Qin Mu slept in a daze, sensing someone climbing onto him. He had a temper when sleeping, so he kicked twice, knocking the person off the bed.
That person was also dazed, pulling the blanket and crawling back into bed, snuggling into his arms, only to be kicked down by Qin Mu again. In the end, three girls fell asleep huddled together, leaving him aside.
After days of toil, Qin Mu and Ling Yuxiu both slept deeply. Qin Mu didn't wake until the early hours of the next morning. Ling Yuxiu had burrowed under his armpit, and he moved his arm carefully, afraid of waking her.
Actually, Ling Yuxiu was already awake. After all, as a girl, she was a bit shy, fearing embarrassment if she woke up, so she pretended to sleep. She peeked open her eyes and saw Qin Mu tiptoeing out with his shoes in hand.
Only after stepping out of the room did Qin Mu breathe a sigh of relief. The twin palace maids had gotten up early and were chatting in the courtyard. One said, "Young Master Qin likes to punch in his sleep. He gave me a good kicking—look at my swollen eye."
"Tell me about it! I got kicked too, right on the chest, knocked right off the bed. You didn't get any... inappropriate touching, did you?"
"No. But the Princess and the Young Master slept together, and we were all in the bed, sharing the same blanket. How do we report that back?"
The two girls fell silent for a moment, then said in unison, "We won't tell, and the Young Master and Princess won't tell either, so let's keep it quiet!"
This concerned the royal family's reputation—saying too much could get them executed. They understood this well.
Qin Mu put on his shoes, cleared his throat, and walked out.
The two palace maids quickly bowed in greeting. "Young Master, you're awake? We sisters were reckless yesterday. Thanks to your care, we didn't lose our lives to the Little Poison King."
Qin Mu returned the bow. "It's also fortunate you two sisters were here. You injured the Little Poison King, making him too afraid to continue his rampage."
The two maids exchanged glances and laughed together. "Young Master, don't call us sisters. We serve the Empress Dowager—we don't even have surnames, just names. I'm Jianqi, and she's Qinqi."
The two maids saw him studying them, trying to figure out which was Jianqi and which was Qinqi, and couldn't help but laugh. At that laugh, Qin Mu noticed: Jianqi had a small tiger tooth on the left, Qinqi on the right.
"Young Master, we've been away all night and must return to the palace early to report," Qinqi said.
Qin Mu nodded. "You've slept, and the residual poison in your bodies is gone—no major issues. I have a few detoxification pills here. Take them."
The two maids thanked him and accepted the pills. Just as they were about to leave, Ling Yuxiu's voice came from the room: "Wait for me! I'm going back with you!"
The two stopped and looked back. They saw Ling Yuxiu in disarray, wearing a white undergarment and rushing out in a panic. Her hair was somewhat messy, and she was clutching her outer robe while dragging her shoes. One shoe slipped off, and she quickly lifted her foot to put it back on, but her jet-black hair completely fell loose, cascading down her shoulders like a waterfall.
Ling Yuxiu tried to fix her hair, and the outer robe she was clutching fell again. It was quite a spectacle.
Qin Mu looked at her and saw her plump chest almost spilling out of her clothes. The young man hesitated, unsure whether to warn her verbally or step forward to help tuck them back in.
Jianqi and Qinqi exchanged glances, stepped forward, and helped the princess back into the room to get dressed and made up.
Ling Yuxiu's cheeks flushed red. Gathering her courage, she whispered, "Could I be pregnant?"
The two maids widened their eyes in surprise. "Why would you say that, Princess?"
"I heard people in the palace say that if a man and woman sleep together, the woman will get pregnant."
Ling Yuxiu said earnestly, "We slept together for almost a whole day and night. Maybe I'm already pregnant."
Jianqi laughed out loud. "Princess, you've got it wrong. It doesn't work like that. Oh, I can't explain it properly. The Young Master is a divine doctor—he certainly has methods for contraception."
