“If you seize the Break-Stage Grass, will you give it to me?”
Before the Grand Elder of the Haoran Sect could finish, Minister Fox interrupted him.
The Grand Elder choked. In truth, he had no intention of giving up the Break-Stage Grass.
He wanted to use it himself to break through to the Mahayana stage!
But he had to placate the old fox first. As for later, they would cross that bridge when they got there.
With this in mind, the Grand Elder put on a conflicted expression but said anyway:
“We can give it to you, but you must promise us that once you become the Demon Emperor, you will join us in invading the Northern Province...”
Minister Fox did not believe a single word of the Grand Elder's spiel.
However, as his thoughts raced, he chuckled and said, “Very well, we can cooperate...”
Hearing Minister Fox agree, the Grand Elder looked delighted.
“However...”
Minister Fox looked at the Grand Elder and continued:
“You must first provide me with a portion of resources and pills to break through to the 6th-rank of cultivation. I can even forgo the Break-Stage Grass, as I know I cannot compete with you for it.”
The Grand Elder was taken aback.
He had not expected Minister Fox to be so pragmatic.
Although resources to break through to the Unity stage were also scarce,
the three major sects of the Eastern Province could scrape enough together if they pooled their resources.
With this in mind, the Grand Elder laughed heartily:
“Minister Fox is indeed straightforward. Deal!”
Minister Fox smiled genially. “But you must deliver a portion of it first...”
“Fine. I will go back and gather it. It will be delivered to you shortly.”
As soon as he spoke, the Grand Elder of the Haoran Sect vanished from the room.
Looking at the empty room, Minister Fox fell into deep thought.
While undercurrents surged throughout the Xiaotian Imperial City,
Ye Fan, who had just stepped out of General Tiger's residence, received a sound transmission talisman from the Demon Emperor.
Hearing the Demon Emperor's hostile tone, Ye Fan frowned. He had no idea what those wretched monkeys had done this time,
or what kind of slander they had spread behind his back.
With a flash of his figure, he rushed toward the Duke's residence.
...
Watching the Demon Emperor send the sound transmission, the Empress hesitated before speaking softly:
“A-Yuan, perhaps I should excuse myself so as not to cause an awkward situation.”
The Demon Emperor turned to look at the Empress tenderly:
“Xintong, this has nothing to do with you. It's all that brat's doing...”
“A-Yuan, I do not wish to stay here...”
Hearing the Empress say this, the Demon Emperor looked at the dust clinging to her dress.
He grew even more furious with Ye Fan—his wife's clothes had been soiled because of him!
Yet, he spoke with reluctant tenderness:
“Very well, go back first. Once I finish here, I will return to find you...”
“Alright, I will wait for you.”
Lu Ming watched the two display their affection with utter speechlessness. He really wanted to tell them that enough was enough!
Could they please stop flaunting their love in front of a bunch of single dogs?
After leaving the Duke's residence, the Empress spoke directly to her ceremonial guard:
“You may return first. I wish to take a walk alone.”
The ceremonial guard turned and left.
They were not the least bit worried about her safety.
Ever since the year the Demon Emperor went on a murderous rampage in the Imperial City, no one dared to show the Empress any disrespect,
let alone raise a hand against her. Besides, the Empress's own cultivation was not weak either.
Once the guard departed, the Empress's figure flashed, and she vanished on the spot.
A moment later, she appeared inside a secluded courtyard.
“Greetings, Elder Gu...”
With a cold expression, the Empress bowed to an old man whose face was covered in a bizarre, interwoven pattern of crimson, blue, and black.
At this moment, the gentleness and sweetness she had displayed earlier were completely gone from her face.
Elder Gu nodded, his voice raspy:
“Is everything ready?”
“It is ready.”
“Hmm... how about we make our move during your centenary wedding anniversary celebration?”
The Empress looked up sharply. She hesitated for a moment before saying:
“Could we wait until the Prince's Tournament to make our move?”
“Hmm?”
Elder Gu's gaze turned frigid as he glared at her:
“Don't tell me you have actually fallen for that fellow?”
“I... I haven't.”
The Empress quickly denied it.
“You had better not. You must remember that you are the Saintess of the Southern Frontier.
Do you know how much effort we spent, and how much suffering you endured, just to have you take the place of General Dog's daughter and get close to the Demon Emperor?”
“Do you think the Demon Emperor would have ever fallen in love with you if not for the Love-Lost Gu?”
Hearing this, the Empress lowered her head sharply and fell silent.
“Furthermore, in order to let you establish a firm foothold and ensure the throne of the Xiaotian Imperial Clan remains secure to this day,
how many lives did our Southern Frontier sacrifice to refine the Fertility Gu? And how many lives were lost in the shadows to suppress those rebellious demon clans?”
“I understand. Rest assured, Elder Gu, I will execute the plan accordingly...”
When the Empress looked up again, her eyes were filled with ruthlessness.
Elder Gu nodded in satisfaction and sighed:
“Very well. We will do as you say and make our move during the Prince's Tournament.”
“Saintess, as long as we use the providence of the Xiaotian Imperial Clan, the entire demon population of the Imperial City,
and the Demon Emperor's essence blood and soul to feed the Spring-Autumn Gu so it can mature, we can resurrect your father...
At that time, as the esteemed Saintess of the Southern Frontier and the daughter of a Mahayana cultivator, what kind of fine man could you not have?”
“Besides, we cultivators should strive for the Great Dao and go further... Romantic entanglements will only hinder your Dao Heart.”
After saying this, Elder Gu's figure vanished from the room.
Looking at the empty room, the Empress could not help but sigh.
Then, she departed as well.
Ye Fan made his way to the Duke's residence. When he stepped inside, he froze instantly.
What on earth had happened here? Had they been raided by bandits?
Then, his eyes flickered. Why did this scene feel so incredibly familiar?
A memory flashed through his mind—back when he was in the secret realm of the Hengduan Mountains.
While he was healing, that wretched mortal had dug up his entire healing spiritual pool, leaving absolutely nothing behind.
In the end, that person had even splattered mud all over him.
Later, at the site where that damned mortal was struck by lightning, he had seen the exact same signs of the ground being dug three feet deep.
Looking at the current state of the Duke's residence, it was also completely stripped bare, with the ground dug up three feet deep.
Instantly, Ye Fan's entire body erupted with murderous intent. That wretched mortal. It really is you.
Let's see where you run this time!
With that, Ye Fan strode into the main hall.
When he looked inside, he saw the Demon Emperor sitting on a small stool, chatting and laughing merrily with Big Yellow and the others.
“Let me tell you, once you marry a wife, you must spoil her, love her, and cherish her...”
Crouched beside him was that fellow named Zhu Wuneng.
With a brush in one hand and paper in the other, he was frantically taking notes while nodding in continuous agreement.
Seeing this scene, Ye Fan was stunned.
This was far too casual! He didn't look like a Demon Emperor at all.
Just as Ye Fan was dazed, the Demon Emperor's furious voice rang out:
“Rebel! Where are the treasures and belongings in this manor?”
Immediately, Ye Fan felt a terrifying pressure wash over him.
Clearly, the Demon Emperor was absolutely livid. But wasn't his emotional switch a bit too fast?
He was just imparting marital advice a second ago!
Rate on N.U.
