Chapter 247 Ceilia's Punishment (4)
Time continued to pass until the sixth chaos cycle, relentlessly bringing Ceilia face-to-face with her own death once again. This time, the weight of her wrong decisions crashed down upon her, dawning on her with brutal clarity.
And so she found herself standing at a crossroad, torn between following Xia Tian or chasing after Nu Jueqing, her daughter. The burning desire to uncover her daughter's fate warred within her, threatening to consume her every thought.
In the end, after agonizing deliberation, she made the excruciating choice and decided to accompany Xia Tian on their journey through the illusion. It loomed before them, a vast and eerily familiar reconstruction of the past, so realistic that it was as though time had folded in on itself.
With a vow to save her daughter still fresh in her mind, Ceilia clung to the hope that Xia Tian would fulfill his promise. Yet, as the moments ticked by in the illusory realm, it became painfully evident that Xia Tian had forgotten all about Nu Jueqing. The weight of disappointment settled heavily on Ceilia's heart, mingling with her bitter smile as she whispered, "I should have expected that..."
In that moment, the fate of Nu Jueqing remained uncertain, shrouded in the shadowy depths of the illusion, leaving Ceilia to wonder, with a mixture of anxiety and desperation, whether she would ever uncover the truth.
However, the mystery didn't last for long, as Xia Tian soon came to know about the rumours of enticing tale surrounding the cold 'Heartless Queen'.
The Heartless Queen, shrouded in an aura of intrigue and secrecy, seemed to possess origins as captivating as they were mysterious.
Whispers echoed through the kingdom, some claiming the king had surrendered a fortune in gold to acquire her, while others insisted it was her ethereal beauty that had enraptured him.
Yet, there were those who believed it was her peculiar physique that had bewitched the king into making her his queen.
Regardless of the varying accounts, a few months after sealing their union, the king's life came to a chilling end, his corpse discovered in his bedroom, an mystery itself.
The air thick with trepidation, it was an unspoken truth that lingered in every heart - it was the Queen who had orchestrated his assassination, whether by her own hand or by the twisted machinations of others while he slumbered in innocent repose.
And so, she embarked on a harrowing journey, transforming into one of history's most cruel and feared rulers.
In a horrifying display of utter ruthlessness, she set ablaze an entire empire, reducing it to smoldering ruins beneath her merciless, destructive flames.
Though, just a few months after the king's tragic demise, a remarkable occurrence unfolded. A pair of twins emerged, stirring whispers throughout the kingdom, claiming to be the offspring of the queen and the late king.
However, skepticism permeated the air since no one had witnessed the queen's pregnancy. The doubts swirled relentlessly, yet the queen skillfully suppressed the growing voices of dissent.
Tragically, the first twin, a precious baby boy, succumbed to an untimely demise mere days after entering the world. The fate of the second twin, a spirited young girl, was equally grim, her earthly journey cruelly cut short at the tender age of eight.
It was exactly one year before this moment of sorrow and intrigue that Xia Tian, an unsuspecting individual, crossed paths with the enigmatic and seemingly heartless queen. The encounter took place when her daughter was just seven years old.
In the depths of that poignant moment, the queen was confronted with the harsh reality of true indifference.
As the relentless torture inflicted upon her by Xia Tian wore down her defenses, she found herself divulging the darkest secrets and confessing to every single transgression committed under her rule.
The tragic fate of the king was hauntingly apparent.
He was nothing more than a love-struck fool, blindly captivated by her allure.
The Heartless Queen, known as Nu Jueqing, ruled with a coldness that sent shivers down the spine.
From the moment she entered the kingdom, she held herself apart, forbidding the king from drawing near. And to his foolish dismay, he complied, falling madly in love with her at their very first encounter.
Little did he know, Nu Jueqing had been forcefully taken, kidnapped on the orders of the former king, and groomed to become the bride of the current ruler.
The intention was to ensure a line of powerful offspring.
Whispers of Nu Jueqing's extraordinary talents had reached the ears of the former king, prompting him to orchestrate her captivity.
However, instead of ruling with a firm hand, the king became a mere puppet, blindly following Nu Jueqing's wishes. Even after their marriage, he was forbidden to touch her, condemned to a loveless existence.
As for the twin children she bore, their creation mirrored the process of creation of herself, that was used by Ceilia. Yet, due to the limited knowledge of mortals, both infants suffered from birth defects. Tragically, the male child's life was cut short, his fragile existence barely exceeding a few fleeting days.
After learning the truth, Xia Tian left Nu Jueqing alone, not bothered to deal with her.
