Previously, he didn't tear off the mask because he was in a weak position.
If he didn't re - hypnotize, he would have to run away.
But now his power was greater than that of Luo Zhao. So what was there to be afraid of?
Moreover, Gu Chengyin had to confirm whether this assumption was true or not.
Although he was 99% sure, until he saw the real Luo Zhao with his own eyes, the assumption would always remain just an assumption.
What if he was wrong?
What if Luo Zhao was really hypnotized?
What if the imperial edicts and oral instructions were really issued by Emperor Luo?
These "what - ifs" were like a thorn in Gu Chengyin's heart. He wouldn't feel at ease until he pulled it out.
But the problem was, how could he force her out?
Thinking about this, Gu Chengyin couldn't help but have a headache.
It wasn't easy to force Luo Zhao out like Gu Xiaoli had stimulated Lin Qingyan.
What was Luo Zhao's greatest strength?
It was her forbearance, comparable to that of the son - in - law of the Dragon King.
In this regard, Gu Chengyin had never admired anyone except Luo Zhao.
This peerless highness was so cold and aloof. Pride was engraved in her bones, and dignity flowed in her blood.
Yet she could pretend for so long. Even when faced with such excessive tests, she endured it.
No matter what Gu Chengyin did, she always looked docile and obedient.
She wouldn't fight back when kissed, wouldn't retaliate when bitten, and would do whatever she was told.
How could he stimulate such a person?
What was even more troublesome was that there were three other people present.
Lin Qingyan, Shangguan Yunying, and Gu Xiaoli. Although they each had their own agendas, they were on the same side when it came to covering for Luo Zhao.
Even if Gu Chengyin wanted to stimulate Luo Zhao, he had to consider the reactions of these three.
Lin Qingyan was invincible at the Golden Core stage, and Gu Xiaoli was half - way to the Nascent Soul stage. If these two really caused a ruckus, the entire Divine Capital would be in chaos.
Although Shangguan Yunying's cultivation was not as high as the other two, she was very meticulous and good at observing people's expressions.
Maybe she would see through his intention before he even took action.
So there was a limit to the stimulation.
Gu Chengyin couldn't go too far. At least, he couldn't treat Luo Zhao like a Japanese pirate.
He couldn't let her dignity be trampled under the feet of anyone other than himself.
Otherwise, not only Luo Zhao but also the other three would turn against him.
What Gu Chengyin wanted was just to make the real Luo Zhao show up.
To let her know that he had seen through her tricks.
Gu Chengyin was calculating all the possibilities in his mind.
Expose her directly?
No.
Without evidence, Luo Zhao wouldn't admit it.
Even if there was evidence, with her forbearance, she would still hold on.
Test her with hypnosis?
No either.
If Luo Zhao really had a puppet, the hypnosis would only affect the puppet, and he wouldn't be able to force out the real her.
Start with Gu Xiaoli?
Gu Chengyin thought about it and then dismissed the idea.
Although Gu Xiaoli had high cultivation, she still had the mind of a child.
But precisely because she was a child, he couldn't force her.
If he pushed her too hard, this cat might do something uncontrollable, and the situation would become even more complicated.
Start with Shangguan Yunying?
No.
Shangguan Yunying was too meticulous. She could detect even the slightest change.
She was on the same side as Luo Zhao when it came to hypnosis. Starting with her would lead to no result.
Start with Lin Qingyan?
Gu Chengyin squinted slightly.
Lin Qingyan had just been freed and was in the happiest mood.
Moreover, she was straightforward and couldn't hide things. If he really wanted to test something, she was the one most likely to show a flaw.
But the problem was, Lin Qingyan was Luo Zhao's own aunt.
This blood relationship couldn't be separated. Unless Luo Zhao wanted his life, in this kind of thing, Lin Qingyan would probably still help Luo Zhao.
Gu Chengyin thought for a long time and found himself in a dead - end.
To force Luo Zhao out, he had to break the current balance.
But to break the balance, he needed enough stimulation.
However, this stimulation couldn't be too excessive, or the consequences would be unimaginable.
Gu Chengyin rubbed his temples and felt his headache getting worse.
Gu Xiaoli, who was idle beside him, seemed to notice his abnormality and looked at him sideways.
"What's wrong, Big Brother?"
She asked softly, in a voice so low that only the two of them could hear.
Gu Chengyin shook his head and showed a gentle smile.
"Nothing."
Gu Xiaoli blinked her eyes and didn't ask any more questions. She turned her gaze to the Dao patterns around Shangguan Yunying.
Gu Chengyin looked at Luo Zhao sitting by the bed again.
This Crown Prince looked calm, showing no signs of abnormality.
But now when Gu Chengyin looked at that face, he felt that there were flaws everywhere.
It was too perfect.
So perfect that it was unrealistic.
There was no emotional fluctuation, no subconscious reaction. She always looked empty and obedient.
Even when Lin Qingyan pretended to have a demon in her heart, there were times when she couldn't help but explode.
But Luo Zhao, never.
The absence of problems was in itself the biggest problem.
Gu Chengyin withdrew his gaze and sighed in his heart.
Since that was the case, there was only one way left.
