Ruan Jinzhu made her way here, enduring countless hardships, before finally arriving at the An'nan underground palace.
When she saw the palace, her face lit up with a grin. She was so excited she could barely contain herself, especially upon seeing the gold, silver, and jewelry in the treasure vault of the side hall.
Not long after, she spotted Nangong Feiyan. She hid in the shadows and, when Nangong Feiyan let her guard down, she captured her.
Following that, she discovered the secret passage behind the throne and forced Nangong Feiyan to lead her through it.
"Ruan Jinzhu, you despicable wretch, release me at once!"
Nangong Feiyan was furious.
This woman had betrayed her time and again under the guise of friendship. It was truly contemptible.
"Don't move! If you move again, I'll slit your throat!"
Ruan Jinzhu pressed the knife against Nangong Feiyan's neck. Nangong Feiyan felt a sharp pain as a bloody gash appeared.
"You dare!"
Ning Beichen roared, staring intently at Ruan Jinzhu.
"Don't move. Give me the jade box in your hand," Ruan Jinzhu demanded.
"You want this jade box?"
The jade box Ning Beichen held was not the Nine Palace Strategy or the ginseng. It was the An'nan King's imperial seal. The other two items were already safely stored; Ning Beichen truly had no desire for the seal itself.
"Yes, give it to me, or I'll kill her!" Ruan Jinzhu said fiercely.
"Do you know what you're doing?"
Ning Beichen's killing intent descended upon Ruan Jinzhu like a dark cloud.
Ruan Jinzhu felt a jolt of alarm, realizing the formidable strength of the man before her.
However, Ruan Jinzhu was unwilling to abandon the treasure within her grasp. The An'nan royal ruins were, in fact, connected to her Ruan clan, as the An'nan royal family hundreds of years ago had been of Ruan descent.
"Fine, I can give you the treasure box, but release my senior sister first!" Ning Beichen said, emphasizing each word.
"Give me the treasure box first!" Ruan Jinzhu threatened, her knife still at Nangong Feiyan's throat.
"No, we trade simultaneously. I give you the treasure box, and you release my senior sister," Ning Beichen replied.
"I disagree. I know you're powerful. How can I be sure you won't play tricks?" Ruan Jinzhu said warily.
"Then what do you want to do?" Ning Beichen asked.
"Open the box. I want to see what's inside first," Ruan Jinzhu suddenly said to Ning Beichen, fearing the box might be empty.
"Alright."
Ning Beichen opened the jade box, revealing the An'nan King's imperial seal within.
"The imperial seal! This is the imperial seal of my Ruan clan's ancestors!" Ruan Jinzhu's eyes gleamed as she saw the seal.
Her purpose in coming here was this very seal, and she never expected it to be in Ning Beichen's possession.
"Give it to me." Ruan Jinzhu's gaze was fixed on the seal, unable to tear itself away. Her entire body trembled slightly.
Ning Beichen looked at her strangely. It was just an imperial seal; why was she so agitated?
But seeing Ruan Jinzhu's almost distraught expression, a wild idea surfaced in Ning Beichen's mind.
"Your Ruan clan... you're not planning to become the An'nan King, are you?"
"Why not? Our Ruan clan was originally the royal family of An'nan. An'nan rightfully belongs to our Ruan clan." Ruan Jinzhu said proudly.
Ning Beichen's eyelids twitched. This woman was mad. In this day and age, still dreaming of usurping a throne? She was either an idiot or a complete fool.
Ruan Jinzhu saw Ning Beichen's expression and knew what he was thinking.
"It is you who are ignorant! Do you know how many people in power in An'nan today are my Ruan clan members, or related to my clan? Once we have this seal, a single command will be obeyed by all!"
Ning Beichen's eyelids twitched again. He didn't care who ruled An'nan. An'nan was merely a small country, insignificant in today's world.
He just hadn't expected the Ruan clan to harbor such ambition. If things truly unfolded as Ruan Jinzhu claimed, An'nan would likely plunge into another period of bloodshed.
But what did that have to do with him, Ning Beichen?
"Fine, here's your item." Ning Beichen tossed the jade box, which landed in front of Ruan Jinzhu. "Release my senior sister, or before you can become king, I will annihilate your entire Ruan clan."
Ruan Jinzhu no longer heard Ning Beichen's threat. Her mind was solely focused on the jade box on the ground.
Ning Beichen made no move. The imperial seal held no importance to him; giving it away was no big deal.
Ruan Jinzhu shoved Nangong Feiyan forward forcefully, simultaneously making another cut on her neck. Then, she snatched the jade box from the ground and fled.
Although Ning Beichen wanted to eliminate this madwoman, his senior sister was more important.
"Senior sister."
Ning Beichen rushed to cover the gash on Nangong Feiyan's neck and took out medicine to stop the bleeding.
"Junior brother, you shouldn't have let her go!" Nangong Feiyan said weakly.
"She's not as important as a single strand of your hair. Besides, I have the Formation Breaking Bead. If she wants to leave, let's see if she has the ability." Ning Beichen said, a hint of anger in his voice.
He wasn't angry about losing the imperial seal, but because Ruan Jinzhu had injured his senior sister. No matter what, that woman had to die!
"But..."
"Alright, Senior sister, please don't speak. Let me bandage your wound first. Don't worry, this medicine I have is excellent. After the wound heals, there won't be any scars." Ning Beichen tenderly applied the medicine evenly to the cut on her neck, ensuring no scar would be left.
After a while, Ning Beichen had finished bandaging her neck. He then began to pack away his bottles and jars.
"I'm sorry, junior brother. It's my fault for being useless." Nangong Feiyan felt deeply ashamed for being coerced by Ruan Jinzhu for the second time. Ruan Jinzhu was truly wicked, pretending to be her close friend on one hand, while secretly plotting against her on the other.
If she hadn't been captured by Ruan Jinzhu, Ning Beichen wouldn't have handed over the imperial seal.
Although Ning Beichen didn't care about the imperial seal, his own weakness had deeply shaken Nangong Feiyan's spirit.
"Senior sister, don't say that. In my eyes, you are the most important. What is Ruan Jinzhu? Once we get out of here, I'll slap her to death." Ning Beichen said.
"Junior brother, Ruan Jinzhu's strength is not weak. Her softness is just an act," Nangong Feiyan quickly added.
It was precisely because she had underestimated Ruan Jinzhu that she had been schemed against by this woman time and again.
"I know. Don't worry, I won't let her get away with it." Ning Beichen could naturally perceive Ruan Jinzhu's strength. Otherwise, he would have acted when exchanging the imperial seal earlier.
It was only because he didn't have absolute certainty of Nangong Feiyan's safety that he had refrained from acting. If he had, he could have easily dealt with a hundred Ruan Jinzhus.