Starting with being handed over to the Imperial Concubine, building a family with a thousand-year hi

What worries the royal family even more is that powerful members of the Divine Judgment Faction have been frequently appearing in the palace these past few days, secretly probing and putting pressure on the palace; there is also Situ Jing, who escaped during the Sacrifice Festival—as a Grandmaster, he will surely seek revenge against the Xiao royal family after the entire Situ family was wiped out.

"However, there is also good news." Xiao Anran changed the subject, a glint of light flashing in her eyes, "The sixth elder of the Tianwu Sect, who is also the Empress's grandfather, has broken through to the Grandmaster realm! I heard that after he stabilizes his cultivation, he will come to the capital to take charge."

"With a Grandmaster in charge, the capital city will be much more stable," Su Mu said, following her words, though his eyes showed little emotion.

"Mr. Su, you don't seem to care?" Xiao Anran asked, puzzled.

"It's nothing." Su Mu shook his head and didn't say anything more.

He knew in his heart that the imperial aura in the palace had become increasingly strong in recent days, which was probably Xiao Anxun deliberately concealing his aura to stabilize the fortunes of the imperial city. Tianwu Sect was a major martial arts sect with a profound foundation, which was incomparable to martial arts families like the Situ family. They were interdependent and mutually trusting with the Xiao imperial family, and had always respected the imperial family for thousands of years. They would never rebel like the Situ family.

"Once the Sixth Elder arrives in the capital, even if Situ Jing suddenly appears, we don't need to worry too much," Xiao Anran said, then asked, "Elder Su, do you know when the Sixth Elder will arrive?"

"I don't know. I haven't heard from him for three days." Su Mu replied calmly, but he understood in his heart—Xiao Anran's words were ultimately meant for Xiao Anxun, intended to test his attitude towards the new Grandmaster of Tianwu Sect.

Xiao Anran fell silent and didn't ask any more questions.

A day passes in the blink of an eye, and night falls once more.

Su Mu sat cross-legged on the second floor of the library, closing his eyes to absorb the imperial aura between heaven and earth to stabilize his cultivation.

Suddenly, he opened his eyes and looked out the window—a dark shadow silently swept across the library at great speed and then disappeared in another direction.

As he passed by, the man casually tossed a metal box, which landed precisely under the window of Xiao Anran's hut.

Almost simultaneously, Xiao Anran heard the sound, walked out of the room, bent down, and picked up the iron box.

Before she could take a closer look, Li Lianqing arrived in haste with two experts at the Innate Realm and landed in the courtyard.

"Princess, did any strangers pass by just now?" Li Lianqing bowed and asked urgently.

"Someone did just pass by and left this behind." Xiao Anran handed over the iron box without any attempt to hide it.

Li Lianqing's expression darkened, and he explained, "Just now, two top assassins infiltrated the palace, seemingly attempting to assassinate the Emperor. After we discovered them, they scattered and fled. One of them headed in this direction, but unfortunately, he escaped."

The two experts at the Innate Realm beside him nodded slowly, clearly having come together to chase the assassin.

"Those who dare to infiltrate the imperial city to assassinate must be quite powerful." Xiao Anran nodded, secretly alarmed.

Li Lianqing's gaze fell on Su Mu, and he bowed respectfully: "Elder Su, have you finished your seclusion today?"

"Yes, it's fine now," Su Mu replied calmly.

Li Lianqing breathed a sigh of relief, then looked at the iron box in Xiao Anran's hand, her tone grave: "Princess, the origin of this box is unknown and it may be dangerous. You are of noble birth and should not take any risks. It would be better for this old servant to take it back for inspection."

Xiao Anran naturally understood the implications and immediately nodded, handing the iron box to Li Lianqing.

"That assassin might return, Princess and Elder Su, please be careful. This old servant will take his leave now." Li Lianqing bowed and hurriedly left with two Innate Realm experts, carrying the iron box.

