Chapter 40: Qian Renxue's Dilemma

In a mere blink of an eye, two months had elapsed since Lu Yuan's face-off with Yu Tianheng.

During this period, Lu Yuan dedicated himself to continuous training and enhancing his combat expertise, regularly visiting the Great Spirit Arena.

Following She Long's counsel, Lu Yuan participated in various types of contests, not just one-on-one battles, but also team matches.

This inevitably caused him to take a beating on many occasions.

However, this was completely normal, the difference in cultivation was there, and the Spirit Masters Teams were not vegetarians, most of them had a lot of experience working as a team, as well as having Spirit Masters from the Auxiliary System to support them. In short, it was quite a challenging task for Lu Yuan.

Nevertheless, he persevered, and the harsh environment in which the slightest error could lead to him being cornered by his opponents helped him improve his skills significantly. His reputation as the "Emperor Dragon" continued to spread, and it was rumored that numerous clans had dispatched representatives to locate this prodigious talent.

However, just as abruptly as he had emerged, Lu Yuan vanished from the Great Spirit Arena, leaving no trace behind.

.....

The Mansion of Qian Renxue was nestled within an expansive, verdant expanse, replete with a charming cherry blossom garden within its courtyard.

It was here that she had spent many delightful hours in recent months, where she had found serenity and happiness, and where she had smiled more frequently than anywhere else.

But, as with all things of beauty, their transient nature was inevitable. Late spring had set in, and early summer was just around the corner, signifying the end of the cherry blossom season.

As the last petals drifted away on the gentle breeze, Qian Renxue stood before a barren cherry blossom tree, her face contorted with anger, her grip on a letter so tight it seemed as though she wished to tear it apart.

Muttering words of resentment under her breath, Qian Renxue's voice barely rose above a whisper, but one could still catch phrases like "Why must you take everything I hold dear?" and "Does this bring you joy?"

Qian Renxue never expected that woman to be so cunning!

The letter, delivered by Ci Xue via a secret channel from the Supreme Pontiff Palace, had left Qian Renxue feeling dejected and resentful.

It accused her of recklessness in her mission to infiltrate the Imperial Palace, claiming that she had been spotted sneaking out of the palace at night, endangering years of work and risking a war with the Heaven Dou Empire.

The letter was so detailed that it included sightings of herself in her true form, accompanied by a boy, as though someone had been closely watching her every move.

Of course, Qian Renxue was not stupid, and she knew that she had clearly been spied on!

Not only this, she even knew who spied on her, and it would be none other than the only subordinate under that woman who could completely hide from She Long and Ci Xue's perception.

Ghost Douluo!

To gather so much information, Ghost Douluo must have been keeping tabs on them for a long time.

But what hit Qian Renxue the hardest was not the letter itself, but the order from the Supreme Pontiff included in it.

The order was brief and straightforward, stating that "The Prodigy Possessor of the Golden Dragon, Lu Yuan, must be sent to Spirit City in three days."

These words felt like a crushing blow to Qian Renxue, filling her with a sense of defeat and frustration.

Ever since she had decided to bring Lu Yuan along with her, Qian Renxue had anticipated that the woman would eventually discover the truth. This is why she took the initiative to inform her grandfather of Lu Yuan's exceptional talent and her own Martial Soul's unusual reaction.

Her grandfather immediately attached great importance to him and concurred with her approach. According to Qian Renxue, with her grandfather on her side, that woman could only swallow all her anger.

But she had not foreseen that the woman would send someone like Ghost Douluo to keep an eye on them and would expose everything to her grandfather.

Her grandfather couldn't tolerate her wasting time at night instead of focusing on cultivating, since it was one of the few times she had to do so.

As the possessor of the Seraphim, her talent was exceptionally high, and the only reason why she was only a Spirit Ancestor at the age of 14 was that she had to pretend to be the prince most of the time. Apart from the short periods she had in her princely schedule to cultivate, she could only do so at night.

In the end, her grandfather also sent her a letter proposing two options.

The first option was for her to send Lu Yuan to Spirit City with the woman, where he would receive top priority in obtaining cultivation resources and be in the best environment to reach his full potential. Her grandfather promised to ensure that Lu Yuan would be able to visit her in the future.

The second option was for her to stay with him, but she would have to abandon her mission to infiltrate the Heaven Dou Empire and return to the Douluo Consecration Hall. There, she would concentrate solely on her cultivation and not interfere with the outside world.

Needless to say, her grandfather was in favor of the second option. For him, Qian Renxue infiltrating the Heaven Dou Empire would never be more important than strengthening the Qian Clan.

Qian Renxue was facing a difficult decision. On one hand, she had never felt as happy as she had been with Lu Yuan during these months, and she did not want to be separated from him.

But if she accepted the second option, that would be like admitting defeat to that woman, and she was not willing to let go of that stubbornness in her heart.

This always made her seethe with anger! How could she not show that woman that she had been wrong to despise her?

'... What should I do?' It had been a long time since Qian Renxue had felt so fragile, weak, and helpless.

Naturally, she had not resigned herself to choosing between the two options presented to her. She had carefully considered all possibilities and concluded that these two options were indeed the best for both of them.

