You

"Oh? Why is Miss Dugu Yan so shy?"

Ye Yunxi gave a playful smile, her jade-like feet tapping the ground as she flashed before Dugu Yan in an instant.

She reached out and pulled the girl into her embrace.

"E-Empress Dowager?" Dugu Yan's delicate body trembled, her cheeks turning crimson in an instant.

She felt completely at a loss.

The Empress Dowager, who usually avoided physical contact and appeared so bewitching, was actually being this intimate with her.

"I have always been here. How has your cultivation been lately? Since switching from poison to power attack, have there been any changes?"

Ye Yunxi lifted the girl's chin with her palm, forcing her to meet her gaze.

With just that one look, Dugu Yan became so shy she could only stammer, unable to utter a single coherent sentence.

"Thanks to you, Empress Dowager, I feel that even without being a control-type Spirit Master, I am confident in the team and can take on a more important role."

Dugu Yan's face flushed all the way to her ears as she spoke in a stutter.

"Why be so formal?"

Ye Yunxi leaned over with a faint smile, deciding not to tease her any further.

The matter at hand was mostly settled, and lingering any longer would only be a waste of her time.

"The Spirit Master Tournament is about to begin. I look forward to your performance, Miss Dugu Yan. If you perform well, I shall invite you to the manor for a gathering."

Ye Yunxi's watery, peach-blossom eyes stared unblinkingly at Dugu Yan, who was already hopelessly captivated.

"Empress Dowager, is that true?"

"Naturally, it is true. How could it be false?"

Ye Yunxi said no more. After releasing Dugu Yan from her embrace, she utilized Lingbo Microsteps, leaping away and departing Dugu Bo's residence in a single bound.

She came quickly, and she left just as fast.

By the time Dugu Yan regained her senses, she felt a lingering sense of emptiness in her heart.

"Grandfather, what did the Empress Dowager come here for?"

"Some matters. I fear the imperial palace is about to undergo a change."

Dugu Bo truly could not see through Ye Yunxi anymore; she was capable of such speed with a single movement, and she was certainly no ordinary lady.

In any case, loyal service was all that mattered.

As Ye Yunxi left Dugu Bo's residence, she was just wondering where to go to treat herself.

Just as she reached a corner, five masked men in black suddenly dropped from the eaves.

"Her Highness the Empress Dowager, you dare to come out alone at such a late hour?"

The leading masked man was burly, his eyes gleaming with greed as he looked at the alluring Ye Yunxi before him.

"Oh? Are you planning to kidnap me?"

Ye Yunxi raised an eyebrow, a cold glint flashing through her peach-blossom eyes as she prepared to move.

Three powerful waves of spirit power suddenly descended, carrying the pressure of a Spirit King, sealing off her retreat.

The two *Soul Ancestor*s on either side struck simultaneously, aiming directly for her vital points. The five men formed a perimeter, trapping her in a tight space.

"Want to run? Your Highness, just surrender obediently!"

The lead man in black licked his lips, his gaze greedy and lecherous.

"As long as we take you back and break you in properly, grinding away that arrogance of yours until you become a mindless toy, the Crown Prince will have no choice but to listen to us, won't he?"

The others chimed in with strange laughter, their eyes scanning Ye Yunxi's body without restraint, filled with profanity.

A faint, chilling smile curled the corners of Ye Yunxi's lips. She gently rubbed her cuffs, her voice as cold as ice:

"Who sent you?"

"Hmph, we'll tell you once you reach the underworld!"

Before the man in black could finish his sentence, a mocking voice drifted from the mouth of the alley, carrying the arrogance of a youth:

"Oh? Does the Empress Dowager think anyone else would have the guts?"

Ye Yunxi looked up to see Xue Beng walking in slowly, dressed in brocade robes with his hands behind his back. He wore a look of certain victory, followed by two imperial guards.

"So it was you."

Ye Yunxi spoke calmly, her tone carrying a hint of surprise. She had not expected Xue Beng to make a move to kidnap her so soon.

"I am the Crown Prince's Empress Dowager. By seniority, you should theoretically call me sister-in-law. You actually dare to kidnap your older brother's woman?"

"Sister-in-law?"

Xue Beng sneered, his eyes sinister. "Once I capture you and use you to threaten Xue Qinghe, forcing him to hand over the position of Crown Prince, the throne will be mine. Whether you become Empress or a noble consort will be for me to decide, won't it?"

He looked at Ye Yunxi's peerlessly beautiful appearance, a flash of greed crossing his eyes.

"Why should Xue Qinghe be the one to possess you? Only I, this Prince, am worthy of a beauty like you."

Ye Yunxi chuckled upon hearing this, her laughter clear and crisp, yet laced with a bone-chilling coldness.

"Just you? And these pieces of trash?"

As her words fell, a pale pink radiance erupted, and nine fluffy, pearlescent white fox tails burst forth from her body. The tips of the tails shimmered with iridescent crimson Fox Flame Heart Devourer, and the soul power pressure of a level 60 Soul Emperor surged outward, instantly crushing the entire scene!

The expressions of the three Soul Kings changed drastically. Feeling a terrifying force descend upon them, their soul power nearly collapsed; their chain-like soul power attacks were no match for the fox tails, being swept away and shattered with ease.

"This... how is this possible! You are actually a Soul Emperor!"

The lead man in black was terrified to the point of despair, his legs turning to jelly. The three of them, Soul Kings, along with two Soul Ancestor, couldn't even withstand the opponent's pressure!

Ye Yunxi tapped her toes lightly, her figure darting out like a phantom, her fox tails dancing as fast as lightning.

"Thud! Thud! Thud!"

With a few muffled sounds, the two Soul Ancestor didn't even have time to scream before their chests were struck by the fox tails. Their soul power dissipated, and they flew backward, vomiting blood before collapsing to the ground, unconscious.

The three Soul Kings were horrified and tried to join forces to resist, but Ye Yunxi gathered Fox Flame Heart Devourer at her fingertips and unleashed it suddenly. The flames swept forward, scorching their soul power while carrying a potent charm and dizzying effect.

Their spirits shook violently, and their movements slowed. Seizing the opportunity, Ye Yunxi closed in, her fox tails wrapping around their necks. She tightened her grip and slammed all three of them hard against the wall, the sound of shattering bones clearly audible.

In the blink of an eye, all five men in black lay on the ground, their fates unknown.

Xue Beng froze in place, his face as pale as paper, his entire body trembling as he looked at the stunning woman with nine fox tails dancing behind her, as if he had seen a ghost.

He never could have imagined that this seemingly fragile Imperial Concubine was actually such a terrifying Soul Emperor!

Ye Yunxi walked slowly toward him, her peach-blossom eyes curving, though the smile did not reach them. She lightly lifted his chin with her fingertip, her voice soft and sweet yet carrying a lethal chill:

"Your Highness, who exactly do you think you can threaten?"

Xue Beng shuddered uncontrollably, his teeth chattering, unable to utter a single word; his eyes were filled with nothing but profound fear.

The strategy he had been so proud of, the one he thought was foolproof, was so pathetic and fragile in her eyes.

No, there was nothing wrong with his plan; it was just that the intelligence was flawed, and she had deliberately hidden her cultivation. He had sent Soul Kings, but she was a Soul Emperor.

Perhaps even Xue Qinghe himself did not know. Moreover, among the princes, the imperial concubines they married rarely possessed the strength of a Soul Emperor. Even looking across the entire Heaven Dou Empire, such a young Soul Emperor was rare, almost non-existent.

"Who exactly are you? To actually be a Soul Emperor? What is your true intention in coming to the Heaven Dou Empire?"