Su Yishui hadn't finished speaking, but it seemed like his spiritual energy was depleting. His figure began to blur gradually, his voice trembling to the point of being inaudible. Before he could finish his words, he suddenly disappeared without a trace.
Ranran waited silently for a while, but the surroundings remained quiet. She couldn't see her Shifu's spirit form anymore, indicating that his spiritual energy wasn't sufficient to sustain the illusion, causing it to vanish.
She cautiously moved to the side and looked down through the window. Under the moonlight, the rippling waves of the lake, her Shifu should be underwater in that area…
Ranran let out a quiet sigh of relief. At least for now, it was clear that Shifu wasn't in immediate danger. Moreover, her master had been very furious just now, and if she didn't listen to him, she might be expelled from the sect even sooner than her second senior brother.
For now, she could only retrace her steps back to the West Palace and plan further when daylight came.
However, as she turned back, she passed by a palace area and heard a familiar high voice, "Quick, carry him to Consort Jing's bed. Empress Jing is used to practicing sparring before bed. She's not in her palace now. When the Chief Steward of the Imperial Palace comes to deliver the plaque later, you know what to do, right?"
The voice speaking was none other than the eunuch who had whispered with Lin Yeting during the day.
Hearing this, Ranran, standing on the roof, couldn't help but stop in her tracks.
Although she wasn't familiar with palace intrigue, she understood what was being said now. It seemed like Lin Yeting had conspired with some despicable eunuch to drug Consort Jing's cousin when he drank, render him unconscious, and prepare to place him on her bed.
Both the eunuch and the palace maid in Consort Jing's palace had been bribed, and Consort Jing was currently practicing martial arts in the arena, providing the perfect opportunity for the scheme.
When Consort Jing returned and the eunuch from the Emperor's chamber arrived, someone would inevitably discover the man in Consort Jing's chambers. At that time, it would lead to exposing Consort Jing's affair with her cousin, cementing her reputation as an unfaithful concubine.
This matter didn't concern Ranran directly; it was just another tragic injustice in the deep palace.
Ranran continued quickly towards the West Palace. As she walked, she overheard Consort Jing speaking softly with a eunuch in a corner of the palace's martial arts training ground.
"My father said that the internal river and the palace's lake are connected. If there's something suspicious, we should check the lake as well. Did anyone see a body float up after someone fell into the lake the other day?"
The eunuch also whispered, "There are always people guarding around the lake. I couldn't get close… Lord Zhou has been investigating for so long without any clues. Maybe the rumors about monsters in the river are just that, rumors."
Consort Jing shook her head, "This matter is of great importance. We can't rest easy until we get to the bottom of it. Go and prepare what I asked you to prepare…"
After dismissing the young eunuch, she began to wield her long sword under the palace lights.
Consort Jing's swordsmanship wasn't just for show; she moved with agility, and her sword whistled as it struck, the floral patterns on her sword swaying around her agile body…
This kind of swordsmanship was almost reaching the realm of "Dao," carrying an air of righteousness. It would take a lot of effort to achieve such mastery.
Ranran first eavesdropped on their conversation about the lake and then got captivated by Consort Jing's skills. She couldn't help but stop and watch, becoming increasingly fascinated.
She thought of General Qin Xuanjiu's injustice in the past and how Minister Zhou Dao of the Ministry of War spoke up for him. This Consort Jing is the youngest daughter of General Zhou Dao, known for her straightforwardness. If she were falsely accused of adultery, it would be difficult for her to clear her name after being set up.
Although Ranran did not have any deep friendship with her, when Consort Jing had inexplicably scolded her in the pavilion during the day, Ranran had felt an unexplainable liking towards her.
She recalled the conspiracy she accidentally overheard, hesitated for a moment, and decided to meddle more and help this soon-to-be-wronged Consort Jing.
So, Ranran quickly moved to the roof beside the training ground, watching the nimble sword dance of the woman. She pricked her finger, quickly wrote a message on a torn piece of her inner garment, "There's a man in your bed. Please deal with it quickly."
After writing, she checked it, finding it concise and to the point, she wrapped the cloth around a stone and threw it towards Consort Jing.
After throwing it, she planned to leave quickly. Unfortunately, she underestimated the skills of this lady of the palace. Consort Jing had already pinpointed the location where the stone was thrown with lightning speed, intercepting Ranran at the roof's edge.
