"Let me help you!"
Qian Renxue clutched his hand tightly, her voice urgent. "This Soul Tool is consuming your life force! Take it off, now!"
A warm golden glow surged from her palm, trying to soothe the violent Destruction energy inside Su Ling.
Su Ling struggled desperately, panic surging through him. ...Mom... help! I swear I'll never go off with strangers again!
A blond "handsome guy" had suddenly grabbed your hand and was telling you to take off your clothes. What were you supposed to do?
If you were a girl, maybe you'd pretend to resist while secretly welcoming it, or even give in halfway because the other person was the Crown Prince...
Su Ling felt only pure terror. Especially the abnormally fervent light in those purple eyes, and the eerie flush on her cheeks, made every hair on his body stand on end.
He tried desperately to pull his hand back, only to find that Qian Renxue's grip was astonishingly strong. He couldn't break free even with the boost from the Destruction God Armor.
"Y-you need to calm down!" Su Ling stammered, his back pressed firmly against the cold wall. "I'm warning you, don't do anything reckless!"
But Qian Renxue paid him no heed. She raised her other hand, her fingertips hovering above his collar.
In the end, she didn't rip away his disguise. Instead, she asked softly, "Are you short on money? These pills... you made them, didn't you?"
Su Ling's pupils contracted. He was about to deny it, but she pressed a finger to his lips.
"Just submit to me, and you can have as much money as you want," she murmured, her breath brushing his ear. "Including... me."
As she spoke, her disguise gradually faded.
Her long golden hair fell like a waterfall, and her fair skin glowed beneath the lights.
Her purple eyes now shimmered with an unusual light. Her face was as pure as an angel's, yet she exuded a heart-stopping air of aggression.
Qian Renxue was done pretending. She had laid her cards on the table. She couldn't hold back another moment.
If she hadn't disguised herself in front of the boy from the very beginning in her Previous Life, perhaps her looks would have been enough to win over that slow-witted block of wood long ago.
Then she wouldn't have been banished to the Cold Palace, forced to watch helplessly as Ye Lingling stole him away.
"System, get out here! What the hell is going on?"
"Why would Qian Renxue, who belongs to Ning Rongrong's harem, be interested in a little nobody like me?"
Su Ling frantically called for the system in his mind, but all he got in reply was static-like crackling.
"Beep, beep, beep. System malfunction. Please try again later."
The system figured that if it told him Qian Renxue had also been reborn,
the Host would completely break down and give up altogether, so it chose to play dead.
Qian Renxue seemed to notice that his attention had wandered. She pinched his chin in displeasure, forcing him to look her in the eye. "Look at me! This time, I won't let you get away again."
In her Previous Life, how had she never realized that the boy could be so adorable?
That cold, merciless boy emperor now cowered in her arms like a frightened little beast.
Qian Renxue's heart pounded harder and harder. She leaned down, unable to resist the urge to kiss the boy.
This was a scene she had imagined countless times in her dreams. Now it was finally about to come true.
"Crown Prince, please show some restraint. We don't even know each other!"
Su Ling turned his head in a panic, and Qian Renxue's lips only brushed his cheek.
He seized the chance to shove her away, but her hand still clamped tightly around his wrist.
"Don't know each other?" Qian Renxue chuckled, a dangerous glint in her eyes. "Now that you know who I really am, you'll never get away from me again, Ling..."
Su Ling: "Emm..."
What was going on? Qian Renxue wasn't into girls.
How had she become interested in a little nobody like him?
The plot hadn't even started, and it had already fallen apart completely.
The worst part was that even wearing the Destruction God Armor, with his attributes boosted dozens of times over, he still couldn't break her hold.
Just how strong was this woman?
"I'm telling you, don't think I'll give up just because of this. My love for Rongrong will never be shaken by you!"
Su Ling suddenly realized: She must be testing me because she's upset that I dared to covet Ning Rongrong!
He immediately straightened his back and stared at her, pretending to be calm. "Even if you threaten me, I won't give up on pursuing Rongrong!"
Qian Renxue's expression froze. A flicker of astonishment crossed her eyes, then gave way to a raging fury.
She slammed Su Ling against the wall. Her voice turned icily cold. "Say that again?"
The fright made Su Ling feel relieved instead.
Good grief, no wonder she was the sort who'd change her sex for Ning Rongrong.
She'd even sacrificed her own charms just to test a little nobody like him.
Still, to make sure he stayed alive, he didn't provoke her again.
Instead, he turned his attention to the auction.
Qian Renxue pressed her lips together, her expression unreadable.
Having lived a second life, she'd realized that this world was different from the one she remembered.
And the biggest thing that had changed was Ning Rongrong.
She was like a little angel, captivating everyone around her.
Her grandfather, the Worship Hall's elders, even Bibi Dong—all of them had taken an unusual interest in the little girl.
Even Qian Renxue herself had been comforted by Ning Rongrong as a child, and had seen her as a light in her life.
And now, even the boy...
Qian Renxue's expression darkened. A bone-deep murderous intent spread through her heart.
Her grip on Su Ling's hand tightened, her knuckles turning white with the strain.
Su Ling nodded to himself, satisfied.
Now that was more like it!
That look, as if she wanted to hack him to pieces, was how the plot was supposed to go.
He was secretly congratulating himself when a sudden pain shot through his wrist. He sucked in a sharp breath.
But he still endured the pain and focused his attention on the second half of the auction.
Down below, the auctioneer spoke with a hint of suggestive excitement:
"Ladies and gentlemen, next up is tonight's grand finale—the 'Living Lots'!"
"I'm sure you've all been waiting! Let's bring out tonight's 'treasures'!"
The heavy curtain slowly rose, revealing a row of enormous cages made of solid iron.
The lights focused on the first cage.
Inside was a girl who looked only thirteen or fourteen, trembling with fear.
A pair of fluffy cat ears drooped helplessly. A few pitiful seashells barely covered her vital parts, while a long, slender cat tail swayed behind her in distress.
"Ooh—!"
"That Cat Girl's a real treat!"
"Name your price! I'm taking her!"
A flurry of lewd whistles and catcalls erupted from the crowd below.
The noblemen's eyes gleamed with undisguised lust.
"Don't look," Qian Renxue whispered to Su Ling, almost instinctively. "It'll sully your eyes."
She remembered how the first thing he did after ascending the throne in her Previous Life was to bathe the auction house in blood and destroy every human trafficking ring. His methods had been ruthless.
Back then, he'd hated this rotten darkness just as much.
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