Empress, please have some self-respect. I am not your husband.

Lu Feng said calmly, "Second rank? That was my level when I was sixteen."

Each powerful individual possesses a unique true qi attribute, whether it be hard, soft, yin, or yang.

For example, Ye Bingyun herself possessed a gentle yet extremely cold inner energy.

Lu Feng's true energy, however, was an unparalleled and supremely powerful Yang energy.

but now!

Ye Bingyun felt that the true energy he was transmitting to her was the same as her own true energy. There was only one possibility: Lu Feng had reversed the attribute of his true energy, turning his originally extremely strong and yang true energy into a gentle and cold one.

This is something she simply cannot do right now, because it would cause irreversible damage to a martial artist.

That's why she was in such a hurry.

Lu Feng's words stunned her, and she stared at the person in front of her with adoring eyes.

Sixteen years old, second rank!

What an appalling thing this is!

At least Ye Bingyun had never heard of anyone who could reach the second rank at the age of sixteen!

So much so that at this moment, Her Majesty the Empress forgot that her damaged meridians were being nourished and widened by Lu Feng's true qi. She only wanted to know what the man in front of her was and why he had so many secrets!

For a full hour, Ye Bingyun stared blankly at him. When Lu Feng finally stopped, he looked at the stunning beauty who seemed to be in a daze and couldn't help but frown: "Your Majesty, what's wrong?"

"what?"

Ye Bingyun snapped out of her daze and gently shook her head: "No, it's nothing."

Lu Feng rolled his eyes and then said, "Try circulating your true energy."

Ye Bingyun subconsciously did as instructed, then her beautiful eyes widened in disbelief as she exclaimed, "How could this be! How come my speed of circulating true energy is more than twice as fast as before!"

With a hint of pride, Lu Feng raised an eyebrow: "Of course. I not only repaired your damaged meridians, but I also expanded them. So as long as you work hard in your cultivation, you'll be able to reach the third rank in less than a year, which will make you a decent expert."

"Really...really?"

Her Majesty the Empress was overjoyed and exclaimed, "Third-Rank Realm!"

This was something she had been thinking about day and night ever since she reached the fourth rank, and now Lu Feng had just casually made it happen!

"of course it's true."

Seeing the joy on the woman's face, Lu Feng's mood improved for some reason: "I think with your talent, Your Highness, half a year should be enough, so hurry up and start cultivating."

"Thank you, Lu Feng!"

The surprise came so suddenly that Ye Bingyun didn't know how to express her gratitude.

Waving his hand to indicate that it wasn't important, Lu Feng thought to himself that this was compensation for what happened earlier, and then said, "Then, Your Highness, if there's nothing else, shall we leave it at that?"

He still has to go to the Qin residence.

Hearing this, which sounded like an invitation to leave, Ye Bingyun, who was in a good mood, thought of his earlier plans to pursue Qin Xinyi and couldn't help but probe, "Are you going to explain to Miss Qin?"

Lu Feng was surprised: "Your Majesty also knows Qin Xinyi?"

Ye Bingyun chuckled and said, "Of course."

She became somewhat suspicious. Didn't Lu Feng dislike Qin Xinyi? He even refused her arranged marriage for the two of them. So what was he up to?

She asked, "Are you perhaps afraid she'll misunderstand?"

Lu Feng shook his head and said, "That's not it, it's just that some things need to be clarified."

Hearing this, Ye Bingyun deliberately said, "I never expected you to care so much about Qin Xinyi. But I heard from His Majesty that you refused the marriage he bestowed upon you two. If you care so much, why did you refuse?"

Lu Feng was both amused and exasperated. Sure enough, women love to gossip: "I care about Qin Xinyi because she is an extremely important person to me, not because of feelings."

That's strange, why are you telling her this?

"I see."

For some reason, when she heard Lu Feng say that it wasn't because of feelings, Her Majesty the Empress felt a little pleased: "In that case, I'll return to the palace. I'll come again next time you need medicine."

Lu Feng nodded. Ye Bingyun's blood was indeed effective, but the effect was a bit weak and required a year of medication. He also needed to quickly prepare the remaining twenty-three doses of medicine.

After Ye Bingyun left, Lu Feng took the valuable gifts he had bought the day before and headed to the Qin residence.

Little did they know that Qin Xinyi was in a state of turmoil at that moment!

Her mind was filled with the scene she had seen at the inn earlier: a stunningly beautiful woman, like a goddess descended from heaven, lying in Lu Feng's arms, her delicate posture captivating even a woman like herself.

Who is that woman?

What is the relationship between Lu Feng and her?

Didn't this bastard just agree to participate in the third competition yesterday?

He turned around and was seen hugging and kissing a strange woman, engaging in lewd behavior in broad daylight!

What does this person think they are?!

As expected, apart from the Crimson Flame War God, there isn't a single good man!

With a jumble of thoughts swirling in her mind, even Qin Xinyi didn't know why she was thinking such chaotic things, and she felt extremely irritable!

Just then, a maid entered her boudoir and respectfully greeted her, "Miss."

"What is it?" Qin Xinyi asked coldly.

Maid: "The steward said that a young master named Lu Feng has come to visit with generous gifts."

Qin Xinyi sneered: "After doing such a thing, he still has the nerve to show his face here? Tell the manager to get that guy out!"

Outside.

Upon hearing the steward relay Qin Xinyi's words, Lu Feng was speechless. What kind of situation was this?

He actually told me to get lost!

Could it be that Qin Xinyi misunderstood something that happened before?

Wait a minute, I haven't revealed my identity, and she doesn't like me right now, so what's with the misunderstanding?

I really can't figure it out!

Left with no other option, Lu Feng looked at the steward and said softly, "Then I'll trouble you to take these things inside. I'll come back to visit another day."

The steward was immediately in a dilemma. His master was the Minister of Revenue, and it would be bad if people thought he was accepting bribes.

Lu Feng smiled and said, "I'm an old friend of Old Master Qin. When Uncle Qin comes back, just tell him, and he'll know."

"I see. Well then, Young Master Lu, I will certainly pass on the message when Master returns."

Hearing him say that, the person in charge was temporarily relieved.

When Qin Ming returned home from the Ministry of Revenue, he was surprised to see more than a dozen brocade boxes in the hall. "Who sent these gifts?"

The steward hurriedly replied, "Reporting to Master, it was a young master named Lu Feng who said that he and the old patriarch were old friends and that you knew him."

"Was it a gift from Lu Feng?"

Qin Ming became interested. Yesterday, his daughter said that the boy had been playing hard to get before, and only agreed to participate in the third competition when it didn't work.

Is the gift you brought today meant to curry favor with your daughter?

Qin Ming shook his head and smiled: "What kind of gift can a poor boy give?"

As he spoke, he opened the top brocade box, and was stunned when he saw it!