In the end, the blood dripping from his black shirt congealed into a puddle on the ground, and he was overwhelmed by inexplicable emotions, unable to breathe.
Han Tao stopped writing with his fingers when demonic patterns appeared on his forehead. He placed one hand on the surface of the Three Lives Stone and leaned half of his body against the stone.
His eyes lowered slightly, concealing the expression in them, but the decadence and despair he exuded were like surging waves, gradually impacting Fu Mingxu's newfound spirit.
Only now did Fu Mingxu fully awaken from his dreamlike state. The light emanating from the Heaven and Earth Mystic Mirror in his hand flickered, and although the two were clearly standing opposite each other, it was as if they were separated by completely different times and spaces, with no interaction whatsoever.
What exactly happened?
Fu Mingxu was filled with doubt and fell into deep thought as he looked at the demonic mark on Han Tao's forehead.
Could this be his inner demon? He was indeed afraid that Han Tao would fall into demonic possession, but why was this worry reflected on the Three Lives Stone?
He recalled what Han Tao had done earlier when the demonic markings appeared, and felt that something was amiss. He was sure he had overlooked something, but he couldn't figure it out no matter how hard he tried.
The Three Lives Stone has existed for a long time. Legend has it that if lovers love each other, they can carve each other's names on it, and the stones will not disappear. Even if the two enter reincarnation, they can meet in the next two lifetimes. The stones will disappear when the two no longer have feelings for each other.
The stone in front of him should be the original Three Lives Stone, and also the largest. The dark yellow Three Lives Stone has irregular edges, with obvious signs of broken pieces. If I'm not mistaken, the piece in Meng Shui's hand should have broken off from here, as should the others scattered around.
But where did this Three Lives Stone originally come from, and does it have any effect other than marriage? Perhaps only the Heavenly Dao here knows.
Fu Mingxu took a step forward, wanting to see the Three Lives Stone more clearly, as well as the appearance of Han Tao within his inner demons.
He had only taken half a step when Han Tao, who had been keeping his head down and silent, suddenly raised his head, his golden eyes, filled with demonic energy, staring straight at him as if he could see his presence.
"Can you see me?" Fu Mingxu stopped in his tracks and called out instinctively, "Han Tao."
Upon hearing this, Han Tao on the other side visibly trembled, stood up abruptly, and almost staggered as he ran towards him.
The two were only about ten steps apart. Fu Mingxu was stunned. He had never heard of a demon being able to see its true form.
Just as the other party impatiently reached out to him, a dragon's roar seemed to come from an extremely distant place, instantly shattering the barrier that trapped him.
Time stopped at that moment, and the surrounding space and time froze. Han Taosheng, whose forehead had a demonic mark, stopped his hand, which was only half a step away from him, and slowly lowered it only after Fu Mingxu disappeared from the spot.
Time moved forward again, and a drop of blood and tears fell to the ground, silently disappearing into the earth, unknown to anyone.
...
Fu Mingxu was still in a daze when he saw Han Tao standing in front of him. He first looked at the other's forehead, and after confirming that there were no demonic marks, he looked at his eyes again.
Those golden eyes held no impurities other than intense emotions; they were utterly pure.
Fortunately, Han Tao did not fall into demonic possession.
Fu Mingxu breathed a heavy sigh of relief. He saw his blurry reflection still on the surface of the Three Lives Stone. After a deep sigh, he said, "You scared me to death. I saw you become possessed by a demon in my inner demon."
The Heaven and Earth Mirror remained as calm as ever, and the Three Lives Stone stood quietly amidst the vines, its fate unseen.
"Inner demons?" Han Tao frowned. As he moved, the vines on the ground seemed to consciously avoid him. "What inner demons?"
Fu Mingxu watched in surprise as the surrounding vines quickly cleared a large space, leaving only the Three Lives Stone standing in the middle.
Since he had brought it up himself, he didn't intend to hide it. He simply omitted the part about Han Tao writing his name on the Three Lives Stone while trapped in his inner demons, and instead focused on explaining in detail how he had fallen into demonic possession.
After all, he couldn't figure out why he could see that strange scene of writing names on that book, and he felt that saying it would make him seem particularly narcissistic.
With each sentence he spoke, Han Tao's expression grew more serious. Finally, when Fu Mingxu finished speaking, he frowned and asked, "Is there anything else?"
Fu Mingxu's heart skipped a beat at the question, and he almost bit his tongue. He shook his head and said, "No."
Finally, he made sure to add, "Thank you for waking me from my inner demons."
