True Heir of Chaos: From Villainess to Empress

Pan Yuanyuan finally saw the light of day again. The moment her gaze landed on the two people seated at the top, especially Tang Jian with a face darker than the bottom of a pot, her scattered soul snapped back into place. She threw herself at him with a pitiful cry.

"Jūnshàng, please speak for me. Mo Yue Jūnshàng, she... she..."

She began to sob. The way her tears clung to her lashes like raindrops on pear blossoms could have tugged at anyone's heartstrings. Unfortunately, the two people at the head showed no reaction whatsoever.

"Speak. Why did you lure the master of Mo Ying Peak toward the Ma clan's cultivators?"

"Jūnshàng, I... I saw that you were in a bad mood, and I wanted to help you."

"Yuanyuan, you'd better tell the truth. Do you really think you're capable of scheming against a Peak Lord?"

"Jūnshàng, please, listen to me. The Ma clan cultivators came to me first. I... I just wanted to vent your anger for you!"

Slap!

This time, Tang Jian struck her across the face with a palm from afar, the force rattling her senses.

"Peak Lord Tang, since she refuses to tell the truth, then just search her soul. You still care about old affections, but she has already dumped all the blame onto you."

Pan Yuanyuan trembled violently. She looked at Tang Jian in disbelief. In her memory, Tang Jian had always been a fool, someone she played with at her fingertips. She had never seen him this merciless before.

"Jūnshàng!!!"

Her desperate cries made Jian Dan's skin crawl with goosebumps.

"Save that act. This is the cultivation world. This is the Heavenly Demon Palace. Don't bring your worldly harem tricks to manipulate a Peak Lord."

Jian Dan's voice was sharp with mockery. She turned to Tang Jian, her tone bored.

"Peak Lord Tang, she's your favored concubine. Handle her as you wish. But I want an explanation for what happened to Mó Yuè. You know what I'm like."

As she turned to leave, Jian Dan glanced back at Pan Yuanyuan, who was still hanging her head and weeping.

"This matter isn't known by me alone."

With that, she stepped out of Tang Jian's cave dwelling.

Oddly enough, her departure made the atmosphere inside even heavier. Tang Jian's face was cold, completely devoid of the tenderness he once showed Pan Yuanyuan.

"I've treated you well. Is this how you repay me?"

"Jūnshàng!"

He stared at her pale, fragile face, yet his heart was frozen. Perhaps he had indulged her too much all along.

With a flick of his fingers, Tang Jian pulled Pan Yuanyuan toward him, placed a palm on her head, and a dim light flashed in his eyes as he began a soul search.

What he uncovered shook him. In that moment, the last traces of affection in his heart vanished. When he withdrew his hand, Pan Yuanyuan collapsed to the ground, unconscious.

Tang Jian immediately sent a message to Jian Dan, stating that Pan Yuanyuan would be handed over to the Obsidian Guards and dealt with according to sect law. He would show no favoritism. Then, using a blank jade slip, he imprinted all the findings from the soul search and passed it on to the Obsidian Guard's punishment hall.

A quarter hour later, six Obsidian Guards arrived at Mo Yun Peak.

Tang Ning had just finished respectfully seeing off Mó Yuè at the base of the mountain when the guards arrived. Startled, he was about to report when Tang Jian's voice reached him through a transmission: "Let them go straight to my cave."

Tang Ning immediately led them up the mountain. Less than a quarter hour after entering, the guards left again, taking with them Tang Jian's most beloved concubine, Pan Yuanyuan.

Jian Dan, hidden in the shadows, watched them leave and retrieved her own shadow jade. The one Tang Jian smashed earlier in a fit of rage had been the replica she had given him, so she didn't bother stopping him.

Floating in mid-air, she wrote a transmission slip, attached the jade, and sent it to the punishment hall.

Back at her own peak, Jian Dan was greeted by Gong Yi, who had been waiting. After a bow, Gong Yi handed her an invitation.

