From Cold Palace Princess to Celestial Empress Ch. 110
“Thank you, Your Highness…”
Xu Xiu’er wiped her tears and whispered.
“There’s no need to thank me. It was my oversight for not taking better care of you. From now on, you don’t have to worry about your safety.”
At the same time, she gave a meaningful glance to Ye Ruoshui, who stood nearby with a look of confusion.
Ye Ruoshui, not understanding the situation, widened her beautiful eyes and looked back at her.
Xiao Minghuang couldn’t help but sigh softly.
“This girl…”
At that moment, Lin Wanqiu quietly moved to Ye Ruoshui’s side and whispered a reminder:
“Ruoshui, go and apologize to Xu Xiu’er. Tell her that what happened yesterday was all a misunderstanding.”
Hearing this, Ye Ruoshui frowned slightly and retorted:
“Prince Wu’an once sent assassins to kill Her Highness. How can we just let this go?”
When Ye Ruoshui brought up this issue, Lin Wanqiu was also at a loss for words.
These words reached Xu Xiu’er’s ears, and her face turned pale, her body trembling slightly.
Seeing this, Xiao Minghuang explained:
“Ruoshui, the assassin from before was not sent by Prince Wu’an but by the Second Prince. Prince Wu’an had no knowledge of it. Don’t wrongly accuse him.”
Xu Xiu’er’s expression froze.
“Is Her Highness… defending me?”
Last night, her grandfather had personally admitted to sending assassins to kill Her Highness, but now the Princess was denying it in front of her.
In an instant.
A warm feeling surged in her heart, and her previous fear and despair vanished.
She knew that the Princess was helping her, genuinely helping her!
In the Princess’s residence, she was merely a hostage, insignificant.
If the Princess didn’t like her, she could have simply ignored her.
There was no need to lie in front of so many people.
The scene before her undoubtedly showed that the Princess truly valued her.
Suddenly, she remembered how the Princess had also stood up for her in front of the Second Prince at the training ground last night.
Does the Princess… like me?
As Xu Xiu’er’s thoughts raced,
Ye Ruoshui’s expression also changed dramatically.
“So the assassin was sent by the Second Prince!”
She clenched her fists and said fiercely:
“That despicable Second Prince!”
After saying this, she turned to Xu Xiu’er, slightly bowed, and apologized:
“I’m sorry, Miss Xu. I wronged you and your grandfather!”
Hearing this, Xu Xiu’er’s cheeks flushed, and she quickly reached out to help Ye Ruoshui up.
“This matter isn’t your fault, Miss Ye. It’s all my doing…”
Ye Ruoshui straightened up, looking puzzled. Since she hadn’t known the truth, how could it be Xu Xiu’er’s fault?
“Huh? What do you mean, Miss Xu?”
Seeing that the two were about to get tangled up again, Xiao Minghuang coughed lightly and interrupted:
“Now that the misunderstanding is cleared up, let’s not all gather here anymore!”
Then, she turned to Lin Wanqiu and instructed:
“Wanqiu, I’ll leave Xiu’er in your care.”
Upon hearing this, Lin Wanqiu was about to respond, but Ye Ruoshui quickly interjected:
“Your Highness, let me take care of Miss Xu. I feel a bit guilty for accidentally tying her up last night.”
After saying this, she grabbed Xu Xiu’er’s hand and ran off.
“Hey! Hey…”
Seeing the two leave, she shook her head helplessly and looked at Lin Wanqiu:
“Wanqiu, keep an eye on things and make sure Ruoshui doesn’t cause any trouble. I might be leaving the capital for a while.”
“Alright!”
Lin Wanqiu acknowledged, then asked with concern:
“Your Highness, the grand competition is only seven days away. Isn’t it risky to leave the capital now?”
“Don’t worry, I’ll stay within a thousand miles of the capital. I can return within a day.”
Hearing this, Lin Wanqiu didn’t press further.
“Your Highness, rest assured, I’ll take care of everything in the capital!”
“Mm.”
After breaking through to the Spring Realm, Xiao Minghuang could travel long distances using her spiritual power without relying on animals, so she didn’t plan to bring any servants this time.
Just as she was about to leave, she suddenly remembered something.
“The sword technique and treasure I won from the Sixth Prince last night haven’t been handed over yet.”
Thinking of this, Xiao Minghuang paused.
She decided to deliver these two treasures before setting off.
Not long after.
She emerged from Lin Wanqiu’s courtyard.
In her mind, the system’s voice rang out.
【Ding!】
【Host has successfully gifted an opportunity!】
【Congratulations, host has triggered a thousandfold critical compensation and obtained the Earth-grade mid-tier martial art 《Thousand Waves Overlapping Tides Sword Technique》!】
Xiao Minghuang’s lips curled slightly, and a hint of a smile appeared in the corners of her eyes.
