After Su Qing'er finished speaking, Lin Zhiyue's gaze fell on the copper bracelet on her sleeve, and she asked, “Is that jade bracelet the one on your wrist?”
Su Qing'er's body stiffened visibly for a moment. After a brief silence, she slowly nodded, reaching down to slide a bracelet off her wrist. The body of the bracelet was entirely emerald green, with a texture as delicate as congealed fat. A very faint luster floated on its surface; if one did not look closely, the traces of spiritual energy were almost imperceptible.
When she held it in her palm, her movements carried an subconscious protectiveness, as if she were afraid someone would snatch it away.
Lin Zhiyue did not reach out to take it, but simply asked, “What is inside this bracelet? Have you looked?”
Su Qing'er hesitated, her voice dropping even lower than before. “...There is a very large space inside. It is planted with immortal fruit trees, and there is a small stream. For the past fifteen years... I have relied on it to get to where I am today.”
Lin Zhiyue did not speak immediately after hearing this. She merely extended her hand toward her, palm facing up. “Let me see.”
Su Qing'er's fingertips tightened on the bracelet before loosening, and she finally placed it slowly into Lin Zhiyue's palm.
Lin Zhiyue did not examine it closely. She turned and handed it directly to Qi Yan, who was sitting by the window.
Qi Yan took it, turning it over in his fingers to examine it. After a brief look, he returned it to Lin Zhiyue, his tone as flat as usual. “A pocket dimension, close to a divine artifact in grade. It can expand as its owner's cultivation grows, and it can accommodate living things inside.”
Lin Zhiyue was slightly stunned upon hearing this. Looking down at the jade bracelet in her palm, the first thought that popped into her mind was—how did this thing sound so much like the standard starter kit for a farming-novel female protagonist? A pocket dimension, a spiritual spring, immortal fruit trees, growing with cultivation, and even the setting of holding living things was complete. It gathered all the tropes of those cultivation farming novels she had read in her past life, missing only a small wooden cabin.
She clasped the jade bracelet in her palm, looked up at Su Qing'er, and spoke in a steady tone. “If you continue to wear this jade bracelet, you can expect Su Jinyu to take your life. This bracelet is her relic. You have kept it for fifteen years, and now she has come to claim it.”
Su Qing'er's face turned visibly paler. She opened her mouth as if to argue, but no words came out. In the end, she simply slumped her shoulders, losing even the strength to defend herself.
Lin Zhiyue did not press her further.
She temporarily kept the jade bracelet on her person and told Su Qing'er to go back first. She said the bracelet would remain with her for now, and they would decide how to handle it once the matter of the vengeful spirit was resolved.
Su Qing'er said nothing more. Supported by her maid, she stumbled out of the side parlor. Her figure, draped in a black cloak, walked extremely fast in the night, as if she did not want to stay in this room for another second.
Lin Zhiyue sat by the table for a while, turning the warm jade bracelet over in her hand.
Qi Yan, Cen Xi'er, and the others gradually dispersed. She blew out the candle and lay down in the darkness, casually placing the jade bracelet on the nightstand before turning over to sleep.
Before she could close her eyes, a soft, milky-white light suddenly lit up from the direction of the nightstand. The light was not piercing, but it carried a gentle pulling force, like an invisible hand lightly resting on her shoulder.
Before she could turn her head to see the source of the light, she was pulled in by a gentle yet irresistible force—like stepping into empty air, her body falling for half a breath before landing steadily on the ground.
When she opened her eyes, she was already standing in a completely unfamiliar place.
The soil beneath her feet was moist and loose, and the air carried a crisp scent of vegetation mixed with stream water. Overhead was a greyish-white sky with no sun or clouds, yet a soft, even light cascaded down.
Not far in front of her, a narrow stream wound its way past, the sound of the water light and clear. A few low fruit trees grew along both banks, their branches hung with round, plump green fruits.
The entire space was natural and vast, without any trace of artificial carving. There were only the most basic elements of mountains, water, soil, and trees.
