[I'm planning to start this one next, and I'm working hard to finish the full draft!]
[Angsty, groveling romance]
Yun Luo remembered the day Ji Zhaocheng brought her back to the immortal sect. It had snowed all night on Cang Mountain.
Once the snow had stopped, she opened her eyes and etched the image of that figure, pure and aloof as frost and snow, into her heart.
--
Everyone in the sect knew that Immortal Lord Zhewei, Ji Zhaocheng, was the leader of the Qingyun Sect and the foremost of all sects: aloof and detached, coldhearted and distant.
In the past hundred years, the only person who had ever been allowed near him was the little disciple he had found by the Ying River.
Yun Luo once thought she was the exception.
So she did everything she could to cultivate, ignoring her frail body and forcing herself through the tribulation until, amid agony that pierced her heart and gnawed at her bones, she gained an immortal physique.
All so she could remain by Ji Zhaocheng's side.
But on the very day Yun Luo gained her immortal physique, disaster struck the immortal sect, and more than a dozen sects were slaughtered by the demons.
With demonic energy clinging to her and suspected of collusion, Yun Luo dropped her sword beneath Nanyuan Peak as Ji Zhaocheng came to arrest her.
She endured 9,800 punishments meant to destroy immortals, the pain of her immortal bones shattering inflicted upon her. In prison, dragging her dying body along, Yun Luo begged only to see Ji Zhaocheng one more time.
But all she received was a gleaming Immortal-Slaying Sword. Ji Zhaocheng kept out of sight and handed her over to the immortal sect, leaving her to their judgment.
Only then did Yun Luo understand: the fluttering in her heart over all those years had been nothing more than an illusion born of confusion. It had all been one-sided.
She had let herself get carried away, forgetting that they were master and disciple. How could they disregard all rules of propriety?
And so Yun Luo died. She escaped from prison, entered the demon realm with her broken body, and finally died in the Abyss of No Trace.
Her soul scattered. No bones remained.
--
When news of Yun Luo's death reached the immortal sect, Ji Zhaocheng finally raised his eyes from his seat in the hall.
Clutching the broken sword she had left behind, he went mad searching the demon realm for the remnants of her soul, determined to spare no effort in giving her a new body.
--
Later, Ji Zhaocheng finally found Yun Luo.
By then, he had endured 9,800 punishments meant to destroy immortals, and his immortal bones had been shattered, all for the chance to see her once.
His white robes stained with blood and his body broken, he bowed low and lifted his eyes.
He saw a woman in red standing atop Cang Mountain. Her gaze swept over him, cold and indifferent, with not a trace of affection left in her eyes.
Yet as Ji Zhaocheng looked at her, he couldn't help but remember...
When she had first gained her immortal bones, she had stood at the edge of the cliff just like this. Back then, she had smiled brightly at him, and thousands of peach blossoms had bloomed all at once.
--
Reader's Guide:
1. The female lead is reborn (her soul returns after her body is remade).
2. Angsty, groveling romance.
The cover character design is by the artist "k" and is used with permission.
Theme: Every inch of time is worth its weight in gold.
