Crossing the Palace Fighting Fox Harem

Chapter 416 Soul Contract

In the Immortal Pavilion, Yun Zhen closed his eyes, feeling the evil spirit flowing between heaven and earth, and said: "The evil spirit gathered in the west outside the palace has dissipated, but there is still a grudge of the dead... It seems that many people have died..."

"Has anyone been killed by a monster?" Ji Anni asked anxiously, hugging Prince Ming tightly in her arms.

Knowing that tonight was a dangerous full moon night, Ji Anni hurriedly brought Prince Ming to the Xianke Pavilion.

It was late at night, but she and Prince Ming were not tired at all.

Yun Zhen set up a seal in the room to block out any evil spirits from the outside world, hoping that he could spend the night safely.

"I heard from Hua Rong that the Queen Mother... is leaving the palace tonight? Could it be that the team escorting the Queen Mother out of the palace was attacked by a monster..." Ji Anni stood up uneasily, opened the window, and looked into the distance. Although she could not see anything, she could feel the ominous breath in the wind.

Yun Zhen still closed his eyes and did not answer. This silence seemed to prove that he had agreed with Ji Anni's guess.

The Queen Mother is heading to the Western Capital tonight, and that direction is where the evil spirit is heaviest tonight. Now that the place is densely filled with the spirit of the dead, does it prove that the convoy has been attacked and a large number of guards have died?

The reason why Yun Zhen didn't say anything was because he didn't want to add to Ji Anni's panic.

"Mother... I, I feel cold all over..." Prince Ming pulled Ji Anni's sleeve and trembled slightly.

Not only Prince Ming, but even Ji Anni had already felt the chill.

"Master, all the evil spirits are gathered in the west. Does that mean the palace is safe for the time being?" asked Ji Annie.

No matter how powerful Yuan Rong's magic power is, it is impossible for him to cause chaos both outside and inside the palace at the same time.

Yun Zhen slowly opened his eyes, "Yuan Rong's black snakes should all be outside the palace, but the evil spirit of the black snakes can cover the palace... Even if we don't confront the snakes head-on, we can't avoid being affected by the evil spirit... Madam, Prince, the various discomforts you are feeling now are precisely because of the influence of the evil spirit..."

"What should we do then?" Ji Anni subconsciously hugged Prince Ming in her arms. Prince Ming's slightly trembling body made her heartbroken.

Yun Zhen said: "This room has been sealed, it should not be affected by the evil spirit...but..." He let out a helpless bitter smile, "But...I actually forgot that I can't resist Yuan Rong's evil spirit..."

"National Master?" Ji Anni noticed that Yun Zhen's voice was getting lower and lower. She looked up and found that Yun Zhen turned his face to the wall. His face was paler than the moonlight, and there was no trace of blood left.

"My Lady, I'm afraid Yun Zhen may not be able to maintain this seal..."

As soon as he finished speaking, Yun Zhen coughed violently.

Ji Anni saw a few drops of blood on his white clothes.

"Master, what's wrong with you? Is it serious?" Ji Anni hurried over and helped him up.

When her fingers accidentally brushed across Yun Zhen's shoulder, the strange touch made Ji Anni stunned for a moment.

The feeling on Yun Zhen's shoulder was not skin at all, but bones...hard bones...

No matter how thin you get, you won't be just bones, right?

Seeing Ji Anni in a daze, Yun Zhen moved away as if hiding, "My Lady, I'm fine."

Ji Anni didn't believe it at all and reached out to touch Yun Zhen's shoulder again.

Yun Zhen raised his sleeve to wave away Ji Anni's hand, stood up and walked to the door.

This evasive attitude further proves that he is guilty and is hiding something.

Ji Anni became even more worried and subconsciously chased after him, "Master, what happened to you? Your shoulder..."

"My queen, everyone has a little secret. Can you please not get to the bottom of it?" Yun Zhen lowered his head to avoid Ji Anni's gaze.

"No, I must know, because you are a person who always makes things difficult for yourself. If you don't tell me, I will tear your clothes off." As she spoke, Ji Anni had already grabbed Yun Zhen's collar, intending to tear it open.

"My queen..." Yun Zhen didn't know what to say. He knew Ji Anni's character best. Since she decided to know the truth, no matter what method he used to hide it, he couldn't escape her.

Ji Anni's memory was a little hazy at this moment. She vaguely remembered that not long ago, she seemed to have grabbed Yun Zhen like this and wanted to see his shoulder, but was interrupted by Prince Ming later. Since she didn't succeed last time, she must see the truth this time.

"Master... even if you don't let me see, I can guess... your shoulder is only bone left, right? Why did Yuan Rong's evil spirit cause such great harm to you?"

Under the influence of the evil spirit, Ji Anni and Prince Ming only felt cold, but Yun Zhen lost his flesh and blood...

"Master, you have so many secrets. Are you unwilling to tell me anything?" Ji Anni slowly loosened her grip on Yun Zhen's collar, and suddenly felt that there was no point in forcing him like this. If Master didn't tell her, and she couldn't pry open his mouth, what would it matter even if she saw his shoulders turned into bones?

"Mother..." Ji Annie's sad expression made Prince Ming worry about her.

