209: The apprentices' storm

The heavy bright yellow dragon robe, like molten gold, lay in a messy heap between the wide desk and the chair.

"Mmph..."

A muffled groan, suppressed to the extreme, escaped from Cold Moon's throat.

"Mas...ter..."

Her proud and cold eyes lost focus at this moment.

She was the Empress of Southern Yu, a powerhouse of the Mahayana Stage; her Physical Body, reshaped by Immortal Qi, had long since become indestructible.

Yet she remained as fragile as a Mortal girl who had never seen the world.

Her voice carried a sob.

Su Lin's entire body was stiff.

Within him, the [Myriad Heavens Star Chart] circulated frantically, attempting to calm the spiritual energy that had gone berserk due to the intersection of Yin and Yang.

But he couldn't move; the chains formed by the nine golden Dragons not only bound his limbs but acted like a catalyst, stimulating the Yang Qi in his body several times over.

"Cold Moon... let go..." Su Lin gritted his teeth, veins bulging on his forehead.

"No... I won't..."

Cold Moon gasped, instead hugging Su Lin even tighter.

She buried her face in the crook of Su Lin's neck, scalding tears dripping onto his collarbone.

"This is... my choice..."

"Even if it hurts to death... I will endure it..."

With this movement, both of them inhaled sharply.

It was like two pieces of unpolished jade, sparks flying from forced friction.

But as the initial sharp pain receded...

This was the complementarity of the Great Dao.

The Immortal Qi inside Cold Moon began to boil.

"Revered Master... Revered Master..."

Her voice gradually changed pitch... Who knows how much time passed.

The storm within the Imperial Study temporarily subsided.

Cold Moon lay limp on the dragon throne.

She gasped for air, her eyes vacant, looking as if she had just been fished out of the water.

Su Lin leaned against the back of the chair, his expression complex.

The restraints within him loosened slightly, but he did not leave.

Things had come to this; any more pretension would be futile.

He looked at his Eldest Disciple in his arms, who still held onto him tightly even though she was exhausted, and a wave of helpless pity welled up in his heart.

"Satisfied now?"

He reached out and wiped the tear stains from the corners of her eyes.

Cold Moon slowly opened her eyes.

Those golden eyes of hers seemed as if they could suck in one's very soul at this moment.

She looked at Su Lin, a satisfied smile curling her lips, like a cat that had successfully stolen a treat.

"Satisfied...?"

She murmured softly, her voice husky and sensual.

"No... not enough."

Su Lin was stunned. "What isn't enough?"

Cold Moon did not answer.

She propped up her sore body and actually turned around slowly, her back to Su Lin.

She knelt on the wide dragon throne, hands grasping the dragon-head carvings on the backrest, revealing her breathtaking back curves to Su Lin without reservation.

Her waterfall of black hair slid to one side, exposing her smooth, jade-like back, and at the very bottom were two rounded, perky curves like a full moon.

From the intensity just now, they had been tinged with a faint pink, looking exceptionally alluring.

"Cold Moon, what else are you going to do?"

Su Lin frowned, instinctively sensing a hint of danger.

Cold Moon did not look back.

Her voice came from ahead, carrying a trembling, almost pleading desire.

"Revered Master..."

"Just now... you only occupied Southern Yu's front hall."

Cold Moon lowered her waist slightly.

"Here..."

"Revered Master... here... also wants your mark."

"Revered Master..."

"I want to offer everything I have to you."

"You cannot leave."

Cold Moon's voice suddenly turned cold.

*Crack!*

The golden chains that had loosened slightly tightened again, fixing Su Lin firmly in place.

And this time, the position of the chains was even more tricky.

"I told you."

"This is my palace."

"There is nothing I want... that I cannot get."

Cold Moon bit her lip, a flash of ruthlessness in her eyes.

She reached out and felt for a small jade bottle among the scattered clothes nearby.

"Since Revered Master is unwilling to act..."

"Then I... will open the door for Revered Master myself."

Cold Moon's whole body trembled; it was an instinctive rejection and fear.

"Do you see... Revered Master...?"

"This is... my sincerity..."

"From now on, you must come often."

The golden chains rattled.

It was the fall of the Empress.

And the sacrifice of the disciple.

The air in the Imperial Study was heavy, so thick it seemed it could drip water.

On the wide dragon throne, the bright yellow cushions were already crumpled into a mess, silently recounting last night's absurd and intense 'war.'

Dawn light filtered through the carved window lattices, spilling onto the memorials scattered across the floor.

