Epilogue
I slept for a very, very long time.
When I woke up again, I could no longer feel the passage of time.
I struggled to sit up.
Someone lifted the bed curtains.
A face wet with joyful tears appeared.
"Imperial Princess is awake—"
Before the words even finished, a large group of people rushed into the room.
Some poured water for me, some wiped my face.
One took my pulse while another hurried to open the windows for fresh air.
They made me so dizzy that I felt even more groggy.
Seeing me holding my head and staying silent, A Li asked nervously, "Is there anywhere else that hurts?"
"Is your head still hurting? Or does your body hurt somewhere?"
I forced myself to wave my hand. "I'm fine. I just slept too long and feel a little dizzy."
Only then did they breathe a sigh of relief.
As if waking from a dream, I pulled A Li closer and frowned. "Where is Rong Che?"
A Li quickly comforted me. "Imperial Princess, please rest assured. He is already dead."
"Dead?"
I froze, then repeated the word.
"You said he is dead?"
Although I had desperately wanted to kill him to avenge my father, hearing the news of his death still felt unreal.
"It was the Young Valley Lord who ended him personally," A Li said seriously. "The Young Valley Lord didn't keep him alive to torture him slowly. He simply gave him a quick death."
The moment she mentioned this, my brows furrowed.
I finally remembered where that strange feeling had come from.
Why had Rong Che shown that kind of smile at the very end?
"Why did it feel like my internal organs were tearing apart when Xie Ning shot the arrow that killed him?"
A Li was stunned. Then she laughed awkwardly. "Well... the doctor said that because Imperial Princess's spiritual power surged too quickly in a short time, you suffered a backlash, which caused you to cough up blood."
"But it's fine now!"
She placed a pillow behind me and explained, "The doctor just came by again. He said your body is no longer in danger. You only need a few more days of rest to recover completely."
A Li was my most loyal maid.
I had no reason to doubt her words. The last trace of confusion in my heart began to fade.
I looked around and asked softly, "What about Xie Ning? Has he returned to Ling Yun Valley?"
The moment I mentioned that name, A Li became tongue-tied again.
"N-no. The Young Valley Lord caught a cold and has been resting in bed these past few days."
A cold?
I asked suspiciously, "How many days have I been asleep?"
A Li faltered, then smiled awkwardly. "It was probably because it rained heavily that night."
Just as she finished speaking, several people walked in from outside the hall.
They were all former subordinates of my father.
Upon seeing me, they eagerly presented rare treasures from their respective clans.
"Imperial Princess has been ill recently. Please take this spiritual pill secretly passed down by our Snake Clan first."
"No, no, no. Try our Wuliang Cliff's medicinal wine first."
I was surrounded by them and felt a headache coming on.
Finally, an impatient rebuke came from outside the hall.
"How long are you going to keep making noise? Can't you let her rest properly?"
My eyes lit up. I quickly looked up.
But the moment I saw the person, I froze.
Xie Ning wore a large wolf-fur cloak. His entire face was so pale it looked almost bloodless.
He walked forward slowly and looked at me.
"Imperial Princess..."
Before he could finish, he broke into a violent fit of coughing.
I immediately pushed everyone aside and supported him. "What happened to you?"
"Why do you look so weak?"
I looked him up and down with worry, but he only patted the back of my hand reassuringly.
"I'm fine. It's just a cold—"
Xie Ning's tone returned to that familiar lazy drawl.
He let out a long sigh.
"People like us who rarely get sick... once we catch a cold, it hits us like a mountain collapsing."
I grew anxious. "Have you taken any medicine? Are you still feeling unwell?"
"Your cold is so serious, yet instead of resting properly, you came all the way here!"
"I could have gone to your room to see you!"
Xie Ning took my hand and smiled calmly.
"Because there are other things that need to be done today."
He asked me to stretch out my hand. A small flame bloomed at his fingertips.
A golden talisman lay in my palm.
"Returning it to its rightful owner," he said.
"From now on, both the golden and silver tokens are in your hands."
The two tokens merged perfectly.
They became a flawless seal.
Xuan Ming, who had been standing beside Xie Ning the whole time, suddenly cleared his throat and announced loudly.
"The Demon Emperor has passed away. The traitor has been eliminated. The demon realm cannot go a single day without a ruler—"
The moment his voice fell, Xie Ning lifted his robe in front of everyone.
He slowly knelt before me.
He lowered his gaze and performed the proper salute between ruler and subject.
Each word was clear and forceful.
"Your subject humbly requests the Imperial Princess to inherit the Demon Emperor's last wish, ascend the throne as Demon Emperor, and bring peace to the realm!"
There was a moment of silence in the hall.
All the clan elders looked at each other.
There had never been a precedent of a woman becoming the Demon Emperor.
But the next moment, A Li and Xuan Ming both knelt beside Xie Ning.
"We vow to follow the Demon Emperor until death—"
My lashes trembled slightly as I slowly stroked the Yin Yang Token in my hands.
I calmly raised my eyes and looked at the others in the room.
Seeing this, the Eagle Clan Elder immediately knelt and bowed deeply.
His voice rang out powerfully.
"We pay our respects to the Demon Emperor! We welcome the Demon Emperor's return to the palace—"
His words completely broke the deadlock in the hall.
More and more ministers chose to kneel. Even the few elders who had hesitated earlier eventually bowed and kowtowed as well.
...
After the clan elders left my bedchamber to prepare for the enthronement ceremony, I finally turned to Xie Ning.
He was leaning casually against the window drinking tea, looking completely at ease and lazy. There was no trace of the cold, decisive man from earlier.
"Why didn't you warn me before saying something like that!"
I swung my fist at him in anger. "I almost didn't know how to react just now."
Xie Ning smiled and caught my fist.
"I was afraid your skin is too thin and you would be too embarrassed to say it yourself."
"So I helped you say it."
I wanted to say more, but my peripheral vision suddenly caught a familiar scar on his wrist.
My heart sank heavily.
"What is that wound on your wrist?"
My throat tightened. I tried to grab his wrist, but he dodged.
"It's nothing."
Xie Ning smiled lightly. "Just a scratch from nocking the arrow."
"Liar!" I couldn't help cursing. "You think I don't know how to shoot arrows?"
I grabbed his hand and yanked his sleeve up to his forearm.
Sure enough, there was a dark mark on his wrist.
Through his pale skin, faint blue veins were visible.
And a ferocious Gu worm.
My body stiffened.
I stared blankly at the Gu worm.
It was still very weak.
It seemed it had only been planted not long ago.
In that instant, the fragments connected. The Gu worm. My headaches. Rong Che's smile.
But...
Why...
"Don't cry, don't cry. It's a small matter!"
Xie Ning pulled me into his arms and wiped the tears from the corners of my eyes.
"If you feel guilty, just take good care of your own body."
I reached out with trembling fingers and touched his face.
Large tears fell onto the back of his hand.
But in this life, I had wanted to prevent you from being implanted with the Gu.
Xie Ning took my hand and pressed his face against my palm.
"You always said before that your fiancé was a sickly person. Now your words have come true."
He looked at me seriously.
"Those things you said while acting at the inn last time... you must never say them again."
"My heart ached for three whole days after that."
"I hope the Demon Emperor will show more mercy to this frail body of mine in the future."
I wrapped my arms tightly around his neck and finally burst into loud sobs.
"Xie Ning, this time I will definitely make sure you live a long life."
He let me cling to his neck.
My tears and snot were all over his neck. He didn't mind. He simply tightened his embrace.
The young man buried his head in my neck and whispered softly.
"Yes."
"In this life, our Rong Yao will also be safe and sound every year."