The Dragon

Gu Fuyou stared at Zuo Qingfeng, his life draining away, his body growing cold, soon to be nothing more than a handful of yellow earth. It struck her how easily life could end, regardless of one’s power or status – death treats everyone the same.

A smirk curled her lips, her eyes gleaming with mockery. Taking a life used to repulse her, the sticky feeling of blood between her fingers once nauseated her. But now, this sensation felt liberating. The blood that disgusted her now quenched her thirst.

The Zuo family members, upon seeing Gu Fuyou drenched in blood and wearing a cold smile, felt like they were staring at a demon from hell. They were deeply shaken, instinctively stepping back. If she could kill Zuo Qingfeng, it meant no one in Bailu City could stand against her.

Among them, Zuo Peixian was the most composed. He declared loudly, “Don’t panic, she’s alone and badly injured. Together, we have nothing to fear from her!”

His voice was firm, instilling a sense of resolve in those around him as they echoed his sentiment, “He’s right. This is Bailu City, not her Zhongzhou. We don’t need to fear her!” Bailu City was fortified with various formations, weapons, and abundant supplies of pills. Moreover, with countless slaves and city guards, they could wear her down.

Despite this, Zuo Peixian made thorough preparations. As soon as Zuo Qingfeng clashed with Qingluan, he had sent people to find Zuo Yuanrong, dispatched Zuo Yi to gather capable cultivators from the city gate and sent signals for reinforcements from neighboring towns. He even sent a message to the Thirty-Three Skies, informing them of the situation in Bailu City.

Zuo Yi, accompanied by his subordinates, hurried to the city gate tower, where most guards were gathered. Two were in charge: a Zuo family cultivator, his cousin, and Xiao Zhongting.

Upon arrival, they were met with a shocking scene of bloodshed and fallen cultivators. A man in light armor and a blood-stained green shirt, holding a spirit sword, had just defeated someone. Hearing them, he turned around, his eyes red and cold.

Zuo Yi trembled, unable to complete his sentence, ” Xiao Zhongting, you… what…?”

Xiao Zhongting, flinging blood from his sword, approached with dozens of cultivators behind him. He had arranged for his men to infiltrate the city when Zuo Hanling reduced the number of patrolling cultivators. With many at the martial arts field and others guarding key locations, those left at the gate were mostly his people. The Zuo family cultivators had been dealt with.

“Close the city gates!” Xiao Zhongting ordered.

The gates slammed shut, reactivating the defensive formations. Bailu City was now impregnable, even to a Soul Splitting stage cultivator like Qingluan.

The reactivated formations not only kept outsiders at bay but also trapped those inside. Gu Fuyou had subtly altered the formations, restricting the Zuo family members’ freedom of movement. Bailu City had become a sealed pot.

Zuo Yi felt a sense of impending doom, realizing Xiao Zhongting was in league with Qingluan!

The reactivation of the city’s defenses was immediately noticed in the martial arts field.

“Why was the defense formation activated?”

“Does she have outside help?”

“Capture her first! Someone…”

But as they called for help, a person appeared from above the stands, landing behind Gu Fuyou – a towering presence, exuding an intimidating aura similar to a colossal deity.

The figure, dressed in red shorts and bare-chested, with a black beard and two chains piercing through his shoulder blades trailing on the ground, was instantly recognized.

Seeing him, people felt a suffocating darkness descend, some screaming in panic, “Who let him out!”

It was Feng Sui. Even Zuo Yuanrong couldn’t always restrain him with the contract, and without Zuo Yuanrong, he was utterly unrestrained. Another powerful figure had arrived.

Feng Sui picked up the mighty sword near Zuo Qingfeng and tested its weight. Gu Fuyou suggested, “This sword doesn’t suit you. Give it to Seven.”

With Zuo Qingfeng dead, the sword, a rare spiritual weapon, became ownerless. Seven, having reached the Hallow Void stage, could tame it.

Feng Sui tossed the sword to the ground near Seven, who picked it up and leaped into the air. Twenty-Three and the other slaves were confused; Seven seemed different from before.

The Zuo family members now realized who had released Feng Sui.

Gu Fuyou, no longer in the mood for impassioned speeches to the slaves – years of subservience couldn’t be undone with just a few words. Nothing was more effective than the contract.

She too called out, “Someone!”

