The Aloof Lord's Mysterious Wife
Chapter 681: I Already Have a Husband, and I Don’t Need Another Brother

Chapter 681: I Already Have a Husband, and I Don’t Need Another Brother

Yuan Zhenhai thought that he would be better off dead rather than being imprisoned in this secluded courtyard by Yuan Zhenxian.

He had already damaged his body, and his cultivation was unlikely to improve. It would be better to die now and make way for Yuan Zhenxian.

Perhaps due to the frustration building up in him, Yuan Zhenhai’s breath became erratic, and a strange flush appeared on his face again.

Nanli frowned and immediately drew a talisman, which flew directly into his chest.

She spoke coldly, "The sinister energy within your body is not difficult to remove, but don’t let your thoughts wander now. Don’t waste my efforts."

Being schemed against, he thought, it would be best to rise up again, and eliminate those who betrayed him one by one. After all, it’s not him who deserves to die.

Yuan Zhenhai’s confused thoughts were calmed by her talisman.

The spiritual energy in his Dantian, which had been swirling violently, slowly began to calm down.

He looked at Nanli again, seeing a trace of concern in her eyes.

His heart stirred. "Miss, you’re doing all this for me..."

"It’s not for you. It’s for myself," Nanli quickly interrupted, wanting to avoid any misunderstandings. "I already have a husband."

Yuan Zhenhai’s mouth moved, but no words came out.

"And I already have five older brothers." She continued, "So, don’t even think about getting any closer."

Yuan Zhenhai’s face stiffened but quickly relaxed. She was direct and straightforward, a person of character.

Wasn’t this exactly the type of friend he wanted?

"Being able to be friends with you, madam, is no regret," he said.

Nanli raised an eyebrow, taking out a wanted poster from her pocket and handing it to him.

"Since you’ve thought it through, I will reveal my identity to show my sincerity."

The paper was no ordinary sheet; it was subtly waterproof and fireproof.

It listed her, Chu Nanli, as a criminal who had joined forces with Qiao Nanyi of Jialan to kill the Valley Lord of Frosty Valley and injure the Zen Master Shanhai of the Divine Buddha Sect. The four major sects jointly issued a bounty for her, offering Spirit Stones as a reward for capturing her.

There was also her portrait on the poster, drawn so lifelike that it was almost real, with her striking beauty immortalized in ink.

However, after being processed by the sects, the portrait showed a slightly demonic aura around her eyebrows, making her appear sinister and wicked, as if she was a villain.

But Yuan Zhenhai was stunned by the portrait, his mouth agape for a long while before he managed to speak.

"Madam, you..." He coughed lightly, trying to regain his composure and not appear too rude. "I didn’t expect you to be so ruthless, even teaming up with Jialan’s Second Elder to kill Valley Lord Yang."

Nanli seemed a little helpless, her expression becoming more serious.

"Valley Lord Yang wasn’t killed by me, but Shanhai... I did injure him. The reason I’m helping Hundred Pass Town now is to gather my own power by starting from the Lower Realm and to oppose the sects of the Upper Realm."

"If you’re unwilling to go that far, I won’t force you. However, since I’ve helped clear the sinister energy in your body and enabled you to control Seaside City, in the future, if I can’t help Hundred Pass Town with their flood, you must open the city gates and allow the people of Hundred Pass Town to take refuge."

As she spoke, she had already removed the Body-Freezing Talisman from Yuan Zhenhai.

As for Qiao Nanyi, the Second Elder of Jialan... He was probably loyal to Siheng, but with the bounty now on their heads, it was likely that he had gone into hiding.

Yuan Zhenhai stared at the wanted poster, his thoughts weighed down. His brow furrowed and didn’t relax.

"Madam, your actions aren’t only for your own benefit. You’re also helping those innocent people. I truly admire that," he said. "Besides, these sects from the Upper Realm are hardly virtuous. I believe you aren’t a wicked person but someone forced to harm others by them."

