The next morning.
At the top floor of the Sword Holding Department building.
Leng Ling'er placed a letter on Leng Qingqiu's desk.
The latter glanced at it—just an ordinary envelope.
She had received far too many of these lately.
Due to her personal influence, everyone who had been approached to switch sides had come forward to submit confessions of wrongdoing.
However, outright rejecting them all might leave some powerless members of the Sword Holding Department vulnerable to unfair treatment.
So instead of refusing outright, she chose to selectively join Long Tianyun's faction.
To be safe, she also sent Shangguan Miaoyin and others to infiltrate secretly.
The goal was simple—to uncover Long Tianyun's true intentions.
Thinking this, she casually remarked, "Ignore it. Let them do as they please."
However.
Unlike the ordinary letters Leng Qingqiu had imagined,
Leng Ling'er shook her head indignantly and exclaimed, "No way, sis! The person they tried to recruit is brother-in-law!"
"That Long Tianyun sent the recruitment letter directly to the Gu Family!"
"If Old Gao hadn’t tipped me off, we’d still be in the dark!"
"This is downright outrageous!"
Leng Qingqiu hadn’t paid much attention to these matters, but hearing that Long Tianyun’s target was Gu Yan...
Her brow arched slightly, and a strange feeling stirred within her.
Though it was just speculation, the recent upheaval in the ancient martial world was likely orchestrated by Gu Yan.
So... Long Tianyun trying to recruit the mastermind behind it all...
Was he foolish, or just overly confident?
Of course, the main issue was that everyone knew Gu Yan was her partner.
Such an open recruitment was clearly a provocation.
Still, the move was laughable—Gu Yan would never join Long Tianyun’s side, so it was meaningless.
"Don’t worry about it."
Leng Qingqiu chuckled lightly. Since Long Tianyun had set his sights on Gu Yan, she had no doubt Gu Yan would respond in his own way.
Leng Ling'er, however, remained sulky. "Sis, aren’t we going to retaliate? Like storming their headquarters and beating up that Long Tianyun?"
"I’m already at the late-stage Xiantian realm, just one step away from becoming a grandmaster!"
Hearing her sister’s words, Leng Qingqiu sighed helplessly. "Ling'er, you need to be more composed. Of course, we’ll retaliate."
"But we need to wait for the right moment."
"The right moment?"
Leng Ling'er was confused.
How long would they have to wait?
"Yes... a reason that justifies us taking action openly."
Leng Qingqiu’s lips curled slightly.
Previously, someone from an organization called [Ling] had arrogantly demanded she meet the true master of the alliance.
On the surface, she had feigned distrust and refused, but in reality, she had secretly sent Jun Zilan to tail them.
Jun Zilan’s cultivation technique was unique—she could summon [Dream Butterflies] that blended into nature, undetectable by anyone.
Through this, Leng Qingqiu learned about the three families behind the alliance:
The Long Family, the Yu Family, and the Situ Family.
Their ancestral elders were all at the grandmaster level.
But their auras were strange, as if their cultivation had been forcibly elevated by someone else.
In any case, they were nothing more than weaklings who could be crushed effortlessly.
However, ever since she had freed herself from the influence of the Night King’s power, her bloodlust had diminished.
Even when provoked, she would only teach them a lesson, not necessarily kill them.
But... if these three dared to harm those close to her...
Then... Leng Qingqiu would make them realize who the true master of the alliance was.
......
......
Inside a floating prison made of black rock within the demonic restricted zone.
Whoosh!
A spatial vortex appeared, and Gu Yan stepped out.
Boom!
The moment he emerged, a deafening roar echoed ahead.
"Roar!! Night King!! You deceived us!"
Gu Yan looked up and saw a massive mass of life essence trapped within—
The colossal silver wolf of the Netherworld Clan!
Yinyue was imprisoned, its crimson eyes filled with resentment and regret.
The Netherworld Sovereign? It was all a lie.
From the very beginning, their sovereign had never been resurrected—it was all the Night King’s scheme!
Gu Yan replied indifferently, "You were just too foolish."
With a slight wave of his hand, strands of Night King’s power surged from his palm toward Yinyue.
In the blink of an eye, the enormous silver wolf was refined into a silver wolf aura shaped like a wolf’s head!
With a thought, he opened a spatial rift, and the silver wolf aura was drawn inside.
The treasure was dealt with.
Now, all that remained was to wait for Long Tianyun to find and absorb this silver wolf aura in half a month.
And when that happened...
It would also be the moment Gu Yan took control of Long Tianyun.
The silver wolf aura had been infused with the Night King’s power and cells from his claws.
Once absorbed, the thoughts of the absorber would fall entirely under Gu Yan’s command.
At that moment—
"You... are you Gu Yan?"
"Or... are you the Night King?"
A voice tinged with disbelief came from another cell nearby.
Gu Yan turned.
Judging by the life essence and the voice, it was none other than Wang Yulan—now demonized.
Wang Yulan never imagined that the Night King, Gu Yan, and the Netherworld Sovereign...
Were all the same person!
