Starting as a Grandmaster, all of my cultivation techniques are at max level.

After hearing Leng Yuexi's approval of Jiang Rouchen and Xia Jin's evaluation that "she is capable of great things and can share your burdens," Xia Yu's doubts vanished, and he instead developed a sense of anticipation for this Princess Fenglin whom he had never met before.

If what my elder brother and sister-in-law said is true, and this woman's talent is one in a hundred years, then I will definitely be able to integrate the entire Eastern Region within a year and make Great Xia the sole overlord of the Eastern Region.

……

Meanwhile, as Xia Jin and the others returned to the Great Xia Imperial Palace, thousands of miles away in the territory of Wuzhou City of the Great Qian Dynasty.

Guan Heng, without stopping, finally arrived in Wuzhou City.

Wuzhou City was a very famous city throughout the Great Qian Dynasty, mainly because it had many ancient temples that were very popular with worshippers.

Every year at this time, Consort Hua, the mother of the sixth prince of the Great Qian Dynasty, would make a special trip here to fast and worship Buddha at Zhaojue Temple in Wuzhou City for seven days.

Guan Heng wiped the sweat from his forehead, looked at Zhaojue Temple in the distance, and immediately breathed a sigh of relief.

"That Prince Jin only gave me ten days. If I don't arrive in the capital of Great Xia by then, I'm afraid my only fate will be death!"

The thought of the pill he had taken, and the unknown substance that Prince Jin had left inside his body, sent chills down his spine.

"We can't waste any more time; we must see Consort Hua as soon as possible!"

Guan Heng calmed himself down and strode towards Zhaojue Temple.

The Zhaojue Temple, which used to be bustling with people, has been quiet and deserted these past few days.

The reason is simple: with Consort Hua's arrival, her "Mysterious Shadow Guards" had already tightly controlled the area within ten miles around the temple, and no unauthorized personnel were allowed to approach.

Guan Heng lowered his straw hat and had just arrived at the foot of Zhaojue Temple when he was stopped by several figures emerging from the forest.

The leader, a tall and thin member of the Xuanying Guard, sized Guan Heng up and down before barking menacingly, "Halt! Don't you know Consort Hua is here in seclusion? Retreat now! Or you'll be killed without mercy!!"

"Chen Yan, it's me!!" Guan Heng said calmly, then raised his hand and took off the bamboo hat that covered his face.

"Huh!?" Chen Yan had just heard a familiar voice, and then, upon seeing Guan Heng's face clearly, his expression suddenly changed. He quickly bowed and clasped his hands in greeting: "So it's Captain Guan! I was blind and offended you!"

The surrounding Shadow Guards had also recognized the newcomers and quickly followed suit, bowing and saying, "Greetings, Commandant Guan!"

They dared not offend Guan Heng, after all, this guy not only held a higher official rank than them, but was also a favorite of the Sixth Prince.

"Alright! I don't have time for pleasantries with you all." Guan Heng glanced at the group and quickly asked, "Where is Consort Hua now?"

Chen Yan was taken aback at first, then said, "At this moment, Consort Hua is chanting scriptures in the 'Pure Karma Hall'."

"The Pure Karma Hall?" Guan Heng nodded and took a step to walk inside.

"Captain Guan! Wait!" Chen Yan seemed to have thought of something and hurriedly stepped to the side, blocking Guan Heng's way.

He looked troubled and lowered his voice to remind her, "Captain Guan... have you forgotten the rules? When Consort Hua is worshipping Buddha, she never sees anyone. If she is disturbed, she may be punished..."

"Nonsense, do you think I don't know this?" Guan Heng narrowed his eyes, staring intently at the other person. "I saw Consort Hua with something extremely urgent to report: the Sixth Prince is in trouble!"

"What? The Sixth Prince is in trouble?" Upon hearing this, Chen Yan immediately jumped to his feet and made way for him. "Then, Captain Guan, hurry! If we're late, all of us brothers will be punished."

"Hmph!" Guan Heng snorted coldly and walked along the towering stone steps for an unknown amount of time before arriving at the Jingye Hall.

The temple door was ajar, and the sound of a wooden fish being struck could be heard.

