When Du Chun was mentioned, Meng Xiangxiang immediately perked up.
Her body even unconsciously moved closer to Gu Qianying.
"I do, I miss him terribly, Qianying sister. Do you have any suggestions?"
Seeing the light in Meng Xiangxiang's eyes, as pure as a child's, Gu Qianying paused.
She suddenly felt a pang of regret. She reached out and tidied a few strands of hair by Meng Xiangxiang's ear, then pinched her cheek.
"Alright, I was just teasing you. You know, a forced melon isn't sweet. If he truly doesn't like you, no matter how good you are to him, it will be useless. Love is a two-way street, understand, girl?"
At this moment, she suddenly abandoned the thought of using Meng Xiangxiang to do her bidding.
In her past life, she, like Meng Xiangxiang, had been so pure and clean in matters of the heart. But what had it brought her in the end? Betrayal, hurt, and heart-wrenching pain. If someone doesn't love you, even if you give your life for them, it means nothing to them.
"Qianying sister, what do you mean by that?"
Meng Xiangxiang looked confused. A moment ago, Gu Qianying was offering advice, and now, had she regretted it?
"Alright, if it's meant to be, you'll end up together. If not, you can't force it. Meng girl, you might not understand these things now, but your brother and I are sworn siblings. As your elder sister, I naturally cannot harm you. Meng girl, the person you like is right before your eyes. It all depends on the depth of your fate. If he cares even a little, we can push forward. If he has no feelings, then we simply give up."
Gu Qianying said a lot to Meng Xiangxiang, but Meng Xiangxiang didn't quite understand. However, she knew that this Qianying sister before her meant her no harm. Originally agitated, she gradually calmed down.
Not far away, two people were whispering. They nudged each other and both looked towards Gu Qianying.
"Damn it, I thought that vindictive woman Gu Qianying and that idiot Meng Xiangxiang would be fighting. But it seems these two get along quite well. That's strange, why would that be?"
Luo Laya Tower reached out a finger and tapped Sixth Prince Nangong Li on the head. "What do you know? This girl Meng Xiangxiang truly fancies Du Chun, not Nangong Mo. Why would Gu Qianying be anxious? Are you stupid?"
"Oh, and if this girl fancied me, what would you do?"
Nangong Li tilted his head and flashed a charming smile at Luo Laya Tower. Luo Laya Tower remained unfazed. She made a scissor gesture with her fingers. "I'd naturally snip off a certain part of you. If I stop you from messing around, then there's nothing to worry about."
Nangong Li: "..."
The smile on his face instantly collapsed. This woman was ruthless!
At this moment, on the stage.
Gao Zhiyang took out the prepared Thunder Talisman. He placed it on his palm, closed his eyes, and recited the Five Thunder Incantation from the Book of Changes. As the incantation flowed from his mouth, a crescent of darkness formed and rose in the sky. The blue sky and white clouds were enveloped by the crescent moon, followed by thunder and lightning descending directly. The area around the arena was instantly sealed by a powerful barrier. Outside the barrier, silver-white light emanated.
Within the barrier, Du Chun's white hair, buffeted by the lightning, billowed without wind. He held his long sword, resisting the power of each lightning strike, which felt like a heavenly tribulation. The hem of his white robe was also lifted. The lightning's power did not diminish in the slightest. Opposite him, Gao Zhiyang was unleashing the Five Thunder Formation to its extreme. Inside the barrier, the deafening roar of lightning strikes filled the air. Du Chun stood his ground, using the spiritual energy transmitted by Nangong Mo and his sword to counter it.
Those outside the barrier all stood up at this moment. Meng Qinghua, Gu Qianying, Nangong Mo, Nangong Li, Luo Laya Tower, and others all rose to their feet. Meng Xiangxiang clutched Gu Qianying's collar, her face filled with worry. "Qianying sister, Young Master Du Chun, can he do it? I'm so worried, won't he get hurt?" When her parents were alive, she had heard that this Five Thunder Formation was incredibly powerful, and even her brother Ye had no confidence in resisting it. And now, if one looked closely, one could see beads of sweat on Du Chun's cheeks within the barrier, and his feet were clearly sinking into the ground, indicating the formidable power of the Five Thunder Formation.
