Chapter 790: The Apex of the Tianshi Sect, Incredible!
When Shen Anyu publicly drew her into an embrace and patted her back in a comforting gesture, Yu Guannan's pretty face flushed. The gesture felt unfamiliar, intimate, yet she found herself unable to resist.
She and Shen Anyu were hardly what one would call familiar.
Before the Yu family banquet, they had only met a handful of times. She had always lumped him in with her second brother, Yu Guanxiong—just another pampered scion of a noble house. Consequently, her opinion of him had been decidedly negative. As a proud daughter of heaven, she had little time for men she deemed superficial.
, the Yu and Shen families had never been on good terms; they were, for all intents and purposes, adversaries.
But at that fateful banquet, Shen Anyu had defeated Old Qin in an instant, cowing the entire assembly. That single act had forced Yu Guannan to see him in a completely new light. Having lost their bet, she was supposed to become his concubine.
Under normal circumstances, Yu Guannan might never have honored such a wager, and the Yu family certainly would not have allowed it. But then, the Young Master of the Tianshi Sect, Zhang Zhiyun, had descended upon her family and annihilated them.
Overnight, every one of Yu Guannan's closest relatives was gone. In that maelstrom of despair, only Shen Anyu had stepped forward to protect and save her. He became the single ray of light in her suffocating darkness, the hand reaching for her as she drowned.
When Qin Yuan had sent a Land Immortal corpse puppet to attack, Shen Anyu had willingly taken an injury to shield her. That moment had sent a tremor through Yu Guannan's heart.
The separation over these past few days had only caused her favorable feelings for Shen Anyu to grow. Without the people he had dispatched to assist her, she, a young woman alone, would never have been able to fend off the covetous wolves circling the remnants of her family's estate. Even for a proud daughter of heaven, a Martial Arts Grandmaster, it would have been too much. After all, the Yu family, as one of the few top noble families in Yanxia, possessed a staggering amount of wealth and resources—a prize countless people now craved.
Yu Guannan sobbed against his shoulder for a while longer before raising her beautiful, tear-filled eyes to look at Shen Anyu's warm and handsome face. A silent, solemn vow formed in her heart.
'Shen Anyu,' she thought, 'as long as you can help me kill Zhang Zhiyun and avenge the Yu family, I, Yu Guannan, will serve you for the rest of my life. I will never leave your side!'
[Ding! Detected Destined Heroine Yu Guannan's Favorability +3. Plundered 9,000 Destiny Value!]
…
'Her favorability has reached ninety-six,' Shen Anyu noted internally, even as he continued to gently pat Yu Guannan's fragrant shoulder. 'It's mostly gratitude, with a bit of admiration mixed in. I don't particularly care if it's love or not. Gratitude that reaches the maximum level is just as effective.'
There was very little romance, but a great deal of obligation. It was a foundation built on kindness, not passion.
In any case, as long as both her body and her heart belonged to him, it was all the same. She would grow accustomed to it in time. Even the purest, most innocent beauty could eventually be trained. They all learned.
And Yu Guannan would never know the truth—that the Yu family's annihilation at Zhang Zhiyun's hands was a tragedy he himself had orchestrated.
"Brother Shen, why did you call me to Hangzhou? Do you have news about Zhang Zhiyun?"
Yu Guannan allowed Shen Anyu to take her hand and lead her into the Rolls-Royce Phantom, her voice laced with an eager, desperate hope.
She had been in the middle of overseeing her family's funeral arrangements. Tomorrow would mark the seventh day since their passing, a crucial day of mourning. But Shen Anyu had told her to come to Hangzhou at once, and she had not hesitated for a second, rushing over immediately.
A thrill of anticipation ran through her. Shen Anyu would not summon her away from her family's funeral for no reason. It had to be something important—it had to be that he had found the whereabouts of that murderer, Zhang Zhiyun!
At the mere thought of his name, Yu Guannan's beautiful eyes reddened again, and she bit her lip so hard the skin turned white.
"Mm, you guessed correctly. We have Zhang Zhiyun's location," Shen Anyu nodded.
"Where is that beast?" Yu Guannan's sorrowful, pitiable expression vanished, replaced by a mask of pure, unadulterated hatred. Zhang Zhiyun had slaughtered her entire family. This was a blood debt that could never be reconciled.
