Chapter 75: Evergreen Convention, I will give you a surprise
Qi Huang’s divine sense reached the late stage of the Shentong Realm, and her speed was as fast as lightning. She killed her way back to the HongHua Sect within half an hour, covering a distance of over a thousand li.
Looking at the familiar sect, although it was only the size of a bullet, Qi Huang felt a sense of returning home. After all, she had lived here for too long; it was like a second home.
Qi Huang landed at the sect entrance and found her main body standing rigidly at the entrance, gazing into the distance like a lovelorn stone. Upon seeing her, a look of surprise flashed across her pretty face.
“What are you looking at?” Qi Huang asked in confusion.
“Nothing,” Cheng Hong Ling replied perfunctorily with an unnatural expression, then couldn’t help but add, “It’s good that you’re back.”
“Yes, no place is as good as our own humble abode,” Qi Huang couldn’t help but sigh.
“Let’s go, Mom and Dad have been worried about you too.” Cheng Hong Ling turned and walked inside, resuming her cold and aloof appearance as an immortal.
Not long after, the family began to talk late into the night by candlelight.
“How is the situation in the palace? There should be many masters, right?” Cheng Hong Ling couldn’t help but inquire.
“Yes, there are three masters at the same level as Elder Zuo of the Immortal Alliance on the surface: Eunuch Zhong, the head of the internal affairs, Thousand Shadows, the leader of the imperial guards, and a powerful zombie, said to be the founding general Tang Xiao.” Qi Huang explained in detail.
“What? Tang Xiao?” Father Cheng Yuan exclaimed in surprise. “This man made great contributions to the establishment of the Xihui Dynasty. He killed millions of soldiers and civilians of the Daqi Kingdom, and he was also the first to break into the imperial palace and exterminate the royal family at that time. Therefore, he was called the Butcher behind the scenes. I didn’t expect him to have become a zombie.”
‘Exterminated the royal family?’ Qi Huang was stunned. If the Crown Prince, who was a zombie, knew about this, he would probably go mad.
“This dog emperor doesn’t focus on exterminating those evil spirits, but instead raises zombies himself. Is that worthy of the people of the Xihui Dynasty?” Cheng Hong Ling couldn’t help but scold.
“Yes, on the surface, he issues decrees every few days, claiming to be committed to clearing all evil spirits in the world, but in private, he raises zombies. This is truly going against the natural order,” Jiang Liniang also couldn’t help but chime in.
“What’s even more hateful is that this incompetent ruler is also very warlike, causing trouble everywhere and making the Xihui Dynasty’s people suffer,” Cheng Yuan shook his head helplessly.
“He’s doing this entirely because he’s strong and fearless!” Qi Huang spoke the key point.
“Are those people from the Immortal Alliance jealous? Why don’t they bring down such an incompetent ruler?” Cheng Yuan slammed the table, speaking excitedly.
“The Immortal Alliance cannot interfere with the secular emperor,” Cheng Hong Ling said concisely.
“Even if they wanted to, they wouldn’t have the ability. Their strength in the Xihui Dynasty is weak. Unless they can rally all the major immortal sects to confront Lin Tu, which is obviously impossible,” Qi Huang explained further.
“Speaking of the Immortal Alliance, I informed Elder Zuo in advance to help me. Did this person appear?” Cheng Hong Ling suddenly remembered this matter.
“He did appear and tried to help, but unfortunately, he was scared away by Tang Xiao in the end,” Qi Huang said with a disdainful smile.
“What a coward, and he calls himself an elder of the Immortal Alliance. The leadership is corrupt, and the subordinates follow suit.” Cheng Hong Ling reprimanded them, then asked curiously, “Then how did you escape the palace? You didn’t force your way out, did you?”
“I’m not that stupid. Even if I could force my way out, my strength would be exposed, which would be unfavorable for us to participate in the Evergreen Convention a year later,” Qi Huang shook her head and explained, “I hid in the storage ring and had a wild cat carry me out.”
“Wild cat? You’re the wild cat, and your whole family are wild cats!” Yaoyao couldn’t help but angrily retort. This was like being called a “savage,” how could she remain calm?
Qi Huang was a little embarrassed and dared not retort.
“How could a wild cat be so obedient?” Cheng Hong Ling frowned slightly. She had always been smart and couldn’t be easily dismissed.
“Uh… I first put the storage ring into a fish to lure it,” Qi Huang said, thinking quickly and coming up with a plan.
“Huang’er is truly clever to think of such a method of escape,” Jiang Liniang praised with surprise.
Cheng Hong Ling didn’t question further, as this method was indeed feasible.
“That’s not right! If Huang’er escaped, wouldn’t the emperor send people to capture her again?” Jiang Liniang suddenly realized that things were not that simple.
“Don’t worry, he definitely wouldn’t dare to scheme against me again,” Qi Huang said with a confident smile, then added, “First, I have re-cultivated True Qi, and I even displayed it in front of many people. This matter will be spread throughout the entire Xihui Dynasty before long, and he has no reason to pester me again.”
“That’s not necessarily true. What if he blocks the news? You said the same thing last time, and who knew he still forcibly brought you into the palace,” Jiang Liniang immediately expressed her doubts.