“Earth-grade mid-tier, not bad.”
Since embarking on her cultivation journey, the only martial art she had mastered was the 《Big Dipper Seven Stars Sword Technique》. While it was true that one move could suffice in many situations, relying solely on it in combat felt too monotonous.
Moreover, this martial art was heavily tied to celestial phenomena. In places where starlight couldn’t reach, its power would greatly diminish.
Now, with the 《Thousand Waves Overlapping Tides Sword Technique》, she had significantly filled this gap.
From now on, no matter the environment, she could handle things with ease.
Next, Xiao Minghuang headed to Ye Ruoshui’s courtyard.
As soon as she entered, she saw Ye Ruoshui and Xu Xiu’er sitting across from each other.
Ye Ruoshui was looking at Xu Xiu’er with curiosity, asking question after question.
Xu Xiu’er, on the other hand, looked visibly uncomfortable and awkward.
Xiao Minghuang’s lips curved into a faint smile, her expression amused.
“Ruoshui, come here for a moment!”
Ye Ruoshui had already noticed Xiao Minghuang’s arrival. Hearing the call, she immediately got up and ran over.
Xiao Minghuang pulled Ye Ruoshui aside, out of Xu Xiu’er’s sight, and took out a treasure from her storage bag, handing it to her.
“Take this sword for now. If it suits you, keep it. If not, you can give it to Wanqiu.”
Ye Ruoshui nodded. She was only interested in alchemy, and now she had added artifact forging to her interests. As for combat-related martial arts, she was completely unfamiliar.
Even if she were given this treasure, she wouldn’t be able to make much use of it. It would be better to give it to Lin Wanqiu, so it could be put to good use.
But at that moment, a thought suddenly occurred to Ye Ruoshui.
“Your Highness, can I give this treasure to Xiu’er?”
Hearing this, Xiao Minghuang was momentarily stunned, then a smile appeared on her face.
“Certainly, since it has been gifted to you, it is yours to handle as you wish.”
Upon hearing this, a faint smile appeared on Ye Ruoshui’s delicate face.
“Thank you, Your Highness!”
Ye Ruoshui returned to the courtyard, and her voice could be heard once more.
In Xiao Minghuang’s heart, there was always a trace of pity for Xu Xiu’er.
In this world, everyone possesses innate talent, and everyone can cultivate.
However, there are always some whose talents are astonishingly poor.
This does not mean they cannot cultivate, but rather that the resources they would need to consume to achieve similar accomplishments as others might be a hundred times greater.
Such a cost is something few can bear.
Thinking of this, Xiao Minghuang summoned the system panel.
【Name: Xu Xiu’er】
【Fate: Mediocre (White)】
【Realm: Body Forging, Eighth Layer】
【This person is utterly ordinary, completely unremarkable.】
Xiao Minghuang sighed softly and turned to leave.
Originally, she had thought that Xu Xiu’er might be a hidden genius like Ye Ruoshui or Lin Wanqiu, but under the system’s scrutiny, nothing could remain concealed.
Xu Xiu’er, after all, was just an ordinary girl.
She possessed no extraordinary talent, nor any remarkable fate.
She was simply an ordinary person.
In this world, how many geniuses can there truly be?
The ordinary masses are the true absolute majority.
After sighing, Xiao Minghuang activated her spiritual power, soared into the sky, and entered the clouds without alerting anyone, leaving the capital.
Half a day later.
In a valley five hundred miles away from the capital, a woman dressed in light red descended gracefully from the sky, like a celestial being descending to the mortal world, ethereal and noble.
Xiao Minghuang landed on the ground and looked around, as if searching for something.
Half a day earlier, out of guilt, she had given Xu Xiu’er some spirit stones and pills, unexpectedly fulfilling the system’s update conditions.
The treasure-detecting compass, which originally could only scan within a radius of one hundred miles, suddenly expanded to a radius of five hundred miles!
The system’s update revealed many opportunities she had not noticed before.
Among them, the most prominent one shone with a dazzling blue light.
This meant that the quality of this opportunity was far superior to those of white or green hues!
【In a valley five hundred miles from the capital, beneath a lake, lies a Sword Dao Stone Tablet, inscribed with the true essence of swordplay by an ancient swordsman.】
Following the guidance of the treasure-detecting compass, Xiao Minghuang did not pause for a moment and quickly arrived at the valley lake.
She gazed at the small lake, feeling a cool breeze.
“Beneath this lake, the Sword Dao Stone Tablet must be hidden…”
With a thought, golden starlight emanated from her body, enveloping her completely.
Then, she stepped into the water.
Under the protection of the starlight, she walked on the lakebed as if on flat ground, her clothes neat and unhindered.
As she descended, the surroundings gradually darkened.
