Chu Yan was reviewing the results of this year's large-scale screening at the Chu Family Children's Academy when a servant came to report that Miss Miaoying was waiting outside to see him.
Chu Yan closed the file and took a sip of tea, his mind drifting to Xu Miaoying's records. This child was another genius seed he had screened out from the main city of Yingzhou during a screening year. She had been five at the time and had already awakened her spiritual seed on her own.
The Xu family was a merchant household in Yingzhou. Although they were well-off, none of their ancestors had ever been cultivators, making Xu Miaoying's appearance a pleasant surprise. However, the head of the Xu family proved to be muddle-headed—his words hinted that he was not keen on Xu Miaoying embarking on the path of cultivation, and he even suggested transferring her opportunity to his younger son instead.
As the head steward of the Chu Family's Children's Academy and a member of the Seal-Bearing Clan, Chu Yan could not be bothered to argue with such a person. He simply stated that whether they chose the Dao Academy route or the Chu family route, the family had three days to give an answer.
But before three days were up—on the very next day—the young girl came to him on her own, saying she had threatened her family with a hunger strike and escaped. Now with nowhere to go, she chose the Chu family and hoped they would shelter her and not let the Xu family take her away.
The girl cried pitifully, tears streaming down her face, and Chu Yan immediately decided to keep her. As for the Xu family, Chu Yan had never taken them seriously.
Xu Miaoying indeed proved worthy. After a single spiritual seed infusion, it was discovered that she had awakened a blue-grade spiritual seed—something impressive even within the main Chu family. Chu Yan allocated her some resources and let her attend classes at the academy.
The second time Xu Miaoying caught Chu Yan's attention was when the little treasure Wangshu happened to come to the academy for classes. Xu Miaoying usually kept to herself, but that time she actively approached Wangshu to build a connection.
Hah. Chu Yan thought at the time that this girl had sharp instincts—she had picked out the Chu family's true jewel in one try. Perhaps her motives were a little transparent, but she actually pulled it off. Among all the children at the academy, she was the one who got along best with Miss Wangshu and Miss Qinghe.
Later, during the family's nomination, Chu Yan submitted Xu Miaoying's name over another boy, Lu Qi.
Chu Yan's assessment of Xu Miaoying: cautious and meticulous, but bold at certain moments; clever, knowing her limits, driven, and possessing a little cunning that was harmless. Perhaps in the Dao Palace, she could become a support for the two young ladies.
After mulling this over, Chu Yan called her in.
Xu Miaoying entered carrying a wrapped bundle. After offering her respects, she smiled lightly and said, "As I will soon be departing on a long journey, and having received your care over the years, I have prepared a small gift to express my gratitude."
Chu Yan frowned and was about to say he did not accept gifts, when Xu Miaoying blinked her watery eyes and voluntarily explained: "This is Qinghe dew tea that I picked and dried myself. It is perfect for relieving summer heat—more palatable than spiritual tea, and carries an extra lotus fragrance compared to plain spiritual dew. It is a humble thing, and I hope you will not refuse it."
Chu Yan's expression softened. Qinghe dew tea requires picking lotus leaves bearing spiritual dew at a specific hour, drying them in the shade without removing the dew, and turning them into spiritual tea. The ingredients are easy to obtain, but the preparation is labor-intensive. Moreover, lotus leaves have a moistening effect, suitable for someone of his—how should one put it—"fuller" figure.
It was a cheap, simple, yet thoughtful gift.
Chu Yan no longer refused. After a moment's thought, he offered some advice: "The family sets out tomorrow, with the clan head and the Fifth Elder personally leading the escort for the two young ladies. You and Lu Qi should travel with them. If you encounter any problems, you may seek out the Fifth Elder. If the Fifth Elder is busy, you may go to Miss Wangshu."
Between Qinghe and Wangshu, although Wangshu was younger, she was clearly more composed and steady in her conduct. As for Miss Qinghe—if you went to her for help, she might well forget about it in the blink of an eye.
"You don't bear the surname Chu, but you share this karmic bond with the Chu family. Such a bond is rare, and even upon entering the Dao Palace, it is worth cherishing and maintaining. You are a clever child, so I won't say more. You may go."
After taking her leave of Chu Yan, Xu Miaoying also visited the homes of the other teachers who had instructed her, presenting gifts to each of them before returning to her own courtyard.
On the table lay a packed bundle. After more than ten years in the Chu family, she still owned very little. Through the lattice window, a hint of peach blossom pink glimmered. Peach trees were planted all over the Chu estate, and after all these years, Xu Miaoying had grown accustomed to waking each morning to a whiff of peach fragrance.
Now that she was older, she no longer wore two peach blossoms in her hair as she had in childhood. Instead, she wore a pair of tourmaline peach-flower jade hairpins, also pink.
Xu Miaoying looked into the mirror. The person reflected had a pointed chin, watery almond-shaped eyes with slightly drooping outer corners, and adorned with pink peach hairpins, she naturally exuded an air of innocence.
