He abruptly stopped speaking halfway through his sentence.
broken.
That was a quick reply; it was too late to remedy the situation.
Ling Xueyao's expression froze for a moment.
The next moment, heat spread from the base of my ears all the way up my cheeks.
Clang.
The golden slender sword was not drawn, but it was already held horizontally at Chu Yunfei's waist.
Ling Xueyao stared at him, her voice very low.
"Quite soft?"
" Chu Yunfei, you'd better explain to me clearly... where is it soft?"
She paused, and the scabbard moved forward another half an inch.
"And what else?"
Chu Yunfei glanced down at the sword sheath at his waist.
"Moreover, the situation was urgent at the time, and Chu was only concerned with escaping for his life, without a single other thought."
He changed his tune very quickly, and his expression was completely at ease.
It was as if the comment "quite soft" hadn't actually come from his mouth.
Ling Xueyao narrowed her phoenix eyes.
"Do you think I didn't hear the first half of that sentence?"
"Of course Your Highness heard it."
Chu Yunfei remained unfazed.
"But if Dao Mysterious Realm expert were to strike with a palm strike, and I still had the mind to think of anything else, then I would truly be courting death."
Ling Xueyao remained silent.
It was indeed dangerous at the time.
The hundred-foot palm print sealed off the surroundings, and the pressure of the Dao Mysterious Realm made it impossible for her to even circulate her spiritual power. If Chu Yunfei had been even a moment slower, both of them might have died there.
But this guy answered so smoothly just now.
After saying everything that had slipped out, I finally remembered to cover it up.
Therefore, "quite soft" is the truth.
The rest were all remedial measures.
Ling Xueyao sheathed her sword, but she couldn't suppress the blush on her ears.
"I'll remember this debt."
"If you dare to relive that moment again, I will chop off your hand."
Chu Yunfei followed her, his tone calm.
"Your Highness's bookkeeping skills are becoming increasingly proficient."
"Shut up."
Ling Xueyao did not turn around.
His pace was just a little faster than before.
It was nearly midnight when the two returned to their palace.
The array outside the palace was activated, and several maids and guards stood watch at a distance. Upon seeing Ling Xueyao return, everyone bowed, and none of them dared to look up at Chu Yunfei.
The commotion deep within the palace tonight is far too great.
Blood Baleful Intent Tower storms the palace.
Dao Mysterious Realm expert has appeared.
The clash of those fists and palms alarmed half of the imperial city.
The future prince consort that the princess brought back was still able to follow behind her unharmed.
If any of these messages were to get out, the capital city would not be able to stay peaceful tomorrow.
Ling Xueyao ignored everyone and led Chu Yunfei straight into the side courtyard.
The courtyard gate closed.
She stopped walking.
Chu Yunfei thought she was going to continue pursuing the "quite soft" comment, and was about to preemptively shut her up when Ling Xueyao suddenly turned around.
Chu Yunfei.
"Thank you for tonight."
The sound was very soft.
Gone was his usual aloofness and authority.
Chu Yunfei looked at her.
Moonlight fell on Ling Xueyao's shoulder.
She had removed her veil, and the weariness in her eyes could no longer be hidden, yet her hand holding the sword remained firmly in her grasp.
So much happened tonight.
The Emperor's poison has been cured, and he will be able to wake up within three days.
On the same night, the Blood Baleful Intent Tower stormed into the palace, with even the deputy leader of the Dao Mysterious Realm personally appearing.
Hope and the murderous intent must be suppressed together.
Even if she were a princess of the Great Qian Dynasty, it would be impossible for her to be completely unaffected.
Over the years, she has become accustomed to hiding all her emotions.
Chu Yunfei softened his tone.
"Her Highness has thanked us many times."
"No the same."
Ling Xueyao looked at him intently.
"You were the one who saved me before."
"Today, you not only saved Father Emperor, but also preserved the current situation for the royal family."
"What I owe you is growing ever more."
Chu Yunfei did not respond immediately.
Ling Xueyao rarely expressed her gratitude to anyone so solemnly.
She was used to maintaining the dignity of a princess, and even a simple expression of concern required a high-sounding reason.
But after the courtyard gate closed tonight, the breath that had been held in all night finally eased a little.
Chu Yunfei smiled.
"Then I'll remember that."
Ling Xueyao was slightly taken aback.
"What?"
Don't you feel like you owe me more and more?
