Stepping in for the Heroine to Crush the Protagonist Group [Transmigration] - Chapter 68

Breaking free from the Spatial Distortion Art, Gu Sheng found herself standing beside a river, Hu Li cradled in her arms. As she pondered their location, a flash of sword light suddenly streaked across the water’s surface.

The sword light, swift as a fleeting meteor, hurtled directly toward her back.

Gu Sheng sidestepped, the longsword grazing her cheek. A chilling Sword Qi sliced her skin, drawing a bead of blood and a faint sting. Frowning, Gu Sheng glanced at Gu Jinghe, who stood a few steps away, manipulating the sword. As the blade lunged at her again, she flipped her hand, conjuring a luminous barrier before her.

The sword clashed against the barrier with a piercing clang. The Sword Spirit within the blade had already been devoured by the Great Rainbow Dragon, leaving it a mere ordinary longsword. Within moments, the barrier shattered the sword, even causing Gu Jinghe to suffer a backlash. He coughed up a mouthful of dark blood with a muffled groan.

“You can’t defeat me alone,” Gu Sheng said, wiping the blood from her cheek. Over the past decade, to suppress the Demonic Qi within her and to protect Hu Li, she had refined her Spells to the level of a near-immortal. Dealing with Gu Jinghe was now child’s play.

But Gu Jinghe merely smiled. “Who said I was alone?”

As his words faded, silver light erupted behind him. From within the shimmering radiance emerged the majority of the Elders from the Tianyan Sect’s Nine Peaks and Nine Valleys, positioning themselves behind Gu Jinghe. Their icy gazes fixed on Gu Sheng, their eyes devoid of warmth.

“Gu Sheng, we spared your life by chance back then. Today, we will show no mercy,” one of them declared grimly.

On the riverbank, the two sides faced each other in a tense standoff.

Gu Jinghe, his body swaying precariously, addressed the Elders behind him: “Esteemed Elders, please lend me your strength.” With that, he straightened his back, and from beneath his sleeve emerged a longsword formed from condensed spiritual power.

The sword shimmered with ethereal light, and faintly visible along its blade was a dark crimson pattern resembling flowing clouds.

Hu Li, with her sharp eyes, noticed the cloud-like pattern and frowned in confusion. “This sword made of spiritual power even has customizable blade patterns?”

Hearing this, Gu Sheng glanced down at Hu Li before shifting her gaze to the sword in Gu Jinghe’s hand. “It’s not a customizable pattern. That’s his Soul Mark.”

“A Soul Mark?” Hu Li exclaimed, suddenly understanding. “That old fox forged this sword with his own soul!”

Gu Sheng pressed her lips together, saying nothing.

But after speaking, Hu Li realized something else: Gu Sheng understood her fox speech. The fox froze completely, then burrowed into Gu Sheng’s arms, too embarrassed to face anyone.

Meanwhile, the System, which had flown all the way from the Demon Palace, urgently warned, “Host, keep your distance from Gu Sheng!” It knew its host’s romantic obsession was beyond help.

The System tried to fly over and yank Hu Li out of Gu Sheng’s arms, but when it saw the Tianyan Sect members glaring at them like tigers eyeing their prey, it immediately retreated into a nearby bush, content to observe the battle from a safe distance.

After Gu Jinghe summoned his Spirit Sword bearing the Soul Mark, the Elders behind him flipped their hands, conjuring their own longswords that pointed directly at Gu Sheng. Gu Sheng glanced at the swords aimed at her, realizing they planned to trap her with the Tianyan Sect’s sword formation.

Too bad she had no intention of letting them succeed.

She released one arm from around Hu Li, turned her palm upward, and formed a hand seal. Crimson threads streamed from her fingertips, then shot out with lightning speed, connecting to the wrists of the Elders behind Gu Jinghe.

The Elders were startled by this revelation. They lowered their heads to examine their wrists, where a faint, luminous glow emanated from a red string encircling each one.

It was the Puppet String.

“Gu Sheng, when did you plant these?!” An Elder, fearing death, glared at Gu Sheng and roared.

Gu Sheng glanced at him, her voice concise: “When you entered the Black Market to seek medicine, intending to harm your own brother.”

The death-fearing Elder stiffened, a flicker of shock crossing his eyes. He quickly averted the gazes of those around him, shrinking like a quail.

The Elders beside him fared no better.

Gu Sheng tightened the Puppet Strings, simultaneously manipulating them to point their swords at Gu Jinghe while addressing them one by one:

“You entered the Black Market to meet your lover in secret.”

“You plotted to harm your wife, scheming to seize the wealth she brought from her family.”

“And you… you too were driven by greed. Many of Tianyan Sect’s High-Grade Artifacts were smuggled into the Black Market by you.”

“…”

These men, who outwardly projected an image of moral purity and detachment from worldly concerns, were inwardly corrupt and depraved, long since having lost their humanity.

“Gu Jinghe, what now?” Gu Sheng asked calmly, turning her gaze to Gu Jinghe after subduing all the Elders.

Gu Jinghe clearly hadn’t anticipated Gu Sheng’s influence in the Black Market, nor that the Elders were under her control. His eyes swept over the Spirit Swords encircling him, and the longsword in his hand trembled slightly as he unconsciously held his breath.

“Gu Sheng—” he hissed through gritted teeth, his eyes flashing with a sudden, overwhelming spiritual pressure that shattered all the Spirit Swords around him. If these useless tools can’t help me, I’ll discard them.