She looked around the space, then squatted down to pinch the soil beneath her feet. The soil was moist and loose.
She stood up, patted the dirt off her hands, and walked a few steps along the stream. Near a smooth blue stone on the bank, she saw a few withered fruits scattered on the ground. Their skins were shriveled, but their original outlines were still visible.
While Lin Zhiyue was squatting by the stream, wondering how to leave this space, a thick, blood-red mist suddenly surged across the horizon without warning.
The red mist rolled in from all directions as if it were alive. Wherever it passed, the fruit trees and the stream began to twist and shatter, torn apart as if by an invisible hand. The space began to collapse and disintegrate piece by piece from the edges, revealing pitch-black cracks.
The soil cracked, and the stream flowed backward. Within a few breaths, the entire space transformed from a peaceful pastoral scene into a collapsing ruin.
Immediately after, black resentful energy poured out of the collapsing cracks, spreading over the sky and earth. When the resentful energy enveloped Lin Zhiyue, she felt her entire body grow heavy, as if a thick, water-soaked quilt were pressing down on her back, making it difficult even to raise her arms.
In the center of the resentful energy, the blurry silhouette of a woman condensed. Her semi-transparent body was covered in dried blood, and dark red liquid slowly dripped down her cheeks from her facial orifices. Her hollow eyes locked directly onto Lin Zhiyue.
A voice drifted out from the depths of the resentful energy, carrying a raspy blend of hatred and confusion. “Su Qing'er... Where is Su Qing'er...” Her gaze swept across the space and finally landed on Lin Zhiyue. Her voice suddenly rose, sharp and broken. “It's you... You saved Su Qing'er... You are with her! Kill her... Kill—”
The pressure of the resentful energy almost bent Lin Zhiyue double. Her mind rapidly scanned through her available outfit skills.
The system's light screen flashed a glaring red light at the edge of her vision, with a stream of text scrolling rapidly: [Warning! The host's life is under threat! It is highly recommended to equip the “Mermaid's Love Song” set immediately. The set skill “Calming of the Vast Sea” can purify all inner demons and resentful energy within a large area, washing away dark obsessions in the depths of the heart with low-frequency deep-sea singing. It has a significant suppressing effect on resentful-energy-type targets.]
She moved almost the instant the system spoke.
With a thought, the Mermaid's Love Song set enveloped her body in an instant—the sea-blue fish-tailed gown spread out as she landed, its patterns of pearls and silver embroidery glowing with a soft luster in the water's reflection. The fin shawl unfurled behind her shoulders, and the conch flute fell into her hand.
She leaped toward the stream. The moment she hit the water, her figure formed a smooth, graceful arc in mid-air. Her sea-blue fish tail gleamed with a soft, gentle luster under the greyish-white sky, and the ripples created as her tail fin sliced through the water carried a ring of pale gold light.
Lin Zhiyue landed right in the center of the stream enveloped by the resentful energy, looking like a sacred and pure phantom emerging from the deep sea.
She raised the conch flute to her lips and blew the first note.
When the sound rippled through the air, it spread outward slowly and steadily like an invisible wave.
The moment the sound touched the resentful energy, it visibly stagnated.
Fine cracks began to appear on the surface of the black mist, and pale gold light seeped from the fissures, spreading outward inch by inch.
As the melody continued to unfold, the movements of the woman's silhouette grew slower and slower. Her originally raspy, broken screams gradually became intermittent before finally vanishing into the fading resentful energy.
The black mist began to dissipate from the edges, like the ebbing tide slowly retreating along the shoreline.
Lin Zhiyue stood in the center of the stream holding the conch flute, her blue fish tail shimmering with a faint silver light beneath the water, with occasional flecks of light drifting past the edge of her tail fin.
The surrounding collapse had stopped. The torn spatial rifts were slowly healing, and the greyish-white light once again cascaded down from above.
Just before the last wisp of resentful energy vanished, the woman turned her head slightly. Her hollow gaze lingered on Lin Zhiyue for a moment, and then, as if drawn by some force, she slowly drifted toward her.
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