Transforming into a stunningly beautiful fox spirit, leaving a scar on the heart of a prodigy.

The snowstorms in the far north show no signs of abating.

Outside the Xuanbing Gate, Gu Xiang and Bai Yin gripped Su Chang'an's wrists tightly. Gu Xiang's eyes were red and bloodshot.

Bai Yin narrowed his beastly eyes, [Reason for modification: to highlight the characteristics of the demon race] a low hiss suppressed in his throat. The veins on the backs of the two men's hands bulged, their strength almost crushing her wrist bones.

The two men stared intently at the woman in white before them, gritting their teeth as they demanded, "Who will you choose?!"

Su Chang'an's head was throbbing with pain, and a sharp pain in his wrist shot straight up to his mind.

On the left, the Grand Chancellor of the Great Zhou Dynasty had a stubborn expression; on the right, the Great Sage of the Demon Clan had a violent look. She moved her lips, and a ready-made line from a mortal novel reached her tongue: "You are all me..."

A piercing alarm suddenly blared in her mind, and a scarlet light screen forcibly occupied her entire field of vision:

[Warning! Two top-tier chosen ones have been detected on the verge of emotional collapse!]

[If the host uses Aquaman's quotes, the target's corruption rate will instantly skyrocket to 100%!]

[Final Result: Triggered a mutual destruction ending!]

Su Chang'an choked up, swallowing back the suicidal words he was about to utter.

Outside, the two were at the peak of their emotions, their frenzied auras clashing, their energy rushing through Su Chang'an's meridians from their tightly clasped hands.

The three forces that had been barely maintaining balance within her body completely spiraled out of control. Gu Xiang's righteous energy surged wildly through her left meridian, while Bai Yin's malevolent energy counterattacked fiercely on her right. Stimulated by this, the black killing intent deep within her heart meridian suddenly erupted with a chilling aura of destruction. The three domineering forces engaged in a brutal battle within her dantian.

Su Chang'an's face drained of all color in an instant, turning ashen white.

Blood and qi surged in my chest, rushing straight to my throat.

"puff--"

A mouthful of bright red blood gushed out, the blood foam scattering in mid-air and splashing onto the pure white robe. The glaring red stains quickly spread across the white garment.

Su Chang'an collapsed forward, exhausted. The jealousy and anger in Gu Xiang and Bai Yin's eyes vanished instantly, replaced by boundless fear.

"Qing'er!"

"Little Nine!"

Two gasps of alarm rang out simultaneously. The two men reached out desperately and caught her limp body.

"Bang."

Gu Xiang and Bai Yin's foreheads collided violently, producing a dull thud. Both were dizzy from the impact, but neither took a step back, nor did they loosen their grip on her.

The two men shielded Su Chang'an in the middle, using their broken bodies to create a sheltered spot. Gu Xiang's breathing was erratic, his eyes fixed on the bloodstains on her clothes and her rapidly weakening breath. The Prime Minister of the Great Zhou trembled violently; his previous arrogant interrogation vanished, leaving only a deep-seated panic.

With red-rimmed eyes, he reached out his fingers, covered in frostbite and mud, to wipe the blood from her lips. But halfway there, he froze, afraid of hurting her.

"Qing'er..." Gu Xiang's voice trembled with helplessness and tears, "It was my fault. I won't force you anymore, I won't ask anything. Don't scare me... As long as you're alive, that's enough."

On the other side, Bai Yin gritted his teeth, blood seeping from them. This Geng Metal White Tiger, who had once slaughtered his way through the Demon Court, now had tears welling in his eyes. His rough, large hand hovered beside Su Chang'an's cheek, not daring to touch it even slightly.

"Little Jiu, I'm not asking you anything anymore!" Bai Yin's voice cracked with extreme panic. "Anyone who dares to force you, I'll kill them! Even if it's myself! Don't close your eyes, look at me!"

Su Chang'an leaned weakly against their arms, lifting her eyelids. To her left stood the powerful Prime Minister of the Great Zhou Dynasty, and to her right, the unparalleled Great Sage of the Demon Clan. These two peerless powerhouses, who once dominated the Nine Provinces, were now humbled to the dust for her. Covered in wounds and mud, they wept without any dignity for her blood. A sense of helplessness welled up within her, mixed with a genuine pang of sorrow.

Within her sea of ​​consciousness, the title "Master of Balance" emitted a faint glow, reducing the probability of conflict in the surrounding area by ten percent. Su Chang'an used this as a boost, barely managing to gather her inner energy. She looked at the two people before her, her voice extremely soft, yet every word piercing to the heart:

"Are you... trying to drive me to my death in this extreme northern snowstorm before you're satisfied?"

