Volume One, Chapter 34: Little Mei Niang, Must You Be So Shameless?

The boy before me looked perfectly harmless, clearly the product of a sheltered upbringing.

"How did you get this? You didn't do anything shady, did you?" Gu Yin asked, looking utterly incredulous.

Although Gu Xinxin and Lu Zhichen had gone behind her back to get involved, she reasoned that if they were allowed to engage in their clandestine affair, she was surely entitled to conjure something out of nothing herself.

"My Lord, you’ve likely caught a chill. It’s best to nourish your health early. With all this tossing and turning, eating poorly, and sleeping badly, your constitution is being worn down," she said, sounding just like an old physician.

When the time arrived, Xiao Xu, the Empress Dowager, and the Empress appeared simultaneously. A young man followed behind the Empress Dowager, who was presumably Prince An.

Urged on by Qin Yin, the group began to run. As they pressed forward, a jagged cliff edge emerged through the hazy darkness, and at the foot of the cliff, the outline of a pitch-black gate became visible.

Consort Shen’s laughter was bone-chilling. "It is good that they are dead! Better that everyone is dead!" Having suffered herself, she naturally wished for everyone else to suffer as well.

As a mother herself, Gu Mian truly did not want her second attempt at action to harm this innocent child.

The movement appeared light and effortless, yet Chu Yunling’s face began to contort from the sheer intensity of the pain.

The attack had passed without further incident, but double guards were specifically arranged for the night; everything else would have to wait until dawn.

Old Xu was the artifact spirit of the Taixu Divine Temple. Previously, when Ling Xiao died in battle at Ling Xiao Mountain, Ling Xiao’s mental realm had also suffered a devastating attack. However, because the Taixu Divine Temple had remained within the Taixu Realm, both the temple and Old Xu had only been severely damaged, not completely annihilated.

If his poison slaves hadn't become ineffective, Ye Fei would never have ended up in such a state.

Still, Ming Jianfeng was his subordinate; he couldn't afford not to speak up for him. If blame were to be assigned later, not only would Ming Jianfeng be doomed, but he himself would fare no better.

The two chatted idly as they passed through the rock-lined corridors of the courtyard and stepped into a room with a somewhat heavy, imposing style.

***

Finally, an expert in geomancy was invited over. Upon entering the room and taking one look, the master cursed loudly, pointing out that the statue had been placed directly upon the "Three Killings" position.

The Great Dream Snake nodded in profound satisfaction. Moments later, the giant face in the firmament ignited into a sea of fire, and wings formed of seven-colored glazed divine flames unfurled as the predecessor, Phoenix Imprisoning the Phoenix, slowly descended from the sky.

One must realize that during the Qin and Han dynasties, a *shi* of grain weighed about thirty-one kilograms—roughly sixty-two *jin* in modern terms. A soldier engaged in high-intensity combat required about two *jin* of grain per day.

He let out a long breath, feeling as though his body had been set ablaze—a heat far more intense than that of the Undying Earth Fire.

As a man, one could be insulted in many ways, but one could never be told he was "incompetent," especially not by someone from the brothels. "Where is that bitch?" Lord Anping grabbed the official of the pleasure house by the collar, hauled him close, and demanded through gritted teeth.

The five figures standing frozen in the void were instantly reduced to fine dust, scattering with the wind.

Qin Yanyan truly had no idea where one could acquire such a thing. In her experience, dragon energy was incredibly rare; let alone her own sect, even the other major sects held very few dragon pills in their reserves.

Feng Manhua briefly described the sequence of events. Realizing the gravity of the situation, Yu Sheng leaned against the door to listen to the movements inside.

The Cangyun Sect prided itself on being the leader of the righteous path and naturally refused to admit that the sword techniques passed down through their sect were fueled by evil, malevolent energy. Yet, he had clearly seen in the ancient stone inscriptions that the "Big Dipper God-Slaying" technique could only unleash its true, formidable power by drawing upon the earth's malevolent veins.

"Wife, you shouldn't drink alcohol. Let me swap that for some warm milk, shall I?" Shen Shiyue poured another glass for Gu Shishan, his meticulous attention to detail drawing teasing remarks from everyone present.

When the group decided it was time to depart, the Boundless Emperor directly bade farewell to Zhuge Ziyun and set off on the road to leave the Central Province territory.

"Of course not! But I have something to say to A-Liang..." Qiu Ya said, clutching Wu Junliang’s arm.

The village was deathly quiet, devoid of even the sound of insects. One could not see outside from within the village, as it was shrouded in a thick, impenetrable fog.

With a wave of his hand, a waiter approached with a tray. Nangong Zheng took two long-stemmed glasses and poured a drink for himself and Ximen Qianxue.

***

I felt a weight lift from my heart. I had been worried about entering the arena, for if someone were to notice me accidentally leaking my own yin energy during the match, it would be a disaster.

The middle-aged man possessed a face like polished jade and a steady temperament; it felt as though he could shatter mountains and rivers with a mere wave of his hand. That grand, imposing aura left Gu Tianxiang with no will to resist, yet she knew that at a time like this, she must not retreat.

"We are cousins who have been through life and death together; they are men I can trust. It was I who brought them out of the Qin family estate in Silver City, and they followed me to Nanhua. I have a responsibility and an obligation to plan for their future," Qin Feng said, a sense of duty and mission rising within him.

Was she unwilling? An undisguised sense of disappointment surged in Yun Ci’s heart. He had never expected that Chuxiu, who had always been gentle and submissive before him, would refuse him so bluntly. Yet, in the end, he said nothing more, returning to his usual indifferent expression as if nothing had just occurred.

The corpse was Xiao Zi’s. This fellow had finally reached the end of his lifespan and was well and truly dead.

Xia Po did not move; he simply sat there calmly, drinking his wine. Fortunately, he had been well-prepared, using a protective spirit talisman before the spiritual energy had been sealed off.

"What is the good news?" Lü Hong asked the young boy beside him, observing the joy on the students' faces in the schoolroom. The boy, who seemed to have been waiting for Lü Hong to ask, excitedly began to tell him two pieces of happy news the moment he heard the question.

Zhaoxia knew that when Lü Erniang came to her room, she must be wanting to ask about Jiangling Prefecture. Although Zhaoxia was extremely reluctant to admit that she was the one involved in that affair, since Lü Erniang had come directly to her, she would not dodge the question like Lü Xiang’er or Lü Hong.

Still, these things were better than being an orphan without parents, Chen Langya thought with a bitter smile as he stripped the fat man of his clothes and collapsed onto the bed to sleep.

Ming Ying was still lost in shock, looking Chuxiu up and down, her heart thumping as she asked herself: Could there really be such a look-alike in this world? The Lady Chuxiu before her was a peerless beauty, and she was convinced there was no other like her. But hadn't Han Chu been dead for many years? How could she have become the mistress of the Yun clan?

This meal was perhaps the most sumptuous one I had ever eaten, yet it was also the most difficult to swallow.