Chapter 1703. Arrival at the Royal Grassland.

Chapter 1703: Chapter 1703. Arrival at the Royal Grassland.

They arrived at a massive open field. A grassland that stretched far beyond the horizon. Mountains, forests, and even a massive desert surrounded this grassland. It felt like an inflection point between several different environments.

Yasenia looked around curiously. She had read about this location in the reports, but seeing it felt more exotic than the descriptions. Just with eyesight, it was impossible to see the true extent of this place, but thankfully, her Spiritual Sense was massive enough to cover most of the grassland and part of the terrain beyond.

"It feels as if someone constructed it this way purposefully."

Ancestor Shang, who was nearby, smiled deeply. "That’s a remarkable observation. Why do you think as such, Young Yasenia?"

Yasenia crossed her arms gently under her ample bosom as she pondered. The weight of her chest was quite comfortable to feel as she thought. "The grassland is far too flat. There are small hills, but for the most part, this location has no elevation differences. Moreover, the edges of the grassland end in an almost perfect circle. However, appearances like this are rare but not impossible to find in nature."

Ancestor Shang nodded. "That’s indeed not enough to jump and guess that it was handcrafted and not natural."

Yasenia nodded. "The appearance can be a coincidence, but the feng shui cannot. The natural flow of energy in this area is indeed that of a normal grassland. Nevertheless, when you approach the edges, you can feel traces of different energy flows. The way the wind blows, the balance between Yin and Yang... Everything tells me that this place was not this way originally. Moreover, faint, lingering traces suggest a powerful treasure was once used here. I can smell its lingering scent."

Ancestor Shang had expected common guesses, but what came his way was a perfect deduction. He glanced Yasenia’s way with appreciation and satisfaction. He grinned and spoke. "Young Qinqin has found a really good partner candidate. Don’t you think so, Shang Yiluan, Shang Yixun?"

The two individuals the Ancestor mentioned flinched slightly, while Qinqin showed a complicated look. Yasenia took in their reactions, and her gaze momentarily wavered toward Qinluan. ’She is sneering. If that’s the case... Are those two Qinqin’s infamous parents?’

Yasenia’s guess was correct. The two that Ancestor Shang handpicked were Qinqin’s parents. While at home, they did indeed look down upon Qinqin because they thought she was being too much to Qinluan. Still, they couldn’t let their image completely collapse outside.

It was an open secret, but being an open secret was much better than something confirmed. That ambiguity, even if almost negligible, did a lot of work.

So, Shang Yixun, the father, spoke with a smile. "Indeed. Some people go to the countryside and manage to have lucky encounters, while others work diligently at the capital but fail to find success. Sometimes, Heaven is truly unfair."

Yasenia thought she misheard. Her gaze moved toward Shang Yixun, and she scanned his face. Seeing no trace of awkwardness at the absolute asinine comment he just spouted made Yasenia’s expression show a trace of visible shock, something no one missed.

Shang Yiluan, Qinqin’s mother, noticed and smiled, trying to ease it up. "Madam Dravory’s beauty is truly sublime. I would love to have a chat with you later, if possible, since you are taking care of our Qinqin. I have many interesting stories about her."

Yasenia looked at her and smiled. "That is a delightful suggestion. Sadly, I am far too preoccupied with meeting other family heads. If I find time, I will make sure to send a letter of notice to Madam Shang. We can still meet during some gatherings if you and I are invited, though. I hope Madam Shang can understand."

Ancestor Shang’s lips almost twitched upward into a smile at that perfect rejection. Shang Yiluan froze for a second, never expecting a rejection, but she recovered quickly. "That’s a shame. Let’s meet by chance, then."

Meanwhile, Shang Qinqin looked at Yasenia with faintly surprised eyes. Her parents were not nobodies. Their power was not too high, but the fact that they were still alive and influential enough to participate in the Royal Hunt spoke volumes about their standing.

So, connecting with them wouldn’t be a loss in the slightest. Yasenia, though, thought otherwise.

In the eyes of the public, she was Qinqin’s potential fiancée. If she went to visit with a smiling face, the people who were known for disliking Qinqin, it could only end in two ways.

First, Yasenia agreed with whatever the madam said, and Qinqin got isolated and even mocked for having her future fiancée look down on her.

Second, Yasenia disagreed with whatever the madam said, and therefore she would become enemies with them and have many connections cut early before she could make contact herself.

Therefore, in this case, the best course of action was inaction. Ambiguity could help a lot when trying to create connections with people on both sides.

’Above all, I truly dislike them. A parent should support their child unless they are doing something terribly wrong. From what I’ve seen, most of what Qinqin has shown me is defensive maneuvers and sublime merchant talent.’

Of course, Qinqin might be deceiving her. However, was it easy to deceive a dragon like Yasenia when living together for years? If Qinqin truly had what it took to deceive Yasenia, Tatyana, Angel, Mirrory, Valeria, and her maids for all these years... That would be impressive on a whole different level.

