But even in her shocked state, Akane's power was absolute.

Her bloodline pressure erupted like a tidal wave of pure spiritual force, slamming into the charging fox spirits with crushing authority. One by one, they collapsed to the ground, their bodies unable to resist the overwhelming dominance of her royal bloodline despite their compelled rage.

"Stop..." she commanded, and they froze mid-charge, trembling with the conflict between Tianlong's beast control and her superior bloodline authority.

Yet even as she effortlessly subdued her own tribe members, her eyes never left Tianlong's form. The naked man stood there like a wounded prince—golden blood streaming down his perfect physique, his breathing labored, one hand pressed against the spear wound in his abdomen.

'I am reaching my limit,' Tianlong thought, allowing his legs to wobble convincingly. 'Come on, come on, work.'

His eyes visibly trembled, looking towards that woman. Given, she was hot, gorgeous, but right now he was in pain and also under invisible threat where he had pushed all of his luck over system's reward and his knowledge to bear fruit.

'I just used this novel's strongest villain's name... come on, something..' Even with the blurred vision, he recalled this plot he used here, the very name of this novel's strongest villain, the man who convincingly had everyone as his enemy. That was why he was prime villain. For everyone, every heroine had some kind of backstory where indirectly or directly they were linked to this villain.

He was like a master key to have every single major character's backstory—a small portion of anger.

The reason he used his name instead of any other character was simply because he was part of the main storyline and surprisingly was a fox kin. Given his recollection of that guy who ruled over the majority of the fox clans and was declared as a tyrant.

Who could be a better scapegoat than him?

Or else why would Tianlong have used that name in the lower realm?

Additionally, given him from the Fox Clan giving a big advertisement board to be used. There was also a small backstory which gave Tianlong a loophole where that guy had killed his brother in throne dispute several millennia ago.

If all puzzle pieces are placed together.

Like how someone like this woman, who had enough power to pierce a great vehicle realm's Qi with such ease to be here in the lower realm with only her and her daughter.

The answer was simple—either she had been hiding here, which was highly unlikely given rather than a random place, she was appointed to guard the seal of the ancient. So most likely she had been exiled here by her own people.

And given such a woman with so much power to be here like a trump card in the lower realm, only meant she was part of the main storyline. Which he did not know, maybe because he had never heard of her name. But he knew this much—that the only main storyline which could push someone from the fox clan to be abandoned would be the mass execution that had occurred after Armidian Vehan sat on the throne.

He might have not been able to kill this woman due to how strong she was and would have probably exiled her here.

And if Tianlong's analysis was correct—if this proud, powerful woman with her royal bloodline and her exile to the lower realm followed the novel's patterns—then she had to be connected to that dead prince somehow. Maybe someone from his vassal state or supporter.

So, he just needed to play dead prince resurrected back millennia later for revenge.

TADA!

"I will k-kill that traitorous brother's bloodline—!—cough!" Tianlong just gave another hint to this woman whom he considered had a smart diplomatic brain by coughing another blurted statement.

His golden eyes found Akane's stunned gaze, and he let his expression fill with desperate hope mixed with heartbreak.

Yu Xiang watched in growing alarm as Tianlong swayed dangerously, his perfect physique trembling with what looked like genuine weakness.

"Emper—" Yu Xiang seemed genuinely shocked seeing so much blood coming out. She tried to move to support him, clearly fearing for his condition.

'!'

'Not now Xiang!' But Tianlong instantly realized that the ambitious woman he had brought here to act instead of others seemed to be convinced by his acting too much. So he couldn't do anything but want a good landing. But he could not fall on the rough surface, so he needed something soft. And that softness he saw in two big proportions coming towards him. As if calling him to crash land on them.

'Help me... boobies~♡!!' And like any cultured man who was on the brink of death yet just wanting to see the pure love, he jumped—jumped towards Akane, sending his naked form pitching forward in a dramatic fall that seemed to let a small tear slide from Akane's right eye.

'Why are you crying... my melon?' In that subtle moment he noticed the real pain within her eyes, which seemed to, for a moment, make his inward thoughts that were towards his perverted nature stuck by strange inexplicable age, as if she was feeling hurt which he couldn't explain before his muscled body crashed forward, heading straight for the frozen Akane—

And she moved.

Without conscious thought, the nine-tailed fox matriarch stepped forward and caught him, her arms wrapping around his broad shoulders as his weight settled against her voluptuous form.

His head came to rest against the soft swell of her massive breasts, golden blood from his wound staining her silver and white robes as his breathing came in ragged gasps against her skin.

"You... you're alive... honey," she whispered, her voice thick with emotions she hadn't felt in centuries.

Her hands trembled as they cradled his head, fingers running through his dark hair as she stared down at his perfect features.

This close, she could see the muscle stiffness, could smell the intoxicating scent that marked him as undeniably royal bloodline, could feel the warmth of his breath against her cleavage as he struggled to maintain consciousness.

'Huh,' Tianlong blinked as if something just hammered his brain as he heard her referring to him with that strange title that seemed to change all of the mood in an instant.

She was crying and he could feel her chest thumping so close as his eyes blinked slowly, lifting only for him to blink as big drops of tears splashed on his eyelid.

The sight that greeted Tianlong as he looked up into Akane's face shattered something fundamental in his worldview.

This wasn't the composed, deadly fox matriarch who had been ready to tear him apart moments before. This wasn't the proud royal who commanded absolute respect from her subjects.

This was a broken woman—crying like a lost child who had finally found her way home after wandering in darkness for millennia.

"Hic... y-you...sob... Waaahhhh..." The sound that escaped her throat was raw, primal, completely devoid of the dignity and control she'd maintained for centuries. Tears poured down her pale cheeks in streams, dropping onto his bloodied chest like warm rain.

Her golden eyes—those ancient, wise orbs that had seen empires rise and fall—were now wide and innocent as a child's, filled with such pure, overwhelming joy and relief that it made his chest tighten inexplicably.

"You're alive... you're really alive..." she sobbed, her voice cracking like breaking glass. "I thought... I thought you were dead... I thought I'd never see you again..."

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