Military Advisor and Princess

Chapter 114

"You won't be able to see her for now; the sect leader has gone out on business." Seeing Huang Ying's bright eyes, Sheng Qing knew exactly what she was thinking and smiled regretfully. The sect leader's charm was truly immense; even little Yingying, whom he had never met, admired her so much. It seemed Elder Huang was working diligently to find an antidote, fearing the sect leader might suffer a relapse or face some danger during this time, so he sent Huang Ying as a precaution.

"Oh, when will I be able to see the sect leader?" Huang Ying lowered her head in disappointment and murmured.

"You'll have your chance to see her eventually, but, you cunning Qing, we should get out of here, someone's looking for Sakura!" Saint Orange, feeling ignored, wasn't about to be left out. He spotted a figure approaching, leaped down, and smiled knowingly. He'd investigated Sakura's unusual behavior, and sure enough, as he'd predicted... Sakura's grown up!

"Oh! I understand, Xiaoyingying, let's go!" Although Shengqing didn't see anyone, he could feel a unique masculine aura approaching. Seeing Shengcheng's ambiguous expression, he instantly understood and smiled ambiguously in return. Before Huangying could react, he and Shengcheng flew away.

"Huang Ying? Is it really you?" Wei Ziqi, who looked like a scholar, suddenly spoke from behind Huang Ying with a voice that was both surprised and nervous.

"Wei Ziqi? What are you doing here?" Upon hearing this voice, Huang Ying suddenly turned around, her face flushed, and she roared arrogantly, as if the person who had come was her enemy.

"I came with the Prince." Wei Ziqi stopped a few steps away from Huang Ying, looking embarrassed, and said softly.

"Prince Jin has come too?" Huang Ying seemed to be asking Wei Ziqi, or perhaps talking to herself. Her frustration at not being able to see the sect leader only worsened upon seeing Wei Ziqi. She snorted coldly, turned around, and left.

Wei Ziqi hesitated for a moment, then chased after him...

In the eerie dense forest, a figure in white and a figure in green stood with their hands behind their backs, seemingly strolling casually, as if the dangerous forest had no effect on them.

"Zi hides Gui water. Wu hides Ding fire and Ji earth. Chou hides Ji earth, Gui water, and Xin metal. Wei hides Ji earth, Yi wood, and Ding fire. Yin hides Jia wood, Bing fire, and Xu earth. Shen hides Geng metal, Ren water, and Xu earth..." The Holy Lord's unfathomable eyes carefully observed his surroundings as he walked, his heart filled with astonishment: The Earthly Branches Hidden Stems Formation? How could the Seven Killings Pavilion know this formation? Although the Earthly Branches Hidden Stems Formation wasn't a secret formation of the Holy Immortal Sect, it was still a formation created by the sect itself. Historically, apart from the pavilion masters, sect leaders, and protectors, outsiders generally couldn't obtain the formation's layout. The Seven Killings Pavilion had actually set up this formation; could there be members of the Holy Immortal Sect within the Seven Killings Pavilion? Or...?

"Your Majesty, is something on your mind?" Jin Xuan asked softly, noticing the Holy Lord muttering to himself. A burning light shone from his deep eyes, as if trying to pierce through the thin veil and reveal his true nature. His mutterings, his pensive expression, his mastery of the Five Elements and Eight Trigrams—they were strikingly similar to hers. Their images constantly overlapped in his mind. Was it because he missed her too much, or was it that the Holy Lord...

"This is the Earthly Branches Hidden Stems Formation, it's... a formation of the Holy Immortal Sect." The Holy Lord hesitated for a moment, then his eyes sharpened, and he said coldly.

"It seems things aren't so simple." Jin Xuan frowned and said in a deep voice. The Seven Fiends Tower is actually related to the Holy Immortal Sect. If even someone within the Holy Immortal Sect is colluding with the Seven Fiends Tower, dealing with the Seven Fiends Tower will be even more difficult. After all, the Holy Immortal Sect is key to dealing with the Seven Fiends Tower this time.

"Be careful." The Holy Lord suddenly grabbed Jin Xuan's hand and warned him in a slightly raised voice, stopping Jin Xuan from moving forward.

Jin Xuan turned his head and stared intently at the hand holding his. The Holy Lord's hand was icy cold. In the sweltering summer, holding such a hand was truly comfortable. He just couldn't understand why, with his superb martial arts skills, his hands were still so cold in the heat of summer. Just like Jun... If he didn't know that this hand belonged to the Holy Lord, he would really think that Jun was holding his hand. Why? Even the feeling of holding his hand was the same.

Seeing that Jin Xuan was staring at their hands, seemingly lost in thought, the Holy Emperor realized that he had grabbed Jin Xuan's hand in a moment of panic. He immediately pulled his hand back as if he had been electrocuted, turned his head away, and said calmly, "One more step and there will be danger." His heart started pounding again. How useless! It was just a touch of hands, why are you jumping like that?