Regarding her female child, she didn't succumb to an innate deficiency but met a far more sinister fate—secretly slain by the hands of Xia Tian.
With a shroud of darkness, he harvested the souls of both the male who had perished earlier and the female he had mercilessly extinguished. Unraveling the threads of his own essence from their essence, fiercely claiming what rightfully belonged to him, and seamlessly amalgamating them into a singular entity while discarding the contaminated residue.
Revelations of his next move remained veiled in mystery, awaiting the fortuitous hands of destiny to unravel its enigma.
Nu Jueqing, despite her crushing defeat, hid her anger beneath a sea of contemplation. Little did she know, if the truth of Xia Tian's wicked deeds of killing her daughter had reached her ears, the fury that would ignite within her would consume even the darkest recesses of night.
Her mind became consumed with curiosity, relentlessly yearning to uncover the enigmatic conqueror who had vanquished her. Alas, it seemed he had vanished, evaporating into thin air, as if no longer tethered to the very fabric of existence they once shared.
Over time, the memories of those fateful events began to fade, gradually retreating to the depths of her consciousness. She redirected her focus solely towards the pursuit of cultivation, leaving behind the remnants of a past that once held sway over her being.
Later, Nu Jueqing, against all odds, ascended to the rank of the Void Realm, becoming one of the exceedingly rare individuals to do so. It's worth noting that she had already surpassed the prerequisite, considering she had no tangible ties to the world from the very beginning.
However, despite her achievements, Nu Jueqing's soul was tainted, much like everyone else's. Therefore, she, too, had to endure endless tribulations to reach the void.
Through the chaos and destruction that ravaged the universe, Nu Jueqing miraculously survived, only to reunite with Xia Tian once more. An overwhelming surge of emotions compelled her to chase after him, hoping to capture his attention. Yet, to her dismay, she found herself relentlessly ignored, unable to comprehend why this enigmatic man, with an apparent affinity for beauty, paid her no mind, as if she didn't exist.
Undeterred, Nu Jueqing delved deeper into the truth, unraveling the mysteries that shrouded her existence. With every revelation, her determination swelled, anchoring her resolve to gain recognition from Xia Tian. Unbeknownst to her, each attempt she made to prove herself turned out to be futile and in vain.
In a stunning twist, it was revealed that the very woman responsible for the demise of Luo Xue, the last remaining fairy, was none other than Nu Jueqing herself. Knowing that Luo Xue sought vengeance for the catastrophic annihilation of her race, Nu Jueqing took matters into her own hands, eliminating her before her plans could come to fruition. All of this was executed with the sole intention of earning Xia Tian's favor, in the undying pursuit of his affection.
The transformation of the once formidable Heartless Queen into a mere target of Xia Tian's unyielding obsession was nothing short of perplexing.
It was as if the cunning old fox held a secret, a hidden knowledge that eother men weren't privy to.
His mastery in the art of deceiving women seemed limitless, an arsenal of manipulative tactics that knew no bounds.
Ceilia, caught in a whirlwind of emotion, found herself at a loss for words. Should she be astonished that Xia Tian hadn't yet laid a hand on her daughter, or should she be astounded that her own flesh and blood had sunk so low as to become a desperate stalker?
But amidst her inner turmoil, one question loomed larger than the rest. How had Xia Tian managed to unleash an obsession within a woman who was once impenetrable, her walls fortified to keep even her own devoted husband at bay? It was a bewitching power, a force that held Nu Jueqing tightly in its clutches, rendering her completely enthralled.
As these musings consumed Ceilia's thoughts, she couldn't help but turn her gaze inward. Wasn't she, too, obsessed by her own fixation at this very moment? The realization washed over her, leaving little room for surprise or judgment in the face of her daughter's actions.
The complex nature of a woman's attraction to a man often eludes their own understanding. It is futile to seek answers from them, as they would only recite their fantasies rather than the true reasons, for they themselves remain unaware of what truly captivates them.
Only sages like Xia Tian possessed the key to unlocking the secrets of women, effortlessly manipulating them in the palm of his hand. The wily old fox had dedicated his entire life to crafting a mind that possessed the thoughts of a man yet harnessed the advantages of a woman, a perfectly balanced being.
The scene swiftly transitions, skipping over the unimaginable scenes of Xia Tian's one billion-year journey at the center of the void. In a seamless shift, we find ourselves at his reincarnation within the Xia Family, where a new chapter of his intricate story begins to unfold.
THIS CHAPTER UPLOAD FIRST AT NOVELBIN.COM