Chapter 187: Watching Intently

Ning Changjiu waited outside the door. Shao Xiaoli entered with the King, and then she saw Su Yanshu.

Su Yanshu wore a loose red robe, leaning against the railing. Her golden hairpin was askew, her makeup half-done, and she gazed quietly at the royal city, her expression desolate.

"Sister Su…" Shao Xiaoli had expected to see a bloodied person covered in scars, but she was surprised to find her completely unharmed.

The beautiful woman's arms were still as delicate and fair as mutton-fat jade, without a single mark.

Seeing Shao Xiaoli approach, she smiled, her misty expression not the shyness of a courtesan, but rather a hint of subtle allure.

She waved to Shao Xiaoli.

Behind Shao Xiaoli, the monarch, dressed in imperial robes, stepped out. Su Yanshu curtsied to him, her voice melodious as she said, "Greetings, Your Majesty."

The King nodded slowly, standing in the shadows with an unspoken majesty.

"Sister Su, are you alright?" Shao Xiaoli asked, puzzled.

Su Yanshu smiled faintly, leaning against the railing. "It was just a play between His Majesty and me."

"A play?" Shao Xiaoli was confused.

Su Yanshu glanced at the King. After he nodded, she explained, "A demon called Chong Sui came to the royal city. This Chong Sui likes to capture women, especially beautiful ones. The prettier they are, the more he likes them."

"Capturing women?" Shao Xiaoli felt a chill. "To... eat them?"

Su Yanshu smiled and shook her head. "No, it's quite laughable, actually. He wants to marry them and live happily ever after. That's why Chong Sui only appears once every hundred years or so; he only seeks a new woman after the previous one dies. In that regard, he's much better than many people."

Shao Xiaoli looked at the courtesan, her makeup vibrant, her beautiful eyes seemingly filled with tears.

"So... you were the bait?" Shao Xiaoli asked.

Su Yanshu nodded. "That was His Majesty's plan. I pretended to assassinate His Majesty and was thrown into prison. Chong Sui also seeks to kill His Majesty, so we thought if he heard of my reputation, he might come to the prison to rescue me and fall into a trap. Unfortunately... it's been a month, and there hasn't been a single sign of him. Perhaps I'm not captivating enough to lure even a monster."

Shao Xiaoli listened in silence, never expecting such an outcome.

Shao Xiaoli said, "You didn't tell me anything..."

Su Yanshu said earnestly, "It was a secret."

Shao Xiaoli sighed, "Well, it's good that you're alright, Sister."

Su Yanshu leaned down, extended a fair finger, and poked her forehead, smiling, "If you dressed up, little girl, you wouldn't be any less beautiful than I am. Be careful at home, too, lest that Chong Sui abduct you to be his wife."

Shao Xiaoli wasn't afraid. She thought the name Chong Sui sounded like a monster seeking undeserved fame. The biggest monster in Broken Realm City should clearly be the boss in her own residence.

"I'm not pretty at all," Shao Xiaoli said with self-awareness.

Since the perilous spirit summoning that day, Shao Xiaoli seemed to have abandoned her noble lady's upbringing. She no longer bothered to dress up, her hair always disheveled, and her dresses plain. Following Ning Changjiu around every day, calling him 'Boss,' she looked more like a girl from the underworld.

Su Yanshu continued to smile faintly and alluringly. Her fingers gently stroked Shao Xiaoli's face. "Are you still thinking about your mother?"

"Of course not..." Shao Xiaoli said, "Father is right here. What nonsense are you talking about?"

The King stood behind them, silent.

Shao Xiaoli suddenly remembered something and asked, "What about that one named Kui Yuan?"

Su Yanshu slowly turned her head and softly called, "A-Yuan."

From the depths of the darkness, a man slowly emerged, holding a sword. He had piercing eyes and strong brows, a handsome face, and his robes were made of precious, impermeable material. Yet, his face carried an undeniable melancholy, far from his usual carefree demeanor. He looked up, gazing silently at Su Yanshu, lost in thought.

