Who is spreading rumors that my filial piety towards them has changed?

After a long embrace, Xiao Yunhan and the others left.

Although Xiao Yunhan and Shen Xuejun were both quiet people in Qingxin Mansion, rarely participating in casual conversations and only speaking when something happened or when someone asked them questions, their departure still made Chu Mingkong feel that something was missing from Qingxin Mansion.

Zuo Qiuchi pulled Chu Mingkong to sit down. Chu Mingkong thought her master would say a few words of comfort, but instead, she asked directly:

"What is that antidote? Why is it being kept so mysterious?"

Chu Mingkong looked embarrassed and serious. Actually, it wouldn't hurt to say what the antidote was, but this topic would inevitably lead to the fatal question of "how Shen Xuejun got the medicine from you," which was not easy to answer.

"It's a medicinal liquid that can temporarily enhance killing power. There are many similar pills, right?" Chu Mingkong looked at Zuo Qiuchi with a wise gaze.

Feng Ying pointed out the flaw in Chu Mingkong's words and said softly:

"That's not an antidote either. An antidote is only needed when someone has been poisoned."

"That's right, there are some kinds of poisons like muscle relaxants. If you accidentally fall for one, your spiritual veins will go on strike and become disobedient. At this time, wouldn't you need to use the antidote to restore your fighting power so that you can better deal with the enemy?" Chu Mingkong nodded to himself, as if this would make him more convincing.

Zuo Qiuchi was too lazy to ask anymore, and she said:

“Yunhan has already run away, so when are you planning to leave? You can’t stay for long, so you should hurry up and finish what you need to do.”

"We've done almost everything we needed to do. Now we're just waiting for Tianya Tower to produce some research results. The elders there keep saying it'll be done soon, so we shouldn't have to wait too long."

"What is 'scientific research achievement'?" Feng Ying was puzzled by the word he used. It was new and unfamiliar to her, but judging from Chu Mingkong's expression, it seemed like a very ordinary word.

Chu Mingkong genuinely didn't know what the closest equivalent to scientific research achievements was in this worldview, and vaguely replied:

"It probably means 'ingenious and ingenious techniques'. I noticed that Yunhan's sect has devices that can transmit sound to communicate, so I was thinking about whether we could create something similar so that we could communicate even when we are far apart."

When Chu Mingkong first met Princess Ruyu, she mentioned that Shen Xuejun had sent her a telepathic message. Later, when Chu Mingkong inquired, he learned that it was a type of jade produced in the mining area under the jurisdiction of Wenqing Pavilion. The same piece of jade could be broken into two pieces and made into jade pendants. The two people holding these two jade pendants could send telepathic messages over a short distance, but only over a short distance.

It's not entirely useless, but it definitely falls short of the mark.

This was something that really puzzled Chu Mingkong. This world even had things like video recorders, such as viewing stones, so why didn't it have telephones?

He told the elders of Tianya Tower about his idea and showed them several pieces of jade he had gotten from his master's wife, Shen Xuejun. The elders seemed to have a sudden inspiration and began to work on the idea Chu Mingkong had mentioned.

Chu Mingkong was waiting for this. He hoped to get the finished product from the elders before leaving, and preferably be able to maintain long-distance communication so that when he returned to the capital in a few days, he wouldn't have to worry about his two mothers and could contact them at any time.

Chu Mingkong shared his idea with Zuo Qiuchi and Feng Ying, and Zuo Qiuchi commented:

"The idea is indeed good, but there is a risk of leakage. The transmission of divine sense over a distance is easily intercepted by experts. Why do you think no one studies this kind of thing? Moreover, with a barrier of the scale of the capital, it may not be able to transmit divine sense smoothly."

"But we have to get started eventually. If there's a problem like this, there must be a way to solve it."

Perhaps thanks to Chu Mingkong's tense preparations made overnight, news came from the elders of Tianya Tower that the research Chu Mingkong had asked them to do had made progress.

