59: The top of the mortal world

Xu Sanyan casually tossed the items aside, walked out of the secret chamber, closed the hidden door, and returned the way he came.

Passing by the Princess Consort's room, the groans from inside continued, but seemed more urgent. Based on his experience, he judged that she was likely close to death.

Xu Sanyan shook his head. The Princess Consort's life wasn't easy either; she was lonely, guarding an empty room every day.

Arriving at the back gate of the Prince's Estate, Yang Qiyuan hid in the corner with an uneasy expression. She only relaxed when she saw Xu Sanyan emerge safely, and quickly pulled his hand, asking, "Did you find it?"

Xu Sanyan nodded, picked her up by the waist, and gently pecked her on the forehead, "My injuries are no longer serious. Let's go."

"Mm." Yang Qiyuan felt a great weight lift from her heart and nestled against her husband's chest like a small bird.

The two returned home, and Xu Sanyan asked the question he had been holding in all the way, "Wife, you just said, birds..."

Yang Qiyuan lifted her eyelids and glanced at him, speaking in a voice as soft as a mosquito's buzz, "I was ugly from a young age, so no one wanted to play with me. Only flowers, birds, fish, and insects kept me company. When I was nine, I suddenly discovered that I seemed to understand the calls of the birds in the sky."

Xu Sanyan's brows furrowed slightly, his expression puzzled, "How do birds speak?"

Yang Qiyuan explained, "There are many types of birds in the sky, and their intelligence varies greatly. The smartest among them are the Red Cedar Birds. They can express different meanings based on the length and intensity of sounds. The secret chamber in Father's study was told to me by one of them."

Xu Sanyan suddenly understood. Prince Rui was only concerned with guarding against people, but he never expected that an ordinary bird on a tree outside the house would actually be a spy.

"And they must understand bird language. Red Cedar Birds have a long lifespan, living for over thirty years, so they are the most intelligent. However, they are very timid and do not easily get close to people."

Xu Sanyan pondered. His wife was truly extraordinary, able to communicate with birds. So he asked curiously, "Besides birds, can you communicate with other domestic animals like pigs, dogs, sheep, and horses?"

Yang Qiyuan silently shook her head, "No, only birds, and not all birds either."

"Who else knows about this... matter?" Xu Sanyan asked.

Yang Qiyuan looked heartbroken, "No one knows. I was afraid others would treat me like a monster."

If her husband hadn't asked, this matter would have been buried with her in the coffin.

Xu Sanyan nodded, then changed the subject, "You said, why didn't the Prince place the treasure in the inner treasury? Having someone guard it would at least be an extra layer of security."

Yang Qiyuan sighed, "You don't understand Father... He doesn't trust anyone, even me, a cripple. The maids by my side are all his people."

Prince Rui thought Yang Qiyuan didn't know, but she had actually known for a long time; she just didn't want to bother with it.

Xu Sanyan understood. Because those guarding the inner treasury were also people, Prince Rui was worried they would steal from it.

"You go to sleep first. I need to recuperate from my injuries alone." Xu Sanyan stroked her hair.

"Mm." Yang Qiyuan nodded obediently.

As the night deepened, Xu Sanyan sat cross-legged in a quiet room. He hadn't been injured at all, so he naturally didn't need to recuperate. Instead, he planned to achieve Heavenly Human Realm Perfection tonight!

After sitting quietly for a moment to calm his mind, he brought up his panel and saw the plus sign next to the "Realm" column. Xu Sanyan smiled contentedly.

"Come on, let me see your limit!"

"Breakthrough!"

With a thought, fifty-seven points of "Qi" instantly dissipated forty-two points, leaving only fifteen points.

Each Breakthrough in the Heavenly Human Realm increased by ten points.

In an instant, Xu Sanyan's mind was in a daze, his eyes showing a momentary blankness, and then a violent pain pulled him back to reality.

His Physical Body's bones shattered and then reformed in an instant, muscles bulged and then shriveled, large tendons protruded, and countless tiny blood vessels bulged on his skin, then gradually receded.

This Physical Body reshaping was even more intense than the last time.

After an unknown amount of time, Xu Sanyan slowly opened his eyes. His body had returned to normal, but there was a great mountain pressing on his heart, making him very uncomfortable.

He seemed to feel... the limitations of heaven and earth.

"Is this the limit of a Mortal?" Xu Sanyan muttered to himself.

Just one more step, and it would be the gap between Immortals and Mortals, and life would be completely different from then on.

Clenching his fists tightly, he felt that his own strength hadn't significantly increased, but a hazy feeling had appeared in his heart.

This feeling was indescribable, as if... he was looking at this world through a layer of gauze.

Real... yet illusory.

He wanted to tear off this layer of gauze, but he couldn't, no matter what.

Xu Sanyan knew that when he tore off this layer of gauze, it would be the day he achieved Foundation Establishment!

"Foundation Establishment..."

He eagerly wanted to know what kind of scenery lay beyond Foundation Establishment, and what the difference between an Immortal and a Mortal truly was!

He looked out the window; the sky was already bright. This Breakthrough had taken an entire night.

...

At the same time,

In the dungeon of the Eldest Young Master's estate, a naked woman lay on the ground, barely alive. Her blood-stained teeth were scattered everywhere, her face covered in blood, clearly on the verge of death.

The Eldest Young Master lifted the sole of his shoe and wiped it on the woman's face, then suddenly asked, "Has Old Gentleman An not returned yet?"

At this moment, a figure walked out from a dark corner of the dungeon, with an effeminate face and a sharp voice, "He has not returned. This subordinate sent people to investigate and only knows that Mister An indeed made a move last night, but the outcome is still unclear."

The Eldest Young Master snorted coldly, "I'm afraid that kid has indeed become powerful. Since Mister An hasn't returned, he must have failed."

If he had succeeded, Old Gentleman An would certainly have brought the body to claim his reward.

The effeminate man looked at the woman on the ground, feeling a bit regretful in his heart, and asked, "Should we continue to send people to assassinate him?"

The Eldest Young Master glanced at him sideways, "If even a Heavenly Human Realm Perfection couldn't kill him, who else should I send?"

The effeminate man said no more.

"How many soldiers are left in the city?" the Eldest Young Master asked.

"Only three thousand city guards remain. The rest of the troops have been transferred away by the Prince."

"Three thousand... that's enough."

The Eldest Young Master lowered his head in thought. Three thousand armored soldiers of the Refining Essence Realm, forming a military formation, would be enough to encircle and annihilate a Heavenly Human Realm Perfection Martial Artist.

The effeminate man tentatively asked, "Then should this subordinate go and mobilize the troops now?"

The Eldest Young Master shook his head, "No hurry. Wait until we hear from Third Brother. Xu Sanyan is merely a minor affliction, not a cause for concern. That old fellow is the key."

The effeminate man pursed his lips, his long-held doubt surfacing. He asked in a low voice, "Young Master, if the Prince dies on the front line, the morale of the army will surely collapse. If the imperial army takes advantage of the situation to attack, I'm afraid..."

The Eldest Young Master turned his head, his gaze sharp and fixed on him.

The effeminate man fell to his knees with a "thump," frantically kowtowing, "This subordinate spoke out of turn, this subordinate spoke out of turn..."

The Eldest Young Master withdrew his gaze, "Don't let it happen again."

He naturally knew that if Prince Rui died, chaos would certainly erupt, but he had no choice. If Prince Rui didn't die, it would be them who died.

Even a tiger would not devour its cubs, but Prince Rui...

He was more poisonous than a tiger!