The Ultimate Sense of Fragility

The next day, when Yun Chen got up, the sun was already high in the sky.

Qian Renxue had also just returned from the morning court session. Evidently, she was in an exceptionally good mood today—the smile on her face had not faded once.

What happened yesterday had already spread across the entire continent. After learning that Xue Ye had been hiding such a trump card, the old aristocrats of Heaven Dou had all changed their attitudes, becoming as humble as they could possibly be.

They were even more respectful toward Crown Prince Xue Qinghe, whom Qian Renxue was impersonating. It gave Qian Renxue a chance to finally hold her head high. Normally, these nobles, who relied on their own bit of military strength, barely gave the Heaven Dou imperial family or her, the Crown Prince, the time of day.

Though Qian Renxue did not particularly care about them. After all, the foundation of her power mainly consisted of nobles sent by Spirit Hall to maintain their disguises.

Still, being ignored like that so often was indeed infuriating.

More importantly, after Xue Ye played that hand, there was much less government business for Qian Renxue to deal with.

Ordinarily, the matters Qian Renxue had to handle mainly involved internal affairs—disaster relief, public welfare, and the like. The real problem was always a lack of money.

But after Xue Ye instantly killed a Titled Douluo, those nobles stopped crying poverty every day. When it came time to pay up, they were more eager than the next.

Li He, the Minister of Revenue, especially went all out, directly producing four hundred million Gold Soul Coins and declaring that it was for national development. Though Qian Renxue had smiled at the time, inwardly, she had nearly rolled her eyes into the back of her head.

The remaining nobles followed suit, each donating more than the last.

After that morning court session, Qian Renxue made a rough estimate. Damn it, the donations they had collected were worth more than an entire year's tax revenue.

"Those old bastards! They've embezzled so damn much!"

But that really was unfair to the nobles. The Xue family had such vast territory, yet they had handed all the good land over to the four duchies beneath them. Those duchies did not listen to them, nor did they pay them taxes.

Wasn't it only natural for their tax revenue to be low?

Oh, so their duchies had already surrendered to Spirit Hall and joined Spirit Hall.

Qian Renxue gave a dry laugh. "It's fine. Turns out they're still working for me."

Qian Renxue had returned to her original appearance. Her gaze fell upon Yun Chen, who had just finished eating and was sitting cross-legged in the cultivation room.

Without realizing it, she walked closer. She said nothing, merely silently watching Yun Chen cultivate so diligently.

Perhaps sensing Qian Renxue's arrival, Yun Chen's eyelashes fluttered as he slowly opened his eyes. The first thing he saw was Qian Renxue looking at him with a gentle smile.

"Sister Xue'er..."

Yun Chen called out in a clear voice, blinking his big eyes as he looked pitifully at Qian Renxue. As for why Yun Chen wore such an expression, naturally, it was because he feared that Qian Renxue would punish him over what happened yesterday.

After all, he had only joined Spirit Hall's side a few days ago, yet he had already caused Qian Renxue such enormous trouble. That was truly a grave offense.

But Qian Renxue had clearly misunderstood. Her heart abruptly clenched as she looked at Yun Chen's pitiful, aggrieved face, overcome with heartache.

She thought Yun Chen was disappointed that she had not saved him. She pulled him into her arms and comforted him softly.

Hey! If you're going to hug me, at least leave me some air. But why does it smell so nice? And it's so soft...

Well, Yun Chen was not very tall. His head only reached Qian Renxue's waist.

"Chenchen, Sister really did want to save you. It was just that Xue Ye got there first. I'm sorry. Sister failed to protect you..."

Yun Chen suddenly froze.

Huh? What's going on?

When Yun Chen struggled and squeezed his head out from between Qian Renxue's two soft mounds, he saw a crystalline tear fall onto his shoulder.

Yun Chen looked up at Qian Renxue's face. Qian Renxue slightly turned her head away, unwilling to let Yun Chen see her current embarrassment.

Yet her choked, trembling voice exposed how she truly felt at that moment.

Yun Chen could not help staring blankly. Qian Renxue was truly beautiful when she cried, carrying the heartbreaking fragility of a celestial maiden fallen into the mortal world.

"No, Sister Xue'er has already done wonderfully."

"I saw Sister Xue'er trying to rush over and protect me. In my heart, Sister Xue'er is the true Angel God, a peerless hero of this world."

Yun Chen hugged Qian Renxue back. He truly felt somewhat reluctant to leave this embrace. It was far too warm.

"Mmm..."

Qian Renxue answered softly, not saying anything else. The two of them felt each other's heartbeats as silence fell between them.

"My Regent, grow up soon."

"The Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect will pay the price. I promise you."

Hearing Qian Renxue say this while lying in her embrace, Yun Chen curled his lips into a smile.

The Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect is in for a world of trouble now, hahaha.

But Yun Chen had now thought of a new question. Tang San had already awakened his martial soul, and he had also obtained the Sea God's inheritance token. Was it time to cause Tang San some trouble next?

After the matter with the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, Yun Chen realized for the first time that, before one possessed absolute strength capable of crushing an enemy, it was best to let others make the move, lest he bring disaster upon himself.

He already knew from the original story that Tang Hao was no good person. He was even less reasonable than those people from the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect. So there were certainly some things Yun Chen could not handle personally. What if Tang Hao set his sights on him, hid somewhere with the Great Sumeru Hammer, and gave him a hammer blow? Wouldn't that be the end of him?

So I need to find a reason to get Qian Renxue to focus on Tang San, then send out people from the Hall of Worship.

As for why he would not use Bibi Dong's hand? Everyone knew how Qian Xunji had died—Bibi Dong had gotten him killed. Bibi Dong even had to thank Tang Hao. Otherwise, she truly might not have been able to kill Qian Xunji.

Use Bibi Dong? By the time Tang San became a god, Tang Hao was not even dead yet. What use would Bibi Dong be?

There was even less need to mention Qian Daoliu. He knew the truth and might not vent his anger on Tang Hao at all, at most putting on a show. Only by letting Qian Renxue learn of this could Yun Chen use her influence to dispatch fighters at the Hall of Worship level to hunt Tang Hao. If possible, it would be best to kill Tang San along with him.

"Xue'er..."

Qian Renxue met Yun Chen's gaze. Looking at his calm expression, she had no idea what he wanted to say.

"Xue'er, I actually think we still need more helpers."

"Hm? What do you mean?"

Qian Renxue's interest was piqued. She wanted to see what kind of ideas Yun Chen had.

"Xue'er, we're operating undercover in the Heaven Dou Empire. Many of Spirit Hall's people can't be moved, especially the younger generation."

"Why don't we recruit more talented individuals under the Crown Prince's Residence's name?"

Qian Renxue nodded. She had considered this idea before. After all, the Heaven Dou royal family's actual control was limited, and there were many geniuses they simply could not reach.

"I've thought about that before as well, but with the Heaven Dou Empire's power, we can't get in touch with that many geniuses. And those with average talent aren't worth cultivating."

Hearing this, Yun Chen merely smiled faintly and shook his head before continuing.

"We can use Spirit Hall's power."