These words struck at their weak point. Both men froze, their faces drained of color. [Reason for revision: The redundant facial description "even the color in their lips had completely faded" was removed.]

"No...no." Gu Xiang shook her head desperately, her eyes filled with regret and self-blame, tears falling onto the frozen ground.

"I didn't mean to force you..." Bai Yin took a half-inch back, his hands flailing helplessly, afraid that the remaining evil energy would hurt her even more.

Neither of them dared to utter the word "choose" again. Their extreme possessiveness was suppressed by the blood, turning into cautious attempts to please.

The crisis was temporarily averted. Without external stimulation, the three forces within his meridians, soothed by the Heavenly Fox's essence, returned to a stalemate. Su Chang'an exhaled a breath of stale air, slightly regaining his composure.

Although the overt killing was resolved, the undercurrents continued. Seeing that her expression had eased slightly, Gu and Bai resumed their subtle competition. Not daring to press her with words, they could only try to gain credit through minor details.

A biting wind, streaked with ice, howled. Su Chang'an's thin, plain robe fluttered in the wind, and she shivered involuntarily. Seeing this, Gu Xiang instinctively reached for his blue robe, intending to cushion her seat to keep her warm.

The scholar's fingers touched the hem of his robe, but he suddenly froze. This blue robe, which represented the prime minister's dignity, had long since become a tattered rag hanging on his body after a long journey and battles with wolves. It could not even cover his own withered body, let alone keep him warm.

Gu Xiang's face instantly turned extremely ugly, filled with shame. The hands that had once held the power of the Great Zhou Dynasty stopped in front of the tattered cloth, falling limply to the ground.

Bai Yin let out a cold laugh, stood up abruptly, grabbed the edge of his tattered fur coat with both hands, and roughly ripped it off. The cold wind swept across his strong, bare upper body, revealing his broad back covered in scabs and lacerations—severe wounds inflicted by the alpha wolf while protecting Gu Xiang.

Ignoring his back injury, Bai Yin bent down and laid his warm, heavy fur coat flat on the clean snow, carefully smoothing out every wrinkle. Then, avoiding the bloodstains, he gently supported Su Chang'an's arm and guided her to sit on the coat.

After settling in, Bai Yin straightened up, slightly raised his chin, and glanced at Gu Xiang provocatively: "You poor, pedantic scholar, what can you use to protect her?"

Gu Xiang gritted his teeth, the muscles in his cheeks bulging. The Prime Minister of the Great Zhou Dynasty remained silent, dragging his thin, frail body devoid of any cultivation, and silently walked to the windiest spot outside the Xuanbing Gate. With his back to the wind and snow, facing Su Chang'an, he dug his legs firmly into the snow, straightened his slightly hunched back, and spread his arms, forming a human wall with his thin flesh.

The fierce wind, whipping up ice shards, relentlessly cleaved through the air, whipping the strips of his blue robe wildly and instantly stripping away his body heat. Gu Xiang's face was ashen, his lips purplish-black, his body trembling uncontrollably in the wind, his teeth chattering. Yet he stood at the forefront of the storm, without uttering a single groan. He only gazed at Su Chang'an with his frozen, red eyes, quietly and stubbornly, risking his life to shield her from the biting north wind.

Seeing this, Bai Yin's eyes twitched slightly, but he didn't mock his overestimation of his abilities. The Great Sage of the Demon Clan also walked silently to his side, using his tall and broad body to block the wind from the other side. The two men, who had once been mortal enemies, now stood on either side of the wind and snow, forming a silent barrier.

Inside the Xuanbing Gate.

The icy pool was shrouded in mist, and Luo Qingxue sat cross-legged at the center of the formation, maintaining the water mirror in front of her. The scene outside was clearly reflected in the mirror.

She looked at the prime minister who commanded awe throughout the Great Zhou Dynasty, and at the Gengjin Great Sage who inspired fear in all demons. The once high and mighty being who looked down upon all living beings was now terrified and begging for mercy over a woman's half-mouthed blood, reduced to the humble state of using his own body to shield others from the wind.

Even the most powerful, stripped of their halos, are nothing more than ordinary mortals caught in the anxieties and struggles of the mortal world. Luo Qingxue's hand holding the sword trembled slightly. From a young age, she had cultivated the Supreme Forgetfulness Technique, firmly believing that only by severing the ties of emotion could one attain enlightenment; love was nothing but poison that pierced the heart and an obstacle to cultivation.

But at this moment, she looked at the three people struggling for their lives outside the door, at Gu Bai's sincere worry, and at his purple lips and bloodstained back.

That stubborn and reckless bond pierced through the Xuanbing Gate and struck directly at the soul.

Luo Qingxue closed her eyes.

At this moment, her rock-solid, detached Daoist heart cracked open with an irreparable fissure.