Emperor's Sword, the Unique Skill of the Flower-Picking Sect!_1

"Ling Shuang, why is such an important place left unguarded? Aren't they afraid of theft?" Gao Xuan voiced his doubts as he stood at the door.

Ling Shuang glanced deeply at the top of the tower and whispered, "Indeed, there are no guards here, but it is also the safest place in the entire world."

Gao Xuan was skeptical, "Why is that?"

Ling Shuang's eyes showed a hint of reverence as she explained, "This place was personally constructed by Emperor Taizu and it houses various martial arts manuals and treasured weapons accumulated over thousands of years by the Great Qian Dynasty. Although it appears to have only six floors, there are hidden compartments between every two floors, making a total of nine floors."

"The reason no one dares to steal from here is because above the ninth floor, there is a guardian, the Imperial Sword left behind by Emperor Taizu before his ascension!"

"Legend has it that this sword is a divine weapon with its own consciousness. It was used by Emperor Taizu a thousand years ago to end a catastrophic era and slay a demon!"

"Over the years, countless people who coveted the martial arts and weapons in the arsenal have tried to break in, including upper realm experts, but none of them escaped the fate of being destroyed by a single strike of the sword, body and soul."

"Therefore, it is not an exaggeration to say that this is the safest place in the entire world."

Ling Shuang spoke with enthusiasm, her eyes filled with admiration and longing for the Imperial Sword.

After listening, Gao Xuan couldn't help but take a few steps back, feeling a chill in his heart.

For him, this was not the safest place in the world; it was clearly the most dangerous place!

Others might not be able to detect his cultivation of demonic techniques, but Gao Xuan had a feeling that if he entered the arsenal, the sword would undoubtedly sense it and immediately strike him without any hesitation.

Ling Shuang didn't notice Gao Xuan's peculiar expression. She walked straight to the door and placed a token engraved with the pattern of a black tortoise into an inconspicuous groove on the stone wall.

In an instant, the interior of the attic was illuminated by layers of candlelight.

"Let's go, go in and choose."

Ling Shuang gave Gao Xuan a signal to enter together.

Gao Xuan quickly took a few steps back, waved his hand, and smiled, "Forget it, I won't go in. Ling Shuang, your cultivation is high and your knowledge is vast. Just help me pick a couple of books."

To him, entering now would be no different from seeking death. At the very least, he had to wait until his cultivation was strong enough to have confidence.

Ling Shuang furrowed her brows and asked, "Are you sure?"

"Absolutely sure!"

Gao Xuan nodded firmly, and then explained, fearing suspicion, "I'm afraid that if the sword thinks I'm a fake eunuch, it might just stab me with a single strike..."

Ling Shuang muttered to herself, "I've never encountered such a thing before, but I can't rule out the possibility... Alright then, what kind of books do you want? I'll help you choose."

Gao Xuan pondered for a moment and replied, "The higher the rank, the better. Other than that, it doesn't matter."

To him, the specific martial arts techniques didn't make much difference. Only with higher-ranked books could he obtain more villain points, and that was the most important thing.

"Alright."

Ling Shuang didn't say much and confidently walked inside alone.

Left outside alone, Gao Xuan retreated several dozen meters before he could relax.

Staying here was too stressful. Who knew if that Imperial Sword would fly out and strike him.

No, he had to stay away from this place in the future. The farther, the better.

Divine weapons were not to be trifled with.

While waiting, Gao Xuan's idle mind was filled with more questions.

Although the arsenal was indeed important, couldn't they have stationed more guards to ensure no one could intrude? Wasn't it a waste to keep the legendary divine weapon here? 

Or perhaps, the arsenal was merely a cover-up, and the true purpose was to suppress the Imperial Sword?

The more Gao Xuan thought about it, the more he felt there was something mysterious about this place. It couldn't be as simple as Ling Shuang had described.

The Emperor and the Empress Dowager might know something.

But Ling Shuang was so close to the Emperor on a daily basis that they might as well be wearing the same pants, yet the Emperor had never revealed a hint of information.

If Gao Xuan wanted to continue investigating, it would be as difficult as ascending to the heavens.

However, Gao Xuan wasn't in a hurry. He had a premonition that one day he would uncover the truth.

After a while, Ling Shuang emerged from the attic holding two martial arts manuals and handed them to Gao Xuan.

"Here, I picked the highest-ranked ones according to your request."

"Originally, according to the Emperor's intention, you could only obtain Earth-ranked techniques at best, but due to certain reasons, these two Heaven-ranked techniques were placed together with the Earth-ranked ones, so I took them for you."

Gao Xuan took a look and his mouth twitched slightly.

One book was titled "Stealing Fragrance and Pilfering Jade Hands," and the other was "Maze-like Steps in the Flower Thicket."

These abstract names turned out to be heaven-ranked martial arts techniques? If he didn't know any better, he would have thought they were knock-off books sold by weight at a street market!

"How about these? They should suit you well," Ling Shuang said seriously. "Don't underestimate these two techniques. They are the lost arts of the Nianhua Sect!"

Gao Xuan's face was filled with black lines. He finally understood why these heaven-ranked techniques were placed together with the earth-ranked ones.

Calling them heaven-ranked was almost an insult to heaven-ranked techniques.

Seeing Gao Xuan's bewildered expression, Ling Shuang stopped joking and said, "If you don't like them, I can help you exchange them."

"No need, no need. Thank you, Ling Shuang. I really like them!" Gao Xuan said as he immediately put the books away. Regardless of their abstract nature, heaven-ranked was stronger than earth-ranked! As long as he could exchange for more villain points, he was fine with it!

Seeing his persistence, Ling Shuang held back the words on the tip of her tongue.

Originally, she had chosen a rare earth-ranked soul-attack technique and a sword technique. The reason she handed him these two was purely to tease him after his earlier remarks.

She didn't expect Gao Xuan to actually choose them, so she didn't say anything more.

Afterward, since it was getting late, they went their separate ways.

Back in his courtyard, Gao Xuan took out the two manuals, intending to practice and then retrieve them.

These techniques were all copied versions, so there was no need to return them.

Shufei thought he had obtained some extraordinary techniques and stretched her neck to sneak a peek at the names. She burst into laughter.

"Haha! The dog emperor actually gave you the bottom-of-the-barrel arts from the Nianhua Sect?"

Gao Xuan couldn't be bothered to pay her any attention. He placed his palm on the book and quietly activated the Swallowing Heaven Demonic Technique.

"Tsk, tsk."

Shufei crossed her arms and enjoyed the spectacle, her face filled with mockery.

"The dog emperor's judgment of people is quite accurate. This thing suits you well."

But in the next second, a blur flashed before her eyes.

Gao Xuan suddenly held a pink undergarment in his hand, embroidered with lotus flowers and still faintly warm.

Shufei's smile froze on her face, and then she felt a cold sensation on her chest.

She quickly covered her clothes, her face filled with shock.

"You pervert!"

She couldn't fathom how Gao Xuan managed to take the innermost garment without making a sound, even when she was wearing so many layers.

She had tied them tightly, didn't she?

As Gao Xuan sniffed the fragrance that drifted to his nose, he had only one thought in his mind.

Heaven-ranked techniques are awesome!

...