A young eunuch cautiously walked into the hall. “Reporting to Your Majesty, the palace maids taking care of General Lu have sent a message. General Lu and the others have regained consciousness.”
“Oh? Summon all four of them, as well as Yang Zhuo, Gao Feng, and Gao Yun, to see me,” Huangfu Yuchen put down his pen.
“Yes.”
Deng Mande poured warm water into a hand washing basin and handed it over.
Huangfu Yuchen washed his hands, picked up a cup of tea and took a sip, slowly contemplating what else needed to be done before he went into seclusion.
“General Yang, General Lu and General Jun are here—”
Yang Zhuo, Gao Feng, Gao Yun, Lu Fei, Jun Xiang, Lin Zhang, and Jiang Ting entered the hall together, bowing to Huangfu Yuchen.
“We, your humble subjects, pay our respects to Your Majesty. Long live Your Majesty!”
“Rise.”
“Thank you, Your Majesty.”
Huangfu Yuchen had all the attendants leave the hall, even the shadow guards were dismissed. Only Deng Mande was left.
Yang Zhuo, Gao Feng, and the others felt their hearts skip a beat. His Majesty must be about to discuss something of great secrecy.
Huangfu Yuchen glanced sharply at Lu Fei, Jun Xiang, Lin Zhang, and Jiang Ting. “Lu Fei, you four must already know what happened to you.”
Lu Fei replied, “Your Majesty, regarding this matter, the four of us have no memory. We only heard that on that day, we were protecting Yan Guiqing during the hunting, and encountered a fierce beast. We got injured while protecting Yan Guiqing.”
They all sensed something strange in this matter; it was possible that they got injured while protecting Yan Guiqing, but the fact that all four of them lost their memory about the incident was too strange.
Huangfu Yuchen nodded, “That’s correct. You four were injured because of Yan Guiqing, which partially crippled your martial arts.” As he spoke, he observed the four men closely, not missing any subtle changes in their expressions. If they showed any resentment towards Yan Ge, they wouldn’t qualify for cultivation.
Lu Fei and the others were startled and knelt down simultaneously.
“We pledge our unwavering loyalty to Your Majesty and Yan Guiqing. We are willing to give our lives and serve Your Majesty and Yan Guiqing. Our martial arts might be partially crippled now, but if Your Majesty and Yan Guiqing don’t abandon us, we will continue to serve you wholeheartedly!”
Huangfu Yuchen was very pleased with their response. “Get up. On that day, one of my and Yan Guiqing’s arch-enemies showed up and harmed Yan Guiqing. He used a secret technique to control you four and attack Yan Guiqing. That’s why you have no memory of the incident. Yan Guiqing didn’t want to kill you, so he had no choice but to forcibly seal off your five senses, which cause a regression in your martial arts. Regardless of your future efforts, your cultivation won’t recover.”
Only now did Lu Fei and the others feel sorrowful. “We thank Yan Guiqing for saving our lives.”
Huangfu Yuchen continued, “Because of this, Yan Guiqing feels guilty towards you four. I also acknowledge your unwavering loyalty to me, so I intend to lead you onto a different path.”
Lu Fei and the others were puzzled. A different path?
Huangfu Yuchen picked up a delicate jade bottle in emerald green. “That path is cultivation. Cultivation means… once you reach the highest level, your strength will be a hundredfold stronger than before, or even more, and even ascending to immortality won’t be a mere fantasy.”
Everyone present wore a look of astonishment. Ascend to immortality? They had no doubt that Huangfu Yuchen wasn’t lying because there was simply no need to.
Gao Feng and Gao Yun had witnessed His Majesty and Yan Guiqing’s peculiar skills in the past, but they never thought about immortality. At this moment, they were no less surprised than Yang Zhuo and the others. However, the two of them were the quickest to calm down and exchanged a joyful look.
“These are the Foundation Building Pills needed for cultivation. They can help you remove impurities from your body and expand your meridians.” Huangfu Yuchen’s gaze then fell on Yang Zhuo, Gao Feng, and Gao Yun. “Yang Zhuo, Gao Feng, and Gao Yun are my confidants, so they also have a share.”
“Thank you for Your Majesty’s trust. Your humble subjects will forever follow Your Majesty!” Yang Zhuo, Gao Feng, and Gao Yun knelt down to express their gratitude.
Lu Fei and the others followed suit.
“We also pledge our unwavering loyalty to Your Majesty!”
Deng Mande didn’t hear his name and felt a little disappointed. However, he was energized knowing that His Majesty included him in this matter, it was already a great honor.
“Rise.” Huangfu Yuchen said, “But, you need to understand one thing. The Foundation Building Pills I have are limited, and I can’t take care of your family members. As your cultivation advances, you will forever retain your youthful appearance, but you will have to witness your loved ones age and even pass away. Of course, if you choose to stop cultivating halfway, you will age gradually and won’t ascend.”
Hearing this, Yang Zhuo and the others gradually calmed down from their excitement. As men, they yearned for great power, but what about their family members?
