The First Lackey Under The Empress

"What did you say, Lao Xu?" Standing by the snow pit, Zhao Du'an was stunned, instantly wide awake:

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"Secret passage? Did you just say secret passage?"

However, facing his eager questioning, the martial artist sitting cross-legged fell silent.

Alright, intermittent intelligence online… Zhao Du'an sighed, but didn't dare to ignore it, carefully chewing on the two keywords "eleven" and "secret passage."

He remembered clearly that the last time he mentioned the Empress's empowerment, Lao Xu spoke about the Yi Jin Washing Marrow and Rebirth-like transformation.

It was evident that the Supreme Ancestor Emperor before him could, to some extent, provide feedback to his words.

"Just now I only mentioned the Yuan Ancestral Temple… which means that the two keywords are related to it. Secret passage? Could it be that the Yuan Ancestral Temple isn't as simple as it seems on the surface? Does it contain hidden mysteries?

Hmm… Zhen Bao didn't mention it, either because she deliberately concealed it, which is normal, as the imperial family's secrets wouldn't be casually shared with an outsider like me… or, she doesn't know the details either."

The latter guess was bold, but not entirely impossible.

The Empress ascended the throne unexpectedly, the old emperor died an unnatural death, and the crown prince also kicked the bucket…

Therefore, it's logical that the Empress didn't inherit some of the imperial family's secrets when she ascended the throne.

Of course, with the Empress's cultivation, she could investigate on her own, but if it was a method personally set up by the Supreme Ancestor Emperor in the past, it wouldn't be surprising if the Empress couldn't see through it.

"Eleven… what does this number mean? Is it related to the secret passage?"

Zhao Du'an was completely clueless and wanted to continue asking the mentally challenged Lao Xu, but saw the middle-aged martial artist, whose cotton clothes were covered with frost and whose disheveled beard and hair resembled wild grass, stand up and continue walking north.

"Hey… wait."

Zhao Du'an sighed and had no choice but to temporarily suppress the mystery, striving to keep up with the other's pace.

And so, they walked for several more hours, the wind and snow showing no signs of diminishing, instead becoming even heavier as they went north.

To ward off the cold, Zhao Du'an had to circulate his Qi machine all day long.

When he was once again exhausted and climbed onto a hill, his legs went soft, and he "thumped" down into the snow, lying in a "large" character shape, panting heavily, exhaling puffs of water vapor:

"No… I can't anymore… I can't move…"

Lao Xu stopped walking, lowered his eyes to look at the teenager lying on the ground in a state of complete surrender, his eyes filled with undisguised disgust, as if looking at a pile of garbage.

Zhao Du'an pretended not to see it, complaining wildly:

"It's not that I'm complaining, I'm fine with trekking through the snow, but can we at least walk on some flat ground?

This broken place is already difficult to walk in, with every step sinking deep or shallow, not any better than the desert, and you're still climbing upwards. Why don't we find some branches, I'll make a sled, and you can drag me along…"

Dog sledding or something, it sounds pretty cool.

The corners of Lao Xu's mouth twitched slightly, he stopped looking at him, and with his hands behind his back like a grandmaster, looked towards the due north and said:

"This is already the northernmost point of this trip."

Huh? Zhao Du'an was stunned, not "the end point of this trip", but emphasizing the northernmost point.

"We're not continuing north?"

Zhao Du'an got up and, using both his hands and feet, scurried to the top of the hill. Through the boundless wind and snow, he could see what appeared to be a continuous, horizontal black line on the distant horizon.

He had already seen it a few days ago and thought it was the destination of this trip.

Lao Xu shook his head: "That's not a place you should go to now."

Zhao Du'an was curious: "What's further north?"

Lao Xu uttered: "Mubei Forest Sea."

Zhao Du'an was taken aback: "The forest sea north of the Great Yu Dynasty, outside the territory's map?"

He had heard of it, saying that at the northernmost end of the continent, there was wind, snow, and an endless forest sea, which was land that the Great Yu Dynasty had never set foot on.

But because it was too far away, the common people didn't know much about it.

Except for cultivators, ordinary people rarely had the opportunity to come here in their lifetime.