The King, meanwhile, looked at Kui Yuan.

The two men stood in the shadows, while the light from the window fell solely on Su Yanshu. The already beautiful woman appeared even more radiant, her red dress like a blooming flower, and she maintained a subtle, enigmatic smile.

In the quiet room, Shao Xiaoli caught a whiff of sharp, conflicting killing intent.

"Greetings, Your Majesty," Kui Yuan said, breaking the silence as he bowed, still holding his sword.

The King nodded and said, "Practice your swordsmanship diligently."

"Yes."

After that inexplicable exchange, Kui Yuan retreated back into the darkness. The King then cast a deep glance at Shao Xiaoli and said, "Unless there's something important, I'll take you out."

Shao Xiaoli looked at Su Yanshu, who, as if no one else was present, took a sip of tea, her posture languid, her half-open robe revealing a dazzling expanse of fair skin. It was quite captivating.

"Then please take care," Shao Xiaoli whispered, and then followed the King out of the hall.

On the dimly lit path, the King suddenly spoke softly, "Your mother was also a rare beauty in her lifetime."

"Hmm?" Shao Xiaoli was slightly stunned, unsure why her father would say such a thing. She knew her mother was beautiful, but the more beautiful she was, the more heartbreaking her passing.

The King asked, "How old are you this year?"

Shao Xiaoli replied, "Seventeen..."

The King smiled faintly, "I was about the same age when I met your mother."

For some reason, a wave of revulsion surged within Shao Xiaoli.

The King walked slowly, saying, "How is your spirit? Is he obedient?"

Shao Xiaoli said, "Of course."

The King smiled and slipped a metal ring from his ring finger, handing it to Shao Xiaoli. "If he doesn't obey, you can put this on his hand. It contains powerful spiritual energy that can instantly seize his will, making him completely subservient to you."

Shao Xiaoli stood still, looking at him calmly, her small face appearing somewhat cold amidst her messy hair.

The King said, "Why are you hesitating? Do you not trust your father?"

They exited the corridor, and light flooded in. Before them was an ancient well.

She suddenly looked up, took the ring, and held it in her palm, saying, "Thank you, Father."

The King smiled, saying, "This is truly my daughter. I know that spirit is quite sentient, even able to converse with you and relieve boredom, but people in Broken Realm City never need such things. What we need is merely a blade, a blade that can..."

His words suddenly stopped.

Shao Xiaoli, holding the ring, swung her arm.

The ring accurately struck the well wall with a 'clink' and then bounced into the well water. The sound of the ring splashing water echoed crisply in the silent imperial city.

The metal ring quickly sank to the bottom of the well.

She walked on, as if nothing had happened.

The King watched her retreating back and smiled faintly, "Truly, you have my blood. You are indeed different from your mother."

*The blood flowing in my veins is not yours; it's the blood of a dead general.*

Thinking this, Shao Xiaoli slowly walked out of the royal city.

Ning Changjiu, waiting outside the gate, saw her emerge and softly said, "Let's go back."

Shao Xiaoli hurried to follow.

"Did you see Su Yanshu?" Ning Changjiu asked.

"Yes, I did," Shao Xiaoli said, then recounted everything she had witnessed in the royal palace.

Ning Changjiu nodded slightly. Regarding Chong Sui, he had seen similar records in the library's books, though he didn't know if they were true.

Blood Feather Lord scoffed, "Live happily ever after? Ha, what kind of idiotic monster is that? If I had that power, I'd abduct all the pretty girls within a hundred miles."

The Spirit of the Sword Manual sneered, "And then what? With your physique, you'd probably be squeezed dry and become skin and bones."

Blood Feather Lord retorted, "You haven't seen me in my prime! Back then, my wingspan was dozens of feet, and with one stomp, a large section of the city wall would crumble. Everyone feared Blood Feather Lord back then, truly terrified!"

The Spirit of the Sword Manual said, "I'm not as famously intimidating as you, but everyone who's witnessed my swordplay has died."