With that thought, Gu Jinghe channeled his Spiritual Power again, sending his longsword hurtling toward Gu Sheng at breakneck speed.

Gu Sheng scoffed lightly. She spun gracefully to evade the sword, then, after settling Hu Li on her shoulder, clasped her hands together, forming a Magic Seal that shattered the sword into fragments.

The shattered sword clattered to the ground. Gu Jinghe’s pupils flickered momentarily, but he quickly recovered, conjuring another sword and gripping it tightly. He charged forward, engaging Gu Sheng in close combat.

Gu Sheng had never been skilled in swordsmanship, a fact Gu Jinghe was well aware of. He flipped his longsword swiftly, each strike aimed directly at Gu Sheng’s vital points.

Gu Sheng narrowed her eyes, dodging another of Gu Jinghe’s attacks. “Since you insist on pressing me so relentlessly,” she said coldly, “don’t blame me for what comes next.”

As her words faded, a luminous screen materialized in her palm, blocking Gu Jinghe’s sword. Immediately afterward, she closed her eyes, chanted an incantation, and a silver-white blade of light materialized at her fingertips.

This was the Spirit Stealing Technique.

Gu Sheng divided the blade of light into three strands, sending them hurtling toward Gu Jinghe.

By this point, Gu Jinghe was already at his limit. He stared blankly at the approaching blades of light, managing to block the first strand with his Spirit Sword. But against the final two strands, which attacked from completely opposite directions, his strength failed him.

The blades of light were about to strike him. Gu Jinghe’s breath caught in his throat, convinced he was about to fall at Gu Sheng’s hands.

But in that split second, a muffled thunderclap echoed through the darkening sky. A bolt of purple-gold lightning descended from the heavens, striking the ground at Gu Sheng’s feet and obliterating the blade of light.

Gu Sheng frowned slightly, sidestepping the scorched mark left by the celestial lightning.

Hu Li also saw the Heavenly Lightning. Clinging to Gu Sheng’s shoulder, the fox froze completely, staring blankly at the sky, which had inexplicably become overcast.

Nearby, the System peeked its head out from the bushes. It looked at Hu Li and urgently called out, “Host, this is bad! The Heavenly Dao has discovered you’re with Gu Sheng and is about to unleash Heavenly Punishment!”

Heavenly Dao? Gu Sheng heard those words again. She glanced at the System, wanting to ask Hu Li what was going on, but Gu Jinghe cackled maniacally and lunged forward with his sword once more.

“Gu Sheng, even the Heavenly Dao can’t tolerate you!” Gu Jinghe roared, slashing down without hesitation.

Gu Sheng barely dodged the strike, but the blade still grazed her arm, allowing Gu Jinghe’s Sword Qi to seep into the wound. The Sword Qi was brutally domineering, tearing through Gu Sheng’s Spiritual Meridians, wreaking havoc on everything in its path.

A metallic sweetness rose in Gu Sheng’s throat, and she couldn’t suppress the mouthful of blood that splattered onto the ground.

Hu Li’s breath hitched at the sight.

She lifted her gaze to the Red Jade Hairpin in Gu Sheng’s hair, her resolve hardening. The hairpin flew free, transforming into a crimson longsword that parried Gu Jinghe’s next strike.

As the two swords clashed, Hu Li fiercely suppressed the discomfort surging through her soul. She channeled a wisp of Soul Power into her blade, parrying Gu Jinghe’s strike.

Gu Jinghe hadn’t anticipated Hu Li’s interference. His grip tightened on his sword, and in the next instant, another strike flew out—this time aimed directly at Hu Li.

Gu Sheng snapped out of her daze and witnessed the scene. The Demonic Qi she had suppressed within her soul immediately surged back to life. Ten years ago, she had stood helplessly by as Gu Jinghe drove countless Immortal Slaying Nails into Hu Li. This time, she would never allow him to harm Hu Li again.

With a swift motion, she disregarded the Demonic Qi’s corrosive assault on her soul as she channeled Spiritual Power, unleashing a Magic Seal that struck Gu Jinghe squarely.

Gu Jinghe staggered back in agony, collapsing to one knee. Clutching his chest, he coughed violently, noticing wisps of dark purple Demonic Qi seeping between his fingers. His pupils constricted. “You have Demonic Qi within you?!”

Hearing this, Gu Sheng suppressed the restless Demonic Qi within her. She met Gu Jinghe’s gaze coldly, her voice dripping with scorn. “So what?”

Gu Jinghe declared flatly, “The Heavenly Dao will not tolerate you!”

Gu Sheng let out a dry “Oh” and retorted, “Is it the Heavenly Dao that won’t tolerate me, or you? Are you truly so blind to your own motives?”

Gu Jinghe had no answer, but the sword in his hand twitched restlessly.

Gu Sheng noticed his subtle movements. After pondering for a moment, she gazed up at the pitch-black sky, and an idea suddenly struck her. She recalled a comment she’d read in a book review: the so-called Heavenly Dao in the novel was simply the “rules” established by the author—in other words, human-made rules.

If the person who set these rules is the reason Hu Li hesitates to be with me, then I’ll just eliminate that person. Wouldn’t that make everyone happy?

With this thought, Gu Sheng’s gaze shifted toward Gu Jinghe, and she offered him a faint smile.

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