Illustration 126: Internship at the Hundred Flowers Palace

"I know. There are a few works here intended for the Red Leaf Gallery. Only the 'Resurrection' and the 'Clear Sky Joyous Flower' are ready." Sangsang brought out the pieces she had been rushing to complete.

Sena nodded as he inspected them. His gaze lingered on the 'Clear Sky Joyous Flower,' and his expression shifted from surprise to a wry, helpless smile. "You really do hold a grudge. The Saintess of Hundred Flowers will be even more agitated by this painting than she was by 'Morning Lotus.' You know full well that she is most sensitive about others discovering the truth of her origin."

Sangsang laughed. "What does this painting have to do with her? It’s common knowledge that the Joyous Flower is known for its fecundity and resilience. If she were truly that sensitive, she shouldn't have chosen it as her attribute flower to begin with."

Sena shook his head. "She hadn't condensed her generative essence when she chose her attribute flower; she was primarily studying the Law of Life, and the Joyous Flower was a perfect fit." He recalled that back then, Bai Xing had been so full of herself, convinced she would one day become the Goddess of Life. Unfortunately, after stalling at the origin stage for several years, she took a shortcut, using the fetus she was carrying at the time to condense a generative-type star core, all while keeping it hidden from those around her.

"Sangsang, I have something good for you." The Heavenly Emperor’s voice arrived before he did. By the time his voice settled, he had drifted into the living room, hands clasped behind his back. "Guess what it is?"

"A Time-Lock Disk," Sangsang replied calmly.

The Heavenly Emperor paused, then turned to look at Xiao Jin. "You tipped her off again! You were the one who said you wanted me to surprise her."

Xiao Jin looked up at the ceiling, quietly transmitting to Sangsang, "I didn't tell him you have the Annihilation Spear." The way he sought praise made Sangsang smile.

"You two are definitely whispering behind my back again." The Heavenly Emperor raised his eyebrows, pulled his hands from behind his back, and shoved the item into Sangsang’s hands. "Here, a Time-Lock Disk. It can freeze most laws and origins, including space-time, though for a shorter duration than other laws. It’s perfect for you."

The disk was barely larger than a palm, resembling a clock with a ring of markings and two hands—one long, one short. The long hand indicated the surrounding law attributes; aligning the short hand with the long one triggered the lock. Once locked, the short hand would rotate automatically, releasing the hold when it completed a full circle and aligned with the long hand again.

Sangsang flipped her hand and tossed the Annihilation Spear to him. "Here, a return gift."

The Annihilation Spear resembled an energy sword, consisting only of a handle a few feet long; it would only manifest a spearhead when infused with the power of laws.

The Heavenly Emperor examined the stick-like object, then his eyes lit up. He infused it with the power of space-time and watched as the energy-condensed spearhead emerged, eager to test its might.

"Wait." Sena moved faster than Sangsang, pressing down the Heavenly Emperor’s raised hand. "The Annihilation Spear can cause space-time to collapse; don't go testing it randomly." He looked at Sangsang with a touch of reproach. "You lean toward defense, which is why His Majesty gifted you the Annihilation Spear to boost your offense. The Heavenly Emperor leans toward offense, and the Time-Lock Disk will improve his defense."

Before Sangsang could speak, the Heavenly Emperor interjected, "I like the Annihilation Spear. Good name, and the attributes suit my tastes."

"I think the Time-Lock Disk is great, too." Sangsang toyed with the disk. While she favored defense, she wasn't without offensive capabilities. It was just that since arriving at the temple, her skirmishes had been for the sake of learning. She had never been forced into a life-or-death battle, nor had she needed to control others or use her Dark Art paintings.

If one spoke of offense, her 'Divine Tomb' was enough to ambush even Mystic-tier experts. With the suppression of the Primal Demon Sacred Heart, all her laws were channeled into it—primarily space-time and devouring—and it was constantly being refined. Even that freak, the Heavenly Emperor, claimed he couldn't handle it if he lingered near the edges; she simply chose not to use it unless necessary.