"Zhang Zhiyun is currently at the Tianshi Sect. He killed everyone there, plundering their vital blood to cultivate a demonic art. He's already been surrounded by experts from the Special Department…" Shen Anyu began to explain.
The annihilation of a behemoth like the Tianshi Sect could not possibly go unnoticed. The Special Department had detected the anomaly quickly. His aunt, An Zhiyue, in her capacity as the Jiangnan Inspector, had swiftly led a team of experts to surround the mountain peak.
"Has Zhang Zhiyun been apprehended?" Hope and excitement flickered in Yu Guannan's eyes.
"No, not yet. Zhang Zhiyun is… not what he once was," Shen Anyu said, his expression turning heavy as he drew the white-clad Yu Guannan closer. A faint, almost imperceptible curve touched the corners of his mouth.
Ring, ring!
Just then, his phone rang. It was a call from An Zhiyue.
"Shen Anyu, where are you now? There's an urgent situation that requires your help," An Zhiyue's capable voice came through the line, tinged with a note of solemnity.
"I'm at Hangzhou Airport, picking someone up," Shen Anyu replied with a knowing smile.
"Hangzhou Airport? What a coincidence. I'm on my way to pick you up personally."
An Zhiyue arrived with astonishing speed, touching down in a military aircraft.
Looking at Shen Anyu, her heroic and beautiful face showed a hint of apology. "Shen Anyu, I have to trouble you again."
"It's no trouble at all. I am a Special Consultant for the Special Department; it's part of my duty," Shen Anyu said, his tone perfectly understanding. The entire affair was his own doing, after all. Besides, the Special Department was practically within the An family's sphere of influence. Working for his own family came with numerous benefits, and they would never treat him poorly. It was a perfect arrangement.
"This matter is also somewhat related to you. The target is the Young Master of the Tianshi Sect, Zhang Zhiyun…" An Zhiyue briefly explained the situation, then her gaze fell upon Yu Guannan standing beside Shen Anyu. A flicker of surprise crossed her phoenix eyes.
She had not expected Yu Guannan to be so close to him. The Yu and Shen families had always been rivals, and Yu Guannan was famous for her arrogance. Yet here she was, standing obediently by Shen Anyu's side, not saying a word.
Then again, the Yu family was now all but destroyed, with only Yu Guannan left. Seeing her, An Zhiyue felt a pang of pity.
After a moment's thought, she offered a word of comfort. "This time, our Special Department will certainly bring Zhang Zhiyun to justice and seek vengeance for the Yu family."
Hearing this, Yu Guannan's eyes reddened slightly, but she was not some fragile, wilting flower. Even after suffering such a devastating blow, she maintained her composure, offered a polite expression of thanks, and bowed her head.
Shen Anyu watched the two heroic beauties, one older and one younger, from the side.
His aunt, An Zhiyue, was sharp and capable, with a fair, delicate face, exquisite features, and stylishly short hair. Her every move carried a disciplined, military bearing, and her words were always decisive.
As for Yu Guannan, alongside her own heroic spirit, she possessed a radiant, moving beauty. Dressed now in pure white mourning clothes, her eyes slightly red-rimmed with faint tear stains, she looked especially pitiable, exuding an air of heart-wrenching fragility.
"There's no time to waste. Let's leave at once. We'll take the military plane to the Tianshi Sect," An Zhiyue said immediately after the brief pleasantries.
With that, she led Shen Anyu and Yu Guannan toward the waiting aircraft.
Onboard the military plane, the atmosphere was heavy. Both An Zhiyue and Yu Guannan wore extremely solemn expressions.
Shen Anyu, however, felt perfectly at ease, not the slightest bit nervous or worried. He maintained a grave facade, holding Yu Guannan's small hand and occasionally leaning in to offer soft words of comfort.
[Ding! Detected Destined Heroine Yu Guannan's Favorability +1. Plundered 3,000 Destiny Value!]
Having her hand held and being so gently comforted by Shen Anyu in front of An Zhiyue made Yu Guannan feel a little shy. She stole a glance at the older woman, and seeing that An Zhiyue wasn't looking their way, she breathed a small sigh of relief. A deep warmth spread through her chest.
She looked at Shen Anyu's handsome, gentle profile, a quiet thought taking root in her mind.
'If… if Shen Anyu really helps me avenge my family… spending my life with him seems like it would be quite good…'
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