"Why... why did this happen!"
The woman collapsed to the ground, her three thousand strands of silver hair cascading down, her peerless face contorted with agony. Her once bright purple eyes were now dim, filled with endless sorrow and disbelief.
Within her pupils, the entire Star Dou Great Forest was a blood-red stain, the once lush trees now appearing as if painted with crimson paint.
Everywhere in the forest lay corpses and limbs—all the carcasses of soul beasts!
A mountain-sized corpse was almost buried under scattered stones, its dark golden fur stained with blood. This was a bear, a Dark Golden Terrorclaw Bear, a king among soul beasts. But now it was lifeless, even its proud, sharp claws had been severed.
The swan that had given soul beasts hope now lay among the corpses. Its snow-white feathers were stained with blood, no longer sacred, its once vibrant body now lifeless. She, with her wings spread, could have given the soul beasts the warmest light, healing all their wounds. But now, her broken wings could no longer unfold, and her unparalleled healing abilities, unmatched in the soul beast world, were no longer enough for her to stand again.
Other beings of similar strength also perished. The five-meter-long giant mastiff, with three heads and six eyes, had all six eyes cruelly gouged out.
Various other soul beast corpses lay brutally murdered, their limbs scattered throughout the forest. The blood of various soul beasts flowed throughout the forest. Now, this was no longer the last paradise for soul beasts, but a veritable purgatory!
The most striking creature was a black dragon, about a thousand meters long. This enormous dragon lay in the middle of the forest, its abyss-like aura still terrifying, but now utterly lifeless. What drew attention most was not only its size, but also its gruesome state. The once lifelike scales on its enormous body had lost their luster, its tail was about half broken off, and its entire body was cut off three times, into four pieces: once by the tail, once by the waist, and finally by the neck, cutting off its entire head.
However, its massive dragon head still stared wide-eyed, its death unsettled! Its dark golden pupils were filled with resentment and indignation, yet showed no fear, despite the brutal slaughter it had endured in its life.
The bright moon hanging in the sky was no longer white, but a chilling crimson. Under the moonlight, the blood-red river reflected the crimson moon, creating an eerie scene.
A night wind, carrying the stench of blood and a sense of desolation, gently brushed against Gu Yuena's pale face, bringing her back to her senses.
"Do you have to be so ruthless?"
Gu Yuena's beautiful face was still stained with blood, but at this moment, she cared nothing for it.
Standing atop the massive dragon's head was a person, half of his face revealed in the moonlight. His handsome face was covered in blood that wasn't his, cold and disdainful, his eyes filled with a crazed killing intent.
He stomped one foot hard on one of the dragon's horns, holding a knife in his other hand. The knife's original color was now stained with blood, but the distinctive dragon patterns and designs were still clearly visible. Blood continued to drip from the tip of the blade.
'Tang Wulin' coldly shook his head. "I didn't want to do this. If you had obediently listened, you could still have become our Tang family's daughter-in-law, and we could have spared your soul beast clan a chance to live. But now, you seem to have remembered something, so I have no choice but to do this."
"As for exterminating them?"
'Tang Wulin' sneered, then lowered his head slightly to look at the enormous dragon corpse, coldly saying, "These soul beasts aren't as easily fooled as you, and they're much smarter than you. If they whisper in your ear one day, it might ruin things."
Gu Yuena didn't reply, but looked at the figure in her arms with closed eyes. It was a man, but a bloody hole had been ripped out of his chest, and he was lifeless.
Gu Yuena's body trembled uncontrollably. She stared blankly at her blood-stained hands, muttering to herself, "I... I'm sorry..."
'Tang Wulin' looked at the person in Gu Yuena's arms and said contemptuously, "It's too late to regret it now, isn't it? You didn't do this when you were choosing between him and Wulin."
"If you hadn't sealed my memories! How could this have happened? This is the despicable nature of you human gods!" Gu Yuena raised her eyes in grief and indignation, her bloodshot eyes wide open, and shouted hoarsely.
"Despicable? Hahaha!" 'Tang Wulin' laughed and shook his head, then said, "The mighty Silver Dragon King, even if I were a God King, how could I so easily seal your memories?"
He glanced at Gu Yuena with amusement, then lowered his head and said softly, "If you had fully accepted the memories of your human avatar, Na'er, perhaps you would have remembered long ago. It's a pity— to avoid any entanglement with the person in your arms and to prevent affecting your relationship with Wulin, you actively filtered out those memories during the fusion."
He paused, then added playfully, "Besides, you killed him with your own hands. Now, what are you regretting?"
Seeing the mockery in 'Tang Wulin's' eyes, Gu Yuena's anger vanished instantly, leaving her slumped, her eyes blankly fixed on the face of the man in her arms.
How earnestly the man before her had pleaded with her!
'Gu Yuena, you're only attracted by the Golden Dragon King's bloodline, not by so-called love. If you continue down this path, the dragon race will only become pawns.'
But she herself looked impatient and coldly said, 'I've never loved the Golden Dragon King's bloodline, but him!'
'Besides, what happens to the dragon race is none of your business!'
And in the end, she acted willfully, without even investigating, subjectively assuming that he was the one slaughtering soul beasts, choosing Tang Wulin over him, and even killing him with her own hands in the end!
Yes, he had approached her countless times. If she had just taken one step forward, this wouldn't have happened. But his countless steps forward only led to her endless retreat, until she stood on the edge of a cliff, her back against the abyss, before she finally realized her mistake. But by then, it was too late…
"Alright, no need to be sad." 'Tang Wulin' chuckled. "Be a good woman and forget all this."
But as 'Tang Wulin' continued to approach her, Gu Yuena didn't move. Only when 'Tang Wulin' was right in front of her did she raise her head, her purple eyes filled with resolute sorrow.
"Dragon Clan, never to be slaves!"
Gu Yuena seemed to have made up her mind. She gently put down the person in her arms, stood up, and her body shimmered with seven-colored light.
Tang Wulin's eyes changed, and his face turned ugly. "Even if I erased your memories, I would at least spare your life. Now, by doing this, you can't even protect the last foundation of the soul beasts."
"The mistakes I made are irreparable, but I will never compromise on the last dignity of the dragon race!"
Gu Yuena's figure appeared more desolate under the moonlight. Her three thousand silver threads floated gently in mid-air, and the seven-colored light on her body gradually enveloped her.
"Stubborn to the end!"
Tang Wulin cursed angrily, and seeing that there was no way to save her, he quickly flew away into the distance.
Gu Yuena took one last look at the corpses scattered all over the Star Dou Great Forest, her purple pupils brimming with tears.
She turned back to look at the man lying on the ground one last time, and a tear fell, changing through nine colors as it fell, until it splashed on the ground, splashing into countless nine-colored droplets.
Countless memories flashed through Gu Yuena's mind:
the protection she had given him during the competitions in their youth, and how her excessive attention to Tang Wulin had caused him to get hurt.
His desolate figure as he was rejected and not chosen time and time again.
The look of relief in his eyes when they last met.
He had protected her so many times just to repay a debt of gratitude, even losing his life in the end, but he owed her nothing!
At this moment, seven-colored light instantly spread, quickly enveloping the entire Star Dou Great Forest.
"Xiu Ran, if there is a next life, let me come to you, okay?"
Let me explain first: the protagonist of this book is no longer a simp; those were just Gu Yuena's subjective perceptions. Furthermore, the protagonist in the previous life didn't actually die; everything was just Gu Yuena's assumption.
(End of Chapter)
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