Chapter 98 The Ghost
The meticulously planned "Heaven and Earth Reversal" formation has fallen apart, and the blood lines, like scorched spiderwebs, quickly curled up and dissipated.
In front of the live stream screen, Su Ying was pleasantly surprised to find that the sores on her cheeks were beginning to heal slowly.
And Suman...
"No--!"
Su Man let out a heart-wrenching scream, knelt on the ground, and gripped her face tightly with both hands.
The once smooth skin is now covered with wrinkles at a visible rate, and the jet-black hair is fading from the roots.
Lu Yao sheathed her wooden sword and coldly watched as the once stunningly beautiful woman writhed in agony on the ground.
“Su Man, you despise this distorted rule that binds women’s value to their youth, so why do you choose to bow down to it? You could have been the one to break the shackles, but you willingly became an accomplice of the rules, pushing more young girls into the same abyss as you.”
Lu Yao's voice was like a blade chilled by ice, each word precisely dissecting the excuse that Su Man had carefully constructed.
She took a step forward, the cold glint of the wooden sword reflecting on Su Man's smudged makeup.
"When you turn your knife on the weaker, you've already become complicit with the rules that oppress you. You don't hate the rules themselves, you just hate yourself for being eliminated by them."
Su Man looked up, her makeup ruined by tears.
At this moment, she finally revealed her true self—an ordinary woman in her forties, with fine lines around her eyes, but more real than ever before.
The number of viewers in the live stream has exceeded three million. A flood of comments poured in:
I don't know what to say. Su Man is truly a pitiful person, yet there's something hateful about her as well.
[The streamer is amazing! It's dazzling, and it's like a sword has pierced my heart!]
Su Man's transformation is heartbreaking. The rules are cruel, but she shouldn't have harmed others.
The side door of the stage was suddenly kicked open, and several police officers rushed in.
Su Man did not resist and calmly extended her hands.
"Master Xuanjin," Su Man asked, turning back before being led away, "you said, how do you rebel against these rules?"
Lu Yao slowly sheathed the crape myrtle wood sword.
She gazed into Su Man's cloudy, tearful eyes, and her voice suddenly softened: "Rebellion is not about fighting against the years, but about fighting against those distorted aesthetics."
Lu Yao turned to face the camera: "That's all for today's live stream. See you next time."
This program is just the tip of the iceberg; how many similar dark secrets in the entertainment industry remain undiscovered?
Qianqian and Suying are so pitiful. I hope everything will be better for them in the future.
Has our enthusiasm fueled the industry's pursuit of a youthful image...?
[Hope the streamer continues to uphold justice through live streaming, go for it!]
A young policewoman in uniform quickly stepped forward, her eyes gleaming with barely concealed excitement: "Answerer, I've been your fan for ten years!"
It was Li Ran, who had participated in solving the Li Guang serial murder case and the case of his biological father's kidnapping.
She watched the entire live broadcast while on duty tonight, and immediately led a team to the scene after receiving Youqing's report.
Her hand holding the walkie-talkie was still trembling slightly.
Lu Yao smiled gently. In stark contrast to her ethereal Taoist robe image during the live stream, she was now dressed in a simple white T-shirt and jeans, looking like a college student who had just finished class.
Only those insightful eyes and the purple crape myrtle wood sword at his waist convinced Li Ran that this was the powerful and influential Xuanmen Celestial Master on the screen.
"Hello." Lu Yao extended her hand gently, then hesitated for a moment. "Would it be convenient to exchange contact information? Perhaps I could assist with any cases in the future..."
Li Ran was flattered and flustered as she frantically operated her phone, "Of course! I'll scan your QR code!"
As she left the TV station building, Lu Yao caught a glimpse of her slightly tired reflection in the elevator mirror.
Those powerful spells were quite taxing, but she was already used to maintaining composure in front of others.
The familiar Wuling Hongguang van is still parked downstairs.
You Qing was sitting in the back seat with her legs crossed, a spicy snack in her mouth, and Yan Lingxuan was unconscious next to her.
Seeing Lu Yao emerge unharmed, she nearly choked on her spicy snack: "Grand Preceptor! Were those lightning effects real?"
Lu Yao opened the car door. "It's resolved. Let's go home."
"Yes, sir!" You Qing nimbly jumped into the driver's seat and casually stuffed the remaining half-pack of spicy strips into Lu Yao's hand.
The Wuling Hongguang vanished into the night.
Several men in black suddenly rushed out from behind. The man in the lead ripped off his sunglasses and stared at the departing taillights with a livid face.
"Damn it! She took the young lady away!" He kicked a trash can on the side of the road hard, the metallic clang echoing sharply in the empty street.
"What do we do now?" Another subordinate frantically pulled out his car keys. "The owner has found out..."
"Chase them!" the leader roared through gritted teeth.
Before the words were even finished, the Wuling Hongguang made a beautiful drift at the intersection ahead and disappeared into the intricate alleyways in the blink of an eye.
"What the hell!" The driver pounded on the steering wheel. "How can this beat-up van go faster than a supercar?!"
In the rearview mirror, Youqing whistled triumphantly.
Lu Yao closed her eyes to rest, but through her Heavenly Eye, she took in everything, and the corners of her mouth turned up slightly.
...
Yan Lingxuan was awakened by a copper coin hitting her.
She opened her eyes abruptly in pain, the blinding sunlight causing her to squint instinctively.
When her gaze focused, she found herself bound hand and foot to a pear tree, the rough hemp rope digging into the sleeves of her expensive silk dress.
The copper coins clattered to the ground, and a large bump swelled up on her forehead.
"woke up?"
A cool, clear voice came from the right.
Yan Lingxuan turned her head and saw Lu Yao and You Qing sitting at a small bamboo table, leisurely having breakfast.
The aroma of steaming hot buns lingered in the morning light, a stark contrast to her disheveled appearance.
Memories flooded back—last night, downstairs at the TV station, after a sparring match with the anchor, she was suddenly knocked unconscious by a talisman.
"Anchor!" Yan Lingxuan gritted her teeth, "This is kidnapping, this is illegal detention!"
Lu Yao paused slightly as she picked up a steamed bun with her chopsticks, then looked at You Qing thoughtfully: "What she said seems to make some sense."
"Pah!" You Qing swallowed half a steamed bun in one gulp and mumbled, "We invited you here as a guest. Not satisfied? Then we'll send you to the police station for tea?"
Yan Lingxuan struggled to get up, only to find herself tightly bound.
She secretly reached for the bamboo tube Gu artifact she always carried at her waist, but found nothing.
"Where are my Gu worms?" Her voice suddenly rose.
Youqing gestured towards the kitchen with her lip: "I used bamboo rice this morning, and it tasted pretty good."
As he spoke, he licked his lips as if he still wanted more.
"You—!" Yan Lingxuan trembled with rage, her delicate face contorted in anger. "Just wait until my father finds out..."
Lu Yao suddenly put down her chopsticks, looking surprised. "Wait, isn't your Miao region a matriarchal society?"
Lu Yao remembers that a thousand years ago in Miao territory, the Yan clan followed the ancient matrilineal tradition.
It was perfectly normal for Yan Lingxuan's mother—that dignified Miao elder—to have several partners.
Bloodline inheritance is based solely on the maternal line; the father's identity is not even mentioned in the family genealogy.
The air suddenly froze.
Yan Lingxuan's expression changed from anger to astonishment. "You... are you really unaware or are you pretending? Matriarchal clans? That's ancient history from a thousand years ago."
"Oh." Lu Yao paused for a moment. "No wonder your Yan family has declined."
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