In a tranquil and elegant manor on the outskirts of the Imperial City, a figure in blue was practicing swordplay. Her movements were graceful yet concise, not a single motion wasted; each strike was deadly. However, her bulky form did not quite match the lethal precision of her swordsmanship.
At that moment, the Empress Dowager’s voice rang out, “Even now, you are still practicing your sword?”
The sword-wielder, Li Kuanglan, paused at the sound, sheathed her sword, and replied, “If I don’t move, my whole body feels uncomfortable.”
The Empress Dowager sat down on a stone chair in the courtyard, instructed her maids to set out tea and pastries, and beckoned, “Come try these. I made them myself, and the ingredients were quite hard to find!”
Li Kuanglan strode over, grabbed a piece before even sitting down, and shoved it into her mouth, about to swallow it whole when her face suddenly contorted with a myriad of emotions.
The Empress Dowager chuckled, “How does it taste?”
Li Kuanglan tilted her head back, gulping down the pastry, and gritted her teeth, “Terrible!”
The Empress Dowager smiled, “I’ve never cooked in my life, and for my first attempt, this is already quite good. The maids who tasted them all said they were delicious.”
Li Kuanglan responded, “These pastries would kill them if they ate them. How could they say they were good?”
The Empress Dowager’s smile remained, “This new recipe needed someone to test its effects before I could let you have it. These herbs are very beneficial for you, but you can only eat them once. It’s a rare opportunity, so I had to get the best possible ratio. If a few didn’t die from it, how would I know it was effective? If they didn’t die or died slowly, it would mean the medicine wasn’t strong enough.”
Turning to the maids standing by, the Empress Dowager said, “You may all leave now.”
The maids, pale-faced, hardly dared to breathe. Upon hearing this, they scattered like birds and beasts.
The Empress Dowager looked at Li Kuanglan’s protruding belly, “How much longer?”
Li Kuanglan hesitated slightly, “Probably this month.”
“This child has such extraordinary talent; it’s really a headache. None of the usual rules apply. Fortunately, I found some secret medicines in the treasury, which are very good for both you and the child. Eat all of these pastries.”
Li Kuanglan picked up another piece, clenched her teeth, and was about to swallow it whole.
“Chew this one slowly to fully release the medicinal properties,” the Empress Dowager reminded.
Li Kuanglan’s face turned extremely sour as she chewed reluctantly, finally swallowing the paste. Looking at the remaining pieces, her face paled.
The Empress Dowager giggled, “Eat them all, I’m just teasing you.”
Li Kuanglan, too preoccupied to care about being tricked, lifted the plate and poured the pastries into her mouth, swallowing them all in one go.
“These pastries might not taste great, but for the sake of the child, you would eat them anyway. Even if you suspected, you wouldn’t risk it.”
Li Kuanglan snorted, not responding.
“So, stop struggling. Everything I ask you to do is for your own good.”
Li Kuanglan, rubbing her belly, said coldly, “I’ve already agreed to this. What else do you want? Do you want me to sleep with more people? That will have to wait until after I give birth.”
The Empress Dowager ignored her sarcastic remark, saying seriously, “There is something I need you to do right now.”
“Tell me what it is.”
“Qian Ye has been developing Yonngland for some time. After you give birth, go and see him. It would be best if he could come and see the child.”
Li Kuanglan’s face changed, her voice rising, “Impossible!”
The Empress Dowager patted her hand gently, “You’re already pregnant. Do you still fear seeing him?”
Li Kuanglan, uncharacteristically flustered, stammered, “No, it’s different. He doesn’t know about this. I don’t want him to know, ever! If we meet, what am I supposed to say to him?”
“A child needs a father.”
“Regardless, it’s impossible!”
The Empress Dowager remained calm, “You know my methods. I cannot let Qian Ye be pulled into the Evernight camp. If you won’t listen, I’ll have to use other means.”
“What do you plan to do?!”
“If you cooperate, I won’t need to use those means, and you won’t have to know, right?”
Li Kuanglan slowly calmed down, “Your actions will destroy my martial arts.”
“For the Empire, Qian Ye’s allegiance is more important than your martial arts.”
“Leave. I don’t want to see you or hear any more. At least until the child is born.”
“Then I’ll return after the child is born. Though I’m not sure if I can wait that long.”
The Empress Dowager stood up and walked to the gate, turning back, “Even if Qian Ye’s talent is once in a thousand years, he won’t be able to face a Heavenly King directly in just a few months. His talent isn’t that high yet.”
After the Empress Dowager left, Li Kuanglan gripped the hilt of her sword so tightly that her knuckles turned white. Finally, she released her grip and sighed.
