Chai Xing’er wore a simple cotton dress that couldn’t conceal her natural beauty, with her delicate oval face drawing attention. Her slightly pale, sickly complexion made her already gentle demeanor appear even more pitiful and delicate. She was the type of woman who could awaken a man’s protective instincts, but in Li Lingsu’s eyes right now, she was like a fuse to a powder keg.

Li Lingsu forced a smile. “Xing’er, why are you out here?”

Xu Qi’an put on an affected sigh. “Knowing we’d be fighting powerful enemies, I released Chai Xing’er beforehand. I forgot to tell you. Though she bears sins, she’s still your beloved. I had to take responsibility for her life.”

“Oh, thank you so much!” Li Lingsu replied through gritted teeth.

Chai Xing’er scrutinized Dongfang Wanqing, while Dongfang Wanqing sized up Chai Xing’er.

“Young Master Li, who is she?”

They asked in unison.

Young Master Li… No need to ask further, their form of address said everything.

When Chai Xing’er and Dongfang Wanqing’s gazes met, sparks flew.

Pfft… Li Meizhen nearly had to cover her mouth to keep from laughing out loud. She thought to herself, “Oh Li Lingsu, Li Lingsu, your day has finally come.”

Dongfang Wanqing spoke with hatred in her voice: “Young Master Li, where did you pick up this vixen? Aren’t my sister and I enough for you? You weren’t satisfied with seducing that little tramp from the Leizhou Merchants’ Guild? Just how many mistresses do you have out there?”

That would be quite a number – their Holy Son’s lovers were spread all across the Central Plains. Who knows, there might even be some in the Martial Arts Alliance… Xu Qi’an and Li Meizhen reached a profound level of mutual understanding at this moment.

“Vixen?” Chai Xing’er raised an eyebrow and sneered. “Who’s the vixen isn’t certain yet. When Young Master Li and I were pledging our undying love, you were still a nursing babe.”

Dongfang Wanqing, with her proud and fierce temperament, stepped forward. “You cheap woman, This Palace Mistress will tear you apart right now.”

Chai Xing’er smiled sadly. “I’m already a prisoner, with only days left to live.”

Li Lingsu’s heart ached. He stepped between them and said gravely, “Xing’er, nothing will happen to you. Brother Xu promised me he would give you a chance at life.”

Xu Qi’an glanced at Chai Xing’er, thinking to himself how impressive she was, knowing how to turn her disadvantage into an advantage to win Li Lingsu’s sympathy. Her manipulation skills were only slightly inferior to his little sister’s.

Chai Xing’er silently shed tears. “I always knew you were a fickle man, yet I just couldn’t let you go, couldn’t forget you. Back in Xiangzhou, you swore you would love only me in this lifetime.”

“Xing’er, every word I said was true…” Before Li Lingsu could finish, Dongfang Wanqing’s eyebrows shot up in anger.

“Li Lingsu! How many other women have you said these same words to?!”

While the argument raged on one side, on the other, Xu Qi’an, Li Meizhen, Heng Yuan, Chu Yuanzhen, and Mu Nanchi sat in a row, neither adding fuel to the fire nor trying to mediate. They simply watched the Holy Son handle his relationship problems.

I should learn a few tricks for dealing with Yu’er in the future… Xu Qi’an thought to himself.

Li Meizhen transmitted: “My senior brother may lack real ability, but his skill at seducing women is remarkable. He was originally confined for half a year after the Dongfang sisters chased him for a thousand li when he abandoned them.”

Chu Yuanzhen transmitted: “The romantic type always suffers from matters of the heart, though compared to Ning Yan’s predicament at the Bureau of Astronomy that day, this is child’s play.”

You’re watching the show, why bring me into this… Xu Qi’an, who had been gleefully watching others’ misfortune, stiffened.

Li Meizhen glanced at Mu Nanchi and deliberately clicked her tongue twice, saying, “My senior brother and Xu are cut from the same cloth, both womanizers. Wouldn’t you agree, Princess Consort?”

