Even a Princess Could Only Be a Maid (Part 2)

Even a Princess Could Only Be a Maid (Part 2)

Li Shuangyan could not help wondering whether Li Qiye had seen this formation before. But she dismissed the thought, because this fragment of a ruined formation was the formation ancestor's lone copy, obtained by the Nine Sacred Demon Gate at enormous cost.

It could be said that aside from the formation ancestor, who had died in ancient times, only the Nine Sacred Demon Gate knew of this fragmentary formation!

Yet Li Qiye had merely glanced at it before speaking eloquently. In his mouth, this fragmentary formation became utterly insignificant, nothing more than a petty trick.

Li Shuangyan was so shocked that she could not speak for a long while. She had spent more than ten years completely comprehending the mysteries of this fragmentary formation—and that had been under the guidance of the insights left behind by several generations of sages from the Nine Sacred Demon Gate!

Li Qiye had taken one look and laid bare the mysteries of this fragmentary formation. It was too unbelievable. Such a situation was truly devastating.

Even a genius could not possibly explain this formation in a single breath, yet Li Qiye had done exactly that. Was there anyone in this world more gifted than him? The maddening part was that Li Qiye was not even a genius!

Li Shuangyan did not know that Li Qiye had once possessed the complete formation. Now that he saw this fragment, the memories that had been erased along with it surfaced in his mind once more.

"Come here." Li Qiye beckoned to Li Shuangyan and spoke calmly and leisurely.

Li Shuangyan found it hard to snap out of her daze. Acting on instinct, she walked to Li Qiye's side. Her mind was blank, and she did not even know how she had reached him.

"Smack—smack—smack—" Before Li Shuangyan could come to her senses, Li Qiye had pressed her across his knees. Without the slightest mercy, his large hand smacked her round, pert buttocks again and again, leaving them numb and burning hot!

"What are you doing—" Li Shuangyan sprang up at once, shrieking like a cat whose tail had been stepped on. She glared furiously at Li Qiye, her pretty face blazing red.

Li Qiye merely dusted off his hands, looking perfectly composed and at ease, as though he had done something utterly trivial. Then he drawled, "As my maid, you need to have the awareness of a maid. I can indulge those around me, and I can dote on those around me, even a maid. But remember this: do not provoke me! Do not truly think that being a favored daughter of heaven means you can turn heaven and earth upside down!"

"You—" Li Shuangyan was both enraged and humiliated. She was a favored daughter of heaven, the princess of the Ancient Niu Jiang Kingdom, always high above the rest. No one had ever dared show her disrespect. Yet today, a mere little man had fiercely spanked her... Just thinking about such a shameful thing made her tremble!

"Go on. Find yourself somewhere to settle down." Li Qiye waved his hand indifferently. Whether Li Shuangyan was angry or not, he did not care, speaking with tranquil ease.

"You... little man, you... just you wait!" Li Shuangyan finally said in fury. For a moment, she had nowhere to vent her anger. She had always stood high above others, surrounded by stars wherever she went. Countless outstanding young men had sought to win her favor.

Yet today, Li Qiye had not taken her seriously at all. One sentence had dismissed her, and he had not even arranged a place for her to stay. It nearly infuriated her to death!

Li Shuangyan flung her sleeve and left in anger. A dignified princess, an eighteen-year-old girl, had been angered to the point of coughing blood by a thirteen-year-old boy. Even she could scarcely believe it.

"Do not try cultivating the Immortal Slaughtering Emperor Formation!" Li Qiye's voice came from behind her. He remained calm and unhurried as he said, "The formation in your hands is merely a tiny corner of the Immortal Slaughtering Emperor Formation, not even one percent of the entire grand formation! If you force yourself to cultivate it, you will destroy yourself within it! Even the formation ancestor of that time would not have dared claim to cultivate this formation! Much less you. If you wish to cultivate it, wait until your cultivation matures. Then I may consider giving you a pointer or two."

His tone was unhurried, but the words he spoke were supremely arrogant. With her talent, who would dare casually claim to guide her? Yet Li Qiye said it without a care.

Li Shuangyan's body stiffened. The Immortal Slaughtering Emperor Formation was nothing but an eternal legend; many even believed it did not exist at all. Yet Li Qiye spoke of it as if it were utterly ordinary!

Li Shuangyan still held a little pride in her heart. Ignoring Li Qiye, she gave a light snort, turned, and walked away.

Li Qiye did not care in the slightest whether Li Shuangyan was happy or not. He merely sat there in silence. After so many ages, he had once again seen a fragment of the Immortal Slaughtering Emperor Formation.

As for the Immortal Slaughtering Emperor Formation, Li Qiye did not even want to mention it. During the Ancient Ming era, how many had died within it? To construct this formation, how great a price had he paid?

This formation could be called invincible throughout the ages, but how much blood had stained it? From the moment its creation began, it had been destined to be washed clean with endless blood. To create it, how many human sages had racked their brains and poured out their heart's blood, including him!

In that battle during the Ancient Ming era, for the Human Emperor Realm and for the human race, how many sages had died within this formation? How many human experts had been ground to dust within it? Back then, he had controlled this formation and slaughtered until heaven and earth collapsed, until blood drifted across the skies!

