These two names were like red-hot branding irons, searing into Luo Ling’s heart.
His whole body trembled, and he almost couldn’t breathe.
Those scenes surged into his mind like a tide—
Surrounded by the Demon Queen’s minions, his magic exhausted, on the brink of despair, Qiqi’s heart-wrenching roar:
“Luo Ling! Go!!”
The scorching Dragon Breath erupted like magma, instantly devouring the enemies ahead and blocking his retreat, carving a bloody path for him.
And Liliya, using the last of her strength, shoved him away and turned to charge into the densest part of the pursuing army.
He could never forget the resolute and sorrowful look in her eyes as she turned away, nor the earth-shattering magic Self-destruction that followed—
It was the final sliver of escape time she bought him at the cost of her own burning life.
The path they paved with their lives, yet…
She still couldn’t escape, ultimately becoming a prisoner.
The immense pain and guilt gnawed at his heart like venomous snakes, nearly suffocating him.
“They will come back… they will definitely come back to save me!”
Luo Ling clenched his fists violently, his nails digging deep into his palms and drawing blood.
He raised his head, bloodshot eyes blazing with anger and despair, but also carrying an undeniable resolve.
“Maybe.”
The Demon Queen was indifferent, the corner of her lips curling into an almost invisible arc.
Then she faded away, as if discussing something trivial and unimportant.
She carelessly extended her hand.
In her palm lay a Collar of Enslavement, emitting a dark metallic gleam.
Fine and eerie magic patterns were engraved along its edge, and at the center was a pigeon-blood-red magic crystal.
It glistened with a sinister light, chilling and filled with evil energy.
Her slender fingers gripped the Collar, slowly bringing it toward Luo Ling’s neck.
Even before the lifeless, metallic coldness touched his skin, he felt as if a poisonous snake was watching him.
He instinctively flinched, muscles tensing instantly.
“But before that,”
Her voice suddenly turned cold, stripping away all previous laziness and adopting the commanding tone of a deity passing judgment from on high.
“You need to learn to behave first.”
She paused, gaze falling to the Collar in her hand as if admiring a masterpiece.
Then she looked up, eyes flashing with undisguised, cat-and-mouse amusement and possessiveness.
“Look, doesn’t this Collar suit you perfectly?”
She gently brushed the cold, smooth surface with her fingertip, and the magic crystal glowed even deeper red under her touch.
“It’ll make you very ‘obedient,’ just like… just like the once gentle, obedient, and loyal ‘Xiya’ who listened to my every word.”
‘Xiya’—
The name stabbed into the softest, most painful part of Luo Ling’s heart like a poisoned dagger.
It was the beginning of his imprisonment, the symbol of his stripped identity and trampled dignity, the brand of those sunless, puppet-like days.
Every time he heard it, it felt as if flesh was being ripped from wounds that had long since scarred over.
The cold metal pressed against the side of his neck, its chilling touch freezing his blood.
But this physical coldness was nothing compared to the rage in his heart that threatened to incinerate his soul.
Luo Ling jerked his head away, trying to evade the disgusting touch.
His eyes reddened with rage, fire nearly bursting from his gaze to engulf the woman before him.
“I’m not your plaything!!”
He forced out the words through clenched teeth, his voice hoarse and distorted by overwhelming fury and despair.
He struggled with all his might, limbs thrashing in an attempt to break free, to tear apart the false face before him.
Yet the brutal torture he had endured had long since drained his strength.
His magic was sealed, his limbs weak and limp.
To others, his struggles looked like the futile, desperate cries of a trapped beast—pitiful and laughable.
The chains clattered with his movements, adding to the sense of desolation.
“Whether or not you’re a plaything isn’t for you to decide.”
The smile vanished from the Demon Queen’s face the moment Luo Ling exploded.
Her seductive eyes turned icy and bottomless, devoid of any warmth.
Only a bone-chilling cold and the anger of being defied remained.
Her patience was clearly at its end, a flicker of irritation flashing in her gaze.
The next moment, her fingers moved like lightning, irresistible in their force.
Before Luo Ling could react—
Before even his pupils could contract—
“Ka-cha.”
A sharp sound, crisp as shattering ice yet heavy as a thousand pounds, crashed onto Luo Ling’s heart, stirring a dull thunder within him.
The cold Collar of Enslavement, symbolizing eternal bondage and slavery, locked around his neck with unerring precision.
The chill of metal flooded into his skin and through his veins, spreading throughout his body.
It did not feel lifeless, but rather like a venomous snake slithering from a frozen pit, coiling tightly around his throat, its scales scraping his vulnerable flesh.
It began to constrict, slow and merciless, suffocating him with malignant intent.
The moment the Collar snapped shut, the embedded magic crystal flared with a sinister red light—so intense it seemed to paint the world in blood.
But like a fleeting flower, the light quickly receded, merging into the dark metal, leaving behind a faint but indelible crimson glow—a curse burned into his skin and soul.
Luo Ling’s body went rigid, all resistance ending instantly, as if some invisible force drained all strength from him.
He could feel it clearly—a foreign, icy force poured in from where the Collar met his flesh, flooding into him like a breached dam.
Its corrosive power spread swiftly, dousing even the anger burning in his chest, as if pouring ice water over a fire, crackling but unable to ignite.
He stared forward in despair, eyes bulging with horror and unwillingness, fixated on a single point in the void.
The heavy, cold restraint on his neck felt unbearably real.
Every breath carried the metallic scent and the chill of magic, a brutal reminder of his captivity.
The helplessness gnawed at him, threatening to bring him to his knees.
A terror unlike any he had known—mixed with overwhelming rage, deep-seated humiliation, and utter despair—crashed over him like icy waves, drowning and suffocating him.
In that moment, the world fell silent.
Only the endless echo of that “ka-cha” sound remained, repeating over and over in his mind, like a death knell battering his nerves.
The crimson magic crystal embedded in the Collar still glimmered faintly in the dim light—blinking, like the cold, mocking eyes of a demon in the abyss, watching him, grinding his dignity and defiance into dust.
Then, as the magic crystal touched his heated skin, it erupted in blinding red light!
This time, the glow was even more intense, nearly searing his vision.
An even colder, more domineering paralyzing magic surged up his spine like a venomous serpent, racing through his limbs with overwhelming force.
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