The northern city gates had barely cooled from conquest when Yu Lan received word: Yu Ya had infiltrated the outskirts of the city, her spies and assassins detected moving among loyalists.
Yu Lan's eyes narrowed. So, the betrayer dares to approach… after all this time.
She did not hesitate. Mounting her horse, lotus blade sheathed, she moved toward the location where the informants reported Yu Ya's presence. Bo Li rode beside her, tension written across his face.
"You don't have to face her alone," he said firmly. "I will protect you, no matter what she attempts."
Yu Lan's lips curved faintly. "I know. But this is more than protection. Some debts must be settled personally."
Huo Yun, riding slightly behind, adjusted his stance. "I will manage support and flanking units. Her movements will be tracked. Nothing reaches you unnoticed."
Yu Lan glanced at him, reading the subtle tension in his gaze — not fear, but a mixture of loyalty, irritation, and… jealousy toward Bo Li. So he still competes… even now.
They reached the abandoned northern watchtower, shadows stretching long across the ground. And there, standing among the broken walls, was Yu Ya — once her closest friend, once her confidante, now her betrayer.
Yu Ya's eyes flickered with recognition, then hardened. "Yu Lan. So… the exiled daughter returns, armed and… confident."
Yu Lan dismounted slowly, lotus blade at her side. Calm. Controlled. Every movement deliberate. "Yu Ya. You betrayed me once. Do you intend to repeat that mistake?"
Yu Ya laughed softly, a hint of bitterness in her tone. "Mistake? You were naïve. Too trusting. And you never saw me… coming."
Yu Lan's gaze sharpened. "I see clearly now. I remember everything — every word, every betrayal, every false smile."
Bo Li's hand brushed the hilt of his sword, protective, ready to intervene.
Huo Yun's eyes narrowed, reading every flicker of movement from Yu Ya. "Do not underestimate her, Yu Lan. She is clever, and her ambition is dangerous."
Yu Lan allowed herself a faint smile, cold yet unwavering. "I am not the naïve girl you knew, Yu Ya. And this time… I will not forgive."
Yu Ya stepped closer, lips curling. "So you've grown strong… impressive. But tell me, can you handle me alone?"
Yu Lan's aura flared subtly, her cultivation energy rising, a warning barely perceptible to anyone else. "I don't fight alone. And yet… I am more than capable of dealing with you."
Bo Li and Huo Yun instinctively moved closer, protective and strategic, flanking her from both sides. Yu Ya's eyes flicked between the three — calculating, assessing, and recognizing the new dynamics in Yu Lan's life.
Two men… both devoted, both powerful. She is no longer the girl I betrayed, Yu Ya realized. She is untouchable in ways I could not imagine.
Yu Lan's gaze hardened. "This confrontation is not just for vengeance. It is for justice. For the people you tried to manipulate, and for the empire you tried to exploit."
Yu Ya laughed, cold, sharp. "Justice? Or arrogance? The empire may bend to your will, but the people… will falter. And you… will fall."
Yu Lan stepped forward, lotus blade humming faintly at her side, cultivation energy coiling subtly in her aura. "Try me. But remember this — the lotus never forgets, and neither do I."
Bo Li's protective stance tightened. Huo Yun's strategic mind calculated every angle, every escape, every risk. And Yu Ya, for the first time, felt a flicker of uncertainty.
The northern watchtower became a tense battlefield of wills — past lives, betrayal, loyalty, jealousy, and power converging in a single moment.
The confrontation was personal. It was dangerous. And it would decide much more than pride.