Su Mu returned to his seat, closed his eyes to regulate his breathing, and remained calm.

The assassin's passage had no effect on him whatsoever; he had intended to go down and check the iron box, but Xiao Anran and Li Lianqing arrived one after another, so he simply gave up.

The killer's trail and the secret of the iron box are best left to Li Lianqing and the others to handle.

As night deepened, Li Lianqing, carrying the iron box, arrived at the Martial Arts Bureau and met up with Wei Zhongxian.

As the Grand Steward of the Inner Court, Wei Zhongxian was a peak Grandmaster. Tonight, the palace was infiltrated by assassins, and he had no choice but to personally oversee the Martial Arts Bureau to coordinate the investigation.

But as soon as Li Lianqing entered the room, he was stunned—on the coffee table next to Wei Zhongxian, there was an identical metal box, which had already been opened.

"Eunuch Li, you've arrived." Wei Zhongxian raised his eyes, his tone indifferent.

"Greetings, Steward Wei." Li Lianqing bowed and quickly handed over the iron box in his hand. "Steward, this is the iron box that the assassin left in the library. It has never been opened."

"Oh? They're exactly the same." Wei Zhongxian raised an eyebrow, took the iron box, and said, "The other box was intercepted just now; it contains a letter."

At this moment, in the reception room of the Imperial Martial Arts Bureau, there was another person sitting to one side—Xiao Changshan, Xiao Yuanhou's nephew, who had been stationed at Yangxin Palace for many years. He was a core elder of the Xiao royal family and one of the few people who knew about Xiao Yuanhou's death.

Wei Zhongxian opened the iron box that Li Lianqing had sent, and sure enough, there was another letter inside. He handed both letters to Xiao Changshan.

Xiao Changshan quickly finished reading, his brow furrowed: "The contents of the two letters are completely identical!"

Wei Zhongxian and Li Lianqing passed the letter around one after the other. After reading it, their expressions both became solemn.

"Elder Su would never join the Divine Judgment!" Li Lianqing spoke first, his tone resolute. "This must be a conspiracy by the Divine Judgment, intended to sow discord between us and Elder Su!"

"One shouldn't speak too definitively; everything is subject to change." Wei Zhongxian spoke slowly, a calculating glint in his eyes. "According to reliable sources, Su Qingshan, the leader of the Divine Judgment, is a descendant of the Western Sichuan royal family. When the Western Sichuan royal family was destroyed, Su Qingshan narrowly escaped and later joined the Divine Judgment, where he also married another woman."

He paused, then said, "Su Qingshan and Su Mu share the same surname, and their ages and backgrounds vaguely match, which makes people suspicious."

Xiao Changshan stroked his beard, his tone ambiguous: "While these two letters may seem provocative, they are not necessarily entirely false. Before being punished and sent to the library, Elder Su was just a lowly eunuch with no cultivation. His breakthrough to the Grandmaster realm in just four months is too suspicious."

"But if he had a conspiracy, why would he help quell the Situ family's rebellion during the sacrificial festival?" Li Lianqing asked, puzzled.

"Perhaps the Situ family's rebellion disrupted his plans, forcing him to take action, feigning allegiance to the royal family while secretly making his own plans," Wei Zhongxian speculated.

"Could it be that Elder Su wasn't secretly cultivated by the royal family?" Li Lianqing asked again.

Wei Zhongxian remained silent and turned to look at Xiao Changshan—only a core elder like Xiao Changshan might know the inside story.

Xiao Changshan sighed softly: "Old Su's success today has little to do with the royal family."

He kept in mind Xiao Yuanhou's dying wish that he must never reveal the connection between Xiao Yuanhou and Su Mu unless Su Mu had ulterior motives.

A hint of secret joy flashed in Wei Zhongxian's eyes—he had long been wary of Su Mu, and now Su Mu's power was overwhelming, making him unable to lift his head. If he could use this matter to bring down Su Mu, he could regain control of the inner court.