Chapter 54: Test

Fresh red blood was collected along the jade needle into a jade box; after roughly three drops had condensed, Eunuch Shen said:

"Enough."

He retrieved the jade box, sealed it, then returned to Commander Fu Qiwén's side, bowing and offering it with both hands.

Fu Qiwén nodded slightly, took the jade box in one hand, and glanced at it.

Instantly, Yu Jin and Sun Changyu snapped their heads up, their spirits jolting sharply.

They felt the entire palace's heavenly qi suddenly boil over.

From Fu Qiwén as the center, an invisible vortex surged upward, rapidly sucking and devouring the surrounding heavenly qi.

Even the qi within their meridians and dantians stirred restlessly, threatening to be pulled away at any moment.

Both instantly turned pale with alarm and urgently activated their cultivation techniques to stabilize their internal qi.

At the same time, the storm above the entire palace ceased abruptly.

The gathering heavenly qi seemed like an invisible giant hand, parting the torrential rain falling from the sky and stirring the gales to detour around the entire Shengzhou Tianjinwei Headquarters.

Inside the hall, the jade box in Fu Qiwén's palm glowed with emerald light, spinning at a speed too fast for the naked eye to trace, as if breaking the sound barrier.

Yet despite this, the jade box—whose true form remained unseen, leaving only blurred afterimages—remained locked in Fu Qiwén's grasp, never shifting an inch from its position.

Could this be… a flesh-and-blood centrifuge?

Li Musheng stared unblinkingly at Commander Fu Qiwén of the Shengzhou Tianjinwei, silently marveling in his heart.

To be honest, he now unexpectedly found himself somewhat convinced by this paternity test.

Yet Li Musheng's gaze shifted, settling instead on one of his own fingers.

When the jade needle had drawn his blood, he noticed a strand of poison had entered his body through the wound.

That poison had an extremely peculiar nature—it would not kill him outright, but instead lie hidden and dormant within him.

Of course, no matter how unusual the poison, it posed no threat whatsoever to Li Musheng, who possessed the Imperishable Golden Body.

"Interesting. I haven't even stepped into the palace yet, and the intrigue has already begun."

Li Musheng raised an eyebrow.

Clearly, the jade box originated from the Great Li Imperial Palace; the one who poisoned the jade needle must also be from within the court.

But who was the poisoner?

It could be the Eunuch Shen standing before him, or someone else entirely.

Li Musheng had no clues, and no real desire to investigate further.

After all, those meant to reveal themselves would inevitably jump out eventually.

He had no interest in court intrigues; right now, he only wished to be a lazy farmer waiting by a tree stump.

At that moment, the heavenly qi throughout the hall abruptly stilled, and the spinning jade box in Fu Qiwén's hand came to a halt.

The outside scene of calmed wind and vanished rain disappeared; once more, gales and torrential rain raged.

Raindrops struck the palace roof, gradually forming a steady patter.

Fu Qiwén gazed at the jade box in his palm for a moment, his expression unchanged, then looked up at Li Musheng and said:

"I must enter the palace. Young Master Li, please wait here for a while."

Hearing this, Li Musheng nodded without objection.

Watching Fu Qiwén prepare to leave, he knew his imperial prince status had been confirmed.

Yet at that moment, Sun Changyu on the side of the hall stepped forward, bowed, and said:

"My lord, I have another matter to report."

Fu Qiwén halted, turned to him, and nodded slightly, signaling him to speak.

Sun Changyu glanced sidelong at Li Musheng, then silently transmitted his words via qi to Fu Qiwén.

Not long after, Fu Qiwén's eyes narrowed slightly as he gave Li Musheng a deep look, then waved his hand and said:

"I am already aware of this matter."

Then he instructed Yu Jin on the side of the hall:

"Go summon Han Li. Have him accompany Sun Eunuch."

With that, Fu Qiwén made no further pause and vanished into the vast, drenching rain beyond the hall.

At this moment, Eunuch Shen glanced at Li Musheng, his gaze flickering slightly, and said:

"I must return to the palace to report this matter to Empress Wang."

After speaking, he followed closely behind Fu Qiwén as he departed.

Yu Jin, the only one left in the hall, did not dare delay; he quickly summoned a thin-faced middle-aged man.

Han Li, Fu Qiwén's most trusted subordinate, obeyed his orders without question; after a brief exchange with Sun Changyu, he hurried off with him.

…

The Great Li Imperial Palace.

Palaces stood in orderly arrangement, their roof ridges adorned with glazed ceramic beasts of varied forms; rain streamed down golden glazed tiles, forming continuous curtains of beads.

Commander Fu Qiwén passed through towering vermilion gates, accompanied by a young eunuch, ascending layers of white jade steps into a vast, imposing palace.

Tianqian Palace—the residence of Emperor Yuanwu.

The polished floor gleamed like a mirror; crimson pillars carved with exquisite cloud and dragon patterns supported the grand ceiling, radiating an aura of solemn authority.

Fu Qiwén walked through the solemn main hall to the side chamber, where a bamboo curtain blocked the view of a purple sandalwood bed.

"Your Majesty, the Seventh Imperial Prince has been found."

Fu Qiwén bowed before the bamboo curtain, withdrew the jade box from his sleeve, and handed it to an elderly, white-haired eunuch at the front of the hall, who presented it to Emperor Yuanwu behind the curtain.

Emperor Yuanwu behind the curtain remained silent; beneath the bright glow of countless candles, only a faint seated silhouette could be discerned.

The silhouette glanced at the jade box in the eunuch's hands and spoke without any trace of emotion:

"This kinship verification secret method comes from the Medicine King Valley of the Western Regions; it is a method refined and tested by generations of healers within the valley and should be without flaw."

Next, that figure signaled for the old eunuch to remove the jade box, and his gaze looked through the bamboo blinds toward Fu Qiwen:

"Qiwen, tell me, what is your impression of that son of mine?"

Fu Qiwen clasped his hands, lowered his brows and bowed his head, thought for a moment, then said:

"I have already reviewed the Juan Sect file of the Seventh Imperial Prince; he was found by a female Constable from the Six Fan Gate in a small town in Wanzhou. His experiences over the past twenty years are unremarkable; before coming to Shangyang City, he stayed as an apprentice in a small martial arts hall."

Hearing this, the figure behind the bamboo blinds nodded slightly, seeming not unfamiliar with Li Musheng's circumstances, and simply said:

"Continue; I wish to hear your opinion of him."

"I only saw Your Highness today. I have observed Your Highness's condition. Strangely, the file states he possesses the Martial Realm of a Pre-Heaven Warrior, yet I have not detected any Martial True Qi on his person."

Fu Qiwen's voice was calm, and his words revealed not a trace of any other unusual emotion.

Emperor Yuanwu behind the bamboo blinds remained silent; after a while, he slowly asked:

"What does Qiwen think is the cause?"

(End of this chapter)