"Xiaoli, would you like to give it a try?"
In truth, Gu Qingche was far more anxious than Gu Qingli herself.
Gu Qingli smiled and nodded gently, ignoring the sneering, scornful look on Gu Qinglin's face as she walked gracefully toward Senior Bai.
With Gu Qinglin's level of intelligence, she wasn't even worthy of being considered a rival.
"Just like her mother—a vixen who seduces men," Gu Qinglin spat venomously from behind.
Gu Qingli's steps faltered for the briefest moment. The serene smile on her lips froze. A moment ago, she had seemed as tranquil as a snow lotus. But in the blink of an eye, a cold, overwhelming aura of killing intent enveloped her entire being. Her presence transformed utterly.
She struck without warning, her hand sweeping back with a flash of emerald battle energy—swift and ruthless, without even a glance.
No one had anticipated her sudden assault. Before the crowd could react, Gu Qinglin had already been struck by the green light. A shriek tore through the air as blood sprayed from her lips, and her body was hurled backward violently.
A figure darted out just in time, catching the injured Gu Qinglin mid-air before she hit the ground. His eyes, wide with disbelief, fixed on the attacker—Gu Qingli.
It was Elder Mu. The moment he had seen Gu Qingli make her move, he had been utterly shocked.
Silence fell over the vast plaza. Eyes widened in disbelief, unable to comprehend what they had just witnessed.
The girl before them was no longer the timid, disregarded youth they thought they knew. Her delicate features were now as cold as frost; her phoenix eyes sharp as blades, gleaming with a dark, unspoken light. A murderous aura flickered faintly around her, chilling everyone to the bone.
"A Great Warrior?!"
A tutor from the academy suddenly exclaimed, jolting everyone back to reality with a surge of astonishment.
"Gu Qingli! You dare seek death?!"
Gu Qinglin, pampered by the Gu family for years, had never suffered such humiliation.
To be wounded so severely, and in public no less—by someone she had always considered a worthless waste—was a blow her pride could not endure.
Tearing free from Elder Mu's grasp, eyes bloodshot and reason lost, she launched forward. Had she retained even a shred of clarity, she would have realized the terrifying strength Gu Qingli had just demonstrated.
Gu Qingli sneered coldly, her expression void of emotion, her voice like winter steel: "Gu Qinglin, if I ever hear your filthy mouth speak ill of my mother again, I will cripple you."
Her voice was calm, almost indifferent—but the killing intent within sent a shiver down Gu Qinglin's spine.
In that moment, Gu Qinglin suddenly recalled the little girl from seven years ago—just five years old, yet as ruthless as a blade. A chill swept through her as she froze in place, eyes locked in terror on Gu Qingli.
Seven years… how could she have forgotten that merciless child? She had made the gravest of mistakes—assuming Gu Qingli was still the same useless girl from before, convincing herself that her strength came from the hidden aid of Dongfang Kunlun. But in truth, it had all been a self-deceiving lie.
Gu Qingli glanced disdainfully at the trembling Gu Qinglin, her eyes curling in a half-smile, half-mockery. She cast a sidelong look at Elder Mu, as if to say—Is this the so-called genius your Gu family has raised?
Elder Mu's aged face flushed deep red. The contrast between Gu Qinglin's pathetic panic and Gu Qingli's poised arrogance filled his heart with bitter complexity.
Seeing that Gu Qinglin had been thoroughly cowed, Gu Qingli curved her lips slightly. Under the stunned gazes of the onlookers, she resumed her pace toward Senior Bai, her expression serene and unshaken—as though none of what had just occurred concerned her in the least.
The moment she moved, the crowd erupted into a flurry of whispers and astonishment.