Hearing the old woman's words, Di Xuanji rushed out of the courtyard, forgoing her meal. The old woman followed closely behind her.

After a brief moment of hesitation, Luo Xiu viciously stuffed two pieces of meat into his mouth and followed them as well. Although he didn't know what had happened, Di Xuanji's urgency indicated that the matter was serious, so he couldn't just stand by and watch.

「In a luxurious villa.」

As soon as Luo Xiu entered the main hall, he saw a little girl lying on a stretcher. She was covered in blood and unconscious.

This little girl, known as Dou Dou, had left a deep impression on Luo Xiu. More accurately, it was her big black umbrella that had impressed him. He always felt that the black umbrella was no ordinary object; it seemed to be some kind of powerful Magical Treasure.

At this moment, Di Xuanji was crouched beside Dou Dou, her hands covered in blood as she treated the girl's wounds. Trusting his senior sister's medical techniques, Luo Xiu did not intervene.

"What exactly happened?" Di Xuanji asked. "With Dou Dou's strength, how could she have been injured this badly?"

In response to her inquiry, the old woman pondered for a moment before speaking. "Earlier, when Senior Sister and I led our people to the Tianyu Royal Mansion, we discovered that an ambush had already been laid."

"To capture the Tianyu King, Senior Sister went in deep by herself but was ambushed by a mysterious expert."

"After an intense battle, Senior Sister managed to capture the Tianyu King, but she and the mysterious expert were both gravely injured."

Hearing this, Di Xuanji's brows furrowed slightly. "To fight the fourth-ranked expert on the Sky List to a mutual-injury stalemate... who exactly is this person? It couldn't possibly be Yang Zhilu."

The old woman shook her head gently. "I am completely clueless about this as well."

ZZZT... ZZZT... ZZZT...

Just then, a harsh, crackling sound erupted from the side, like a high-voltage power line snapping and hitting the ground. The entire hall flickered with electricity as pieces of furniture began to explode one after another.

The old woman spun her head around, her gaze turning frigid. "Boy, who told you you could touch that? Put it down now!" she said sharply.

Luo Xiu stood there holding the big black umbrella, his expression extremely awkward.

"Er... I'm really sorry. I was just a bit curious about this black umbrella... so I picked it up for a look. I never expected such a strong reaction." As he spoke, he returned the umbrella to its original place.

The old woman huffed coldly, thoroughly annoyed. If not for Luo Xiu's apparently good relationship with Her Majesty, she would have loved to vent her frustrations on him.

"WAAAH... It hurts... Dou Dou hurts so much..."

Suddenly, Dou Dou began to struggle violently on the stretcher, letting out pained screams. Di Xuanji quickly reached out to hold her down.

The old woman, frantic with worry, asked, "Your Majesty, what's happening to Senior Sister?" She was shocked to see that eerie markings had begun to appear all over Dou Dou's skin.

"It looks like she isn't going to make it. Let me handle this," Luo Xiu said as he stepped forward.

Hearing this, the old woman and the nearby palace maids were all taken aback and turned to look at Luo Xiu.

Taking a deep breath to suppress her anger, the old woman said, "Boy, Her Majesty is taking care of it. This is none of your business. Step aside and stop causing trouble!"

The old woman was deeply familiar with Di Xuanji's medical skills and had absolute faith in them. In her mind, within the current martial arts world of Hua Country, if Di Xuanji claimed her medical skills were second best, only the "White Skirt Medical Immortal" would dare claim to be first. It was precisely because Di Xuanji had once healed the Ageless Beauties' injuries that they were so willing to serve her loyally.

A palace maid quickly stepped in front of Luo Xiu and said sternly, "Her Majesty is treating Senior Tian Jiao. Please, Luo Wukui, step aside for now!"

Luo Xiu, however, ignored the palace maid as if she didn't exist. He stared at the strange markings on Dou Dou's body, his expression growing increasingly solemn. "Right now, I'm probably the only one who can save her."

Hearing this, the old woman snorted, her face filled with scorn.

"How arrogant!"

"Boy, I'm only sparing you trouble for Her Majesty's sake. But if you continue to cause a scene and delay her treatment, don't blame me for getting rough!"

