7: The demoness and the empress, the spectators and the chess players

Within the Nine Nether Demonic Cult, a great hall of bones was suffused with a bloody aura.

Liu Ruyan was so lazy her bones felt soft, her entire body sinking into the throne.

One snow-white, shapely leg rested carelessly on the armrest, the black skirt slipping down the smooth skin to reveal a section of plump, delicate calf.

The flickering light of the pale bone candles cast an ivory-like sheen upon that stretch of calf.

Last night's 'rooftop party' had been broken up by that unromantic man's shout, yet she wasn't angry. Instead, she found the whole affair increasingly amusing.

At that moment, her fingertip hooked the diary that had reappeared, a smile playing on her red lips as her gaze fell upon the latest entry.

When she saw Su Chen's evaluation of her last night as 'flirty as a fox spirit,' she let out a soft 'giggle,' her soft waist trembling slightly.

"A fox spirit?"

"Little Man, your descriptions really haven't improved at all, but... I like it."

She extended a pink tongue and seductively licked the corner of her mouth, her eyes filled with aggression.

Reading on, Su Chen actually wanted to use them as free bodyguards and was even considering handing out commendation banners.

She laughed even harder, her charming eyes narrowing into crescent moons.

"'Employee of the Year Award'? Giggle... Interesting, truly interesting."

"This Saintess has lived this long, and it's the first time someone's thought of giving me an award certificate."

"Little Man, you really are an inexhaustible Treasure Trove."

Her laughter drifted through the great hall, sending shivers down the spines of the several demonic cult Protectors standing below.

The happier the Saintess laughed, the more it usually meant someone was about to be in deep trouble.

This was an ironclad rule etched into the bones of the entire Nine Nether Demonic Cult.

Liu Ruyan's gaze continued downward and was soon completely captured by the two words: "Tianyuan Secret Realm" and "Qin Feng."

She read Su Chen's analysis of Qin Feng's 'hero saving the beauty' script word by word. The smile on her face didn't fade; instead, it grew even stronger.

Only now, that smile carried the chill of someone watching a good show.

"Tsk tsk, this little insect called Qin Feng has quite a venomous mind."

"'Hero saves the beauty,' swindles affection, steals treasures... This scheme, how is it even filthier than our demonic cult's methods?"

Her slender fingers lightly tapped the armrest of the bone throne, producing crisp echoes.

"That Ice Block Face, Ling Qingzhu, gets sold and still helps count the money. Stupid is a bit stupid."

"But, to have her fooled so completely, this Qin Feng is quite a clever little devil."

Excitement flickered in her eyes, the look of a hunter who has discovered novel prey.

To her, whether Ling Qingzhu was deceived or not, she simply didn't care.

If the Yaochi Saintess met misfortune, she'd only pop open champagne to celebrate.

But!

Ling Qingzhu is Su Chen's nominal Fiancée.

This Qin Feng, deceiving Ling Qingzhu's feelings, from a certain perspective, isn't that just digging at her, Liu Ruyan's, corner?

Although she herself didn't take that marriage pact seriously either, her consistent rule was—what I don't want, you can't have either.

This guy called Qin Feng, how dare he lay hands on the woman of the man she, Liu Ruyan, has her eye on?

He's got some nerve.

"Someone."

She spoke lazily.

A black shadow silently appeared below the throne, kneeling on one knee.

"Go and investigate for this Saintess, find out where this Qin Feng sprouted from."

"As you command, Saintess."

The shadow received the order and vanished immediately.

Liu Ruyan rose from the throne, stretching in an utterly alluring manner. Her figure, tightly wrapped in the black dress, was perfect in every proportion.

"Tianyuan Secret Realm... nine-leaf reincarnation grass... Purple Lightning Thunder Lion..."

She softly recited the keywords from the diary, the smile at the corner of her mouth growing increasingly bewitching.

"Seems like it'll be quite lively."

"Such a fun event, how could this Saintess miss it?"

She had no interest in any holy medicine, but was extremely interested in 'fun things' and 'interesting people.'

To go see how that hypocrite called Qin Feng performs.

To go see how that silly, white, sweet, Ling Qingzhu, gets taken in.

And to go see... what else that man, who arranges everyone so clearly in his diary, actually knows.

"Little Man, since you're worried about your iceberg Fiancée, big sister will just go supervise on-site for you."

"If that Qin Feng performs well, big sister might even give him a round of applause."

"If he performs poorly..."

"Then big sister will have no choice but to... personally help him take his final bow."

Before her words faded, her figure transformed into a wisp of black smoke, disappearing from the great hall, leaving behind only a string of heart-stirring, coquettish laughter...

At the same time, deep within the Great Xia Divine Dynasty's imperial palace.

Inside the Imperial Study, the blue smoke of dragon's saliva incense rose in a straight line.

Ji Hongxue, clad in a nine-dragon imperial robe, sat upright behind the desk, her expression indifferent as she looked at the memorial in her hand.

The intelligence brought back by Xuan Ya last night had surprised her quite a bit.

Three major forces gathered, yet were all driven back by Su Chen's one impatient complaint?

This raised her evaluation of Su Chen yet another notch.

