Chapter 29: The Incompetent Little Maid

Inside Phoenix Palace, the atmosphere was eerie.

Lu Ning raised both hands high, maintaining a textbook surrender posture, her mind racing.

Could this suddenly-appearing Heiyi Woman have come to kill the “Demonic Sect Master”?

Lu Ning glanced at her own pink twin-tail getup, then at the other woman’s puzzled expression, and instantly understood.

She hadn’t recognized her!

Well, who would ever associate this delicate, seemingly defenseless girl in a fairy dress and twin-tails with the legendary ruthless and decisive demonic overlord who once shook the Northern Territory?

This was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

An opportunity to get rid of Ji Linglong, maybe even escape the imperial palace altogether!

In the blink of an eye, Lu Ning’s eyes filled with tears, her watery gaze brimming with terror and helplessness, making her look just like a startled little deer.

“Heroine, I… I’m just a servant girl in Phoenix Palace who serves tea and water…”

Her trembling voice, laced with sobs, portrayed the humility and fear of a lowly palace maid to perfection.

“That sect master… he… he’s already run away…”

The Heiyi Woman was none other than Ying Qi, here on the Empress Ji Liuyun’s orders.

Hearing this, her brow creased tightly.

Run away?

How was that possible?

The entire Phoenix Palace was locked down with the highest-level restrictions set by Her Highness the Princess.

Even she had only been able to open a tiny gap to slip in—let alone some heavily injured fiend escaping.

Besides, when she broke the restriction just now, she hadn’t sensed anyone else leaving.

Ying Qi’s gaze fell on Lu Ning again, full of scrutiny and suspicion.

“You’d better tell the truth.”

“Otherwise, I won’t mind letting you taste the pain of soul-searching.”

Lu Ning’s body trembled violently, the fear on her face growing even more intense.

“I… I’m telling the truth! Please spare me, Heroine!”

She fell to her knees with a “thud,” hugging Ying Qi’s thigh and starting to sob uncontrollably.

“That sect master—who knows what kind of demonic magic he used—just now, he suddenly broke free from his shackles, swallowed up all the guards, and then vanished.”

As she spoke, she pointed to several sets of guard uniforms on the floor that she had “accidentally” messed up.

She’d set up this scene earlier to trick Ji Linglong; who’d have thought it would come in handy now.

“I’m just an innocent little maid, I know nothing! Please, Heroine, have mercy, don’t kill me!”

Lu Ning’s cries were so heart-rending that even those who heard it would feel sorrow, and those who saw it would shed tears.

Ying Qi looked down at Lu Ning, who was clinging to her leg, crying and sniffling, her masked face revealing a distinctly human look of distaste and impatience.

She loathed dealing with such troublesome matters the most.

Yet, Lu Ning’s story forced her to take it seriously.

Shaking Lu Ning off, her figure flickered as she began to investigate carefully.

There was no trace of that fiend in the bedchamber…

Could the fiend really have mastered some secret spatial art and forced open the restriction to escape, even while gravely injured?

Though unlikely, it wasn’t entirely impossible.

After all, he was the Demonic Sect Master—having some trump cards for survival was hardly surprising.

If that were true, her mission this time was a complete failure.

At that thought, Ying Qi’s expression grew grim.

She turned to glance at the “little maid” who was still trembling on the floor, a flash of killing intent in her eyes.

By the rules, all who saw her carrying out her mission must be eliminated.

Ying Qi’s gaze swept over Lu Ning’s tear-stained face, those clear, innocent eyes, and the pink twin-tail outfit that seemed so out of place in this palace of intrigue and bloodshed.

Incredibly, her heart, frozen for years, felt a rare flicker of reluctance.

Thinking it through, this little maid was currently the only witness.

If the fiend had truly escaped, she’d need to take this girl back to report to Her Majesty.

“Get up.”

Ying Qi spoke coldly.

“Ah?”

Lu Ning stared blankly for a moment, lifting her tear-streaked face in confusion.

“I won’t kill you.”

Ying Qi’s tone was still frosty, but her killing intent had faded.

Lu Ning let out a long breath of relief at those words.

She’d gambled right!

She scrambled to her feet, hastily wiping away her tears, standing quietly at the side with her head bowed—a picture of obedient compliance.

Ying Qi studied her in silence for a moment, as if pondering something.

“What’s your name?” she suddenly asked.

“I… my name is A-Ning.”

Lu Ning replied softly, using the name Ji Linglong had given her.