Chu Yunfei smiled and said, "If I can't pay it back right away, I'll put it on my tab. I'll ask Her Highness for it later when I've thought it through."
Ling Xueyao looked at the slight smile on his lips.
The slight tenderness that had just risen in my heart was almost suppressed again by those words.
She gave a soft hum.
You'd better not make unreasonable demands.
Chu Yunfei looked her up and down.
What constitutes "excessive"?
Ling Xueyao's gaze turned cold.
Chu Yunfei immediately changed his tune.
"I was just asking casually."
Ling Xueyao was too lazy to argue with him any longer and turned to leave.
Chu Yunfei suddenly remembered something and reminded him, "By the way, no matter what happens tonight, don't come in if you hear any noise."
Ling Xueyao stopped in her tracks, turned around and looked at him suspiciously. "What do you mean? Are you going to do something strange?"
Chu Yunfei gave a meaningful smile.
"You already know, why are you asking?"
Ling Xueyao's face darkened. " Chu Yunfei, you'd better put away those messy thoughts in your head. This is my palace, not a place for you to act recklessly."
"Rest assured."
Chu Yunfei said casually, "I'll try to keep my voice down."
Ling Xueyao tightened her grip on the sword sheath and then loosened it.
If it weren't for the fact that he saved him tonight, this sword would probably have already smashed into his face.
She took a deep breath and said coldly, "Don't worry, even if you die inside, I won't care."
After saying that, she turned and left.
His pace quickened slightly compared to when he arrived.
The smile on Chu Yunfei's face only completely disappeared when that figure vanished at the end of the corridor.
Teasing is one thing, but it's another.
Tonight's tasks cannot afford any surprises.
He closed the courtyard gate, checked all the formations inside and outside the side courtyard, and then used his divine sense to scan several corners where people could easily hide.
He only entered the cultivation room after confirming that no one was watching.
The stone gate closed.
One by one, array patterns lit up.
Xiaoxiao Dragon's puzzled voice rang out. "You brat, what are you planning to do? You even specifically told that girl not to come over tonight."
Chu Yunfei sat down cross-legged and casually replied, "It's nothing, just taking precautions."
"Your tone doesn't sound like nothing's wrong."
You're overthinking it.
Chu Yunfei did not continue to explain.
Little Purple poked her head out from his wrist, her purple vertical pupils fixed on the storage ring.
The Purple Lightning Heart-Devouring Vine from the auction has been on its mind ever since it was put into its ring.
Chu Yunfei raised his hand and flicked its head. "What's the rush?"
Little Purple hissed softly, its tail wrapping tightly around his wrist.
In his mind's eye, Xiaoxiao Dragon lazily said, "If you don't give it to it soon, it might try to gnaw on your storage ring tonight."
Chu Yunfei took out the jade box.
The Purple Lightning Heart-Devouring Vine lay quietly in the box, its fine black thorns still oozing venom, and pale purple lightning arcs danced around its roots. If an ordinary Heavenly Origin Realm martial artist were to touch it, the poisonous lightning would enter their body, crippling half of their arm.
Little Purple's vertical pupils lit up as she looked at it, her head almost touching the jade box.
Chu Yunfei did not feed it directly.
A thought crossed my mind.
The Purple Lightning Heart-Devouring Vine was stored inside the Divine Cauldron of Heavenly Mandate.
Blue flames rose along the walls of the cauldron and quickly enveloped the entire vine.
The purplish-black venom was refined bit by bit, its impurities turning to ash in the flames. The lightning arcs entwining the roots were also forcibly compressed, transforming into tiny specks of light.
Before long, the entire medicinal herb disappeared.
Only a single drop of pale purple liquid, the size of a grain of rice, remained at the bottom of the cauldron.
Inside the liquid, lightning and poison intertwined, emanating an aura even purer than that of the Purple Lightning Heart-Devouring Vine itself.
Chu Yunfei took it out of the Divine Cauldron Space.
Little Purple couldn't contain herself any longer.
It darted from Chu Yunfei's wrist to his palm and swallowed the drop of pale purple liquid in one gulp.
The next moment.
Its entire body of purple-gold scales lit up simultaneously.
Rays of lightning seeped from the gaps in the scales, and purplish-black venomous patterns slowly spread along the snake's body.
Little Purple shook her head and swayed her body a few times, as if she were drunk.
Then, it wrapped itself around Chu Yunfei's wrist again, buried its head in its body, and soon became still.
