Chapter 77: Counterattack

Bai Huan had not returned home for three days.

When Madam Bai Meng saw her, her eyes immediately reddened.

“Qingqing, how are you?” she asked.

Bai Huan clasped her mother’s hand tenderly, her voice gentle as she reassured her, “Mother, I’ve even gained weight. I’m doing just fine.”

With tears in her eyes, Bai Meng looked her over from head to toe. Indeed, she seemed well, which finally put her at ease. “Stay and have a meal at home. Your father is also very worried about you.”

“All right. I truly miss your cooking, Mother.”

“Good, good, I’ll—

This man had saved the Seventh Princess’s life and was her teacher. Why was he being treated this way?

As for Zhang Lingling, the thing Aniu could never forget in his life was that she had once cooked a meal for him! Was that even food? Aniu had pondered this question for years and still could not figure it out. Never mind, he thought, if he kept talking about it, he might just be sick again! There’s a saying that the past is too painful to revisit—how true it is. Just thinking about it made him want to retch.

After three more laps, Ye Feng again yielded second place to the Iceman. However, Alonso, who had surged ahead with a burst of energy, now had a considerable lead. In the end, despite the Iceman’s best efforts, he could not threaten Alonso’s position.

Because the grand competition was held today, all the sect leaders and elders of the participating sects were required to be present from early morning.

Meanwhile, Ruoshui, reclining on a soft couch with her eyes closed, sank deeper into contemplation as the room fell silent. She knew she needed time to carefully consider the series of thoughts that had recently surfaced in her mind.

“My lady, you overstate the case. I am only waiting here for His Majesty and the Dowager Consort; innocence will clear itself,” Concubine Fang’s face showed no sign of panic. She had not done such a thing, after all. As for who had placed the object here, she believed the truth would come out.

“Understood!” Zhang Lingling hung up the phone, preparing to relay the director’s message. At that moment, several screams rang out.

“You already have a wife—why are you still chasing after me?” Xi Lin’s eyes were brimming with tears, her heart full of grievances. Aniu wanted to imitate the Bull Demon King, claiming his relationship with his wife was broken to get by, but Xi Lin had witnessed everything herself—how could she possibly believe him?

Afterward, Zhao Shiyao glanced at Ji Mo a few more times, exchanged a few words with Shang Qitian, then soared into the sky, summoned a massive portal, and stepped through it.

At this moment, flames surged across Wang Yu’s body. Amidst the pale white fire, a streak of orange-red burned brightly—the fire of the Candle Dragon.

From this, it could be inferred that Star Lord Taiyi definitely knew something, which was why he could speak with such certainty.

“No, no, don’t get agitated, let me explain,” Jiang Qixuan said, patting the visibly agitated Zhou Huan on the shoulder in an attempt to calm him.

That blood-red glow truly resembled a human pupil, casting an abrupt, enchanting light across the shadowy world of giant trees. From its commanding height, it seemed to gaze down upon the thousands of soldiers as if with the eyes of a god.

That surge of energy crashed into Wang Yu’s body with a heavy metallic clang.

It was then that she had not yet been titled the Heartless Demon Saint, and was only at the half-step Star Lord realm.

Jiang Qixuan did not believe such things were impossible. He always believed in one truth: where there’s a will, there’s a way; man can triumph over destiny. But whether humans could truly outmatch the heavens—whether that was just bravado or reality—he didn’t know.

Here, he held the advantage; out on the frontier, he would be the outsider. If there were problems, it was better to settle them here. Whether the border troops made noise or even mutinied, he could quell it. And if he couldn’t, the court would clean up the mess for him.

He could also, behind the scenes, quietly spread word that Lian Shaokang was suppressing other members of the Lian family to monopolize the family business, making Lian Shaokang’s public image worse and harder to manage, thus causing the old master Lian to gradually develop dissatisfaction with him.