Inside the training room, Su Qingcheng was diligently practicing the movements for her various basic hand-to-hand techniques. Though they did not require as much initial Nightflower Tianqi as when she used Star Vortex Fist, they all did require a good grasp of control and being able to inject the right amount into your fists and feet. A reoccurring theme within these movements that Su Qingcheng noticed was that it tended to follow the strange theme of mixing flowers with space. The most crucial ones that Yao Meiyue forced Su Qingcheng to be able to perfect with full mastery were simply just a pair of stances – the Night Lily Stance and the Black Hole Stance.

Yao Meiyue urged Su Qingcheng to focus on these two stances the most because when alternated between them, you could pretty much form an impenetrable defense that would let you counter attack most things if you knew how to. Of course, Su Qingcheng lacked actual practical experience so she would have to figure out the counters herself, but at the very least Yao Meiyue comforted her by saying that even knowing these two stances would at the very minimum let her repel the attack even if she couldn’t directly retaliate. Nodding, Su Qingcheng diligently focused the most on these two stances. The Black Hole Stance like its name implies, was designed to allow and bait attacks to come in. The user would then steal the forward momentum from the attacker and then force it back on them.

The Night Lily stance on the other hand was more aggressive. It was most like an animal trying to strike an opponent, but with a high enough mastery, you could conceal an attacking intent enough to mask your own intentions to the enemy, and launch a sneak attack that way. Su Qingcheng had been trying very hard to work on these two stances. Though at first glance it didn’t seem like much, the youth had to actually use the Nightflower Tianqi to boost her insight and perceptive senses, which is something very few people actually learned how to do. Since she had a teacher like Yao Meiyue, Su Qingcheng naturally was able to learn this type of use.

However, despite this kind of tyrannical usage of tianqi, it was still very difficult to actually put into practice and more often than not, Su Qingcheng messed it up minutely causing herself to injure herself due to backlash. Though it was painful, the girl nevertheless continued to persist, and for the next few days since the start of her training, she gradually improved faster and faster until this had become second nature to her.

At that moment…

Su Ran was sitting on a bench underneath a large tree in the courtyard of the Su clan residence. Quietly, without making a sound, she turned a bit to the side. There was clearly a figure there who somehow entered the premises undetected. However, how could a Tianqi Emperor like Su Ran be ignorant of this intrusion?

“I see that the Snake Mistress comes to visit me today,” Su Ran sighed, not even bothering to face the woman who had entered the space. Naturally this was Fang Li, the Mistress of the tower which was far from here. As for how she got here, nobody except her and Su Ran knew. Slippery like a loach, Fang Li specialized in stealth and espionage. Though her fighting capability was much weaker than Su Ran, being just fifth rank Tianqi Sage, she also could be considered to be a kind of poison expert. Due to this, she got the nickname of Snake Mistress.

Her beauty was unparalleled in the empire but she was dangerous enough to make any man or woman freeze in their tracks and think twice about pursuing her. Even Su Ran wouldn’t dare to mess with her or dismiss her easily due to her poison prowess. “To what occasion do I owe the pleasure of entertaining you, Mistress Fang Li?” Su Ran asked with a smile, finally turning to face the lady who was wearing an incredibly tight-fitting green cheong-sam.

Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.

The woman smiled. “One of your children has broken through another rank. I could sense the ripple from a mile away. Do you know one of them is eligible to inherit your Ghost Calamity Palm, which you swore a vow not to use since you married that lovable oaf, Su Zhan?” Fang Li joked casually by calling Su Zhan a ‘lovable oaf’ but she also would readily admit that Su Zhan had skills for taming Su Ran and helping her calm down from her past self, allowing her to settle down peacefully.

“Mistress Fang Li, do not play games with me. I know you are talking about Qingcheng’er; that abnormal kid is really beyond my expectations,” Su Ran plainly admitted, knowing it wasn’t much use hiding it from her. Fang Li most likely sent people to spy on Su Qingcheng, who fortunately was undergoing closed door training and thus wasn’t doing anything outwardly considered noteworthy. “She is indeed eligible to use Ghost Calamity Palm. I heard she was able to fend off your two most prized subordinates for a single exchange, right? Gu Ling and… What’s her name… Mo Miaoyu?”

“Tsk, they were caught off-guard. Qingcheng displayed a skill they never saw before. How could they know how to fight it.”

“You’re going to go watch the White Spirit Competition so you can learn what’s going on, right?” Su Ran yawned, as if having already expected this outcome.

“Well, naturally. Your eldest son is currently recovering from some non-trivial issues. And that Su Yanran is definitely a strong contender. But since he’s recovering, I’m sure little Qingcheng was eager to prove herself.” Fang Li giggled.

“If you have any untoward motives towards my daughter…” Su Ran ignited blue flames on her fists which looked like they came from the depths of hell itself. “I may consider breaking my vow to destroy you. I do not give exceptions. If the Tiger Queen threatened to do the same. I’d say the same thing.”

Fang Li stepped back involuntarily, unable to withstand the fires of the Ghost Calamity Palm that Su Ran just displayed. Though she vowed never to use it, it didn’t mean she wouldn’t activate the flames just to make a point. After all, this was her kid we were talking about here. “Calm down, ma’am. She’s interesting to be sure, but I just want to see her grow. I don’t want to do anything to her…”

Is what Fang Li said, but really, she had other things in mind. Something about Su Qingcheng from what had been described of her… Set her mind into a different direction. Su Ran was fortunately oblivious to this as she couldn’t read minds. If she did, she might as well have killed Fang Li then and there.

“Look, it’s nice to chat with you, but I think you’d better leave before you scared the others,” Su Ran hurriedly waved Fang Li away. Su Ran was probably one of the only people in the entire empire who had the qualifications to behave this way. “Qingcheng’er and Yanran’er are in closed door training. Your love servants won’t get much information out of it. You had best wait for the White Spirit Competition itself. Get a full body massage or something. You look like you need one.” She added

Fang Li blushed profusely before regaining her composure in a moment’s time. “Fine, I’ll get out of your hair. I’ll ask Ling’er and Mo Miaoyu to withdraw. I look forward to seeing your two girls in the competition. Bye then~” The woman then slinked away like a snake slithering into the bushes. She left as quietly as she came, almost as if she were invisible. This action caused Su Ran to sigh wistfully.

She then looked into the general direction of the Tiger’s Den. “Qingcheng’er… You should grow to be morally upright and outstanding. I don’t want you to turn up like me in your prime.” She sighed to herself, looking at her two hands. They looked fine, but Su Ran knew she had taken too many lives with these two bare hands of hers. She only hoped that Su Qingcheng would find a different use for her talents. Then and only then might Su Ran consider passing down her Ghost Calamity Palm…