Ice-blue hair, eyes so cold they seemed to freeze one's soul, and the mechanical device shimmering with light behind her ear.
And the massive cracked sword she held in her hand.
This was Lacy, known as the "Angel" within the organization, the same person who had shattered Ning Yu's weapon on that rainy night.
The one who had said, "We will meet again."
"It's you."
Ning Yu narrowed her eyes. This person claimed to want to help her but had set up an ambush to attack her.
She ignored the now motionless mutated zombies on the ground and fixed her ruby-like eyes on Lacy.
"We meet again."
Lacy smiled slightly, her previously expressionless face melting like ice, a bright gold beginning to spread through her eyes, replacing the icy blue.
Ning Yu remembered—this was the sign of Lacy entering her second phase. In this state, it was as if her entire personality had changed.
Before Lacy could say more, Ning Yu sidestepped into the mist, activating [Mist Walk].
Shen Yiyue's sniper rifle was also in action, its barrel spitting fire as bullets imbued with time manipulation flew toward Lacy.
"It's a misunderstanding. I'm not here to fight you."
Lacy spread her hands in a gesture of helplessness.
But neither Ning Yu nor Shen Yiyue listened to her. After all, she had set the ambush first, and now they couldn't trust her.
Shen Yiyue's bullets halted in front of Lacy, a faint blue ripple shield appearing, the bullets creating ripples across its surface.
Ning Yu's figure appeared behind Lacy, and Blood Kite pierced into the barrier.
It was no longer the original [Crimson War Blade], and its tip easily broke through Lacy's shield.
Though Lacy hadn't directly attacked Ning Yu to trigger [Moon's Moment], Ning Yu had no intention of stopping her assault.
She swung Blood Kite, slashing at the barrier countless times in a flurry!
Lacy's barrier trembled violently, shaking until it finally shattered with a crisp sound.
Her supposedly impenetrable shield was broken by Blood Kite!
Lacy's expression remained unchanged, still wearing that mysterious smile as she shook her head slightly in resignation.
Now, Ning Yu's blade and Shen Yiyue's bullets were no longer obstructed.
Lacy dodged Shen Yiyue's time-stopping bullets, but Ning Yu's blade followed her like a shadow, relentless in its pursuit.
"Clang!"
Lacy placed her massive sword in front of her chest, blocking Ning Yu's fierce strike.
"You've grown much stronger. I wasn't wrong about you."
Ning Yu frowned. Her attacks with Blood Kite were like a storm, yet Lacy didn't engage in a direct confrontation, instead opting for a passive defense.
It seemed as if she truly had no intention of fighting.
Was she really not here to ambush them?
"What about these mutated zombies?"
Ning Yu glanced at the now motionless cyborg-like zombies on the ground. It seemed they had truly stopped attacking under Lacy's control.
"Just a test of your strength."
Ning Yu's attacks grew faster, leaving only afterimages in the air.
To keep up, Lacy sprouted a pair of blue light wings from her back.
Unlike Ning Xuan's mechanical wings, these were genuine light wings, resembling the delicate wings of a fairy, composed entirely of some kind of energy.
The energy flowing through them rippled backward, as if burning, gently swaying with Lacy's movements.
"Clang!"
Their weapons clashed once more, and Lacy still didn't take the initiative to attack.
Shen Yiyue suddenly noticed Ning Yu raising her hand behind her back, signaling her to stop attacking.
"You really want to help me?"
Ning Yu slowly retracted Blood Kite, her eyes still locked on Lacy, wary of a sudden attack.
Lacy released her grip, sending the cracked sword back into an invisible space. She spread her light wings and flew to the massive portal.
After manipulating it for a moment, she closed the portal and then turned back to Ning Yu.
"Of course."
"Why?"
Ning Yu pressed immediately, leaving no room for evasion.
This was Ning Yu's biggest question. She had been watching her for so long—what did she want?
"We still have time. Your dear sister is tracking Chen Xing's trail. We can talk slowly."
She walked over to the destroyed altar in the center and placed a small soul gem on it.
The altar reactivated, the surrounding light paths glowing again, though far less effectively than with the original large soul gem.
But it seemed enough for Lacy. She manipulated the altar, and the devices on it began to shift and move.
A screen slowly rose from below, the energy from the soul gem flowing into it, seemingly powering it.
"The soul gems, these altars—are they your work?"
Ning Yu frowned, staring at her, unable to imagine that someone so beautiful could create such an evil, even cruel, energy extraction mechanism.
"It is me, and yet it isn't."
She seemed to have finished her work and turned to look at Ning Yu. Shen Yiyue, realizing the fight was over, slowly walked over as well.
Ning Yu was speechless.
"I suggest you start speaking plainly."
She was barely holding back the urge to punch this riddle-spouting person.
"Hahaha, you're still as fiery as ever."
Lacy couldn't help but laugh softly, her golden eyes sparkling with a crystalline light.
"The me you're seeing now is the real me."
She pointed to her eyes, signaling to Ning Yu.
"What you usually see is my protective personality, which you can simply understand as a program I designed."
"The one who attacked you initially was also my protective personality."
