No one could have anticipated that the young Gu Qingli, so small in stature, would be so extraordinarily formidable, and even more so, ruthlessly cruel.
Even Ouyang Qian, who stood nearby, was left utterly speechless in disbelief—was this really her daughter?
Han Jiao turned to flee, but how could Gu Qingli, the very cause of this chaos, allow her to escape?
Several silver lights suddenly emanated from around her, and there stood the little girl, no more than a child with the air of an ethereal being. Though she smiled, her presence was nothing short of chilling.
The silver rays that shot forth were so beautiful they seemed like meteors streaking across the sky!
But alas, no one had the luxury of admiring their beauty; all eyes were filled with terror, for those silver lights were nothing less than death's harbingers.
Screaming, Han Jiao tried to evade, but the silver lights seemed to home in on her, striking her directly.
A sharp pain pierced her abdomen, and looking down, she saw blood gushing forth. Her eyes widened in horror, and her body crumpled lifelessly to the ground.
Gu Qinglin screamed, throwing herself upon Han Jiao, only to find that she had already lost consciousness.
The blood, bright as crimson, stained her clothes, turning them into a garish red.
Gu Qingli's expression was as cold as ice, her calm demeanor enough to freeze the very air.
"We have already severed ties with the Gu family. Our paths no longer cross. If blame is to be laid, it is on your own foolishness for causing trouble unprovoked!"
Gu Qingli cast a dark glance at the two guards, now blinded and utterly helpless.
"You should never have laid a hand on my mother. What is a Spirit Illusionist to me? To my eyes, you are nothing!"
As Gu Qingli spoke these words, both the guards and Gu Qinglin were so terrified they turned ashen, unable to move a muscle.
"Now, leave, before I show you no mercy!"
Ouyang Qian, shaken from her stupor, stepped forward to speak with Gu Qingli. But in that instant, a shadow sprang from the side—one of the blinded guards.
With a bloodthirsty sneer, he grabbed Ouyang Qian by the throat, his face, now half-bloodied from the loss of an eye, twisted in rage as he glared at Gu Qingli.
"Gu Qingli, you useless fool! I will kill your mother now!"
The guard, now completely deranged, had lost an eye, and with his future prospects in the Gu family all but sealed, the humiliation of being bested by a mere child—one no older than five—had driven him mad.
"Kill her!"
Seeing her mother in distress, Gu Qinglin screamed in fury.
As she watched her mother's face turn purple from the pressure on her neck, Gu Qingli's heart ignited with an inferno of anger. Her gaze grew colder still.
With a flicker of motion, Gu Qingli's inner energy erupted, and the overwhelming pressure caused the three of them to gasp for breath.
It was a silent yet crushing force.
In that instant, countless silver needles shot out, filling the sky with a dazzling silver light that seemed to block out the very sun.
The three were left staring in terror, as though they had seen a ghost, unsure where to run or how to escape.
One by one, they staggered backward, falling to the ground. Gu Qingli wiped the cold sweat from her brow, her small body and weak inner energy barely able to bear the strain.
Seeing that her mother had fainted, Gu Qingli had no choice but to redirect her energy and carefully carry her back inside to rest.
When she stepped back outside, however, a sudden soft laugh reached her ears.
Her eyes narrowed, a flicker of cold light passing through them, as she glanced in the direction of the laughter, her senses on high alert.
It came from a large banyan tree in the courtyard, its leaves thick and lush. And hidden within its branches, a figure loomed.