From Cold Palace Princess to Celestial Empress Ch. 19

Extra Chapters (9/9, thanks for the Ko-fi!)

Xiao Minghuang was momentarily stunned, then a strange expression appeared on her face.

Does she think I’m one of those evil cultivators?

The corners of her mouth curled up slightly, her eyes revealing a mix of cunning, amusement, and a touch of mischief.

“What terms do you want to discuss?”

Xiao Minghuang lowered her voice, imitating a man’s tone.

Hearing this voice, the woman was visibly taken aback, thinking to herself: Why does the voice sound different? Did they switch people?

“Who are you? Where is Chief Chen?”

Xiao Minghuang pondered for a moment and concluded that the “Chief Chen” the woman mentioned was likely the fat man from earlier, the same “third brother” she had heard about from the evil cultivator.

“I am his elder brother. You can discuss matters directly with me; there’s no need to go through him.”

Hearing this, the woman thought to herself: The Chen demon cultivates the evil art of absorbing yin to supplement yang, so negotiating with him would be difficult. But the person in this room might not practice such evil arts—this could be an opportunity!

“My humble home is in Beiyang City, and I have some modest resources. I am willing to offer a thousand spirit stones and ten Ascension Pills to aid the Great Chief in his cultivation. I am also willing to truthfully disclose the location of a certain spiritual herb, as long as the Great Chief allows me to return home. My father will surely prepare everything!”

“A thousand spirit stones and ten Ascension Pills—such vast resources! Even the Imperial Family couldn’t produce them so easily. Who are you? How is your life worth so many resources?”

Mentioning her family background, the woman replied with pride, “My father is the Beiyang City Lord, who governs the northern lands of the Great Xia. Not only a thousand spirit stones, but even two thousand, he could produce without difficulty.”

At this point, the woman paused briefly before continuing:

“The Great Chief possesses the cultivation of the Qi Refining Realm, yet he has been labeled an evil cultivator, forced to hide and wander, rarely finding a peaceful night’s rest. Though you may enjoy temporary pleasures today, how can you not plan for the future?”

“If the Great Chief allows me to return home, my father is willing to offer not only two thousand spirit stones and twenty Ascension Pills but also to appoint the Great Chief as a Beiyang City Elder. From then on, you would be a servant of the Great Xia court, far superior to being a fugitive bandit!”

“These words are all for the Great Chief. As for the likes of Chief Chen, their minds are corrupted by evil, beyond the reach of medicine. The Great Chief must not sink to their level and associate with such vile individuals!”

The woman spoke at length, and perhaps due to days without food, even with her seventh-level Body Tempering cultivation, she felt a hint of exhaustion. Her rosy lips gasped for breath, and her soft voice echoed faintly in the room.

“Listening to you, I, the Great Chief, am somewhat moved.”

Hearing this, the woman’s heart leaped with joy, and she immediately seized the opportunity to flatter him:

“The Great Chief is wise and righteous, a pillar of the Great Xia. Today, you are a hidden dragon in the depths, but one day you will surely soar to the heavens!”

“But wouldn’t it be even better if I directly made you the son-in-law of the Beiyang City Lord?”

At these words, the woman’s face paled. She hadn’t expected that all her efforts would yield no effect.

But even in the face of despair, she wouldn’t give up without a fight. She had to seize every possible opportunity to turn the situation around.

If soft words didn’t work, she would try a harder approach.

“If the Great Chief speaks like this, does that mean you intend to disregard the face of Beiyang City?”

The woman’s voice turned cold as she spoke indifferently.

“I am the butcher, and you are the meat. What does Beiyang City matter to me?!”

Suddenly, the aura of a fourth-level Qi Refining cultivator spread out, filling the entire room.

Feeling this overwhelming pressure, the woman’s expression darkened. It seemed her efforts had failed. Invoking the name of Beiyang City hadn’t worked—what could she do now?

But at that moment, she suddenly recalled a distant memory from her childhood.

