Chapter 188 - Not Bad After All

The banquet had ended, and the next event would be the farewell party. By tomorrow, the sects would go their respective ways.

After the banquet, all the disciples went back to pack their bags happily.

All except for Lu Mingshu.

Even though n.o.body explicitly said it, she was well aware that the name list for the return trip didn"t include her.

How interesting.

She chuckled. Who was the one that said, "We Martial Pract.i.tioners place a greater importance on the inheritance from a teacher to their disciple than the relations.h.i.+p between a father and child"? …selling me out now without any notice.

The sect leader of Nine Jade Palace, and her own father.

When the banquet ended, the noise coming from the Flying Imperial Palace died down.

Lu Mingshu walked on the edge of the cliff under the moonlight and the fragrant flowers, then opened the door to the greenhouse.

The door creaked open, revealing the beautiful scenery under the moonlight. A man was sitting at the edge of the cliff, looking at the night sky through the clear gla.s.s.

Upon hearing the sound of the door opening, he turned around in surprise. "Miss Lu?"

This meeting shocked Lu Mingshu, but she smiled in response, "What a coincidence. Is this considered "two hearts beating as one"?"

Her smile and her words somehow felt out of place.

Xie Lianzhen glanced up at Xie Zhanghui beside him. Xie Zhanghui nodded and left the greenhouse.

"What brings you here, Miss?"

"I didn"t know where to go, so now I"m here." Lu Mingshu slowly walked toward him and stood beside him, looking out of the window. "Is the scenery here nice? I don"t see anything good over here."

Xie Lianzhen smiled softly. He looked at the moon that was half hidden behind the mountains. "How beautiful the scenery is depends on your mood."

"So how are you feeling right now?" Lu Mingshu tilted her head and smiled at him

Xie Lianzhen could faintly smell the wine on her. "Did you drink a lot?"

"Not much." The smiled still hung on her face. "I only drank two gla.s.ses when I was with the queen for courtesy."

Xie Lianzhen finally found out what was weird. She"s obviously drunk.

"Only two gla.s.ses? You have a bad capacity for liquor, eh?"

Lu Mingshu rubbed her eyes. "I don"t know. I"ve never had alcohol before."

Being used to her act so fierce and defensive, and now having her suddenly become nice, it was really…

"Don"t ever drink again," Xie Lianzhen said softly.

"Ah," she responded without thinking much. After a while, she opened her eyes and seemed more awake. "Who are you to tell me that?"

Seeing that he couldn"t answer, Lu Mingshu sneered. "Aren"t I supposed to accompany the queen? Not only two gla.s.ses, I should even drink an entire jar just to make her happy. Why shouldn"t I drink?"

Xie Lianzhen answered softly, "You don"t have to bootlick her."

"Isn"t it normal for me to bootlick her? My future right now depends on her," Lu Mingshu replied calmly, as if she was fully awake now.

"I said there"s no need, so that means there"s no need. Do whatever you like and whatever you want. n.o.body can do anything to you." He furrowed his eyebrows, showing that he wasn"t pleased.

Lu Mingshu started laughing out loud. "Xie Lianzhen, are you stupid?"

Ignoring his expression, she continued, "You don"t even know who you are, do you? There"s no need for you to please the queen because she loves you unconditionally, but for me, I am just an accessory. I"m only valuable to the queen because of you, but that may change in the future. She does not care about my opinion or my desires, so I obviously have to please her."

This made Xie Lianzhen"s face red with anger, looking like he was about the burst.

"Since you know why you"re valuable, why do you bootlick someone else? What do you think you"re going to accomplish?" he asked coldly.

Lu Mingshu laughed so hard that she couldn"t stand straight. "Xie Lianzhen, it"s the queen who won"t let me go, not you. Are you clear on who I"m supposed to please now?"

