The protagonist stole my spiritual root? Hey, heroine, give birth to me!

"Sirui's here. I guess you've reached the bottleneck of the Golden Core stage?" Master Yu said.

"As expected of Master, you guessed it right away!" Tang Sirui complimented.

Having taken care of his father since childhood, he has a more mature personality than most people.

"Hehe, there's no such thing as guessing right on the first try. It's just a matter of calculating the time. You should have reached this bottleneck by now. As expected of my beloved disciple, your cultivation has now surpassed that of your master!" Master Yu laughed.

"Not at all, not at all. A teacher for a day is a father for life! I will always remember Master's teachings!" Tang Sirui respected Master Yu very much.

"You've got a good idea, kid. Alright, then let's set off just the two of us this time. I've been screening a lot of demonic beasts lately, and finally decided on a demonic spider!"

"A demonic spider?"

"That's right. If you refine it, it will provide a significant boost to your other half of your plant bloodline, even more so than the previous two!"

"Is it really true, Master? Is it really true?"

"Hehe, when have I ever lied to you? Of course, you should believe this!"

"That's great! When do we set off?" Tang Sirui asked excitedly.

"I've already made all the preparations; you're just waiting for me to arrange the time."

"Why don't we set off now? Xiao Wu, you wait for me at the Zhang family's place, okay?"

"But I want to go with my brother too!" Qingwu naturally didn't want to stay here alone.

"Don't worry, your master and I will be back soon. You can just stay here and cultivate in seclusion. We might even be back before you come out of seclusion!"

"Alright then! Since Sister Zhu isn't here, I'll go find Sister Ningning to play with!"

"Don't worry, Qingwu. Judging by the time, Zhu Zhu and the others I sent to the lower realm will be back soon. When the seven of you are together, you can share the treasure. You're sure to win first place in this academy competition!" Master Yu said.

"Okay, then teacher and brother Sirui, hurry back!"

"Don't worry, I'll be back after I break through!"

(The pictures of Qingwu are not complete. Please check Q597, 691, and 604 for more information.)

……

On Chen Xuan's side, his opponent had just forfeited when Dai Dabai invited him over.

"What's the matter, Your Majesty?"

"You must be well aware of my identity in the Upper Realm, right?"

"Yes, Your Majesty, could it be that you... are going up?"

"It's not now, but it will be soon. I came to the mortal realm with a mission, and the time is almost here. I just wanted to remind you so that you can lure the Empress Dowager away."

"I see, I understand now. Your Majesty may inform me when the time comes!"

"Good! Good! You truly are a pillar of my state! If the matter is accomplished, I will reward you handsomely!"

"If Your Majesty has nothing else, I will return to make preparations."

"Wait!"

"Is there anything else, Your Majesty?"

"The medicine you gave me last time..."

"No problem, no problem. If Your Majesty needs anything, just ask me!" Chen Xuan took out another storage bag and handed it to Dai Dabai.

"Hmm! Well done! From now on, you can just call me Boss! My becoming emperor here was just a spur-of-the-moment decision. In the Upper Realm, I'm just the boss of our team!"

"Lao Da?"

"Hmm, I find you quite pleasing to the eye now, so I won't take you as my attendant. The Empress and I have discussed it and decided to give you an immense honor!"

"What an incredible stroke of luck!" Chen Xuan feigned surprise.

“That’s right, an incredible stroke of luck! You’ll see when the time comes! You can go down now.” Dai Dabai kept it a secret, refusing to say more.

"My minister retire."

After leaving the Imperial Study, Chen Xuan went straight to the Empress's Palace without looking back.

When Zhu Zhu learned that it was Chen Xuan who had come to visit, she was suddenly overjoyed. She realized it herself, but she was just so happy that she couldn't control it, which made her feel a little helpless.

However, she couldn't resist and received Chen Xuan. She dismissed the maids, secretly hoping something would happen.

"Why are you here?" she asked, deliberately putting on a stern face.

"Your Majesty, I just delivered some things to His Majesty and came to see you."

"Oh? What did you send?"

"Some elixirs and tonics, I think His Majesty will find them useful."

Aren't you afraid he'll suspect something about you?

"Huh???? Why would he suspect me?"

"You just left the Imperial Study and went straight to my Empress's bedchamber! What if someone saw you..."

"Then, Empress, are you afraid?" Chen Xuan stood up and took a step forward.

Upon seeing this, Zhu Zhu blushed slightly, and her heart began to pound uncontrollably.

"Why would I be afraid of him! He wouldn't dare doubt me or question me!" Zhu Zhu said proudly.

"Oh? Is that so? I haven't seen the Empress for the past few days and I've noticed she's acting strangely."

"Something's weird?!" Zhu Zhu's heart tightened.

"Explain yourself clearly! What did I do wrong?!"

"She's really pretty!" Chen Xuan hugged the girl's waist, took a breath, and then blew out a breath.

Zhu Zhu found herself helplessly drained of energy, unable to muster even the slightest resistance against Chen Xuan.

"Let go of me!"

"I heard from the Emperor that you two are planning to grant me an immense stroke of good fortune? Why didn't you tell me?"

"You, you haven't been here for the past few days, how am I supposed to tell you!" Zhu Zhu said, getting a little angry. She, the Empress, had invited Chen Xuan several times, but he was never in the palace, and was out doing who-knows-what!

Furthermore, during this sect competition, he seemed to be surrounded by quite a few beautiful women, which made her feel a little uneasy, and she didn't know why.

"So, what good fortune have you bestowed upon me, Your Majesty the Empress?" Chen Xuan said, placing the girl directly on his lap and gently stroking her hair.

The girl trembled slightly, then let Chen Xuan have his way.

"Actually, it's nothing, it's just that I don't want you to be his follower, so I... I told him..."

"say what?"

"We want you to join our team!"

"Your team? You mean...!"

"Well, after all, our team doesn't have a decent doctor yet, and you could fill that vacancy! So I took the liberty of having him recommend you for our team!"

"Oh? So my little queen cares about me this much?" Chen Xuan chuckled.

"Who, who cares about you!" Zhu Zhu said coquettishly, "If you don't want to, I'll just send a message to that guy Dai Dabai right now!"

"No way, I just like your personality," Chen Xuan said with a grin. "Since that's the case, and you're so eager for me to join, then I'll reluctantly join your team!"

Zhu Zhu smiled and said with a hint of pride, "That's more like it!"

"Also, don't call me 'Empress Baby.' You're older than me. From now on, just call me 'Junior Sister'!"