“Gu Wangchen, what nonsense are you spouting? My family is not some territory of the Demon Kingdom, and we’re not remnants of the Demon Kingdom either!”
Hearing the words “Demon Kingdom,” Su Qianhua immediately panicked and hurried to defend herself.
“Mm, I was just saying it casually. Why are you so agitated?”
Looking at the golden-haired fox woman so close at hand, Gu Wangchen gave a calm smile. “Could it be… I actually guessed right? Is everyone in the Cangwu Secret Realm really a remnant of the Demon Kingdom?”
The “Demon Kingdom” he spoke of referred to the Tianluo Demon Kingdom.
In “Immortal Fate,” Tianluo Demon Kingdom was one of the background powers, its old site located within the Hundred Thousand Great Mountains south of Shu.
At its peak, it once boasted three mighty cultivators of the Ninth Realm Returning-to-True stage. The Demon Kingdom’s armies threatened Shu’s Tianfu to the north, forcing Great Qian to station heavy troops in Shu for defense.
But half a jiazi ago, when Great Qian’s national power reached its zenith, the late emperor was able to mobilize three hundred thousand elite troops, flatten the Demon Kingdom, and exterminate all of its mighty figures.
Back then, the Hundred Thousand Great Mountains were shrouded in murderous aura, nine out of ten homes were empty, white bones stretched for a thousand li, rivers of blood surged. The three hundred thousand Great Qian soldiers wiped the Demon Kingdom completely off the land.
A scant few Demon Kingdom survivors managed to escape and fled westward, arriving at the Tianduan Mountains where the Hundred Thousand Great Mountains bordered the Snowy Plateau, establishing a secluded refuge there.
This was the Cangwu Secret Realm.
With the power of the True Dragon, the Demon Kingdom survivors hid the Cangwu Secret Realm deep beneath the Tianduan Mountains, where it has remained peaceful ever since.
And this time, Su Qianhua had come to Sheng’an precisely to find the Biluojade and save the True Dragon Zhujun, who was on the verge of collapse.
Recalling once more the origins of this major demon clan storyline in his mind, Gu Wangchen quietly waited for Su Qianhua’s response.
To his surprise, Su Qianhua didn’t try to argue this time. Instead, she let out a sigh, hung her head, and fell silent.
After a moment, she finally struggled to lift her head, her eyes flickering with complex emotions as she slowly spoke. “Yes, you guessed right. We are the remnants of the Demon Kingdom. Since you know, what do you plan to do?”
“Are you going to tell your grand prime minister father and have that old emperor send troops to finish us off?”
As she spoke, Su Qianhua’s body trembled slightly, her delicate fists tightly clenched, and her fox ears twitched uncontrollably.
Even though she forced her voice down and tried to remain calm, her body’s reactions had already betrayed her.
Gu Wangchen gently shook his head. “Of course not. If I really wanted to do that, would I say it in front of you?”
“Tch, how am I supposed to know you won’t…”
“Enough, Miss Su, I don’t have time to argue with you here,” Gu Wangchen interrupted her, continuing, “Let’s get back to the topic. I said the Biluojade is indeed in the palace, but you chose the wrong person by picking me.”
“What do you mean?”
“You wanted to control me and have me ask Empress Dowager Xiao for this treasure, didn’t you?”
Su Qianhua nodded.
“But it seems you don’t really understand the palace’s power structure. Although the Empress Dowager controls the entire harem, the Royal Treasury isn’t under her jurisdiction.”
“Then who controls it?”
“The Royal Treasury, as the name suggests, is naturally controlled by someone with the blood of the Li imperial family flowing in their veins.”
Su Qianhua frowned slightly, blurting out, “That old emperor?”
“Uh… The emperor is gravely ill now. That authority was long ago handed over to Her Highness the Crown Princess.”
“Crown Princess Li Zhaoning?” Su Qianhua immediately thought of that upright figure dressed in a cinched, dark-blue long robe.
“So, as you can see, I was only summoned by the Empress Dowager, and she just so happens to have no way to interfere with the Royal Treasury.”
“Damn it…” Su Qianhua’s beautiful eyes darkened, and she instinctively clenched her fists.
