Chapter 473: The Gathering at the Mountain Villa

The stone highway winding up the southern peaks of Cloud-Mist Province was flanked by ancient pine trees and rising plumes of white geothermal steam.

At the head of the northern column rode Noble Consort Cui Yulan atop her armored violet-scale steed. Her dark violet profound-steel armor gleamed in the afternoon sun, and the heavy golden tally of the Border Marshal hung prominently from her narrow waist. Behind her marched fifty elite soldiers of the Violet Thunder Pavilion, their spears held at a sharp, uniform angle.

Directly behind the vanguard rolled the grand imperial carriage housing Imperial Consort Xian, Zhao Mengxue, and Imperial Consort Shu, Su Xinyue. Flanking the royal transport were the four Peak Martial King bodyguards and the Half-Step Martial Emperor protector assigned to Cui Yulan, alongside Commander Jin and the veteran Half-Step Martial Emperor guards who protected Zhao Mengxue and Su Xinyue.

Inside the spacious, silk-lined cabin of the imperial carriage, the atmosphere was completely different from the strict military march outside.

Alaric sat comfortably on the central velvet bench, dressed in the simple gray linen robes of a traveling physician. Against his chest, hidden beneath the cloth, rested the octagonal Azure Spirit Lion medallion. Its eight-layered concealment formation hummed quietly, masking his true Level 69 Peak Archmage mana core and his Beast Emperor physique so that even the Half-Step Martial Emperor guards riding ten paces away sensed only a frail, harmless Master Mage healer.

On his left, Zhao Mengxue leaned her lush, crimson-clad frame against his shoulder, pouring warm spirit-tea into a jade cup. Her fair skin carried a healthy, rosy glow from the seven nights they had just spent tangled together on the snow-fox furs in Azure Fall City.

On his right, Su Xinyue rested her soft hand on his knee, her deep sapphire court gown struggling to contain the heavy swell of her massive breasts.

“We are less than two miles from the outer gates of the Royal Nine-Dragon Hot Springs Villa, Master,” Su Xinyue murmured, keeping her voice low beneath the active Sound-Severing Void Ward that Alaric maintained inside the cabin. “My spiritual sense can already detect the defensive formations surrounding the mountain basin.”

“And another convoy has just reached the southern fork of the mountain road,” Zhao Mengxue added, a sly smile curving her plump red lips as she lifted the edge of the silk window curtain. “I can see the banners of my daughter Huang Mei and your daughter Huang Hua, Xinyue. The carriages of the Gu Clan and the Ling Clan are right behind them.”

Alaric took a slow sip of the warm tea, his ruby eyes calm and measured as he looked out through the narrow gap in the curtain.

‘Everything is moving right on schedule,’ Alaric thought, setting the jade cup down on the low sandalwood table. ‘With the princesses and the two clan heiresses arriving at the exact same moment from Cloud-Mist City, Second Prince Huang Xuan will have his hands full just managing the greetings and the guard detachments in the outer courtyard.’

He turned his gaze back to the two magnificent, mature women seated beside him, letting his hands rest casually on their wide, silk-covered hips.

“Tell me more about the two women waiting for us inside that villa,” Alaric said smoothly. “I know their names and their cultivation ranks from the messages we exchanged, but you two have lived alongside Imperial Consort De and Virtuous Consort Ning in the Inner Palace for years. How do they think, and how do they fight?”

Zhao Mengxue’s dark eyes gleamed with a mixture of old palace rivalry and wicked anticipation.

“Imperial Consort De’s maiden name is Yan Ruyu,” Zhao Mengxue explained, shifting slightly so Alaric’s palm pressed firmer against the plush curve of her hip. “She comes from the Yan Sword Clan of the Central Plains and sits at the Late-Stage Martial King realm. In the Inner Palace, Emperor Huang Long placed her in charge of the Palace Discipline Registry. She is cold, severe, and obsessed with imperial rules.”

