Volume 1, Chapter 29: Grudges Between Sister and Brother

Upon hearing Xiao Ting’s words, the girl finally realized the preciousness of the jade talisman and immediately sat cross-legged before the others to begin refining it.

Zhangsun Wuji was deeply perplexed by events within the palace. No matter whom he sent to investigate, he could never obtain any concrete information, leaving him completely in the dark. He decided to be direct this time: he would simply go and ask Empress Wang herself. His goals were threefold: to inquire about palace affairs, to check on Crown Prince Li Zhong, and to learn more about that Yang Chunhua.

Wang Xu continued, "Because it must do so; it requires believers, and the shopkeeper plays that very role."

Wang Xu had no particular plan in mind, so he simply rolled up his sleeves, ready to act. Yet, at that very moment, a strange voice rang out.

Now, trapped in a predicament where he could neither advance nor retreat, he had no choice but to push forward. Gritting his teeth, he focused his consciousness on channeling his true energy to strike at the final acupoint.

Violent fluctuations erupted, and that mysterious energy, perceptible only to Ling Tian, began to surge.

Lei Gang nodded and swiftly plunged into the lightning web ahead, once again beginning his hunt for the lightning-attribute divine beasts.

Ling Tian slowly raised his hand. The laws of heaven and earth gradually converged upon his index finger. He then flicked his finger toward the blue beam of light still racing toward him. In the next instant, the beam vanished into thin air.

"It seems that is the only way!" Qiu Tingxuan could find no better solution, so he nodded in agreement.

Before dawn had even broken, an anxious Penglai had already jumped up from her meditation. She splashed some water on her face to wake herself up, not forgetting to fluff her messy, yellow, slightly curled hair, before jogging toward Yang Jing’s cave dwelling as if it were a morning exercise.

When Lady Lan told her to perform a curtsy, she curtsied; when told to kneel, she knelt; when told to address someone, she followed suit. She simply could not untangle the web of so many extended family relations.

As his biological mother, Concubine Zhao was unwilling to be away from Xia Ziqi for too long. Recently, people from Concubine Zhao’s courtyard had frequently been appearing at Xia Chifan’s courtyard to socialize.

Perhaps in a metropolis like Moster City, one might find firework launchers installed, much like the abundance of Christmas trees set up during the holidays, but for players to obtain such items themselves was entirely impossible.

Lin Baoshu glanced at Meng Changzhi. Seeing his vacant expression and the silly, unchanging grin on his face—he was effectively a fool—she knew he could no longer help her make any decisions.

After returning to Anding Commandery, Lin Ze found that his parents had long since passed away. After paying his respects, he used the assets gifted by Liu Yuan to rent land and purchase grain. Gradually, he thrived, managing to scrape into the top one hundred wealthiest residents of Anding Commandery.

As they spoke, Le’er and Ze’er had finished changing their clothes. Today, Le’er wore a red palace gown embroidered with auspicious flowers and grasses.

Ming Qi and Ming Heng were still excitedly discussing how they would go out and sell umbrellas on the streets the next time it rained. Qiao Mingjin merely smiled at their enthusiasm.

Aside from the clothes and daily necessities Liu Qi packed for himself, there were several large bundles, along with refined rice, meat, vegetables, oil, salt, melons, fruits, and pastries—enough to fill half an ox-cart.

By the time Old Madam Ye and Ye Kui learned the news, Concubine Qin had already fainted from the pain, lying on the bed with a deathly pale complexion.

The golden doll loosened its grip, and with a clatter, it fell to the ground. Pouting, it muttered, "Fine, if I have to give it back, I’ll give it back." With a quick turn, it instantly transformed back into the shape of a token.

"Surveillance? My brother back home is just installing a surveillance system," Zhou Meifeng said, her face beaming with joy at the prospect of securing a big deal for her brother.

Doctor Ye was also startled, as his hand had just touched a place it shouldn't have. Fortunately, Zhao Yidan was too shy to point it out on the spot.

Regardless of what Li Xu was thinking, Chen Shiru felt quite happy as long as he was willing to keep her company.

"How can that be? Do you have any idea how valuable shops in the Pill-Weapon City are? How can you just leave them for others to manage?" Old Fang stared at Su Ruoxi with immediate dissatisfaction.

Seeing the situation, Liu Yan seemed to understand something. He smiled and said, "Very well, everything shall be done as the Prince commands." With that, he was the first to depart.

There was not a single cloud in the sky. The setting sun was not blinding, yet it glowed a fiery red. The western horizon was illuminated by the afterglow, while behind him, it was already pitch black. The stars sparkled like jewels in the night sky, with a brilliance unseen anywhere else.

The news of the battle between Lin Feng and Yu Wu—and how Yu Wu had exhausted his life force to open a passage through the starry sky and pull Lin Feng into it—had spread across the entire Starry Continent, causing ripples in many places.

These words were like another knife thrust deep into her heart. It was evident that his intention in saying this was simply to tell her that he no longer cared about her feelings in the slightest—not even a little.

As for Lan Ling and Nan Xi, who were closest to the scene, their jaws had dropped to the ground, creating two craters in the floor.

Although the woodshed appeared unchanged, a closer look revealed markings on the floor. Because they were in the shadow, they were impossible to see without careful inspection.

"I... I will help you wash!" Her voice carried a touch of conciliation and unease, and she dared not look him in the eye.

"If you must cry, get out and cry!" He threw the words coldly, then leaned back in his seat and closed his eyes to rest, though his heart was in complete turmoil. A sour, restless agitation burned within him, leaving him feeling adrift.

Without waiting for me to say anything more, Su Rongrong gently pulled me to the edge of her bed and began to tenderly undress me... As her soft, fragrant body lay gently in my arms...

This was a room dominated by the color white—spacious and elegant. Upon waking, I noticed, not entirely to my surprise, that I had been changed into a bathrobe-style sleeping gown.

That flash of spiritual light looked very familiar. After a moment of thought, Xie Fei realized it was the same light released by the medicinal pill that Wan Xue had consumed back in the Immortal Mansion.

The village chief remembered being utterly speechless at the time. He truly had traveled too little and seen too little; he was not well-informed about many things and often only had a half-baked understanding.

An Qin was infuriated by his hooligan-like behavior. She turned back, itching to punch him, but clenched her hands and restrained herself. She did not want to provoke him; the man had been in a volatile state for the past few days.

Generally, handing over one's sword in such a manner during combat was considered unwise, for if the opponent seized the opportunity to draw their own blade and strike, the one handing over the sword would surely find themselves in grave danger. It seemed this Young Master Bei was either supremely confident in his ability to defeat Xu Huixin or was so arrogant about his own martial arts that he dared to be so reckless.