Мир боевых искусств — это яма

Глава 158

Si Kou Xunxiang continued to frown as he stared at the bead, seemingly deep in thought, ignoring the people behind him.

Seeing that Sikou Huanxiang didn't turn around, Xun Le grew bolder. He swaggered in, approaching his brother step by step. When he saw the Empress on the bed, he frowned slightly: "When did she return?... Outrageous! I worried about her for so long, and she went to sleep as soon as she got back, making me wait for her?!"

Si Kou Xunxiang suddenly took the bead from the Empress's hand, gently pried open her mouth, and put the bead into her mouth.

Xun Le poked her head out, puzzled: "What's wrong with her, brother? Is she sick?"

Si Kou Xunxiang suddenly turned around, took Xun Le's hand and placed it in the Empress's hand: "Le'er, don't let go, I need to go and get back the remaining amber beads... You must remember not to let go, so that this life force will leave her."

"Brother, why are you crying? What's wrong with her?" Xun Le looked at the Empress's sleeping face, his eyes filled with deep anxiety.

"Le'er, don't ask. I'll tell you when I get back. You must wait for me to come back. Don't let go... If you let go... she will never come back." Si Kou Xun Xiang held Xun Le's hand tightly in the Empress's hand.

Xun Le trembled slightly and tightly gripped the Empress's hand in return: "Brother... come back soon."

Sikou Xunxiang nodded slightly. He looked around the hall and murmured, "Jin'er, don't go... stay here and don't move. Wait for your brother to come back." As he spoke, he walked towards the door.

As if possessed, Zi Jin followed Si Kou Huan Xiang step by step. Seeing Si Kou Huan Xiang close the door and leave, Zi Jin quickened her pace to catch up, only to be forcefully pulled back. Zi Jin fell to the ground, looking behind her in confusion; no one was there. She stood up again and walked towards the door, only to find that someone seemed to be pulling her from behind, and she couldn't break free no matter what she did.

After repeating this several times, Zi Jin dejectedly walked back to the bedside, only to find Xun Le covered in sweat, his hands trembling violently as he held the Empress's. He stared blankly at the Empress, his face pale. After a long while, he tightly gripped the Empress's hand with one hand, and slowly checked her breath with the other, frozen in place.

Zi Jin casually sat down next to Xun Le, looking at his face, which was even more beautiful than a little girl's: "Don't try anymore, you're already dead, trying won't bring you back to life... But you weren't bad when you were little, you were quite well-behaved... Hmm?... Why are you crying? Isn't she the person you hate the most?"

Xun Le sat blankly on the edge of the bed, large tears silently sliding down her cheeks.

Zi Jin tilted her head, a gloating smile playing on her lips: "Don't tell me, of all the looks I've seen you have, you look best when you cry? Didn't you hate her to death? Why are you crying? I never knew you could cry."

Xun Le's eyes were red and swollen from crying, but his hand remained clenched around the Empress's hand. He dragged her clothes with one hand, shouting, "Get up! Get up! I won't let you die! I hate you so much! How could you die?! How could you die like this, without any explanation?! Get up, you wicked prince! You're so wicked! So wicked! Who could possibly kill you?! Who could possibly kill you?! You never knew who was good and who was bad! I treated you so well! You haven't even repaid me! How could you die?! How could you die?! I won't let you die! I won't let you die! Get up, get up! Get up!" Xun Le dragged the Empress's body like a madman.

Zi Jin sat to the side, lamenting the Empress's pitiful state: "Even in death, you won't die peacefully! It seems being a pervert is something cultivated from childhood. You're a dead person, and he's just a little kid, doesn't he know fear? Aren't children supposed to be afraid of dead people?"

