kvmb Chapter 425: The Farce is Over, But This is Just the Beginning?
Chapter 425: The Farce is Over, But This is Just the Beginning?
Silence.
A deathly silence.
Everyone was stunned by the old Qin Patriarch’s masterstroke.
Liu Canglan and the others had grim, shifting expressions.
To be honest, they were completely against it.
Apologize?
Could an apology bring his wife back to life? Could an apology wash away the shame of being utterly humiliated?
But...
They had to admit, the old Qin Patriarch’s move was both ruthless and absolute.
If Gu Yuexi were just an ordinary student, no matter how talented, they would have just killed her and been done with it.
But if she became the Young Madam of the Qin Family... she would be one of the Top Three Families!
By the unwritten rule of the Top Three Families holding precedence over the other seven, having the Qin Family’s Young Madam bow and apologize to them was, in a sense, already giving them an immense amount of face!
If they continued to press the issue, it would mean disrespecting the Qin Family, and disrespecting the Qin Family’s Great Emperor!
Liu Canglan took a deep breath, rapidly weighing the pros and cons in his mind.
’A wife can be replaced.’
’But if we offend the Qin Family, the Liu Family might be struck from the Ten Great Clans.’
’And most importantly, the chance to compete for the position of Divine Son is still on the table!’
"Fine!"
After a long moment, Liu Canglan gritted his teeth and forced out a single word:
"Since the Qin Patriarch has spoken, the Liu Family will grant you this face!"
Seeing this, the other patriarchs, though filled with reluctance, could only nod and agree one by one.
There was no other choice. This was the crushing weight of power.
Meanwhile.
Li Zhantian and Luo Zhan looked at each other, seeing the helplessness in the other’s eyes.
Though they felt frustrated and found it unfair to Gu Yuexi.
This seemed to be... the only solution available at the moment.
...
At that moment, public opinion on the internet exploded.
"What? Marry Qin Wudao?"
"Holy shit, what kind of punishment is this? It’s practically a reward! The Qin Family is one of the Top Three Families!"
"I know, but... it just feels so frustrating. Goddess Gu was the one who won, but in the end, she’s being forced to marry someone and apologize?"
"Sigh, be content. It’s good enough that she gets to keep her life. Besides, Qin Wudao is a First Echelon prodigy in Kyoto. He’s not an unworthy match for Gu Yuexi."
"I guess this is the best possible outcome... I don’t like it, but this is reality."
Countless netizens sighed in front of their screens.
Although the outcome seemed "perfect" and like a "happy ending for all," everyone felt as if a heavy stone was weighing on their hearts, leaving them feeling suffocated.
Because everyone could see the truth.
In the end, power was what truly won.
The Ten Great Clans still stood high above everyone else.
...
「On the scene.」
The dust had settled.
Qin Wudao adjusted his collar, a confident and charming smile on his face.
He took long strides, walking step by step toward Gu Yuexi, who stood amidst the ruins.
He moved with elegance and grace.
He had been interested in this woman before, but now, he found her all the more captivating.
He stopped three meters in front of Gu Yuexi.
He looked down at the pale yet still breathtakingly beautiful young woman.
"Gu Yuexi."
Qin Wudao’s voice was gentle, yet it carried an air of victory.
"I told you before. Cooperate with me, and I’ll help you."
"In the end, didn’t it turn out this way regardless?"
As he spoke, he slowly extended his fair, slender right hand, palm up, in a gesture of invitation.
"Come, my fiancée."
"All it takes is a single apology. After you’ve said it, come home with me."
All eyes were focused on this single moment, on that outstretched hand.
Everyone felt that the outcome was set in stone.
As long as Gu Yuexi wasn’t a fool, she knew what choice to make.
Amidst the ruins.
Gu Yuexi slowly raised her head.
Her eyes, usually cool and detached, were now frighteningly calm.
She glanced at Qin Wudao, then at his outstretched hand.
Then.
Under everyone’s watchful gaze, she slowly raised her own hand.
The smile at the corners of Qin Wudao’s mouth widened.
’See?’
’He had even planned it all out. The moment Gu Yuexi placed her hand in his, he would pull her into his arms and declare his ownership to the entire world.’
However.
Just as Gu Yuexi’s hand was about to touch his palm.
Her hand didn’t stop.
Instead, it suddenly accelerated, carving a graceful arc through the air.
"SMACK!"
The crisp sound of a slap echoed abruptly.
The slap wasn’t heavy.