Although the Star Power within him had been greatly replenished during last night's Dual Cultivation,

And even because of the feedback from Cold Moon's Imperial Dao Dragon Qi, his Realm had completely stabilized at the Peak of the Body Integration Stage Great Perfection, just one step away from returning to Mahayana.

But this physical exhaustion was very real.

"Revered Master..."

A white, jade-like arm reached out from behind, like a lazy white snake wrapping around his waist.

She lay on her side in the shadow of the dragon throne, her long hair spread over her body, covering most of her skin while making the exposed parts seem even more dazzling.

At this moment, where was there even a hint of the Empress's majesty?

She rubbed against Su Lin's back, her voice husky and lazy, with a thick nasal tone.

"Stay with me... and sleep a while longer."

"Sleep? What sleep!"

Su Lin irritably slapped her hand away and picked up the starlight dharma robe from the floor, which had already been reduced to rags, trying to cover his body.

"If we sleep any longer, your Junior Sisters are going to tear this palace apart!"

"Let them tear it down then."

Cold Moon rolled over indifferently, lying on her back.

She reached out and tapped lightly in the Void Realm.

A water mirror appeared out of thin air.

What was shown in the mirror was the scene outside the Imperial Study.

Outside the main hall, five figures stood like five door gods, staring intently at the tightly closed palace doors.

Su Hongling was holding her great sword, prying out the gold bricks from the floor one by one and crushing them to vent her anger.

Luo Ximei was surrounded by surging Devilish Qi, feeding the fierce ghosts in the myriad soul banner, her eyes as cold as if she wanted to eat someone.

Chu Weiwei squatted on the ground, holding a small shovel, poisoning the precious peonies in the Imperial Garden.

Ye You was clinging to a pillar, her nails clawing deep grooves into the phoebe zhennan wood while she muttered 'so hungry' and 'want to eat.'

Mu Qingxue stood at the very front; the surrounding air had already frozen into ice shards. She held an Ice Lotus in her hand, which exploded every breath and then re-condensed.

"Tsk tsk."

Cold Moon looked at the water mirror and let out a soft sneer.

"Truly a pack of... impatient wild dogs."

She sat up, stepping barefoot on the memorials, walked behind Su Lin, wrapped her arms around his neck, and pressed her whole body against him.

"Revered Master, look."

"They all want to snatch you away."

"Only I... only I am the one who loves you most."

It was a humility that completely crushed her self-esteem just to please him and keep him.

"Enough."

Su Lin sighed, took out a set of brand-new green robes from his storage ring and put them on, then tossed her a spare set of clothes.

"Put your clothes on first."

"As an Empress, show some decorum."

Cold Moon obediently took the clothes but was in no hurry to dress. Instead, she slowly put them on piece by piece in front of Su Lin, every movement filled with temptation.

"Revered Master, that golden Dragon mark..."

She pointed to the faintly visible golden Dragon below Su Lin's collar.

"You must never let them erase it."

"As long as it's there, your scent will always belong to me."

Su Lin's hand paused as he tied his belt, and he shook his head helplessly.

"Let's go."

"It's time to face the storm."

...*Creak.*

The heavy palace doors slowly opened.

The morning sun shone on Su Lin, but it couldn't dispel the Killing Intent outside that had condensed into substance.

Five pairs of eyes, ten gazes, instantly focused on him.

Immediately after, they all shifted in unison to Cold Moon, who was following behind him.

Cold Moon had now changed into a brand-new purple-gold Phoenix robe, her long hair pinned high, returning to her image as the majestic Empress of the world.

Only her walking posture... was slightly unnatural.

Moreover, the lingering flush between her brows and the few red strawberries on her neck that she deliberately didn't cover were all silently announcing how intense last night's battle had been.

"Eldest Senior Sister."

Su Hongling was the first to jump out, her great sword hitting the ground with a 'boom.'

"Why are you limping a bit?"

She pointed at Cold Moon's legs, her loud voice shaking dust off the roof.

"Did the Old Man break your leg last night?! I knew it! How could the Old Man ever be interested in an old woman like you! You must have tried to force him and got beaten instead!"

Cold Moon: "..."

She elegantly adjusted her hair bun, glanced at Su Hongling, and a mocking smile curled her lips.

"Second Junior Sister, you are still so... adorably naive."

"It wasn't broken."

"I'm just... overfilled."

"Pfft—!!"

Chu Weiwei, who was drinking water, spat it out.

Luo Ximei's face instantly turned black as a pot's bottom.

