Chapter 217: A Familiar Divine Presence
Chapter 217: A Familiar Divine Presence
Imperial City
Crown Prince’s Palace
West Courtyard
~
A young woman in her early twenties was busy dressing up as a man and she really did a good job. Except for those who knew her personally, others wouldn’t be able to tell that she’s a woman let alone the Crown Princess.
While she carried a look of satisfaction and excitement on her face, the same couldn’t be said about the maid who was standing not too far from the Crown Princess while looking like she was terrified for her very life.
"Your Highness, maybe you should reconsider. Escaping from the palace when you are grounded by His Highness is a huge crime. His Highness is already very angry at you, if he find out about you leaving the palace, things are going to turn for the worst." The maid tried to make the Crown Princess realize just how big of a trouble she was causing this time, but it seemed like the woman was determined to go out of palace despite the consequences.
"I’m not afraid of that stupid cabbage, nor you need to fear him. I will protect you. Stop worrying too much. The worst he can do is to shout at me and ground me more heavily. But that’s all." Crown Princess told her personal maid, but it did little to pacify the latter’s worries.
"But Your Highness-"
"I’m ready. Make sure to hold the fort here. I’ll be back before sunset." Crown Princess didn’t give her maid another chance to stop her as she rushed at the back window of her chamber and climbed out. Even though she was new at the Crown Prince’s Palace, she was still able to make her way past the tight security and out of the palace.
* * *
Xiang Ling walked out of the restaurant and on the bustling street of the market. She just finished making a deal with a big brocade merchant who had business in several cities of Nanxia County, including Dongzhi City.
Other than making business deals for her clothing store, she had also made connections with few other merchants who were involved in different sorts of businesses. Overall, the past week in the Capital City had gone really productive for her. After the last meeting the coming afternoon with some more business owners, she was ready to head back to Dongzhi City.
She was on her way to the Inn where she had been staying with her husbands, when she noticed the little commotion that had started in the market. Several imperial guards were out on the streets and from their actions, it seemed like they were looking for someone.
Not interested in whatever mess was going on in the Imperial family, Xiang Ling continued to walk in the direction of her destination. She would have barely taken a couple of steps before someone grabbed her hand and she found herself being pulled in a certain direction.
The instinct to fight her attacker kicked in and she was ready to punch whoever had dared to mess with her, when she sensed it... a very familiar divine presence.
She turned her body fully to face the person and found herself looking at a young man. Her eyes assessed him from head to toe while she tried to recognize the divine presence she felt from the man. It didn’t take her long before she recognized the person behind the facade.
"Supreme Immortal Lin?"
"Sssh!"
In her shock, Xiang Ling almost cried out the given title of the woman standing in front of her while dressed like a man. That was why, the woman pressed her hand over Xiang Ling’s mouth to silence her. They were in a small empty alley filled with some big bamboo baskets that were hiding their presence from anyone who wasn’t paying enough attention to that alley.
Before Xiang Ling could have asked the woman what was going on, they heard the shouts of the Imperial guards who were passing by the alley. She felt the woman’s hold tightening on her arm before the latter whispered, "Supreme Immortal Xing, help me."
Xiang Ling’s eyebrows immediately went high in shock and confusion when she heard the request. The two of them shared a sort of past that almost forbade them from asking for help from each other.
"Me? Helping you? Why?" She demanded from the woman while letting out a scoff. Their previous records still needed to be set and the shameless woman dared to ask for her help.
Xiang Ling had known Supreme Immortal Lin, the High fire Phoenix Immortal, ever since the two of them were kids. Before Xiang Ling took her human form, Supreme Immortal Lin was known as the most beautiful woman in the Five Realms. So, one could already imagine how sour the Fire Phoenix might have felt after losing that title.
If that wasn’t already bad enough, the two of them ended up as classmates in the High Academy of Immortals. From there started their never-ending rivalry that only grew the distance between them.
To be fair, they never crossed the line to harm each other in a way that could emotionally or physically hurt the other, but that didn’t mean they held back at all. Despite not going extreme, they went as extreme as one could imagine just to make each other’s lives miserable. It was a rivalry that had lasted for nine thousand years.
That was why, after knowing her identity, Xiang Ling didn’t feel the need to help the woman at all. But then, a sudden realization hit her.
"You... what’s going on? What are you doing in the Mortal Realm?"
From the look of it, Supreme Immortal Lin looked nothing like her divine self. Instead, it seemed like she was currently occupying a mortal body. Not only that but Xiang Ling was also unable to feel her divine powers.
"Help me get away from these guards and I will tell you everything." Supreme Immortal Lin proposed, and Xiang Ling realized that she didn’t have much of an option left.