Gu Chengyin maintained his calm and composed expression, comforting her, "It's fine, Auntie. His Majesty is a man of his word and possesses a broad mind."
"Since he has already retracted the decree, there is no reason for him to make an exception again."
"Otherwise, he wouldn't be His Majesty."
He said this, but Gu Chengyin knew very well why Emperor Luo hadn't killed him.
The real reason was that Luo Zhao was in his hands.
And Luo Zhao was Empress Lin's biological daughter.
To Emperor Luo, she was the only memento left behind by his deceased unforgettable first love.
When he played the card of using Luo Zhao to force the palace, it was basically the same as showing his hand to Emperor Luo.
But Gu Chengyin did not regret it; a card played is a good card.
As long as Luo Zhao remained in his hands for a day, Emperor Luo couldn't do anything to him for a day.
This was a true death-exemption medallion.
However, to keep Lin Qingyan from worrying, Gu Chengyin decided to change his approach.
He lowered his head and leaned in close to Lin Qingyan.
Very close.
So close that their noses were almost touching.
So close that they could clearly see the light reflected in each other's eyes.
So close that Lin Qingyan's breath caught in her throat.
The corners of Gu Chengyin's lips curled up slightly. His eyes were full of tenderness as he confessed with incomparable devotion:
"Besides, now... I have you."
These words fell upon Lin Qingyan's ears like a heavenly melody.
Back in the Celestial Master Mansion in the Luo capital, while recovering in the Tranquility Pagoda.
She had said these very words to Gu Chengyin just to catch a glimpse of the memories sealed by her inner demon.
And now, Gu Chengyin was returning them to her, word for word.
Thus, Lin Qingyan's heartbeat helplessly quickened.
It beat so fast, like a fawn thrashing about in her chest.
So fast, like thunder clapping at the tip of her heart.
So fast that her entire world...
Was left with only Gu Chengyin.
Lin Qingyan's eyelashes fluttered violently.
She didn't speak; she just looked at him, staring unblinkingly for a long time.
After looking for a long, long time, she suddenly opened her arms and hugged Gu Chengyin tightly.
At the same time, she promised with absolute earnestness:
"I definitely won't let anything happen to you!"
Buried in Gu Chengyin's embrace, Lin Qingyan's heart was filled with resolve.
She had already lost someone once.
That time, she had watched helplessly as her older sister passed away, unable to do a single thing.
That time, it took her a very, very long time to pull herself together.
But had she truly moved on?
If she had, then what were those memories sealed within her inner demon?
However, Lin Qingyan was absolutely certain of one thing: she didn't want to experience it again.
She didn't want to experience the death of her most beloved ever again.
She didn't want to experience that kind of powerlessness ever again.
So this time, she absolutely would not allow it.
She would never allow anyone to take Gu Chengyin away from her side.
Not even Emperor Luo.
Not even the Celestial Master Mansion.
Not even the entire cultivation world...
No one!
Holding Lin Qingyan in his arms, Gu Chengyin suddenly felt a bit emotional.
How had his relationship with Lin Qingyan started?
It was the inner demon.
It was hypnosis.
It was a transaction.
It was all those inexplicable things.
But along this journey, he felt it more and more clearly.
Lin Qingyan truly cared about him.
And it wasn't because he resembled Empress Lin, nor because he could weaken her inner demon.
This feeling was very strange, because Gu Chengyin could clearly sense it.
Lin Qingyan was very familiar with him—from her eyes, her attitude, everything she did.
It was as if... she had known him from a long time ago.
This made Gu Chengyin very confused. The first time he met Lin Qingyan was in the warm pavilion.
They had never met before that, so where did this familiarity come from?
However, this also proved one thing.
His position in Lin Qingyan's heart was becoming increasingly important.
Gu Chengyin even had a feeling that his status had likely surpassed Luo Zhao's.
This was also the first time Gu Chengyin had gained the upper hand among the people around Luo Zhao.
This was a good thing.
It was also a bad thing.
The good thing was that he could receive Lin Qingyan's sincere and full protection.
With this Jingzhe of the Celestial Master Mansion guarding his side, even Emperor Luo wouldn't be able to touch him.
And the bad thing was...
This protection would very likely be for a lifetime, for an eternity, for the rest of his life.
Ultimately, it returned to the question Gu Chengyin worried about the most.
If Lin Qingyan wanted more, could he afford to give it to her?
Gu Chengyin didn't know the answer to this question, so he decided on a direction.
That was to take another step forward and break through to the Golden Core Realm.
Originally, there was no problem with this direction.
But now, Gu Chengyin realized he had overlooked a crucial point.
That is, if some unexpected situation truly arose.
Could he beat Lin Qingyan in a fight?
Gu Chengyin fell deep into thought, beginning to consider this question very seriously.
Previously, he believed that as long as he could break through to the Golden Core Realm, the problems he faced now would no longer be problems.
Because his cultivation was linked to his influence, allowing him to crush anyone in the same realm.
But did "anyone" include Lin Qingyan?
Did it include this Jingzhe of the Celestial Master Mansion, who possessed invincible combat power even at the early Golden Core stage?
The corner of Gu Chengyin's mouth twitched.
He wasn't sure.
Because Lin Qingyan was simply too strong.
Even though she was currently acting like a lazy cat lounging in his arms.
She was truly formidable.
What made Gu Chengyin feel even more helpless was that Lin Qingyan's strength...
Had been forged by his own hands.
If it were the previous Lin Qingyan, plagued by her inner demon and with her immortal path severed.
Even if she were invincible in the Golden Core realm, Gu Chengyin would still have ample confidence to crush her.
And it would be the kind where he pinned her down and taught her a harsh lesson.
But what was the current Lin Qingyan like?
