I Was Forced to Marry a “Trash” Cultivator, But She Turned Out to Be a Reborn Empress!

Chapter 219: Settling Karma, A Letter of Farewell

Shen Xian sat cross-legged on the mossy green stone at the mountain’s peak. With a tap of his finger, Zhao Wuji’s Storage Ring hovered before him.

A flash of spiritual light erupted, and the contents of the ring poured out like a waterfall, cascading onto the stone and shimmering with a myriad of precious hues under the moonlight.

The first items to catch his eye were three jade-green pills.

[Green Wood Longevity Pills]

These were the Divine Wood Sect’s famous Rank 4 Top Grade Spirit Pills, refined from the essence of the ancient Jianmu Tree.

Shen Xian brought one to his nose and inhaled gently. The rich, verdant fragrance made his Nascent Soul tremble with desire. These pills possessed a terrifying efficacy: a single one could extend a cultivator’s lifespan by a hundred years.

To any cultivator sensing the approach of death, these were worth more than an empire.

Next, he picked up a set of emerald jade slips—the complete manual for the Divine Wood Everlasting Spring Art. This was the core inheritance of the Divine Wood Sect.

Shen Xian’s Divine Sense swept through the text. To his surprise, the slips contained Zhao Wuji’s personal annotations. Between the lines of the technique, there were faint, scribbled insights regarding the breakthrough to the Deity Transformation Realm.

“The old dog had some substance after all,” Shen Xian mused.

Although Zhao Wuji was a hypocritical evil cultivator, his understanding of the Dao was undeniable. These notes were invaluable.

“I’ll give this to Zhaoli,” he decided. “Even if I can’t return immediately, this will guide her cultivation after she breaks through to the Nascent Soul stage.”

But the true prize of the collection was the Mid-Grade True Spirit Treasure.

[Azure Emperor Longevity Seal]

The seal was carved from translucent green jade, entwined with a Daoist charm of “endless cycles.” It pulsed with the heartbeat of a forest. When activated, it could summon phantom forests to suppress enemies or condense pure Yi Wood Essence to heal fatal injuries.

Shen Xian toyed with the seal, feeling the surging life force within it. He nodded in satisfaction.

The rest of the haul was equally impressive:

Twelve Spirit Stones condensed from thousand-year-old Spirit Milk, each radiating pure Yi Wood Spiritual Qi. Three stalks of Nine Cycles Soul-Returning Grass, preserved in jade boxes—the main ingredient for resurrection pills. A complete set of Rank 4 Array Flags for the Yi Wood Azure Dragon Array, capable of creating an impenetrable defensive domain. Over 80 High-Grade Spirit Stones. And a stack of restriction tokens granting access to the Divine Wood Sect’s various herb gardens.

Shen Xian’s gaze finally settled on a cold, sinister token at the bottom of the pile.

The front was engraved with the characters “Yin Fiend.” The back bore the relief of a blood-red skull.

“The Yin Fiend Sect,” Shen Xian whispered.

It was the largest organization of evil cultivators in the Southern Region, and rumors suggested their influence extended deep into the Northern Region as well. Zhao Wuji had been one of their agents.

He pocketed the token.

After cataloging the harvest, Shen Xian let out a long breath. Any single item here would be enough to cause a bloodbath among Nascent Soul cultivators.

He looked toward the distant Divine Wood Sect, its mountain gates still brightly lit with panic and alarm fires. A faint smile played on his lips.

The treasures that should have belonged to their sect were now lining his pockets.

The Shen Family Estate.

Wei Zhaoli was deep in meditation when a spiritual transmission from her sect shattered her concentration.

Zhao Wuji is dead.

She sat frozen on her prayer mat, the message echoing in her mind. For a long time, she couldn’t react.

Ever since she discovered she was being raised as a human furnace, she had lived in the shadow of that man. The pressure had been a physical weight on her soul, a terror that only eased slightly after she met Shen Xian.

Now, that pressure had vanished instantly. It felt unreal, like waking from a nightmare too abruptly.

Wei Zhaoli’s fingers tightened around the transmission talisman as she read the details.

“Elder Zhao was assassinated by an unknown evil cultivator. The Sect has sealed the mountain gates and is conducting a thorough search…”

“An evil cultivator?”

She frowned. She knew better than anyone that her master was an evil cultivator. How could he be killed by one of his own kind?

Unless the scene was fabricated.

But framing a kill with authentic evil arts was no simple feat.

“Could it be… Shen Lang?”