Although I don't know why he was able to see his inner demons under the influence of the Three Lives Stone, I can't think of any other explanation.
Perhaps this is because the Mirror of Heaven and Earth is connected to one's mind and spirit, and the surging heavenly secrets are trying to remind one of something.
After all, from the very beginning, preventing Han Tao from falling into demonic possession was the very reason he was able to be reborn.
"I will not fall into demonic possession." After a long silence, Han Tao slowly spoke. He glanced at the Three Lives Stone, which was now motionless, and suppressed the chaos in his emotions. "As long as you are here, I will not fall into demonic possession."
Fu Mingxu felt a little embarrassed when he heard this. Nowadays, he no longer simply thought that the other party was talking about the pills he had refined, as he used to do when he heard such words.
He rubbed his toes on the ground, gave a soft "hmm," and didn't respond much, but still brought up the matter of the array's core: "In your opinion, is this Three Lives Stone the core of the array?"
Han Tao walked to his side, followed his gaze to the Three Lives Stone beside him, and asked in a cryptic tone, "Besides the inner demon, do you see anything else?"
His hands, which were hanging in his sleeves, slowly tightened, and his thin lips slowly pursed as his eyebrows drooped slightly.
The vines, which had already been retreating, seemed to sense something terrifying and instantly withdrew, leaving only two people and a stone in the huge cave.
Fu Mingxu didn't see the change in his expression, and frowned as he thought about it carefully.
"Oh, there are others." As his brow relaxed, he slowly recalled, a smile appearing on his lips. "I think I dreamt about my mother!"
The clenched fist suddenly loosened, and Han Tao finally stopped asking about what happened during the time his soul left his body. Instead, he talked to him about the core of the formation.
“This Three Lives Stone is indeed the array eye of the first half of the Mermaid Domain. The front is Yang and the back is Yin, which conforms to the law of the Array of Life and Death.” Han Tao turned his head, the end of his golden hair ribbon hanging down to his shoulder. “The Array of Life and Death is not a killing array, because it conforms to the way of heaven and earth and can ensure the complete operation of a domain.”
Fu Mingxu nodded to indicate that he understood, and asked directly, "Then what should we do?"
Surely we won't destroy the array's core? This is the Three Lives Stone, certified by the Heavenly Dao of the Cangling Continent, not some wild stone.
Han Tao concealed the emotion in his eyes and answered in the most ordinary tone possible: "Since it is the Three Lives Stone, we just need to use it in the most common way."
He turned his head and lowered his eyes, his tall figure enveloping him without him even realizing it.
"How do you use it?" Fu Mingxu repeated it in confusion at first, then quickly understood.
That's where their names were engraved.
Before the Three Lives Stone, the two were still wearing their wedding attire, looking just like newlyweds who couldn't wait to carve their names and pledge their eternal love.
An unspoken silence fell between the two, and an ambiguous atmosphere slowly filled the surrounding space.
"Don't worry, I estimate that all we need to do is write each other's names on the map. Even if the names disappear immediately, it won't affect breaking the array's core." Han Tao explained slowly when he saw him looking at him, as if he knew what he was thinking and was trying to soothe his uneasy mind. "This is just a method to break the array."
Fu Mingxu stared at him intently, seeing that his expression was calm and genuine, a bitter feeling welled up in his heart, a feeling that was slowly eroding his emotions.
As if understanding what the two were saying, the stone surface, which had been calm and still just moments before, began to emit a faint red light. The entire stone surface was no longer blurry, and it reflected the figures of the two people as clearly as a mirror.
They stood side by side in their wedding attire, their wide sleeves overlapping and intertwining, as if they were holding hands.
Fu Mingxu suddenly remembered Han Tao, whom he had seen in his inner demons, with demonic markings on his forehead, and the desolate and lifeless look in those golden eyes filled with demonic energy.
He turned to the side, his eyes like shattered stars, tilting his head slightly to meet those golden eyes, his voice soft: "What if our names hadn't disappeared?"
In the mirror of the Three Lives Stone, a tall figure leaned forward, and every word Fu Mingxu said entered Han Tao's ears without missing a single one.
The blood rushed through his body the moment he finished speaking, the pretense in his golden eyes crumbled, and the composed expression on his face collapsed.
Han Tao's eyelashes drooped slightly, overflowing with deep affection, his voice low and husky: "Can I hope for that?"
Even though the two had the closest relationship, he was never sure of Fu Mingxu's feelings.
