Chapter 707

Guoshi Residence, in the secret chamber.

Tuan Tuan was holding a piece of roasted meat to tease Xiao Feifei; as long as it lifted its paw and tapped its little hand, it would give it a bite.

Xiao Feifei was extraordinarily clever; each time Tuan Tuan lifted its little hand, it would sit properly on the ground, raise one small front paw and tap once.

Xiao Ran looked on, eyes hot, walked over and squatted beside Tuan Tuan, took the meat from her hand, and with his other hand opened and raised it: "Little fox, come, raise your hand, tap me once, and you'll get some meat."

Xiao Feifei's eyes rolled, yet it ignored him, sitting motionless.

Xiao Ran said it again, but Xiao Feifei still paid him no heed.

Xiao Ran furrowed his brows: "Tuan Tuan, why won't this fox listen to me?"

Tuan Tuan stroked Xiao Feifei's head, turned to look at him: "Ninth Brother, you got it wrong! It's not Xiao Feifei's fault."

Xiao Ran blinked: "Where did I go wrong?"

Tuan Tuan said solemnly: "You should say lift the paw, not lift the hand."

Xiao Ran: "......"

Everyone burst into laughter.

Xiao Ningyuan calculated: "In a few days, the great army should arrive."

Xiao Er gazed at the stone wall: "I hope this time we can win swiftly and decisively, with fewer casualties."

"Big Brother," Tuan Tuan suddenly thought, "should we go tell Master?"

"Miss," Lu Qi chuckled, "you have quite a few masters— which one are you referring to?"

"Of course we need to tell them all! Seventh Uncle," Tuan Tuan mused, "let's first go to Jade Belt Lane."

"National Preceptor?" Eunuch Cheng interjected, "Little Princess, the National Preceptor is what sort of person? At home he can calculate with his fingers and know roughly; you don't need to make this trip yourself."

"But I want to tell him myself!" Tuan Tuan giggled, "I haven't been out for days."

"Tuan Tuan," Chen Hao shook his head and smiled, "you can't stay put— you just want to go out for a stroll, right?"

Tuan Tuan felt a bit embarrassed, walked up to Xiao Ningyuan, nuzzled into his embrace, rubbing back and forth: "Okay, Big Brother?"

Xiao Ningyuan's heart softened, he pulled his sister into his arms: "All right, you're his disciple— for such a big matter, telling him in person is only proper."

"The Eldest Master speaks well," Xiao Er immediately agreed, "the Miss should indeed make the trip."

Xiao Feifei walked over and kept circling around Tuan Tuan's feet.

Tuan Tuan lowered his head to glance at it: "Poor Xiao Feifei, aside from going with us to the Imperial Kitchen, it's never run outside; tonight we should bring it along too."

"Let it run around freely in Master's courtyard."

Xiao Feifei, as if understanding, excitedly chirped nonstop, continually leaping onto Tuan Tuan.

"All right," Xiao Ningyuan smiled, "but you need to tell it not to make random noises."

Tuan Tuan hastily shushed Xiao Feifei.

Xiao Feifei suddenly froze, mouth shut tight, only its two little ears and tail tip twitching slightly.

Everyone burst into laughter again.

That night, the darkness was deep.

Several people landed silently in the courtyard of Jade Belt Lane.

Lu Qi pulled Xiao Feifei from his bosom; the little creature curled into a ball, its fur all mussed.

Tuan Tuan hastily scooped it up, smoothed its fur, and rubbed its little head with his chin: "Be good, just run in the courtyard, don't go out."

Xiao Feifei looked around, its eyes lighting up; it pushed off with its four short legs and slipped out of Tuan Tuan's arms.

It darted about the yard like a happy ball, a white lump rolling to and fro in the moonlight.

Everyone laughed; Chu Yuan heard the commotion, opened the door, and stood silently in the doorway.

"Master!" Tuan Tuan lunged forward, burying his head in his embrace.

Chu Yuan swept her into his arms, glanced at the others, and said: "Come, go inside and sit."

Everyone took their seats.

"Master, you mustn't go out," Tuan Tuan lifted her little face to look at Chu Yuan, "Father and the others will be coming in a few days!"

Xiao Ningyuan nodded along: 'Second Brother said, once the great army arrives, they will attack the city.'

