The concubines and Palace Maids in the Eastern Palace have all undergone rigorous training in court etiquette. Their looks, talents, and temperaments are all first-rate. Every last one of them is on par with, if not superior to, the women meticulously cultivated at the Yixiang Building.
With just a bit of training, they could become the top attractions of the house. Moreover, their unique status would make them irresistible to many men.
What’s more, they have substantial savings. Once they enter the Yixiang Building, that money will naturally become the building’s money. It would only take a few small tricks to get it.
Qian Tong hesitated. "But the Eastern Palace is part of the Royal Family, after all. Even though the elder Crown Prince is finished, he’s still the Crown Prince in name. For us to plot so openly..."
"What is there to be afraid of?" Lady Yu sneered. "Once the elder Crown Prince dies, the women of the Eastern Palace will be masterless. According to old Palace customs, childless concubines are either buried with their lord or sent to a temple to become nuns. The Palace Maids are sent back to their hometowns or married off to soldiers. Those are all miserable fates. We’re offering them a way out, saving them from dire straits and letting them live as happily as Immortals."
She paused, a venomous glint flashing in her eyes. "Besides, we have someone backing us. What is there to fear?"
Qian Tong and Zhao Wu exchanged a look. Both thought of the same person: the Third Prince, Xia Wuchen.
Decades ago, the Yixiang Building’s rapid rise in White Jade City and its meteoric growth were all thanks to the clandestine support of the then-all-powerful Third Prince.
In return, the Yixiang Building became the Third Prince’s front for gathering intelligence, currying favor with Courtiers, and even handling his dirty work. It had done a great deal for him.
In those years, the Yixiang Building frequently helped the Third Prince deal with his political rivals, a list that included the Qinhuai Building from the Crown Prince’s Mansion. The two sides had clashed many times.
Qian Tong still remembered that rainy night forty-five years ago.
Hong Shao, the second-in-command of the Qinhuai Building, had infiltrated the Yixiang Building. She was trying to steal secret correspondence between the Third Prince and a high-ranking courtier. At the time, the Third Prince and that courtier were plotting against Crown Prince Xia Wuyang.
But she fell into an ambush. Zhao Wu broke both her legs and threw her into the city moat, where she nearly died.
Many of the Qinhuai Building’s young women were also lured away by the Yixiang Building’s schemes and sold to the lowest-grade brothels. To this day, it’s unknown if they’re alive or dead, but they surely endured endless suffering.
Though these acts were done in secret, there’s no such thing as a perfect secret. The two houses thus became mortal enemies.
Later, when the Crown Prince’s Mansion fell and the Qinhuai Building disbanded, the Yixiang Building took advantage of the chaos to prey on many of the Qinhuai Building’s women.
But even though the Third Prince was now deposed, the Northern King’s Mansion behind him still stood.
If they could establish a connection with the Northern King’s Mansion, the Yixiang Building could perhaps reach even greater heights and reap handsome rewards.
"About the Third Prince..." Qian Tong began, probing.
Lady Yu said coolly, "I’ve already sent people to make contact. He may be deposed, but some people in the Northern King’s Mansion behind him should have an interest in our line of work. A considerable interest, in fact."
She didn’t finish her sentence, but her meaning was clear. Nothing more needed to be said.
Brothels were never just about the flesh trade. They were hubs for intelligence, trading grounds for power and money, and the perfect venues for winning over and corrupting officials. Their uses far exceeded what an ordinary person could imagine.
If the Northern King’s Mansion wanted to plant more eyes and ears in the Imperial Court, the Yixiang Building was undoubtedly the best choice, especially given their shared connection through the Third Prince.
"So, what now..." Zhao Wu asked, his voice a low rumble.
Lady Yu set down her teacup. "First, we make preparations. Qian Tong, go and find out the details on the women in the Eastern Palace—who is most favored, who has the most money, who is the easiest target, and who is off-limits... We need to know everything. Zhao Wu, you pick some of our sharpest men and keep an eye on Wenhua Hall. The moment the elder Crown Prince dies, we move. Don’t let anyone else get the first strike."
"Yes." The two replied in unison.
Lady Yu rose, walked to the window, and pushed it open a crack.
The scorching afternoon sun flooded in, making her squint.
Below, Fengyue Street was deathly still, but she knew that once night fell, it would transform into another world—a world that devoured money, desire, and even humanity. And from it, they would make a fortune.
And those women from the Eastern Palace would, sooner or later, become a part of this world, violated by all kinds of men until they were completely used up.
She muttered to herself, the corners of her lips curling into a mocking smile. ’Qinhuai Building, you couldn’t beat me then, and now your former master is about to die by my hand. This must be retribution, haha...’
What she didn’t know was that at this very moment in Wenhua Hall, the elder Crown Prince whom she saw as a dead man walking was about to complete a world-shaking breakthrough. His power would be so immense that he could crush all of them with a single finger.
「In the Practice Room.」
Xia Wuyang sat cross-legged, his aura contained, still as a boulder.
But if one could peer into his Sea of Consciousness, they would witness a dazzling, miraculous sight.
Four hundred and ten points of Spiritual Power swirled like a Star River. The ten points of starlight on the very edge were exceptionally bright, linking together to form a profound vortex.
At the center of the vortex, two distinctly different masses of light were fiercely colliding and merging...
One was a light purple mass—the essence of the Enchanting Heart Technique, capable of enchanting minds, controlling hearts, and altering memories...
The other was an indigo mass—the core principles of the Enchanting Soul Scripture, used for bewildering souls, creating Illusions, and weaving dreams...
Xia Wuyang had mastered both Cultivation Techniques to their absolute limits and had even modified them to suit his own traits, making them perfectly tailored for him.
Now, thanks to an epiphany granted by his Seven-Aperture Exquisite Supreme Talent, the moment for their complete fusion had finally arrived.
BOOM...
A clap of thunder seemed to detonate in his Sea of Consciousness, sending a jolt through his entire being.
The two masses of light shattered, exploding into countless motes that rained down like stars. Then, drawn by some profound power, they began to converge, recombine, and sublimate... undergoing a deep and fundamental transformation.
After an unknown amount of time, a brand-new Cultivation Technique slowly took form in Xia Wuyang’s mind.
It was a luminous, glass-like color. The words of the Cultivation Technique flowed like liquid, at times coalescing into the glyph for "Enchantment," at others, the glyph for "Bewilderment." At last, they solidified into two large, rather peculiar characters in Ancient Seal Script.
Enchanting Heart!
The very first line revealed its extraordinary nature, sending a tremor through Xia Wuyang.
"The heart is the master of the spirit; enchantment is its key. A single thought can birth an Illusion; ten thousand can forge a cage."
’This Cultivation Technique is called... the Enchanting Heart Scripture!’
A wave of understanding washed over Xia Wuyang, and everything became clear.
This new Cultivation Technique had completely surpassed the Enchanting Heart Technique and the Enchanting Soul Scripture, entering the realm of High Level Spiritual Techniques. It had skyrocketed directly from being two Low Level Spiritual Techniques, a testament to the power of the Enchanting Heart Scripture.
What’s more, it had a full nineteen layers. If cultivated to the stage of Great Success, one could reach the realm of a Nine Spirits Refining God True Monarch—just one level shy of a Ten Spirits Refining God True Monarch.
More importantly, it combined the advantages of both original techniques. It could be said to have gathered all their strengths, discarded many of their weaknesses, and even added new, more formidable powers.

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