Chapter 247: Return to the Fortress

Lieyin exhaled deeply when they finally rode past the gates of Ashen Fortress. She had been sitting in the back of the wagon for most of the journey with one arm wrapped around Ru Yi’s shoulders, and the other pressed against the wound in her side.

The journey that should have taken a day had stretched painfully because they were forced to stop whenever Ru Yi’s condition worsened.

The shadows had spread across her skin like black veins. They covered part of her neck now, creeping beneath her jaw and disappearing into her hair.

One of her eyes had begun to darken around the edges, and the tips of her fingers occasionally dissolved into wisps of smoke before returning to flesh.

Lieyin had not slept, neither had Kael.

Qingyue was already running toward them when the wagon finally rolled to a stop in front of the Eastern castle.

"Lieyin! You had all of us worried. Were you able to get the weapons?" Qingyue asked all at once.

Yexue followed behind, calling her name. But Qingyue stopped abruptly when she reached the wagon.

The expression on her face changed when she saw Ru Yi in the wagon and Lieyin holding her. She had even more questions than before.

The woman lying against Lieyin barely resembled the Ru Yi who had left Ashen Fortress. Qingyue’s voice dropped. "What happened?"

Lieyin climbed out of the wagon with Ru Yi in her arms. "She was stabbed by Han Zheng. Spiritual energy won’t enter the wound. Every time I try to heal her, the shadows push it back."

Qingyue could see the exhaustion on her sister’s face. "Bring her to my room. There must be something we can do."

Yexue rushed ahead and pushed the doors to the room open. They carefully laid Ru Yi onto the bed. The moment her body touched the mattress, black smoke slipped from beneath her clothes and curled around the sheets.

Yexue recoiled. "Oh heavens..." she thought about how things would go if they ever met with Ru Yi again. But nothing she imagined could’ve prepared her for this.

Lieyin immediately sat beside Ru Yi and took her hand. "She’s still here."

"What?" Qingyue looked at her.

"She’s not fully conscious but she knows we’re here," Lieyin answered. She squeezed Lieyin’s fingers and her eyelids fluttered.

"Ru Yi?"

Her eyes opened, the darkness in them receded. "Lieyin..." The single word was barely audible.

"Yes," Lieyin answered in relief.

Ru Yi’s fingers tightened around hers, then her body suddenly convulsed. The shadows exploded from the wound.

Everyone rushed towards her. "Ru Yi!"

"What’s happpening?" Yexue asked frantically, hating that she didn’t know how to help the woman she loved. If she even had the right to say that.

"I don’t know!" Lieyin was as lost as the other two. "I really don’t know..." she was at the brink of tears from the frustration that was building up inside her.

Kael remained at the door as he watched them. He had barely spoken. His eyes were fixed on Ru Yi, not with fear but recognition.

He knew what was happening. After all, this was the final act of the book.

The original story contained a passage most readers would have skipped—a section that described the Eclipse relic and the danger of allowing its power to consume its host.

The relic in question was in his sleeve. He’d managed to take it after Sheng was killed and his soldiers had either run off or ended up dead.

At that time he hadn’t been sure of what to do with it, but now...

"I know what’s wrong with her," he finally blurted out when he saw that the princesses were already falling into hysteria.

The three of them turned to him. "What do you mean?"

Kael stepped closer. "The shadow is killing her...no," he shook his head. "It’s merging completely with her core energy. To put it simply, the shadow is consuming her from the inside out."

"How is that even possible?" Qingyue asked. "Back in Tiancheng, it was the shadow that healed her after she was stabbed."

Kael sighed. "I think Han Zheng was poisoned. An ordinary blade would not have done this. It disrupted whatever balance existed between her spiritual core and the shadow."

Lieyin’s expression tightened. "How do we stop it? Is there an antidote?"

Kael hesitated. "An antidote is useless at this point, it has already eaten into her energy deep enough. But there is a way—" One he was reluctant to let happen since he was trying to keep the triplets away from Ru Yi by every means possible.

"What’s the way?" they urged him.

Kael gulped. "It requires someone whose spiritual energy is compatible with hers."

They all looked at Lieyin.

"My energy?" Lieyin asked.

Kael nodded. "Yes, your core energy." His voice became more serious. "The shadow is feeding on Ru Yi’s spiritual energy which is why she’s not able to control it. Every time you try to heal her from outside, it treats your energy as an intrusion and consumes it."

Lieyin looked down at Ru Yi. "So what do I do?"

Kael answered, "You can’t heal her from outside—" he paused. "You have to enter the flow of her spiritual core."

Qingyue’s brows drew together. "How?"

Kael looked between them, considering his next words carefully. "Through the deepest spiritual bond possible."

Lieyin understood before her sisters caught on. That would explain the growing red on Kael’s cheeks. He was embarrassed.

Kael continued carefully. "The old cultivation texts describe it as a core-bond. Two people have to completely synchronize their spiritual energy. There can be no barriers between them. No defensive techniques. No separation between their cores."

Lieyin stared at Ru Yi. "And that will remove the shadow?"

"No." Kael shook his head. "It will only give Ru Yi enough stable energy to control it."

Qingyue looked at him. "Will it hurt?"

Kael’s silence answered before his words did. "Possibly."

Lieyin did not hesitate. "I’ll do it." She looked at Ru Yi. "If that is what will keep her alive."

Kael glanced at her. "There is one problem though. You cannot force the bond, she must accept you all on her own."