Divine Harem: My Sect of Heavenly Beauties

Upon close inspection, Shen Yu noticed injuries on the demonic tree's soul. Not only that, but even the physical body, which was the tree itself, had weakened.

"It must have been injured in some battle, but who could damage a Tier 8 Spiritual Creature's soul to such a degree? Even though it has healed over the years, the marks are still there on its soul," Shen Yu muttered, standing on a branch of the said demonic tree. He looked at it closely and narrowed his eyes, becoming confused by its state.

[You're forgetting something, Master. The question is, how did it get here?]

Shen Yu was surprised, realizing he had indeed overlooked this matter. The system was right; how did the Devourer actually end up in such a desolate space?

The Devourer tends to migrate occasionally after it has sucked a region dry of its Qi, and by that logic, the Devourer shouldn't be here.

He had checked the Qi leylines of the Qing Empire, and there were no signs of them being too dry. Although they were showing signs of depletion, he was sure it was due to the recent effects of the Devourer.

So, it meant that the Devourer had come to the Qing Empire even though it was weak for it. It didn't make sense.

So, why and how did the Devourer actually get here?

His head suddenly snapped towards the west, where he could see a tall wall standing high enough to touch even the heavens.

"The Hollow Mountains..."

Shen Yu's face turned grim. He could think of nothing but the Hollow Mountains that could have injured the Devourer to such a degree.

Even though the Devourer was a calamity to humans, there were Spiritual Creatures that could crush it like an ant. And those Abominations resided in the peaks of the Hollow Mountains.

They were the main reason any sects from the outside world never tried to send their full force to conquer the Qing Empire.

If even a single one of those Abominations decided to come down, then their Sect would cease to exist. There was just no way for them to defeat those Abominations. Even the major Sects were helpless against them.

Well, there was a chance for them if they fought by going all out, but nobody was stupid enough to do it.

However, there was one more question: did the Devourer really come down to the Qing Empire just to recover?

He glanced at the tree, its branches swaying in the wind, bringing a strange tranquility to the atmosphere. It was as if he could just relax here, no matter what was happening in his life.

"Heh, bastard. Even when it's sleeping, it has never stopped sucking people dry. Even though the influence is small because of its slumber, it is very terrifying. If someone really fell asleep here, they might as well say goodbye to their life."

Shen Yu shook his head and once again rose into the air. He had turned himself invisible, so he wasn't worried about being noticed.

He turned his head to find Qing Zhiyan's carriage. It had reached the Imperial Palace, and despite being a princess, she didn't receive any welcome.

The guards just bowed their heads slightly, not even showing proper respect, and let her in.

Shen Yu scoffed, wondering if he should just throw a dildo at them.

[Master... others can become yandere, but not you. You know the consequences of it.]

Shen Yu instantly coughed, hiding his reaction.

"I don't know what you're talking about."

[...]

[Just be careful.]

Shen Yu chuckled, sensing the sincere concern in the system's voice. He then gave a last glance at the Devourer, and after making sure it was slumbering, he went toward the carriage.

After entering the massive fortress through the main gate, the carriage headed towards the central building, which spoke of grandeur. It was huge and carved with precision, clear from just a single look.

The carriage was stopped by two guards as it got close, and after some exchange of words, Hastor jumped down from his seat, glaring at the two guards.

Being under the pressure of a Nascent Soul Realm Cultivator was no joke, and they broke out in a sweat. But they still stood their ground as they were ordered.

Hastor snorted and didn't pursue the matter, knowing the things happening behind the scenes. He simply reached for the carriage door and opened it.

Qing Zhiyan gracefully stepped out of the carriage, a veil over her face. She nodded at Hastor and then began walking towards the giant metal gates of the building.

The guards sighed in relief when the Princess walked away and returned to their positions.

Shen Yu was watching everything from above, and he couldn't help but sigh.

"Really? The usual?"

[I mean, just because you hate these tropes because of how much they've been used, you can't deny they actually happen in real life. Even those urban novels you read happened in real life, so this royal family and politics stuff is pretty believable.]

Shen Yu shrugged, still finding it weird. He then came down and entered the building through the metal gates.

After passing through many corridors, he finally reached a grand hall where he could hear noise. He entered it casually, smirking as he remembered those movies where the main character turns invisible and does many things.

[Master... you're really a pervert.]

'Movies! I meant movies! You dirty-minded system. Seriously, I didn't even do anything this time.'

The sight that greeted him upon entering surprised him slightly. Qing Zhiyan was standing in the center of the hall with Hastor standing a few feet behind her.

Now that he was looking at the hall properly, he instantly understood what it was.

'Holy moly! A Raj Darban?'

Jiang Wei exclaimed mentally. Many seats were placed upon small pedestals on both sides of the hall, with many people sitting on them.

'Wait! So, even the Emperor is here?'

Shen Yu thought, turning his head towards the center of the hall, where, on a crimson red throne, a man sat, his cold eyes looking directly at Qing Zhiyan.

The Emperor, Qing Yicheng.

[A/n: Raj Darban = imperial court basically.]