The high-eaved abandoned pavilion, with its carved beams and painted rafters, was entirely constructed of black gold jade, towering over nine hundred and ninety-nine meters. Three figures in coarse cotton robes stood there, each differing in height, build, and appearance.
On the far left was a scholarly, fair-skinned young man. In the middle stood a dwarf elder with a faint, amiable smile. On the right was a muscular man built like an iron barrel.
The three exuded an overwhelming aura, and just standing there motionless made Su Qingqiu feel as if she were facing a formidable enemy.
“Where’s the imperial edict?” The dwarf elder, with a harmless smile, extended his hand towards Su Qingqiu, asking for the edict.
It’s him!
As soon as the dwarf elder spoke, Su Qingqiu recognized him as the one who had been harassing her earlier.
A half-disabled old pervert, still so lecherous, ugh, disgusting!
Su Qingqiu could tell that these three had unusual status and dared not take risks by demanding they kneel to receive the edict, fearing that any mistake could expose her. Thus, she took out a yellowish imperial edict and handed it to the dwarf elder, saying:
“By the Emperor’s decree, I am here to retrieve a specific tome from the Scripture Repository. The details are confidential and cannot be disclosed.”
In truth, Su Qingqiu had no idea what was inside the Scripture Repository.
If she casually mentioned a tome that didn’t exist in the repository, she would be immediately exposed.
To prevent the three from questioning her, Su Qingqiu preemptively blocked their inquiries.
Sure enough, the dwarf elder opened his mouth, wanting to ask questions, but swallowed his words.
“Hmm… seems fine.” The dwarf elder carefully examined the edict.
Su Qingqiu was quite nervous inside but maintained a calm exterior.
She wasn’t sure how skilled Wu Die was in soul arts, whether the imitation of the Moon Shine Realm’s Langya soul imprint could deceive these three guardians of the Scripture Repository.
After a while.
The dwarf elder put down the edict and nodded slightly to the other two, indicating no problem.
“Alright, go ahead.” The fair-skinned young man smiled, stepping aside to make way.
Su Qingqiu, feeling as if she had been granted amnesty, hurriedly thanked them and was about to enter the Scripture Repository.
The dwarf elder’s nose twitched, catching a whiff of a faint fragrance carried by the wind. He smirked mischievously, eyeing Su Qingqiu’s shapely figure, ready to take advantage.
Suddenly.
“Wait!” The dwarf elder frowned, scrutinizing Su Qingqiu from head to toe, and abruptly asked:
“The palace maids and eunuchs’ uniforms change every year, each style different to mark the years of service. Your palace attire is from three years ago.”
“With your looks, serving in the palace for three years, you shouldn’t be so obscure, nor should you have fallen to this point.”
His words drew the attention of the other two, who focused their gazes on Su Qingqiu.
The atmosphere grew tense.
Su Qingqiu’s clenched fist hidden in her sleeve, her heart pounding wildly. She wasn’t worried about her safety if exposed, as her master was secretly protecting her, ensuring these people couldn’t harm her. She was more concerned about failing her mission and being sent back to the Imperial Capital of Great Jin, where she would be left alone in an empty boudoir.
The key was, Wu Die had proven to be an excellent partner.
Brave, wise, knowing when to advance and retreat, understanding trade-offs, and most importantly, being quick-witted and adaptable. These past few days, Wu Die had been perfecting the plan, and Su Qingqiu only needed to follow orders.
If she were sent back to the Imperial Capital, while Wu Die could follow the master to the Western Buddhist Kingdom…
No way!
That must not happen!
Just the thought of it made her feel a chill in her heart!
Imagining herself alone with the Sunlight Lord in the vast Qin residence, watching flowers bloom and wither, while picturing her master, Wu Die, and the Empress experiencing all sorts of thrilling adventures in the Buddhist Kingdom, left her feeling self-pity…
“What to do, what to do…”
Su Qingqiu never expected her appearance to be a giveaway. If she had known, she would have disguised herself as an ugly freak! A snub nose, pockmarked face, and bald head.
Damn dwarf old man!
“I…” Su Qingqiu’s big eyes rolled as she racked her brain for a suitable excuse.
Suddenly!
From the distant direction of the Minister’s Office, a tremor was felt, even from thousands of meters away, causing the ground to shake slightly and gravel to roll.
