Lang Ruhua sat cross-legged behind Lang Huan, placing her palms firmly against the little monkey's back. "Don't resist my flow… let my qi guide you," Ruhua whispered softly.
Lang Huan clenched her teeth, chest tight and painful. The heart suffering had thrown her Heart Meridian into chaos; qi surged wildly, harming her inner organs.
Slowly, Lang Ruhua pushed her own true qi from her Lower Dantian, sending it into Lang Huan's body.
The qi moved like a warm current, running through the Conception Vessel, sinking into the Lower Dantian, then slowly rising along the Governing Vessel, running along the spine. Each time Ruhua's qi brushed past a blocked meridian knot, Lang Huan groaned, yet the suffocating weight in her chest began to ease.
Beads of sweat formed along Ruhua's brow. She had to maintain perfect rhythm—one misstep, and their qi could clash, injuring them both.
Gradually, her flow reached the Shanzhong point, center of the chest, controlling breath and emotional balance. The storm in Lang Huan's chest settled, her ragged breathing growing steady.
After several cycles of circulation, the pallor drained from her face, replaced with faint color.
Lang Ruhua pulled back her hands, her breath slightly heavy after expending so much qi. Slowly, she laid Lang Huan down on the bed, brushing her pale cheek against her shoulder.
Just as she was about to stand, a cold, wicked voice echoed, like the one she had heard on the island. "Kill… kill the woman who blocks your love… kill her…"
Her eyes narrowed. "Who are you?" she snapped, scanning the room. It was silent, completely empty.
She remembered that the creepy voice had started ever since she put on the bangle. Her gaze dropped to the gold bangle on her wrist. "…Could it be this?" she muttered, frowning.
Strange laughter filled the air, sharp and chilling, as if it clawed straight into her mind. "Damn!" Lang Ruhua was not afraid of ghosts, but this voice disturbed her heart. She slipped the bangle off.
"This thing… it's too evil," she whispered. Though the Eldest Princess had her own motives for blowing up the mountain cave entrance. Her decision had been right. If treasures like this fell into the wrong hands, chaos would swallow the world.
Her eyes shifted to Lang Huan's sword lying on the table. Could it also be corrupting the little monkey's mind? She carefully placed the bangle next to the sword, her frown deepening. "These two… they carry the same dark aura."
With a long sigh, Lang Ruhua stepped outside. The cool dawn air washed over her, easing the heaviness in her chest. She went to a secluded spot and sat cross-legged beneath the open sky, letting the stillness of nature calm her qi. Where could she hide such dangerous objects?
---
Xiao Lan slipped quietly into the room, her steps light as a shadow. It had been so long since she last saw Lang Huan after the incident with Lang Ruhua. Her chest ached with worry, but also with longing. She missed her big brother deeply.
As soon as she entered, she noticed the sound of heavy breathing. The air felt strangely cold, making her rub her hands together as she walked straight to the bed where Lang Huan lay unconscious.
She reached out and gently held Lang Huan's hand. "Big brother… it's me, Xiao Lan. Please… please get well soon," she whispered, her eyes already wet with tears.
Suddenly, a faint voice brushed past her ears, calling her name. "Xiao Lan… Xiao Lan…"
Her head shot up, startled. She looked around the room—no one was there. The voice came again, soft and tempting. "Xiao Lan… Xiao Lan…"
Drawn by the whisper, she slowly stepped toward the round table in the corner. There, lying in the dim light, was a golden bangle and sword. Her eyes widened, caught by its beauty. The bangle was… mesmerizing.
Deep inside her heart, a sudden, desperate desire rose. Xiao Lan's fingers trembled as she reached toward the bangle. The golden light seemed to call her closer.
Her hand hovered above it. The moment her skin touched the metal, a rush of cold spread through her body.
Before she realized it, Xiao Lan slid the bangle onto her wrist. She gasped, clutching her wrist. "Um… how do I take this off?"
She pulled and tugged at the bangle. The bangle only grew tighter—squeezing, biting into her flesh until thin lines of blood trickled down. Panic filled her chest as she struggled to remove it with all her strength.
Then a voice slithered into her ears, cold and poisonous. "Xiao Lan… you're pretty. What use is beauty, when your big brother never notices you? His heart belongs only to Feng Yao… and Lang Ruhua."
Her eyes widened, fear flashing across her face. "Who… who's speaking? Is it… the bangle?" she whispered, trembling.
As if hypnotized, Xiao Lan approached the mirror and looked at her reflection. She was like a flower just beginning to bloom.
The mocking laughter returned, twisting into words that stabbed her heart. "Ha… ha… ha… You're not as beautiful as Feng Yao, nor as charming as Lang Ruhua. And you? Just a little girl from a small village."
"All men love young, beautiful women. No matter how dazzling they are, beauty will always fade with time. How could Feng Yao or Lang Ruhua compare with me?"
In desperation, she shoved the bronze mirror standing in the corner—it toppled with a thunderous clang, the polished surface cracking as fragments of its decorated frame scattered across the floor.
"Stupid girl… Who is Lang Huan? He is a duke's son, far above you. Do you think you could ever hold his gaze?" The bangle continued to provoke her, whispering venom into her heart.
She stumbled back to Lang Huan's bedside, her gaze softening as she looked at the still face.
"No… my big brother is kind. He never looks down on me," she whispered fiercely. "When he looks at me… his eyes are always gentle."
Tears blurred her sight as she leaned closer, her lips brushing against Lang Huan. The kiss was trembling and clumsy. It was her first bold act.
The moment Xiao Lan's lips touched Lang Huan's, her heart pounded wildly. The whisper returned, colder, sharper, dripping like poison.
"He dotes on you only as a little girl. A sister to be pitied. Do you think he will ever see you as a woman?"
"Shut up!" Her fingers clutched the robe tightly. Jealousy coiled like a snake inside her, whispering in rhythm with the bangle's pulse.
"Feng Yao, the perfect princess. Lang Ruhua, the powerful fairy. And you? Just a small flower in the dirt, struggling to bloom. Kill them... Only if the two women die will you win his love."
"Kill them… kill them… feed me with their blood… I will help you fulfill your desire. Marry the duke's son. You will gain wealth and his love…"
"Moreover, Lang Ruhua killed your mother… as a filial daughter, you must take revenge," the sinister man continued.
"Ho… how could you know?" Xiao Lan gasped. The bangle seemed to be able to read her mind and heart.
"Hahaha… it is you who let me enter your heart and mind. Now we have become one… hahaha…"