Are you sure you can calculate it accurately?

Leaving the capital city, the Golden Palace.

The palace was resplendent in gold and jade, with towering dragon pillars and glazed tiles reflecting the thin sunlight filtering through the high windows, yet unable to dispel the opulent atmosphere. The air was filled with the scent of ambergris and a faint, sweet fragrance of cosmetics, so quiet that only the barely audible sound of breathing and the soft rustling of a palm-leaf fan could be heard.

Two pale-faced, beardless eunuchs, their eyes lowered, mechanically fanned the man on the dragon throne. Beneath the throne, two beautiful women, their clothes disheveled but their faces gleaming, knelt like docile lambs on the cold, smooth gold-brick floor, just within the man's reach.

The man on the dragon throne did not tie his hair up; his dark hair was loose and he wore only a soft, bright yellow undergarment. He reclined in a languid posture. One hand was casually placed on the shoulder of the beautiful woman beside him, his fingertips unconsciously caressing the smooth fabric. A hint of languid comfort was on his face as he enjoyed the tranquility that had been carefully bestowed upon him.

However, this tranquility was soon broken. A eunuch entered with small, hurried steps, bowed, and knelt down with a thud at the foot of the steps in front of the dragon throne. His high-pitched voice was filled with caution: "Your Majesty, General Chen Sheng is outside requesting an audience."

His mood dampened, the man's brows furrowed immediately in displeasure. His sinister eyes slowly shifted to the kneeling eunuch, his gaze like a cold, venomous snake coiling around the eunuch's humble back. The air in the hall seemed to freeze instantly; even the eunuch fanning himself froze for a moment. After a long silence, he finally managed to squeeze out a single, cold word: "Summon."

The eunuch, feeling as if he had been granted a pardon, quickly stood up, strode to the palace gate, and raised his voice: "Summon—General Chen Sheng into the palace—!"

Chen Sheng, who had been waiting outside the hall, immediately straightened his armor upon hearing the sound, took a deep breath, and stepped into the oppressive hall. His face appeared unusually pale under the brilliant lights inside. As he knelt, the heavy armor made a soft clanging sound, and his body seemed to tremble slightly, almost imperceptibly. "Your humble servant Chen Sheng pays respects to Your Majesty! Long live the Emperor! Long live the Emperor! Long live the Emperor!"

Upon hearing Chen Sheng's voice, the man finally sat up slowly from the dragon throne. He placed his hands on his knees, his bare feet ruthlessly resting on the kneeling beauty's legs for support, his voice carrying a hint of nonchalant coldness: "General Chen, what brings you to the palace at this hour?"

Chen Sheng lowered his head even further, his voice filled with suppressed fear: "Your Majesty... Your Majesty, this morning... the western camp was attacked. I... I failed in my duty to defend it, and... the bandits rescued thirty-two children..."

"Oh?" The man drawled, a faint smile playing on his lips just a moment ago. The next, he grabbed a golden goblet from beside the dragon table and smashed it fiercely against Chen Sheng's head! "Good! Very good!"

The golden goblet swept past with a whoosh, and although it did not hit Chen Sheng directly, it terrified him.

"I gave you a full eight thousand men! To guard those children! For three days in a row, you were attacked every day! Not only did you fail to protect the children, but you didn't even catch a glimpse of the culprit! Chen Sheng, do you think my blade isn't sharp enough?!"

"I dare not! I absolutely dare not!" Chen Sheng immediately banged his head on the ground, the thud echoing loudly. He was filled with grievance and fear. He had thought guarding the boys would be an easy task, but who would have thought their opponent would be like a ghost, appearing and disappearing without a trace? In three days, several strongholds had been breached, and all the boys had been rescued, yet they hadn't even touched the hem of the thief's clothes! "I...I haven't slept for three days, patrolling day and night, but...but that thief is truly bizarre, appearing and disappearing as if from nowhere...I...I truly..."

"Useless!" The man on the dragon throne abruptly stood up, his chest heaving violently. He paced back and forth barefoot on the smooth floor, his face twisted with rage from the disruption of his plans. Immortality! He was only one step away from his coveted immortality! Consuming the hearts of a hundred virgins, purifying himself with their blood on the night of the fifteenth of the Yin month, and then taking a elixir refined using secret methods—that would grant him a glimpse into the gates of immortality! Now, with only three days left until the fifteenth of the Yin month, he had already lost nearly a hundred virgins. How could he not be filled with hatred?!

"Since you are so useless, what use is your life?" He suddenly stopped and kicked Chen Sheng, who was kneeling on the ground, to the ground. "I hereby grant you death!"

"Your Majesty, spare me! Your Majesty, spare me!" Chen Sheng was terrified. He crawled over on all fours, grabbed the emperor's ankle, and begged with tears streaming down his face, "Your Majesty, please give me another chance! I will do everything in my power to capture those thieves and tear them to pieces..."

"General Chen," a slightly aged yet strangely penetrating voice interrupted his plea, "how will you capture him?"

An old Taoist priest, dressed in a black robe and holding a whisk, walked out of the back hall with a measured gait. He first bowed slightly towards the emperor as a sign of respect, then his gaze fell on the disheveled Chen Sheng, his expression filled with undisguised contempt. "How can a mortal with flesh and blood possibly catch... a cultivator who comes and goes like the wind?"

"Overestimating yourself." Before he finished speaking, he casually flicked his whisk.

