Chapter 1 The Illusionary Realm

As Feng Bujue and Xu Huaishang stepped through the gates of the Lianxian Palace, the blurry scenery before them cleared (similar to the city barrier of the Imperial Harem City, the Lianxian Palace’s barrier also hindered outside vision).

The Lianxian Palace was indeed like a fairyland.

Elegant trees stood tall in the courtyard, and clouds drifted. There were orchids and artemisia, and jade springs produced roses. Slender jade flowers, mysteriously extraordinary.

All kinds of unique, precious, and beautiful plants and jades of the Holy Yuan World formed this dreamlike and illusory painting.

Moreover… this was only the front courtyard. Beyond the front hall, the Immortal Palace had four more courtyards. The beauty there was beyond the imagination of those outside the palace…

“Ho… not bad scenery.” Even Feng Bujue couldn’t help but praise upon seeing this magnificent scene.

“Mm…” Xu Huaishang added, “The air here smells good too, a faint fragrance.”

“Probably the scent of flowers and plants,” Feng Bujue casually replied.

“Not quite…” At this moment, a gentle and melodious voice joined the conversation, “That smell… is the fragrance of women.”

Before the words faded, a graceful figure emerged from the flower forest.

The newcomer was a woman, but dressed like a monarch. She wore a dark robe and scarlet skirt, draped in a large red imperial robe, without a crown, and her long hair reached her waist.

With just one glance, Feng Bujue knew… she was Ji Fenglong.

“I see…” Jue-ge’s face turned serious, and he thought, “I think I understand that stalker a little…”

“So beautiful…” On Xu Huaishang’s side, she was staring intently at someone of the same gender as herself, muttering those two words in a daze.

This was the magic of Ji Fenglong.

Her beauty was stunning.

No matter how many words had previously described her beauty, the moment people saw her, they would involuntarily feel surprised and at a loss.

Jue-ge knew quite a few beautiful women. Taking the ones in this script as an example, Li Ruoyu, Lutter, Twenty-Three, Xu Huaishang, An Yueqin… each of them could be called an exquisite beauty, either charming, perfect, celestial, or breathtaking…

However, Ji Fenglong was different from any of them. Her beauty possessed a grandeur, a composure, and an aura that looked down upon the world.

“The flowers and plants in my Lianxian Palace only contain elegant air, not rich fragrance.” Ji Fenglong was not surprised by Xu Huaishang’s reaction. She smiled slightly and continued from the previous topic, “The scent you smell is actually the body fragrance of my beauties… Looking at the entire Holy Yuan World, only by being in my Lianxian Palace, with its clouds of beauties, can you smell it.”

Hearing City Lord Ji’s explanation, Jue-ge’s first reaction was, “Looks like… the air circulation system here isn’t very good…”

“Air… circulation… system?” Ji Fenglong looked at Jue-ge somewhat inexplicably, repeating the six words, but still didn’t understand the exact meaning.

“Oh… right, I haven’t introduced myself yet.” Feng Bujue didn’t plan to stray too far from the topic, so he immediately changed the subject, “I am Feng Bujue, the master of Broken Sword Teahouse.” After speaking, he gestured towards Xu Huaishang next to him, “This is my…”

“Friend!” Xu Huaishang interrupted before Jue-ge could say “Fourth Concubine,” “Just a friend! There is no other relationship.”

“Heh… this must be Miss Lu?” Ji Fenglong smiled gently, looking at Xu Huaishang with a gentle gaze.

In front of this smile that could captivate all beings, Xu Huaishang’s pretty face also flushed slightly, and she replied somewhat nervously, “Uh… City Lord may have misunderstood, that Miss Lu who entered the city with Master Feng is not here at the moment (on the way here, Jue-ge had told Xu Huaishang some of what happened earlier).” She paused for a second, subconsciously flicking a strand of hair at her temple, and then cupped her fists, “I am Xu Huaishang.”

