Chinese animation: Starting with Bad Guys

The starlight, like a reversed Milky Way, instantly pierced through that filthy, scarlet giant claw!

There was no earth-shattering explosion, only silent annihilation!

The giant claw, containing Feng Xi's lifelong cultivation and twisted emotional power, crumbled and melted away inch by inch in the face of the pure and vast power of heaven and earth and the will to purify.

The starlight, still powerful, struck Feng Xi with pinpoint accuracy!

"puff--!"

As if struck by an ancient divine mountain, Feng Xi's protective demonic power shattered like paper, and blood gushed out.

His body flew backward like a kite with a broken string, crashing heavily into the thick trunk of the Bitter Love Tree with a dull thud.

Her gorgeous clothes were torn, her breath instantly became extremely weak, and her eyes were filled with extreme fear, resentment and confusion.

Her pride and her carefully planned trump cards were utterly ineffective in the face of this incomprehensible power!

Qin Chuan, who had unleashed this earth-shattering attack, turned deathly pale instantly. His body swayed, and an overwhelming sense of weakness swept over him, as if all his strength had been drained away in an instant, making it difficult for him to even stand.

Forcibly mobilizing such a massive amount of power from heaven and earth far exceeded his current capacity, almost completely draining his energy and spirit.

"Qin Chuan!" Tu Shan Honghong exclaimed, rushing to his side and supporting his swaying body. The coldness of his skin made her heart clench. "Are you alright?!"

"It's nothing, just overexertion. You'll be fine after a period of rest."

Qin Chuan's voice was a little hoarse as he struggled to stand firm, his sharp gaze still fixed on Feng Xi, who had collapsed under the tree:

"Her immediate priority is her."

Tu Shan Honghong followed his gaze and looked at Feng Xi, who had once been like a mother and teacher to her, but was now on the verge of death and with a distorted face. Her eyes were filled with complex and indescribable emotions.

Hatred, pain, disappointment, and a lingering sense of filial piety intertwined and surged within him.

She remained silent for a long time, so long that the petals of the bitter love tree fell silently onto her and Qin Chuan's shoulders and hair.

In the end, all the emotions turned into a heavy sigh.

She raised her hand, and pure, crimson demonic power surged forth, transforming into chains of runes imbued with the essence of the Bitter Love Tree. These chains wrapped around Feng Xi's body, binding him tightly.

"In the name of the Lord of Tushan, suppress the traitor Feng Xi deep within the roots of the Bitter Love Tree! With the power of the giant tree, purify his heart and extinguish his delusions!"

Honghong's voice trembled slightly, yet remained unusually firm:

"From this day forward, announce to the public that Feng Xi has gone on a long journey to seek a breakthrough, and has entrusted all affairs of Tu Shan to me!"

As she finished speaking, the roots of the Bitter Love Tree seemed to come alive, slowly wriggling and forming a deep, dark cage filled with sealing runes. It slowly swallowed the unconscious Feng Xi, eventually sinking deep into the ground and merging with the roots of the giant tree.

After making this difficult and weighty decision, unexpected changes occurred.

Tu Shan Hong Hong's body suddenly erupted with a strong and pure crimson light!

Her body visibly grew taller and longer in the light.

The figure of the fifteen or sixteen-year-old girl, which was originally a little immature, quickly became exquisite, mature and heroic, as if time had accelerated.

Her waist-length hair moved without wind, and her reddish-brown eyes were as deep as an abyss, containing even greater power and more complex and profound emotions.

In the blink of an eye, she had transformed into a tall, stunningly beautiful woman in her early twenties.

A powerful and pure emotional force surged and settled within her.

This emotional force encompasses the heart-wrenching pain of imprisoning caregivers and the collapse of beliefs, the deep gratitude and excitement for friends who risked their lives to protect them, and the resolute determination and responsibility to shoulder the future of Tushan.

All these intense emotions collided fiercely, finally breaking through a certain constraint that had bound her for a long time, bringing about a transformation in power and form.

As the light faded, the new, true ruler of Tushan—Tushan Honghong—stood quietly beneath the Bitter Love Tree.

She looked at Qin Chuan beside her, his face pale with weakness, her eyes filled with mixed emotions. These emotions ultimately coalesced into a soft whisper, which gently echoed amidst the falling petals:

"Thank you. I will need a friend like you for the future of Tushan."

Qin Chuan looked at her mature and transformed face and the heavy sense of responsibility and complex emotions in her eyes. He smiled weakly and did not answer. He just looked up at the canopy of the Bitter Love Tree.

The fluttering petals silently bear witness to the changing fortunes of Tushan and the quiet emergence of a new bond.

Let's walk the road from Chapter 10 onwards together.

The petals of the bitter love tree continue to fall silently, like a gentle dream.

Tu Shan Honghong helped Qin Chuan sit on the blue stone under the tree, her palm pressed against his back, slowly transferring her pure emotional energy to him to help him sort out his disordered breathing.

The crimson light intertwined with the faint yet resilient golden energy within Qin Chuan's body, forming a warm band of light between the two.

Are you still feeling unwell?

Honghong asked softly, her gaze falling on his pale profile with a hint of worry.

He had risked everything for that earth-shattering attack.

Qin Chuan leaned against the tree trunk, feeling the power within his body gradually calming down, and shook his head: "Much better. Your emotional power is very special, carrying the power to soothe people's hearts."

Her red lips curved into a barely perceptible smile. Just as she was about to say something more, she caught a glimpse of an unusual halo flashing in the direction of the Continuation Stone out of the corner of her eye.

The two looked at the same time and saw a pink petal lying quietly in the center of the Continuation Stone. A faint wisp of crimson-gold energy swirled around the petal, which was formed by the fusion of her and Qin Chuan's auras.