Maybe because she was drunk, she began to speak without a filter. "I have thought clearly about it. Actually, this life won"t be bad. Just look at Emissary Xiahou and Emissary Ding; don"t they have great lives? They have whatever they want - power, position, and resources. Oh, I even heard that Emissary Xiahou spends a Mystic Crystal when she bathes! I doubt even State Master Jiayan lives such a good life. Compared to those two, I would have even more of an advantage because I would be considered her family member!"

Xie Lianzhen"s fist tightened upon hearing Xiahou Shan"s and Ding Qingqing"s names.

Xiahou Shan indeed led a good life. The king of Zhongzhou didn"t care, and the queen had full control. As the queen"s personal aide, she held greater power than most. Even the king of Yijun was below her. As the ears and eyes of the queen, one would have to please her if they wanted to please the queen. Rare treasures and precious gems from all over the world flowed into Xiahou Shan"s palace like water. Her life was indeed more than good.

As for Ding Qingqing, she was always beside the queen. Whatever was given to the queen would need to go through her first. How could she ever give up such great authority? She had probably bullied and killed many people to keep it, and who knows what else?

One who loved money, and one who loved power. These two women may look gentle and nice, but how many bad deeds had they done in secret?

This was the result of the queen being lenient with them.

Greed wasn"t something scary, it was precisely what let the queen have full control of them.

Xie Lianzhen felt a s.h.i.+ver run down his spine. As if he just remembered something, his hand shook.

After a while, he calmed himself down and gritted his teeth. "You"re going to make me give up with this method?"

Lu Mingshu looked at him weirdly. "What?"

"So, you think I"ll let you off because of those words, huh?" He grabbed her hand tightly and pulled her down.

He was very strong, causing Lu Mingshu to trip. "What on earth?" she asked unhappily.

As soon as she said that, Xie Lianzhen held her chin tightly. Lu Mingshu met his cold eyes. "Lu Mingshu, I"ll do anything to get what I want, even if I ruin it. Give up."

"Why are you so agitated?" Lu Mingshu said weirdly, "I have already given up, so I"ll choose a route that I think is best. Are you happy now? Let go, it hurts!"

Swinging away his hand, Lu Mingshu rubbed her chin, which was in pain from Xie Lianzhen"s grasp. She looked down at him and raised her eyebrows. "You don"t want me to become like them? You hate Xiahou Shan and Ding Qingqing? Even the queen too, right?"

The more she said, the darker Xie Lianzhen face looked.

Lu Mingshu already knew the answer deep in her heart. "Xie Lianzhen, aren"t you selfish? You want me to stay, but you expect me to remain the same. Is that even possible? One"s personality is closely related to the environment in which they live - have you ever heard that saying? Nevermind, I doubt you have. You"re already like this, what"s new? All you want is to break my spine and make me give in, right?"

Chapter 189 - Still Early

Yes. That was his motive.

Xie Lianzhen never denied that his motive was to make Lu Mingshu give in.

He was interested in her after their first meeting in the alley.

Xie Lianzhen was fully aware of her situation; her stepmother was trying to sell her off at a good price, and her birth father not only turned a blind eye to it but added fuel to the fire. In order to escape their hands, she was constantly working hard, fighting in different arenas once she reached Tianyun City to increase her value.

He was curious. He knew how hard that could be. In addition, just fighting in arenas wasn"t enough - she had to get onto the New Generation Ranking at the least to have qualified to talk to the queen.

For a newbie who just entered the Harmonization Realm, Xie Lianzhen knew very well how hard it was to enter the New Generation Ranking, and if the game just ended there, it would"ve been boring.

That was why he chose to help her by giving her information on her opponents.

The more stubborn Lu Mingshu was, the more fun he found in it. He even purposely let the queen know about it so he could use the queen to pressure Lu Mingshu.

At first, he just wanted to test the limits. However, the further she went, the bigger the fire within him grew.

Very interesting. She doesn"t look like she"s sixteen - she"s firm and steady. Comparing her to Jiayan, who"s two years older, Jiayan"s more like a kid.