However, with her cultivation level, Xiao Minghuang could still see everything clearly.
After a quarter of an hour.
Xiao Minghuang arrived before an ancient, weathered boulder.
The boulder stood three zhang tall, covered in moss and coral, appearing to have endured countless years of wear, with no trace of mystery.
Without hesitation, Xiao Minghuang extended her slender hand and placed it on the stone tablet.
At that moment, a sword’s hum echoed in her ears, followed by an extremely sharp aura emanating from the boulder, as if it could sever everything around it.
If anyone had been there, they would have been terrified, their scalp tingling.
Fortunately, this was the bottom of a desolate lake, and the valley above was rarely visited, so no one noticed this frightening scene.
Xiao Minghuang focused her mind, carefully sensing the strands of sword intent emanating from the Sword Dao Stone Tablet.
Within the tablet, the sound of sword hums continued to ring out, and sharp sword qi spread out, cutting and collapsing the water within a radius of over ten zhang, causing the entire lake to churn as if a storm were approaching.
An unknown amount of time passed.
Whoosh!
Suddenly, a deep sword hum sounded, and in the next moment, a beam of sword light several zhang long condensed above the stone tablet and instantly slashed toward Xiao Minghuang!
The sword light was powerful, swift as lightning, and condensed in an instant. Caught off guard, an ordinary martial artist would have found it difficult to dodge and would have been killed on the spot.
But Xiao Minghuang, as if she had anticipated it, dodged the deadly sword light with a swift movement.
However, in the next moment.
Swoosh!
After the sword light missed, two more beams of sword light condensed on the stone tablet, slashing toward Xiao Minghuang from both the left and right.
Xiao Minghuang narrowed her beautiful eyes and no longer evaded. Her thoughts shifted, and golden starlight emanated from her body, bursting forth with endless radiance, as if a myriad of stars were shining. The spiritual spring within her dantian surged, and her vital energy erupted like a volcano. She held her breath, focusing her spirit, and condensed all her spiritual power into one, delivering a fierce punch towards the sword light!
“Break!”
Boom!
A dull impact sound echoed from beneath the lake.
The sharp sword light slashed down through the air, crashing heavily onto the dazzling starlight fist. The moment they collided, a terrifying roar erupted.
Hum!!!
The entire lake rippled with concentric circles, and the water within a radius of nearly a hundred zhang was shattered, demonstrating the immense power of the impact!
Under the tremendous force, even Xiao Minghuang’s expression changed slightly, but it was not out of worry—rather, a hint of joy appeared on her face.
She had blocked those two razor-sharp sword lights!
She could sense that this simultaneous release of two sword lights was the limit of the Sword Dao Stone Tablet.
As long as she could endure this trial, she would gain the tablet’s acknowledgment and receive the sword dao inheritance it contained.
The sword light gradually dissipated, eventually vanishing into the churning lake water.
A faint smile appeared at the corner of Xiao Minghuang’s eyes as she retracted her fist and exhaled deeply.
The trial of the Sword Dao Stone Tablet did not allow the use of external aids—whether it was magical treasures or secret techniques. If one were to shatter the tablet using such means, they would not obtain the inheritance within.
After the sword light dissipated, the stone tablet was covered in dense cracks, as if it would completely shatter at any moment.
Seeing this, Xiao Minghuang’s delicate brows furrowed slightly. The tablet had endured countless years—could it have reached its limit after this final strike?
At least let it pass on the inheritance to her before crumbling!
As she watched the tablet slowly breaking apart, Xiao Minghuang stood still, making no move.
The Sword Dao Stone Tablet was a spiritual entity. If it had reached its end, no one could stop it.
A moment later.
What happened next was beyond Xiao Minghuang’s expectations.
The tablet did not crumble but instead shed its outer disguise.
The coral and moss on the tablet’s surface completely peeled away, revealing its true form hidden beneath.
What appeared before her was a small stone tablet, only as tall as a person.
It was entirely grayish-green, exuding a sharp sword dao aura. Razor-sharp sword energy radiated from it, so intense that merely glancing at it made Xiao Minghuang’s eyes sting and her sockets ache.
There were many ways to inherit martial arts in the world—some were engraved on golden scrolls or jade slips, others written on silk or paper, and some passed down orally.
Imprinting martial arts inheritance onto a stone tablet was one such method.
Moreover, only martial artists of higher realms could imprint dao insights onto a tablet.
As far as Xiao Minghuang knew, only Yuan Tai Realm experts were capable of imprinting stone tablets.
“The martial artist who imprinted this tablet… I wonder what realm they reached…”
Xiao Minghuang calmed her breath, focused her mind, and circulated her spiritual energy to protect herself as she approached the tablet.
Translator: Glariosa
Editor: Ruu
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