He had had so much to say, but the words got stuck in his throat, leaving him tongue-tied.

Sheng Lingyuan's gaze calmly fell upon the entangled fingers of the two, and he let out a soft "Hmm": "I suppose the oath recorded in the mermaid's secret language is probably only this one. What, do they not know a mutual oath?"

Xuan Ji: "..."

Even if he was a poor student in his childhood, after repeating his studies for three thousand years, he wouldn't forget how to solve a simple problem by just changing the numbers!

How could he be judged by his past mistakes?

Can't these old-fashioned stereotypes be broken?

But Sheng Lingyuan just laughed.

At first, Xuan Ji was stunned.

It had been a long time since he had heard the Emperor laugh like that.

He felt like a lucky person who had been hit by a shooting star. He stood there, dazed and confused, for several seconds before slowly realizing that Lingyuan had just been teasing him.

This warm-up joke had touched a nerve in Xuan Ji, and his eyes were starting to water.

"After Dan Li's death, no one in the world dared to make decisions for me. You're the first," said Emperor Sheng Lingyuan in a calm voice, neither too loud nor too fast.

His words were ambiguous, leaving Xuan Ji unsure whether he was happy or angry.

"Not only did you act on your own, but you also dared to deceive me. It seems that you are not unaware of the precariousness of the Vermilion Bird Bone Seal and the danger of the Chiyuan."

Xuan Ji opened his mouth to speak, but...

"Dr. Wang said he's only a little over 200 years old, but you're over 3,000 years old. Surely you can't still be considered 'young' and not know your own strength," Sheng Lingyuan said. "If there's any problem with Chiyuan, do I have to witness you being crushed to pieces again before realizing I've been kept in the dark?"

Xuan Ji couldn't help but feel nervous, the veins on the back of his hand slightly bulging as he prepared to have his hand thrown off at any moment.

But Sheng Lingyuan didn't do anything.

He just let out a light sigh and said, "Are you blaming me for pushing you away repeatedly and feeling unhappy about it, wanting to take revenge on me?"

Before the pale-faced Xuan Ji could say anything, he waved his hand lightly and said, "I don't mean to blame you... I just overheard what you and your chief were talking about earlier. If we were to switch places, I would probably..."

Sheng Lingyuan paused, lowered his eyelashes slightly, and suppressed the deep darkness in his eyes.

He was the demon who had killed in a thousand different ways and survived to win in the end, stepping on the blood of his teachers and friends, suppressing the heavenly rules by half.

He didn't care about the consequences, didn't hesitate to use any means, didn't have the naturally gentle temperament of the Sword Spirit, nor did he hold onto illusions like a Sword Spirit, futilely nurturing a body that could never return in the fiery purgatory.

Sheng Lingyuan smiled at him and said, "I would probably have already crushed you and ate you."

Xuan Ji was twisted into a ball by his words and begged for mercy, "Your Majesty, spare me, please don't say that."

Sheng Lingyuan reached his hand into his hair, his fingers brushing through the thousand strands of tangled hair.

Xuan Ji froze as he was touched, his blood rushing to his face, turning it red.

Sheng Lingyuan met his gaze and received the hint, so he stopped speaking.

He slowly leaned in and lightly kissed Xuan Ji's lips, hearing his breath catch in his throat.

Sheng Lingyuan silently laughed, deliberately drawing out the kiss, making it long and tantalizing.

Xuan Ji's grip on the documents in his hand loosened and they scattered on the ground.

His entire body was focused on the sensation at the roots of his hair and on his lips. He almost fell off the small bamboo stool, but Sheng Lingyuan caught him just in time.

This sudden "teasing" was like stepping into a dream, and Xuan Ji's heart was pounding like thunder. He was at a loss, wondering how Sheng Lingyuan could be so skilled.

"Wasn't he a conservative and dull old relic from the feudal society with no sense of the world?"

His expression was too obvious, and Sheng Lingyuan immediately understood his meaning. He laughed and lightly slapped him on the head.

In fact, three thousand years ago, things were not conservative at all.

The old order had not fully developed and collapsed during the war, while the new "rites and music" had not yet formed. There were those who acted recklessly and those who were better off dead.

Both humans and demons lived in a post-war frenzy and despair, and their actions were generally not refined. Many forms of entertainment were already divorced from their natural instincts and could be considered spiritual pollution.

It was only after Sheng Lingyuan took office and stabilized the political situation that he slowly began to ban them for the sake of public safety.

Dan Li had no concept of "not suitable for children". When he was young, he was carefully taught about "greed" and "desire".

However, they only talked about it when Xuan Ji was asleep or when it was blocked, and Xuan Ji was never exposed to knowledge he didn't need.

It seemed like they silently agreed that when the late blooming Vermilion Bird Spirit could venture out into the world on its own, it would be greeted with a clean and peaceful era.

"Intruding in your dreams multiple times, please forgive me," said Sheng Lingyuan.

Xuan Ji: "..."

How could this person talk nonsense with his eyes open? If it weren't for him personally sneaking into the "dreams" of Sheng Lingyuan, he would have almost believed this cheap talk!