After struggling for a while, Xun Le's strength waned. He sat down weakly, panting heavily, his hands gripping the Empress's hands tightly: "Don't die! Didn't you say you'd protect me for life?... Brother and I have always been so good to you, so incredibly good, why can't you see that? Why can't you see that? Whatever you want, brother has given you, everything, and you're still not satisfied? Do you want to torture brother with your death?... What's so good about him? Not only is he ugly, but he's always throwing tantrums at you, never giving you a kind look. When you look at him, you're always so submissive, not at all like an Empress. But even after all that he treats you, you still cling to him and like him." He… “...Your brother and I have been so good to you, we’ve given you everything, the entire Sikou family, aren’t you satisfied? Father has been made sick by us, aren’t you satisfied? Why do you want to die? Why do you want to die? What else are you not satisfied with? Tell me! Tell me! What else are you not satisfied with? Your brother and I will do it, we’ll do it your way, please don’t die, okay? Please don’t die, okay? Le’er begs you, Le’er will never lose her temper with you again, okay? I won’t lose my temper with you again, okay? Please don’t die, please, please don’t die… please… don’t die… okay? … okay? …”

The smile froze on her face as Zi Jin stared blankly at Xun Le. He looked utterly pitiful, his eyes swollen shut, barely open, crying and talking incessantly, his hands gripping the Empress's hands tightly. Gradually, his crying convulsed, and he began to sob softly, repeatedly pleading, "Don't die, please, don't die."

Seeing him like this, even the most hard-hearted person would find it hard to harden their heart. Zi Jin felt an emptiness in her heart, an indescribable feeling. The truth she had always believed shouldn't be like this, it shouldn't be like this. Si Kou Xun Le clearly hated the Empress to death, so how could he cry so pitifully? If it was an act, he was alone now, there was no need to act in front of a dead person. Si Kou Xun Le was always proud and arrogant and never showed weakness.

How heartbroken must someone be to force such a proud and self-centered person to bow their head and beg?

"Le'er, go and stand guard outside the door." While Zi Jin was lost in thought, Si Kou Xun Xiang had already stood by the Empress's bedside.

"Brother...who...hurt her?" Xun Le's voice was hoarse from crying, and she could no longer speak coherently.

"Le'er, don't ask so many questions. Go and guard the door. No one can come in," Si Kou Xunxiang said, his brows furrowed and the Empress's complexion somewhat dull.

"Brother, you can save her... right?... You can bring her back to life, right?... Le'er, go and watch over her, go and watch over her now." Xun Le quickly got up, hurried out the door, and locked the door tightly behind her.

Sikou Xunxiang took out several amber beads from his bosom and arranged them in an orderly fashion next to the wick of a strange, gilded lamp.

Zi Jin leaned closer to take a look and discovered that each piece of amber contained all sorts of insects, which looked lifelike inside the amber and did not appear to be dead at all.

Si Kou Xunxiang placed the lamp by the Empress's bedside, then gently pinched her chin and took out the amber bead he had previously placed in her mouth, carefully arranging it inside the lamp wick.

Zi Jin carefully observed the strangely arranged amber beads. The beads, soaked in a thin layer of lamp oil, appeared even more translucent, but the arrangement always gave the impression of a large gap, yet she couldn't tell what was missing.

Si Kou Xunxiang stroked the Empress's face, his gentle eyes overflowing with tenderness, and coaxed her softly, "Jin'er, you've lost a pearl, you're going to suffer a bit... Don't think too much, brother will bring you back."

Zi Jin watched Si Kou Xun Xiang's every move with great curiosity. Could he really have a magic that could bring the dead back to life?

As soon as Sikou Xunxiang lit the oil lamp, Zi Jin felt a warm breeze wash over her. This gentle, spring-like warmth made Zi Jin feel weak and drowsy. Gradually, she slumped weakly against the bedside, trying to keep her eyes open. But waves of sleepiness washed over her, making her mind gradually blurry; all she wanted was to sleep.

The surroundings suddenly turned cold. Zi Jin, who was still awake, groggily opened her eyes and saw that the oil lamp above her was gradually dimming, its oil running out.

Si Kou Xunxiang seemed equally anxious about the flickering light. He quickly rolled up his sleeve and lightly scratched the lamp with his fingernail. Bright red blood flowed down his wrist into the lamp, and gradually, the lamp blazed brightly again.

