Blind and Bereft

Chapter 88 | The World Had Died

When Jingrui's weight slumped into Zhanying's arms, he knew he had lost. No matter the outcome of the battle, he had been defeated.

There were tears within his eyes as he tried to shake her awake. "Bao Bao," his voice crooked out of his throat. "Bao Bao. . ." He called again. His jaws were so tensed that his teeth grinded. He lowered his forehead to touch hers.

The life in his arms felt like a pool of coldest snow, and his heart turned bleak. At that moment, he no longer cared for the world. He no longer cared for the throne, and he no longer cared for revenge. All that he wanted was to melt the never-ending winter that had taken over his soul.

He clenched his hands into fists as his veins throbbed against his neck. His eyes ignited with the hottest fire as he snapped it up at the army. They instantly inched back.

Gently, he laid Jingrui on the floor, and a silver flame took over his form, burning him, as if he was a creature that just rose from hell.

The army held their swords out, and backed away as far as they could, upon feeling a substantial cultivation flowing from him. Zhanying felt his muscles tearing, and his veins straining. He let out a guttural growl as scales and fangs rose from him like smoke. As if the world was facing the most tormenting retribution, he shot up into the air. His body turned to his true form, rising into the sky; a silver dragon with five claws.

The glass plane shattered. Crystalling shards fell to the ground like diamonds from the sky. The wind howled like the most wrenching screech, and the bitter rain poured into the throne hall, washing away the bloodshed.

The army and deities below glared up at him, and immediately, their swords fell from their hands. They dropped to their feet, no matter their sides, as they bowed deep. "It's the heavenly son!" they wailed. "Bless us!"

Every soul within the bloody throne hall did their deepest kowtow except one. The Empress Dowager swayed left and right as she glanced at the bowing crowd. Her hands clutched her hair as she screamed like a maniac, "Take down the rebel!" She huffed and stomped her feet when no one moved. "I said take down the rebel, can't you hear me?"

"Prince Zhanying is a five claws dragon. He's the descendant of Heaven!" A deity yelled from the crowd.

Lingyue screeched as she kicked the puddle of blood. "So what? I said take down the rebel!" She held the military tally out in her stretched arms and screamed, trying to earn someone to her side. "Why are you all not taking down the traitor? The bastard prince is the traitor of our Celestial Tribe. Can't you all see, he is the traitor—"

"You are the traitor!" The army yelled, and they launched at her, seizing her arms. Her blaring scream of vain commands rattled the night as she tried to struggle free.

Prince Zhanying flew within the dark clouds, emitting fury. He knew that if he had taken his true form earlier, the bloodshed could have been prevented. But he didn't, for he knew it was a suicide. The poison within his veins had damaged his meridians beyond repair, and he knew that if he were to use his cultivation to take his true form, he would not live to see dawn.

He had feared death before, and he had wished for a future with her, therefore he refused to transform until this moment, the moment he feared to live.

Holding onto his true form was too strenuous with his damaged flow of Qi, and the anger in him extinguished. Like a shooting star, silver light glowed around him as he fell from the sky.

The crowd gasped as he crashed onto the ground, shattering the marble floor. Smoke rose from his scale as he turned back to his deity form. The impact of the landing caused blood to gurgle out of his lips. He turned his head to the side. Lying beside him was Jingrui, the one whom he had loved with all of his heart. Tears slid from his eyes.

With every ounce of strength, he reached out towards her. His hand wrapped around her small one, intertwining his fingers in hers. A smile came over him.

He will go wherever she goes.

Within this world, only she would be his queen. A world without her was no better than an abyss.

Third Uncle Yunru stepped forward from the crowd of deities and he crouched down. Tears brimmed in his eyes as he picked up the antidote bottle from the pool of blood. "Please. Drink it, Zhanying."

Zhanying was no longer listening to words of mourning from the crowd. All that he wanted was to see her smile again and run freely without any more grief and hatred. He wanted to give all the love in this world.

The crowd bowed down low. "Please take the antidote, Heavenly Emperor."

Yunru sobbed, closing his eyes. "You have worked for the throne, and now it is yours, how can you just shrug off your responsibility like this? Who is going to rule the world and protect the world now?"

Zhanying clutched her cold hands tighter. What if he had the throne? Even if he had the whole world, it didn't matter to him anymore. He had told her he would conquer the world for her, and if she was not there to see it, what was the point? "I don't care about the world. My world had died," his words came out as a hoarse whisper.

"Zhanying. . ." Third Uncle began.

"In my life, I've never wanted the throne. All that I ever wanted was to live in peace. I wanted to see colours again, and I wanted to love. But it is too much to ask Heaven for." He closed his eyes, his vision swirled with black mists. "If fate doesn't let me live together with her, then I'll die with her."

Yunru fell onto his knees and weeped. "Alright then," his words tumbled out. "To tell you the truth, I am the one to be blamed. For all of these, if only I wasn't a coward, then maybe this could have been prevented. Since I have started all of this, I shall end it."

Zhanying was too weary to comprehend what was happening next. He saw light flickered from the tips of Yunru's fingers like rays of the dawn he would never live to see. The light shot towards Jingrui's lifeless body.

Yunru's face scrunched up in pain as he pressed out all of his power. "Who could have thought my cowardice could ruin a person's whole life."

With that, all the force within Yunru was strained into the light. Zhanying watched him, and it took him a long time to realise what Yunru was doing. The light from the fingertips was a substantial amount of cultivation. Zhanying coughed hard as he tried to sit up, but to no avail. The poison had already consumed him and he was soon to dissipate into ashes.

Suddenly, he felt warmth pricked against his palm, and something slightly twitched. His breathing became sharp, but as he tried to look over, he found his body too paralysed to move.

Yunru stood up and stumbled towards Zhanying. He pulled the cog of the antidote off and plopped down. With everything that he had, he forced the antidote down Zhanying's throat. Zhanying was far too weak to protest as his vision was being pulled towards the darkness. Trying to fight against death, he felt something thumped down against him.

Then soft speckles of lights rose into the cool air; beautiful and freed. The sky became plastered with glimmering stars, and the clouds were cleared from the night sky.

A bright and full moon graced its silver ray upon his face, beaming brightly at him. Perhaps, this was the moon that she had always wanted to see. As he closed his eyes, the only regret he had in this life was that, in the end, Bao Bao couldn't become his queen.