"Old People? Are you talking about the people who live in the Mubei Forest Sea? Why are they called that?" Zhao Du'an asked curiously.

He gradually realized the benefits of the Martial God Diagram, which allowed him to cross thousands of mountains and rivers without leaving his house and see the world that the Great Yu Supreme Ancestor had once set foot in.

That was a world full of mystery.

"If you reach the Celestial Human Realm, you can come here," Lao Xu said.

"…Is the Worldly Realm okay? I feel like the Celestial Human Realm is a bit difficult to handle, well, difficult in all sorts of ways," Zhao Du'an bargained.

Lao Xu ignored him and only said:

"On this trek through the snowy plains, you have been constantly breathing and circulating your Qi machine to ward off the cold, your Qi within your body is already incomparably thick, freely controlled, and you can try to practice the Swallowing Cloud and Exhaling Breath Method. Watch carefully."

Zhao Du'an hurriedly got up, his eyes wide.

He saw the extremely slovenly middle-aged martial artist before him, whose beard and hair were as messy as weeds, suddenly take a deep breath, his abdomen expanding with a rumbling sound.

Whoosh—

A scene that left Zhao Du'an dumbfounded appeared.

Accompanying the Supreme Ancestor Emperor's inhalation and exhalation, the snow falling from the sky was actually crazily swallowed into his stomach.

Like a dragon sucking water, from his perspective, the trajectory of the snow falling from the sky formed a giant tornado.

The tornado was unimaginably huge, almost covering the sky, with its end disappearing into his gaping mouth.

At this moment, the snowflakes within a ten-mile radius were all sucked into his stomach.

The world was clean.

The sky over the snowfield was clearer than ever before, and Zhao Du'an's vision was no longer obstructed.

He strained his eyes to look into the distance, taking in the vibrant forest, made up of countless verdant and tall green-leaved trees.

Above the forest, there were even giant birds circling.

Suddenly, an indescribable, vast, and formless gaze was cast from the depths of the forest, instantly crossing thousands of miles and enveloping Zhao Du'an.

The Mubei Forest was alarmed.

Rumbling, the earth began to tremble.

In the forest, countless wild beasts stampeded, led by a large pack of wolves. Behind them, the massive forms of other creatures loomed closer.

“Old… Old Xu…”

Zhao Du’an felt a chill run down his spine, suddenly understanding why his cheap master had told him to become strong before coming here.

Because, perhaps only by reaching the “Celestial Human Realm” could one protect themselves in this place far removed from the human world.

The next moment, he saw Old Xu suddenly exhale endless clouds of vapor towards the north, a massive cold current erupting from his mouth.

The snowfield roared like an angry sea, unleashing a level ten tsunami, the gale winds wrapping ice and snow into a surging torrent that swept towards the Mubei Forest.

The wolf pack at the front was instantly swallowed, frozen to death, turning into ice sculptures. The countless beasts behind them retreated in terror, even that massive will seemed somewhat astonished.

“Let’s go.” Old Xu raised his hand and patted Zhao Du’an on the shoulder.

Seeing the useless wretch’s soft legs and lack of strength, he helplessly grabbed Zhao Du’an’s belt, hoisted him up, turned around, and headed southeast.

“…”

Zhao Du’an didn’t say a word, his mind replaying the scene he had just witnessed.

A martial artist inhaling clouds and exhaling mist, freezing a thousand miles in a single breath.

Just how powerful was Old Xu in his prime?

Wasn't this already a “Human Immortal”?

And what was that will in the forest?

Zhao Du’an felt the snowflakes falling again, landing on his head and face. He began to feel curious about the world beyond the Great Yu.

“Hey, Old Xu, where are we going next?”

“East, I’m taking you to Martial Emperor City to watch the sea.”

…

…

Inside the Yuanzu Temple, early morning.

When Zhao Du’an opened his eyes, waking from his “dream,” he felt an indescribable comfort in his body, every cell cheering and jumping for joy.

He could clearly feel that the density of the Qi within his Qi Sea had at least doubled.

