Main Storyline 5: The Princess Calls Off the Engagement

After Princess Ping'an left, Jiang Chen pondered it over and over before asking the Empress Dowager:

"Was this Princess Ping'an... raised under your watch since childhood?"

The Empress Dowager understood what Jiang Chen meant. He suspected that the princess might have another identity, or that she had concealed her strength.

"The princess is simply the princess. She possesses even more royal blood than I, the Empress Dowager. There is no possibility that she was switched at birth or possessed... nor is she anyone's incarnation."

At the mention of possession, she deliberately cast a faintly resentful glance at Jiang Chen.

Jiang Chen smiled and avoided her gaze, not exposing the way her personality shifted at times between the Empress Dowager and the Thousand-Faced Fox.

"You have no dignity at all, yet you still want to become an empress?"

The Empress Dowager sighed softly and began to explain.

"Actually, Chan'er's late mother was once a female prodigy from the Beast Taming Sect. That was why Chan'er became engaged to Yun Lanzi, a prodigy of the Beast Taming Sect's new generation.

"She had always rejected this engagement before, yet for some unknown reason, she strangely agreed to it recently.

"Perhaps she never truly wanted to become empress. She merely wanted to seize the legendary Dragon Bone."

Upon hearing this, Jiang Chen wondered whether the princess was a traitor secretly colluding with the Beast Taming Sect.

"Have you searched her soul?"

The Empress Dowager shook her head and strolled beside the winding pond.

"Soul arts are not omnipotent.

"Three years ago, even my strongest soul art failed in the neighboring Monk Kingdom.

"Ever since everyone in the palace learned of my illusion arts, they have all guarded against me and cultivated powerful soul arts for defense.

"I can search souls, but limited by my cultivation, I cannot search hers without her noticing."

Jiang Chen nodded slightly, then asked curiously:

"Who exactly claimed that Fireburn Kingdom had a Dragon Bone?"

The Empress Dowager said:

"The earliest rumors claimed that the desert stretching thousands of miles around Xiyang City had been formed by Dragon Flame scorching the land...

"Of course, that is a rumor. Dragon Flame would not burn everything into sand. The desert was formed simply because of water scarcity.

"There is another legend. Many years ago, it was the Merfolk Clan that drained all the groundwater nearby.

"Perhaps that is why His Majesty has so unscrupulously exploited hundreds of Merfolk Women."

Jiang Chen chose to believe the second legend as well.

Merfolk Pearls brimmed with spiritual power. They could not have appeared from nothing; there had to be a price.

"What exactly is the Dragon Bone for?"

The Empress Dowager suddenly stopped, turning to stare at Jiang Chen. Her deep-pool eyes shimmered with rippling light.

She had not expected Jiang Chen to know so little even about such common knowledge...

"People seek the Dragon Bone to extract Dragon Marrow and Dragon Blood.

"Dragon Blood is said to be the bloodline closest to immortal spirit essence. It stabilizes the dantian and improves one's talent, physique, and the purity of spiritual power.

"Besides that, certain high-grade magic artifacts also use Dragon Blood to temper their spirit patterns."

Jiang Chen thought, I can do most of that too.

Then he asked curiously again:

"Can Dragon Blood devour demonic aura or devil aura for cultivation?"

The Empress Dowager felt as though she were about to become a teacher at a private school.

"Of course not. But possessing Dragon Clan blood allows one to perfectly absorb ordinary spiritual energy and the resources of heaven, earth, and spiritual treasures."

Jiang Chen understood. Dragon Blood was the purest demon blood; both its efficiency and range in absorbing spiritual power far surpassed those of humans and the Devil Race.

"Other than the Demi-Immortal's Book, are there any other methods in the cultivation world to devour demonic aura and devil aura for cultivation?"

The Empress Dowager nodded slightly.

"There are many, but if one wishes to convert them into spiritual power that human cultivators can absorb, the efficiency is extremely low, with tremendous losses.

"There has never been a cultivator who used demonic and devilish aura as quickly as you do, not even Reverend Guiqi himself."

Jiang Chen smiled confidently.

"If not for that, how could I have caught the Empress Dowager's eye? Not to mention your bedchamber and bed."

The Empress Dowager rolled her eyes at him, then asked:

"Have you decided on your Foundation Establishment method?"

"Like you, all I need to do is wait."

Jiang Chen answered calmly.

He then left the palace and went to a sword shop on Vermilion Bird Avenue in Xiyang City, one that specialized in forging natal swords and custom spiritual swords.

He planned to melt down and reforge Old General Chen's heavy sword into a yellow-rank spiritual sword suited for someone with a Five-Element Endowment to control spiritual power.

He did not seek explosive power, only balance in every aspect. It would be especially suited to balanced Five-Element spirit infusion, and could even harmonize demonic and devilish aura.

The shopkeeper had never heard such a request before.

"This is an Imperial Guards heavy sword. You are..."

Jiang Chen said:

"This sword is being forged at Warden Li's request."

The shopkeeper froze, his expression changing drastically as he hastily said:

"Yes, yes, yes! It will certainly be forged at once!"

Jiang Chen then removed the miscellaneous magic artifacts and resources he had no use for from his inventory, intending to sell them all together.

"Help me sell all this junk too. Raise gambling funds for Warden Li."

"Yes, yes. I will definitely offer you the highest price."

"And this Soul-Transfer Device is broken. Can it be restored?"

The shopkeeper picked up the Spine-Bound Soul-Shifter and sent his divine sense inside.

"The spirit patterns within this soul artifact have been shattered. Repairing it would cost more than buying a new one. Unless its original owner was someone important to you and you wish to trace their memories, there is no need to restore it."

