The Empress's No.1 Lackey-Chapter 1138 - 619: Zhao Douan: Old Fool, You Dare Talk About Face With Me? You’re Not Worthy. (6k)
On the deck.
Zhao Douan slowly withdrew his right hand into his sleeve, staring thoughtfully at the river fish floating in the water.
Calculating with his fingers, it had only been a month since he advanced to the High Grade of the Worldly Realm, and logically speaking, such a short time wouldn’t allow for much improvement in cultivation.
Yet two unexpected factors greatly accelerated the progress of his cultivation.
"Last time Master Gu Huo died, his Divine Soul shattered, and the pure Soul Power filled my Sea of Consciousness, greatly enhancing the intensity of my Divine Soul... Tsk, truly a good person. Every time he came to me, he brought gifts..."
"As for the physical body..."
Zhao Douan looked down at his abdomen... it was slightly bulging, a change resulting from his recent cultivation of the "Dragon Taming Technique".
Uh-huh, as his understanding and mastery of the Dragon Essence increased, with each breath during cultivation, the flow of Qi Mechanism in his meridians seemed as if it was on a shortcut...
Moreover, the Perfection of the Worldly Realm is not a well-defined state, which is why this sudden advancement in cultivation progress occurred.
"But it still feels like something is missing. Ah, entering Perfection in the Worldly Realm is so difficult. When will I be able to step into Heavenly Human?"
Zhao Douan sighed lightly. Little did he know, such Versailles-like words, if spread, would be enough to anger all the cultivators under heaven.
Turning around, his gaze swept across the deck. Aside from the soldiers operating the ship, at the other end of the deck, three figures gathered together, sitting in a row on small stools to fish.
Yu Xiu, Jin Jian, and Ji Yue each held a fishing rod, stretching out high, with the fishing lines angling into the rapid current.
Occasionally, a fish would bite, causing Jin Jian to shout out.
This girl might have been a reincarnated angler in a past life. Recently, she developed a fondness for fishing, refusing to nap in the daylight.
However, with the ship’s speed, it should have been difficult for fish to bite. Zhao Douan reckoned that Little Ji Yue might have secretly cast spells to attach fish onto the two priests’ hooks...
People with high social anxiety and those eager-to-please personalities often overlap...
The "Young Master" Tang Ping, clad in white armor and helmet, was holding a "Thousand-mile tube" to patrol the river’s surface.
Looking further back, to the left and right of the ship, followed two warships, both manned by officers and soldiers from the Divine Mechanism Camp.
This was not the main force of the Divine Mechanism Camp; the real large fleet was much further back, personally led by Shi Meng.
In a sense, Zhao Douan personally served as the "Advance Team".
Currently, with clear skies and the sun shining, the fleet had already ventured deeply into the range of Marine Road, encountering several patrol teams of marines belonging to Prince Chen along the way.
But they were easily defeated, with no major enemy forces sighted yet.
However, Zhao Douan figured that with such a grand display of military force, Prince Chen and Prince Jing, if neither blind nor deaf, should already be aware.
"Where are we now?"
Zhao Douan saw Tang Ping put down the telescope and casually inquired.
Tang Ping hurried over to say:
"Further ahead, it should be Yutou Mountain. Using Yutou Mountain as the boundary, heading further east will enter the core territory of Prince Chen. Sir, as expected, Prince Chen will not let us proceed easily."
Zhao Douan sneered: "I’m not here to seek his permission."
Tang Ping felt a surge of admiration. This young man from a military family who once challenged Zhao Douan in the Divine Mechanism Camp had long been deeply persuaded, transforming into a devoted follower.
He first nodded, then hesitantly said:
"Although there are few experts under Prince Chen’s command, the Coastal Road is within the sphere of influence of Qingshan. With a strong martial atmosphere, it’s said that since Prince Chen’s rebellion, he has spent heavily to win over local martial world forces. If those martial artists join the battle, it could be a small headache."
Zhao Douan asked: "Are there any notable figures among the martial world renegades?"
Tang Ping hesitated, then said:
"I don’t know much, only that the contemporary martial arts leader Zuo Tang has been in seclusion at the coast for years, also part of the Qingshan lineage. In terms of seniority, he’s a junior to Wu Xiankui, nicknamed the ’Wine Sword Immortal’, a formidable figure who entered the peak of the Worldly Realm many years ago, but rarely mentioned due to long avoidance of the world.
As for other martial sect experts, they can muster a few Worldly Realm experts."
The Martial World forces in Great Yu were mostly divided into eastern and western branches.
The western branch was more grass-roots, relying on aristocratic families, and had been recruited by Prince Hejian.
The eastern branch was mostly an extension of the "Qingshan" lineage, entrenched in the coast, Jiancheng, and Qingzhou.
After the Eight Princes’ Rebellion, these martial experts tacitly refrained from joining the turmoil, retreating to the isolationist state in the Coastal Road.
"Wine Sword Immortal? Quite the name. I wonder if he can withstand my cannons."
Zhao Douan’s expression was indifferent:
"As for the other martial world rabbles, they are not worth worrying about."
While speaking, Zhao Douan’s ear suddenly twitched slightly, and his Divine Thought silently spread into the cabin. A hint of delight appeared on his eyebrows as he calmly said:
"I will go to the cabin to rest."
With that, he turned and stepped into the cabin.
...
Upon pushing open the door to his own luxurious supreme cabin, he saw the window on the side of the cabin facing the ship’s side open without his notice. 𝑓𝑟ℯ𝘦𝓌𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝑐ℴ𝓂
River wind blew in, and outside the window was the undulating river surface.
A woman dressed entirely in white, with black hair tied into a high ponytail, and a streak of bright red silk at her waist, was sitting openly at the tea table in a cross-legged position, eating the pastries on the plate.
The woman’s face was adorned with a fox mask, white with red markings, and a longsword with a black scabbard was casually placed on the brown table.
"Are you that Commander Zhao?" The woman with the fox mask turned her head and asked, suppressing her voice.
Zhao Douan took a deep breath, closed the cabin door behind him with a smile, and said:
