Xun Junyao calmly looked at the dying Blood Dragon. She was a master at reading emotions, so she could tell from his eyes that he was still in disbelief that she would betray him. She shook her head. He was just like everybody else.

Xun Junyao sighed, thinking about how much effort she had taken before reaching this point. A look of annoyance flashed in her eyes:

"Do you know how much time and effort I've spent just on that Death-Root Poison alone?

"After you guys used the world's luck to cast a causality spell that destroyed anything that threatened you, almost all poisons in the world were destroyed. They were nowhere to be found.

"

Xun Junyao wanted to be angry, thinking how many rare resources these parasites destroyed so that they could protect themselves.

"The only place with such poison was those top lineages,

" Xun Junyao continued.

"But they were sealed or did not want you to use an excuse to plunder their sects, so they refused any of my attempts to get my hands on one. As fate would have it, I found that destroyed Death-root and wanted to revive it. However, you people kill all poison masters, alchemists, or spiritual herb planters capable of such a feat.

"

Xun Junyao looked at him with pity.

"Fate is truly against you. There happens to be a talented poison cultivator in the Lawless Zone with the skills to revive and even improve on it. The next step was to get you into ingesting it without noticing. For this part, I would like you to meet one of the greatest contributors.

"

Xun Junyao clapped her hands, and a middle-aged man with streaks of white hair on the side of his hair walked in. His body naturally emanated a scent of spices. He looked at Blood Dragon with unrestrained hatred.

"Remember him?

" Xun Junyao asked.

"You probably do since he's the only gift from you that I've ever accepted. Well, I have to thank you. Without all his excellent food, I would never have such a rapid cultivation speed.

"More importantly, this plan today would have never succeeded. He integrated the Death-Root into your food so perfectly that your body would not detect it as a poison. Instead, it will see it as a nourishing substance.

"

Xun Junyao then pointed at the palace's ceiling to manifest an array.

"The next step was asking Lady Wu for this array that suppressed your Sense of Danger, and voila. Of course, it helps that you were so fanatic, for lack of a better word, about my beauty. I'm sure that was a great distraction from the danger surrounding you.

"

Roar

A potent dragon roar emanated from Ao You's mouth. With a twisted fist, he managed to summon a decisive blow as he summoned a red dragon phantom that rushed. The palace trembled, but nothing else occurred. A shield appeared before Xun Junyao and the cook named Chen Shu.

"Weren't you paying attention to the banquet?

" Xun Junyao asked.

"Lady Wu granted me a protective talisman. How can someone like you break something she made? Know your place, little reptile.

"

Ao You's eyes turned red. Nothing dragons hate more than being called lizards, snakes, or reptiles. He stared at Xun Junyao.

"Ohh, so many emotions, including some vile things you think you're going to do to me once you get out of this situation,

" she commented.

"However, more than anything else, you wish to know why I'm doing this. Am I correct?

" She asked him.

"I'm going to take that as a yes,

" Xun Junyao nodded.

"I'll tell you.

"

"Lady Xun, I think we should activate the poison and accelerate his death,

" Chen Shu said.

"Is that your way of saying I'm speaking too much?

" she asked him.

"I wouldn't dare.

"

"You don't understand,

" Xun Junyao continued.

"I've been planning this for so long and had to keep it a secret to ensure nothing was leaked. Now is my chance to show off; how can I let it go so easily?

"

She focused on Ao You;

"To answer your questions, there are many reasons why I did this, including all the atrocities you've committed, how you, parasites, have blocked the way forward, revenge for my cook, and revenge for scheming against my apprentice and turning him into a waste.

"However, none of those are my primary objective. For those, I only have two. Firstly, you killed my second apprentice.

"

Ao You looked at her confusedly. He did no such thing.

"It was an accident, but I don't know if that makes it worse or better,

" Xun Junyao continued.

"I once met this blind little beggar boy and surprisingly discovered he could not see me. I know you think my words are odd, but that's because you don't know that my accursed beauty works even on people without any sights or visual detection. As long as I'm close to them, their idea of the perfect beauty will manifest in their mind.

