“Beloved Consort, come and see whether these items are all magical artifacts?”

“Magical artifacts?”

Only then did Cui Xiabing realize that a pile of items was laid out before them.

Zen staff, kasaya, wooden fish, demon-slaying pestle, and other clothing items used by monks.

It seemed that even Monk Fayuan’s clothes had been stripped off.

Cui Xiabing hurriedly said, “Your Majesty, magical artifacts should not be kept too close to a trapped cultivator, otherwise they are very easy for him to regain control.”

“Rest assured, beloved consort, here he is unable to control the magical artifacts.”

Zheng Yi said, “Beloved consort, first see if there are other magical artifacts among these items.”

“That Thousand Illusions Glazed Painting should be a magical artifact. Elder Chen and I were temporarily controlled by this painting, if it weren’t for the Blood Moon Gu…”

“I understand.”

Cui Xiabing immediately stooped down to inspect, quickly picking out two items.

“Your Majesty, after checking, I found that there are only two magical artifacts in this pile, but both are damaged, and I cannot repair them.”

“The other items are just ordinary clothing items.”

“Oh?”

Zheng Yi looked over, the first item was a string of dark yellow Buddha beads, now full of cracks, obviously damaged.

Even the string connecting them had broken, leaving a dozen or so Buddha beads piled together, looking dilapidated.

The second item was a simple-looking, bronze-colored demon-slaying pestle.

Like the Buddha beads, this demon-slaying pestle was also broken, completely unusable.

“Beloved consort, take another look at this painting.”

Zheng Yi handed the Thousand Illusions Glazed Painting to Cui Xiabing to inspect.

Cui Xiabing’s eyes shifted from initial suspicion to surprise, grasping it tightly in her palm to sense it, eventually shaking her head and saying:

“Your Majesty, I cannot determine this item, but it is definitely stronger than my flying sword.”

“What grade is your flying sword?”

“Mid-grade magical artifact.”

“So isn’t that to say this painting is at least a top-grade magical artifact?”

“Yes.”

Cui Xiabing added, “A cultivator able to consecutively control three different magical artifacts would have a cultivation at least in the middle-stage Qi Cultivation, possibly even late-stage Qi Cultivation!”

“My master is like that, she also has three magical artifacts, not counting the flying sword she taught me.”

“By the way, Your Majesty, I received a letter from my master. She said she could return to Great Yu in at most a year.”

Zheng Yi’s eyes brightened slightly, asking, “Where is she now?”

“Xueyun Country.”

Cui Xiabing said, “In the letter, my master mentioned she found a Spirit Grass in Xueyun Country, which will mature in just over a year. Once she harvests that Spirit Grass, she will return to Great Yu.”

“Xueyun Country…”

Xueyun Country is a nation in the north of Great Yu, even further north than Wu Country, sharing a small border of snowy mountains with Great Yu.

Zheng Yi was not very clear about intelligence concerning Xueyun Country. There wasn’t much enmity between the two countries; they merely contacted occasionally.

He only knew that Xueyun Country was covered with endless snow mountains and grasslands, vast and sparsely populated, with inhabitants living in poverty.

“When your master returns to the capital city, I will definitely visit her.”

Zheng Yi continued, “By the way, beloved consort, do you have any means to discern the true cultivation level of this person?”

Cui Xiabing contemplated, “I need to transfer Spiritual Qi into his Dantian to check.”

“Good!”

The three approached the trapped Fayuan, and only then did Cui Xiabing see that Monk Fayuan had been stripped bare, his hands, feet, and neck all bound by chains hanging in mid-air.

On the other side, the iron pillar and wall.

Only his waist was covered with a layer of torn cloth, clearly meant to spare Cui Xiabing from embarrassment.

Beyond that, a Blood Moon Gu lay on his throat, temple, cervical vertebrae, and Dantian, its mouthpiece stabbed into his body, inhibiting the flow of magical power within him.

Most importantly, it was to threaten Fayuan not to make any sudden moves.

Otherwise, Zheng Yi merely needed a thought, and those Blood Moon Gu could kill Fayuan!

Cui Xiabing took a deep breath, her single hand hovering an inch above Fayuan’s abdomen.

The flow of magical power within her surged into Fayuan’s body.

Now, heavily injured and unconscious, Fayuan showed no response to the foreign spiritual power.