Ling Yuxiu widened her eyes. "Is that possible?"
"Of course! I've heard that some noble ladies don't want to give birth, so they have apothecaries prepare medicine, and they won't get pregnant."
...
Qin Mu sent the three women off and noticed that the yellow pear tree's blossoms had fully opened, covering the branches with flowers.
"Spring has finally arrived," he thought. "Once the first season of crops ripens, this year of calamity will be considered over."
He freshened up. Alone at home with only the Dragon Qilin for company and no intention of cooking, he decided to go down the mountain to eat. Just as he stepped out of the courtyard, he saw Chancellor Bashan walking over, robes draped over his shoulders, shouting in his booming voice, "I just saw the Princess and two palace maids coming down the mountain with lanterns. Did they come from your room?"
"That's nonsense, Senior Brother. Don't speak blindly."
Qin Mu replied without batting an eye. "Senior Brother, are you here about Ban Gongcuo? Have you had breakfast?"
Chancellor Bashan had always been loud—no less so than the Duke of Wei. If he found out that Ling Yuxiu and the two maids had spent the night in Qin Mu's room, the whole capital would know.
For Qin Mu, emotions were proper and restraint was observed—he hadn't done anything improper. But in worldly terms, it was no small matter. Sleeping with the princess, if word got out, would cost him his head. Better to keep it secret.
"I just ate at the foot of the mountain. I know you've just come back from the imperial palace. After all this time, you must be hungry, so I brought you some food."
Chancellor Bashan took out several oil-paper packages and handed them to Qin Mu, who quickly thanked him. Opening the packages, he found a steamer of buns, another with meat from some unknown exotic beast boiled in water, served with red bean paste mixed with shredded scallions, and yet another with pickled vegetables.
Qin Mu invited him inside to eat.
Watching Qin Mu wolf down the food, Chancellor Bashan sighed, "The emperor is really stingy. He sends you to treat someone and doesn't even prepare any good food. By the way, Ban Gongcuo has broken through most of the Six Harmonies Divine Treasury wall."
"That fast?"
Qin Mu looked up in surprise.
Cultivating to the Six Harmonies Realm made one a Divine Abilities Practitioner. For anyone, each realm required meticulous polishing. Qin Mu breaking through the Five Stars Divine Treasury wall in two years was already considered very fast.
He had painstakingly cultivated in the Five Stars Realm for nearly a year and was now at the edge of the Six Harmonies Realm, but when he would succeed in breaking through the Six Harmonies wall was still unknown.
The last time they encountered Ban Gongcuo, he was just a novice in the Spirit Embryo Realm. Now, in just half a year, Ban Gongcuo's cultivation had surpassed Qin Mu's, becoming a Divine Abilities Practitioner in the Six Harmonies Realm!
This was absolutely not normal cultivation speed—it could be called godlike!
"There's something odd about this kid."
Chancellor Bashan picked up a pickled vegetable and popped it into his mouth. "The Imperial Academy's Six Harmonies Hall is where they teach breaking through the Six Harmonies wall. Students who have perfected the Five Stars Realm all go there to listen. Shen Wanyun, Yue Qinghong, Qin Yu, Yun Que, Fatty Wei, and some other young masters all went, and this Ban Gongcuo is there too. The Hall's Master Hongfa says his progress is incredibly fast—he needs no guidance. Three days ago he had just perfected the Five Stars Realm, and now he's broken through most of the wall. In just two more days, he'll be a Six Harmonies Realm Divine Abilities Practitioner. By the way, what stage is your cultivation at?"
"I've basically perfected the Five Stars Realm."
Qin Mu took large bites of meat. "But I still have no clue about the Six Harmonies Realm."
Chancellor Bashan's eyes gleamed. "Then you should visit the Six Harmonies Hall. Master Hongfa specializes in teaching this. I want to see who's stronger—you or Ban Gongcuo."
