The ritual took three hours.

Wei Long worked in absolute silence, his movements carrying the precise, economical grace of a master craftsman who had performed the same task a thousand times before. He drew on the polished jade floor with a brush tipped with the hairs of a celestial fox that had lived for over a millennium before being rumored to have ascended to the Heavens themselves — and, whether that story was true or merely a fanciful bit of exaggeration, its tail fur was still worth more than a provincial governor earned in a lifetime. The ink he used was ground from high-grade spirit stones and the petrified heart of an ancient shadow panther — a spirit beast that had died protecting its cubs from a Core Formation demon three hundred years ago — mixed with a liberal application of Wei Long's own Golden Core-level blood, freely given for the ritual's success.

The stoic man's hands moved across the jade in smooth, flowing strokes, each character a perfect expression of a hellishly complex formation principle. Xueyue watched in fascination as the array took shape — it was a massive mandala of interlocking runes and geometric patterns that seemed to shift and flow even as they were drawn, as if existing in multiple dimensions simultaneously. This was Grandmaster-level work, the kind of esoteric art that took many mortal lifetimes to perfect, and Wei Long wielded it with a casual mastery that still managed to awe her even after all these years.

As she watched him work, she took a moment to appreciate the irony of her mental state: all things considered, she should have been pleased. Triumphant, even. An Earth-Grade Golden Core at twenty years old was an achievement that transcended normal categories of genius.

Instead, she felt... hollow.

"It's a shame, really," she said quietly, breaking the comfortable silence. "About Young Master Jiang."

Wei Long's brush paused for the briefest instant before resuming its flowing motion. "Your Highness?"

"Jiang Li." Xueyue's fingers traced absent patterns on her knee, her gaze distant. "His gifts made this breakthrough possible. I had hoped to thank him properly. Perhaps... to get to know him better. He was interesting in ways that most people at court are not. Genuine. Unafraid. He looked at me and saw a person rather than a princess."

"…Not to mention his inexplicable access to wealth and rare artifacts, his impossible talisman and alchemy talents, and the backing of an unknown, possibly Immortal master," Wei Long quipped.

She laughed softly, and the sound held more bitterness than amusement. "Yes, of course — that too. But, I suppose that's the nature of our world, isn't it? The good die young, and usually from poison meant for someone else. I should commission a memorial for him. Perhaps sponsor his family's businesses. It seems inadequate, but—"

"Your Highness," Wei Long interrupted gently.

"—And Jiang Li's family! Can you imagine? To have your son achieve such miraculous things only to lose him to political machinations at the very moment of the family's triumph? The tragedy of it all is—"

"Your Highness—" Wei Long tried again, his voice slightly more insistent.

"—simply unbearable, and I feel partially responsible because the poison was meant for me, so, in a sense, I was the one who killed him through the simple act of—"

"Your Highness!"

"—existing as a target for my rivals' schemes, which makes me wonder if I should even—"

"XUEYUE!"

The name cracked through the chamber like a thunderbolt, and Xueyue's mouth snapped shut mid-sentence. She stared at Wei Long with wide eyes, shock rendering her momentarily speechless.

In years of service, and despite Xueyue always insisting on informal protocols when the two of them were together alone, Wei Long had never willingly addressed her by her given name. Not once. He insisted on training her for the courtly formalities at all times — it was always "Your Highness" or "Princess" with him. To hear her given name spoken aloud by her guardian — without her having to plead with him to drop the act first — was so profoundly unexpected that it took her several heartbeats to process that it had actually happened.

Wei Long, for his part, looked slightly embarrassed by his own outburst, but his expression quickly settled back into professional composure.

"Forgive this old servant's impropriety," he said with perfect formality, though his eyes held a glint of wry amusement. "But Your Highness has been lamenting Young Master Jiang's death for the past three minutes without pausing for breath, and this servant has been attempting to inform you that—"

"That what?" Xueyue demanded, leaning forward with sudden intensity.

"—that Young Master Jiang Li did not, in fact, die from the Golden-Core ranked Earth-aspect poison at the banquet."

Xueyue blinked. "What?"

"He survived, Your Highness. In quite spectacular fashion, actually. As it turned out, Young Master Li possessed an amazing -- and, dare I say, unprecedented -- special constitution. Not only did it neutralize the poison, but it also helped him to break through to Foundation Establishment on the spot! I understand the sight of it was really quite… something."

