FRGNM -Chapter 120 The Ninth-Level Imperial Palace

“Wow, this really is a palace… not a forest?” Ling Ruoxi was completely stunned as she stepped inside. The lush green trees stretched across the sky, with sparse sunlight filtering through the branches lazily and casually. What shocked her even more was that green fireflies danced between the trees, tracing circles in the air. The flowers along the path were of varieties she had never seen before—vividly colorful and breathtakingly beautiful.

Some flowers were even as tall as a person, their brilliant blossoms emitting a strange, intoxicating fragrance. The scenery alone was enough to overwhelm anyone.

“This is a palace… and also a test. Old ghost, explain it to her,” Luo Mingyu said lightly, putting his arm around Ling Ruoxi’s shoulders to prevent the foolish woman from touching those dazzling plants.

The man in blue smiled faintly. “Duan Yun Wang invited us to a feast in the palace, but it’s also a kind of test. The most beautiful things are often the most dangerous. The obstacles here are set for the other guests. You mustn’t touch those things, or…”

“Waaah!” The man behind her reached for a soft, colorful flower—but in an instant, the flower, which had been in full bloom, leaned forward. Its petals, like arms, wrapped around him and quickly closed. In that moment, the man who had been walking just a second ago was swallowed by the flower.

Luo Mingyu wanted desperately to warn the woman in front of him how dangerous it was. Yet the person in his arms, eyes shining brightly and drooling slightly, immediately pried his hand away and lunged at the flower.

“Ling Ruoxi!” Luo Mingyu’s face turned pale. Had this foolish woman not seen what just happened? Was she not afraid of being eaten by the man-eating flower?

She boldly grabbed the petals of the flower!

Yes—she actually grabbed them!

Luo Mingyu’s eyes nearly popped out in shock as he stared at Ling Ruoxi, completely at a loss.

The woman in white suddenly bit down on the flower’s petals with a wide-open mouth! The flower shuddered violently, thrashing its leaves, even trying to envelop Ling Ruoxi’s head.

In the final moment, Ling Ruoxi released her bite, grasped the flower, and said, “Bitter indeed… no wonder the medical texts say that man-eating flowers take a hundred years to grow, and the brighter they are, the more bitter they taste. But they’re still useful for healing.”

She extended her hand and, speaking to herself, placed the flower into her storage ring.

A beautiful butterfly fluttered its colorful wings past her eyes.

If Murong Ming knew that Ling Ruoxi was this kind of monster, he would never have allowed her in. The woman grabbed nearly half of the poisonous plants here, almost as if she could have taken the magical beasts too.

At this point, the man in blue realized why Ling Ruoxi’s medical skills had improved so rapidly—her thinking went far beyond what was recorded in books. On that foundation, she could freely concoct pills according to her needs. Even these poisonous plants could be used in countless ways.

Luo Mingyu realized he shouldn’t have provoked this woman. Seeing that giant centipede earlier, he swallowed hard, wondering what kind of woman he had fallen in love with.

“Is that all?” Ling Ruoxi looked at the forest helplessly. Such fine medicinal herbs… though small, the harvest was still plentiful. Many things she couldn’t find on Liuli Island were here!

If Murong Ming, who had set this place up, knew that all his poisonous plants had been taken, one could only imagine his expression.

“Next is the ninth-level wall. Here you can ride the magical beasts called Windshadow Wolves. They are fast, and from their backs, you can observe the grandeur of the ninth wall,” the man in blue said calmly. The fifty-meter-high wall tightly encircled the palace, while guards checked the guests’ invitations.

The Windshadow Wolves were magical beasts from the forest, now harnessed for riding.

“The speed of these wolves is indeed impressive,” Ling Ruoxi gave a thumbs-up at Luo Mingyu. The man in black clothes, hair loose, looked especially elegant as the wind whipped his hair around. He used his fighting energy to protect himself and prevent the wind from messing it up.

The ninth-level walls looked like mountains. Wolves were perfect for running on them. The green ground was covered in grass, carrying a fragrant scent. Dandelions danced in the wind atop the hills. The eighth wall rose above them, and below, the streets of the palace formed a huge character for “cloud.” Mist made it appear dreamlike and serene.

From here, one could see the panorama of Duan Yun Kingdom—it was truly breathtaking.

At the eighth wall, Ling Ruoxi’s eyes almost burned from the sight. The ground was inlaid with jade, blocking flowing water. The Windshadow Wolves were replaced with sea beasts. Passing lotus flowers emitted a subtle fragrance, intoxicating anyone nearby.

Of course, Ling Ruoxi couldn’t resist collecting them. The lotus flowers, growing on jade, had spiritual energy and medicinal properties. Even after hundreds of years, they never withered.

There were countless treasures—like entering the Old Summer Palace of the Qing Dynasty, seeing five thousand years of cultural relics. She couldn’t count them all. A kingdom with so many treasures—no wonder Duan Yun Kingdom had lasted for thousands of years.

Ling Ruoxi was satisfied, checking her storage ring and finding everything intact. Murong Ming would never know that she had secretly taken the best treasures.

The final level was the palace’s main hall, the largest area. No more than five thousand palace maids and eunuchs had ever lived there.

In front of the hall, everyone had to remove their shoes and climb ninety-nine steps barefoot before entering, regardless of season. This was the ritual, unavoidable for anyone.

“What kind of weird ritual is this…” Ling Ruoxi pinched her nose in disgust. People here were fighters or martial artists, men with strong body odors. Taking off shoes only made it worse. Even the man in blue covered his nose with a scented handkerchief, saying, “Hmm, this smell is authentic. Clearly someone who has been traveling long, with depleted kidney energy…”

“Stay away from me,” Ling Ruoxi said, unwilling to breathe near him.

After the ninety-nine steps, there was a large pool with medicinal herbs and petals. Everyone had to wash their feet in it.

“Duan Yun Kingdom’s king had foresight,” Ling Ruoxi noted, though the time to grow these herbs was terrifying. She didn’t want to put her feet in it—disgusting as it was.

“Don’t want to soak? That’s fine. I’ve smelled your feet—they’re not bad,” Luo Mingyu said with a faint smile, patting her head.

The grand hall was made entirely of gold, engraved with dragons and phoenixes, rare metals, jade, and countless crafted tools. Even a single piece was priceless. Apart from the invited guests, the hall was empty, eerily so.

“Is this how Duan Yun Kingdom receives guests?” someone finally shouted, frustrated. Others frowned.

“Yeah, they invited us to a feast, yet now they hide from us. What’s this about?”

“All of us are well-known on the continent. Duan Yun Kingdom may be powerful, but to play tricks like this is barbaric!”

“Forget it, let’s leave!”

As people started moving toward the exit, the path instantly vanished into white mist. There was no way out.

An illusion? The man in blue smiled faintly. Even at the final trial, Duan Yun Kingdom still liked to tease guests.

Luo Mingyu, smiling faintly, crossed his arms, observing the stunned crowd.

Ling Ruoxi only cared about the contents of her storage ring. After checking, she relaxed. Seeing the thick fog outside, she shrugged, “The fog’s really heavy… I wonder how long it will last for Duan Yun Kingdom’s people to come out.”

“You’re an idiot! We’re inside Duan Yun Kingdom’s formation!” another man shouted, frustrated at finding no way out. Hearing Ling Ruoxi say that made him furious.