It could even be called light, like a playful tap between lovers.
But at this moment, in this silent, highly anticipated venue, that sound was like a clap of thunder from the highest heavens, exploding in everyone’s minds!
Qin Wudao’s head was knocked to the side.
The smile on his lips froze, his eyes filled with disbelief and bewilderment.
’I was slapped?’
’In front of my grandfather, in front of the Ten Great Clans, in front of all the people of Great Xia.’
’This woman... slapped me?’
"Fiancée?"
Gu Yuexi pulled back her hand and even wiped it on her clothes in disgust, as if she had just touched something filthy.
She looked at Qin Wudao, her eyes full of ridicule and disdain.
"You? Are you even worthy?"
With that, she completely ignored Qin Wudao.
"And you."
Gu Yuexi turned her head, her gaze sweeping over the old Qin Patriarch, over Liu Canglan, over all the powerful figures present.
"Apologize? Join you?"
"Heh..."
"A bunch of disgusting trash. You think you’re worthy of making this Emperor bow her head?"
She’s crazy!
She’s completely insane!
Everyone stared at her in terror.
’She’s courting death! She just blocked her only way out!’
The old Qin Patriarch’s face instantly turned dark as thunder, and a terrifying killing intent erupted from his wizened body.
"You ungrateful cur!"
"If that’s how you want it, then die!"
However.
Gu Yuexi just smiled.
A smile that was dazzlingly brilliant and utterly unrestrained.
"You want to kill me?"
"Maybe in your next life."
"I’ll say this one last time."
"The position of Divine Son—if you want it, you can take it."
"But..."
Gu Yuexi’s voice gradually became ethereal:
"...just don’t be afraid of paying the price."
"Everything that happened today was just the simplest, most minor of beginnings."
"That is the only thing I, Gu Yuexi, have to say to you old dogs."
The instant her voice fell, something strange happened!
Gu Yuexi’s body actually began to... glow!
It wasn’t the glow of Spiritual Qi.
Rather, her body itself began to disintegrate, dissolving into countless translucent motes of light.
Then, she vanished.
The entire scene fell dead silent.
Only the mosquito that had been on Gu Yuexi’s shoulder was still buzzing wildly.
Everyone was dumbfounded.
Even battle-hardened experts like Li Zhantian and Luo Zhan were completely baffled.
Where did she go?!
A living person was right there—how could she just suddenly disappear?!
"A clone?!"
The old Qin Patriarch took a single step, appearing where Gu Yuexi had vanished, and snatched the mosquito out of the air.
His powerful Divine Sense swept over it in an instant.
The next second.
This Patriarch of the Qin Family, a man of deep cunning who rarely showed his emotions, was now trembling with rage.
This mosquito was nothing more than an ordinary White-striped Aedes Mosquito, the most common type of biting pest found in the sewers during summer!
At that moment.
Everyone realized what had happened.
The Gu Yuexi who had confronted them, challenged them, and even slapped Qin Wudao... was nothing but a clone!
The real Gu Yuexi had probably escaped long ago!
"When?!" Liu Canglan roared. "When the hell did she run?!"
’How is that possible! Everyone here is in the Emperor Realm! They’re incredibly sensitive to auras, how could they not have perceived a clone!’
’If it were a clone, they would have discovered it long ago!’
’When did it become a clone?!’
’This is impossible, utterly impossible! A mere Seventh-Grade Realm Clone Technique, such a petty trick—how could it possibly have fooled them!’
So that meant?
The seven great families, including the old Qin Patriarch, had all been played for fools?
Then where on earth was the real Gu Yuexi??
The seven great families, and even the old Qin Patriarch who had come to act as a "peacemaker," all felt a primal rage welling up inside them at this moment!
Meanwhile, Li Zhantian and the others were rather speechless.
’So all this time, they’d been on edge, ready for a fight, all for a clone? In fact, they didn’t even need to come... Gu Yuexi had an escape route planned from the start.’
The old Qin Patriarch slammed his cane heavily on the ground, shattering the earth into countless cracks.
His murky eyes had completely lost their so-called "kindness" from before, replaced now by a chilling, murderous intent.
The name of the Qin Family cannot be profaned!
"Relay my orders!"
The old Qin Patriarch’s voice was like a passing arctic gale:
"Use all our resources! Lock down the entire city! Even if you have to turn Great Xia upside down, you will find her for me!!"
"The Ten Great Clans are to issue an all-points bulletin for Gu Yuexi!!"
"Dead or alive!!"