IDWBE -Chapter 577 Absorbing the Cultivation Power

While sleeping soundly, the urge to urinate struck, forcing him to roll off the bed.

“Your Grace.”

Suxin got up with him, draping a piece of clothing over Lin Yi’s back. After stepping down, she reached under the bed.

“No need to get it. I never use that thing,”

Lin Yi stopped her from grabbing the chamber pot and stood up. “I’ll go to the latrine.”

Even as the top figure in the Da Liang Kingdom, he still lived like an ordinary person—eating, drinking, and excreting.

It was just that he never got used to those so-called chamber pots and night stools.

Having grown up in the palace, he found the arrangements absurd: the enormous imperial palace had not a single proper toilet. Children used small pots, adults used larger ones, and for dignitaries like the emperor or concubines, a small bench would be placed over the pot.

Afterward, palace maids and eunuchs would carry the waste outside.

Since he was eleven, whenever he had a chance to leave the palace, he would hold it until outside. If he couldn’t leave, he would go to a secluded garden behind the cold palace to fertilize plants, regardless of weather.

He rarely wanted to relieve himself inside official quarters.

This was also one of the reasons he disliked living in the palace.

After building his new residence outside the city, his first demand was proper sewage and toilets.

Following his instructions, Bian Jing set up fifteen toilets of various sizes in the mansion, digging underground pipes over two meters deep so the sewage flowed directly to the Grand Canal at the foot of the mountain.

“Your Grace, it’s cold outside.”

Suxin said with concern.

“It’s fine.”

Lin Yi tightened his jacket and, once Suxin opened the door, walked straight out.

He immediately ran into Hong Ying, bent slightly and holding a dust whisk at the door.

“Your Grace.”

“Still not asleep at this hour?”

Lin Yi smiled. “You don’t need to guard here. Go rest.”

“Yes.”

Though Hong Ying said so, he still silently followed behind Lin Yi.

After Lin Yi left the latrine, he brushed snow off a bush and asked Hong Ying, “Are you worried Jingyi and Jingkuan might escape from the prison?”

Hong Ying forced a smile. “Your Grace, you are merciful, sparing them like dogs. I just fear they won’t appreciate it and take desperate measures.”

“True. Jingkuan once attempted to assassinate me, and now she denies it shamelessly,” Lin Yi said, gathering a handful of snow and rolling it in his palm. “What do you suggest we do?”

Hong Ying hesitated. “I remember in Your Grace’s book The Son-in-Law Warrior, there’s a line: an enemy without a knife is a good friend. Similarly, a nun without martial skill is a good nun. Those under Jizhao Nunnery who defy orders may escape death, but cannot escape punishment.”

He gritted his teeth at the last part.

“You’re a genius,” Lin Yi couldn’t help but praise. “But here’s the problem—they are Grand Masters. Can you really force them to lose their cultivation?”

“Shall I handle it immediately, Your Grace?”

“Can you manage it?” Lin Yi rolled his eyes.

Hong Ying smiled wryly. “I always remember your teachings: if there are no conditions, create them. I will handle it, no matter what.”

Lin Yi chuckled casually. “Then go ahead.”

“As you command.”

In the blink of an eye, Hong Ying had disappeared. Lin Yi sighed. “All trained by the same master, yet come and go like shadows.”

He then returned to his room.

“His Lightness Skill has reached perfection. There are very few in the world who can compare,” Lei Kaishan muttered from the shadow of a corridor pillar.

Tan Fei yawned. “The Grand Master is fast, but so are the monk and the blind man. If anyone can surpass him, it must be one of them.”

Lei Kaishan laughed. “Forget it. Not a Grand Master yet, we have no right to discuss such things.”

Tan Fei glanced at him. “You’re about to break through?”

Lei Kaishan sighed. “I sensed a trace of energy the other day, but these days yielded nothing. Not hopeful anytime soon.”

Tan Fei smirked. “Maybe I’ll surpass you first.”