So she is the Princess Consort… Chu Yuanzhen confirmed his suspicions.

“What has it to do with me!” Mu Nanchi frowned. “Xu Qi’an and I are merely traveling companions. Whether he’s a womanizer or not has nothing to do with me. Are you probing because you’re one of his lovers?”

Li Meizhen’s expression changed slightly, and she quickly scoffed: “Xu Qi’an and I are merely acquaintances, nothing more. Princess Consort, don’t spread baseless rumors.”

Xu Qi’an hastily interrupted their bickering: “Meizhen, Brother Chu, Master Heng Yuan, aren’t you curious about who Chai Xing’er is? It’s quite a long story, let me explain…”

“Not interested!”

“Don’t care.”

“Lord Xu, this poor monk isn’t curious either.”

“…”

Meanwhile, Li Lingsu had finally managed to calm both Chai Xing’er and Dongfang Wanqing’s emotions, feeling greatly relieved. He had better ways to reconcile the conflicts between his beloved women, but the presence of those Tiandiuhui bastards watching from the side made him too embarrassed to employ them.

“My senior brother’s skill at placating women is still impressive. Every woman resents him, yet they’re all desperately in love with him,” Li Meizhen transmitted with a sigh.

Li Lingsu’s women’s fighting spirit is too weak, giving up so easily? Hmm, maybe it’s because I’m here and they don’t dare to make a scene… Xu Qi’an thought to himself.

With the show over, he stood up, dusting off his bottom, and said, “I have matters to attend to. Please, you two enter the pagoda for now.”

He brought out the Futu Treasure Pagoda and collected Chai Xing’er and Dongfang Wanqing into its first level.

Chu Yuanzhen took out the Earth Book fragment and tilted its mirror surface, from which several figures tumbled out – Liu Hongmian and the others.

Xu Qi’an swept his gaze over them. “Where’s Jingxin?”

Li Meizhen puffed her cheeks. “He got away. I couldn’t hold him.”

Xu Qi’an made an “oh” sound. “Just a minor character, no matter.”

Li Meizhen was quite satisfied with his attitude and casually took out a pouch, saying, “I sealed their souls in this bag. How do you want to handle them?”

Meanwhile, Li Lingsu took the opportunity to return the Universal Mirror to Xu Qi’an.

Xu Qi’an stuffed the Universal Mirror into the Earth Book fragment, hearing the mirror’s moaning voice:

“So good, so good, the dragon qi is even more concentrated…”

“Don’t tempt me like this, I might not want to return to my little master…”

The voice gradually faded.

After acquiring the two dragon qi from the Martial Arts Alliance, the golden dragon within the Earth Book fragment became increasingly substantial.

Xu Qi’an took the soul pouch, opened it, and four powerful primordial spirits emerged gracefully, returning to their respective bodies.

Qihuan Danxiang, White Tiger, Liu Hongmian, and Jingyuan all awakened and opened their eyes.

Thump!

Xu Qi’an stamped his foot, and his qi rippled out like waves. The four were struck as if by lightning, seemingly suppressed by some force, their instinctive violent reactions dying before they could manifest.

“Let’s have a chat, shall we?” Xu Qi’an smiled, bringing over a small stool and sitting before them.

The impetuous Qihuan Danxiang maintained a look of disdain and contempt.

White Tiger and Jingyuan wore solemn expressions.

Liu Hongmian put on a pitiful appearance.

“Of course, you can choose not to cooperate. It’ll just make things a bit more troublesome for me – I’ll have to kill you and then question your spirits.”

Xu Qi’an’s words struck the four like a knife to the heart, destroying their will to resist until death.

Liu Hongmian said weakly, “This humble woman will tell everything she knows, only begging Lord Xu to spare her life.”

Li Lingsu stirred things up from the side: “If you agree to be our Silver Constable Xu’s bed warmer, you might be able to keep your life.”