“Clear Bailu City of all Zuo family members, slave masters, and training officers. Leave none behind!”

As soon as the words were spoken, nearly a thousand slaves on the martial arts field, spread across seven layers, suddenly attacked the surrounding cultivators. Their bodies moved before their minds could process, and they found themselves ruthlessly fighting those they usually wouldn’t dare to touch. They realized it was due to the contract’s power.

Zuo Peixian was shocked to see that Gu Fuyou commanded the slaves with a contract. “How do you have a contract? Did my father give it to you?!” he exclaimed in disbelief.

Gu Fuyou glanced at him with a smirk, which Zuo Peixian interpreted as mocking.

Another slave master used his contract, shouting, “What are you waiting for? Capture them!”

Initially, nearly half of the slave contracts were in Zuo Yuanrong’s possession, but Gu Fuyou had already seized the contracts from other slave masters, along with Zuo Yuanrong’s. She now controlled nearly seventy percent of the best slaves. The Zuo family, however, could only command the remaining thirty percent, who were the least capable.

The slaves, upon receiving orders, acted immediately, but the numerical and power disparity made it impossible for them to be stopped.

The martial arts field descended into chaos, the slaves and training officers locked in combat, much to the shock and bewilderment of everyone, as if the world had turned upside down.

Zuo Peixian, leading the Zuo family’s cultivators on the viewing platform, surrounded Gu Fuyou, who sat in the city lord’s seat, watching the chaotic scene below. Gritting his teeth, he attacked her, but his assault was intercepted by a towering figure, Feng Sui, who retaliated, sending up a cloud of dust and forcing everyone to retreat. Seven, like a ghost, pursued relentlessly with his sword.

With two powerful Soul Splitting stage cultivators working together, the others stood no chance.

Zuo Peixian couldn’t comprehend how a vast city like Bailu had fallen to a single woman. She was alone, yet it seemed as if all the advantageous conditions had flowed towards her.

Zuo Peixian, propped up by his sword, knelt among the fallen cultivators. The martial arts field was half-destroyed, and the fighting slaves had spilled outside. The sky was darkening, with a red glow visible in the west.

The ground was covered in hardened blood, the air thick with the smell of iron. Taking a deep breath, Zuo Peixian felt a tearing pain in his throat as he looked up to see a cultivator descending on a sword. The defensive formations of the city had been reactivated by Gu Fuyou, preventing anyone from entering.

Zuo Peixian and the others had fought to the last, with no reinforcements arriving. They had considered retreating but were trapped by Gu Fuyou’s spirit sword and formation on the viewing platform. Their spiritual powers were suppressed, making them helpless against the two Soul Splitting stage cultivators.

Eventually, more slaves joined the fight, sealing their fate.

Xiao Zhongting approached Gu Fuyou, reporting, “All the slave masters in the city have been dealt with.”

Zuo Peixian, in shock, realized, “It was you.”

Xiao Zhongting bowed, “Young Master.”

Furious, Zuo Peixian accused, “So it was you conspiring with her in secret!” He couldn’t understand how Gu Fuyou, unfamiliar with Bailu City, could stir up such trouble. “You ungrateful dog!”

Xiao Zhongting chuckled, “Whose grace? Whose righteousness?”

Zuo Peixian retorted, “Without the Zuo family’s grace, you wouldn’t be alive, let alone the city’s defense commander. If it weren’t for my father, your Xiao City would have been flattened by Zuo Tianlang!”

Xiao Zhongting replied bitterly, “It’s because of your family’s tyranny and cruelty that Xiao City fell to this state. Why did my sister take her own life? Why did my daughter fall into the wolves’ den? You talk about grace and righteousness after pushing me into the abyss and then pretending to save me?”

Zuo Peixian’s face turned red, speechless. Xiao Zhongting mocked, “Young Master, your family has ruled over Nanzhou for a thousand years. Now it’s your turn to taste being toyed with and oppressed.”

Gu Fuyou stood up and said, “Xiao Zhongting, you take care of the aftermath.”

“Understood,” Xiao Zhongting replied.

Feng Sui and Seven, both bearing scars, were resting cross-legged nearby. As Gu Fuyou prepared to leave, they quickly stood up. “No need to follow,” she said without looking back. The two exchanged a glance and sat back down.