He rushed over to see what had happened.

The finished product presented by the elders of Tianya Tower was a booklet of paper, with the cover adorned with many spirit stones and mysterious array patterns, and in the very center was a jade stone from Wenqing Pavilion.

"Can this item achieve the effect I previously mentioned to the elders?"

Elder Ding said:

"Barely possible. We are now combining the jade from the Wenqing Pavilion with the teleportation array of the Immortal Treasure Pavilion's teleportation viewing stone. Your Excellency only needs to write on this piece of paper, and the contents of the letter will appear on another corresponding piece of paper, making it difficult to intercept. However, there are some inconveniences."

Chu Mingkong tried writing a few strokes on one of the slips of paper, and the content he had just written appeared on the other slip of paper. Although it wasn't "telephone," it barely met the effect Chu Mingkong wanted.

"Is there any inconvenience? Is it because the distance is too far to contact each other?"

"That's not the case. At least within the Tianji Empire, there's no problem with communication. The current issue is that one letter can only correspond to one letter. If multiple people want to contact each other, we'll have to prepare several letters, which is inconvenient. We don't have any ideas on how to improve this problem yet."

Elder Ding sighed helplessly. There were many scholars in Tianya Tower, and quite a few of them liked to tinker with these strange things. They had come up with an idea, but they had no idea where to start, which was the most painful thing for them.

Chu Mingkong counted on his fingers, from the beauties in the capital to his mother in Xiling. If he were to give each of them a prescription, he would have to keep a huge stack of them at all times!

It seems that this is the only way for now. After all, we can't expect too much from the early stages of the technology. Also, the elders have other things to deal with, and the inability to concentrate manpower on research is one of the reasons for the slow progress.

"How's the formation at Tianya Tower being improved? Can we now ensure the safety of Tianya Tower? We can't let anyone sneak in and assassinate us again, and then leave unscathed." Chu Mingkong put the note away.

Elder Ding nodded, but hesitated slightly:

"The balance barrier that Your Excellency mentioned to me a few days ago has been very enlightening for us. An elder said that his mentor had once had this idea and wanted to ask Your Excellency how he knew about this barrier concept."

“This is not a concept, but something I have seen before, right here in the capital of the Tianji Empire.”

"The capital? That's a place that nurtures dragon energy. Is there extreme yin energy supporting this balanced barrier to maintain its stability?" Elder Ding didn't think too deeply about it. Without seeing it with his own eyes, there was no point in fantasizing. He continued, "The problem we're facing now is that we don't know if the newly researched array barrier can stop people. Tianya Tower can't find anyone who can master extreme yin power to come out and test the barrier."

The elders have already tested it themselves. Cultivators of the five elements of spiritual energy and those with extreme yang power can all be stopped by the newly researched [Balance Barrier - Xiling Version], and they will be warned immediately that someone is intruding. The only thing they cannot test is extreme yin power. However, the assassin who was suspected to be King Huai of Chu was able to use extreme yin power.

Hearing his distress, Chu Mingkong nodded and said:

"Don't worry about that. Where is the balance barrier? Take me there."

Elder Ding was both surprised and puzzled, and asked as he led the way:

"Your Excellency Zuo actually knows a master who can wield the power of extreme Yin. Your background is indeed extraordinary! But... could it be that a method for cultivating the power of extreme Yin has actually appeared? Not to mention me, at least the entire Xiling region has never heard of it, except for that assassin."

Chu Mingkong stroked his stubble, but since he was wearing a helmet, he couldn't touch it. He said:

"Actually, I don't know either. Logically speaking, there shouldn't be such a cultivation method. I can't answer your question, but I can try to see if this balance barrier works for you."

As he spoke, a ball of fire spirit energy, corrupted by extreme yin power, ignited at Chu Mingkong's fingertips.

Elder Ding: "...?"

He looked at the extremely yin flame in "Lord Zuo's" hand, then at "Lord Zuo" himself, and fell silent.