“She is a miserable, self-righteous warden,” Su Xinyue chimed in with a soft scoff, her massive chest rising and falling as she leaned closer to Alaric’s ear. “Whenever any consort in the palace broke a minor dress code or spoke out of turn, Yan Ruyu was the one who handed down the punishment. Because she gave birth only to a princess and has no son competing for the throne, the Emperor trusts her completely to be impartial. She practices the Heavenly Law Star-Weaver Sword Qi. Her sword threads can lock down an entire hall while slicing through profound-steel armor like paper.”

“And she has a figure that puts half the younger concubines to shame, even if she hides it under high-buttoned black and silver robes,” Zhao Mengxue added with a low chuckle. “Even Emperor Huang Long used to visit her quarters three times a month just to tear those strict judge’s robes off her back. She knows how to serve a man in bed when required by palace law, yet she always acts as if she is above carnal desires the moment she puts her clothes back on.”

‘A strict, experienced woman who hides a ripe body behind rules and sword qi,’ Alaric noted internally, a faint smirk touching his lips. ‘Those are always the most entertaining ones to strip bare and break by force.’

“What about Virtuous Consort Ning?” Alaric asked, his fingers tracing slow circles over Su Xinyue’s thigh.

“Ning Wan’er is the exact opposite on the surface,” Su Xinyue replied. “She is the younger sister of the Second Prince’s late mother, which makes her Second Prince Huang Xuan’s biological aunt. After her sister passed away years ago, Emperor Huang Long brought Ning Wan’er into the palace and made her a Virtuous Consort to keep the Ning Clan’s loyalty. She is a Mid-Stage Martial King who cultivates the Soul-Whispers Illusion Zither and the Heart-Mirror Spiritual Pulse Art.”

“Do not let her soft, gentle look fool you, Master,” Zhao Mengxue warned earnestly. “Ning Wan’er always speaks in a quiet, delicate voice and looks at people with misty, sympathetic eyes, and her body is as soft and curvy as ripened fruit. She has served the Emperor in his bedchamber for many years, using her music and her soft flesh to keep him pleased so her nephew, the Second Prince, stays in his good graces. In combat, her zither strings project invisible sonic blades and mental illusions that can rattle a Martial King’s internal organs before they even draw their weapon.”

“More importantly,” Su Xinyue said, her expression turning serious, “the Emperor sent Ning Wan’er here specifically because her Heart-Mirror Spiritual Pulse Art allows her to pluck her zither strings and read the internal Yin and Yang flow of another woman’s meridians. The moment she tests Cui Yulan, Mengxue, and me in the bathhouse tonight, she will immediately sense that our wombs and energy channels have been thoroughly reshaped by your Yang essence.”

“Which means the moment she plucks that zither inside the bathhouse, the talking ends and the trap snaps shut,” Alaric said calmly.

“What about their guards, Master?” Zhao Mengxue asked. “Second Prince Huang Xuan brought twelve Royal Dragon-Scale Guards led by Captain Tie, who is at the Half-Step Martial Emperor stage. And Yan Ruyu and Ning Wan’er are always escorted by two old Half-Step Martial Emperor palace protectors from the Inner Court, Eunuch Feng and Eunuch Liu, along with eight Peak Martial King female sword-attendants.”

“Added to Commander Jin, Cui Yulan’s protectors, Gu Ling’s eight Gu Clan elders, and Ling Ying’s guards, there will be nearly twenty Half-Step Martial Emperors and over a hundred elite guards packed into the outer grounds of this villa,” Su Xinyue noted softly. “If a massive fight breaks out in the bathhouse, we must make sure not a single ripple of Battle Aura leaks through the walls.”

“You don’t need to worry about the walls,” Alaric said, patting Su Xinyue’s cheek reassuringly. “The Royal Nine-Dragon Hot Springs Villa was built with eighth-tier isolation formations around the inner bathing pavilion so Emperor Huang Long could indulge himself with his wives without his own guards listening in. Once Yan Ruyu and Ning Wan’er lock that inner barrier from the inside for your private inspection, and I layer my own spatial and sound-severing wards inside theirs, we could bring down the roof pillars and the guards fifty paces outside the stone gate wouldn’t hear a splash.”

