296: The Empress appears in the Water Mirror! That damnably beautiful face!

What kind of face was that?

Within the Water Mirror, Dragon Qi coiled and swirled.

The golden imperial majesty of the royal Dao became the most unremarkable backdrop for that face.

Her eyebrows were distant mountains, her eyes were a sea of stars.

Icy killing intent and overwhelming fury churned within her gaze, yet far from marring that flawless beauty, it seemed as if sharp and magnificent patterns had been carved upon pristine white jade.

She was power itself.

She was absolute beauty itself.

When the majesty of the nine phoenix emperor robe combined with a face that could stir the hearts of Gods and Demons, it brewed a poison potent enough to corrode the Soul.

On Heavenly Pillar Mountain, deathly silence reigned.

The breaths of those old monsters, who had just been trembling in fear, simultaneously hitched.

Their turbid, aged eyes stared blankly at that figure, even forgetting their fear.

Someone even subconsciously murmured, "This... this is a true sovereign..."

This was an instinctive awe, transcending personal grudges, directed towards the supreme authority and peerless elegance.

Such elegance should not exist in this realm.

On the immortal ship.

When Zhao Wuji clearly saw the face in the mirror, he was first stunned, then the resentment in his eyes nearly solidified into substance.

"It really is that bitch!"

He gnashed his teeth, wishing he could charge into the mirror that instant and tear the face that made him feel humiliated to shreds.

However, the reaction of Lin Yu beside him was completely different.

The eyes of Lin Yu, which always held an aloofness as if looking down upon all living beings, froze the moment he saw Ji Hongxue.

The disdain, impatience, and coldness on his face vanished in that moment, leaving only a blank slate.

Even his breathing paused for an instant.

He had seen countless beauties in the Immortal Realm.

The aloofness of Saintesses, the charm of enchantresses, the gentleness of princesses... he had long since built a solid fortress against the concept of 'beauty'.

But he had never seen one.

Never seen a woman like the one in the Water Mirror, who could fuse 'tyranny' and 'unparalleled beauty' into a single entity!

That wasn't mere prettiness.

It was a poison woven from the power that held the lives of billions in its grasp and a beauty that could topple divine dynasties, each enhancing the other!

In that instant, a possessiveness so intense and unfamiliar, like a volcano dormant for eons, erupted violently from the depths of his Soul!

A thought sprouted wildly.

He wanted to pluck that proud, solitary moon hanging high in the Nine Heavens with his own hands.

And then, press it ruthlessly into the mire.

He wanted her!

At any cost!

It wasn't her heart he desired, but to personally break that pride of ruling the world that flowed in her very bones!

He wanted those phoenix eyes that looked down upon all living beings to be fit only to reflect his own image!

He wanted her unyielding authority to completely crumble before him, transforming into the most Humble trembling!

Once this thought took root, it spread like demonic wildfire, instantly incinerating all his reason.

"Heh... hehehe... kekekeke..."

From Lin Yu's throat came a series of insane laughs, escalating from suppressed to pathological.

The laughter was filled with undisguised greed and the excitement of finding the ultimate prey.

He slowly extended his tongue, licking his parched lips, his clenched knuckles emitting crisp cracking sounds.

That amused smile reappeared on his face, but it was more sinister and dangerous than ever before.

"Zhao Wuji."

He spoke in an eerie tone.

"Your subordinate is here!"

Zhao Wuji's heart gave a violent jolt. He felt that the current Envoy was a hundred times more terrifying than when he had just decided to obliterate the Quasi-Emperor!

"This Envoy has changed his mind."

Lin Yu's gaze, like two nails, fixed Die Die on Ji Hongxue's face within the Water Mirror, his voice filled with an irresistible will.

"Killing her directly would be... too boring."

"A mortal realm Empress like this, if she could become This Envoy's concubine, kneeling daily at This Envoy's feet, serving in Humble..."

He paused, as if sketching that scene in his mind, the smile on his face growing increasingly cruel.

"Watching her fall from a ruler of a nation to a plaything who can only look up to me, that face etched with unwillingness and humiliation... it would surely be more beautiful than any scenery in the world."

"It would likely be a far more amusing pastime."

Zhao Wuji felt his Divine Soul tremble, as if his very marrow had frozen!

This Envoy had been swayed by lust!

And it was the most domineering, most crazy kind!

More importantly, he instantly realized an utterly terrifying truth: killing an Empress required but a single immortal technique; but to capture alive an Empress of a Divine Dynasty, stationed in its capital and bearing the fortune of the nation... the variables and risks involved were increased by thousands, if not tens of thousands of times!

This madman wanted to drag the entire Harvesting Team into an abyss of eternal damnation!

Zhao Wuji could even foresee that a colossal storm, enough to subversion the entire realm, was about to be unleashed because of This Envoy's single whim!

But he dared not voice any objection.

He could only lower his head further and respond in the most Humble tone, "The Envoy is... wise!"

"Wise?"

Lin Yu let out a light laugh, the sound dripping with wanton playfulness towards the fates of the Lower Realm beings.

What he sought was never wisdom.

What he sought was merely to satisfy his own whims.

He wanted to make this Lower Realm Empress, who dared to provocative him, understand what true despair was.

He wanted to trample her pride, her dignity, her nation, everything she had underfoot, and wanton trample upon it!

This was the best punishment for her.