"No... it's impossible, this can't be."
Qin Xuehua let out a bloodcurdling scream; she couldn't accept this fact.
"Jiuling... Jiuling loves me, he said it himself."
You were born after I carried you for ten months, and I watched you grow up. You have my shadow in you.
You're lying to me, aren't you?
Qin Xuehua, seemingly insane, looked at Zhang Heng and Zhang Wanning, hoping to see a trace of lying on their faces.
However, all she saw on their faces was undisguised mockery, contempt, and a hint of... pleasure?
Zhang Wanning scoffed, smoothing her temples, her tone dismissive:
Your shadow?
Ha, you're just being delusional.
Father told us the truth a long time ago. We've put up with you for too long, you foolish, jealous, and self-righteous woman.
If your father hadn't needed the Qin Household's influence, do you think you could have stayed in the Marquis Estate for so long?
Now that Sister Lingyun has joined East Green Mountain and Grandpa has broken through to the Grandmaster, our Zhang Family no longer needs to hide anything.
You, including the Duke, mean nothing to us anymore.
A bolt from the blue! A thunderbolt from the blue!
Qin Xuehua was completely stunned. She felt dizzy and as if the whole world was collapsing.
My entire soul was radiating a tearing pain.
Her life was filled with pride, scheming, love for Zhang Jiuling, and maternal love for her children.
It turned out to be a complete joke.
She was merely a pawn, a substitute, a tool that could be used and discarded at will.
Her most beloved children, the children she was most proud of, turned out to be other people's children.
Zhang Yu, whom she had bullied, resented, and wished she could kill her throughout her life, turned out to be her only blood relative.
She not only raised other people's children, but also constantly bullied and exploited her own flesh and blood for the sake of other people's children.
She felt her life was a joke; first, she gave everything for love, and then she was abandoned.
She thought she had found a Zhang Jiuling who was willing to accept her, but she was schemed against for the rest of her life.
In the end, his only biological child hated him to the core.
Subconsciously, she glanced at Zhang Yu, but all she saw was indifference and disdain.
"Puff--!"
Overwhelmed by anger and frustration, Qin Xuehua could no longer hold on and coughed up a mouthful of blood, collapsing to the ground.
Her eyes were unfocused, as if all her life had been drained away in an instant.
Qin Zhen was also struck as if by a heavy blow, staggering back two steps, his lips trembling as he pointed at Zhang Heng and Zhang Wanning:
"You... you all... Zhang Jiuling... he... he actually dared to bully my Qin Household like this!!"
He is meticulously planning for the future of his daughter and grandson, even at the cost of everything.
But now he realized that he and the entire Qin Household were just pawns on the Zhang Family's, or rather, Zhang Jiuling's, chessboard.
Once a piece is used up, it can be ruthlessly discarded, or even stabbed in the back.
The Zhang Family has been using Qin Xuehua and the Qin Household from beginning to end.
So-called family ties, so-called blood relatives, are all fake.
Zhang Heng and the others are not Qin Xuehua's children at all.
A bone-chilling coldness shot from Qin Zhen's feet straight to the top of his head.
Inside the Heavenly Prison, all was deathly silent.
This sudden and astonishing reversal left everyone speechless.
The Xiao Family members went from initial despair and shock to bewilderment and a sense of absurdity.
Their gazes toward Qin Zhen and Qin Xuehua were filled with sympathy, but even more so with a sense of satisfaction that they deserved it and that they had been punished.
Zhang Yu observed all of this with a detached eye, feeling no particular surprise.
He had suspected it before, and this was simply confirmation.
Seeing Qin Xuehua's broken and desperate state, and Qin Zhen's dejected appearance as if he had aged ten years in an instant, he felt little pleasure, only a cold irony.
Hu Qingxuan was so excited she almost jumped up, and quickly typed into the Messaging Jade Token tablet:
"Sisters, the climax is here, an earth-shattering revelation."
Zhang Heng Zhang Wanning revealed their identities: they are not Qin Xuehua's biological children, but rather the daughters of a princess from the Duke.
Qin Xuehua was just a stand-in, a tool; the Duke Qin was made a fool of by the Zhang Family.
This plot is so exciting, even screenwriters wouldn't dare write it like this.
Her Best Friend, however, seemed uninterested in the so-called melodramatic plot, repeatedly asking, "Is what you're saying true? Is Zhang Yu really the illegitimate son of Sheng Yuntang, the Third Prince of Eastern Sheng Kingdom Sheng Yuntang?"
"It's genuine, sister, absolutely authentic."
Hu Qingxuan assumed her Best Friend was from the Eastern Sheng Kingdom, so she was more concerned about Zhang Yu's identity and replied casually.
