Tome of Troubled Times
Chapter 845: Why Cant I Covet You Too

Chapter 845: Why Can't I Covet You Too

Whether Ye Jiuyou was willing to trust him or not, she gave no clear answer. However, the cold smile that had been lingering on her lips finally faded.

Zhao Changhe, still with his soul shackled, was suffering. His body remained invaded by darkness and death qi, his face pale, lips bloodless. He endured in silence.

Ye Jiuyou raised a hand and drew him toward her. She quietly studied the pain etched on his face for a long time, but said nothing.

In the end, she simply pressed her palm against him, feeling the changes in the death qi now mingled with his flesh.

Of course, Zhao Changhe had not been boasting. He had once seriously studied the nature of death qi and the transformation between life and death aided by the Heavenly Tome’s page of life. He truly did understand it intimately, though he had never used it himself. At first, he had studied it merely to prepare for future encounters with Ye Jiuyou, to ensure he would not be instantly slain by her powers.

Later, from cultivating the Eternal Blood Demon Body, to gaining an understanding of the Vermillion Bird’s essence of life and death through dual cultivation with Huangfu Qing, and even to assisting Piaomiao in creating her body, he had grown exceedingly adept when it came to the law of life.

His comprehension of the concept of “profound control” alone was already more than enough to be called masterful. Now, as Ye Jiuyou’s death qi invaded his body, his flesh instinctively resisted, creating a counterforce. The result was life and death rotating around each other in a balanced conflict, a sensation very close to Taiji itself.

The aura Ye Jiuyou injected also carried traces of the power of shadow and darkness. Although she no longer wielded it consciously, her instincts could not help but draw upon it.

At this moment, Ye Jiuyou realized something strange. The shadow power within Zhao Changhe did not resist his will. Instead, it merged seamlessly with him, quietly being absorbed while her influence was dissolved. There was no conflict at all.

There was only one reason for this, and that was his affinity with the essence of the night sky.

The night sky itself contained no light. Light came later from the stars. Without stars, there was only endless, primordial darkness. Compared to his understanding of life and death, Zhao Changhe actually used the concept of darkness even more frequently, especially when using River of Stars to strike silently. At times, that stealthy, soundless darkness rivaled even Dark Oblivion’s mastery.

A strand of darkness merging into night, what meaning could that possibly hold? It was like vanishing into the sea.

Yet the nature of Zhao Changhe’s darkness was subtly different from Ye Jiuyou’s.

His was not the dead, barren darkness of Ye Wuming, but a darkness harboring hidden life, life that was slowly blooming within the void.

Ye Jiuyou stood quietly, absorbing this realization.

Zhao Changhe, too, felt a flicker of understanding stir in his heart.

From this perspective, Ye Jiuyou truly was the predecessor—the earlier, purer form... When chaos gave birth to light, when stars bloomed in the night, when life grew within death... that was the second stage.

The two were not enemies but stages of evolution.

Ye Jiuyou was more likely the elder sister, not some wicked fragment torn from Ye Wuming. She was not a derivative. She was the origin.

Ye Jiuyou withdrew her hand, gazing at the wisp of black qi swirling in her palm. Though she had not immediately reclaimed dominion over darkness, the experience had been profoundly enlightening.

If she followed this path, then when she once again wielded darkness one day, it would no longer be the same darkness from before. Throughout the process, she had continuously injected streams of death qi and darkness into Zhao Changhe’s body. Sweat poured from him like rain and his breathing grew ragged, yet not once did he utter a word of complaint. By the time Ye Jiuyou withdrew her power, Zhao Changhe’s face was as pale as a corpse, utterly bloodless.

Ye Jiuyou watched him for a moment, then said unexpectedly, “Actually, you look better when you’re paler like this.”

Zhao Changhe forced a strained smile and croaked, “Is this your way of confessing a fondness for corpses?”

Ye Jiuyou: “...”

Zhao Changhe blinked, “Or maybe you think I should match you and that the both of us pale and ghostlike would be better suited for each other?”

This was different from the rare teasing before. This time, Zhao Changhe’s words carried a rare, deliberate flirtation. Ye Jiuyou gave him a sidelong glance and said, “You’re the one who volunteered to be my experiment, and now you want to play the wounded hero, throwing childish barbs because you’re embarrassed?”

Zhao Changhe said, “Who’s being childish? You didn’t need to keep injecting death qi into me. You were just deliberately torturing me... and enjoying it.”

Ye Jiuyou replied blandly, “When someone foolishly places their life in another’s hands, is it so strange to remind them of the consequences? I didn’t kill you. I didn’t enslave you. Is a little suffering so unacceptable?”

Zhao Changhe said, “I owed you a debt. Now, that debt is repaid. My conscience is clear, and that’s enough for me. If you keep torturing me, though... it’ll be you who owes me. And if I strike back with petty words, what’s so strange about that?”

