第十三章:Tanoshi VS Qing Lan
塔諾什站在那裡,身著墨黑長袍,裙子雖無風也隨風飄動.她一言不發,目光卻冰冷如凍土──宛如死神降臨的化身.
「塔...塔諾西大人...」
唐平鬆開了摟著青蘭腰的手,驚恐地望著窗外的神明.
你們兩個在幹嘛?
「難道你們看不出來嗎?我們做的正是情侶該做的!」
青蘭站起身來,絲毫不為自己的曼妙胴體被眾人看到而感到羞恥.在她眼裡,在場的人都是她最親近的家人.
塔諾希沒有回應,她冰冷的目光始終緊盯著床上的兩人.一個是她的未婚夫,這個國家的未來統治者.另一個是她最信任的摯友兼下屬.而現在,他們竟然背著她,進行著如此骯髒的勾當.
「唐史大人,我們真的—」
唐平試圖用身體擋住青蘭,但他的保護舉動卻點燃了火藥桶.
「我允許你說話了嗎!」
塔諾什連手都沒抬一下,只是瞪了唐平一眼,唐平就被打飛出去,重重地撞在牆上,然後被埋在一堆瓦礫下面.
青蘭沒有去探望她的愛人.她還能感受到他微弱的呼吸,這就夠了.此刻,她不能將目光從塔諾希身上移開.這不是她的「妹妹」——這是一頭瀕臨瘋狂的野獸.塔諾希散發出的氣息比以往任何時候都更加深沉,更加沉重.這意味著她的耐心已經到了極限,距離她變回邪神的原始本性只有一步之遙.
通常情況下,最好的做法是退後一步,避免觸及她的痛點,並真誠地道歉.
「真沒禮貌.這根本不是一個『好女人』該有的行為.」青蘭評論道.
「該死...」 「
我剛才是不是把心裡話說出來了?難道這幾天的放縱讓我大腦的剎車失靈了?」
青蘭心中閃過一絲擔憂,卻並不後悔.或許,這些話是她一直想說卻沒說出口的.
出乎意料的是,她的冒險似乎奏效了.塔諾希並沒有立刻爆發,而是瞪大了眼睛,滿臉難以置信.她們相識千年,她還是第一次聽到青蘭如此輕佻地說話──而且還是在她面前.塔諾希甚至懷疑青蘭是不是被洗腦了.
「哼!睡了自己最好的朋友的未婚夫,而且毫無悔意...這就是你所謂的『好女人』嗎?"
「...」
邏輯無可辯駁.她的行為毫無可取之處.然而...她現在已無法退縮.
"What fiancé? You're just using Lord Husband as a shield. Don't think I don't know how much 'private cargo' you stuffed into his contract!" Qing Lan rolled her eyes.
Suddenly, a pale palm appeared before Qing Lan's eyes.
**SMACK!**
Pain exploded across her face, and her consciousness momentarily flickered out. After smashing through two walls, the physical agony finally caught up to her.
"Watch your words, mongrel! You shall address him as 'Lord Groom'!" Tanoshi roared, her voice echoing through the sky and vibrating within the very foundations of the building. "Even if he is just a placeholder, he is *my* property! Who gave you permission to touch him! You shameless slut!"
Qing Lan didn't counterattack immediately. She lay in the debris, touching her swollen cheek.
*This is the first time she's ever slapped my face...*
A strange sensation welled up; she almost felt like crying. She had allowed Tanoshi to hit her, even dropping her defenses to let the Goddess vent. For a split second, a trace of guilt had flickered within her when she felt Tanoshi's momentary hesitation—otherwise, her head would have been torn from her shoulders.
As a renowned lady of the White Sand Sea, Qing Lan's moral compass was much stronger than Tanoshi's. If Tanoshi felt rage, Qing Lan felt shame. She hated herself in this moment.
But now was not the time for self-reproach. If she showed weakness now, it would imply she regretted their relationship. Tang Ping would see her hesitation, blame himself, and doubt if they should have ever started. And Tanoshi would have a righteous excuse to take him back because Qing Lan was the one "in the wrong."
As Tang Ping's partner, she would not allow that. The die was cast. She was his woman, and he had taken her most precious gift. No one could dispute that, no matter how immoral the betrayal.
*Fine,* she thought. *If Tanoshi calls me a slut, then I'll be a slut. I'll just steal him outright.*
"In love, the person who isn't loved is the real 'third party.' Get that through your head, you moron!"
