The improved female villains regained their memories.

"Yes."

As Leng Yan was speaking, he was about to persuade Song Panning to take a bite, but when he looked up, he heard the doorman slam the door shut.

She felt somewhat wronged.

Since arriving in the main world, Song Panning has been absent-minded. Compared to the previous world where she often shared her innermost thoughts with her, in this world, Song Panning has closed herself off and doesn't tell her anything.

Perhaps the young lady was under too much pressure. Leng Yan could only comfort himself in this way: the main world was different from their world. There were too many outstanding people in it. The young lady had to do great things, so naturally she couldn't be distracted by other things. It was normal for her to keep it from him.

But I still feel wronged.

Despite feeling wronged, Leng Yan still had to carry out the tasks assigned by Song Panning.

The message delivered in the morning quickly received a reply from Xu Baxian, who agreed. So in the afternoon, Leng Yan and Song Panning entered the city.

The commercial streets of Beijing are always bustling, with morning markets and afternoon markets. Even though the markets are closed in the afternoon, all the shops are packed with people, with Zuixianlou being the most crowded.

Zuixianlou has three unique features: its food, its wines, and its beautiful women. The food is particularly exquisite, with each item not only available in limited quantities but also sold out regardless of the customer's social status.

The essence of famous wines lies in their rich and mellow aroma. Some say that the wines of Zuixianlou are brewed by immortals, and each jar contains 0.2% spiritual energy. Regular consumption by mortals can keep their skin fair and tender, and keep them young and light.

These two unique features alone are enough to make Zuixianlou a signature establishment of the Qian Kingdom, but the reason it has stood firm in the capital and under the emperor's nose for so many years is due to its third unique feature.

beauty.

The owner of Zuixianlou is unfortunate.

People rarely see Tian Bulian, but those who do are invariably captivated by her beauty. She truly is described as having a form as graceful as a startled swan, as lithe as a swimming dragon, as radiant as autumn chrysanthemums, and as flourishing as spring pines. She appears as if light clouds veil the moon, as if drifting snowflakes in a flowing wind. From afar, she shines like the rising sun at dawn. Up close, she glows like a lotus emerging from clear water. Even royalty and nobility yearn for a glimpse of her, but only true heroes and valiant warriors are granted entry to the top-tier private room on the fifth floor to witness her beauty.

In a small private room on the fourth floor, Song Panning and Leng Yan sat. The pastries that were supposed to be sold out were laid out on the table, and in front of them was an exquisite tea set. The dark green liquid inside also carried a strong tea aroma. A maid brought up wine, but Leng Yan stopped her.

"My young lady is not in good health and does not drink alcohol."

"Miss, this is our Drunken Immortal Pavilion's famous medicinal wine. It won't harm your health; on the contrary, it's very nourishing." The maid didn't mind at all and put down the wine with a smile. "This medicinal wine was specially ordered by Young Master Xu. You can try it."

"Thank you."

"Please let me know if you need anything."

The maid bowed her head and left. Song Panning ignored the delicious food on the table, turned her head slightly, and looked out the window.

Leng Yan sat down next to her and placed a pastry on her plate: "Miss, Young Master Xu knew that there was something wrong with Zuixianlou, so why did he still ask us to meet here?"

“There’s no problem with Zuixianlou,” Song Panning replied absentmindedly. “The problem is with the proprietress.”

Her eyes were looking out the window, seemingly lost in thought, as if she were pondering something.

Leng Yan picked up a piece of pastry and stuffed it into his mouth. The complex taste immediately filled his mouth. With his cheeks puffed out, he followed up on Song Panning's words and asked, "What's the problem, boss lady?"

"..."

The mumbled words brought Song Panning back to her senses. She looked at Leng Yan and couldn't help but smile slightly. She then imitated Leng Yan and put a piece of pastry into her mouth.

"Before establishing rules, you must have the capability to establish rules."

She pointed to the table full of pastries and said, "Just like the pastries you and I are eating, does she mean there really aren't any left today? There are so many nobles and princes in the capital. If someone really wants to eat them and threatens to eat them if they can't, how will Zuixianlou deal with that?"

"This……"

Song Panning smiled and continued, "Moreover, judging from these pastries, the pastries at Zuixianlou are not that scarce. The so-called pastry quota rule is for ordinary people, while the rule for the fifth-floor VIP room is for those who really want to make a name for themselves."

"Whether it's the pastries or the rules on the fifth floor, to put it bluntly, these are all things set up by the owner of Zuixianlou. If she didn't have absolute power to control the situation, who would be willing to abide by her rules? Take the rules for meeting, for example. Xu Baxian is a prince and a strong contender for the crown prince position. Even he can't just see the owner of Zuixianlou whenever he wants. Isn't that enough to explain the problem?"