However, she couldn"t escape the fact that she was still young. Under his subtle hints, she made an inappropriate move.

In order to hide her emotions, she chose the most idiotic way to solve the problem - to expose his true self to his face, speaking about the dark side of him that couldn"t be shown to the world.

Being naive, she thought that he would retreat. But outside of her expectations, he held on to her even tighter.

Anyways, I"m sick!

Xie Lianzhen recalled the last twenty years. He had never met someone who could see through him so easily. He had his mask on all day and all night. Everyone who ever saw him only saw his mask, but in front of Lu Mingshu, he could be himself.

If I let her leave, I"ll regret it for sure.

That was the moment where he was determined to make her stay, regardless of the price he had to pay.

So he watched her fight with all her might on stage, defeating all her opponents and clinching first place on the New Generation Ranking.

She accomplished something that others had deemed impossible for her to achieve.

So what? Xie Lianzhen sneered. I can"t wait to let her know that, even if she gets first, her fate is still her fate. She can never escape it.

At that point, what will she do? Rage? A life-and-death struggle? Or give up totally?

To his surprise, she suggested treating his legs as an exchange to let her go.

…something that no one should ever mention in front of him.

He gritted his teeth in anger. No matter what you come up with, you"ll never get out of my hands!

However, the next day, he witnessed her sitting beside the queen, and for the past few days, she had been following orders like she had accepted her fate.

Xie Lianzhen couldn"t believe his eyes. The Lu Mingshu who once had nothing on her mind but becoming first on the New Generation Ranking would give in like this?

He couldn"t believe his eyes, and his mood was ruined.

Just as Lu Mingshu said, he wasn"t aware of what he really wanted. He hoped that she would persevere and prove her worth, yet he also wished to take away her arrogance and make her obey. No matter which he got, he would be unsatisfied.

And now, his true self was exposed again.

"Xie Lianzhen, it"s not like you to be so fl.u.s.tered and exasperated," Lu Mingshu slowly said and smiled.

She may have been mature, but she still couldn"t quite grasp what the world was really like. In front of Xie Lianzhen, she looked quiet and gentle, but in reality, her aggressive attempts to make Xie Lianzhen give up might backfire, and she would lose the upper hand.

However, Lu Mingshu would always reflect on herself and take action when she found a mistake.

Hearing about Xie Lianzhen in Wei Chunqiu"s eyes made her realize that Xie Lianzhen wasn"t as powerful as she thought.

Thus, she started to search for his psychological weaknesses.

In the end, it was no harder than a math question.

"What do you actually want?" Lu Mingshu stared at him. "Do you hope that I"ll never change, so I can be your pillar of support mentally, or should I give in to fate and bow down in front of you? You don"t even know what you want, so what makes you think you can say anything?"

The disdain on her face brought Xie Lianzhen back to the day where they first met in the alley and she told him, "Don"t promise something you can"t fulfill."

She always seemed to be chiding him.

"How do you know that I"m not just having fun?" he started slowly. This was the first time that he completely showed his dark side to someone. "You are arrogant, stubborn, and firm. It will be fun to torment someone like you, no? Will you give in when you"re at the end of the rope and helpless? On the other hand, if you give in too early, that won"t be any fun."

Lu Mingshu stared at him for a moment before commenting, "Xie Lianzhen, you"re really sick indeed!"

This made Xie Lianzhen laugh out loud. "Well, I always have been." He smiled at her before continuing in an eerie voice. "My real name is Xie Xingchen, remember that, missy."

Lu Mingshu scoffed.

So what if I know his real name? Xie Lianzhen or Xie Xingchen, a pervert is a pervert.

"Sorry to disappoint you. I have a strong point, which is to always find myself a way out no matter where I am. From what I see now, the queen is more reliable than you."

"The queen?" Xie Lianzhen"s gaze fell as if he just remembered something. "Speaking of the queen, she"s quite a strong person, am I right?"