Soon, Cui Xiabing withdrew her palm, saying, “Your Majesty, Fayuan’s cultivation is only at the fourth layer of Qi Cultivation, just one layer higher than mine.”

“Fourth layer of Qi Cultivation? I understand.”

Zheng Yi said, “Thank you, beloved consort, this place is damp and dark, I will have someone escort you to the sleeping chamber to wait for me.”

“Thank you, Your Majesty. Then I shall take my leave first.”

Cui Xiabing said softly, then turned and was led away by the Shadow Guard.

Yet Zheng Yi stared fiercely at Fayuan before him, saying in a deep voice, “Elder Chen.”

“This old servant is here.”

“No matter what methods are needed, extract every bit of intelligence from his mouth.”

“Even if it’s whether he peeked at a widow in the village bathing when he was young, I want to know!”

Elder Chen said with a sinister tone, “This old servant follows orders! I will not fail Your Majesty!”

Zheng Yi nodded, then turned and left the underground palace with the Thousand Illusions Glazed Painting.

Chen Liancang, however, turned back and scrutinized Fayuan as if looking at a pig waiting to be slaughtered.

“Come!”

In the darkness, more than ten figures appeared, all carefully trained Shadow Guards, now coldly watching Fayuan.

“Listen up, divide into pairs, and watch this person in four shifts a day, your eyes must not stray. As soon as he wakes, inform me immediately, understand?”

“Yes, ancestor!”

“Hehehe…”

In the darkness, Chen Liancang’s voice was as cold as ice.

“So what if he’s a cultivator? Isn’t he still in our hands?”

“When you wake, I will extract all your secrets from you!”

“Hope that you… can endure!”

Having left the underground palace, Zheng Yi immediately sought out Cui Xiabing.

“Beloved Consort, do you possess the means to refine a magical artifact?”

“Your Majesty intends to refine that Thousand Illusions Glazed Painting?”

Cui Xiabing said curiously, “The method of refining rituals that I learned from my master was only meant to refine that flying sword.”

“I don’t even know if it can refine the Thousand Illusions Glazed Painting. Moreover, I just investigated, and Fayuan is not dead. There are still restrictions on this Thousand Illusions Glazed Painting, and Your Majesty cannot refine it.”

“So, do we have to wait for him to die?”

Zheng Yi held the Thousand Illusions Glazed Painting, feeling somewhat unwilling.

This is a top-grade magical artifact that can easily control him and Elder Chen, two innate realm powerhouses, in an instant.

If he could master it, it would be like adding wings to a tiger!

Cui Xiabing shook her head and said, “Waiting for the original owner of the magical artifact to die is one method. Another is the slow process of using one’s own magical power and divine thought to gradually wear down the restrictions on the artifact.”

“The restrictions of a fourth-layer Qi Cultivation cultivator… it takes about one or two years to open.”

“One or two years…”

Zheng Yi’s lip twitched, and he immediately felt like he had entered a treasure mountain only to return empty-handed.

“Forget it, let’s wait for Elder Chen to extract some information from him first.”

“Hmm.”

Cui Xiabing gently touched Zheng Yi’s forehead and said, “Your Majesty, don’t always frown, it makes my heart ache~”

“Heartache?”

Zheng Yi picked up Cui Xiabing by the waist and laughed, “Then let my beloved consort comfort me, hahaha.”

“Ah~ Your Majesty!”

An hour later, Cui Xiabing lay contentedly in Zheng Yi’s arms, fast asleep.

Meanwhile, in Zheng Yi’s mind, the Yin Yang Treasure Mirror once again displayed a line of text.

[Absorb Yin Qi, Magical Power +1.]

[Absorb Yin Qi, Water Attribute Spirit Root +1.]

“Indeed…”

Zheng Yi said, “Only when my dual cultivation partner and I are in harmony and deeply in love can I gain magical power.”

“Now my cultivation is…”

The line of text disappeared, and more lines appeared.

[Life Master: Zheng Yi]

[Innate Talent: Yin and Yang]

[Lifespan: 27/5668]

[Spirit Roots: Water (Middle Grade 1/1000), Earth (Lower Grade 63/100), Wood (Lower Grade 12/100)]

[Magical Power: 1/1000]

[Overall Strength: First-layer Qi Cultivation]

[Innate Spiritual Energy Progress (Tier One): 6/10]

His Water Attribute Root Bone was growing the fastest and had reached the middle-grade realm.

