Princess Zhenguo

Gu Qingxuan was startled, but remained expressionless.

He'd spent long hours holed up at home playing games, rarely showing any emotion; he'd long since developed a poker face. His mind raced, and he sneered, "Since you know so much about my escape… you should know better than I do whether there's any treasure involved!"

【Shan Hai Xuan Jian】is not a physical entity, so what's there to be afraid of?

That's not wrong.

The Zhenfu Division's elite cavalry were omnipresent, and Wu Dingbang and Shen Xiaoxiao had indeed uncovered most of the process—the Dragon-Elephant Body clearly originated from that maid named Qingluo.

She was wearing a hairpin when she delivered the food, and that hairpin was a rare treasure, but it was empty when she returned.

The reason is self-evident.

But this doesn't explain why Gu Qingxuan could see the treasure hidden in the hairpin.

During this period, no new extraterrestrial treasures fell into the Marquis's residence, and the Astronomical Observatory showed no unusual activity.

Gu Qingxuan must have obtained some kind of method to transform himself overnight and gain such discerning eyes. Most likely, he obtained some special and powerful treasure.

But with his tattered clothes, even if he had treasures, he couldn't hide them.

Could it be some kind of invisible treasure?

Why didn't the Astronomical Observatory react?

Seeing that he showed no signs of anything amiss, Shen Xiaoxiao became even more curious.

Wu Dingbang had no intention of delving deeper and said directly to Shen Xiaoxiao, "Take that thing out and let him see it."

Shen Xiaoxiao nodded and took out a piece of silk from her bosom.

The silk was much thicker than ordinary silk, and its surface had a faint silver-gray sheen, as if some kind of metal thread was woven in.

The strangest thing is that this piece of material, which is only a few inches in size, is densely covered with runes the size of rice grains.

Leaving traces without revealing words is precisely the characteristic of sealing the inheritance from the upper realm and preventing the core techniques from being leaked.

To see the words, you must know how to break the seal.

Over the past two years, Shen Xiaoxiao has tried every means possible, including soaking in oil, water, fire, infusing with true qi, studying runes, and tracing the origins of the cloth. Although she has made some progress, the cloth has remained unmoved.

At this moment, she handed the silk to Gu Qingxuan, stepped aside, crossed her arms, and raised her chin slightly, waiting to see him make a fool of himself: As a descendant of the Duanwen Pavilion, I am familiar with all kinds of textual materials from the Upper Realm. I spent two years trying to decipher something, and you, a self-taught amateur, can do it? I don't believe it at all!

Gu Qingxuan took the silk and glanced at it only once.

Within his sea of ​​consciousness, the mirror of the "Mysterious Mirror of Mountains and Seas" flashed, and words appeared on its surface.

【Title: The Heavenly Secrets Left Behind】

Category: Cultivation Techniques

[Quality: Treasure]

[Note: This is a silk scroll containing a secret cultivation technique passed down by the Heavenly Mystery Palace, a major sect of the Upper Realm Demonic Cult. It is sealed with the "Water Moon Seal" talisman. Hidden within the scroll is the Heavenly Mystery Palace's ultimate movement technique, "Shifting Stars and Changing Constellations." When used, it can create several indistinguishable clones, while the true body moves among them, dazzling the enemy and allowing the user to move swiftly and silently. Unsealing method: Soak the scroll in clean water and expose it to direct moonlight. The seal will break, and the technique will reveal itself.]

After reading it, Gu Qingxuan understood and looked up at Shen Xiaoxiao, saying, "Go and fetch a basin of water."

"..."

Shen Xiaoxiao was stunned for a moment, then subconsciously narrowed her eyes, about to explode in anger: Who do you think you're ordering around?!

She became Lu Zangfeng's apprentice at a young age, entered the Zhenfu Division at fifteen, was promoted to centurion at sixteen, and to commander of a thousand at eighteen. She was always the one who ordered others around!

It wouldn't be bad if he were polite, but this guy's tone made him sound like he was a servant!

She cursed inwardly—Fine, I'll do the work. If you can't figure out what's going on, see how I deal with you!

She gritted her teeth, forced a dangerous smile, turned and left, her steps heavier than usual.

Gu Qingxuan didn't take her attitude seriously.

I bowed to you, and you didn't even return the greeting, but instead you looked down on me. Did I owe you something?

Wu Dingbang watched from the sidelines with a cold eye, and seeing his confident demeanor, he was secretly amazed.

