New Spirit Artifact

Next, you successfully joined the Sword Spirit Sect. After Yuan Xia pestered you for half a month and you still remained unmoved, she could only leave helplessly. However, she had also lost the mood to continue her training and chose to return to the Imperial Palace.

Because of Yuan Xia's sensitive status, to prevent anything from happening to her on the journey, a Supreme Elder of the Sword Spirit Sect secretly escorted her away.

On the way back to the palace, Yuan Xia was attacked. Fortunately, the Supreme Elder appeared and joined forces with the Old Woman to kill the enemy, allowing her to narrowly survive.

At that moment, Yuan Xia recalled your words. Lingering fear filled her heart, and she secretly rejoiced that she had come to the Sword Spirit Sect with you. Otherwise, she might have died at the hands of villains. She secretly swore that she would unearth the mastermind behind it and kill them.

You also heard that Yuan Xia had been attacked but survived thanks to the Supreme Elder's secret intervention. You could not help but feel greatly shocked, realizing that a Butterfly Effect had appeared. You had no idea whether it was a blessing or a curse.

Still, you ultimately believed that as long as you remained in the Sword Spirit Sect, and as long as Bai Tianhong did not perish midway, no major problems would arise.

Over the next few years, Xia Yuan often wrote to you, still unwilling to give up on recruiting you.

In Great Xia Calendar 486, Great Xia fell into turmoil. The Third Prince was killed by the Ninth Princess in the Capital City, shocking the entire realm. Everyone was shaken by Great Xia Ninth Princess Xia Yuan's strength and iron-handed style.

Great Xia Ninth Princess Xia Yuan's actions left all the other princes and princesses trembling in fear. They jointly submitted a memorial, demanding that the Old Emperor punish the Ninth Princess. They believed that she was far too cruel, having killed even her own elder brother without cause.

Faced with the princes and princesses' joint memorial, the Ninth Princess was incomparably forceful. She directly threw out evidence that the Third Prince had repeatedly sent people to assassinate her, rendering the court silent as a grave. In the end, the Old Emperor firmly stood on the Ninth Princess's side, making all the court officials understand who the successor was. Their thoughts became active; they no longer wavered and began choosing sides.

When you heard of Great Xia Ninth Princess Xia Yuan's deeds, you could not help shaking your head. You had not expected her style to be so domineering. One truly could not judge a person by their appearance.

In Great Xia Calendar 487, you and Bai Tianhong appeared in Blackwind Forest together, killed the Seventh-Level Demon Beast Silver Moon Wolf, and prevented a beast tide from erupting.

At the end of Great Xia Calendar 492, the Old Emperor abdicated. Great Xia Ninth Princess Xia Yuan ascended the throne, becoming an Empress whose might shook Great Xia. That same year, your cultivation reached the Spirit Origin Realm Second Level.

At the beginning of Great Xia Calendar 493, Great Xia Kingdom was thrown into chaos. Bandits ran rampant, uprisings began throughout the land, and the people suffered bitterly. Empress Xia Yuan flew into a rage and swiftly dispatched a great army to suppress them.

That same year, she began carrying out reforms, issuing a series of policies that benefited the nation and its people. Countless corrupt officials were executed. Great Xia Kingdom's condition showed signs of improvement, and the people began praising Empress Xia Yuan, who started to gain the people's support.

However, her domineering methods also greatly dissatisfied many officials, feudal lords, and aristocratic families, who began secretly colluding with one another.

In response, Empress Xia Yuan showed no intention of restraining herself. Instead, she became even more domineering, even inviting out the Great Xia Royal Family's Invincible Old Ancestor to suppress numerous petty villains. She knew very well that Great Xia had reached the twilight of its dynasty and could collapse at any moment. Therefore, governing the nation required strong medicine; one absolutely could not look ahead and behind in hesitation.

