The light at the entrance was blocked.
Against the light.
A boy of six or seven strode over the threshold.
Golden hair, mismatched eyes.
Dressed in luxurious brocade robes, he stood utterly out of place in this shabby little courtyard.
Dai Mubai.
The Second Prince of the Star Luo Empire.
And Zhu Zhuqing's so-called fiancé, who had never given her even the slightest warmth.
Two Spirit Master guards followed behind him, their gazes arrogant as though they were lions inspecting their territory.
"Zhu Zhuqing."
Dai Mubai ignored the mess in the courtyard.
His gaze swept over the girl covered in blood and grime, and his brows furrowed in disgust.
"This prince heard you were confined. Why are you still out here making a fool of yourself?"
"And besides."
He turned his head, and those mismatched pupils finally settled on Qian Mo.
Filled with lofty scrutiny.
"Where did this bastard come from? Don't you know this is property of the Star Luo royal family?"
Arrogance.
Arrogance etched into his bones.
In his eyes, everyone but the royal family was an ant.
As for the two elderly men behind Qian Mo, who had restrained their aura, he naturally took them for ordinary family slaves.
Qian Mo said nothing.
He merely looked quietly at the golden-haired boy.
His gaze was indifferent, as though he were looking at a grasshopper that did not know whether it lived or died.
"Presumptuous!"
A sharp cry suddenly exploded through the air.
Yue Guan's face darkened, Soul Power flickering around his Orchid Finger.
"A mere Barbarian Prince dares speak so insolently to His Highness the Holy Son!"
Killing intent boiled over.
The surrounding temperature instantly dropped to freezing.
Dai Mubai took half a step back in fright at the sudden pressure.
But soon, royal dignity turned his embarrassment into rage.
"Holy Son?"
He sneered, forcing himself to mock them despite his fear.
"What bullshit Holy Son! This is Star Luo City, not your Spirit Hall's Pope Mountain!"
"On my territory, a dragon must coil and a tiger must lie down!"
"Men! Break the legs of these two old fools and throw this pretty boy out!"
The ignorant feared nothing.
Yue Guan laughed in furious disbelief and was about to strike.
A fair hand lightly stopped him.
"Elder Ju."
Qian Mo's voice was soft and calm.
"There is no need to dirty your hands."
He turned around without sparing Dai Mubai another glance.
His eyes returned to Zhu Zhuqing.
The little girl, trembling all over, was biting her lip hard, her gaze shifting between Qian Mo and Dai Mubai.
Fear.
It was an instinct born from years of oppression.
Qian Mo extended his hand once more.
His palm was pale, its lines clear.
"Choose."
"Will you remain in the mire and rot away, or take my hand and become the one who tears open the heavens?"
Zhu Zhuqing looked at that hand.
Then she looked at Dai Mubai's vicious face as he prepared to rush forward.
At that moment.
The fear in her eyes became a blazing fire.
She did not want to die.
And she wanted even less to live like a dog!
That small hand, stained with blood and mud, slapped heavily into Qian Mo's palm.
Gripping it tightly.
Never letting go, even in death.
The corner of Qian Mo's mouth lifted slightly.
"Very good."
"You're courting death!!"
Dai Mubai, having been completely ignored, instantly exploded in rage.
That was his fiancée!
She was his private property!
And now she had actually thrown herself into someone else's embrace right in front of him?
"Let go!!"
Dai Mubai roared. Soul Power surged around him as he charged forward like a crazed little beast.
Qian Mo did not even turn his head.
In his mind, a cold mechanical voice quietly sounded.
[Malicious target "Dai Mubai" detected.] [Passive activated: Cursed by Misfortune (Lv.Max).] [Converting...]
The next second.
Something bizarre happened.
The ground was perfectly level.
There was not a single obstacle.
Yet as Dai Mubai sprinted forward, his left foot suddenly seemed to be grabbed by a ghost, inexplicably catching on the heel of his right foot.
Under the force of inertia.
His body instantly lost balance, tracing a graceful arc through the air.
Face-first.
He crashed stiffly toward the ground.
And by sheer coincidence.
There was a protruding bluestone there, sharp as a blade.
"Bang—!"
The dull impact made everyone present feel their teeth ache in sympathy.
Immediately after.
"Crack!"
A crisp sound of breaking bone.
Time seemed to freeze at that moment.
Dai Mubai lay sprawled on the ground, his body convulsing violently.
Two seconds later.
He suddenly raised his head.
With a "wah."
A mouthful of blood spurted out.
Mixed in with the blood were two stark-white front teeth.
His once fairly handsome face now had a red, swollen chin and split lips, making him look both ridiculous and miserable.
"Mm... my teef..."
Dai Mubai covered his mouth as tears and snot immediately poured out.
The pain pierced straight to his heart.
"Your Highness!!"
Only then did the guards behind him react, rushing forward in horror to help him up.
The courtyard fell deathly silent.
The Zhu Family servants stared wide-eyed, desperately covering their mouths for fear of laughing aloud.
A dignified prince.
Tripping on flat ground.
Knocking out his front teeth.
That was just... far too unlucky, wasn't it?
Yue Guan and Gui Mei exchanged a glance, their eyes filled with awe.
Others might think it was an accident.
But they saw it clearly.
From beginning to end, His Highness the Holy Son had not even moved a finger.
This was heavenly punishment.
The price of offending a God!
Qian Mo held Zhu Zhuqing's hand and did not stop walking.
As though the tragedy unfolding behind him had nothing to do with him.
"Stop... stop..."
Dai Mubai was helped to his feet. With air leaking through his mouth, he stared at Qian Mo's back with bloodshot eyes.
Humiliation had made him lose all reason.
"You... jus wait..."
Before he could finish.
A hoarse cry suddenly came from the sky.
"Caw—"
A pitch-black crow happened to be flying low overhead.
Perhaps it had been startled.
Or perhaps it was fate.
A grayish-white lump of viscous filth fell from the sky.
Guided with perfect precision.
Without missing by an inch.
It landed directly in Dai Mubai's wide-open mouth as he shouted.
"..."
The world went quiet.
That lump slid down his throat.
Dai Mubai's eyes instantly widened into circles.
An indescribably sour, rotten stench exploded in his mouth.
"Bleurgh—!!!"
The next moment.
This noble prince shoved his guards away, dropped to his knees, and began vomiting his guts out.
He vomited until the world spun.
He vomited until he doubted his life.
Everyone instinctively took a step back, terror in their eyes.
This was no longer mere bad luck.
He had been struck by divine punishment, hadn't he?!
Qian Mo stopped walking.
He turned his head.
Looking at the figure kneeling on the ground, miserable as a dog.
A teasing curve rose at the corner of the mouth.
"So this is a prince of Star Luo?"
"Your teeth haven't even grown in yet, so don't go around biting people."
"You might end up eating shit."
With that said.
He pulled Zhu Zhuqing along and strode away beneath the fading glow of the setting sun.
All that remained behind them was a complete mess, along with Dai Mubai's shrill, despairing retching.
Zhu Zhuqing followed behind him.
She looked back at the figure who had once filled her with fear.
Dai Mubai's face was now smeared with blood as he knelt on the ground and vomited. Where was even a trace of a prince's dignity?
So.
He could bleed too.
He could be this pathetic too.
Zhu Zhuqing turned back and looked at the clean, upright figure ahead of her.
The warmth in her palm was scorching.
She clenched it tightly.
For the first time.
In the darkness, she saw the sun.
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