In King of Glory, the "Plunder" keyword has been completely exploited by Ah Li.

Page 89

After Haiyue and Jiang Che left, Shangguan Wan'er picked up her brush again and began to write and paint seriously, her expression focused and meticulous.

…………

On the third floor, in a magnificent and antique-style hall, stood a stunningly beautiful figure dressed in a phoenix robe, gazing at the sky from the window.

After Haiyue led Jiang Che to the third floor, Wu Zetian withdrew her gaze from the distance, turned around, and scrutinized the handsome young man in front of her with a pair of eyes full of scrutiny.

Dressed in a blue robe, he was elegant and refined, with striking eyebrows and bright eyes, exuding a free and unrestrained charm.

He was composed, neither arrogant nor humble, with a steady breath, and his cultivation had already reached the peak of the Golden Core realm.

Looking at Jiang Che in front of her, Wu Zetian's eyes flashed with satisfaction.

Just as Haiyue said, this young man is indeed a promising talent, a gem among gems.

After receiving training from the academy, his cultivation level improved rapidly. Given time, he will surely become a great help to her.

"Greetings, Your Majesty..."

Haiyue clasped her hands together and placed them on her lower abdomen, offering a slight bow.

"Disciple Jiang Che greets Your Majesty..."

Jiang Che cupped his hands in a respectful bow and spoke with a hint of reverence, but his face did not reveal much emotion; he was neither humble nor arrogant.

This was the first time Jiang Che had ever met the legendary Empress.

Wu Zetian's figure and appearance were naturally exceptional, with delicate features, fair skin, arched eyebrows, and a flawless oval face.

Her eyebrows were arched, her eyelashes were delicate and long, her eyes were like water, her nose was high and straight, and her lips were red and her teeth were white.

She is tall, shapely, slender, and charming, with a curvaceous figure and graceful movements.

Dressed in a light red phoenix robe that perfectly concealed her slender figure, she stood high above, looking down upon all living beings with an air of elegance and nobility, exuding an aura of authority that was unmistakable.

If an ordinary cultivator were to glance at her, he would be so overwhelmed by her aura that he would likely lower his head in shame and dare not look at her any longer.

"No need for such formalities..."

Wu Zetian parted her lips slightly, uttering a clear and melodious voice that carried an undeniable air of dominance.

"Speak, what brings you to the palace this time?"

Wu Zetian looked at Haiyue in front of her with her beautiful eyes and asked in a low voice.

She knew this woman well; unless it was something important, she generally wouldn't come to the palace to see her.

"Of course, I have something to report to His Majesty..."

Haiyue smiled gently and slowly explained her purpose.

"The International Lantern Festival will begin in three days. Does Your Majesty have any other instructions?"

"Nothing..."

Wu Zetian shook her head. She had already made all the necessary arrangements, and the invitations had been sent by the cabinet to the major dynasties and families throughout the land. Now she only needed to wait quietly for the lantern festival to begin.

"Is this so..."

"Jiang Che's cultivation has now broken through to the peak of the Golden Core realm. After cultivating for so long, it's time for him to gain some experience..."

"Does Your Majesty have any orders?"

Haiyue nodded, then directly shifted the topic to Jiang Che with a gentle smile.

"Orders?"

Wu Zetian frowned slightly, turned to look at Jiang Che beside her, scrutinized him, and spoke softly after a long while.

"No…"

"Just focus on your spiritual practice; you don't need to do anything else..."

As she spoke, Wu Zetian waved her hand, and a fragrant, crystal-clear, and perfectly round pill floated in front of Jiang Che.

Just one breath is enough to give you a feeling of mental clarity and a great shock to your mind.

Jiang Che has now officially embarked on the path of alchemy and is a second-grade alchemist, so he can naturally see the extraordinary nature of this pill.

It was a sixth-grade pill, with faint pill patterns appearing on its surface, making it look incredibly divine.

"Your understanding is sufficient; you have touched the threshold of the Nascent Soul stage. This pill will be given to you..."

"It will allow you to successfully break through to the Nascent Soul stage without any obstacles."

Wu Zetian spoke in a cold voice, giving Jiang Che a brief explanation, her tone carrying an air of unyielding authority.

As the Empress of the Celestial Dynasty, Wu Zetian possessed a vast empire that ordinary cultivators could never imagine.

These sixth-grade pills would be enough to attract countless cultivators to flock to them, but they were not particularly rare to her.

She had countless sixth-grade pills in her storage ring; they were inexhaustible.

Besides the legendary ninth-grade pills, she also possessed quite a few seventh-grade and even eighth-grade pills, after all, she herself was an alchemist.

With her current cultivation level at the Tribulation Transcending stage, aside from the legendary ninth-grade pills and even immortal-grade pills, these seventh and eighth-grade pills are of no use to her.

Since Jiang Che has talent, she is naturally happy to cultivate him.

The resources in the academy are more than enough for him at this stage, and she doesn't need to worry about anything.

"Thank you, Your Majesty!"

Jiang Che readily accepted, took a deep breath and received the pill that was floating in mid-air. A hint of excitement flashed in his eyes, as if he could already see the Nascent Soul realm beckoning to him.