"However, that boy was truly blind — eternally without a sight. I knew he was special and planned to cultivate him, but my greed ruined him,

" Xun Junyao sighed.

"You have no idea how exhilarating it felt to talk to someone not influenced in the slightest by beauty. The boy was only eight and was utterly ignorant of the world, but I enjoyed our conversations. I enjoyed cultivating his curious mind. Alas.

"

A deep sadness enveloped Xun Junyao.

'I knew as soon as he became my disciple, our dynamic would change and we could not converse normally, so I delayed things just to enjoy that brief peace and tranquility. Sadly, fate had other plans. I only left for 10 minutes to deal with things at the palace, but when I returned, you wiped out the entire mortal dynasty.

"Later, I learned it was not even intentional. You had a confrontation with someone and blatantly used your aura in an area full of mortals, killing everyone around. My poor apprentice.

"

Xun Junyao looked at him with a fierce gaze.

"That's why I chose you out of all the other 8,

" Xun Junyao said coldly with indifferent eyes. In the next second, her demeanor returned to calm and a little more positive.

"Of course, I cannot say that's my main reason — that would be hypocritical. After so many years, I've properly mourned Little Ergou,

" Xun Junyao continued with a slight smile.

"My primary motivation is reputation. I'm tired of people seeing me as nothing but a beautiful vase — someone whose only value is their face.

"What better way to change my reputation than to kill a Paragon and, more importantly, be the one to start the end of this Era.

"

A hint of brilliance and madness flashed in Xun Junyao's eyes.

"After killing you, my name will forever be transcribed in the annals of history. From now on, people will not know me as Xun Junyao, the Most Beautiful Woman in the World. They'll know me as Xun Junyao, the Paragon Slayer, the Herald of End of this terrible era.

"

"You…won't…succeed.

"

"Oh, but I will.

"

Blood Dragon fell to the ground, his soul scattered, and his body turned into this black ash that dispersed a few seconds later.

"You should leave since the next part might be dangerous,

" Xun Junyao ordered.

"Are you sure you don't need my help?

" Chen Shu asked.

"Don't worry. I'll be fine. I've rehearsed this for so many years that I'm prepared for most variables.

"

"As you wish.

" Chen Shu disappeared from the room, and a few seconds later, Blood Dragon reappeared in the room. The process of returning from Limbo was slightly disoriented, but he soon realized what had happened.

"Re-Life Talisman,

" he said with gritted teeth.

"Exactly,

" Xun Junayao nodded with a smile.

"I figure, given how many resources you've leached from the world, there should be a few third-rank longevity resources.

"

Blood Dragon quickly calmed down.

"Now that I'm not poisoned, do you think you have a chance?

" He did not hide his sneer.

"Then, why don't you attack me?

" Xun Junyao asked, calmly waiting for him to make a move. However, even after more than five seconds, the dragon only looked at her while secretly analyzing the surroundings with his divine sense.

"Truly a coward,

" Xun Junyao uttered while shaking her head.

"I often wondered how people like you survived the Time Washing Heart Tribulation. I guess that's not fair. Maybe in your prime, you had a pure and courageous heart to pursue the Dao, but after becoming thieves that stole the world's power, you indulged yourselves in power politics and thought only about how to preserve your power by keeping everyone else down.

"

Xun Junyao was genuinely disappointed.

"Alright, since you won't take action, I will.

" She raised her hand to snap her fingers. Blood Dragon reacted. The difference between their strength was astronomical, so all of Xun Junyao's actions were in slow motion in his eyes.

He raised his hand to release a devastating blood magic. However, as soon as he mobilized his power, Blood Dragon fell to his knees, holding his heart.

"You!?

"Wondering how I knew about your Bloodline Curse? Well, let's just say you're not keeping as secret as you think, and many of the dragons under your control would do anything to get in my favor,

" she replied with a smile.