“You?” Lei Kaishan looked at him dismissively. “Learning the Yuan Technique, the Purple-Gold Hammer, and Lion’s Roar all at once, internal force scattered… you’re early.”

“How do you know I’m learning the Purple-Gold Hammer?” Tan Fei asked, surprised.

Lei Kaishan pouted. “You gave Yu Xiaoshi twenty taels of silver to teach you. Yu Xiaoshi made it known to everyone.”

“Damn! I specifically told him not to say a word,” Tan Fei grumbled.

Winter fell silently over Ankang City.

Chen Xinluo, gripping a large broadsword, led the constables in guarding the prison outside the city government. Occasionally, patrols passed by, and he greeted familiar faces.

“Sir, why don’t you rest? Leave it to me?”

Cao Xiaohuan looked at the exhausted Chen Xinluo.

“No. Today, important prisoners are inside. Better I stay to prevent mishaps.”

Just as he spoke, he noticed a figure standing ahead. Upon recognizing him, he saluted. “Chief.”

Inside were two Grand Masters, and it was only natural for the Chief to personally check.

Hong Ying ignored him and walked past the constables toward the prison.

“Open the door quickly,” Chen Xinluo urged.

With a rumble, the heavy door swung open. Chen Xinluo followed closely behind Hong Ying.

Wind rushed in, flickering the oil lamps on the stone walls, reflecting the Chief’s uncertain expression.

Inside, the three nuns of Jizhao Nunnery sat cross-legged. Hong Ying calmly said, “Open it.”

“Yes.”

Chen Xinluo opened the prison door without hesitation.

Jingyi, sitting in the center, snapped her eyes open, coldly staring at Hong Ying. Even Chen Xinluo felt a chill from her gaze.

A Grand Master truly was terrifying!

Even at the peak of a ninth-rank, she felt no courage to resist.

Yet he did not step back.

Hong Ying said, “Did the head of the nunnery sleep well?”

Suddenly, the pressure vanished. He finally raised his head and noticed the Chief smiling.

The Chief almost never smiled at anyone except the Prince.

Jingyi said calmly, “What does Your Grace wish to discuss?”

“Your Grace is merciful,” Hong Ying still smiled, “so we shall spare your life—for now.”

“Thank you, Your Grace,” Jingyi said expressionlessly.

“But I am not Your Grace,” Hong Ying slowly stepped forward. “We told Your Grace that a nun without martial skill is a good nun, and he agreed.”

“What do you mean?”

Before she could finish, a hand as fast as lightning grabbed her wrist. Struggling, she found she could not direct her inner force like a surging river toward Hong Ying.

“Sister!”

Jingkuan, concerned for Jingyi, suddenly realized one of her wrists had also been seized by the treacherous eunuch. Veins bulged, her nose and mouth as if covered, and she could not breathe.

“Release my master, my senior!”

Ye Jinyu slammed both palms against Hong Ying’s back.

Everything happened in a flash. Chen Xinluo at the door didn’t react in time. When he saw Ye Jinyu attacking, he hurriedly raised his sword to protect Hong Ying—but Hong Ying didn’t resist. Instead, he met Ye Jinyu’s palms with his own back.

Ye Jinyu’s hands seemed stuck to the Chief’s back. Her face flushed red, eyes bloodshot, body trembling uncontrollably.

The Star-Absorbing Technique.

Chen Xinluo’s mind screamed the words.

The technique’s power was astounding! Two well-known contemporary Grand Masters stood no chance against him.

Suddenly, the Chief’s back bulged, and Ye Jinyu was flung into the prison gate, landing on the hay with a clatter, bleeding from mouth and nose, crawling toward Hong Ying, murmuring, “Master… Senior…”

Chen Xinluo stepped forward, sword at her neck. “Better not move, or I won’t be polite.”

He knew Ye Jinyu. No mercy would be shown. If necessary, he would behead her without hesitation.

Jingkuan then fell, unconscious.