Meanwhile, the Earth Attribute and Wood Attribute Spirit Roots were still at lower grade.

However, Zheng Yi believed that given more time and with support from Cui Xiabing and Yue Chan, he could surely reach middle grade!

The most important thing is, first-layer Qi Cultivation…!

He closed his eyes and could clearly feel a warm breath circulating in his dantian, radiating outward and circulating through his limbs.

The vortex of magical power in his dantian was also constantly rotating, remotely commanding the flow of magical power throughout his body.

“Is this… magical power?”

“It’s a pity I don’t have a main cultivation technique; all this magical power is just attributeless magical power, without any characteristics.”

“Unless I can find a suitable cultivation technique and corresponding magic.”

“And Yuheng Zhenren…”

Zheng Yi’s heart stirred as he remembered the Taiyii Dao female crown who had lived within the Imperial Palace for over a year.

“This woman must also have a spirit root; otherwise, the old Yuheng Zhao Xizheng would not have allowed her to participate in the concubine candidate selection.”

“Now that cultivation is imminent, it’s time to win her over!”

“And the Tuoba Clan of Yunmeng Marsh.”

Zheng Yi’s eyes shifted again. He had issued two holy decrees, inviting Master Fayuan of Tianlong Temple to the Capital City and asking the Tuoba Clan to present a legitimate daughter as a consort.

Fayuan had hidden intentions and was imprisoned by him.

The Tuoba Clan, however, remained silent, neither agreeing nor refusing, and even the Embroidered Uniform Guard sent to deliver the decree vanished.

Truly strange.

“It seems the Tuoba Clan of Yunmeng Marsh also harbors rebellious intentions, otherwise, they wouldn’t have remained silent for so long. Are they trying to delay?”

Zheng Yi murmured, “Since they want to delay, then I shall indulge them!”

“I also want to delay!”

After a night, the next day, a message spread within Baiyu City.

“Master Fayuan, deeply versed in Buddhist Dharma and adept in the three teachings, has been invited by His Majesty, who is sincerely impressed, to temporarily reside in the palace and expound on Buddhist doctrine to His Majesty!”

Rumor had it that an eunuch witnessed, upon Master Fayuan’s entry into the palace, a radiance of Buddha light hovered above Baiyu City, lotus flowers bloomed at each step he took, and phoenixes were drawn to his wake, heralding a change in the heavens!

At the same time, a convoy escorted by a team of Embroidered Uniform Guards, carrying more than ten carriages, headed towards Lin’an Tianlong Temple.

Master Fayuan preached, delighting His Majesty, who conferred many rewards, to be delivered to Tianlong Temple under the escort of the Embroidered Uniform Guard!

As for how many spies from the Embroidered Uniform Guard and Eastern Depot were among the rewards, that was unknown.

Elder Chen once said that two new innate powerhouses had emerged from the Southern Martial Arts noble families.

His intelligence depended on the Eastern Depot and Embroidered Uniform Guard’s investigation in martial arts circles.

Master Fayuan was not that newly emerged innate powerhouse.

So, was that innate powerhouse still lurking in Tianlong Temple?

The purpose of the Embroidered Uniform Guard this time was to investigate this innate powerhouse!

Just as Zheng Yi was focusing on Tianlong Temple, the Tuoba Clan of Yunmeng Marsh, and Nanyue County, a great news arrived suddenly from Xu Mujun at Black Mountain Pass.

The old Emperor of the Wu Country had died.

Before his death, he left an edict, appointing his seventh son, Wu Siwen, as the successor.

This Wu Siwen was born into the Wu Country’s noble Mengg family. His grandfather was the Prime Minister of Wu Country and had controlled the court affairs for many years, so it was quite normal for him to support his grandson’s ascension to the throne.

However, the Eldest Prince, Second Prince, Fourth Prince, and over ten other princes were not satisfied and began fierce battles with their own soldiers around the Wu Country Imperial Court.

The chaos was no less than that of Great Yu.

And to stabilize the court affairs and seek external support for his grandson, Wu Country’s Prime Minister Mengg Yu quickly paid war reparations to Yu and Wu Countries to gain the support of Xu Mujun.

This correspondence from Xu Mujun was to ask which side Great Yu would support to ascend to the throne.

Besides this, there were two other matters.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep