The carriage rumbled forward, its wheels rolling over the flagstones of the official road, emitting a monotonous yet rhythmic sound.
Inside the carriage, sunlight spilled through the gaps in the curtains, outlining beams of golden light in the air.
Tiny specks of dust floated slowly within the sunbeams, like countless miniature worlds, each revolving independently of the others.
As for Shangguan Yunying, after being personally disciplined by Gu Chengyin, she now sat obediently in her seat with her head bowed.
Her hands rested properly on her knees, her back straight, looking the very picture of a gentle and submissive chief lady-in-waiting.
Anyone who saw her would think she was a well-behaved woman earnestly admitting her mistakes after a harsh scolding.
But no one saw the sharp gleam flashing beneath Shangguan Yunying's lowered eyelids.
After her probing attempts last night and just moments ago, she had confirmed two very important things.
First, Lin Qingyan's affection for Gu Chengyin far exceeded her imagination.
It was not an ordinary or superficial kind of love.
Rather, it was an intense affection that could not be controlled, one that would erupt at the slightest provocation.
Last night, Shangguan Yunying had merely called him Master a few times, and the red glint in Lin Qingyan's eyes was almost irrepressible.
This morning, just by casually asking if he had returned, the ears of this aloof fairy had turned red.
What did this mean?
It meant that Her Highness's aunt had absolutely no resistance when it came to Gu Chengyin.
As long as it involved Gu Chengyin, Lin Qingyan would lose her reason, lose control, and...
Reveal her flaws.
The corners of Shangguan Yunying's lips curled up slightly before quickly pressing back down.
As long as this point was utilized well and at the crucial moment.
For example, accidentally leaking it to Her Highness, letting her know that Gu Chengyin was her aunt's lover.
When that time came, what would happen?
Just thinking about it made Shangguan Yunying feel it would be incredibly entertaining.
Although in front of outsiders, her status might seem high.
But in front of Lin Qingyan, she was just a lowly chief lady-in-waiting.
Her status was inferior to Luo Zhao's, and her strength was inferior to Lin Qingyan's.
In this game revolving around Gu Chengyin, Shangguan Yunying was originally the weakest link.
But not anymore. As long as Lin Qingyan and Luo Zhao started fighting.
She would be the fisherman.
When the snipe and the clam grapple, the fisherman profits.
Shangguan Yunying's eyelashes fluttered slightly.
Of course, this was only a theoretical possibility.
In actual practice, there were still many details to consider.
For instance, Gu Chengyin himself was a massive variable.
But at least it was a direction, a direction that would allow her to turn her disadvantage into an advantage.
And the second thing, which was also the most crucial.
Gu Chengyin had her in his heart; he would protect her.
Of this, Shangguan Yunying was more certain than ever.
Last night, when Lin Qingyan released that arc of lightning, Gu Chengyin had shielded her beneath his body without a second thought.
That split-second reaction could not deceive anyone.
It was not a choice made after weighing the pros and cons, but a subconscious act of protection.
And just now, when she was deliberately causing trouble, even though Gu Chengyin had disciplined her.
The actual force used felt more like he was taking advantage of her, a fact Shangguan Yunying was incredibly clear about.
He wasn't truly trying to punish her; it was a reminder, a form of protection.
Reminding her not to take the joke too far, not to cross the line in front of Lin Qingyan.
While simultaneously protecting her from being outright crushed by Lin Qingyan's status and power.
After all, since Gu Chengyin had personally meted out the punishment, Lin Qingyan naturally wouldn't do anything further.
Shangguan Yunying lowered her eyes, hiding the fleeting tenderness in them.
As long as Gu Chengyin cared for her, everything she did was worth it.
Even if it meant deliberately provoking this invincible Golden Core Fairy Jingzhe.
Yes, from beginning to end, she had done it on purpose.
Deliberately calling him Master, deliberately stimulating Lin Qingyan, deliberately messing around, deliberately saying things that made people blush and their hearts race.
Shangguan Yunying just wanted to see, between a lowly chief lady-in-waiting like herself and a Golden Core fairy like Lin Qingyan.
How Gu Chengyin would choose, and what he would do.
Would he ignore the feelings between them and completely favor Lin Qingyan, leaving her to be suppressed?
Or would he act like he did now, outwardly favoring Lin Qingyan but secretly favoring her?
Ultimately, Shangguan Yunying got her answer, an answer more important than anything else.
So important that after confirming it, she would even be willing to trade her own life for Gu Chengyin's.
Shangguan Yunying's fingers curled slightly, her fingertips digging into her palms.
Using the slight sting to remind herself not to get carried away.
