Imperial Cultivation

Chapter 312: Chapter 309: The Visit

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”Sigh—!”

Xiao Ruoling sighed lightly and said, ”I just fear the Emperor will truly take action.”

Chu Zhiyuan said, ”He won’t act easily.”

Having seen the number of Great Grandmasters in Yao Yue Palace and considering the remaining three Demon Sects, it’s clear why successive Emperors have hesitated to act.

The combined number of Great Grandmasters in the Four Demon Sects far exceeds that of the Court, and most of the Court’s Great Grandmasters are tied up in the Four Grotto Heavens and Four Secret Lands, unable to spare themselves.

In this way, acting against the Four Demon Sects is just wishful thinking; they can’t be defeated.

Unless Da Meng and Da Zhen were defeated and the world unified, only then would the Court dare to act.

But once the world is unified, why bother dealing with the Four Demon Sects?

Dealing with the Four Demon Sects is precisely to unify the world, isn’t it?

Chu Zhiyuan laughed, ”Rest assured, no matter what, Yao Yue Palace is different.”

”What if Prince Ying becomes Emperor one day?” Xiao Ruoling gently shook her head, ”Would he still consider Yao Yue Palace?”

In a hundred years, Yao Yue Palace has no Holy Daughter to marry, nor a successor to the Nine Heavens Mysterious Woman Technique.

Chu Zhiyuan pondered, shaking his head, ”Tenth Uncle would probably treat Yao Yue Palace impartially.”

Tenth Uncle has long been in the battlefield and would not easily be swayed by women in making decisions.

Xiao Ruoling whispered, ”That’s why Yao Yue Palace wishes for the Princely Heir to become Emperor.”

Chu Zhiyuan said, ”The imperial throne struggle isn’t something I can compete for just because I want to; the key is still the Emperor’s Sword.”

”Actually, the Emperor’s Sword choosing its master follows a pattern.”

”Hmm—?”

”Cultivation, Achievement, and Character; possessing all three is the standard for the Emperor’s Sword to choose its master.”

”I am not outstanding in any of the three,” Chu Zhiyuan laughed.

My cultivation is not as advanced as Tenth Uncle’s, my achievements are inferior, and my character may also be lacking.

Tenth Uncle is noble and virtuous, diligent and meritorious, at Grandmaster Perfection, just a step away from becoming a Great Grandmaster.

In every way, he appears to be the next Emperor.

Xiao Ruoling said, ”The Palace Master and several Elders all feel you have the best hope.”

Chu Zhiyuan smiled and shook his head, ”Forget it, let’s leave it to fate.”

He understood that Yao Yue Palace’s favor towards him also considered this factor.

Otherwise, they wouldn’t easily allow him to reside in the Guest Peak, breaking the norm.

Xiao Ruoling nodded, ”Indeed, the imperial throne involves a bit of fate.”

Chu Zhiyuan gently embraced her, smiling, ”You don’t want me to become Emperor, do you?”

Xiao Ruoling lay in his arms, her jade-like face against his chest, sighing lightly, ”Of course, I don’t wish for it.”

If you become a Prince, you might have at most two Concubines; if you become Emperor, it would be Three Palaces and Six Houses, Seventy-two Consorts.

The whole year, we might not see each other often.

To her, the difference between a Princess and an Empress isn’t that significant; she feels more at ease as a Princess.

But because of Yao Yue Palace, there’s some conflict.

Chu Zhiyuan said, ”It’s too early to speak of this now; even if I become a Great Grandmaster first, it’s still not too late to talk about it. Who can say for certain about the future? It’s best to live well in the present.”

”Mm.” Xiao Ruoling leaned against him, feeling peaceful and serene, indescribably tranquil.

——

In the following two days, Chu Zhiyuan and Xiao Ruoling entered the Secret Land once more.

They explored for a day, not killing many Demon Beasts, focusing mainly on searching for Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures and Cave Mansions.

Yet the Secret Land was vast, and apart from finding twelve Sky-reaching Grass, they gained nothing else.

No Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures, no Cave Mansions.

He couldn’t help but sigh; could it be that entering the Secret Land has some newbie benefit, lucky to come across a Cave Mansion the first time?

The immensity of the Secret Land was boundless; even with his Qinggong, accompanied by the Heavenly Dragon Divine Horse, he and Xiao Ruoling galloped for a day with no results.

While galloping, he expanded his Insight to a radius of five hundred meters, covering over a thousand miles in half a day, all to no avail.

He felt that even if he ran for several more days, he might not reach the borders of the Secret Land.