“And how will you slip into the inner bathhouse without Eunuch Feng, Eunuch Liu, or Yan Ruyu’s female sword-attendants seeing you, Master?” Zhao Mengxue asked curiously.

“That is why I will not walk through the front door of the bathhouse,” Alaric replied with a calm smile. “When Yan Ruyu orders all men and outside attendants to remain in the outer courtyard during the inspection, I will obediently walk back to the guest quarters with Lin Ruoli and Ya Su. From there, I will use the underground steam-duct blueprint Huang Mei gave me to teleport straight past the foundation stones into the inner chamber after the doors are sealed.”

Right as Zhao Mengxue and Su Xinyue nodded in admiration, the carriage slowed to a halt.

Outside, the clear, ringing voice of a royal herald echoed across the mountain valley:

“Arriving from the Northeastern Border—Border Marshal Noble Consort Cui, Imperial Consort Xian, and Imperial Consort Shu! Arriving from Cloud-Mist City—Imperial Princess Huang Mei, Imperial Princess Huang Hua, Envoy Princess Gu Ling of the Gu Clan, and Heiress Ling Ying of the Ling Clan!”

Alaric lowered his posture slightly, letting his shoulders round into the modest, unassuming bearing of the scholar-healer as the carriage door was opened by an attendant.

Stepping down onto the white marble flagstones of the vast mountain forecourt, Alaric took in the grandeur of the Royal Nine-Dragon Hot Springs Villa.

Carved directly into the sheer granite cliffs of Mount Nine-Dragon, the estate consisted of nine tiered palace pavilions connected by covered jade bridges and steaming channels of natural mineral water. Massive statues of golden dragons coiled around the central pillars, spouting streams of hot spring water from their open jaws into a moat filled with winter-blooming spirit lotuses.

Across the eastern side of the forecourt, Princess Huang Mei and Princess Huang Hua had just stepped out of their royal carriages, dressed in splendid court gowns of crimson and pearl-white silk. Just behind them walked Princess Gu Ling in her pale-lavender dress, guarded closely by Elder Gu Shan and seven other white-bearded Half-Step Martial Emperor elders of the Gu Clan, while Ling Ying strode forward in her tight emerald-green martial robes flanked by her twelve Ling Clan protectors.

Meanwhile, stepping out of the merchant carriages behind Alaric were Guildmaster Lin Ruoli in her form-fitting black-and-emerald dress and Chief Auctioneer Ya Su in her low-cut golden-red silk gown.

Standing at the top of the wide marble steps in front of the Grand Dragon-Spring Hall to receive both processions were three figures surrounded by gleaming palace guards.

In the center stood Second Prince Huang Xuan. Dressed in a crown of black gold and a robe embroidered with four-clawed golden pythons, the Second Prince wore a warm, cultured smile on his handsome face, though his narrow eyes flicked greedily toward the Golden Tiger-Tally hanging at Cui Yulan’s waist.

Yet Alaric’s gaze barely lingered on the Second Prince for half a second before shifting to the two breathtaking, mature women standing to the prince’s left and right.

On the prince’s left stood Imperial Consort De, Yan Ruyu.

She was tall and statuesque, her long black hair coiled into a strict, towering court bun pierced by a long platinum hairpin shaped like a double-edged sword. Her skin was as fair and smooth as polished white jade, and a pair of thin, silver-rimmed crystal spectacles rested on the bridge of her straight, aristocratic nose, giving her sharp phoenix eyes a cold, judging intensity.

She wore a high-collared court gown of deep ink-black silk trimmed with silver star-embroidery. Despite the strict, conservative tailoring of the robe, her figure beneath the silk was overwhelmingly voluptuous. Her massive, heavy breasts pushed out the silver-buttoned front of her bodice in a steep, shelf-like curve, while her cinched waist flared dramatically into wide, mature hips and a full, rounded rear that strained the dark fabric whenever she shifted her weight.

