I am the reincarnation of Rachel Monroe, the God, sent to the mortal realm with a divine mission. I married Ethan Caldwell, not out of love, but to extend his life. It was a karmic exchange—my sacrifice for his survival. In public, he was cold and distant, acting as if I were invisible. But behind closed doors, his passion was unrestrained, almost obsessive. I convinced myself he must love me deeply, just too emotionally repressed to show it. I accepted his aloofness and silence as the price for love.

So, I willingly bore his child, believing it would bring us closer, that he would finally open his heart to me. But on the day of my delivery, when I was at my most vulnerable, he stood beside me and revealed a horrifying truth.

“If you hadn’t taken Lillian’s place, she wouldn’t have jumped into the lake. She miscarried at three months and now carries a lifelong illness,” he said coldly. “They say Buddha’s relics can prolong life. This is what you owe Lillian—you must repay it.”

I was stunned, unable to comprehend what he meant. But then he reached for the newborn—our child—with the intent to turn the baby into a relic.

I cried and begged with everything I had. But he broke my hands and feet, silencing my pleas with pain. He locked me in the dungeon beneath the Caldwell estate, a hidden place of shadows and screams. And there, I became a prisoner, a vessel, forced to carry child after child.

Each time I gave birth, he took the baby away, offering it in a ritual to create relics, hoping to extend Lillian’s life.

By the time I gave birth to our ninth child, my body was beyond repair. I died, torn and empty, with my child in my arms. One body, two lives—snuffed out as if we were nothing.

But the heavens took pity. I was reborn, returning to the same life, the same faces, but now armed with the memories of my past torment. When I opened my eyes and saw the familiar faces of the Caldwell family pleading before me, I felt nothing but cold detachment.

“You’d best start preparing for Ethan’s funeral,” I said, voice emotionless. “Life and death are governed by fate.”

——

Margaret Caldwell, Margaret collapsed to the ground. His father fell to his knees.

“Rachel Monroe, please save Ethan! The Caldwell family has stood for generations. Our foundation cannot end with him!”

Before I could respond, Ethan appeared, walking weakly with a cane. His once-charming peach blossom eyes were now distant and icy.

“Don’t beg her,” he said flatly. “I’m not ill. This is all just Rachel Monroe’s scheme—she covets the Caldwell family’s fortune. Don’t fall for her tricks.”

His glare pierced through me, full of disgust. At that moment, I understood—he had been reborn, too.

The realization hit me like a wave of ice. I trembled at the memories of my previous life—the dungeon, the blood, the agony. But I kept calm.

“You’re right,” I said with a faint smile. “The young master is healthy and destined for a long life. There’s no need for relics.”

“I heard he’s fond of a woman named Lillian. I’ve checked their horoscopes—they’re a perfect match.”

“Why force him into a loveless marriage? It’s better to let true lovers unite.”

Charles Caldwell, face turned grim. He knew the truth but had tried to bury it. The Caldwell family had investigated Lillian’s past and discovered the scandal she’d tried to hide. She was a known socialite with a chaotic early life. The root of her infertility wasn’t a tragic miscarriage—it was the result of numerous abortions, which left her with a paper-thin uterine wall.

But Ethan, blinded by love, ignored all warnings. He blamed me and used my body—and our children—as offerings to heal the woman he worshipped.

Now that I’ve been given a second chance, I refuse to repeat the same nightmare. I dressed calmly and turned to leave.

But he wouldn’t let me go.

Ethan followed, grabbing my wrist tightly.

“Rachel, what kind of game are you playing now?” he growled. “No matter what you try, I’ll only ever love Lillian. I’ll never marry you. Stop feeding me lies about life extension!”

In my past life, I used my entire spiritual cultivation to save him. I offered everything, and he repaid me with silence, betrayal, and death.

He never knew the truth. He believed the lies—believed that the relics, the rituals, my identity as Rachel Monroe—were all fabrications just to trap him into marriage.

He left me bleeding and dying, believing I deserved it.

But now… now, I will walk away. This time, he will feel what it means to lose everything.

Now, I look at the lifeline on Ethan’s palm—faint and near breaking—and exhale softly.

“Don’t worry. I won’t interfere between you and Lillian Hart.”

Whether it’s Ethan’s death or the downfall of the Caldwell family—none of it concerns me anymore.

I will continue cultivating my path in Buddhism.

Let them bear the consequences of their worldly karma.

Seeing the calm in my expression, Ethan frowned slightly.

“Didn’t you once love me so much you’d rather die than let go? You’re really willing to give the title of Mrs. Caldwell to Lillian?”

I couldn’t help but sneer, but gave no reply.

I knew too well—no matter what I said, he wouldn’t believe me.

Just like when I first told him Lillian and I had never met him.

But because she cried a single tear, he believed I forced her into the lake.

Each time he remembered it, he would charge into the dungeon—punching, kicking, slicing my flesh to watch me bleed.

I told him I married him because I loved him, that I wanted nothing else.

But he insisted I was greedy for status and wealth.

He took a knife and carved the word “cheap” all over my body.

Remembering it, I pulled my hand back with all my strength and walked away, expressing cold.

I returned to the quiet courtyard on the outskirts, continuing my spiritual practice.

But the Caldwell family, unwilling to let go of their last hope, moved next door.

When Ethan saw me again, his face was as dark as storm clouds.