Ranran reacted quickly, flipping down, narrowly avoiding Consort Jing's sword tip.
However, dodging one attack led to more sword moves following.
Ranran was a bit dumbfounded; she had managed to pass through one difficult situation after another before so smoothly. She didn't expect that her one moment of kindness would expose her true identity to Consort Jing.
If she had her spiritual power, she had a hundred ways to defeat Consort Jing, but now, in the palace, she was no different from an ordinary person. Looking at Consort Jing's robust muscles revealed by her short sleeves… hmm, she had no chance of winning.
Consort Jing glared at the young girl in black standing before her. She had now pressed the sword tip against the girl's neck, rendering her unable to move.
Consort Jing lifted the cloth wrapped around the stone, shaking it off and revealing the message. Her eyes widened as she coldly asked, "Who are you? What does this message mean?"
Ranran weighed the urgency of the matter, carefully gesturing for the lady to speak softly, and then whispered, "I am a junior of General Qin Xuanjiu, here to report a conspiracy against you by someone.
She wasn't lying. If they considered Mu Qingge's connection, she was indeed Qin Xuanjiu's nephew disciple, a legitimate junior.
Upon hearing Qin Xuanjiu's name, Consort Jing loosened the short sword at Ranran's neck slightly and asked coldly, "Who is trying to harm me?"
So Ranran briefly explained about Lin Yeting buying off the eunuchs in the palace.
As for whether Ranran was telling the truth or not, it was quickly confirmed. With a glance from Zhou Feihua, her two maids and a trusted eunuch quickly returned to her palace.
They first tied up all the duty maids staying in the palace tonight, then found her cousin who was unconscious on the bed, clearly drugged.
Next, the eunuch swiftly moved the unconscious cousin to another location.
With Ranran's warning, everything was resolved smoothly. Before the emperor's men arrived, the abnormality in the palace was cleared.
Zhou Feihua was quite bold. Faced with the card sent by the emperor's trusted aide, without a change in expression, she calmly stated that she wasn't feeling well and couldn't accompany the king tonight, requesting the emperor to pick another concubine.
The eunuch didn't mind at all. It seemed that Consort Jing had given the emperor the cold shoulder before. He raised a string of colorful wind chimes in his hand and said, "His Majesty heard that you have been feeling unsettled lately and your sleep hasn't been good. He specially ordered the eunuch to select this string of wind chimes from the Western Regions as a tribute, to hang by the window so you can sleep more peacefully."
After saying that, the eunuch went and hung the wind chimes by the window.
Once she dismissed the eunuch sent by the emperor, Zhou Feihua touched with the wind chimes a little while.
The Emperor's favor was like these wind chimes, beautiful but not practical. It looked good but was of no real use, only creating more enemies for her in the palace.
Unfortunately, those jealous women didn't think about why a favored concubine for over a decade hadn't borne any children.
After dealing with the bribed palace maids and eunuchs, Zhou Feihua returned to her palace to assess Ranran. Ranran had just been released from her restraints and was kneeling in front of Consort Jing, rubbing her wrists.
Zhou Feihua looked at her and suddenly asked, "Who are you exactly? If you don't tell the truth, I'll have the Chief Steward come and identify you, to see if you're really from the palace."
Ranran realized that it must have been her improper etiquette that gave away her identity to Consort Jing. She must have seen through her and recognized that she wasn't a trained palace maid.
Seeing that Consort Jing was straightforward, Ranran didn't beat around the bush and said respectfully, "Considering that I've helped you once out of goodwill and saved you, can you spare me this time?"
She then revealed her identity. When she mentioned that she was Su Yishui's disciple, Zhou Feihua's expression changed, but she still patiently listened to Ranran's explanation of coming to save her Shifu.
Ranran kept some things unsaid and didn't mention how she had replaced Mu Qingge and hid her in the bathroom cabinet. Zhou Feihua had a good relationship with Mu Qingge. If she had said it, Zhou Feihua might execute her on the spot.
Zhou Feihua didn't know about Su Yishui's capture before. To her, this news was worth celebrating with a few drinks.
However, this girl with big eyes had a good heart. Despite knowing the risk of entering the palace, she still lent a hand when she heard about someone else's conspiracy.
