Chapter 1278: Unchanging and Faithful Oath

When the survivors heard what she said, they weren’t really all that surprised that she was married. After all, based on her hairstyle and other details they had seen while she was in the coffin, they had all indicated that she was a married woman.

As for the husband she spoke of, they all turned to look at the black-haired monster. Of course, there was a lot less black hair on his body, and they could vaguely make out a rather handsome man. However, perhaps because he hadn’t seen the sun for too long, his face was extremely pale, like a zombie’s.

Zu An didn’t respond immediately. The beautiful woman quickly landed next to the monster, using her body to help him block the flashlight’s light. The monster’s pain finally eased a bit. The woman took him into her embrace, her eyes filled with grief. Seeing that she didn’t react at all when the flashlight landed on her, Zu An realized the woman wasn’t an undead creature. After some hesitation, he moved the flashlight away, no longer aiming it at the black-haired monster.

Of course, he wasn’t stupid enough to turn it off. After all, this was his last use already. It was going to turn off on its own after two hours, so he obviously had to make full use of its remaining time, in case the monster might suddenly attack again.

“Thank you, young master!” the woman exclaimed, then bowed toward Zu An with an expression full of gratitude.

The monster was still groaning, clutching his head as if in endless pain. However, the woman gently patted his body and sang a tune. The monster gradually calmed down. Seemingly enjoying her embrace, he even adjusted his posture a bit. The viciousness on his face faded, replaced with a sense of peace and affection.

“What is your esteemed husband called?” Zu An asked seriously. “What exactly happened between you two?”

“People call me Madam Yu,” the woman replied. As soon as she spoke, Yan Xuehen and Yun Jianyue turned to look at Yu Yanluo with strange expressions. Why did their names sound so similar?

Yu Yanluo was also stunned. She had felt a mysterious sense of familiarity while the woman was still in the coffin. Now that the woman had come to life, that feeling had grown even stronger. It was almost as if they were relatives, and yet the woman clearly wasn’t of the Medusa race!

The woman slowly said, “This is my husband, the past Sui State’s monarch. The people called him Lord Sui.”

“Sui State?” The others looked at each other in dismay. Neither the humans nor the fiends had heard of any Sui State.

Meanwhile, Zu An was moved. Sui State? Lord Sui? That country did indeed exist in the ancient history of his previous world.

The woman wasn’t surprised to see the survivors’ confused expressions. She replied, “You have not heard of it? It seems to have been so long that the Sui State has already faded from the great river of history.”

Then, she ran her slender and gentle, jade-like fingers through the hair of the monster in her arms. She seemed to be reminiscing about the past as she said, “The first time I met my husband was in a valley. Back then, I was seriously injured after fighting an old enemy in a battle to the death. My body was almost cut in half, and I could no longer remain in human form. However, he just happened to be passing by. Not only did he not turn his back on me because of my appearance, he instead had his subordinates treat me, even personally wrapping my wounds. He always took care of me…”

The woman had a mysterious, gentle expression as she lowered her head toward the monster in her arms, saying, “He really was a kind person.”

The survivors were shocked. They thought back to the mural they had seen when they first entered the tomb. The story seemed to match what was depicted in it. However, the one that had been cut in half was clearly a large snake!

The longer she looked at the woman, the more fervent Yu Yanluo’s expression became. This woman was of the same species after all! But why couldn't she sense the aura of that species from her at all?

The bit of pressure coming from the woman didn’t come from her strength, but rather from a bloodline restriction. Was there actually a bloodline even nobler than the Medusa bloodline?!

“Lord Sui’s Pearl!” Zu An exclaimed, finally remembering where he had heard of the familiar story.

Sir He’s Jade[1] and Lord Sui’s Pearl[2] were the two most famous treasures of the Spring and Autumn Period. However, the whereabouts of Lord Sui’s Pearl were unknown, so compared to Sir He’s Jade, its fame was a bit lower.

The woman exclaimed in surprise. “Hm? So you actually know about that event in history? Indeed, after I recovered, in order to show my gratitude, I sought him out and gave my life pearl to him. The people of this world called it Lord Sui’s Pearl.”

Zu An was in a bit of a daze. After coming to this world, he had discovered that it contained many traces and legends related to his previous world, and yet they were all events shrouded in mystery and mythology. Was this world’s history really the history of his own world?

“But according to the recordings, it was a great snake that offered up the pearl. Don’t tell me you’re…” Zu An asked hesitantly.

