Chapter 362: Pretty Stupid
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"Gu Ai… sir?"
Yu Lan spoke cautiously. Su Cheng had repeatedly warned her about the pink-haired child before her—she wasn't as fragile as she appeared.
"Just call me Xiao Ai."
Accompanied by two Valkyries, Xiao Ai found Yulan and watched from afar as Su Cheng and Shen Rui battled in the mountains.
Honestly, it wasn't much of a battle. At best, Su Cheng was holding his ground; at worst, he was running away.
"Why did you bring me here…"
Yu Lan's puzzled expression froze mid-sentence as a thunderous roar shook the air.
Immediately, a violent wind swept in, powerful enough to snap trees and lift people off their feet.
Following the sound, Yulan saw her beloved Chengcheng, now surrounded and under attack.
Multicolored arrows crisscrossed with a sky full of sword shadows, while countless magical artifacts unleashed a barrage of attacks.
In the world Su Cheng once inhabited, there was no room for dramatic duels. Appearing meant only one thing: to kill the enemy.
Shen Rui knew this was a trap, and Su Cheng knew it too.
Shen Rui knew the Honorable One would come, and Su Cheng knew he had no choice but to go.
"What exactly did my city do to you that you must seek its utter annihilation?"
Yu Lan twisted her head. Even knowing she was no match for the girl before her, or even the two black-armored Valkyries behind her, she still demanded an answer!
She couldn't bear to watch. This wasn't a battle at all!
The entire mountain was swarming with enemies. His Chengcheng wasn't just in grave danger—it was practically a death sentence.
And every enemy surrounding the mountain possessed the strength of that armored warrior from that day—like heavenly soldiers and generals, utterly unshakable.
She wanted to help?
Like hell!
It would only mean joining them in death.
"Hmph~" Xiao Ai dismissed it with a scoff, merely watching on.
"What's this supposed to mean? You called me here just to watch this?"
Xiao Ai grinned, glancing at Yulan who glared at her fiercely, and casually remarked.
"What else? You wouldn't actually want to kill him, would you?"
Undoubtedly, this was a spectacle—far more intense than the Armored Warrior incident. This time, Su Cheng couldn't even save himself.
Helping him would be tantamount to killing Su Cheng. Su Cheng absolutely couldn't protect another person now.
Standing before him was the former Godslayer King—a man capable of slaying deities.
With the calmness of someone always one move behind, Su Cheng exchanged dozens of blows with that hero. It seemed they were evenly matched—after all, Su Cheng was still very much alive.
"Xiao Ai, Lady Gu Ai, what exactly would make you spare my Chengcheng?"
Xiao Ai paused, but she didn't dislike this kind of conversation.
"Spare her? Xiao Ai has never considered such a thing, unless he begs me himself."
Spare Su Cheng?
As if she enjoyed this thankless task!
If Su Cheng dared to speak up, she'd be off living the carefree life in a heartbeat!
Heh~
Though Xiao Ai understood what Yu Lan meant, she didn't care about this misunderstanding.
Regardless of the kind of "sparing," she wasn't particularly inclined to spare Su Cheng.
"If you're willing to let him go, Yulan is willing to do… anything…"
Yu Lan kept her head bowed, her eyes hidden from Xiao Ai's view.
"Anything?"
"Yes. As long as you're willing to let my Chengcheng go, I'm willing to do anything."
Xiao Ai couldn't help but laugh. Sometimes, when you're utterly speechless, laughter just escapes.
"Hmph~ What are you, anyway? Do you think you're worthy of negotiating terms with Xiao Ai?"
"No one in this world can negotiate terms with the Executioner's Blade, nor can anyone negotiate terms with the Mansion!"
"If Xiao Ai decrees death by the third watch, no one lives past the fifth!"
"You're nothing but a snake demon, a worthless creature who survives only by crawling into bed with others! How dare you negotiate with Xiao Ai?"
The spear swept through, carving a canyon into the earth beneath.
Divine might erupted, a colossal blade cleaving sky and cloud.
The sword's aura scattered her pink hair. As her figure shifted, the once-smiling face now bore a bitter expression.
Many things Xiao Ai had long forgotten—memories sealed away, buried alongside countless faces.
As Su Cheng’s chest was pierced by the spear, Yulan could no longer hold back. In an instant, she raised her giant axe, ready to charge forth and rescue Su Cheng from peril.
The abilities purchased with system points might instantly kill natives, but against the Godslayer King wielding true authority, they proved utterly inadequate.
Xiao Ai couldn't understand why Su Cheng could still summon Zero Two, though Zero Two's power was clearly reduced to a fraction of its former self.
How could this false authority possibly stand against true authority?
Yet Xiao Ai clutched the axe handle with iron-grip resolve. No matter how fiercely Yu Lan strained, he couldn't budge it an inch.
"If you don't want to kill him, just watch quietly."
"What the hell do you think you're doing?!" Yulan couldn't help but rage—that was her man!
Even if she were wicked, even if she were cold-blooded, she could never stand by and watch the man she loved die before her eyes!
Yet Xiao Ai remained as calm as ever, as if she had orchestrated this entire scene.
To be honest, that was exactly what Yulan believed. She was convinced the man below was Xiao Ai's subordinate.
"I want you to understand this isn't your business. You've been overstepping lately."
"What do you mean?" Yulan's eyes widened. Knowing pleas were useless, she shed all weakness now, adopting a look of utter defiance.
Frankly, Yulan was starting to lose track of things!
The young lady said Xiao Ai was one of their own! Su Cheng also told her not to go against this pink-haired girl!
But did this guy even look like one of us?
This fucking thing was clearly the enemy! The young lady and Chengcheng were clearly all show and no substance!
This pink-haired brat, and her whole gang of armored lackeys!
They don't look like good people at all!
"Honestly, Xiao Ai prefers smarter types. That fox spirit might be a bitch, but she's clearly smarter than you."
"I told you, I don't know what you're talking about! So what the hell do you want?!"
Xiao Ai let out a long sigh, her face a picture of exasperation. She glanced at the two behind her, as if seeking their agreement…
But behind their masks, the silent pair offered no emotional support.
In truth, Yulan and Xiao Ai had been here for a while. Ever since entering the mountains from Su City, the atmosphere had grown strangely tense.
A peculiar tension hung in the air, thick as if facing a formidable enemy. The wind whistled like war drums, or perhaps the wails of ghosts.
This wasn't fun. Honestly, everything felt so strange and inexplicable.
Yulan felt like this whole situation was some kind of sick game. She couldn't quite put her finger on the feeling.
Everyone wore those condescending, disgusting expressions, yet somehow she found herself powerless to argue back. This feeling was truly… sickening!
Including Chengcheng—every single one of them spoke in riddles!
This fucking thing wasn't mysterious at all—it was just stupid!
It wasn't the slightest bit interesting! It was disgusting!
But Yulan couldn't grasp that these "big shots" weren't deliberately playing mysterious. It was just a touch of childishness mixed with a bit of hypocrisy.
Gu Ai, with her far-reaching influence and power rivaling the gods despite her childlike form, was, at her core, just an ordinary mortal.
Just like those Valkyries—when resting, they're ordinary people too, with different hobbies and quirks.
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