*Clap! Clap! Clap!*
A series of crisp, loud claps rang out. "Wonderful. Truly wonderful." The laughter that followed was chilling to the bone. "What a pair of devoted lovers."
Chu Ruo spun around, shielding Nan Muxue firmly behind her. This drew a look of utter disdain from Nan Menghua. "A blind girl who can barely look after herself... you truly overestimate your abilities."
"Nan Menghua, don't think you can calculate everything. Since I dared to stand here today, I am not afraid to die."
"Is that so? But your beloved might not feel the same way." Nan Menghua remained shrouded in the shadows. "Otherwise, she wouldn't have exhausted every effort to send you down the mountain."
As expected, she knew everything. It was as if every corner of the Baihua Palace was under her watchful eye. Chu Ruo shifted into a defensive stance. "And that is exactly why I would give my life for Xue'er."
"Hahaha... Should I call you naive or just plain stupid? Do you think that in this Baihua Palace, life and death are yours to decide? No. It is I who decides. I am the heavens here!"
"Mother," Nan Muxue said, gripping Chu Ruo’s hand and stepping forward to face her. "Ruo'er and I will not be parted."
Chu Ruo turned her head slightly, a smile playing on her lips. "You've had a change of heart?"
The woman smiled back at her. "If you aren't afraid of death, how could I, your Master, be? I went through so much trouble to send you away, yet you insisted on coming back. If we are to die, we die together."
Chu Ruo suddenly burst into a wild, unrestrained laugh—a rare display of such bold defiance. She raised their joined hands, flaunting their bond. "Nan Menghua, do you see? Xue'er and I—in life, we share a robe; in death, we share a grave. You are the pathetic one. You will never know the taste of love!"
These final words clearly struck a nerve. Nan Menghua lunged at them in a fit of rage. Chu Ruo was instantly on high alert. With her beloved in her arms, she was incredibly cautious; at the slightest stir of wind, she dodged with feline agility. She continued to provoke her opponent. "You can't even catch a blind girl? You're not all that after all!"
Nan Menghua’s face contorted into a hideous snarl. Her hand curved into a claw as she struck out viciously. "You seek death!"
However, while she was driven to distraction by Chu Ruo's taunts, Chu Ruo remained steady. She didn't counterattack, but she didn't allow a single blow to land either. Despite the circumstances, she held her own. Nan Yunshuang stood by, watching without intervening. Nan Menghua was consumed by a murderous fury; she wanted to seize them with her own hands and torture them to death, so she issued no orders. Thus, Nan Yunshuang remained a mere spectator.
After several exchanges, guided by Nan Muxue’s whispered cues, Chu Ruo moved with lithe grace. Nan Menghua’s eyes were bloodshot with rage, her every move intended to kill. Slowly, the fight moved from the entrance toward the interior of the dungeon. Just as they reached the exit, Chu Ruo flashed a cunning smile. As Nan Menghua lunged again, Chu Ruo raised her other hand and flung a cloud of lime powder directly into her face. It hit the mark perfectly! In the blink of an eye, the two had vanished from the dungeon, leaving only Nan Yunshuang and the blinded, cursing Nan Menghua behind.
Nan Yunshuang finally stepped forward. "Palace Master..."
A hand clamped around her throat. "Do you also look down on me? Those who betray me time and time again never meet a good end!"
"This disciple... would not dare."
*Crash!* A palm strike shattered everything in the cell. "Kill them! Send the order! Kill those two wretches!"
"Yes."
***
Chu Ruo had just managed to lead Nan Muxue out, but the orders of the Baihua Palace traveled faster. They were soon surrounded by countless disciples. They were forced to fight as they retreated. The disciples had no choice; though they were reluctant to strike, disobeying the Palace Master meant certain death. They pressed on, relentlessly draining Chu Ruo’s strength. Although she could handle them individually, protecting Nan Muxue while fighting and trying to find an escape route was taking its toll. After several rounds, her exhaustion became apparent.
Nan Muxue, held close to her, felt her fatigue. She wrapped her arms around Chu Ruo’s waist. "Where is Bai Zhier? Didn't they come to rescue you?"
"You're asking what you already know. Don't count on them. I made them go down the mountain. Don't worry about how I did it; they won't be coming back. Otherwise, how could they have agreed to let me run back here to die with you?"
"You..."
"Alright, alright, pay attention. Don't scold me now. Let's figure out how to get off this mountain."
"It's no use. Mother is far too shrewd. We've only just escaped the dungeon, yet these disciples are already organized and in position. Every path down the mountain must be blocked by now. Unless we jump into the bottomless abyss."
"Xue'er, I... I'm useless, aren't I? I've led us into a dead end."
Nan Muxue shook her head gently. "No. I'll say it again: my Ruo'er is the best."
"My little viper, you always know how to coax me."
"Even at death's door, you two still find time for your affections?"
"Of course! Unlike you—an old hag whom nobody wants!"
Nan Menghua had only just managed to clear the lime from her face. Her expression was already ghastly, but hearing Chu Ruo mock her so openly in front of the disciples sent her into a fresh explosion of rage. She charged forward, but Chu Ruo raised her hand again as if to throw more powder. Nan Menghua instinctively flinched, and in that opening, the two broke through the encirclement once more.
"Palace Master!"
"Hmph. They can't run far. Every path down is sealed. The only way they're leaving this mountain is as corpses."
***
"Xue'er, where are we going? There's no road left."
"There is one more place."
"Right, the Cold Ice Cave!"
"Haven't I always said you weren't stupid?"
"I'm never stupid. But there's no way down from there either."
Nan Muxue led her quickly through the terrain. "But it is a forbidden zone."
"So what? The disciples won't follow, but Nan Menghua—I mean, your mother..."
They reached the vicinity of the Cold Ice Cave. For a brief moment, there were no disciples around them—a rare second of solitude. Nan Muxue turned and straightened Chu Ruo’s collar. "Nan Menghua can come here. But this is the only place without a crowd. Ruo'er."
"Calling me so suddenly... what is it?"
"Have you truly made up your mind?"
Having come this far together, their mutual understanding went without saying. Chu Ruo reached out and kissed her beloved’s forehead. "I came here today to die with you. Even as a ghost, I’m going to haunt you, Nan Muxue."
"Good."
Nan Menghua arrived like a vengeful specter, but Nan Muxue simply held her lover’s hand tight. "Mother, this is the last time I shall call you that. My martial arts are gone. I have done enough for the Baihua Palace over the years to repay what was given. You will never lay a hand on us again!"
*Splash!*
The former Young Palace Master and the Holy Envoy of the Baihua Palace leaped together into the bottomless depths of the Silent Lake.
