"And you came from the Grand Commander's residence. You can't even see that much?"
Lin Changqing sneered. "The Su Clan has rendered outstanding service to our Chishui Kingdom. I would have a reason to take drastic action against them over a consort who was once a maid, but it wouldn't be sufficient!"
"Even if she was once a maid, she's still Your Majesty's consort and counts as family. Besides, this consort is pregnant!"
"If even that isn't sufficient reason," Liu Ling'er said, "I'm afraid Your Majesty will never find a suitable one!"
"Heh, you think far too highly of your status as a secondary consort!"
Lin Changqing shook his head. "The principal consort said outright that she would throw you into the Devil-Sealing Well after you gave birth. Did you see me punish her?"
"Heh!"
Liu Ling'er gave a bitter laugh.
She really was too young and had seen too little of the world.
"As the saying goes, those who commit too many injustices are bound to bring about their own destruction!"
Lin Changqing continued, "Sooner or later, I'll deal with Su Song and Consort Su. Whether the reason is sufficient isn't particularly important. What really matters is the right opportunity! Our Chishui Kingdom isn't strong enough yet, and we still need the Su Clan. When the day comes that losing the Su Clan won't have much impact on the kingdom, that will be the day they're destroyed!"
"That day won't be far off."
Liu Ling'er spoke calmly.
She had already tested her own combat strength.
Even if she could never attain a divine soul, as long as she fully mastered the Eight Sounds of the Profound Zither and could wield the Heavenly Heart Zither at will, she could destroy the Su Clan herself without any misgivings!
She could try it now, but there was no need!
Waiting was safer. After all, she had to think of the child in her womb.
"There's something else I came to tell you today."
Lin Changqing said, "Once you give birth, the child will stay in the palace. Hong San will be responsible for raising and teaching the child..."
"What about me?"
Liu Ling'er narrowed her eyes and asked impatiently.
"I'll strip you of your status as a secondary consort on the grounds of your misconduct at the Ancestral God Temple, then send you out of the Chishui Kingdom."
"Why?"
Unwilling to give up, Liu Ling'er asked.
"There are two reasons. First, if you stay in the palace, you could easily die, and I don't want to see that happen."
Lin Changqing replied, "Second, you're a stain on my reputation. After all, no one knows the truth, and we can't tell them either. If you stay in the palace, you'll constantly remind people of how I disgraced myself after drinking, and that would damage my authority as king."
He was speaking the truth, but it was hurtful all the same.
Liu Ling'er couldn't help giving another bitter laugh.
But Lin Changqing went on, "You can still look dissatisfied? It seems you really don't know your place! You're a lowly maid, and Heaven has already favored you by letting you have a child with the king. Do you dare hope for even more?"
"Your Majesty, Consort Su hates me to the bone. Once I'm stripped of my status as a secondary consort and sent out of the palace, she'll surely send people to kill me."
Liu Ling'er wanted to see just how heartless Lin Changqing could be.
"Don't worry. No one will know when I send you out of the palace, and no one will know where you're sent."
With that, Lin Changqing rose and left.
Liu Ling'er felt deeply chilled, but also a little relieved.
She was chilled by Lin Changqing's attitude toward her, even though he had arranged a way out for her.
She was relieved that she hadn't revealed her current strength to Lin Changqing early on. Otherwise, she wouldn't have seen the true heart of this man.
A man like that wasn't worth spending her life with, even if he was the king of a nation!
"My child, Mother won't leave you here alone!"
Liu Ling'er stroked her belly and spoke to herself, her expression firm.
At that moment, she wanted to leave the Chishui Royal Palace at once!
But on second thought, she felt it would be too humiliating to leave just like that!
Besides, she thought of the ancestral god, Mu Wanqing!
She had received divine blessings from Heaven to get where she was today. If she left now, would everything she had gained vanish in an instant?
At that thought, Liu Ling'er got out of bed.
She knelt and prostrated herself respectfully, kowtowing as she asked, "Ancestral God, what should I do next? Please give me a clear sign."
Of course, she received no response.
Lin Heng felt miserable too!
What the hell was all this?!
He'd thought that in this life, with a mother in the God Realm and a king for a father, everything would go smoothly from birth and he'd live a life above others. Who would have thought...
Alas!
Father!
You really misjudged her this time!
Why did you have to come running over here to say all that?
When you find out how strong my mother is, don't go slapping yourself in the face!
Lin Heng naturally sided with his mother, Liu Ling'er.
He was going to help his mother give Lin Changqing a resounding slap in the face!
So, following his plan, he took another seed from the Seven-Colored Heavenly Heart Lotus!
Liu Ling'er was prostrating herself on the floor, begging the ancestral god for a clear sign, when she suddenly felt a familiar surge of unknown energy erupt inside her.
She hurriedly rose and sat steadily on the bed again.
The vast unknown energy entered her sea of consciousness and poured into the sea of soul flames that resembled a starry sky.
Liu Ling'er looked inward at her sea of consciousness, watching the changes in the sea of soul flames.
The unknown energy that had just poured in created a massive vortex within the sea of soul flames!
The vortex stirred the entire sea of flames, devouring all the soul power!
She didn't know how long it took, but the soul power gathered by the vortex became an enormous sphere.
The sphere was liquid, and it was rapidly shrinking and solidifying!
Gradually, a small pearl took shape!
Seven-colored soul flames radiated from the pearl, making it look extraordinarily mystical!
A Divine Soul Pearl!
Liu Ling'er was beside herself with excitement!
Her Divine Soul Pearl trembled faintly and incessantly in her sea of consciousness.
With each tremor, she could feel her divine body and divine crystal resonate.
Before long, her divine body, divine power, and divine soul would be in perfect harmony!
The God Realm!
The excitement in Liu Ling'er's heart was beyond words!
The Quasi-God Realm was not the highest realm on the Divine Firmament Continent, but the God Realm was different!
Upon reaching the God Realm, she would have the confidence to fear nothing, not just in the Chishui Kingdom, but even when facing the Great Xia Imperial Clan!
A God Realm expert was an honored guest wherever they went!
Liu Ling'er had realized she might reach the God Realm, but she hadn't expected the day to come so quickly!
"Thank you, Ancestral God, for bestowing your divine blessing!"
She got out of bed again, knelt on the floor, and kowtowed repeatedly.
She believed the ancestral god had heard her request just now.
The ancestral god had bestowed another divine blessing, so she surely didn't want Liu Ling'er to leave.
She possessed nearly everything the ancestral god Mu Wanqing had possessed, and Mu Wanqing had cared deeply for the Chishui Kingdom. The current Chishui Royal Clan were all Mu Wanqing's descendants!
After truly advancing to the God Realm, Liu Ling'er discovered that her ability to learn and comprehend had grown much stronger.
Her grasp of the Heavenly Heart Profound Maiden Scripture became much more thorough, and she quickly gained a complete understanding of the divine technique, the Eight Sounds of the Profound Zither.
When she activated the divine artifact, the Heavenly Heart Zither, again, she used it to perform the Eight Sounds of the Profound Zither with ease!
She had a feeling that if she faced a Quasi-God now, she could destroy them with a flick of her finger!
While Liu Ling'er was advancing to the God Realm, Su Ying arrived at Yongning Palace, the residence of the principal consort, Shi Feifei.