Looking at Li Changshi before him, Zhang Yuanqing first expressed astonishment, then brightened with excitement: "The whole world has turned to fire?" He hadn't expected Li Changshi to be a teammate—after all, this was the imperial palace, and Zhang Yuanqing naturally assumed that male teammates would be on the front lines or somewhere in the capital. As for why it was "The Whole World Turned to Fire," the reason was simple: Li Changshi was a fire specialist, and he had immediately guessed Zhang Yuanqing's identity—such wisdom could only belong to "The Whole World Turned to Fire." Zhang Yuanqing drew a breath, shaking his lips: "Those three female assassins are our teammates." Red Chicken Brother was stunned: "Those three little brats—no, those three assassins—are actually teammates? But why would they target you? Although when I first entered the instance, I learned about Zhao Shun's absurdities and wanted to give him a good slap myself, my objective was to protect Zhao Shun, and since Zhao Shun is you, we're on the same side." It's no wonder you've been so unfriendly to me lately—considering the Fire Master's temperament, it truly takes great patience to endure this. Zhang Yuanqing explained: "I have two hypotheses. First, the status of the 'unfortunate sovereign' is particularly challenging. Second, the instance itself is specifically designed to increase the difficulty for me." In essence, both points convey the same idea: because the sovereign is indeed unfortunate, the difficulty level is high, which is why assassins have been sent against me. Red Chicken Brother nodded in understanding, murmuring, "Ah," and then let it go, continuing: "My main quest is to protect the sovereign for five days, and my side quest is to assist him in identifying the spies." This morning, I suddenly realized my side quests have already been completed—have you found the spy? "Let's discuss the main storyline later," Zhang Yuanqing sipped his tea. "The mechanics of this quest unfold gradually. Each completed side quest lifts a portion of the seal. How many levels are you now? Have the side quests changed?" "My strength has recovered to level 4, just one level short of the peak. There are two side quests: one to protect the昏king for 72 hours, and another to protect him for ten days. But as soon as I finish the main quest, I plan to leave. By the time I reach the ten-day mark, I feel the difficulty has reached master-level. Staying here now feels like walking to my death," Red Chicken said. Zhang Yuanqing let out a sharp breath. Red Chicken is now a Level 4 Saint—within 72 hours, he will face attacks from enemies at the Saint level. Yet he has only recovered to the Transcendent realm. The sage eliminated the extraordinary, much like crushing an ant—my situation hasn't improved; on the contrary, it's growing more dangerous... At this pace, when I finally restore my sovereign identity, the enemies I face will likely be at level eight, or even higher. Zhang Yuanqing gritted his teeth. The A-level quest during the Sovereign phase proved harder than any S-level quest he had encountered so far. Lady Ya paused in the antechamber, speaking softly: "I heard the Emperor was attacked, and my heart has been troubled ever since. I've come to see him personally." Zhang Yuanqing furrowed his brow. He sensed in Lady Ya's demeanor a sense of confusion, bewilderment, and seriousness—something not typical of the moment when teammates first recognized each other. Was Lady Ya not a teammate? Was she truly here to visit the Emperor, only to find him vigorous and well, and thus feeling unsettled? He suppressed his joy, gazing steadily at Lady Ya, whose mature grace was evident, and smiled. "You've truly thought of me, my lady. Today, you need not return. Please stay in my private quarters—I haven't seen you intimately in several days." He made sure to uphold the image of a reluctant, even dull, monarch. Lady Ya stood motionless in the hall, her voice calm and measured. "I was told by a palace maid that last night, the Emperor received a vision from the Star God Wenqu, and composed a poem. Is this true?" "Yes," Zhang Yuan清 replied evenly. "I also have a poem, though only half of it. Would "Tell me more!" Lady Ya mused for a few seconds. "The sun shines overhead as the farmers till the soil, their sweat dripping onto the earth beneath." How truly a teammate Lady Ya was—what had happened to her earlier emotion? Zhang Yuanqing replied with a tone more befitting his status: "There are simply too many people who embody the image of the sun shining overhead." Lady Ya's expression instantly thawed, joy radiating across her features. She hurried into the inner chamber, where Zhang Yuanqing sat on a soft couch, and smiled warmly, "It's me, Xiao Yuan." Zhang Yuanqing returned her smile: "Come quickly—let's make love!" Upon hearing this, the red-robed colleague beside her sighed irritably. "With Lady Guan away, are you really this flamboyant?" Among the "vaguely romantic" women of Yuan Shǐ Tian Zun, the red-robed colleague still leaned toward Lady Guan—after all, they had fought side by side for several months. Zhang Yuanqing glanced at him sideways. "Don't you want to be pushed out?" The red-robed colleague shrugged. "You're the one who's been the lazy ruler—your biggest flaw." "With Red Chicken Brother being such an obstacle, Zhang Yuanqing and Xiao Yuan could only offer formal hospitality, inviting her to sit on the soft couch and engage in a proper exchange of their respective missions." Xiao Yuan said, "My side quest is to assassinate the weak king; my main quest is to overthrow the Southern Dynasty. Since I haven't completed the side quest, my rank remains at level three." She paused, her expression slightly unusual, adding, "I always thought our team belonged to the Northern Dynasty faction, with the core storyline being to assist the Northern Dynasty in overthrowing the decaying Southern regime. I never expected you to be the weak king." Zhang Yuanqing was startled, instantly understanding why Xiao Yuan was so serious—her main quest being to destroy the Southern Dynasty meant she was the sovereign of the enemy state. In such a death-focused quest, failure of the main quest signified certain death. That meant, no matter who ultimately succeeded in the quest, the other side would have to perish. Red Chicken Brother scratched his head, puzzled, "Wait—our team is supposed to be on the same faction. How can we be on opposite sides?" This did not align with