Chapter 498

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Chapter 498: Master Ronghua, the Yin Yang Master

“I can’t wait any longer!”

Nalan Qingshu lost her patience.

She had waited for a whole hour, but no answer came.

The carriage had arrived at the palace, and she could sense the presence of the feudal lords.

Her face turned pale as she anticipated what might unfold next.

As she tried to leave, Nalan Jinghuai’s calm voice came from behind, “You cannot leave.”

Nalan Qingshu looked at Nalan Jinghuai in confusion, a pitiful expression on her face. But before she could react, she kicked over the table.

The chessboard, pastries, and teapot were thrown at Nalan Jinghuai, blocking her view.

With swift steps, Nalan Qingshu crossed the lotus pond, her feet a blur. She rushed towards the main hall, determined to stop what was about to happen.

Even if she wasn’t strong enough, she couldn’t just stand by and watch.

She arrived in front of the palace and spotted her father in the distance. She was about to shout out to him, but suddenly, her voice caught in her throat.

Her father walked out, smiling, holding the hand of a girl who was happily smiling back at him. It was her.

The girl’s other hand was held by the girl’s mother, a prominent figure in the Ming Country.

“How could this be…” Nalan Qingshu mumbled, unable to comprehend the scene.

Why were there two of her, and her mother?

That wasn’t her, it was fake!

She wanted to rush forward and expose the truth, but as she was about to shout, a cold voice came from behind. A hand covered her mouth, pulling her into an embrace. A deep voice spoke above her, “Disobedient child, you will be punished…”

Nalan Qingshu lifted her gaze and struggled, landing a punch on the person’s face.

With that punch, she saw the person’s face begin to break apart, like a shattered glass window revealing another face.

Under the broken illusion, a dark, crying mask and pale, colorless skin appeared.

“You can only watch…”

“You can’t do anything.”

“Just like three years ago.”

The masked figure held her wrist and calmly explained, “Next, the lords will join forces to kill the enemy. Lord Bi Fang will die, and the memories of you and your mother will vanish. He will fall into despair and madness, and the entire Qingyang City will be consumed by flames… Hundreds of thousands of residents, a capital city, all turned to chaos.”

Nalan Qingshu tried to speak, but she couldn’t. She attempted to bite the hand covering her mouth, but his fingers clamped her jaw shut, making it impossible to exert any force.

“Let me tell you, Guaiguai, I specially chose a good seat for you to watch, but you didn’t want it…” The masked person stepped back. “Then let’s change the place. We can’t let him see you. But even if he does, it doesn’t matter; he won’t remember anything anymore.”

The masked figure lifted Nalan Qingshu, like a kitten held by the scruff of its neck, and set her down in the center of the lotus pond.

She immediately tried to escape, but she was bounced back by an unseen force, faster than she could move.

Beneath the lotus pond, black rushing water surged like a living creature, slapping against her forehead, pushing her back and causing her to fall to the ground.

After several failed attempts, Nalan Qingshu’s face was swollen and bruised. She fell with a heavy thud, nearly unable to get up.

“Once you break through the southern wall, there’s no turning back. The same goes for Nalan Jinghuai…” The masked person sneered. “If she had given up earlier, perhaps she could have returned to the Ming Country to live out her days. Your mother was stubborn, but you are even more foolish, coming to this place willingly.”

“Who… are you?” Nalan Qingshu’s voice was strained, her face covered in bruises. “Where is this place?”

“When I saw it, I understood. This is Qingyang City,” the masked figure replied.

“No, this is not!” she denied.

“This is not the Qingyang City you know, but my Qingyang City,” the masked man explained calmly. “The enclosed territory that I created.”

“Enclosed…” The word sent a chill down her spine.

Nalan Qingshu opened her mouth to speak, but no words came.

“With hundreds of thousands of lost souls and the corpse of a top-level exotic beast, it is nearly impossible to find a more perfect place to nurture souls. It is the ideal place for dark practitioners and evil cultivators,” the masked man continued. “This Qingyang City repeats the same scene you’re about to witness every night. Hmm… it’s about to begin.”

As soon as the words were spoken, the life signs of Nalan Jinghuai and Nalan Qingshu—the two memory bodies—suddenly vanished. The once harmonious scene turned dark and eerie.

