While Xia Wuyang was enjoying the company of women, the Divine Female Constable was hard at work investigating how the Seventh Prince, Xia Wunian, had become a eunuch.
Constables fanned out across San Yin Hall, searching every suspicious corner and funneling all their findings to Liu Yiqing.
Liu Yiqing, meanwhile, was focused on inspecting every corner of the Practice Room, not letting a single detail escape her.
After several hours, Liu Yiqing was forced to a conclusion: "There are absolutely no signs of an intruder. All evidence indicates that the Seventh Prince suffered Qigong Deviation from attempting a breakthrough on his own."
"The Seventh Prince cultivates a Spiritual Cultivation Technique, which is treacherous, unpredictable, and extremely difficult. If control is lost, it can indeed lead to such a result." The Imperial Physicians also confirmed this. "Based on all the signs, the Seventh Prince was conscious during the Qigong Deviation. To stabilize his Spiritual Power and prevent even more severe consequences, he was forced to ignore the rampage of his Qi Blood, and that’s what caused... the incident."
Unfortunately, the Seventh Prince, Xia Wunian, was now comatose. Even when he occasionally woke for a moment, he was borderline insane, clearly unable to accept what had happened. Otherwise, they would all have a much clearer understanding of the events.
’A Spiritual Cultivation Technique?’ Liu Yiqing was also surprised. She hadn’t expected Xia Wunian to possess one. In all her years of traveling the Jianghu, she had never even seen a Spiritual Cultivation Technique.
After triple-checking, Liu Yiqing reached her final conclusion: the Seventh Prince had indeed been too eager for results during his Cultivation, causing a backlash from his technique.
During that time, no suspicious individuals had entered San Yin Hall, nor had anything been stolen.
When Xia Wuyang received the news, he simply gave a faint smile and paid it no further mind.
’It’s a shame it’s not the right time to deliver the killing blow. I could only cripple Xia Wunian for now and let him taste a fate worse than death. When a suitable opportunity arises later, I’ll send him on his way. And then there’s Xia Wushang... and Xia Wuchen...’
He stopped dwelling on it. He had already comprehended the Enchanting Heart Technique up to the Fourth Floor; it was time to advance further.
With his level of Spiritual Power, as long as he comprehended a floor, he could rapidly ascend to it, further tempering and enhancing his Spiritual Power; the Spiritual Power in his Sea of Consciousness was but an external manifestation.
In truth, many of the seven aspects encompassed by the growth of Spiritual Power had already permeated deep into his body and would never manifest externally.
For example, how could Comprehension, one of the aspects of Spiritual Power growth, possibly be manifested through tangible Spiritual Power?
Aided by his immense Spiritual Power, the bottleneck to the Fourth Floor shattered with ease. More of his Spiritual Power converted into the "Enchanting Heart" variety, growing ever purer and more formidable.
A realm the Seventh Prince, Xia Wunian, could only dream of was thus achieved by him with unstoppable momentum.
He then began to comprehend the Fifth Floor. A few hours later, he had grasped it completely, successfully cultivated it, and the Enchanting Heart Technique naturally reached the Perfection of the Fifth Floor. His progress was astounding, advancing by leaps and bounds.
At the same time, Xia Wuyang didn’t neglect the associated Combat Techniques and Secret Techniques, using any spare moment to continue his Cultivation of them.
Enchanting Heart Technique, Enchanting Heart Step, Enchanting Heart Needle, Enchanting Heart Sword Technique... all of them improved steadily, causing his overall strength to grow continuously.
Furthermore, the Cultivation of Spiritual Power was extremely discreet. It was difficult for others to detect, even under public scrutiny. Thus, he dared to cultivate and comprehend the Enchanting Heart Technique freely, even while indulging in carnal pleasures during the day.
In just a few short days, he had cultivated the Enchanting Heart Technique to the Seventh Floor, which corresponded to a Third Grade Martial General. In other words, his Refining God Cultivation had already reached the Upper Three Grades.