"And you say you're the only one who can save her, as if we'd be lost without you."

Just then, Di Xuanji spoke. "Di Jiao, you're right... without him, it truly would be impossible."

The old woman froze, staring at Di Xuanji in utter confusion.

Di Xuanji stood up and looked at Luo Xiu, her expression graver than ever. "Little Mule, the patterns on Dou Dou's body seem to be devouring her life force, and they're incredibly difficult to stop with external force."

"These should be the Spirit Martial Markings," Luo Xiu said. "I saw them once not long ago." With that, he walked forward, brushing past the old woman. "For now, we can only use the Counter Curse Seal to stop the spread of these markings."

Di Xuanji was surprised. "Will that really work?"

Luo Xiu nodded slightly. "You hold her down. Try to keep her from moving."

"Also, get the Silver Needles ready. When I tell you where to insert a needle, you do it. At the same time, I will get her blood flowing and disperse the stagnant energy."

"Okay."

"Also, prepare a basin of hot water."

"..."

After that, the hall fell silent.

Seeing Her Majesty the Empress assisting Luo Xiu, and even being corrected by him at times, the old woman and the palace maids were utterly dumbfounded. The situation felt completely surreal. Could it be that this young man's medical skills are even greater than Her Majesty's?

A long time passed.

Luo Xiu withdrew the Silver Needles from Dou Dou's body and let out a long sigh.

Seeing the color return to Dou Dou's face and her breathing stabilize, the old woman also heaved a great sigh of relief. She looked at Luo Xiu, then suddenly cupped her fist and bowed.

"I was offensive earlier. I hope Mister Luo will forgive me."

"Thank you, Mister Luo, for saving her!"

Di Xuanji wiped the sweat from her forehead and said to the old woman, "My junior brother's acupuncture is far superior to mine, and he knows all sorts of strange and wonderful techniques. We're lucky he was here this time; otherwise, Dou Dou would have been in real danger."

Hearing this, the old woman's gaze wavered in astonishment.

"Junior brother?"

"Mister Luo... is Her Majesty's junior brother?"

Di Xuanji nodded gently.

A look of sudden realization dawned on the old woman's face. So that's why Her Majesty is so close to him. They're senior and junior disciples! And here I was thinking it was just because he was the Martial Champion.

Luo Xiu spoke up, "She's out of danger now. Take her to get some proper rest."

The old woman looked at Luo Xiu with gratitude, then gestured to the palace maids.

「A short while later.」

After the palace maids had taken Dou Dou to a room, Di Xuanji approached Luo Xiu with a serious expression. "Little Mule, those Spirit Martial Markings you mentioned... are they the legendary markings left by the ancestors of the Zhang Family?"

Luo Xiu couldn't help but think of Zhang Yi. "I saw them once before when I was in Henghai Provincial City. I used the Counter Curse Seal to suppress them then, too."

Hearing this, Di Xuanji and the old woman exchanged a look, their expressions growing heavy.

The old woman said, "This means that the mysterious expert Senior Sister encountered was from the Zhang Family! And that person possesses the complete Zhang Family bloodline, having inherited the Spirit Martial Markings!" She shivered with lingering fear and exclaimed, "Those Spirit Martial Markings... they are truly terrifying."

Di Xuanji narrowed her eyes slightly. "If I'm not mistaken, the mysterious expert who ambushed Dou Dou is likely a member of the Holy Boi Religion's Protectorate Group."

"What Protectorate Group?" Luo Xiu asked curiously.

Di Xuanji explained, "Previously, we extracted a great deal of useful information from the Soul-devouring Worm that Su Shenyun brought back to Capital City, including intelligence about the Protectorate Group."

"The Holy Boi Religion's Protectorate Group is an independent department of only eighteen individuals, all of whom are peerless experts. Each one's strength is comparable to a Sky List Strong One."

"Interesting," Luo Xiu remarked.

"Where is the Tianyu King?" Di Xuanji asked.

The old woman bowed. "Your Majesty, the Tianyu King has been locked in the dungeon."

Di Xuanji started walking toward the exit. "Little Mule, I'll need you to use the Soul-stimulating Needle on him later. I don't have the patience to interrogate him."

"..."

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