Her inner demon had been thoroughly suppressed, and her immortal path now had a clear direction.
She had even successfully broken through from the early Golden Core stage to the mid Golden Core stage without the slightest hindrance.
And all of this was brought about by him, Gu Chengyin.
This meant that even if Lin Qingyan really locked him up in a small dark room in the future.
The foundation of that small dark room would have been built by Gu Chengyin's own hands.
Thinking of this, Gu Chengyin couldn't help but gasp.
This is bad.
After all his careful calculations, how did he still end up trapping himself?
Should he keep his distance?
No, previously he had only called her Lord Jingzhe.
Lin Qingyan had exploded with anger on the spot. If he hadn't reacted in time...
He would probably be in the small dark room right now.
Then...
Just at this moment, a world-weary face suddenly appeared in Gu Chengyin's mind.
Gu Xiaoli.
His eyes instantly lit up. Even if he couldn't beat Lin Qingyan...
Could a half-step Nascent Soul Gu Xiaoli really not beat her?
Lin Qingyan noticed the emotional fluctuations in Gu Chengyin.
She looked up and asked with some confusion:
"Chengcheng, what are you thinking about?"
Gu Chengyin blinked and finally confessed truthfully:
"I was wondering if I'd be able to beat you in a fight in the future."
Lin Qingyan froze for a moment.
Then, her face flushed red.
As red as the sunset glow on the horizon, as red as the peach blossoms on the branches.
Looking at Gu Chengyin's somewhat helpless smile, she suddenly understood something.
Lin Qingyan gave a soft hmph and buried her face back into Gu Chengyin's chest.
"In your dreams."
e, Immortal Body, Transmigration, System, Progression Fantasy, Academy Setting, Third-Person Perspective. Alternate Title: Transmigrating into a High Martial World and Reading Live Comments. Bad news: I transmigrated. This is a terrifying high-martial world, and my original, pathetically weak body fell into a coma and never woke up. Good news: I got a Popularity Points system upon arrival. I can see live comments and even create an unkillable alternate identity. Starting out, the alternate identity has all stats at 1. The system tells me that to grow stronger, I must participate in the plot, gain popularity points to allocate stats and grow stronger, and ultimately awaken my original body. And so, carrying my original body on my back, I officially entered Huaqing Academy, where the story's protagonist resides. From that moment on, Chen Guan kicked the original plot to pieces. Live Comments: [Doesn't anyone find this mysterious coffin guy creepy? He can summon indescribable grey misty hands.] [Is this guy a hero or a villain? What kind of onion became a spirit?] [By the way, does anyone know who's in the coffin? Shouldn't the debt for saving his life be repaid by now?] [According to unofficial histories, the person in the coffin was Chen Guan's first love. Their love was once passionate and earth-shattering, but they were separated by life and death due to worldly circumstances. What a star-crossed pair.] ... Years later, the world knew of a demon god born from a coffin, shrouded in grey mist, impossible to gaze upon directly. His foremost divine emissary often wielded a scythe, reaping lives like the god of death. As war approached, facing former friends and a boundless sea of enemies, Chen Guan merely raised his scythe. "Would you like to dance as well?"
't think I'm that capable, I'm just trying my best to stay alive. I've been kind all my life, never did anything bad, yet worldly suffering spared me not one bit. The human world is a nice place, but I won't come back in my next life. A kind young man, who wanted to just get by singing, but through repeated deceits and betrayals, has gone down an irredeemable path.
nd fell into a coma while saving his younger sister from an out-of-control car. He became a vegetable. No one knew that his consciousness had crossed into a world of cultivation. Over the course of sixty years, he began as the lowest kind of mine slave, struggling to survive amid mountains of corpses and seas of blood. By sheer chance, he eventually obtained the complete memories of a fallen Immortal King. Alchemy, medicine, formations, feng shui, physiognomy, artifact forging… Every great inheritance of the cultivation world was now his. But when he opened his eyes again, he discovered that ten full years had passed in the modern world. To pay for his treatment, his father had sold the family’s shop and house, leaving himself covered in lasting injuries and illness. His mother had cared for him day and night, and more than half of her hair had already turned white. His younger sister, who had been only fifteen back then, was now twenty-five. To help repay the family’s debts, she had been forced to lower her head and put on a smiling face in places of glittering lights and endless revelry. Only then did Chen Xuan understand that what he had lost was not merely ten years. He had lost the life his entire family was meant to have. The good news was that he had brought back the memories of an Immortal King’s entire lifetime. The bad news was that his soul had returned alone—his cultivation had not come with him. Spiritual energy was scarce, resources were depleted, and the modern world still had firearms, surveillance, capital, and laws. If he wanted to protect his family, break free from everyone’s control, and become truly invincible beneath the heavens, he would have to start all over again.
s + Rent Collection Wealth】 At the start, he inherited a rundown house in the urban village from his grandfather. The house had no tenants, but the moment he was diagnosed with a terminal illness, a self-proclaimed empress from the Tianxuan Continent arrived as his first tenant. Ye Chuan soon discovered that with every new tenant moving in, not only did he receive massive daily payments, but he also obtained unique items related to their backgrounds. 【Acquired Bai Qianshuang’s related item: Tiger Strength Pill—dramatically enhances physical power!】 【Acquired Bai Qianshuang’s related item: Deer Blood Pill—significantly boosts vitality!】 …… From that day on, all sorts of bizarre tenants began appearing in the house: the empress from Tianxuan Continent, an apocalyptic sorceress from the Magic Realm, a mysterious scientific girl who fell through a spacetime rift… Every single day, he received strange, powerful items and endless money. Then one day, he suddenly realized—he had become invincible. Enough, enough! Stop giving me more!
