“Creak—”
With a soft sound, the doors to the bedchamber were pushed open from the outside.
Time seemed to freeze at this very moment.
Zhang Mingyuan's mind went completely blank, all of his senses focusing on that slowly opening door.
He was finished.
That was the only thought left in his mind.
He had spent his entire life being open and upright (or so he believed). Having dominated the Xuanling Realm for five thousand years, what kind of storms had he not weathered?
Yet today, he was about to be witnessed by a third party in the humiliating posture of being pinned to a bed by his archrival's foot.
This was worse than death!
Su Jinxue's reaction was even faster than his.
The instant the door was pushed open, an explosion of shame, anger, and murderous intent far more terrifying than before erupted from her!
Her instinct was to grind the intruder's bones to ash.
However, when she saw who it was, she forced herself to suppress the urge.
The jade-like foot stepping on Zhang Mingyuan's chest retracted like a bolt of lightning, moving so fast it left an afterimage.
Almost simultaneously, she stood straight. Her silver hair fluttered without any wind, and her immortal robe rustled as she tried to reconstruct her cold, aloof, and inviolable image as the Immortal Lord in the shortest time possible.
However, it was already useless.
A woman wearing a plain white palace gown had already walked in. She had an elegant posture and a delicate, pretty face.
Her name was Nian'an, and she was Su Jinxue's personal maid.
She... had seen it.
She had seen her sacred, inviolable, and utterly ethereal Palace Master standing by the ice-jade bed. Her clothes were slightly disheveled, and on that peerless face, which was usually frozen like ten-thousand-year ice, there was a breathtaking blush she had never seen before.
And on the bed lay a man.
A man with disheveled clothes, staring blankly at the ceiling with a face devoid of any desire to live.
She would recognize that man even if he were burned to ashes.
The Sacred Lord of Qingyun Heaven, Zhang Mingyuan! Her Palace Master's lifelong archrival!
Boom!
It was as if billions of immortal thunderclaps had exploded in Nian'an's head simultaneously!
What was going on?!
Why... why was there a man in the Palace Master's bedchamber? And Zhang Mingyuan of all people?!
Her Palace Master had just attained immortality, and she immediately captured her archrival...
She even brought him into her bedchamber, let him lie on her bed, and was now standing there disheveled with a flushed face...
Countless scandalous, forced-love stories she had read on the anonymous forums of 《Secrets of the Immortal Sects》 instantly flooded Nian'an's mind.
【Shocking! Lifelong archrivals are actually true love! The newly ascended female immortal imprisons her former nemesis for love!】
【The Domineering Fairy's Forced Love: Your body and your heart can only belong to me!】
【On Conquering a Man: It starts with conquering his body...】
Oh my god! Oh my god! Oh my god!
I'm shipping them! They're actually real!
So the Palace Master's “hatred” for Zhang Mingyuan was actually this kind of “hatred”!
It turned out their five thousand years of entanglement wasn't about fighting to the death, but rather... being unable to let go!
Nian'an was screaming internally, her gossip-loving soul burning so fiercely it almost blew her top off.
Yet, on the surface, she maintained the professional poise of the absolute gold standard of etiquette in the Myriad Snow Palace.
She steadied her jade tray, her face remaining calm and her heart steady, as if this shocking scene of “woman on top, man on bottom, domineering fairy's forced love” was nothing more than a passing breeze.
Slowly lowering her head, she spoke in a voice that was even more respectful than before, carrying a subtle hint of “I understand.”
“Nian'an deserves death for disturbing the mood of the Palace Master and... Sacred Lord Zhang.”
“Nian'an saw nothing.”
“Nian'an will excuse herself now and guard the outside of the hall for the Palace Master, ensuring that no one else will disturb you.”
With that, she turned around in a smooth, fluid motion, preparing to retreat and close the door behind her to leave a perfect world for just the two “mighty experts” inside.
“Stop right there!”
A cold, slightly exasperated voice barked.
It was Su Jinxue.
She was about to go mad!
She had witnessed the sequence of Nian'an's expressions shifting from shock, to realization, and finally to a wild, fanatical gleam when she walked in.