Why must we hurt each other like this… Xu Qi’an silently noted this down, planning to get revenge on the Holy Son later.

“Really?” Liu Hongmian’s eyes lit up.

“Kill her,” Mu Nanchi passed a sentence.

“I’ll help you deal with her,” the Flying Swallow swordswoman offered helpfully, displaying her chivalrous spirit.

Xu Qi’an stopped their nonsense with a look, then turned back to face the three excluding Jingyuan, saying, “Tell me about the layout, location, and military forces of Dragon’s Lair City. Be truthful, and I’ll spare your lives.”

White Tiger was silent for a moment. “You mean this?”

Xu Qi’an smiled. “My word is my bond.”

White Tiger immediately nodded. “Ask away.”

A wise man submits to circumstances – reaching the Fourth Grade in cultivation wasn’t easy, and staying alive was paramount.

As long as they lived, they could seek revenge against Xu Qi’an later. While there was life, there was hope.

Qihuan Danxiang was also clever. Something stirred in his heart, but he maintained his arrogant expression while deliberately showing signs of being moved, keeping his true thoughts buried deep.

Temporary submission was currently the only good strategy. They had repeatedly suffered defeat at Xu Qi’an’s hands, but the battle between the Imperial Advisor and Xu wasn’t over yet.

One day, they would surely have their revenge.

When that time came, they would kill all of Xu’s family and friends.

“Dragon’s Lair City is in the deep mountains of southern Cloud Province, with seventy-two mountain strongholds radiating out from the city center. These strongholds are for training and stationing troops, responsible for kidnapping people and raiding merchant caravans.”

“I’m not sure of the exact numbers, but each stronghold has between a hundred and a thousand men, totaling no less than fifty thousand, I’d say.”

After White Tiger finished, Qihuan Danxiang added, “Dragon’s Lair City has a population of two hundred thousand, with twenty thousand armed forces. They’re all civilians abducted from various parts of Cloud Province. Many are also martial artists who have fled to Cloud Province from all over.”

Li Meizhen recalled some past events:

“So it wasn’t the Witch God Cult supporting the mountain bandits, but your Dragon’s Lair City?”

Xu Qi’an shook his head. “Wrong. The Witch God Cult also supported bandits, secretly accumulating forces. This was probably why Xu Pingfeng helped me back then. The Witch God Cult’s expansion was affecting him.”

As for why they had previously turned a blind eye to the Witch God Cult’s activities, Xu Qi’an speculated that Xu Pingfeng might have been using the cult as a smokescreen while secretly building his strength.

Chu Yuanzhen frowned. “Even at maximum estimate, their forces don’t exceed a hundred thousand. Rebellion would be difficult.”

An elite army of nearly a hundred thousand was quite terrifying in scale.

Wei Yuan had once led about the same number of troops to Jingshan City.

But Great Zhou had a massive population, with deeply entrenched power structures far more complex than the Witch God Cult.

In Chu Yuanzhen’s view, seventy to eighty thousand rebels would still face great difficulty in rebellion.

White Tiger said, “These are just Dragon’s Lair City’s direct forces. Don’t forget, Cloud Province has nearly sixty thousand more troops.”

“The Provincial Commander Yang Chuannan is one of us.”

Hearing this, Li Meizhen gritted her teeth.

Back when she was organizing mounted forces to suppress bandits in Cloud Province, Commander Yang Chuannan had given her great convenience and assistance.

They had become good friends because of this.

It wasn’t until after the Capital incident, when Xu Qi’an revealed the intelligence, that she learned about Cloud Province’s inside story. She realized Yang Chuannan had been using her to eliminate the bandits supported by the Witch God Cult.

He avoided exposing himself while using her as cannon fodder on the front lines.

She had treated people with sincerity and viewed Yang Chuannan as a close friend. In the end, the Flying Swallow Swordswoman’s honest heart had been betrayed.

“What detailed plans does Xu Pingfeng have for the uprising?” Xu Qi’an asked.

