Ouyang Qinglin and Gu Qianying rose simultaneously.
"Who are you? Why did you barge in?"
As Ouyang Qinglin asked, he instinctively shielded Gu Qianying behind him. At this moment, he could clearly feel the intense killing intent emanating from the man who had entered.
The man in the white robe remained silent. His cold eyes, hidden beneath the bamboo hat, reflected a miniature image of Gu Qianying. Within his gaze, one could see a scene invisible to outsiders.
It was a woman radiating purple spiritual energy, with a lock of red hair and red eyes, possessing a beauty unlike ordinary women.
This was the symbol of a Purple Ling Woman.
The man in the white robe approached with his sword. His mind was filled with the words of two old men from that day: taking the heart's flesh of the Purple Ling Woman as a medicinal ingredient could cure his palpitation ailment.
Yet, at the same moment, upon seeing Gu Qianying, the man in the white robe, in addition to the old men's words, saw a fleeting image of a woman flash through his mind. It was a vague, indistinct figure that appeared and then quickly vanished.
The man in the white robe frowned slightly, pushing away the blurry images in his mind. He pointed his sword at Gu Qianying and parted his thin lips, "Take out your heart, and I can leave your body intact."
Gu Qianying: "..."
Ouyang Qinglin's brow furrowed, and he exerted force with his palm, "Seeking death!"
A red silhouette flickered. As he delivered the palm strike, he drew the sword hidden on his person, and began fighting the man in the white robe within the room.
The two powerful forces instantly blew open the roof. Two figures soared upwards from the roof, stepping on branches, fighting fiercely in mid-air!
Leaves fell one by one. The already sparse two large trees were reduced to bare stumps.
However, the onlookers at this moment cared nothing for the trees. All their attention was focused on the two figures battling in mid-air.
"Who are they? Their fight is so intense."
"Look quickly, that person seems to be Third Prince Ouyang Qinglin, so handsome..."
"The one fighting him is wearing a bamboo hat. This person must be ugly... a complete villain."
"Third Prince is amazing! Kill him! Quickly kill him!"
Amidst the crowd, the young ladies and married women infatuated with Ouyang Qinglin shouted upwards.
It was known that the Third Prince possessed exquisite looks and was the most capable of becoming emperor. However, he was indifferent to power and status, disdaining to inherit the throne, thus ceding it to the young crown prince.
Such detachment from fame and fortune made him the ideal candidate for a lover in the eyes of many women. What spirit!
Listening to the crowd's cheers and observing the fiercely battling figures, Gu Qianying walked out of the post station. She had the post station attendant bring out the prepared chairs and place them beside the station. She sat down, took a small plate of melon seeds handed to her by the attendant, and began eating, occasionally glancing at the two fighting.
It was quite amusing. A reckless fool who appeared from nowhere dared to demand her heart? Hmph!
Ouyang Qinglin's martial prowess was comparable to hers. For a young man who dared not show his face, it was more than enough!
At this moment,
Lu Zhu and Gu Yi, who had returned after completing their tasks as per Gu Qianying's instructions, were quite shocked to witness this scene.
Without much ado, Lu Zhu did not ask many questions, but handed a letter to Gu Qianying and reported in a low voice, "Miss, Lord Yang and Young Master Yan have succeeded. They are currently on their way. This is a letter from Lord Yang for you, Miss."
Gu Qianying took the letter from Lu Zhu's hand, unfolded it, read it, and then casually flicked her fingers. The letter turned to ash in her hand. Following this, she spoke coldly, "Mm, very good. Issue an order. On a chosen day, we shall return to Dongsheng Kingdom. Have the disciples in the Poisonous Doctor's Sacred Hall prepare themselves."
"Yes, Miss!"
Lu Zhu acknowledged the order.
At this moment, Gu Yi, who had been frequently observing the "heated" battle between the white and red figures, could no longer suppress his curiosity. "Qianying, who is the Imperial Preceptor Ouyang fighting?"
Gu Qianying did not lift her head, replying lightly, "A foolish boy seeking death."
"Hmm?"
