I tried to kill the heroines of destiny, but they ended up chasing after me.

But cruelly, with the few breaths gained by the three halberds, the fifth halberd shadow, like the last straw that broke the camel's back, instantly overlapped with the first three halberd shadows. At the same time, the silver barrier, amidst a roar, immediately shattered into countless silver fragments, falling into the central abyss below like a silver rain, and thus completely collapsed.

Also due to the barrier's effect, the subsequent force of Gu Qici's four halberd shadows only managed to inflict minor injuries on the dragon and tiger beasts when they struck them. Although it made the two silver clones' faces even paler, they were not seriously harmed.

But looking at Gu Qici, his face was ashen. If it weren't for his willpower, he would probably have collapsed here. But even so, faced with this opportunity to attack, no matter how severe the backlash might be, he was unwilling to let it go.

"Attack," Gu Qici said, her voice so soft it could barely be heard. Yet, beneath that seemingly listless tone, the fighting spirit in her eyes remained. This meant that, given her current physical condition, she could not afford to show too much emotion and had to bury her fighting spirit deep within.

As Gu Qici spoke softly, the remaining sixth, seventh, and eighth halberd shadows, seemingly imbued with Gu Qici's determination, suddenly appeared in front of the dragon and tiger beasts. As if they had been hidden somewhere by Gu Qici, they attacked with a sense of destruction before the dragon and tiger beasts, or even the silver clone, could react at all.

"What?!" Shen Lian's expression changed drastically for the first time, but there was no time to defend now. The only way was to confront him head-on. So his half-step Heavenly Monarch power suddenly surged up again, and he shouted, "Strike!"

Upon receiving the command, the dragon and tiger roared, their auras booming and swirling as they rose and fell. In the blink of an eye, they transformed back into the silver giant they had been before. After giving Gu Qici a fierce glare, the giant unhesitatingly extended its left hand to meet the three halberd shadows.

With another loud boom, the silver giant immediately vanished. The dragon and tiger beasts, along with their two silver clones, coughed up blood one after another, their auras weakened, and they instantly collapsed into nothingness. As for Gu Qici, although her face was still ashen, she only took a few dozen steps back, managing to steady herself and maintain her composure.

At this moment, suppressing the pain in her heart, Gu Qici suddenly stood up, and the Emperor Halberd in her hand merged directly with the last halberd shadow, arriving in front of Shen Lian in the next instant.

"Die." Gu Qici gritted his teeth, his expression crazed, his killing intent surging. Taking advantage of the moment before Shen Lian could recover, he was about to strike him with his halberd to kill him.

"What?!" At this moment, a powerful sense of shock filled Shen Lian's heart, leaving his mind blank, because he felt that he would surely perish under this halberd.

To everyone's surprise, just when the imperial halberd was only about one centimeter away from him, Gu Qici's figure suddenly trembled, and for some unknown reason... he stopped.

Although he still retained some ruthlessness, he seemed to have lost... the will to kill.

"You." Shen Lian was stunned. He frowned, a deep sense of confusion creeping over him.

He looked at Gu Qici quietly, and Gu Qici looked at him quietly as well. The two stared at each other in silence for a moment.

After a long while, Gu Qici retrieved the Emperor's Halberd and distanced herself from Shen Lian once again.

This scene wasn't exactly shocking, but it couldn't be underestimated either, because that's the difference between Gu Qici and Shen Lian.

Shen Lian swallowed hard. He looked at Gu Qici in front of him with extremely complicated feelings. He really did not expect that Gu Qici's strength had reached such a level, nor did he expect that Gu Qici could remain calm under his verbal attack.

"No. She wasn't calm. Otherwise, he wouldn't have attacked me. He was indeed angry, but he held back in the end." Shen Lian guessed Gu Qici's change of mindset in an instant.

Guessing is one thing, but understanding is another. He thought about it for a long time but still couldn't figure out why Gu Qici stopped at the end.

So, unable to bear this doubt any longer, he steadied himself and suddenly asked, "Why?"

Upon hearing those three words, Gu Qici wiped the blood from the corner of her mouth and said, "You can't die yet... that's all."

"Hmm?" At this moment, Shen Lian seemed to understand something, but he was still more confused and conflicted.