"What a poser..." Blood Feather Lord spat.

"Chong Sui," Ning Changjiu murmured the name.

Shao Xiaoli suddenly said, "That Chong Sui definitely comes to capture pretty girls... Boss, you must protect me!"

Ning Changjiu calmly replied, "If that's the case, you're probably quite safe."

"..." Shao Xiaoli puffed out her cheeks.

Back at home, Shao Xiaoli started preparing his meal. She stared at the ugly wild chicken for a long time, contemplating whether to cook it or give it to the red-headed chicken.

Ultimately, Blood Feather Lord received a new body.

However, this wild chicken already had an injured leg, and Shao Xiaoli couldn't resist. Before giving this body to Blood Feather Lord, she swiftly brought down her knife and cut off the injured leg, calling it 'healing' its wounds.

Blood Feather Lord wanted to cry but had no tears. It floated out of the broken sword and into the body of the one-legged wild chicken, merging its soul with it through tears.

During the initial integration, it experienced a clear rejection from the body. It clucked loudly, excitedly hopping around the courtyard on one leg for a long time.

Shao Xiaoli, meanwhile, gnawed on a chicken leg while watching the wild chicken frantically hopping around the courtyard.

After dinner, Ning Changjiu said, "Let's practice swordsmanship. Today I'll teach you the most beautiful stance: White Rainbow Piercing the Sun."

"White Rainbow Piercing the Sun..." Just hearing the name, Shao Xiaoli imagined a long rainbow spanning the sky like a nimble white dragon. She nodded nervously yet excitedly, but then worried, "But my previous swordsmanship isn't very good yet."

Ning Changjiu said, "Just learn and remember it for now. Improvement in swordsmanship isn't an overnight thing; it needs to be honed through countless battles in the future."

Shao Xiaoli nodded thoughtfully. She pointed to the courtyard and said, "That wild chicken is hopping all over the place; I can't practice my sword."

Ning Changjiu said, "Just practice. If you cut it, we'll just get it a new body."

Blood Feather Lord snorted derisively, thinking, *This little girl's crappy sword? Does she really think she can cut me? That's preposterous.*

Ning Changjiu thought for a moment and added, "If that really doesn't work, we can cage it."

At these words, Blood Feather Lord's mind trembled. It immediately recalled the miserable days of being kept as a messenger pigeon by Zhao Xiang'er, eating birdseed daily. It instantly quieted down, standing steadily in a "golden rooster stands on one leg" pose. It looked at Shao Xiaoli and said seriously, "From now on, if you want to practice your sword, this immortal lord can be your sparring partner. Master Ning understands me; I've always been a good mentor and friend."

Listening to its words, Ning Changjiu seemed to be reminded of something and nodded. "Hmm, Xiaoli, you can make a pact with it and make it your summoned spirit. That way, it won't dare to betray you."

Shao Xiaoli glanced disdainfully at the ugly, one-legged chicken.

Blood Feather Lord also protested, "A pact... Master Ning! Don't you trust me? I've been diligently offering advice these past few days..."

Ning Changjiu said, "In the imperial city, Lu Jiajia spared your life, but that doesn't mean I will. Of course, it's best if what happened that day doesn't happen again."

Blood Feather Lord whimpered, "I was merely deceived by that old fox back then! Now I'm determined to be a good bird."

Ning Changjiu said, "Enough nonsense. Make the pact."

So, that afternoon, Blood Feather Lord was forced to write a blood pact, agreeing to protect Shao Xiaoli's safety for three years and never betray her, or else its blood would transform into a blade to pierce its heart and kill it.

Although Shao Xiaoli gained a bodyguard, she was quite dissatisfied with the chicken's appearance. She said, "Then you'll have to accumulate merit points diligently from now on, okay? One point for killing a monster for me, five points for delivering a letter. When you've earned five hundred merit points, I'll get you a better-looking body."

Blood Feather Lord flapped its wings without much hope.

Inside Ning Changjiu, the Spirit of the Sword Manual looked at it, feeling a hint of envy.

It also wished to cultivate an independent, complete soul like Blood Feather Lord, one that could merge with any compatible creature, instead of being unable to escape its main body, the Sword Manual, condemned to exist like a parasite within others.

And Night Exorcist's prediction about Ning Changjiu's fate was an even greater obstacle in its mind.

And so, the afternoon sword practice began.

Blood Feather Lord enthusiastically acted as a sparring partner, but having only recently emerged, its cultivation was shallow, and its integration with the body was not yet harmonious. In just an hour, Shao Xiaoli had it scrambling everywhere.

Shao Xiaoli looked at the chicken feathers scattered across the ground, worriedly thinking, *Who is supposed to protect whom?*

For safety reasons, Blood Feather Lord decided not to provoke this little troublemaker until its cultivation returned to its long-life realm.

So Shao Xiaoli focused wholeheartedly on practicing the "White Rainbow Piercing the Sun" stance.

Although Ning Changjiu had meticulously explained the mental cultivation technique, the method of qi circulation, and the acupuncture points to her, Shao Xiaoli still struggled to grasp the rhythm and breath of the sword strokes. After an entire afternoon of chopping, she still couldn't unleash a complete rainbow light.

In the evening, Ning Changjiu further regulated her body. It seemed Shao Xiaoli's cold illness could be completely cured in less than a month.

That night, he didn't leave the city but secretly took Blood Feather Lord with him towards the library.

He had Blood Feather Lord guard the rooftop, watching for anyone approaching, while he himself slipped into the library to browse and search for information about Broken Realm City and beyond.

Several large bookshelves were now filled with many new books.

Ning Changjiu began reading from the entrance, going through each book, including many thick ones he had missed before due to time constraints.

The 700-year history of Broken Realm City was clearly recorded in this library.

Ning Changjiu formed a complete structure of events in his mind, based on the timeline recorded in each book, and gradually filled in the details.

Next, Ning Changjiu compiled a timeline of major events that had occurred in Broken Realm City from these book records.

The books stated that traces of battles between many large creatures had been found outside Broken Realm City. These traces appeared almost every hundred years, and the trees and stones beneath these battle scars were withered and rotten, as if they had undergone severe corrosion.

Descriptions of these giant creature battles were rare and vague, only mentioning great demons hidden in the canyon. But because no expeditions had ever encountered them or died because of them, they were not given much importance.

However, Ning Changjiu noticed that the timing of these giant creatures' appearances roughly coincided with Chong Sui's every emergence...

Could Chong Sui also be one of these great demons?

And who was it fighting against?

Ning Changjiu searched through these documents but found no new clues.

Outside the library, Blood Feather Lord stood on the rooftop, overlooking the entire city. It couldn't help but recall its glorious days of venturing alone into the State of Zhao. The past was vivid, but now, with the ancient city before it, both things and people had changed. This was no longer the State of Zhao, and it was merely a demonic bird on guard duty, its future uncertain.

Blood Feather Lord pondered these things sadly.

Then, its bird-like eyes suddenly brightened. It turned its head, seemingly catching a moving dot in the darkness, but the dot moved too quickly, vanishing from sight in an instant.

As morning approached, Ning Changjiu put down the last book he was holding.

This was a book from within the restricted section. It not only described the duties of the Prime Minister and the King but also briefly introduced the Sī Mìng.

The Sī Mìng is a deity in mythology who governs human life. Because ancient people believed that human life was connected to the stars in the sky, Sī Mìng was, in a sense, also a divine official who governed the movement of the stars.

At the end of this book, there was even a conjecture personally written by a former Sī Mìng: *The stars in the sky, perhaps all dead. The sun and moon's cycles, perhaps mere afterglows. The end of days approaches, how can anything exist? After the divine war, all turned to dust.*

Ning Changjiu's gaze lingered on the words "divine war" for a long time.