For a long moment, Xueyue simply stared at Wei Long as if he had suddenly started speaking an alien language. Then her face transformed — grief melting into confusion, confusion blooming into shocked joy, joy exploding into manic excitement.

"He's alive?" She shot to her feet, nearly upsetting the meditation cushion. "He survived that? But how? The poison was of the Golden Core-grade, wasn't it?"

"And not just any Golden Core-level poison, either," Wei Long confirmed, while shaking his head. "Whoever targeted you used no half measures — the toxin was nothing less than the Eternal Abyss Entombing Earth. An alchemical blight specifically optimized for use against Water and Frost-aspected cultivators."

The words were a key, unlocking a door in her mind she had long since sealed shut. A memory, sharp and cold as a shard of glass, surfaced from the depths of her childhood.

She was a girl of six, hiding behind an ornate screen of carved jade in the Palace's Garden of Ten Thousand Flowers, playing a game of hide-and-seek with her cousins. The air was warm, fragrant with the scent of a thousand blooming spirit-peonies. Her Ninth Uncle, Long Feng, was there. He was a brilliant, flamboyant man, a Mid-Stage Foundation Establishment cultivator with a Frost affinity almost as pure as her own. He had been her favorite, the one who always brought her candied spirit-fruits from his travels and told her stories of the great Ice Dragons in the northern mountains.

Her uncle was sharing a cup of wine with a visiting dignitary from a southern province. She remembered the shared toast. And then… the first sign: the way the laughter died in her uncle's throat, replaced by a look of profound, dawning confusion. She saw the faint, greyish tint that spread with an unnatural speed up across his skin. She saw the exquisite jade cup he held suddenly crack and crumble to dust in his petrifying grasp.

She remembered the sound. Not a scream of pain, but a series of sickening, wet cracks, like an ancient tree groaning and splitting under its own immense weight. It was the sound of her uncle's own bones breaking — not from any external blow, but from an internal, phantom pressure, the weight of a thousand illusory mountains crashing down upon his very soul. She watched, paralyzed with a child's helpless terror, as he became a living statue right before her eyes. His face, a moment before so full of life and laughter, contorted into a silent scream, his eyes wide with a horror that transcended mere pain, before they, too, glazed over, becoming dull, lifeless stone.

And she remembered how it felt, even from her hiding place. The feeling of his vibrant, beautiful Frost Qi — that familiar, comforting cold — being smothered, extinguished, entombed by something alien and wrong… so much so that her own nascent Qi had recoiled in sympathetic terror. She had been found later, shivering and silent, by Wei Long.

The poisoning was covered up so as not to cause a panic. The official cause of death was catastrophic Qi deviation. A convenient lie. But she knew the truth. She had never forgotten the sound of those breaking bones.

So indeed, she knew that poison well. She also knew that contact with even a drop of it was a death sentence -- anyone in the Qi Gathering stage should have been dead within moments.

And Jiang Li has survived it? No, more that that — he had refined the poison and used it as a catalyst to break through?

"But how did he — no, never mind that! I don't care how. Where is he? Get him here immediately! No, wait — we will need to prepare a proper reception. Wei Long, commission a banquet! The best chefs, the finest wines! And gifts! What do you give to someone who gave you an Earth-Grade Golden Core breakthrough? Mere spirit stones seem insulting. Perhaps high-grade artifacts? Or—"

"Your Highness—"

"—exclusive trading rights throughout the Imperial Capital? Yes, that would be appropriate! And a formal title! Can I grant titles? I should ask Father for a boon. Although, perhaps not right away. But definitely soon! And—"

"Your Highness—"

"—we need to establish a formal alliance. Political protection for his family, obviously. They'll need it with all the attention this will bring. And I should apologize for the assassination attempt even though it wasn't strictly my fault, but face and politeness demand—"

"Your Highness, if this old servant might interject—"

"—and we can discuss that constitution of his! Whatever allowed him to survive that poison must be studied! Not in a threatening way, of course, but surely we could come to some sort of arrangement. Why, this could—"

"Your Highness?"

"—revolutionize alchemical theory! Can you imagine? If we could replicate even a fraction of his abilities? The applications for—"

"Your Highness, he's missing!"

Xueyue stopped mid-gesture, her hand frozen in the air where she'd been outlining her grand plans. "...Missing?"

Wei Long seized the moment of silence before she could build up momentum again. "Yes, Your Highness. Missing. Along with City Lord Zhang Wei. Six months ago, on the night of the banquet."