Wei Zhaoli covered her mouth, a gasp escaping her lips. It seemed impossible.

Among the people who wanted Zhao Wuji dead, only Shen Xian possessed the strange, sinister methods required to mimic an evil cultivator. But he was only a Golden Core cultivator. Even if he had recently broken through to the Nascent Soul stage, killing a veteran Supreme Elder on his home turf was a fantasy.

She immediately destroyed the transmission talisman.

She hurried to Shen Xian’s secluded cultivation chamber. She stood outside the stone door for a long time, hand raised to knock, but ultimately lowered it. She didn’t dare disturb him.

Two days later, Shen Lingyue arrived with a letter and a storage pouch.

Wei Zhaoli unfolded the paper.

Zhaoli,

By the time you read this, I will have already left the Shen Family for the Northern Region.

Regarding Zhao Wuji—worry no more. Since that man dared to mark you as his furnace, he was destined for a dead end. I killed him. Not just for you, but for myself.

With him gone, the shackles on your cultivation are broken. You are free.

My journey to the North is fraught with unpredictable dangers. I chose not to say goodbye in person to spare you the pain of watching me leave.

You are now at the late Golden Core stage. Inside the pouch, you will find the “Divine Wood Everlasting Spring Art” and “Green Wood Longevity Pills.” With these, your path to the Nascent Soul is open.

I have also compiled Zhao Wuji’s personal cultivation insights into a jade slip. Study them well.

If all goes smoothly, I will return to you.

If a long time passes with no news… then assume I have perished. Do not come looking for me.

—Shen Xian

Wei Zhaoli’s fingertips trembled. The ink on the page blurred as tears welled up in her eyes.

She stood there, stunned, before her fingers clenched around the letter, turning her knuckles white. She looked as if she wanted to crush the thin paper into dust.

“Shen Lang… you really…”

She whispered the words, her voice shaking with an uncontrollable tremor.

She should have known.

When the news of Zhao Wuji’s death first arrived, she had suspected it. But seeing the confirmation in his handwriting… knowing that he had walked into the dragon’s den to sever her nightmare…

She had thought she would spend her life struggling to escape Zhao Wuji’s shadow. Shen Xian had simply obliterated the shadow with thunderous means.

“You wouldn’t even say goodbye to my face…”

She bit her lower lip until it nearly bled. Emotions churned in her chest—shock, heartache, gratitude, and a trace of indescribable anger.

He had left alone. He hadn’t even given her the chance to ask him to stay, or to promise to wait.

Assume I have perished.

She stood up abruptly, her fingers flying through hand seals to activate a transmission talisman. She wanted to scream at him, to demand he come back.

But her hands froze in mid-air. Slowly, she lowered them.

She knew Shen Xian too well. Once he decided on a course of action, he never looked back. If she chased him now, she wouldn’t be a help; she would be a burden. A weakness he would have to protect.

“You are always like this…”

She closed her eyes and took a deep, ragged breath. When she opened them again, the tears were gone, replaced by a steely resolve.

“Fine. If you don’t want me to look for you, I won’t.”

“But I will become strong. Strong enough to stand by your side, not hide behind you.”

She carefully folded the letter and placed it into the storage bag next to her heart. Then, she turned and walked straight into the cultivation chamber.

Shen Xian had paved the road for her. She would not waste it.

She would break through to the Nascent Soul.

She would wait for his return.

High above the clouds, en route to the Tianyao Sect.

[System Alert: Host gifted Dao Companion “Wei Zhaoli” with Rank 4 Top Grade “Green Wood Longevity Pill”.]

[Blessing Triggered: 50x Return.]

[Reward: Rank 5 Middle Grade — Dark Underworld Spirit Explosion Pill. Claim?]

Shen Xian paused in mid-air as the notification flashed.

The System had prioritized the highest-quality item for the feedback loop.

“Dark Underworld Spirit Explosion Pill…”

Shen Xian murmured the name, weighing the reward in his mind.

This was a forbidden drug of the highest order. Upon consumption, it would allow a user to temporarily possess the power of the Deity Transformation Realm.

The cost was equally steep: a ten-day period of total weakness where he would be as fragile as a mortal.

“A true trump card,” he mused. “To be used only when there is no other choice.”

He claimed the pill and stored it carefully. Then, he turned his gaze toward the horizon, where the mountain gates of the Tianyao Sect loomed amidst the clouds.

His eyes darkened.

“Now… I need to figure out how to kidnap Qiu Ruoli.”