First annul the engagement, then sever ties with the empress; the empress reigns supreme.

"Bang."

Just when Su Li thought she was really going to die, the tightly closed door was kicked open from behind, and Mu Lingxuan barged in with Qingmiao and Qingyan.

Even as Su Li felt dizzy, she was still thinking about why those two idiots, Qing Yan and Qing Miao, had barged in. They should take this opportunity to escape.

Those two fools actually teamed up with Mu Lingxuan.

Su Li never considered asking Qing Miao and Qing Yan to save her; at this point, running away was the best option.

Qingyanzi turned his head to look when he heard the loud noise.

Mu Lingxuan, Qing Miao, and Qing Yan exchanged a glance upon entering, but said nothing. In order to save Su Li, they attacked Qing Yanzi together.

"You're courting death." In order to deal with Qingyan, Qingmiao, and Mu Lingxuan, Qingyanzi had no choice but to release Su Li, and Su Li was finally saved.

Su Li collapsed onto the bed in a disheveled state, panting heavily, watching Qing Yan and Qing Miao join forces with Mu Lingxuan to launch continuous attacks on Qing Yanzi.

Qingyanzi was already injured, and with Mu Lingxuan's martial arts skills being quite strong, they finally lost ground in this combined attack.

He was stabbed on both sides by Qingmiao and Qingyan. The pain made Qingyanzi yell, "You bastards! I raised you with my own hands, and you dare to betray your master and ancestors! Even if I die, I will drag you down to hell with me!"

After Qingyanzi finished speaking, he began to summon the Gu worms inside Qingyan, Qingmiao, and Suli. Qingmiao and Qingyan's expressions changed instantly, and they clutched their heads in pain, writhing and struggling on the ground.

"Haha, only you are left." Qingyan looked down at his masterpiece with pride, pointed at Mu Lingxuan and said, "Mu Lingxuan, it's not too late for you to regret it now. Put down your sword and kowtow to me to admit your mistake."

Mu Lingxuan's face was icy, and he spoke with a do-or-die spirit: "You dare to make me kneel before you? I failed to protect Xixi before, but this time I will protect her sister for her, and while I'm at it, I'll kill you, you dog."

"Fine, fine, since you want to die, then I'll grant your wish." Seeing that he couldn't persuade Mu Lingxuan, Qingyanzi stopped talking and attacked Mu Lingxuan again with a ferocious look in his eyes.

He knew that only Mu Lingxuan was still capable of fighting. It was a fight to the death between him and Mu Lingxuan today; he had to fight to the death.

Qingyanzi assumed that Qingmiao, Qingyan, and Suli were all incapacitated, so naturally his attention was entirely focused on Mu Lingxuan. He didn't spare any extra attention for defense and charged forward with all his might.

Just as his sword was about to clash with Mu Lingxuan's, he suddenly felt a chill down his spine and was stabbed.

He turned around and saw that Su Li's lips were bleeding from being bitten. With sheer willpower, she got up from the ground and endured the pain of being devoured by countless Gu worms.

Resentment flashed in Qingyanzi's eyes, and his body began to disintegrate little by little. He weakly cursed, "You wicked disciple... you have the Gu I planted in your body. Even if I die, you will not survive."

Qingyanzi was about to die. This beast who had tormented her for years was the culprit behind every demonic appearance. The physical pain now outweighed the pleasure in her heart. Su Li gripped the knife again, and the knife penetrated Qingyanzi's body another half inch.

Su Li smiled radiantly, and deliberately spoke loudly to spite Qing Yanzi: "There's no need for Master to trouble himself, because I have already found the book of antidote in your secret room."

"You wicked disciple, I should have killed you long ago." Qingyanzi was indeed enraged and collapsed, his chest tight, spitting out a mouthful of blood. At that moment, Su Li also drew her knife, and Qingyanzi's body fell straight to the ground.

The moment Qingyanzi collapsed to the ground, one after another, black, thread-like Gu worms crawled out of his mouth and nose, instantly filling every corner of his body.

Su Li was not frightened by the strange scene of Qing Yanzi's body. She felt relieved and collapsed to the ground, exhausted.

"Su Li..." A voice came from outside the door, and then Murong Yuan, led by Jiao Niang, rushed into the room.

Having defeated her greatest enemy, Su Li, who had been relaxed, tensed up the moment she saw Murong Yuan, especially when she saw the beautiful woman standing beside him, backlit like an untouched fairy.

Su Li frantically tried to hide herself, and then noticed that Qing Yanzi's clothes were disheveled, while her own outer skirt was torn and she was only wearing a bodice. Anyone could guess what had happened before.

Su Li is like someone who has been in the abyss for a long time, and is timid and inferior when she sees the sunlight.

But her childhood experiences taught her that she could not show weakness in front of others.

