"Hubby?

" Elena awoke fully to a set of cold lips on hers. Yet, she felt a sense of warmth and comfort when she saw that set of silver eyes looking down at her.

Ryu's eyes were slightly red, still lingering with remnants of his stored emotions. Still, they had an outpouring of tenderness and love that was rare for him. How long had Elena waited to see this very gaze? How many nights had she dreamt of being awoken by this very kiss that still tingled along her lips? So why did she feel her eyes watering? Why was her chest aching with this disgusting bitter-sweet feeling?

"Elena..

" Ryu's voice was barely a whisper as though he feared a louder volume would betray its trembling.

"Will you allow me to be selfish?

"

The fluttering of Elena's heart quickened. She cupped her fiancé's cheeks, sinking her warmth into their cold.

Without a word, she pulled Ryu down to her, almost melding their bodies into one.

Elena pretended not to notice the moistness that now coated her palms, nor did she hold back her own. She simply immersed herself in the feeling of Ryu's body, delicately removing his robes to reveal his broad but frail chest.

Ryu tried to reciprocate, but his attempts at a gentle, caressing touches were thwarted by his shaking hands. Voices of doubt and discontent rang in his ears. Is this really how you want to do it? She deserves better than this. Can you even call yourself a man?

Maybe it was due to these voices, or maybe it was because he so wanted to forget his own thoughts, but the trembling slowly disappeared. Elena's soft body fell into his embrace, not an ounce of which was lost on him.

Her gown was pulled over her head, revealing skin so soft Ryu almost felt as though he was sinking into a warm cloud. His lips dotted her curvature as he breathed in her intoxicating fragrance.

Elena squirmed under his touch, eagerly lifting her hips to rid herself of the final layer that separated them.

No matter how cool-headed Ryu was, it was impossible for him to remain unaffected. To those residing in the Mortal Plane, such a sight was impossible to see. In their eyes, the cultivators who resided here were their Gods and Goddesses. If Elena appeared, she would be no less than an immortal fairy in their eyes because this was how even Ryu saw her!

This wasn't the first time Ryu had seen his fiancée naked. In fact, it wasn't even the hundredth or thousandth. But, something about the sheen of fragrant sweat on her delicate skin, the faint blush on her healthy cheeks and the almost pleading expression in her eyes lit a fire within Ryu.

He caressed her cheek, tender affection clear in his eyes.

"I want you to know that I'll never leave you. No matter what happens, can you promise me that you'll remember this?

"

Elena's pink, crystalline eyes reflected the moonlight as she looked at her fiancé. Unable to trust her words, she nodded.

A sudden nervousness overtook Ryu. Not only was he completely inexperienced, seemingly inconsequential thoughts suddenly felt that now was the time to make their presence known.

Would he hurt her? How fast should he go? He was just a mortal, what if he couldn't satisfy his immortal fiancée? Did Elena care about such things? Should he assume that she wanted to have a child now, or should he take precautions? Dammit, he hadn't prepared, what precautions could he possibly take now?

It wasn't until a light giggle sounded in Ryu's ears that he realized his cold, handsome features had given way to panic. He couldn't help but blush slightly. Still, those feelings were washed away the moment he felt a soft hand grab onto him from below, guiding him toward a wonderful place filled with moist warmth, love and desire.

"I'm willing to allow you to be selfish, but I need one thing from you first.

" Elena said softly. Her voice was a bit haggard, suffused with a raspy breath that rose and fell along with her ample chest. Even though her hair had also become an absolute mess, it only made her all the more alluring as it clung to her sweat matted forehead.

Ryu didn't let her finish. He knew her next words and she accepted them wholeheartedly.

In the martial world, marriage more than just a simple ceremony. What distinguished wives from concubines was a tradition that dated back several Eras even to the start of the first human civilizations.

A husband and wife weren't just a man and woman, they were two sides of the same coin. It was a union that was wholly sacred, one that bound that fates of two people together for a lifetime and lifetimes.

For the first time in his life, Ryu fully opened his soul to another. Although Elena trembled at the sight she saw, she too reciprocated. In the next moment, their thoughts became one. Nothing of Ryu's was hidden to Elena, nor was anything of Elena's hidden to Ryu. They had come to have a perfect understanding of each other the moment a dull pain pierced Elena's senses.

"You, Elena Tatsuya, will forever be my, Ryu Tatsuya's wife. In life and in death, we walk together. In sadness and happiness, we feel together. In this reincarnation and the next, our souls will always be one.

"

A swirling of turbid Primordial Yin and Yang filled the room. Moans of passion and fervent desire ricocheted across the walls. Ryu's nervousness had fled as a sense of freedom pervaded his mind. Elena's wants and needs were no longer a mystery to him…

In the end, Elena fell into his embrace and a satisfied sleep, once more clinging to her fiancé's arm as though she was afraid he would disappear.

Maybe ironically, this fear that Elena had irrationally held for so long became reality the next morning.

Nuri's shrill cry of sorrow and pain shook Tatsuya Palace. Elena didn't even need to open her eyes to know that her husband was no longer by her side. An empty void the likes of which seemed to encompass the whole of existence was all that was left behind.

She knew exactly what had happened. She had felt his fear and hesitation, his tears and resolution.. And finally, she had felt his death.