Milestone Achieved

Once again coming to the palace for an audience, Ying Ru Shi was surprised to find... the air was so fresh.

The skylights and gates were all open, and the soft sunlight shone directly into the main hall, illuminating every corner through the building's reflective structure. The breeze dispelled the stuffy heat, and upon entering the hall and looking up, one could see the towering and solemn dragon carvings. Although one could still feel the supreme solemnity and dignity, there was no sense of oppression in her heart, only awe for the imperial power.

But when Ying Ru Shi clearly saw the figure on the throne, her mind went blank in an instant, almost losing control of herself. By the time she came back to her senses, she was already kneeling before the Mount Sumeru Throne.

Sitting on the throne was naturally the Phoenix Majesty Emperor Ying Le of Qi Kingdom.

However, she was not wearing clothes haphazardly, nor was she not wearing clothes at all, but sitting upright on the throne, clad in a full set of Silver Moon Armor. The shoulder armor was engraved with intricate dragon patterns, the breastplate perfectly conformed to her figure, the skirt armor covered her legs in layers like mountains, and the steel gauntlets on her hands were full of ferocious spikes.

She wore the Laurel Imperial Crown, her black hair cascading down like a waterfall, a few strands gently brushing her cold face, and her hands rested on a Black Steel Greatsword stuck into the ground.

If the previous Ying Le was a volcano, a tsunami, a storm, an undisguised destruction, then the current Ying Le was a deep sea and a high mountain, towering, solemn, majestic, and heroic. Seeing such an emperor, Ying Ru Shi almost burst into tears of joy, and said in a trembling voice, "Le City County Princess Ying Ru Shi greets Your Majesty!"

"Grant her a seat."

A chair was immediately brought over, but Ying Ru Shi did not get up, but presented the long saber in her hand: "Ru Shi is incompetent, and failed to obtain Bingzi Jiaolin, and could only obtain a pseudo-saber with some of Bingzi Jiaolin's authority."

In the Thieves' Den, Ying Ru Shi reached a deal with Yan Qing: 500 Spirit Jade for a conferred saber.

Yan Qing naturally agreed. Conferment required the consumption of 100 spiritual power, costing only 100 Spirit Jade, and the more conferred sabers there were, the stronger Bingzi Jiaolin would be. He wished everyone would use conferred weapons.

However, the process of conferment took a lot of time, because not to mention a Tier 1 The Herald, even a Tier 2 The Herald's spiritual power limit could not exceed 100. Fortunately, the conferment process was a 'continuous consumption of spiritual power', meaning Yan Qing could absorb Spirit Jade while conferring.

This design of 'continuous consumption of a large amount of spiritual power exceeding the level limit' meant that 'this function cannot be used in battle'.

"Oh?"

Ying Le took the pseudo-saber, "It does look like a pseudo-Zhou style war saber... I see, Bingzi Jiaolin's authority is to enhance the performance of other weapons?"

"As Your Majesty expected, Bingzi Jiaolin's three authorities are Conferment, Pillar of the Nation, and Overturning the Heavens." Ying Ru Shi briefly introduced the effects of Bingzi Jiaolin, and then said, "Looting is not allowed within the Thieves' Den. To obtain a Legendary Relic, one can only earn Thief Points according to the rules of the Thieves' Den. Only by having more Thief Points than others is it possible to bid for a Legendary Relic."

"Ru Shi failed to obtain Bingzi Jiaolin, please punish me, Your Majesty."

"No need." Ying Le put down the pseudo-saber, "You are the most talented member of the imperial family. I will need to rely on you to govern the country in the future. How can a Legendary Relic be more important than you? You can continue to follow up on the Thieves' Den, but prioritize your own safety and do not force it."

Ying Ru Shi's forehead touched the ground, tears streaming down her face: "Ru Shi will definitely spare no effort to repay Your Majesty's kindness!"

She took off the ring on her hand and presented it to Ying Le: "This is a Storage Ring that I bid for from the Thieves' Den, and it should be handed over to Your Majesty for disposal."

Ying Le examined the Storage Ring for a moment, and nodded: "Alright, then I will accept it. You can go back and rest. By the way, you should know about the announcement and the wanted order, right? Do not expose your identity. There are countless The Heralds coveting your bounty now, and even the City That Never Sleeps may not be able to protect you."

"Yes!"

Even after leaving the palace, Ying Ru Shi was still dizzy, as if in a dream, unable to believe it.

She never expected that after nine years, the emperor who had been mad for nine years could actually regain consciousness and return to the Phoenix Majesty Emperor who once dominated the world!

