Chapter 123 - 122: Blood Lotus Fruit Obtained
Vast Extraordinary Spiritual Power surged forth, instantly enveloping Princess Jinping’s Sleeping Palace and cutting it off from outside detection.
Even Li Wan’Er, who was just a stone’s throw away, couldn’t detect anything unusual, let alone the Grandmasters and First Grade Grandmasters deep underground.
’It’s a good thing I came to Ciping Palace only after my Spirit became Extraordinary. Otherwise, things could have really gone wrong.’
The Spiritual Snake Sword hadn’t reacted yet, mainly because Princess Jinping’s own power was too low; she couldn’t even unleash a tenth of the sword’s strength. Xia Wuyang’s Extraordinary Spiritual Power had already enveloped it layer by layer.
He unleashed the Enchanting Heart Technique. His already Extraordinary Spiritual Power erupted to its fullest, instantly severing the connection between the Spiritual Snake Sword and Princess Jinping.
Then, relying on his tyrannical Extraordinary Spiritual Power, he forcibly charged into the Spiritual Snake Sword and erased the imprint Princess Jinping had left on it.
The Spirituality of a Middle Level Spiritual Artifact was limited to begin with, let alone when faced with an assault from such tyrannical Extraordinary Spiritual Power. On top of that, its master, Princess Jinping, was far too weak.
In the span of a few breaths, the Spiritual Snake Sword had changed masters, becoming Xia Wuyang’s weapon.
Unfortunately, Xia Wuyang couldn’t unleash the Spiritual Snake Sword’s full power at this moment either, but at least it was more formidable in his hands than it had been in Princess Jinping’s.
Princess Jinping, who was on the verge of waking, was also entranced by the Enchanting Heart Technique. She fell into an Illusion Realm and did not wake up.
In the face of absolute power, Princess Jinping, a mere Second Grade Grandmaster, was helpless.
His Mental Force Field spread like flowing mercury, easily locating several hidden compartments. In one of them sat the Blood Lotus Fruit.
Xia Wuyang opened the compartment, placed the Blood Lotus Fruit into his Personal Space, and then gave the Sleeping Palace a thorough search. He took every single treasure of value.
’With this Blood Lotus Fruit, once my Cultivation Foundation solidifies, I can use it to advance by leaps and bounds again. I should be able to improve by at least one or two minor realms.’
He then plundered the rest of the area. The haul was far greater than he had anticipated, with a total value likely reaching several million taels of silver. ’As expected of Princess Jinping.’
But he wasn’t finished. This woman had wanted to take his life; this small punishment was hardly enough.
’Besides, with Third Prince Xia Wuchen and Fifth Prince Xia Wushang confined, things have gotten a little too quiet. It’s time to give everyone something to do and liven things up a bit.’
’Princess Jinping has hidden her true self for so many years, deceiving all those Princes and Princesses and running them in circles. It’s rather unfair. It’s about time she revealed her true face.’
With that thought, Xia Wuyang no longer hesitated. He activated the Enchanting Heart Technique, precisely stimulating Princess Jinping.
Soon, Princess Jinping woke up to find her Sleeping Palace had been ransacked. Her most precious treasures, the Spiritual Snake Sword and the Blood Lotus Fruit, were gone. She felt an uncontrollable rage rush to her head, and in that instant, all her reason collapsed.
"Which scoundrel dared to steal my Spiritual Snake Sword and Blood Lotus Fruit!"
Princess Jinping had no intention of hiding her Cultivation. The terrifying aura of Second Grade Perfection erupted from her, making the entire Ciping Palace tremble under her might.
The surrounding Cyan Bamboo stalks snapped, and the candles in the prayer hall flickered violently.
Watching from a nearby hall, Li Wan’Er was horrified. "Princess, no!"
But it was too late. Moving like a bolt of lightning, Princess Jinping shot out of Ciping Palace as a white shadow, searching everywhere for the thief.
However, Xia Wuyang had already returned silently to Wenhua Hall. No matter where she searched, she found nothing.
It was nearly dawn, and the Imperial Palace was still quiet. Princess Jinping’s undisguised aura of Second Grade Perfection was like a giant boulder dropped into a calm lake, instantly alarming the entire palace.
When they discovered the one releasing the aura was the Second Princess, Princess Jinping, many of the other Princes and Princesses were left dumbfounded.
"I-Is that... Second Sister?" In Wude Palace, the still-confined Third Prince Xia Wuchen looked up in horror. "That’s the direction of Ciping Palace... That familiar voice... It really is Second Sister, Princess Jinping. She’s actually a Second Grade Perfection Grandmaster! Judging by her aura, she’s only half a step away from becoming a First Grade Grandmaster."
He simply couldn’t believe it. The Second Sister who had spent her years as a vegetarian chanting scriptures, the one who seemed above all worldly struggles, was actually an expert with one foot in the First Grade.
In the Gold and Silver Palace, the equally confined Fifth Prince Xia Wushang’s face was pale. "Impossible... How is this possible? When did she reach this level?"
He recalled Princess Jinping’s frail and weak appearance over the years, how she seemed single-mindedly devoted to burning incense and praying to Buddha, and a chill ran up his spine.
Under the influence of the Enchanting Heart Technique, Princess Jinping had now completely lost her sanity. She sped over the Imperial Palace, searching one building after another, trying to find a trace of the thief.
When Li Wan’Er tried to stop her, she inadvertently revealed her own attainment as a First Grade Grandmaster. She froze for a moment. ’Why was I so impulsive?’ she thought.
But as she watched the frenzied Princess Jinping, Li Wan’Er reasoned to herself that it was probably because the princess was already exposed that she herself had acted rashly in her anxiety. ’After all, it can’t be hidden anymore.’
What she didn’t know was that this, too, was the effect of Xia Wuyang’s Enchanting Heart Technique.
At the same time, the several First Grade Grandmasters and Second Grade Grandmasters hidden underground also burst out, fanning out to search the area for the thief.
The once-peaceful Ciping Palace was now in a complete uproar.
"Get out here!"
Princess Jinping roared like thunder and struck a side hall with her palm, causing it to collapse.
The surrounding Palace Maids, eunuchs, and Guards scattered in every direction, their screams rising and falling.
Even more Princes and Princesses were disturbed, and numerous concubines were awakened from their sleep. They all stepped out of their palaces, staring dumbfounded at the furious figure rampaging through the imperial grounds.
Gone was Princess Jinping’s usual elegance and calm. Her plain white palace robes billowed without a wind, her black hair whipped about wildly, and her eyes glinted with a terrifying light.
Her immense Qi Blood, her terrifying speed, her fierce aura—it all proclaimed one thing: this was her true self.
"Heavens, Princess Jinping is actually a Second Grade Perfection Grandmaster! From the looks of it, she’s about to advance to First Grade Grandmaster. How could her power be this immense? Didn’t she only ever reveal the strength of the Lower Three Grades before? To think she was hiding so much."
"And Ciping Palace has so many First Grade Grandmasters and Second Grade Grandmasters... several of them in total! I never thought the most powerful Prince or Princess in the palace wouldn’t be the Third or Fifth Prince, but the Second Princess."
"Why would she hide so much? What is she planning? Could she be aiming for the throne, too? If she didn’t have that ambition, why would she hide so much of her strength? The Third and Fifth Princes’ chances just got even slimmer."
"We’ve been deceived by her all these years. If this hadn’t been exposed, she might have secretly usurped the Crown Prince’s position. I wonder if Father Emperor even knows about this."
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