Nalan Rong raised his eyes in annoyance, only to see Mo Yi, whose cold face remained unchanged for thousands of years, smiling at him. That smile was extremely charming and wicked, just like Shen Qianmo's bewitching smile, with a captivating charm that could bewitch all beings. A pair of dark eyes looked at him, filled with domineering and playful intent.
"You're not Mo Yi!" Nalan Rong finally said with certainty. Not Mo Yi. Mo Yi wouldn't have such a smile, much less such eyes! No wonder, no wonder he said Shen Qianmo showed no abnormality; it turns out he was with Shen Qianmo! But who could possess such abilities?!
Situ Jingyan chuckled coldly, reaching out to remove the human skin mask from his face. A wicked and arrogant smile curled at the corners of his lips, revealing his undeniable domineering aura. He was now dressed in a deep black, a stark contrast to his usual alluring red attire, exuding a coldness and domineering presence. His lips curled into a smug smile, his tone arrogant, "Nalan Rong, isn't it a little too late for you to realize this now?"
"It is the Emperor of Tianmo."
"What? Tianmo took our military deployment map? What are we going to do?"
"It's all over! His Majesty has offended the emperors of Tianmo and Linwei. Our Li Kingdom is doomed this time!"
The courtiers who had initially congratulated Li Kingdom on its ability to restrain Linwei and Tianmo now realized that the situation was dire and looked at Nalan Rong with anxious expressions.
"Situ Jingyan!" Nalan Rong said, enunciating each word with gritted teeth, as if she wished she could chop Situ Jingyan into pieces and eat him whole.
"How dare you call me by my name?!" Situ Jingyan raised an eyebrow, his dark eyes looking at Nalan Rong with an invisible sword aura that seemed to shoot towards her with unparalleled sharpness.
"Is Linwei just going to sit idly by and watch Tianmo annex Li Kingdom?! The Emperor of Linwei must know the principle of 'if the lips are gone, the teeth will be cold,' right?" Nalan Rong's face was already very ugly. She angrily shifted her gaze from Situ Jingyan's face to Yan Xiuling. At this time, only Linwei could save Li Kingdom.
Yan Xiuling raised an eyebrow, shrugged, and said with a helpless expression, "I can't help with that."
Yan Xiuling was telling the truth; even if he sent troops now, it would be too late. He understood Situ Jingyan; the fact that he dared to openly reveal his identity proved that everything was already set in stone.
Moreover, he had no need to send troops to help the Li Kingdom. Nalan Rong was definitely not someone who would submit to others. Even if he sent troops to help the Li Kingdom now, the Li Kingdom might not necessarily become Linwei's possession.
Nalan Rong knew that Yan Xiuling had no intention of helping the Li Kingdom. Her face twisted in pain, and a hint of malice flashed in her narrow eyes. Her light blue eyes were now covered with a thick layer of malevolence, and a venomous smile curled at the corner of her mouth. She slowly said, "Since that's the case, then let the emperors of the two countries be buried with my Li Kingdom!"
There are thousands of experts surrounding the Li Kingdom's palace; killing Situ Jingyan and Yan Xiuling wouldn't be impossible. But even if they were killed, it wouldn't change the inevitable fate of the Li Kingdom. Just now, Nalan Rong had tried to make a final stand, but realizing there was no hope, he naturally chose this path of mutual destruction.
If the Kingdom of Li cannot be saved, Situ Jingyan and Yan Xiuling should not expect to enjoy the throne peacefully. Today, even if it costs him everything, he will definitely destroy Situ Jingyan and Yan Xiuling.
Upon hearing Nalan Rong's threat, Situ Jingyan calmly curled a wicked and arrogant smile, his eyes filled with a hint of condescending mockery, and said in a sarcastic tone, "You think you can spare my life with those good-for-nothings?!"
These words shocked everyone present.
Nalan Rong's face turned extremely ugly. What did Situ Jingyan mean by that? Did he have the confidence to escape from these thousands of experts?!
"Two hundred and eighty-nine traitors to the martial arts world have already been executed by the Martial Arts Alliance Leader. They should all be meeting their maker by now." Shen Qianmo calmly walked to Situ Jingyan's side, unabashedly taking his hand. Her expression was serene, as if she were discussing something trivial. Without even glancing at Nalan Rong, Shen Qianmo asked with a light smile, "I don't like this Li Kingdom palace. Shall we tear it down?"
"Okay. If Mo'er doesn't like it, then we'll take it down." Situ Jingyan affectionately stroked Shen Qianmo's hair, his eyes full of tenderness.
Their intimate conversation completely disregarded Nalan Rong and the assembled ministers. They were discussing dismantling the Li Kingdom's palace, treating it like child's play, like lovers' whispers?! The ministers' expressions darkened, and Nalan Rong's smile vanished.
Yan Xiuling looked at Shen Qianmo and Situ Jingyan with a half-smile. These two guys were really cunning. Were they deliberately trying to infuriate Nalan Rong by bringing up this topic at this time?
No wonder. Nalan Rong actually dared to plot against Shen Qianmo, attempting to use her to control Situ Jingyan. Such thoughts alone are enough to warrant his death a hundred times over. He knew perfectly well how much Situ Jingyan cared for Shen Qianmo; because of her, Situ Jingyan showed no mercy when destroying the Tang Clan, even going so far as to break ties with him.
"Hmph! What exactly do you want to do?!" Nalan Rong finally couldn't hold back anymore. Shen Qianmo and Situ Jingyan were simply going too far, actually saying in front of him that they wanted to demolish the royal palace of Li Kingdom?!
