Shenhuo City was an extremely prosperous city in the Southern Frontier, home to millions of subjects.

Thanks to the protection of the Divine Flame Imperial Palace and the influence of Empress Lin Shuwang, a constant stream of travelers came and went. Among them were many powerful cultivators, and all kinds of rare treasures, Pills, Talismans, and the like were available in abundance.

Strolling along the broad streets, the cries and shouts of hawkers rang in their ears. Shops lined the avenues, painted pleasure boats drifted on the lake, and children chased each other playfully down the road...

It was the very picture of a peaceful and prosperous era, where the rivers ran clear and the seas were calm.

Chu Chen's entire body and mind thoroughly relaxed. He hadn't felt this at ease in a long time.

Before his rebirth, it went without saying.

Living within the immortal Ye Clan, he suffered day and night under the torment and exploitation of Ye Xuan and the others, bullied to the very brink of death.

After his rebirth, he had constantly schemed to escape the Ye Clan, leaving no time for anything else.

Upon entering the Divine Flame Imperial Palace, although he had resumed his cultivation path and advanced triumphantly with unstoppable momentum...

...the inherent dangers went without saying.

A single misstep would mean total ruin, potentially even implicating Empress Lin Shuwang...

To describe it as "treading on thin ice" was incredibly fitting.

Fortunately, the situation within the Divine Flame Imperial Palace was temporarily stabilized for now.

Under Chu Chen's machinations, Empress Lin Shuwang had forcefully broken through to the Ninth Heaven of the Great Saint realm, even fabricating the illusion of earning the Extreme Dao Imperial Weapon's recognition.

Central Palace Master Qi Lao'er and Supreme Elder Weng Su were no longer wavering; at least on the surface, they were now staunch supporters of Empress Lin Shuwang.

Although the four branch palace masters, including Geng Yan, still harbored treacherous ambitions, they dared not act rashly.

And with the Empress's terrifying aptitude, breaking through to the Tenth Heaven of the Great Saint realm and then the Saint King realm was merely a matter of time.

Once she successfully advanced to the Saint King realm, she could achieve initial refinement of the Extreme Dao Imperial Weapon. At that time...

The world would be set in stone!

Therefore, time was on Chu Chen's side.

The ones who should be panicking right now were Geng Yan and her ilk.

Shenhuo City was a melting pot where dragons and snakes mingled. Various factions had a foothold here, including many powerful Saints hidden in obscurity.

To better protect Chu Chen and prevent any mishaps, Dao Guardian Zhong Sheng-with Chu Chen's consent-did not conceal himself in the void. Instead, he disguised himself as an old servant, retracting his aura and narrowing his eyes as he trailed closely behind Chu Chen.

No one could possibly discern that this unremarkable, groveling, and obsequious old servant was actually a terrifying Great Saint powerhouse.

As for Saintess Zhang Ke'er, it went without saying. The moment she left the Divine Flame Imperial Palace, she was like a wild horse slipping its reins, bolting wildly in a manner no one could rein in.

Only after a bout of coaxing and threatening from Chu Chen did Zhang Ke'er reluctantly don a veil, conceal her aura, and obediently trail behind him like a docile maidservant.

Meanwhile, Chu Chen, draped in fine brocade, looked every bit the part of a silk-pants scion from one of Shenhuo City's prominent clans.

"Chu Chen, I want a candied hawthorn stick! Hurry up and buy one for me~"

Stopping before a candied haw vendor, Zhang Ke'er blinked her large eyes, tightly gripping Chu Chen's arm with both hands and shaking it back and forth as she acted spoiled.

"..."

Chu Chen was rendered speechless. Regardless of anything else, Zhang Ke'er was still the Saintess of the Divine Flame Imperial Palace. Possessing a Spirit Communication Realm cultivation, she should logically have reached the realm of Inedia long ago. So how...

How could she still crave candied hawthorn sticks???

But then again, if one stripped away the halos of "Saintess" and "Heaven's Chosen," she was just an innocent, naive little girl.

"If you want to eat them, buy them yourself. It's not like you lack money."

Chu Chen remained deeply guarded against Zhang Ke'er. Heaven only knew what wicked schemes this little demoness was brewing in her heart.

A candied hawthorn stick was nothing more than the most ordinary of mortal snacks. A few copper coins could buy a stick. Let alone the Saintess of the Divine Flame Imperial Palace, even common mortals could afford it easily.

Yet this girl refused to buy it herself, choosing instead to whine and act spoiled in front of him. Clearly, she harbored ulterior motives~

Could it be that she was sent by Empress Lin Shuwang to test him?

"Not buying!"

Chu Chen strictly refused.

It wasn't that his willpower was resolute, but rather that the enemy's temptation was simply too weak.

