During the Qin Dynasty, he brought chaos to the seven kingdoms.

Inside the wooden house, there were only four people: Cao Yuan, Xiao Mengjiang, Wuming, and Yan Lu.

Xunzi was lecturing to his disciples in the courtyard of his residence.

Upon hearing Cao Yuan's explanation and request, Wuming said gently, "I understand. Mr. Cao Yuan, please feel free to do as you please, just don't take him out of the manor."

Just as a swordsman loves his greatsword, a skilled locksmith, like a thief in a game, develops a deep love for treasure chests after unlocking his lockpicking skill.

Cao Yuan felt a little relieved. Just as he had expected, Wuming would not refuse his small request.

As for the option of stealing the bronze treasure box, he hadn't even considered it.

Instead of stealing from the Grandmaster Xunzi and the peak Grandmaster Wuming, he thought it would be better to launch a night raid on the giant salamander and get it pregnant.

At least the latter has a high success rate of hitting the target on the first try.

hiss~

You know what, maybe I could try to get the salamander's belly bigger?

If you succeed, you'll automatically get a half-step Grandmaster wife!

Immediately, Cao Yuan dismissed this unrealistic and whimsical thought.

If he dares to raid the giant salamander at night, Jing Ni will most likely kill him with a single blow.

Let's talk about that another time.

Afterwards, Cao Yuan, under the pretext of not disturbing Yan Lu's studies at the Nameless Sect, took Xiao Meng Jiang's hand and carried the bronze treasure box to the wooden house next door.

"Aman, does this box truly hold the legendary secret of the Azure Dragon?"

Xiao Mengjiang asked curiously.

Cao Yuan gently stroked the treasure box. It felt warm and smooth to the touch, not like metal. The description of it as bronze only referred to its bronze color.

"It's true."

Cao Yuan said with certainty.

The moment he touched it, he knew he couldn't handle it.

Fortunately, the "golden key" within his soul flickered slightly, indicating that it could be opened.

Cao Yuan fell into deep thought, hesitating whether to open it now.

This is a legendary divine object; if it causes a huge commotion, it could easily get you into trouble.

Cao Yuan carefully examined the treasure box.

The front of the treasure box features an ancient star map with intaglio micro-carving, depicting the seven constellations of the Azure Dragon, with the constellation of Ji (箕) being slightly brighter.

The top is a slightly concave disc, like a sundial without a needle.

The other four sides are unremarkable, with only some patterns and designs of unknown meaning.

It's as if this really is just a rather old object.

Little Meng Jiang asked with admiration, "Then Cao Cao will definitely be able to open it, right?"

She believed that Aman could unlock all the locks in the world.

Cao Yuan smiled and said smugly, "Of course."

"Why doesn't Cao Cao open it?"

"This..." Cao Yuan coughed lightly, "Let me think about it for a moment."

He was considering whether it was worth the risk to open up here.

Little Meng Jiang sat obediently next to Cao Yuan, her fair legs tucked together, and said, "Okay."

Just as Cao Yuan was making his plans.

Thousands of miles away.

Xianyang, the Prime Minister's Residence.

An elderly man in official robes was kneeling before a desk, handling government affairs.

His pale face was covered with wrinkles, but his eyes were bright and piercing, exuding great authority. In the large room, none of the court officials, high or low, who were reporting and handling government affairs, dared to meet his gaze.

"A secret letter from Prime Minister Lü, Hou Sheng."

Zheng, an old man nearing sixty, who was Lü Buwei's bodyguard, spoke in Lü Buwei's ear.

"Go to the study."

After Lü Buwei got up and left, the tired officials in the room exchanged silent glances, all of them letting out a sigh of relief and briefly relaxing their tense nerves.

After the states were about to form an alliance, everyone was extremely busy under Lü Buwei's intense pressure. Lü Buwei himself became a workaholic, taking over all the decisions made by the court, leaving even the young King of Qin with little influence.

He is not the King of Qin, but he is better than the King of Qin.