Gu Fuyou descended from the platform. Many slaves remained on the martial arts field, having just finished off the training officers. Without further orders, they stood still, unsure of what to do next. Their blood boiled with an excitement they couldn’t calm, a stark contrast to their usual submissive demeanor. They had never even considered resisting the training officers, but now they had taken their lives. As they dealt the final blows, something within them seemed to shatter, making their bodies feel lighter, but their hearts heavier.

Twenty-Three stood by the stairs, half her face stained with blood, with one eye closed. As Gu Fuyou approached, Twenty-Three stepped back and knelt.

Gu Fuyou stopped in front of her. Twenty-Three tensed up, visibly nervous. Gu Fuyou said, “Well done.”

Twenty-Three looked up, her eyes shining brilliantly, almost standing in her excitement. She opened her mouth to say something but couldn’t find the words to express her admiration and excitement. She just shook all over, watching Gu Fuyou walk away.

Despite Bailu City’s numerous defensive formations, it was left in ruins. Broken walls and dead bodies littered the city.

Gu Fuyou walked to the hall, stepping on the red carpet, through the opened doors, and into the hall. Zuo Yuanrong was sitting in the middle of the hall, staring blankly and smiling. Above his head hung a silver bell, ringing with an ethereal sound.

Gu Fuyou looked around; the hall was littered with bodies, the floor stained dark red. These were probably people sent by Zuo Peixian to find Zuo Yuanrong, dealt with by Xiao Zhongting.

Gu Fuyou approached Zuo Yuanrong, extended her right hand, and said, “City Lord, give me the contracts.” With the slave masters dead, the contracts would flow to Zuo Yuanrong. Now that all the slave masters in the city were dead, the last three layers of contracts would be transferred to him.

Lost in his delusion, Zuo Yuanrong obediently grasped Gu Fuyou’s hand, transferring all the contracts.

Withdrawing her hand, Gu Fuyou looked at it for a moment before ascending the steps to sit on the City Lord’s throne. As she sat, the tone of the bell changed, becoming deeper and more piercing. Zuo Yuanrong, who had a smiling face, suddenly cried out in agony and fell to the ground, writhing in pain from some unseen vision.

Gu Fuyou leaned her cheek on her hand, lounging on the throne, emotionlessly watching him. She hummed a lullaby to his cries of pain.

—— Down the long lane, dreams are hard to leave,

Hard to leave the dreams, the lane is long ——

In a deep sleep, Zhong Michu dreamt of a world where colors were dim and cold.

She held Gu Fuyou in her arms, panicked and helpless, “I’ll take you back to the Eastern Sea.”

Gu Fuyou asked, “What will happen if we return to the Eastern Sea? What am I to them? Will they protect me?”

She said, “Then we’ll go to the Xuji Mountain.”

Gu Fuyou said, “Zhong Michu, I have no home to return to anymore.”

“No…”

Before she could finish speaking, the person in her arms began to decay, bleeding from all orifices until the flesh turned to blood and even the bones disintegrated.

In the dream, willpower becomes fragile, and emotions more delicate. Despair overwhelmed her, and she nearly collapsed. “Even you don’t want me?”

Just like my master and mother.

No matter how tightly she held, it was futile, like clutching fine sand – the tighter the grip, the faster it slips away, leaving nothing behind. The body in her arms turned into a pool of blood. She opened her hands, and the blood trickled through her fingers. Her vision blurred, tears welling up.

Ah Man, you broke your promise.

You broke your promise.

The immense pain in her heart jolted her awake from the dream. Scholar Zhai, sitting beside her, was startled, dropping the pill bottle, still holding a pill, unsure whether to give it or hide it.

Zhong Michu opened her palm, feeling as if it was stained with blood. Her heart felt as if it had been violently grabbed. She clutched her chest, turned over, gasping for breath, and moaned softly.

Seeing her in this state, Scholar Zhai got scared again and hastily dropped the pill to pat her back. Upon touching her, she realized Zhong Michu was trembling and asked anxiously, Miss Zhong, what’s wrong, where does it hurt?”

Zhong Michu’s forehead was covered in cold sweat, soaking her hair at the temples. She turned to look at her, her eyes dazed: “Scholar Zhai?”

“Yes, it’s me.”

Zhong Michu propped herself up with her hands on the bed, gradually steadying her breath.

It was just a dream, only a dream.