This meant that the power he could unleash when drawing his saber had also increased by at least onefold.

In addition, the “Cloud Inhalation and Exhalation Method” taught by Old Xu was now imprinted in his mind.

Giving him a mysterious premonition:

As long as he wanted, he could change the color of the “Qi,” within his body, like the “True Qi” in martial arts novels, and turn it into… Frost True Qi?

Without anyone needing to remind him, he already understood that he had advanced to the High Grade of the Mortal Body Realm.

One more step, and he could challenge the Divine Chapter Realm.

“Your Majesty?”

Briefly distracted, Zhao Du’an was surprised to find that Xu Zhenguan had not left as before, but was still in the temple.

The beautiful woman in white was sitting cross-legged on a prayer mat, facing him, seemingly also meditating and cultivating.

Beside her were several empty wine jars.

Xu Zhenguan's eyes were tightly closed, her long eyelashes trembling slightly, illuminated by the faint morning light coming through the cracks in the temple door.

Her skin was like ice and snow, her crystal-clear face serene and ethereal, like a fairy descending to the mortal world, making it impossible for anyone to have defiling thoughts.

Her fair wrist rested on her crossed knees, her slender fingers forming a hand seal, and her black hair cascaded down like a waterfall.

Her long dress was slightly transparent, unnoticeable from afar, but now, observing up close, one could vaguely see the long legs within the skirt that were in no way inferior to Princess Yunyang’s…

“What… are you looking at?”

Zhao Du’an’s aesthetic appreciation was interrupted by a cold voice. He quickly raised his head, meeting a pair of meaningful, dark eyes.

“Your… Your Majesty… You’re awake?”

“Yes. You…”

“I broke through to High Grade.”

“…Very good.”

After a brief silence, Xu Zhenguan finally broke the slightly awkward atmosphere.

She gracefully stood up, waved her hand, and the wine jars were sent into the wine cellar.

Zhao Du’an eagerly stepped forward and turned the candlestick. With a “creak,” the entrance to the tunnel closed.

Could it be… that the so-called secret passage referred to this wine cellar?

He suppressed his curiosity, trying not to show anything unusual.

By now, he had already realized that his cultivation of the Martial God Diagram might be different from others.

At least, when chatting with Ma Yan, he had subtly learned that when Ma Yan cultivated, the Grand Ancestor he encountered would only speak when teaching martial arts.

The rest of the time, it was like a segment of video, far less “intelligent” than the Old Xu he encountered.

Therefore, for the sake of prudence, Zhao Du’an suppressed the thought of asking the Empress about the “secret passage” and the “massive will in the Mubei Forest.”

He said with a “flattering” smile, “Thank you, Your Majesty, for helping your subject break through!”

Xu Zhenguan glanced at him quietly, gave a soft “En,” and walked out:

“Go take a bath in the imperial bedroom, then leave the palace. The Xiuwen Hall will convene in a few days, and someone will notify you.”

“Oh, alright, alright!”

Zhao Du’an hurriedly pushed open the temple door for her.

The creaking door opened.

The night had passed, and it was almost dawn outside. Fortunately, a small court meeting had been held yesterday, so the Empress would not be attending court this morning.

There was no delay in time.

Outside the Yuanzu Temple, two rows of palace attendants holding lanterns still stood with their heads bowed.

Zhao Du’an and Xu Zhenguan had cultivated in the family temple all night.

These people had actually stood silently outside all night.

No, there was one more person.

Wearing a female official’s robe, a wingless black gauze hat, a plum blossom makeup mark on her forehead, and possessing a cold and beautiful temperament, the extremely androgynous “Big Ice Cube” witnessed the two walking out.

Her eyes first fell on the Empress’s clothes, and seeing that they were not disheveled, she breathed a slight sigh of relief.

Then, looking at the smiling Zhao Du’an, she felt inexplicably stifled:

“Your Majesty… Peace be with you.”

Thanks to Niuevc for the 3000 coin reward, Jiujiu Qiufen for the 1000 coin reward, 2018...7624 for the 500 coin reward, Dust Forest 300 coins, Li Shipu 200 coins, andyou's hundred coin reward!