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What are you doing?
In the realm of gods, Lingyan had always been a domineering minor deity. Even during her confinement, she had never been treated with such disrespect.
The situation was extremely unfavorable. She glanced at Gu Zhong, who stood in front of her, and raised his head to angrily rebuke the leading general.
"Your Majesty, we are ordered to capture Lord Gu Zhong."
Although the formation was grand, the divine general dared not be truly disrespectful. He bowed respectfully and carefully explained his purpose, with a hint of uncertainty in his expression.
He clearly knew that what happened today didn't make sense, and if the God of War didn't want to, who could hold her back?
"By order? By whose order?"
Ling Yan snorted coldly, still standing in front of Gu Zhong.
"God...God Emperor..."
The divine general raised his head and looked at Lingyan and Gu Zhong with a sorrowful expression. No matter how difficult it was to understand the order of the Lord of the God Realm, he had no choice but to obey it.
Upon hearing this, Ling Yan froze on the spot. She was unwilling to believe it and did not understand why the God Emperor wanted to capture Gu Zhong.
Now that the armies of gods and demons are locked in a standoff, what a foolish thing to do is to imprison their commander.
Even with the demon realm as an ally, it is clearly the best strategy to keep the initiative in one's own hands.
"What is the reason?"
Gu Zhong gently pressed down on Ling Yan's shoulder, took a step forward, and turned their positions around.
"The Divine Lord Lin Yuan was found brutally murdered in Merlin. The aura left at the scene not only contained demonic energy, but also—"
Unable to meet Gu Zhong's cold gaze, the general swallowed hard and, under immense pressure, spoke with difficulty.
"And mine?"
Gu Zhong's brow twitched slightly, and he finished speaking for him. A knowing smile appeared on her lips.
"yes."
"I did indeed go to see Lord Lin Yuan today, but how could I kill my mentor?"
"This—I was merely following orders."
The deity still respectfully clasped his hands in greeting.
Looking at him, Gu Zhong couldn't help but feel a pang of sorrow. For so many years, he had been obeying orders like a puppet, being held in the hands of the God Emperor.
She managed to break free from control, but what awaited her was suppression and destruction.
"The reason for this should be very clear to the God of War himself."
An annoying voice approached from afar, and the rather arrogant Demon Emperor strode into the palace, flanked by the God Emperor with a face as black as iron.
"Gu Zhong, are you trying to rebel?"
The God Emperor's wary gaze fell on Gu Zhong, and he immediately began to loudly question him.
Upon seeing the God Emperor, Gu Zhong recalled the truth Lin Yuan had told her: the entire Asura clan perished because of the decrees of a high and mighty emperor.
For a fleeting moment, she wanted to disregard everything, draw her sword, and truly rebel against this god who had been consumed by selfishness and scheming; he was unworthy to be emperor.
"You little god, I wouldn't dare."
However, after glancing at Ling Yan beside him, Gu Zhong finally suppressed such extreme thoughts, lowered his head to adopt a respectful posture, and replied in a low voice.
"Then what are you doing?"
The God Emperor snorted coldly and gestured with his eyes for the soldiers in the hall to prepare to take action.
"Your Majesty, please understand. When I left today, Lord Lin Yuan was not in any danger. How could I have committed the crime of murdering my master?"
"Father! Gu Zhong would never be that kind of person!"
From the few words exchanged, the reason for today's turmoil was roughly pieced together. Lingyan couldn't help but rush out to speak up for Gu Zhong.
"Nonsense! What do you know? Yan'er, come here."
Upon seeing his adopted daughter, who had once again deliberately interfered, the God Emperor glanced at the Demon Emperor watching the show from the side, rubbed his temples with a headache, and waved to Ling Yan.
"Lord Lingyan, perhaps it wasn't like that before, but what about now? Do you really understand Lord Gu Zhong now? Besides, Lord Lin Yuan died tragically, and all that remained at the scene were demonic energy and Lord Gu Zhong's aura. Who knows if she colluded with the demons?"
The Demon Emperor's words were full of implications, even linking Gu Zhong to the Demon Clan.
Lingyan recalled Gu Zhong's unusual behavior earlier, and realized that something drastic must have happened. It seemed as if all these events were specifically aimed at Gu Zhong.
Gu Zhong's gaze shifted from the Demon Emperor to the God Emperor. Now that his master had died violently, the God Emperor had suddenly launched an attack, willing to harm himself to capture her. There was only one reason for this—she had learned something she shouldn't have known—the truth about the extinct race.
Therefore, he dared not use her anymore, fearing that she would be detrimental to the divine realm and to him. Only by removing the tiger's teeth and claws could it become a docile pet cat.
"How could Gu Zhong possibly collude with the demons!"
Lingyan, however, could not tolerate the Demon Emperor's slander. She glared at him angrily and was about to make the first move.
"Enough!"
The God Emperor rebuked again, staring coldly at Gu Zhong.
"Gu Zhong, are you going to disobey orders? This is a serious matter. If you are truly innocent, your freedom will be restored once the reasons are investigated."
The threats were mixed with false promises. Gu Zhong didn't believe it; even Lin Yuan hadn't fared well, so how could she naively believe that the God Emperor would let her off the hook?
The best outcome would be to be completely destroyed like Xuanhu, but there are also traces of demons mixed in. If they surrender, their fate will probably be even more miserable.
"I'm sorry, I can't comply."