"I don't care! I want you to buy it for me to eat~"

"Every time Master Empress secretly sneaks me out, she always buys them for me. You're my Master's man, so you have to buy them for me too~"

Zhang Ke'er clearly hadn't thought that deeply. In her heart, Chu Chen had already become an existence as important as her Master Empress:

"Besides, how can candied hawthorn sticks bought by myself ever taste as good as those gifted by someone else?"

"..."

Chu Chen was speechless. Looking at the quirky and eccentric Zhang Ke'er before him, his eyes shifted, and the corners of his lips curled up slightly:

"I can buy you a candied hawthorn stick, but you must agree to one condition."

"What condition?"

Zhang Ke'er crossed her arms and stared at Chu Chen with high vigilance, retreating several steps.

Don't assume Zhang Ke'er was ignorant just because she was young. She had read plenty of Picture books~

The way Chu Chen had just secretly eyed her, she, Zhang Ke'er, saw it with absolute, undeniable clarity...

"Could it be you want me and Master Empress to serve you together??"

Whoosh-

Faced with the filterless Zhang Ke'er, Chu Chen's old face instantly flushed as red as pig liver. Even Zhong Sheng, who was resting his eyes behind them, was so shocked he nearly choked on his own breath.

"Don't spout nonsense! I... I never even thought in that direction..."

Chu Chen clamped a hand over Zhang Ke'er's mouth, hastily trying to explain. If this misunderstanding blew out of proportion and reached the Empress's ears...

"If I'm not spouting nonsense, then why are you explaining? Don't think I haven't noticed. I just kept my mouth shut to save you the embarrassment."

"..."

"Furthermore, your cultivation breakthroughs have been bizarrely fast. You stayed in the Imperial Palace for a brief moment and shattered several bottlenecks consecutively. If that wasn't dual cultivation with Master Empress, what else could it be?"

"Don't look down on this young lady's age. I know a lot of things~"

"..."

The moment those words fell, before Chu Chen could even open his mouth to defend himself, Zhong Sheng nodded thoughtfully behind them.

The mystery that had plagued his mind for days was finally unraveled. Once he returned to the Red King Palace, he absolutely had to report this earth-shattering secret to Palace Master Qi Lao'er.

This was paramount intelligence. Once the Palace Master learned of this, he would surely reward him handsomely.

"..."

Chu Chen couldn't even be bothered to explain anymore. After all, in matters like this, to explain was to cover up, and covering up only cemented it as fact.

Remembering that this girl had actually helped him quite a bit recently, he casually tossed a Low Grade Spirit Stone to the old granny selling the candied hawthorn sticks. He plucked two sticks from the stand, handing one to Zhang Ke'er and gnawing on the other himself.

Using a candied hawthorn stick to gag this brat's mouth was worth the peace and quiet.

Otherwise, if he let her keep yapping, she'd turn black into white~

"L... Lord, two sticks of candied hawthorns only cost four copper coins. You... you gave this old woman a Spirit Stone, this..."

Catching the Spirit Stone Chu Chen tossed, the old granny took a closer look and was so terrified she instantly dropped to her knees, trembling like a leaf in the wind:

"This old woman cannot make change! I cannot make change!"

A single Low Grade Spirit Stone could be exchanged for ten taels of gold, a hundred taels of silver, or a thousand strings of copper coins.

And whether it was gold, silver, or copper, they were all mere mortal currencies. Spirit Stones contained the spiritual energy of heaven and earth; they were the hard currency of the cultivation world.

Yet a single candied hawthorn stick only cost two copper coins...

"How about this... these candied hawthorn sticks are free. Consider them a gift to you, Lord! A gift!"

But when the old woman raised her head again, the silhouettes of Chu Chen and his companions had long since vanished.

...

"Chu Chen, earlier you said you wanted this Saintess to agree to one condition. What is it?"

Poking out her little tongue to lick the candied hawthorn stick, Zhang Ke'er smiled and asked Chu Chen, clearly in high spirits:

"As long as it isn't too outrageous, this... this Saintess will agree to it~"

"Don't worry, I won't tattle to Master Empress~"

"..."

Staring at the playful and adorable Zhang Ke'er, Chu Chen couldn't hold back any longer and spoke up:

"I just think that given your age and face shape, an updo doesn't suit you. Tying your hair into pigtails would look far cuter and much better~"

Zhang Ke'er was the very definition of a fearless little loli who dreaded neither heaven nor earth.

Yet unexpectedly, upon hearing Chu Chen's words, she blinked her large eyes and hesitated for a mere two seconds. Clamping the candied hawthorn stick in her mouth, she pulled out a hair tie, unraveled her coiled updo right then and there, and bound her hair into two small pigtails on either side.

So obedient?

Chu Chen was momentarily stunned. He truly hadn't expected this little demoness to be so remarkably cooperative.

"..."