the mechanics of the Spirit Realm. Xiao Yuan furrowed her brows, saying, "I suspect it's related to their profession. After all, I am a villainous profession." Zhang Yuanqing thought for a moment, "The Mage's Eye is also a villainous profession. I'm not sure about Fu Qingyang's situation—perhaps I should write a letter to inquire. This is the faction's quest area for the White Tiger's troops. Qian Gong will likely know more than we do." Xiao Yuan paused slightly, saying, "Since you're a negligent ruler, I assume the three beauties are still alive. Later, bring them to the imperial chambers and inquire about their condition..." As she continued sharing details about her role, Xiao Yuan discovered a set of night-dress, a human skin mask, and a waist plaque hidden in the chest beneath Lady Ya's bed. "These are all ordinary items, but I believe the waist plaque is more significant than either the night-dress or the mask, so I'll carry it with me." From her bosom, she produced a copper plaque about the size of a palm, engraved with a Taiji fish. Zhang Yuanqing took the plaque and examined it carefully, "This must be the key item. Ah, Xiao Yuan's primary mission is to extinguish the Southern Dynasty—she's likely a representative from the Northern Dynasty. Now I understand: she's a spy sent by the Northern Dynasty, operating undercover within the imperial court, one of the hidden operatives who has not yet been exposed." Red Chicken Brother was overjoyed, "Then we can use her to establish a counter-operation against the Northern Dynasty, feeding them false information. Excellent—we've struck a winning position!" "Ah, it's theoretically a win for us—having our own people become the enemy's spies. Yet Xiao Yuan's side quest is to assassinate the emperor, and since that mission remains unfulfilled, her capabilities have been locked in place. We've effectively lost a master-level Wu-Gu master. Zhang Yuanqing isn't as optimistic as Red Chicken Brother. Whether it's a gain or a loss—hard to say. "Who saved them last night?" Zhang Yuanqing asked, gazing at the exquisite beauty of Lady Ya. Xiao Yuan nodded, recounting the events of the previous day. She had declined to meet the emperor, citing illness, out of concern that she might not convincingly portray Lady Ya, and thus be exposed. Moreover, the emperor is notoriously indulgent in his desires, and as a consort, she found it difficult to resist any unwanted advances. There was no opportunity for an assassination attempt during the day. Therefore, she had chosen not to meet him at all. After dusk, she had intended to sneak into the imperial quarters to find an opportunity to strike the emperor. But upon arrival, she discovered that three other beauties also planned assassinations. Given that all of them shared the same objective, she suspected Thus, the storyline of Lady Ya has been largely clarified. Zhang Yuanqing said, "I'll first retrieve the three beauties... There should be members of the Zheng family within the Imperial Court's Office of the Palace. We must act with care, so as not to be seen. Let me think... You, Xiao Yuan, remain in the inner chamber. Red Chicken, you go and fetch three sets of maids' attire and bring them to the artificial lake by the faux stone grove." He whispered a few words to his two teammates, then raised his voice and declared, "I shall now share a passionate night with Lady Ya. All of you, retire." The attendants and eunuchs in the outer hall bowed and quietly withdrew. The silver-haired Red Chicken strode purposefully to the outer hall, lowered the silk curtain to separate the inner and outer chambers, and then pushed open the door of the inner chamber, joining the attendants and eunuchs in leaving. In his now nocturnal state, Zhang Yuanqing quietly followed Red Chicken out of the chamber, without a word, and headed straight toward the artificial lake outside the palace. The Lady had previously informed him of the "suppression" locations of the three ladies. Following the assassination attempt last night, the Imperial City Office began its extensive sealing and investigation work this morning. Thus, she chose to suppress the three ladies beneath the lake's surface, thereby evading the Imperial City Office's search efforts. He easily bypassed the Imperial City Office's garrison stationed at the various gateways and before the halls, as well as the palace maids and eunuchs passing through, successfully reaching the lake's shore and carefully stepping into the water. If someone observed the man-made lake at that moment, they would notice suspicious ripples rippling along the shore. Once submerged, Zhang Yuanqing immediately opened his inventory, donned the Yin-Yang robe, and gained the ability to command water, swiftly descending toward the lake bed. Within half a minute, he arrived at the designated "suppression" site and saw the three ladies of varying ages floating in the water, their hands and feet bound by chains formed from condensed water. They hung suspended like balloons at the lake's bottom, each bearing a blood-red talisman drawn on her forehead. Wang Geji and Wan Meiren fell into deep sleep, while Chu Meiren appeared listless and weak, occasionally frantically tugging at the "chains" on her wrists. This was precisely the "Water-avoiding Seal" mentioned by the warrior Wan Meiren, and the three ladies' illness stemmed from pathogenic bacteria implanted within their bodies, causing them to be severely unwell—thus their frailty. This was done to prevent them from making too much noise underwater and being discovered by the imperial garrison troops of the Imperial City Command. "Blub-blub-blub..." When Chu Meiren saw the昏君 diving down, she was startled, opened her mouth in anger, and her voice turned into bubbles. Zhang Yuanqing pointed to his robe. Chu Meiren remained unmoved, continuing to emit the bubbling sounds. Stupid, unthinking Jingwei... Zhang Yuan清 thought to himself, raised his hand to brush his face, and cast a spell, transforming himself into the appearance of Yuan Shi Tian Zun. The quest no longer restricted the mutual recognition of identities among the spiritual realm travelers. Chu Meiren was momentarily stunned, then overjoyed, and her bubbling grew even more Zhang Yuanqing raised his index finger to his lips, signaling her to be quiet, then activated his water-control ability, snapping the weak chain, and carried Wang Geji with him, handing Wan Meiren to Jiang Jingwei. The four of them quickly rose to the surface.