Chapter 915 — I Just Can't Let Her Go
The Blossom Guardian · Page 1 of 2
"The young master ought to be able to find someone to protect the young lady..." Elder Li trailed off, sounding less than certain even to himself.
"What are we to do? Uncle Li, is there any way? Do you have anyone at your disposal?" the Palace Mistress in Plain Robes asked urgently.
"Young lady, this old servant is powerless as well... Ever since the master passed away, the Supreme Elder has feared that your heart was not yet dead and has whittled away much of my influence. Though I am now the Chief Elder, the only force I can still mobilize is the Shadow Group, which I built with my own hands..." Elder Li sighed, speaking with a trace of helplessness. "The Supreme Elder has tightened her grip on power. In the Night Palace today, to deploy any capable fighter without the Supreme Elder's nod is utterly impossible..."
"But... could she be in danger?" The Palace Mistress in Plain Robes frowned, her mind visibly unsettled.
Elder Li was about to speak when a stern, cold laugh cut him off.
"Hmph! Such frantic, jittery behavior — what sort of conduct is that? Looking at you now, is there any trace of a palace mistress about you?"
An old woman who appeared to be over sixty suddenly appeared at the edge of the pavilion, fixing Elder Li and the Palace Mistress in Plain Robes with a severe gaze.
"Supreme Elder, why have you come..." The Palace Mistress in Plain Robes started at the sudden voice.
"This Li pays his respects to the Supreme Elder..." Elder Li clasped his hands and bowed half his body to her.
"I'm sorry, Palace Mistress... the Supreme Elder insisted on coming up, and I dared not stop her..." Xiaoqing shrank back a little in fear.
The Palace Mistress in Plain Robes shook her head. How could she blame Xiaoqing at a time like this? Xiaoqing was only her personal maid — how would she dare stand in the Supreme Elder's way?
"Wan'er, you are the mistress of this palace, and you must carry yourself as one! Do not imagine I am unaware that you spend your days using Elder Li's Shadow Group to pry into trifles of the mundane world — I have simply turned a blind eye!" The Supreme Elder watched the Palace Mistress in Plain Robes coldly. "All these years, and you still cannot let it go?"
"Supreme Elder, she is my daughter after all, and the blood of our Dark Phoenix clan flows in her veins..." The Palace Mistress in Plain Robes was like a child caught in some fault, not daring to meet the Supreme Elder's eyes.
"Hmph — daughter? Nothing but a little bastard. Blood so impure is a disgrace to any cultivator of the ancient martial arts!" The Supreme Elder snorted. "After such a scandal, you still have the nerve to bring it up? Would you have the Night Palace take that bastard back and acknowledge her, so the Profound Elixir Sect can laugh at us?"
Wan'er, the Palace Mistress in Plain Robes, said nothing, only lowered her head in quiet grievance.
"Hmph, if you had married the Second Young Master of the Profound Elixir Sect back then, how would the Night Palace have fallen into such an awkward position today, mocked by every sect?" Here the Supreme Elder seemed to touch upon an old wound, and she gave a cold snort. "From now on, you had best settle your heart and calm your mind, and devote yourself to cultivation. Break through from the Earth Rank to the Heaven Rank within ten years — otherwise, do not blame me for killing that adulterer and the little bastard!"
With that, the Supreme Elder drifted away, leaving behind only the Palace Mistress Wan'er, her face full of grievance.
"Young lady, this old servant truly has no way. Forgive me!" Elder Li sighed. "The Supreme Elder acts as she does for the sake of the Night Palace. Extreme and mercenary though she is, she never married in her life, and devoted all her energy to the Night Palace! She served under the Grand Madame and was as close to her as a sister; this old servant is a generation below her..."