It had been some time since Daoist Longshe entered the teahouse. There still seemed to be negotiations going on inside, yet there was no commotion. Instead, before long, a strange fragrance drifted out from the teahouse.

The beautiful woman frowned slightly and glanced at the elderly woman. Understanding her intention, the elderly woman stepped inside.

However, the moment she did, she went rigid from shock. Daoist Longshe stood there with a livid expression, holding a pot in his hands. The exotic serpent that had once coiled around him was nowhere to be seen.

He set out bowls and chopsticks for everyone, then served each of them a bowl of soup and a piece of snake meat.

"Could it be...?"

A trace of disbelief flashed through the elderly woman's eyes. She slowly backed out of the teahouse.

"Madam... Daoist Longshe... may already have been subdued by them," reported the woman in a low voice.

Subdued?

Then why hadn't there been any disturbance?

The Nascent Soul cultivators who had come together exchanged uneasy glances.

The beautiful woman frowned. "What do you mean?"

"The exotic serpent on Daoist Longshe's body... seems to have been personally stewed by him into soup. He's serving it to those few right now."

Even as she said it, the elderly woman found it hard to believe.

"Daoist Longshe stewed his own serpent?"

The crowd felt a chill run down their spines. The other party's cultivation might already have surpassed their imagination. Otherwise, how could Daoist Longshe have been forced into such a position so effortlessly?

They hadn't even sensed the slightest fluctuation of spiritual energy just now!

The elderly woman's expression grew grave. "Madam, this matter may not be easy to handle."

If the other party's strength temporarily exceeded the Nascent Soul Realm, they dared not act rashly. It didn't matter how powerful their backing was if the other party was a madman who didn't acknowledge it.

"I'll go speak with him personally," said the beautiful woman after thinking for a moment.

She flew toward the teahouse. The others were startled and tried to stop her, but she had already entered. Left with no choice, they followed.

"Mother!" Li Zhi cried inwardly upon seeing her.

She remained completely immobile, suppressed by that invisible force. The sensation was unbearable.

The beautiful woman slowly approached Fang Chen, examining him and Xia Ji. She then glanced at Abbess Qing He before smiling. "My daughter is somewhat ignorant and injured Fellow Daoist Qing He. As her mother, I offer my apologies on her behalf."

Fang Chen smiled. "Your daughter hasn't told me yet why she treated the little abbess this way."

The Nascent Soul Realm cultivators behind her examined Fang Chen and Xia Ji, then looked at Daoist Longshe. They only wanted to know why he had personally stewed his own serpent.But no matter how they looked, they found nothing unusual, except that Daoist Longshe's eyes were filled with terror.

Which meant... he had truly encountered something horrifying.

Seeing Fang Chen speak, the beautiful woman's smile widened. "I've heard that Fellow Daoist Qing He took in a cultivator whom my daughter expelled from Taiyue Sect?"

"Oh?" Fang Chen gave an exaggerated look of realization. "Was that cultivator also gouged out of both eyes, had their ears cut off, and thrown into Taiyue City to be toyed with and humiliated?"

The beautiful woman paused briefly, then smiled faintly. "May I ask which sect you come from, Fellow Daoist? Did my old servant inform you of my background?"

Fang Chen glanced at the elderly woman and nodded. "She did. You were a slave to one of the Nine Generation King's concubines. I truly didn't expect that a mere concubine's maidservant could act so lawlessly outside, indulging her daughter in committing such cruelty."

He sighed. "In the end, your daughter is merely a maid's daughter, a servant's offspring. Yet she dares behave so tyrannically. I fear she's even more vicious than the Nine Generation King's legitimate sons and daughters." 𝙛𝓻𝒆𝓮𝒘𝙚𝙗𝒏𝙤𝙫𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝒐𝙢

The crowd was stunned. His words were dripping with disdain. Calling her a maid over and over, a servant's child, he was clearly belittling her origins.

Yet her background, within the Central Continent Empire, was indeed among the very top. One had to still consider whose maid she had been.

The beautiful woman's smile gradually stiffened. Fury surged in the elderly woman's eyes. But they still restrained themselves.

"Fellow Daoist, from your words, it seems you hold my identity in contempt?" The beautiful woman smiled faintly. "I have already apologized on my daughter's behalf. What more do you want? Have you not heard the saying, show mercy when possible? The young are ignorant. We elders will discipline them ourselves upon returning. There is no need for you to interfere."

Fang Chen ignored her entirely and turned to Qing He. "Qing He, is the soup good? Another bowl?"

Her vitality was steadily draining. A faint aura of death already lingered around her.

The beautiful woman's smile froze once more.

At that moment, a voice suddenly rang out from outside. It was the Taiyue Sect's master.

"Madam! Madam Lan has arrived! Come out at once to pay your respects!"

Madam Lan has arrived?

The beautiful woman was overjoyed. No longer bothering to conceal the malice in her heart, she cast Fang Chen a cold glance. "I'll go greet Madam Lan first. We'll let her handle this matter afterward."

With that, she turned and left. The elderly woman and the others hurried after her.

***

At the same time, above the vast expanse of Taiyue City, endless clouds spread across the sky.

Upon the multicolored clouds stood countless cultivators clad in black armor. There were also numerous carriages drawn by exotic beasts.

The armored cultivators alone numbered in the tens of thousands.

"These are Immortal Soldiers?"

"With such a display... could it be that the Nine Generation King himself has arrived!?"

Cultivators throughout Taiyue City were filled with shock.

When the beautiful woman and her group exited the teahouse, they too were stunned by the scene in the sky.

The Taiyue Sect master stood before the most distinguished carriage, his face brimming with excitement.

Seeing his wife emerge, he signaled frantically with his eyes.

"Could it be... the Nine Generation King in person?!" muttered the beautiful woman, shocked and delighted.

A faint blush crept across her cheeks.

She immediately led the others in kneeling to pay their respects. The Nascent Soul Realm cultivators present were equally thrilled. If they could so much as come into contact with such a great figure, the benefits would last a lifetime.

A soft, delicate voice came from within the distinguished carriage.

"My lord, this girl was once my personal maid. Now her daughter has been taken hostage by villains. My lord must uphold justice for her."

"Mm," A voice filled with authority responded faintly.

In the next moment, tens of thousands of Immortal Soldiers descended from the sky, encircling the entirety of Taiyue City. Every street and intersection was guarded. The surging spiritual energy from them weighed heavily upon the cultivators of Taiyue City.

Soon after, carriage after carriage descended gracefully, and a man and a woman stepped out. At the sight of the man's attire, the crowd was left only with awe and reverence.

The beautiful woman bowed deeply, incomparably respectful. "Th-this humble one greets the Nine Generation King! I greet Madam Lan!"

"Rise." The Nine Generation King gave a slight nod. He did not spare the beautiful woman even a glance, instead walking directly toward the teahouse.

Madam Lan followed at his side, smiling like a blossoming flower.

"It really is the Nine Generation King..."

The Nascent Soul Realm cultivators were beside themselves with excitement.

The Taiyue Sect master moved to his wife's side and transmitted eagerly, "Madam, the Nine Generation King has come in person! I never imagined I would have the chance to see such a great figure!"

But the beautiful woman seemed not to hear him. Instead, a trace of disappointment flickered in her eyes.

The Nine Generation King hadn't even looked at her once....