Liu Hongmian and the others exchanged glances and shook their heads:

“No one can fathom the Imperial Advisor’s thoughts.”

“Besides Dragon’s Lair City, how many sleeper agents does he have in the Central Plains and the court?” Xu Qi’an asked again.

White Tiger said, “That’s handled by the Heaven’s Mechanics Palace spies. We don’t know.”

Just then, someone knocked on the courtyard gate, drawing everyone’s attention.

The host, Xu Qi’an called out loudly, “Please enter!”

The gate opened, and two beautifully dressed women stepped across the threshold – the flourishing young Miss Rong’er and a mature, beautiful woman.

Rong’er’s face was like a peach blossom, hesitant yet expressive, her maiden’s infatuation obvious to all.

She held a package of medicinal herbs and said:

“Silver Constable Xu has fought hard battles and faced danger for our Martial Arts Alliance. Rong’er has nothing else to offer but these healing herbs as a small token of gratitude.”

Xu Qi’an felt piercing gazes from both sides but maintained his composure as he stood to accept the herbs, smiling, “Thank you, Miss Rong’er. Since we parted in the Capital, your beauty has grown even more remarkable.”

Miss Rong’er was overjoyed but then noticed the Heaven Sect’s Holy Maiden and a plain-looking woman staring at her coldly.

She swallowed back everything else she had wanted to say.

She pressed her lips together, then suddenly noticed Liu Hongmian and exclaimed:

“Liu Hongmian, it’s you!”

Her expression showed both hostility and surprise.

Liu Hongmian glanced at the master and disciple pair but didn’t respond.

“You know each other?”

Xu Qi’an’s gaze moved between the three women.

The beautiful matron nodded and said softly:

“Liu Hongmian was the previous Tower Master’s disciple, Master Xiao’s junior sister. After she lost the competition for the Tower Master position to Master Xiao, she left the Ten Thousand Flowers Tower.”

She didn’t mention the betrayal – after all, it was an embarrassing internal matter.

Xu Qi’an suddenly understood. No wonder when he first saw Liu Hongmian in the Yongzhou barracks, he had found something familiar about this charming woman’s bearing and temperament.

So she was a disciple of the Ten Thousand Flowers Tower in Jianzhou.

At this point, Rong’er was attracted by Li Lingsu’s stunning beauty and made a surprised sound:

“You’re Li Lingsu?”

The Holy Son, half-hidden behind his junior sister Li Meizhen, stammered: “You… you…”

“Have you forgotten me? Two years ago, you visited the Ten Thousand Flowers Tower as a guest, and we drank together. Master was there too, right?”

Miss Rong’er smiled as she glanced at her master, then continued:

“Earlier when you were helping Silver Constable Xu on your flying sword, I thought you looked familiar. I can’t believe it is you!”

…Li Lingsu suddenly remembered, “Oh, oh, it’s you! Miss Rong’er, it’s been years, how have you been?”

He didn’t greet the beautiful matron.

The matron gave Li Lingsu a deep look, then withdrew her gaze and said softly:

“It seems Silver Constable Xu still has matters to attend to, so we won’t disturb you further.”

She pulled away the reluctant Rong’er and took their leave.

Then, Xu Qi’an asked for more detailed intelligence about Dragon’s Lair City, such as the members of the Ji family and the military organization of the city.

Finally, after some hesitation, he asked:

“Are you familiar with Xu Pingfeng’s wife?”

Liu Hongmian and Qihuan Danxiang shook their heads, then looked at White Tiger. The former said:

“He’s the leader of the White Tiger Constellation, directly under the Imperial Advisor.”

Seeing Xu Qi’an looking his way, White Tiger immediately said:

“I’ve only seen the Mistress twice. She’s the sister of Dragon’s Lair City’s lord, and lives in seclusion, never leaving her residence.”

“She’s under house arrest, not allowed to leave Dragon’s Lair City. The Ji clan members of Dragon’s Lair City deeply hate her, calling her the family’s sinner.”