At that point, even if deceived, Yasenia would honestly spread her arms and admit that the opponent was just too strong, accepting whatever that master deceiver Qinqin prepared for her.

’That’s nonsense, though.’

Yasenia shook her head and turned to speak with some people close to Qinqin, like Shang Tian. The uncle who came to get Qinqin in the past and guided them to the Shang family estate for the first time.

Shang Tian turned out to be an elder and someone with tremendous power. He was a peak Level 9 Transcendence, someone with a chance to become a Half-Step in about 5,000 years. That timeframe wasn’t too long for people at their level.

Therefore, making a connection with him would be perfect for Yasenia. They were currently speaking about some merchandise that Yasenia and her family could create. She had not revealed her top products yet, but she mixed in one or two Supreme Ranked items her lovers could replicate with relative ease.

Supreme Ranked items were the absolute best this Heavenly Layer had to offer. Any Supreme Ranked treasure beyond Five Stars quality was considered a unique treasure worth entire cities.

As for Ancient Ranked treasures... You could count them on the fingers of your hand. The Imperial family’s throne was one of such treasures.

Uncle Tian suddenly changed the subject. "Yasenia, you need to be careful this time around."

As they arrived at the center of the grassland and descended from the flying ship, Shang Tian looked around and continued. "You’ve reached your age by yourself, so I won’t be pedantic. However, your looks are enough to cause Demons and Divines to lose control at your sight. They are also arrogant because their species is very strong. So, you might find yourself in trouble even if you try to hide."

Yasenia naturally knew it. Demons were lustful and loved the strong. Yasenia was basically a perfect breeder for all demon species.

Meanwhile, Divines were different in that regard. They were less lustful, but that didn’t mean they were pure or anything like that. On the contrary, they were quite promiscuous as a whole. Their standards, though, centered on fertility.

Divines could faintly sense an individual’s fertility, whether men or women. Therefore, if Yasenia were to approach a Divine and that Divine smelled her scent, they would probably act like an incubus or succubus in heat.

’Well, it doesn’t matter the species. Beasts, Beast Humans, Humans, Divines, Demons, plant creatures, Spirits... Regardless of the species, I think I am only unattractive to the undead.’ Yasenia paused her thoughts, and her eyes landed on Tatyana.

Tatyana blinked her ruby-like, gorgeous eyes. "Is there something wrong?"

"...Am I attractive to the undead?"

"Very much so," Tatyana answered without a shred of hesitation, much to Yasenia’s dismay. "Natural Undead need tons of life essence to reproduce. So your incredibly powerful life essence is like a tonic. Few people can boast that their vitality is so strong that even undead would be attracted, but you are one of those few without a doubt."

Yasenia sighed and asked. "Am I unattractive to any species?"

That question fell like a muting bomb as everyone became silent and began pondering in depth. Tatyana turned toward Mirrory. "She must be unattractive to Treasure Spirits, right?"

Mirrory looked at Tatyana as if she were stupid. "How could someone of her talent be unattractive to Treasure or Weapon Spirits? Moreover, she is talented enough to wield basically everything. Be it an instrument, weapon, shield... As long as she practices it for a while, her comprehension level will catch up and let her use any type of treasure."

Kali tilted her head. "How about golems?"

Everyone suddenly became silent, their minds racing to know how Yasenia could be attractive to a naturally formed rock golem.

Evelyn spoke hesitantly. "Would a rock golem be attracted to her blood? If the rock golem smears Yasenia’s blood on their child, wouldn’t it be born with incredible strength as long as they absorb even a portion of it?"

Andrea frowned. "That’s... a bit too far-fetched, no?"

Evelyn looked at her in the eyes. "Tell me I am wrong, though."

Andrea wanted to... but couldn’t. Her argument was quite good!

Even Ancestor Shang joined, finding the conversation amusing. "How about an Air Spirit? They are mostly incorporeal."

Soluna manifested and shook her head. "We, spirits, find energy purity attractive. Yasenia’s energy is so pure that spirits would drool just to get a sip, regardless of their element."

And so, for the remaining time, the group went species by species, even asexual ones, as for whether they found the answer or not... How about you discuss it together?

"Welcome to the Royal Hunt."

The voice of the Imperial Announcer rang loud and clear. The man was dressed neatly and had a handsome face and upright posture. His role in the Imperial family was announcing large events because of one detail among many: His voice.

Deep and velvety, rumbling pleasantly and ringing in the ears. It was low, but clear enough to never need a second listen, to the dismay of many. As the voice flowed, the cadence he spoke with also caused a sense of solemnity without losing its beauty.

Honestly, many Young Ladies of the capital were in love with him just for his voice. Even Yasenia was surprised. "Wow. That voice is sublime."

Shang Qinqin chuckled. "So even you can be surprised. He is called Han Yasheng, one of the most handsome bachelors in the Central Area. They say even a succubus melts like snow in spring when he whispers lovingly."

Yasenia didn’t rush to deny such a claim. His voice was that good.