The overwhelming drowsiness washed over her again, and Zi Jin closed her eyes and fell asleep once more. Even so, the image of Si Kou Xun Xiang nourishing the lamp with his blood was deeply etched into Zi Jin's mind.

She didn't know how much time had passed when Zi Jin was awakened by a gust of cold wind. She groggily opened her eyes and saw someone jump in through the window. The person went straight to where she was, and as they got closer, Zi Jin realized that the person was—Jun Ying.

Jun Ying stood by the bed, staring blankly at the Empress's sleeping face. He didn't even dare to reach out and touch the person in front of him: "Your Majesty... Your Majesty..." He called out to the person on the dragon bed in an extremely soft voice.

Zi Jin watched Jun Ying's every move with curiosity. The inexplicable drowsiness came and went quickly, and she didn't know how long she had been asleep.

"Your Majesty...it's in complete chaos outside...won't you wake up?...Your Majesty...you've been asleep for three days...isn't that enough?" Jun Ying reached out but stopped mid-air, still standing respectfully by the bedside. "Your Majesty...His Highness has done his best...he has exhausted all his energy...he has done his best..."

Zi Jin frowned, trying to figure out the meaning behind Jun Ying's words. He was standing here so swaggeringly, where was Si Kou Xun Xiang? Three days... Had she slept for that long?

Jun Ying stood there with his eyes closed for a long time, then suddenly opened them and, without warning, reached out and picked up the Empress from the bed. Zi Jin felt the earth shake and her head spin. Before she could recover, Jun Ying's series of movements knocked over the strange lamp that had been burning on the dragon bed.

"Ah!" Zi Jin felt a sharp pain rush through her heart, screamed, and fell to the ground. As the pain intensified, she rolled on the ground screaming.

Si Kou Huanxiang, who had been unconscious under the bed, suddenly woke up. He struggled to support himself and reached out to grab Jun Ying's leg: "Shadow Guard... My lord... Don't move her... Don't move... That lamp... She's in pain... She's in so much pain..."

Jun Ying, who was holding the Empress, stopped and looked down at Si Kou Xun Xiang, whose face was pale, with a blank expression: "Your Majesty has done your best. Rest assured, Your Highness, Jun Ying will find someone to save His Majesty."

“The lamp… quick… it’s going out… she’s in so much pain…” Si Kou Huanxiang’s voice was extremely weak, each word sounding so powerless.

Jun Ying turned around, but the strange light had already gone out. He didn't look at Si Kou Huanxiang again, and strode towards the window, disappearing almost instantly outside.

After the lamp went out, Zi Jin's pain gradually subsided, and her body grew colder and colder. She looked up at Si Kou Xun Xiang, who stood frozen, staring at the extinguished lamp on the dragon bed. His peerless face was completely devoid of color, even his lips were pale. Before she went to sleep, he had a head of floor-length black hair, but now it was snow-white, making him look as if he were already dead.

Sikou Xunxiang seemed to awaken suddenly, struggling to crawl towards the dragon bed, inching his way up. He was panting heavily, utterly powerless, and fell countless times before finally reaching the edge of the bed. He braced himself, trying to straighten the lamp, but saw no light from its wick. The lamp oil spilled on the bed was like clusters of poppy-red blood. The amber beads, stained crimson with blood, were scattered across the bed…

The flickering oil lamp seemed to have drained all of Sikou Huanxiang's life force; his eyes, once overflowing with sorrow, fell silent almost instantly. He turned his face frantically, searching everywhere: "Jin'er... Jin'er... Jin'er..."

Tears streamed down her face, and Zi Jin's body grew colder and colder. Without thinking, she endured the waves of cold and walked towards Si Kou Xunxiang, reaching out but unable to touch him, as if an invisible wall separated them. Zi Jin lunged at him like a madwoman, only to be blocked by a beam of light.

So close yet so far...