Chapter 161

The trio closed in, leaving no escape. Yang Guanfeng lowered Yingxuan from his shoulder.

This Spirit Communication-level Barrier of Technique was one of her final Life-saving Methods. Now forced to use it, the barrier could only last less than half a moment.

Cornered, Yingxuan abandoned all pretense.

She clawed at her face, dissolving the disguise.

Yang Guanfeng stared at her exquisitely carved, otherworldly features and sighed, “Lass, you’re nearly as pretty as my daughter back home.”

Yingxuan’s answering smile shone so brightly it momentarily dazzled the two Condensing Essence cultivators from the Eastern Wilderness.

“Squad Leader, thank you.”

Her whisper carried through the air. “These two months at the front? Happiest days I’ve ever known. Choosing to come here was right.”

She flipped her palm, revealing a gold-rimmed jade hairpin. Yang Guanfeng recognized her last escape talisman and refused to take it.

Knowing his stubbornness, Yingxuan pressed, “No one awaits my return. But your family does.”

“You could live for yourself,” Yang Guanfeng countered.

The words struck like thunder. Yingxuan’s ruby lips quivered before tears overflowed.

_Live for herself._

The foreign concept hung in the air. For a palace-born princess with mediocre cultivation potential, survival meant constant vigilance – every step measured, every breath guarded against disaster.

Her cultivation potential, however faint, had spared her the fate of those royal children who’d “disappeared” young. When excluded from the national master’s list, despair drove her to beg the West Concubine.

Three months kneeling outside the concubine’s palace earned her an audience. The West Concubine offered desperate counsel: Tiger-Chasing’s top officials sought justification for their Eastern Expedition after consolidating lower-level forces under sect-suppression pretenses.

A missing royal scion at the eastern border would serve perfectly.

Yingxuan volunteered.

In rare kinship, the West Concubine gifted the teleportation hairpin – this same jade ornament now glowing in Yingxuan’s outstretched hand.

But without the guidance of the royal formation, the hairpin’s teleportation distance and direction became unpredictable in the border area.

Teleporting just a yard, reversing direction, or getting torn apart by spatial chaotic flows – all were possible outcomes.

Survival ultimately depended on the user’s sheer luck.

"Squad leader, you’re right. Thank you."

Yingxuan wiped her tears and gave Yang Guanfeng a sunlit smile: "Did I meet expectations during my two months here?"

Yang Guanfeng considered briefly before answering sincerely, "You’re the finest recruit I’ve ever trained."

"Good."

She shoved the golden jade hairpin into his palm. "I could keep living for myself… but I’m tired. My mother suffered constant nightmares – I can’t let her face the darkness alone."

"This isn’t charity. If you survive, you’d better visit my grave with proper thanks."

When Yang Guanfeng took the hairpin, he asked, "What should I bring?"

Yingxuan tilted her head mischievously. "A delphinium would do."

"Done."

Yang Guanfeng channeled spiritual power into the hairpin without hesitation. With her resolve clear, he pinned all survival hopes on this trinket.

The three Condensing Essence cultivators tensed as spiritual energy rippled. Before they could react, Yang Guanfeng vanished.

Their frantic divine awareness scans found nothing – he’d completely escaped their detection range.

Yingxuan’s shoulders relaxed when no pursuit came. Wherever he’d gone, they couldn’t track him now.

She turned toward the imperial capital and activated the gold thread technique. Delicate filaments coiled around her heart, sea of consciousness, and Qi Palace.

"What’re you doing?" barked the sword cultivator. "Don’t be stupid! Cooperate and we’ll spare you!"

Their orders were clear: capture the Tiger-Chasing royal alive. Sects craved her soul and essence blood to crack the Heartfire Technique.

"Cooperate?" Yingxuan smirked. "This choice is mine alone."

The gold threads snapped taut.

Her body jerked as vital organs shredded simultaneously – heart destroyed, soul scattered, essence blood evaporated. Only an empty husk remained.

The Eastern Wilderness cultivators gaped. No pleading, no hesitation – she’d robbed them of everything in one decisive act.

"Now what?" The first cultivator threw up his hands. Their mission had required three Condensing Essence experts to capture a mere Gathering Qi youngster. Total failure.

At least they’d killed a late-stage Condensing Essence warrior from Tiger-Chasing. That might mitigate their punishment… though harsh reprimands awaited.

In the Hall of Divine Governance, Hong Yao emerged from a chamber. She fiddled with her braid before speaking.

"Master… Murong Yingxuan is gone."

Crash!

The old man under the elm tree shattered his teacup. "And Shu Concubine?"

"Also departed."

A sigh carried decades of weariness. The elder’s gaze pierced palace restrictions to where Shu Concubine lay cold. Memories surfaced – a vibrant girl in emerald skirts marveling at palace wonders, trying to tug Hong Yao’s braid until she hid on roof beams, their laughter echoing through marble halls.

"The imperial family shows no mercy." His voice rasped. "Enter these walls, and your fate’s no longer yours."

Stiffly rising, he announced, "I’ll inform His Majesty and the National Master of this… fortunate news."

He dissolved into mist, leaving Hong Yao alone. Her fingers absently twisted the braid Yingxuan once loved to pull.