"Ice Seal!" A cold glint flashed in Ye Lanshan's eyes as she waved her hand, instantly freezing Ye Luotian, all traces of her former tenderness gone.
"You—I recall that Shanluo was your man, wasn't he? Tell me, what exactly is hidden in that courtyard you two frequented most?" Yue Jinghong, seasoned emperor that he was, had nearly all of Ye Lanshan's doings within the capital under his watch.
"Heh, it seems Your Majesty has no intention of letting me go." Ye Lanshan cast him a glance, a mix of joy and sorrow, and with a swift wave of her hand while he was off guard, Ye Luotian vanished before their eyes. She then turned and flew swiftly out of the palace.
But Yue Jinghong wouldn't let her leave so easily. Sure enough, before Ye Lanshan could even reach the wall, a swarm of guards blocked her path, among them soldiers from the three armies.
Ye Lanshan swept a cold gaze over them, expressionless, as if she didn't recognize them at all.
The soldiers, however, felt otherwise. Their faces flushed with shame, heads bowed low, eyes flickering with inner conflict.
"Do you really think you can stop me?" Ye Lanshan summoned Devourer, but this time it was different—faint flames flickered atop it, like a pearl fallen to the mortal world, refusing to be tainted by it.
"We'll give it a try." The Imperial Guard commander gripped his sword tightly, lacking confidence but bound by the emperor's orders.
"Then go ahead and try." Ye Lanshan showed no mercy. With a slash of her blade, fresh lives vanished into thin air, while Devourer itself trembled with excitement, having absorbed so much blood.
"Do you think your threads can control me?" As if sensing something, Ye Lanshan bent low and swung her dagger backward, slicing through spider-silk-like threads in an instant.
"My puppet arts have controlled beings far stronger than you. Do you think I can't control you?"
"I'd hoped you'd hand over the Red Lotus Karma Fire willingly and spare yourself the pain. But since you're so clueless, don't blame us for being ruthless and making you feel the agony of severed meridians." Zhou Haiming snorted coldly, his entire body gleaming with a strange sheen. Upon closer look, fine, transparent threads swirled around him.
"I wonder who it was that fled wounded from my hands back then." Ye Lanshan tossed out the words lightly, as if unconcerned.
"Heh, if it weren't for my unhealed injuries back then, combined with your alliance with the Demon Sect's young master, do you think I'd fear you? Now that the young master's not here to help, do you think you can still act so arrogantly?"
Hearing this, Ye Lanshan's expression didn't harden; instead, it grew more relaxed. She gently stroked the trembling dagger and said flatly, "No one who's lost to me has ever managed to win against me again."
"Clang!" The sound made Ye Lanshan's dismissive demeanor finally turn serious.
So tough—even celestial silk couldn't be this hard. Ye Lanshan rubbed her numb arm, unable to believe a single thread could be so unyielding. She was wielding an ancient killing weapon, yet it couldn't cut through this thread.
"How about it? Not a bad taste of the Thousand Silk Thread, is it?" Zhou Haiming's face showed a hint of smugness at Ye Lanshan's shock.
"Your Thousand Silk Thread is indeed formidable. It must be at the divine artifact level by now." Ye Lanshan's expression grew grave, her grip on the dagger tightening.
"Haha, right you are. It's indeed a divine artifact. And while the world's weapons are countless, I'm the only one who uses threads. Since I've had this thread, I've never met my match." Zhou Haiming caressed the thread lovingly, as if stroking a lover.
"What a pity. From today on, this thread will meet its greatest rival." Ye Lanshan smirked coldly, her dagger gleaming with a chill yet strangely tinged with a fiery red.
"Ding!" A crisp, clear sound, yet laden with suppressed killing intent. The thread that had coiled around her neck snapped and fell to the ground in pieces.
"How—how is this possible?" Zhou Haiming's face twisted in shock, his features contorting grotesquely.
Ye Lanshan wasn't foolish enough to wait for him to recover and launch a frenzied attack. In the blink of an eye, she dashed into the Dream Red Pavilion, frantically gathering everyone. Before they could react, they found themselves in a strange place, staring at each other in confusion, unaware of what had happened.
"Right, there's Ye Yu and the others." Ye Lanshan muttered to herself, darting toward the small courtyard with such speed that it seemed like a gust of wind.
"What's going on? Why the rush?" Sikong Kuang, mid-alchemy, was startled by Ye Lanshan's frantic arrival.
"No time to explain. Get in here first." With another wave of her hand, everyone vanished from the courtyard.
But no sooner had they disappeared than the puppet master caught up. Hatred burned in his eyes as his fingernails slowly turned black. He cackled maniacally, bent on Ye Lanshan's destruction.
"You destroyed my Thousand Silk Thread—now you'll be buried with it!" He lunged with a claw, his voice dripping with sinister madness. This was a true lunatic.
Rage fueled his insanity, and insanity boosted his power. Ye Lanshan quickly found herself at a disadvantage.
No, I need a way to dodge his attacks. Ye Lanshan barely blocked another strike with Devourer, her strength waning.
"Wings of Carnage!" "Misty Water Veil!"
A simultaneous assault of water and fire trapped Zhou Haiming for a moment, but before Ye Lanshan could escape, he was on her again. Yue Jinghong watched from a nearby rooftop, looking relaxed, as if everything was going according to plan.
"How careless of me." Ye Lanshan's mind raced, searching for a way out of this predicament.
"Flying Fire Meteor!" "Hmph, Golden Flash!" Golden specks spread through the air, seemingly inconspicuous but devastatingly powerful. The dense golden rain left Ye Lanshan no room to evade.
"Wings of Carnage!" "Water Lotus Shield!" "Earth Barrier!"
Ye Lanshan conjured shield after shield to block the golden onslaught, but she still took damage.
"Eternal Ice Seal!"
Just as Zhou Haiming was about to grab her, Ye Lanshan briefly froze him, but he broke free in an instant.
"Spare him—I still have use for him." Yue Jinghong finally stopped watching, landing lightly before Ye Lanshan.
Though bloodied, Ye Lanshan's face remained calm as she silently calculated Yue Jinghong's weaknesses.
Yue Jinghong then produced a bowl-like object. Even with her eyes closed, Ye Lanshan could sense the ancient aura emanating from it, seemingly a level above divine artifacts.