Coarse insults poured from Qing Lan's mouth, stripping away any image of a refined Dragon Lady. She sounded like a common brawler. This was the final straw for Tanoshi.
Tanoshi teleported in front of her, tentacles flashing like blurred shadows, instantly snapping the Dragon Princess's knees. She pinned Qing Lan down, raining slaps upon her face.
"You backstabbing bitch! Who do you think gave you everything you have today? If it weren't for me and Lord Father, you'd be the 48th wife of that old dragon by now!"
Tanoshi's eyes were bloodshot, her strength increasing with every blow. Yet, Qing Lan found a gap between the strikes, lunged upward, and delivered a brutal headbutt to Tanoshi's forehead. Both were left dazed, but Qing Lan was the first to shout back, returning the slap with interest.
"Exactly! You said it yourself—it wasn't just your doing! It was Lord Ulreth and Lady Furia who stepped in! It had nothing to do with you! Oh, I forgot—you were beaten unconscious by Grandfather, so you have no idea what actually happened!"
"I'll kill you! Bitch!"
Tanoshi backhanded her, sending her flying again.
"Bring it on! I've been tired of you barking like a stray dog for a long time!"
They descended into a primitive brawl. More than the physical blows, they aimed to break each other's spirit with words.
"Shameless!"
"Unwanted!"
"You're just an earthworm raised on seaweed!"
"You're a lazy, good-for-nothing squid!"
"Unprincipled slut!"
"Old virgin that nobody wants!"
"DIE!!!"
"GET OUT OF MY SIGHT!!!"
Before long, Tanoshi regained the upper hand, pinning Qing Lan down once more. The gap in their cultivation and mana reserves was simply too vast.
"How could you do this to me! I trusted you!" Tanoshi screamed through tears, delivering another heavy blow. If she hadn't hurried back to show Tang Ping the unique samples she found, these two would still be tangled in bed.
"You're the one who told me to take the lead! I did what you asked, and now you blame me?" Qing Lan spat out a mouthful of blood.
"I asked you to *test* the dish for me, not eat the whole table!"
When Tanoshi had first seen her best friend and fiancé naked and entwined as if trying to merge their bodies, her brain had short-circuited. She never imagined her two most trusted people would betray her while she was out working. The internet slang flashed in her mind: *Beware of fire, beware of theft, beware of your best friend.* The netizens were right!
"So what? You didn't even want the first bite anyway! I just tested the flavor for you—wasn't that your plan all along?"
"I wanted your help, not for you to steal my things!"
Qing Lan let out a cold laugh. *You want all the benefits and leave me with all the trouble? Dream on.*
"Fine. I've tested him for you. The quality is excellent. Since he's 'your thing,' you can have him back!"
She acted like she didn't care, but it was a bluff. If Tanoshi actually tried to take him, she would fight to the death.
"I don't want something you've already used!" Tanoshi yelled, falling right into the trap.
「好!你說得對!從今天起,唐平就是我的丈夫!還有你——我親愛的'主人'——別再叫他新郎或未婚夫了!也別再碰他了!我噁心死了!"
塔諾什僅存的一點理智也徹底崩潰了.她帶著殺意猛地揮下手掌,想要捏碎青蘭的頭骨.
**拍! **
塔諾什震驚地瞪大了眼睛.青蘭...竟然接住了她全力一擊?不僅如此,她的傷口癒合速度也快得不可思議.
**繁榮! **
一股巨大的壓力從龍公主身上爆發而出,將塔諾什吹飛.塔諾什在空中翻了個跟頭,優雅地落地.
"這是一項…突破!"
「她要成神了?」塔諾希心想. "不可能!她和我一樣是個局外人;世界的意志絕不會允許這種事發生."
但隨後,她感覺到水神屏障內的所有魔力都湧向了一點:青嵐.
隨著魔力湧入,青蘭的氣息呈指數級增長.她痛苦地尖叫起來,翡翠般的光芒如同燃燒的火焰般將她吞噬.天空中閃電閃爍.方圓百里之內,植物瘋狂生長.由凝結蒸氣構成的巨龍在她周圍凝聚成形,發出震耳欲聾的咆哮,彷彿在迎接它們的王者.
能量達到頂峰後,然後——
**裂縫! **
她用來模仿人類皮膚的鱗片徹底破碎.光柱消失了,世界陷入了靜止.
塔諾希絲毫沒有放鬆警戒.她渾身汗毛倒豎,肌肉本能地顫抖起來.這個人*很強壯*.
在空地中央,在繚繞的薄霧中,綠髮龍公主緩緩睜開了雙眼.