“Oh hohoho❤️～～～!”
Su Qianqian felt a surge of power far beyond that of a normal Golden Core Stage, as if some force was violently remolding and refining her body. The sensation was painful, yet filled with ecstasy!
At this moment, Su Qianqian’s body was undergoing a transformation of earth-shattering magnitude.
She felt a soreness that coursed through every inch of her being, but the exhilarating sensation of her power rapidly increasing completely overshadowed the pain.
The intertwining of aching discomfort and pleasure made Su Qianqian so unsteady that she almost couldn’t sit upright, hurriedly bracing herself with both hands against the ground—nearly rolling her eyes from the intensity…
Naturally, she had experienced the Golden Core Stage before, and hers had been none other than the top-quality Nine-patterned Golden Core.
So her understanding of the Golden Core Stage’s power was quite clear.
Normally, upon breaking through to the Golden Core Stage, one’s life essence would be elevated, and one would go through a similar sensation—but this time, it was way too overwhelming…!
“No, stop, stop for a moment… Oh hohoho❤️～～”
But this transformation was clearly not something Su Qianqian could stop at will.
After another stretch of body-refining that felt both short and yet like an eternity, Su Qianqian wiped the drool from the corner of her mouth and slowly came back to her senses.
“Phew— I nearly thought I’d pass out… What on earth is going on?! Why did the Sword Sect Immortal Medicine suddenly appear? And why did it replace my Golden Core?!”
Su Qianqian rubbed her temples helplessly. She truly could not make sense of this situation.
As Su Qianqian lowered her hand from her temple, she suddenly noticed something odd about her hand…
She quickly stretched out both arms, feeling as though… they’d become even whiter, and her skin seemed even more supple!
Confused, Su Qianqian summoned a full-length mirror to check her current state. The moment she saw her reflection, her heart skipped a beat!
Although Su Qianqian’s figure wasn’t outstanding, she was still quite a beauty—fair and delicate by any standard.
Any fairer, she’d thought, might not actually look better. But now, this kind of whiteness seemed as if her skin had been “remade”:
At this moment, Su Qianqian’s skin was as warm and lustrous as jade, radiating a translucent glow.
It wasn’t the pallor of bloodlessness, but suffused from within with a gentle blush, like morning dew glistening on the first bloom of a peach blossom, alive with a vibrant flush.
As her fingertip brushed over her cheek, her skin felt so plump, as if filled with crystal water, not a trace of dryness—every inch exuded warmth.
And if one looked closely, the change extended beyond her skin—her hair had turned jet-black as ink, flowing as smoothly as woven silk.
Her eyes, once tinted with a faint gold, were now more luminous and glistening.
“Is… this me?”
Su Qianqian stared at her reflection. Though her features were exactly as before, it felt as if the “clay figurine” of her past had been fired into “white jade porcelain.”
Even she was dazed at her current appearance, unsure for a moment if this was really herself…
She tentatively pinched her cheek—the sensation was indeed wonderful!
But now was not the time to dwell on such things. Under normal circumstances, Su Qianqian wouldn’t have minded—prettier or uglier, it made little difference to her. But now, she was locked away by someone with clear designs on her!
“I’m doomed, I’m doomed. With this face, even I’m having trouble restraining myself. If Luo Wuhen sees me like this after I get out, I might not be able to get out of bed for days!”
Inside the secret realm, Su Qianqian paced back and forth anxiously, hands clasped behind her back.
She even considered disfiguring herself, but ultimately didn’t go through with it—even if she did, Luo Wuhen would definitely find a way to restore her looks.
Besides, Su Qianqian felt Luo Wuhen wasn’t the type to care only about appearances, but this face would definitely have a special effect on Luo Wuhen!
“Think of the positives—at least things can’t get any worse. But… why does it smell so fragrant in here? When did I add any perfume? It actually smells pretty nice.”
Su Qianqian tried to comfort herself, and just as she was starting to feel better, she noticed the persistent fragrance in the air.
It was fresh and elegant, reminiscent of lotus flowers at dawn, a scent she could never tire of…
“No way…?!” Su Qianqian thought of a possibility, and with a horrified face sniffed herself—instantly, the fragrance became even more pronounced…
“Damn it, they’re really pushing me into the fire!”
Su Qianqian slumped to the ground as if drained of all strength.
Any normal female cultivator would be overjoyed with such a situation, but Su Qianqian wanted none of it! At least, not now!
She scratched her head in frustration, but could only compromise in the end.
She might as well check her cultivation progress… In this cold world, only the warmth of cultivation could bring her comfort…
With a heart full of expectation, she peered inward at her Dan Tian.
Where there once should have been a Golden Core like other cultivators at her stage, there was now a snow-white lotus.
Upon closer inspection, the once-pure Lotus Seed, which was formerly her Golden Core, wasn’t floating.
Instead, it was embedded in the center of the lotus’s Lianpeng.
Meanwhile, the Qingyun Sword Embryo hovered above the lotus, apparently absorbing its energy to begin its own refinement.
Before long, Su Qianqian’s life-bound sword would be completed on its own—a convenient development.
Su Qianqian’s divine sense swept over what had once been the Sword Sect Immortal Medicine.
This lotus was no longer as mystical as when she had stolen it in her past life—it had become a miniature version.
And now, she could sense that this pristine white lotus had become part of herself, taking the place where her Golden Core ought to be.
“There’s a serious problem here. All my cultivation techniques are based on the Golden Core foundation. Now that it’s become a lotus, how do I continue to cultivate?”