Ye Jiuyou smiled faintly and said, “Right now, I’m weaker than before. If you rallied your women and attacked me, I’d have reason to worry. But you didn’t. Instead, you came to me and made me stronger. When the time comes that I can stand equal to Ye Wuming herself, what could you possibly do then to take revenge?”

Zhao Changhe did not answer. Instead, he asked, “Then tell me, if you knew all along that I was helping you... why did you still insist on tormenting me?”

Ye Jiuyou said coolly, “I have always been the villain. Killing and torment are second nature to me. Is it so strange?”

Zhao Changhe said, “Or perhaps it was a way to provoke me and push me away, an attempt to force a distance between us?”

It was a brazenly self-important statement, and yet Ye Jiuyou did not sneer or mock him. She fell silent.

Because it was true, at least somewhat.

She had tortured him on purpose, indeed, but not to drive him away. Rather, it was because she herself could not understand why he would help her at all.

By all rights, they were supposed to be enemies, whether it was in concept, in allegiance, or in action. Even now, the forces behind Guanlong still worked against the Great Han Empire. They had not reached the kind of trust that could justify such reckless aid.

She had deliberately tormented him, trying to see what he was truly thinking, yet she had seen nothing. Instead, she had only given him more reasons for his shameless self-confidence...

After a long silence, Ye Jiuyou finally said, “You didn’t have to go this far. Disturbing the dead? Offending the world? Heaven’s wrath? What does any of that have to do with you? If anything, I’m still your enemy. It’s only because of Ye Wuming that we are cooperating temporarily. If, during this cooperation, I sowed more enmity, if I became the object of universal loathing, wouldn’t it make it even easier for you to turn on me later? Why are you stopping me? Why sacrifice yourself like this?”

“Why won’t you believe the simplest reason?”

“And what’s that supposed to be? It can’t possibly be that you actually care about me.”

“Why not?”

Ye Jiuyou’s eyes widened slightly, staring at him in stunned silence.

“I told you long ago that our opposition stemmed from the things you were born to represent. Now that you are struggling to free yourself from that definition, why still remain enemies?”

Ye Jiuyou said stiffly, “But I haven’t given up darkness or oblivion. I’m still trying to master them.”

“As tools, what of it? Hey, did you all forget? My foundation is demonic arts, too. I cultivate the Vicious Blood Art, remember? Since when did I become some uptight knight who recoils at anything evil? If I really cared about that, shouldn’t I have slit my own throat a long time ago?”

Ye Jiuyou was stunned.

Somehow, it was true. People had forgotten. The Four Idols Cult itself had once been called a demonic cult. But Zhao Changhe now carried himself with such righteousness, such dignity, that everyone had simply forgotten his roots. This held doubly true now, after Piaomiao’s full endorsement.

“A means is just a means. No matter how unsightly, when necessary, certain means must be used. I objected to you using the Four Idols as corpse puppets not because I’m some weepy idealist preaching about letting the dead rest. If the situation truly demanded it, I might very well be the first to desecrate the dead myself. But right now, the situation does not demand it. The Four Idols are our own people, our foundation. As long as you trust us, there’s no need to provoke public outrage by resorting to such acts.”

Ye Jiuyou finally could not hold back, “Just what are you after?”

“If you want a dignified answer, then I’m doing this because you could have unleashed chaos in the capital, you could have gone for Qing’er and the others, but you didn’t. You said you wanted to preserve our cooperation. Qing’er thought maybe it was just a show, but whether it was genuine or not, the fact remains that you made concessions for the sake of working together. And if you made an effort, then I should too. That way, there won’t be any debts between us.”

“That’s the dignified explanation? Does that mean that there’s a less dignified one?”

“Well, the less dignified explanation is simple. It’s that... I want you. Do you believe that?”

Ye Jiuyou’s half-closed eyes widened into full circles.

Zhao Changhe said bluntly, “You already know that I even coveted Ye Wuming. It didn’t take long for me to covet Piaomiao, either. I’ve always been a man of intense desires. Why would you be an exception? Back then, we were enemies, so there was no way to even entertain the thought. Now, with that barrier gone, why can’t I covet you too?”

Ye Jiuyou had never, across the ages, imagined anyone would say such things to her. She was utterly dazed.

In the ancient era, there might have been those who harbored thoughts toward Ye Wuming, but none, not a single soul, had ever entertained such notions toward Ye Jiuyou. That endless desolation and deathly stillness of hers... How could it ever inspire desire in another?

Across the infinite span of years, this was undoubtedly the first and only person who had openly declared he intended to pursue her.

Yet Zhao Changhe spoke as if it were the most natural thing in the world. “I’ve seen you bathing, kissed your hand, touched your... and we even share a marriage contract. However flimsy it might seem, it’s a marriage contract nonetheless. Such is karma. Even if you were an ordinary woman, a man’s heart would already regard you differently just from such entanglements. However, your beauty surpasses the mortal realm itself. I am a normal man, not some eunuch burdened by shame or pretense. Every time I look at you, my heart stirs. There’s no sense in lying to myself about it.”

Ye Jiuyou stared at him in silence, her thoughts still adrift.