The woman nodded slightly and replied, “That is right. I am a descendant of Nuwa, so I do have a portion of snake bloodline within me.”[3]

The others on the stone platform were baffled. They had never heard of the name Nuwa, but the woman was from the Snake race after all! They all looked at Yu Yanluo.

Yu Yanluo began breathing rapidly. They were of the same race after all! But why had she never heard of a Nuwa clan before?

“Nuwa?” Zu An exclaimed in surprise. In Chinese mythology, there was once a huge hole that opened up in the heavens. Nuwa was the goddess who had filled in that hole, then used the leftover five-colored divine soil to create the human race.

The woman explained, “My ancestor is merely a legend. We descendants have never had such powerful abilities.” She lowered her head to look at the man in her arms again. A sweet and gentle smile appeared on her face as she continued, “After being saved by him and being around him for so long, I inadvertently ended up loving this kind and warm man. That is why I not only offered up the pearl, but also took on human form to become his partner. As if it were destined by the heavens, he also quickly fell in love with me.”

The others’ expressions became strange. They thought to themselves, If you were this beautiful and approached a man of your own accord, what man would ever refuse you? It would be strange if they didn’t like you.

“Sadly, however, good things do not last forever. Eventually, a disaster arrived. Lord Sui fought bravely for his people, but he was afflicted by evil. He gradually began to sink into demonic madness.”

The others recalled the black hair and mist covering the monster. Was that the demonic madness the woman was speaking of?

Princess Suolun really wanted to find out if it had anything to do with the Demon race. Why were so many things referred to using the ‘demon’ character? That was the case with the human race’s Devil Sect, and the demonic madness this woman had spoken of was the same.

Zu An asked in alarm, “Just was kind of a disaster was it?” Why didn’t he remember that part of history? Furthermore, if it had turned Lord Sui into this half-human, half-demon thing, wasn’t that calamity way too terrifying?

To his surprise, however, the woman shook her head and said, “There are some situations in which knowing more will only harm you.”

Zu An was speechless. He hated being kept in the dark, but since she didn’t want to talk about it, he couldn't force her mouth open either.

The woman continued, “After Lord Sui fell into demonic madness, he feared that he would hurt his people and me. As such, he left without saying goodbye, disappearing without a trace.

“In order to find him, I searched the thousand mountains and ten thousand waters. In the end, I finally found him, but he no longer resembled his past self in the slightest. He was just as you all saw just now. However, I still recognized him. He was bloodthirsty and delirious when he went mad, but he never harmed me in the slightest.

“I tried to think of all kinds of methods to save him, but they all failed. Later on, I heard that there was a method that could be tried, but it was extremely dangerous. For him, however, I was willing to try it. Unfortunately, not only did I fail, I also lost my own life…”

The others all felt strange. She had clearly said that she died, and yet she was standing in front of them in perfect health. What was going on, exactly?

The woman looked down at the monster in her arms and said, “It was he who saved my dying self again. I have no idea where he found the legendary Three Three Flower, but back then, it was still far from blooming and could not save me. Furthermore, the amount of time it would take for it to bloom was too long, so he searched the world and gathered Prime Souldew to seal me inside, waiting for the Three Three Flower to bloom again all this time.

“Even after falling into madness and only retaining his instincts, he still continued to protect me. In order to save me, he did so much…” She could no longer hold back her grief as she spoke. Teardrops like pearls fell onto the face of the man in her arms.

1. A man from Ch'u named Pien Ho found a piece of unpolished jade at the foot of the Ching Mountains. He offered it as tribute to King Wu of the Chou dynasty. King Wu had it inspected by a jade expert, who declared it to be ordinary stone. Pien Ho had his left leg cut off (as punishment). When King Wen came to the throne, Pien Ho once more presented the jade. King Wen took it to be ordinary stone, and Pien Ho had his right leg cut off. Pien Ho wrapped the jade carefully and wept tears of blood. When King Ch'eng ascended the throne, Pien Ho once again presented the jade. King Ch'eng said: 'Dear sir, you disregard having your legs cut off, as long as you can have your jade piece cut up for examination.' As soon as the stone was cut, it appeared that it was truly fine jade, and it was made into a jade disk. ☜

2. The Marquis of Sui's pearl was a famous gemstone in the Warring States folktale about a ruler of the state of Sui, who was given an amazing luminous pearl by a grateful snake whose life he had saved. ☜

3. Nuwa is the creator of humans in Chinese mythology ☜