Chu Yunfei sensed the contract for a moment.
Little Purple's breathing was very steady.
Thunder and poison are constantly colliding and fusing within its body, and there are no signs of it getting out of control for the time being.
When it wakes up, it will at least be able to reach the Fourth Level of the Heavenly Origin Realm.
If the bloodline transformation goes smoothly, the power of the innate poison lightning can reach another level.
After a moment of observation, Xiaoxiao Dragon said, "This little guy is quite lucky. If its innate poison lightning can complete its transformation, it will be more than enough to give an ordinary Eighth Level of the Heavenly Origin Realm opponent a hard time."
Chu Yunfei nodded.
The current situation in the capital is not optimistic.
With one more ancient exotic species at the Fourth Level of the Heavenly Origin Realm, we gain more confidence.
He carefully collected the fragments of the jade box and then took out the nameless stone tablet he had obtained from the auction.
The gray stone tablet landed in the center of the cultivation room, causing the ground to tremble slightly.
The weight of 32,000 jin, even with the support of the array, still caused the surrounding array patterns to glow slightly.
The stone tablet remains unchanged.
There was no response.
The grayish-white surface is pitted and rough, with no writing or traces of its heritage.
Chu Yunfei walked around the stone tablet.
He then placed his palm on the monument, and liquid spiritual energy slowly flowed into his palm.
The stone tablet did not respond.
He then released his divine sense.
The moment the divine sense touched the surface of the monument, it was as if it had hit a cold iron wall, and could not advance even half an inch further.
Chu Yunfei continued to intensify his spiritual awareness.
A sharp pain quickly shot through his mind.
The stone tablet remained lifeless, not even a ray of light appeared.
Xiaoxiao Dragon didn't rush to conclusions this time.
After sensing for a long time, her voice became more serious. "The sealing technique is very old, at least not something that the sects of the Eastern Continent could set up. The outermost layer seals the spirit, the middle layer separates the divine, and there is something inside that I cannot discern at the moment."
Chu Yunfei attempted to break through again.
The stinging pain in his mind intensified.
Xiaoxiao Dragon immediately warned, "Don't force it. Your soul strength is too weak right now, barely reaching the Early Stage of Heavenly Origin Realm. To break this seal, you need at least Divine Sea Realm soul, or even Dao Mysterious Realm."
Chu Yunfei withdrew his divine sense, his brows furrowing slightly.
His spiritual strength is indeed his biggest weakness at present.
With past life experiences and perspectives intact, and with the support of Boundless Creation Scripture both physical body and spiritual power.
The soul, however, requires gradual recovery and refinement; it cannot be elevated out of thin air based solely on memory.
The soul, however, can only be restored and tempered step by step; it cannot be rushed.
Chu Yunfei looked at the stone tablet again.
If something can be sealed at this level, then whatever it contains, whether it's an opportunity or a dangerous creature, is unlikely to be simple.
He raised his hand and put the stone tablet into his storage ring.
The moment the stone tablet disappeared, that cold, desolate, and profound feeling once again struck his consciousness.
It's very light.
Yet it was exceptionally clear.
It was as if something, through layers of seals, touched the edge of the soul.
Chu Yunfei immediately focused his divine sense to track it.
That feeling, however, has already disappeared.
The sea of consciousness returned to calm.
Xiaoxiao Dragon asked, "You felt it again?"
Chu Yunfei nodded. "Only for a moment."
"Then let's leave it for now."
Xiaoxiao Dragon said in a deep voice, "This thing is probably quite powerful, but the stronger the seal, the harder it is to touch what's inside. With your current cultivation level, even if you forcibly pry open a crack, you might not be able to withstand the consequences. What you should be doing right now is improving your strength. This imperial city is no longer a place for leisurely visits."
Chu Yunfei walked back to the prayer mat and sat down.
He understood this without Xiaoxiao Dragon needing to remind him.
Ling Zhantian's crisis has been temporarily resolved.
But the real chaos in the capital had only just begun.
Blood Baleful Intent Tower.
Qin Hao.
Han Kui, the Puppet Sect.
And there's the upcoming Seven Sects Grand Competition.
Today, he can use Ling Xueyao and the royal family's influence to shield him from many troubles, but in the real life-or-death situation to come, no one can stand in front of him forever.
He must improve his cultivation level as soon as possible.
"Tonight, it's time to break through."