When cutting weeds, one must remove the roots.
All royal descendants understood this principle well.
Since Prince Li Guanglu of Zhen Nan had decided to rebel, he naturally wanted to eliminate any future troubles.
Though it wasn't clear who the girl Ye Nian was born to, whether she was Li Ruowang's daughter or someone else's, it didn't matter.
What mattered was that she was officially Li Ruowang's daughter, and that alone warranted her eradication from this world.
Jie Chen, the third of the Southern Four Evils, grinned maliciously.
In an instant, he vanished from his original position and reappeared on the throne of the Ascension Platform.
At this moment, almost all the guard forces launched an attack on Li Guanglu as per Li Ruowang's orders.
On the throne, only Qingzhu and three female attendants remained to protect Ye Nian.
Jie Chen's sudden appearance caught everyone off guard.
In their unpreparedness, two female attendants were instantly turned into pulp by Jie Chen.
Qingzhu, quick-witted, immediately scooped up Ye Nian and prepared to fly towards where Li Ruowang was.
However, at this moment, Jie Tan, the eldest of the Southern Four Evils, appeared on the other side of the Ascension Platform, blocking Qingzhu's path and preventing her from joining Li Ruowang.
"Lady Qingzhu, take the princess and leave quickly. I'll hold them off!"
The last remaining female attendant drew her sword, intending to block Jie Chen's advance.
But the disparity in strength was too great. Jie Chen's body radiated with light, transforming into numerous vultures in the next moment, devouring the female attendant instantly.
He then continued at full speed towards Qingzhu.
Seeing this, Qingzhu knew she couldn't confront Jie Chen head-on. She had to dodge and swiftly flew towards the direction of the palace.
Qingzhu's thoughts were clear.
Once she reached the palace, there were the most elite soldiers of the Great Qian Dynasty and royal guards who might be able to stop this grotesque giant.
Moreover, she could call for reinforcements to rescue the Empress.
Everything happened too quickly, too abruptly, leaving no time for a proper reaction.
When Ye Liangyan saw Jie Chen and Jie Tan chasing after Qingzhu in the distance, he immediately spoke in a solemn tone, "Your Majesty the Empress, I'm willing to lead the troops over and vow to protect Her Highness the Princess with my life."
Li Ruowang turned her head and glanced in the direction where the Azure Cloud Sect disciples were located.
Seeing that the masked Ye Yu had already disappeared without a trace, a touching smile appeared on her face.
"You all just focus on dealing with the enemy. No one can leave unless Li Guanglu is killed," she said.
Upon hearing this, Ye Liangyan instantly understood. Li Ruowang must have arranged for others to protect Ye Nian's safety.
Otherwise, given her usual doting towards the little princess, she would never sit idly by like today.
But something was amiss.
With such intense fighting erupting on the Ascension Platform, how could the royal attendants of the Great Qian Dynasty not notice?
Why hadn't anyone come to rescue them until now?
On the other side, under the siege of Jie Chen and Jie Tan, Qingzhu was unable to return to the Imperial City.
She could only take advantage of the chaos and hide in the dense forest outside the city, blending Ye Nian's figure completely with the tree trunk using a hiding technique.
Leaning against the tree trunk, Qingzhu hugged Ye Nian and silently recited the concealment incantation.
She whispered in a very low voice, "Princess, no matter what happens, do not speak or move. Otherwise, this hiding technique will disappear. Now, I'll go lure them away. You stay here and wait for rescue."
Ye Nian nodded earnestly.
Seeing her so obedient and sensible, a hint of a smile appeared on Qingzhu's usually cold face.
She then tore off a nearby leaf, cast a spell with one hand, and transformed the leaf into Ye Nian's likeness.
Without daring to delay any longer, Qingzhu hugged the fake Ye Nian and swiftly flew outward.
However, before she could fly a hundred meters away, a large black bear paw condensed instantly in mid-air, slamming Qingzhu down from the sky with immense force.
The entire forest trembled from the impact.
Countless vultures flew in and gathered into a mass. Jie Chen's figure appeared again.
Meanwhile, Jie Tan descended from the sky on the other side.
One on the left and one on the right, they formed a pincer attack against Qingzhu.
At this moment, Qingzhu was already severely injured from the earlier blow.
She wiped the blood from the corner of her mouth and struggled to get up, tightly holding the fake "Ye Nian" in her right hand.
Jie Tan grinned maliciously, clasping his hands together.
In an instant, black vines appeared out of nowhere, completely entangling Qingzhu, leaving her unable to move an inch.
Meanwhile, Jie Chen strode forward, reaching out to snatch the fake Ye Nian from Qingzhu's hand.
Before he could examine it closely, the fake Ye Nian instantly turned into a leaf and fluttered down.
It was only then that Jie Chen realized the real Ye Nian wasn't there. He roared angrily, "Hand over that girl, or I'll eat you!"
"Dream on!" Qingzhu snorted coldly.
She twisted her body, trying to break free from the vines binding her.
But these vines were clearly not ordinary; they tightened more and more, covered with thorns that pierced into Qingzhu's body, continuously draining her spiritual energy, making her weaker and weaker.
Jie Tan quickly approached. "Such a beautiful fairy, she must taste delicious. How about I start by eating her legs?"
With that, Jie Tan took Qingzhu from Jie Chen, opening his bloody mouth wide, preparing to devour her legs.
"No!" Ye Nian immediately stepped out from the tree trunk.
Though she hadn't been with Lady Qingzhu for long, she had already regarded her as an elder sister. How could she bear to watch her being eaten alive?
Summoning all her strength, Ye Nian shouted loudly, "Let go of Elder Sister Qingzhu, and I'll leave with you!"
"Princess!" Qingzhu's eyes were bloodshot as she shook her head repeatedly.
But the vines almost drained all her spiritual energy, leaving Qingzhu unable to do anything but feel furious.
"What a compassionate little girl," Jie Chen sneered.
With just a few steps, he arrived in front of Ye Nian, raising his large hand to grab her.
But just then, the clear sky suddenly became overcast with dark clouds. A sword light flashed across, followed by several purple thunderbolts descending from the sky.
BOOM!
After a muffled sound, Jie Chen fell to the ground, completely blackened.
Countless small wounds appeared on his body, and there was even a faint scent of roasted flesh.
Such a scene instantly stunned everyone present.
Qingzhu looked up.
She saw behind Ye Nian, a figure in white appeared. He still wore the eight-bamboo mask on his face.
It's actually him?
Ye Nian couldn't believe it either. She slowly turned back.
When she saw Ye Yu's figure, she immediately felt an unprecedented sense of security surge in her heart.
Just like when her daddy was by her side.
"How dare you lay a hand on her? Are you tired of living?"
At this moment, Ye Yu's anger reached its peak.
If it was about usurping the throne, then so be it.
But how dare they touch his daughter?
This, Ye Yu absolutely couldn't tolerate.
Whether it was the Four Southern Evils or the Prince of Zhen Nan.
Anyone who dared to harm Ye Nian deserved to die!