She could figure out with her toes that this maid, who had followed her for two thousand years, must have her head filled with all sorts of unspeakable garbage right now!
Her reputation! Her majesty as the Palace Master of the Myriad Snow Palace!
All of it was ruined!
And it was all because of this bastard, Zhang Mingyuan!
Su Jinxue's anger instantly found an outlet, and she glared viciously at Zhang Mingyuan on the bed.
Zhang Mingyuan shuddered, feeling as if his very soul had been pierced by her glare.
Right now, he just wanted to die.
Social death was still death!
Struggling to climb up from the bed under Su Jinxue's murderous gaze, he squeezed out a smile at Nian'an by the door that looked worse than crying. “Um... Fairy, let me explain. It's not what you think! We are completely innocent!”
Hearing this, Nian'an paused and turned around, giving Zhang Mingyuan a serene look that said, Please rest assured, I understand.
【Inner thoughts: Oh my, Sacred Lord Zhang is actually feeling shy! Of course he can't admit it at a time like this, otherwise how embarrassing would that be? Yes, yes, you two are innocent. You were just comparing notes on immortal arts on the bed. I understand, I understand completely!】
Looking at her “some things are better left unsaid” expression, Zhang Mingyuan almost coughed up a mouthful of blood.
Understand? You don't understand a damn thing!
“Nian'an!” Su Jinxue raised her voice, cold energy radiating from her. “Who allowed you to enter?”
Nian'an immediately gathered her thoughts and bowed.
“Reporting to the Palace Master, the elders and disciples are all gathered outside the palace gates. They wish to... wish to seek an audience with you and offer their congratulations.”
Just as she finished speaking, a cacophony of footsteps and excited shouts drifted in from outside the hall.
“We pay our respects to the Immortal Lord! Congratulations to the Palace Master on attaining the Red Dust Immortal realm! May your immortal blessings last forever, and may your life span be as long as heaven and earth!”
“The Immortal Lord's divine might rules supreme for thousands of generations!”
The voices grew louder as they approached, indicating that a crowd was excitedly surging toward the bedchamber.
Su Jinxue's expression turned even uglier.
Zhang Mingyuan's eyes, however, suddenly lit up!
A crowd was a good thing!
The more people there were, the more Su Jinxue would have to care about her reputation, making it less likely for her to execute him!
This was his chance!
However, his hope was shattered in the very next second.
Boom!
The doors of the hall were slammed shut by an invisible force, cutting off all sounds from the outside.
Su Jinxue turned around, a chilling light churning in her red eyes that made Zhang Mingyuan's heart skip a beat.
She looked at the awkward Zhang Mingyuan, and then at Nian'an, who was trying her best to shrink into the background but had her ears perked up high. An inexplicable rage surged straight to her head.
Fine.
Very well.
Zhang Mingyuan, didn't you love getting my attention?
Didn't you want to be famous?
I will fulfill your wish!
She suddenly took a deep breath, suppressing all her shame and rage, and reverted to her cold and aloof demeanor as the Immortal Lord.
“Nian'an.”
“Present.”
“Pass down my command,” Su Jinxue said word by word, her voice carrying clearly throughout the entire bedchamber. “In three days, at the summit of the Myriad Snow Palace, we shall hold the Ascension Ceremony to announce this to the world.”
Nian'an was taken aback for a moment before turning ecstatic. “Yes! Palace... Immortal Lord is wise! I shall attend to it immediately!”
This was a momentous occasion!
With the Palace Master ascending to immortality, the status of the Myriad Snow Palace would also skyrocket, making it the premier sacred land of the current era!
Zhang Mingyuan also breathed a sigh of relief.
An Ascension Ceremony?
Great!
With so many people around, it would be the perfect opportunity for him to fish in troubled waters and make his escape!
He was already beginning to plot how he would flee in three days.
However, Su Jinxue's next words caused the blood in his entire body to run cold.
He watched as Su Jinxue slowly, very slowly, shifted her gaze to him. On that peerless face, a strange, cold smile actually tugged at her lips.
“Furthermore, pass down my decree.”
“For this Ascension Ceremony, the Sacred Lord of Qingyun Heaven, Zhang Mingyuan, shall serve as my Sword-Bearing Attendant.”
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