Sword Douluo, Chen Xin!!

Watching the hexagonal palace lantern drift along with the current, Qian Renxue stood up, her previously taut cheeks softening considerably under the glow of the candlelight.

Gu Qing stood to one side, withdrawing his gaze from the river and letting it fall upon her exquisite profile.

"Feeling a bit better now?"

Hearing this inquiry, Qian Renxue tilted her fair neck slightly and deliberately stiffened her expression.

"Don't try to get chummy with me. You think you can dismiss me with a cheap lantern? Do you really take me for a three-year-old?"

Gu Qing was not annoyed, merely letting out a soft laugh.

"If you didn't like it, then why were you so earnest when you released it just now?"

Qian Renxue was momentarily speechless; she glared at him fiercely, then turned her head away, refusing to acknowledge him further.

The night breeze, carrying the moisture from the riverbank, swept past, and the surrounding clamor had thinned out significantly.

Gu Qing did not give her another chance to retort, reaching out his right hand and accurately catching Qian Renxue by the wrist.

"Let's go, it's time to head back."

This action caused Qian Renxue to shudder, her instinctual reaction to pull back.

However, Gu Qing's fingers were like cast iron, locking onto her wrist firmly and allowing no room for escape.

The two walked one after the other, heading back along the long, flagstone-paved street.

At the start, Gu Qing's attitude was quite forceful, striding ahead with long steps and pulling her along with great strength.

Qian Renxue was dragged along, stumbling and nearly tripping over her own wide hemline several times.

As she walked, she cursed this guy in her heart as a complete bastard for being so brazen on the streets of the Heaven Dou Imperial Capital.

However, as the journey stretched on, the two gradually moved out of the most bustling lantern district.

The pedestrians around them grew fewer and fewer, leaving only the faint glow cast by the lanterns swaying occasionally along the street.

The strength in Gu Qing's hand changed imperceptibly.

The five fingers that had been tightly locked around her wrist slowly loosened, then slid downward, naturally taking Qian Renxue's soft, smooth palm into his own.

The force was no longer as overbearing as before, instead carrying a touch of gentleness and ease.

Feeling the warmth radiating from his palm, Qian Renxue froze, her pace slowing by half a beat.

She instinctively wanted to pull her hand back, but for some reason, that urge to resist vanished into thin air.

A flicker of struggle crossed her golden eyes, but in the end, she allowed the broad back in front of her to lead her forward.

The stars twinkled in the night sky, and the shadows of the two were stretched long across the bluestone road, creating a sense of quiet harmony.

Before they knew it, a magnificent mansion appeared ahead, with several guards standing watch before the tall, vermilion gates.

They had reached the Crown Prince Mansion.

The sight of those familiar upturned eaves instantly jolted Qian Renxue from that subtle atmosphere.

She gave a violent start, as if electrocuted, and shook off Gu Qing's hand with force.

The movement was so sharp it even stirred a faint gust of wind in the night air.

Gu Qing stopped in his tracks and turned to look at her, his palm still lingering in mid-air.

Qian Renxue retreated two steps, hurriedly hiding her hand behind her back to conceal the lingering warmth on her palm.

To mask her inner turmoil, she forced herself to adopt an arrogant posture.

Gu Qing withdrew his hand and spoke in a very flat tone.

"You go on in first; I have some private matters to attend to."

Hearing this, Qian Renxue's delicate brows furrowed, and she cast a cold glance at Gu Qing.

"Whatever matters you have are of no concern to me, and this Crown Prince has no desire to know."

Having said that, she took a deep breath, her chest rising and falling slightly.

"However, don't think that just because of this, I will agree to the wedding."

She stared fixedly into Gu Qing's eyes, her tone resolute and tinged with a hint of grit.

"I will not agree to it. You can give up on that idea."

After this outburst, Qian Renxue didn't even look at Gu Qing's reaction, turning abruptly and walking toward the gates of the Crown Prince Mansion.

She had to get inside immediately to restore the seamless facade of Xue Qinghe and hide all traces of her emotional fluctuations.

Yet, as one foot crossed the high threshold, her body stopped uncontrollably.

Sheltered by the shadow of a massive stone lion beside the gate, Qian Renxue secretly turned her head and cast her gaze outside.

In her line of sight, Gu Qing had his hands behind his back, walking with a composed gait toward the other end of the long street, his figure gradually merging into the deep night.

Watching the man drift further and further away, a strange feeling that she herself could not name or explain welled up in Qian Renxue's heart.

The images of the night replayed in her mind, from the forced capture in the alleyway to his refusal to take 'no' for an answer when he shoved the lantern into her hands.

Though this bastard was detestable, when she thought about it carefully, he was actually quite decent—even possessing a bit of that irresistible, small-scale dominance.

After leaving the district where the Crown Prince Mansion was located, Gu Qing did not return to the luxurious residence Emperor Xue Ye had arranged for him.

His pace appeared slow, but in reality, each step spanned a vast distance, with profound soul power circulating continuously beneath his feet.

Before long, the surrounding buildings grew sparse, and the smooth stone road gave way to a slightly muddy dirt path.

Gu Qing had arrived at an extremely remote suburb, surrounded by dense woods where the night wind whistled as it wove through the branches and leaves.

Here, even the sound of the night watchman was completely absent, leaving only endless gloom and silence.

Gu Qing came to a halt in an open grassy area.

He did not turn around, simply standing quietly in place as the night wind stirred the hem of his robes.

"You've been following for so long; aren't you tired?"

Gu Qing's voice was not loud, yet wrapped in deep soul power, it carried clearly throughout the entire forest.

"Whoever is hiding in the shadows, come out."

No sooner had the words fallen than a white figure atop a towering tree less than a hundred meters away trembled slightly.

Chen Xin, the Sword Douluo of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, who had been hidden amidst the dense foliage, was instantly struck with great shock.

He was exceptionally skilled at concealing his presence, and as the inheritor of the Seven Kill Sword, as long as he did not wish to be exposed, even Title Douluo of the same rank would find it extremely difficult to detect him.

He had been cautious the entire way, keeping a vast distance and even lowering his breathing frequency to the absolute minimum.

How could this brat possibly have discovered him?

After a brief moment of shock, Sword Douluo knew there was no longer any point in hiding.

His figure flashed, drifting down from the trunk dozens of meters high like a weightless falling leaf.

His feet touched the ground lightly, without making even the slightest sound.

Sword Douluo wore a pristine white robe, his silver hair shimmering under the moonlight, and he exuded an extraordinary, otherworldly aura.

He slowly took a step, walking out from the shadows, his gaze fixed directly on Gu Qing's back.

"How did you discover this old man?"