“A-Ning?”

Ying Qi’s brows furrowed again.

“You’re not from the palace?”

All Da Huang dynasty palace maids had standardized numbers and were on the official roster; she’d never heard of anyone named “A-Ning.”

Lu Ning’s heart tensed—she realized she might have made a mistake.

But she reacted quickly, spinning another story on the spot.

She spoke timidly, “Her Highness the Princess brought me in from outside the palace to be a maid… Her Highness said she would grant me a proper name.”

She deliberately kept it vague, hinting at other possibilities.

Sure enough, when Ying Qi heard this, her gaze changed at once.

Brought in from outside?

Given a name?

And with Lu Ning’s extravagant outfit…

Ying Qi mostly believed her, and in her mind, an entire “overbearing princess snatching a common girl” drama unfolded.

So that’s it.

No wonder Her Highness the Princess would lock herself in Phoenix Palace for so many days because of this woman.

This seemingly fragile girl was probably the true treasure of Her Highness’s heart.

That so-called Demonic Sect Master might only be a scapegoat.

Once she figured this out, Ying Qi’s attitude toward Lu Ning shifted ever so slightly.

Still cold, but the air of utter distance had softened.

After all, she might be a future “imperial consort.”

“Come with me.”

Ying Qi finally made up her mind.

Whether the fiend had really escaped, or if there was some other plot, she had to take this sole “witness” back and hand her over to Her Majesty personally.

“W-where are we going?”

Lu Ning asked, feigning terror.

“To meet someone who will decide your fate.”

Ying Qi said indifferently.

She didn’t mention that Lu Ning would be meeting the Empress of Da Huang.

In her view, this “canary” raised deep in the palace by the princess was better off knowing as little of royal secrets as possible.

“But, before that…”

Ying Qi’s gaze swept over Lu Ning.

“Your outfit is too conspicuous.”

With a wave of her hand, a black night-suit appeared in front of Lu Ning.

“Put this on.”

Lu Ning: “…”

She looked at the night-suit, similar in style to Ying Qi’s, utterly speechless inside.

Just took off the maid’s uniform for a fairy dress, now had to put on nightwear?

Was her whole life doomed to be one endless dress-up game?

Though she raged inwardly, Lu Ning obediently took the night-suit.

She wouldn’t dare bargain in front of this killing god.

Once Lu Ning changed into the neat black night-suit, binding her long black hair with a black cloth, her whole aura shifted.

She seemed less delicate and playful—now there was a heroic sharpness and mystery about her.

Ying Qi glanced at the transformed Lu Ning, her eyes flashing with approval.

She had to admit, this woman was a natural beauty—anything looked good on her.

“Let’s go.”

Without further delay, Ying Qi grabbed Lu Ning’s wrist.

With a flicker, they crossed the crack in the restriction, blending into the shadowed corner.

Lu Ning felt a moment of darkness, then a sudden weightlessness.

When her sight returned, she found herself in a dim secret tunnel.

On the walls to either side, every so often a glowing night pearl was set, lighting the way ahead.

“Follow closely.”

Ying Qi’s voice came from ahead.

“This is the palace’s hidden passage, stretching in all directions, filled with traps and restrictions. One wrong step and you’ll be doomed forever.”

Lu Ning stiffened at that, sticking closely behind Ying Qi, not daring to take a single wrong step.

She walked on, glancing around curiously.

She’d never expected such a vast, intricate underground network to lie hidden beneath this dazzling palace.

It deepened her understanding of the Da Huang dynasty’s hidden strength.

The two of them traveled through the labyrinthine tunnel for about the time of one incense stick.

Up ahead, a faint light finally appeared.

Ying Qi halted, pressing a spot on an inconspicuous wall.

“Clack.”

With a soft sound, the wall slowly slid apart, revealing a tastefully decorated study.

Inside, sandalwood smoke curled in the air.

A peerless beauty in a phoenix robe stood with her back to them, quietly gazing at a giant painting of rivers and mountains.

Even though it was only her back, the majestic imperial aura she exuded made Lu Ning’s heart skip a beat.

“Your Majesty.”

Ying Qi knelt on one knee, her tone respectful.

“Forgive my lateness, the fiend has escaped, but I’ve brought back a maid who saw him.”

At those words, Lu Ning was struck dumb.

Your Majesty?

The “one who would decide her fate” in the black-clad assassin’s words was actually the Empress of Da Huang?

Now… things were truly out of hand!