Guan Heng gently pushed open the temple door and saw the back of a woman kneeling on a prayer mat in the center of the Buddhist hall.

Although she was dressed in a gray-white monk's robe, the loose fabric still revealed her unusually plump figure.

Guan Heng's Adam's apple bobbed involuntarily. He immediately lowered his gaze, took a deep breath, and strode forward, kneeling respectfully a few steps behind the woman. He bowed and said, "Your Highness Consort Hua, your subject Guan Heng has urgent business to discuss!"

The sound of the wooden fish abruptly stopped.

The hall fell silent instantly.

A few breaths later, the woman slowly stood up and turned around. Her wide monk's robe swayed with the movement, revealing her stunning figure even more.

This person was none other than the sixth prince's mother, Consort Hua of the Great Qian Dynasty.

She looked to be only in her early thirties, but her almond-shaped eyes added a touch of allure to her dignified demeanor.

"As I have said, when I worship Buddha, I do not see anyone. Guan Heng, if you do not have a satisfactory explanation for me, then go and receive your punishment."

Guan Heng quickly looked up, and when he saw the face of the person in front of him, his heart fluttered once again.

But this wasn't his first time meeting Consort Hua, so he forced himself to remain calm and said urgently, "Your Majesty, it's the Sixth Prince...something has happened to the Sixth Prince!"

Consort Hua's phoenix eyes suddenly narrowed, but her expression remained largely unchanged: "Speak, what happened?"

Guan Heng dared not delay and hurriedly said, "The Sixth Prince and Lord Yun went to the Xuan Yin Sect in the Eastern Region, intending to devour the cultivation of all the sect's members. Unexpectedly... a mysterious man suddenly appeared and joined forces with the Xuan Yin Sect's leader, Leng Yuexi. The Sixth Prince and Lord Yun... fought valiantly but were no match for him and were unfortunately..."

"waste!"

Consort Hua suddenly let out a cold laugh, directly interrupting Guan Heng from continuing to speak.

Guan Heng was somewhat taken aback. Before he could react, Consort Hua suddenly called him a good-for-nothing.

Just as he was about to look up, he saw that Consort Hua's jade hand had somehow landed on his head.

There was only a muffled "thud," and his head burst open like a ripe fruit.

Guan Heng's body stiffened abruptly, his eyes bulged out instantly, he lost all breath, and his body fell straight to the ground.

Even in death, he never understood why Consort Hua suddenly wanted to kill him.

Right after Guan Heng died, a figure emerged from behind the Buddha statue.

Upon closer inspection, one would find that this person's face bears a striking resemblance to Consort Hua, with seven or eight points of similarity.

She frowned slightly as she looked at Guan Heng's rapidly cooling corpse on the ground: "Sister! Why didn't you wait for him to finish speaking before killing him?"

Consort Hua slowly withdrew her hand, glanced at her younger sister, her phoenix eyes showing no emotion.

"Does it matter? That good-for-nothing... is dead. We can just find a new spokesperson."

"Sister! Although the sixth prince isn't your biological son, we've still put a lot of effort into him over the years. If he dies like this, wouldn't all that we've done be for nothing..."

"A waste of time?" Consort Hua looked at the Buddha statue in front of her, a cold glint in her eyes. "Do you really think that useless person's resources and influence are actually controlled by the so-called Sixth Prince, or by me?"

"Besides, no matter how much that good-for-nothing tries, the throne of the Great Qian Dynasty will never be his! Since that's the case, he's dead, so be it!"

After hearing Consort Hua's words, the figure opposite fell silent.

After a few breaths, she slowly spoke: "Sister, who is the next spokesperson you've chosen?"

Consort Hua turned around, looked at her younger sister, and couldn't help but smile slightly. "I think... that Third Prince is quite a good candidate."

"The Third Prince? His maternal family is weak, and he doesn't seem to be favored by His Majesty in court..."

"That's exactly right." Consort Hua slowly peeled off the human skin mask from her face, a hint of coldness flashing in her phoenix eyes. "When one is weak, one needs external support even more. When one is not favored, one craves it even more and is even easier to control."

"Remember this: burn Zhaojue Temple down, and kill all the Xuanying Guards you brought with you!"

"It's time for my status as Consort Hua... to change!"