A day had passed since Lin Mu's Immortal Tribulation and Breakthrough went 'unnoticed'.
The courtyard was still surrounded by clouds, and no one had a clue what was happening inside.
"Jeez! Did you have to go that far?" The Ever Spring Mistress pouted as she held her head.
A few bumps could be seen on them, while her eyes were a bit red. "And did you really have to give him Ichor Essence wine, of all things?" The Saintess shot back.
"I didn't think he would trigger an Immortal Tribulation of all things! I didn't even know it was possible to do that drunk." The Ever Spring Mistress complained. "I thought he would just act funny for a bit and then pass out." She said in a low voice, as if a wronged child.
"Yeah well, it has happened and you have to endure the punishment." The Saintess replied, not letting it go this easily.
"Fine… Can I at least fix these?" The Ever Spring Mistress asked, pointing to her injuries.
"No." The Saintess denied right away. "You're not allowed to heal them until I say so." She warned.
"Okay…" The Ever Spring Mistress said in a depressed tone. "But they mar my beauty…" She said, looking into a mirror.
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇt"You should have thought about that before, you decided to be naughty." The Saintess rolled her eyes.
~pour~
Little Shrubby eyed the two from some distance, while pouring the Saintess tea using one of his prosthetic hands.
"They fight like siblings." Ashy spoke while sitting on Little Shrubby's head.
"They sure do." Little Shrubby replied, finding it both strange and entertaining.
After confirming that Lin Mu was fine, they had become relaxed and waited for him to wake up. Which was an uncertain thing, as Lin Mu's sleep was often quite long.
Little Shrubby had seen him sleep for long periods of time, and was usually with him in the Sleepscape. But since he had passed out before that, both the beasts were left outside.
"Is the Sleepscape really that good?" Ashy asked.
She had never been inside, and was quite interested in it. Little Shrubby had told her about it and all the benefits it had.
"It is very comfortable. Lots of Qi and perfect to cultivate." The cat nodded.
Little Shrubby had shrunk back to his smaller form since it was more convenient. "I can't wait to go inside." Ashy replied. "I also want to see the big tree Xiao Yin and Xiao Yang talked about. Can there really be trees bigger than the Evergreen Pillars Bamboo?" She wondered.
"It's giant." Little Shrubby confirmed. "It's the biggest tree I've seen too. Master got it a while back." "I wonder when he'll wake up." Ashy said, looking at the sleeping form of Lin Mu.
The door of the bedroom was open, which allowed the people inside to keep an eye on Lin Mu. Since they were all sitting in the garden of the courtyard, the main bedroom was right opposite it, making it very convenient.
"I think it should be short and not like his long sleeps." Little Shrubby replied with hope.
While the beasts and the two celestials waited for Lin Mu, the entire Morning Glory Clan was also waiting.
Back in the grand hall of the Morning Glory clan; Guang San, Princess Feng Lan, Emperor Feng and several other elders of the clan were waiting. Of course, Meihua was also there and was sitting in the lap of the Emperor.
The man was having some quality time with his granddaughter, since he knew he won't be able to see her for a long time. "Grandpa, what kind of place does master live in?" She asked.
"Hmm, it's a very big and beautiful place." Emperor Feng replied while rubbing the little girl's head. "Will you come to see me?" Meihua asked.
"I will, of course." The Emperor replied. "But you have to promise to cultivate well." He added.
"Yes, yes!" Meihua nodded like a chick pecking rice. "I'll become big and then grow strong and then take all the Qi, then take all the world and then become an emperor like you!" She said with excitement.
Follow on Novᴇl-Onlinᴇ.cᴏm"Hahaha, you sure will." The Emperor couldn't help but laugh. "The Morning Glory Clan and the Dao Wind Empire will be with you every step of the way. Perhaps you'll unite the Rust Sky world too." He said, casually mentioning a hostile takeover.
If these words were spoken outside, they could very well carry over to the other powers and spark the fires of war. Usually he would be careful speaking things like this, even if he was in familial territory. Especially since there was no telling if these would would, eventually spread, either by spies or a drunk tongue.
But this time around, he wasn't worried at all.
Because they now had the direct backing of a Celestial!
Not just that, but the resources they would be able to obtain through this alliance were bound to bring the empire to a new peak. The same could be said for the Morning Glory Clan. In fact, the Emperor was aware that it was no longer appropriate for them to be just a clan of the Dao Wind Empire.
"Guang San, Feng Lan." The Emperor spoke in a firm tone.
"Emperor," Guang San cupped his hands, knowing the man was serious.
"What is it, father?" Feng Lan asked.
"I think… it is time the Morning Glory clan is indicted into the Imperial Aristocracy." Emperor Feng stated, stunning everyone in the hall.
"Heavens!" The Elders of the Morning Glory Clan were awestruck.
"Emperor… is that… really fine?" Guang San asked.
"Mmhmm, with the current situation, I think it is appropriate." Emperor Feng replied. "From this day onwards, I announce the Morning Glory Clan as a direct extension of the Dao Wind Imperial Family!" His words echoed in the hall.
The hall was silent, as everyone processed his words.
"As such, I bestow upon Morning Glory Clan a dukedom! Clan Head Guang San is hereby declared as Duke Guang!"