Lin Qingyan narrowed her eyes.
Her gaze passed over Luo Zhao’s shoulder and fixed directly on Gu Chengyin.
The meaning was clear: Are you deliberately letting Luo Zhao provoke me?
Gu Chengyin met her gaze, and an innocent expression still appeared on his face.
He wasn’t pretending. He really was innocent.
Because he truly hadn’t asked Luo Zhao to provoke Lin Qingyan.
He hadn’t even come up with the idea himself.
It had all been Luo Zhao’s doing. She had insisted on climbing onto Lin Qingyan.
She had been the one to put her arms around Lin Qingyan’s neck and refuse to let go.
This was all Luo Zhao’s own fault. What did it have to do with him?
But Gu Chengyin had no way to explain.
At a time like this, any explanation would sound like an excuse—like he was trying to shirk responsibility.
So he could only remain silent, keep wearing that innocent expression, and silently make a note of this debt in his heart.
He would settle the score with Luo Zhao properly later.
But Luo Zhao clearly had no intention of giving him a later.
When she saw Lin Qingyan’s look and Gu Chengyin’s innocent expression, an uncontrollable sense of triumph welled up inside her, making her even bolder.
Bold enough to think that even if she said a few more outrageous things, there wouldn’t be any consequences.
And so Luo Zhao opened her mouth, preparing to say something else.
But before she could speak, the next instant, every word jammed in her throat. She couldn’t utter a single sound.
It wasn’t that she didn’t want to speak.
She simply no longer had the chance.
Because Gu Chengyin moved.
In that instant, Luo Zhao’s mind went blank.
Every one of her senses was overwhelmed by the same sensation.
Her mouth hung open, yet she couldn’t say a word.
Her eyes were wide, yet she could see nothing.
Her ears were still functioning, yet she couldn’t take in a single sound.
The entire world had been reduced to one feeling—a feeling so overwhelming that she even forgot to breathe.
Luo Zhao’s arms were still around Lin Qingyan’s neck, but the strength behind them was no longer meant to show off.
It had become the strength of someone clinging to life.
She needed to hold on to something, needed an anchor—something that would keep her from losing herself amid this sensation that swept over her like a tidal wave.
Her fingernails nearly sank into Lin Qingyan’s shoulders, while her forehead pressed against the side of Lin Qingyan’s neck.
Her breathing was rapid and ragged, her chest heaving violently.
Her entire body was like a little boat battered against the rocks by the waves, rocking unsteadily and threatening to capsize at any moment.
Watching Luo Zhao fall silent, a smile returned to Lin Qingyan’s face.
The corners of her lips curved upward, as did her eyes. Her whole face was like a full moon—round, radiant, and bright.
It gave off a light that was impossible to look away from.
“Why did you stop, Zhao’er?”
“You were so arrogant just now. What happened? A few moves were enough to wear you out?”
“Don’t tell me you’re like Sister Yunying—a Useless Highness?”
“Useless Highness.”
When those four words rolled off Lin Qingyan’s tongue, they carried undisguised mockery.
She was doing it deliberately, using the word “useless” to provoke Luo Zhao.
She deliberately used the title “Highness” to remind Luo Zhao of her identity.
She deliberately placed the two together, forcing Luo Zhao to swing back and forth between I am the heir apparent and I am useless.
No matter which side she landed on, she could find no balance that would make her feel better.
Luo Zhao heard her.
She heard every word Lin Qingyan said, clear as day.
But her mind could no longer process them, because her thoughts had been completely consumed by that single sensation.
All her reason, all her thoughts, all her ability to speak—
Everything had been blasted into pieces, scattered across the ground, impossible even to gather up.
Even though Luo Zhao instinctively wanted to argue, the words merely spun around on the tip of her tongue. She couldn’t say a single one.
Her mouth would not obey her. Her tongue would not obey her. Her throat would not obey her.
The only sounds she could make were faint, indistinct noises that even she found humiliating.
Yet even so, Luo Zhao had no intention of giving up.
She was the heir apparent, the future empress of Da Luo, a Highness who was cold and aloof in court.
How could she be like Shangguan Yunying, a Useless Highness who couldn’t last more than a few moves?
Shangguan Yunying was Shangguan Yunying. She was herself.
Sister Yunying could be useless, but Luo Zhao had to endure.
This wasn’t a question of whether she could do it. It was a question of whether she ought to be able to.
Besides, she couldn’t afford to lose face in front of Lin Qingyan.
Even less could she afford to lose face in front of herself.
No. Absolutely not.
She had to hold on.
Even if she couldn’t, she had to grit her teeth and endure.
She had to hold out until the mockery on Lin Qingyan’s face turned into astonishment—to hold on until even she no longer knew how she had managed to make it through.