Not waiting for her reply, he continued, "When I was younger, I once doubted how she - an ambitious and capable woman - could be willing to be under somebody else, even if it was just nominally."

So? Lu Mingshu"s thoughts went wandering.

"Shortly, she gave birth to s.h.i.+ Yu." Xie Lianzhen smiled. "I saw her after giving birth for the first time, and I could not believe my eyes. She was full of smiles - gentle, warm, and tender, as if her whole world was filled with happiness. Back then, I thought that, no matter how tough a woman seems to be, they"re still soft at heart."

Lu Mingshu felt chills run down her spine.

Xie Lianzhen smiled, his bright-as-jade face s.h.i.+ning below the moonlight. He turned to her and asked gently, "What about you? Compared to the queen, that is."

Lu Mingshu was absolutely horrified. "You… pervert!"

Her voice trembled.

Xie Lianzhen laughed. "I see. I know the answer now. Back then, your mother bore humiliation and paid with her life to find her former husband just so you could have a place to stay. With a mother like her, you"re surely softer than the queen, right?"

Lu Mingshu turned green.

Satisfaction gushed up as Xie Lianzhen looked at her expression. "You put up a tougher side today compared to last time, but it"s not enough for a pervert like me. See for yourself; I"m just spouting nonsense and you"re already shaking. Such an obvious shortcoming. It"s still early for you to defeat me!"

Chapter 190 - Who"s the Weakling?

This pervert!

Lu Mingshu"s hands continued to shake. They only stopped after a while.

It was true - Xie Lianzhen had caught her soft spot. She was still somehow a gentle girl under her tough side. There was a place of softness in her heart, and everything that was important to her was kept there.

She wanted to tell Xie Lianzhen that, even if she stayed, the queen would be the one to decide her fate, not him. It was impossible for him to get what he wanted.

However, Xian Lianzhen told her that she wasn"t what she thought she was - not an invincible stronghold, but rather, full of weakness. He knew what she valued, and it was as simple as drinking water for him to manipulate her. If he wanted to be thorough, he could even create a new weakness for her.

Lu Mingshu had never met someone like him - dark and full of malice. At the thought of what he said, chills ran down her spine. She felt like she was now freezing in an icy cave without any warmth.

No matter what she thought, the past fifteen years of her life had been relatively simple. As he spoke, this was her first time truly experiencing how evil a person could be.

It"s okay. She rea.s.sured herself. Just as he said, it"s too early, which means I still have time.

And he may sound evil, but he may not do what he says.

The unknown was the most interesting. He knew this clearly, which was why he was interested in her - because he couldn"t tell which option she would choose. To give in, or to struggle. If Xie Lianzhen could get a confirmed answer, he would already have lost interest in her and left her alone. There was no point in continuing if he already knew the result.

Seeing her expression change back to being calm, Xie Lianzhen gave her a thin smile. "Not bad. Tougher than I expected. I see that I"m right."

The wheelchair pa.s.sed by Lu Mingshu slowly. He reached out his hand and plucked a fresh flower.

"You"re doing this on purpose, huh?"

Before this confrontation, Lu Mingshu was already feeling tired. After the confrontation, she felt even weaker. She leaned onto the gla.s.s wall and looked at her feet.

She could hear him talking; "From the moment you stepped into the greenhouse, it was all arranged. From your perspective, there"s nothing more you can do. You have been to the arenas, and you ranked first on the New Generation Ranking. Still, you only get to speak up when the queen is willing.

"But I"ve already blocked your way. The queen likes you, and it will be impossible for her to disobey my will. You have nowhere to go now." He looked up at her and smiled.

He snapped his fingers, and the dew on the flower petals fell. "You don"t have any bargaining chips. Nine Jade Palace will never be your support. I"m the key person in this whole situation now; if you want any change, it will be from me."

