The dignified noblewoman possessed a cat-like allure, her cold, elegant beauty meticulously preserved—a perfect template of a frosty aristocrat.
"Who is it?!"
A seventh-ranked soul ring ignited. Surging soul power rose—only to be violently suppressed the next instant. Overwhelming weakness flooded her. The Duchess of the White Tiger collapsed to the floor.
"..."
Her splendid gown was smeared with dust. The disheveled Duchess scrambled up, her earlier arrogance gone. "May I ask how the White Tiger Ducal Residence has offended Your Eminence?"
A Titled Douluo!
This person had to be a Titled Douluo!
Why hasn't Elder Teng appeared? He's a Soul Douluo! Was he assassinated?
She needed to stall. Buy time until Star Luo City's powerhouses arrived.
"Your Eminence, whatever offense we have committed, the White Tiger Ducal House and the Star Luo Imperial Family will spare no effort to make amends."
Her usually haughty, icy face was now plastered with obsequious smiles.
She didn't want to die.
She couldn't die.
The figure shrouded in grey mist advanced without a word, closing in on the Duchess, now too weak to stand, forced to kneel. Within the mist, small, fair fists clenched, knuckles white. Eyes deep as the abyss burned with hatred. Images of her mother flashed through Huo Yutong's mind.
"You monster!"
A voice thick with loathing rang out—young, almost childlike. The Duchess froze. This didn't sound like a Titled Douluo. It sounded like a teenager.
The grey mist around Huo Yutong's face thinned, revealing a tear-streaked, adorable visage contorted by rage.
The Duchess found it familiar.
"Xu Ying!"
A dagger appeared in Huo Yutong's hand, its blade gleaming coldly.
"Did you ever imagine this day would come when you tormented my mother?!"
"Huo Yun'er!" Xu Ying's eyes widened. She remembered now—who this face resembled.
"You're Huo Yun'er's daughter! Dai Yutong!"
"My name is Huo!"
A sneaker-clad foot slammed into Xu Ying's abdomen, knocking her flat.
"Yutong! Yutong! There's a misunderstanding!" Xu Ying screamed through the pain.
She didn't want to die.
"It was Dai Hao! Dai Hao forced me to do it!"
"That's a lie."
A young man's calm voice cut through the air. Xu Ying turned to see a youth carrying several chairs. An Zhen took Huo Yutong's hand; the deathly aura around it dissipated. "Don't kill her outright. That's too merciful."
He placed the chairs nearby with a chilling smile. "Use these."
Tears welling, Huo Yutong nodded fiercely. Ignoring Xu Ying's pleas, she swung a chair down with all her might.
Crack! One shattered. She grabbed the next.
"Ah! You little bitch!"
Realizing they wouldn't spare her, Xu Ying unleashed a torrent of curses between screams.
"Your mother was a whore, and you—"
Her words choked off as An Zhen's foot pressed onto her face.
Rip—
The back of her opulent black gown tore open, revealing pale skin and the curve of her spine.
"Madam Duchess," An Zhen's voice was deceptively soft. "You wouldn't want me to throw you into the slums, would you?"
Xu Ying shuddered violently.
"I recall you have two sons."
"Mmph!" The Duchess thrashed wildly beneath his foot.
An Zhen lifted it slightly.
"Please!" Xu Ying begged, hair matted, face filthy. "Huabin and Yaoheng are innocent!"
"You remember how others begged you when you tortured them," An Zhen said coldly, gently nudging Huo Yutong forward. "Don't you?"
"I... I remember."
Minutes later, at a lonely gravesite. An Zhen held Huo Yutong, then tossed Xu Ying's limp form onto the ground like discarded trash.
"Mom!"
Huo Yutong rushed to the grave, pressing her face against the cold earth.
"Your turn."
An Zhen's icy gaze pinned Xu Ying as she feebly tried to crawl.
The Duchess knelt, dragging herself to Huo Yun'er's tombstone. She pressed her forehead hard against the dirt.
"I wronged Huo Yun'er."
"I deserve death ten thousand times!"
"I am vile scum!"
"..."
Tears streamed down Huo Yutong's face as she watched the woman who had once looked down on her mother now kowtowing, groveling, and cursing herself in abject repentance.
"Mom, do you see?"
The girl's whisper was hollow. No one answered her call.
"You deserve to die!"
Pure hatred fueled Huo Yutong's scream. She thrust the dagger with all her strength.
A crimson flower bloomed.
The malice in Huo Yutong's heart peaked as she watched her nightmare fall lifeless. Then, like spring snow, the hatred dissolved, leaving emptiness.
Huff…
Blood dripped from the blade. Huo Yutong doubled over, hands on her knees, biting her lip as fat tears fell.
"Wuwuwu…"
"It's over now." An Zhen knelt, gently wiping her tears. He pulled her into an embrace. "Vengeance is yours. You should be happy."
"An Zhen… ge?"
Tear-filled eyes looked up, vulnerable as a lost kitten. "You… won't abandon Yutong?"
"Never."
An Zhen kissed her cheek softly. "I'll be with Yutong forever."
"En!"
Arms wrapped tightly around his neck. She clung to her family.
They would be together forever!
Later, Huo Yutong kowtowed three times before the grave. "Mom, I have to go."
"Don't worry. Yutong met someone wonderful. Someone who loves Yutong very much. Yutong loves him too. We'll live happily. Yutong will have a happy family."
"Aunt Yun," An Zhen whispered, "I will take care of her."
Under a sky full of stars, An Zhen carried Huo Yutong away. A surge of immense power erased all traces—blood, footprints, disturbances—leaving only the Duchess's corpse, returned to her chambers, cold and still.
"Mm..."
The young girl slept soundly in An Zhen's arms, a faint smile on her lips, dreaming of beautiful things.
"So, Tianmeng Iceworm," An Zhen's voice held quiet triumph. "Wasn't my plan better than yours?"
Those who had tormented Huo Yun'er and Huo Yutong were punished. Vengeance was complete. The weight of the past and the demons within her dissolved. Huo Yutong seemed reborn.
Tianmeng Iceworm remained silent. Her spiritual sense registered their northward movement.
Hmph. So they were executing her plan after all.
(End of Chapter)