Sheng Huai'an's plan was to unseal Xie Jing, then absorb the demonic energy within him, thereby gaining world-ending power.
He did all this for Xie Jing.
Qin Jiujiu became one of the links in Xie Jing's breakthrough of the seal.
And the most crucial link.
He had tested it many times, and this method was bound to work.
Because Xie Jing had repeatedly broken through restrictions due to Qin Jiujiu, it would be a spectacular scene if she died right before his eyes!
Sheng Huai'an saw through Qin Jiujiu's intentions and, in one go, revealed all the facts to her.
"Then why is Yao Wan helping you?"
Yao Wan smiled brightly, "Naturally, it's for this skin of yours. Don't you understand my intentions yet?"
"Oh, and one more thing, you might not remember, but the nine-tailed fox you killed in Shangyang Town was my sister..."
The crimson in her eyes flared, filled with a deep hatred that threatened to consume her.
Qin Jiujiu was stunned, "That nine-tailed fox, it wasn't me..."
Qin Jiujiu thought of something and her voice abruptly stopped.
"It was Xie Jing who killed her with his own hands."
No wonder Yao Wan had been relentlessly pursuing them; it was for Yao Wan.
"Alright... Now you finally understand everything, and even in death, you'll be a ghost who knows."
After Sheng Huai'an finished speaking, he and Yao Wan walked out.
The quiet environment seemed to conceal immense danger.
She looked at the bell on her wrist, fearing that it too had been exposed.
They were probably eager for her to ring the bell and summon Xie Jing right now.
So, what should she do now?
[Host, I've given every task-taker a benefit, and you have one too. At a critical moment, this benefit might come in handy.]
Qin Jiujiu suddenly remembered what the system had told her.
...
"Yaoyao? What are you doing?"
Yun Yaoyao tightly gripped the dagger in her hand, about to plunge it into her own heart.
A dark glint flashed in Sheng Huaizhi's eyes.
She had been fine last night, but this morning she had become like this.
"Take me to the secret chamber!" she repeated.
Sheng Huaizhi's face showed urgency, but it didn't reach his eyes.
"I said, take me to the secret chamber!"
Yun Yaoyao moved the dagger a little closer to her neck, and a bloodstain quickly appeared.
"Yaoyao!"
The red in Sheng Huaizhi's eyes deepened noticeably.
"I promise you!"
Her divine soul could not be reunited a second time. If Yun Yaoyao died again, he would have no way to revive her.
And this death, he feared, would be utter annihilation.
"Take me there now!"
Sheng Huaizhi had no choice but to comply.
The secret chamber was within his imperial sleeping quarters. At this moment, the hidden guards had already appeared, making Yun Yaoyao even more tense.
She could not afford to be careless.
Success or failure depended on this.
"Yaoyao, relax, don't hurt yourself!" Sheng Huaizhi glanced at the bloodstain on Yun Yaoyao's neck, his eyes filled with anger and fear.
He had killed many people and knew that with a slight cut, Yun Yaoyao would die on the spot, leaving him forever, a result he could not accept.
In these past few days, he thought his hypnosis had worked, but he hadn't realized it was just her pretense.
"Don't come near me, take me in! Otherwise, I'll die right in front of you."
Yun Yaoyao herself had never expected to threaten someone with her own life one day.
Her mother had told her since childhood that beauty was merely her tool, and those who claimed to love her only valued her beauty. Once her beauty faded, they would abandon her without hesitation.
She believed it because her mother had met such an end.
In that cold imperial palace, she became insane, her charm gone.
Her greatest joy each day was to whip her, and her own cries would only send her into a greater frenzy.
Later, Yun Yaoyao stopped crying easily.
But she became very good at begging for mercy.
"I'll take you there immediately."
Sheng Huaizhi, naturally cold, had utterly lost his composure before Yun Yaoyao.
When the long-sealed secret chamber was opened, Yun Yaoyao's skin crawled.
The moment she was captured, she had been locked in this secret chamber.
Originally, this secret chamber was built by her esteemed father for the convenience of seeking immortality, but later Sheng Huaizhi used it to confine her.
In her childhood, her mother would often lock her in the torture chamber, and several times she had nearly died. If it weren't for her elder brother, she surely would not have survived...
As soon as she entered, Yun Yaoyao's sword-wielding hand began to tremble violently.
More and more blood flowed from her neck, yet she seemed not to feel it.
"Yaoyao, you... relax..."
It was also here that she gave birth to Xie Jing.
The further they walked, the more intense the chill and miasma became, and Yun Yaoyao's expression grew more terrifying.
Until—
The sound of the secret chamber restarting echoed.
Taking advantage of the chaos, Sheng Huai'an and Yao Wan, holding Qin Jiujiu hostage, had already broken into the emperor's sleeping quarters.
Although Sheng Huaizhi's hidden guards were skilled in martial arts, they were still human and could not withstand Yao Wan, a nine-tailed fox with years of cultivation. Within a few moves, all of them had fallen to the ground.
After the screams, silence returned.
The secret chamber could only be opened by Sheng Huaizhi. Due to Yun Yaoyao earlier, Sheng Huaizhi hadn't had time to fully seal the chamber, so outsiders only needed to find the mechanism to open it.
"Let's go!"
Seeing the door to the secret chamber open, a trace of joy flashed across Sheng Huai'an's face.
Soon, he would be the most powerful person in the world, and no one would dare to ignore him again!
Yao Wan supported Qin Jiujiu and followed Sheng Huai'an into the secret chamber.
Sheng Huaizhi had a general idea of what had happened above; someone had broken in, and this person seemed familiar with the secret chamber.
Who could it be?
"Yaoyao, it's very dangerous now, can you please let go?"
No matter who it was, Yun Yaoyao's safety was paramount.
"No!" Yun Yaoyao flatly refused.
She had to destroy the altar from the past now, or the consequences would be unimaginable.
"Father, Mother!"
Sheng Huai'an quickly caught up to them, Yao Wan holding Qin Jiujiu.
Yun Yaoyao understood almost instantly that Sheng Huai'an, like his father, was no good!
"I should have killed you long ago!"
Yun Yaoyao said hatefully.
Qin Jiujiu had never seen Yun Yaoyao like this. Her current demeanor was completely different from how she had been in front of Xie Jing and herself two days ago.
But this appearance seemed to be her true self.
"Empress..." Qin Jiujiu called out.
"Jiujiu, you absolutely cannot die!"
Could it be that Yun Yaoyao also knew about the seal on Xie Jing?
"If you die, little Jing will die too!"
If the seal were broken, the demon within Xie Jing would take over his body, and Xie Jing would be completely eroded by the demonic energy, turning him into a complete demon.