Qin Ming felt his head was about to explode again.
He had only been in the palace for two days—who had set up this trap?
These maniacs…
Calm down! He had to stay calm!
Panicking now would only make things worse.
He immediately put on an extremely aggrieved expression.
"Your servant thanks the Princess!"
The Princess lazily leaned back onto the bamboo chair behind her.
Lifting a wine flask to her crimson lips, she took a slow sip.
A few drops of the clear liquid trailed down the corner of her left lip and onto her fair neck.
It was an intoxicatingly seductive sight.
"Xiao Qin Zi, lift your head."
The Princess's eyes locked onto Qin Ming.
"The right side of your face is quite handsome—why is there such a long scar on the left?"
"Reporting to the Princess, I was injured while killing a traveler upon entering the palace."
"I heard about that," the Princess said, her bewitching gaze shifting to a nearby female guard.
"Fluffy Rabbit, grant him medicine!"
"Yes, Princess!"
A round-faced female officer stepped forward and handed Qin Ming a bottle of "Qinglu" Scar Removal Balm.
Only then did Qin Ming recall what Ling yin had told him—
The Princess commanded the Demon Suppression Guards across the land.
Her twelve closest generals, known as the Twelve Zodiac Officers, were all peerless beauties with remarkable strength—and every single one of them had long, elegant legs.
This round-faced guard in front of him was none other than the legendary Fluffy Rabbit Officer.
"This ointment will heal your scar within a few days," the Princess said. "Consider it compensation for your wrongful accusation."
"Thank you, Princess."
The Princess stood up, casually tossing her wine cup onto the table, where it spun in circles.
With one hand behind her back, she strode toward the main hall.
…
In the courtyard, only Qin Ming, Ling yin, and Jingxiang remained.
A large patch of snow had melted into a sickening, bloody mess from Li Shan's spilled blood.
Jingxiang handed Qin Ming a cup of hot water.
"Here, drink this to calm yourself. Li Shan was never a good person anyway.
He's dead, and that's that—you don't need to feel bad about it."
"Thank you."
"Qin Ming, I sometimes help out at the Demon Suppression Tower.
I've seen this "Qinglu" Scar Removal Balm before. With your injury, it should heal in about three days."
"Demon Suppression Tower?"
"The Demon Suppression Tower is where travelers are imprisoned," Ling yin interjected.
"But getting in isn't easy. You have to undergo a bloodline test by the Princess herself!"
Qin Ming asked in confusion,
"There are that many travelers? Enough to need an entire tower to imprison them?"
"Of course! The tower holds many travelers, some of them incredibly powerful!
But no traveler has ever left there alive."
Snow began to fall more heavily again.
Qin Ming took a sip of the hot water.
Yet, he felt no warmth at all—instead, his whole body was freezing cold.
Damn this world!
Surviving here was truly difficult.
…
Night had fallen. The wind howled in the darkness.
Qin Ming checked his Luck Points—24, still not enough for a second draw.
After practicing Turtle Breath Spirit Technique for a while, he began to think.
He had a strong feeling that there was another traveler hiding nearby.
Li Shan had clearly been set up!
But who was this traveler?
It couldn't be the Princess.
It wasn't Ling yin either—her concern for him was genuine.
She even saved him once in front of General Iron Tiger.
Earlier today, Ling yin mentioned that before entering the Demon Suppression Tower, the Princess would perform a bloodline test.
That meant Jingxiang wasn't a traveler either!
Could it be one of the Twelve Zodiac Officers under the Princess?
No, no…
The Princess was ruthless and shrewd—
There was no way she'd allow a traveler to infiltrate her personal guard.
Thinking about it made his head hurt.
There was no clear answer!
If only he could leave the palace…
Or better yet, visit the Demon Suppression Tower to find other travelers.
Maybe then, he could gather more information about this world.
…
The night grew late.
Qin Ming waited, watching for Ling yin to come out for her usual late-night flower ice treat.
She had this habit—she always did.
But tonight, she never appeared.
After hesitating for half a quarter-hour, Qin Ming got up and walked to Lingyin's room.
"Knock, knock, knock~" He gently tapped on the door.
"Sister Lingyin, are you asleep?"
"N-no... not yet."
"Why do you sound so weak?"
"Cough, cough, cough…" Lingyin let out a few soft coughs.
Qin Ming frowned slightly and pushed the door open.
Inside, the once graceful and capable Lingyin was now curled up under her blanket.
Her lips were dry and bluish, her face pale.
"What's wrong, Ling yin?"
"It's nothing… I just ran out of charcoal today. It's a bit cold in here. Why are you visiting at this hour?"
Qin Ming almost blurted out, "Because I noticed you didn't eat flower ice tonight."
But he immediately dismissed the thought—he couldn't let Lingyin realize he had been observing her.
Last time, he had already exposed himself by pretending to eat ice.
"Ling yin, I was feeling a little homesick and couldn't sleep, so I wanted to chat with you."
