"You definitely won't blame me?"
Do you still think you're dealing with the lovestruck senior from before?
Qin Luo walked toward Liu Ruyan step by step, and she lifted her pretty little face to meet him.
In her heart, she thought smugly, As expected, Senior Brother Qin still loves me. No matter how things change, his love for me will never change.
Now that Qin Luo had another identity—a prince of the Great Qin Dynasty—he seemed even more worthy of her.
The next second, Qin Luo's response was a resounding slap.
Smack!
The force of it left Liu Ruyan completely stunned.
Where was her "face" in all of this?
"Do you have no shame at all? You framed me and nearly got me killed, and you don't even want me to blame you?"
"You filthy bitch, you're not that pretty, but you sure like to dream big."
The disciples of Tai Xu Holy Land erupted. The countless simps had never imagined that Qin Luo would actually slap the goddess in their hearts.
They immediately began hurling accusations.
"Qin Luo, what right do you have to hit the Saintess? What qualifications do you have? Hitting a woman—I despise you!"
"So what if you've risen up now? You think you're different and can look down on our junior sisters? Bah, what scum!"
"It was Ye Chen who framed you. If you don't have the guts to kill Ye Chen yourself, why are you venting on the Saintess!"
Qin Luo swept a cold gaze across the noisy crowd, then turned to Zheng Tuo. "Marquis Po Jun, if someone insults a prince of the Great Qin Dynasty, how should they be dealt with?"
Zheng Tuo's lips curled in a cruel smile. "Kill."
Without waiting for Qin Luo to speak again, he moved.
The instant a Saint made his move, killing intent locked onto the ones who had been shouting the loudest. Their faces went white with terror, and just as they were about to beg for mercy—
Bang!
Their bodies exploded into misted blood on the spot.
As gore rained down, many people snapped back to their senses and clamped their mouths shut, no longer daring to utter a word.
Liu Ruyan watched in a daze. She had never imagined Qin Luo would slap her first—and then start killing on the spot.
"Senior Brother… you've changed," she whispered weakly.
"Changed your ass, bitch." Qin Luo's kick drove straight into her stomach.
In his inherited memories, this woman and Ye Chen had framed Qin Luo again and again, all while pretending it was because she "trusted" Ye Chen's words. Heh…
Whether it was love-brain or calculated pragmatism—who cared?
Boom.
Liu Changhe appeared the moment Qin Luo kicked out.
He glared at Qin Luo, rage barely contained. "Qin Luo, my Tai Xu Holy Land has nurtured you for so many years, and you actually had someone kill disciples of my Holy Land! You are utterly ungrateful!"
Qin Luo met his gaze without the slightest fear. "Nurtured me? Heh. That's all thanks to my master. Every cultivation resource I ever had came from him. As for your Holy Land… he gave Tai Xu far more resources than Tai Xu ever gave me."
That one line almost choked Liu Changhe.
The Tai Xu Old Ancestor also emerged, speaking slowly. "Qin Luo, Tai Xu still nurtured you in the end. You shouldn't behave like this over such a trivial matter."
"I have decided that from this day forward, you will remain the Holy Son of Tai Xu Holy Land. The Tai Xu Bell will be entrusted to your safekeeping—but you must leave behind a copy of the Four Symbols Swordplay."
Qin Luo glanced at the Old Ancestor and slowly shook his head. "I refuse."
"If you insist on taking it, I can't help you."
The moment he finished speaking, Zheng Tuo stepped forward, voice deep. "If Tai Xu Holy Land dares to coerce a prince of my Great Qin Dynasty, the armies of Great Qin will flatten Tai Xu Holy Land—leaving no one alive."
"She bailed," Qin Luo thought irritably.
He'd been planning to at least talk to Saint Han Yue, but the old crone had slipped away the moment things calmed down a little.
There was nothing to be done about it. He could only remember this and come back for his junior sister after he settled things in the capital.
As for Liu Ruyan, this so-called Daughter of Destiny… heh.
Qin Luo glanced at her. Her eyes were full of tears; she looked utterly pitiful.
[Liu Ruyan's mental state has collapsed. Luck -10,000. Host gains 10,000 Villain Points.]
