Chapter 78 - 77: Standing Up for Her Husband
The Seventh Prince, Xia Wunian, had spent decades painstakingly cultivating the Enchanting Heart Technique to Third Floor Perfection and was preparing to break through to the Fourth Floor.
But then there was Xia Wuyang. He had just obtained the Enchanting Heart Treasure Manual and, in a matter of a few hours, cultivated it all the way to Third Floor Perfection in one go.
If he had already grasped the subsequent parts of the Cultivation Technique, he would have gone far beyond mere Third Floor Perfection.
His Spiritual Power, refined by the Enchanting Heart Technique, was clearly purer and more formidable than before. It also carried a special Power of Confusion, allowing him to bewilder anyone whose Spiritual Power was weaker than his, even without using any Combat Techniques and Secret Techniques.
Furthermore, this meant that to enhance his Spiritual Power in the future, he wasn’t limited to just his Supreme Talent, Seven-Aperture Exquisite. Xia Wuyang could also continuously increase his Spiritual Power by cultivating the Enchanting Heart Technique.
Just as he had suspected, his Supreme Talent, Seven-Aperture Exquisite, had influenced and altered the Enchanting Heart Technique.
When he cultivated it, it didn’t just enhance his Spiritual Power. It also improved seven related aspects: memory, understanding, Comprehension, Metacognition, and so on. This also caused his cultivation of the Enchanting Heart Technique to be more than ten times slower than that of other Martial Artists.
However, given the choice, other Martial Artists would gladly accept being ten times slower for the chance to enhance those seven aspects.
After all, many of these aspects—such as Comprehension, Metacognition, and creativity—were things that no other Spiritual Cultivation Technique in the world could improve. Even for the aspects they could enhance, like thought speed or understanding, the improvements were minimal.
The Spiritual Cultivation Techniques of this world could increase Spiritual Power, but they were primarily used for offense and defense, with limited effects in supportive roles.
But Xia Wuyang was different. His Supreme Talent, Seven-Aperture Exquisite, was so powerful that any Spiritual Cultivation Technique he learned was forced to enhance all seven aspects.
Moreover, each aspect improved at roughly the same rate, advancing in lockstep, which gave Xia Wuyang an enormous advantage.
Coupled with the daily increase to his Spiritual Power and the ability to awaken Companion Talents, this minor drawback was nothing at all.
Absorbed in his cultivation, Xia Wuyang had no idea that while he was taking revenge on the Seventh Prince, Xia Wunian, someone had already found his other two enemies: Wang Xuan and Dong Yujie.
「In an inconspicuous residence in White Jade City, night had fallen.」
At that very moment, Wang Xuan—the cousin Dong Yujie was accused of "reminiscing about pillow-side tenderness" with—was adjusting his robes before a Copper Mirror, preparing to visit his dear cousin in a few days.
Although he didn’t know who had placed him here, Wang Xuan knew they had no intention of killing him for now. They probably wanted to use him for something.
This brought him a small measure of relief. ’After all, no one who cuckolded the Crown Prince, even partially, would be let off so easily.’
’Even if he is just an elder Crown Prince, he’s not someone a minor official like me can afford to offend.’
He couldn’t help but feel a pang of regret. ’If I had known we’d be found out, I never should have kept up those lingering ties with that bitch Dong Yujie.’
’Now, not only did I not get to taste the fruit, but I’m being hunted by men sent by the elder Crown Prince. What a raw deal.’
CREAK...
Just then, the door opened on its own, and a figure as bright as moonlight glided silently into the room.
The Crown Prince Consort, Yun Liyue, wore a simple white palace gown. Its hem was adorned with fine Sea Pearls that shimmered with a cool halo in the moonlight, making her look like a Moon Palace Fairy.
Her beauty was unparalleled. Her brows were like distant mountains touched with indigo, her eyes like autumn waters rippling—a vision of indescribable perfection.
Though she was no longer young, given her lifespan of over two hundred years, she was still in what would be considered her girlhood.
An icy frost that would not melt settled in her lovely eyes, and her voice was as cold as jade striking stone. "You are Wang Xuan?"
"Who... who are you?" Wang Xuan spun around in horror. When he saw who it was, a look of infatuation washed over his face, as if he had forgotten where he was.
Yun Liyue gave a detached smile. "Crown Prince Consort Yun Liyue."
"Ah..." Wang Xuan’s expression changed instantly. He stared at Yun Liyue in disbelief. "You... You’re the Crown Prince Consort!"
Yun Liyue stepped forward slowly, her dress trailing on the ground without gathering any dust. She looked down at Wang Xuan. "I am. And it’s time for you to go."
"Your Highness, I swear! My cousin and I only exchanged letters. We haven’t even met face-to-face! Nothing improper happened. Please, Your Highness, spare me!" Wang Xuan’s legs gave out, and he collapsed to his knees, kowtowing repeatedly as he begged for his life.
"Enough!" Yun Liyue cut him off. She raised her hand, and a brilliant light appeared at her fingertips before striking Wang Xuan heavily. "If it weren’t for you two, would the Crown Prince have coughed up blood repeatedly? He’s on the verge of death now. You’re both better off dead."
Wang Xuan wanted to scream in terror but found he couldn’t make a sound. His internal organs were being pulverized. He slowly collapsed to the ground, utterly silent.
Gazing at Wang Xuan’s lifeless body on the floor, Yun Liyue stood motionless, looking out the window at the bright moon and letting out a soft sigh.
They had been married for decades. Even after Xia Wuyang had become mad and perverse, she still couldn’t completely let him go.
’The vows of eternal love they once shared felt as if they were made just yesterday. If not for that accident, they would still be treating each other with mutual respect, and perhaps they would even have children by now.’
Seeing him humiliated like this, coughing up blood and fainting repeatedly, on the verge of dying from sheer anger—how could Yun Liyue simply stand by and do nothing?
She had dealt with Wang Xuan first. Once she found Dong Yujie, she would deal with her too. If she could stop them from stirring up any more trouble, perhaps the elder Crown Prince could live a little longer.
What she didn’t know was that in another courtyard not far from there, Yan Jiuge had just appeared at Dong Yujie’s residence. Dressed in a crimson gown embroidered with flame patterns, she looked like a living inferno.
Her jet-black hair cascaded down like a waterfall, accentuating her snow-white skin. A hint of coldness touched her exquisitely beautiful face, giving her the strange aura of a snow-capped mountain amid a blazing fire.
"Dong Xiurong. I trust you’ve been well."
Yan Jiuge stared indifferently at Dong Yujie, her killing intent unconcealed.
Dong Yujie stared in terror at the sudden appearance of Yan Jiuge, her voice trembling. "You... How did you find me?"
"There’s no one in White Jade City that my Fire Spirit Race can’t find." Yan Jiuge chuckled, a cluster of crimson flame dancing on her fingertip. It was a sign that her Qi and Blood Power had been condensed to a certain level, and also an indication that she practiced a special Cultivation Technique.
She advanced slowly. With each step, a scorched mark was left on the stone slabs beneath her feet.
"Do you have any idea how many times the Crown Prince has coughed up blood? All because of your shameless letters and your repeated slanders."
"The Crown Prince hasn’t treated you poorly all these years. You, your family, your friends—you have all benefited greatly. Even that lover of a cousin of yours profited quite a bit. And this is how you repay the Crown Prince?"
"Even if someone were to get revenge on the Crown Prince, it would be our place to do so, not a freeloader like you, Dong Xiurong."
...