"I must admit that you got me," he hummed. "You know what I desire, and what I hate. I have not been angered in a long time, but you did it.

"Acting drunk as an excuse to test my limits and trying to find a chance to break through." He nodded. "Nice move, but you have underestimated a pervert"s mentality.

"Lu Mingshu, you"re normal - you have something you care for. But I"m not. Just as you said, I"m sick. I don"t have anything I care about, and I don"t see any hope for my future. What could you possibly use to defeat me?"

"Is that so?" she suddenly asked.

Xie Lianzhen turned. "Huh?"

"Do you really not have anything you care for? Is your future really hopeless?" She stared into his eyes. "If that was the case, why are you still ill?"

She forced herself to stand up. Lu Mingshu looked into his eyes and emphasized every word. "It"s just because you"ve been forced to lose everything you value and your hopes were all dashed, that"s why you"re ill. You said that, if time could rewind, you would want to have a proper and happy family, n.o.body sacrificing for you, and no need to do unpleasant things. If you had lost all hope, you wouldn"t be thinking about such a thing. It"s just you trying to rationalize, telling yourself that that"s never going to happen."

"Xie Lianzhen, you"re not as powerful as you think you are. You"ve abandoned yourself. Becoming what you are today, it"s all because you"re too weak!"

Her voice was as cold as the clear pond of an icy mountain as it rang throughout the greenhouse. "You just dare not face reality. Your father died, and your mother remarried. You invested all your emotions into your new master, and he sacrificed himself for you. You can"t bear the heavy weight of life, so you bury your true self and continue to be "ill.""

She slowly walked toward him and leaned down. "Envy me, do you? Back when you first met me in front of Nine Jade Palace, it was as if you saw your younger self. Why else would such a cold-blooded person tell me all these things? After nine years, you envy me. I"m in the same situation, or maybe even worse, but I"m still going strong. You"re not interested in me, but yourself," she gently said.

She stood up, s.n.a.t.c.hing the flower away from his hand. "Weak. Not wis.h.i.+ng to give in, but daring not to move forward. Fate was evil to you, but you don"t even have the courage to rebel. You want to torture me, and yet you don"t. A person like you has no rights to defeat me."

The moonlight shone onto Xie Lianzhen"s cold face. The wind seemed to stop as well.

"Go back," she said. "It"s late, and I have to return tomorrow."

She placed the flower in the vase and prepared to leave.

When she pa.s.sed by him, she felt her wrist tighten as she was pulled over.

Lu Mingshu fell onto him. She screamed in anger, "Xie Lianzhen, what are you doing!?"

Xie Lianzhen held her tight and signaled for her to keep quiet. He leaned nearer to her and whispered, "Hold on tight, don"t let go. Something"s not right."

What? Lu Mingshu didn"t understand. She looked up and all she saw was him looking serious.

Not right? What"s not right? Lu Mingshu dared not move, and she realized what wasn"t right very soon.

It was too quiet. The sound of the wind howling, the insects chirping, and water flowing could no longer be heard. It was as if everything was dead.

What"s going on?

"Isn"t your attendant Xie Zhanghui outside? If there"s something wrong, he"ll come, right?" she whispered.

Xie Lianzhen shook his head. "No, I suspect that…"

Before he could finish, Lu Mingshu felt her knees shaking, and she lost balance.

She let out a soft cry and tried to find something to balance herself. Unfortunately, Xie Lianzhen was in the same situation as well.

Afterward, something shocking happened.

The s.p.a.ce in front of her started to crack like shattered gla.s.s. The cracks became bigger until they suddenly burst.

"Ah!" There was no longer anything below her feet. The floor had cracked open.

Xie Lianzhen jumped over to catch her. The wheelchair lit up, covering them both.

Lu Mingshu wanted to do something, but she couldn"t find her balance, as if there was something surrounding her and freezing her mystic force.

The world was spinning, and she fell quickly. With a loud thud, she lost her consciousness.