Although Gu Yi was a bookworm, he had a tendency to get to the bottom of things. "Why is he seeking death? And a foolish boy? Qianying, do you perhaps recognize this person?"
"I don't!"
Gu Qianying only replied with this sentence, not bothering to explain further.
As she finished the small plate of melon seeds, Gu Qianying casually looked up.
Ouyang Qinglin and the man in the white robe had fought from mid-air down to the ground. The crowd scattered, chickens and dogs flew about, and the street vendors hid in the corners of their stalls, trembling. All the stalls around were destroyed.
The bamboo hat worn by the man in the white robe had its veil stirred by the wind, his face faintly visible. His deep, cold eyes were noticed by someone.
Gu Qianying's body trembled, her pupils contracting. She instantly stood up and, with the speed of the wind, arrived before the man in the white robe, her voice trembling slightly, "Nangong..." Mo.
The wind picked up slightly. Ouyang Qinglin struck with a palm.
The bamboo hat on the man in the white robe's head was blown off by a gust of palm wind.
At this moment, the onlookers held their breath.
It was a man with a vermilion mark on the left side of his face, appearing very ugly.
"As I said, this person is incredibly ugly, otherwise why would he cover his face?"
The crowd's perception of a person with noble bearing yet an ugly appearance created a huge discrepancy. Among them, there were those who spoke words of mockery and ridicule, but in reality, they desperately hoped the man in the white robe was a standard handsome man.
After all, the noble aura he possessed was not something an ordinary person could casually possess.
The crowd was greatly disappointed, and their mockery and insults towards the man in the white robe intensified.
However,
The man in the white robe paid no attention to the surrounding sarcastic remarks. His cold pupils met the gaze of the woman before him.
Gu Qianying also looked up at the man in the white robe at this moment.
Their gazes collided in the air. His was distant and indifferent; hers was probing and sincere.
Just as the man in the white robe withdrew his gaze, Gu Qianying suddenly stepped forward and reached out to touch his cheeks and jaw. The man in the white robe froze, his cold eyes narrowing, "What are you doing, woman?"
The man gathered three parts of his spiritual power in his palm, intending to strike Gu Qianying, but seeing Gu Qianying's disappointed and helpless gaze, he did not know why, but he did not attack her.
"You are not him. I'm sorry, I offended you."
There were no traces of a human skin mask on the sides of his cheeks or jaw, meaning this man had not disguised himself; this was his true appearance.
Not Nangong Mo, not him!
Gu Qianying was somewhat disappointed. As she spoke, she immediately distanced herself from the man in the white robe.
Originally, she had thought Nangong Mo was still alive, but she had been mistaken.
Ultimately, she was wrong.
A bitter smile spread across her lips. She turned away, no longer looking at the man in the white robe, and coldly told him, "My lady is surrounded by experts. If you don't want to die, you should leave quickly."
"Lu Zhu, I'm tired. Let's go back to the room."
Gu Qianying raised her hand, and Lu Zhu quickly stepped forward to support her.
Gu Qianying's complexion was not good at this moment, and Lu Zhu supported her into the post station.
As Gu Qianying entered, the man in the white robe wanted to follow, but Ouyang Qinglin blocked him at the door, "Didn't you hear? Get lost if you don't want to die!"
Ouyang Qinglin and Gu Yi both stood guard at the entrance of the post station.
The man in the white robe glanced at Ouyang Qinglin and then at Gu Yi, who stood beside him, trembling but refusing to leave. He then turned and left.
His martial skill was similar to the man in red. If the fight continued, not only would it be difficult to determine a winner, but his palpitation ailment would soon manifest, and he would not gain any advantage over the man in red.
Therefore, he could only compromise and leave first, finding another way later.
However, as he moved away from the post station and turned a corner, his chest suddenly ached intensely, a pain as if it were being torn apart, making the hand he used to support himself against the wall tremble.
This was different from the pain when his palpitation ailment had previously occurred, and the time for his palpitation ailment to manifest had not yet arrived.
He was very confused.
At the same time,
In the post station room, Gu Qianying, resting, clutched her chest and curled up in a corner of the bed...