The vastness instilled a sense of awe within him.

Could this Secret Land be no smaller than the outside world?

...

”Just how big is it? ... No one knows.”

Over dinner, Chu Zhiyuan casually chatted with Xiao Ruoling about this perplexing question.

Just how large the Secret Land is remains an unanswered question, not even a Great Grandmaster has fully explored it.

”One can only stay inside the Secret Land for a month, travel half a month inwards, and the remaining half to return, to avoid going mad and dying,” Xiao Ruoling said helplessly. ”In half a month’s time, entering from different places, no one has seen its edge.”

Chu Zhiyuan asked, ”How far can a Great Grandmaster go in half a month?”

”At least ten thousand miles,” Xiao Ruoling stated, ”and each visit starts in a different place... The Elders and Palace Master suspect the Secret Land is constantly changing and expanding.”

Chu Zhiyuan queried, ”Could it merge with our world?”

Xiao Ruoling shook her head, ”It’s difficult; an invisible force separates it. If it were to merge, it would’ve happened long ago.”

They chatted casually, and after dinner, Xiao Ruoling reluctantly left.

——

The following morning, fourteen maidens stood in his courtyard, making the small courtyard bustling.

Chu Zhiyuan extended his hand, closed his eyes, and one maiden placed her fair wrist in his hand.

A moment later, Chu Zhiyuan opened his eyes and slowly stated, ”Continue maintaining the original training method, don’t add or subtract privately. It is likely you will see the path to becoming a Grandmaster by tomorrow.”

The round-faced maiden’s bright eyes lit up.

Chu Zhiyuan waved his hand and beckoned another maiden forward.

Another maiden stepped up and extended her fair wrist.

Chu Zhiyuan closed his eyes and examined for a moment, then opened his eyes and said, ”You need to adjust your training method; change two hours of Red Sun Technique to one hour of Red Sun Technique and add one hour of Sharp Gold Technique.”

The Red Sun Technique, Thick Earth Skill, Sharp Gold Technique, Black Water Skill, Evergreen Technique are mental methods he created.

Each is a distillation of the essence from numerous mental methods, focusing on cultivating a particular type of energy.

The disadvantage is singularity, lacking power. The advantage is simplicity and speed, with rapid and immediate results.

They have greatly transformed after three days of adjustments, something they also felt themselves.

This is a tendency towards Perfection, a feeling of completeness.

Chu Zhiyuan corrected the practices of each of the fourteen maidens, nodding in satisfaction, ”Barring any accidents, within three days, they’ll step into the Grandmaster Realm.”

”All can step into Grandmaster Realm?”

”Yes.” Chu Zhiyuan nodded, ”Yao Yue Palace disciples have high aptitude requirements, and Yao Yue Palace’s mental method is also extreme, making adjustments easy, not overly complex.”

The Ultimate Yin Technique of Yao Yue Palace greatly alters the body, making reconciliation less difficult.

If it were replaced with experts from the Four Great Sects or the army, adjustments would be far more complex, even requiring daily changes.

He could sense the difference between Yao Yue Palace and the Four Great Sects. From a mental method perspective, Yao Yue Palace is a level higher.

The Four Great Sects’ mental methods are inferior to Yao Yue Palace, which explains why the Four Demon Sects are so feared.

In the following days, the Yao Yue Peak repeatedly echoed with roars.

The fourteen maidens each broke through, stepping into the Grandmaster Realm.

In six days, advancing from Innate Perfection to Grandmaster, this speed exceeded all expectations.

Even Shen Hanyue specifically came by to express gratitude.

...

In those two days, every day Chu Zhiyuan visited the Secret Land, still without success.

He initially thought, upon entering the Secret Land, that with his Super Sense and good fortune, he’d be richly rewarded each time.

Reality gave him a harsh wake-up call.

The Secret Land wasn’t as filled with Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures as he’d imagined, nor was it dotted with Cave Mansions.

The Secret Land was even larger than the real world.

Apart from more ancient trees and stronger Demon Beasts, everything else was similar to reality.

It’s not so easy to find Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures in the real world, so why should it be easy in the Secret Land?

Anything easy to find would’ve long been picked.

He also failed to discover what caused people to go mad.

His Super Sense sensed nothing.

That morning, after finishing the Purple Sun Scripture practice, concluding the Purple Sun Stance, Zou Fang suddenly glided out.

A moment later, he drifted back to Chu Zhiyuan’s front, whispering, ”Princely Heir, someone from the Wuyou Sect is here to visit.”

Chu Zhiyuan nodded, ”Please let them in.”

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