Gu Zhong slowly and firmly uttered these words, raised the sword in his hand, and drew it from its sheath, trembling with rage.
"Gu Zhong?"
Lingyan turned around and looked at her with some confusion. To those unaware of the reason, what the God Emperor had just said seemed like a good idea, and Lingyan, relying on her status, believed she could help Gu Zhong prove his innocence.
But to her surprise, Gu Zhong refused. What unspeakable reason lay behind this?
“Father, this matter is still unresolved. Perhaps—perhaps we should leave Gu Zhong in the Wuji Palace. I will watch over her and guarantee she won't leave until you have investigated the matter thoroughly—”
She gritted her teeth and, under the cold, deathly gaze of the God Emperor, still mustered her courage to speak, continuing to defend Gu Zhong as always.
"Yan'er? Why are you protecting her like this?"
After being repeatedly obstructed by his adopted daughter, even the most thick-skinned God Emperor noticed something was amiss.
"I know that the High God and Lord Gu Zhong are deeply in love and have already pledged their lives to each other. However, this matter involves the Demon Clan, and if—the High God alone is not enough to protect this God of War of the Divine Realm. The High God should advise Lord Gu Zhong not to act rashly in the heat of the moment—"
Just then, the Demon Emperor opened his noisy mouth again, seemingly chatting about trivial matters without a care in the world, but his words were like a thunderclap from a clear sky, resounding in the ears of everyone present.
"What did you say?"
The God Emperor stared wide-eyed in disbelief, looking at the Demon Emperor and then at Ling Yan, who had stood beside Gu Zhong without moving an inch from beginning to end.
"—A lifelong commitment?"
If looks could kill, Gu Zhong would probably have been torn to pieces by the God Emperor countless times.
The murderous intent in the God Emperor's eyes was no longer concealed and was fully exposed.
He no longer waited for the soldiers and officers, but reached out and grabbed Gu Zhong's neck.
"Father!"
Feeling the palpable killing intent emanating from the God Emperor, Ling Yan couldn't understand why things had escalated to this point.
She rushed between the two, hoping that the God Emperor could calm down.
Yan Yun twirled a sword flower in Gu Zhong's hand, extending it from behind Ling Yan to block her. The barrier formed by the sword light isolated the God Emperor's palm strike, which he had not held back at all, and forced the God Emperor back three steps.
"God Emperor, please calm down."
The Demon Emperor flashed to the God Emperor's side, grabbed the God Emperor's robe, and looked at him with displeasure and warning, which made the God Emperor regain his senses a little.
"Demon Emperor, help me capture this traitor!"
Although the God Emperor and the Demon Emperor are realm lords, they are not the strongest in terms of combat power. Gu Zhong is truly too strong; neither of them can defeat her individually, only by joining forces.
"Yan'er, I'll give you one more chance, get out of the way!"
Ling Yan bit her lip tightly, still standing there. She hadn't expected that even after seeing her, the God Emperor hadn't stopped his attack.
"Father, Lord Gu Zhong and I are in love. I cannot stand by and watch you fight each other. Why must you put her to death?"
The God Emperor's call snapped her out of her daze. She still refused to give up or face the truth. How could the harmonious relationship between ruler and subject have turned into a life-or-death struggle in just one day? And the reason was so unclear and absurd.
"Ah Yan, it's no use. The God Realm can't keep me here."
Gu Zhong sighed from behind and pulled Ling Yan into his arms.
"Would you like to come with me?"
She asked again, speaking quickly, revealing her anxiety and urgency.
Does it really have to be this way?
Lingyan didn't know what to choose. The God Realm had raised her; it was her home. How could she just abandon it? Gu Zhong was her lover; why did he have to turn his back on the God Realm? She didn't know.
In her eyes, it was clearly unnecessary to go this far, yet some force propelled the conflict to an irreversible point.
"God Emperor, when you ordered me to exterminate the Xuanhu clan back then, I had doubts and didn't know if it was right or wrong. I struggled with this for many years, and only today, having experienced it firsthand, have I finally come to an answer—it was a grave mistake."
"Asura, Xuanhu, is it true that you colluded with the demon race? Even if you were bewitched by demons, why would it bring down your entire race? Or did you raise your sword against countless beings across the myriad realms because of some unknown selfish motive?"
Whether Lingyan stays or leaves, Gu Zhong has to take her away today. Having made up his mind to go all in, Gu Zhong simply punctured all the paper-thin riddles that were meant to conceal his true intentions.
Feeling the curious gazes of everyone present, which were trying their best to hide but were also furtively observing, the God Emperor's face turned pale and then red.
"How dare this brat make baseless accusations?"
For the God Emperor, the best course of action now is to silence Gu Zhong forever and not allow her to live under any circumstances.
Ling Yan understood. The deep-seated hatred of her clan's extermination and the deception and manipulation involved were far from minor conflicts that she could resolve, and she had no way to keep Gu Zhong.
The God Emperor and the Demon Emperor ignored Ling Yan and simultaneously launched a joint attack, unleashing an overwhelming force upon them.
Gu Zhongli swung his sword at the ground, kicking up a flurry of floor tiles. The sword's light and shadow wove a dense net in the air, completely concealing the two of them.
She tore open a crack behind her, pulled Lingyan up, and was about to jump inside.
"High God Lingyan, don't you care about the divine realm that nurtured you?"