After spending an entire month fucking like rabbits, it was impossible for the palace maids and servants not to notice that something was off.
By the end of the second week, most of the Empress's closest maids had already realized what had happened. Terror struck them, but they immediately did their best to keep the information sealed away, afraid that any leak might affect their master.
If their master were to die, they, as her servants and her entire clan, would be buried with her.
Meanwhile, inside the room, Meng Xuanjue lay between Yun Wuji's legs, her back resting against his chest. Both were completely naked. Hei Xiaolian had already returned to the Sky Poison Pearl, while Helian Lingzhu had teleported back to the Cloud Dragon Palace to give the two of them some privacy.
"Do you want to control this kingdom?" Yun Wuji asked as his hand caressed her smooth belly, occasionally giving her breasts a squeeze.
"Controlling the kingdom?" Meng Xuanjue didn't feel any shock at his words. Instead, she tilted her head up to meet his eyes and asked, "What do you want from me?"
She had been holding back this question for a long time. She never asked before, afraid of displeasing him and ruining the mood, but now she couldn't stop herself.
It was true that she was the Empress of a Kingdom of God. Compared to the lowly commoners, she stood at the highest peak of existence. Very few would even dare to dream of licking the ground she walked on. But compared to Yun Wuji, who could enslave even a True God, she couldn't imagine what he could possibly want from her.
If it were authority, then at this very moment, he already held the highest authority in the entire kingdom.
Her beauty? She was undeniably beautiful, but compared to Hua Qingying, she fell short. That woman was the Heart Demon, the obsession of an entire generation of men.
In the end, Meng Xuanjue remained uncertain about his motives and why he was doing all of this to her.
"The answer is very simple," Yun Wuji said with a smirk as his hand slid lower along her abdomen, teasing her naked pussy while he whispered, "I want you." He had no desire to become the ruler of heaven and earth, because to him, heaven and earth themselves were already bending and begging for him to rule.
What he cared about was enjoying life and spending his time as he pleased. His way of thinking was something probably no one in this world could ever understand, not that he sought anyone's understanding.
"You want me?" Meng Xuanjue's eyes widened as her legs tightened around his hand, the fluttering and ticklish sensation suddenly blooming in her chest. The feeling was so light, so soft, and so intoxicating.
She had liked Yun Wuji from the first time she saw him. After all, she was just a normal woman, and any woman would find it hard not to be fascinated by him. However, during their interactions, she had always been on the passive end, feeling like he was toying with her for his amusement. She felt helpless, yet she couldn't deny that she was enjoying it.
Hearing that the reason he did everything was simply because he wanted her made her feel valued and loved. The sensation was overwhelmingly sweet and blissful.
"Yes, I don't care about this Kingdom of God or anything else. When I saw you, I wanted to make you my woman, and that's all there is to it." Yun Wuji held her chin, pressing his forehead against hers as he said, "To me, you are ten thousand times more important than this Kingdom of God."
"..." Meng Xuanjue stared silently into his dark, bottomless eyes.
"With my abilities, I can have any woman I want, but I still chose you. Isn't that proof enough that I value you and like you?" Yun Wuji kissed her lips softly before adding, "Or could it be that you don't like me?"
"...You already know the answer." Meng Xuanjue pressed her lips against his, kissing him for a full minute before whispering, "Is that enough of an answer?"
"Good girl," Yun Wuji chuckled, gently caressing her face. "Though it would've been better if you said it with your mouth. But I'll let it slide this time."
"Harem +1!" Hei Xiaolian's voice echoed from within the Sky Poison Pearl. "As your power grows, so does your harem."
"What, are you jealous?" Yun Wuji asked with a grin.
"Nah, they're the ones who should be jealous," Hei Xiaolian snorted with disdain before declaring proudly, "You and I are literally inseparable for eternity."
"I like this cute side of you, Xiaolian," Yun Wuji chuckled at her response. Well, she wasn't wrong. He then flipped his hand, and a white pill appeared in his palm. Showing it to Meng Xuanjue, he said, "Take this. It will help you reach the Divine Limit Realm."
"What? Something like this actually exists?!" Meng Xuanjue stared at the pill before her, then turned to Yun Wuji, exclaiming in astonishment.
A single pill capable of raising someone's cultivation directly to her level was unheard of in the entire history of the Abyss. Not even the Pure Land, with all its wondrous resources, could produce anything like this.
To think that Yun Wuji had something this precious and was giving it to her! He really did love her. Otherwise, why would he waste something like this on her if she were just a booty call?