The manic energy drained from Xueyue's expression, replaced by something cold and sharp. She lowered her hand slowly, and when she spoke again, her voice carried a dangerous edge that hadn't been there before.

"Please. Tell me everything."

Wei Long set down his brush with deliberate care, giving the words the weight they deserved.

If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

"After the banquet, it is rumored that Young Master Jiang and City Lord Zhang went to meet with representatives from the Azure Cloud Sect. According to some witnesses, they were seen walking towards the Sect's compound in Yuhang City. However, they were never seen leaving. When the Zhang family made inquiries, they were told that no such meeting had occurred, that the two young men had simply never arrived."

"And?" Xueyue's eyes had gone flat, all traces of the excited girl vanished beneath the razor-sharp focus of an Imperial Princess who had just identified a threat.

"…And nothing, Your Highness. The matter was investigated by Imperial representatives. Briefly. Superficially. The Azure Cloud Sect's word was accepted without challenge. The case was declared closed. The Zhang family's protests were... dismissed."

The temperature in the chamber seemed to drop several degrees as frost began to form on Xueyue's fingertips — an unconscious manifestation of her Frost Qi responding to her emotional state.

"Who?" she said, her voice soft and deadly. "Who dared block the investigation?"

"Factions loyal to the Crown Prince, Your Highness."

For a long moment, Xueyue was silent, her jaw clenched so tightly Wei Long could see the muscle jumping beneath her skin. When she finally spoke, each word was carved from ice.

"My brother has gone too far this time."

She began to pace, her movements sharp and predatory. "Blocking an investigation into the disappearance of an Imperial City Lord? This isn't subtle political maneuvering — this is outright banditry! This is Tianba declaring that he will act with impunity, that no one under my potential protection is safe from him, that he can make people vanish and face no consequences!"

Her hand dropped to where her sword would normally hang, found only empty air, and clenched into a fist instead. "Well. Brother dearest is about to learn that I will not tolerate such audacious acts from him. Not anymore."

She whirled to face Wei Long, her eyes blazing with cold fury. "The Azure Cloud Sect. They're complicit. They have to be. Two young men seeking a meeting with them simply disappear? In the middle of a Provincial Capital, where guards are posted on every street corner? Either they're guilty or they're incompetent — and either way, they will answer for it."

Wei Long nodded slowly, his expression carefully neutral. "Then Your Highness intends to—"

"I intend to make an example," Xueyue said flatly. "If the Sect was involved in harming someone under my potential protection, I will ensure they face consequences. My brother wants to play games with people's lives? Fine. Let him learn that his little sister has learned to play too. I'll rend that Sect asunder brick by brick — my brother's politics be damned — even if I have to do so with my own two hands."

Wei Long was quiet for a long moment, and something that might have been respect flickered across his weathered features. Then he picked up his brush and resumed work on the formation, his voice carefully neutral.

"This old servant applauds Your Highness's resolve. Truly. The determination to seek justice for those harmed is admirable."

"…But?" Xueyue asked, hearing the unspoken word hanging in the air.

Wei Long's lips quirked into something that wasn't quite a smile. "But Your Highness is, I'm afraid, somewhat late to the party."

Xueyue frowned, gesturing for him to elaborate.

"The Azure Cloud Sect," Wei Long said calmly, his brush flowing across the jade in perfect, unhurried strokes. "…was completely destroyed three days ago."

Xueyue stared at him, mouth slightly agape in a most undignified manner.

"...What?"

"Destroyed, Your Highness. Annihilated. Wiped clean from the face of the earth. The Sect Master is dead. The Elders are dead. Most of the inner disciples are dead, and the few survivors among the Outer Disciples have since scattered to the winds." Wei Long paused to examine his work, then added almost conversationally, "I thought it was quite thoroughly done, actually. Very professional. Whoever was responsible clearly had access to significant resources and absolutely no interest in half-measures."

"How," Xueyue said faintly. "How did this happen? Who would—"

Then understanding crashed over her like a wave of ice water, and her eyes went wide. "The Jiang family?"

"There are rumors," Wei Long confirmed, his tone suggesting that 'rumors' was a polite fiction and everyone of note knew exactly who was responsible. "Nothing official, of course. But yes, the prevailing theory involves Young Master Jiang's rather formidable cousin. Apparently she took exception to the Imperial investigation covering up the Sect's role in her beloved's disappearance. Rather… vigorous exception."

Xueyue slowly sank back onto her meditation cushion, trying to process this information. "She destroyed an entire Sect? She hired mercenaries, then?"

