From Cold Palace Princess to Heavenly Empress

The next moment, Xiao Minghuang took a step, her figure flashed, and she appeared in front of Ye Ruoshui.

"Your Highness..."

Before Ye Ruoshui could speak, she felt herself embraced by a warm, soft chest, and then her vision went dark.

A gentle, sweet kiss landed on the corner of her lips.

The kiss was not slow, and it was over in an instant.

As the warmth receded, so did the kiss.

Ye Ruoshui opened her eyes.

She saw Xiao Minghuang's peerlessly beautiful and ethereal face, with a hint of playfulness. Xiao Minghuang blinked her charming peach blossom eyes, her allure innate, capable of eclipsing the moon and shaming flowers, making Ye Ruoshui's heart flutter.

"I'm leaving now, sister. You'll have to block Wanqiu for me later, okay!"

Perhaps captivated by her charming and playful smile, Ye Ruoshui inexplicably nodded.

After receiving her reply, Xiao Minghuang casually patted Ye Ruoshui's small head, her figure flashed, and she disappeared.

An unknown amount of time passed.

Ye Ruoshui slowly came to, covering her hot, flushed cheeks with her hands, and whispered:

"Sister..."

Around this time.

Lin Wanqiu emerged from behind the large rock.

The kiss just now had been too much for her.

It was the first time in her life that she had been kissed on the lips.

It was also the first time she had been kissed on the lips by someone she liked.

In that instant, she forgot heaven and earth, blurred the boundaries of space and time, and just wanted to immerse herself in that moment of happiness forever, making the fleeting moment eternal.

But this was just an unrealistic fantasy, and she quickly regained her senses and understood.

"Your Highness is truly... helpless!"

Lin Wanqiu gave a wry smile. She was at a loss, perhaps facing disaster, but willing to be lost in her infatuation for the beauty.

Stepping out from behind the rock, she saw Ye Ruoshui standing there covering her face, looking flustered.

Lin Wanqiu's mind raced, and in an instant, she understood.

"Did Ruoshui see Your Highness kiss me just now?"

If she were an ordinary, shallow, vulgar woman, she would likely have arrogantly walked up to Ye Ruoshui and disdainfully declared:

"Your Highness only cares about me. You're just a mere maidservant, daring to lust after your mistress? Have you even looked in a mirror? Are you worthy?"

But Lin Wanqiu was not such a crude woman. She knew Ye Ruoshui was innocent and pure-hearted, and that she genuinely cared for Xiao Minghuang. She couldn't hurt such a lovely girl; instead, she should cherish her and let her feel the beauty and kindness of the world.

Lin Wanqiu walked to Ye Ruoshui's side, intending to say:

"Don't be discouraged, Your Highness will definitely kiss you too later."

But the words caught in her throat.

Kissing, after all, was a very private matter.

It couldn't be spoken of lightly. If she said it, it was unknown if it would comfort Ye Ruoshui.

If it had the opposite effect and she was mistaken for being provocative, it could be even more troublesome.

And so.

Lin Wanqiu stood beside Ye Ruoshui, her brows furrowed, wanting to speak but stopping, wanting to stop but speaking, repeating this cycle several times.

After a period of calm, Ye Ruoshui gradually recovered and saw Lin Wanqiu standing beside her, her brows furrowed, her expression gloomy, as if she had a lot to say but couldn't.

Ye Ruoshui's mind spun, and she immediately thought of Xiao Minghuang kissing her just now.

"Oh no! Did Miss Lin see when sister kissed me just now?!"

In an instant, Ye Ruoshui's expression changed rapidly, her mood fluctuating.

The thought of such a private matter as her and sister kissing being seen by a third person made her feel awkward and shy.

But thinking that it was Lin Wanqiu, who also liked her sister, she felt that she should flaunt it.

Letting her see firsthand that her sister had kissed her would surely dispel any improper thoughts she had.

"Just a provincial girl from the countryside, daring to lust after my Your Highness!"

As she pondered.

Ye Ruoshui wanted to openly admit that Xiao Minghuang had kissed her just now, and also mention the previous kisses, to slap Lin Wanqiu's face and make her despair and give up!

But then she thought again.

"Miss Lin seems to like sister a lot. If I say these things, will it hurt her too much?"

Thinking of this, Ye Ruoshui's delicate eyebrows furrowed, and she hesitated again.

She knew that Lin Wanqiu's meridians were blocked from birth, and her mother had passed away early, a point of commonality in their experiences.

Although she was the eldest daughter of the City Lord's mansion, she had endured countless sarcastic remarks.

Having grown to this age, despite her outwardly sunny and cheerful disposition, she might actually harbor deep-seated inferiority.

If she said it, Lin Wanqiu would surely be heartbroken, and in despair, might even take her own life.

With this thought.

Ye Ruoshui decided to keep her mouth shut and not mention the matter at all, waiting for Lin Wanqiu to speak first.

And so.

The two of them just stared at each other, neither of them uttering a word.

While the Wooden Man Competition was being held outside the cave, Xiao Minghuang had already descended deep into the mine.

"This spirit vein spans over a hundred li, crossing several mountain ranges. If it's all mined, the Spirit Stone yield could be millions!"

Xiao Minghuang delved deeper into the mine, sensing the surrounding spiritual energy of heaven and earth, and murmured to herself.

