This scoundrel is a bit of a swordsman.

An unrest in the imperial palace has far-reaching consequences.

Murong Fenghua spent a sleepless night. She sat on a tree branch in the cold palace, a pot of wine in her hand, constantly recalling everything about Xiao Xingchen.

She had been wondering about this for a long time: why did she and that boy get along so well?

In recent days, she has been constantly asked about her relationship with the boy, with some even speculating that he is her illegitimate child.

Even Emperor Wu came to verify this more than once, telling himself that if it really was her flesh and blood, he would treat it well.

Not to mention her two children, Ling Xue and Ling Feng, who were constantly testing her in various ways, which made her feel quite tired.

He was utterly disgusted by the feeling of being betrayed by the world, so he immediately closed the gates of the Cold Palace and drove away all the maids.

She racked her brains, convinced that this was truly their first meeting, yet she ultimately attributed that feeling of familiarity to cause and effect.

The world is full of wonders, and the concept of cause and effect has always existed, although it has not been proven. However, those who cultivate themselves deeply believe in the doctrine of cause and effect.

"Perhaps it's the result of a past life's cause."

She took a big gulp, looked up at the stars, and smiled. Ever since that young man bowed to her three times, her heart had come alive.

Whenever she thought of that boy, a warm current would flow through her long-dormant heart. She understood what this meant; it meant that no matter what had happened before, from the moment they met, their fates were inextricably linked.

Just as she was lost in thought, the bell rang, interrupting her gaze.

"The soul-suppressing bell tolls; someone has trespassed into the hanging burial grounds,"

She jumped up, her eyes filled with shock.

The location of the suspended burial site is probably known only to two or three people in the entire Great Qian Dynasty. As the Empress and the beloved daughter of the Murong family, she naturally has the right to know things that others do not.

Seeing Emperor Wu tear through the sky and rush towards the ancestral temple without regard for anything else, she hesitated for a moment, but finally sat back down.

What does this world have to do with me?

She shook her head and smiled bitterly, took another sip of wine, and pretended to be indifferent. However, her occasional glances towards the ancestral temple revealed that her heart was not at peace at the moment.

"Are all the demons really dead?"

Sighs that no one could hear echoed in the air, and the Cold Palace returned to its usual tranquility.

The sound of the bell shook the entire city of Yong'an. Just as shocked as Emperor Wu was Daji, who lived in Chen Miao's house.

The soul-suppressing bell tolled, and no one understood its meaning better than her. She slowly opened the window, her gaze complex as she looked towards the ancestral temple, murmuring something to herself.

"They've gotten there so quickly! The divine embryo has transformed into a demonic embryo. Is the true demon about to arrive?"

A bitter smile appeared on her lips as she shook her head helplessly. Far from feeling excited, her heart was heavy with sorrow. Too many things weighed on her mind, things that destined her to be unable to enjoy life like most people.

As Xiao Xingchen's battle sword transformed into a divine embryo, her resolve to carry on with her schemes wavered for the first time. She had thought everything was under control, having planned for millennia, even severing her fox tail to enter the mortal world, and being imprisoned in Cangshan, all to wait for one person.

But with the appearance of this person, she realized that everything was out of control. This person was extraordinary; not only did he possess a poison of destiny, but he could also form a divine embryo in an instant, and even ascend to immortality through swordsmanship.

All of these actions were beyond her expectations. First, there was the poison of destiny, a poison invisible even at the Ninth Heaven level. This was a method used only by extremely powerful families to sever their lineage, because administering this poison signified that this generation had lost and could not win, so they would seek revenge in the next generation.

This means that Xiao Xingchen has a terrifying family behind him, that's one point.

Secondly, a divine embryo is something that Heaven and Earth cannot tolerate. Ancient records state that when a divine embryo takes shape, lightning strikes the world, and the earth churns up dark rivers. No one throughout history has ever succeeded in creating one. Yet, Xiao Xingchen did, and it was so simple. She had already prepared to shield him from the calamity, and had brewed numerous methods long in advance. But in the end, none of them were needed; he simply achieved it on his own, and even deceived Heaven and Earth. This is the second strange thing.

The third strange thing was that the fighting spirit and malevolence that had plagued countless people vanished automatically after entering his body. His fighting spirit seemed to have found a home, readily available for him to command. This, in her view, was even more absurd.

These three reasons led her to decide to temporarily distance herself from Xiao Xingchen. She wanted to observe from an outsider's perspective to see how far he could go before she left.

Now, only a day has passed, and he has already reached the stage of divine embryo transforming into a demon. This makes her feel that she has finally waited for that one person after ten thousand years, but at the same time, it also makes her uneasy.

This is too fast. In the original plan, the transformation of a divine embryo into a demon would take at least a hundred years, but it has only been a few days, and a hundred years have already been covered. This behavior is extremely dangerous and could easily attract a killing frenzy.

Faced with the attack, he had no power to resist. Everything was like a castle in the air. He had only reached the first level after transforming into a demon. Wasn't this just courting death?

Many demons are born at the fourth level of the Heavenly Realm, but now, a true demon is about to be born at only the first level, like a baby who can't walk yet. Anyone could easily obliterate it.

This put her in a very conflicted position, even considering whether to take Xiao Xingchen back to Cangshan and imprison him there until he had achieved sufficient cultivation before releasing him. This pace terrified her; she had never seen anything so outrageous before.

Transforming into a demon—any ancestor who reached this stage was a supreme master, at least at the eighth level of the Heavenly Realm. But now, the lowest level of demon transformation in history is about to appear.

The bell rang again, and Chen Haoran's entire family was already standing in the courtyard.

Chen Miao stared outside, somewhat puzzled.

"Why are the temple bells ringing at this time? Has something happened?"

They all shook their heads in confusion. The ancestral temple was a place for sacrifices. What could possibly happen there? Who would go there to cause trouble so late at night when they weren't sleeping?

Moreover, the bell tolled out of nowhere. At this hour, aren't those old men in the ancestral temple asleep?

"Damn it, these things at the ancestral temple really don't want people to get a proper rest. Wait, I'm going to find those bastards at the ancestral temple," Chen Haoran thought, unsuspecting, but being disturbed from his sleep was infuriating.

It was just past the hour of Yin (3-5 AM), a time when everyone was sound asleep. And coincidentally, the Chen residence was right next to the ancestral temple and the office of the priest.

"Old priest, come out here! Don't you want anyone to sleep? What exactly are you trying to do with your ancestral temple?" Chen Haoran shouted directly over the wall.

Then a noisy commotion came from the other side.

"Lord Chen, this wasn't rung at our ancestral temple. I've been wondering the same thing. Who would stay up all night to ring the bell at the ancestral temple? If I find out, I'll skin them alive!"

"Not you?" Chen Haoran frowned, then looked at Madam Chen.

"I understand, wait for my news."

Madam Chen immediately realized that there was something wrong with the religion, and disappeared into the darkness without even having time to change her clothes.

Many people were awakened by the chimes. Those in lower positions might not understand the significance, but all those in higher positions came out of their rooms.

But the same doubt arose in their eyes, and even the Left and Right Prime Ministers asked in bewilderment,

"Go ask the people at the ancestral temple what they're up to in the middle of the night."

As the temple bells rang at Huayu Tower, the temple guards who were watching the commotion on the second floor were all startled, then broke out in a cold sweat and rushed out without thinking.

Upon witnessing this scene, the eldest princess and Ye Yunfeng both stood up, especially Ye Yunfeng, who was furious.

"Warrior, your target is the ancestral temple. What exactly do you want to do?"