“The Emperor will not block the news,” Cheng Hong Ling retorted simply.
“Yes, now that Huang’er has escaped the palace, if I were him, I would go with the flow and say that I released her voluntarily. Otherwise, once the matter is exposed, where would his dignity be?” Cheng Yuan also agreed.
“Moreover, not only were people from the imperial palace present at that time, but also people from Prince Kang’s mansion and the Immortal Alliance. He couldn’t block it even if he wanted to,” Qi Huang explained further.
Jiang Liniang suddenly understood and nodded repeatedly.
“Second, the reason I was forcibly brought into the palace last time was because the people from the Immortal Alliance assisted. However, after the incident in the palace this time, the two sides are already irreconcilable and will never cooperate again,” Qi Huang continued to state her reasons, adding at the end, “Moreover, the people from the Immortal Alliance already know how formidable I am, and even if they had ten thousand dares, they wouldn’t dare to take the risk again.”
Upon hearing this, her family members all nodded subconsciously.
“Of course, there is the last point! If he targets me again, he will suffer more losses than gains, because I tested the Phoenix Selection Token in the palace and only got a fertility score of four, which means I don’t have any outstanding bloodline. I’m just a pretty vase.” Qi Huang continued to state her third reason.
“What? Your fertility is only four points?” Cheng Hong Ling became agitated all of a sudden. Her plump breasts heaved violently, and she said excitedly, “This is impossible! I tested the Phoenix Selection Token before, and all six items were full marks. You were also present at that time. As my clone, your fertility shouldn’t be as low as four points, right?”
“I don’t know about that!” Qi Huang shook her head indifferently. She hadn’t really delved into this issue, as it was completely meaningless.
“Is it because I only gave you a face?” Cheng Hong Ling had a flash of inspiration, but then she shook her head again. “This is also impossible. You were originally a cultivator. Even if I gave you too little bloodline, you should still have six or seven points.”
“Stop dwelling on it. Anyway, bloodline is meaningless to me. You all know that I don’t cultivate True Qi as my primary focus.” Qi Huang quickly stopped them.
“What does four points mean?” Jiang Liniang saw that her usually aloof eldest daughter was so anxious and quickly asked.
Cheng Yuan, who had been traveling outside for many years, was knowledgeable and explained the function of the Phoenix Selection Token to his wife.
“That’s indeed quite strange,” Jiang Liniang also furrowed her brows.
“Who cares? This is a good thing for me,” Qi Huang could only comfort her family again.
“A good thing? What good thing?” Jiang Liniang asked curiously.
“Mom! Look, the fact that I have a low-grade bloodline will soon spread throughout the entire Xihui Dynasty. Then no one will scheme against me anymore, which will save a lot of trouble. Don’t you agree?” Qi Huang expressed her thoughts and then looked at her “cheap father” and said seriously, “Most importantly, I have a low-grade bloodline. If I can crush all kinds of cultivators in the Evergreen Convention, it will prove your philosophy that ‘kings and generals are born equal.’ Don’t you think so?”
Hearing this, Cheng Yuan first smiled with satisfaction and then said earnestly, “My child, I am already very pleased with your filial piety. However, as parents, the greatest wish in life is not what they want for themselves, but to see their children happy. So, this is not good news for me.”
‘It seems I have judged a gentleman’s heart with a villain’s mind!’ Qi Huang was a little embarrassed, but she still said, “Don’t worry, Dad! These two things are not in conflict! I have OCD. If I’m comfortable, my family must also be comfortable, otherwise, I won’t be able to sleep.”
“Let’s talk about those later,” Cheng Hong Ling interrupted Qi Huang’s grand pronouncements and said, “Just in case, I think it’s best to inform Elder Zuo about your escape from the palace as soon as possible. Although the people from the Immortal Alliance are unreliable, they are the only ones who can help.”
“I think so too. I can see that Elder Zuo genuinely didn’t want me to stay in the palace, but at that time, circumstances were beyond his control,” Qi Huang also agreed.
Next, Cheng Hong Ling picked up the Thousand Li Sound Transmission Device and notified the Immortal Alliance of the matter.
At that moment, Elder Zuo was racking his brain trying to figure out how to report to his superiors. This news was undoubtedly a life-saver for him. So, the next day, he immediately had his subordinates issue a notice, stating that he personally brought Qi Huang out of the palace.
Although Lin Tu was extremely depressed in his heart, he couldn’t refute it, because telling the truth would be even more embarrassing, so he simply went with the flow and claimed that Qi Huang was released from the palace voluntarily by him.
Thus, the matter of selecting Imperial Concubines came to a complete end. Lin Tu reaped nothing but a basket of empty promises, his stomach full of resentment that he couldn’t vent.
Qi Huang, on the other hand, received the greatest benefit. Just confirming that she had a low-grade bloodline was already worth a thousand pieces of gold.
As Qi Huang had predicted, soon after, the news of her having a low-grade bloodline spread throughout the entire Xihui Dynasty, followed by various voices of slander.
‘This is the effect I wanted. Just wait, in the Evergreen Convention, I will give you all a surprise.’ Qi Huang smiled triumphantly.
Volume 6: Such an Arrogant Maidservant