In the New World, Qian Ye slowly opened his eyes, ancient runes flickering in his pupils. Unexpectedly, upon entering the New World, he sensed the opportunity for a bloodline breakthrough. He immediately went into seclusion to practice the profound chapter, refining essence blood to replenish his blood energy. With the immense blood energy gained from the battle against the werewolf of the Windswift Territory, Qian Ye broke through and officially entered the rank of Duke.
The breakthrough was smooth, as he had previously reached the Vice-Duke realm in White City, only to be forced back to Marquis by the Green Sun King. Now, with sufficient accumulation, the breakthrough was natural.
Though only a Vice-Duke, the difference between Duke and Marquis was significant. Qian Ye’s bones began to transform, gradually taking on dark golden spots. The transformed areas were extremely hard, even surpassing high-strength alloys. Qian Ye wondered if his bones, if fully transformed, would become the material for top-tier equipment.
At the moment of his advancement, Qian Ye also communicated with the River of Blood, gaining not only a large amount of pure dark golden blood energy but also new knowledge from ancient traditions.
Qian Ye extended his hands, and with a thought, a pair of dark golden gloves appeared. He flexed his fingers, feeling the excellent texture, almost believing the gloves were real if not for knowing they were condensed from his blood energy.
Reaching into the void, Qian Ye summoned a massive blood-colored sword, swinging it casually to split an iron table in half silently.
This was the gift of the River of Blood, the Blood Armament. As long as his blood energy was full, Qian Ye could instantly summon this unique weapon. Neither Bone nor Windswift had used similar combat skills, indicating it was a special technique of the Blood Race, a gift from the River of Blood to the ancient Blood Clan.
Feeling a sudden urge, Qian Ye left the room and went to the balcony, where he could see the entire base and the door behind him.
In the base, nearly a hundred thousand werewolf warriors were kneeling, led by the shamans in continuous prayer. The familiar power fell upon Qian Ye, improving his bloodline essence bit by bit.
Qian Ye had asked the High Shaman, learning this was one of the most ancient and sacred rituals of the werewolves, expressing devotion to ancestors or a supreme being.
This ritual seemed to have no practical purpose, but twice, Qian Ye felt its mysterious power, unlike origin power, indescribable and untraceable.
Qian Ye repeatedly questioned the High Shaman, finding he knew nothing about it, so he gave up.
Yet now, for some reason, the werewolves were spontaneously holding the prayer again.
Respecting the sacred ritual, Qian Ye waited quietly, enjoying the cleansing of the mysterious power. When the prayer ended, Qian Ye called a shaman and asked what was happening.
The shaman replied, “During your cultivation, all the shamans heard the call of the Dark Origin to you. This is a miracle, so we prayed immediately.”
Qian Ye nodded, dismissing the shaman.
The werewolf tribes of Yonngland were primitive, but their shamans’ senses were sharp. Unfortunately, what Qian Ye had caused was the vibration of the River of Blood, not the descent of a Dark Source Point.
In some ways, the River of Blood and Dark Source Points were similar, but to Qian Ye, they were distinctly different. He wouldn’t explain this to the werewolves.
After a short rest, Qian Ye set off for the forward base in the Three Sacred Trees Forest, planning to use it as a starting point to explore deeper into the New World.
The forward base in the Three Sacred Trees Forest was already complete, large enough to accommodate fifty thousand warriors. Qian Ye had built a power tower at great cost, using it as an energy source for ten turrets!
Such firepower was truly insane.
Continuing his exploration, Qian Ye soon came to a forest covering an entire valley. He didn’t enter rashly, sensing intense danger at the periphery. However, having conquered three forests before, Qian Ye had a general idea of their layout. Generally, larger forests meant more Sacred Trees and stronger six-armed commanders.
This forest was so vast, it must have at least four Sacred Trees, and the six-armed commander should be at least a Great Duke level.
Observing for a while, Qian Ye stealthily approached the forest, caught a lone monster, killed it, and doused himself in its blood.
The Imperial Research Institute had preliminary results on monsters, whose sense of smell was highly developed. Bloodline concealment only suppressed origin power, not Qian Ye’s scent. Using monster blood at least provided temporary camouflage, which was all Qian Ye needed.
Entering the forest, Qian Ye moved laterally, estimating the center’s location based on the fluctuations of the Sacred Trees. He then headed towards the center.
The deeper he went, the more monsters he encountered. Carefully avoiding patrol groups, as he neared the center, the density of monsters covered his view, leaving no room for evasion.
Seeing no way forward, Qian Ye released an origin flame, causing the entire forest to erupt. The sheer number of monsters was overwhelming, even to Qian Ye!
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