Song Chun heard Huang Yan’s secret message and nodded slightly. He didn’t look in Huang Yan’s direction to avoid alerting anyone, pretending he knew nothing.

Mu Yunjin ate her vegetarian meal unhurriedly. Ever since Wen Yuan and Ming Yuan had entered, she had become more vigilant, constantly paying attention to their movements.

After all, she had once snatched the Xuanling True Scripture that they could have easily obtained, and she had injured them several times. They undoubtedly harbored resentment toward her.

Throughout the meal, except for Chu Qingyuan and Jingyang, who sensed nothing amiss, the other three were all on high alert.

To the side, Wen Yuan also felt the atmosphere was off. While eating with his head down, he rolled his eyes and cast a meaningful glance at the young monk sitting opposite him.

The young monk, upon catching this look, continued eating with his head lowered.

Just as the atmosphere in Jingxin Garden was growing strangely tense, a commotion came from the entrance. Mu Yunjin looked up to see a figure in deep red and another in bright gold entering Jingxin Garden.

The visitors were Empress Dowager Zheng and the Empress.

Mu Yunjin lowered her gaze. Despite trying to avoid them, they had still come here.

…

…

Empress Dowager Zheng probably hadn’t expected to encounter Mu Yunjin here. She was currently holding the fat cat that Mu Yunjin had given her. Later, she had sent people to Prince Ning’s mansion to invite Mu Yunjin to visit the palace more often, but Mu Yunjin had never come.

“Greetings to Your Majesty the Empress Dowager and Your Majesty the Empress.” Mu Yunjin stood up and curtseyed to the two women.

“Greetings to Grandmother and Mother…” Chu Qingyuan also stood up to pay her respects.

Jingyang didn’t know how to address them, so she simply followed Chu Qingyuan’s actions and curtseyed, considering it a sufficient greeting.

“Yunjin, Qingyuan, what a coincidence! I never expected to meet you here,” said Empress Dowager Zheng. Recently, her days had been peaceful and comfortable. With a beloved pet for company, not only was she in good spirits, but her health had also improved significantly.

Mu Yunjin curled her lips into a smile.

“Meow…” The fat cat in Empress Dowager Zheng’s arms suddenly moved and called out toward Huang Yan’s direction.

Huang Yan looked at the lazy cat he had raised and wanted to reach out and hold it, but at the moment, he could only pretend he had never seen this fat cat before.

However, it seemed the old lady had taken good care of it and hadn’t mistreated his little darling.

After the greetings, Mu Yunjin glanced sideways at Wen Yuan’s table and found that they had already left, with more than half of the vegetarian dishes still on the table.

Mu Yunjin slightly clenched her sleeve, trying to recall the appearances of the other two monks, but only a vague outline remained in her mind.

“I came here today specifically to offer incense and pray for blessings, and to try the vegetarian food here. You haven’t finished eating, have you? Why don’t you join me and the Empress for a little more?” Empress Dowager Zheng looked at Mu Yunjin, then at Chu Qingyuan.

She used to dislike both of them, but now the times had changed. There was no point in dwelling on old grudges.

Children didn’t understand, but as an elder, she certainly did.

Seeing that more than half of the vegetarian dishes were still left on her table, Mu Yunjin knew that claiming to be full would be disrespectful to the Empress Dowager. So she could only nod and agree to the Empress Dowager’s suggestion.

After moving to a larger table, the Empress, who had been silent until now, looked toward Jingyang. “I heard that Princess Jingyang from the Northern Ming Kingdom has come to visit her relatives. Is this Princess Jingyang?”

Jingyang, whose name had been mentioned, stood up and bowed to the Empress.

“Princess Jingyang, there’s no need for such formality,” the Empress said with a gentle smile.

Jingyang sat back down, feeling somewhat awkward and uncomfortable for reasons she couldn’t explain. Although her mother was also an empress, she didn’t know how to address the Empress of the Western Yuan Kingdom. Even making eye contact with her felt strange.

It seemed that outside the palace of the Northern Ming Kingdom, the world was indeed vast and diverse.

…

During the meal, Mu Yunjin suddenly felt a discomfort in her chest. The sound of her heartbeat became distinctly audible in her ears. This time, she could hear two heartbeats pulsing, one strong and one weak.

The longer she sat, the more constricted Mu Yunjin’s chest felt. She couldn’t help but offer an apologetic smile to Empress Dowager Zheng and the Empress. “I suddenly feel unwell. Please excuse me for a moment.”

“You’re not feeling well? Is it serious? Should we find someone to examine you?” Empress Dowager Zheng wanted to suggest calling an imperial physician, but they were at Shuiyun Temple, and the imperial physicians couldn’t arrive quickly.

However, there were surely people with medical skills in Shuiyun Temple.

“It’s nothing. I just need to step out for a moment. I’ll be back shortly.” Mu Yunjin forced a smile and rose to leave Jingxin Garden.

Once outside Jingxin Garden, Mu Yunjin walked a few steps forward and leaned against a tree. She took several deep breaths, and the discomfort in her chest gradually eased.

Pressing her hand against her chest, Mu Yunjin recalled Master Huaiyuan mentioning that Master An was also here. Now she urgently wanted to find Master An and ask him for guidance.