Chu Yuan fell silent for a moment, then slowly opened his mouth: 'I observed the night sky; though the Killing Star beside the Purple Forbidden Enclosure shines bright, it is veiled by a dark cloud, indicating obstruction.'

He paused: 'I'm afraid they won't be able to arrive that quickly.'

Everyone was stunned.

Xiao Er frowned slightly: 'The Prince's marches have always been swift; surely Prince Chen and Prince Qing sent people to ambush along the way.'

Xiao Ningyuan said nonchalantly: 'Father has experienced a hundred battles; could he not know such a trick? At most it will delay them a few days, nothing serious.'

Lu Qi shook his head: 'I'm not worried about anything else; I just fear that those sent to ambush are not ordinary soldiers, but those Eastern Ocean people.'

'What if they have several hundred or even a few thousand? That would be troublesome to deal with.'

As soon as those words were spoken, Xiao Ningyuan's brows also furrowed: 'You're right.'

'Those Eastern Ocean people are highly skilled in martial arts; if they truly number several hundred or even a few thousand, launching ambushes, they could match a whole army.'

Xiao Er thought the most: 'The Prince's martial arts can certainly match them, but everyone else surely isn't their opponent.'

'Even if the Third Young Master and the Seventh Prince join forces, at most they could handle only one.'

'It would be great if we could know exactly how many Eastern Ocean people there are; their martial arts are truly formidable.'

Lu Qi snorted: 'What in this world is an unbreakable martial art? It's just that we don't understand their school.'

'If we could find their weakness and defeat them in one blow, we wouldn't need to worry about encountering them again.'

Tuan Tuan clenched her little fists and waved them: 'Those Eastern Ocean people didn't come following that Eastern Ocean old man, did they?'

'Come on! Let's go ask him! Besides, I also wanted to go see Master; last time I never got to speak with him.'

'Ask, ask him?' Xiao Ningyuan stared, 'Tuan Tuan, how could he possibly tell you?'

"Exactly, miss," Lu Qi shook his head and said, "He still wants to kill you; how could you walk right into his hands?"

"Of course I can!" Tuan Tuan laughed proudly, "If he doesn't speak, I'll make him itch even more; if he does speak, I'll make sure he never itches again!"

The few of them looked at each other.

Xiao Er murmured, "This… can it work?"

Tuan Tuan tilted her little head, "Just try it! If it fails, he'll keep itching, and I won't lose anything."

"In that case," Chu Yuan took a small cloth pouch from his bosom and handed it to Tuan Tuan, "Take this with you."

"What is this, Master?" Tuan Tuan took it, untied the knot, and poured the contents into her hand to see.

It was a night‑glowing pearl about the size of a Dragon Desk, crystal clear, with seven tiny stars on its surface arranged into the Big Dipper, emitting a faint silvery glow in the candlelight.

"How beautiful!" Tuan Tuan's eyes lit up, she lifted it to examine it in the candlelight, "Master, it even has the Big Dipper on it!"

"This is the night‑glowing pearl we used in the Return‑to‑Origin Array; I have refined it into a magical artifact and named it Xingke," the Master said.

"When the Eastern Sea mage casts spells, he often draws upon the power of the Big Dipper star lord."

Chu Yuan looked at Tuan Tuan, his gaze gentle, "Xingke cannot harm a person, but it can cause the spell power of those who try to use the Big Dipper star lord's aid to diminish markedly."

Tuan Tuan blinked, "So it just makes their spells ineffective, right?"

"Correct," Chu Yuan's lips curled slightly, "like an archer who has lost his bowstring—full of skill yet unable to draw it."

Xiao Er praised, "National Preceptor, this item truly is marvelous!"

Lu Qi rubbed his hands together and chuckled, "If that old thing is in the middle of casting and the spell suddenly disappears, who knows what his face would look like."

Xiao Ningyuan also laughed, reached out and rubbed the top of Tuan Tuan's head, "Great! With this, whatever spells that Eastern Sea old man casts won't harm our Tuan Tuan anymore."

Tuan Tuan clenched the pearl in her palm, lifted her little face to look at Chu Yuan, her eyes sparkling, "Thank you, Master!"

Chu Yuan gently patted her small shoulder, "Go then, be careful."

Tuan Tuan carefully placed the pearl back into her Sachet, gave it a tap, and smiled contentedly.