The sky was heavy and overcast.
The sounds of fighting and chaos on the cliff gradually faded.
Ye Luan slowly closed her eyes, her dark hair cascading down, her crimson robes accentuating her peach-blossom-like complexion, yet her expression was as cold as ice.
"Xiao Chi Zhan! Farewell forever!"
Snowflakes fell faintly, and the biting wind stung the skin, chilling to the bone.
The figure in red, plummeting amidst the snow, was extraordinarily cold, alluring, and eerie. The golden patterns embroidered on her skirt seemed to come alive, piercing with a dazzling radiance.
With a "boom," the frigid ice cave instantly exploded, and the unfathomably deep seawater immediately submerged everything.
Cold, a cold that pierced the heart and bones!
Ye Luan's senses were instantly swallowed, her internal organs feeling as if they had shifted. Blood spurted from her mouth.
As her pale face sank into the ice cave, through the deep blue, frigid sea surface, she seemed to see a white figure lunging down.
"Luan Luan, I won't let you go. I want to be entangled with you for all eternity. Marry me willingly, and be my princess with a willing heart."
"Luan Luan, I love you. Unless I die, you can only be mine."
Xiao Chi Zhan! This time, it was truly farewell!
----
Beneath the ink-black night, the entire temple was surrounded by troops.
It had been three full days.
Doctors came and went, one after another, but the person inside showed no signs of waking, as if fallen into a deep sleep.
Tantai Ye lay wearily on a rattan chair outside, stroking his growing stubble, his voice hoarse.
"How is it?"
The army physician emerged from the inner room and said respectfully, "Your Highness's body is unharmed. As for why he remains in a coma, this subordinate truly does not know."
Tantai Ye's eyes instantly turned sinister.
"Are you telling me that you, a physician, don't know?"
His voice was too cold, his dark, hawk-like eyes seemed to burn with two clusters of eerie flames, frightening the army physician into kneeling immediately.
"General, spare me. Perhaps His Highness suffered too great a shock, causing him to remain in a coma."
With a crash, the teacup shattered, and the scalding water doused the army physician. The kneeling body trembled terribly.
"Useless trash, get out."
Seeing this, everyone in the room trembled, not daring to breathe.
Tantai Ye closed his eyes in exhaustion, muttering a few curses under his breath.
After a moment, he called out, "Ying Yi."
"Your subordinate is here."
He tapped his fingers lightly on the armrest of the chair and asked, "Has the war report from the border arrived?"
Ying Yi bowed. "They have all arrived. Does the General wish to see them now?"
"Bring them here!"
With the war raging, the man falling into a coma was truly enraging him.
"Right, hurry and go to the ice cave. Have they found anyone yet?"
"Yes."
The cold north wind cut like knives against the face in the night.
The vast ice cave, whose extent was unknown, had all been broken open by the soldiers. On the unfathomably deep sea surface, dozens of warships were searching along the coast.
In the darkness, the torchlight on the ships flickered.
Li Qiongyu, dressed in flamboyant red robes, stood on the ship, gazing at the deep sea. His usually roguish face was now solemn and stern.
"After searching for so many days and not seeing even a shadow, she's likely shattered to pieces."
He lowered his gaze, took a few sips, and turned to Lan Murou, who was facing the sea breeze, his voice softening.
"You should go back first. It's cold here."
Lan Murou held a handkerchief in her hand, looking at the frigid sea. A mist of tears appeared in her eyes.
"Is A Luan truly dead?"
Li Qiongyu frowned. "There are killer whales in this sea; she's likely in dire straits."
The ice cave was too deep; death would occur within a hundred zhang. Their men simply couldn't find the body.
Ye Luan chose to die here, likely to prevent them from finding her.
"Falling from such a height without internal energy to protect her, she must have been in extreme pain before she died."
The ice cave had been blown open.
Hearing this, Lan Murou's eyes reddened. Her pale hand gripped the edge of the ship tightly, speechless.
A Luan, such a strong person, enduring torment and pain to the point of despair, yet still choosing to live strongly.
How could she have wanted to die?
To what extent of despair did she reach, to smile as she embraced death?
She couldn't understand, she truly couldn't understand.
"Young Master Li, this sea cave is simply too vast, stretching for tens of thousands of zhang. Even if the body wasn't eaten, it would sink to the deepest parts with the currents, or flow to who knows where. No matter how many troops we deploy, we won't find her. Can we stop?"
They had already spent several days searching for a body that was impossible to find; it was simply a waste of military resources.
Li Qiongyu listened to the副将 (fùjiàng - deputy general), looked up at the sky, and remained silent.
The crescent moon hung high, its silver glow casting upon the icy sea. Looking out, everything was desolate.
"Have all the remains recovered from this sea been examined?"
The deputy general said, "The coroner has examined them. They are not Miss Ye, but ancient remains."
Hearing this, Li Qiongyu's deep pupils contracted slightly. A profound, indifferent aura emanated from him. His hands rested on the edge of the ship, his complexion a little pale.
The surrounding atmosphere solidified slightly.
The deputy general added, "This sea cave goes down tens of thousands of zhang. Living people cannot go down."
This implied that they absolutely could not retrieve the body, and this person had jumped with the conviction of death, so she could absolutely not be alive.
"Continue searching!"
The man before him spoke with extreme coldness, a stark contrast to his former banter with them.
The deputy general sighed, intending to persuade him further.
But seeing the man's profile, so cold, revealing obvious fatigue and a fierce killing intent, he immediately dared not say anything more and could only order his men into the sea.
On the icy sea surface, dozens of warships stood against the wind, countless armors reflecting a sharp, cold light. A large number of troops searched downwards along the sea.
Waves of corpse retrievers went down and came up, all finding nothing.
As dawn broke, light appeared on the horizon. On the sea, the men lay collapsed on the ships, exhausted.
They had searched for several days and nights without rest; anyone would be unable to endure.
Lan Murou felt her head growing groggy and couldn't help but support her forehead.
"You should go back first. You're suffering from the cold here for no reason."
Although it was April, a snow had just fallen, and it was very cold all around.
Lan Murou knew she was of no use here, so she nodded and left.
Upon returning to the temple, she heard Tantai Ye inside furiously cursing and raging, the entire room filled with a low-pressure atmosphere.
She paused at the doorway, not daring to enter.
"Linchi has been breached, and now the entire army has entered Yuehanguan. You're telling me twenty thousand men were ambushed? Are you joking with me?"
"Who led the troops? How many troops did Jiuchuan send? Where is Xie Beihan? Are all the people sent out dead? You can't even find a trace?!"
Lan Murou listened to the commotion inside, her lips pursing slightly. It seemed the army of Daliang had been ambushed in Beiqi.
Knowing the man was in a rage, she didn't dare to provoke him. With her nose feeling the chill, she stood under the eaves, keeping a distance.