"I've been here before, and there was no danger!" Jin Xuan felt a sense of relief as he saw the Holy Lord quickly withdraw his hand. He turned his head and looked at the large tree he had marked with an X last time, asking in confusion. Last time, they were only safe after retreating to this place. There were no traps here, so how could it be dangerous?

"The most formidable aspect of the Earthly Branches Hidden Stems Formation, besides its mystery and unpredictability, and the fact that it is fraught with hidden dangers, is that it constantly changes with the time of day. Last time you came here, this place might have been a safe area, but this time, it could be the most dangerous and deadly spot." The Holy Lord had already composed himself, turned around, and explained calmly. Following Jin Xuan's gaze, he knew that Jin Xuan had marked the area last time, and that it hadn't been dangerous then.

"Then which way should we go?" Jinxuan nodded and asked. The Five Elements and Eight Trigrams are indeed unpredictable and ever-changing; they are a very profound subject.

The sage looked up at the now completely dark sky, then glanced around. He stretched out his hand, calculating as he murmured, "The Rabbit (卯) contains Wood (乙). The Rooster (酉) contains Metal (辛). The Dragon (辰) contains Earth (戌), Wood (乙), and Water (癸). The Dog (戌) contains Earth (戌), Metal (辛), and Fire (丁). The Snake (巳) contains Fire (丙), Earth (戌), and Metal (庚). The Pig (亥) contains Water (壬) and Wood (甲)..."

Jin turned and stared blankly at the focused Holy Monarch. His white figure overlapped with the Monarch's figure. When the Heavenly Stems Eight Trigrams Formation was broken, the Monarch was just as focused, just as dazzling, just as confident and proud.

Trembling, she reached out her hand and murmured, "My lord..."

"This way." The Holy Lord suddenly raised his head and hurried past the Imperial Pavilion to the side. His flustered steps revealed his inner turmoil. The murmured "Lord" was like a sharp knife, deeply piercing his heart and striking his otherwise strong heart.

Jin Xuan also seemed to wake up from a dream and withdrew his hand, secretly annoyed at himself for confusing Jun with Sheng Jun. No matter how similar they were, he was not her after all. She was the only Jun in his heart, while Sheng Jun was just a man with Jun's shadow. Jun... sighed to the sky and followed Sheng Jun's steps.

Because of Dui Jun's presence, although they turned left and right, and moved forward and backward along the way, they were not attacked like last time. However, the two remained silent along the way, and the atmosphere was even more eerie than in the dense forest.

After walking for about the time it takes to burn three incense sticks, they finally emerged from the dense forest. However, the scene before them was completely unexpected: instead of the magnificent or eerie Seven Temples Tower, there wasn't even a small house in sight. Instead, there was only endless wasteland, overgrown with weeds that seemed to stretch all the way to the ends of the earth.

"Holy Lord, is this another formation?" Jin Xuan turned his head and asked the Holy Lord who was deep in thought. Seeing the scene before him, this was the only possibility that Jin Xuan could think of. He was very confident that this was definitely the location of the Seven Killings Tower, otherwise there would be no reason for the appearance of the 'Earthly Branches Hidden Stems Formation'. But after leaving the dense forest, there was only a wasteland, and there was not even a trace of the Seven Killings Tower.

"No." The Holy Lord raised his head, his unfathomable eyes filled with coldness, and affirmed, a cold smile playing on his lips: "This is truly the best natural place for the Seven Killings Tower. Before they made their move, they were already prepared and had devised a plan. Even if you find the Holy Immortal Sect and break the Earthly Branches Hidden Stems Formation, you still won't be able to pinpoint their exact location. This place is vast and open; even if you don't get lost, you'll be quickly discovered in this undisguised environment. The enemy is in the dark, and we are in the light; our chances of victory are almost zero. Besides, we don't know which of the four directions the Seven Killings Tower is located in." The Seven Killings Tower's move was specifically to guard against the Holy Immortal Sect. It seems the Seven Killings Tower knows the Holy Immortal Sect very well. Just who is he?

"What a Seven Kill Tower!" Jin Xuan said resentfully, then sneered and said to the Holy Lord, "Holy Lord, you must be tired too. Why don't you rest for a while and then go down and hunt a few wild rabbits? You've been out for a long time and you must be hungry."

The Holy Emperor nodded knowingly, a faint smile appearing beneath his veil. It had been a long time since they'd had an outdoor barbecue; tonight, a cool breeze was blowing, and there were plenty of wild animals around—everything was ready.

Jin Xuan vanished from the Holy Emperor's sight in a flash, and returned shortly after, carrying two wild rabbits. He laughed like a child and showed them off to the Holy Emperor.

The smile beneath the veil deepened, but then a serious problem suddenly occurred to him: he had absolutely no idea how to grill anything. Everyone else always cooked for him; he'd tried once himself, but either the food was burnt, or he'd fall into the fire, nearly causing a major blaze. After that, no one dared ask him to grill again. And Jinxuan, a prince, almost burned down the kitchen trying to cook porridge—how could he be expected to know how to grill? What a blunder!