Demons and Ghosts were known to exist in the Great Xia Dynasty. Among them, Ghost Spirits and Anomalies primarily cultivated Spiritual Power. They were notoriously hard to defend against, mysterious, and the most troublesome of all Demons and Ghosts.
They were naturally suited for cultivating Spiritual Power and followed the Refining God Dao; it was very difficult for them to follow the Body Refining Dao.
Xia Wuyang had encountered them before. Among Cultivators of the same rank, Human Race Martial Artists found it extremely difficult to defeat Ghost Spirits and Anomalies of the same level.
Anomalies were especially terrifying, as they could revive infinitely so long as their anchor object remained unharmed.
The Cultivation Power of Demons and Ghosts was divided by Level, not by grade. Levels 1 through 3 were considered Low Level Demons and Ghosts, Levels 4 through 6 were Middle Level, Levels 7 through 9 were High Level, and Level 10 was Top Level.
A Level 7 Demon or Ghost corresponded to a Third Grade Martial General of the Upper Three Grades. Generally, only Level 7 Ghost Spirits and Anomalies were capable of cultivating their Spiritual Power to such a degree.
Right now, Xia Wuyang still had a great deal of Spiritual Power he had yet to absorb. If he were to absorb it all, he could possibly reach not just the eighth floor, but even the ninth, or perhaps even the Tenth Floor.
At that point, his Refining God Cultivation would completely surpass his Body Refining Cultivation. Paired with his various Spiritual Combat Techniques and Spiritual Secret Techniques, he might even be able to contend with a Grandmaster above First Grade, or perhaps even a Super Grade Celestial Human.
With a faint smile, Xia Wuyang once again immersed himself in his Cultivation. When night fell, he quietly slipped out of Wenhua Hall, passed through layers of palace walls, and finally came to a stop in a corner of the Imperial Garden.
Disguised by his Dragon Storage Skill, he now looked like an ordinary, unremarkable palace attendant.
He stopped and took out a handful of grain that had been soaked in a special concoction.
COO COO... Xia Wuyang made a peculiar call, his voice imbued with the mystical fluctuations of the Soul Capturing Technique.
Before long, a RUSTLING sound came from the bushes. A few pure white Moon Shadow Foxes cautiously poked their heads out and looked toward Xia Wuyang.
They were pets raised by some of the concubines. They possessed no combat ability but were naturally skilled at Concealment and sensing danger, and they looked utterly adorable.
Upon seeing Xia Wuyang, they all pounced on him joyfully and began to enjoy the special grain he had prepared.
Xia Wuyang had specially prepared this grain after learning their preferences through the Language of the Heart, and it was the Moon Shadow Foxes’ absolute favorite.
"Consort Chen is pretending to be mad again, desperate to find the person who killed her two sons."
"Consort Zhen dotes on her children and is clearing obstacles for them."
"The Third Prince and the Fifth Prince are fighting more fiercely than ever; they’re practically ready to bash each other’s brains out."
While enjoying the treat, and under the influence of the Soul Capturing Technique, they began to relay bits of palace gossip, allowing Xia Wuyang to learn a great deal about the events of the past few days.
After feeding the Moon Shadow Foxes, he used the Soul Capturing Technique and the Enchanting Heart Technique to strengthen his connection with them, subtly conveying the kind of information he was interested in. Only then did he sneak off to his next location.
Soon, a flock of birds flew down from the night sky. They circled Xia Wuyang and began to CHIRP, telling him what they had learned over the past few days.
Xia Wuyang took out some specially prepared millet for the birds to enjoy. He used the Soul Capturing Technique and Enchanting Heart Technique in tandem to further strengthen his connection, guiding them to focus on matters that interested him.
Once they had eaten their fill, under Xia Wuyang’s guidance, they all flew off to different locations, becoming his eyes and ears to monitor everything happening within the palace.

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