"I know," Gu Jin answered. "We need to be ready before that."

Long Yifan grinned mentally. "I'll make sure she doesn't strike in weeks. I'll stretch it to a year."

Gu Jin blinked. "A year? How do you plan to do that?"

Long Yifan's voice became serious.

"I'll give her many reasons to keep us alive. I'll make her think we're still useful, that she needs us for her plan. If she believes that, she won't kill us. Not yet."

Gu Jin frowned. "That's a very rough plan, Yifan. You haven't even thought it through properly. How will you execute it?"

Long Yifan smiled faintly. "It'll only work if we seem harmless to her. If she thinks we're easy to handle, she'll stop being cautious."

Gu Jin looked confused. "Easy to handle? What do you mean?"

Long Yifan sighed. "We need to make her think we're broken. That we've lost our will to fight. If we pretend to fall apart, she'll relax."

Gu Jin blinked. "You mean… act?"

"Yes," Long Yifan said. "For the next few months, we'll act. I'll act desperate and helpless. You'll act cold and distant. It'll look like our bond is breaking."

Gu Jin crossed her arms. "That's dangerous. She might use that as an opportunity to finish us off."

"Maybe," Long Yifan said calmly. "But she might also see it as a chance to control us even more. People like her love control."

Gu Jin sighed deeply. "You're playing with fire."

Long Yifan smiled faintly. "We already are."

For the next few weeks, they did exactly what they planned.

Lady Ling came to check on them often, her sharp eyes studying every detail.

At first, everything looked normal. Gu Jin and Long Yifan poured their energy into the glowing crack like before. But slowly, things began to change.

Gu Jin stopped smiling. She stopped talking much too.

Her once bright eyes turned cold and empty, and she rarely looked at Long Yifan. When she did, it was with a blank, distant gaze.

On the other hand, Long Yifan changed completely.

He started acting just like he used to in the early days...warm, kind, and hopelessly in love.

He brought Gu Jin food, tried to make her smile, and even followed her around like a lost puppy.

"Gu Jin," he said one morning, "you haven't eaten properly in days. At least have something."

Gu Jin didn't even glance at him. "I'm fine."

"You're not," Long Yifan said quietly. "You're getting weaker."

She turned her back to him. "Then maybe that's better."

Long Yifan froze, pain flashing in his eyes. But he didn't say anything more.

Lady Ling, who was watching from a distance, frowned. Something about this situation bothered her.

"Strange…" she muttered. "Why is her illness acting up again? And he looks like a fool chasing after her."

Her servant Maya bowed. "Maybe their relationship is falling apart, my lady?"

Lady Ling's lips curved slightly. "Perhaps. Let them be. Its their relationship anyway."

It would be better if they maintain the current status quo.

But Lady Ling was disappointed when things started to become worse.

As the months passed, Gu Jin and Long Yifan grew even more distant.

Gu Jin's face became paler, her movements slower. Sometimes, she would even faint while pouring energy into the crack.

Long Yifan would catch her and call her name again and again, but she wouldn't respond.

Seeing this, Lady Ling grew worried. "She's dying too fast," she whispered one night in her room. "If she dies before the ritual, everything will be ruined."

Because only she knew...Gu Jin and Long Yifan can never die eternally as long as they weren't killed in a special way.

And if Lady Ling and Chang Yin doesn't finish them off and not keep an eye on Gu Jin and Long Yifan, then those might remember everything and...

After thinking for a while, she decided to give them a break.

The next morning, she appeared at the training hall where Gu Jin and Long Yifan were working.

"You two have worked hard enough," Lady Ling said gently. "You may take a break for now."

Gu Jin nodded silently and walked away without even glancing at Long Yifan. Her steps were slow, and her eyes looked completely lifeless.

Long Yifan stood still, his face pale. Then he gave a weak smile. "Thank you, Lady Ling."

As he turned to leave, Lady Ling suddenly said, "Wait."

Long Yifan stopped and looked back. "Yes, Lady Ling?"

"Is something wrong between you two?" she asked softly. "You seem… distant."