The Ice Lotus in Mu Qingxue's hand was crushed directly into powder.

The air suddenly became terrifyingly quiet, with only the wind chimes on the distant palace eaves making a crisp sound.

"Shameless!!"

Su Hongling finally realized what she meant and turned red with rage, her crimson pupils seemingly spitting fire.

She slammed her great sword heavily into the ground, cracking the floor.

"Eldest Senior Sister, stop acting like a victim after getting the benefits! What do you mean by 'overfilled'? I think your body is just too fragile to handle Revered Master's 'instruction'!"

Su Hongling puffed out her chest, her explosive muscle lines shining in the sun.

She pointed a thumb at herself, her tone full of the pride of a Body Cultivator at the Mahayana Stage.

"If it were me, hmph! My [Great Vajra Body-Locking Art] has long since reached the Transcendent level, and I can control every muscle in my body with ease."

"Vulgar."

Luo Ximei sneered, her folding fan snapping shut with a 'clack.' Her heterochromatic eyes swirled with a strange light, her tone contemptuous.

"Second Senior Sister, this kind of thing is about 'rhythm' and 'Concept'; it's not blacksmithing. What's the use of just having strength?"

She stepped forward with a cat-like stride, her waist swaying like a boneless serpent.

"My [Heavenly Demon Dance] has long reached Major Achievement, and I understand depth."

"Oh no, I mean the mysteries of the nine-turn intestines."

"I can transform into water, into mist, permeating everything, enveloping every inch of Revered Master's Divine Soul."

"The taste of that soul-blending, that ecstatic entanglement—how could a muscle-head like you who only knows brute force understand?"

"Huh? Who are you calling a muscle-head?!" Su Hongling was furious.

"All of you, shut up."

Chu Weiwei wiped the tea stains from the corner of her mouth and slowly pulled out an extremely thin silver needle from her sleeve, waving it in the sun.

"Do you understand what 'precision strike' means?"

A sickly sweet smile hung on her face, but her eyes were fixed directly on Su Lin's waist and abdomen.

"Weiwei is proficient in the seven hundred and twenty Acupoints of the human body,"

"And I know where the sensitive points are that even an Immortal cannot control."

"As long as Weiwei applies needles... or uses special 'finger techniques,' I can keep that flame burning,"

"Unable to stop even if one wanted to, and I can even amplify that pleasure a thousand times, ten thousand times..."

"And..." she licked her lips, "Weiwei can also formulate medicine that turns pain into pleasure; Revered Master will surely love it."

Mu Qingxue, who had been silent, now had the surrounding air beginning to condense into tiny ice crystals.

She didn't look at anyone, just gazed indifferently into the Void Realm, her voice as cold as a wintry spring.

"A heaven of ice and fire."

Just five words, yet they made everyone present shudder involuntarily.

"I can control the temperature," Mu Qingxue continued.

"I can too!"

Ye You poked her head out, unwilling to be outdone.

She waved the dark green vines faintly appearing behind her, looking excited.

"I can wrap Revered Master up from all angles without any blind spots, and I have many barbs inside me..." "ENOUGH!!!"

Su Lin finally lost his patience.

He felt the veins on his temples throbbing and his blood pressure skyrocketing.

Is this a discussion about cultivation? This is clearly driving a car in public! And the wheels are about to roll over his face!

The surrounding imperial guards and maids, who were originally kneeling on the ground, now wished they could bury their heads in the earth, yet their ears were pricked up longer than a rabbit's, for fear of missing even a single word of imperial scandal.

"All of you, shut your mouths!"

Su Lin stepped forward, blocking their view, his face as black as a pot's bottom.

"This is the palace! In broad daylight, discussing these... these shameless topics, where is your decorum?!"

"Is this how I usually teach you?!"

"Revered Master..."

The five of them shrank their necks after being shouted at, but their eyes were still clashing fiercely in the air, clearly none of them yielding to the others.

"All of you, go and Cultivate!!! Cultivate!!"

"I am going to prepare for my Breakthrough into the Mahayana Stage!"

"Every one of you is a Prodigy; my Breakthrough might not even be as smooth as yours!"

"And you! Those of you who have already reached the Mahayana Stage, go and prepare together."

"Who knows when the Lightning Tribulation of the Tribulation Transcendence Stage will strike."

"Can you even survive it?"

"And you still have the heart to argue here!"

"I don't even know how dangerous my next Lightning Tribulation will be."

"When the time comes, I might even have to rely on you to pull through!"