It was not yet time to celebrate.
What she needed to do now was to restore her image as a gentle and capable chief lady-in-waiting.
As a smart woman, she knew when to fight for what she wanted and when to be the most obedient little darling.
She had already fought, already tested the waters, and obtained the answer she desired.
Now it was time to stop, time to curl up into a ball and assume the most inconspicuous appearance.
To make Lin Qingyan lower her guard and let Luo Zhao put her mind at ease.
Who said that having high status and great strength meant one could get everything?
Although Shangguan Yunying's identity was merely a lowly chief lady-in-waiting.
And her strength was just at the mediocre mid-to-late Foundation Establishment Realm.
But she also had her own unique advantage.
That was patience.
Shangguan Yunying believed that one day, an opportunity would present itself before her eyes.
When that time came, all she had to do was seize it.
Seize it firmly, and never let go.
A faint, almost imperceptible smile curled the corners of Shangguan Yunying's mouth before quickly vanishing.
Her breathing was steady and long, and the expression on her face became increasingly natural.
Her gentle and submissive appearance gradually blended seamlessly with her aura.
As if she had always been this kind of woman.
But right at this moment.
A gaze landed on Shangguan Yunying.
The gaze was very light, very faint, like an unintentional glance.
But Shangguan Yunying's perception and intuition told her that this gaze was not simple.
She raised her head and met that gaze.
Lin Qingyan.
This Fairy Jingzhe had opened her eyes at some point and was looking at her.
Those eyes remained as aloof as ever, but deep within them, something seemed to ripple slightly.
In just a flash, Lin Qingyan looked away.
So fast it seemed like an illusion.
But Shangguan Yunying knew it was no illusion.
Lin Qingyan was looking at her.
Scrutinizing her.
Shangguan Yunying's heart skipped a beat.
But her face revealed nothing unusual.
She simply lowered her head slightly and continued to maintain that gentle and submissive appearance, as if she hadn't noticed a thing.
Lin Qingyan withdrew her gaze and closed her eyes again, but waves were stirring in her heart.
In that brief glance just now, she had seen many things.
Shangguan Yunying's expression was very natural, very gentle, very well-behaved.
But she, Lin Qingyan, was no ordinary person after all.
She was Jingzhe of the Celestial Master Mansion, an invincible expert of the Golden Core Realm.
Her perception was far sharper than that of ordinary people.
More importantly, she could sense the electricity in people's bodies.
This was her talent, an innate ability she was born with.
Everyone had electricity in them, and different types of electricity represented different emotions and different intentions.
Different...
True colors.
transmigrates into the world as the sect master of the Heavenly Yan Sect, which is on the verge of being wiped out. He binds a system that grants him cultivation power based on the number of disciples he has: for each disciple, he automatically gains a year's worth of cultivation every single day! Take one disciple: every day he gains 1 year of cultivation power. While others struggle through a year of bitter training, he gets the same just by sleeping through a single night. Take ten disciples: every day he gains 10 years of cultivation power. Foundation Establishment, Core Formation, Nascent Soul—he breezes through all bottlenecks without lifting a finger. Take one hundred disciples: every day he gains 100 years of cultivation power. Even a Soul Transformation Venerable before him can’t survive a single blow. Take ten thousand disciples: every day he gains 10,000 years of cultivation power! With a wave of his hand, he topples empires. With a single step, he crushes the sacred grounds of the universe. ... While others fight tooth and nail for secret techniques, Lin Yan casually hands out Nascent Soul-level cultivation manuals as beginner textbooks. While others strain to find talented recruits, Lin Yan opens his doors to anyone—so long as they’re human. In just three short years, the Heavenly Yan Sect went from a backwater sect made up of three crumbling huts to a sacred land that every cultivator under heaven would kill to enter. ... One day, otherworldly demon gods invade, with a million demon soldiers pressing down upon the realm. Lin Yan, yawning, rises from his lounge chair and glances at the system panel: [Current Disciples: 1.28 million] [Daily Cultivation Increase: 1.28 million years] He waves his hand casually, and the countless demon soldiers are reduced to ashes in an instant. “So noisy… interrupting my fishing.”
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.
end. Thus one must continue to cultivate, and become a saint or great emperor, in order to prolong one's life. Chen Xia, however, completely reversed this. Since his transmigration, he has gained immortality, and also a system that awards him with attribute points for every year he lives. Thus between the myriad worlds, the legend of an unparalleled senior appeared. "A gentleman takes revenge; it is never too late even after ten thousand years." "When you were at your peak I yielded, now in your old age I shall trample on you." - Chen Xia
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!