A face like that—wasn't it perfect for dressing up cute and pure, and going out to fool people now and then?
Xu Miaoying flashed a sweet smile at her reflection, but her eyes were dark and deep. The two conflicting qualities blended together, lending her delicate features a kind of coldness.
Putting the mirror away, Xu Miaoying thought back to Steward Chu Yan's words.
Indeed, discarding the Chu family connection now would be a waste. She had used the Chu name as a stepping stone all the way here, achieving her goals each time. As a child, it had helped her escape the Xu family, secured her nomination, and now it was taking her to the Dao Palace.
The Dao Palace was far more complex in its dynamics. She still needed to cling to a great tree for shade. And the Chu family was exactly such a tree.
But how to cling to it—that was the challenge. It was no longer a matter of ingratiating herself with the two Chu young ladies. Besides, those two young ladies were not easy to please.
Chu Qinghe, granddaughter of the Chu family's Grand Elder—kind, warm, enthusiastic toward everyone. But being enthusiastic toward everyone meant she was sincere toward no one in particular.
She was hard to exploit.
Chu Wangshu, daughter of the Chu clan head. The feeling she gave people was hard to describe. She was the core around which the Chu family revolved, and her relationship with Xu Miaoying was decent—sometimes she would sit with her in class and offer guidance.
Yet Xu Miaoying dreaded dealing with Chu Wangshu the most. Those dark, clear eyes reflected a person's complete image, and sometimes Xu Miaoying felt that Chu Wangshu had long since seen through her "mask."
Deception was not hard. Disguise was not hard. What was hard was continuing to put on the act when you knew you had been seen through.
Xu Miaoying wanted to stay as far away from Chu Wangshu as possible.
But to cling to the Chu family's leg, Chu Wangshu was an unavoidable link.
She knew very well how much effort the Chu family had poured into Chu Wangshu. They had hidden her for eighteen years, the outside world knowing only her name, never her face.
She must be the Chu family's trump card—they expected her to stun everyone at the Dao Palace and soar to fame.
Xu Miaoying carefully finalized her plan in her mind. When she raised her eyes, the coldness within had dissolved into a faint, shallow smile.
At the age of ten, she had awakened her spiritual seed talent: "A Thousand Faces for a Thousand People."
From that year on, Xu Miaoying had survived by disguise and deception.
No one knew her true face.
And she would never show it.
-
The next morning, Xu Miaoying stood together with Lu Qi, waiting for the summons from the Chu clan head.
The journey to the Dao Palace required crossing the sea. First, they would take the Chu family's treasure ship to reach the port of Yingtian. As for how they would reach the Dao Palace after that, Xu Miaoying had no idea.
The Chu family's treasure ship was already anchored on the lake beyond the island of Yingzhou. The Chu family had a dedicated pier from which to board.
Lu Qi glanced back at the plank road. Still no one had come, so he said, “They haven’t arrived yet—can’t we board the ship first?”
His features were handsome, with high brow bones, yet his eyes were clear and bright, carrying an air of simple honesty.
Xu Miaoying often found him dim-witted, but she said softly, “Riding the Chu family’s treasure ship straight to the Dao Palace is already a privilege. It’s only proper to wait for the clan leader and the others to board first—that shows better courtesy.”
“Ah, I see. Ying, thanks for the reminder.”
Ying. Xu Miaoying’s lips pressed into a thin line. She found the nickname unbearably rustic and wanted to tell him to stop using it, but then spiritual light flickered across the sky.
Xu Miaoying looked up and saw a group of people skipping the plank road entirely, riding their qi directly through the air.
At the head was a woman in striking red robes, with two girls following behind her. Xu Miaoying’s eyes stirred slightly, her gaze landing precisely on one of them.
The girl wore a flowing immortal gown in a gradient of blue and green tie-dye. As she descended, the peacock-blue silk ribbon traced a graceful arc in the air. The bright green, translucent longevity lock around her neck was especially eye-catching, paired with a gold bracelet on her right wrist and a red-tasseled palace bell at her waist.
She caught the probing gaze precisely, and just as Xu Miaoying failed to look away in time, she broke into a smile—dark pupils, feathery lashes, and a hint of divine light at the center of her brow.
Xu Miaoying paused, then her lips curved upward instinctively, her eyes crinkling.
Wangshu blinked and looked away.
“Child, what are you looking at?” Chu Qinghe asked her.
“I just saw Miaoying and said hello to her,” Wangshu said.
“Oh, Miaoying.” Chu Qinghe craned her neck, spotted Xu Miaoying by the plank road, and immediately waved her arm. “Miao—ying! Long—time—no—see!”
It had been years since they last attended classes at the academy.
Even Chu Daixi turned to look, raising an eyebrow slightly.
Xu Miaoying: …
Her smile stayed in place, but it had gone a little stiff.
This was exactly why she found Chu Qinghe hard to get close to—sometimes aloof, sometimes bursting with a baffling kind of enthusiasm.
