Chapter 304: Chapter 301: The Beginning of Courting Death

"By the way, is the information you received reliable?"

Li Shimu spoke with gravity. "The information is absolutely certain. No power exceeding the Immortal Level will descend upon the Empire."

"Excellent. And how do you plan to deal with those petty clowns in the Imperial City?"

A cold glint flashed in Li Shimu’s eyes as he sneered. "They think their actions were flawless, but they have grossly underestimated the power of the Li Family. Little do they know, their every move has been under our surveillance and control from the very start."

"Those who betray their country and collude with outsiders shall be shown no mercy! But there’s no rush. When the time is right, we’ll wipe them all out in one fell swoop!"

"Mm. Handle it as you see fit. Don’t hold back, and don’t be timid. No matter what happens, we old men will have your back!"

Li Shimu nodded, then focused on healing his injuries.

...

Watching as a mountain of Spiritual Medicines and Treasures was thrown into the pool, Li Shimu couldn’t help but feel a pang of pain, even as the ruler of a nation.

Fifty percent!

Fifty percent of the resources in the Imperial Treasury had been spent on this!

That was wealth the Mountain and Sea Empire had spent ten thousand years accumulating!

Even more terrifying, the wounds from the Power of Fortune’s backlash still hadn’t healed.

Although Li Shimu had anticipated the backlash from wielding the Power of Fortune would be severe, he never imagined it would be this bad.

The Empire had many Treasures, but its expenses were equally enormous.

Especially since, in the near future, they were destined for a direct confrontation with the Hall of Envoys.

For the Empire to develop and thrive in that event, it would need a sufficiently deep foundation.

Now, those ten thousand years of accumulation seemed like a joke.

He dared not continue. If he exhausted the treasury, the Empire would be defeated without a fight, and ten thousand years of preparation and waiting would have been for nothing.

But the wound from the Power of Fortune had damaged his very foundation. If it wasn’t healed completely in one go, his Cultivation would inevitably regress, and he would be reduced to a powerless cripple.

This was an outcome Li Shimu could not accept.

’What should I do?’

In his desperation, he suddenly recalled the Rice Flour Ball Mo Qi had given him, and the words he’d said before leaving: "If your body can’t take the strain, the item in this box might be able to help."

At this thought, Li Shimu hurriedly took out the brocade box containing the Rice Flour Ball.

He opened the lid, and a Rice Flour Ball the size of a pigeon’s egg appeared before him.

The Rice Flour Ball was pure white, its surface smooth and glossy, and it was even steaming gently.

A distinct, fresh aroma of rice flour wafted toward him—a scent so fragrant it seemed to seep into his very bones.

Even for someone as worldly as Li Shimu, who had tasted countless delicacies, he couldn’t resist taking a deep sniff. His mouth began to water, forcing him to swallow again and again.

’This is Medicinal Cuisine?’ 𝐟𝕣𝕖𝐞𝐰𝕖𝚋𝐧𝗼𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝗰𝐨𝐦

Li Shimu had long suspected that the Blessed Qin Daye was none other than Mo Qi, the one who had briefly revealed his skills during the annual selection tournament’s test.

He also knew that this Rice Flour Ball before him was the legendary Medicinal Cuisine.

Although the theory of Medicinal Cuisine had been proposed by an ancestor of the Li Family, Li Shimu found it hard to believe that this tiny ball could heal the fundamental wound that half the Imperial Treasury’s wealth could not.

But it was a desperate gamble, and he had no better options.

’Then again,’ he mused, ’this thing smells intoxicating. The taste can’t be too bad, can it?’

As he thought this, Li Shimu picked up the Rice Flour Ball and popped it into his mouth.

The rice flour was soft and springy. The moment it entered his mouth, a fine layer of powder on its surface dissolved into his saliva.

A faint sweetness slid down his throat into his stomach, while the aroma surged back up into his nasal cavity, stimulating his taste buds.

Li Shimu had intended to swallow it whole, but on some inexplicable impulse, he bit down on the Rice Flour Ball.

Unlike other Medicinal Pills, this one didn’t have a vegetable filling. Instead, at its core was a single, crystal-clear drop of radiant blood.

It was Mo Qi’s Essence Blood!

BOOM!

A searing heat, like magma, erupted in Li Shimu’s mouth. Washed clean by the fresh rice flour aroma, he didn’t taste a hint of blood—only a rich fragrance, fiery and potent like strong liquor!

With no time to savor it, Li Shimu swallowed it down.

"Incredible!"

He cried out, his face flushing red as if he had just downed a whole jug of potent spirits.

"What flavor! What a kick!"

Li Shimu was ecstatic, praising it endlessly.

He suddenly understood Liu Hong a little.

If the pills Liu Hong usually ate were like this rice flour one, it was no wonder he was so dismissive of the fine cuisine the Empire prepared.

Li Shimu smacked his lips, so lost in the novel experience of the Rice Flour Ball that he didn’t even notice his fundamental wound was being repaired.

By the time he snapped out of it, not only had his injuries completely healed, but even the latent wounds accumulated over the first half of his life cultivating the Martial Dao had vanished.

Even his Cultivation at the Peak of the Void Realm had begun to stir, as if he might touch the threshold of the Demi-Immortal realm at any moment.

"This..."

Li Shimu was stunned. That wasn’t Medicinal Cuisine; it was clearly an Immortal Elixir and Marvelous Medicine!

Compared to Mo Qi, the Empire’s Tributor and Alchemy Master, Wu Pill Master, was complete and utter trash.

’If these rice flour balls could be supplied in bulk, wouldn’t I be able to borrow the Power of Fortune without limit?’ A bold idea suddenly occurred to Li Shimu.

If he could borrow the Power of Fortune without limit, then in the absence of outside Immortal Level Power, who within the borders of the Mountain and Sea Empire could possibly be his opponent?

Without the support of Immortal Level Power, Demi-Immortals, the Hall of Envoys—they would all be nothing!

"Excellent! Excellent! As expected of the Blessed One! The ancestral teachings were correct—you truly are the Li Family’s lucky star! I can’t even imagine what heights you will reach in the future with the support of your Medicinal Cuisine!"

His face wreathed in joy, Li Shimu suppressed his excitement. He didn’t leave immediately but sat cross-legged in the pool and began to meditate on the Semi-Immortal Realm.

...

Ever since she learned that Qin Daye was Liu Hong’s "grandnephew," Mu Xue had been visiting the Fighting Cultivation Room every few days.

On one hand, she did have genuine feelings for Mo Qi. On the other, his various displays, whether of strength or status, already met her standards.

She was a woman who refused to lose at anything.

So even after Niu Kexin publicly declared herself Mo Qi’s woman, Mu Xue had no intention of giving up. In fact, she seemed determined to steal him away from her.

However, every time she went looking for Mo Qi, she was stopped at the door by either Jin Sanpang or Liu Hui, who would claim that Mo Qi was busy and not seeing outsiders.

At first, Mu Xue didn’t think anything of it. She even saw it as a good thing, a sign that Mo Qi was ambitious.

That is, until the day she saw Jin Sanpang and Liu Hui respectfully welcome Niu Kexin inside with beaming smiles, only to stop her right afterward.

How could Mu Xue possibly tolerate that?

Making a scene was beneath her, so after a period of plotting, she concocted a plan to kill three birds with one stone.

Not only could she get her revenge on Niu Kexin, but she could also help her brother, Mu He. Most importantly, it would make Mo Qi grow to resent Niu Kexin, abandon her, and choose to be with her instead.