"Forget it." Ji Anni let go of Yun Zhen and returned to Prince Ming. "As the Imperial Master said, everyone has secrets. I won't force you. I don't blame you for hiding them, I only blame myself for not being qualified to know your secrets..."

He said this not to provoke Yun Zhen, but because he really felt that he was not qualified.

Ji Anni made the bed for Prince Ming and said, "Ming'er, it's getting late. Even if you can't sleep, you should go to bed early."

As long as you close your eyes, your mood will gradually calm down.

"Your Majesty, Yun Zhen will step outside the door to guard." Yun Zhen decided to leave first because he was afraid of disturbing Ji Anni and Prince Ming's rest, and also because he was afraid that Ji Anni would continue the previous topic.

"Master, please go back to your room and rest early. Yuan Rong should not be in the palace tonight, so my son and I won't be in any danger." She wanted Yun Zhen to leave, the farther the better, because as long as she thought of Yun Zhen standing outside the door, Ji Anni couldn't sleep at all.

Yun Zhen had to fulfill his duty and did not dare to leave Ji Anni to go back to his room to rest. He closed the door and walked out, standing at the door.

The night wind outside was blowing, and the chill was bone-chilling. Suddenly, a sharp pain came from his shoulder, and Yun Zhen's eyes went dark, and he almost fell down.

Subconsciously covering his shoulder, he felt a skeleton in his hand. Lian Yunzhen was shocked by himself and couldn't help but let out a bitter laugh. No wonder Ji Anni insisted on tearing off her clothes. If it were me, after touching the skeleton, I would not be able to help but want to see what it was.

At this time, the door was gently pushed open and Ji Anni walked out.

"Master, are you okay?"

Just now, Yun Zhen's figure suddenly shook when seen from the window. Ji Anni was worried that he could not resist the evil spirit, so she hurried out.

"It's okay, I'm sorry for disturbing you..."

Yun Zhen half-crouched on the ground, unable to stand up. He took a breath after every word he spoke, revealing his weakness that was difficult to conceal.

Ji Anni supported him and helped him sit down on the stone bench in the yard.

"Master, don't force yourself. Your body has become like this. How can you still defeat Yuan Rong?"

"Don't worry, Madam. Yun Zhen will protect your safety even at the risk of his life."

"Compared to us, I hope you can care more about yourself..." Ji Anni took off her coat and put it on Yun Zhen's shoulders. "It's cold at night. If the Imperial Master decides to stay here tonight, at least put on one more piece of clothing."

As soon as the clothes were put on Yun Zhen's shoulders, Yun Zhen stood up and declined politely, "I really appreciate your kindness, Madam."

Ji Anni had no choice but to take back the clothes, holding them in her hands, and said sadly: "It's strange... I always feel that you are very close to me, but you always keep me at a distance. Am I being too sentimental..."

A few days ago, when my memory was still confused, every time I saw Yun Zhen, I would always have unusual feelings in my heart.

Some happiness, some pain...I couldn't help but follow his figure with my eyes.

"My queen, the most painful thing in this world is to fall in love with someone you shouldn't love, someone who doesn't belong to you." Yun Zhen's voice became lower and lower, with a hint of pain, "... Yun Zhen has tasted this kind of pain once, and I don't want you to follow in my footsteps."

Ji Anni remained silent. She clearly wanted to refute, but she couldn't make a sound.

"Your Majesty, Yuan Rong disturbed your memory, which is fortunate for you. At least... you can be Zhao Ji again and face the Emperor and Prince Ming again..."

Yun Zhen didn't know if this was God's will, letting Ji Anni stay with Long Mohan and Prince Ming as Zhao Ji.

"I was convinced that I was Zhao Ji, but that day... the emperor suddenly kissed me, and I suddenly realized... that I was not Zhao Ji at all, because at that time, there were only a piece of scattered peach blossoms, only a white figure, and only... you in front of me. At that time, I found that deep in my memory, there was another name... called Ji Anni..."

This distant name has not been called upon for too long and is on the verge of being forgotten.

Ji Anni lowered her eyelashes and looked at her toes in confusion.

There are too many souls and too many memories in my body, and I can’t find who is the real me.

Looking at Ji Anni like this, Yun Zhen suddenly felt that he owed her too much.

"My lady, do you want to hear Yun Zhen tell a story?"

"Story?" Ji Anni was puzzled.

"A story about... why my body became like this..."

Yun Zhen undressed, revealing his right shoulder. It was even more horrifying than Ji Anni had imagined. It had become a few rotten bones, not like a living person's body at all, but like a rotten corpse.

"How could this happen?" Ji Anni was as stiff as if she was frozen.

"This is proof that the contract is slowly taking effect..." Yun Zhen put on his clothes, not wanting Ji Anni to stare at his ugly body. "Since I discovered the Ghost King's cave, the changes in my body have become more and more obvious. Maybe... this is a sign of the Ghost King's awakening, my lady... If your ancestor is really the Ghost King's bride, and you are the key to awakening the Ghost King, then... my meeting with you may really be destined by fate..."

"What exactly is this contract you're talking about?" Ji Annie's heart was pounding and her chest was about to shatter.

"It's a contract between the ghost king and the ghost, and also a contract between a body and a soul."