Upon returning to the palace, Qi Ling moved as if he were in an empty place. Even when he was simply walking down the street and opening a door as if nothing was wrong, no one could detect his presence.
At this point, Qi Ling finally understood that when the gap in strength reached a certain level, it was simply impossible to bridge the gap with any means.
Just like now, everyone else, out of their instinct to protect themselves, has subconsciously ignored Qi Ling's existence. Unless Qi Ling takes the initiative to contact them, no one can discover Qi Ling.
However, among all these people, there was only one exception! When Qi Ling arrived at the court, Xue Ke, who was listening to the ministers' reports, immediately noticed Qi Ling.
"Teacher? You, how did you get back?" Xue Ke said in great surprise, her voice filled with undisguised joy.
Upon hearing Xue Ke's words, the surrounding ministers seemed to awaken from a dream, noticing Qi Ling's presence. Some even wondered why Qi Ling had suddenly appeared, as they hadn't sensed him before.
"It's nothing, I just happened to be back and came to see you," Qi Ling said with a smile. "No rush, I won't be leaving for a while. You should focus on your business first. As a queen, you should act like one."
As Xue Ke's teacher, Qi Ling's guidance of Xue Ke in this way was already a common occurrence between them. However, after being separated for so long, Xue Ke had no interest in listening to the other ministers' nonsense when she saw Qi Ling again.
Xue Ke then glanced at all the other ministers and said, "My dear ministers, you should have nothing to report today, right? Is that right? Is that correct?"
"Ah, this..." The ministers looked at the report in their hands, feeling helpless, and then silently put it away.
If you can't even see such an obvious hint, you probably don't need to be an official anymore. You could just put on a pair of sunglasses, grab a cane and a bowl, squat down at the city gate, and you might live a little longer that way.
"We take our leave!" All the ministers left in a hurry, and afterwards, a few observant guards quietly closed the door.
Seeing Xue Ke's excited expression, Qi Ling couldn't help but say helplessly, "Sigh, really, you girl, as the queen, you need to take responsibility properly."
"Of course I took my responsibilities seriously, it's just that the ministers happened to have nothing else to say!" Xue Ke laughed, giving the impression of a cunning little fox who had succeeded in her scheme.
Fortunately, Qi Ling knew that Xue Ke was always very responsible and a wise ruler loved by all the people, which was much better than her, a hands-off manager.
Despite being a high-ranking, noble, and dignified empress, Xue Ke always acts like a nervous and flustered student in front of him. This stark contrast is indeed quite interesting.
"Teacher, I... I want to hug you, is that okay?" Xue Ke asked somewhat shyly.
Although Xue Ke and Qi Ling hadn't seen each other for a year, Xue Ke's situation was much better than Huo Wu's and the others' when she met Qi Ling again.
This is not only because Xue Ke is Qi Ling's student and therefore has no psychological burden, but more importantly, having been in a position of power for a long time, Xue Ke, as a queen, is also outstanding in terms of aura.
"Of course you can, do you even need to ask? Come here." Qi Ling opened her arms and embraced Xue Ke.
Then, Xue Ke threw herself into Qi Ling's arms, looking completely content as she felt the warmth and scent emanating from Qi Ling.
After feeling satisfied, Xue Ke stepped out of Qi Ling's embrace, then looked at Qi Ling and asked, "Teacher, did you come to see me this time because you wanted to talk to me about something?"
Clearly, Xue Ke sensed something, which is why she said that. Qi Ling replied helplessly, "As expected, I couldn't hide it from you. I came to see you because I do have something to tell you."
Afterwards, Qi Ling told Xue Ke about the Divine Realm and the Devil Realm, and also asked Xue Ke if she was willing to go to the Divine Realm or the Devil Realm with her, and that she could help her.
If Xue Ke chooses to stay in the Douluo Continent, then it will be very difficult for them to meet again in the future.
After listening to Qi Ling's explanation, Xue Ke remained silent for a long time, and her final choice was exactly what Qi Ling had expected.
"I'm sorry, teacher, I can't go to the Divine Realm with you," Xue Ke said, "Because I can't abandon my country and my people and leave alone."
Although the Douluo Continent is currently at peace, no one can predict what will happen in the future. As the Queen of the Heaven Dou Empire, Xue Ke bears a responsibility and a duty.
Some things can't be avoided just because you don't want to do them; that's just being willful. Qi Ling had actually anticipated Xue Ke's decision; she truly is a qualified queen.
"Is that so? In that case, your teacher respects your choice. Xue Ke, the Heaven Dou Empire is fortunate to have a queen like you," Qi Ling said, stroking Xue Ke's head.
Seemingly sensing the somewhat heavy atmosphere, Xue Ke suddenly pouted and pretended to be very angry, saying, "Teacher, let's put that aside for now. I have something very important that I need to discuss with you! You didn't keep your promise to me!"
"Huh? I didn't keep my promise to you? No way, I'm always very trustworthy!" Qi Ling said in surprise.
"Of course I have! You just didn't keep your promise to me!" Xue Ke said with a smile. "You clearly promised me you'd give me a child! But I haven't gotten pregnant yet. Tell me, didn't you break your promise?"
Qi Ling couldn't help but chuckle. This was something she really couldn't decide. It seemed that she had inherited the low birth rate of the Dragon Clan, so having a child would be quite difficult.
"Yes, I did break my promise. So, how do you want to resolve this?" Qi Ling asked with a smile, while looking at Xue Ke with ill intent.
Xue Ke blushed at this moment and said, "Then... then of course we must try to make amends as soon as possible! Teacher, you must take responsibility!"