As for Su Yishui helping Qin Xuanjiu subdue the water demon at Wangxiang Pass, her father had mentioned it before. Since Mu Qingge's death, Su Yishui had upheld the reputation of Lingxi Palace and recruited new disciples, doing some decent deeds.
recalled how Su Yu had expanded the Pool of Inquiry into a big lake twenty years ago. Add that to her master falling into the lake and not coming out. All the mysteries pointed to the Lake of Inquiry.
Perhaps only by entering the lake could all the mysteries be solved. So Ranran, daringly, said, "There are demons in the Lake of Inquiry. If your Ladyship wants to find out the truth, I'm willing to go into the lake to investigate."
When she was about to jump into the lake just now, her Shifu had appeared in his spirit form to stop her right at that moment. He did not allow her to enter the lake. The more he did this, the more determined Ranran was to find out the truth. Even if her Shifu were to expel her from the sect, she wouldn't leave him alone at the icy cold bottom of the lake.
Seeing her determination, Zhou Feihua thought for a moment and then slowly spoke about what she knew.
It turned out that Zhou Feihua had been secretly investigating the anomalies in the Capital. Just a month ago, one of her father's old subordinates returned from a night banquet and almost fell into the inner city river. At that time, he said he saw a huge creature emerge from the water, dragging the servant who was supporting him into the river with one gulp.
The old subordinate was so frightened that he immediately snapped out of his drunken state. Since Zhou's official residence was not far from the incident, the old subordinate had stumbled his way over and desperately knocked on the door of Zhou's mansion.
After Zhou Dao listened to his incoherent account, he immediately sent people to search the river. However, even after alarming the city prefect and despite mobilizing the district office and numerous fishing boats, they found nothing.
If there really was a huge creature in the river as the old subordinate said, with such a large-scale search, it would have been discovered long ago.
The district office concluded that the old subordinate was drunk and speaking nonsense, closing the case. As for the missing servant, he was ruled as a run-away slave.
But Zhou Dao believed his old subordinate's words. He had picked up a shell-like object by the riverbank that looked extraordinary, not like a common item.
However, it seemed someone didn't want him to investigate further. Three days later, the old subordinate, once again drunk, fell into a ditch, broke his neck, and died.
His wife pleaded with Zhou Dao, stating that it was the death anniversary of her mother-in-law, and her husband, being extremely filial, would never drink and revel on such a day, especially after the scare he just experienced. Why would he get so drunk again? Lord Zhou felt that something was amiss. He quietly hired people to search for clues.
Unfortunately, recently, it seemed he had fallen out of the royal favor, as the Emperor hinted that Zhou Dao should retire. If he resigned, he would have to return to his hometown, and this matter would be left unresolved.
Now, when Zhou Feihua heard Ranran confidently mention suspicious activities in the lake, she couldn't help but ponder. Because she knew that the water in the lake came from the inner river.
Could it be… that the man-eating monster was under the lake in the Imperial palace?
When Ranran expressed her desire to investigate the lake, Zhou Feihua hesitated. "That place is a forbidden area in the palace. One of the emperor's beloved consorts accidentally fell into the lake, causing the Emperor extreme grief. Since then, palace personnel are forbidden from approaching."
Thinking Zhou Feihua was being apprehensive, Ranran tilted her head and said, "I'm not a person from the palace. Even if His Majesty investigates, it won't implicate you, Your Ladyship."
Zhou Feihua looked at her and suddenly laughed self-deprecatingly. "I never thought that after so many years in the palace, I would waste all my skills and become such a timid person. I am the one who wants to find out the truth, how could I put a little girl like you at risk? Your name is Xue Ranran, right? I've heard about you. You were the winner at the Marrow-Cleansing Pool this time. You were able to pass the test of the Great Dun Tian, just like Qingge back then, a rare talent. Won't it be a pity if something happened to you in the palace lake?"
It seemed that Zhou Feihua was also someone who valued talent.
Ranran clasped her fists and said, "Shifu is the person who is kindest to me. Now that he's alone and has no one else, who else can save him aside from me? Even if it's a dragon's pool or a tiger's den, I will still venture into it!"
As she spoke, Ranran's gaze was resolute, and her small face exuded an indescribable charm. For some reason, Zhou Feihua, in a trance, seemed to see another person in this young girl.
That person had been sitting on the top of a tall tower, looking at the dawn in the distance, smiling and saying, "He's alone, and has no one else. Unless I give him a hand, who else would be willing to save him?"