Fu Mingxu's emotions and thoughts had never been so clear. Perhaps it was the influence of the power of the Three Lives Stone's rules of heaven and earth that made him face his feelings for Han Tao for the first time.
On the shores of the East China Sea, before the Stone of Three Lives, love will peel away from all the disguises and reveal its original essence.
A familiar yet intense heat wafted over him, but Fu Mingxu didn't answer him directly. Instead, he chuckled and said, "We can give it a try."
As soon as he finished speaking, Han Tao could no longer bear it and grabbed his hand. Only he knew how much pain he had endured to say those words.
Fu Mingxu followed him to the Three Lives Stone, not forgetting to tease him, "How do you write it? Do you carve it with a knife?"
He also pulled a pen from his storage bag, raised an eyebrow at him, and asked, "Want this?"
As soon as he finished speaking, his hand, which had been held, was forced to rise, and a sharp pain shot through his fingertip. By the time he realized what was happening, a round drop of blood had already appeared.
"Use our blood." Han Tao bit his finger quickly, almost as if afraid he would regret it.
The sweet aroma of dragon blood immediately filled the air, and the feeling of not having tasted it for so long made him take a deep breath. Seeing the speed at which the dragon blood oozed from his fingertips, Fu Mingxu knew that he had already gone easy on him.
There was no need for coyness at this point. Without waiting for Han Tao's reaction, he withdrew his hand and wrote his name directly on the stone surface, glancing at him sideways as if in provocation.
The pupils, a blend of black and blue, were incredibly lifelike, captivating at a single glance.
With what he sought right before his eyes, how could Han Tao easily give it up? He pursed his lips tightly, his other hand quietly clenched into a fist, his fingers, oozing dragon blood, trembling slightly.
Fu Mingxu looked at the fine beads of sweat on his forehead, and while reaching towards the stone surface, he said, "Since you're unwilling, I'll just erase my name."
After saying that, he made a gesture as if to wipe it off.
"I do!" Han Tao, no longer caring about the surging emotions in his heart, grabbed Fu Mingxu's mischievous hand and quickly wrote his name with his fingertips.
The two names were written side by side. After doing all this, he stared intently at the surface of the Three Lives Stone, his heart hanging high, ready to shatter into pieces if it fell.
Fu Mingxu also felt an indescribable tension. The two held hands tightly, as if they were afraid of something, or as if they were looking forward to something.
Until the bright red characters on the stone surface remained embedded and motionless as if they were alive, then the red light shone brightly, and when the light dissipated, the two people's names were gilded with a layer of gold.
This has been acknowledged by the laws of Heaven.
Fu Mingxu suddenly felt a sense of relief, and an unprecedented joy filled his chest.
As he stared at the two names, he caught a glimpse out of the corner of his eye that the tip of Han Tao's lower eyelashes looked like a glistening teardrop.
Before he could even take a closer look, his hand was pulled, and as he turned around, his entire back was pressed against the mirror surface of the Three Lives Stone.
A cool touch immediately followed, along with a scorching heat and dark, turbulent golden eyes.
"Not here!" Fu Mingxu knew all too well what that look meant, and hurriedly shouted, "Don't be impulsive."
In his desperation, he even suggested, "If all else fails, you should take a calming and desire-free pill first."
He felt the large, protruding breasts on his lower abdomen and realized that the dosage of this "Heart-Clearing and Desire-Severing Pill" should start at nine pills.
"I'm very happy." Han Tao ignored his advice and instead lowered her head to touch his forehead, her magnetic voice tender and affectionate, "I love you, from the past to the present and into the future."
What he didn't say was that the three lifetimes were too uncertain; he only wanted to prolong this life and have him in endless time.
The two locked eyes, and Fu Mingxu stared blankly at the other, as if trying to see a trace of a lie in his eyes.
But no, when Han Tao clearly and openly revealed all her feelings to him, his eyes only saw sincerity and love.
This wasn't the first time Han Tao had expressed her love for him, yet it still made him feel intensely loved.
Time seemed to have passed for a long time, yet it also felt like only two breaths had gone by.
Fu Mingxu closed his eyes and then opened them again, a smile playing on his lips, like a lotus about to bloom.
Then, for the first time, he took the initiative to kiss Han Tao's lips.
The Three Lives Stone remained silent, but Han Tao had already willingly been bewitched by that smile.
This time, he let himself hold those two sweet lips in his mouth.
An isolation array enveloped the area with the dragon's breath, while red wedding robes undulated and overlapped, and a scorching aura filled the entire space.