Was Gu Yan still Gu Yan? Did he retain his own consciousness, or had he been possessed?
Wang Yulan tensed under Gu Yan’s gaze—his eyes, composed of chaotic threads, bore into her.
An overwhelming pressure filled her heart, and she clenched her fists.
Even though she had broken through to the grandmaster realm, fear still gripped her.
"Both."
Gu Yan replied flatly.
He raised his hand—Crack!
The restraints holding Wang Yulan shattered.
She slowly descended to the ground, confusion in her expression. "You’re not going to kill me?"
"No. I have another task for you."
Gu Yan stepped forward.
A tendril extended from his palm as he said emotionlessly, "Swallow it."
Swallow... it?
Wang Yulan stared at the writhing tendril in Gu Yan’s hand, repulsed.
But since she had already consumed one of his tendrils before, her body instinctively reached out and swallowed it.
Instantly, a strange power surged through her.
Wang Yulan’s eyes widened in surprise. "What is this? I feel... full of energy."
Gu Yan explained calmly, "You possess the Flower God’s essence. Combined with the life essence I’ve given you, you can now create living vessels out of thin air."
With a flick of his finger—
Rumble!!
The space around them expanded and transformed.
Under Wang Yulan’s stunned gaze, Gu Yan extended his hand.
Countless tendrils scattered like pollen across the ground, taking root.
ine. During your journey, you save an abandoned baby girl and become her elder brother】 【You rely on each other, becoming each other's support】 【At the end of the simulation, you shield the now-grown girl with your life, sacrificing yourself to block numerous demonic cultivators. You die, and the light in the girl's eyes fades】 …… 【Second Simulation: You are transported to a world where steam and magic coexist】 【You immerse yourself in the study of magic, obsessed with its research. One day, while out, you encounter a half-blooded demon girl wandering the streets. You take her in as your student】 【You teach the demoness what it means to be human, show her the beauty of the world, and nurture her into a miracle that surpasses even the gods】 【At the end of the simulation, you die of old age in front of the nearly immortal demoness due to your mortal lifespan】 …… One simulation after another, one encounter after another. Xu Xi suddenly felt something was off: "Wait, you said you're coming to the real world to find me?"
lan, the Luo family, tracked him down - along with the babies in their arms. Mo Xuan stared pensively at the paternity test results from over a dozen top institutions, both domestic and international, showing a 99.99% match between himself and the two baby girls. At 23, Mo Xuan, a doctoral student, had become the father of two three-year-old children. The kicker? The mothers weren't even the same person! He gradually realized he was being lured step by step into an elaborate trap designed by these two yandere sisters. "Be good, little Xuan. Sister's life belongs to you entirely." "Brother, if you try to run away, I'll have no choice but to tie you up." Mo Xuan: "Do whatever you want, ladies. I give up."
his freshman year, Su Bai accidentally bound the "Indulgence Tycoon System." 【Sleeping in? Reward: +$1,000】 【Spent $288 at a street barbecue stall? Cashback: +$2,880】 【Dropped $14,396 on in-game skins? Special reward unlocked: A brand-new Porsche Panamera!】 Luxury cars, penthouses, corporate shares, financial empires… College life was all about living freely and doing whatever he pleased! … When the adorably naive academic genius faced family medical bills and financial struggles, Su Bai waved his hand dismissively: "Your future is on me." "Wuwu~ Big Brother is so good to me! I’ll become a scientist to repay you!" When the genius girl got bullied by a shady professor? Su Bai casually dropped a billion-dollar investment, forcing the university to grovel and beg for her return. A company’s funding chain collapsing? Su Bai smirked—cash was the one thing he’d never run out of. Years later, when people traced the rise of the AI prodigy beauty, who was the man behind her success? Not just that—Su Bai also became the tsundere campus belle’s unattainable dream, the contrast senior’s daily necessity, and the beautiful counselor’s emotional anchor…
th】 【No prior gaming knowledge required】【The First Cultivation + Game Design Novel on the Platform】 In a world where the righteous path dominates and crushes the demonic sects, Lu Ze unlocks the "Son of the Demon Path" system. Killing righteous cultivators now grants him power-ups. Wait—deaths in illusions count too? As a former game designer, Lu Ze decides to give the cultivators of this world a little—no, a massive—shock... Sect Elders: "What is this 'Escape from the Demon Sect' game? Why have all our disciples abandoned cultivation to play it??" Elite Disciples: "You're saying... mastering 'Demon Slayer' can help us counter demonic schemes?" Reclusive Masters: "Why did I leave seclusion? Ask that backstabbing rat who ambushed me in 'Eternal Strife' yesterday!" Rogue Cultivators & Civilians: "'Immortal Abyss Action' is addictive! You can even earn spirit stones by loot-running..." Sect Prodigy: "My Dao heart is unshakable... except for that cursed black hammer." Royal Scions: "Can skins have stat boosts? I’ll pay 10,000 spirit stones for one!!" Sect Leader: "WHO IS CORRUPTING MY DISCIPLES?!!!"