He had seen too many appraisers who were only half-baked and made a big show of it, while those with real skills took it all for granted.

This kid doesn't even glance at me. Either he's out of his mind, or he's incredibly capable.

Not long after.

Shen Xiaoxiao carried in a basin of water and placed it heavily on the blue brick floor beside Gu Qingxuan's feet. A few drops of water splashed out and wet the tips of his boots.

She straightened up, crossed her arms over her chest, and raised her chin even higher.

Gu Qingxuan was too lazy to argue with her. He walked to the window, pushed it open, and the two wooden windows creaked open. Moonlight poured in, illuminating the duty room floor with a silvery glow, and the clear water in the basin shimmered.

He casually tossed the piece of silk into the basin.

The moment the silk entered the water, under the moonlight, a faint silver ripple appeared on the surface.

The densely packed runes on it suddenly came to life and began to move, each stroke like a star, rearranging itself along a predetermined trajectory!

In the blink of an eye, all the runes were back in place.

A very thin silver light shone from the center of the silk, and the runes on it disappeared completely, replaced by lines of small, elegant characters.

The handwriting gleamed faintly silver in the moonlight, as if it were cast onto the cloth with molten silver.

The first four large characters of the book read: "Shifting Stars and Changing Constellations"!

Wu Dingbang suddenly stood up from the armchair.

He was not good at appraising treasures, but he could read. His name, "Shifting Stars and Changing Constellations," was incredibly famous. It was one of the seven great skills of the Heavenly Mystery Palace, the leader of the demonic path in the upper realm. The demonic sect had a bad reputation, but it was unconventional, extremely powerful, and progressed very quickly!

The artifacts of the Demonic Sect always unleash a bloodbath whenever they appear in the world!

Shen Xiaoxiao was shocked and her head, which was tilted back, froze.

She stared blankly, her hands unconsciously clenching, trembling slightly.

"How is this possible?"

She wasn't unfamiliar with unsealing talismans; her master had done it countless times. But each time, he would burn incense, wash his hands, consult ancient texts, and repeatedly deduce the method. First, he would observe the shape of the talisman to determine its school, then identify the patterns to determine its sect, and finally, he would use the sect's usual methods to deduce the unsealing method step by step.

The person in front of me only glanced at me.

At a glance!

Shen Xiaoxiao squatted down in disbelief, leaned close to the basin, stared intently at the words in the water, carefully confirming them, then looked up at Gu Qingxuan and couldn't help but ask, "How... how did you do that?!"

Gu Qingxuan glanced at her: "Isn't it enough that you have eyes?"

Shen Xiaoxiao: "..."

She suddenly felt a little lost.

Just like the famous saying "Originally there is nothing," Shenxiu studied under the Fifth Patriarch Hongren, and spent decades in arduous study, only to finally glimpse the path after half a lifetime of hardship. Yet, there are others like the Sixth Patriarch Huineng, who, without any learning or practice, are born standing at the pinnacle of Buddhism...

All the pride Shen Xiaoxiao had accumulated over the past ten years was shattered by that one glance.

She couldn't help but doubt life, doubt the Broken Literature Pavilion, and doubt all the knowledge she had acquired...

Wu Dingbang didn't have so many thoughts on that. He picked up the silk and examined it closely, then exclaimed with delight, "Well done! It really is the 'Shifting Stars and Changing Constellations' technique from the Heavenly Mystery Palace! Deciphering this technique is a great achievement in itself! Even if things don't go as planned, Her Highness the Princess should still be willing to help."

Gu Qingxuan was still busy memorizing the contents of his book when he heard this and was taken aback: "Princess?"

Wu Dingbang laughed and said, "Didn't you want to know who could handle this matter and keep the Marquis of Dingyuan in check? Don't you understand when you see the words 'Tianji Palace'?"

Gu Qingxuan suddenly realized.

Tianji Palace is a demonic sect in the upper realm, with powerful and sinister techniques that harbor hidden dangers.

Looking across the entire Eastern Capital, there is only one person who dares to defy the world and openly cultivate this school's techniques. Not only has he not attracted any criticism, but he is also highly respected.

That is the Grand Princess who, amidst the sudden death of the late emperor, the struggle for the throne among the princes, and the turmoil in the court, used an iron fist to integrate the inner guards, establish the Phoenix Pavilion, and, with the help of a hundred birds, support the current emperor's ascension to the throne.

Princess Zhaohua, Jiang Nihuang!