He no longer remembered how many had fallen in that battle, including those peerless experts who had once followed him! After that battle, he had remained silent for who knew how long.

Time could wear away everything. Time could smooth over every wound. But some memories could not be erased even by time; they were branded into the deepest part of the soul, never to be wiped away!

The Immortal Slaughtering Emperor Formation... In the end, Li Qiye sighed softly, shook his head, and came back to himself, no longer drowning in the sorrow of the past. The past was ultimately the past! In this life, he would return to the Nine Worlds. Some old debts, he would personally collect—for himself, and for those who had died fighting beside him!

Li Shuangyan's arrival at the Washing Yan Ancient Sect was a heaven-shaking event for the entire sect. Not only did the younger generation of disciples grow so excited they could not sleep, but the upper ranks of the Washing Yan Ancient Sect also attached immense importance to the matter.

Within the Washing Yan Ancient Sect, only Li Qiye did not regard it as anything significant. Whether Li Shuangyan came or not made little difference to him. If she was willing to submit to him, he would have one more capable assistant by his side in the future. Even if she had not come, he could still find someone else to take her place. To Li Qiye, it was nothing at all!

Li Shuangyan was brimming with anger. Li Qiye had not even arranged her lodgings, making her grind her teeth in fury. With a hint of petulance, she refused to live with Li Qiye.

Li Shuangyan did not stay in the small courtyard with Li Qiye. Instead, she brought out a treasured tower and set it down on one corner of the solitary peak, adjacent to the small courtyard. Though she did not live together with Li Qiye, she did not leave the solitary peak either.

Li Shuangyan's arrival, along with Yu He and his group, benefited Protector Mo and Nan Huairen the most, because the master and disciple had been specifically assigned to attend to Yu He's party throughout their visit.

This was no small matter. Yu He was a noble, and serving at his side brought tremendous benefits. More importantly, because of a single word from Li Qiye, Protector Mo and Nan Huairen's status within the Washing Yan Ancient Sect became completely different.

Yu He had also specifically requested that Protector Mo and Nan Huairen handle the matter, following Li Qiye's wishes. This meant that future communications between the Washing Yan Ancient Sect and the Nine Sacred Demon Gate would make Protector Mo and Nan Huairen envoys who could communicate directly with Yu He!

One had to know that in the past, when the Washing Yan Ancient Sect sent envoys to the Nine Sacred Demon Gate, even the six Elders—or even the Grand Elder in person—might not necessarily be able to meet Yu He, the chief grand protector. Yet today, Nan Huairen and Protector Mo could meet Yu He directly. This meant that the relationship between the Washing Yan Ancient Sect and the Nine Sacred Demon Gate had grown another layer closer!

Protector Mo and Nan Huairen's standing within the Washing Yan Ancient Sect rose tremendously. Protector Mo could now be said to rank ahead of the other protectors, while Nan Huairen needed no mention; his treatment made countless third-generation disciples, and even second-generation disciples, green with envy.

Li Qiye did not concern himself with any of this. What he needed to do now was solidify his cultivation foundation without allowing any errors. He would not permit even the slightest flaw in his cultivation foundation. Only by making it firm could he charge toward the peak in the future.

Li Qiye knew better than anyone that if one's cultivation foundation was not firm, or if it had flaws, then no matter how powerful one's cultivation became, problems would easily arise in the future. This was especially fatal when facing the decline of lifespan and the calamity of fate!

How many geniuses had advanced by leaps and bounds in cultivation during their youth, only to have their cultivation foundations crumble because they had failed to solidify them, or because they had been too eager for success? In the end, they vanished into ashes beneath the decline of lifespan and within the calamity of fate!

Therefore, Li Qiye held his cultivation foundation to extremely high standards. Even though cultivating the supreme secret art Moon Vortex Sun ** allowed him to advance quickly, he still slowed its pace, solidifying his cultivation foundation again and again.

Had Li Qiye not restrained his cultivation, his power could already have surged wildly into the realm of robust life and true fate. Yet he still slowed down, repeatedly consolidating his cultivation foundation.

On the seventh day after Li Shuangyan's arrival, Li Qiye and Li Shuangyan had gotten along without incident. But that morning, Nan Huairen came over with a middle-aged man at his side.

"Senior Brother, this is Hall Master Zhou of the Martial Teaching Hall at Wash Stone Peak," Nan Huairen introduced.

Li Qiye gave Hall Master Zhou a glance, nodded, and said, "What is it?"

To Hall Master Zhou, Li Qiye's attitude was arrogant and rude. He felt displeased, snorted coldly, and said nothing further.

Nan Huairen hurriedly said, "The Elder has decided that Senior Brother will temporarily take Hall Master Zhou's place in teaching the Dao. Hall Master Zhou has brought Senior Brother the roster of disciples in the hall, as well as detailed records on each of them. The Elders hope that Senior Brother will teach in Hall Master Zhou's stead seven days from now."

Hall Master Zhou did not say much either. He had an especially poor impression of Li Qiye. As a hall master, he found it irritating that Li Qiye showed him not the slightest respect. Thus, after leaving behind the roster and records, he turned and left, too lazy to offer even one more word of reminder or advice.