When Ying Ru Shi was young, Ying Le was not like this, but a general who conquered all directions and roamed the world. She led the Bai Bao Iron Cavalry several times to plunder the key Secret Realms on the border, defeating Pseudo Zhou's Yaoshi Mo Ke and Pseudo Liang's Shao Hu, and returned to the country with the great prestige of capturing cities and territories to revitalize the country, implement reforms, encourage agriculture and education, and compile laws and regulations, governing Qi Kingdom in an orderly manner. Countless people built ancestral temples and honored her as the Phoenix Majesty Emperor.

That vibrant scene of all things competing was still vivid in her mind.

This was also why even after Ying Le's perverse actions for many years, no one in the entire country dared to oppose her or even overthrow her. Not only because of her strength, but also because she only needed to raise her arms, and countless people who had received her kindness would still gather!

But since Ying Le established her foundation, everything had changed. Power was like a curse, turning Ying Le into another extreme, indulging in alcohol, absurdity, cruelty, and madness, like a monster in human skin.

But it didn't matter, she was back, everything was back!

When Ying Ru Shi returned to her mansion, she saw a team from the palace waiting at the door.

"County Duke, this is His Majesty's gift to you." The eunuch presented a treasure box.

Ying Ru Shi opened the treasure box and discovered it was a Storage Ring, and one with three spaces, far more precious and rare than the one she had offered!

She immediately knelt on the ground, tears welling up in her eyes, and said:

"Your subject, deeply grateful for His Majesty's great kindness, will certainly devote myself heart and soul until my death!"

At the same time, inside the Qiankun Hall of the Imperial Palace.

The Pseudo Blade changed shape in Ying Le's hands, kneaded into a ball like mud. Ying Le watched the iron ball in her hand, drool dripping from her mouth, yet she seemed oblivious, continuing to knead the iron ball, finally slamming it out, directly smashing through the Mithril-forged palace gate!

She panted heavily twice, taking out a wanted poster from her bosom.

[Suspect Number Three]

[Characteristics: Wears a white fox mask, uses a longsword]

[Crime: Involvement in the Anguo Temple Heist]

[Threat Level: Third-Rank Combat Power]

[Bounty for Elimination: 20,000 Spirit Jade or an Advanced Swordsmanship Mastery Manual]

"No rush, no rush, must wait, must wait."

"I must endure, endure! Must nurture her until the bounty is high enough, high enough to lure out the people from the Divine Marquis Manor, high enough to lure that guy out!"

"The Divine Marquis Manor will definitely come out to hunt her down, and that guy will come out too, he definitely will!"

"Someday, someday..."

Jiangnan City, the Shang Family.

"So you understand your situation now, right?" Shang Qia's voice held worry but also a hint of schadenfreude: "Now the whole world has heard the Divine Marquis Manor's announcement, do you understand what that means?"

"I understand." Shang Xin Lei nodded: "Third Brother, you're jealous of me!"

"Bullshit, what am I jealous of you for!"

"You're jealous that I could disguise myself and go to Chang'an to kill and set fires, jealous that my deeds are being announced to everyone, even women and children, jealous that I can participate in such an exciting and sensational adventure, while you, Third Brother, can only stay at home and be scolded by Father."

"That's not true!" Shang Qia's face flushed red: "Besides, Father hasn't scolded me recently!"

It would be a lie to say he wasn't envious. A worldwide announcement, ah! How many emperors, generals, talented scholars, and beautiful women could achieve such towering feats and still not have their names and deeds known to the whole world?

Yet Shang Xin Lei and the others merely went to Chang'an, stole an item, and actually attracted an announcement that shook the four seas and spread throughout the eight wildernesses! There might be no one in the future, but it was definitely unprecedented. Even if you searched through history books, you would never find anything similar!

The first time ever!

Although the worldwide announcement didn't have any substantial impact, it was nothing short of a miracle to the people of the time. Even the Herald, who had seen Secret Realms, couldn't help but be affected.

Watching his sister crack melon seeds smugly, Shang Qia knew he couldn't control her, and unhappily handed a book to her.

The book had no title, only a few thin pages, but Shang Xin Lei's expression changed slightly after reading it for a moment.

This is a booklet introducing the Secret Realm 'Divine Marquis Manor'. It doesn't contain much, only briefly mentioning what kind of demons are in the Divine Marquis Manor. These demons are generally at least Third Rank, and the Divine Marquis Manor doesn't exist in any one place; to enter, you can only rely on an item called the 'Reward Good Punish Evil Token'.

The last page mentions that the treasure chests in the Divine Marquis Manor produce a special spiritual medicine.

The spiritual medicine is called Foundation Establishment Pill.