An invisible, immense force slammed into Chen Sheng's chest! Before Chen Sheng could even scream, he was sent flying like a kite with a broken string, crashing heavily into the thick, golden dragon pillar in the hall with a dull thud. He then coughed up blood and slid limply to the ground, his life hanging in the balance.

Upon seeing the Daoist Qingfeng, the emperor's violent expression instantly vanished, replaced by a stiff, almost ingratiating smile: "Have I disturbed the Daoist? It's all the fault of these useless servants for their incompetence! Now... now, of all the young boys we've gathered, only these few remain in the palace... this elixir of immortality..."

"Your Majesty need not worry." Daoist Qingfeng stroked his long beard, his expression still calm, even with a hint of smugness as if he had everything under control. "Since some cultivators have already disregarded the rules and interfered in the affairs of the mortal world, then this old Daoist need not hold back any longer."

A glint flashed in the emperor's eyes, and he immediately understood the Taoist priest's meaning: "Does the Taoist priest mean... that he will take action personally?" Does he mean to capture those children who were rescued?

"Hehe," Master Qingfeng chuckled, shook his head, and gazed deeply, "Your Majesty, it's too late to gather another hundred children's hearts now. However, every cloud has a silver lining. The efficacy of a Golden Core condensed within the body of a Foundation Establishment cultivator far surpasses that of a thousand children's hearts!"

"A thousand?!" Upon hearing this, the emperor's breathing suddenly quickened, and the corners of his mouth twitched slightly with extreme excitement. "Then, Daoist, if I obtain this golden elixir, will I... will I also be able to live forever like a cultivator, fly on a sword, and cultivate the supreme immortal techniques?"

“Of course.” Master Qingfeng nodded confidently. “As long as His Majesty cooperates with me and puts on a good show of luring the enemy into a trap, the golden elixir will be within our grasp.”

"Alright! Alright! Alright! I'll follow the Taoist priest's arrangements!"

As the fifteenth of the lunar month approached, the atmosphere in the entire capital of Li Kingdom was as oppressive as the deathly silence before a storm. Inside the palace, the number of patrolling imperial guards had doubled, with a post every five steps and a sentry every ten steps, with almost no gaps. The strict guarding conveyed a tense atmosphere as if facing a formidable enemy.

Even the people in the capital felt the impending danger. Every household kept their doors and windows tightly shut, and the once bustling streets were now as deserted as ghost towns.

In this desolate northwest corner, in the shadow of a secluded palace wall, stood two tall and handsome young men. They were Bai Chuan and Bai Ji.

Bai Ji's expression was solemn. He took a deep breath, brought his index and middle fingers together, and used his pure spiritual power as ink to quickly outline the mottled palace wall. As the spiritual light flowed, a sophisticated teleportation array containing spatial power gradually took shape.

As the last stroke was completed, the array flashed with a faint light before disappearing completely.

Completing this teleportation array, capable of connecting to the distant Cangmin Mountain, had consumed almost half of Bai Ji's spiritual energy. His face was slightly pale; he gently pressed his chest, which felt somewhat tight, and nodded to Bai Chuan beside him. With this backup plan, even if something went wrong during the operation, they could instantly escape danger.

In recent days, they have successfully rescued most of the imprisoned children. Today, they will make a final attempt to infiltrate the palace, kill the tyrant, and rescue the last few children.

However, looking at the heavily guarded palace before him, as impenetrable as an iron fortress, Bai Chuan's uneasy premonition grew stronger. His brows furrowed, his expression more solemn than ever before. The sudden increase in guards at the palace seemed less like a precaution and more like an open trap, waiting for something.

"Don't look so serious," Bai Ji said, flipping his hand to take out two old copper coins and weighing them in his palm, trying to lighten the mood. "Before I left, I did a divination, and the result showed that there would be no real danger."

Bai Chuan glanced at him, his expression clearly skeptical: "You calculated that? Is it accurate?" His junior brother usually had his mind entirely on those mysterious formations; when had he ever seen him delve into the art of divination? This impromptu divination was hardly convincing.

“Hey, of course I can’t compare to Master’s insight into the secrets of heaven.” Bai Ji put away the copper coins, but his tone was firm. “But I can still see the general good or bad fortune. We must settle this matter today. I’ve calculated that Master may be returning to the mountain soon. We can fool Senior Sister, but we may not be able to fool Master’s eyes.”

Upon hearing this, Bai Chuan raised an eyebrow slightly: "You really think... we've managed to fool Senior Sister?" He recalled Yun Qian's seemingly casual yet meaningful gaze during the competition that day.

Mentioning Yun Qian, Bai Ji felt a pang of guilt for no apparent reason, and her voice lowered slightly: "At least if Senior Sister knew, she wouldn't really blame us. She would always be on our side."

“Master won’t either.” Bai Chuan looked into the depths of the palace, his tone calm yet certain. Although he hadn’t spent much time with Bai Yan, and his master was always aloof and taciturn, he had a deep-seated conviction that Bai Yan would never punish them for their actions.

“That’s true.” Bai Ji smiled, trying to dispel the tension in his heart. “It’s just that Master… is too serious.”

The entire capital was deathly still, so oppressive it was suffocating.

Bai Chuan raised his head and looked at the gray sky shrouded in dark clouds, where not a ray of sunlight could be seen.

Today, even the sky seemed ominous, adding to his already heavy mood. Behind those thick, dark clouds, it seemed, lay an unknown danger, quietly awaiting their arrival.