On the prince’s right stood Virtuous Consort Ning, Ning Wan’er.

Where Yan Ruyu radiated the freezing severity of an imperial judge, Ning Wan’er looked like a soft, blooming peach soaked in morning dew. Her dark hair hung in loose, glossy loops held by jade ornaments, framing a delicate, heart-shaped face with misty apricot eyes and full, naturally pouting pink lips.

She wore layered robes of seafoam-green and soft peach silk that clung lovingly to every generous curve of her body. Her waist was remarkably slender, making the sheer, heavy volume of her breasts look even more staggering as their pale upper slopes swelled above her modest square neckline. Cradled gently against her lush hip in her fair arms was an ancient seven-string zither carved from translucent green spirit-jade.

‘Both at the Martial King stage, both in the full, ripe bloom of mature womanhood, and both carrying the unmistakable poise of women who have shared an Emperor’s bed for years,’ Alaric observed silently from behind Zhao Mengxue’s shoulder. ‘They will make a fine pair once that palace pride is beaten out of them.’

“Welcome, Esteemed Consorts, Royal Sisters, Princess Gu, and Heiress Ling!” Second Prince Huang Xuan called out warmly, descending three steps with his hands clasped in a polite salute. “The journey from the northern border and the basin must have been tiring. Royal Father was overjoyed to hear of the great victory at Azure Fall City and specifically sent Imperial Consort De, Aunt Ning, and myself to this villa to reward your merits and ensure your wellbeing.”

Noble Consort Cui Yulan stepped forward, her silver eyes cool and commanding as she gave a slight nod of her head that satisfied court protocol without yielding an inch of her Border Marshal authority.

“Second Prince is too polite,” Cui Yulan replied in a clear, steady voice. “The Northeastern Vanguard merely fulfilled His Majesty’s decree and cleared the border of invaders. We have brought the full campaign logs, the captured enemy standards, and forty chests of northern tribute in the rear carriages for the court’s inspection.”

Imperial Consort De, Yan Ruyu, stepped forward half a pace. Her sharp phoenix eyes swept behind her silver-rimmed spectacles, passing over Cui Yulan, Zhao Mengxue, and Su Xinyue before briefly pausing on Alaric’s humble gray robes and the veiled merchant figures of Lin Ruoli and Ya Su.

“Military merits and tribute ledgers are matters for the Second Prince and the Ministry of War’s clerks to verify in the outer hall,” Yan Ruyu spoke, her voice crisp, resonant, and cold as striking steel. “Before any banquet is held or any seals are exchanged, His Majesty’s personal edict regarding the Inner Court must be executed first.”

Zhao Mengxue raised a sculpted eyebrow, folding her crimson sleeves over her stomach as she met Yan Ruyu’s gaze evenly. “Oh? And what pressing directive did His Majesty entrust to you, Sister De, that we cannot even drink a cup of warm tea after riding three hundred miles?”

“According to Chief Auditor Sima’s preliminary report from the border,” Yan Ruyu stated flatly, adjusting her silver spectacles with one slender finger, “all three of you—along with Princesses Huang Mei and Huang Hua—entered the subterranean caverns of Whispering Gorge where the Blood Lotus Cult set off a demonic array. Furthermore, Noble Consort Cui suffered severe lightning backlash during the siege of Azure Fall City, yet miraculously recovered and reached the absolute peak of the Martial King realm within weeks.”

Beside Yan Ruyu, Virtuous Consort Ning Wan’er offered a soft, apologetic smile, her misty apricot eyes looking gently at the three arriving consorts as her fingers brushed the strings of her jade zither.

“Please do not take Sister Ruyu’s strict words to heart, Sisters,” Ning Wan’er said, her voice as sweet and soothing as warm honey. “His Majesty is simply deeply concerned for your sacred bodies. Demonic qi and unorthodox battlefield remedies often hide deep within the lower meridians and the womb, masquerading as a surge in cultivation before corrupting the soul. His Majesty instructed Sister Ruyu and me to accompany you three into the Sacred Nine-Dragon Bathhouse immediately upon your arrival, so that I may play the Heart-Mirror Pulse melody while you bathe in the geothermal spring and verify that your foundations remain completely pure and untainted.”