"Is the Divine Marquis Manor the only place that produces Foundation Establishment Pills?" Shang Xin Lei asked.

Shang Qia shook his head, "Not only, but most other places that produce Foundation Establishment Pills are Fourth Rank Secret Realms."

Fourth Rank Secret Realms and Third Rank Secret Realms are completely different concepts, because Third Rank Secret Realms can be conquered by relying on a large number of Second Rank Heralds and First Rank Heralds without regard for casualties, while Fourth Rank Secret Realms are absolutely impossible to conquer in this way. Only teams composed of Fourth Rank Heralds have a chance to conquer them.

"In other words, the Divine Marquis Manor is the only place where the vast majority of Third Rank Heralds can obtain Foundation Establishment Pills," Shang Xin Lei murmured, "Then the Reward Good Punish Evil Token—"

"It is said that they may appear in the treasure chests of any Secret Realm," Shang Qia said, "Our family has controlled the Quiet Heart Abode Secret Realm for decades, and only one Reward Good Punish Evil Token has appeared, but it was immediately traded away as an important bargaining chip, in exchange for our Shang Family's hereditary nobility in Great Liang."

"What did Father say?"

"You enter the Secret Realm immediately," Shang Qia said, "Even if someone can track your traces through the Relic, it will be ineffective because the Secret Realm is isolated from the outside world."

"Then I could actually stay in the Thieves' Den," Shang Xin Lei tilted her head, "I only need to come back every day to shower and eat, and it won't be boring, after all, Yellow Dog seems to be staying in the Thieves' Den all the time..."

"No!" Shang Qia said anxiously, "How can a single man and a single woman be in the same room!"

"It's not the same room, we each have our own bedroom..."

"That's still no good, you should still go to Quiet Heart Abode to avoid trouble."

"I've been there too many times, it's boring," Shang Xin Lei said casually, "I want to go to Wandering Star Forest."

Shang Qia was stunned, pondered for a moment, "Wandering Star Forest is indeed about to open recently, but... it's much more dangerous than Quiet Heart Abode, and the family guards can't help, do you really want to go?"

"I may not stay in the forest for long, it won't be dangerous just to see it. Besides..."

Shang Xin Lei glanced at the four wanted posters on the table.

"I should also work hard, I don't want to be last again after the next mission."

[Fourth Suspect]

[Characteristics: Wears a red snake mask, weapon used unknown]

[Crime: Participating in the Anguo Temple heist]

[Threat Level: Unknown]

[Bounty for Elimination: 10,000 Spirit Jade or Basic Footwork Mastery Manual]

"Are you kidding me, why is my bounty so much higher..."

In the Thieves' Den, Yan Qing opened the game console and logged into the 'Night Four' account, and soon found his wanted poster.

And he didn't need to go to the city gate or anything, because a message popped up in the chat bar in the lower left corner of the game—

[World Channel] Divine Marquis Manor Announcement: Four unknown small thieves recently came to the Thieves' Den. They successfully stole the Legendary Relic Bingzi Jiaolin from Chang'an Anguo Temple. They are hereby wanted.

The words 'Wanted' were also hyperlinks, clicking on them would jump to the "Bulletin Board," which was probably an area displaying various real-time activities in the game, but now there were obviously no activities, only four wanted posters hanging on it.

"Suspect No. 1"

"Characteristics: Wearing a yellow dog-shaped mask, using a long blade as a weapon"

"Crime: Participating in the Anguo Temple heist"

"Threat Level: Unknown"

"Bounty for Execution: 100,000 Spirit Jade or Legendary Relic · Bingzi Jiaolin"

Yan Qing glanced at it twice and put it down. After all, he didn't live outside, and even if the bounty on the wanted poster was increased by ten thousand times, it wouldn't matter to him. Instead, he began to worry about whether the others would be unable to withstand the pressure and flee to the Thieves' Den to take shelter. If that happened, Yan Qing would have to live under the same roof as them.

Living together, it would be normal for them to invite him to eat together, right? It would be normal to chat, right? It would be normal to visit each other from time to time, right?

TMD, what's the difference between this and going to work!

Before transmigrating, he had to engage in useless socializing, and after transmigrating, he still had to engage in useless socializing? Then didn't he transmigrate for nothing?

Is there no place in this vast world for him to quietly play games?

Yan Qing sighed in his heart and focused his attention on the game.

Suddenly, he noticed a strange effect in the status bar above 'Night Four's' health bar. When the cursor moved over it, the name of the effect stunned Yan Qing.

"Milestone Title: Demolition Team"

Oh, he did complete this milestone... Wait!?