"Princess Embroidered Jade." The Fool looked at the princess, his tone serious: "Don't give up hope."
"When have I ever given up hope..." Princess Embroidered Jade wanted to retort, but The Fool didn't respond. He just looked at her seriously, his eyes seeming to peer into her heart, and repeated, "Don't give up hope. There's still a chance."
Princess Embroidered Jade was at a loss for words. Thinking back on what she had just done—risking everything to heal The Fool and teaching him the Bright Jade Technique in a pinch—it all felt like she was entrusting him with her legacy. Maybe she subconsciously sensed that today might end badly, which is why she acted so self-destructively? Embroidered Jade lowered her head, like a child who'd done something wrong: "Mm, okay."
Thinking about herself, then about The Fool—this silly guy had never given up, never wavered. He could easily have taken the Bright Jade Technique and the Supreme Sentiment Dao—two legendary skills everyone in the world covets—and just run off, or even switched sides to work with Lady Simone. But he didn't. To ignore such temptation is basically idiotic. How can someone this naive still exist in the martial world?
What a fool. And yet, she had to admit, he's a man you can count on.
No need to worry about betrayal, scheming, or flip-flopping—a man you can truly rely on.
Princess Embroidered Jade looked up at The Fool, her cheeks slightly flushed. This time, it wasn’t because of instinct, some powerful Sound Skill, or the embarrassment of seeing a naked guy—something genuinely strange was stirring inside her.
Emotions affect the spirit. Whether it's rage or hatred, it can drive people to do things they'd never manage otherwise. With that flicker of emotion in her heart, Princess Embroidered Jade felt her spirits lift. As long as there's hope, there's motivation, and her energy bounced back.
"My cultivation is shallow—I can't really use Sound Skill. Not sure if it'll do anything." Sound Skill is way more advanced than simple sound transmission—it takes at least fifty years of cultivation to make it work. Lady Simone is a rare exception, having mastered it to the innate level. Most Sound Skills are broad-area, wide-spread attacks. But the farther the sound spreads, the weaker it gets. Without enough power, you’ll never get that epic "roar and everyone drops" effect.
The Fool's internal energy was only enough for a year—worlds apart from what you need for real Sound Skill. At super close range, he could barely whisper a few words, and even that would drain him completely. If not for his insanely strong spirit and rapid recovery, he’d only get to say those few words a day. If Lady Simone's Sound Skill is an endless ocean, then The Fool’s shout is just a pebble tossed into the water.
Normally, this would be totally useless.
But right now, all Princess Embroidered Jade needed was just a little bit of help. A breeze can only blow away a single feather, but once that feather is gone, the camel won't collapse. "It works," Embroidered Jade nodded. "I feel much better."
"If I can say something like this every twenty breaths—about a minute and a half—does it help you?" Saying just a few words in ninety seconds was already pushing it.
Princess Embroidered Jade thought for a moment, then nodded firmly. "Let's give it a try—maybe it'll work."
"Alright. You focus on stabilizing your internal energy, organize your strength, and recover as much combat power as you can." The Fool lowered his voice and aimed it carefully to avoid eavesdroppers, then gave a sly grin: "I've got an idea that should work. If we catch them off guard, we'll win."
Princess Embroidered Jade couldn't help but ask, "What's your plan?"
"Give me your hand." The Fool extended a finger and started doodling on Embroidered Jade's palm. She shivered, fighting the urge to laugh from the ticklish sensation, but forced herself to focus on the message. Instantly, her face turned crimson, her gaze darting everywhere, so embarrassed she couldn't even look straight. "Is that okay?" The Fool wrote the last two words and looked to her for confirmation.
Normally, Embroidered Jade would rather die than go along with such a plan. But now, blushing, she looked at The Fool, bit her lip, and nodded. Then she wrote on his palm in return: "Alright, let's do it."
Princess Embroidered Jade began to calm her mind, gathering her internal energy with The Fool’s help, preparing for a final stand.
Time ticked by, second after second.
Outside, deep in the stone cave, Lady Simone was still going hard on her radio drama. When it came to arranging broadcast content, she was a hands-on expert—she could whip up any kind of plot, never run out of material for three days straight, and her updates were legendary. As for martial power, her innate internal energy flowed endlessly; unless she got into a knock-down drag-out fight, she rarely ran out of qi.
So she was still pretty chill, multitasking by livestreaming her radio drama while using her Sound Skill to monitor the two inside the stone chamber. That guy was interesting—the way he used echoes to scout his surroundings was genius, even gave her a few ideas. Thanks to that trick, her environment-sensing efficiency shot up several times.
