Starting with being handed over to the Imperial Concubine, building a family with a thousand-year hi

Xu Qian'er frowned, her heart filled with doubt.

It wasn't until evening that the Sixth Prince, Xiao Jingye, had had enough fun. He left the library with Xu Qian'er, his face full of smug smiles.

After dinner, Su Mu poured Cheng Ping'an a glass of water, in which a Soul Nourishing Pill had already dissolved.

Su Mu himself has been taking Soul Nourishing Pills to enhance his spiritual power. Cheng Ping'an has now broken through to the Innate Realm and also needs to enhance his soul power in preparation for breaking through to the Grandmaster Realm in the future.

After Cheng Ping'an drank the water in the cup, he quickly felt a strange energy surge into his sea of ​​consciousness. He felt a sharp pain in his head, but he gritted his teeth and persevered, without fainting. During this period, he had taken a lot of pills, and his soul power was much stronger than before, so he was able to withstand the effects of the Soul Nourishing Pill.

Two hours later, Cheng Ping'an was panting heavily, his whole body was soaked in sweat, his tender face showed some fatigue, but his eyes were brighter than before.

"Godfather..." Cheng Ping'an knelt before Su Mu, his face full of gratitude, "Thank you so much for the medicine! I feel my mental strength has increased considerably!"

"Get up." Su Mu waved his hand. "Once you arrive at the Martial Arts Academy, you must diligently cultivate and not slack off."

"I understand!" Cheng Ping'an nodded vigorously.

"You must remember that your achievements today are entirely due to your own talent and hard work, and have nothing to do with anyone else," Su Mu reminded him again. He didn't want Cheng Ping'an to lose his ambition because he relied on him, and he didn't want others to realize that Cheng Ping'an's rapid growth was related to him.

"Yes, Godfather!"

Cheng Ping'an stood up, went to his small courtyard, and carefully sensed the spiritual energy of heaven and earth around him to consolidate his newly broken-innate realm.

A day and a half passed in the blink of an eye.

That noon, Huang Yuan personally came to the library, spoke with Su Mu, and then took Cheng Ping'an away to report to the Martial Arts Bureau.

Su Mu was once again alone, managing the vast library all by himself.

Life became much quieter.

During the day, he would practice the Wind Shadow Step, Vajra Palm, and the newly acquired Thunderclap Fist in the courtyard, constantly familiarizing himself with the subtleties of these martial arts techniques. At night, he would return to his room, where he would cultivate the Imperial Body Technique to accumulate true qi while absorbing the power of the emperor to strengthen his dantian.

Such a life was peaceful and fulfilling, but it also had a drawback—after Cheng Ping'an left, he had to wash his own clothes, cook, clean the house, and do chores like drying books, which was much harder than before.

If Cheng Ping'an hadn't already been targeted by the powerful figures of the Martial Arts Bureau, Su Mu would definitely have kept this sensible adopted son and continued to nurture him.

However, Su Mu currently lacks the power and status to protect Cheng Ping'an. Allowing Cheng Ping'an to enter the Martial Arts Academy would allow him to receive better training and protection, which is the best option at present.

Four days have passed since Cheng Ping'an entered the Martial Arts Academy.

Late that night, Su Mu was in his room absorbing the power of the imperial path when he suddenly sensed an unusual aura—someone was approaching the library!

Su Mu's heart stirred, he stopped cultivating, and quietly left the room.

Under the moonlight, a figure staggered to the kitchen door, then collapsed to the ground with a thud, barely breathing.

"Help me..." A mournful and weak cry came from the man's mouth.

The man seemed to sense Su Mu's presence, and with difficulty raised his head to ask for his help.

"Damn it, this is troublesome!" Su Mu cursed inwardly, gripped the Heart-Piercing Needle in his hand, and carefully walked forward, finally seeing the person's appearance clearly.

The newcomer was a petite woman, about twenty-five or twenty-six years old, dressed in tattered black clothes that revealed her wounds, and she was tightly gripping a dagger in her hand.

She leaned against the kitchen door, her breathing shallow and her face ashen, clearly suffering from severe injuries.

Upon closer inspection, Su Mu noticed a long bloodstain on her body, stretching from her shoulder to her waist. The wound was still bleeding, and it looked shocking!

Su Mu was puzzled. This woman looked like an assassin and was seriously injured. How could she think that she could get help in a place like the library?

Just as Su Mu was pondering, the woman seemed to have used her last bit of strength to take out a jade hairpin from her bosom and hand it to Su Mu.

Su Mu's pupils contracted slightly—he recognized this jade hairpin! It was the one Xu Qian'er always wore!

He suddenly realized something—this woman in black robes must have a close connection with Xu Qian'er!

"I'm Xu Qian'er's older sister, Xu Shan'er... Help!"

After saying this, Xu Shan'er tilted her head and completely fainted, losing consciousness.

Su Mu took two steps forward and carefully examined Xu Shan'er's face. He found that she looked seven or eight parts like Xu Qian'er, but her temperament was much colder than Xu Qian'er's.

This put Su Mu in a dilemma!

Should we intervene to save her?

If he saves her, he will inevitably be implicated once he is discovered, since Xu Shan'er doesn't seem like a kind person and could very well be an assassin in the palace; but if he doesn't save her, once Xu Shan'er is discovered, Xu Qian'er will definitely be implicated because of her similar appearance to Xu Qian'er.

Xu Qian'er is now a person in Consort De's palace. If something happens to Xu Qian'er, he, who once had a relationship with Xu Qian'er, will definitely be held accountable and will find it difficult to escape!

Su Mu could faintly hear loud shouts coming from deep within the palace. It was the powerful figures in the palace yelling "Catch the assassin!"—it seemed that Xu Shan'er was indeed an assassin!

After thinking for a moment, Su Mu no longer hesitated. He stepped forward, grabbed the woman in black robes, dragged her into the kitchen, then opened the cellar entrance in the corner of the kitchen and let her in.

"Save people? Dream on!" Su Mu sneered, blocked the entrance to the cellar with wooden planks, and then piled firewood on the planks to completely cover the cellar.

This cellar was extremely well hidden, and no one except the old man who had worked in the library for many years would know about it.

After hiding Xu Shan'er in the cellar, Su Mu did not leave immediately. Instead, he carefully checked the kitchen and yard, completely erasing all traces left by Xu Shan'er—including bloodstains, footprints, and fluctuations of true energy.

After doing all this, Su Mu returned to his room, pretending that nothing had happened.

Not long after, hurried footsteps were heard outside the library. A group of imperial guards dressed in tight-fitting clothes rushed in, led by Huang Yuan, who had taken Cheng Ping'an to the Martial Arts Academy.

"Eunuch Su, have you found any strange people or unusual noises in the library?" Huang Yuan asked directly, his sharp eyes scanning the surroundings.