Meanwhile, Gao Zhiyang's Five Thunder Incantation seemed to deepen in layers, and the dark energy around him grew sparser and more intense. The lightning striking from the sky above became even more potent.
"Pfft!"
Du Chun finally couldn't bear it any longer and spat out a mouthful of blood.
"Du Chun!"
Sixth Prince Nangong Li and Meng Qinghua exclaimed in unison.
"Young Master Du!"
Meng Xiangxiang cried out. Nangong Mo, usually composed, frowned. He took a few steps forward and raised his palm as if to intervene, but a figure blocked him.
"Don't go. This is a conspiracy. If you act, we lose!"
As Gu Qianying approached Nangong Mo, she stood on tiptoe, quickly kissed his cheek, and whispered in his ear, "Husband, I don't want to be a pampered invalid. I want to go through this gamble with you. I don't know who is behind it, but this conspiracy also needs me to unravel it myself!"
"Husband, promise me, let me handle this, okay?"
"Alright."
Nangong Mo's heart finally softened. He knew that the appearance of the Demon Emperor symbolized his identity and that his wife's true identity could no longer be hidden. Fine, if she wanted to know who she truly was, if she wanted to unravel this future conspiracy bit by bit, then so be it. He would accompany her.
"Husband, you're so good."
True love isn't about imposing one's will on the other, nor is it about doing whatever one pleases for the other without understanding. It is about mutual understanding and lifelong companionship.
With that, Gu Qianying turned, snatched a long sword from Lu Zhu, who was standing not far away, and leaped up. Recently, Nangong Mo, worried about Gu Qianying's health, had confiscated his wife's weapons.
The moment Gu Qianying leaped, everyone exclaimed.
"Princess Consort!"
"Qianying!"
"Ninth Imperial Aunt!"
"Gu Qianying!"
Yet, among these exclamations, Nangong Mo remained silent. He stared blankly at the woman holding a long sword, standing within the barrier. Her red attire fluttered in the wind, and her three thousand strands of hair surged wildly behind her. The powerful aura surrounding her belonged solely to her.
Rumble!
With a single sword strike, she created a rift in the barrier, as hard as iron. Gu Qianying closed her eyes, and the image of her as a demoness from her nightmare suddenly appeared in her mind. At this moment, she could feel the spiritual energy within her continuously rising, and a demonic power seemed to be growing within her. The two forces clashed within her body, like a struggle in a place of ice and fire rebirth. Her three thousand strands of black hair suddenly turned red, and a long fox tail unfurled behind her. All the meridians in her body seemed to have been cleansed, and she endured pain that ordinary people could not bear.
When she opened her eyes, the spiritual energy and true qi within her had completely vanished, replaced by that powerful demonic force. Her eyes were now red, her lips had turned black, and the black lotus imprint between her brows was exceptionally prominent.
"Girl!"
Nangong Mo could no longer bear it. He leaped forward. However, before he could even approach the barrier, "Bang!" The barrier cracked over a large area, and Gu Qianying dropped her sword, standing alone beneath the lightning. Her slender fingers, with their nails turned black, long and dark. She moved unharmed through the lightning, approaching Gao Zhiyang, and grabbed him by the neck. Simultaneously, Gao Zhiyang's chanted incantation stopped.
On the other side, Du Chun, injured by the lightning, used his sword to support himself on the ground, kneeling on one knee. He looked up at the woman who had seized Gao Zhiyang by the neck and was holding him aloft with one hand.
"Qianying, you..."
Gu Qianying suddenly turned her head, her bloodthirsty red eyes meeting Du Chun's gaze. Du Chun froze, not even bothering to wipe the blood from his lips.
"You..."
He had never seen Gu Qianying like this before.