Only when light appeared in the sky did he finally put down the book and leave the library.

"Someone was here last night," Blood Feather Lord said directly when it saw him.

Ning Changjiu nodded softly. "It seems she's hiding very well."

He was now almost certain that the one who led the ghostly fiend from the prison to him was Sī Mìng.

Blood Feather Lord asked, "You know who it is?"

Ning Changjiu countered, "Who else could it be?"

Blood Feather Lord immediately thought of the terrifying woman who had defeated it with a single move that day. It shivered and said, "If it really is her, we'd better be very polite..."

Ning Changjiu said, "Her ultimate goal should only be to fight Night Exorcist and return to the divine realm. We are, at most, just pawns."

"Pawns? How am I a pawn?" Blood Feather Lord questioned its own value.

Ning Changjiu said, "A woman with her personality would likely extract the value she desires from everyone she deems exploitable."

"Then won't she exploit us completely dry in the future?" Blood Feather Lord covered its wings, trembling.

Ning Changjiu shook his head. "Not everyone standing on the chessboard is a pawn."

These past few days, Shao Xiaoli had been practicing swordsmanship diligently. She vowed to unleash a brilliant, long rainbow before the travel ban was lifted, to prove her exceptional talent in swordsmanship.

Finally, one evening a month later, Shao Xiaoli skillfully circulated her cultivation technique, gathered her breath and focus, then suddenly swung her sword. Her spirit moved with the sword, and in an instant, Shao Xiaoli's eyes turned bright white—her pupils were illuminated by a fleeting white light!

Shao Xiaoli stood in place, breathing heavily, her legs weak, but a smile spread across her face.

She looked at the lingering white light on her sword and confirmed that she had not been mistaken.

She had really channeled the White Rainbow Sword Qi onto the metal surface of the sword using her spiritual power!

"Boss, Boss!" Shao Xiaoli shouted excitedly, but then realized Ning Changjiu wasn't behind her. She quickly ran into the house, tugged at his sleeve, and eagerly said, "Boss! I've mastered it! That White Rainbow Piercing the Sun stance! Let me show you."

Upon hearing this, Blood Feather Lord quickly retreated to a corner.

It was the same sword strike Lu Jiajia had unleashed in the imperial city, illuminating the falling rain, a memory still vivid for Blood Feather Lord, bringing phantom pain whenever it recalled it.

Shao Xiaoli looked at the cowardly Blood Feather Lord and scoffed, "I wouldn't bother cutting you. Why use an ox-cleaver to kill a chicken!"

Saying this, she took a bundle of firewood from the kitchen, picked up her sword, held her breath, and chopped. No white rainbow appeared; the sword plunged into the firewood and was firmly stuck by the wood.

Shao Xiaoli's expression was slightly embarrassed. She twisted her wrist hard, and the sword split the wood, pulling free.

"One more time..." Shao Xiaoli thought it must be because she was being watched, making her too nervous.

In no time, Shao Xiaoli had chopped through a large bundle of firewood, but she couldn't manage to perform that sword strike again.

She wiped the beads of sweat from her face, laughed awkwardly, and boasted, "Today's firewood is chopped early, Boss, aren't I diligent?"

Ning Changjiu sighed. He had previously thought Ning Xiaoling's talent was merely average, but after this comparison, he realized that Junior Sister Xiaoling was actually an extraordinary genius...

"Very good," Ning Changjiu praised her helplessly.

Shao Xiaoli asked, "Since I've mastered White Rainbow Piercing the Sun, what should I practice next?"

Ning Changjiu said, "Originally, you should have learned the 'Great River Entering the Ditch' stance next, but each move in this sword manual requires the previous one as a foundation. Although you've learned White Rainbow Piercing the Sun, it still needs more refinement."

Shao Xiaoli lowered her head shyly, knowing that her boss didn't want to discourage her and was subtly saying that her sword technique was poorly executed and ugly.

Seeing her disappointed expression, Ning Changjiu felt a little sympathetic and said, "How about this, I'll teach you another sword technique."