The test results were encouraging. Under this barrier, Chu Mingkong had to rely on the extreme yang energy in his heart to pass through it, otherwise he would be blocked. Moreover, even if he passed through this improved barrier, it would still send a warning to the elders.

With this, Chu Mingkong was temporarily relieved about the safety of Tianya City.

Elder Ding said:

"By the way, the city lord said that she received several letters from the Gu family, which were from the capital. She asked me to inform Minister Zuo to go to the city lord to collect the letters."

Chapter 237 Opening Up the Crowded Place

In the past few days, Princess Chu and Consort Wan have been staying at Tianya Tower. This is partly to facilitate handling affairs and partly to reduce their activities to avoid revealing their whereabouts.

Currently, only those within Tianya Tower know the true identity, which is relatively easy to control. However, if it is seen by independent cultivators and others, and then becomes the subject of gossip in the streets and alleys, then it will truly be impossible to hide.

Once this period has passed, Princess Chu will use Tianya City as a base to gradually take control of Xiling in her own name. After that, her identity will no longer matter. Even if it is leaked, so what? No one can do anything about it.

However, what Princess Chu and Consort Wan were discussing in the City Lord's Pavilion at this moment had nothing to do with the affairs of Tianya City.

Two stunningly beautiful and mature women sat together. Consort Wan addressed Princess Chu:

"Zhi'er, could you talk to Mingkong and ask him to come over tonight so we can have a heart-to-heart talk? Otherwise, he'll be leaving in a few days, and we don't know when we'll see him again."

Consort Wan was most distressed to learn that Chu Mingkong was going to return to the capital. She had left the capital to meet Chu Mingkong, but the Xiao family's plan to make her "disappear" and thus break away from the royal family was something she was unaware of.

Now, although Chu Mingkong has successfully brought Consort Wan under his control, freeing her from the prison of the palace, he is now preparing to return to the capital.

This truly saddened Consort Wan. If she hadn't yet left the royal family, she might have been able to meet with Chu Mingkong more often in the capital.

She felt that the hard-won freedom she had now came at the cost of not being able to see Chu Mingkong for a long time was a losing proposition.

Princess Chu did not want Chu Mingkong to leave, but he insisted that he had unfinished business in the capital. Princess Chu could not force him to stay. They had just reconciled, so why should they quarrel again and fall out?

“It’s time to call Mingkong over. He’s been busy with the elders at Tianya Tower these past few days, and his workload is quite heavy.”

As soon as she finished speaking, Chu Mingkong knocked on the door and came in. When the tall and handsome man walked over, the two beautiful ladies were overjoyed, their faces radiant with happiness.

Consort Wan's beautiful eyes had curved into crescent moons, while Princess Chu's expression was not obvious. In the past, she always felt that showing joy was inappropriate and shameful, and that she would lose her dignity in front of the servants. Now that it was time to be happy, she was not good at putting on a smile. However, the gentle gaze she gave Chu Mingkong did not lie.

On the day the martial arts competition ended, Chu Mingkong used his smaller body to reconcile with Princess Chu. He felt that he had cheated a bit and was worried that Xiao Zhi would not be able to accept the difference after he returned to his normal body and would give him a slap to avenge the night. Fortunately, when she first saw Chu Mingkong in his normal body, she was just not used to it and did not have any other negative feelings.

At first, Xiao Zhi did have some trouble adjusting to the new mindset. Just like when adults talk to children, they might use reduplicated words, blush, or feel disgusted, but they wouldn't do that when talking to adults. However, after chatting for a while, she gradually got used to Chu Mingkong growing up.

"Mingkong, we were just talking about you." When Consort Wan saw Chu Mingkong sit down opposite them, she quickly patted the seat next to her. "Why are you sitting so far away? Come and sit with your mother."

Wan Hua arranged for Chu Mingkong to sit in a position far away from Xiao Zhi.

