Volume 3 ◆ Smoke Locks Palace Heart VS Ascending to the Top of Qingyun ◆ 044 Re-entering the Imperial Palace

  Darkness crept into the sky, dyeing the clear and cloudless heavens with a few shades of dark blue. Looking up, the bean-green vault was like an enormous ancient porcelain. A bright and round moon rose, like a snow-white wave lifted from the celestial sea, quietly blooming open.

  Soft silk silver light pours down, the majestic and magnificent imperial palace, heavily guarded. The crimson red palace walls, in the dark of night, look like a dormant giant beast, devouring the souls struggling in the depths of the palace.

  One by one, the heavily armored guards patrolled back and forth in front of the grand gate of the imperial palace.

  However, no one noticed a black figure quietly crawling into a half-dry well outside the imperial palace.

  Feng Mei Xue made a second trip to the palace after conducting an even more detailed investigation, and at the bottom of this dry well, she discovered a hidden river. This hidden river seemed to lead to the imperial palace, but where its source was from within the palace, she had no idea.

  She had no time to hesitate, wearing her night-traveling clothes, she entered the dark river from the bottom of the dry well and swam upstream.

  The area of this dark river is not large, just enough for one person to pass through. If her vision wasn't particularly good now, she wouldn't have discovered it either.

  In the midst of the river water, Feng Xue was astonished to find that she could see clearly into the river. With this assurance, her heart calmed down a bit.

  She was originally going to grope her way in the dark, which is very dangerous. Now that she can see at night in the water, she can avoid many dangers.

  Feng Mei Xue quickly swam towards the depths of the dark river, the rapid water flow and powerful impact force seemed to want to flush her out.

  She laboriously used the stones on both sides of the dark river to climb up against the current, and the oxygen in her lungs became thinner and thinner. She felt like she was going to suffocate, and hypoxia occurred. Her heartbeat was rapid and powerless, and dizziness began to appear before her eyes.

  She didn't expect this underground river to be so long, seemingly endless. The underground currents have many forks, if you choose the wrong direction, you'll swim into a dead end.

  It can't go on like this! We must leave early!

  She made a decision in her heart, glanced at the bottom of the water, observed the direction of the water flow, and judged which side was live water and which side was stagnant dead water.

  After a moment of rapid thought, she immediately swam towards the fork in the road to her right. The water flow on this side had a unique pattern, and there must be an exit outside.

  Just as she had swum to the right fork, she suddenly caught sight of several human figures swimming out from a fork on the opposite side and quickly swimming downstream.

  Because in the dark, those people did not find Feng Xue and hastily left.

  Feng Mei Xue's eyes lit up, and she focused her attention on the fork in the road ahead. Seeing that no one else was coming out, she quickly swam into the opposite fork.

  The fork in the water bottom seems to be man-made, and it is unknown whose handwriting it is. During her tour, she also noticed that there was a crescent-shaped symbol in some corners of the fork.

  After swimming into the forked path, the water flow was not urgent. After a few breaths, Feng Xue discovered that she had reached the end of the forked path.

  However, right in front of me is a closed road, and it's impossible to pass through anymore.

  It seems like this fork in the road is a dead end. Now that she's turned back, she can't hold on any longer.

  Feng Mei Xue's face didn't show any anxious expression, instead she carefully observed the end of the forked road. At the lower left corner, she discovered a half-moon shaped protrusion and pointed at it with her finger. As soon as her rough stone touched it, it slowly sank in, causing a slight ripple in the water.

  Rumble...

  The stone wall at the end of the fork suddenly moved, and Feng Yuxue reached out to grab a nearby rock, only to see the water outside rushing in.

  A flash of joy flickered across her eyes as she hastily swam towards the opened passage.

  "Whoosh——"

  Under the moonlight, sparkling water flowers are blooming in the Moon Tooth Lake of the Imperial Garden, with ripples spreading out layer by layer. The swans are breaking through the water and breathing in the air mouthful by mouthful.

  The moon at the horizon casts a glow on her exquisite face, and the ruffled lake water beside her is like scattered silver dust, shining brightly, beautiful to the point of being dreamlike.

  Just as she was wondering where she had arrived, a fragrant and elegant plum blossom floated gently down from the wind and landed in her hair.

  She glanced around, and not far away, a delicate small bridge jumped into her line of sight, with huge tree crowns above. The plum blossoms as white as butterfly wings were in full bloom on the trees, and the moonlight filtered through the shadows, creating ripples on the lake.

  "Is this where we last saw Ze'er?"

  Phoenix Snow hadn't noticed the lake last time, but that ancient plum blossom tree had left a deep impression on her. Fortunately for her, she didn't arrive at an unfamiliar place; after strolling to the lakeside, she took out a black veil from her bosom and covered herself with it.

  She walked quickly in the direction of the imperial palace's forbidden area, the last time Emperor Tian Ce brought her here once, she remembered the road.

  A plum blossom tree behind me, petals scattered, sprinkling romantic beauty everywhere.

  Under the moonlight, on the other end of the plum blossom tree's high branch, a man in red attire shone brightly. He leaned gently against the tip of the branch, and the soft and slender twigs could bear his weight. His extraordinary handsome face was hidden behind an icy mask with snow feathers, revealing only a pair of transparent glass-like eyes, with pupils that were not tainted by worldly dust, reflecting the petals scattered across the sky.

  His eyelashes, thick as a reed fan, blinked slightly, and the lake's light and color rippled out. He gazed steadily at Feng Miao Xue's receding back, his eyes misty with emotion.

  "Master! Is Snow Miss... with those people..."

  A figure followed the man in red, his voice laced with a hint of hesitation. He didn't say that he suspected Feng Mianxue was in cahoots with those who had secretly infiltrated the palace earlier, but his meaning couldn't be clearer.

  If it's really like that, then won't young master be disappointed?

  He gazed at the man in red clothes leaning on the branch, unable to see his expression, but if he wasn't mistaken, a hint of surprise flashed across the young master's eyes.

  Just now he had not seen Feng Yuxue's face before she put on the veil, but Gongzi's position could be seen clearly.

  But is there really someone in this world who can make Young Master astonished?