"What sword technique?"

"The sword technique from the second half of the Heavenly Edict Sword Manual," Ning Changjiu said.

"This is a killing sword. When you strike, don't think about your cultivation level, and don't consider the opponent's strength or weakness. You must believe in yourself absolutely, believe in your sword, because you strike only to kill the opponent, and the opponent under your sword is not truly a person. When you strike, your spiritual field should be completely black, with only one point of light in that blackness—that is the light of the opponent's vitality. You only need to thrust your sword towards that point of light," Ning Changjiu explained about the second volume of the Sword Manual. "It's that simple."

*It really doesn't sound difficult...* Shao Xiaoli thought.

Ning Changjiu said, "Then you go ahead and try to find the feeling yourself first."

"Huh?" Shao Xiaoli was surprised. "What about the mental cultivation technique, the sword stances...?"

Ning Changjiu said, "Before learning this sword technique, you must spend a sufficiently long time believing in your sword. Only then can you master it; otherwise, no matter how long you spend, it will be in vain."

Shao Xiaoli asked, "Did Boss also need to cultivate trust before learning this sword technique?"

Ning Changjiu shook his head. "I have never doubted my sword."

"Ohh..." Shao Xiaoli drawled.

Blood Feather Lord listened to his words, daring not to speak its mind.

Inside Ning Changjiu, the Spirit of the Sword Manual protested, "Are you really going to teach this little girl this sword technique? Such divine swordsmanship is precious because it's rare. It might not be good to pass it on so casually."

Ning Changjiu understood the principle. "This kind of swordsmanship is rarely seen because almost no one who has seen it survives, making it extremely difficult to decipher. Are you afraid she won't be skilled enough to kill in one blow, and someone might learn it?"

The Spirit of the Sword Manual scoffed, "You ask, knowing the answer."

Ning Changjiu softly said, "Don't underestimate her. There's a fire hidden in her heart. All she lacks now is an opportunity."

The Spirit of the Sword Manual said, "You haven't fallen for this naive girl, have you?"

Ning Changjiu said, "I just feel like I can't keep getting free room and board."

"Hmph, an excuse. Instead of wasting time on this useless stuff, you should think about how to deal with that Sī Mìng," the Spirit of the Sword Manual said.

Ning Changjiu said, "I always feel like she's watching me."

"Flattered much?" the Spirit of the Sword Manual sneered.

Ning Changjiu shook his head. "Have you heard this story? A donkey, from a faraway place, was grazing at the foot of a mountain. A black tiger on the mountain had never seen a donkey before, so at first, it thought it was a monster and watched from afar for a long time, trying to test the donkey. It was even startled by the donkey's braying. But a few days later, the black tiger discovered that this donkey couldn't do anything but kick. So, it used its 'black tiger digs out heart' move and killed the donkey."

"First time I've heard someone compare themselves to a donkey," the Spirit of the Sword Manual remarked in wonder. "So, all these amazing sword techniques you're showing off are just to prove that you can do more than just kick, that you're a highly skilled donkey?"

Ning Changjiu did not answer.

The Spirit of the Sword Manual assumed he didn't want to admit he was a donkey. It chuckled, "I don't agree with your view, though."

"Hmm?"

The Spirit of the Sword Manual quipped, "Wearing black robes makes it a black tiger? Maybe it's a white one."

Ning Changjiu said, "Black or white, any tiger that wants to eat me isn't a good tiger."

The Spirit of the Sword Manual said indifferently, "As long as it's pretty, it's fine..."

This was the last month of Broken Realm City's ban.

Even with daily patrols by guards and the King himself secretly visiting the city, Chong Sui showed no trace. If not for Sī Mìng's assertion that Chong Sui was still in the city, the King might have given up.

And this ban could only last three months at most. After several releases of grain over these three months, the royal city's food supply was almost exhausted. If the city gates didn't open soon, the royal family would starve alongside the commoners. During this time, there had even been small-scale protests in the city, and the guards on the city gates had been ambushed. Many families weren't even sure if they could last until the city gates reopened.