Jian Wuwei seemed to have no interest in this family drama. He merely frowned impatiently, exchanged a glance with Master Huichen, and then silently stood beside Zhang Heng.
The Four Great Lords also followed in tacit agreement.
It all happened so naturally, yet so glaringly.
The reason why the Four Great Lords and the two Grandmasters are here today is not because of Qin Zhen's influence at all.
What they valued was Zhang Lingyun's status as "the only Direct Disciple of the East Green Mountain Sect Master" and the Great Grandmaster master behind her.
Now that Qin Xuehua and Qin Zhen have completely broken ties with the Zhang Family, they naturally have to side with the "legitimate" heir of the Zhang Family.
As for whether Qin Zhen and Qin Xuehua live or die, who cares?
In an instant, the situation on the field changed dramatically again, and Zhang Heng became the Zhang Family's representative on site.
Feeling the support of the two Grandmasters and four lords beside him, Zhang Heng's joy and sense of elation almost burst out of his chest.
He had never felt so good, so powerful.
This extreme illusion of power made his gaze towards Zhang Yu even more resentful and impatient.
He turned to Jian Wuwei beside him, and said with barely suppressed excitement and ruthlessness, "Senior Jian, please take action and kill this bastard immediately. I don't want to see him live another moment."
Jian Wuwei frowned slightly at Zhang Heng's imperious tone, a barely perceptible hint of coldness flashing in his eyes.
However, he nodded slightly, slowly drew the chilling longsword from his waist, and locked his gaze on Zhang Yu.
"To die by my 'Autumn Water' sword is your good fortune."
Jian Wuwei's voice was calm, yet it carried a chilling Killing Intent.
He didn't use any fancy moves; he simply flipped his wrist, and a blue sword light, refined to its extreme, carrying a resolute determination to tear everything apart, silently yet swiftly struck towards Zhang Yu.
Faced with the Grandmaster's enraged sword strike, Zhang Yu's pupils constricted, his hair stood on end, and he felt unprecedented pressure.
But instead of fear, his eyes burned with a fierce fighting spirit.
He had long wanted to test how much of a difference there was between his Innate Peak strength, enhanced by the system and cultivating three paths simultaneously, and that of a true Grandmaster.
"Be careful, young friend."
Before Zhang Yu could make a move, a low shout rang out.
It's Xiao Xuan.
This Imperial Family Old Ancestor understood that the matter could not be resolved peacefully today. Even if the Imperial Family softened their stance and gave up on Zhang Yu, the other side would never let the Xiao Family off the hook.
"Buzz--!"
Xiao Xuan's beard and hair bristled, and his entire body shone with Golden Light.
He unleashed a punch, accompanied by the faint roar of a dragon; it was the killing move of the Xiao Family's Supreme Lore, the "Dragon Emperor Breaks the Army Fist."
He simultaneously transmitted his voice to Zhang Yu, speaking extremely quickly:
"I'll try to stall these two guys for a while, young friend, you should seize the opportunity to escape this place immediately."
As long as the green hills remain, there's no fear of running out of firewood.
Xiao Xuan had always believed that Zhang Yu was the Great Being Reincarnation, and that as long as he survived this calamity, he would surely ascend to heaven and transform into a dragon.
The Xiao Family will surely be blessed if they manage to save Zhang Yu today.
"Amitabha."
However, just as Xiao Xuan threw his fist, a Buddhist chant that seemed to cleanse the soul rang out in front of him.
Master Huichen, who had been standing like a withered tree, had somehow appeared in front of him.
The old monk remained with his head bowed and eyes lowered, his expression of compassion unchanged.
He simply raised a withered hand, gently pushed forward with his palm, and steadily blocked Xiao Xuan's fist, which was powerful enough to split mountains and shatter rocks.
"Elder Xiao, when will this cycle of revenge end?"
Zhang Yu is burdened with misfortune and entangled in karma. It would be better to hand him over to Sword Benefactor to settle things and avoid a catastrophe.
Please, benefactor, remain on the sidelines and observe.
Huichen's voice was calm, yet carried an undeniable firmness.
Meanwhile, Jian Wuwei's earnest sword strike had already reached Zhang Yu!
"Escape?"
Xiao Xuan's voice echoed in Zhang Yu's ears, but his heart was filled with coldness and determination.
He never considered running away.
He cultivates his Divine Soul, True Qi, Body Refinement simultaneously, reaching the Innate Peak in all three, and is confident that he can fight a Grandmaster.
Most importantly, he needed to stay in prison to Cultivation, so he naturally couldn't leave the Heavenly Prison.