Volume 1, Chapter 26: Return to Chang'an (Part 2)

She reached out to ruffle Du Youxi’s hair, and ignoring the stunned onlookers, she picked up her luggage and walked away from this stifling cage without looking back.

This highly efficient management style was, naturally, the handiwork of Lelouch. With Al’s refinement, it became the "ironclad proof" that priests and sons of God could communicate telepathically, further bolstering the reputation of the church and Lelouch among the common folk.

They gathered in small groups, gnawing on dry rations. Beside each person lay a drawn scimitar.

Gu Nian nodded slightly as well, offering no reply. It was only after they arrived in town and disembarked that she casually offered a brief explanation to Gu Nan.

The City of Blood served as a gathering place for living beings on this plane, yet even among necromancers—who were generally eccentric—not everyone was keen on wallowing in piles of corpses.

A vast, magnetic voice drifted slowly through the air, sounding perfectly natural. The audience below rubbed their eyes in disbelief: it was the Silhouette. The Silhouette had actually taken the stage, dressed in a pristine white gown, her long hair and the hem of her skirt fluttering in the breeze created backstage; her beauty moved everyone to tears.

"Exactly. That Yun Feilong is a total fraud. He only managed to reach the top twelve of the Earth Ranking by relying on a supreme treasure bestowed upon him by his master. Without that treasure, he probably wouldn't even rank in the top fifty," another explained.

From the age of nine, Alice had begun to show signs of extreme cold, followed by fainting spells. The royal family had secretly sought out many doctors for her, but to no avail.

Initially, nutrients were introduced into the bloodstream, which were then slowly replaced by pure blood. Only after the candidate’s body fully adapted to blood-based sustenance would they receive the Embracement.

She shouldn't have kept things from the Eighth Prince. By hiding the truth, wasn't she leaving him defenseless when the Empress eventually moved against him?

These were words of extreme severity, signifying that the Crown Prince intended to cast aside their marital affection and treat her with the cold formality of a sovereign and a subject.

Mu Changning wrapped her shark-silk shawl around herself. Places of extreme yin were breeding grounds for ghosts and demons, and it was unknown what lurked in the depths of this lake. It was better to be cautious.

Yang Ming’s mother held up a garment to her body and asked Yang Ming’s father, who was sitting on the sofa drinking tea.

The First Madam returned to Furong Courtyard and pondered all night, trying to figure out how to help An Nianrang hide the lack of blood on her wedding night. She recalled An Nianxi once mentioning a method to restore virginity that she had heard from Hua Wantian. The next morning, she personally prepared alum and other medicinal ingredients and had Qingyun deliver them to An Nianrang.

***

However, since the Sword Dance Red Dust team had defeated the Leopard team, there was no longer any problem.

Peng Feiyue, egged on by An Nianxi, was already tempted. When An Nianxi pulled her toward the exit, she went along half-willingly.

She also knew that the strained relationship between her mother and the Empress Dowager over the years was largely her mother’s fault, so she felt a twinge of guilt toward Princess Jun.

Deng Daoyin remembered that when his brother and sister-in-law were married, his brother was barred from the bridal chamber on their wedding night; the one who entered the room to crawl into his sister-in-law's bed was their clan leader.

"We want it!" The deafening roar of laughter startled the two students. When they turned around, they realized that many people were already plastered against the windows behind them, their eyes glowing with a greenish light as they stared at them.

Pushing open the bedroom door, Yan Xi was lying curled up on the bed. Yun Mo walked in softly and pulled back the curtains, leaving only the sheer drapes. The room was instantly filled with light.

"My brother guessed you would visit the manor soon, so he told Lin to wait for you." Ji Lin had been kept by Ji Jingxi for instruction during this time; compared to before, she had changed for the better, and her speech was now far more poised and composed.

Mo Jingzhi was overbearing. Not only had she monopolized the income of the Rongguo Mansion for years, but now she demanded an annual tribute of six hundred thousand taels of silver—it was insatiable and utterly unreasonable.

Shen Mengxi couldn't help but widen her eyes, staring straight at Chen Yang, her expression a mix of unease and tension.

Nine hundred years of a curse. For nine hundred years, the Fire Clan had lived far from the Central Plains, struggling to survive in the Western Desert. This had been enough.

In their eyes, this was the kind of fashionable attire found only in major cities like the provincial capital of Bigor or the imperial capital of Trier.

Old Cui hadn't finished speaking when he couldn't help but frown, for he caught a foul stench, and waves of scorching heat were radiating from Hou Tingting.

Returning to the city, Chen Yang first went home. Since it was Saturday, his parents, Anna, and Shen Mengxi were all there. They were wrapping dumplings, laughing and chatting; it was a scene of true domestic harmony.

Chunyu Youfeng found the sight amusing, thinking his grand-disciple was truly thin-skinned, though her companion was certainly impressive.

***

Even hundreds of years after the Chinese people entered the interstellar era, they still preserved the tradition of the college entrance examination.

"Yes!" Li Changkong laughed. If Captain Jin Chan knew he had acquired four types of domains, he wondered what his reaction would be. But these were things he would never reveal, even if it killed him.

A slap in the face—a blatant, humiliating slap. Although everyone was aware of certain things, acknowledging them openly was an unforgivable offense.

Before long, she was certain that the figure on horseback was an officer, and he kept looking back as he rode, as if someone were in hot pursuit.

The only reason the Princess had made such a request was to give her, the coerced party, something to do so she wouldn't be bored. Their main purpose in keeping her by their side was to restrict her movements and observe whether she harbored any ulterior motives.

Nie Chen flipped his hand and withdrew the Asura Fire. The temperature in the alley dropped rapidly, and the walls stopped melting. Nie Chen asked Mo Wuyin with a smiling face.

Looking at the mad old man, to be honest, Qin Tian felt a bit of a headache. In his view, even the most advanced techniques didn't warrant such hysteria. After all, having grown up in a wealthy family, Qin Tian didn't know the price of daily necessities.

Bob, who finally caught up, shook the unconscious Reed, his face filled with panic and regret.

Eerily, in this stance, a dark energy sphere appeared, sparks of electricity flashing like needles piercing the void.

No, a sense of foreboding rose in Li Changkong's heart. There was only one explanation for this: there was an ambush ahead and pursuers behind—he had been surrounded.

Just as the Asura flames flared around Nie Chen, several arc-shaped gales appeared, slamming into the flames with a series of thunderous booms.

While shopping, he ran into Zhao Jianjun. Qin Tianci told him that his clinic was under renovation and asked Zhao Jianjun to visit the villa later. Zhao Jianjun acknowledged this and offered to make him another suit. Qin Tianci smiled and said he wasn't used to formal wear and that one suit was enough.