No matter what, she had to endure.
Otherwise, how could she ever hold her head up in front of Lin Qingyan again?
And so Luo Zhao gritted her teeth and clenched her fists, pouring all her strength into one thing.
Not fighting back. Not arguing.
Enduring.
Enduring the sensation that made her whole body tremble, as though it would swallow her whole.
Enduring the sensation that made her want to scream, cry, and beg for mercy, yet left her unable to utter a word.
Enduring the sensation that made her feel as though she were neither the heir apparent nor a Highness, nor anyone important at all—
Just an ordinary, fragile woman trembling in a man’s arms.
Fine beads of sweat appeared on Luo Zhao’s forehead, slid down her cheeks, and dripped onto the side of Lin Qingyan’s neck.
Her fingers clutched Lin Qingyan’s shoulders so tightly that her knuckles turned white.
Only one thought remained in her mind:
I am the heir apparent.
I can’t lose.
And I especially can’t lose in front of Auntie.
Looking at Luo Zhao, who was clearly on the verge of collapse yet still stubbornly forcing herself to hold on, Lin Qingyan could only shake her head.
Although Luo Zhao was performing better than Shangguan Yunying, surpassing Gu Chengyin was clearly impossible.
So Luo Zhao’s ultimate fate would be the same as hers.
She would admit that she was a Useless Highness, then cry and beg Gu Chengyin for mercy.
For that reason, Lin Qingyan no longer felt like arguing with Luo Zhao.
What concerned her now was something else entirely.
During the time Lin Qingyan had been resting, Luo Zhao had actually managed to seduce Gu Chengyin.
That wasn’t normal.
It didn’t make sense.
Based on what Lin Qingyan knew of Gu Chengyin, he wasn’t the kind of man who thought with his lower half.
Back then, she had gone to enormous lengths before finally managing to have him.
And now, not only had Gu Chengyin had Luo Zhao, he had done it while she was on top of Lin Qingyan.
From a perverse perspective, perhaps he had done it to add to the excitement.
But Lin Qingyan’s instincts told her there had to be some reason she didn’t know about.
Why?
Why now?
Why before the Battle of Taihe?
There was no way Gu Chengyin didn’t know what having Luo Zhao would mean.
At that moment, Lin Qingyan’s heart tightened.
She suddenly remembered something Gu Chengyin had said before.
A hypothetical answer to a question that did not exist yet:
“Auntie, what if—I’m only saying what if.”
“What if I forgot you?”
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.
lities. One day, Qi Yuan was buying groceries when he unfortunately came face-to-face with a monster. Just when he thought he was going to die on the spot, he suddenly heard the monster's thoughts... "This aura, he's definitely not an ordinary master!" "So terrifying, so terrifying." "A fight with my back against the wall, I can't take it anymore." Qi Yuan: Ah, no one told me that my awakened ability isn't telepathy, but rather the stronger my enemies imagine me to be, the stronger I truly become. PS: Zhou Hai in the first chapter is not the protagonist.
e bizarre and supernatural had descended. The previous emperor was a thoroughgoing tyrant; no longer satisfied with human women, he had set his sights on a stunningly beautiful supernatural entity. He met his end in his bedchamber, drained of all his vital essence. As the legitimate eldest son and crown prince, Wang Hao was thus hastily enthroned, becoming the young emperor of the Great Zhou Dynasty. No sooner had he awakened the "Imperial Sign-In Intelligence System" than he was assassinated by a Son of Destiny—a classic villain's opening. The Great Zhou, ravaged by the former emperor's excesses, was in national decline. The great families within its borders harbored their own treacherous schemes, martial sects began to defy the imperial court's decrees, and border armies, their pay and provisions in arrears, grumbled incessantly against the central government. Fortunately, the central capital was still held secure by the half-million Imperial Guards and fifty thousand Imperial Forest Army who obeyed the court's orders, along with the royal family's hidden reserves of power, barely managing to suppress the realm. As the Great Zhou's finances worsened and supernatural activities grew ever more frequent, the court sat atop a volcano. Ambitious plotters everywhere dreamed of overthrowing the dynasty, and even some reclusive ancient powers emerged, attempting to sway the tides of the world. At the first grand court assembly, the civil and military officials nearly came to blows, fighting tooth and nail over the allocation of fifty million taels of silver from the summer tax revenues. The spectacle opened Wang Hao's eyes—the Great Zhou's bureaucracy was not only corrupt but also martially proficient, a cabinet of all-rounders. Some officials even had the audacity to suggest the emperor release funds from the imperial privy purse to address the emergency. Wang Hao suddenly felt weary. Let it all burn.
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!
