Yuan Yan's hatred for his wife was bone-deep.
For the many years he had been out of the mortal world, a lonely soul, he had never been able to understand why his wife always hurt him for outsiders, why... she could be so cruel.
And it all seemed to have been planned.
Recalling the past, he remembered the moment he pushed open the door and rushed in with an axe, only to see the man and his wife both rising to their feet.
What he hadn't expected, however, was that they were both holding weapons.
His wife held a dagger, and the man a long sword.
The instant Yuan Yan saw that scene, his entire body went numb, and the axe in his hand dropped to the floor. Then, before he could even get angry or shout, his wife coldly uttered, "Go to hell, Yuan Yan."
That single sentence 'shattered' Yuan Yan's heart. Standing rooted to the spot, his body trembling with rage, he looked at his wife who was glaring at him menacingly, then at the man who, with a smile on his lips, had one arm around his wife's shoulders. He couldn't help but shout, "You bastard," and lunged at the man.
Seeing Yuan Yan approach, the man immediately removed his arm from his wife's shoulder, dropped his long sword, rushed forward, grasped Yuan Yan's fist, and grabbed Yuan Yan's collar with his other hand, proceeding to beat him severely.
Back then, Yuan Yan was just a young man with brute strength and no skill. He wanted to resist, but he wasn't strong enough. Just like that, he was beaten to the ground, unable to move.
The man stood beside Yuan Yan, looking down at his pathetic state with a cold sneer. He then turned to Yuan Yan's wife and said, "Come here and kill him. If you kill him, I'll marry you."
The man's words struck Yuan Yan like thunder. He mustered all his strength, looked up at his wife who was staring at him expressionlessly, and with his last ounce of strength, said, "Didn't you say you wanted to grow old with me? Didn't you..."
"This isn't the life I want, Yuan Yan, you liar. You're not someone with immortal destiny, you're a liar." With that, his wife walked past the man, dagger in hand, and knelt beside Yuan Yan.
Yuan Yan looked at his wife's face, then at the 'marks' on her neck. His mind was flooded with all the complaints his wife had usually directed at him. His eyes darkened, and he said in a low voice, "Spare me."
In that moment, he didn't want to die.
"You're so afraid of death," his wife said, reaching out and grabbing Yuan Yan's ear.
The pain all over his body overshadowed everything else. Yuan Yan, with vacant eyes, looked at his wife and slowly said, "Yes, I'm afraid of death. Since you want to be with him, want to marry him..." he gave a bitter smile, "I'll grant your wish, but please don't kill me."
"I wouldn't be at ease if I didn't kill you," his wife replied.
"You..."
"You worthless piece of trash," his wife interrupted, releasing him and raising the dagger to stab Yuan Yan.
The dagger fell, and the memory ended.
Mu Anxiao looked at Yuan Yan, who was silent and had his eyes closed, and asked, "Is your wife still alive?" She could tell Yuan Yan was recalling memories, so she waited for him.
Hearing her, Yuan Yan clenched his fists, opened his eyes, and looked at Mu Anxiao, saying in a low voice, "She's still alive."
"Are you going to kill her?" Mu Anxiao asked again.
Yuan Yan's eyes darkened. "If I kill her, will I be finished?"
"Yes," Mu Anxiao nodded. "You were a soul to be pitied, but if you kill her, that pity will be nullified. Instead, you will be punished because of her."
Yuan Yan had never considered these things. For so many years, he had only thought about how to get revenge, how to appear before his wife in a new form, with a new demeanor, and tell her that he had always been there, always thinking about how to kill her, and then plunge her into lifelong fear.
But now, after hearing Mu Anxiao's words, he had a new perspective.
"..."
Seeing Yuan Yan fall silent again, Mu Anxiao couldn't help but ask, "What's wrong?"
"I stayed behind solely for revenge, to get revenge on her," Yuan Yan said in a low voice. "That's why I avoided everything, and finally, they completely forgot about me. I gained freedom and met Mu Xi... Originally, I thought I could successfully resurrect using Yuan Ye's body, but I didn't expect to meet you." He stared at Mu Anxiao.
Mu Anxiao said, "I am the person Shen Yan hates the most. I think," she suddenly recalled Yuan Yan's previous refusal, and instead of helping him, she decided to test him, "You wouldn't let me help you, would you?"
Conversely, Yuan Yan didn't show any resistance. He said, "I hope you can help me."
"Didn't you refuse me earlier? Didn't you say," Mu Anxiao feigned resentment, all to confirm if Yuan Yan truly trusted her, "that I'm Shen Yan's enemy, and you wouldn't let me help you."
"You're really holding a grudge," Yuan Yan said, slightly embarrassed.
Mu Anxiao smiled. "Of course. Who doesn't hold grudges? But I always believe that hatred is diluted by time, because hating someone," she said, "is truly tiring. Just like Shen Yan hated me his entire life, and I imagine his life was quite exhausting."
"...." Yuan Yan smiled faintly.
Mu Anxiao looked confused. "What are you smiling about?"
Yuan Yan said faintly, "Shen Yan said you were a talkative woman, full of grand principles every day, but those principles were basically useless. He said that was the only thing he disliked about you – that all your abilities were only in your mouth."
"He said that about me?" Mu Anxiao was surprised.
"Mmm. However, he never said he wanted to kill you. He only said he didn't want to see you anymore." Yuan Yan's memory was being awakened.
"Is that so," Mu Anxiao said, a pang of sadness in her heart.
Seeing Mu Anxiao's dejected expression and recalling Shen Yan's past evaluations of her, Yuan Yan smiled. "At first, I thought you were the most detestable person, but after meeting her," he said, "I realized... you're not detestable at all."
"Can you please not compare me to your wife? Who is she, and who am I?" Mu Anxiao said without thinking.
"Indeed, we are not the same kind of people," Yuan Yan said with a low smile.
Looking at Yuan Yan's expression, Mu Anxiao thought about his wife's age and frowned. "That's not right."
Yuan Yan retracted his smile and asked, "What is it?"
Mu Anxiao took a breath. "Your wife... shouldn't still be alive by now, right? If we calculate by age, she would be over a hundred? She's not an immortal or a demon, how could she live so long? Have you lost your mind?"
"That man was a cultivator," Yuan Yan said in a low voice.
"...." Mu Anxiao was stunned, suddenly feeling an ominous premonition.
Seeing Mu Anxiao's somewhat dazed expression, Yuan Yan said, "She followed me because she knew I had immortal destiny. But after marrying me, she regretted it because I was useless. Just like she said," he said, "in every aspect, I was a failure." He lowered his head.