After nine lifetimes of reincarnation, the yandere villainous heroine descends.

"You shouldn't have fallen for that woman."

Deep within the Abyss Temple, directly above the throne hangs a towering raven statue, its wings carved from black stone gleaming with a cold, hard light in the dim light.

This cold rebuke spilled from the hollow beak of the statue, echoing throughout the empty hall.

Before the words were finished, the stone eyes in the statue's eye sockets suddenly cracked open.

In an instant! Two scarlet beams of light shot out from the crevice, piercing the thick darkness of the hall like poisoned blades.

The crimson light spread across the cold stone seat, over the tangled chains, and finally landed on the figure reclining in the center of the throne.

The darkness was brutally ripped open, and a face appeared in the bloody light.

It was a face no different from any other mortal's, yet it held a cold indifference that did not belong to this world.

His brows still held a hint of youthful innocence; who would have thought that the Demon Raven Lord, who struck fear into the hearts of the entire Forbidden Land, was actually a sixteen or seventeen-year-old boy?

The blood-red light reflected in his eyes, but it didn't stir up the slightest ripple; it only made his eyes appear even more profound than the darkness within the hall.

The Lord of the Demon Crow Abyss remained silent, his gaze fixed on the dark blue light floating in front of him.

As the light and shadow shifted, Gu Qingran's figure became clearly visible. She lifted her skirt and carefully stepped across the gravel path of the forbidden land.

Each step was taken very lightly, and they were slowly moving towards the solitary Taoist temple in the distance.

Countless prying eyes lurk in the shadows, watching those forbidden things hidden in the darkness.

Sensing the faint, unique aura emanating from her, their pupils swelled with lust and greed, yet none dared to make a move.

Two black crows constantly circled above the girl's head, their feathers drawing silent arcs in the dim light, like two loyal shadows following her every step.

This scene was perfectly clear to all the creatures in the shadows: behind this mortal woman stood the enigmatic Lord of the Abyss God Temple, the Demon Crow Lord.

Even with boundless greed, who would dare to lay a hand on this fearsome figure under his very nose?

"Raven Night, have you forgotten how Gu Jian slashed you with those three swords back then?"

Raven Night, this is the true name of the Lord of the Raven Abyss, known only to the statue atop the throne.

"So noisy!"

The name Gu Jian was like a needle quenched in ice, precisely piercing the deepest old scar in my heart.

Ya Ye's brows furrowed sharply, a chilling aura emanating from him, and a cold shout exploded in the hall, carrying an uncontrollable ferocity.

"Hehe... It's good that you remember."

The statue's laughter echoed through the empty hall, carrying a hint of mockery and warning.

"In that case, you should be even less inclined to have such inappropriate thoughts about that girl surnamed Gu."

Ya Ye raised his eyes, his gaze even colder, but his tone was as hard as iron: "My affairs are none of your business."

"Don't forget! If I hadn't saved you back then, you would have died by those three swords long ago."

"And don't forget who gave you that power."

The statue's voice suddenly turned stern, each word carrying an undeniable air of authority.

The forbidden power surging within Ya Ye's body was inherently connected to this statue by blood.

Strictly speaking, he was not only the master who imparted power to him, but also the biological father who gave him life.

"If you can't bring yourself to do it, then I will do it for you."

A glint of crimson greed flashed in the statue's bloodshot eyes!

"And that little girl of unknown origin, as long as everything is done according to my wishes, I will be able to break free of this cage sooner or later."

"If you dare to touch her, I will utterly destroy you."

A chilling voice suddenly rang out, Ya Ye's words carrying a bone-chilling coldness that solidified within the hall.

"What did you say...?"

For the first time, the statue's voice carried a hint of surprise; its stone beak agape, as if it could not believe its ears.

The next instant, Ya Ye suddenly looked up.

Those pupils, reflecting the blood-red light yet remaining unmoved, were now fixed intently on the statue above.

Every word seemed to be ground out from between his teeth: "You are nothing but a worthless god clinging to life. I'll say it again: if you dare to touch her in the slightest, I will personally smash your divine position and condemn you to eternal damnation!"

