CHAPTER 665: CHAPTER 095: HEAVENLY SOUL HALL’S ACTIVE STRIKE

As soon as Qingcheng, still short of breath, stepped inside the palace, she was startled by Zhou Yan’s almost unscrupulous and arrogant words, and her eyes widened in disbelief as she looked at him.

While she wanted to trust her Princess and maintain respect for the young Master Zhou, wasn’t this master a bit too "frivolous"? Could such a person truly possess genuine knowledge and skills?

However... After giving Zhou Yan a few more glances, Qingcheng found him exceptionally handsome—she wanted to keep looking at him, as if Master Zhou possessed a strangely demonic charm, compelling her attention.

"Could this be with ulterior motives? No, I shouldn’t doubt the Princess’s judgment and capability. How could someone she confides in be problematic?! It must be an overthought on my part!"

Qingcheng felt that to question the Princess’s decision was to distrust her, which was immensely disrespectful. Thus, she subconsciously turned her gaze toward her Princess, who seemed imperious and formidable in her heart.

However, Princess Yilan at that moment, her face flush with the warmth of spring, coy and affectionate, hardly looked like the forceful figure she admired. Wasn’t this just the image of a maiden infatuated by her lover?

What shocked Qingcheng even more was that, despite Zhou Yan’s teasing, the Princess was not angry but instead blushed with bashful, affection-soaked eyes that even a blind man could see. Moreover, the noble Princess actually went on her tiptoes and lightly kissed Zhou Yan’s face like a dragonfly skimming water.

Even more so, the ecstatic look on the Princess’s face afterward completely astonished Qingcheng.

Her face, still slightly childish and delicately beautiful, displayed a thrilling expression.

Her small mouth agape, her pink tongue peeking out in shock and dumbfoundedness, froze her completely.

After a long moment, seeing that Princess Yilan was too shy to raise her head, Qingcheng finally came to her senses, speaking uncertainly, "Princess, the Ancient Array being broken is one thing, but that red-haired creature..."

"The red-haired creature is probably some cultivator’s Demon Heart, don’t worry about it, Qingcheng. Just watch over your princess for a while, everything will be just fine."

Zhou Yan, seeing the small girl’s bewildered and adorable expression could not help but think, perhaps Sisi when grown up would be just as lovable? Surely she must be just as irresistibly cute.

Therefore, Zhou Yan spoke very gently.

This gentle tone, to Qingcheng, who harbored no such frivolous thoughts and always treated male cultivators with indifference, strangely stirred some heat and excitement within her. Startled by her own reaction, she felt an immediate need to be cautious—this man’s way of speaking was alarmingly comforting!

Qingcheng was also somewhat uncertain in her heart, thinking, "My goodness, this ’Master’ seems quite mysterious, managing to overheat one’s brain. Could the Princess have been entrapped by this? I must be careful, I need to watch him closely; otherwise, I fear the Princess might suffer a disadvantage."

Her thoughts were transparent, and even without trying to sense others’ feelings, Zhou Yan could tell her small concerns from the pursing of her lips.

Then, she heard Princess Yilan say, "Qingcheng, don’t worry. If Master said he can handle it, then he definitely will. This time, we really rely on Master. If not for him, all of us could have faced a dire fate. After all, even though I am a princess, compared to the Netherworld Goddess, what am I really?"

The Princess was somewhat emotional; after all, she was a princess. She reined in her throbbing heart, suppressing the tender emotions inside, and immediately calmed down.

Of course, when facing others aside from Zhou Yan, she had never truly been confused, but with Zhou Yan, she had never been calm.

The most intelligent and capable women, when faced with the man destined for them, would see all aspects severely degrade, with a significant drop in IQ. This seemed to have been the case since time immemorial.

Princess Yilan was almost in such a state at the moment.

"Princess, since your Master Zhou can manage the ancient array, let’s proceed as soon as possible... Moreover, the Three Great Battle Halls outside still do not know our identities. They were originally escorting us to Ye Sha Ancestor Star, but now, if we bring them along to meet the Goddess, wouldn’t that conflict with the Netherworld Goddess? After all, the Goddess, with her exceptional beauty, is said to attract the infatuation of cultivators from all over the All Heavens and Myriads of Worlds..."

Qingcheng expressed her concerns.

"Earlier, in order to keep a low profile, I indeed did not reveal my identity. The recruited Battle Halls, although capable, are just first-class; bringing them now to see the Netherworld Goddess could definitely cause issues. These people... let it be, Qingcheng, take some Heavenly Crystals and disperse them. Just say, now that we’ve received news that the ancient array is damaged, we won’t go to Ye Sha Ancestor Star, and double their employment payment should suffice."

"That’s a good job done by you, Qingcheng. I overlooked this and didn’t consider it from that angle. We’ll credit you for this achievement,"

Yilan reflected, her expression becoming solemn. The situation was constantly changing, and if one could not maintain a cool head, even a small matter could lead to significant errors.

Because of male cultivators’ lustful bravado, they often became muddled and acted unwise.

The Netherworld Goddess being so outstanding could easily provoke mad, discourteous actions from male cultivators.

"Princess, then Qingcheng will leave. After that, the palace will descend on the region around Beixue Heavenly Palace. From there, reaching the ancient transmission array can only be done by sword flight, so while you study the Tai Chu scripts, don’t forget to control the palace through the void and stop there afterward."