“Rachel, I really underestimated you. You claim not to love me, yet behind my back you’ve bewitched my family.”

“I’m warning you—no matter what tricks you play, it’s useless. Lillian and I already have our marriage certificate. I’ll protect her and our child this time!”

I said nothing, only stared at the black aura surrounding him.

In just a few days, his condition had worsened.

Last time, he had two or three years left to live.

Now, he has less than a year left.

Curious, I quietly calculated with my fingers.

My face went pale.

Lillian is a dark spirit. She brings death to all—father, mother, husband, son.

With all her past abortions, her sins are too heavy.

Anyone close to her will suffer.

If Ethan had avoided marrying her, he might’ve had a few years left.

But the deeper his entanglement with her, the faster his life force will burn out.

Thinking of how Caldwell elders had once treated me kindly, I wanted to give them a warning.

But before I could speak, Ethan shoved me hard.

Off balance, I slammed into the wall with a loud thud.

Without a glance at the blood trickling from my forehead, he turned and flung scalding tea at me.

“Stop looking at me like that. Your pitiful gaze makes me sick!”

The hot tea mixed with blood dripped slowly to the floor.

I wiped my forehead in silence, swallowing the words I’d meant to say.

“You’re right. I was too sentimental.”

“You and Lillian truly are a perfect match.”

Ethan’s expression softened slightly.

“Glad you finally understand. Lillian’s moving in this afternoon. Once the baby’s born, we’ll hold a grand wedding.”

“If you dare speak nonsense to my parents, I won’t show mercy.”

Seeing the hatred in his eyes, I sighed inwardly.

He still didn’t know.

The child in Lillian’s womb is indeed fated to be born.

But even with divine mercy, Ethan likely won’t live to witness that day.

I returned silently to my meditation room.

That afternoon, Lillian moved in.

Ethan drove her himself, his car tearing through the middle of my medicinal field.

Lillian rolled down the window, smiling smugly.

“Rachel, I’m so sorry. I only mentioned casually that those weeds ruined my mood. I didn’t think Ethan would take it so seriously.”

She tugged open her collar, revealing suggestive red marks scattered across her skin.

Ethan didn’t even glance in my direction.

He simply pulled out a thick wad of cash and flung it in my face.

“No need to apologize to her. A greedy and lustful woman like that—just saying another word to her would dirty my eyes!”

The sharp edge of a banknote sliced across my cheek.

I gave a quiet, helpless shake of my head, stepped over the scattered bills on the floor, and walked away.

In the medicinal field, ancient, rare flowers I had painstakingly cultivated for years.

They were among the few of their kind left in the world—capable of greatly alleviating Ethan’s condition.

But what the two of them did today served as their final chance of survival.

I no longer wished to be entangled in this mess. I decided to move far away into seclusion.

But that night, Charles and Margaret knelt before me.

“Rachel Monroe, please save Ethan,” they pleaded.

“He vomited blood and collapsed during dinner. Every doctor we called said he was fine. We have no one else to turn to but you!”

The two elders knelt and kowtowed repeatedly, their blood dripping down the stone steps, pooling near my feet.

“Rachel Monroe, if you can save him, we’re willing to donate half our fortune to rebuild your golden image and erect a temple in your name.”

I sighed. “How pitiful parents can be in this world.”

“The Buddha is merciful. Donate that money to children truly in need. I will help Ethan this once, in honor of the kindness you’ve shown others.”

“But only this once. From this moment on, his luck, joy, suffering, and fate have nothing to do with me.”

The two nodded repeatedly, overwhelmed with gratitude.

When I arrived at Caldwell residence, I saw two bodyguards forcing Lillian to her knees.

Margaret was furious. She slapped her across the face.

“You seductress! My son was fine until you came along.”

“You must’ve tempted him and caused him to collapse from exhaustion!”

Lillian lifted her tear-streaked face and shook her head in panic.

“It wasn’t me! It was Rachel! She drugged Ethan out of jealousy—because he loves me!”

Margaret trembled with rage.

I simply ordered the bodyguards to throw Lillian out.

Without a word, I entered Ethan’s room, placed the Blood Sutra beside his bed, and began to chant prayers.

I recited the scripture through the night, depleting my life force.

By dawn, I could barely stand.

“Ethan has made it through this ordeal.”

“Our past grievances are settled. Madam Song, take care.”

Seeing the color return to Ethan’s face, his mother wept with joy and bowed in thanks again and again.

I waved off her gratitude and cast one final glance at Ethan.

From that moment, whatever fragile bond once tied us together had completely dissolved.

The young man who had once made me fall in love beneath the blooming peach tree…

He had died in my heart long ago, buried beneath the betrayals of our past life.

I began packing, preparing to leave this place of entanglement and pain.

But on the eve of my departure, Ethan stormed into my home.

Without explanation, a group of men in black tied me up.

He held Lillian with one arm and a wooden board in the other—

And struck me hard in the face.

“You wretched woman, I thought you were dead!”

“Turns out you drugged me and tricked my mother into kicking Lillian out of the house! I underestimated how manipulative you really are!”

“You dared let Lillian get slapped—I’ll make you pay a hundredfold!”

Before I could say a single word in defense, the board slammed against my face again.

Pain exploded across my cheek, swelling it instantly.

There was no chance to fight back. No time to explain.