Cultivating Immortality, Starting from Childhood Sweethearts-Chapter 359 - Paying Respects to Her Majesty (Two in One - )

“He went to a brothel.”

The maid spoke.

Hearing the maid’s response, the Dragon Empress turned her head to look at her.

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For a man to visit a brothel in the Dragon Capital was not something that particularly surprised the Dragon Empress.

In fact, the brothels in the undersea palaces of all four seas were quite famous, frequently visited by cultivators seeking entertainment. Every time human envoys came to the Dragon Palace, it was common for them to visit these establishments whenever they had free time.

What surprised the Dragon Empress, however, was that most envoys would at least show some restraint. They would typically wait for a while before going, at least making it seem like they weren’t in too much of a rush.

But Xu Ming seemed entirely unaware of such things.

Among all the envoys who had just arrived in the Dragon Capital, he was the first to visit a brothel.

Not to mention, as an official from the Wu Kingdom, Xu Ming should have been more mindful of his image.

“Which brothel did Xu Ming visit? Which courtesans did he call for? What did he do there?” The Dragon Empress asked three questions in a row.

She seemed very interested in Xu Ming’s visit to the brothel.

But in reality, she wasn’t.

She was merely trying to get a clearer understanding of the man.

Even if he had called for a dozen courtesans and spent three days and nights there, the Dragon Empress wouldn’t have had the slightest emotional reaction.

“Your Majesty, the brothel Xu Ming visited was Bihai Pavilion, the most famous one in the Dragon Capital. However, after arriving there, he did not call for any courtesans,” the maid, Xiao Lan, replied respectfully.

The Dragon Empress was momentarily surprised. She looked at the maid and curiously asked, “He didn’t call for any courtesans? Then why did he go to a brothel?”

“That young master Xu simply booked a seat, ordered some dishes and two jugs of wine, and watched the courtesans perform.

Apart from that, he did not enter a private room with any of them, nor did he interact with anyone. Even when some courtesans tried to approach him on their own, he refused them.”

Xiao Lan truthfully recounted everything Xu Ming had done at the brothel.

The Dragon Empress: “And after that? Where did he go after leaving the brothel?”

Maid: “After leaving, that young master Xu went to a restaurant for a meal.”

“Heh.”

The Dragon Empress let out a soft, cold chuckle.

“Scholars always have some strange habits. When put nicely, it’s called refined elegance and charm; when put bluntly, it’s just being pretentious.”

Xiao Lan lowered her head and said nothing.

“Have the envoys from the other three Dragon Palaces arrived? And among the other guests we’ve invited, who will be the latest to arrive?” The Dragon Empress no longer concerned herself with Xu Ming.

In her mind, she had already formed a rough impression of him.

Xiao Lan nodded. “Your Majesty, the envoys from all three Dragon Palaces have arrived. The Eastern Sea Dragon Palace even sent the Grand Crown Prince himself, the Western Sea Dragon Palace sent the Dragon King’s most beloved youngest daughter, and the Southern Sea Dragon Palace sent the Lame Chancellor.

As for the various sects and clans, most of their delegations have already arrived in the Dragon Capital, and we have arranged their accommodations.

The latest to arrive is expected to be the delegation from White Deer Academy, as they are traveling from quite a distance.”

The Dragon Empress nodded. “The scholars from White Deer Academy are always troublesome. It doesn’t matter. They’re always the last to arrive anyway. Speaking of which, who is leading their delegation this time?”

Maid: “This time, it is Zhu Cici, the personal disciple of the academy’s headmaster, who is leading the delegation.”

The Dragon Empress was momentarily stunned. “Zhu Cici? The same Zhu Cici from the verse ‘The most fleeting thing in this mortal world,

Is youth leaving the mirror, flowers parting from the trees’?”

“Yes, Your Majesty,” the maid Xiao Lan continued. “Speaking of which, this poem was actually written by Young Master Xu when he hosted Zhu Cici during his envoy mission to the Wu Kingdom.”

“Hmm.” The Dragon Empress nodded. “That poem is indeed quite well-written.”

Xiao Lan smiled. “At this Four Seas Grand Ceremony, we should have that Young Master Xu compose a poem for Your Majesty as well. In my humble opinion, Your Majesty is far more beautiful than Zhu Cici.”