Zuixianlou is a magical place.

Whether you're a womanizer, a foodie, or simply looking for a quiet place, Zuixianlou can satisfy you.

It boasts the best service, the finest cuisine, stunningly beautiful women, and exquisite wines that are hard to find in ordinary people; it has it all.

Even so, Song Panning realized how terrifying it was.

"These all come at a price."

Song Panning picked up her teacup, looked at the pattern on it, and slowly said:

"Not everyone can enjoy the best of everything here. The food and wine come at the cost of money and noble status. As for meeting the owner of Zuixianlou, the rule is that only heroes and great men can do so. It may seem like there is no cost, but it is the most expensive price to pay."

Not everyone can be called a hero.

The *Baihu Tong* (Comprehensive Discussions in the White Tiger Hall) states in its section on "The Record of Names and Their Meanings": "Five people are called Mao, ten people are called Xuan, one hundred people are called Jun, one thousand people are called Ying, twice as many Ying are called Xian, ten thousand people are called Jie, and ten thousand Jie are called Sheng." Heroes and outstanding individuals are those one in ten thousand; their talents and innate abilities, though not as great as those of protagonists or villains, must still possess extraordinary qualities.

Just like Song Panning's ancestor Song Qihao, he was proficient in formations and developed the Immortal Slaughtering Formation, which rivaled that of true immortals. He was unwilling to be just a pawn in the game and instead used his descendants and the descendants of his followers to lay out a grand plan for a thousand years. He turned the killing move that threatened him into the extermination of three clans and used it to help Song Panning win a battle. Only with such character and talent can one become a hero.

The only privileges of entering the fifth-floor premium private room at Zuixianlou are those who are heroes or outstanding individuals. With such a high standard, it's hard not to wonder what this guy is up to.

Are heroes and great men so easy to come by?

No matter how outstanding the main world is, there is only one villain and one protagonist. Even if there are heroes and great men, they may not come to Zuixianlou. Even if they do come, they may not ask for help from the owner of Zuixianlou.

They can bow their heads, but if they bow their heads so easily, they are not heroes.

"Heroes and heroines..."

With a sigh, Leng Yan asked, "Then, Miss, is Xu Baxian considered a hero?"

"He has the temperament, but he lacks a bit in terms of shrewdness and talent."

In Song Panning's eyes, Xu Baxian was still lacking something.

He harbored ambitions to overthrow the Heavenly Guardian Sect, but lacked the corresponding talent. After researching for so long, he finally managed to create the Heaven-Slaying Formation with the help of Song Panning (in reality, he was just borrowing her techniques). He achieved little and hastily revealed his thoughts to the current emperor. Although he was magnanimous, unconcerned with trivial matters, and dared to fight and kill when commanding troops, he was ultimately a mortal with a mind of his own and could not fight against immortals.

"He's good enough to seize the throne, but if he really wants to do those things, he's definitely not good enough. A celestial being can destroy mountains and rivers with a flick of his finger. His troops are not even enough to fill the teeth of a mere terrestrial immortal."

Earthly Immortals wield celestial artifacts and can unleash deadly attacks, slaughtering mortals like ants. Celestial Immortals possess destructive immortal techniques, capable of annihilating a city with a mere wave of their hand. As for True Immortals, they are beyond redemption; mortals don't even have the right to stand before them, and the slightest carelessness will result in their oppressive power reducing them to ashes.

Even if Xu Baxian hadn't mastered the Heaven-Slaying Formation before, it would be naive of him to think he could destroy the Heaven-Protecting Sect now that he has.

If Song Panning were in charge, she would definitely be playing it safe right now, trying to please the emperor while maintaining her persona, waiting until she has figured out the whole situation and set up all the traps before striking decisively.

Xu Baxian is causing trouble everywhere without any real control. Does he really think the capital belongs to the Xu family? How could the Guardian Sect not have any spies here?

Leng Yan asked with some concern, "Since Xu Baxian is no good, then Miss, why should we continue to cooperate with him? Aren't we afraid he'll drag us down?"

"Will not."

Why?

Song Panning glanced at her and sneered, "Would you care if two ants were plotting how to kill you?"

Song Panning uses the female lead's body as her best disguise. Unless the Guardian Sect has someone who is proficient in souls, it will be difficult to find out her identity as a female villain.

Of course, the Heavenly Guardian Sect may also possess unique detection methods, but for now, Song Panning feels that she is still very safe.

Her residence was already equipped with countless concealment arrays. If someone were monitoring her, she would have known long ago. As for the world's will, she used the core of the mountain city array to create a small, portable shielding array. If the main world were to detect it, she would receive a warning.