Long Yifan forced a smile. "It's nothing. Just… difficult times."

Lady Ling studied him for a moment, but he quickly bowed and walked away.

'He won't tell me anything,' she thought. 'Then I'll make him.'

That night, in the White Palace, Lady Ling sat quietly at her desk and called her loyal servant, Maya.

"Maya," she said softly. "Prepare the soothing incense. Mix it in Long Yifan's room."

Maya blinked. "Soothing incense, my lady? The one that calms the heart?"

"Yes," Lady Ling said. "He's under stress. It will help him relax."

Maya smiled faintly. "You care for him a lot, my lady."

Lady Ling's lips curved slightly. "Just do the work."

After Maya left, Lady Ling closed her eyes and waited. The incense would take about three hours to take effect.

Once it did, Long Yifan would be calm enough to tell her the truth.

When three hours passed, she stood up and quietly walked toward Long Yifan's room.

As she entered, she saw him sitting on his bed, staring blankly at the wall. His expression was dazed, and the faint scent of incense filled the room.

"Long Yifan," she said softly, walking closer. "What's wrong? Why do you and Gu Jin seem so distant?"

Long Yifan chuckled sadly. "I don't know. Maybe it's fate."

Lady Ling raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"

He sighed.

"Gu Jin's illness… it came back. She can't feel emotions anymore. It's like she's turning into stone. I don't know what to do."

Lady Ling's eyes widened slightly. "That's terrible. But you can't give up on her."

Long Yifan looked down, his expression full of sorrow.

"I want to give up. I really do. I've tried everything, but she's slipping away. Her emotions are fading… she might die before she turns thirty. What's the point?"

Lady Ling felt a small jolt in her chest. His words sounded real...too real.

"Don't say that," she said quickly. "You love her, don't you?"

Long Yifan gave a bitter smile. "Love doesn't matter if she can't feel it. I'd do anything to save her… but maybe it's hopeless."

Lady Ling hesitated. "Is that what you truly want?"

There was a bit of suspicion in her eyes as she stared at Long Yifan.

Long Yifan's voice cracked slightly. "No...no... I just want her to be cured. I just want her to be happy again."

A single tear rolled down his cheek.

Lady Ling watched him silently, and suspicion slowly vanished.

If Long Yifan continued to say that he wanted to give, she might have started to suspect that he was pretending.

Long Yifan's love for Gu Jin was so much... that even the gods of god city couldn't stop him from leaving. So how can he leave now just because of a small obstacle.

After a long pause, she finally nodded.

"You shouldn't give up. I'll help you. Perhaps some time away will help her recover. You both need rest."

Long Yifan didn't answer. He kept staring at the wall, blank and silent.

Lady Ling smiled softly. "Don't worry too much. And whatever you said today, you will remember that you did it willingly."

He still didn't respond, and Lady Ling turned to leave, satisfied that the incense had worked.

But what she didn't know was that the moment she stepped out, Long Yifan's blank gaze sharpened.

He sat up straight and looked toward the window where a faint shadow moved...it was Gu Jin.

Their eyes met through the reflection in the glass.

The next morning, Lady Ling arrived again at their room.

She saw them still working, their faces calm but distant. Long Yifan's eyes followed Gu Jin lovingly, while Gu Jin ignored him completely.

Lady Ling sighed. "Long Yifan," she said softly. "Take a day off. You look exhausted."

Long Yifan looked down at her and nodded. "If that's your order, Lady Ling."

She turned to Gu Jin. "You should go with him. Spend some time together. It might help both of you."

Gu Jin shook her head. "I'm fine. I don't need rest."

Lady Ling frowned slightly.

"That's an order, Gu Jin. Both of you will take two months off. I expect you to return stronger...and closer."

Gu Jin stayed silent for a moment, then gave a small nod. "As you wish."

Long Yifan smiled faintly. "Thank you, Lady Ling."

Lady Ling watched them carefully.

She wanted them to stay close because for her plan to work, their bond needed to remain strong.

But Gu Jin's emotionless face made her uneasy.