034 A Merged World

"Princess?" Qu Zhanyi pulled a smile that was half-sarcastic, half-self-deprecating.

"I haven't been a princess for a long time. I am just an ordinary high school student now; I cannot bear the title of 'Your Highness' from you."

"The Princess is joking again." Qin Yangsheng’s expression remained gentle. With a good-natured air, he handed Qu Zhanyi a plate of roasted meat. "Are you hungry? Would you like to eat something?"

Qu Zhanyi did not move. She stared at him intently and sneered, "You should know that I did not come to find you to reminisce."

As if ignoring the girl’s impatience, Qin Yangsheng continued on his own, "Does the Princess not wish to ask me why I did not return to provide reinforcements after I escaped?"

"Why ask a meaningless question?"

"To clear up misunderstandings and let the Princess vent her anger."

"I am not angry. It is not worth it. Besides, I am living just fine."

Qu Zhanyi’s words were sharp as thorns, yet Qin Yangsheng acted as though he were made of iron, seemingly unaffected by how biting her remarks were.

He sighed helplessly, his expression darkening slightly. "Your Highness has suddenly returned to life, and I imagine you have many doubts. But the reasons are a long story... I shall make it brief."

Qu Zhanyi waited with composed anticipation.

Qin Yangsheng began to recount: "Let us go back more than seven thousand years. I remember it was sleeting that day. Many disciples from the immortal sects were spouting nonsense in the brothels and taverns of Jiufang City. You had just finished beating them up when you were cornered by the nine major immortal sects at Longevity Cliff..."

As she listened, Qu Zhanyi gritted her teeth and interrupted him impatiently, "Qin Yangsheng, can you fix your habit of being so long-winded!"

"Patience, patience! You must have patience, Your Highness!"

Qu Zhanyi said viciously, "If reality didn't forbid it, I would truly love to poison you into muteness."

At the mention of this, Qin Yangsheng recalled the past, his face filled with longing and pride. "The times I was poisoned into muteness by you, my body already developed a resistance to the toxin."

"Ha. You’re quite proud of that?"

Qin Yangsheng replied as if it were a matter of course, "I am indeed a little proud, for I am the only one who survived the Princess's hands."

The topic began to drift away. Qu Zhanyi knew that if she did not press him on the question he had initially raised, he would continue to circle around with useless chatter.

She took a deep breath and said slowly, "So... what happened after you escaped?"

Qin Yangsheng got his wish and replied, "After the Princess covered my retreat, I met Su Miaomiao..."

No sooner had he started than Qu Zhanyi interrupted him again. "No, I don't want to hear about your sordid affairs with her. I only care about the outcome of the war between the righteous and the demonic, and the fate of my parents."

"..."

"Su Miaomiao is dead," Qin Yangsheng paused, the smile on his face never fading. "I killed her."

Qu Zhanyi was stunned for a moment, then let out a cold snort. "Why are you telling me this? Do as you please with your women; I have no interest in knowing."

The girl’s attitude was harsh and her tone ice-cold, but Qin Yangsheng did not take offense, continuing with a calm voice, "The day I returned to the Demon Realm, the hundred immortal sects had already breached the Ridge of the Living."

"At that time, the Demon Queen had fallen in battle, and the Demon Emperor’s whereabouts were unknown. When I led several protectors to rescue the Princess, Su Miaomiao used the Princess’s token to lure us into the Yin-Ming Ravine, not expecting that they had set an ambush..."

"To completely eradicate the Demon Realm, the hundred immortal sects spent decades laying a trap. In this game, every righteous individual was a willing pawn. Su Miaomiao was no exception."

By this point, his voice had grown dry, and the lightness on his face had vanished.

"The war between the righteous and the demonic lasted less than half a month before the 'barrier' of our world was shattered by the primordial energy unleashed by the conflict. Spiritual energy in heaven and earth withered instantly, and countless immortals and demons perished, their souls extinguished."

"The other world was also affected, and since then, the two worlds have broken their barriers and merged. Those who survived that war have gradually faded into the masses; after thousands of years, I fear they have all returned to dust."