Lord Bi Fang saw his wife and daughter mysteriously die. His pupils contracted, and a blue fire swept through the hall. He rose with a roar that shook the palace.

The demon kings gathered, their powers clashing. Above Qingyang City, the eight great demon kings stood facing each other in a deadly battle.

Nalan Qingshu watched in despair, knowing the outcome.

“I specifically extracted fragments from my memory to place them here,” the masked man sighed. “This spectacular scene is a rare sight. Why don’t you guess how many rounds your father can endure?”

Angrily, Nalan Qingshu stomped the table and swung her fist at the masked figure, but her movement was halted by the black water that knocked her back to the beginning.

“Like an angry little chick,” the masked man laughed heartily. “Your cultivation skills are far from being proficient.”

“You motherf***er!” Nalan Qingshu cursed, rage surging through her. “You dirty bastard!”

The masked figure glanced at her, his expression cold. “Slap yourself.”

The sound of a slap was sharp and clear.

Nalan Qingshu fell to the ground, her lips turning purple.

The masked figure, who kept hundreds of thousands of lost souls captive, sat calmly, lifting a cup of tea. He drank it behind his mask, and as the tea went down, it seemed to release years of suppressed darkness from within him.

The memories and lost souls battled above, but it was just a repetitive fragment. It felt like a grown man swinging his fists in the air, deeply immersed in a delusion, unable to distinguish between reality and imagination. The shockwaves of dark power reverberated through the city. Fiery meteors rained down, setting Qingyang City alight. The lost souls relived the burning scenes of their own deaths, running through the streets in desperation.

But none of it reached the lotus pond behind the palace. The black flowing water blocked the flames, severing any connection to reality. It was like being separated by a fourth wall—characters trapped in a movie, unable to influence the audience.

Nalan Qingshu lifted her gaze toward the burning sky, hearing the anguished cries from the city below.

Struggling, she propped herself up with her fingertips, her hateful eyes fixed on the masked figure.

She refused to let her pain become his pleasure.

The masked figure clapped his hands with exaggerated, mocking gestures.

“You should be thinking about how you will live next, instead of clinging to hatred,” he taunted.

“Your mother would never have let you enter this city, but you broke her final wish.”

“When you came to Qingyang City, you walked right into my territory. This path was your own undoing, and you gave me a big gift for no reason.”

“I originally thought that with the Bi Fang bloodline still alive, your stay in Qingyang City wouldn’t be secure. Your mother did everything she could to get you out of the city for your safety, but now you’ve come to me willingly. It’s fascinating, this twist of fate.”

The masked figure laughed heartily.

“Oh, Nalan Jinghuai, Nalan Jinghuai, you oppressed me for fifteen years. You never imagined that today would be the day of your downfall.”

“By sitting here, I am sitting on the soul of your husband, Lord Bi Fang, and controlling your daughter’s life.”

“Even I didn’t expect it to be so easy to eliminate all future threats. It feels too effortless, almost fake. But if this was your plan, then it’s laughable. Someone like you, how could you act so recklessly?”

The masked figure wasn’t speaking to Nalan Qingshu, but to the memory of Nalan Jinghuai. His words held both respect and fear.

After a long pause, the masked figure looked at Nalan Qingshu and said, “Why didn’t your mother teach you that survival is more important before your wings are fully grown? You, a young bird, are about to be crushed in my hands before you can spread your wings. It’s like a stone sinking into the Ten Thousand Demon Kingdom, where no wave will ever rise. How pitiful! But reuniting your family is also a good deed. At least I can make your departure a little less painful.”

Nalan Qingshu shuddered, her spine chilling at his words. “Who are you, really?” she asked once more.

The masked figure paused, smoothing out the wrinkles on his clothes, and sat up straighter.

“Your mother didn’t tell you for a reason. If I knew your name, I might discover something I shouldn’t.”

“I can’t reveal my real name, but you can call me Master Ronghua, or Uncle Nineteen. Your mother and I were born into the Nalan family.”

“I once learned the art of manipulation from the Ghost Valley Master, but deep down, I am a practitioner of Yin and Yang. And… your mother was also a practitioner of Yin and Yang.”