With these thoughts, Mu Yunjin headed toward the Dark Pavilion.

After Mu Yunjin’s figure disappeared, several silhouettes emerged from behind a stone staircase not far away. Among them, one deliberately lowered voice said, “She has mastered the techniques from the Xuanling True Scripture and possesses the divine weapon Phoenix Tail Whip. Her abilities cannot be underestimated. However, Master said that in recent days, she seems to have damaged her heart meridian.”

“If we want to eliminate her, today might be the best opportunity.”

…

Mu Yunjin had come to the Dark Pavilion to find Master An, more in hope than expectation. After walking to the end of the Dark Pavilion, Mu Yunjin cleared her throat and called out to the surrounding darkness:

“Ahem, Master An, are you here?”

There was no response.

“Not here?” Mu Yunjin tried once more, peering further inside.

Still, no one answered her.

He must not be here, Mu Yunjin thought with a sigh. This person, like Consort Rong, always hid in the shadows. When she didn’t want to find him, he seemed to appear beside her at any moment.

Now that she wanted to find him, she didn’t know where to start looking.

Mu Yunjin pouted, preparing to turn and leave.

After taking two steps, four streams of extremely fast spiritual energy suddenly surged from the quiet darkness, heading straight for her. Mu Yunjin’s expression changed. She retreated two steps, raised her spiritual energy, and extended her hand to block.

But the spiritual energy was too fast, and four streams were attacking simultaneously. Mu Yunjin was completely unprepared. The spiritual energy broke through her defense and struck her body.

Mu Yunjin felt an intense pain coursing through her body. She spat out a mouthful of blood but managed to support herself, preventing a fall.

Looking up, it was just as she had initially thought—the four streams of spiritual energy came from Wen Yuan, Ming Yuan, and the two monks. These four must have followed her into the Dark Pavilion.

“Are you seeking death?” Mu Yunjin wiped the trickle of blood from the corner of her lips, her eyes cold as she stared silently at the four people before her.

“Mu Yunjin, if you hand over the incantation of the Xuanling True Scripture, perhaps we might spare your life today,” an unfamiliar monk said, with one hand behind his back and the other extended toward Mu Yunjin.

Mu Yunjin gave a cold laugh. “Dream on!”

“Arrogant! Before entering the Dark Pavilion, we had already sealed its entrance with a formation. Just now, we heard you calling for someone, but no one responded. At this point, you should realize that heaven won’t help you, and neither will earth. If you’re sensible, you’d better obey,” the monk said, his words full of disdain.

“And the Phoenix Tail Whip on her wrist is also a first-class treasure. We should take that as well,” Ming Yuan added boldly. Seeing Mu Yunjin cough blood after being struck by them, he couldn’t help but feel vindicated.

Mu Yunjin crossed her arms. After being hit earlier, she had forced herself to stand steady, unwilling to show any sign of vulnerability. Even now, she was gritting her teeth to endure.

The discomfort in her chest surged again. Mu Yunjin bit her lower lip, her gaze moving back and forth among the four people in front of her, thinking of countermeasures.

She knew the capabilities of Wen Yuan and Ming Yuan, but she didn’t know the background or skills of these two new monks. She dared not act rashly.

Damn it, was she going to lose her life at Shuiyun Temple again?

During this deadlock, a golden light suddenly flashed in the darkness, illuminating this corner of the Dark Pavilion.

“Her chest… there’s light…” Ming Yuan trembled as he pointed at the glowing spot on Mu Yunjin’s chest.

This sudden light startled everyone.

Mu Yunjin lowered her gaze to look at her chest. The last time it had glowed, she had been in the Ice Cave with barely any consciousness.

This time, she was fully aware.

As the golden light emerged, Mu Yunjin felt the pain in her body being enveloped by waves of familiar warmth. Under these warm currents, the pain gradually disappeared, and her heart and lungs began to feel clear and comfortable.

The golden light lasted for a while before abruptly vanishing into the boundless darkness.

When Mu Yunjin regained her senses, apart from a pool of blood on the ground proving she had indeed been injured, there was no discomfort left in her body, and her chest had returned to normal.

Could it be that the golden light was the manifestation of the Heaven God Token? Did it know she was injured and was healing her?

Mu Yunjin clenched her fists. Now she was even more eager to find Master An to inquire about the Heaven God Token. Seeing the four troublemakers blocking her way, she felt increasingly irritated.

“You two, who sent you?” Mu Yunjin turned to look at the two unfamiliar monks. She had never seen these two before; they probably weren’t from Shuiyun Temple.

Hearing Mu Yunjin speak, the four people before her showed various expressions. Earlier, after Mu Yunjin had been struck, although she had managed to speak, her voice had lacked strength and power. Now when she spoke again, she had somehow returned to her usual self…

Was that golden light truly so miraculous?

No wonder their master had ordered them to kill Mu Yunjin and dig out her heart to bring back…

“What do we do now?” Ming Yuan asked, his tone tinged with fear.

“The four of us will attack together. We must kill her and not let her leave alive!” Wen Yuan replied. He had been waiting for this moment for a long time.

He knew that if they didn’t eliminate Mu Yunjin today, their lives would be forfeited. This woman would not spare them.

Since things had reached this point, they might as well fight to the death!