"Your Majesty, what's wrong?" Jin Xuan asked, puzzled, seeing that His Majesty was staring blankly at the two wild rabbits.

"Young Master Ling, I don't know how to do this." The Holy Lord came back to his senses and said embarrassedly, his face under the veil blushing. Fortunately, the veil was covering his face and it was dark, so Jin Xuan did not see it.

Jin Xuan almost burst out laughing. So that's what it was all about! Heh... This Holy Ruler is really interesting.

The Holy Emperor looked at Jin Xuan with a puzzled expression as he carried the wild rabbit to the side, skillfully started a fire, set up a frame, skinned the rabbit, skewered two rabbits together with a forked stick, and placed them on the frame. His movements were fluid and seamless, as if he had done it hundreds of times before.

Saint King Jian couldn't believe his eyes. Was this person really a prince? He seemed more like a hunter. Did he often barbecue in the wild, which was why he was so skilled? So he had this hobby?

"You're quite skilled, aren't you?" The Holy Lord sat down next to Jin Xuan and asked with a hint of doubt.

"It's been a long time since I've hunted in the wild myself, I'm a bit rusty." Jinxuan stared at the roaring flames and said softly, then seemed lost in memories as he continued, "I remember when I was young, my master took me hunting. It was my first time hunting, and I was so excited I couldn't sleep all night. When we got to the hunting grounds, I found that hunting wasn't as easy as I thought. Even though I aimed very accurately, I could never hit the target. I was so frustrated I wanted to give up. It was my master who taught me step by step, telling me that as long as you don't give up, there's nothing you can't do. In the end, I actually shot a pheasant! I took my prize and excitedly showed it to my master. He nodded approvingly. I was so happy, it's indescribable. My master has always been my role model since I was little, and he's always been my role model." I studied diligently in literature and martial arts, hoping to gain his recognition. As a reward, we didn't return home that night, but sat on the ground in the wilderness. My master taught me how to make a fire, and we roasted the pheasant I had caught over it. Soon, the enticing aroma filled the air, and I remember devouring the pheasant as if I hadn't eaten for days. My master sat beside me, watching me with doting eyes, and said meaningfully, "This is a survival skill. A true strongman can survive under any harsh conditions." The confidence and righteousness radiating from his face at that moment are etched in my heart forever. His words were sacred to me, the truth; I never doubted them.

Jin Xuan narrated calmly, as if he were talking about someone else, but his usually serene eyes now held a deep resoluteness and adoration. The Holy Emperor's heart clenched; did he know who this master he was referring to?

Jin Xuan's resolute eyes suddenly dimmed, flashing with bitterness. He picked up a branch and stung the fire intermittently. The burning flames reflected on his face, flickering between light and shadow. After a long while, he continued calmly, "The mountain I've looked up to since childhood, I never imagined that one day, would be betrayed by his daughter. She took advantage of my trust in him, took advantage of my fatherly feelings for him, and delivered the most fatal blow to me. She conspired with his daughter to steal the woman I loved most. The mountain has collapsed."

Jinxuan's sorrowful aura deeply pierced the Holy King's heart. He could feel his bitterness, his pain, his despair, and the feeling of being betrayed by his loved ones. He empathized with him, but he was even more bitter. The faith he admired most had betrayed him one day, and his belief in life had vanished in an instant.

She reached out her hand, wanting to comfort him, but in the end, it could only slowly fall to his sides. What could he say? In what capacity could he speak? A bitter feeling welled up in her heart as well. This must be what it means to be so close yet so far.

Jin Xuan seemed to realize he had said too much tonight. To this man he had only known for a day, he had so readily revealed the pain he had been suppressing. It seemed his guard had lowered. He chuckled self-deprecatingly, "I don't know why I told you all this tonight. Forget about it! It's almost done roasting, give it a try." He then handed one of the roasted rabbits to Sheng Jun. Perhaps he had told him all this because he felt a similarity to Sheng Jun! He had unconsciously treated him as if he were Sheng Jun, listening to his woes.

"Thank you, it smells delicious." Shengjun took the wild rabbit that Jinxuan handed him, smelled it, and said sincerely. He knew that Jinxuan was changing the subject, so he went along with him. However, it really smelled delicious, even better than any roasted rabbit he had ever eaten. He tore off a piece, put it in his mouth and chewed. Instantly, his mouth was filled with fragrance, and his appetite was greatly stimulated.

"You also brewed tea for me, so we're even." Jinxuan said with a slight smile. Hearing his words of praise made him happy for a moment, and seeing his satisfied expression, he even felt a sense of happiness.

The two ate the rabbit in silence, neither of them saying a word. Suddenly, they both put down their rabbits, looked at each other, and stood up.