279: Chapter 279 Even if Tang Ruan disagrees, he will still keep her by his side...

The tiger beastman coming for the shift change kicked the beastman in the hallway twice.

"Are... are you dead? How are you still sleeping? Aren't you afraid the Beast King will find out?"

The beastman in the hallway sat up groggily, only then realizing that it was already broad daylight.

On the stone table not far away, the figures of the Goddess and the Lord of Red Fox City were long gone.

Inside the room, Tang Ruan burrowed into Hu Che's arms.

She mumbled groggily: "How about we open the first shop in Central City? When Yan Qing and the others come back, I'll have Yan Qing write a plaque for you..."

She vaguely recalled plot points from TV dramas where, as long as an emperor had eaten somewhere and left an inscription, that shop would become a famous attraction.

She really was too clever.

But, where were Yan Qing and the others?

Suddenly, that pair of purple eyes appeared in Tang Ruan's mind once again.

"Yan Qing!"

She sat up abruptly.

Hu Che sat up with her, wrapping his arms around her from behind and resting his head on her shoulder.

"Mistress... don't worry..." he said groggily.

Suddenly, Tang Ruan seemed to hear the rumbling sound of the Beast King Palace's stone gates opening and closing.

She abruptly pulled away Hu Che's hands and ran downstairs.

Hu Che was startled, jumped out of bed, and followed closely behind.

By the time Tang Ruan arrived at the entrance of the Beast King Palace, the gates had just closed.

She Mu was standing at the entrance, and upon seeing Tang Ruan, he hurriedly stepped forward.

"Goddess."

"Has Yan Qing returned?" she asked anxiously.

She Mu nodded. "The Beast King asked me to tell you not to worry."

Tang Ruan bypassed him, intending to go inside, but She Mu took a step back and blocked her.

"The Beast King instructed that the matter he is currently discussing with the various city lords is extremely urgent and he cannot be distracted.

He hopes the Goddess can wait for him in her room."

Tang Ruan clenched her fingers. "Okay."

Although she didn't know what matter could be so urgent that he didn't even have time to say two words to her, Tang Ruan trusted Yan Qing.

She took a step back and asked: "What about Fen Tian, Heng Zhou, and Lang Lie?"

She Mu shook his head.

"They didn't come back?"

She Mu replied: "The Beast King said not to let you worry about them either."

Tang Ruan took a deep breath. "Okay."

Since Yan Qing had returned, and the three of them now had Supernatural Abilities stronger than Yan Qing's, they shouldn't be in any trouble.

She turned around and was about to head back when she suddenly saw Lang Lie walking over from the distance.

"Lang Lie!"

Tang Ruan ran over and threw herself into his arms.

Suddenly thinking of something, she immediately checked his body and breathed a sigh of relief after finding only a few minor abrasions.

"How is it?" Tang Ruan asked.

Lang Lie replied: "It's almost over."

Tang Ruan thought: Almost over?

"You didn't kill Princess Jiao Yi?" she exclaimed. "What about Fen Tian and Heng Zhou?"

Why hadn't they returned? Had something happened to them?

Lang Lie gently gripped her shoulders. "Don't worry, Princess Jiao Yi's soul has completely vanished.

The Witch Doctor Shui Zhu watched it disappear.

She is truly dead.

From now on, no one will ever threaten your safety again."

Tang Ruan looked into Lang Lie's eyes.

"Then why did you say it's almost over..."

Lang Lie pursed his lips. "Just to be safe, Fen Tian and Heng Zhou are going to destroy Beast God Mountain.

So it will still take a little time."

Seeming afraid that she would worry, he added: "They should be back very soon."

Tang Ruan asked: "Is that so?"

Why did she feel a trace of unease in Lang Lie's eyes?

"Yes.

I will wait here with you for them."

He looked at Hu Che and walked over to his side.

"When I came back, I passed by Red Fox City.