It can be said that Song Panning had been extremely cautious in her actions in the main world, but even so, she still hadn't been able to resolve the impact Yang Pingsheng had on her.

In the dead of night, the dreams would surge in like a tide, layer upon layer, and no matter how hard she struggled, she could not escape them.

Song Panning is still the same Song Panning. She is indifferent, aloof, good at disguising herself, and shrewd in her calculations. She thinks three steps ahead before taking one. But her heart seems to have changed.

"You'll be my follower, won't you?"

Followers, followers, followers, the goddess's followers, Song Panning's followers—every time she thought of them, her heart would ache.

Just thinking of the name Yang Pingsheng makes her limbs feel as if they are being torn apart by a wild beast, the pain penetrating to the very core of her being, the regret piercing her heart, leaving no room for remedy.

She wanted to see Yang Pingsheng, to talk to him about everything, and to show him her true feelings. Whenever this happened, Song Panning felt like she was going crazy.

On one hand, there's her ambitious, gazing at the heavens; on the other, there's her constantly looking back, yearning for tenderness. She can no longer distinguish which is a pretense, which is genuine.

After wearing the mask for so long, it felt as if it had become embedded in her skin and flesh, and she could no longer separate it from it.

That feigned yandere demeanor was etched into her bones little by little, slowly transforming her into this person.

"I swear that no matter what obstacles I encounter, no matter how great the temptations I face, I will become Song Panning's follower, sharing happiness and hardship, life and death together, and never abandoning her."

Those were words Yang Pingsheng once said.

She was deeply moved by this, and in prison, her tears mingled with Yang Pingsheng's blood, dripping onto the ground.

"Ah, Miss, Xu Baxian is here."

The sharp-eyed Leng Yan spotted Xu Baxian riding his horse toward Zuixianlou. There weren't many people in the city who could ride horses, so only Xu Baxian would do something so ostentatious. She reminded Song Panning, but when she found that Song Panning didn't react, she turned to look at her.

"……Miss?"

"..."

In her heart, the always composed Song Panning, the always wise Song Panning, the always decisive Song Panning, was now covering her face, trembling, letting tears stream down her face.

"Ugh……"

The trembling sigh, carrying many unreadable emotions, seemed to have seeped into Song Panning's soul just like it had back then, indistinguishable from her own.

Chapter 277 Longing

Xu Baxian, unusually, was not wearing armor today, but walked in dressed in ordinary clothes.

He was not large or tall, but had a refined and approachable demeanor. His overall bearing did not suggest that he was a military leader. He addressed Song Panning as "sir" with a smile, and his manners were humble and respectful, showing no disrespect despite his status.

Leng Yan clicked her tongue in amazement. After all, her young lady was using Lin Wanjun's body. She knew Lin Wanjun's beauty. She had outshone all the beauties in the Goddess Selection back then. Even Song Panning was inferior to her in appearance.

When Xu Baxian first saw Song Panning using Lin Wanjun's body, there was no surprise in his eyes. His respect seemed genuine, and there was no desire between men and women in his eyes. This made Leng Yan wonder if this guy was a eunuch or impotent. After all, Lin Wanjun's appearance was lovely, and it was hard for anyone to resist her.

"Thanks to your advice, sir, I was able to see some hope."

Song Panning sized up the man in front of her. Although she had belittled him when she spoke to Leng Yan earlier, he wasn't actually that bad.

What Xu Baxian wanted to do, did Xu Weibang not want to do the same? Of course he did, but the Guardian Heaven Sect was the foundation of the Qian Kingdom, the basis of their nation's existence. What kind of ruler would dig up his own roots?

Roots may rot and decay, but a root is a root. The day the roots rot, the tree will not live much longer either.

Xu Baxian's attempt to eradicate Xu Weibang was tantamount to suicide, yet Xu Weibang merely placed him under house arrest, which Song Panning found utterly unbelievable.

The punishment wasn't too severe, but too lenient. If she were the emperor, she wouldn't have given Xu Baxian the chance to continue the experiment when he said it.

Song Panning was quite certain that by associating with Xu Baxian in this way, she had probably already come into the royal family's sights. But it didn't matter; every effort had its reward. In Song Panning's view, the effort of coming into the royal family's sights was not as great as the reward she was about to receive.

As expected, Xu Baxian then said, "I have brought the demon-taming method you requested, sir."

The two chatted for a long time until the sun began to set, at which point Xu Baxian took his leave.

In the capital, a place of utmost importance, right under the emperor's nose, even he could not be too presumptuous. Moreover, given the matter of the Heaven-Slaying Array, his appearance today was already a taboo.

Song Panning watched Xu Baxian ride away on horseback, with Leng Yan standing beside her. Only after the man disappeared into the distance did she hear her goddess sigh.