Qingcheng, taking her leave to handle matters, did not forget to remind Yilan about some details. The pair, master and servant, didn’t strictly observe superior-subordinate roles; their relationship clearly resembled that of sisters.

Zhou Yan unconsciously thought of Jiang Yuning and Ping’er and their relationship—weren’t they just as similar? Weren’t Qingcheng and Ping’er similarly characterized, both so loveable and pitiable?

Yet now, Qingcheng still remained by Yilan’s side, growing up happily, while Ping’er was still trapped in the Netherworld Life and Death Illusion Realm, still suffering.

Thinking of these, Zhou Yan couldn’t help but sigh faintly in his heart; indeed, he was somewhat puzzled. Why, with Jiang Yuning’s strength and status, did she still repeatedly encounter misfortune, even Ping’er had met with the same fate?

Could it really be that Ping’er’s misfortune was to protect that precious Life Soul, truly just so he, Zhou Yan, could have more hope?

Perhaps, the Holy Daughter also had her unavoidable difficulties; after all, no matter how things changed, her love for him was always so sincere.

Zhou Yan felt a touch of emotion in his heart, but this sentiment also dissolved in an instant because now his determination was unwavering, and he would no longer let such sentiments affect his mental state.

Cheng’er had departed, while Yilan looked at Zhou Yan with deep affection, her heart filled with an inexplicable anticipation, as if expecting something to happen so she could experience the happiness within these emotions.

Yet before this anticipation could come to fruition, the palace suddenly started shaking, followed by a surge of Energy from the Void outside.

At that moment, Zhou Yan noticed that Yilan, who usually displayed extreme timidity, suddenly had a fierce brilliance in her eyes.

The next moment, she almost instantly regained her colder demeanor, yet when facing Zhou Yan, she revealed a tender and charming smile, her face apologetic, "Master, Cheng’er is in trouble outside; Yilan will go handle it first, then return to chat with you."

Cool and regal in the face of enemies, but respectful and gentle towards Zhou Yan. It was clear that Yilan could distinctly differentiate between closeness and distance, executing everything perfectly.

Zhou Yan nodded and watched Yilan leave.

After Yilan had departed, he gently touched the spot on his cheek where Yilan had kissed him, where a faint aromatic sweetness still lingered.

Zhou Yan sensed the space of this Flying Palace, and in a moment understood its Rune structure, immediately knowing the way out.

This Flying Palace was merely a High Grade Soul Artifact, but every aspect and function were designed for comfort, evidently made with great effort and to please someone with high comprehension.

With Zhou Yan’s discerning eye, unless he did not look seriously, he could at a glance understand the inner essence and rank of Magic Treasures, Weapons, and Combat Armor, even knowing the methods of their creation.

Using this sensing power, Zhou Yan’s connectivity reached outward, and he immediately frowned.

At that moment, the sixty individuals from the Three Great Battle Halls had formed a battle array surrounding Cheng’er and Yilan. Not only that, a hunchbacked old man was also encircled amongst them.

This old man, withered and old, was bathing in blood and had fought to frenzy.

His hair disheveled, with several bloody holes stabbed by swords in his head, all actively bleeding out. The blood poured onto his messy long hair, giving him a ghastly appearance, like a demon.

"Princess, they’ve already discovered your identity, you must escape now, they are all from the Heavenly Soul Hall—"

The old man couldn’t finish speaking before a fierce Sword Soul struck his forehead.

In desperation, he spat out Essence Blood, which transformed into the Fierce Beast Desert Eagle. The flame-like Desert Eagle roared, shattering the fierce Sword Soul but immediately became extremely weak and appeared to be on the verge of collapse.

At that moment, the old man’s blood-soaked black hair turned piercingly white, and he appeared even more aged.

Clearly, his previous strike had exhausted him severely, even burning his Life Potential!

"Princess, go, flee quickly!"

By now, half of Cheng’er’s body had been shattered, with startling white bones exposed. Her ribcage was penetrated, half of her body had vanished, and even though the pride of a woman’s twin peaks was still intact, they were nearly exposed.

The cultivators surrounding them mostly did not make a move, but all wore mocking expressions.

"You dare to act so outrageously, I truly regret that when my father attacked you in the past, I repeatedly persuaded him to abandon that intent; otherwise, you would have been annihilated long ago—"

Yilan angrily spoke, even with her full strength, she could not prevent her maid from getting hurt.

"Hahaha, our Demon Heart lineage has always been Thunder Sovereign, eternally indestructible! What do you Wansheng Divine Dynasty think you are, daring to battle against us? Then we’ll take some interest first, annihilate the Divine Dynasty Saint Master’s most beloved daughter, bring your body which has been violated by our hundreds, thousands of Soul Hall cultivators in rounds, carrying your head with eyes filled with despair, fear, and helplessness as a grand gift to the Divine Dynasty."

The leading Battle Hall Master, a man with blood-red hair covering his body, yet the hair was very docile, arranged as neatly as satin.

"Tsk, what tall tales, you actually dare to offend my disciple, and even dare to hurt my favorite little girl, Cheng’er. I’ve decided, not to let you die comfortably."

At this moment, Zhou Yan flew out of the palace, chuckling.

"Huh? Hahaha, what are you? You also dare to spout bravado! Mo Qi, take him down, turn him into a Blood Demon’s Heart, and let him experience what an uncomfortable death feels like!"

The leading Battle Hall Master burst out laughing.

As he finished speaking, a sinister-looking young man with blood-red eyes stared intently at Zhou Yan.