Luo Zhao, hiding behind the consciousness puppet, had long noticed that Gu Chengyin was looking at her.
That gaze had been lingering on her since just now.
It was scrutinizing, inquiring, and carried a vague meaning.
If it were someone else, being stared at by such a gaze, they would probably have been fidgety.
But Luo Zhao didn't.
She didn't show the slightest bit of panic.
Because she was hiding behind the consciousness puppet now.
So what if Gu Chengyin was as smart as a demon?
So what if he saw something fishy?
As long as she endured, as long as she kept enduring, Gu Chengyin would have no way to deal with her.
The consciousness puppet wouldn't panic, wouldn't be nervous, and wouldn't show any flaws when being stared at.
The corner of Luo Zhao's mouth curled up slightly. This Gu Chengyin was nothing special.
No matter how smart you were, no matter how powerful your means were, you were still completely deceived by me.
You thought you had hypnotized me, thought I knew nothing, and thought I was obedient.
But you didn't know that from beginning to end, I was always awake.
You knew nothing about those imperial edicts, those oral instructions, and those secret arrangements.
Luo Zhao secretly felt proud of herself and couldn't help but admire herself.
This kind of forbearance and self - control, looking across the entire Divine Capital.
No, it should be across the entire Great Luo Empire.
Could there be a second person like this?
Lin Qingyan couldn't do it, Shangguan Yunying couldn't do it, and Gu Xiaoli definitely couldn't do it.
Only she, only Luo Zhao, could achieve this.
Just as Luo Zhao was secretly rejoicing, the next moment, she suddenly froze.
Because the consciousness puppet...
Disappeared.
This consciousness puppet that had endured the hypnosis for her and played the role of obedience suddenly dissipated, as if it had never existed.
In its place was the real tactile sensation of her body.
The softness of the brocade mattress, the warmth of the candle flame, and the lingering aroma of mutton in the air.
Luo Zhao's face instantly turned pale. She looked up in disbelief.
Just in time to meet a pair of smiling eyes.
Gentle as water, deep as a pool.
With a bit of understanding, a bit of playfulness, and a bit of a meaningful smile.
"Her Highness, long time no see."
lity and could only live as an ordinary mortal. He only wished to live a peaceful life. Yet he didn't know— The dog he adopted, because it ate his food, became a legendary demon king. The kitchen knife he casually forged became a peerless divine weapon, causing numerous experts to fight desperately for it. The young disciple he took in became an immortal lord that led an era, due to cultivating the techniques Ye Feng taught him. Even the skeletons he looked down on the most were ominous demon kings that suppressed countless worlds. Many years later, looking at the void shattered with a punch, Ye Feng murmured to himself: It turns out the peerless kings were myself all along...
ut it can buy an entire year of absolutely perfect training results! Su Yu stared at his empty wallet and decisively opened up various online loan platforms. “Borrow a thousand bucks! Recharge my vitality!” Boom! His vitality broke a hundred points, shattering the limits of the human body! “Borrow ten thousand bucks! Recharge my combat skills!” Boom! A basic punching technique so common it was everywhere instantly maxed out, revealing the ultimate assassination technique of Five Elements Unity—Inner Force! When a rich kid hired assassins for a midnight ambush, aiming to break both of his legs, they instead ran headfirst into a monster—a human-shaped tyrannosaur, brimming with dragon-like vitality. With just two fingers, Su Yu snapped a steel staff reinforced with alloy. Staring at the killer’s stash of stolen cash—a staggering quarter-million dollars—he showed a corporate-sincere smile: “Thanks for the pre-exam gift pack, Mr. Zhao! I’m gonna go re-invest this!” Three days later, at the National Martial Arts College Entrance Exam, while everyone else struggled just to reach the passing line, Su Yu threw a single punch—and more than a thousand vitality points literally detonated the entire arena!
ose... to cooperate with the protagonist! Shen Yuan: I have a system! Protagonist: What? System: Holy crap, you're just spilling it out like that? Shen Yuan: Let's team up, we'll split the system rewards! Protagonist: Fifty-fifty split? Shen Yuan: No way! Protagonist: What!? I'm the one getting beaten up, and I don't get half? Shen Yuan: Forty-sixty split, I get forty, you get sixty! Protagonist: Deal! Big brother, come on, hit me! As long as it doesn't kill me, beat me like you mean it! Shen Yuan: Don't worry... I will definitely protect all of you! No one but me can lay a finger on you! Guard our Heaven's Chosen Ones! I'm the only one allowed to bully them!
ing gift was a patch of barren land, and disciples were all picked up along the way. He spent fifty years diligently building three "ramshackle little sects," thinking he could finally live a carefree life relying on his disciples. But right at the fifty-year mark, he was suddenly swept away by a spatial rift and exiled to the Chaos Desolation, the Disorderly Ruins. There was no spiritual energy there, only slaughter. Relying on the cultivation feedback from his disciples, Gu Changyuan hacked his way through a sea of blood for eleven hundred years. When the system finally fished him back out, he discovered the ramshackle little sects he'd built back then had developed a rather... unusual style. Hold on... I vanished for a thousand years, so how did my ramshackle little sects become holy lands?!
