The Princess Cannot Escape: The Cunning Prince Is Not to Be Messed With

Chapter 267 Fantastic Creatures

As soon as the two stepped out of the courtyard, they saw Qinghuang leading the man out. The man was wearing a black cloak, completely concealing his face. Qinghuang touched his face before reluctantly leaving. The man looked around to make sure no one was there before hurrying away.

As soon as the two left, Yin Quan could no longer suppress the strange feeling in her body. She shook her body, and a fluffy little thing fell off her.

Upon closer inspection, Yin Quan felt like crying. "Brother Rat, what do you want from me? I really didn't mean to wander in. You can't expect me to take responsibility for you or anything, can you?" The silver rat's fur shimmered in the sunlight, and its black eyes looked at Yin Quan pitifully.

Finally able to see its full form, Yin Quan no longer found it so annoying. The mouse squeaked twice and was about to jump onto Yin Quan when Chongyang grabbed it by the tail and said with some surprise, "It seems that this little thing's power has also weakened after it shrank. If you don't want it, I'll take it back and study it properly."

Yin Quan nodded, eager to get rid of this pest. Chongyang ignored the little thing's protests, stuffed it into his pocket, walked into the bushes, and mysteriously fussed over for a while. When he came out, he was no longer a delicate and charming man, but had instantly transformed into a lively and beautiful young girl.

Chongyang was already slender, and when she put on the pale yellow clothes and the human skin mask, she looked no different from an ordinary woman, and even had a bit of beauty. She smiled at Yin Quan and her voice completely changed to that of a woman, "You're already dumbfounded? Long hair, short brains."

After saying that, he left Yin Quan standing alone, bewildered in the wind. "Chongyang, I don't know the way!" Chongyang turned around and glanced at her. "My name is Xiaoyang." Yin Quan shrank her neck. What is cosplay? This is real cosplay! Completely immersed in the role!

Led by Chongyang, Yin Quan finally made it back to his room after many twists and turns. As soon as he opened the door, he saw Xiahou Ying with a gloomy face. He was even more wary when he saw Chongyang behind Yin Quan. "Why did you take so long?" Yin Quan hurriedly pushed him in, pulled Chongyang into the room, closed the doors and windows, and then asked Xiahou Ying.

"This is the Double Ninth Festival." Xiahou Ying raised an eyebrow, quite surprised. "When did Hundred Flowers Valley become interested in Qifeng Manor?"

“Your Highness is now in dire straits, so I’m afraid you have no time to deal with matters of the martial world, right?” Xiahou Ying’s voice turned several degrees colder. “What’s going on in the martial world lately?” “The leader of the martial arts alliance has disappeared. Doesn’t Your Highness know that a new force in the martial world is challenging all the major sects? Everyone in the martial world is in danger. Moreover, as far as I know, this new force in the martial world seems to have been cultivated by the Crown Prince for a long time.”

Yin Quan frowned. It turned out that the Crown Prince had not been idle during the years he was expelled from the palace. He had secretly made all the arrangements. Could it be that Xiahou Ying's current predicament was also arranged by him?

That Crown Prince's move is terrifying. He has already calculated every move Xiahou Ying makes. Seeing Yin Quan's worry, Xiahou Ying touched her hand and said, "Don't worry about him having backup forces. How do you know I don't have any secret weapons?"

“But…” Chongyang had a look of anticipation on his face. “Prince Duan is indeed extraordinary. He can remain calm in such a dangerous situation. However, Hundred Flowers Valley has never been involved in Jianghu affairs. Although I am grateful to the prince for saving my life, I am determined to get the Ancient Spirit Pearl this time. If anyone tries to stop me, I, Chongyang, will not show any mercy.”

Their eyes blazed like thunderbolts, neither willing to yield. Yin Quan was furious at Chongyang's ungrateful behavior.

"Do you have any conscience? Who just risked their life to enter the rat's nest for you? Without me, would you have gotten that...that little silver rat?" Chongyang clutched his pouch and shrank back. "What, are you going to go back on your word? If you want it now, you'll have to see if I agree."

Before she could finish speaking, a small hole appeared under Chongyang's skirt, and a little mouse crawled out and went straight into Yin Quan's arms.

Xiahou Ying pointed with two fingers and pinched the little mouse's body. The little mouse stared blankly at Xiahou Ying, wagging its tail and chirping incessantly. Yin Quan looked at the little mouse, which had been squeezed out of shape, with a pang of heartache.

"I'm telling you, Xiahou Ying, you should at least go easy on me. It didn't mean me any harm. Look, you've deformed it."

"What is this?" The little mouse stared desperately at its short legs. Yin Quan couldn't bear to watch any longer and hurriedly rescued the little mouse from Xiahou Ying's hands. Chongyang got up and tried to take the little mouse from Yin Quan's arms, but Xiahou Ying had already seen through his intentions. The two clashed in the air, and Chongyang was knocked back several steps.

Xiahou Ying landed calmly without batting an eye, sneering, "Valley Master, you'd better have some self-respect in front of me." Chongyang gritted his teeth, "You're ruthless. It's my incompetence that I can't beat you. I can give you this little thing, but it's better for Prince Duan to keep a low profile right now. You probably don't know that the bounty for a prince's head in the martial arts world has already reached five million taels of gold."