If what Gu Wangchen said was true, didn’t that mean she had no way of getting the Biluojade?
After all, she was already marked by “Gu Wangchen,” and Wang Lingniang had also said she could only serve him from now on. She couldn’t get close to anyone else—especially those with access to the Crown Princess.
“But, I do have a way to help you get the Biluojade from Li Zhaoning.”
“Really?” Su Qianhua jerked her head up, her voice tinged with excitement.
“What do you want?”
Yet she quickly regained her composure, knowing that there was no such thing as a free lunch. Gu Wangchen offering his help so readily must mean he had other plans.
Thinking of the look of eagerness he had shown when he entered earlier, her cheeks instantly turned pink.
This guy, could it be he wants her to…
A trace of hesitation and fear flashed through her stunning purple eyes. Her lashes trembled slightly, and she didn’t know what to do for a moment.
If Gu Wangchen really asked for that condition—
Su Qianhua clenched her fists, her mind a whirlwind of inner struggle.
For her homeland, for her family and friends back home, and even more for her dearest friend Zhujun—this matter…
Isn’t it just a moment’s pain? I can bear it!
How could she cherish her own life at the expense of greater things?
Thinking this, Su Qianhua suddenly declared, “If you can really help me get the Biluojade, I… I’ll give myself to you!”
“Give yourself to me?”
Gu Wangchen raised his brows, not understanding what she meant for a moment.
A heartbeat later, he realized what she was implying—that “give herself” wasn’t about giving him that colorful treasure, but rather…
Giving herself to him.
He let out a short laugh, looking at Su Qianhua with interest. He said coolly, “You really think I, Gu Wangchen, covet your body?”
“……”
Hearing this, Su Qianhua didn’t know how to respond.
Isn’t that so?
But judging by Gu Wangchen’s tone, it seemed he really didn’t mean that.
With this thought, her just-stilled heartbeat suddenly pounded wildly again, and her ears felt so hot she could fry apples on them!
“I don’t want anything from you—not your body or anything else. My only condition is that after I give you the Biluojade, you have to take me to the Cangwu Secret Realm.”
He had to go there himself to retrieve that colorful treasure.
“Take you to the secret realm?”
“Yes, that’s my only condition. If you can’t do it, then find someone else.”
“Of course, my goal in going to the Cangwu Secret Realm isn’t to destroy its foundation or anything. I just want to find something that belongs to me.”
After speaking, Gu Wangchen leaned back at the head of the bed, waiting patiently for Su Qianhua’s reply.
“I… I’ll think about it.”
Su Qianhua immediately began to analyze in her heart.
Since Gu Wangchen knew she had come for the Biluojade, it meant his intelligence network was extremely strong—he’d probably been keeping an eye on her for a long time.
But he said he wanted to find something in the secret realm?
Su Qianhua frowned in thought, but couldn’t recall anything in the secret realm worth the son of the Grand Prime Minister scheming for.
But… if she refused, would he become enraged and bring disaster upon the Cangwu Secret Realm?
Weighing her options, she made a decision.
She would first agree to his request and figure out a backup plan later.
She spoke. “Gu Wangchen, all we want is a place to stand, not to start another war with Great Qian.”
“I understand.”
“Can you guarantee you won’t have any ill intentions toward us?”
“I promise.”
“All right, I’ll… trust you this once.”
Hearing this, Gu Wangchen gave a faint smile and extended his right hand. “Pleasure working with you.”
“?”
Gu Wangchen had unconsciously used a mannerism from his previous life. Just as he was about to withdraw his hand, a soft, boneless, pale, and delicate hand lightly landed on his.
“All right, pleasure working with you.”
But before Gu Wangchen could savor the softness of her hand, she recoiled as if shocked by electricity.
Su Qianhua hid her hands behind her back, instinctively backing up several steps until she was crouched in the corner, head bowed in silence.
He was suddenly puzzled, not knowing what this woman was up to now.
“Miss Su, what’s this about?”
“Don’t come over, stay away!”
Su Qianhua wrapped herself tightly in her fox tail, her voice muffled as if forcibly suppressing something.