Huangfu Yuchen continued, “So, I’ll give you some time to consider. Come back the day after tomorrow.”
“Now, if there’s nothing else, you may leave.”
“Yes, Your humble subjects take their leave.”
Yang Zhuo and the others left the Tenglong Palace with complex emotions. Tonight, several of them might not be able to sleep.
Only then did Huangfu Yuchen turn to Deng Mande.
“Deng Mande, I have also prepared a Foundation Building Pill for you.”
Deng Mande’s eyes lit up. Realizing that His Majesty hadn’t finished speaking, he knelt down promptly without saying a word.
“However, your constitution is weaker, and even if you start cultivating now, it will be challenging to achieve significant results. It’s not that you can’t cultivate, but your progress will be slower than others, and the danger when encountering the tribulation will be greater. Take your time to consider it.”
Deng Mande knocked his head on the ground, tears flowing from his eyes as he spoke resolutely, “Your Majesty, I don’t need to consider. I want to cultivate too. Since childhood, I’ve been following Your Majesty, and forgive my impudence, I see you as family. As long as Your Majesty and Yan Guiqing don’t mind, I’m willing to serve you and Yan Guiqing forever.”
Huangfu Yuchen looked at him with emotion, nodding, “Since you’ve chosen this arduous path, I won’t say much more. Rise. When they come the day after tomorrow, I’ll give you the Foundation Building Pill.”
“Yes, thank you, Your Majesty, for your great grace.”
Huangfu Yuchen looked at the eight small jade bottles on the tray. Xiao Ge had given him eight Foundation Building Pills in total, he hoped they would all be worth it.
Outside the palace, in the First Company, Yan Ge’s thoughts were also revolving around the Foundation Building Pills. Regardless of whether Huangfu Yuhu was Meng Xiaohan or not, he absolutely couldn’t give him the Foundation Building Pill. This was also why he only gave eight pills to Huangfu Yuchen. Based on his understanding of Huangfu Yuchen, he would undoubtedly give these eight pills to Lu Fei, Jun Xiang, Lin Zhang, Jiang Ting, Yang Zhuo, Gao Feng, Gao Yun, and Deng Mande.
Unfortunately, Huangfu Yuhu had already left the capital, otherwise, he could try to secretly monitor him.
Two days later, Yan Ge and Huangfu Yuchen waited together in the Tenglong Palace for Yang Zhuo and the others.
After a difficult mental journey, the temperament of Yang Zhuo and the others had changed considerably, undoubtedly showing more determination than before.
Yan Ge was sure that even if they chose not to cultivate, except for Lu Fei and the other four, the martial arts of the rest would easily break through their bottlenecks.
“So, have you all considered it?”
Gao Feng, Gao Yun, Lu Fei, and Jun Xiang knelt down together, “Your humble subjects are willing to cultivate.”
Yang Zhuo, Lin Zhang, and Jiang Ting followed suit.
Yang Zhuo said, “Your Majesty, thank you for your kindness, but this subordinate can’t bear to leave his family. Please forgive me.”
Lin Zhang and Jiang Ting also said, “We, your subordinates, also thank Your Majesty for your kindness. Like General Yang, we can’t abandon our families. Please forgive us, Your Majesty.”
Huangfu Yuchen knew that Lu Fei and Jun Xiang were not yet married. Lin Zhang and Jiang Ting were older than Yang Zhuo. Lin Zhang’s son was already eight years old, and Jiang Ting’s son and daughter were seven and four years old, respectively.
“You value your families and kinship. What fault is there?” Huangfu Yuchen said, “Lin Zhang and Jiang Ting were injured for the sake of my beloved. The Foundation Building Pill will still be given to you. It can repair your meridians, and you will continue to serve me in the future.”
Lin Zhang and Jiang Ting were overjoyed and knelt down to express their gratitude.
Huangfu Yuchen gave them the Foundation Building Pills, saying, “After taking the Foundation Building Pill, you will experience intense pain. Find a safe and secluded place to take it later.”
“Yes.”
“Alright, General Yang, you may rise.”
“I take my leave.”
After Yang Zhuo and the other two left, Huangfu Yuchen gave the Foundation Building Pill to Gao Feng, Gao Yun, Lu Fei, Jun Xiang, and Deng Mande. Then he placed his palm on their foreheads, imparting the first two levels of the “Heavenly Demon Annihilation Technique” into their consciousness.
Upon receiving the cultivation technique, Gao Feng and the others realized the profound and miraculous nature of cultivation. They were deeply moved and became even more respectful to Huangfu Yuchen and Yan Ge. They all lowered their heads in unison, “We pledge our unwavering loyalty to Your Majesty and Yan Guiqing!”
Huangfu Yuchen explained some important points about cultivation and then dismissed the five of them.
He and Yan Ge also needed to prepare for seclusion.
He handed the remaining bottles of Foundation Building Pills to Yan Ge, “Xiao Ge, keep these. We will enter seclusion tomorrow.”
“Alright.”