Chief Hu Xiao said there is a very important matter to discuss with you..."

The rest of his words were lowered in volume, and Tang Ruan did not hear them.

Hu Che's eyes widened abruptly.

After a long while, he said very softly: "Okay."

---

Tang Ruan stood on the highest level of the Beast King Palace, listening to the stone gates of the Beast King Palace opening and closing countless times.

City lords were constantly coming in and out, but Yan Qing never came out.

She gazed into the distance at the clouds on the horizon.

She stood here so that if Fen Tian and the others returned, she would be the first to see them.

Suddenly, a violent wind carrying heat waves struck.

Impurities in the air blurred her vision.

Tang Ruan instinctively stepped back while raising her hand to shield her face.

She rubbed her eyes.

When she opened them again, the light before her had dimmed significantly.

She looked up and happened to meet Lang Lie's ice-blue eyes.

He was standing in front of her, helping her block the violent wind and filth.

Tang Ruan tilted her head and saw that the sky behind him had darkened.

She shifted her body, wanting to see more.

Lang Lie suddenly followed her movement, turning his body as if intentionally blocking her view.

Tang Ruan raised her hand, pressed down on his arm, and took a large step outward.

She saw that the sky behind Lang Lie had turned black and red in an instant.

The upper half looked like a sky brewing a rainstorm, while the lower half looked like fire clouds on a hot summer day.

At the intersection of black and red, lightning flashed and thunder rumbled; it seemed as though a wicked dragon might emerge at any moment.

"What... is going on with this weather?"

Tang Ruan had never seen such terrible weather in Central City.

When the Central City was built here, besides it being perfectly located in the center of all the cities in the Beast Kingdom, it was also because the four seasons were distinct and the weather was relatively mild.

The sky of Central City had never displayed this color before.

This color...

A flash of inspiration suddenly struck Tang Ruan; she remembered that before natural disasters, there would be anomalies in the sky.

Although she had never experienced a natural disaster, this was clearly abnormal.

"Lang Lie! Have you ever seen a sky like this?" Tang Ruan asked.

Lang Lie lowered his eyes and looked at her.

After a long while, he still said that same sentence— "Don't worry."

"Tell me, are you all hiding something from me?" Tang Ruan put her hands on her hips, looking at Lang Lie threateningly.

Lang Lie: "No."

Tang Ruan: "Tell the truth!

If not, why haven't Fen Tian and Heng Zhou returned yet?"

Lang Lie: "They will be back immediately."

Tang Ruan suddenly looked down.

The gates of the Beast King Palace were still tightly closed.

Yan Qing had been inside for a day.

What was he hiding from her?

Were they all injured?

Were they closing the doors to heal because they were afraid she would worry?

Tang Ruan turned and ran downstairs.

She had only run two steps when she was embraced by Lang Lie.

"Mistress!"

This was the first time he had used her identity to address her.

A sudden shock went through Tang Ruan's heart.

A bad premonition arose in her mind.

"You must believe in them..."

Tang Ruan's hand fell onto the back of Lang Lie's hand.

"Then tell me, what exactly happened?"

Lang Lie closed his eyes and said nothing.

A violent wind struck from the side again, and the withered leaves mixed in the air brushed against Tang Ruan's eyelashes.

She instinctively reached out to catch one.

Opening her palm, she realized it was not a withered leaf at all.

It was a scorched black piece of fabric the size of a fingernail—the kind of material that only some wealthy High-level Beastmen would wear.

"What is this?"

Seeing that he could no longer hide it, Lang Lie took a deep breath and said: "I can tell you what happened.

But you must stay by my side."

His ice-blue eyes showed determination.

It seemed that even if Tang Ruan did not agree, he would tie her to his side...

Tang Ruan: "Okay."

Lang Lie sighed and said: "We destroyed Princess Jiao Yi's soul.

To prevent future trouble, we decided to destroy Beast God Mountain.

However, an accident occurred..."