"Fine, sell it together with the rest."

"But this thing is worthless..."

"Price it as you see fit. Warden Li needs money urgently."

"Yes, yes, yes."

"Oh, and please leave a drop of your fingertip blood on the stone blade, so the newly forged natal sword may be fitted to you."

Jiang Chen glanced at the stone blade. Leaving his blood behind felt unsafe; it could easily be used by villains.

"It is not for me. Warden Li needs a broadly compatible all-purpose spiritual sword, not a natal sword."

"Understood, understood."

When Jiang Chen returned the next day, the junk in his inventory had sold for more than a thousand spirit stones in total.

However, forging a yellow-rank spiritual sword that met his requirements cost eight hundred spirit stones.

The five-foot sword came with a scabbard for free, embroidered with an auspicious cloud.

Jiang Chen accepted the sword, drew it from its scabbard, and gave it a rough look.

The sword itself was rather heavy. Its blade was blackish and not particularly sharp, while its center was engraved with dense, intricate patterns, far more than an ordinary sword...

There was no helping it. Those were the characteristics of a Five-Element Sword.

After clearing out his inventory, Jiang Chen felt much lighter all over. It was like emptying the recycle bin—utterly refreshing.

He checked the system panel.

[Money]: Low-grade spirit stones ×562;
[Items]
Custom Five-Element Sword ×1 (Yellow Rank);
Rapid Spirit-Healing Pellet ×10 (Low Spirit);
Merfolk Pearl ×6 (Low Demon);

A handy spiritual sword, as many spirit stones as possible, and a small number of Spirit-Healing Pills—those were enough.

As for the Merfolk Pearls...

Peaceful Palace, underground cultivation chamber, night.

Jiang Chen and the Empress Dowager soaked together in the pool. Afterward, he gave her all six Merfolk Pearls.

"I heard Merfolk Pearls are a supreme beauty treatment."

The Empress Dowager accepted them and immediately recognized that they had come from the two Merfolk Women. She deliberately said in a resentful tone:

"Do you think I am old?"

Jiang Chen reached out to measure the Empress Dowager's snowy peaks and smiled.

"I am merely testing the Merfolk Pearls' medicinal effects. I am using the Empress Dowager as a lab rat."

Smack!

With a crisp slap, the Empress Dowager knocked his hand away.

"Hmph. One who offers courtesy for no reason is either a traitor or a thief. Speak—what do you want?"

Only then did Jiang Chen say:

"The beast tamer deliberately released the Twin Mermaids, intending to use merchants and the Imperial Guards to deliver the two Merfolk Women into the emperor's hands...

"However, I destroyed the beast tamer's tear-inducing and control restrictions. From now on, we can have an endless supply of Merfolk Pearls."

"You certainly spread your affections far and wide."

The Empress Dowager put away the Merfolk Pearls, though she reminded him:

"Since the two Merfolk Women are key figures, they may very well be connected to the Dragon Bone... Do you not want the Dragon Bone?"

Jiang Chen said carelessly:

"My whole body is made of it. Who cares about that thing?"

The Empress Dowager rolled her eyes at him.

"In that case, I must guard you, this precious stroke of fortune, very carefully."

Jiang Chen smiled.

"Exactly. Before long, other women will come to snatch me away."

The Empress Dowager frowned, remembering something.

"Since the princess came to test you, she must have discovered that the Merfolk Women's disappearance is related to you. Next, she will likely make further probing moves. If you have nothing important to do, you had best not leave Peaceful Palace."

"Alright."

Jiang Chen nodded and made a new cultivation decision.

"I am preparing to continue cultivating the Demi-Immortal's Book here."

At present, he had only scratched the surface of the Demi-Immortal's Book. He still needed to take time to improve his mastery.

Otherwise, given the current size and spiritual pressure of his Qi Sea Abyss, he might very well be unable to achieve Foundation Establishment.

At the mention of the Demi-Immortal's Book, the Empress Dowager instinctively became irritated.

"Are you trying to devour me?"

To dispel her doubts, Jiang Chen reassured her:

"Don't make a fuss. That is a kiss, not devouring."

The Empress Dowager smiled softly, shaking her head with mock resentment before taking out several pills.

"These are all the Demon Cores and Demon Pellets I possess. They can provide only low-grade demonic and devilish aura to assist illusion arts. They can help you cultivate the Demi-Immortal's Book, but they cannot enable you to achieve Foundation Establishment."

"Enough."

After finding himself a rich woman to rely on, cultivation really did yield twice the result with half the effort!

Thus, Jiang Chen moved into the underground cultivation chamber and began cultivating the Demi-Immortal's Book by fusing the energies of humans, demons, and devils.

Protected by an illusion array and equipped with Resonance Concealment, he could cultivate without restraint here.

He made all kinds of deep attempts and fusion expansions based on the Demi-Immortal's Book cultivation method.

At the same time, he had the tear-inducing Merfolk Pearls from the two Merfolk Women, the dual-cultivation demonic aura from the Empress Dowager, and all manner of herbs from Spirit-Calming Garden to assist him...

Three days later.

In the mist-wreathed pool, Jiang Chen slowly opened his eyes.

[Your Demi-Immortal's Book has advanced to: Minor Accomplishment!]

Looking inward at his qi sea, he felt only one thing: the abyssal vortex within had grown larger and deeper.

"Foundation Establishment is not far away!"

Jiang Chen said excitedly.

Just then, a line of translucent text appeared before his eyes.

[Main storyline five, "Princess Breaks Off the Engagement," is now online. Would you like to watch it immediately and participate in the storyline simulation?]