Inside the study.

Lu Buwei opened Hou Sheng's secret letter, read it, and then snorted coldly.

Damn it.

Old Master Zheng rarely saw Lü Buwei like this, and couldn't help but ask, "Prime Minister Lü, didn't Hou Sheng stop Qi from joining the alliance of states?"

Lü Buwei coldly said, "Hou Sheng took advantage of the chaos and demanded that I remove the people from his inner circle, and that Jing Ni be crippled and handed over to him, on the condition that Qi would not join the alliance."

Old Master Zheng's eyes turned cold. "Prime Minister Lü, should this old servant personally teach him a lesson?"

As a grandmaster, he had the ability; otherwise, he couldn't have guaranteed Lü Xiang's safety for decades.

Lü Buwei tapped the table slowly with his thick fingers, his mind filled with only reason and considerations of gain and loss.

"Now that four states have joined the alliance, and Qi has a superior geographical location, we cannot take any risks, otherwise I will certainly bear a heavy responsibility."

"What does Prime Minister Lü mean?"

Lu Buwei's expression was cold. "Leave two spies behind and eliminate the other members of the Luowang organization around Hou Sheng."

"What about Jing Ni?"

"He was just an assassin; his sacrifice is no loss. Have Yan Ri arrange for Ba Linglong to handle this. There must be no mistakes, or he will be punished according to Qin law!"

"Yes."

……

"Open it."

Inside the wooden house, Cao Yuan stared directly at the bronze treasure box and finally made up his mind.

The worst outcome is simply that it becomes public knowledge.

He could accept this price.

At worst, I'll just have to get involved with Xunzi.

Although the old man had a fiery temper, at least he didn't have any bad intentions.

As for Wuming, there's even less to worry about; he's a true saint who can sacrifice his life for righteousness.

"Ring ring, ring ring..."

When Cao Yuan activated the "golden key," the bronze treasure box emitted a soft, melodious sound.

It was beautiful, so subtle, like heavenly music.

"It sounds so good..."

Xiao Mengjiang said, completely absorbed.

"Buzz..."

The bronze box on the table trembled slightly.

The lid of the bronze box slowly slid off.

The next moment, an invisible barrier enveloped the entire wooden house.

Even Xunzi, who was already a grandmaster, was completely unaware of the changes that had occurred during this period, and he continued to teach his disciples.

"...Empty?"

But when Cao Yuan saw the empty box, he was momentarily stunned.

No matter how hard he racked his brains, he never expected that the box was empty.

Could it be that some ancient enthusiast was deliberately playing a prank?

Shouldn't they also slip a note inside the box that says, "Congratulations on opening it, but unfortunately there's no reward"?

"Aman, this feels so good..."

Xiao Mengjiang squinted her big, watery eyes, completely absorbed, just like when Aman was holding her.

At this moment, Cao Yuan realized that the spiritual energy within the barrier was incredibly dense.

Before long, the spiritual energy became visible to the naked eye, like cotton wool swirling within the barrier, making everything inside the barrier appear misty.

Every breath is imbued with spiritual energy.

If absorbing spiritual energy is as difficult as finding water in the desert outside, then here it's like entering the ocean. You can only sigh, "Oh ocean, you're all water."

"Meng Jiang, inhale! Inhale more!"

Cao Yuan immediately understood that this was the opportunity presented by the bronze treasure box.

Cao Yuan quickly pulled Meng Jiang, who had only recently learned the art of breathing exercises, to practice together.

Xiao Mengjiang quickly sat cross-legged, facing Cao Yuan.

As soon as the two began cultivating, without even using their divine soul power much, the spiritual energy within the barrier shifted and surged into their bodies like a celestial river overflowing its banks.

Cao Yuan was surprised to find that the quality of these spiritual energies was much higher than that of the spiritual energies from the outside world.

But he didn't have time to think about it now; he just wanted to take this opportunity to get rid of his Spirit Absolute Body.

If he still can't get rid of his Soul-Severing Body, then he will...