Only two oil lamps were suspended from the cave ceiling in the bend of the Bloodthirsty Sect's dark pa.s.sageway. Their flickering flames cast a gloomy atmosphere over the corridor.

Ye Yunzhi tried her best to conceal her silhouette within the shadows as she furtively made her way to the Hundred Flower Palace.

After she pa.s.sed through a walkway, she took a turn and b.u.mped into a few of the Bloodthirsty Sect's disciples, who had just returned from their practice.

Every one of them ogled the lithe figure beneath the red gossamer clothing.

Ye Yunzhi ignored their lecherous gazes and continued to walk forward.

The Patriarch was extremely possessive of his personal Blood Slaves. He implanted Blood Soul Flowers in the hands of all the Blood Slaves that lived in the Hundred Flower Palace.

The Blood Soul Flower's fragrance was very distinctive. Not only that, it rubbed off easily.

Anyone who dared to molest the Patriarch's Blood Slaves would smell like the Blood Soul Flower. Once the scent was detected on them, they died horribly.

However, sooner or later, once someone new caught his eye, the Patriarch lost interest in the Blood Slaves who had been with him for a long time.

After he tired of them, he removed their Blood Soul Flowers and sent out-of-favor Blood Slaves to the Blood Brothel. There, they would pleasure anyone who visited.

Many disciples had been coveting Ye Yunzhi for a long time. They laughed gleefully and said, “This Blood Slave has been with the Patriarch for quite a while. She must be amazing in bed.”

“Tch! The Patriarch has already been sick of her for some time. If he had not promised her skin to Liu Yunfei, he would have sent her to the Blood Brothel ages ago.”

“Little Beauty, listen to my advice. You should hurry up and learn how to please a hundred men in one night. My brothers and I can hardly wait to touch you.”

“How could one hundred men satisfy her? I heard that someone once brought his Blood Beast to the brothel. He wanted to experience a threesome with a human and a beast!”

“F*ck. After they're done with her, she'll be completely ruined. We won't be able to play with her.”

“Don't worry about that. They definitely won't be the last ones to touch her. Then, they'll have her all to themselves.”

“Hahaha! That's more like it.”

Ye Yunzhi turned a deaf ear to the disciples' nasty words. She quickened her steps toward the Hundred Flower Palace.

While the Hundred Flower Palace sounded like a beautiful place, in reality, it was merely a larger cave.

Its chiseled walls created long and narrow cave dwellings. A piece of shabby drapery hung at the entrance. This was their residence.

When they heard Ye Yunzhi return, a few ghastly pale faces poked out from the worn curtain of a small cave room.

All of the Blood Slaves that lived here were girls with Spiritual Power.

When the Bloodthirsty Patriarch implanted their bodies with the Blood Soul Flower, all their Spiritual Energy melded with their blood.

This Blood Soul Flower was extremely magical. It formed a protective light around their bodies, which prevented sharp blades from harming them. They were also impervious to all kinds of poison. Even if they wanted to commit suicide, they would not succeed.

The Bloodthirsty Patriarch was extremely unforgiving toward suicidal Blood Slaves.

After newcomers witnessed his cruelty firsthand a few times, they stopped thinking about ending their own lives. Instead, they resigned themselves to living as Blood Slaves and waited for death.

Ye Yunzhi was highest in seniority because she has served the Patriarch the longest. Therefore, she stayed in the uppermost cave room.

She slowly climbed up to her room using a rope and stepping on the ledges protruding from the cave walls.

The cave room was so cramped that one could only take a single step into it before being forced to turn around.

Other than a bed with thin blankets, there was nothing else in the room.

She let down the cave room's curtain and sat quietly for a while.

Once she was sure that no one was paying attention to her, she fished out the Blood Pill which Shou Hou had given her.

This Blood Pill was a Medicinal Pill exclusive to the Bloodthirsty Sect. It was produced by combining various kinds of medicinal herbs with blood essence. It could raise the level of a Bloodthirsty Disciple's cultivation.

The Bloodthirsty Patriarch often drank the Blood Slaves' blood. After a long time, their complexions became sallow. When that happened, they did not have long before they were sent to the Blood Brothel.

Shou Hou did not have a way to save her from this, so he'd come up with an idea for her to consume Blood Pills to retain her beautiful appearance. At least the Patriarch would not cast her aside as soon as he laid eyes on her.

It had never occurred to Shou Hou that the Ye Clan's Cultivation Techniques, which Ye Yunzhi practiced, were Yin in nature. This Blood Pill, therefore, not only preserved her beauty, but it also allowed her to steal some Spiritual Energy from the Blood Soul Flower.

After Ye Yunzhi swallowed the Blood Pill, she started cultivating.

Her Elixir Field emitted rays of Spiritual Light that pa.s.sed through a few of her main meridians before expanding steadily. In the end, the light entered her left arm and remained there.