Xiahou Ying said nonchalantly, "No need for Valley Master to worry. Valley Master must have had a compelling reason for coming down from the mountain to search for this Ancient Spirit Pearl. If I remember correctly, the Valley Masters of Hundred Flowers Valley have all had hidden ailments. Could it be that Valley Master Chong thinks this Ancient Spirit Pearl can cure your ailments?"

Chongyang's body emanated a murderous aura. "How could you know the secrets of my valley?" Xiahou Ying subtly hid Yin Quan behind his back. "There is nothing in this world that Tinghailou doesn't know."

“Tinghailou? You… could Tinghailou also be one of your people?” Xiahou Ying smiled faintly and remained silent. Chongyang glanced at Yin Quan, “Since you want this Ancient Spirit Pearl so badly, let’s see who has the best skills.” With a flash, he disappeared from the room. As soon as Chongyang left, Xiahou Ying bowed.

Xuan Qingzi had said that Xiahou Ying's poison should never be used lightly. "You are injured, why are you being so stubborn?" Yin Quan looked at Xiahou Ying coughing up blood with heartache. His poison had already invaded his lungs and internal organs. Yin Quan felt a little guilty. "It's all my fault. I'm useless. I can't help you and I always cause you trouble."

After circling Xiahou Ying a few times, the little silver mouse climbed up his trouser leg and onto his body. When he was caught off guard, it bit his index finger, drawing out a dark black blood. The little mouse then began to suck on it. Just as Yin Quan was about to knock it off, Xiahou Ying hurriedly stopped him.

"Don't act rashly, let's see what it's going to do." After the little mouse drank the poisoned blood, its body gradually turned dark, and two dark red stripes appeared on its back. Its eyes also changed from bright black to blood red, making it look quite frightening. It didn't stop until it had drunk a whole bowl of blood.

Looking at the little mouse that had grown a size larger, Yin Quan said with some heartache, "Won't it die from poisoning?" Xiahou Ying took the pill and began to sit cross-legged in meditation. After a while, his complexion became much rosier. When he opened his eyes again, they were bright and alert. He moved around a couple of times with great energy.

"Where did you get this little thing? It can actually absorb the poisonous blood from my body. With the help of the pills Xuan Qingzi gave me, I feel that the toxins in my body have been diluted a lot. Although I don't know if it can be completely eradicated, I have at least recovered 50% of my strength now."

Yin Quan picked up the little thing and examined it carefully. Apart from its unusual body color, the little thing did not show any other reaction.

"I was looking for Gu Lounan but got lost and ran into Chongyang. He led me into a deserted courtyard where there was a secret passage. When we went in, we saw this little thing guarding a stone door. At that time, it was a grayish rat that was at least two meters long."

Yin Quan gestured vividly and continued, "It guarded the door and only let me in. There was nothing special inside except for a corpse. Oh, right, but there were some strange words imprinted on the wall and they got on me."

As Yin Quan spoke, she began to roll up her sleeves. Strangely, there were no golden characters on her body, and no marks could be seen on her snow-white skin.

"This...this is impossible...there was clearly just now?" Xiahou Ying looked at the bewildered Yin Quan. Although he couldn't quite understand what she had seen, these secrets were not recorded in Tinghai Tower. It seemed that Qifeng Manor was hiding secrets he didn't know about.

Yin Quan pondered for a long time, resting her chin on her hand. "Could those words have been my illusion? I saw a man and a woman there, and the woman looked somewhat familiar." Turning to look at Xiahou Ying again, Yin Quan's heart skipped a beat. She hadn't remembered before, but now that she saw Xiahou Ying, the woman actually looked three or four parts like him.

"What's wrong? Why are you looking at me like that? Is there something wrong with me?" Yin Quan pinched his cheek and asked in confusion, "Xiahou Ying, what does your mother look like?" Xiahou Ying's expression darkened. "Why are you asking this? I don't know what my mother looks like. Her name is taboo in the palace."

Seeing Xiahou Ying's hesitant expression, Yin Quan didn't say anything more.

Gu Lounan pushed the door open and entered at some point. Upon seeing Xiahou Ying, he clicked his tongue and said, "Your complexion has recovered quite well. I was only gone for a short while. Did you use yin-yang cultivation to replenish your yang?" Xiahou Ying ignored him and handed the little mouse to him.

"Do you recognize what this is?" Gu Lounan examined it carefully for a long time. "I don't know. Isn't it just a rat with a slightly different pattern? How come all the rats in Qifeng Manor are so different?" Yin Quan was about to explain when Xiahou Ying interrupted her.

"It's alright if the Imperial Advisor hasn't seen it before. Ah Quan, find a place to settle it down." Yin Quan nodded, and the creature jumped into Yin Quan's arms with a whoosh. It seemed to have a special fondness for Yin Quan, and would jump into her arms whenever it had the chance.

"After lunch, the other two elders will also come to discuss whether to open the seal and examine the Ancient Spirit Pearl." Yin Quan thought for a moment and decided to tell Gu Lounan about Qinghuang's plan.

"Today I inadvertently discovered Qinghuang's secret. They are plotting how to seize the position of the manor lord. It seems that some Elder Ling went down the mountain to retrieve something that can cripple the manor lord's martial arts. They also want you and Chu Fenghua to have a relationship so that neither of you can interfere with the position of manor lord. Then Qifeng Manor will belong to Qinghuang."