Besides, the Heavenly Emperor was always courting trouble. If he ever provoked a true expert, having the Annihilation Spear would keep him safer. He could trigger a space-time collapse and use the resulting shockwave to slip into a spatial rift. Unless the opponent was also a master of space-time laws with a much higher cultivation, they wouldn't even be able to track his shadow.

Sena didn't press the issue further. After all, the items were already theirs, and even if His Majesty Anthony were here, he wouldn't force them to change their minds.

Xiao Jin changed the subject. "Sangsang, the knight team roster is out. Do you want to see it?"

The Heavenly Emperor stopped fiddling with the spear and leaned in, nodding repeatedly. "I chose them all. I used my Eyes of Space-Time to carefully examine their potential futures. Even if they looked good, I rejected anyone without Mystic-tier potential. There’s one sword cultivator who is quite interesting; he’s already at the Mystic tier, and I feel he has some connection to you."

"A sword cultivator?" Sangsang recalled, looking at the light screen Xiao Jin had opened. "Is it the one from the Divine Tomb?"

Xiao Jin adjusted the list. "Here it is. Sword cultivator Yi Yu, master of the Glazed Sword Heart, hailing from the Thousand Thunder Star Region. You passed through there when you arrived with the Heavenly Emperor."

The Heavenly Emperor licked his lips and narrowed his eyes. "I remember. The Thunder Cloud Star Beast, right?"

The multi-dimensional recording on the profile was indeed the person they had encountered in the Divine Tomb. His sword intent seemed to soar even higher than before, which was puzzling. "His potential is excellent. With just the Glazed Sword Heart, plenty of organizations would be willing to accept him as a core reserve. Why would he come here to be an ordinary guardian knight for me?"

The Heavenly Emperor tilted his head, pondering. "I didn't feel like there was anything wrong with it."

"I didn't mean whether it was 'good' or 'bad'." Sangsang felt helpless as the Heavenly Emperor and Xiao Jin stared at her in perfect unison.

Green Bud had been sent to the Green Light Academy by Ye Xiu, and the young Dragon Lord had been taken back to the clan grounds by his elders for training. White Thorn preferred staying in the laboratory. Dodo was left only with an intelligent nanny and a few pets, and his favorite was the big white wolf.

Sangsang watched the lonely child brushing the big white wolf's fur and made a decision. As for the Heavenly Emperor, he only cared about the portion of Sangsang's genes within Dodo and didn't mind his future; hearing that sending him to the Galaxy Civilization would be best for everyone, he immediately agreed.

While the Heavenly Emperor was being escorted by Kane to the Judgment Knight training base, Sangsang departed for the Palace of Hundred Flowers.

To divert outside attention from the space-time collapse incident, Sangsang's internship began under the spotlight, with an honor guard of intern saintesses clearing the way and a promotional film crew in tow.

The Saintess of Hundred Flowers, who had been in seclusion for a long time, made her first public appearance since the Sang Hongye incident. She remained as dignified and gentle as ever, cordially receiving the intern Sang Hongye. The two beautiful women, one large and one small, chatted and laughed, presenting a harmonious atmosphere to the world, declaring that their relationship was not as adversarial as the rumors on the Star Network suggested.

However, the sharp-eyed netizens would not let a single detail slip. Some noticed that the Saintess of Hundred Flowers' gaze would inadvertently sweep over High Priest Sena, who stood behind Sang Hongye, her watery eyes filled with a hint of resentment that was quite alluring.

"Sang Hongye is amazing! My Queen is a fan of hers and even grabbed one of the first spots in the Danxia faith district opening."

"My baby is a fan too. Now she insists on changing majors to join the Knight Academy and become her guardian knight. We're from the Spider Clan; it's not a good fit for the knight major at all. It's such a headache."