“Oh? ‘I am’?” Hearing this address, Ji Fenglong’s gaze quickly shifted to the pair of sabers at Xu Huaishang’s waist, “Miss Xu… is also a person of the Jianghu?”

“I… wouldn’t say I am.” Xu Huaishang noticed the other party’s gaze and instinctively placed a hand on the hilt of her saber, “This… is just for self-defense.”

“Self-defense?” Ji Fenglong smiled, “Heh… alright…” She revealed an ambiguous expression and turned around, “The two of you, please follow me.”

Hearing this, Jue-ge and Xu Huaishang exchanged glances. Then, the former shrugged his shoulders, and the latter nodded… and they followed together.

Before long, under the leadership of Ji Fenglong, the two of them passed through the flower forest in the front courtyard and arrived at a lotus pond.

On the rocky bank of the pond stood a stone pavilion.

At this time, tea had already been prepared on the stone table in the pavilion. The three of them quickly stepped into the pavilion and sat opposite each other.

While the heat of the first cup of tea was still rising, Ji Fenglong took the lead and said, “Master Feng, I don’t like to beat around the bush when I speak, so… I’ll just say it straight…” She looked directly into Jue-ge’s eyes without any reservation, “I’m not interested in your set of cultivation methods ‘beyond the Holy Yuan’. The reason I invited you here is actually just to exchange a few moves with you… to relieve some boredom.”

“Oh, is that so…” Feng Bujue lazily replied, “Then what’s in it for me?”

Jue-ge’s reaction greatly exceeded Ji Fenglong’s expectations. She originally thought that this man would agree to this request with a flattering or pleasantly surprised expression, but she never expected that the other party would calmly start negotiating terms…

“Benefits?” Ji Fenglong repeated the key point in Jue-ge’s words with a questioning tone and a half-smiling expression.

“That’s right.” Feng Bujue replied in a matter-of-fact tone, “Even if I went to the streets to perform and show off a few tricks, I could still earn a few coins, right? Now you’ve invited me to your door to perform for you privately, and even want to ‘exchange a few moves’, shouldn’t you give me some compensation?”

“Heh… that’s strange…” Ji Fenglong seemed to find the current situation quite amusing, and replied with a smile, “Being people of the Jianghu, do we have to charge for martial arts sparring?”

“Ha!” Feng Bujue laughed loudly, “I ask you, what is the Jianghu?”

Ji Fenglong seemed to be intrigued and prepared to continue arguing with Jue-ge, “I don’t know… or else… you tell me, and I’ll listen.”

Feng Bujue replied with a serious expression, “The Jianghu is a nebulous concept. It is used to describe the relationship between a group of organized but undisciplined non-governmental armed forces.”

His explanation successfully stunned Ji Fenglong…

“Oh…” City Lord Ji rarely responded to others in this way, but at this moment, she was indeed a little dazed.

“I think City Lord Ji is not considered a person of the Jianghu,” Feng Bujue added.

“Not considered?” Ji Fenglong asked.

“Not considered,” Feng Bujue replied.

“Then what am I?” Ji Fenglong asked again.

“You are a wealthy person who has money, land, combat power, and even raises a group of private armed forces…” Feng Bujue said.

“Hahahaha…” Ji Fenglong laughed loudly, shaking her head after laughing for a while, “I really didn’t expect… someone would say to a ‘Yuansheng’ that she is not a person of the Jianghu, but a wealthy person.” At this point, Ji Fenglong’s expression suddenly changed, and the topic changed, “Heh… I am a wealthy person, then what are you?” Her tone suddenly turned cold, “Could you be a beggar?”

“No.” Feng Bujue remained unmoved and leisurely took a sip of tea.

“Then you are a storyteller,” Ji Fenglong added.

“Hehe…” Feng Bujue put down his teacup, “City Lord’s implication… I am a liar who only knows how to talk?”