“Not good! An assassin!”
“It’s General Qianyu! He’s been killed by a thief!!”
“You two go support, I’ll stay and guard the Scripture Repository!” The dwarf elder commanded sternly.
The sudden incident caught the three guardians off guard. They only saw a graceful black figure, seemingly using a divine power to shrink the ground, covering a thousand meters in one step. Wherever she passed, soul threads like spider webs controlled all the palace maids, eunuchs, and guards.
“Kill her!” The fair-skinned young man and the burly man shouted coldly, chasing after her.
…
…
“A soul cultivator with considerable skill, whose subordinate could she be? There must be more than one terrifying thief.” The dwarf elder muttered to himself, gazing into the distance.
As he spoke, the dwarf elder gradually fell silent, his gaze involuntarily shifting to Su Qingqiu, then he closed his mouth.
“…”
“…” Su Qingqiu also remained silent.
The two stared at each other for a good ten seconds before the dwarf elder asked, “You wouldn’t happen to be…”
Before he could finish, a long sword was drawn, its cold gleam like a waterfall, stopping just three inches from the back of the dwarf elder’s neck. Su Qingqiu coldly said:
“Correct guess, but no prize! Die, you old pervert!”
Unexpectedly, the dwarf elder suddenly grinned. At this critical moment, he chuckled and said:
“I was just looking for an excuse to capture you, little beauty, and here you are, delivering yourself.”
“Once I capture you and interrogate you as an assassin, I’ll have my fun with you before handing you over to the Emperor.”
“Heh heh…”
With that, the dwarf elder slightly tilted his head, dodging the fatal sword, then stepped back with his right leg, his body leaning back to avoid Su Qingqiu’s follow-up strike.
Swish, swish, swish…
Dozens of strikes missed.
The dwarf elder moved like a ghost, calmly dusting off his robe and wiping away imaginary dust, then smiled:
“Little beauty, you’re quite feisty, but I like that.”
“Crippled old man, you’re not even as tall as my dog. If I gave you a dog, you’d need a stool to reach it. Disgusting! Don’t you know your own strength, you old pervert, you old bastard!” Su Qingqiu retorted disdainfully.
The adorable and silly Sword Immortal only showed her cute side to the Empress and the Empress’ Husband. To outsiders, Su Qingqiu was extremely cold, earning her the nickname: Ice Block.
Her sharp tongue was likely learned from Qin Fenghuo and Jiang Canghai, those old fellows. In court debates, they often disregarded rules and etiquette, directly attacking each other’s weak points when angered.
Insulting someone effectively required targeting their weaknesses, making them lose their composure and calm.
The dwarf elder’s face darkened considerably.
He hated it when people mentioned his height. Those who dared usually ended up dead, except for the Emperor—King of Langya.
Why? Because he couldn’t beat the King of Langya, so he let it slide.
“Sharp-tongued, once I capture you, I’ll make you regret ever being born… little beauty.”
The dwarf elder took a step forward, the air gradually freezing, forming ice shards.
Though it was noon with the sun high in the sky, a snowstorm suddenly arose! The biting cold wind cut like knives, and the smooth bluestone ground was covered with a thick layer of ice, making it hard to keep balance.
Su Qingqiu silently raised her Sword Sense to its peak. She could feel the water molecules in the air freezing! Even the blood flow in her body seemed to be controlled, cooling down, her body becoming stiff and less agile.
At this moment, Su Qingqiu recalled the Empress’ Husband’s earnest teachings:
“The principles of ice, derived from the Five Elements, and incorporating water principles, are fundamental laws of the world, followed by many on the path to transcendence.”
“Such enemies are either extremely weak or exceptionally strong, rarely in between.”
“If the opponent is a strong transcendent, defeating or killing them will be particularly difficult! But remember, the more fundamental the principles, like my principles of time and space, the harder they are to comprehend!”
“In such cases, you have two choices: first, overwhelming strength! Second, a deep understanding of principles! With your profound grasp of swordsmanship, find their weaknesses and strike.”
“However, these choices assume you’re exceptionally talented and the realm gap isn’t too large. Otherwise, you have only one option… run!”
Su Qingqiu gripped her sword tightly, silently feeling the opponent’s pressure.
She could vaguely discern that the dwarf elder was a cultivator at the early Moon Shine Realm.
The gap wasn’t too large!