Hearing this, Second Prince Huang Xuan smiled broadly, clasping his hands behind his back.

‘Once Aunt Ning examines Cui Yulan in the bathhouse,’ the Second Prince thought smugly to himself, ‘we will find out exactly what secret treasure or forbidden technique allowed her to break through and crush General Tokugawa so fast. If there is even the slightest flaw in her meridians, Aunt Ning and Consort De can declare her unfit for military command on the spot, and her seventy thousand soldiers will fall right into my hands!’

Across the courtyard, Princess Huang Mei and Princess Huang Hua exchanged a quick, hidden glance with Princess Gu Ling and Ling Ying. They knew that if Ning Wan’er examined the internal pathways of Cui Yulan, Zhao Mengxue, and Su Xinyue, she wouldn’t find demonic qi—she would find gallons of Alaric’s rich Yang essence coiled inside their wombs and meridians!

Yet instead of showing any hesitation, Su Xinyue let out a graceful, amused laugh, her heavy sapphire-clad breasts jiggling slightly beneath her collar.

“So His Majesty is worried that the cold mountain air harmed our skin and meridians,” Su Xinyue purred smoothly. “How thoughtful of him. Frankly, soaking in the Sacred Nine-Dragon Bathhouse after seven days on the road sounds far better than listening to military clerks count spirit stones.”

“Indeed,” Cui Yulan agreed without missing a beat, turning her head toward her four Peak Martial King guards and Commander Jin. “Then let us not waste time. Second Prince, since Imperial Consort De and Virtuous Consort Ning must inspect the three of us in private inside the Sacred Bathhouse, my deputies along with Guildmaster Lin Ruoli, Lady Ya Su, and my Royal Sisters Huang Mei and Huang Hua will accompany you to the Grand Banquet Hall to unseal the forty tribute chests.”

Princess Huang Mei stepped up beside her second brother with a bright, challenging smile, hooking her arm loosely near his sleeve while gesturing toward the outer courtyard where the dozens of elite guards stood.

“Come, Second Brother!” Huang Mei said cheerfully. “Hua’er and I brought Princess Gu Ling and Heiress Ling Ying all the way from Cloud-Mist City to join the victory feast, and their elders from the Gu Clan and Ling Clan have not tasted the villa’s famous Dragon-Marrow Wine yet. While our mothers and the Consorts conduct their private bath inspection in the rear peak, let us invite Commander Jin, Elder Gu Shan, and your Dragon-Scale Guards to the Outer Dragon Hall so we can audit the war chests and feast properly!”

Second Prince Huang Xuan’s eyes lit up at the mention of Princess Gu Ling of the Gu Clan and Ling Ying of the Ling Clan joining his banquet table. Winning the favor of the Gu Clan’s envoy was worth ten times his time standing outside a bathhouse door!

“Royal Sister Mei speaks wisely!” Second Prince Huang Xuan laughed, gesturing grandly toward the main banquet hall on the eastern ridge. “Elder Gu Shan, Commander Jin, Captain Tie—bring all the outer guard detachments and the tribute wagons to the Eastern Dragon Hall! Have the kitchens bring out fifty jars of hundred-year spirit wine!”

As the massive crowd of guards, clan elders, and soldiers began moving toward the eastern hall, Yan Ruyu’s sharp eyes locked onto Alaric, who was standing quietly behind Zhao Mengxue’s carriage holding his wooden medical case.

“Who is this man?” Yan Ruyu demanded coldly. “Why is a male servant standing inside the inner carriage circle of the Imperial Consorts?”

“This is Physician Alaric, Sister De,” Zhao Mengxue replied with an arrogant tilt of her chin. “He is the master healer who treated Noble Consort Cui’s lightning recoil and tended our troops at Azure Fall City. We brought him along in case you wished to question him regarding the medical herbs used during the campaign.”