"Cough, cough, cough… Come, sit! I'd love to talk about home too."
"Not yet! I'll go get some charcoal from the imperial kitchen first."
"No need, Qin Ming. Jingxiang went to return the meal boxes. She might bring some charcoal back."
"I'll go anyway. Charcoal is heavy—how could she possibly carry much?
Ling yin, stay under the covers. I'll get the charcoal and light the fire when I'm back."
With that, Qin Ming pushed open the door and rushed into the snowy night.
Ling yin struggled to sit up, propping herself up with her hand.
She gazed at Qin Ming's fading silhouette in the wind and snow, feeling a warmth rise in her heart.
The heavens are truly heartless!
How could such a fine young man be turned into a eunuch?!
Suddenly! Ling yin's whole body tensed.
A bright glow radiated from her palm!
She hurriedly clenched her hand and pressed it under the blanket, sweat breaking out on her forehead.
"Calm down! Stay still!
Light… light, I beg you, don't come out!"
…
Qin Ming wrapped his robe tightly around himself.
The wind was fierce, the snow relentless. Damn, it's cold as hell.
Halfway there, he reached into his pocket and felt the squid ink sac.
This thing is like a ticking time bomb—I need to get rid of it.
He turned his head and spotted the dry well behind the rock garden—
The very well where he had buried Eunuch Liu Yuan.
Glancing around to make sure no one was watching, Qin Ming gripped the ink sac and hurled it toward the garden.
By sheer luck, it landed right inside the well.
…
Jingxiang returned the meal boxes to the imperial kitchen.
From morning until night, Jingxiang had been puzzled.
Li Shan had always seemed clever—so why would he try to frame Qin Ming with a blank sheet of paper?
No matter how she thought about it, she just couldn't figure it out.
"Good evening, Miss Jingxiang!"
The eunuchs and palace maids in the imperial kitchen had a good impression of Jingxiang from the Taiyin Palace.
"Good evening, everyone! You're all still busy at this hour?"
"We just finished steaming these bread. Want to try one?"
"Oh, no, no!" Jingxiang quickly waved her hands.
"These are for the masters. How could a maid like me dare to eat them?"
"One bite won't hurt."
Wang Yu, a eunuch from the back kitchen, stuffed a bread into her hand.
Just as she took a bite, her eyes caught sight of something in the corner—
Several squids lay there, along with a few ink sacs.
One of the sacs had ruptured, its black ink spilling across the floor.
Buzz! Jingxiang's mind went blank.
In that instant, it all made sense!
Her heart pounded violently in her chest.
Qin Ming was indeed a time traveler—only someone like that would know this method!
If she captured Qin Ming, she could earn a martial arts reward.
She could get silver, buy her freedom…
She could finally leave the palace and live a good life outside!
She couldn't spend her entire life as a palace maid!
"Eunuch Wang, what is this?"
"Oh, those are squid ink sacs."
"They're so dark and interesting… Can I have one to play with?"
"What do you want it for?"
"It just looks fun. I could even use it for painting."
The kitchen master, Wang, chuckled.
"Take one, take one!"
Jingxiang immediately tucked an ink sac into her sleeve and hurried back to the palace.
She had discovered the truth.
She had to find the Grand Princess as soon as possible and report the ink sac situation. Since she had already passed the bloodline verification and had experience dealing with time traveler in the Demon Suppression Tower, the Grand Princess wouldn't suspect her!
Just as she stepped out of the imperial kitchen, she spotted Qin Ming walking down the corridor ahead.
Without hesitation, she slipped into the side path leading to the Imperial Garden.
Now that she knew Qin Ming's secret, she realized deep down—this man was anything but simple!
She had to avoid him and prevent him from sensing anything was amiss.
Qin Ming finished packing ten pounds of coal.
Thanks to his sweet-talking and attentive nature, he had built a good rapport with the palace maids in the kitchen.
He even took the chance to eat three freshly steamed bread—soft, fragrant, and incredibly satisfying.
"Eunuch Wang, why does this coal look so pale?"
"Of course, it's pale! You're taking it for Ling yin, right? Palace maids and eunuchs can only use this inferior white mountain coal. The black mountain coal is reserved for the masters."
"This white mountain coal is so light—can it even catch fire?"
"Hahaha, of course, it can! If you don't like the color, you could always dye it with some of those ink sacs over there!"
The kitchen master's joke drew laughter from the crowd.
Qin Ming waved a hand and hoisted the coal onto his shoulder.
"Who would even want to play with that nasty, pitch-black ink sac?"
"Oh? Someone actually did."
Qin Ming's heart skipped a beat. He kept his expression calm and asked casually,
"Who?"
"Jingxiang! She just took an ink sac. That little girl is quite the beauty—who would've thought she'd be into such weird things?"
In that instant, Qin Ming felt as if he had been struck by lightning.
It was as if a thunderclap had exploded in his heart.
He reacted almost instantly—
Jingxiang was definitely a time traveler!!