Chapter 749: Chapter 478: Deceiving the Monarch
Immediately, his gaze traced up along the curve of her leg, only to be obscured by the hem of her skirt, much like a cloud shrouding the peak of Luo Mountain, hiding the sight, spanning across ridges.
It made one want to disperse the clouds, revealing the blue sky and bright sun, dazzling and brilliant, in the vast world.
Zhenbao?
No... it should be a treasure...
Zhao Douan mused inwardly, his gaze sweeping over her white and slender swan-like neck, stopping on the Empress’s face, as jade-like as a flower.
She seemed deeply intoxicated, her cheeks flushed, a layer of fragrant sweat beaded on her forehead, under the candlelight, her black hair spread out on the soft pillow, beautiful beyond compare.
"Your Majesty?"
Zhao Douan called softly, then prepared to close in on her.
The "inebriated" Xu Zhenguan, however, murmured softly, "Extinguish the lights..."
Extinguish the lights... indeed, there were too many red candles lit in the room... Zhao Douan was somewhat reluctant, as darkness made it difficult to see anything... He bit his lip and whispered:
"Fear not, Your Majesty, no one around will see us."
Having said that, without waiting for Zhenbao’s response, he raised his hand, letting down the draped gauze curtain of the bed, and leapt up entirely.
Xu Zhenguan could no longer keep up the act, slightly opening her eyes to a thin line, her hands pushing weakly but with no real authority:
"The lights... you refuse to listen to me?"
Below the bed, I obey; on the bed, I have my own thoughts... Zhao Douan transformed into a Dragon Knight:
"I will defy you, Majesty!"
...
Bang!
Outside the room, rain clouds slowly drifted across the sky, covering the bright moon, accompanied by a peal of thunder, and the night was first swept by wild winds.
In the endless flower fields, countless blooms swayed and trembled, petals swirling fiercely under the gusts.
The dark heavens were occasionally torn apart by flashes of lightning, the rumbling thunder masked all other sounds below.
Thunder roared for a long time.
Suddenly, rain began to pour from the sky, growing heavier, pounding the thousands of acres of flower fields, suppressing even the wind with its intensity.
In the darkness, the lights in this rear residence seemed to be the only remaining source of illumination in this world.
And inside, the couple, immersed in their own world, did not notice the faint presence of two illusory "dragons" facing off above the dwelling.
One was large yet ethereal, scarred, clearly the Dragon Qi of the crowning emperor that once coiled atop the mountain during the Luoshan Sealing.
The other was much smaller, yet exceptionally solid and lifelike, extremely similar to the "Dragon Essence" dormant in Zhao Douan’s Qi Sea.
At this moment, with a dragon’s roar, the Dragon Essence plunged into the illusory Dragon Qi.
In an instant, the weather changed dramatically, this sudden and unpredictable storm grew even more intense and frenzied.
...
More than half an hour later.
Inside the rear residence, the candle flames were all extinguished, the room plunged into darkness.
Zhao Douan exhaled softly in the dark, lying down and glancing at the rain battering against the window paper with impunity.
The candle flames were finally extinguished in the midst of this truce by Xu Zhenguan’s palm wind.
However, at this moment, the occasional flash of lightning outside the window frequently lit up the interior as bright as day.
"Your Majesty, how much has your cultivation recovered?"
Zhao Douan asked softly, clearly feeling that he could no longer suppress the situation.
In the darkness, Xu Zhenguan lay on her side, back to him, eyes closed, seemingly sensing her own condition.
"The injuries have healed considerably, and my energy has recovered to the initial phase of the Worldly Realm."
The Empress opened her bright eyes, speaking somewhat surprised.
Her theoretical state had never fallen, but due to her injuries, her actual strength could previously only just enter the Divine Chapter.
If not for this, she wouldn’t have been nearly captured by Ouyang Ye and his forces without suffering much loss.
Moreover, this alone had restored her to worldly combat ability, a remarkably significant effect.
Zhao Douan turned his body closer: "The initial phase is still not enough, I’m afraid."
"...It is not," the Empress instinctively agreed, then her expression subtly changed:
"What do you intend to do?"
Zhao Douan played the song of the peasants turning over:
"Listen to the dragon’s roar!"
...
Another half hour elapsed.
Outside, the storm paused once more, yet the temperature inside was extraordinarily high.
Zhao Douan rested for a while, feeling the changes in his own body, equally surprised:
"My realm has completely stabilized, I can feel that the Middle Grade of the Worldly Realm is not far off."
Compared to boosting Zhao Douan’s cultivation, in the current situation, it was evidently more reasonable to focus on enhancing the Empress’s strength.
Thus, with the conscious guidance of both.
The majority of the Dragon Essence’s power was directed at Xu Zhenguan.
Yet even so, Zhao Douan also inadvertently gained some benefit, solidifying the previously unstable Qi Mechanism from initially stepping into the Worldly Realm, within just over an hour not only was it solidified, it even advanced.
No regular cultivation method could achieve this.
"No wonder that old Bodhi nun keeps thinking of using me, treating people as Lu Dings, medicine dregs, wouldn’t that be quite pleasing?"
Zhao Douan inwardly mused, turning to look at the Empress, who this time faced him, back to the window:
"Your Majesty, to what level have you recovered?"
"...Middle Grade of the World."
Zhao Douan clicked his tongue in amazement, quietly calculating:
"Middle to High Grade, High Grade to peak, peak to half-step, half-step to Heavenly Human..."
"What are you muttering about?" Xu Zhenguan couldn’t hear clearly, but her intuition told her this Little Forbidden Army was up to no good, and she nervously shrank back.
Created a distance.
Zhao Douan pondered: "Your Majesty, have you heard of a hand technique that descends from the heavens?"
Saying this, he fiercely yanked a large portion of the bed sheet towards himself...
"What?! Zhao Douan, do you dare!"
"I am not called Zhao Douan, tonight I am called Dang Dali!"