Originally, Jiang Che only wanted to meet the legendary Empress Haiyue when he accompanied her to the palace. This sixth-grade pill was a completely unexpected surprise for him.

Since it was a gift from the Empress, Jiang Che didn't bother to feign reluctance.

Since he is now completely aligned with the Empress's camp, isn't it reasonable for him to accept some gifts from her?

"This is what you deserve..."

"Just focus on your cultivation, you may leave..."

The Empress nodded calmly and waved for Jiang Che to leave.

"This disciple takes his leave..."

Jiang Che accepted the order and turned to leave.

He understood that the Empress had something important to discuss with Haiyue. Although he was now considered one of the Empress's confidants, there were some things he should not listen to.

Knowing too much isn't necessarily a good thing.

"Do you have something you need me to do?"

Gazing at Jiang Che's departing figure, and waiting until he completely disappeared at the bottom of the stairs before turning to go downstairs, Haiyue withdrew her gaze, her face beaming with smiles, and looked at the Empress in front of her.

Jiang Che left, and she was too lazy to continue pretending in front of Wu Zetian, so she simply stopped calling her "Your Majesty".

"Something really did happen..."

Wu Zetian nodded slightly, her phoenix eyes narrowed, completely unconcerned about Haiyue's change in attitude, as she had long been accustomed to it.

After a moment's hesitation, Wu Zetian slowly spoke.

"In this era, the gods are nowhere to be seen, the heavens and earth are incomplete, and the path to immortality has long been severed. Do you know of any method that allows one to transcend tribulations and become an immortal?"

"Immortal?"

Haiyue was taken aback, clearly not expecting Wu Zetian to ask such a question. She frowned slightly and began to ponder.

As an ancient deity, Haiyue was once a powerful cultivator at the peak of the Tribulation Transcending Realm. However, she had been asleep for too long. When she was awakened by Wu Zetian, she lost some of her cultivation in order to break through the illusionary prison and fell to the peak of the Mahayana Realm.

Otherwise, her cultivation level would be three points higher than Wu Zetian's.

She had tried to force her way into the immortal path in order to break through to the legendary realm of True Immortal, but suffered a backlash and fell into a long slumber.

That's why Haiyue's expression became very solemn when she heard Wu Zetian ask such a question.

"The path to immortality has long been severed. You know that I suffered a backlash from the Heavenly Dao because I forcibly attempted to break through to the True Immortal realm, and I almost perished, both in body and soul..."

"If it weren't for the protection of the Cloud Butterfly, they would probably have perished long ago..."

"Since ancient times, the rules of heaven and earth have become incomplete. No matter how outstanding or unparalleled you are, you are destined to never ascend to immortality..."

"If one forcibly breaks through to a higher realm, attempting to reverse the power of the Heavenly Dao's rules, one will only suffer a powerful backlash, resulting in death and the dissipation of one's Dao..."

Haiyue's expression was solemn, and she spoke with utmost seriousness.

Although he did not directly answer Wu Zetian's question, his words had already given her an answer.

In this day and age, forget about becoming an immortal.

In ancient times, with Wu Zetian's talent and ability, becoming an immortal would only have been a matter of time; now, there is no hope of opening the gates to immortality.

If someone were to forcibly break through the realm like she did, defying the rules of heaven, Wu Zetian would likely perish, since she did not have the protection of the wondrous Cloud Butterfly.

The Cloud Butterfly coexists with the clouds. Legend has it that it was born between heaven and earth when the ancient fairy queen Nuwa created the gods. It possesses the great power to create illusions, reverse yin and yang, and reverse the flow of the river of fate.

It was precisely because of the existence of the Cloud Butterfly that Haiyue had the confidence to attempt to reach the ethereal realm of True Immortals.

After suffering the backlash, Yun Zhongdie, in order to save her and reverse the course of fate, forcibly evaded the constraints of the Heavenly Dao, thus allowing her to escape a calamity and avoid the tragedy of her soul being destroyed.

Having experienced failure before, Haiyue no longer dared to dream of such an ethereal thing as ascending to immortality. She would be content to slowly cultivate back to her former peak level.

Haiyue was not at all surprised that Wu Zetian had the ambition to become an immortal.

Having already reached the Tribulation Transcending stage and arrived at the pinnacle of the Divine Continent, wouldn't it be a pity if they couldn't catch a glimpse of the scenery above the Immortal Gate?

Back then, her desire to become an immortal was no less than that of Wu Zetian.

………………

"What level of tribulation are you at now?"

Haiyue looked at the stunningly beautiful woman before her and asked with great interest.

Her current cultivation level is much lower than Wu Zetian's, and she can't sense at all what level Wu Zetian's cultivation level was.

The path of cultivation becomes increasingly difficult as one progresses. Once one reaches the Tribulation Transcending stage, it is comparable to the legendary Realm of True Immortal, a realm that low-level cultivators cannot easily comprehend.

"Sixth level of tribulation..."

Sensing Haiyue's curious gaze, Wu Zetian didn't hide anything and directly revealed her current cultivation level.

The Tribulation Transcending Stage has nine minor realms, and each breakthrough requires experiencing terrifying Heavenly Dao Divine Lightning.