The cold stone steps were illuminated by eternal lamps on both sides.

The Grand Preceptor of Daxia, clad in a black robe embroidered with Daoist patterns, bowed slightly. "Your Majesty."

Zhao Lu lifted the curtain of her palanquin, her gaze falling upon him.

"Grand Preceptor, what brings you here so late at night?"

"Merely taking a leisurely stroll."

Zhao Lu chuckled. "Then I shall not disturb your refined pastime. Proceed with the palanquin."

The Grand Preceptor stepped aside, but as the palanquin passed, he suddenly asked:

"Might I inquire who accompanies Your Majesty within?"

The palanquin was shielded by an isolation array designed by the Director of the Imperial Astronomical Observatory, concealing all sound and aura unless Zhao Lu willed otherwise.

Yet such arrays held no secrets from the Grand Preceptor.

Inside, Li Xuanxiao buried his face against Zhao Lu's chest, his expression bashful.

Zhao Lu lazily replied, "Does the Grand Preceptor now concern himself with my private affairs?"

"By no means. Only that recent rumors have prompted my master to advise caution."

"What rumors?"

"That remnants of Mount Shushan have returned for vengeance, annihilating Xiangshan Academy - one of the Confucian institutions."

Zhao Lu arched an eyebrow, glancing down at her senior brother.

Li Xuanxiao was the only possible connection that came to mind.

She'd heard fragments of these rumors - Mount Shushan disciples returning to avenge the academy's destruction - but had dismissed them as idle gossip among countless others.

That the Grand Preceptor would mention it now suggested undeniable truth...

"Your Majesty, have you any leads?"

"None. I stand irrevocably opposed to Mount Shushan. Why would any disciple seek me?"

Zhao Lu paused deliberately.

"Rest assured, Grand Preceptor. Should any Mount Shushan disciple approach me, they shall meet swift execution."

The Grand Preceptor nodded approvingly, then added:

"Let Your Majesty remember her own hands bear Mount Shushan disciples' blood."

Zhao Lu's expression flickered, her fists tightening.

Years ago, the Grand Preceptor had presented five captured Mount Shushan disciples before her.

He'd compelled her to execute them personally before the entire court.

Disciples she'd actually known.

The memory still churned her stomach like stormy seas.

This was history Zhao Lu wished forgotten.

Especially before her senior brother.

After the Grand Preceptor departed,

the imperial palanquin continued toward the palace.

Silence lingered heavily within.

Zhao Lu maintained her embrace around Li Xuanxiao.

He squirmed slightly.

"...Enough. Release me."

Three decades apart, and this girl had reached the Nascent Soul stage.

Given Zhao Lu's exceptional talent, abundant resources as Daxia's ruler, and access to master instructors, this advancement surprised no one.

"Senior brother, about Xiangshan Academy..."

Zhao Lu studied Li Xuanxiao.

She hadn't expected him to begin vengeance immediately upon awakening.

"Not my doing," Li Xuanxiao stated flatly.

"Then... false rumors?" Zhao Lu frowned.

Yet would the Grand Preceptor be stirred by mere gossip?

"Could someone be using Mount Shushan's name against the academy?" she speculated.

Li Xuanxiao nodded thoughtfully. Regardless of perpetrator,

this matter held no priority now.

The Myriad Soul Banner took precedence.

Zhao Lu hesitated. "Senior brother, about the disciples..."

She wished to explain those executions had been forced.

But Li Xuanxiao preempted her:

"I know."

"........"

The palace.

Zhao Lu had arranged Li Xuanxiao's quarters in Xianfu Palace within the inner court.

During the old emperor's reign, the inner court overflowed with concubines,

forcing multiple consorts to share quarters.

Zhao Lu's ascension left these spaces barren.

Now the vast Xianfu Palace housed only Li Xuanxiao,

plus two shadow guards Zhao Lu assigned him.

Li Xuanxiao inhaled deeply, circulating spiritual energy.

He'd been continuously healing.

Fine spiritual mist enveloped him like cocooning vapor.

"Just a few remaining acupoints."

Hair-thin energy threads wove through his shattered meridians.

Injuries inflicted thirty years ago by the Carefree Elder still gnawed at him.

Without Di Nü Feng's protection, even survival would have left him crippled.

"Cough... cough!"

Violent spasms brought up dark blood,

splattering in viscous crimson puddles.

Wiping his lips, Li Xuanxiao steadied his breathing,

then pressed fingertips to his sternum.

The dormant sword energy in his dantian awakened at his touch.

His senior brother's Lifebound Flying Sword,

after thirty years within him,

had harmonized with his essence.

Now this sword energy flowed like crystalline water through his meridians.

Fortune follows misfortune.

Li Xuanxiao comforted himself.

Two nights later,

under cover of darkness,

armed with Zhao Lu's golden token,

Li Xuanxiao moved freely through the palace,

heading straight for the study.

His junior sister mentioned some of her father's relics remained there,

others interred in the imperial mausoleum.

"........."

A raven's coarse caw echoed.

The bird perched on a barren branch.

Li Xuanxiao studied it briefly,

then pressed onward.

He verified the plaque's inscription before entering.

Within the pawnshop, a clerk's voice greeted him.

Li Xuanxiao presented a paper inscribed with arcane symbols.

The clerk examined them. "Proceed."

This was Tian Sha Hall's covert communication method.

Li Xuanxiao's symbols identified him as a Secret Envoy -

a system originally designed for Di Nü Feng.

The clerk knelt on one knee. "Hail the Envoy."

Li Xuanxiao spoke evenly. "Prepare my passage to the main hall. I seek audience with the Hall Master."

"Timely arrival, Envoy. Another dignitary prepares to return."

Soon Li Xuanxiao encountered this other figure,

whose gaze held strange disbelief.

Did this man recognize him?

Suppressing suspicion,

they awaited their guide beyond the city walls.

The Tian Sha Hall disciple named Qin Li kept shooting wary glances at Li Xuanxiao.