Consort Dan's mind went blank. Great Emperor Canghai's words had turned her thoughts into complete mush. She murmured, "Treasure Tree Sect? The Sixteen Kingdoms Alliance? Young Master Zhen? Great Emperor Canghai, you're not joking with me, are you?"
"Of course not." Great Emperor Canghai grinned. "The whole world knows about it now. If you don't believe me, ask the Geng brothers. They are both close confidants of Young Master Jiang Chen."
Jiang Chen!?
Those two words struck like a bolt from the blue, causing Consort Dan's delicate frame to sway. In that instant, she almost thought she was hallucinating.
A name that had haunted her dreams for years had appeared in her ears without the slightest warning.
From the Sixteen Kingdoms Alliance, once a disciple of the Treasure Tree Sect, now the Young Master of the Glazed Royal City — Jiang Chen?
"Miss Dan'er, what's wrong?" Great Emperor Canghai was completely baffled. "You don't actually know Young Master Jiang Chen, do you?"
Great Emperor Canghai found it somewhat incredible. Miss Dan'er had always been at the Peacock Sacred Mountain, and Jiang Chen had always been the Young Master of the Peacock Sacred Mountain.
The two of them should have met at the Peacock Sacred Mountain. How could they not know each other?
Consort Dan forced herself to stand steady, her voice somewhat choked. "Young Master Jiang Chen... Young Master Jiang Chen. Am I really not dreaming?"
Great Emperor Canghai and the Geng brothers exchanged a glance. The Geng brothers didn't actually know Consort Dan, but upon learning that she was the foster daughter of the Great Emperor Peacock, their attitude softened considerably.
"Miss Dan'er, our young master did indeed come from the Sixteen Kingdoms Alliance originally. However, he didn't stay at the Treasure Tree Sect for long before going to Pill Dao Palace. After the Myriad Manifestations Domain was conquered, he barely made it to the Glazed Royal City with his life, where he earned the favor of His Majesty the Great Emperor Peacock. From then on, he shone brilliantly, and in just ten short years, he has become the most outstanding figure among the younger generation of the human domain. Miss Dan'er, you are His Majesty the Peacock's foster daughter — has he never mentioned any of this to you?"
Consort Dan turned away, tears streaming down her face.
This sudden news gave her a dreamlike sensation. She had never imagined that the person she longed for every single day had been right beside her all along, separated by the thinnest of lines.
Fate's cruel jest had gone this far!
Elder Qiu, seeing them fall into reminiscing, shot a glance at Zhao Mang.
Though Zhao Mang's forehead was slick with sweat from the pain, upon seeing the look from his master, he swept his left hand to gather his severed limb, intending to summon his escape light and flee.
"You'd better behave yourself, Qiu." Every move made by Elder Qiu and Zhao Mang could not escape the discerning eye of Great Emperor Canghai.
An Emperor-realm powerhouse, once his spiritual sense was deployed, could clearly detect the slightest disturbance within a radius of several dozen li.
"I haven't given you permission to leave, and yet you dare to flee?" Great Emperor Canghai said coldly.
Elder Qiu's face turned pale and he froze on the spot.
He had been hoping to slip away while the other party was off guard. Who would have thought that Great Emperor Canghai would be so perceptive, keeping them under such a tight watch.
He knew that if he tried to force his way out now, it wouldn't be entirely impossible, but the chances were extremely slim.
The gap in power between those below the Emperor realm and an Emperor-realm powerhouse was enormous. Perhaps some geniuses could challenge those above their level, but Elder Qiu was clearly not one of them.
Most importantly, Great Emperor Canghai was not some newly entered Emperor-realm cultivator, but a veteran Great Emperor who had been famous for at least two thousand years.
Though not considered a top-tier Emperor, he was still a high-level Emperor-realm existence.
Great Emperor Canghai had always been fond of flattering others. People like that were generally adept at reading expressions and extremely meticulous in their thinking.
Seeing Consort Dan turn away with her back to him, apparently somewhat emotional, her shoulders trembling ever so slightly...
A thought stirred in Great Emperor Canghai's mind: Could it be that Miss Dan'er truly was an old acquaintance of Young Master Jiang Chen? That was simply too unbelievable. The two of them had been in the Glazed Royal City for so many years — could they really have never met?
However, Great Emperor Canghai quickly reconsidered: That's right — Young Master Jiang Chen had always been in disguise in the Glazed Royal City, and his identity had never been publicly revealed. If the two of them had never crossed paths, it was entirely possible that neither knew the other was at the Peacock Sacred Mountain. Otherwise, why would Miss Dan'er be so emotional, with such an exaggerated reaction?
"Could it be..." Great Emperor Canghai's thoughts raced. "Miss Dan'er losing her composure like this, becoming so excited at the news of Young Master Jiang Chen — there must have been some romantic connection between them... Yes! I must handle this matter well. Finding the young master's woman and bringing her back — wouldn't that be a tremendous merit?"
With this thought, Great Emperor Canghai didn't disturb Consort Dan's emotions, instead allowing her to keep her back to him while she composed herself.
After a long while, Consort Dan finally steadied her emotions and turned around, asking softly, "Great Emperor Canghai, where is your young master now?"
"He's at Pill Dao Palace. Pill Dao Palace is currently being rebuilt, and his presence is needed there. Miss Dan'er, did you come to the Treasure Tree Sect to look for Young Master Jiang Chen?"
Consort Dan wanted to protest, but in the end she didn't deny it. Instead, she said in a distant, melancholy tone, "I never imagined that after parting back then, he would become the Young Master of the Glazed Royal City. So many times we passed each other by, yet I thought we were worlds apart. Great Emperor Canghai, is he... is he doing well?"
Great Emperor Canghai quickly replied, "Very well, very well. Miss Dan'er, how about I take you to see him right now? Reuniting with an old friend, Young Master Jiang Chen will surely be overjoyed. Before sending me here, he specifically instructed me to make inquiries upon arriving at the Treasure Tree Sect, to see if I could find any old acquaintances — old Master Ye Chonglou, Tang Hong, and so on. Oh, right — the young master also asked me to visit a secular kingdom when I had the time..."
"Oh? Did he say who he wanted you to look for in the secular kingdom?" Consort Dan's heart stirred upon hearing this, and she asked with a slightly peculiar tone.