From Cold Palace Princess to Celestial Empress Ch. 1
Eastern Pole, Southern Territory.
Great Xia Capital, the Cold Palace of the Imperial City.
In a desolate courtyard, a young girl in a bright yellow dress stood gracefully, her figure slender and tall. Her long, black hair cascaded like a waterfall, her waist so delicate it seemed it could be held with one hand. Her skin was as fair as snow, her features exquisitely beautiful, with a high nose bridge and rosy lips, as if she had stepped out of a painting—a peerless beauty.
Even without the adornment of green leaves, without a trace of rouge or jewelry, her unparalleled charm could not be concealed.
“I never imagined I would transmigrate into the Ninth Princess of the Great Xia Dynasty, Xiao Minghuang.”
The girl’s eyes were dazed as she murmured to herself, but soon clarity returned.
A flood of memories surged into her mind.
…
This was a bizarre and fantastical world of cultivation.
Here, powerful cultivators could soar through the skies, move mountains, fill seas, achieve immortality, and traverse the void!
The fourteen-year-old Ninth Princess, Xiao Minghuang, was originally a martial artist at the sixth level of the Body Tempering Realm.
Three days ago, during the monthly competition among the royal descendants, the original host had violated the rules by taking a Raging Spirit Pill to temporarily boost her cultivation, yet she still lost.
After the defeat, the side effects of the forbidden pill caused her meridians to shatter, and she lost all her cultivation. She was then punished by being sent to the Cold Palace, accompanied only by a young maid.
In the Cold Palace, with no one to treat her, she struggled for three days before finally passing away.
However, after inheriting the memories, Xiao Minghuang knew that the original host had been framed.
During the competition, the original host had no idea she was taking a Raging Spirit Pill, believing it to be just an ordinary healing pill.
And that healing pill had been gifted to her by the Seventh Prince, Xiao Gang!
At this point, the analysis was clear—the original host had died due to the Seventh Prince Xiao Gang’s scheme!
But seeking revenge would not be so simple.
Within the Royal Family, the competition was fierce, and with cultivation resources scarce, so-called siblings were essentially rivals vying for those resources.
The Xia Emperor did not restrain the conflicts among his children; in fact, he secretly encouraged them.
Looking back now, the discord among the royal siblings, with brothers turning against each other and sisters becoming enemies, was undoubtedly fueled by the Emperor of Xia.
Therefore, seeking justice through the Emperor of Xia was utterly impossible.
What one could rely on was nothing but strength!
The law of the jungle prevails, where the strong are revered!
Moreover, if the Seventh Prince discovered that Xiao Minghuang was still alive, he might very well continue to plot against her in secret.
Thus, her crisis was far from over; retreating would not guarantee safety.
If she kept yielding, the result would only be that for every step she retreated, others would advance ten steps, and in the end, she would only reap what she sowed.
“Now that my meridians are all severed and my cultivation is completely lost, it’s uncertain whether I can ever leave the Cold Palace in this lifetime. How can I seek revenge?”
Xiao Minghuang sighed softly, resignedly saying, “Did fate bring me here just to be a cripple? Others who cross over get golden fingers, why is it that only I don’t?”
[Ding! Detected an invitation, system binding in progress…]
[Ding! Congratulations to the host for binding the Opportunity Doubling Compensation System!]
Hearing the system’s voice, Xiao Minghuang was momentarily stunned, then a glimmer of joy appeared in her pupils.
Just as she wished, it came true!
The system might be late, but it never fails to show up!
Xiao Minghuang took a deep breath to calm herself and asked inwardly:
“System, what functions do you have?”
[The current functions of this system are quite simple. As long as the host gives opportunities to others, she will receive random multiple compensations!]
After understanding, she roughly grasped the system’s specific functions and some limitations.
The so-called giving opportunities isn’t something that can be done with just anyone.
Only by giving opportunities to the bound contractees can one receive high multiple compensations. If given to non-contractees, only the original item will be compensated.
For example, if Xiao Minghuang gives a low-grade spirit stone to a contractee, it might trigger a hundredfold compensation, returning a hundred low-grade spirit stones.
But if given to a random passerby, only one low-grade spirit stone will be compensated, neither a loss nor a gain.
Additionally, there’s a limit to how many opportunities can be given to the same person each day, whether they are contractees or not.
Items compensated by the system, if given again, will not receive further compensation, and the system itself cannot be given to others.
Finally, the system dangled a carrot in front of her: as the number of opportunities given increases, the system’s functions will also continuously expand.
[Ding! Detected that the host’s meridians are all severed and her cultivation is completely lost, a beginner’s welfare Mending Pill is gifted.]
As the system’s voice faded, a brown pill emitting a medicinal fragrance appeared from the void, glowing faintly, and landed in Xiao Minghuang’s palm.
The medicinal scent wafted into her nostrils, making her severed meridians seem to revive.
But Xiao Minghuang knew this was just an illusion. The Mending Pill was only a high-grade Profound-tier pill. Although it had some effect on repairing foundations, for a cripple like her with completely severed meridians, it was merely a drop in the bucket.
“Hope followed by despair is nothing more than this.”
Xiao Minghuang sighed softly. The Mending Pill was only a high-grade Profound-tier pill. Even if it triggered tenfold or hundredfold compensation, it would only be a Earth-tier pill.
As far as she knew, among Earth-tier pills, none could treat completely severed meridians. Therefore, having this system or not made little difference.
At this moment.
[Ding! Detected that the host has no contracted partner. Please bind a contracted partner as soon as possible!]
[Task triggered: Bind any contracted partner, limited to the same gender as the host.]
[Task reward: First-time gift, guaranteed to trigger a ten-thousand-fold compensation!]
Upon hearing the voice in her mind, Xiao Minghuang’s eyes immediately lit up with a hint of surprise.
There were no Earth-tier pills that could treat completely severed meridians, but Heaven-tier pills could!
With a ten-thousand-fold compensation, a Heaven-tier pill was bound to appear, and even a legendary Saint-tier pill was not out of the question!
If such a divine pill were to appear, healing her injuries would be almost effortless!
Thinking of this, Xiao Minghuang immediately sprang into action.
After her meridians were completely severed, she could only walk with the aid of a cane.
Leaning on her cane, Xiao Minghuang hobbled step by step into the west courtyard.
After being banished to the Cold Palace, she had only a young maid to accompany her. For the past three days, this maid had dutifully attended to her needs, serving her food, clothing, and daily necessities, staying by her side from morning till night, working tirelessly without complaint.
When the original host passed away, the maid had been washing clothes in the west courtyard and likely had not yet heard the news of her mistress’s death.
Sure enough.
As Xiao Minghuang entered the west courtyard, she saw a petite figure huddled by the well, vigorously scrubbing clothes.
The maid appeared to be only eleven or twelve years old, young and frail, struggling to lift the heavy bucket of water but gritting her teeth and persisting.
Seeing this, Xiao Minghuang felt a pang of pity.
“A girl of this age, if she were on Earth, would probably be the apple of her parents’ eyes, living a carefree life. What a pity…”
Originally, Xiao Minghuang had already considered contracting the maid, and seeing this scene only strengthened her resolve.
But just as she was about to speak, she remembered something important.
She had no idea what the maid’s name was!
PS: New book release, thank you all for reading. Dear readers, please vote and leave some comments or feedback.
This is really important to me! (/ω＼)
Translator: Glariosa
Editor: Ruu
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