But at that very moment, something unexpected happened again. A black blade emerged from Shen Lian's chest and pierced his heart. This caused Shen Lian to be extremely surprised amidst the excruciating pain, and it also shocked Gu Qici, who was in the distance.

At first glance, Shen Yuan appeared behind Shen Lian at some point, and in his left hand he was holding the black blade.

"Hehehehehe." Shen Yuan's expression turned ferocious, and he suddenly burst into wild laughter: "Brother, brother. How could you be so careless? Didn't you know I've been watching you the whole time? Didn't you know I was in danger? Didn't you know he wouldn't kill you... but I would."

"You." Shen Lian's eyes widened, as if he never expected to be defeated by Shen Yuan. He was already weak, and under Shen Yuan's sneak attack, he immediately showed signs of death. Crimson blood dripped down the black blade and fell to the ground below.

Chapter 175 An Unexpected Opponent

Originally, cultivators who had reached the Transcendent Realm could have their souls leave their bodies even if their physical bodies were destroyed. As long as they could obtain a new body before their souls dissipated, they could continue to live. Although their cultivation and lifespan would be affected to some extent, it was still better than death. Unfortunately, Shen Lian was unable to let his soul escape at this moment, as if it were imprisoned in his body.

"Hahahaha. Forget it, forget it. I won't give you a chance to turn things around. This black blade has been imbued with a secret technique to seal the soul. If you were in your prime, you might have been able to escape, but unfortunately, your power is now less than a tenth of what it used to be. Even if your soul leaves your body, you can't escape. So, die in peace. All of this... should end now." Shen Yuan's laughter suddenly turned cold. Despite being brothers, he showed no concern whatsoever. This must be what cold-bloodedness is all about.

Meanwhile, Gu Qici, who was far away, wanted to stop it, but unfortunately, his injuries were also severe, and he was unable to move at all. He could only watch helplessly as Shen Lian died at Shen Yuan's hands.

"Don't rush, don't rush. It'll be your turn soon. I'm so lucky. I can take care of you two great enemies without much effort. Hahahaha!" Shen Yuan laughed wildly again. He seemed to already see himself winning against the Imperial Demon Domain.

"Shen... Shen Yuan. My brother... Could it be that if you kill me like this, you will never know the proper way to control demonic energy... You... you will never become the true master of the Imperial Demon Realm." Shen Lian's body trembled, growing weaker and weaker, as if he would soon perish completely.

Hearing Shen Lian's words, Shen Yuan didn't care at all. He sneered and replied, "Come on. What orthodox demonic energy? My foolish brother. Do you think I really care about the so-called demonic energy left by our ancestors? Hmph. You underestimate me. Demonic energy or the Imperial Demon Domain, these things are just the inheritance of some cultivators in the end."

"To be honest with you, I will definitely look down on these inheritances. Even if they are destroyed, I will not feel the slightest heartache, because I want to create my own era and my own inheritance in the Imperial Demon Domain, so that future generations of the Imperial Demon Domain will know that among all the masters of the Imperial Demon Domain, only I, Shen Yuan, am the strongest."

Upon hearing this, Shen Lian disregarded his injuries and whether it would provoke Shen Yuan, and suddenly sneered, "Hehehe. What a joke. What a joke! You? You, a despicable scoundrel who betrays his master and ancestors, actually think you can surpass the masters of the Imperial Demon Domain throughout the ages? Why don't you take a piss and look at yourself in the mirror?"

However, Shen Yuan was not angry at Shen Lian's words. In fact, there was no need for him to be angry at a person who was about to die. He simply said, "My brother, you have always thought that I am no good at this or that since I was little. I'm afraid you have never thought that I am good at anything. But it doesn't matter. Anyway, after today, I will never have to see that pitiful look in your eyes again. So... go in peace."

As soon as he finished speaking, Shen Yuan activated his cultivation power, causing the black blade to emit a black light in an instant, completely covering Shen Lian's body. This caused Shen Lian's expression to twist, and he couldn't help but let out a shrill scream, showing that the pain he was enduring had reached a certain level.

A few breaths later, Shen Yuan slowly pulled out the black blade. But as soon as the blade was drawn, Shen Lian's life force vanished completely, and he became a dead corpse, falling rapidly towards the central abyss below.

"It's over. Although your life was extremely short, you at least served as the sect master of the Demon Emperor Sect for a hundred years, so you should be satisfied." Watching Shen Lian's body gradually disappear, Shen Yuan surprisingly stopped smiling. He didn't seem as happy as expected; instead, he had some strange emotions.

However, this feeling didn't last long. A smile appeared on his lips again, this was his true joy at victory, and this smile would likely remain on his lips forever, unless he changed his mind, unless... he was wrong.

And Gu Qici, in her severely injured state, wouldn't pose any threat to him at all. That makes sense, since his condition is far more perfect than Gu Qici's, and if they were to fight directly, his chances of winning would indeed be much higher than Gu Qici's.

After a moment, Gu Qici calmed herself down, glanced at Shen Yuan in the sky with indifference, and then gradually flew up into the sky, standing alongside Shen Yuan.

The two looked at each other, and after a while, Shen Yuan's smile remained unchanged as he said, "Hehehe. Now it's just you and me. Are you planning to fight me to the end, or hand over the Imperial Demon Jade and leave this place?"

"Leave here?" Gu Qici seemed to have found a key word and murmured.

“That’s right. You’re not stupid, you should understand what I mean. I really acknowledge your strength; you are indeed very strong. My brother didn’t understand this, which is why he lost to you and died at my hands. But I won’t underestimate you. I think even now, it would still take me some effort to kill you, but I don’t want to fight you…”

"Although we fought to the death before, that doesn't mean we need to continue fighting. Now that my brother is dead, I've basically achieved my goal, and for the rest of the years to come, the Imperial Demon Realm will be under my rule. So you should also know that our battle is meaningless..."

"Of course, I know you want my brother to save your wife, but that's impossible now, unless you think I've crushed your hopes and then, out of pointless hatred, you decide to fight me to the death. If that's the case, I won't be afraid of you. After all, given our current situation, the outcome of the battle is a foregone conclusion."

"Alright. I won't waste any more words. You only have two choices now: one is to give up, and if you choose this path, I will let you leave here, and we will go our separate ways from now on; the other is to fight, but I believe you won't choose to do that, right?" Shen Yuan had made his point very clear, and how Gu Qici interpreted it was up to her.

At this moment, Gu Qici smiled slightly, then said somewhat strangely, "Hehe. Of course I'm not stupid. I'm already injured like this, how could I possibly have the confidence to win against you? But..."

Before Shen Yuan could even feel happy about Gu Qici's words, Gu Qici continued, "But I'm sorry. Sometimes I'm just stubborn, and sometimes I do unexpected things. So I don't want to fight you, and I don't want to give you the Imperial Demon Jade. So you see... do I have a third option?"

"Hmm?" Shen Yuan frowned, his gaze thoughtful. He quickly sneered, "Hmph. Then it seems I have to apologize. I told you, you only have these two choices, and from your tone, it seems the demon has already made his choice."

At this point, Shen Yuan had already unconsciously begun to circulate his spiritual energy. It seemed that if Gu Qici said anything that did not suit his taste, he would attack her directly. However, he really did not want to fight Gu Qici. Firstly, he was wary of Gu Qici's own strength, and secondly, he was wary of the person who had helped Gu Qici last time reappearing. After all, he still vividly remembered being seriously injured by that person.

Even so, he would not back down. If Gu Qici was an obstacle, he would definitely get rid of it. No matter who appeared in front of him, he would not let Gu Qici go. This was his madness, so he was not afraid of fighting.

"Don't misunderstand, don't misunderstand... I said I don't want to die here, and I don't want to fight you, but..." At this moment, Gu Qici's tone suddenly turned colder, and he continued, "But sometimes, some things don't necessarily have to be done by me personally. I think this person... should be able to replace me."

After she finished speaking, a woman dressed in gray, with cold and lifeless eyes, slowly walked out from behind Gu Qici. When Shen Yuan saw this woman in gray, his pupils gradually widened, and a hint of shock seemed to linger in his eyes.

Because this woman was the person he cared about most, and also the white-clad woman who had fought fiercely with Gu Qici before, but was ultimately controlled by his consciousness.

Her name is Gray Moon.

Gray, it's grayish gray.

The moon is the moon in the moon.

The name Gray Moon was given to Gu Qici by the woman in white when her consciousness controlled Gu Qici's body. From then on, the white clothes disappeared and the gray clothes gradually remained. The woman in white's former name no longer had any meaning. She was only called Gray Moon, belonged only to Gu Qici, and only listened to Gu Qici.

Although Shen Yuan's sudden arrival interrupted the final stage of refining this woman's consciousness, the imprint left by her consciousness remained in her heart. Gu Qici, who had merged with her consciousness, naturally became this woman's new master.

"Bai Wu?." Upon seeing Hui Yue arrive, Shen Yuan immediately showed an expression of disbelief, as if he never expected the woman in white to come here.

After rescuing the woman in white, he entrusted her to some physicians from the Demon Extermination Sect for treatment. For the past month, apart from remaining unconscious, she had remained perfectly calm and normal. But now…

"Could it be that the secret technique from back then hadn't been unlocked yet?" Shen Yuan wondered to himself, his surprise undisguised.

At the same time, Gu Qici narrowed her eyes, looked at Huiyue, then at Shen Yuan, and said softly with a smile, "This is my third choice, because the one who will fight you is not me, but her."

"Despicable!" Shen Yuan roared.

"Despicable? Heh heh heh. What a joke! Compared to you and Shen Lian, I'm probably far inferior. But I didn't expect that someone like you would actually have someone he cares about." At this point, Gu Qici seemed to have confirmed something quite important.

In fact, he had had this idea for a long time, believing that there must be some extraordinary relationship between Huiyue and Shen Yuan. However, Huiyue was not by his side at that time, and her consciousness had disappeared, so he could only guess and could not be sure. But now, his guess was finally confirmed, because Shen Yuan's expression had betrayed him.

Shen Yuan and Hui Yue have known each other for over fifty years. Their relationship is simple: one is a teacher, and the other is a student. Hui Yue is the former, and Shen Yuan is the latter. This doesn't seem like a big deal, since there are plenty of disciples in the cultivation world whose cultivation and status surpass their masters, let alone a teacher and student.

But besides that, there is another layer of relationship between the two of them, a layer so thick that it cannot be concealed.

"It seems that's how it is. In Gray Moon's memories, the person who wronged her and caused her to be expelled from the academy must be you." Gu Qici knew most of Gray Moon's memories through her consciousness, but she had no impression of the student and family that had hurt Gray Moon. This was not because her consciousness could not see it, but because Gray Moon had actively erased a part of that memory, as she herself realized... returning it to nothingness.

Therefore, Gu Qici and her consciousness were unable to know the truth of what happened back then. However, just two days before Gu Qici arrived at the Central Abyss, in order to be on the safe side, Gu Qici still investigated the past of the Shen family and learned some things, including the previous generation of Demon Emperor Sect Master's suppression of the Imperial Demon Academy. As a result, everything naturally became clear.

In every era and in every place, different forces will emerge, and the Imperial Demon Domain is no exception. During the reign of the previous Demon Emperor Sect Master, a force that was almost comparable to the Demon Emperor Sect emerged, namely the Imperial Demon Academy.

This Imperial Demon Academy is a legacy of the previous two generations of Imperial Demon Lords. It has existed since the time the previous Imperial Demon Lord ascended to the throne, and the talents cultivated by the Imperial Demon Academy are almost everywhere in the Imperial Demon Domain. If these people are gathered by the Imperial Demon Academy, they can definitely pose a certain threat to the Demon Emperor Sect. Therefore, this academy must be eliminated.

However, the Imperial Demon Academy is an old and established institution. Targeting it without proper justification would definitely provoke a large number of angry young people to make a fuss. Therefore, taking down this academy would definitely require some underhanded methods.

Unsurprisingly, this method was related to Shen Yuan, who was studying at the academy at the time. Shen Yuan was still young then. Although he was exceptionally talented and extremely intelligent, he was still somewhat lacking in dark matters. Therefore, he followed his family's arrangements, used Gray Moon to frame the Imperial Demon Academy, which gave the Demon Emperor Sect an opportunity to take advantage of him.

On that day, watching Gray Moon being interrogated, watching this teacher he respected fall into darkness, he could do nothing. Under the instigation of his family, he could only personally push Gray Moon step by step into the abyss of despair. He was in great pain, but he could only suffer.

After this incident, his personality changed. It was like going from day to night; his dark side was completely exposed. Over the years, he felt very uncomfortable watching the Demon Emperor Sect decay. He felt that he was not worthy of doing his best for such a sect, let alone dedicating his beloved teacher to it. So he regretted it.

He had a plan in his mind, a plan to change the Imperial Demon Realm, but before that, he had to find the missing Gray Moon. He searched for two hundred years before finally finding her deep in the mountains of a small place. However, at that time, Gray Moon had selectively deleted her memories in order to comprehend the power of nothingness.

For Gray Moon, the so-called nothingness was nothing more than an escape. Shen Yuan knew this very well, so after his initial shock, he felt even more regretful. But in order to prevent Gray Moon from remembering this incident and to prevent her from hating him, he chose to conceal everything and pretend that nothing had ever happened.

He asked Gray Moon for help and made some very generous promises. Gray Moon was tempted, but not by him. She was tempted by the promises and benefits, so she joined his camp. At that time, he had already become the leader of the Demon Extermination Sect.

Decades ago, after making ample preparations, he stole the secret treasure, the Imperial Demon Jade, during one of Shen Lian's carelessness. He then used the Imperial Demon Jade to step into the realm of a half-step Heavenly Monarch, gaining the ability to fight against Shen Lian. However, he himself did not expect that this war would last so long. Fortunately, Shen Lian is now dead, and the Demon Emperor Sect and the Imperial Demon Island will undoubtedly become his.

Once he resolves one problem—getting rid of Gu Qici, this outsider—he can smoothly complete his plan. He will make Huiyue the Grand Elder of the Demon Emperor, second only to the Emperor. This is his true compensation to Huiyue.

Chapter 176 Each with Their Own Hidden Agenda

Surprisingly, things weren't that simple. Gu Qici was like a leech, impossible to get rid of no matter what he did. In fact, she became increasingly clingy, making him extremely uncomfortable and giving rise to waves of murderous intent.

However, he could do nothing now, because Gray Moon was in Gu Qici's hands. He might disregard family ties, but he couldn't disregard Gray Moon. In his heart, anyone in this world could die, anyone could perish, but Gray Moon couldn't, and his beloved... couldn't.

"Release her." After a moment of silence, recalling his entanglement with Gray Moon, Shen Yuan's expression turned ferocious as he shouted sharply.

"Heh. Do you think I'm stupid? If I let her go, I probably wouldn't be alive today. So you'd better not say such stupid things." At this moment, Gu Qici smiled and said softly, "But don't worry, I don't mean to hurt her. As long as the time comes, I will return her to you."

Shen Yuan was helpless. He originally wanted to act directly and kill Gu Qici as quickly as possible, or save Huiyue. However, Gu Qici had sensed his intention in advance. So at this moment, Gu Qici did not hesitate to use her left hand to grab Huiyue's left shoulder, who was like a walking corpse. It seemed that as long as she moved slightly, Huiyue would face a life-or-death crisis.

This made Shen Yuan hesitant to act rashly, and he was once again at a stalemate with Gu Qici. However, if one looked closely at this scene, it seemed as if Gu Qici was some kind of heinous villain, while Shen Yuan was the righteous one saving his lover, which was a bit strange.

"Tsk tsk. Quite the villainous air. Oh well. He can clear his name later." Gu Qici thought to himself, puzzled, but continued speaking to Shen Yuan, "I only need one day, the last day. Once that time is over, you can do whatever you want. I absolutely won't stop you, understand?"

Upon hearing Gu Qici's words in the silence, Shen Yuan frowned again. After a moment, he finally calmed himself down, his eyes flickered, and he suddenly asked, "Do you mean that once this time comes, you will be completely safe?"

“You could say that. I’ve said it before, I came here to put an end to all of this. Now that Shen Lian is dead, his part is over. It’s just that this outcome is a little different from what I expected, so I need to do something else to correct it,” Gu Qici said.

"Other things?" As if realizing something, Shen Yuan added, "But unfortunately, our positions are different, so we can only be enemies."

"Enemy, I do agree with what my brother said before: there are no permanent enemies, only permanent interests. So I think I can negotiate with you and make a deal, how about that?" Shen Yuan suddenly said.

"A deal?" Gu Qici raised an eyebrow, muttering to herself in confusion.

“Yes.” Shen Yuan’s eyes flickered slightly.