“I didn’t say that.” Ji Fenglong stood up from her seat, crossed her hands behind her back like a man, and slowly paced in the pavilion, “Although General Huo is injured, those who can directly withstand his Liuhuo Zhuiyun Sword… undoubtedly have some ability.”

“Then what does City Lord mean?” Feng Bujue asked.

“What I mean is…” Ji Fenglong slowly recited, “You are very good at bluffing and mystifying.”

“What makes you say that?” Feng Bujue replied.

Ji Fenglong sneered and replied, “Most people… especially men… after seeing me, will mostly be distracted and act inappropriately. And they often agree to my requests without thinking, without considering the consequences.” She glanced back at Jue-ge, “But you are different…”

“What about me?” Feng Bujue picked up the teapot and poured himself another cup of tea.

“You know how to pretend to be calm, disturb my thoughts with some bizarre and outrageous remarks, and bargain with me,” Ji Fenglong replied.

“I agree with the ‘bargaining’ part,” Feng Bujue corrected, “But ‘pretending to be calm’ or something… I don’t.”

“Really not?” Ji Fenglong pressed.

“Really not,” Feng Bujue replied.

“Hmph… that’s strange…” Ji Fenglong obviously didn’t believe it, “Among the men in this world, apart from the elders in my family, even enlightened monks would have a fleeting thought when they see me…” She sat back at the table, picked up her teacup, took a sip, and looked at Jue-ge provocatively.

In the next second, Feng Bujue replied to her with five calm words: “I like men.”

“Pfft—”

Ji Fenglong had lived for more than three hundred years. Whether she was a lady or a female overlord… in front of others or behind their backs, she had always maintained the image of a perfect woman. But today, in front of two people, she spat out a mouthful of water.

“You…” Forcibly suppressing the urge to cough, City Lord Ji wiped her face with her sleeve, staring at Jue-ge with wide almond-shaped eyes, “…you…this…”

But she soon realized that she was speechless…

“Hehehe… sorry, I was just joking.” Two seconds later, Feng Bujue added with a malicious smile, “I like women just like you. It’s just… I really wanted to see if you would spit out your tea.”

“Bastard!” Ji Fenglong instantly became furious, and with a single wave of her hand, she unleashed a surge of Holy Yuan power, striking towards Jue-ge’s chest.

Of course, although she was angry, she didn’t intend to take the other party’s life. Ji Fenglong was, after all, a Yuansheng, and still had some grace. She couldn’t possibly kill someone just because she choked on her tea. Therefore, she accurately used the “limit power of a Holy Yuan Limit One-Turn Practitioner” with this strike; one was to test Jue-ge’s depth, and the other was to teach him a lesson.

Bang—

Accompanied by a muffled sound, Feng Bujue flew out of the stone pavilion.

However, he was not retreating from the impact, but rather he instantly activated [Spirit Consciousness Gathering Body Technique - Modified], stepped on the ground, and leaped out backwards.

The Holy Yuan power released by Ji Fenglong barely chased after Jue-ge, failing to touch his body…

Two seconds later, when Jue-ge arrived in the middle of the lotus pond, he suddenly flipped backwards, using five [Rank Kicks] at super speed in an instant, and each kick used the tip of his toes.

“Rank Kick - Five Instant Stars!” Because this was Feng Bujue’s original high-level application of Rank Kick, he gave it a name… and announced it…

Boom—

As Jue-ge’s move was executed, a violent collision suddenly rang out in mid-air.

Two strands of energy collided in mid-air, bursting out with strange red light.

Several seconds passed, and the power was exhausted, and the light dissipated.

Ripples shimmered on the lotus pond.

Feng Bujue crossed his hands behind his back, floating in mid-air, and said coldly, “I’m fine, don’t get excited… City Lord Ji is just playing with me.”

On the other side, in the stone pavilion…

Without anyone knowing when, Xu Huaishang had appeared behind Ji Fenglong.

The pair of sharp sabers in her hand were already placed on City Lord Ji’s neck…