Wei Long shook his head. "Oh no! Apparently she did it by herself! Our agents did track down two of the surviving outer disciples, who told a very interesting story. They report that the attacker used wealth like water — burning through entire stacks of high-grade talismans, defensive artifacts, movement techniques, most at the high Foundation Establishment to low Golden Core level. Apparently, she also made extensive use of Spear Intent during the battle, which alone would make her one of the most dangerous Foundation cultivators in the Empire."

He completed another section of the formation before adding, almost as an afterthought, "The Crown Prince is choosing not to pursue the matter. And the Zhang family and their bureaucratic allies are gleefully blocking any attempts at investigation from other quarters. Officially, the matter remains a mystery. Unofficially..."

He shrugged.

"Blood debts are sacred. The cultivation world understands."

Xueyue was quiet for a long time, staring at nothing in particular as she processed the implications.

Finally, she started to laugh.

It began as a small chuckle, grew into a genuine laugh, and eventually became the kind of slightly unhinged laughter that came from pure stress relief combined with the absurdity of the situation.

"And here, I was going to tear down a mountain," she said between fits of laughter. "I was going to lead an investigation, gather evidence, mobilize forces, make dramatic speeches about justice. I had a whole plan in my mind."

"And I'm sure it was a very good plan, Your Highness," Wei Long said diplomatically.

"And someone already took care of it. Three days ago. While I was in seclusion." Xueyue wiped tears from her eyes.

She shook her head, and when she spoke again, her voice held equal parts admiration and frustration. "Jiang Yue. I need to meet this woman. Anyone who can manifest Spear Intent at Foundation Establishment and successfully conduct a one-woman war against an entire Sect — a backwater, third-rate sect though it might have been — is either brilliant or insane."

"Perhaps both, Your Highness," Wei Long suggested. "After all, the line between genius and madness is notoriously thin among cultivators."

Xueyue took a deep breath, forcing herself back to composure. "Well. This changes things. If Jiang Yue has already dealt with the Sect, then my focus needs to shift. The Jiang family will need protection now more than ever — both from potential retaliation and from those who might try to exploit their clan heir's disappearance."

"Indeed, Your Highness. Which brings us back to the original purpose of this formation." Wei Long gestured to the nearly complete suppression array. "You'll need to be seen as strong enough to provide that protection, but not so strong that your brother feels immediately threatened. A delicate balance."

"Let's go with a High-Grade Golden Core," Xueyue confirmed, settling back into political calculation mode. "Powerful enough to matter, not quite powerful enough to provoke immediate action."

"Just so, Your Highness."

They fell into companionable silence for a moment, Wei Long working on the formation while Xueyue processed everything she'd learned.

Finally, Xueyue said quietly, "He might still be alive, you know. Jiang Li."

Wei Long glanced up at her, questioning.

"No body was found. He survived an impossible poison through some miraculous constitution. He has resources we can barely comprehend. If anyone could have survived..." She trailed off, then shook her head. "But that is probably just wishful thinking."

"Perhaps, Your Highness," Wei Long rumbled, his voice carefully neutral. "Or perhaps it is a necessary prayer to preserve our sanity."

Xueyue gave him a sharp look. "A prayer?"

"Consider the source of his power," Wei Long said, his voice dropping to a low, grave tone. "If Young Master Jiang is not a reincarnated Immortal, then he must have been taught by a teacher. A Master. And those talismans he crafted… they were not merely advanced, Your Highness. They were… alien. They followed principles of the Dao that I — one of the Empire's foremost talisman experts — have not encountered in over three centuries of study, despite having access to all of the restricted archives! To have taught Jiang Li things that even our archives have no knowledge of? His Master… quite frankly, must be older than dirt."

He paused, letting the weight of his words settle.

"The Emperor is a master of the Dao Formation realm, a living god who shapes this world with his will. But even he is bound by the known laws of this continent's cultivation. Even a Dao Formation expert will ultimately perish after their lifespan runs out over the course of ten thousand years or so."

He paused dramatically.

"But there are realms beyond that, Your Highness, whispered of in the most ancient texts. Realms that ultimately lead to true, world-transcending Immortality. If the boy's Master is such an expert…" His voice became a near whisper, laced with a genuine, profound fear that chilled Xueyue to the bone. "…then for some fool to have carelessly killed his prized, perhaps his only, disciple… Your Highness, the wrath of such a being would not mean a mere war. It would be a judgment upon this dynasty. Upon this Empire. Perhaps… even upon this world itself…"

Wei Long shook his head in dismay.