After Ye Yunzhi completed her cultivation, she caressed the inner area of her left arm gently.

A large amount of Spiritual Light had already concentrated there. It was an adequate amount for her to activate the Ye Clan's Invisibility Skill and leave this place. However, she was not in a rush.

She'd gained a thorough understanding of all of the routes in and out of Bloodcloud Peak from Shou Hou. Right now, she was just waiting for the perfect opportunity.

If possible, she hoped that she could give the Bloodthirsty Sect a harrowing lesson to avenge her suffering.

She only had one chance. She needed to be incredibly patient.

Ye Yunzhi regulated her breathing and continued her meditation.

Meanwhile, at an incomparably magnificent residence located at No. 17 East Main Street, in the Lei Kingdom's Capital…

Under Qing Mama's supervision, officers from the Jingzhao Commandery were hanging up a plaque inscribed 'Ye Jiuge's Residence,' which had been conferred by the Emperor.

This was a great day. However, Ye Jiuge and Zi Shang were performing Enclosed Cultivation.

She had declared that she would be performing Enclosed Cultivation so that she could avoid dealing with the aristocratic families in the Capital as well as the Emperor fawning over her.

The news that Great Master Yun had a.s.signed an extremely adept master to protect Ye Jiuge had spread throughout the entire Lei Kingdom.

Everyone burned with curiosity about this master. At the same time, they also wanted to forge ties with Ye Jiuge, who'd not only struck out on her own but was also an Alchemist with bright prospects.

A flurry of invitations were sent to her. Even Imperial Consort Xi and Dongfang Que wanted to meet her in private.

It was said that Emperor Xuanwu had even drafted an imperial edict that permitted her to visit the palace at any time to have an audience with him.

If Zi Shang were truly a bodyguard sent by her grandfather, Ye Jiuge should also bring him along whenever she left her residence.

However, this fellow was a demon. Not only that, he was a shameless demon who kept complaining loudly that he did not have enough Demonic Energy, so he needed to kiss and touch her.

Ye Jiuge did not have the confidence to take him for a walk, much less enter the palace.

There were still several highly-skilled masters left in the Capital. If he exposed himself accidentally, then everything that she had achieved in the past would go down the drain.

Since this was a case of 'in for a dime, in for a dollar' for Ye Jiuge, she made the most of the opportunity afforded by her excuse to perform Enclosed Cultivation and progress in her cultivation.

However, her excuse was not just a way to fob off the aristocratic families and the Emperor.

She'd encountered a few setbacks during the events that had taken place in Medicine Refinery City, and it had since dawned on her that her martial arts ability was still lacking.

If Zi Shang had not woken up in time and defeated Xiong Yunhu, it was very likely that everyone in the Medicine Refinery Hall would have died.

Lately, Zi Shang had been helping her ma.s.sage her meridians. This was increasing her Spiritual Energy considerably. Even the White Bone Flame was becoming much stronger.

Therefore, Zi Shang had suggested that she use the White Bone Flame to nurture the Lightning Snake Magical Whip so that it would be able to integrate the Bone Essence from the White Bone Cavern more effectively.

During Ye Jiuge's Enclosed Cultivation, political upheaval broke out, causing a ma.s.sive storm in the Capital.

As the Crown Prince was deemed to have conducted himself in a dishonorable and unacceptable manner, he was stripped of his rank and became a commoner. Not long after, it was rumored that he'd pa.s.sed away suddenly.

The Empress missed the Crown Prince so much that she committed suicide to accompany her son in grief and despair.

A kingdom cannot go a day without its Emperor. The same also goes for the heir to the throne.

Therefore, Emperor Xuanwu proclaimed to the whole world that he was appointing Dongfang Que as the new Crown Prince and lord of East Palace.

Initially, Emperor Xuanwu had wanted to bestow the position of Empress on Imperial Consort Xi. However, contrary to his expectations, Imperial Consort Xi declined. Instead, she recommended that the Emperor confer a posthumous t.i.tle on Dongfang Que's biological mother, Imperial n.o.ble Consort Bai Linglong .

Emperor Xuanwu agreed and posthumously renamed Bai Linglong as Empress Rende. Then, he promoted Imperial Consort Xi to Imperial n.o.ble Consort.

This news spread throughout the entire Lei Kingdom. Even Ye Jiuge heard about it amid her Enclosed Cultivation.

Nothign that was happening was a surprise to her.

The Crown Prince and Empress had dug their own graves. Out of everyone they could have allied with, they chose to collude with Black Magic Pract.i.tioners. Hence, they suffered the consequences of their actions.

Right now, Ye Jiuge felt troubled because she could not keep performing Enclosed Cultivation to avoid the aristocratic families and the Emperor. She needed to think of a way to deal with these nosy people who wanted more information about Zi Shang.