"By the way, I wanted to ask you something about your recent visit to the Spirit Treasury," Liu Xiaobei changed the topic, eyeing Xuefeng's Storage Ring. "You might not know, but the treasury is my Spirit Artifact, and I can monitor everything inside at will. I was going to give you any Spirit Artifacts you were lacking, but it seems like you already got everything you needed. Was it your master that helped you avoid the Guardian Spirit's detection?"
He didn't seem angry since he had already allowed Xuefeng to take whatever he wanted, but he still wanted to know the truth. If there was a method to trick the Guardian Spirit, he needed to make adjustments to prevent others from doing the same thing.
"That's right. She helped me move all the Spirit Artifacts into a hidden space in my Spirit, so I didn't need to go back and ask for more tokens. After all, I took more items than tokens, which would have been troublesome," Xuefeng explained, scratching his head, still feeling guilty.
"I see, so that's what happened. I guess there's nothing I can improve then. Your master is an existence far beyond the power of a rank 6 Spatial Artifact," Liu Xiaobei nodded in understanding. "Also, you don't need to worry about the artifacts you took. Everything in the Spirit Treasury is my possession, so it's as good as yours too."
"Alright, I'll be more shameless then," Xuefeng replied with a cheeky grin. "Father, I will go back to training now. I still have other Spirit Arts I need to test."
"Go ahead. If you need anything for your practice, just ask Elder Ming, and he will prepare it for you," Liu Xiaobei declared with a smile.
"Okay!" Xuefeng nodded with a thumbs up and promptly left the mansion. He found himself back on the main street and sighed in relief.
'I guess it's good that I fabricated the existence of my master. If I showed that much talent, my father would be suspicious and might even suspect I'm not his real son,' Xuefeng thought, recalling his father's surprise. It seemed modifying Spirit Arts was far beyond his league to claim it as his own.
Back in the Clan Leader's study, Senior Wang appeared just after Xuefeng left.
"Did you see that sword move my son created?" Liu Xiaobei asked with interest.
"Yes, and it was quite powerful," Senior Wang admitted, still shocked by what he had seen.
"Can you replicate it?" Liu Xiaobei asked, knowing the likely answer.
"I can copy the movements, but the Spirit Qi patterns were too advanced. The master who created it is truly a powerhouse with great knowledge," Senior Wang praised while shaking his head. "To improve a complete Sword Art that was already close to perfect, I'm lost for words."
"I noticed it too. It was the first move from our Sacred Serpent Steps, but there were no longer any holes in the Spirit Qi patterns," Liu Xiaobei said, stroking his beard. "Although it's still a rank 5 Spirit Art, it should be comparable in power to─"
Suddenly, Senior Wang looked behind him as if he sensed someone coming and vanished. Moments later, a Shadow Guard appeared.
"Sir, we followed your orders and tracked your brother. We discovered he planned an action that could endanger the Young Master's life, so we detained him and his son," the Shadow Guard reported.
"Oh, I was waiting for that. I spared them when that bastard attacked my son, but now it's time to finish the job. Execute them both and spread the news of their betrayal to the clan," Liu Xiaobei decided on the spot.
"Yes, Sir," the Shadow Guard nodded without question and disappeared.
"I guess I need to discuss the future with my wife. If Xuefeng can mature this quickly, we will have to act sooner than I thought," Liu Xiaobei said after some reflection. "Oh, Xuefeng, Xuefeng... you keep surprising us."
Xuefeng arrived in his courtyard an hour later, surprised to find both ladies still in their rooms. He had spotted a pancake stall on his way back and decided to buy them breakfast. There were quite a few shops and stalls in the Liu Clan territory, so people didn't need to leave to buy essentials.
It cost him only four Spirit Stones for two portions, which he considered a bargain since he had thousands of them.
He carried the two packages and knocked lightly on the Princess's door. Hearing no response, he carefully entered. The room was much colder than outside.
He saw her sleeping on the bed, her quilt covering only half her body. She wore a sexy pink nightdress made of delicate silk. If Xuefeng crouched down, he would probably see everything underneath.
'Isn't she too comfortable in here?' he thought, the corner of his mouth twitching.
He approached the bed and sat on the edge, almost touching her. He placed the breakfast on the nightstand and looked at her up close. She looked much more innocent while sleeping, and he couldn't stop his eyes from roaming over her physique.
'Look at the necklace!' Ling's voice suddenly broke through his unrestrained thoughts.
He quickly focused on her chest, almost forgetting the real purpose of his visit.
A small golden crystal lay between her perky breasts, connected by a silver chain around her neck. It emitted a faint golden light that was barely noticeable if one didn't pay attention.
'The Fate Fragment is sealed inside, or rather, it's in hibernation. She probably uses it as a necklace because it's a pretty stone. How about we grab it now?' Ling suggested excitedly.
'No, we can't use force. Let's use other methods first,' Xuefeng replied, gently caressing Princess Shan's cheek. "Princess, it's time to wake up. I brought breakfast for you."
Princess Shan's eyelids fluttered momentarily but then stilled as if she was pretending to be asleep. Unfortunately, Xuefeng noticed this detail.
He smiled and stopped his actions.
"Okay, you can sleep a bit longer. I'll wake up Wuying next," he said gently, preparing to stand up.
At that moment, Princess Shan grabbed his arm. "Don't leave," she called out.
Xuefeng laughed internally as his tactic worked.
"Oh, so you weren't asleep," he pretended to be surprised.
"Tell me, I was defenseless just now. Why didn't you make a move on me?" she asked with a hint of reproach.
"What?" Xuefeng didn't expect this turn of events.
She didn't answer but flipped him onto the bed, pinning his arms as she sat on him.
"You entered a tigress' den and expect to leave without giving her some meat?" she asked while licking her lips, her nightdress hanging messily from her shoulders.
Xuefeng gulped as his imagination ran wild, watching the Princess's sexy curves.