After all, she couldn't be so selfish as to jeopardize Lu Yuan's future.

She would send her own people to their deaths if necessary, but she could never do the same to him.

Qian Renxue sighed, biting her lip.

'Fine, you win, sister, but I won't let you take him from me, so I...'

"Sister Xue'er?" Just then, a familiar voice interrupted her thoughts, causing her to snap out of her contemplation.

Qian Renxue turned around to see Lu Yuan, and her dejected face changed in an instant, replaced with a sweet smile.

Lu Yuan smiled gently at the sight of Qian Renxue surrounded by the beauty of the cherry blossom trees. Even though the cherry blossom trees were deflowering, to Lu Yuan, this was the most beautiful scenery.

"I've been waiting for you to have lunch for a long time."

"What are you doing here?" Lu Yuan asked, sensing something was off about Qian Renxue.

For the past few months, the two of them had been fighting in the Cherry Blossom Garden almost every day. It could be said that the two of them already knew each other extremely well. Qian Renxue knew almost all of Lu Yuan's tricks, just as Lu Yuan knew all of Qian Renxue's Spirit Skills like the back of his hand.

Qian Renxue knew that Lu Yuan was a combat prodigy capable of fighting at a higher level than his rank. Coupled with his amazing learning ability, he had progressed by leaps and bounds in these few months. Thanks to him, even she had progressed in her combat experience, and her own strength had improved greatly. After all, she could not go to the Great Spirit Arena like Lu Yuan was doing.

Of course, the outcome of their battles was always Lu Yuan's defeat, as the difference in their cultivation levels was too huge.

However, if Qian Renxue's soul power was suppressed to the same level as his, she was not sure if she could win even once against him. Lu Yuan's tricks and learning speed were too astonishing, which even made Qian Renxue sigh in defeat.

But this also did not take into account that Qian Renxue was at a natural disadvantage fighting on the ground and at night.

Needless to say, the two of them had formed an incredible understanding through their battles. Besides the love of her grandfather, Qian Renxue had never known any other form of affection, so the care she received from Lu Yuan was a completely new experience for her.

If Lu Yuan were older, their relationship might have gone even further. Nevertheless, he had already left a deep impression on her heart, and the same could be said for Lu Yuan towards Qian Renxue.

"I... I was just taking in the beauty of the surroundings." Qian Renxue replied, her words sounding unconvincing even to herself. She cursed her own intellect, couldn't her answer be a little more credible?

"Admiring the scenery after receiving a letter? Come on, Sister Xue'er, don't lie to me." In fact, Lu Yuan didn't believe her either, so he persisted, his concern for her evident in his tone.

Qian Renxue let out a sigh, knowing that she couldn't hide anything from him. "... I just wanted to talk to you about something," she admitted, her heart warming at the sight of Lu Yuan's concern for her.

Lu Yuan looked a little perplexed and moved closer to her.

At 14 years old, Qian Renxue was already over 1.6 meters tall, not much shorter than Bibi Dong at the same age. Lu Yuan had grown rapidly in the past two months, likely due to his complete resonance with his Golden Dragon Martial Soul. He now stood tall enough to reach Qian Renxue's chin.

As he moved closer, the distance between their figures shrank to no more than twenty centimeters, creating a rather intimate atmosphere.

Feeling Lu Yuan's figure approach her and sensing the scent of his body, Qian Renxue's expression remained composed, as close proximity to him was not a new experience for her.

"I've been considering moving to Spirit City," Qian Renxue said softly, her eyes showing a hint of reluctance before quickly regaining her composure.

"Eh?" Lu Yuan turned his head, caught off guard by Qian Renxue's words. He had been enjoying the fragrance of her hair and admiring the scenery, not expecting such a sudden declaration.

Their gazes locked, and a palpable tension began to fill the air, almost as if time had slowed down.

"Why do you want to move to Spirit City?" Lu Yuan asked seriously.

Qian Renxue's heart skipped a beat as she met his gaze, and a warm sensation spread throughout her body. Though she couldn't quite explain it, being close to him always made her feel happy and at ease.

Her initial reluctance slowly dissipated, and a smile appeared on her face.

"Don't you remember the first day we met, you asked me when I would take you to Spirit City? Well, it looks like the time has finally come. Why aren't you more excited?" She teased.

Lu Yuan was puzzled, it was true that he had said that, after all, he really needed to enter the Supreme Pontiff Palace at least once, but with Qian Renxue's help, even if he couldn't enter the Supreme Pontiff Palace as the direct disciple of Bibi Dong, it might not be too difficult to achieve in the future. That was why he was no longer in a hurry about it.

Recalling Qian Renxue's earlier look, Lu Yuan couldn't shake the feeling that she was not doing this willingly. She still had an important mission in Heaven Dou City that she had spent five years working on, and this decision seemed too hasty.

Earlier, Qian Renxue had received a message that made her leave the hall, and putting together all the information he had so far, Lu Yuan had a general idea of what might be happening.

But if he wanted to be sure of his assumptions, he could only do it one way.

"Then, what will happen to your mission at the Imperial Palace?"

!!!!!!