"You’re worth a lot—maybe even tied to the real secrets of the Southern Wasteland Ancient Empire." Lady Simone was running a dozen thoughts at once, still had energy to spare, and muttered into the void as if talking to The Fool: "But it’s a shame—your body’s too tough. Great for killing, not so much for keeping. The real key is Princess Embroidered Jade. If I can get the Bright Moon Divine Skill and the Supreme Sentiment Dao, I’ll have a guaranteed seat as vice palace master in Spiritwater Palace."
Patience is key—wear down the enemy, wait for the perfect shot. Those two are just putting up a desperate fight. Under my Sound Skill, there’s no way they’ll cure poison or heal wounds. No water, no food. Let’s see how long they can last!
"But, word is Princess Embroidered Jade is notoriously strong-willed. If she’s really cornered, she might just end it herself." If an innate master wants to commit suicide, almost nobody can stop them. "I’ll need a plan—wait for the right chance and take her down fast."
Just as she was thinking, Lady Simone suddenly frowned—something weird was happening in the stone chamber. Her hearing wasn’t superhuman; her powerful sensing came mainly from her special internal energy, so she couldn’t eavesdrop all the time. She noticed the two inside were arguing, moving around intensely, maybe even fighting.
"What’s going on?" This was weird. Why were they fighting? Simone suspected a trick, kept her radio drama running, and quietly moved closer, channeling power to her ears to listen in. What she heard made her eyes go wide. She caught gasping, the slap of limbs, and that guy’s surprised, panicked voice: "You—what are you doing? Stop it, don’t…"
Huh?! She was so shocked, her radio drama even paused for a second. Simone figured she must have misunderstood—she was just too much of a degenerate, so her mind automatically went to the worst possible interpretation. Yeah, definitely her problem!
But then the guy nervously blurted, "Quit tugging, this is my last piece of cloth—let go!"
Lady Simone’s brain short-circuited a bit. Sure, she always used dirty jokes and radio dramas to mess with people’s heads, but that only worked because she knew Princess Embroidered Jade was squeaky clean. If her opponent was shameless and thick-skinned, her tricks wouldn’t be nearly as effective. But now… Did I mishear, or has the world gone nuts?
"D-Don't say another word!" This was definitely Princess Embroidered Jade herself—her voice held a tinge of anger, followed by the sound of clothes being ripped and bodies tumbling.
Lady Simone froze for a full three seconds, then wide-eyed, crawled toward the cave entrance. What was happening inside was way beyond her imagination—did her Sound Skill actually enlighten the princess? Drive her mad? Or was this... the last party before the end? Peeking in, she saw two bodies tangled together, rolling around in the dim light. Her view was limited, just flashes of movement before they disappeared from sight.
Even so, her innate-level eyesight let her see clearly: that guy was really pinning Princess Embroidered Jade beneath him!
"This..." Lady Simone was stunned, then broke into a smug grin. She heard Embroidered Jade’s trembling voice: "I want to..." It was like watching a fairy fall from the clouds into the mud—seeing the downfall of someone pure and noble was a guilty pleasure, every time.
Simone edged closer to the cave entrance and looked inside. The two were now lying face-down on the ground, the man pressing against the woman's back—chest to back, hips to hips, really getting a taste of the earth. Embroidered Jade struggled in confusion, like she was planning something naughty.
This—this was the perfect chance! At this distance, in this situation, there was no way the guy could block the cave entrance. If she acted fast, she’d win for sure! The man had no internal energy—one pressure point strike and he’d be down. The woman was on the verge of delirium, not even a threat, easy to subdue.
Total victory was right there, waving at her!
Why was she so sure this wasn’t a trick? Because she knew Princess Embroidered Jade’s character—if she wasn’t truly delirious, she’d never say those things or act that way!
Hesitation leads to chaos. Simone didn’t get her reputation for raiding the Flower Shifting Palace by being timid. Innate masters rule the martial world—when opportunity knocks, you don’t chicken out. In a flash, Simone dove into the cave, gathering energy in her palms with a sizzling sound. The man seemed to notice, but it was too late. Simone slipped through the narrow cave and lunged at his back like a shadow.
Now that she was inside, victory was in the bag!
Time seemed to slow down at that instant. Lady Simone locked her ten fingers onto the major acupoints on the man's back. If she landed this move, he'd be finished. But right then, she heard him mutter, "Here we go!" Suddenly, he sprang up in a way that defied all logic.
It was like one of those wild Michael Jackson forward-lean rebounds—the Fool suddenly used his feet as a pivot, his Achilles tendon as a spring, and flipped a full 150-160 degrees. In an instant, he went from facing away to head-on.
The distance between them changed in a flash—the Fool’s head was now right in the danger zone! Cold eyes like stars, a chill like a blade. Lady Simone saw a white finger strike—packing all of Embroidered Jade’s power—coming straight for her.