But this did not include Shao Xiaoli's family.

Ning Changjiu often snuck out of the city at night to hunt, so Shao Xiaoli's household rarely ran out of meat.

Finally, one day, other members of the royal family couldn't bear it anymore and knocked on Shao Xiaoli's door. Shao Xiaoli opened it to find the same boy who had ridiculed her that day, the one with a black, eye-like spirit hovering behind him.

"Why does your family have cooking smoke every day? Why?" The boy couldn't hold back. "Is it because you're the King's biological daughter, so he's secretly sending you food? Share some with me, and I'll keep your secret, how about it?"

Shao Xiaoli looked at him as if he were an idiot. "What food are you noble children short of? You're just craving meat, aren't you? I wouldn't give it to you even if I were distributing grain to the outer city commoners."

The boy grew angry, seeing her equate him with commoners. Then, his gaze went past Shao Xiaoli's shoulder and he saw another proud, though somewhat ugly, demonic chicken in the courtyard. He exclaimed in shock, "You still have food reserves? I never would have guessed! How could you be so farsighted, girl? Did someone reveal the ban to you early? That shouldn't be... I understand! You're working with that Chong Sui, aren't you!"

Shao Xiaoli thought, *This person has three eyes, how can he be even more idiotic than me?* She retorted furiously, "Mind your own business! Don't slander me. If you're so upset, go tell my father in the royal city. Let's see who he helps!"

The three-eyed boy said, "My spirit is the Heavenly Eye. I just had it look, and your glabella is darkened; you're bound to have misfortune this year..."

As he spoke, Shao Xiaoli had already rolled up her sleeves and said, "I think you're asking to die."

The three-eyed boy showed no fear. Royal family members generally knew each other's cultivation levels, and he was confident he knew Shao Xiaoli inside and out.

*This girl has only practiced the North Sea Divine Sword up to the fourth or fifth stage. What kind of power can she amount to? She's just a paper tiger trying to scare people. Not like me, who's amazingly talented and has cultivated the Heaven-Piercing Sword Art to the seventh stage!*

And so, the two, each refusing to back down, immediately began to fight.

Fighting was forbidden within the royal family, and the three-eyed boy didn't want to leave any evidence of injury, so he didn't use his full strength. He merely aimed a sword thrust at Shao Xiaoli, intending to scare her.

But soon, the three-eyed boy was terrified.

Shao Xiaoli watched him intently. As his sword thrust forward, she seemed to have already predicted its trajectory. She dodged to the side, avoiding the blade, then directly swept her palm towards his throat. Seeing the danger, he leaned back and withdrew his sword to block, but Shao Xiaoli had already transformed her palm into a claw, precisely grasping his sword blade, pushing it aside, then striking his chest with a palm.

With a loud thud, the boy, along with his spirit eye, was sent flying, landing hard on the long street.

Shao Xiaoli herself had not expected that she had improved so much in just over two months.

"You rotten girl, don't you dare leave! Just you wait!" The boy scrambled to his feet, running and weakly muttering threats.

Shao Xiaoli crossed her arms, let out a cold snort, knowing he wouldn't dare to cause her trouble again.

Just as she was about to close the door, a gentle female voice spoke up.

"Little sister, your swordsmanship is quite profound. May I ask who your master is?"

Shao Xiaoli turned to look.

It was a beautiful woman with silver hair and a white robe. Her figure possessed the graceful charm women dreamed of, and her fair skin glowed, like a lunar halo described in books. Even as a fellow woman, Shao Xiaoli was momentarily captivated.

"This is clearly palm technique," Shao Xiaoli said, looking at her hand and defending herself.

Inside the house, Ning Changjiu sat on a chair, letting out a long sigh, and the laughter of the Spirit of the Sword Manual echoed within him.

"That big white tiger is finally here. And you? How ready are you, donkey?"