Before he finished speaking, the forbidden power around him surged like a raging torrent, and fine cracks appeared on the black stone floor inside the hall. Even the floating light and shadow shook violently.

Do you know what you're saying?

The statue's blood-red eyes suddenly narrowed, and a huge shadow loomed over the palace.

"I know it better than anyone else."

The sound of crows in the night was as cold as a desolate night.

"You haven't figured out your place yet. A useless god trapped in a statue, do you dare to bark at me?"

"presumptuous!"

The statue's roar nearly lifted the roof off the temple.

Before he could finish speaking, a towering black mist suddenly rose around Ya Ye, and forbidden power surged like a tsunami, carrying a terrifying pressure that could tear the heavens and the earth apart.

Sensing the undisguised destructive intent within that power, the statue's rage abruptly halted.

Even though he hated it so much his teeth itched, in the end he could only close his bloodshot eyes in frustration.

Ya Ye expressionlessly dissipated his power, then turned his gaze back to the light and shadow in front of him.

As the light and shadow shifted, Gu Qingran's figure stopped in front of the Taoist temple, which stood alone in a forbidden place, her white skirt fluttering gently in the evening breeze.

"Knock knock knock".

As the first rays of dawn crept over the outline of the forbidden land, Gu Qingran's jade-like fingers gently knocked on the wooden door of the Taoist temple.

The knocking was crisp, but it couldn't hide the pounding of her heart, which made her fingertips tremble slightly with each knock.

For sixteen years, she lived in the gentle lies woven by her brother.

He never mistreated her; he provided her with fine clothes and food, showered her with care and concern, and protected her from all sides.

But she did have her doubts during those years.

Why is she always stuck in her room?

Countless times I wanted to push open the door, but my brother always gently suppressed my thoughts with a word about danger outside, leaving me trapped in that seemingly safe world.

Perhaps at some point, she had already seen through her brother's lies in her heart.

The warmth of sixteen years of mutual dependence was too real, and that subconscious dependence made her willingly curl up in the nest woven from lies, pretending that life was peaceful.

Until the figure glimpsed in the sunlight and shadows, it was like a dull knife slicing through the cocoon of self-deception, shattering the illusion that had trapped her for half her life.

Inside the Taoist temple courtyard, Shen Shuchou had just set up the stove when a few knocks suddenly broke the soft crackling of the firewood.

He frowned slightly, and paused in his act of adding firewood.

In this remote corner of a forbidden place, someone would actually knock on this mottled wooden door?

"Could they be villagers from Changming Village?"

He muttered to himself.

But as far as he knew, killing the mountain god worshipped in Changming Village a month ago had not relieved the villagers' suffering.

Instead, it attracted an even more ferocious taboo, a creature a hundred times more greedy than the mountain lord, which slaughtered the entire village in a single night.

The villages on this land were few and far between, either hidden deep in forbidden territory or long since turned into desolate graves.

First Encounter at the Door

"Hello...is anyone home?"

After waiting for a long time without receiving a response, Gu Qingran's voice, tinged with timidity, drifted gently in the quiet morning breeze.

As soon as she finished speaking, she heard light footsteps coming from the courtyard, growing louder as they approached, making her heart pound even harder.

As she frantically tried to find the right words, the wooden door in front of her suddenly creaked open.

The morning light poured through the crack in the door, illuminating the figure inside dressed in a gray-blue Taoist robe, and also casting a warm glow on the plain white skirt of the girl outside the courtyard.

Gu Qingran subconsciously clenched the hem of her clothes, her fingertips turning slightly white from nervousness, her eyes timidly looking at the person inside the door.

"Who are you?"

Shen Shuchou frowned involuntarily as he looked at the unfamiliar girl outside the courtyard, his eyes filled with wariness and doubt.

How could such a pure and innocent mortal girl appear in this forbidden land?

Timidity Kills

"Hello……"

The moment Gu Qingran saw Shen Shuchou clearly, the words she had rehearsed in her mind shattered instantly, leaving only a stammering greeting stuck in her throat, her cheeks flushing slightly.

"Who are you?"

Shen Shuchou leaned down slightly, his gaze sharp as a knife, looking down at her eyes, his voice filled with undisguised coldness.

"I...I..."

Gu Qingran bit her lip, twisting the hem of her skirt with her fingertips, her eyes welling up with tears.

This person is fierce.

She grew up under the meticulous care of Ya Ye over the years.

I've never seen such a cold and hard look in your eyes, and for a moment I couldn't even utter a complete sentence.

Inside the Abyss Temple, the girl's uneasy appearance, reflected in the light and shadow, was clearly seen by Ya Ye.

As he looked down at Shen Shuchou's condescending posture, the air around him suddenly froze.

The murderous intent hidden in his eyes suddenly burst forth like a sharp blade breaking through ice.

Almost at the same instant, two black crows circling in the sky above the Taoist temple suddenly flapped their wings.

The shriek was hidden in the wind, and the chilling killing intent, like an invisible net, instantly enveloped the entire Taoist temple.

Shen Shuchou's back stiffened slightly as he looked up, following the chilling killing intent.

Sure enough, two black crows were circling above the Taoist temple, their feathers gleaming coldly in the morning light.

Through the raven-like eyes, he saw a dark temple and a black figure sitting high on the throne.

The person was hidden in the shadows, his face indistinct, yet a gaze pierced through the void and settled heavily upon him.

Shen Shuchou's eyes narrowed slightly. Even though he couldn't see the face clearly, he instantly recognized that this was the Demon Crow Lord, whom the forbidden ones feared.

"Stay away from her, or you'll die."

The icy voice seemed to explode directly from a crow's beak, or as if it pierced through from the distant Abyss Temple, carrying an undeniable killing intent that struck Shen Shuchou's eardrums.

He twitched his fingertips slightly, but his face remained calm and expressionless. He only glanced at Gu Qingran, whose eyes were slightly red beside him, before his gaze returned to the black crow in the air.

"Kill me? You're not worthy."

Shen Shuchou's lips moved silently, yet the words fell like ice beads.

The instant their eyes met across the void, two invisible forces collided violently in mid-air, the air seemingly crushed and then solidified again, carrying a suffocating sense of oppression.

Just a few breaths later, a muffled thud exploded, and the bodies of the two black crows finally could not withstand the force of the clash, instantly shattering into a cloud of blood mist.

"Hello, my name is Gu Qingran."

In the midst of this tense moment, Gu Qingran suddenly raised her head. Her voice was soft but steady, and most of her previous timidity had dissipated. Her clear eyes looked at Shen Shuchou.

Shen Shuchou withdrew his gaze from the void and began to examine the girl in front of him again.

Xuan Ya was the spy of the Demon Crow Abyss Lord, and his killing intent from afar was completely undisguised.

The relationship between this girl and that Lord of the Abyss was clearly extraordinary.

However, his eyes did not show much emotion. He was unwilling to provoke either any taboo in this forbidden land or the Lord of the Abyss.

The most important thing right now is to take good care of Tantai Chigu in the Taoist temple, and when the time is right, take her away from this place.

"Um, is there something you need?"

Shen Shuchou's voice remained flat, devoid of any emotion.

"I want to ask you... are you even human?"

Gu Qingran gripped the hem of her skirt and mustered her courage to ask.

Shen Shuchou was taken aback upon hearing this, and his eyebrows twitched almost imperceptibly.

He couldn't help but think to himself: "Hey girl, do you want to listen to this yourself first? Does it even sound like human language?"

Seeing the change in his expression, Gu Qingran realized that her words had been too abrupt, and her cheeks flushed slightly: "I'm sorry, I just wanted to confirm..."

"First, I am human."

Before she could finish speaking, Shen Shuchou coldly interrupted her.

"Secondly, outsiders are not welcome here, please leave."

Before Gu Qingran could react, he reached out and pushed open the courtyard gate.

Gu Qingran suddenly snapped back to her senses and squeezed through the door just as it was about to close.

She didn't even care that her skirt was caught in the door crack; she just stared at him with her clear eyes and said, "I have something very important to ask you!"

Shen Shuchou frowned even more as he watched the girl squeeze through the door.

He could feel that the gaze of the Abyss Temple was still firmly locked on this side, and the oppressive feeling in the air had not diminished at all.

This girl is just causing him unnecessary trouble.