Qian Renxue stood at the highest point of the city wall, her crimson pupils fixed on Shen Lian outside the city, her clenched fists white at the knuckles.
She knew that the final battle for Heaven Dou City was about to begin.
Shen Lian was looking up at the towering walls of Heaven Dou City, a cold curve lifting at the corner of his lips.
"Pass down my order,"
Shen Lian's voice was not loud, yet it carried clearly throughout the entire army formation. "Prepare to storm the city!"
"Yes!"
The 110,000-strong army answered in unison, their roar soaring into the heavens and making the defenders atop the walls' ears buzz.
Qian Renxue stood at the highest point of the wall, her crimson eyes locked on the black-robed figure beyond the city.
Shen Lian's army surged up to the base of the city like a black tide. The pressure of their formation made even the bricks tremble faintly, but all her attention was on Shen Lian.
Why?
A raging tide of resentment churned within Qian Renxue.
She had hidden under Xue Qinghe's identity for twenty years, playing a part before the sickly Xue Ye every day, slowly draining his life away with chronic poison. She had been on the verge of enduring until her ascension to the throne, seizing the Heaven Dou Empire and completing Spirit Hall's mission... Why did Shen Lian get to bring an army here at the very end and reap the rewards?
Then Qian Renxue thought:
If he captured Heaven Dou City, wouldn't her twenty years of forbearance become a joke?
Qian Renxue's nails dug deep into her palms, and the taste of blood spread across her tongue.
Qian Renxue also knew she could not act personally—once her identity was exposed, all her previous efforts would