"Jūnshàng, this is an invitation from the Hua clan. They've invited you to their ancestral home in Tian Mo City to admire the flowers tomorrow."

Jian Dan raised her brow. The Hua clan was quick to react. Back at the auction in Huan Le City, she had passed a message through a junior cultivator of theirs. Now that she had officially entered the Heavenly Demon Palace and established her footing, they had come knocking.

"Well chosen timing. Just happens to avoid the day after tomorrow, when I'm meeting Senior Sister Mo Qi. Very well. Bring your squad with me tomorrow."

Gong Yi was already used to her moody temperament. He simply nodded and accepted the order.

"We are visiting someone's home. Dress decently. Don't make it look like we're going there to silence witnesses. Understood?"

"Yes, Jūnshàng. I'll make the arrangements."

After returning to her cave, Jian Dan sat down on her rocking chair, tapping the armrest with one finger as she closed her eyes and extended her senses to the inner space.

Within, everything was tranquil and peaceful. Cotton Candy flitted through the air, sometimes growing larger, sometimes shrinking, experimenting with transformation techniques. The moment it sensed Jian Dan's divine sense, it began to wail.

"Master, I still can't transform! I'm useless. I can't go out and help you!"

Seeing Cotton Candy's pitiful expression, Jian Dan gently brushed it with her divine sense and soothed it with a warm voice.

"How could Cotton Candy be useless? You're wonderful. I've already scouted a patch of flowing colored clouds on Caixia Peak. If I can get a strand, you might be able to refine it and change your color. Then you'll be able to go outside."

"Really?"

"Of course. I've never lied to you, have I?"

"Okay! Then hurry, Master! I can't wait!"

Cotton Candy spun in circles joyfully.

"Alright, I'll hurry. How are Mo Ran and Jade doing?"

"They're lazy snakes, sleeping in trees all day. Sometimes they go nibble on spirit herbs or drink from the spirit spring, but most of the time they're coiled up. I try to play with them, but they ignore me."

Jian Dan laughed and gently tapped Cotton Candy's head with her divine sense.

"You've made progress. You can help me fight. They want to be like you, that's why they're training hard. Keep an eye on them for me."

"Understood!"

Jian Dan swept her divine sense through the space once more. Everything was in order, so she withdrew.

Then her entire spirit sank into her sea of consciousness, forming a ball of divine light that circled the magnolia, absorbing the soft white motes it emitted. With every mote she absorbed, her spirit grew stronger. The sensation was like drinking cold water on a hot summer day, refreshing her from head to toe.

By morning, Jian Dan emerged from her cave rejuvenated. Seeing Gong Yi and the others already waiting, she nodded in satisfaction.

"Jūnshàng, we have nine members in our team. Six will accompany you to the Hua clan, and three will remain to guard the peak. That way we can stay in contact if anything happens."

Gong Yi's calm voice outlined the plan.

"Well done. Your arrangement is sound."

Just as the group was about to leave Mo Ying Peak, Jian Dan paused.

"I remember last time we rode golden chariots drawn by flying horses. Can we borrow one again?"

"If the Peak Lord requires it, I'll request one from Beast Peak."

"I've never been to Beast Peak. Let's go check on my unicorn flying horse."

Led by Gong Yi, the group headed to Beast Peak, where they unexpectedly ran into Mo Su at the base of the mountain.

"Senior Brother, where are you headed?"

Mo Su glanced at Jian Dan and the black-robed guards behind her. After a brief nod, he replied,

"I'm here to check on my beast companion, the hawk."

Jian Dan nodded in understanding. The last time she saw Mo Su's beast companion was back in the secular world, when they destroyed the Blood Dragon Array used by evil cultivators together.

Back then, she was a Foundation Establishment cultivator from the Heavenly Sword Sect named Shan Yunzu. Mo Su was still a Golden Core cultivator from the Heavenly Demon Palace named Yan Su.