“The family gave her wealth and status, but she didn’t know how to contribute. For… for an abandoned son, she betrayed the family.”

Chu Yuanzhen and the others knew the inside story and fell silent.

Only Li Lingsu didn’t know Xu Qi’an’s true identity.

Twenty years under house arrest, deprived of freedom… Xu Qi’an remained silent for a long time.

Seeing he wasn’t speaking, Qihuan Danxiang urged:

“We’ve told you everything we know. Please fulfill your promise, Silver Constable.”

Xu Qi’an looked at him and nodded:

“Very well! I’ll give you freedom right now.”

Slap!

He struck Qihuan Danxiang’s crown with his palm, causing the Heart Insect Master’s eyes to roll back and his primordial spirit to scatter.

He died instantly.

“You…”

White Tiger’s expression changed drastically, but before he could finish the word “you,” Xu Qi’an’s palm appeared in his pupils.

The next moment, his crown was also shattered, and he died on the spot.

“I never keep promises made to enemies.”

Xu Qi’an flicked out two child insects, and the black worm-like creatures crawled into the two corpses’ nostrils. After a moment, Qihuan Danxiang and White Tiger stood up again.

They stood side by side with empty eyes.

He had gained two Fourth Grade corpse puppets.

With the Seven Fatal Insects’ current maturity, the corpse insects could retain nearly ninety percent of a Fourth Grade cultivator’s power.

“Is this the Corpse Insect?”

Li Meizhen and Chu Yuanzhen looked envious – this was equivalent to instantly gaining two Fourth Grade death warriors.

As for Master Heng Yuan, he had no such worldly desires.

“Your turn now.”

Xu Qi’an looked at the pale-faced Liu Hongmian and the expressionless Jingyuan.

These people weren’t like Dongfang Wanqing, protected by her relationship with Li Lingsu, nor were they on the edge of conflict like her, without deep hatred.

Qihuan Danxiang and his group were Ji Xuan’s team, Dragon’s Lair City’s people, and his mortal enemies.

The same went for Jingyuan.

For enemies who deserved death, Xu Qi’an never showed mercy, even if they were charming beauty.

“Knock knock!”

Suddenly, someone knocked on the courtyard gate, and Xiao Yue’nu’s mature female voice came from outside:

“Silver Constable Xu, Xiao Yue’nu requests an audience.”

Just hearing this voice made Chu Yuanzhen and Li Lingsu’s eyes brighten.

“Please enter, Tower Master Xiao.”

Xu Qi’an responded.

Xiao Yue’nu entered, wearing a yellow dress and fashionable women’s hairstyle. She was tall and graceful, with a gauze veil over her face and long, enchanting eyes that were quite alluring.

Though Chu Yuanzhen wasn’t one for female beauty, he couldn’t hide his amazement at the sight of this woman.

Even the Princess Consort, who held herself in high regard, was slightly stunned, surprised that such a pearl existed in Jianzhou’s martial arts world.

Then, she and Li Meizhen’s hearts sank.

“Tower Master Xiao, it’s been a while,” Xu Qi’an smiled.

Xiao Yue’nu’s gaze swept around, pausing briefly on Liu Hongmian, and then she gracefully bowed to Xu Qi’an:

“I heard from Aunt Mei that the Ten Thousand Flowers Tower traitor Liu Hongmian is here as your prisoner, so I came to see.”

“Just to see?”

Xu Qi’an looked at her.

Xiao Yue’nu stepped forward slowly and said softly:

“Yue’nu boldly asks, how does Silver Constable Xu plan to deal with her?”

“Kill her without delay!” Xu Qi’an said frankly.

Xiao Yue’nu pressed her lips together, bowed again, and said sincerely:

“Please spare her life, Silver Constable Xu, and let the Ten Thousand Flowers Tower handle her.”

Xu Qi’an pondered: “How do you plan to handle her?”