With a thought, Su Qianqian caused the Golden Core—now refined into a Lotus Seed—to float out from the Lianpeng.
She then sensed her connection to the Lotus Seed, and tried cultivating with it as the core, using the same techniques she would in the Golden Core Stage.
To her relief, it worked! Golden Core Stage cultivation techniques still functioned, so her path hadn’t been cut off.
In fact, the rate at which she absorbed and refined spiritual energy stunned even Su Qianqian!
If, in her past life, her Golden Core Stage cultivation was like a gentle trickle, now it felt as though a separate river channel had opened—once she began cultivating, the flood of energy was unstoppable!
Realizing this was all due to the lotus, Su Qianqian felt much better. Fortune and misfortune walk hand in hand; for the sake of cultivation, so be it!
But Su Qianqian also noticed that while she refined the Lotus Seed, a portion of the spiritual energy was being absorbed by the lotus itself?
She continued cultivating and, sure enough, a small amount of spiritual energy was channeled into refining.
Tracing her senses, she discovered that the energy flowed into a chamber within the Lianpeng… Was it preparing to gestate a new Lotus Seed?
If one Lotus Seed equaled one Golden Core, and if the Lianpeng’s chambers eventually filled… could she end up with 26 Golden Core Lotus Seeds?! And if each Lotus Seed had to be refined individually…
If that were true, then Su Qianqian’s strength at the Golden Core Stage—or rather, the Lianzi Stage—would reach a terrifying level.
Of course, cultivation would become much harder, but thankfully, her cultivation speed was already vastly improved. The future looked bright!
With that thought, Su Qianqian wanted to seize this opportunity to cultivate as much as possible.
If Luo Wuhen didn’t come looking for her, she’d just keep training in here!
The longer she could delay their next encounter, the better. Su Qianqian knew full well that the next time she saw Luo Wuhen might be the moment she would be “settled with”……
At the same time, in the Ziyuan Kingdom’s harem, Lin Muxue swept her senses over and over, but couldn’t detect Su Qianqian’s presence…
Luo Wuhen’s mocking tone was written all over her face:
“Give up. Not everyone goes mad over a man like you do. Of course, I can’t blame you—after all, you already ‘succeeded,’ but failed to hold on to him yourself～. Naturally, you’re filled with such regret. How pitiful——”
Lin Muxue wasn’t swayed by Luo Wuhen’s words, and instead looked toward the one room she couldn’t probe with her divine sense…
Seeing Lin Muxue focus her attention there, Luo Wuhen sneered inwardly but outwardly appeared quite annoyed: “Sect Leader Lin, this is the residence of my Heavenly Emperor. Do you really wish to pry into my Heavenly Emperor’s quarters?!”
Lin Muxue hesitated. She wasn’t entirely sure if Luo Wuhen had kidnapped Su Qianqian, and right now her actions did seem rather unreasonable…
But to give up on searching such a suspicious place—she simply couldn’t do it.
Fortunately, just then, the door to the room opened, and out walked a beautiful woman in splendid robes, her expression calm, with pale blue hair and two small horns on her head.
The woman glanced at the sky, spotted Luo Wuhen floating in midair, and waved sweetly. Luo Wuhen smiled back.
Watching the two share gentle smiles, Lin Muxue felt a wave of complex emotions. Just then, Luo Wuhen’s icy voice rang in her ear:
“Since my Heavenly Emperor has come out, see for yourself—for the sake of your hopeless suspicions. Once you’re done, leave. I have no more time to waste on you!”
Lin Muxue swept her divine sense through the room. As expected, there was no trace of Su Qianqian.
The room only held the lingering aura of the blue-haired “Heavenly Emperor” and Luo Wuhen—a loving couple, by all appearances…
“I’m sorry, I misunderstood you… In a few days, I’ll return to apologize again.”
“May you and your Heavenly Emperor remain together in love, never to be parted…”
“Mhm, we will…” Luo Wuhen’s lips curled in a slight smile as Su Qianqian’s image flashed through her mind.
“There’s no need to return with apologies. I have many matters to attend to, so I won’t see you out!”
With Luo Wuhen’s words of dismissal, Lin Muxue, having seen what she needed, wisely refrained from lingering. She apologized once more and quickly departed.
At the very last moment before leaving the harem’s array, she seemed to sense, for a fleeting instant, a familiar aura—perhaps that of the Sword Sect Immortal Medicine. But why…?
As the array’s barriers closed, the sensation seemed illusory, as if seen through mist or water, but Lin Muxue kept this oddity in mind and moved on to her next goal…
Luo Wuhen stared in the direction Lin Muxue had gone for a long time, then returned to her unfinished duties.
The “Heavenly Emperor” on the ground, for safety’s sake, re-entered the residence…
As soon as she entered, the “Heavenly Emperor” couldn’t hold it in any longer and nearly collapsed from fright.
“Damn, that scared me to death! I had to keep smiling at Her Majesty, and after snatching Lin Muxue’s disciple, I had to act normal in front of her. Thank goodness I took the emotion-suppressing pill in advance, or I’d have died from fright!”
Luo Wuhen had long since guessed that Lin Muxue would come searching.
She had trained Shun and Ying in advance, and after sending Su Qianqian into the secret realm, arranged the harem accordingly, deploying many precious treasures.
In the end, the results were gratifying—Lin Muxue was deceived, though poor Shun was nearly scared to death.
“This kind of thing should really be left to Ying. I just can’t handle it myself…”