198: He is not a puppet.

"I do not agree either!"

A female voice, even more domineering and bewitching than Chu Yuehua's, suddenly rang out.

Everyone looked toward the sound, their expressions changing drastically!

In the distant sky, ripples of pink color spread silently across the Void Realm.

Immediately after, a flash of fiery, intense red stepped out from the center of the ripples, as if teleporting.

Su Qingjue had arrived.

She was still wearing that vibrant red long dress that outlined her proud figure in a breathtaking manner.

Her tender, bare jade feet stepped onto the Void Realm, and the bells on her ankles emitted a crisp, alluring sound with every step she took.

"Jingle! Jingle!"

The spot where she landed was exactly in front of the Nine Nether Sacred Cult group, like a Devil King descending, looking down upon the entire scene.

She first swept a lazy glance at the crowd below. Wherever her gaze fell, regardless of their cultivation level, everyone felt a chill in their hearts and hurriedly lowered their heads to avoid her eyes.

Immediately after, her fox-like eyes, which seemed capable of stealing souls, fell upon the Butian Sect Master with a teasing smile.

"This Little Man was spotted by me first."

Su Qingjue's red lips parted slightly. Her voice was seductive to the bone, yet every word was clear, carrying an unquestionable possessiveness, like a declaration of ownership.

"If you dare to play matchmaker and force him to pair up with someone else..."

She paused, the corners of her mouth curling into a bewitching smile that could topple nations, yet her eyes remained ice-cold, devoid of any laughter.

"I wouldn't mind inviting you right now to go into my Ten Thousand Souls Banner and have a nice heart-to-heart with the old friends inside."

Her tone was light, yet it lingered like a demonic sound.

The Butian Sect Master's expression turned extremely ugly in an instant.

Although she was also a Quasi-Emperor, she knew deeply the terrifying strength of the Demoness before her.

Su Qingjue was a ruthless character who had truly killed her way out of a mountain of corpses and a sea of blood. Her fierce reputation shook the world; even as fellow Quasi-Emperors, their combat power was worlds apart.

She had never expected that this person, who always acted as she pleased and viewed men as playthings, would actually declare her sovereignty so aggressively in public for the sake of Qin Wushang!

This was clearly a determination to monopolize that young man!

The experts from various factions present were now as silent as cicadas in winter, not daring to even breathe loudly.

Three peerless, magnificent women were vaguely forming a standoff over one person.

This gossip was too big; they were afraid they would choke if they ate too much of it.

The moment Su Qingjue appeared, Chu Yuehua's cold, clear gaze shot over like an ice arrow.

Their gazes collided in mid-air!

One was as cold as ten-thousand-year black ice!

The other was as bewitching as the demon flower of the other shore!

But this time, neither of them spoke immediately; they just stood in a quiet standoff.

In the Great Chu Empire's Prodigy camp, Lin Ziyao, dressed in purple, bit her lower lip tightly, her fists clenched inside her sleeves.

She looked at the three dazzling figures high in the sky, and an unprecedented sense of powerlessness welled up in her heart.

"Lin Ziyao, oh Lin Ziyao..."

She whispered to herself in her heart, her voice filled with unwillingness and self-mockery.

"You are still too weak... too weak to even have the qualifications to stand by his side and compete with them..."

"You must strive to become stronger! You must become even stronger! Strong enough to stand by his side, strong enough to ignore the threats of these women, strong enough... to firmly make him your own, so that no one can snatch him away!"

She swore secretly!

The Ancient Desolate Secret Realm would be the first step of her transformation!

Further away, in an inconspicuous corner, a slender figure draped in a black cloak also quietly raised her head, looking at the figure on the Imperial Carriage.

She stood quietly, as if merging with the shadows. Only beneath the cloak, those beautiful eyes flickered with a complex and unclear light.

She also pursed her lips tightly, revealing the unrest in her heart.

...

"Fellow Daoist Su!"

The Butian Sect Master took a deep breath, suppressing the shock and anger in her heart, and put on that elegant and proper smile again.

Only, this smile was slightly stiff!

"Just now, I was merely trying to facilitate a happy union and going with the flow."

"If you, Fellow Daoist, do not like it, then let the matter drop."

"Why must you... be so aggressive?"

"Facilitating a happy union? Going with the flow?"

Su Qingjue covered her lips and giggled, her body trembling, and the waves on her chest surged accordingly.

"What a high-sounding excuse!"

Her laughter stopped abruptly, and her eyes suddenly turned cold.

"Taking without asking, just wanting to treat my man as an accessory to your disciple and arranging a marriage at will—do you still have any shame?"

"Calling him 'my man' in every breath?"

Chu Yuehua's cold, clear voice rang out at the right moment, interrupting Su Qingjue's words and successfully drawing the fire toward herself.

Her gaze was like ice as she looked at Su Qingjue, then glanced at the Butian Sect Master, her tone carrying the unique arrogance of an Empress.

"Have you asked for my opinion?"

"He is my Personal Disciple; when has it ever been your turn to interfere in his affairs?"

Three women, one show.

No, it was three peerless women capable of stirring up the winds and clouds of the Desolate Heaven Domain, engaging in a war of words and refusing to yield to each other over one man, under the gaze of everyone.

This scene plunged the entire Border Wasteland into a deathly silence.

Everyone felt their scalps tingling, while simultaneously unable to stop themselves from screaming crazily in their hearts.

Qin Wushang! What virtue or ability do you actually possess?

Damn you, even saving all the heavens and worlds in your previous life wouldn't be enough to earn this Heaven-Defying romantic fortune!

You son of a bitch, is the Heavenly Dao your father?

"I cannot be bothered to engage in a war of words with you!"

Su Qingjue also seemed to feel that continuing to argue like this was beneath her status, so she rolled her eyes at Chu Yuehua and ignored her further.

"I do not think so."

Just as the atmosphere was subtle, a clear, calm voice, like a flowing ice spring, rang out, breaking the silence.

It was Mu Bingyun.

She tilted her head slightly, her ice-blue eyes looking at Su Qingjue high in the sky, then calmly turned to Chu Yuehua.

"Love and affection arise from one's own heart; there is nothing wrong with that."

"Anyone has the right to like someone else."

"If, just because of liking someone, one is to be deprived by force and treated as a Puppet or an accessory, then this liking has already turned sour, and it does not deserve the word 'like'."

"Let alone love!"

She paused, her gaze seemingly sweeping over Qin Wushang, her voice remaining calm and waveless.

"Whether he loves me or I love him, that is a matter between us and has nothing to do with others."

"He is not anyone's Puppet, nor does he need anyone to speak for him or decide who he should belong to."

When these words were spoken, both women were stunned for a moment, and were actually speechless for a time.

That's right; they had been arguing until their faces were red, but had they ever asked that Little Man, that Rebellious Disciple, about his own wishes?

Qin Wushang also looked toward the cold, snow-like figure below with slight surprise.

He hadn't expected that this seemingly cold ice block had such a clear and transparent heart, and that she would actually dare to say that.

She had really changed!

In his previous life, she had chased him with a sword for a long time; in this life, she was so different.

The corners of his mouth curled into a very faint smile unconsciously.

"Enough!"

A deep shout suddenly exploded, breaking this eerie and suffocating atmosphere.

From the direction of the Taiyuan Sacred Sect, an old man dressed in a black Taoist robe stepped forward and spoke in a deep voice.

"Fellow Daoists! The time is approaching; do not forget the main business of gathering here today!"