Hearing her sister so naturally let his son call her "Mother Consort," the Princess Consort of Chu felt angry and jealous, but she was in the wrong and helpless. The misunderstandings and estrangement between her and Chu Mingkong would not disappear completely just because they reconciled.

If you pull the nails out of the wooden board, a hole will still be left in the board.

Her older sister took advantage of her vulnerability during that time, and Xiao Zhi was in the wrong, but she was unwilling to admit defeat.

The Queen Consort of Chu shifted her plump, alluring peach-shaped buttocks, patted the area next to her, and said:

"Come sit here with Mother!"

Chu Mingkong felt that it was better to treat everyone equally in this kind of situation. If he favored one side, their dissatisfaction might not be directed at Chu Mingkong, but at each other, which could cause discord among the sisters and that would be bad.

However, it was impossible for Chu Mingkong to sit down opposite them. He walked straight over and sat down between the two beautiful and graceful mothers. He forced himself to sit down in the narrow crevice, his body pressed against their delicate buttocks. The fleshy buttocks of the two beautiful mothers were pressed tightly against his body.

Chu Mingkong skipped over their earlier minor disagreement and naturally returned to their initial topic, saying:

"What about me?"

Princess Chu's figure was more plump and voluptuous than Consort Wan's. She felt her buttocks were being pressed against the wall and deformed, but Consort Wan showed no intention of moving, so she continued to sit next to her son.

She hadn't noticed it when she was bathing with Xiao Mingkong before, but now, sitting close to the strong and muscular Chu Mingkong, his masculine scent was exceptionally strong, lingering in her nostrils, as if she had returned to that wrong night, when she smelled this same intense scent.

For a moment, her heart trembled, and in that instant of distraction, Consort Wan had already answered for her, saying:

"I wanted you to come and stay for a few nights, otherwise you'll leave in just a few days, and your mother won't be able to get close to you properly. You spend your days with your master and the others, and you're also busy with all sorts of things at Tianya Tower. You should at least set some time for your mother, right?"

Chu Mingkong thought about it and felt it made sense. He had also been thinking about having more intimate contact with Consort Wan recently, but she and Princess Chu were always together. If Chu Mingkong came over and asked Consort Wan to leave alone for a private encounter, it would easily displease Princess Chu. Having that kind of intimate contact with Princess Chu as well... Chu Mingkong didn't know how to bring it up.

Although they were already excessively intimate the night he exchanged his body for medicine, their motives were different. Chu Mingkong would never take the initiative to tell Princess Chu, "I have already done this and that with Consort Wan, do you want to join me?"

If they stay here overnight, there will be more room for maneuver. At least it's normal for Consort Wan to go for a run in his room and catch her breath if she can't sleep at night.

"Alright, then I'll stay here with my mothers for the next few nights. By the way, I just heard Elder Ding say that there was a letter from the Gu family at Xiao Zhi's mother's place?" Chu Mingkong came for this matter.

“Yes, this letter is for the Chu royal family to open themselves. The Gu family is much closer to you, so I assumed it was for you and accepted it on your behalf.” The Chu royal princess took out a small stack of letters and handed them to Chu Mingkong.

She had never opened any of these letters, nor had she peeked at their contents; the seals on the letters remained intact.

Chu Mingkong didn't open the letters on the spot. He had just roughly counted them and there were quite a lot of them. He estimated that each of the Cui family in the capital and the royal family members received one. However, since they were not familiar with the situation in Xiling, they asked Aunt Gu to forward them to their maternal families, and then have the Gu family deliver them to Tianya City.

These letters were definitely not something that could be easily seen by the two mothers beside them.

Chu Mingkong put the letter into his storage ring, and Consort Wan asked him:

"Mingkong, who sent these letters?"

"Those elders in Beijing who care about me, like Aunt Gu and the others..."

Chu Mingkong remained expressionless, his arm subtly encircling Consort Wan's slender waist, his large, grotesque trotter resting on her buttocks.