Even more startling is that a faint contract mark has appeared on the stone surface below the petals, like two intertwined patterns of light. Although blurry, it is real.

This is not a trace left by any known ritual for continuing the bond; it is more like a spontaneous response from the Bitter Love Tree.

"This is……"

Honghong subconsciously withdrew her hand, her eyes filled with astonishment.

The rules of the Bitter Love Tree have never been precedented. It has always only recorded the mark of those who actively seek to continue their bond, and has never responded to the entanglements of those who "did not make a wish".

Qin Chuan also propped himself up, staring thoughtfully at the fleeting mark.

When he mobilized the power of heaven and earth just now, he clearly felt that the will of the Bitter Love Tree was not completely cold. Instead, it was like a silent observer, rejecting when Feng Xi twisted the rules and resonating when Hong Hong made a decision.

Is this a response to the bond between them?

“Perhaps, rules are not immutable,” Qin Chuan said softly, turning to look at Hong Hong. “They record emotions, not forms.”

Honghong paused, her gaze towards him becoming complicated.

Feng Xi's words were still echoing in his ears, and those questions about the narrowness of the rules were now shaken by this petal and this mark.

She looked down at her palms, where the heavy touch of suppressing Feng Xi still lingered, as did the warm, throbbing feeling of transferring her love to Qin Chuan.

Aren't these emotions also part of "emotion"?

A breeze swept by, and another petal fell onto the Stone of Continued Fate, overlapping with the previous one.

The two marks seemed to sense something, flickered slightly, and then disappeared completely, as if they had never appeared at all.

But both of them knew that some things had changed.

Honghong took a deep breath, suppressing the turmoil in her heart, and looked at Qin Chuan again. His face was still pale, but when their eyes met, he gave her a reassuring smile.

Honghong looked at him, the complexity in her eyes gradually dissolving, replaced by a gentle expression.

She stood up, stretched out her hand, palm up, and gently enveloped him with crimson demonic power: "Go back to your lodgings and rest first. You need to recover your strength."

Qin Chuan stood up with her help, his body still a little unsteady, but he firmly grasped her hand.

The moment their fingertips touched, they both felt a faint resonance, as if the mark on the Fate Stone had transformed into an invisible thread, quietly binding them together.

Amidst the falling petals, Honghong helped Qin Chuan away from the Bitter Love Tree step by step.

Her figure was tall and resolute, no longer the girl who needed to rely on others; his steps were slow, but they carried a calm strength, as if he could steadily withstand any storms ahead.

"Not just Tushan, but the path between humans and demons..." Honghong suddenly spoke, her voice clearer than when she was under the tree, "We'll walk together from now on."

Qin Chuan turned his head to look at her, and his gaze met hers as she turned away.

In those reddish-brown eyes, there was honesty, expectation, and a hint of barely perceptible shyness, like the sky after the rain, clear and bright.

He smiled and nodded slightly: "Okay."

A single word, amidst a shower of petals, is as light as a feather, yet as heavy as a promise.

As Tu Shan Honghong helped Qin Chuan back to their residence, two small figures immediately rushed over like a whirlwind.

"Sister!" Tu Shan Ya Ya's voice was choked with sobs, her face pale, clearly terrified by the earth-shattering energy fluctuations from before.

Tu Shan Rongrong followed closely behind. Although she remained relatively calm, her usually squinty eyes were now wide open, filled with lingering fear and worry.

"Sister! Brother Qin Chuan!" Rongrong's voice trembled slightly, "Are you alright? Just now... just now was so scary!"

Looking at her two younger sisters, Tu Shan Honghong finally relaxed a little, and a reassuring smile appeared on her face:

"It's alright, Feng Xi... has been suppressed deep within the Bitter Love Tree."

Hearing "It's alright," Ya Ya and Rong Rong's tense shoulders finally relaxed, and they breathed a long sigh of relief.

Immediately, their gazes fell on the arm that the older sister was supporting Qin Chuan, and on Qin Chuan's obviously pale and weak face.

Ya Ya pouted slightly, a mixture of worry and awkwardness welling up inside her, something she herself didn't even realize.

My sister is actually supporting this guy like that! Even though he really helped a lot this time…

Rongrong, however, keenly observed even more.

The elder sister's figure was no longer that of a petite girl, but had truly grown into a graceful and peerless lord of Tushan.

Rongrong understood; her sister was truly moved this time.

Honghong briefly and clearly told Ya Ya and Rong Rong everything that had just happened under the Bitter Love Tree, from Feng Xi's questioning and the clash of rules to Qin Chuan's decisive blow, and finally the appearance of that strange petal mark.

Ya Ya clenched her little fists, both shocked and furious: "That old hag! She deserved to be suppressed! Qin Chuan, you..."

She wanted to say "You did a good job," but the words felt awkward and she swallowed them back.

Suddenly, as if remembering something, Ya Ya turned around abruptly and rushed out of the yard without saying a word.

Honghong, Qin Chuan, and Rongrong looked at each other, all feeling bewildered.

A moment later, Ya Ya came running back in a flurry, carrying a bulging bundle that exuded a rich and pure spiritual energy of plants.

She ran up to Qin Chuan without saying a word, and shoved the pile of rare spiritual herbs, which were emitting various colored halos, into Qin Chuan's arms in a rather rough manner, as if she was trying to cover something up.

She turned her face away, chin held high, trying to make her voice sound nonchalant:

"Don't misunderstand! I'm not concerned about you! These... these are to thank you for helping my sister, and... for helping Tushan! You should recover from your injuries quickly, so as not to... so as not to be a burden to others!"

This attempt to cover up her true feelings, coupled with her rosy cheeks and shifty eyes, made Qin Chuan chuckle.