Qin Mu didn't even look up. "I don't think that's necessary. I am the Overlord Body..."
"I know, I know. You're the Overlord Body, head held high, very impressive."
Chancellor Bashan laughed. "I had Wanyun test him. Wanyun lasted two moves before being defeated."
Qin Mu finally looked up in shock. "Two moves? Senior Brother, are you sure he only needed two moves to defeat Shen Wanyun?"
Chancellor Bashan nodded.
Qin Mu's expression turned grave. Shen Wanyun was indeed extraordinarily talented, a standout among his generation. His aptitude and comprehension were only slightly below the Buddhist Heart and the Buddha's Son, and his strength was also extremely high. When the Buddhist Heart had blocked the Imperial Academy's mountain gate, Shen Wanyun had gone to challenge him and held out for over a dozen moves before losing—showing his strength.
His foundation was solid, and after receiving guidance from Yankang's Imperial Preceptor, he had almost no weaknesses.
Since returning from the southern frontier, Qin Mu rarely saw him, only hearing that he spent most of his time in the Heavenly Records Tower, likely cultivating the deified state of the Five Stars Divine Treasury.
Even if Shen Wanyun's perfected deified state wasn't quite equal to the Buddhist Heart, it wasn't far off.
Defeating Shen Wanyun in just two moves—even Qin Mu himself found it hard to imagine accomplishing that, unless he used a powerful technique like Sword Treads Mountains and Rivers right from the start!
"Interesting."
Qin Mu finished eating, wiped his mouth, and smiled. "War Khan, you've been trying to convince me to go to the Six Harmonies Hall, to meet this Ban Gongcuo. What exactly are you planning?"
Chancellor Bashan replied leisurely, "I want you to probe his background. I suspect he's been possessed by a ghost. Besides, the Overlord Body shouldn't be afraid, right?"
"Possessed by a ghost?"
Qin Mu paused slightly, recalling that when heading to Loulan's Golden Palace, The Butcher had mentioned an old monster there who had reincarnated eighteen times and lived nineteen lives. He blurted out, "You mean..."
Chancellor Bashan nodded. "I suspect Ban Gongcuo is no longer Ban Gongcuo, but has been possessed by an incredibly terrifying old monster—one who has lived for ten thousand years. He's also Teacher Heavenly Blade's old enemy. Because of him, Master abandoned even his own name, not daring to use his true name."
Qin Mu nodded. Chancellor Bashan had once told him about this—The Butcher had never revealed his true name to anyone, not even Bashan, all because of that eighteen-times-reincarnated powerhouse in Loulan's Golden Palace!
That was a terrifying existence. Knowing an enemy's name allowed one to directly curse them.
"Shen Wanyun couldn't probe his background, so I want you to go to the Six Harmonies Hall and meet him."
Chancellor Bashan's eyes flashed. "Teacher Heavenly Blade's greatest enemy is him. If Ban Gongcuo is truly possessed by him, then killing Ban Gongcuo would eliminate a mortal enemy for Master. However, he is the son of the Khan of the Barbarian Di Kingdom after all. Without certain proof, I won't act rashly. So only you can probe his background."
Though rough in appearance, he was very sharp in mind.
Qin Mu stood up. "I was also planning to attempt breaking through the wall and rush into the Six Harmonies Realm. I'll go to the Six Harmonies Hall..."
He said sheepishly, "Senior Brother, which building is the Six Harmonies Hall?"
Chancellor Bashan nearly coughed up blood. "You've been at the Imperial Academy for almost a year, and you don't even know which building is the Six Harmonies Hall?"
Qin Mu said somewhat embarrassedly, "I've only attended one lecture since coming to the Academy."
"I'll take you there!"
Chancellor Bashan led him out of the Student Residence, and they walked side by side. Suddenly, Qin Mu remembered something. "Senior Brother, have you heard of the Celestial Savior Sect?"