"Tell me first, who are your masters, and what is the current situation in the court?" Ling Yi asked, looking at the two of them.
Wei Xu and Qianxue exchanged a glance.
Qianxue remained silent, leaving Wei Xu with no choice but to speak first.
"I don't even know the identity of my master..." Wei Xu lied as soon as he opened his mouth.
Ling Yi waved his hand impatiently to interrupt him, "Alright, I'll ask, you answer."
How much do you know about emperors cultivating immortality?
"I don't know much either; basically, what I know is what everyone else knows."
"Is that so?" Ling Yi's lips curled into a smile.
Her eyes flashed with a cold light as she stared directly into Wei Xu's eyes and said, "Then, tell me what everyone already knows."
Wei Xu's gaze darted away, and he involuntarily swallowed.
The moment Ling Yi fixed his gaze on him, Wei Xu instantly felt the temperature around him drop significantly.
It was as if I were being targeted by a ferocious beast, and that I would be torn to pieces by it at any moment.
"Three years ago, His Majesty was on a southern tour when he passed by a Daoist temple. Suddenly, golden light emanated from the temple, and His Majesty was struck by the light and disappeared in the time it takes to drink a cup of tea."
"After returning, His Majesty began to neglect state affairs and became obsessed with cultivating immortality."
"Some say that His Majesty found a cultivation technique in a Daoist temple, but three years have passed, and no one knows how His Majesty's cultivation has progressed or whether he has made any breakthroughs."
That's all I know.
Ling Yi turned to Qianxue: "And you? What do you say?"
"I'm just telling the truth."
"Well, then let's hear the truth from you." Ling Yi waved his hand, and a chair flew over from a distance.
Ling Yi sat in the chair, looking down at Qianxue.
As for Wei Xu, Ling Yi had no interest in hearing a single word from him.
"My original name was Zhao Dongxue. I was an orphan and a beggar." Qianxue sat cross-legged on the ground and slowly began to tell her story.
Ling Yi wasn't in a hurry; there was still plenty of time, and it wouldn't hurt to listen to it as just a story.
"When I was eight years old, I was almost beaten to death by three beggars who mistook me for a steamed bun. At the critical moment, my innate power was triggered, and Hua Sha happened to see it."
" Hua Sha is the Third Princess's subordinate, a Master Realm expert. Afterwards, Hua Sha took me to see the Third Princess."
"The Third Princess provided me with food and lodging, gave me beautiful clothes, and had Hua Sha teach me how to use the Power of Shadow, as well as poetry, calligraphy, painting, music, and cultivation techniques."
"When I was 13, the Third Princess gave me my first task: to impersonate the illegitimate daughter of Zhao Qianyun, the Vice Minister of War, and enter the Zhao family mansion."
"At the age of 15, Zhao Qianyun, the Vice Minister of War, was killed for raising a private army and privately making dragon robes. The entire main branch of the Zhao family was beheaded, the other male members were exiled, and the female members were sent to the Bureau of Entertainment."
"And I, too, received the second task from the Hua Sha: to become the most beautiful courtesan in the Bureau of Entertainment."
"With the help of the Hua Sha, I succeeded and became the Flower Queen for two consecutive years. This year is the third."
"For the past three years, I've become one of the Third Princess's moneybags. Half of the Bureau of Entertainment's annual revenue, roughly two million taels of silver, has gone into the Third Princess's pocket."
"Less than one million taels went into the national treasury."
"According to the original plan, the Third Princess will continue to support a new courtesan to rise to the top this year, namely Fangfei."
At this point, Qianxue chuckled.
"The Second Prince thought Fangfei was a pawn found by his men, but he didn't know that Fangfei was a pawn who underwent the Hua Sha training in the same batch as me."
Ling Yi's lips curled up slightly.
This third princess is indeed very capable.
He not only deceived the Second Prince, but also Qianxue in front of him, and everyone else.
A woman actually wanted to be the empress.
