The stars were sparse as night fell.
Chu Qianli, stepping through the moonlight, hurried to the Lingjiu Hall.
The guards outside the Lingjiu Hall were extremely strict at this time.
However, within the inner circle near the Lingjiu Hall, there were hardly any guards.
This was the most sacred place in the entire imperial palace, and even the entire Southern Nether Kingdom, and ordinary people dared not approach it.
Chu Qianli walked into the Lingjiu Hall.
The design of the Lingjiu Hall was different from ordinary palace courtyards.
There was no front courtyard; upon entering, one directly faced a grand hall.
Looking up, a colossal statue stood in sight, as if piercing the heavens, solemn and sacred.
However, tonight, the area before the statue was empty, and the entire hall was deserted, making this already sparsely populated place feel even colder and more desolate.
Chu Qianli walked through the hall and entered a small path behind the statue.
Passing through this path and continuing inward led to a secluded and elegant courtyard.
Lan Qing usually resided in this courtyard.
However, at this moment, the courtyard only had two young attendants sweeping fallen leaves, and Lan Qing had not yet awakened.
"Princess!" The two came forward to pay their respects.
Chu Qianli nodded and walked towards the back of the courtyard.
Beyond this courtyard was an even larger one.
The small courtyard was a courtyard within a courtyard, and the larger courtyard, though not as grand as the Imperial Garden, was not small in area.
Especially the rockery, which was very high, and the trees, which reached the sky, making it look like a wild forest.
The Ice Pool was located at the deepest part of the courtyard.
This place did not require guards, and guards could not approach it.
The power of the Ice Pool was too overbearing; even the siblings Fu Ning and Fu Long, who guarded it day and night, could only stay far away at the entrance to the cave leading to the Ice Pool.
"A'li! You've really returned!"
Upon seeing Chu Qianli, a flicker of light immediately appeared in Fu Long's eyes.
He had heard that the princess had returned, but Fu Long, for the sake of guarding Lan Qing, had not had a single moment of free time to go out and see her.
Chu Qianli nodded, and as she moved closer to the cave entrance, the breath in her chest began to churn.
"A'li, your complexion is not right!" Fu Long quickly noticed this and immediately stopped her, "Don't come any closer!"
"It's fine, I know my limits." She had to see how Lan Qing was doing with her own eyes, after all.
Finally, she reached the cave entrance.
Looking up, Fu Ning was still guarding the other side of the Ice Pool, with Fu Long flanking Lan Qing from front and back.
And Lan Qing...
"Why is he sitting inside? You..." Chu Qianli looked at Fu Long, a hint of surprise in her voice, "Can you get close to the Ice Pool?"
How was that possible? Even Feng Yexuan found it difficult to touch this Ice Pool without any distance!
Could it be... "Has he woken up?"
"No." Fu Long's words caused the surprise in Chu Qianli's eyes to vanish instantly.
Fu Long could only explain, "Consort Ling arrived today, and His Majesty permitted her to come. Consort Ling can not only approach the Ice Pool but also touch its water."
"Was it Consort Ling who helped him sit inside?" Hearing this, Chu Qianli understood.
She just hadn't expected Consort Ling's abilities to be even more formidable than she had imagined.
Truly a woman who hid her strength.
Fu Long nodded, "Consort Ling said that this Ice Pool is harmful to ordinary people, but it brings nothing but benefits to the Grand Tutor. Having the Grand Tutor sit inside will yield twice the results with half the effort."
Chu Qianli naturally didn't understand this principle. If she had, she would have found a way to have Lan Qing sit in the Ice Pool from the beginning.
"He... he hasn't woken up at all?" Seeing Fu Long shake his head, Chu Qianli felt a degree of disappointment.
However, when she looked at Lan Qing again, she saw that Lan Qing's complexion had clearly changed...