She vaguely remembered that when she was young, her grandfather had arranged a marriage for her.

“If the face of Beiyang City doesn’t work, what about the Great Xia Imperial Family?”

“I am the betrothed of the Ninth Princess, the ninth daughter of the current Xia Emperor. If you dare lay a finger on me, the Ninth Princess will surely not let you off!”

“Moreover, this marriage was personally arranged by the Xia Emperor. If you harm me, you are directly insulting the Xia Emperor. With his peak Divine Sea Realm cultivation and his status as the ruler of the nation, how could he tolerate such humiliation? At that point, there will be no place for you in the entire Great Xia!”

After spitting out this long speech in one breath, the woman’s heart was still unsettled. This was her last chance. If she couldn’t seize it, she would have no choice but to perish together with her enemy.

She possessed a low-grade Yellow Tier magical artifact—a pendant she had worn since childhood, connected to her by blood. With a single thought, she could detonate it.

Low-grade Yellow Tier artifacts were extremely powerful, and there were only a handful of them in the entire Great Xia. This one had been given to her as a token by the Xia Emperor during the betrothal ceremony.

At such close range, the explosive force of the low-grade Yellow Tier artifact would undoubtedly kill the bandit leader on the spot, even if he was at the Qi Refining Realm!

“So, according to you, you and the Ninth Princess are very close?”

Hearing this, the woman was momentarily stunned. She had never expected the bandit leader to ask such a question.

In truth, she had never met the Ninth Princess in her life. She had only heard her grandfather mention it during her childhood.

After the old Beiyang City Lord passed away, no one had brought it up again.

But in this situation, she couldn’t show any weakness!

“Exactly!” the woman declared proudly. “The Ninth Princess and I have sworn eternal love, deeply devoted to each other. We’ve promised to hold hands and grow old together, vowing to marry no one else.”

Then, she added fiercely:

“If you dare lay a finger on me, the Ninth Princess will surely ask the Xia Emperor to intervene, and you’ll be cut into a thousand pieces, minced into pulp!”

“Oh? Is that so? So you know her very well?”

“Of course! We’ve been completely open with each other, as close as can be. I even know she has a mole the size of a sesame seed on her chest. How could I not know her?”

“Then, do you know what the Ninth Princess’s name is?”

Oh no!

Hearing this, the woman’s breath hitched, and she instinctively clenched her fists.

Her knowledge of the Ninth Princess was limited to knowing that such a person existed and that she was female.

As for anything else, she knew nothing.

She didn’t even know her name.

After all, the so-called marriage was nothing more than a casual remark made by the elders during a banquet.

Moreover, since her grandfather’s death, her father, the current Beiyang City Lord, had been suffering from a hidden injury. His cultivation had been stuck at the peak of the Spring Realm, unable to break through.

With such meager strength at the Spring Realm, he was utterly incapable of defending the vast Beiyang City. The Xia Emperor had long been dissatisfied and wanted to recall their family to the capital. It was only out of respect for the old Beiyang City Lord’s past contributions that he had delayed taking action.

She was well aware of all this.

She also understood that the Xia Emperor would never allow the Ninth Princess to marry into Beiyang City—it would be far too demeaning.

So, everything she had just said to the bandit leader was nothing but fabricated lies, a desperate bluff.

But.

At this point, she had no choice but to keep going.

After gathering her thoughts, the woman vaguely remembered seeing the Ninth Princess’s name on some imperial decree.

“The Ninth Princess’s name is naturally Xiao Ming…”

But she only remembered the first two characters of the name. The last one had slipped her mind.

Just as she was about to make up a name…

In the room, a clear and melodious voice, as refreshing as a flowing spring, suddenly rang out, enunciating a name with perfect clarity.

“Xiao Minghuang.”

PS: Feeling like my grades are getting worse and worse o(╥﹏╥)o

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Translator: Glariosa
Editor: Ruu

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