371: The Empress's perverse sense of humor

The spiritual spring of Wei Ran Residence was steaming, warm mist filling the entire room, and the faint spiritual fragrance made one feel completely relaxed.

Shang Wan Ning leaned lazily on a chaise longue, an ice silk facial mask covering her face.

The cool sensation against her skin washed away all the fatigue from days of reviewing memorials.

A maid knelt by the couch, one carefully picking out snow lotus fruit from a glass bowl with a jade skewer; the other held a green jade plate, offering small pieces of the fruit to the Empress's lips.

Shang Wan Ning kept her eyes closed and simply opened her mouth to eat.

The sweet fruit fragrance melted on the tip of her tongue, so refreshing that she couldn't help but squint her eyes.

In the System Space, Xiao Si's light screen was flashing like crazy, filled with fangirl-like complaints:

[The hand of the maid on the left is just too beautiful! So slender and white, I really want to 'rua' it!]

[Wuwuwu, great host is so biased, eating delicious things all by yourself without giving the system even a single bite.]

(ˉ﹃ˉ) Drool is almost flowing into a river.

The Secretary-General had just come out of the hot spring, water droplets trickling down her back and splashing onto the floor.

She took out a bathrobe from her storage ring and put it on, her fingertip flicking lightly as she tied the belt.

The maids tactfully bowed their heads and retreated, the palace door closing tightly with a "click."

Ling Qi walked to the side of the couch, gathering gentle spiritual power in her palms and pressing them onto Her Majesty's shoulders and neck.

She began to massage with just the right amount of pressure, hitting the sore acupoints perfectly.

"A Ning!"

"Hmm?"

Shang Wan Ning enjoyed it with her eyes closed, her voice sounding lazy.

"There's good news, and there's bad news. Which one do you want to hear first?" Ling Qi's voice was still slightly husky from the hot spring, sounding a bit ticklish.

Shang Wan Ning: "Bad news first. Keep the good news for dinner."

"The Magistrate sent word that the Abyss Church's layout in Barbatos has been discovered by Sabrina..."

Ling Qi's massaging hands paused for a moment, clearly feeling the person beneath her stiffen for half a second.

With the mask still on her face, Shang Wan Ning's expression was hidden, only a hum of "Oh?" escaping her throat.

"And the good news?"

"The mother of flesh and blood has mistaken Your Majesty for an Evil God and invited you to cooperate to deal with Avila and Astrea together."

"The reward is... carving up the Ativi Continent."

"Heh," Shang Wan Ning chuckled softly, raising her hand to peel off the now-useless mask and tossing it casually into a nearby crystal basin.

Her phoenix eyes tilted slightly, but there was no hint of a smile in them.

"That really is a generous gift."

"Pity my appetite is small; I can't swallow it in one gulp. Even if I want to chew slowly, I have to see if others will give me the time."

Ling Qi resumed her pressure, slowly moving down her spine. "Does Your Majesty mean... to refuse?"

"No."

Shang Wan Ning suddenly propped herself up and turned to look at Ling Qi, a trace of wicked interest flashing in her eyes. "AQi, what do you think about... inviting the Elf Goddess to hold a concert in the Netherworld, how about that?"

Ling Qi's massage stopped completely, her fox-like eyes behind the gold-rimmed glasses narrowing slightly. "Your Majesty just said your appetite was small. After all this time, you still haven't given up on your designs for the Elf Goddess."

"No, no, no," Shang Wan Ning waved her hands repeatedly, saying solemnly, "I'm purely being kind-hearted. Doesn't Lia believe in the Elf Goddess?"

"Wouldn't it be nice to let her see her own deity? Just think of it as an onboarding gift pack for the 'new' employee."

Ling Qi: "..."

[This excuse is so bad that even the stones under the Bridge of Helplessness would roll their eyes.]

"If Your Majesty wants the Elf Goddess, I'm afraid Sabrina won't agree."

Shang Wan Ning lay back down, her tone casual yet laced with chilling killing intent. "Then invite her to her death."

She paused, her fingers unconsciously tapping the edge of the couch, her brow furrowing slightly. "But there's some trouble. If I take action, once the spiritual power fluctuations come out, Sabrina will be able to see through my identity immediately."

"Using Yin energy would be even more obvious in telling her who I am!"

"No, I have to find a way to cover it up."

Ling Qi pondered for a moment, her fox tail quietly emerging from under the hem of her bathrobe and lightly brushing against Shang Wan Ning's wrist.

"Perhaps Your Majesty doesn't need to take action personally. Since Sabrina thinks you are an Evil God, then let her continue to be mistaken."

"Her Excellency the Goddess of Desire would be a good candidate."

Shang Wan Ning's eyes flashed as she grabbed the mischievous fox tail and kneaded it in her palm. "Let Olexia play the part of the Evil God's true body?"

A glint of deep thought flickered in her eyes. "The authority of Desire, wandering between order and chaos, does indeed have some commonalities with the origins of those Evil Gods in the Ativi Continent who rely on faith and chaos to exist."

"If she plays the part, she'll look more like it than me, an orthodox Yin God."

Ling Qi pushed up the gold-rimmed glasses on the bridge of her nose, a sharp light flashing across the lenses. "How can an eighth-rank Evil God not have a few subordinate gods to keep up appearances?

"When the time comes, Your Majesty can meet them as a subordinate god, and Sabrina will find it only natural."

"Evil Gods are suspicious by nature; our guarding against her at every turn and keeping many backup plans will better fit the logic of an 'Evil God ally'."

"As for the concealment of Your Majesty's identity and power..." The Secretary-General's gaze turned toward the hot spring pool. "That will require the System to step in."

"Ding! Your caring little assistant is now online."

The light screen instantly exploded with colorful special effects, and Xiao Si's electronic voice sounded extremely sycophantic. "great host! The System Mall is having a limited-time special offer, with at least twenty percent off everything."

"Don't miss out as you pass by, buying is earning! If incense points aren't spent, they're just a bunch of numbers!"

A vein on Shang Wan Ning's forehead throbbed slightly.

"Cut the crap, just give me a recommendation."

"I need to be able to perfectly disguise myself as a seventh-rank Evil God's subordinate. The spiritual power fluctuations must be completely covered up, the kind that even a ninth-rank Ancient God cannot see through."

"Understood! Filtering the best options for you."

Data refreshed on the light screen like a waterfall, finally settling on four items.

robe of ten thousand sorrows

Price: 45 billion incense offerings

Taken from the depths of the Bottomless Abyss Rift, woven from the echoes of billions of resentful spirits at their moment of extinction. The robe comes with an 'Existence Distortion' field that can confuse perception and transform the wearer's spiritual power fluctuations into the purest Abyssal Filth.

Function: Perfectly simulates the energy characteristics of a seventh-rank Evil God's subordinate, continuously shielding the true nature of spiritual power from the investigation of ninth-rank and below existences.

System Review: Expensive but worth it! Wear it, and you'll be the most 'pure' Abyssal scum in Sabrina's eyes; even an Abyss Lord would have to show you some respect!

heaven-deceiving divine soul mask

Price: 38 billion incense offerings

Polished from the skull of a fallen deity, it contains a fragment of the 'Void' law. After wearing it, one can tamper with their own soul aura and simulate any divine fluctuation.

Function: Solidifies the soul characteristics of a seventh-rank Evil God's subordinate, granting immunity to most origin-tracing divine arts.

System Review: Soul-level disguise, Mom doesn't have to worry about me being seen through by old fossils anymore!