The flow of Saint Energy was not fast. However, even if it was just a tiny quiver, it still attracted a considerable amount of Atmospheric Energy. Zhou Weiqing could feel his cultivation was slowly improving. This process of improvement was to convert the Atmospheric Energy from outside into Saint Energy, which was then compressed into Saint Energy Galaxia.
It was a slow process but this continuous improvement was what most Heavenly Jewel Masters with a Nine Jewel cultivation base could only dream about.
Zhou Weiqing’s meditation took a whole day. When he finally woke from the meditation state, he had returned to his spirited self.
The room had already been cleaned, and there was even a new serving of food. Zhou Weiqing did not feign courtesy. He finished the food quickly and left a satchel of gold. He did not even bid the village girl goodbye. He went out the door, identified his direction, and leaped into the air while unleashing his Dragon-Tiger Transformation Wings before rushing toward the Mysterious Heavenly Palace as fast as he could.
This concerned Shangguan Bing’er’s life, how could he not be worried? In his mind, the Spatial Teleportation Stone was nothing compared to Shangguan Bing’er. Nothing could be more important than his Bing’er.
On the seventh floor, Mysterious Heavenly Castle, Mysterious Heavenly Palace.
The entire Mysterious Heavenly Palace management was seated. However, the atmosphere was currently pretty somber.
This time, Dongfang Hanyue sat on the main seat, while the previous Palace Master, her mother, a classy middle-aged lady, sat on the seat Dongfang Hanyue occupied when she pretended to be Meng Xing.
Dongfang Hanyue had just returned not long after she received the news.
On the day Zhou Weiqing fell into a coma, she had wanted to bring him back to the Mysterious Heavenly Palace before she suddenly received the news about Mysterious Heavenly Palace.
Her mother and several other Supreme Elders were back too. Not only that, they had restricted Shangguan Bing’er’s movement as soon as they had the chance of capturing her. This was why Zhou Weiqing was not able to communicate with Shangguan Bing’er after a while.
The Mysterious Heavenly Palace had something similar to a Sound Transmission Stone as well. Dongfang Hanyue’s mother, Dongfang, used it to determine everyone’s safety as well as informing her about the capture of Shangguan Bing’er.
Dongfang Hanyue was naturally impatient. She had asked her mother to release Shangguan Bing’er without success. Left with no other choice, she dared not bring Zhou Weiqing back directly, so she left him at the fishing village to take care of the issue herself. She did not know how the relationship between Zhou Weiqing and Shangguan Bing’er was, but she was still Zhou Weiqing’s lover! If she was hurt in the Mysterious Heavenly Palace, Zhou Weiqing would probably antagonize her immediately after. That was not what she wanted to happen.
In that sense, Zhou Weiqing’s guess was not right. He could not have guessed the complexity of the matter.
“Release Shangguan Bing’er immediately,” Dongfang Hanyue ordered without any hesitation.
Elder Water frowned, “Palace Master, please calm down. This is something we need to discuss in detail.”
Dongfang Hanyue said angrily, “What’s there to discuss? Let’s ignore Zhou Weiqing’s status as an Honorary Master of Mysterious Heavenly Palace. Shangguan Bing’er is still an Elder. Most importantly, it was Zhou Weiqing who saved all of us at a critical time when we fought the Dreadfiend Sea Naga. We shouldn’t treat him like this.”
Elder Water sighed and said, “That’s right. Zhou Weiqing saved us. However, Palace Master, did you consider one issue? Zhou Weiqing hid his true power from all of us without us even noticing. Is there not something wrong with that? Moreover, what’s that skill he used at that time? Even a Heavenly God-tier’s power was suppressed. It might not be an offensive skill, but it clearly illustrates how Zhou Weiqing has the power to threaten us.”
“How old is he? Early twenties, I suppose. Yet he already has a cultivation base of Nine Jewels, as well as that weird Heavenly Energy. Would you believe it even if it’s not suspicious? Furthermore, he doesn’t have the inheritance that you have. I am afraid he has an ulterior motive joining the Mysterious Heavenly Palace. It’s true that he had done us a great service. However, for the sake of our survival, I’ll like you to reconsider. We have to investigate thoroughly, so we should wait for Zhou Weiqing’s return. Shangguan Bing’er is our trump card, we did not mistreat her. Don’t worry.”
Dongfang Hanyue’s face was scary. It was flushed with fury and pale with worry. She had to admit that the Elders had a point. She also knew what Zhou Weiqing was trying to accomplish. ‘However, if he returns, will the Elders let him off easy? What to do? What can I do?’ she thought.