Ning Yu listened, only half understanding:
"So androids don't dream of electric sheep, but they can have split personalities??"
Shen Yiyue almost burst out laughing beside her, while Lacy was nearly choked by her words.
"First, I'm not an android. Second, this isn't a split personality."
Lacy rolled her eyes at Ning Yu in a very vivid manner, then pointed to the altar below.
"These altars were also designed by my surface personality."
"Why do something like this? This isn't William's goal. Why are you betraying him?"
Ning Yu began to speculate.
At the mention of 'William,' Lacy's eyes trembled, as if the name stirred something deep within her.
"How do you know that name?"
s the Eldest Princess, renowned for her cold and aloof detachment, became the most docile of lambs, obeying his every command without question. But when the final move was played on the chessboard, as Gu Chenghan seized everything and ascended on the verge of apotheosis, that very Princess suddenly embraced him from behind, her tone carrying a dependence never heard before: "Wait... you haven't yet... commanded me to love you forever." Gu Chenghan froze abruptly. She... hadn't been hypnotized?! ... [The Eldest Princess's Diary] [When my soul was extracted, becoming the sole spectator outside my own shell] [At first, there was overwhelming fury, until I saw] [How he used my sword to effortlessly shatter my inescapable doom] [How he wielded my authority to eradicate fatal conspiracies I had never even detected] [Like a deity, he rescued me from the deep mire I was trapped in] [If not for those annoying vixens, he and I would be a match made in heaven] [I think I am ill, gravely ill] [My deity should belong to me alone] ... "Hypnosis? Oh, it succeeded, my dear Master." "Only this time, it's my turn to hypnotize you."
e vast world of cultivation, where he becomes the master of the Heavenly Ruins Sacred Hall, a dying old man with barely a tenth of his former cultivation remaining. He is immediately confronted with a deadly crisis: his subordinates have rebelled, and his protectors are forcing him to abdicate. At the critical moment, the system descends from the heavens: [Ding! The host has been detected facing a life-or-death crisis. The system is now officially activated!] [As a gift, you have received the Supreme Beginner’s Pack and awakened the ultimate cheat: ten thousand years of pure cultivation essence every second!] Yin Tianjue: “Wait… ten thousand years of cultivation every second? That’s six hundred thousand years a minute, and in one day… I can’t even calculate it. Either way, I’m already invincible!” You’re a peerless prodigy rarely seen in ten thousand years? Sorry, I gain ten thousand years of cultivation every second. You’re an undying ancestor who has guarded a sacred land for countless ages? Sorry, I gain ten thousand years of cultivation every second. You’re the strongest chosen one, blessed with heaven-defying destiny? Sorry, I gain ten thousand years of cultivation every second. From this day forth, I have only one thing to say: “I gain ten thousand years of cultivation every second. Now, how exactly are you supposed to deal with that?”
y came from. The chests contained supplies, currency, class-change scrolls, skills, talents… and even godhood! The laws of the world were completely rewritten. This became a world where everyone gambled with their fate! Some people, despite having nothing, opened a divine artifact and rose to the top, eventually ruling the world. Others went bankrupt, opened nothing but worthless junk, and leaped from skyscrapers in despair. Lin Ye arrived in this world from another reality, utterly bewildered. “What is going on? Why is everyone a gambling addict?!” “Opening chests? No way. I refuse to gamble. I’ll start with myself!” Until— On his first chest, he obtained a Mythic Talent: Void Incarnation! He could become completely intangible, pass through all things, and reduce everything to nothingness! … On his fiftieth chest, he obtained a Mythic Weapon: Blade of Karma! With a single slash, karma shattered, twisting the universe and overturning the myriad phenomena of creation! … On his ninety-ninth chest, he obtained a Mythic Divine Treasure: Primordial Purple Energy! It could split open the heavens and earth, create all things, and evolve countless worlds with a single thought! Lin Ye: “Now that I think about it… shouldn’t someone have told me that every chest is guaranteed to contain something Mythic?!”
rowess are unmatched, commanding a million-strong army! Yet, the Emperor wants to depose him for the sake of a false prince? Hold on, are you throwing me into some female-oriented romance plot? How can I tolerate this? With a grand wave of his hand—the Nine Clan Extraction Technique! Slander the Emperor? Very well, all of you shall die! ... The False Prince: "Although I am not the biological son, Father and Mother love me more. The throne should be mine!" The Female Lead: "Qin Xiao, you are the Emperor, and I am a commoner. If you wish to marry me, you must abdicate. Otherwise, you will never have me!" The Empress: "After we divorce, you must give me half the empire!" The Transmigrator Consort: "You worthless Emperor, why should I kneel to you? All men are equal—I advise you to be kind!" The Great General: "The enemy general is my childhood sweetheart. For her sake, I willingly abandon the frontier defenses!" The Retired Emperor: "Although Yu'er was adopted, I prefer him. Qin Xiao, you should abdicate and let him become Emperor!" ... Very well! So this is how you want to play? Facing this twisted world of female-oriented tropes, Qin Xiao grins and raises his hand to unleash—the Nine Clan Extraction Technique! I am the Emperor. Why would I bother reasoning with you? Seal the gates! Leave none alive!