“I’m already at this age—why would I need someone to compose a poem for me?” The Dragon Empress shook her head.

“Pass down the order. The Four Seas Grand Ceremony will be held in five days,” she said slowly.

“Five days?” Xiao Lan blinked in surprise. “Your Majesty, isn’t that a bit too rushed?”

“Why?” The Dragon Empress glanced at her. “Are we not prepared?”

“We can certainly be ready in time,” Xiao Lan replied.

“Then let’s start as soon as possible and end as soon as possible.” The Dragon Empress waved her hand dismissively.

“As you command, Your Majesty,” Xiao Lan nodded.

She had initially wanted to point out that such a short notice might make it difficult for guests to adjust and that the hospitality might not be as refined as it should be, potentially leading to criticism behind closed doors.

But she knew that if she had thought of it, her mistress surely had as well. Since the Dragon Empress wasn’t concerned, there was no point in raising the issue.

All she could do was execute the order to the best of her ability—nothing more.

“Then go and summon Xu Ming,” the Dragon Empress continued. “It’s time I met him.”

“Understood, Your Majesty.”

Having served as the Dragon Empress’s personal maid for a thousand years, Xiao Lan naturally understood what her mistress was thinking.

Her mistress likely just wanted to determine whether Xu Ming was the reincarnation of that person before the Four Seas Grand Ceremony.

Most of the time, whenever her mistress suspected someone of being his reincarnation, she would summon them immediately to assess whether they were truly him.

As the years passed, the Dragon Empress had encountered many candidates, but each time, the result was the same—disappointment.

Over time, she had begun to appear exhausted.

Perhaps, in a few more years, she would finally give up.

In Xiao Lan’s view, it would be best if her mistress could let go.

After all these years, it was truly time to move on. She couldn’t keep dwelling in the past.

With that thought, Xiao Lan took her leave and exited the palace.

At the same time, Xu Ming, who was dining in a restaurant, had just learned about a well-known yet unofficial “secret” of the Northern Sea Dragon Empress.

Xu Ming had already been aware that the Northern Sea Dragon Empress had an old lover, whom she had been searching for nearly ten thousand years.

This was something practically everyone in the world knew.

The Dragon Empress was known for her unwavering devotion—she had never taken another partner in all this time.

However, what Xu Ming hadn’t known was that, in her search for that man’s reincarnation, the Northern Sea Dragon Empress had established a special formation within the Dragon Palace.

That formation could roughly determine whether someone was his reincarnation.

But over the past few millennia, it had never succeeded.

The Dragon Empress had found numerous individuals with similar traits, but in the end, none of them were him.

Over the years, the number of people brought to the Dragon Palace because of this formation had grown to tens of thousands.

After testing them, the Dragon Empress would compensate them with some money and send them on their way.

Xu Ming had already guessed why the Dragon Empress had summoned him.

It was simple—he had been identified by that formation.

The Dragon Empress, following the principle of “better to be wrong than to miss a chance,” had summoned him to see for herself whether he was truly that person’s reincarnation.

But in Xu Ming’s opinion, there was no need to even think about it—he definitely wasn’t.

His soul came from Blue Star.

There was no way that Dragon Empress’s old lover had reincarnated there, right? Most likely, she would take one look at him, realize he wasn’t the one, and leave without another thought.

But then again, this world did have reincarnation. And yet, after nearly ten thousand years, the Dragon Empress had still not found him. That was some seriously bad luck.

In ten thousand years, wouldn’t a soul have long since worn away?

Could it be that her lover’s very soul had already been erased from existence? And the Dragon Empress simply refused to face that reality, so she kept searching in vain?

Xu Ming shook his head, clearing those thoughts from his mind.

That wasn’t his problem.

What puzzled him more was how that so-called formation had managed to lock onto him—someone whose soul didn’t even belong to this world.

There was no way he was the one she was looking for.

Maybe the formation had a bug? It had been running for nearly ten thousand years, after all. Malfunctions were inevitable.

Unfortunately, he was the unlucky one who now had to make a trip to the Dragon Palace because of it.