That time, Zhou Feihua and "her" drank together all night on the high tower. At the farewell, Zhou Feihua never expected that it would be the last time they would meet…
When she heard that Qingge was reborn, Zhou Feihua was extremely ecstatic. Later, she had looked forward to Qingge entering the palace. But when the two met again, the once close friends who could drink together all night had become very distant.
Mu Qingge politely explained that she had lived on a tree for twenty years, and many old memories were hard to recall.
With change, their deep-seated friendship of the past seemed to not have borne fruit with the turning of the cycle of life.
Zhou Feihua sighed lightly, ending her inexplicable sadness. From this impetuous young girl, she seemed to have regained the heroic spirit of her youth.
She smiled and said, "Since you're not afraid of death, why not accompany me? Let's find out what secrets are hidden in the lake."
After they agreed on their plan, Ranran asked curiously, "I heard that during the construction of the Great Qi Palace, an expert had guided it, so there are things buried under the foundation that can suppress spiritual power. Perhaps, that's why the monster hasn't caused trouble?"
As she said this, she fingered the small compass around her neck, lost in thought, and then looked at the birds chirping outside the window.
When Zhou Feihua turned around, the young girl standing by the window had disappeared, leaving only a clear voice floating in, "Consort Jing, I'll go on ahead. If you trust me, we'll meet again by the lake at midnight…"
Ranran's light skills were excellent. Seizing the opportunity while it was still dark, she finally made her way back to the Western Palace.
She changed into Qingge's clothes and then picked up pen and paper, quickly drawing for a while on the paper. When the outline was formed, she exhaled slowly, folded the paper, sealed it with wax, ready to send it out of the palace at the right opportunity.
During the day, she had to pretend to be Qingge. Only at night could she venture into the lake to find out the truth.
In fact, Ranran still had doubts and worried that Consort Jing might betray her.
But when midnight arrived, as she lay on the eaves, she saw Lady Zhou Feihua, dressed in black, appear at the agreed place. She knew then that this Lady's credibility was as reliable as her swordsmanship.
With Zhou Feihua's help, approaching the lake for the second time became much easier.
Zhou Feihua knew the time when the guards changed positions around the lake. After the second watch of the night, she took advantage of the wind direction, used a packet of sleeping powder provided by her confidant to incapacitate the guards around.
They then changed into diving attire. After exchanging a glance, they jumped into the water with a splash.
Zhou Feihua was an excellent swimmer, but in the darkness of night, it was pitch black and impossible to see under water.
She took out a night pearl to illuminate the surroundings. It was said that this pearl was a reward from the emperor himself, a testament to Consort Jing's favor.
With the light from the pearl, they continued to descend, and Ranran's thoughts grew heavier.
Because in such a large lake… there wasn't a single fish! The layout of the palace's water bodies always followed Feng Shui principles, and there should have been auspicious creatures like koi inside.
However, after descending for so long, holding a night pearl that would easily attract fish, the water was eerily silent, like dead water.
Ranran sensed something was wrong. She looked around but saw nothing unusual. She was about to signal Zhou Feihua to ascend when she saw Zhou Feihua, seemingly startled, wide-eyed, gulping water with bubbles forming around her mouth.
Following her gaze, Ranran turned her head and her pupils contracted sharply. She forgot to hold her breath for a moment and almost choked on the water.
Because following the dim light of the pearl, at the bottom of the pool, there was a huge creature coiled there—a dragon with complete scales and horns!
At first, the creature's figure was blurry, but under the reflection of the night pearl, its body seemed to emit a faint glow of scales, gradually revealing its full appearance.
Fortunately, it seemed to be in a deep sleep, lying motionless at the bottom of the water.
And the dragon's body was coiled around something, when Ranran took a closer look, she realized that was a person—long hair flowing like black waterweed in the water, the face also illuminated by the light reflecting off the scales, it was clearly her master, Su Yishui!
However, Shifu's eyes remained closed, seemingly in endless slumber.
Zhou Feihua had choked just now and had to surface. Just then, the dragon slowly opened its eyes, and through its narrow slits, shone a golden light that Ranran felt was inexplicably familiar.
As the dragon stared at her, Ranran found herself unable to move. She could only watch as the massive dragon head slowly approached her. Its swaying whiskers even touched Ranran's body.