Under the dim, wavering lights, Gu Qing stepped slowly out of the shadows and into the glow.
His tall figure blocked Dai Mubai as he tried to press forward.
"A prince of the Star Luo Empire, and this is how low you stoop?"
His clear, cool voice rang out above the din of the bar, every word landing like a heavy hammer.
Gu Qing let his gaze sweep casually over the two before him, open mockery in his eyes.
The words instantly froze Dai Mubai, whose mind had been full of lewd thoughts just moments ago.
Having his identity exposed to his face, then branded with such a damning judgment, was like having his bottom line trampled underfoot.
The blond young man whipped around. When he saw who had arrived, shock and fury filled his eyes.
"It's you!"
That very day, at Shrek Academy, he had learned that Oscar had been crippled by the man standing before him.
Old grudges and new ones erupted in his chest all at once.
Gu Qing barely spared Dai Mubai a glance. His gaze went straight to the black-haired girl huddled in the corner.
"You have such exceptional talent, yet you've sunk this low."
"Do you really think a man like that can change your fate?"
His challenge was like a sharp scalpel, mercilessly cutting into the deepest cowardice in Zhu Zhuqing's heart.
The girl's body shuddered violently. Her pupils, blurred with fear, slowly came back into focus.
Those words were like a basin of cold water, jolting her completely awake from her despair and confusion.
Zhu Zhuqing clenched her teeth, braced both hands against the sofa cushion, and moved away without hesitation.
Using that momentum, she sprang to her feet and retreated several steps, putting as much distance as she could between herself and Dai Mubai.
Watching the prey that had nearly been his slip away just like that, Dai Mubai's eyes turned bloodshot.
"Gu Qing, this has nothing to do with you. Get the hell out of my way!"
His roar reverberated through the cramped bar, startling patrons at several nearby tables into getting up and moving away.
Gu Qing remained utterly unruffled. His steps didn't falter, and he showed no intention of even acknowledging the other man.
The humiliation of being completely ignored became the final straw that snapped Dai Mubai's reason.
"You're asking for death!"
A powerful surge of Soul Power exploded from within Dai Mubai.
The light of White Tiger Possession blazed to life. His hands became razor-sharp tiger claws, and he lunged at Gu Qing's back with a furious gust of wind.
The intense sense of danger made Zhu Zhuqing cry out in alarm.
"Look out!"
Just as those tiger claws came within half a foot of Gu Qing's back—
One stalk after another of deep-blue Blue Silver Grass burst without warning from the ground beneath his feet.
Thick vines twisted together, instantly weaving an unbreakable wooden shield behind him.
Dai Mubai's full-force strike slammed into the Blue Silver Grass shield.
A muffled boom rang out.
The vines didn't shatter as expected.
Instead, an utterly terrifying counterforce surged back along his claws and flooded into Dai Mubai's body.
Dai Mubai's expression changed drastically. Before he could even scream, he was flung backward like a kite with its string cut.
His heavy body smashed through seven or eight tables and chairs before crashing into the brick wall at the far end of the bar.
Blood poured from Dai Mubai's mouth, soaking the front of his clothes.
Pain engulfed his entire body. He struggled to get up, only to find that every bone felt broken, leaving him limp among the wreckage.
The entire bar fell deathly silent. Everyone stared in terror at the young man who had gravely wounded a White Tiger Soul Master with a single move.
Gu Qing didn't even turn around. He merely brushed at dust that wasn't there on his sleeve.
Zhu Zhuqing stood rooted to the spot, staring at the startling scene before her as storm waves crashed through her heart.
Her cool, beautiful face was filled with conflict and struggle.
For years, her family's ironclad rules had been like an invisible shackle, choking her tightly by the throat.
To survive, she had traveled all the way to the Heaven Dou Empire in search of Dai Mubai, trying to seize the only lifeline she had.
But Dai Mubai's shameless behavior just now, along with Gu Qing's soul-piercing questions, had torn her hard-won hope to shreds.
If even this last path was wrong, then how was she supposed to go on?
She took a deep breath and walked slowly toward Gu Qing, each step weighed down with hesitation.
"I..."
Zhu Zhuqing tilted her head up slightly, her eyes full of confusion she couldn't shake, hoping to find an answer in this unfathomably powerful man.
"Smack!"
A crisp, resounding slap suddenly split the quiet of the bar.
Everyone was stunned by the unexpected turn of events.
Zhu Zhuqing's head had been knocked to one side. Five distinct red finger marks quickly appeared on her fair cheek.
A burning pain flared across her face, but she didn't raise a hand to touch it. She simply stood there, dazed.
"Pathetic."
Gu Qing lowered his hand, undisguised contempt in his voice.
"Do you really think following a loser like him can change your fate?"
"Entrusting your hopes of survival to someone else was the most foolish choice from the very beginning."
Every word struck at her heart, without the slightest mercy.
When he had finished, Gu Qing couldn't be bothered to spare her another glance. He turned and strode toward the bar's entrance.
His tall figure soon disappeared into the deep darkness outside.
Zhu Zhuqing stood alone amid the wreckage. The pain in her cheek lingered, but the fog in her eyes slowly began to lift.
Gu Qing's parting words echoed again and again in her mind.
That was right.
Why did she have to rely on someone else?
Why place her life in the hands of a loser who knew only how to run away and indulge himself?
She clearly possessed the top-tier Nether Civet Martial Soul and a cultivation talent inferior to no one. She had never been a worthless weakling for others to butcher at will.
If she wanted to survive, if she wanted to change that so-called family fate—
Then she alone had to hold her destiny firmly in her hands!
Zhu Zhuqing's hands clenched into fists. A blazing fire rekindled in her cool eyes.
She didn't look at Dai Mubai, lying on the floor with life or death uncertain. Turning around, she strode out of the suffocating bar.
Night deepened over a quiet alley in Heaven Dou City.
Gu Qing pushed open the door of an inconspicuous little tavern.
It was the meeting place he had arranged earlier that day.
There were only a few customers inside. Behind the bar, the bartender was polishing a glass with nothing better to do.
Gu Qing went over, casually tossed him a Gold Soul Coin, and sent him off to the kitchen.
Then he slipped behind the bar and deftly selected several base spirits of different hues from the shelves.
His long fingers moved between the sparkling glass bottles.
Ice clinked inside the shaker, making a clear, pleasant sound.
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