That wasn't an act; it was a kind of transcendence rooted in his bones, as if those three women, who could shake the world, were truly just a few noisy stray cats in his eyes.

How many in this world possess such Heart-Nature?

Just as she was pondering, the familiar diary once again materialized before her.

A faint glint passed through Ji Hongxue's phoenix eyes. She didn't open it immediately, but quietly gazed at it for a moment.

This diary appeared far too mysteriously.

But the intelligence it carried was of inestimable value.

Yesterday it was 'Black Fiend Tower,' what would it be today?

She extended her long, fair fingers and turned to a new page.

Her reading speed was extremely fast, taking in ten lines at a glance, each word imprinted upon her heart.

When she saw Su Chen's Make complaints about last night's trio being an 'ice block,' a 'fox spirit,' and a 'pot bottom,' even with her imperial composure, the fingertip lightly tapping the desk paused almost imperceptibly.

Pot bottom... rather fitting. Xuan Ya, clad in black armor, did resemble one.

But terms like 'hand out commendation banners' and 'Employee of the Year,' which she had never heard before, also stirred a strange light in her usually placid phoenix eyes.

Just what was going on in this Su Chen's head?

Her gaze soon fell upon the prophecy regarding the "Tianyuan Secret Realm."

"Qin Feng..."

Ji Hongxue's fingertip resumed its rhythm of tapping the desk. *Tap, tap, tap.*

This name, she had an impression of it.

A few days prior, a memorial from the Hundred Clans Alliance of the Eastern Wasteland had mentioned this person.

Hailing from a second-rate Sect, exceptionally talented, frequently encountering fortuitous opportunities, hailed as a leading figure among the younger generation of the Eastern Wasteland.

At the time, she had merely glanced over it. The world had countless Geniuses; those who hadn't grown to their potential didn't count.

But now, this name was linked with Su Chen's diary.

"Poisoned flying needles, hero saves the beauty, swindles the holy medicine, captures her heart..."

A flash of icy mockery passed through Ji Hongxue's eyes.

"What a fine leading light of the Righteous Path, what a sinister and vicious method."

She was different from Liu Ruyan. What Liu Ruyan saw was 'excitement.'

She was also different from Ling Qingzhu. What Ling Qingzhu saw was 'crisis.'

As an emperor, what Ji Hongxue saw was a 'chessboard.'

This Qin Feng possessed cunning, talent, and Luck—he lacked nothing. Without mishap, such a person was destined to become a major power in the future.

But his methods of operation were sinister, ruthless, and unscrupulous.

This was a double-edged sword.

And Su Chen's diary had allowed her to see the trajectory of this sword in advance.

"Interesting."

Ji Hongxue slowly uttered two words.

She felt neither anger nor excitement; her emotions remained wrapped in absolute rationality.

Through this diary, Su Chen had once again thrown a question at her, or rather, a chess piece.

This chess piece, Qin Feng, how would she respond?

Let him develop according to the 'script,' to antagonize the Yaochi Holy Land?

Or intervene, earning a favor from the Jade Pool?

Or perhaps... take this chess piece into her own hands ahead of time?

Ji Hongxue's gaze became unfathomably deep.

She suddenly understood Su Chen's 'laziness.'

He wasn't truly lazy; rather, the height he stood at no longer required him to personally enter the fray.

He merely needed to write a few passages in his diary to stir up storms across the world, making the heirs of three top forces all dance according to his 'script.'

He was the true chess player.

And they, even that self-righteous praying mantis, Qin Feng, were merely pieces on his board.

"Want to see how this Emperor makes her move?"

The corner of Ji Hongxue's mouth lifted into an extremely faint, yet peerlessly domineering curve.

"Su Chen, your chess game, this Emperor accepts."

"Someone."

She spoke lightly.

Xuan Ya's figure appeared like a ghost once more.

"Deliver this Emperor's decree."

"First, secretly order the Shadow Guard to thoroughly investigate everything about this person Qin Feng—his origins, past, fortuitous encounters, the source of his Cultivation Technique. This Emperor wants to know all his secrets."

"Second, when the Tianyuan Secret Realm opens, you personally lead a team there. No need to show yourself, just keep an eye on Qin Feng. If he acts as written in the diary, leave evidence for this Emperor."

"Third..."

Ji Hongxue paused, a trace of amusement flashing in her phoenix eyes.

"Prepare a gift for the Yaochi Holy Land, congratulating their Saintess on a successful start to her Secret Realm journey. The gift... send a box of 'Truth-Piercing Divine Needles.'"

The Truth-Piercing Divine Needles were a secret treasure of the Great Xia Divine Dynasty, formless and shadowless, specifically designed to neutralize all strange poisons and hidden projectiles.

She wouldn't directly inform Ling Qingzhu of the truth; that was the act of a fool.

She merely needed to hand over a knife, letting Ling Qingzhu discover the truth herself.

This would earn her favor, do so without leaving a trace, and also allow the Yaochi Holy Land and that Qin Feng to form a deadly enmity.

As for Su Chen... Ji Hongxue looked at the slowly vanishing diary, her gaze profound.

This Emperor wants to see just how large you intend to make this chess game.