Spirit Stones are formed when the spiritual energy of heaven and earth becomes so concentrated that it precipitates and attaches itself to soil or rock. Over time, the rock and soil are enveloped by spiritual energy, undergoing a qualitative change to become Spirit Stones.

Unprocessed Spirit Stones do not have a fixed color. Their color corresponds to the elemental spiritual energy they are most influenced by.

The Spirit Stones Xiao Minghuang saw within the spirit meridians were mostly yellowish-brown, clearly influenced more by earth spiritual energy, yet mixed with the other four elemental energies. They also contained many impurities, resulting in uneven and unattractive colors.

After Spirit Stones are mined, they need to be refined and processed to remove impurities and balance the five elemental spiritual energies. The Spirit Stones will then gradually become pure and transparent.

Spirit Stones processed through these steps are the commonly used Spirit Stones on the market.

High-grade Spirit Stones are as effective as some elixirs, or even more so.

Some special Spirit Stones are comparable to high-grade elixirs, existing only in legends, never seen by anyone.

Xiao Minghuang recalled Ye Ruoshui's account as she walked deeper into the spirit meridian.

She remembered that high-grade Spirit Stones could be used as the main ingredient in alchemy, greatly effective for improving cultivation and restoring spiritual power.

"It would be absolutely wonderful if I could find high-grade Spirit Stones in this spirit vein."

Xiao Minghuang thought to herself.

Witch in the Mysterious World

[Conqueror of Bad Women] [I'm Not a Bad Woman] [Bad Women Are All Older Sisters] The decadent poem of the new era of mystery, with the awakening of Miss Anya Shunos, a mage and traverser of Blue Star, a new chapter unfolds.

Unknown existences annihilated the magical civilization, mad whispers linger for a long time. We, humble and insignificant beings, chase truth with fragile senses, truly pathetic.

Dawn of the Gods, Twilight of the Mortal Realm, Celestial Lords of the Spirit Realm, Gods Beyond the World.

Mortals have ten shackles. Will truly gaining freedom after unlocking all of them be possible?

53. Two Treasures, Long Sword and Elixir

Deep within the dark and damp mine, Xiao Minghuang followed the guidance of the Destiny Compass downwards.

As she went deeper, the surrounding space became increasingly narrow, forcing her to move sideways, pressed against the wall.

Xiao Minghuang leaned against the cold rock wall, winding her way forward, and murmured with a sigh:

"It's fortunate it's me. If Ruoshui were here, she'd definitely get stuck and couldn't move forward."

Finally, Xiao Minghuang stopped before a seemingly ordinary rock wall.

Her gaze, like stars, pierced the darkness, allowing her to see that there was no path ahead.

However, the needle of the Destiny Compass still pointed towards the rock wall in front of her.

"Could there be another secret behind this rock wall?"

Xiao Minghuang guessed that behind the rock wall, there might be another hidden world.

She raised her palm and gently pressed it against the rock wall. With a thought, she circulated her spiritual power, which erupted forth!

RUMBLE!!!

Under the surge of spiritual power, the rock wall shattered into pieces, crumbling into dust.

Xiao Minghuang waved her hand lightly, the dust settled, and the scene behind the rock wall came into view.

It was a narrow cave, only about ten feet wide.

At the deepest part of the cave, there was a protruding platform. Seated upon it was a skeleton covered in dust, as if it had died countless years ago.

The moment she saw the skeleton, a heart-stopping pressure emanated, as if facing an invincible supreme expert.

But this feeling lasted only for a moment before it disappeared.

"You may have been powerful in life, but in the end, dust returns to dust..."

Xiao Minghuang's eyes flickered slightly, and she murmured softly before walking forward.

She didn't touch it immediately. Instead, she took out a few Spirit Stones to test the waters, and only after confirming there were no unexpected situations did she walk up to the skeleton.

The skeleton was entirely gray and white, naked. It was likely that after countless years of erosion, its clothes had long since turned to ash.

"Buried by time, bones unyielding. I really don't know what cultivation this skeleton had in life..."

Xiao Minghuang sighed. She had just begun her cultivation journey, and all she could feel was vibrant energy and an unwavering forward momentum.

As for concepts like lifespan and eternal life, she didn't feel anything at all.

She shook her head slightly, clearing these stray thoughts from her mind. She then raised her hand, circulated her spiritual energy, and enveloped her palm with it before gently touching the skeleton.

The instant her palm made contact with the skeleton.

Clatter!

The gray and white bones shattered in response, breaking into a pile of gray and white bone fragments.

The sudden turn of events startled Xiao Minghuang. She retreated rapidly. Once she regained her composure and realized no anomalies had occurred, she turned back and walked up to the pile of bones...

or rather, bone fragments.

"It seems you weren't powerful enough..."

Xiao Minghuang murmured softly. She walked closer and, amidst the pile of gray and white bone fragments, discovered three items.

The most eye-catching was a Long Sword, about three feet long, covered in dust.

Xiao Minghuang picked up the Long Sword and blew on it gently. The dust scattered, revealing the blade.

The Long Sword was entirely green, exquisitely crafted, and incredibly magnificent. A faint green light flowed along the blade, exuding an extremely mystical aura.

Xiao Minghuang held the sword in her hand and swung it lightly, feeling an immediate sense of lightness.