In truth, she, too, had viewed Zhao Changhe differently all along. And was that not precisely because of these prior entanglements? What woman could ever truly disregard such things?

Making it so that Azure Dragon did not cause chaos was said to be to preserve their alliance, but was the deeper reason not that she instinctively wished not to mar her relationship with him too grievously? Had it been any other ally, would Ye Jiuyou have cared?

Why else would they both labor so desperately to deny a mere “affair”? If there were no guilty conscience, why bother at all? At the time, he felt indebted and thus held back. Now, feeling his debts repaid, he spoke boldly, or perhaps he had glimpsed some deeper thread of karma that freed him from restraint?

Wait... what was it he just said?

My beauty surpasses the mortal realm?

Is it because I resemble Ye Wuming?

Suddenly, Zhao Changhe asked lightly, “Do you know when I first truly felt moved?”

Ye Jiuyou, forcing herself into a tone of mocking coldness, replied, “A beast in heat could be stirred at any time. Who could possibly predict it?”

Zhao Changhe took no offense. He simply said, “It was when I saw you alone, standing amidst the desolation, staring into a mirror.”

Ye Jiuyou’s heart stirred faintly.

Zhao Changhe continued, “At that moment, you spoke to your reflection, commanding Azure Dragon to withdraw from the capital to Kunlun. I do not know what you felt then. I only know that, looking at you, I had an overwhelming urge to embrace you.”

So... it has nothing to do with Ye Wuming.

Ye Jiuyou fell silent for a moment, then said coolly, “I, however, feel that King Zhao, after gaining Piaomiao, has grown arrogant. You think I must endure such disrespect without it breaking our alliance?”

Zhao Changhe chuckled softly, offering no rebuttal. He simply said, “I have spoken my heart. Whether you believe it or not is up to you. As long as you don’t end our collaboration over a few careless words, then we are still allies.”

Zhao Changhe today was no longer the naive youth he was back when he had first set foot into this world. He had already confirmed multiple times: If you’ve gone that far and she hasn’t flown into a rage demanding you leave... then half the battle is already won. As for why he was so bold this time? The reasons were much the same as before.

She had not merely refused to bathe after he glimpsed her washing. She had refused precisely to avoid giving him another chance to “accidentally” intrude. But had she truly been so offended, so scornful, would she not have cut ties immediately? Refusing to bathe was as good as saying: You may continue to chase after my hidden self. The thousands upon thousands of knots in her heart were already clear.

Of course, he could not press too hard. Otherwise, she truly would fly into a rage. So before Ye Jiuyou could lash out, Zhao Changhe swiftly shifted the topic. “I have another matter of collaboration to propose. Would you hear me out?”

Ye Jiuyou suppressed her tumultuous emotions, speaking with cool detachment, “What is it?”

Zhao Changhe said, “You control Guanlong to prevent us from establishing a unified order. It is the manifestation of your will to sow chaos but also a way of suppressing the qi veins connecting Piaomiao and me, is it not?”

“Indeed. I am just that evil, what will you do about it?”

Zhao Changhe sighed softly. “If I can help you devise a path to transcend the chaos dictated by the heavens’ design, would you be willing to have Guanlong surrender to the Great Han Empire? Will you take that deal?”

Ye Jiuyou’s heart skipped a beat. “And how would you propose to devise such a path?”

“Do you know why Ye Wuming seeks aid from other worlds?”

“It’s because those from beyond are not bound by Heavenly Dao.”

“It’s not just that. It’s because we know that this world alone is too small. Its scale is too narrow.” Zhao Changhe smiled and continued, “The myriad realms stretch across the cosmos; countless lives teem across boundless space. To cause a mere ripple of chaos within this single land is laughable... It’s like pissing on the ground and claiming you’ve polluted the world.”

Ye Jiuyou said coolly, “Did you think I was ignorant of that? Without taking a step, how does one cross a thousand li? Even the smallest realm holds meaning. I roil the rivers and mountains while never forsaking dreams of altering stars and constellations. Do you think I study the Four Idols simply to crudely imitate Ye Wuming?”

Zhao Changhe laughed. “I know you understand, but it’s still too small. No matter how fierce your upheaval, even if you crack the land and shatter the heavens, it would still be but a repetition of the previous era’s failure. You would still remain trapped within the script.”

Ye Jiuyou said nothing.

Zhao Changhe continued, “Of course, realizing true chaos transcending the script isn’t something achievable overnight. I myself am still far from that threshold. But if I can offer you a glimpse, something that might genuinely move you, would you grant me a small favor in return?”

Ye Jiuyou’s pale cheeks flushed slightly.

In this context of clearly admitted pursuit, what other “small favor” could he possibly want? A kiss? A touch?

She steadied herself and said coldly, “If it’s something that genuinely moves me, then naturally, you may name your terms.”

Zhao Changhe smiled. “Then it’s settled... When the time comes, you’ll accompany me to stroll through the markets of Chang’an.”

Ye Jiuyou was stunned.

What?