Staring at the pill, Meng Xuanjue felt her nose stuffy. As the daughter of the second strongest person in the Dreamweaver Kingdom of God, who had grown to become the Empress, her entire life had revolved around profit and manipulation, whether manipulating others or being manipulated herself. She had always judged people by their value, including her own children. Being treated with such sincerity by Yun Wuji was something entirely new to her.
Though if she had been treated like this by a lowly person, she would have simply scoffed. But being treated this way by someone of a higher status than her made the impact countless times stronger.
"Yeah, you should take it now. I'll help you refine it," Yun Wuji said calmly, pushing the pill toward her lips.
Meng Xuanjue was at the 9th level of the Divine Extinction Realm, and this level-up pill was designed for the Divine Extinction Realm, capable of helping anyone skip a single level.
Since the Divine Limit Realm was essentially the 10th level of the Divine Extinction Realm, anyone at the 9th level who took the pill would advance directly to the Divine Limit Realm.
With almost the entire Endless Fog at his disposal, Yun Wuji had no trouble gathering the resources needed to create the pill.
Meng Xuanjue swallowed it silently, then sat cross-legged and began refining the pill.
...
Swoosh!
On a desolate cliff, the wind and sand blew endlessly. Suddenly, a sharp gust tore through the air, scattering the flying sand like a blade slicing through the storm before landing on a massive rock.
A thin, small cut appeared on the surface of the stone.
"I failed again." Hua Qingying's beautiful face tightened into a deep frown as she looked at the paper in her hand.
She had been trying to cut the rock using only her will, without relying on any profound energy or sword intent.
While cultivating the Limitless Sword Art, she had faced many challenges, but her talent allowed her to overcome them all. She had even managed to master the first level in less than a year. However, after reaching the second level, she found herself completely stuck.
She needed to use her will and her heart to manifest a sharp intent capable of cutting anything. The first step toward achieving that was to slice through something solid, like a rock. It was absurdly difficult, and even after countless attempts, she could barely leave a small cut on the stone.
"Noob."
Yun Wuji's voice came from behind her as he walked up to her side.
Hua Qingying glanced at him, her eyes fixed on his face. 'Noob? What does that even mean?' Was he making fun of her? Why did he always like using such strange words?
"It seems you're stuck, huh?" Yun Wuji said as he reached out and took the paper from her hand. Aiming at the rock, he slowly swung his arm, and in an instant, a sharp, invisible blade shot forward, slicing cleanly through everything in its path.
Swoosh!
The rock split cleanly down the middle.
"It's actually fairly easy to do. You just need to get the feeling right," Yun Wuji said calmly as he placed the paper back in her hand. "The Limitless Sword Art revolves entirely around freedom and being unfettered. Your heart is still bound by something."
"..." Hua Qingying stared silently at the paper in her hand. She knew he was right, but she would have appreciated it more if he had shown her a way to actually reach that mental state.
"Let me show you something." Suddenly, Yun Wuji reached out and took her hand calmly. He closed his eyes, as if concentrating all his attention on something.
'Holding hands! He is holding my hand!' Hua Qingying's pupils expanded. The warmth radiating from his palm seemed to seep toward her beating heart, leaving her thoughts in complete chaos. Yet strangely, she didn't struggle or pull her hand away.
How could he constantly pull off such intimate gestures without even asking for her opinion, and the absurd part was that she didn't feel any repulsion at all!
After a moment, Yun Wuji opened his eyes and stepped behind her. He reached out and lifted her hand high as he spoke, "I will show you this only once. Remember this feeling."
"!!!" Hua Qingying shuddered slightly as his hot breath tickled her ears. Trying to keep her voice steady, she managed to answer, "...Alright."
Suddenly, a foreign power entered her body, swiftly coursing toward her heart and profound veins. The moment it touched them, all her uneasy and chaotic feelings vanished like smoke. It was an inexplicable yet wonderful sensation, as if every shackle binding her had been broken.
When she followed his movement and swung her hand this time, a sharp invisible blade flashed forward, almost identical to the one he had unleashed earlier.
It split another rock cleanly in two.
"Well, it worked this time." Taking a step back to put some distance between them, Yun Wuji's voice brought her back to her senses.
"Remember this feeling, and use it as a reference. If you do, perhaps you'll succeed in no time." After giving her the instruction, he turned and walked through the spatial rift that appeared, leaving her alone.
He didn't give her any time to ask questions or react to what had just happened.
...
Happy New Year. May your New Year's resolution survive longer than it did last year.
...
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