"Jingyan, what does His Majesty the King of Li want us to do?" Shen Qianmo glanced at Nalan Rong, her eyes filled with arrogance and disdain, and asked with an innocent smile, pretending not to know.
Situ Jingyan affectionately stroked Shen Qianmo's hair, a wicked smile playing on his lips. "Mo'er, what do you think we should do next?"
"His Majesty the King of Li has been very kind to me these past few days, and I don't know how to repay him. I've heard that His Majesty the King of Li and the late King of Li have a deep bond. Why don't we do him a favor and send His Majesty the King of Li to see his father?" Shen Qianmo's dark eyes were filled with a murderous and playful look, and the corners of his mouth curled into a bloodthirsty arc. His words sounded gentle and harmless, but everyone understood what he meant.
This was retaliation for Nalan Rong's audacity in attempting to imprison her. Anyone who wanted to deal with her, and with her Jingyan, had to be prepared to pay the price!
The court officials, hearing Situ Jingyan and Shen Qianmo's nonchalant conversation, couldn't help but darken their faces. Were they trying to kill their Emperor?!
"Alright then." Situ Jingyan replied gently, and as he smiled tenderly at Shen Qianmo, the fan in his hand flew towards Nalan Rong with great speed and without warning.
Nalan Rong froze on the spot. It wasn't that he didn't react quickly enough; it was that Situ Jingyan was simply too fast. In addition, Nalan Rong had never expected that Situ Jingyan would actually make a move, that he would actually dare to attack him in the royal palace of Li Kingdom.
Yan Xiuling frowned slightly upon seeing this. This Situ Jingyan really had the guts to do it. He actually dared to try and kill Nalan Rong in the Li Kingdom's palace. His audacity and daring were truly extraordinary. One must know that there were still many assassins lying in ambush around the Li Kingdom. Even if Shen Qianmo killed some of them, what about the remaining assassins?!
Moreover, the capital of Li Kingdom has a large military force, all under the control of Yao Yuanshan, the most powerful general in Li Kingdom. Yao Yuanshan has also received great favors from Nalan Rong, and will surely seek revenge for Nalan Rong. At that time, with tens of thousands of troops, even if Situ Jingyan has high martial arts skills, he will not be able to escape.
Yan Xiuling looked up at Yao Yuanshan. A hint of surprise flashed in her eyes. He looked so familiar. After a moment's thought, a look of understanding crossed her eyes. So he was the son of General Qi Yue, Yao Shan. It seemed Situ Jingyan and Shen Qianmo had already made thorough preparations. This was their true trump card. No wonder they dared to make a move in the Tianmo Imperial Palace.
Just as Yan Xiuling was staring blankly at Situ Jingyan and Shen Qianmo, everyone in the hall gasped in surprise. Yan Xiuling turned to look at Nalan Rong and was also startled.
Just now, Situ Jingyan's move was so fast that it flew towards Nalan Rong with all his internal force. He originally thought that Nalan Rong was bound to die, so he immediately looked away. He did not expect to see such a scene.
Situ Jingyan's move just now was extremely fast and infused with internal energy. Even he wasn't confident he could dodge it without any warning, let alone Nalan Rong. Therefore, he thought Nalan Rong was doomed. However, Nalan Rong was standing there unharmed, with only a hint of surprise and heartache in her eyes.
Nalan Rong was holding a woman dressed in black and wearing a black veil in his arms. It was this woman who took the fatal blow for Nalan Rong.
The speed of that attack was so fast that this woman was able to block it, which shows that her movements are extremely fast and her internal strength should be quite impressive. But why is her face pale and blood gushing out? She is clearly seriously injured and incurable.
As Yan Xiuling's mind raced, Nalan Rong's heartbroken cry echoed throughout the entire Li Kingdom palace, "Shadow!"
The woman in black's veil slowly slipped down, revealing a delicate and charming face. Although not as stunningly beautiful as Shen Qianmo, she possessed a unique allure. However, the woman had a peach blossom mark on her right cheek; the blossom was lifelike, with a faint golden light emanating from its stamen.
"Rong..." Blood kept gushing from the woman's mouth. She seemed to want to say something, but due to her severe injuries, she couldn't say anything. Her mouth opened and closed, and all that could be seen was blood gushing out, but no one could hear what she was saying.
"Ying. Don't say anything. Don't say anything. You'll be alright. You'll be alright." Nalan Rong hugged Ying tightly. He had thought he was going to die just now, and he never expected that Ying would run out and take the fatal blow for him.
The moment he saw the shadowy figure appear, he felt an unprecedented panic. Seeing her slender body slowly collapse before him, the heartache and despair were almost stronger than when he heard Situ Jingyan say he would destroy the Li Kingdom.
He had always believed that his feelings for Ying were merely dependence. He had always thought he was in control and hadn't fallen in love with anyone. But now he realized he had only been deceiving himself. Ten years of companionship—this woman had long been etched into his very bones.
Ying stared intently at Nalan Rong, the agonizing pain in her internal organs rendering her speechless. She desperately wanted to tell Nalan Rong not to cry, not to cry, that she was just his shadow, and that she would do anything as long as he was alright.
Even though she knew that even if she took the fatal blow for him, she couldn't save his life, she still didn't hesitate to take it for him.
Because at that moment, everything was driven by instinct. Without thinking, her body had already reached out to block him. She reached out, wanting to stroke Nalan Rong's cheek, but her hand fell limply to her side.
"Shadow! Shadow!" Nalan Rong cried out in anguish, but Shadow would never wake up again, never appear again in the dark of night to keep him company.