This course of action left many feudal lords shocked, enraged, and fearful. Yet, constrained by the Invincible Old Ancestor's might, they could only lie low and did not dare act too wantonly, lest the Empress seize evidence against them and eliminate them outright.

At the end of Great Xia Calendar 494, the Empress began reforming the Imperial Examination System, selecting talent from across the nation to inject fresh blood into Great Xia and break through the rigidified social classes. Countless talented scholars were stirred into a frenzy, seeing hope of becoming officials.

However, this action thoroughly offended another group of officials. Their dissatisfaction with the Empress reached its peak, but because of her domineering style, they did not dare reveal it and could only cooperate.

At the end of Great Xia Calendar 494, the Empress governed wisely. Old and new officials gradually began replacing one another, fresh blood surged forth, and Great Xia showed signs of rising from the dead. The people's lives gradually improved.

Although you were within the Sword Spirit Sect, you watched all of Great Xia's circumstances unfold. However, you knew very well that the Empress's confidence in overhauling the court on a grand scale and suppressing numerous petty villains stemmed from the royal family's Invincible Old Ancestor. That Invincible Old Ancestor's cultivation had reached Spirit Origin Realm Great Perfection, and no one was his match. But if he died, the realm would surely descend into great chaos, and Xia Yuan's confidence would cease to exist. In this world, strength ultimately spoke for itself.

At the end of Great Xia Calendar 495, the Great Xia Royal Family's Invincible Old Ancestor Ascended. The many forces that had long suppressed themselves could no longer hold back. They joined together, launched a rebellion, and began seizing cities, plunging the realm into chaos.

At the same time, the Sword Spirit Sect's Second Supreme Elder discovered traces of the Fire Spirit Flower and intended to join forces with the other Supreme Elders to harvest it. You appeared at the right moment and stated that you had also seen the Fire Spirit Flower, explaining the terrifying strength of the Fiery Patterned Demonic Tiger and the existence of another Seventh-Level Demon Beast, the Twin-Tailed Serpent Tiger. Bai Tianhong and the other Supreme Elders were all astonished.

In the end, they believed what you said and dispatched even more Supreme Elders. To be safe, they even took the Sword Spirit Sect's sect-protecting spirit artifact—the Azure Spirit Sword—with them.

Because their preparations were so thorough, this hunt proceeded very smoothly. The Supreme Elders easily killed both demon beasts and picked the Fire Spirit Flower.

Seeing Bai Tianhong and the others return safely, you also breathed a sigh of relief.

In Great Xia Calendar 496, the Imperial Army and the feudal lords engaged in fierce battles of attack and defense, with both sides suffering grievous casualties. However, because Xia Yuan governed wisely, the imperial forces were not as rotten as they had been in the past. Their combat strength was formidable, and they showed no signs of decline for the time being.

Yet as more and more forces dissatisfied with the Empress's governing policies joined the feudal lords for their own interests, the pressure on the Imperial Army also increased.

At the end of Great Xia Calendar 496, for the sake of victory, the Empress risked entering the Forbidden Ground hidden by the Great Xia Royal Family. After surviving nine deaths and one life, she successfully passed the Forbidden Ground's trial, obtained the spirit artifact—the Ice Condensation Mirror—and successfully made it acknowledge her as its master.

With the Ice Condensation Mirror's assistance, the Empress personally led an expedition. Even Spirit Origin Realm Ninth Level experts feared her greatly and did not dare meet her edge. This caused the pressure on the feudal lords' side to surge, and they began showing signs of defeat.

When you heard this news, you were greatly surprised. You had not expected the Great Xia Royal Family to possess a spirit artifact as well. No wonder Xia Yuan had the nerve to carry out sweeping reforms. However, you were also deeply puzzled as to why your memories contained no information about the Great Xia Royal Family possessing a spirit artifact.

Driven into a corner, the feudal lords fell into madness. They actually joined forces with Chu Kingdom and invited Chu Kingdom's invincible figure to come bearing a Quasi-Spirit Artifact.