By the time Chen Xinluo checked on Jingyi, the Chief had already vanished.

Looking at the seated Jingyi, he realized the beautiful young woman had disappeared, replaced by an elderly lady with wrinkles and white hair.

He slowly exited the prison, waiting for the warden to lock the door. “Bring some water inside. Don’t let them truly die.”

The shock in such a short time surpassed a lifetime’s experiences.

“Amitabha.”

Jingyi clasped her hands, reciting the Buddha’s name, opening her cloudy eyes.

“Master, are you alright?”

Ye Jinyu, weak and without inner power, staggered to her side, kneeling to support Jingyi.

“Sister.”

Jingkuan, also with white hair, gradually regained consciousness and crawled to Jingyi.

Jingyi looked at them. “I finally understand.”

Jingkuan sighed. “I understand too.”

Ye Jinyu, puzzled, asked, “Master, Senior, what do you understand?”

Jingkuan said, “I once doubted that the Western Barbarians were so powerful. The Star-Sinking Sea Gate, over a thousand years, could not be so easily defeated. That little eunuch returned from the Western Wastes, his power surged. Doesn’t that explain everything?”

Ye Jinyu: “Senior, you mean the little eunuch absorbed the cultivation of the Star-Sinking Sea disciples?”

Recalling what happened to her, she immediately understood.

Jingkuan nodded. “Exactly. Otherwise, no matter how long he cultivated, how could he be our match?”

Ye Jinyu: “But Master, I remember you said the Star-Sinking Sea leader’s skill was above yours. The little eunuch was inferior before. How could he absorb so much inner force?”

Jingyi explained, “Simply by defeating them individually and gathering all their power. Then, he could indeed be a formidable opponent.”

As she spoke, a small window in the iron door opened, passing in a wooden bucket and a tea bowl.

Ye Jinyu saw the water inside, hurried to scoop it, giving it first to Master and Senior, finally drinking a bowl herself.

“Master,” Looking at the white-haired Jingyi, Ye Jinyu couldn’t help crying. “Rest now, don’t speak.”

Jingyi sighed. “Your Senior and I have lost all power. Our days are numbered.”

“Master…”

Ye Jinyu cried louder.

Jingyi removed the jade ring from her thumb, examined it, and handed it to Ye Jinyu. “If you get the chance, give this to Senior Jingrong to succeed as head of the nunnery.”

Ye Jinyu asked, puzzled, “I only know her name. How can I find her?”

Jingyi continued, “People think Jizhao Nunnery has only two Grand Masters, but there are four. One is Senior Jingrong, from the outer sect, exceptionally gifted. By thirty, she became a Grand Master. Another is Senior Jingtong, once a kitchen maid with rudimentary skills. Master saw talent, took her as a disciple, and by forty she became a Grand Master, seldom matched. I never surpassed them in skill, yet Master chose me as head. Naturally, they were displeased and left.”

Ye Jinyu was astonished. She had never heard of this secret.

Jingkuan said, “Sister, no need to blame yourself. Senior Jingrong is stubborn, Senior Jingtong crude. If Master had handed the nunnery to them, it would have been a disaster.”

Ye Jinyu quietly asked, “Where is Senior Jingrong now?”

Jingyi slowly said, “Her whereabouts are uncertain. I haven’t seen her for years. When you spread our death, if she feels nostalgic, she will return. Senior Jingtong serves the Tang Sect. If Jingrong does not return, pass it to her.”

The nunnery must have a Grand Master as head.

“Yes.”

Ye Jinyu, tears streaming, said, “I understand. I will find both Seniors.”

“Good child. Your power is lost,”

Jingyi stroked her hair gently. “After this, leave the mountain, marry an ordinary family, and stay away from the Jianghu.”

“Master,” Ye Jinyu said firmly, “I grew up in Jizhao Nunnery. Where else in the world can I go?”

Jingyi shook her head. “Without us, and without power, staying in the nunnery, your sisters would not tolerate you. Good child, leave early.”