[Name: Liu Ruyan]
[Age: 18]
[Luck Rank: First Rank]
[Physique: Profound Charm Physique]
[Luck Value: 18,000]
[Realm: Seventh Layer of the Sea Opening Realm]
She had already lost 30,000 Luck, falling from a Third-Rank Daughter of Destiny to First Rank.
What a piece of scrap.
"Is there a chance someone's Luck can recover?" Qin Luo asked.
[If the Child (or Daughter) of Destiny encounters new great opportunities, their Luck may rise again. Luck is not absolutely fixed (chance is relatively low).]
Seeing Qin Luo's gaze on her, Liu Ruyan thought he had softened. But the words he spoke next nearly shattered her.
"Don't worry, bitch. One day I'll see to it that you and Ye Chen share the same grave. No need to thank me—it's the least I can do."
Liu Changhe was enraged. "Qin Luo, how dare you!"
Threatening to kill his daughter right to his face—what did he take him for?
Boom!
A powerful aura surged toward Qin Luo, only to be firmly held back by Zheng Tuo.
"Holy Lord of Tai Xu, are you looking for death?" Zheng Tuo's hands tightened on his giant axe, ready to swing at a moment's notice.
Qin Luo looked at Liu Changhe and sneered. "What, does the Holy Lord want to kill me now?"
"I was just talking. I didn't kill your daughter, yet you want my life. Tsk, tsk… I just don't know if you can afford that price."
Being talked down to by a junior left Liu Changhe seething.
At that moment, the Tai Xu Old Ancestor's cold voice rang out. "Changhe, stand down."
He turned to face Qin Luo, his gaze frosty. "Qin Luo, have you really thought about what it means to leave my Tai Xu Holy Land?"
"You should understand—there are more princes in Great Qin than just you. The fact that you were left to wander outside for almost twenty years… what does that tell you?"
"I thought you were smart. I didn't expect such a foolish choice."
His meaning was clear: Qin Luo had no real backing. Tai Xu Holy Land was willing to become that backing.
But if he wanted that support, he had to pay—starting with the Four Symbols Swordplay.
A Saint-rank martial art could anchor Tai Xu Holy Land's foundation. The Old Ancestor was certain the complete Four Symbols Swordplay in Qin Luo's hands was of Saint rank.
And the Tai Xu Bell? How could their sacred artifact be left in someone else's hands?
"Oh?" Qin Luo raised an eyebrow. "So you really mean to keep me here?"
"How about I give you a counteroffer?"
"I can stay in your Tai Xu Holy Land."
"But I want to be the Holy Lord of Tai Xu Holy Land, and Liu Ruyan will be my concubine. Everyone in Tai Xu must swear allegiance to me."
"In that case, the Tai Xu Bell will still 'belong' to Tai Xu Holy Land, and the Four Symbols Swordplay will still be the sect's top cultivation art."
Inwardly, though, Qin Luo snorted. They'd all be the Holy Lord's things anyway—which meant they'd all be his. The sect's wealth belonged to the Holy Lord, and the Holy Lord's wealth… was still the Holy Lord's.
His words sent a shockwave through everyone present.
The Old Ancestor and Liu Changhe's faces went black. Liu Changhe snapped, "Qin Luo, don't be too arrogant. The Old Ancestor was showing you goodwill, and you dare insult my Tai Xu Holy Land like this?"
"Insult?" Qin Luo sneered. "Do you really think the status of a prince of Great Qin is beneath that of your Holy Lord of Tai Xu?"
"If you want something, you pay the price."
"You really thought you could just flap your lips and walk off with my things for free?"
The words hit too close to the mark. The Old Ancestor's face grew even darker.
He snorted. "Qin Luo, do you know that in Great Qin, including you, there are nine princes in total?"
"And in the end, only one can sit the throne."
"No background, no backing at all—Qin Luo, I truly want to see how far you can get in Great Qin."
[System notice: One of the host's maternal relatives is still alive. Awaken?]
[Awakening requires consuming all current Villain Points.]
Holy shit. Qin Luo really wanted to yell, "666!"
His mother's clan? He didn't even know his mother's surname, yet the System had found blood relatives.
"Are they strong?" he asked.
[System: Isn't the answer obvious?]
"Awaken."
Let them drain him dry. With a heavyweight backer, would more Villain Points really be hard to come by?