After chatting with some of the locals for a while, Xu Ming had just about finished his meal. Feeling generous, he paid for the whole table and stepped out of the restaurant.

But just as he exited, a woman dressed as a palace maid approached him.

Xu Ming’s brows furrowed slightly, and his instincts immediately went on high alert.

She might look like a mere maid, but the spiritual pressure radiating from her was overwhelming.

At the very least, she had to be at the Jade Purity Realm.

A Jade Purity Realm cultivator, dressed as a maid.

She was almost certainly the Dragon Empress’s personal attendant.

“This servant greets Young Master Xu,” the maid said, stepping forward and offering a polite bow.

Xu Ming returned the gesture. “And you are?”

The maid smiled. “This servant serves Her Majesty. Young Master Xu may call me Xiao Lan.”

“Miss Xiao Lan,” Xu Ming acknowledged.

Xiao Lan nodded. Despite being a powerful Jade Purity cultivator, she maintained a humble demeanor. “May I ask if Young Master Xu is free? Her Majesty wishes to meet you.”

Xu Ming chuckled. “Since Her Majesty invites me, I suppose I must make time, whether I have it or not.”

Not that he had a choice—this was her territory. How could he possibly refuse?

Xiao Lan’s eyes curved into a crescent smile. “In that case, please follow me.”

“After you, Miss Xiao Lan.”

“Please, Young Master.”

Xiao Lan turned and led the way toward the palace, with Xu Ming following behind.

Earlier, Xu Ming had felt a little uneasy, not knowing why he had been summoned.

But now that he understood the Dragon Empress’s reason, he wasn’t worried anymore.

Might as well take the chance to see for himself the legendary Northern Sea Dragon Empress.

Strictly speaking, she was technically a ten-thousand-year-old wife.

And if possible, he could also ask about that treasure.

After all, this trip to the Eastern Sea Dragon Palace wasn’t just about diplomacy—he had another goal. He needed to obtain that treasure for Qin Qingwan.

As he stepped into the palace, Xu Ming continued walking deeper inside.

Although he and the other envoys were staying within the palace grounds, their residence was actually in a transitional zone between the palace and the Dragon Capital.

The true heart of the palace—the place where the Northern Sea Dragon Empress ruled and lived—was strictly off-limits to outsiders unless they were specifically summoned.

Without a direct invitation, no one was allowed to enter.

Following Xiao Lan, Xu Ming moved deeper into the palace.

Before long, they arrived at a garden.

The moment Xu Ming stepped inside, he was immediately enveloped by a dense, overwhelming aura of spiritual energy.

“Young Master Xu, just follow this path straight ahead, and you will see Her Majesty. I will not be accompanying you any further.”

Xiao Lan stopped in her tracks and bowed slightly to Xu Ming.

“Thank you for your trouble, Miss Xiao Lan,” Xu Ming replied with a nod before continuing forward.

The garden was vast, filled with corals and spiritual flowers that could only survive in the ocean. Normally, a place of this size should have been a riot of colors.

Yet here, Xu Ming saw only two shades—white and pale pink.

These two colors were naturally clean and elegant, giving the entire garden a refined and serene atmosphere rather than appearing chaotic or overwhelming.

After walking about five hundred meters, Xu Ming came to a stop.

Not far ahead, a woman sat quietly on a stone chair.

She wore a light blue robe, her posture composed and tranquil.

Her gaze was lifted toward the sky, long eyelashes gently fluttering. Beneath them were a pair of deep blue eyes, as clear and brilliant as sapphires.

Her facial features were flawless—delicate and refined, with smooth, porcelain-like skin as fair as freshly fallen snow.

Even though she was seated, Xu Ming could tell she was exceptionally tall.

He estimated her height to be around 1.8 meters.

Draped in the flowing blue gown, her figure was graceful and perfectly proportioned.

If the top ten beauties of the world were ranked with equal standing in terms of facial features, then in Xu Ming’s eyes, this woman undeniably had the best figure he had ever seen.

Especially those golden-ratio long legs—even though they were hidden beneath the gown, he could vividly imagine their elegant, well-proportioned shape.

Xu Ming stepped forward and bowed.

“Wu Kingdom’s Xu Ming greets Your Majesty.”