Yan Ruyu looked Alaric up and down through her silver spectacles. Sensing only the weak, unthreatening aura of a Master-rank healer from his concealed frame, she dismissed him with a cold wave of her hand.

“The Sacred Nine-Dragon Bathhouse is strictly forbidden to all men under penalty of death,” Yan Ruyu declared sharply. “And I have no need for a border physician’s opinion when Consort Ning’s Heart-Mirror Zither can read every meridian directly. Have him wait in the outer servant quarters with the merchants until our inspection is finished.”

“Of course, Imperial Consort De,” Alaric bowed his head respectfully, his voice calm and humble. “This lowly healer will retire to the guest courtyard and await your summons.”

Turning away without a trace of haste, Alaric walked alongside Lin Ruoli and Ya Su toward the western guest wing, while Cui Yulan, Zhao Mengxue, and Su Xinyue followed Yan Ruyu and Ning Wan’er across the high jade bridge leading to the secluded Sacred Nine-Dragon Bathhouse carved into the rear mountain peak.

At the heavy bronze outer gates of the bathhouse courtyard, Yan Ruyu stopped and turned to the remaining personal guards: her own two Half-Step Martial Emperor palace protectors, Eunuch Feng and Eunuch Liu, their eight female Peak Martial King sword-attendants, and the personal Half-Step Martial Emperor bodyguards of Cui Yulan, Zhao Mengxue, and Su Xinyue.

“Halt here,” Yan Ruyu ordered in an uncompromising tone, pulling a heavy silver formation medallion from her sash. “Inside this gate lies the Emperor’s sacred bathing spring. We five Imperial Consorts will now strip our robes to conduct the foundation inspection. Eunuch Feng, Eunuch Liu, and all personal guards will station themselves fifty paces outside this bronze wall. I am activating the Eighth-Tier Nine-Dragon Isolation Barrier from the inside. Until I personally unlock the array with my medallion, no one is permitted to approach the gate or probe the barrier with spiritual sense!”

“Yes, Imperial Consort De!” Eunuch Feng, Eunuch Liu, and the other Half-Step Martial Emperor guards bowed in unison, stepping back fifty paces down the stone bridge to stand silent watch.

With a satisfied nod, Yan Ruyu led Ning Wan’er, Cui Yulan, Zhao Mengxue, and Su Xinyue through the heavy bronze doors and slammed them shut.

Pressing her silver medallion into the dragon-shaped socket on the inner wall, Yan Ruyu channeled her Late-Stage Martial King Qi into the mechanism. Instantly, a thick, opaque dome of golden-white runic light surged up from the mountain foundation, completely sealing the entire bathhouse complex off from the outside world so that neither sound, sight, nor spiritual sense could pass in or out.

Meanwhile, three hundred yards away inside a quiet room of the western guest wing, Alaric closed the wooden door behind Lin Ruoli and Ya Su.

The humble, stooped posture of the border physician vanished instantly.

“Ruoli, Ya Su,” Alaric said calmly, his ruby eyes gleaming as he unfastened the gray linen cloak from his broad shoulders. “Keep the outer door of this suite locked and maintain the illusion talisman I placed on the tea table in case a servant walks past the window. Now that the good Consort De has so kindly locked all the Half-Step Martial Emperor guards outside an eighth-tier isolation barrier for me, it would be rude to keep the ladies waiting in the bath.”

“Have fun breaking those two arrogant palace birds, Master,” Lin Ruoli purred, kissing his cheek as Ya Su handed him a small spatial pouch containing the array-override stones. “When you are finished claiming them tonight, let us know how we should handle their guards in the morning.”

Alaric smiled, tapping his foot lightly against the stone floor. Following the exact subterranean geothermal line mapped out on Princess Huang Mei’s blueprint, his body dissolved into a silent flash of silver-violet light:

Spatial Teleportation: Subterranean Conduit Step!