“Who ordered the house arrest on Shangguan Bing’er? You dare decide on things on your own when I’m gone?” Dongfang Hanyue’s voice dropped into an eerie tone, her eyes betrayed her killing intent. She was also utterly confused. She had yet to clarify the matter between herself and Zhou Weiqing, and something like this happened in the Mysterious Heavenly Palace.
“It was me,” Dongfang who sat quietly since before spoke up.
Hearing her mother’s voice, Dongfang Hanyue was startled, “Mother, how could you do that? Won’t that be pushing Zhou Weiqing to oppose us?”
Dongfang’s eyebrows were knitted together. She said, “Hanyue, the things one holds dear to one’s heart often confuses them. It looks like you really fell for him. If he’s an Honorary Master, I’ll not object to releasing her. However, it’s not clear what his intention is. How can we not thoroughly investigate this? You’re the Palace Master of the Mysterious Heavenly Palace, how can you be so reckless? Think about the big picture, don’t you think we need to find out? Also, regarding Shangguan Bing’er’s house arrest, only a few of us know about it. Zhou Weiqing couldn’t have possibly found out. After we sort things out when he returns, there’ll be no problem if he’s really not planning to do anything to the Mysterious Heavenly Palace.”
Dongfang Hanyue could throw a tantrum at the Elders, but how could she do it to her mother? Even though she was the Palace Master of the Mysterious Heavenly Palace, she had not held the position for long. If her mother stood together with the four Supreme Elders, her influence would not be enough.
Elder Water advised, “Please don’t be mad. Zhou Weiqing saved us, we’ll never forget that. We’re not people who’ll betray a person’s trust like that. However, it’s also imperative for you to consider the state of the Mysterious Heavenly Palace. We’ve lost six Elders in this battle, it can be said that we’re rather beaten up. In this critical period, it’ll be a disaster if problems arise within the Palace. We only decided on this after giving it a thorough consideration.”
Dongfang Hanyue kept quiet. The Elders and her mother were not wrong. If she could have kept calm, she would have understood that they were only doing the right thing. Zhou Weiqing was still an outsider after all. However, Zhou Weiqing had earned an immovable spot in her heart. She had even given him her most precious possession. In this situation, she had already taken Zhou Weiqing’s side.
There was also the operation against the Dreadfiend Sea Naga. Instead of calling it a success, it was more of a lose-lose situation. Even though one Dreadfiend Sea Naga was dead, there was still the other one. The dead one had also exploded. No one had gained any benefits. Instead, they had lost six Elders. It was no wonder the four Supreme Elders were being so cautious.
Dongfang Hanyue took a deep breath as she tried to calm herself down with mediocre success. She clenched her jaw a little and made up her mind. Sometimes it was better to explain things than to leave people in the dark.
“There’s no need. I know his intentions,” Dongfang Hanyue sighed and reluctantly said.
“You knew?” Dongfang looked at her daughter in surprise, “How did you find out?”
Dongfang Hanyue smiled wryly, “After the sea naga exploded, we were both sent by the shockwave to the same place. We drifted on the sea for a while before we arrived at a deserted island. It was there that we met up. At that time, I had the same questions as you do. I even suspected he would attack me. When we met up, I was badly injured and was only left with less than one-tenth of my strength.”
As she was describing, everyone listened in shock. When they had seen her returning without injury, they thought she was not hurt at all. When the Dreadfiend Sea Naga self-destructed, the Supreme Elders and Dongfang powered up the Ward of Darkness with their full strength. Although they were injured, they managed to retreat safely because of their Heavenly King tier cultivation. Once it was mentioned by Dongfang Hanyue, they were suddenly reminded that Dongfang Hanyue was right in the middle of the explosion since she was one of the main force attacking the Dreadfiend Sea Naga!
“Did he do anything to you?” Dongfang asked anxiously.
Dongfang Hanyue sighed and said, “Mother, if he wanted to do anything to me, I wouldn’t be sitting here. Not only did he not hurt me, he even used the miraculous Heavenly Energy that he called Saint Energy to heal me. It didn’t take long before I was completely healed and recovered to my peak state.”
“I had forced him to answer me about his background at that time. He told me everything without withholding anything.”
Right there and then, Dongfang Hanyue told them everything about Zhou Weiqing. Every one of their faces paled when they heard that Zhou Weiqing came from the Boundless Mainland and that he did not belong to any Saint Lands.
“… he approached us with the intention of acquiring the Spatial Teleportation Stone. If he had been waiting on the side when we were battling the Dreadfiend Sea Naga, with his cultivation base, it’s not hard for us to guess how easy it would be for him to succeed. If it wasn’t for him, we would have to face two Dreadfiend Sea Nagas! However, he didn’t do it. He saved us knowing there’s a risk the nagas might kill him. I’ll admit that I was moved. In that split second, I fell in love with him.”