"…So yes, we can only pray he is alive. For all of our sakes. And pray that his Master does not blame us for failing to protect him."

Xueyue contemplated what she has heard. She looked at the partially complete suppression formation, then at her own hands — hands that now contained the power of an Earth-Grade Golden Core, hidden beneath layers of carefully constructed deception.

"Well," she said with a slight smile. "At least I won't be bored."

Wei Long's stoic face creased into what might have been a smile. "No, Your Highness. I suspect boredom will be the least of your concerns in the months to come. Now, hold still."

She stood perfectly still as Wei Long completed the final characters, his brush moving with a reverent precision that spoke to the profound importance of what he was doing.

"This will feel... uncomfortable," he warned. "The formation does not merely hide your power — it actively suppresses it, forcing your Core to operate at a fraction of its natural capacity. You will feel weaker, slower, as if you are moving through water."

"I understand," Xueyue said, squaring her shoulders and lifting her chin with the unconscious pride of someone who had never been allowed to show weakness.

Wei Long's hand moved through a complex series of mudras, and the formation activated.

The glowing runes lifted from the floor like living things, thousands upon thousands of tiny motes of black and gold light that swarmed through the air with hypnotic, undulating grace. They converged on Xueyue from every direction, and for a breathless instant she felt their touch against her skin — cool, slightly oily, carrying a faint sensation of wrongness that made her want to flinch away.

Then they sank into her flesh, flowing through her meridians like a thousand tiny ants of light and shadow, and wrapped themselves around the blazing power of her Golden Core in a multi-layered, smothering embrace.

She gasped as the world suddenly dimmed.

The vast, overwhelming awareness of her surroundings contracted sharply, folding in on itself until her senses were back to something approximating what they had been before her breakthrough — perhaps even slightly less, given the interference of the isolating formations in her quarters.

She felt... diminished.

She promptly decided she didn't like that feeling.

"Breathe, Your Highness," Wei Long said gently, his hand hovering near her elbow in case she needed support. "It will become easier with time. The formation is most sophisticated. It adjusts to your control, responds to your will. You can lower the suppression in moments of need, though in doing so, your true power will be obvious to anyone watching."

Xueyue took a slow, steadying breath, then another, forcing herself to adapt to this new limitation. She was a cultivator of the Golden Core — she had endured six months of agonizing compression to achieve this breakthrough. She could certainly endure a self-imposed suppression for the sake of survival.

"How do I appear to others?" she asked, her voice steady despite the disorientation.

Wei Long closed his eyes, his spiritual senses sweeping over her in a professional assessment. When he opened them again, he nodded in satisfaction. "A particularly potent High-Grade Golden Core, recently achieved. Your aura is controlled but powerful, suggesting excellent potential for further advancement. Those who knew you before will be impressed but not alarmed. Your brother will certainly be... displeased, but should not be threatened by it. At least, not immediately."

Displeased but not threatened. It would have to be enough.

"Then let us proceed," Xueyue said, smoothing down her robes with hands that did not tremble. "I have been in seclusion for six months. The Court will be expecting my emergence, and delay will only fuel speculation."

Wei Long bowed deeply, his expression settling back into the mask of impassive professionalism he wore in public. "Just so, Your Highness. The ceremonial bath has been prepared, and fresh robes await in your chambers. Shall I summon your handmaidens?"

"Yes," Xueyue said, then hesitated. "And Uncle Long?"

"Yes, Your Highness?"

"Thank you. For everything."

The man's face softened fractionally, and he bowed again — not the formal court bow this time, but the simple incline of the head that a father might give a daughter. "It has been my honor to serve you, Princess Xueyue. And it will continue to be my honor, for as long as the heavens permit it."

Then he was gone, moving with the silent grace of a ghost, leaving Xueyue alone in the antechamber with only the slowly fading glow of the sealing formation for company.

She stood there for a long moment, staring at the complex web of characters that now lived beneath her skin, suppressing the greatest achievement of her young life.

This is the price of power, she thought grimly. To achieve greatness and then hide it. To be strong and pretend to be merely adequate. To stand at the threshold of true potential and then take three steps back just to survive.

But she would survive.

She would play this game with the same ruthless precision she brought to everything else. She would protect those who deserved protection, punish those who deserved punishment, and carve out a space in this vicious, beautiful, terrible world where she could finally breathe.

And perhaps, someday, she would be strong enough that she no longer needed to hide.

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.