112. Chapter 112: The Task Entrusted by My Sister

They began to size one another up.

Seeing that Baili Tianchang had not harmed her little phoenix, the Great Phoenix felt its anxious and restless heart finally begin to calm. Standing to the side, it observed the scene, filled with curiosity. It could not fathom why its little phoenix had taken such a keen interest in this frail human who possessed no cultivation whatsoever.

The woman in red watched in astonishment as the little phoenix voluntarily burrowed into Baili Tianchang’s embrace. She found it utterly inconceivable! How could this be? How could such a thing happen? Was the little phoenix a fool? Was it blind? Did it lack the ability to distinguish beauty from ugliness, or right from wrong?

Could it not see that the person holding it was nothing more than a useless waste and an ugly woman? No, no, no! A little phoenix like this should belong to her! She was a beauty of peerless, nation-toppling charm, and she possessed formidable cultivation. Only a woman like her was worthy of owning such a divine phoenix!

She had always firmly believed that the world was graced with beauty and wonder precisely because of women like her. For instance, it was because of her existence that a man like Nalan Dijiu had appeared to be her match. It was because of her that noble beasts like divine dragons and phoenixes existed; they were destined to be her pets.

Therefore, watching the little phoenix fly into Baili Tianchang’s arms and behave so affectionately—as if they were long-lost friends reunited—deeply stung her heart. She could not help but shift her gaze from Baili Tianchang and the little phoenix, casting it instead upon Nalan Dijiu.

At this very moment, the Ninth Prince, who in her eyes stood high above all, seemingly devoid of desire and forever untouched by sorrow or joy, was looking at that useless, ugly woman with eyes full of doting affection.

A surge of jealous blood rose in her throat, threatening to burst forth. She could no longer hold back. Although her sister had cautioned her to appear only at the most critical moment—the moment when the Ninth Prince would intervene to subdue the divine phoenix for that useless wretch—the situation before her differed from her sister's instructions. Yet, she was no longer willing to wait. She believed this was the moment she had been waiting for.

Drawing her sword, the woman leapt from the woods where she had been hiding and flew swiftly toward Baili Tianchang and the little phoenix.

Baili Tianchang saw only a flash of red, accompanied by a sharp, piercing aura, rushing toward her. Before she could react, she heard the woman cursing her.

"You useless, ugly wretch, let go of that little phoenix! This is a divine phoenix; how dare you defile it with your presence!"

The woman in red spat out her curses, determined to vent all the rage she had accumulated since she began following Nalan Dijiu and Baili Tianchang.

"You are ugly and incompetent! Even if this little phoenix stays with you, it will only be dragged down by your worthlessness! As a useless, ugly creature like yourself, do you not have even the slightest shred of self-awareness? How are you fit to be with the Ninth Prince? You aren't even worthy of standing on the same patch of earth as him!"