Chapter 540: Chapter 540
Qin Zhao’s consciousness was already growing dim, and she felt like a light feather floating on the surface of the sea, uncertain of where she would drift.
Deep beneath the sea, it seemed that shadows of people were emerging.
All were people she recognized.
Her parents from her past life, her siblings, her clan.
One after another they questioned her, asking if she had avenged them yet. Why hadn’t she sought revenge?
Qin Zhao didn’t know what to say, staring blankly at them.
The disappointment in their eyes was like a multitude of sharp swords, piercing her heart.
The surging waves grew higher, threatening to completely engulf her.
It might be better to just die .
If she were to die, she wouldn’t feel guilty anymore.
Suddenly, such a thought emerged in her mind.
And the thought of death didn’t scare Qin Zhao; on the contrary, it gave her a sense of relief.
She had left a child for Chu Yan.
That would be enough.
Let him cling to that memory, and then she would leave.
There would be no regrets that way.
The storm on the sea grew fiercer, pulling Qin Zhao’s body down into the depths of the ocean.
"No! Zhaozhao, wake up! Wake up and look at me!"
Chu Yan’s frantic calls reached her ears.
There was a hint of crying in his voice.
Qin Zhao felt tired, so very tired; she didn’t want to respond to him at all.
The hospital alarm suddenly sounded.
"What’s going on? Wasn’t all her data good just after she gave birth?"
The doctor and nurses hurried over and rushed Qin Zhao back to the operating room.
This time, the resuscitation was personally overseen by Chu Yan.
His eyes reddened with urgency, but he had to calm himself down.
However, no matter how hard he tried, Qin Zhao’s heartbeat remained a flat line.
"She has given up on herself; your efforts are in vain."
The figure of the Netherworld Emperor passed through the doors of the operating room and stood beside Chu Yan.
He looked at the woman on the operating table and couldn’t help but remember the first time Chu Yan had come to him, desperate to do anything to revive her.
But despite all his efforts, he had ended up back where he started.
Oh no, that wasn’t quite right; there was a gain.
There was an additional child.
The Netherworld Emperor, seeing the silent Chu Yan, suddenly felt that the child seemed to mean nothing to him.
"Why? Why must you always leave me alone?"
He stared at the person on the hospital bed, his eyes a bloody scarlet, the aura of slaughter around him becoming somewhat uncontrollable.
To the extent that the doctors and nurses in the operating room had all passed out.
The Netherworld Emperor waved his hand to protect these mortals and spoke up to remind him, "Chu Yan, calm down."
"I can’t be calm! Without her, what meaning is there for me to live in this world! It’s all my fault; I shouldn’t have wanted this child. If it weren’t for this child, I wouldn’t have lost her!"
The Netherworld Emperor, seeing somewhat mad Chu Yan, felt his brows jump wildly, sensing that something bad was going to happen.
He cast a spell, enveloping Qin Zhao in it.
"Just wait, this Emperor will think of something, surely there’s a way to solve this! Don’t be rash!"
Chu Yan then turned his gaze towards him, the depths of his cool Phoenix Eyes brimming with a violent and brutal aura.
"I’ll think of something, I’ll think of something."
Chu Yan’s look sent a shiver through the Netherworld Emperor’s heart.
If he couldn’t save this woman, Chu Yan would likely lash out and unrest would ensue across all realms.
He pondered hard for a while, "I think it’s still because of the conflicts from your past life. You need to unravel this knot in her heart before she can fully accept you."
"How exactly do we unravel it? It’s a dead end. Those people are dead, their souls have scattered. How can we possibly redeem this?"
Chu Yan wrapped his arms around his head, consumed by internal agony.
The reckless slaughter committed in a moment of impulse had cost him dearly, and even after a thousand years, he was still unable to atone for his sins.
Karma, this was all his karma.
But he couldn’t bear it—he couldn’t simply lose Qin Zhao !
"You’d better think of a solution, or I’ll make every being across all realms, every ghost in the Netherworld, accompany her in death!"
Chu Yan lifted his bloodshot Phoenix Eyes, staring intently at the Netherworld Emperor.
He was threatening him.
But it was also the only option he had.
"I really owe you big time!"
The Netherworld Emperor tugged at his hair, frustrated with worrying over Chu Yan’s affairs—more so than even his own son, who, unlike Chu Yan, he could punish.
"Here’s what you can do. Go to the Wang River’s Naihe Bridge and ask Meng Po for a bowl of Forget River Water. With it, she can forget the one she loves; wouldn’t it be fine if she forgot about you?"
"No way!" Chu Yan flatly refused, "I absolutely can’t let her forget me."
"If she remembers you, she’ll remember the grievances of her past life. Do you want her to die all over again?
Her soul is different from others. It’s a residual soul that you picked up and mended. It won’t reincarnate nor can it cultivate in a ghostly form; it will just fade away bit by bit."
"Is there no other way?"
Chu Yan looked at the Netherworld Emperor with puppy dog eyes, lowering his status for the second time almost pleadingly, "I beg you, think of some other way. I don’t want her to forget me."
"What if she does forget? You can start over. Besides, this pregnancy and childbirth have greatly affected her; her cultivation has almost dissipated.
The Heart Demon created by the resentments of her past life—if she retains those memories, she won’t be able to achieve Ascension in this life and will ultimately age and die."
Chu Yan didn’t speak, staring blankly at Qin Zhao on the bed.
Her face was incredibly pale, devoid of any color.
Chu Yan knelt beside the operating table, tightly holding her hand, and asked in a small, grievous voice, "Zhaozhao, do you really hate me that much? Have you long wanted to completely forget me?
I know I was wrong, and so I did many good deeds, helping countless people and ghosts, but you never knew, is it too late to make amends?"
He rested his chin on the back of her hand, and tears kept falling.
Eventually, he couldn’t hold back any longer and burst into tears, cradling her.
"Qin Zhao, I have never seen someone as heartless as you," he choked out accusingly, "Even if you despise me, how could you abandon a newborn child?
He’s a boy; I don’t like boys at all—I won’t take good care of him.
So wake up, will you? You take care of him, alright?"
"Qin Zhao, please wake up, as a favor to me."
The Netherworld Emperor silently observed him, exhaling a rueful sigh.
He had known Chu Yan for hundreds of years and never seen him beg anyone.
Chu Yan had only begged him twice, both times for Qin Zhao’s sake.
The Qingyan God, esteemed by both the Emperor and the Netherworld Emperor, was utterly humbled by this woman.
"Go to Wang River quickly; her soul won’t last much longer."
Seeing the life force in Qin Zhao rapidly diminishing, the Netherworld Emperor urged Chu Yan.
Chu Yan then came back to his senses.
He asked the Netherworld Emperor to look after Qin Zhao for a moment and went to the next room to pick up the child.
Looking at the child in his arms who was blissfully unaware, staring back with clear eyes, Chu Yan’s heart was numb with pain.
"Let’s start over, then."