Xu Miaoying’s many-faced social skills hadn’t yet evolved to the point where she could smoothly handle both Chu Wangshu’s evaluating gaze and Chu Qinghe’s unexpected antics at the same time.
The group boarded the ship. The sails automatically folded away, and a pair of wings extended from beneath the hull. The lake surrounding Yingzhou Island was an inland one, not connected to the sea, so they needed to fly out to the open ocean first, then sail from there to Yingtian Harbor.
The treasure ship was wrapped in a golden barrier, gliding steadily through the clouds. In about an hour, they reached the open sea.
On the vast blue expanse of the ocean, the treasure ship folded its wings and sailed smoothly across the waves, helmed by Chu Mingyan.
Wangshu withdrew her gaze and asked Chu Daixi, “Where is the Dao Palace?”
“On the divine mountain at the center of the four seas, in the middle of the land,” Chu Daixi replied, standing beside Wangshu on the deck, gazing over the water.
“Why do we have to dock at Yingtian Harbor?” Wangshu recognized the area as the outer waters of the North Sea. They could have sailed straight in and reached the Dao Palace directly.
Chu Daixi looked at her and smiled. “Because the Dao Palace will send someone to receive us.”
Wangshu nodded without pressing further. She knew the “us” meant the seal-holding powers. She was no longer a novice in cultivation—she understood that when her mother said "us," she meant the entrenched political powers.
The seal-holding families were a broad term, but among them, only nine were true noble houses, with three nations beyond those. The nine families held sway across the nine provinces, while the three nations stood independent.
These twelve power blocs surrounded and supported the Dao Palace, forming the very apex of the Heavenly Balance.
It wasn’t until they reached Yingtian Harbor that Wangshu understood what “send someone to receive us” actually meant.
The harbor was packed with countless treasure ships gleaming with spiritual light, sails hoisted, clan banners fluttering in the sea breeze.
She saw many dignified elders, each trailed by at least two juniors radiating vigor and youthful arrogance.
The Dao Palace’s ships flew no banners, only hanging bells. Any boat with a crimson bell dangling from the bow and ringing softly was unmistakably sent by the Dao Palace.
Chu Qinghe circled the harbor once, frowning. “The Dao Palace’s reception boat is way too small. Can it even fit all of us?”
It wasn’t actually that small—just plain compared to the jewel-laden ships—but it was more than roomy enough to carry a clan’s genius seedlings into the palace. The Dao Palace didn’t accept just anyone. Seal-holding families usually recommended a maximum of five, and common recommendations topped out at three. Each family’s full quota, including elder escorts, would stretch to ten at most. Why couldn’t a single boat hold that many? At worst, it would be a bit cramped.
Wangshu smiled faintly and pointed toward the center of the harbor bay. “Sister, what about that one over there?”
Xu Miaoying and Lu Qi followed her gaze.
The sea fog was heavy that day. Chu Qinghe hadn’t noticed at first, but with Wangshu’s guidance and a boost of spiritual power, she spotted an enormous ship moored at a distance in the harbor.
Palace lanterns were already lit along its decks, bells hanging beneath each light, casting a warm orange glow. One glance was nearly blinding—there were lanterns on every single floor. If they were all lit at night, the whole world would practically illuminate. Counting carefully, there were ten stories.
“Is that ship grand enough for you?” Seeing the dazed look on Chu Qinghe’s face, Wangshu smiled.
Qinghe snapped back to herself and clicked her tongue. “Not bad, does fit the Chu family’s style. It just feels hard to get aboard.”
Qinghe’s instincts were sharp. The Dao Palace’s reception apparently came in two kinds: one dingy and subdued, like slipping into the palace low-key, and one dripping with splendor, practically begging people to wonder what kind of political games and conflicts brewed inside.
At that moment, Chu Daixi finally spoke with a meaningful smile. “When the Dao Palace receives guests, there’s the famous palace gate night banquet. The ten-story treasure ship docks at Yingtian Harbor, and families board freely. The ship lights its lanterns by day, sails by night, and arrives at the Dao Palace right as dawn breaks.”
“So—ride the plain boat and travel in quiet obscurity, or board the treasure ship and drink through the night at the palace gates?”
“Wangshu, which do you choose?”
Wangshu toyed with the palace bell at her waist, its ringing clear as she gave a light smile.
“I recall that the Chu family’s last entry into the palace was brutally difficult. This time, the mockery and suppression will be inevitable. Being low-key won’t buy peace. But being loud and proud can at least buy a moment of glory.”
“Even one moment is worth it. Mother, let’s be lavish.”
Chu Daixi’s smile deepened. “Lavish… then that suits your mother’s heart perfectly.”
Her hands moved in a rapid seal, and a colossal sword’s ethereal silhouette appeared behind her, sliding into a sheath. Chu Daixi’s eyes snapped open with a flash of gold. In a swift motion, she drew her blade, whipping up a gale that swept Wangshu and the other three into the air.
Straight toward the ten-story treasure ship, she struck with a single sword slash—
