Chapter 1137: Chapter 1137 Death by Poisoning
Li Li’s composed and meticulous nature played a critical role at the decisive moment. With just a light stab, she inflicted Mei Ji with deadly poison, leaving her no chance to use the Jade Melting Pill.
A silver needle glinting with cold light fell from Li Li’s hand to the ground, emitting an exceedingly faint sound. The tip of the silver needle was deeply blackened.
This silver needle laced with deadly poison was the very weapon Qin Sisi had used to kill a guard when she was imprisoned in the dungeon. Later, when she was attacked by Elderly Fourth, the needle slipped from her grasp and fell.
Jiu Ge had arrived in time to save Qin Sisi and gave Elderly Fourth a thorough beating. Amid the chaos, Li Li had seized the poisoned needle.
She had preserved it cautiously, waiting just for a day like this.
"Mother!" Jiu Ge snapped out of his daze, his expression drastically changing as he rushed toward Mei Ji. Li Li swung her longsword, blocking him. Though her face struggled to remain calm, the hand holding her sword trembled slightly.
"Li Li, move aside!" Jiu Ge roared furiously, raising the Thunder Break Fan in his hand.
Li Li said nothing, steadfastly blocking Jiu Ge, refusing to let him rescue Mei Ji. Her gaze was pained yet firm.
Jiu Ge was frantic to the point of near madness. With a ferocious swing of the Thunder Break Fan, he launched a Wind Sky Slash toward Li Li, imposing and threatening.
Li Li brandished her longsword, conjuring a Heavenly Wind Barrier in front of her to defend herself. However, her abilities paled in comparison to Jiu Ge’s. The Wind Sky Slash shattered Li Li’s defense in no time, its overwhelming energy striking directly at her.
Li Li let out a cry of pain, forced back by the attack. Yet she managed to come to a forced halt, standing merely two or three meters away from Mei Ji. Blood trickled from the corner of her lips, yet she stayed rooted, refusing to back down.
Jiu Ge advanced swiftly, trying to bypass Li Li to reach Mei Ji, but Li Li turned and blocked him again.
Enraged, Jiu Ge grabbed Li Li by the throat and hissed through gritted teeth, "Li Li, must you force my hand?"
"Jiu’er, Jiu’er... save me, save..."
A few ragged, hoarse murmurs came from behind. Jiu Ge’s face turned ashen. He flung Li Li to the ground and rushed forward to hold Mei Ji in his arms.
"Mother, Mother!" Jiu Ge called out urgently.
But Mei Ji’s entire body had turned black, her once delicate face comparable to blooming flowers now darkened to the depths of a charred pot, devoid of any life.
The poison Qin Sisi had coated on the silver needle was serpent venom, highly toxic and devastatingly fast-acting.
Back then, the masked attacker who ambushed Qin Sisi had managed to survive because the wound was on their leg, allowing them time to use a Jade Melting Pill and depend on their own immense mana to barely save their life.
But Mei Ji, after her battle with Ye You, had exhausted too much of her magic skill and had been injured. Her body was already weakened, and when the poisoned needle struck the back of her hand, she had no chance to retrieve a Jade Melting Pill and cure herself.
With Li Li constantly blocking the way, the optimal rescue window had slipped away. The serpent venom had erupted within Mei Ji’s body. Lying in Jiu Ge’s arms now was nothing more than a lifeless corpse.
Jiu Ge stared in stunned disbelief at Mei Ji’s corpse in his arms. Just moments ago, he had been desperately trying to save her, dreaming of someday pulling her out of the center of power struggles and liberation from her fixation on desire, letting her experience a life of tranquility and serenity.
No one could have imagined that within the blink of an eye, she had departed, never to return.
That woman who had brought him into this world, shown him her deepest care, and inflicted upon him her greatest hurts had left him forever.
He had lost his only family.
Tears welled in Jiu Ge’s eyes as he slowly lifted his trembling hand to gently close Mei Ji’s eyes.
In life, she had loved beauty so dearly; in death her entire body was blackened, her features distorted, unspeakably hideous.
The things she had worked so desperately to hold onto were ultimately beyond her grasp—youth, beauty, feelings.
Jiu Ge gently laid Mei Ji on the ground, then stood. His narrow eyes fixed on Li Li. The tenderness in his gaze froze into piercing coldness.
"Why?" He began walking toward Li Li step by step.
She was his most loyal, most trusted servant. When he was thirteen, returning home on break from the Heavenly Magic God’s Castle, he had gone to play by the lake and heard a commotion.
He had run over to investigate. That was the first time he saw Li Li—a ten-year-old girl, slight in stature and not yet mature, but wielding a sharp little knife, recklessly stabbing anyone who dared approach her.
A group of brawny guards surrounded her, yet they hesitated to move in.
In that instant, Jiu Ge had found himself inexplicably intrigued by the cold-eyed little girl. The timid maids around him had always been far too insipid.
So with just a few words, Jiu Ge had sent the guards packing and saved the bruised and battered Li Li.
When he inquired about her story, Li Li told him that her parents had been killed by villains. She had sneaked into the Chief Mansion, hoping to find someone with powerful mana who could teach her magic skills, so that she might one day avenge her parents.
Jiu Ge had lightly declared, "Alright, I’ll teach you magic skills, and I’ll protect you. But you’ll have to become my servant and obey my orders."
Li Li suddenly raised the knife she had just lowered and spat venomously, "I won’t sleep with you!"
Jiu Ge’s eyes widened, then he rolled them dismissively and said in exasperation, "Are you crazy?"
At that time, Jiu Ge had been a relatively innocent boy. The thought hadn’t even crossed his mind. He hadn’t imagined that Li Li, at ten years old, could say such a thing, nor understood its implications.
And so, Li Li became Jiu Ge’s servant, reserved and taciturn, efficient and decisive. Jiu Ge was greatly satisfied with her.
Later, when Jiu Ge came to understand matters of love between men and women, he couldn’t deny that he had felt some interest in Li Li.
But whenever he recalled her adamant declaration, "I won’t sleep with you," he would think it better to let it go. A man should keep his promises; if he had agreed back then, he ought to uphold it now.
Besides, if he did sleep with her and his mother decided to kill her, he would lose his most trusted servant.
The secrets he dared not share with anyone else, he confided in her; the tasks he found inconvenient to carry out himself, he entrusted to her. Every time, Li Li completed her missions flawlessly, earning his increasing favor and regard.
Never had Jiu Ge imagined that the servant he trusted and relied on the most would one day betray him.
Jiu Ge’s large hand once again clutched Li Li’s throat. "Tell me, why on earth?"
Li Li’s expression turned anguished as she replied, "Li Li has failed you, my lord. I am willing to die in atonement."
"Alright." Jiu Ge released Li Li, his gaze icy cold as he looked at her, as though staring at a corpse.
Li Li gasped for air a few times, then bent down to pick up the longsword that had fallen to the ground.
This sword was given to her by Jiu Ge; the clothes she wore were bought by him; many of her magic skills were taught by him; even her life had been saved by him.
Now that her great vengeance had been exacted, it was time to repay her debts.