Su Qingqiu’s eyes lit up, then she steadied her mind, pondering the Empress’ Husband’s words about using a deep understanding of swordsmanship to defeat the opponent…
But the dwarf elder wouldn’t give her time to think. Countless ice blades shot towards Su Qingqiu like a storm.
With her blood freezing, Su Qingqiu’s movements were sluggish. She hurriedly parried but couldn’t block everything, some ice blades cutting her, blood flowing.
Su Qingqiu didn’t have Wu Die’s innate talent in a specific path, like a destined master of principles. She was just exceptionally gifted in cultivation, with extraordinary roots, progressing faster than her peers, but it didn’t greatly enhance her combat power.
“My deep understanding of swordsmanship is the key to victory.” Su Qingqiu silently recited.
Gradually, Su Qingqiu manipulated her Sword Sense in various ways.
Sometimes the Sword Sense formed a curtain, blocking the incoming blades. Sometimes it disappeared, only for a sudden sword light to strike from the dwarf elder’s side. Sometimes the Sword Sense condensed into petals, falling beautifully, but turning into a meat grinder upon contact.
“Interesting, using my attacks to gain insight, bold!” The dwarf elder exclaimed.
His eyes grew serious.
He was going to get serious!
Before, he was afraid of hurting the delicate beauty. Now, he was barely managing, feeling a mortal threat, seeing Su Qingqiu still in a state of enlightenment, improving every second, he decided not to hold back.
…
…
Meanwhile.
In a boudoir somewhere in the harem.
The King of Langya asked puzzledly, “Sword Saint, your little maid seems to be struggling. Aren’t you going to help?”
Meng Qingzhou, sitting cross-legged in the void, chuckled and said:
“This girl isn’t too dumb.”
“My Sword Sense domain covers the entire palace. I can feel that Qingqiu is turning her understanding of swordsmanship into deadly moves.”
“Just watch, she’ll win!”
The King of Langya looked skeptical.
What a joke, are all your maids prodigies? Having one like Wu Die who can defeat higher-realm enemies is enough, but this seemingly not-so-bright maid can do it too?
Then your whole household would be defying the heavens.
With the Empress as a shining example and you, the Space-Time Sword Saint, emerging, even the maids are following suit?
Nonsense!
But soon, the King of Langya’s skeptical expression turned serious as he watched the scene in the projection, his brows furrowing deeply.
How could this be?
From the dwarf elder’s initial overwhelming advantage, Su Qingqiu gradually turned the tide, becoming evenly matched, and after half an hour, even showing signs of suppressing him!
“I see, the master’s teachings about understanding swordsmanship mean using strengths to compensate for weaknesses. Cultivation isn’t just about realm, but a comprehensive evaluation…”
“For example, Wu Die, though seemingly at half-step Moon Shine, her mastery in soul arts surpasses anyone, allowing her to easily kill the early Moon Shine General Qianyu.”
“And I, under the master’s guidance, have a deep understanding of swordsmanship, far beyond the Moon Shine Realm, likely reaching the Morning Glow Realm…”
“This is my key to victory!”
Su Qingqiu’s beautiful eyes turned vacant, lost in her inner world, ignoring her injuries and the dwarf elder before her, as if sparring with the air.
——【Falling Flowers Intent, Flowing Water Heart…】
——【Sword momentum like a torrent, flowing endlessly…】
——【This sword, I name: Falling Flowers and Flowing Water.】
Su Qingqiu’s soft voice was clear to everyone.
Meng Qingzhou’s expression turned odd, rubbing his chin: “Falling Flowers and Flowing Water… a good name.”
For this girl to come up with such a term, impressive.
…
…
“Frozen Realm, Forbidden Ruins!”
The dwarf elder gazed at the vision before him—a small bridge, flowing water, a peach tree by the river, dropping gray-white petals carried by the water towards him.
Unable to avoid it, he had to use his ultimate move!
The dwarf elder created a small world, turning the area within a hundred feet into a frozen wasteland, allowing only the principles of ice to exist!
Freezing all other principles, preventing their intrusion!
“You… can’t stop it.” Su Qingqiu said calmly.
The river flowed swiftly, penetrating the frozen realm, the petals on the water turning blood-red as they passed through the dwarf elder’s body…
…
【Double-length chapter, seeking follows and gifts】
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