In this world, that's quite a rebellious thing to do.
"And I, the Ren Hua, will not want to open the door, and in despair, I will take my own life, thus escaping the Bureau of Entertainment and officially following the Third Princess under the new identity of Shadow."
"Everything was going smoothly until the appearance of the Lü Yuan disrupted everyone's plans."
"Both the Second Prince and the Third Princess need to be reassigned."
"Originally, I planned to proceed as scheduled, but by using the Shadow Puppet, I discovered that the Second Prince's men were trying to kill me."
"But at this crucial moment, I was unable to contact Hua Sha, so I had no choice but to flee in Haste."
Ling Yi then asked, "So, before I warned you, you already knew there was something wrong with that batch of bounty money?"
"Yes, I have Shadow Puppet that can enter and exit any part of the Bureau of Entertainment."
"As far as I know, there are no secrets within the Bureau of Entertainment )."
Ling Yi nodded, "Indeed."
Shadow Puppet are used to Probe intelligence, and they are indeed difficult for ordinary people to detect.
"So, at this point, you had other ideas?" Ling Yi asked again.
"Yes, the struggle for the throne among princes is a matter of life and death at every turn."
"Although the Third Princess is Wushuang talented and resourceful, for a woman to become empress is like Heaven Splitter; it is simply impossible for her to succeed."
"I don't want to get involved, I don't want to lose my freedom, and I don't want to die."
"So, this is a good opportunity to escape the vortex."
Ling Yi nodded; it was a smart choice.
"Furthermore, Hua Sha only knows that my Power of Shadow can make me Invisibility by using Shadow, but she doesn't know that my Power of Shadow can also make me teleport by using Shadow and can condense Shadow Puppet."
"However, despite all my calculations, I never expected that the Second Prince, in addition to poisoning the silver, would also sprinkle a fragrant powder on it."
"One of his men had an extremely keen Sense of Smell. He followed the scent of the perfume powder and found me. After that, he sealed my Divine Ability and cultivation, which is why I was captured by the Second Prince's men."
Qianxue pointed at Wei Xu.
Wei Xu didn't react at all, remaining completely unmoved.
"As for Emperor Wu Canglan, he is indeed cultivating immortality, and has already successfully embarked on the Immortal Dao immortality, possessing extraordinary power. However, the current Wu Canglan is no longer the original Wu Canglan."
"The original Wu Canglan is dead."
Just then, Qianxue dropped a bombshell.
"What? This is impossible!" Wei Xu exclaimed in shock, unable to keep up the act any longer.
"The emperor's southern tour and the golden light emanating from the Daoist temple are all true, but Wu Canglan, who emerged from the temple, had already been Body Possession."
"And this was something I unexpectedly obtained using the Shadow Puppet."
"Even the Third Princess doesn't know about this. I haven't told anyone, nor dare I. The methods of Immortal Dao are unpredictable and mysterious."
"I don't know if Wu Canglan will find out if I tell, so I dare not say it."
At this point, Qianxue looked at Ling Yi: "Can you trust me about this secret?"
Ling Yi glanced at his system panel.
He nodded and said, "I believe you!"
[ Dream System) ]
[Host: Ling Yi ]
[Cultivation Level: Body Tempering Sixth Layer / Seventh Pin Martial Practitioner ]
[Talents: Channel-Opening Divine Body Photographic Memory Lv2, Hawkeye Lv2, Perception Lv2, Innate Divine Power Lv2, Ox and Horse Physique Lv2, Immunity to All Poisons Lv2, Hidden Asgard (Sealed), Power of Shadow, Devour Heaven and Earth), Power of Sealing Lv2, Multitasking Lv2!]
[System Function: Dream Entry)!]
[System Functions (Appendix): Talent Entries!]
[System Function (Appendix): Copy Talent (Cheat Code)!]
[ Follower (current number: 1)]
Zhao Dongxue: Loyalty 80 (Locked)