If Gu Shuling could have glimpsed the face inside the slowly approaching luxury car, she would have been astonished.
For this was no ordinary woman, but the legendary Liu Yuzhu—the only person in the Great Jing Empire's business world who could be considered her equal.
In the public's eye, Gu Shuling was a CEO as cold and aloof as an iceberg.
Liu Yuzhu, however, was a passionately blooming red rose.
Young and full of life.
She exuded an indescribable, alluring sex appeal.
At this moment, she was wearing a fiery red dress, its hem swaying gently with the slight movement of her fair legs.
Her slightly curled hair fell casually across her snow-white shoulders, adding a hint of languid charm.
She folded her arms, her gaze shifting from Gu Shuling to the window of the villa.
There, a tall, upright figure of a young man stood silently.
"Gu Shuling always thinks of me as her rival, but little does she know, I've never even considered her competition," Liu Yuzhu said scornfully, her voice dripping with contempt and arrogance. "Everything she has is thanks to that National Guardian War God, Chu He. That foolish woman actually thinks she's some kind of business prodigy."
The driver turned his head and asked respectfully, "What should we do next?"
Liu Yuzhu smiled smugly. "The Great Jing Empire's days are numbered.
"Although our Great Xia Empire has also just undergone a change in power, with a young Queen taking the throne as well, our Queen Xingcan is far more outstanding than that Ji Shengyue.
"With an idiot like that in power, how could the Great Jing Empire not fall?"
She paused. "How is the investigation I assigned you progressing?"
The driver replied, "The Queen is personally overseeing this matter. I believe we'll have results soon.
"It would be a wonderful thing if our Great Xia Empire could have a National Guardian War God like Chu He. It's a pity the Great Jing Empire doesn't know how to cherish him."
A glint flashed in Liu Yuzhu's eyes upon hearing this. "Once that matter is confirmed and we present the evidence to Chu He—combined with all the things happening in the Great Jing Empire and Ji Shengyue's bizarre maneuvers—I'm confident our Great Xia Empire will soon have a powerful National Guardian War God of its own."
Her words were filled with longing and anticipation,
as if she could already see the Great Xia Empire growing stronger and more prosperous under Chu He's protection.
The radiance of a War God like Chu He had attracted the endless attention and desire of every nation.
The Great Xia Empire, a neighbor to the Great Jing Empire, was naturally drawn by this radiance as well. They were filled with envy and longing for this War God.
The Great Xia Empire bordered the Great Jing Empire and faced the same threat from the Demon Caves.
They had already paid an immense price to suppress the Demon Caves, but incidents of rampaging Evil Spirits still occurred frequently, each one resulting in the loss of countless lives.
For the Great Xia Empire, it was like being sliced by a dull knife—a slow and agonizing process.
Therefore, they began searching everywhere for a breakthrough, hoping to lure the War God, Chu He, to their country.
Every country in the world was jealous that the Great Jing Empire had a War God like Chu He.
As long as Chu He was there, the Great Jing Empire could rest easy, develop its strength, bide its time, and wait for the right opportunity.
However, the newly appointed Queen Ji Shengyue made a series of jaw-dropping moves, which gave the Great Xia Empire hope of poaching Chu He.
Coincidentally, the Great Xia Empire had actually found a crucial opportunity.
Through a deep investigation, they discovered that Chu He had been alone ever since he became world-famous.
They later learned that Chu He was an orphan who had once been taken in by an orphanage in the Great Jing Empire.
That orphanage went out of business due to poor management, and Chu He was left to wander the streets.
It wasn't until later, when he displayed his astonishing talent in Martial Arts, that he became known to the world.
In the course of their investigation, the Great Xia Empire unexpectedly found a childhood photograph of Chu He.
In the photo, he was young and adorable, and standing behind him was a young couple.
Unfortunately, because the photo was very old and poorly preserved, the couple's faces were blurry and indistinct.
Most crucially, the background of the photo was a city in the Great Xia Empire.
This discovery thrilled the people of the Great Xia Empire.
If they could find that couple, or prove that Chu He had some connection to the Great Xia Empire,
then they might actually have a chance to poach this National Guardian War God!
For the Great Xia Empire, this was without a doubt a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
They began to search with all their might for clues about the couple, hoping to unravel the mystery of Chu He's origins and bring him into the fold of the Great Xia Empire.
"Do you think that Queen Ji Shengyue is really that foolish?"
the driver asked after a brief silence.
Liu Yuzhu shook her head gently, a mocking curve playing on her lips. "Foolish? No, she isn't foolish. She's just overly ambitious. Her lust for power has driven her to extremes.
"Ji Shengyue is well aware that the upper echelons of the country are skeptical of her as a young Queen, and even make subtle moves against her behind the scenes.
"So she cleverly used her gender to her advantage, whipping up a frenzy of public opinion across the nation."
She continued, "According to our covert investigations, over eighty percent of the women in the Great Jing Empire now fully support Ji Shengyue.
"And among the men, more than sixty percent have started to mindlessly follow her because of her beauty and that so-called 'Time Girl Group' she launched—those twelve beautiful and charming women, each with her own unique style.
"A situation like this only strengthens my conviction that the Great Jing Empire is not far from collapse."
Liu Yuzhu let out a cold laugh, a flash of smugness in her eyes. "These people have lived comfortable lives under Chu He's protection for too long. They've long since forgotten about the existence of Evil Spirits and Demon Caves.
"They don't know that those Evil Spirits and Demon Caves are like a fatal sword hanging over humanity's head, ready to fall at any moment.
"And Chu He is their only shield."
Liu Yuzhu gently caressed the childhood photo of Chu He in her hand.
She wasn't actually a citizen of the Great Jing Empire, but a mole planted here by the Great Xia Empire.
Her mission was to do everything in her power to poach the National Guardian War God, Chu He, for the Great Xia Empire.
And now, she seemed to see the light of success on the horizon.
All of this was something the Great Jing Empire itself was throwing away.
They were lost in the illusory dream world created by Ji Shengyue, forgetting where the real crisis lay.
It was precisely this that Liu Yuzhu was exploiting, bringing her one step closer to her goal.
...
Chu He sat on the soft sofa, his expression as calm as still water. He softly spoke two words: "System, activate."
His voice echoed in the air as if it had triggered some mysterious mechanism.
Immediately after, a crisp, pleasant voice rang out in Chu He's mind: "DING! The Beautiful Life System has been successfully activated. The first mission is about to be issued. Does the host accept?"
Chu He nodded slightly. "Accept."
The system's voice sounded again:
"Mission: Check in at a desert, an ocean, and a mountain within one month. Completion reward: one hundred years of cultivation!"
"Mission failure: no penalty."
This mysterious system had actually appeared quietly back during his days guarding the Demon Cave.
But back then, he was burdened with the heavy responsibility of protecting humanity and couldn't take a single step away from the Demon Cave, let alone complete the system's missions.
Now, he was finally free from that heavy burden and could freely pursue his own dreams and desires.
Chu He's heart filled with anticipation,
imagining himself traveling between deserts, oceans, and mountains, enjoying the magnificent scenery of nature while receiving the system's generous gifts.
'Once I get that one hundred years of cultivation, how terrifying will my power become?'