The Heavenly Emperor's Family's courtyard.
"Yueyan, you saw it too. Huoyao said he had a way to remove the poison in my soul core, and he could even help my martial soul evolve!"
"If his immortal grass could evolve Duoxu's Seven-Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda into the Nine-Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda, then it could surely evolve my Blue Silver Snake into a stronger martial soul too!"
Taolangke nodded eagerly, his face full of anticipation.
Yueyan's brows furrowed with concern as she gently shook her head.
"Calm down, Taolangke. Even if Huoyao really does have the immortal grass you mentioned, the auction house might also have something capable of removing the poison in your soul core."
Ice Emperor nodded.
"No, you don't understand, Yueyan. I want to get that grass from Huoyao's hands—not for myself, but because I want to give it to my father."
"Father's poison is far more serious than mine. I still have plenty of time, and we can wait slowly for the auction house. But the poison in Father's soul core is much more severe than mine."
Yueyan paused, then understood why Taolangke was so excited.
Just as Ice Emperor had said, the Ice Emperor had been the head of the Heavenly Emperor's Family for many years. The poison in his soul core had likely taken deep root, and he might not even have been able to survive another illness.
If they couldn't find a way to purge the poison from his soul core, there was no telling how much longer he could hold on.
That was why Ice Emperor was so eager to earn more points: he wanted to buy the antidote for the poison from the auction house. But the pills were expensive, and with her cultivation method guaranteeing only a set number of points each day, she didn't know when she would have enough.
If she could find Huoyao and learn where the immortal grass was, Ice Emperor would surely have a much better chance.
But...
Yueyan frowned.
"Huoyao said it herself: there's only a limited amount of immortal grass, and it can't be distributed to everyone. Even if she gets her hands on some, she'll most likely follow the rules and hand it over."
"In my previous life, I had a connection with Huoyao. In this life, if it weren't for the diary, I might even have been her enemy. So this immortal grass is probably beyond my reach."
Ice Emperor wasn't the only one who wanted the immortal grass.
Some of the other diary owners would likely react in unexpected ways when they read about all this.
Just learning about the immortal grass's effects would make them eager to get some.
After all, while the Nine-Heart Begonia was undoubtedly a more powerful healing martial soul than the Seven-Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda, its restrictions were also greater.
Across the entire Douluo Continent, there could be only two Nine-Heart Begonia martial soul owners at a time. One had to die before another could appear.
Just as Duoxu wanted to evolve her Seven-Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda into a Nine-Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda, Yueyan also wanted to change that restriction on the Nine-Heart Begonia.
But she knew just how difficult that would be. She didn't dare place too much hope in it, and instead put her hopes in the auction house's items.
Unlike Yueyan, who remained calm, Ice Emperor was eager to purge the poison from her father's soul core. She wasn't swayed by Yueyan's words, but simply went quiet.
"Yueyan, do you think I should go to the Spirit Hall and look for Huoyao right now?"
Yueyan was startled by the suggestion and hurriedly stopped her.
"Absolutely not!"
"If you let the diary be exposed in front of Huoyao, she might directly destroy it!"
She had tried it herself before. The moment she thought about telling anyone the diary existed, she felt the threat of death. If she hadn't abandoned the idea in time, she would have been killed outright.
The diary's secrets had already been laid out clearly. If Huoyao found out about it, the consequences would be unimaginable.
Yueyan understood Ice Emperor's hopes, but she couldn't let her take that kind of risk. After thinking it over, she offered another suggestion.
"But, Ice Emperor, isn't Qin Ming the dean of the Imperial Academy? He graduated from the Spirit Hall, didn't he? We could show our interest in the Spirit Hall in front of him and get him to invite us to meet Taolangke."
"Then we could avoid exposing ourselves, while also making a reasonable connection with Huoyao."
"If possible, I'd even like to invite Huoyao to visit the Heavenly Emperor's Family. That way, besides securing points every day, I could also grow closer to him."
Given Yueyan's cool and reserved nature, it was already rare for her to say so much at once. She had truly racked her brains for a way to help Ice Emperor.
After hearing her suggestion, Ice Emperor calmed down too. She thought Yueyan's words made a lot of sense and nodded in agreement.
"Yueyan, you really are so clever. It's wonderful to have you!"
As she spoke, she went straight over to Yueyan and nestled against her, making herself comfortable in her arms.
Yueyan pushed her away, feigning disgust.
"Enough. Can you calm down now?"
Ice Emperor nodded vigorously.
"I'll do as you said. I'll find an opportunity to bring up the Spirit Hall in front of Qin Ming."
"Just like Huoyao said, those people at the Heavenly Emperor's Family are always trying to find ways to wash themselves clean. Qin Ming has already been stuck at his current level for years, and he gets furious whenever the Spirit Hall is mentioned."
"As long as I show interest in the Spirit Hall, he'll definitely suggest taking us to visit it."
The Northern Region.
"Immortal grass? Your Majesty, do you think we might get some if we follow the rules for the distribution?"
Ice Emperor's emerald eyes shifted as she glanced at the maid beside her.
Faced with her mistress's sudden question, the maid looked bewildered, then smiled awkwardly.
"What are you thinking? If it's distributed according to the rules, how could we possibly get any?"
Ice Emperor hadn't thought her idea was especially foolish. She replied with complete sincerity.
"Huoyao's already in the diary. We're in this world and can fight alongside her. Isn't that close enough?"
The maid rolled her eyes, helplessly at a loss for words.
Strictly speaking, being able to fight alongside her did make them close. But it still couldn't compare to the bond between Huoyao and her other friends.
Leaving those people aside, just the unnamed soul beast co-master, the Azure Bull Python King, was closer to Huoyao than her friends were.
After all, Huoyao had appeared in the diary. In her previous life, the Azure Bull Python King had been deeply devoted to her, even sacrificing himself to save her.
And Huoyao had even helped the Azure Bull Python King recover. If Huoyao got the immortal grass, wouldn't she have a better chance than the others?
There was also Huoyao's daughter, Tang Yiran. Surely her chances of getting the grass were greater than those of Huoyao's friends?
Before you continue