Nanli heard this and relaxed a little, sitting more casually.

"It seems the public’s eyes are indeed sharp," she said.

In the information she had gathered, the people from Penglai Island hadn’t spoken ill of themselves because they were the powerful and the beneficiaries.

But the people from the Lower Realm were different.

They had little spiritual energy.

Due to their lack of strength, the sects from the Lower Realm had been wiped out, and all their secret manuals and magical tools had been taken away.

Even the long-standing cities in the Lower Realm had been oppressed, forced to offer tribute to the six major sects every year.

These so-called Immortal Cultivation sects were nothing more than bandits.

Yuan Zhenhai sighed.

"My father once said that when the Celestial Sovereign set up the two-layered protective barrier, it was to prevent the Demon Ruin cracks from being left unfixed. After all, if the demonic energy leaked out, the consequences would be unimaginable."

"The Celestial Sovereign did all this for the people of the Nine States, but who would’ve thought that the Upper Realm scoundrels would use the one-layered barrier for their own benefit, doing evil and pursuing their own interests."

Nanli’s thoughts stirred.

The Lower Realm people seemed to hold Siheng in high regard, suggesting that he was indeed a competent Celestial Sovereign.

"How did they exploit it?" Nanli asked, "After all, the Spirit Tree grows in the Upper Realm."

When Yuan Zhenhai heard this, he realized that Nanli was somewhat ignorant about this matter.

Of course, this was all part of the dirty history, and unless one came from a long-established family, they wouldn’t know about these things.

He said, "Actually, back then, this place was where the Immortal Palace had sunk. It was a place that didn’t distinguish between the Upper Realm and Lower Realm. There were a few Spirit Trees here, but one day, someone dug up the tree spirits. The Spirit Trees were already on the brink of withering, and once the tree spirits were removed, the trees immediately withered and died."

Thus, the Immortal World was divided into the Upper and Lower Realms due to the varying strength of spiritual energy.

Nanli propped her chin up with one hand, raising an eyebrow. "Could it be that the major sects dug up the tree spirits to try and revive the Spirit Trees in the Upper Realm?"

Yuan Zhenhai smiled disdainfully. "Yes, my father’s subordinates saw it, but they dared not speak of it, nor did they dare to act against it."

Because once the matter became public, not only would their lives be in danger, but the entire Seaside City would be in jeopardy.

His father had told the brothers about this.

Although they couldn’t yet confront the Upper Realm’s sects, they wouldn’t bow down to them either. Losing their dignity meant losing everything, and that wasn’t the way of the Yuan family.

Nanli said, "That’s truly selfish and vicious. How dare they claim that it was the Immortal Liquid that revived the Spirit Trees?"

Yuan Zhenhai shook his head seriously. "No, our tree spirits were dug up long before they found the Immortal Liquid, so the tree spirits were of no use."

"What’s the deal with the Immortal Liquid?" Nanli asked.

"This matter is secret, known only to the sect leaders and elders of the major sects. With their means, the Immortal Liquid must have come from dubious sources," Yuan Zhenhai replied. "After all, once the two sect leaders of the Limitless Palace and Frosty Valley died, their sects’ Spirit Trees immediately withered."

There were many hidden secrets in all this.

But these were things that a Lower Realm cultivator like him couldn’t investigate.

Even if they knew the Immortal Liquid had dubious origins, what could they do?

They didn’t dare to fight back.

Because the spiritual energy in the Lower Realm was more scarce, and the battles between the ten major cities were even fiercer.

Nanli thought about it and realized that Yun Yubai might know the answer.

So she had to finish up this matter and head to the Seven Peaks Sect.

After calculating the time, she asked, "Have you made up your mind?"

Yuan Zhenhai stood up with a relaxed expression, and he could already use his spiritual energy faintly.

His gaze was determined as he said, "I have been waiting for a chance ever since I fell ill. I believe that you are that chance."

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