Su Li took a few breaths in her mind before forcing herself not to show her emotions. She smiled and met Murong Yuan's gaze indifferently.

"Young Master Murong is truly remarkable. You managed to find your way to such a remote place. But aren't you a little late? Perhaps you could come again after I'm dead."

"I'm sorry I'm late." Just as Su Li had guessed, Murong Yuan had already figured out what had happened between Qing Yanzi and Su Li with just one glance. However, he did not feel pity or contempt as Su Li had guessed.

His heart was filled with nothing but heartache.

I was so heartbroken that I didn't know what to do for a moment.

Without a second thought, he immediately took off his outer robe and covered Su Li with it, saying, "I'm sorry, I'm late. I deserve to die. If I had come earlier, you wouldn't have suffered so much and been wronged. It's too good for Qingyanzi to die like this."

Murong Yuan's hatred for Qingyanzi was so obvious in his words, and everything he said was from Su Li's perspective, but Su Li just couldn't be happy.

When the robe, which still carried Murong Yuan's scent, was draped over her, Su Li's mind was filled with thoughts of Murong Yuan's disdain for her.

She was disgusted by her revealing outfit, which Qingyanzi had seen.

Therefore, it must be concealed thoroughly.

Sometimes, the more you care, the more likely you are to narrow your path.

Su Li admits that she is now not only jealous, but also twisted.

Even though she was covered in wounds from fighting Qingyanzi, she still managed to tear Murong Yuan's robe off her body. The smile on her face vanished, and she stared at Murong Yuan with a gloomy expression.

"Murong Yuan thinks he's a savior. Too bad, I, Su Li, am born shameless and like to be decadent. I have no need for Young Master Murong. This body doesn't need to be hidden either. My master wanted to touch me, that's the truth. I'm dirty."

When the robe was thrown back onto his body, Murong Yuan reached out and caught it, but when faced with Su Li's sharp words, he held onto the robe and remained silent. His handsome, chiseled features were shrouded in sunlight, making them obscure and difficult to discern his emotions.

The room was quiet. Qingyan, Qingmiao, and Mu Lingxuan were all relieved that Qingyanzi had finally died. They were either standing or lying down to catch their breath, and no one spoke. The atmosphere was strange.

Jiao Niang stood beside Murong Yuan, frowning at Su Li's sarcastic remarks.

She shifted her body slightly, took a deep breath, and whispered to Su Li, "Su Li, how could you say such harsh words? Do you know how anxious Young Master Murong was to come up the mountain to find you? It's Qingyanzi's problem that he wanted to take advantage of you. How could you use Qingyanzi's mistake to punish Young Master Murong and yourself... Young Master Murong is so innocent."

Jiao Niang stepped forward and reached out her hand to Su Li: "Come on... let me help you up first."

Su Li sat lazily on the ground, not moving, her gaze looking up. The beautiful woman against the light seemed to be bestowing a favor upon her.

Suddenly, it felt as if her heart had been pierced countless times by tiny needles, leaving it riddled with holes, and the pain made her want to curl up into a ball.

Su Li admitted that she was in darkness and found the beautiful woman in front of her particularly dazzling.

She didn't extend her hand, but instead said sarcastically, "Oh, isn't this the Holy Maiden of our Li Huo Clan? You used to always avoid me when you saw me, but today you actually reached out to me. Aren't you afraid I'll corrupt you? Little Holy Maiden, look, you're coiled up with a big snake."

Jiao Niang was indeed startled. She screamed without daring to look back and shrank back to Murong Yuan.

Murong Yuan dodged Jiao Niang in time, but Jiao Niang's gaze shifted and she saw Qing Yanzi covered by Gu worms.

In just a short while, Qingyanzi's body was completely covered by Gu worms, making a crunching sound.

The crunching sound grew louder and louder. In the blink of an eye, Qingyanzi's body seemed to turn into powder and dissipate into the air, but it also looked as if he had been eaten by Gu worms.

"Ah, what kind of strange insect is this? How can it be so terrifying?" Jiao Niang continued to move closer to Murong Yuan, stomping her feet on the ground to avoid the Gu insects that had scattered after devouring Qing Yanzi's corpse.

Every move the young woman made was so innocent, like a flower grown in a greenhouse.

Jiao Niang was indeed raised and protected.

Although her parents died when she was young, she was cherished by the clan chief because of her talent for performing rituals to summon spirits. The clan members also protected her, and Bai Ze especially doted on her.

When Su Li was young, she suffered beatings and starvation at the hands of Qing Yanzi, who also threw her into the Poison Pool. During those times, she envied Jiao Niang, but that envy later turned into jealousy.

She was never a good person; she even considered killing Jiao Niang.

At this moment, Su Li's murderous intent was growing wildly. She glanced at the beautiful woman who was standing next to Murong Yuan, propped herself up, and limped out of the room.