The legend begins with becoming a white deer.

Yan Lie stared intently at Yuan Shuying in front of him, a look of surprise and realization flashing in his eyes.

At this point, there's nothing left to misunderstand.

They secretly met several times.

Provide weapons and intelligence.

Hire him to infiltrate the capital and harm the little princess during the auction...

The mastermind behind this series of conspiracies was none other than the high and mighty Princess Bilin.

Yuan Shuying felt a chill run down her spine when Yan Lie looked at her, and instantly realized that things were about to go wrong.

She quickly retreated, sternly ordering the surrounding soldiers: "What are you standing there for? This villain is about to commit a crime, kill him immediately without mercy!"

King Bilin also quickly ordered his soldiers to protect the princess, fearing that Yan Liegou might act rashly in desperation.

Several royal guards immediately stepped forward with their spears, blocking Yuan Shuying's path.

"Ah, I see."

Yan Lie grinned maliciously. Although he had figured it out, the most important thing right now was to escape.

Yan Lie reached out to grab Yuan Shuying; if he could capture this princess, he would still have a chance to survive.

But as soon as he extended his fingertips, a white shadow flashed by like lightning.

"Bang!"

"Click—"

Qi Ji's antlers slammed hard into Yan Lie's side.

The sound of bone cracking rang out clearly.

Yan Lie, already exhausted, could not withstand this attack. He was sent flying like a kite with a broken string. In mid-air, one of his arms was torn apart by the sharp deer antlers and thrown away, spraying blood.

Blood gushed from the wound like a fountain, and his body drew a bloody arc in the air before crashing heavily onto the stone pavement thirty meters away, instantly spreading a large, glaring red stain beneath him.

This time, he never got up again.

Lin Qin, accompanied by several guards, strode forward. With a flash of sword light, she swiftly severed Yan Lie's tendons in his hands and feet, crippling his last bit of resistance to prevent the murderer from launching a counterattack before he died.

"Haa~~Haa~~Haa~~........."

Yan Lie lay in a pool of blood, panting heavily. With each breath, blood flowed from the corner of his mouth, and all his strength was rapidly draining away with the blood on his body.

Yan Lie knew that this time, he had truly reached the end.

He strained to lift his neck, looking at the snow-white deer silhouette not far away. He forced a hideous, bloodied grin and muttered hoarsely, "You beast... you're really ruthless... I've roamed the martial world for half my life, and I've fallen for you... This is really infuriating, hahahahaha."

"Yan Lie!"

Lin Qin stood before him, sword in hand, and coldly questioned, "Tell me honestly, why did you lead a group to storm the auction? Who instigated you?"

"Why waste words with such a vicious criminal? Just kill him!" Yuan Shuying said immediately, her tone urgent, with a hint of barely perceptible panic.

Upon hearing this, Yan Lie raised his eyes to look at her with a mocking gaze, his eyes full of amusement.

The next second, Yan Lie took a deep breath and roared with all his might, his voice echoing throughout the entire street: "I made a deal with someone. She helped me hunt the auspicious beast, the white deer, and I helped her kill someone. That person is the little princess of the King of Bilin."

As soon as he finished speaking, the entire room fell into a sudden, deathly silence.

The surrounding soldiers, guards, and dignitaries who had just evacuated were all stunned.

Is Yan Lie's target Princess Yuan Yao?

Yuan Yao stared blankly at Yan Lie with her mouth agape, completely bewildered.

King Bilin's face instantly turned ashen, and the pressure around him was frighteningly low.

This murderer's target was actually his beloved daughter; thankfully...

Ignoring Yuan Shuying's sudden change in expression, Yan Lie continued, panting, "Although I was momentarily blinded by anger and forgot about killing that little girl, the person I contacted was that masked woman from earlier..."

He moved his neck and pointed his chin at Ji Zhu, who had just gotten up from the ground.

Then his gaze shifted to Yuan Shuying, his voice hoarse with the hoarseness of someone on the verge of death, yet every word was clear.

"But this woman isn't the real person behind my hiring. I didn't know who her master was before... Now, I know."

All eyes followed Yan Lie's gaze and fell on Yuan Shuying.

The crowd looked on incredulously, yet somehow it seemed perfectly logical.

Many people witnessed Ji Zhu's desperate act of protecting the princess.

If the mastermind behind this was the eldest princess, then the fact that the capital's garrison failed to detect so many outlaws infiltrating the city, and that the defensive lines around the auction were easily breached, all these inconsistencies would be explained.

King Bilin and Queen Ningshu stared blankly at their eldest daughter, their eyes filled with shock and disbelief.

Yuan Yao's face turned deathly pale as she stared blankly at her older sister, her lips pressed tightly together, momentarily forgetting even her fear.

Qi Ji stood to the side, gently flicking his deer tail, not too surprised.

Back when they met by chance in the palace, he had already sensed that Yuan Shuying harbored undisguised malice towards Yuan Yao, but he never expected that this woman would be so ruthless as to kill even her own sister.

"This woman is indeed twisted and seriously ill."

While Qi Ji was internally complaining, he also roughly understood that the guard who had led him out of the palace with the precious medicine was most likely one of Yuan Shuying's men.

"Unfortunately, this woman miscalculated. As expected, she probably wanted to lure me to the auction so that Yan Lie would kill me. However, she seriously underestimated my strength. Yan Lie, on whom she placed so much hope, was no match for me after my body was strengthened multiple times. Instead, I became the key to breaking the deadlock."

"Sparse shadows".

Bilin Wang's voice was as deep as ice. He stared intently at Yuan Shuying and asked, word by word, "Is what Yan Lie said true?"

Yuan Shuying's face turned pale and then green, her lips pressed tightly together, and she remained silent.

"Hahaha, King Bilin, if you don't believe me, you can interrogate that woman."

Yan Lie coughed up blood, pointing his chin at Ji Zhu.

"This woman... she must be the princess's confidante."

Ji Zhu's expression changed drastically.

She knew that if she were captured and tortured, she would not be able to withstand it, and everything would be exposed. Rather than being captured alive and implicating the princess, she would rather fight to the death and escape, which would be her only chance of survival.

The thought flashed through her mind, and Ji Zhu immediately turned around, touched the ground with her toes, and fled towards the alley entrance with all her might.

Her running away was tantamount to admitting guilt without being asked.

The expressions of everyone around changed again.

Just as Ji Zhu rushed out a few steps, a gilded whip, like a serpent, pierced through the air and precisely wrapped around her ankle.

"Snapped!"

The spider lost its balance and fell heavily to the ground.

The long whip wrapped around her wrist and tightened sharply, binding her arms behind her back so she couldn't move at all.

The one who made the purchase was Su Yanji, who had already walked out of the auction hall.

She walked over with a cold expression and stomped Ji Zhu on the ground. She had heard everything Yan Lie had said.

Su Yanji's gaze swept lightly over Yuan Shuying, then landed on the bound Ji Zhu, his tone carrying an undeniable force:

"My Wanhua Chamber of Commerce's premises are not places that anyone can just smash up. If you dare to disrupt the auction and injure our guests and staff, I, Su Yanji, will investigate to the end. Don't even think about escaping. I have plenty of ways to make you tell me the whole truth, word for word."

She leaned down slightly, looking at Ji Zhu lying sprawled on the ground, her eyes as cold as ice...