Chapter 18: A Branch of Red Apricot Reaches Over the Wall

When Su Han emerged from the Cultivation Chamber, it was already the morning of the second day.

The stone doors of the Cultivation Chamber opened. Seeing Su Han walk out, both the Princess Consort and Prince Jing blanked for a moment.

"It's... over already?"

Looking at Su Han, who seemed completely unchanged, Prince Jing couldn't help but feel suspicious. "Did your Foundation Establishment succeed or fail?"

Prince Jing hadn't believed Su Han's claim that Foundation Establishment would take him a day.

Even a peerless genius like himself had taken over a year.

What gave his son the right to accomplish it in a single day?

Furthermore, having waited outside all day, Prince Jing hadn't sensed the slightest fluctuation in the surrounding Spiritual Qi.

Foundation Establishment was not child's play. Even ordinary Cultivators who spent years or decades on it had to absorb Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi from their surroundings when circulating ordinary Cultivation Methods to replenish themselves.

Let alone his son, who claimed it would only take one day.

If the lengthy Foundation Establishment process were truly condensed into a single day, the resulting Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi fluctuations would probably be no weaker than breaking through from the Spirit Platform Realm to the Divine Sea Realm, right?

Yet...

Faced with Prince Jing's suspicion, Su Han simply nodded. "It succeeded."

"Succeeded?"

Prince Jing looked entirely unconvinced. "Are you serious?"

Su Han smiled faintly. Raising his hand, he threw a punch straight at Prince Jing.

He only used ten percent of his strength for this punch, but even so, it was no weaker than the full-powered strike of a Cultivator at Foundation Establishment Perfection.

Caught off guard, Prince Jing didn't even have time to dodge before Su Han's fist was right in front of him.

In his haste, Prince Jing was startled but not panicked. Circulating his Spiritual Qi to protect his body, he raised his hand and used a technique to deflect the massive force with minimal effort, neutralizing Su Han's punch.

Even so, after deflecting the ten-percent-strength punch, Prince Jing was still forced to stumble three steps back.

"Are you trying to murder your own father?!"

Steadying himself, Prince Jing glared at Su Han in exasperation.

However, the deep shock in his eyes could not be hidden.

"Come to think of it, Han, did you really only start your Foundation Establishment yesterday? You haven't been doing it under the radar this whole time just to surprise me today, have you?"

Su Han rolled his eyes, too lazy to explain to his unreliable father.

He wondered if his father truly had no clue whether he had any cultivation base before.

Seeing each other day in and day out, wouldn't a Divine Sea Realm Cultivator be able to tell if he had been cultivating?

Oh, wait. He really wouldn't be able to tell.

Foundation Establishment primarily developed the human body's potential without manifesting Spiritual Qi externally. Unless one intentionally probed, there was truly nothing to see.

Prince Jing accepted his son's eye-roll without the slightest psychological burden.

Then, slapping his forehead in belated realization, he pulled a thread-bound book that still smelled of fresh ink from his robes.

"Right, your mother asked me to write this out in advance. It's the royal family's Spirit Platform Realm Cultivation Method. Since you've just completed your Foundation Establishment, it's exactly what you need right now.

"As for the Divine Sea Realm and Immortal Platform Realm Cultivation Methods, come ask me for them once your Spirit Platform Realm reaches Perfection."

Looking at the Spirit Platform Realm Cultivation Method that had clearly been handwritten over the last few days, Su Han didn't hesitate to... reject it.

"There's no need. I have the subsequent Cultivation Methods as well."

"You do?"

Prince Jing blanked for a moment before deep interest flashed across his face.

"Did the ancestors leave them behind..."

Before he could finish, the Princess Consort viciously pinched his waist.

"Since Han has the subsequent Cultivation Methods, your father and I won't worry about it.

"You've been in the Cultivation Chamber for a day and a night; you must be hungry, right?

"I've had some food prepared. Go back, change your clothes, wash up, and come eat."

After making the arrangements, the Princess Consort pulled Prince Jing away from the Cultivation Chamber doors.

From beginning to end, the Princess Consort hadn't asked a single question about what kind of Cultivation Method Su Han possessed or where it came from.

A Cultivation Method that allowed someone to complete Foundation Establishment in a single day was unheard of in this era. If word got out, the top Major Sects and prominent factions of the world would likely spy on them from the shadows, or even resort to outright robbery.

As for the subsequent methods, even if they weren't as heaven-defying as the one-day Foundation Establishment method, they should at least somewhat match its profundity, right?

Naturally, the fewer people who knew about such a thing, the better. Ideally... Su Han should be the only one who knew. Only then could potential dangers be minimized.

Attended by his two personal maids, Xi and Qiao, Su Han washed up and changed into clean clothes.

After eating lunch with Prince Jing and the Princess Consort, Su Han learned from the Princess Consort that his Sister and the Eldest Princess had only returned at nightfall yesterday and had left again early this morning without even having breakfast.

They were acting so mysteriously that Su Han couldn't help but feel a little curious.

And they had claimed he was the one who had changed.

His Sister was the one who had truly changed. She actually had little secrets now.

He remembered how she never used to keep secrets from him. She used to dote on him so much—whenever she had something delicious, she would share it with him, and whenever there was something fun, she would bring him along.

If anyone bullied him, his Sister was always the first to stand up for him.

Eighty percent of the princes and princesses in the imperial palace had been beaten up by him and his Sister more than once.

However, curiosity aside, since she didn't want to talk about it, he naturally wouldn't be so foolish as to run up and ask: Sister, do you and Miss Feng have a little secret you're hiding from me?

That wouldn't be straightforward—that would just be stupid!

After eating and drinking his fill, Su Han took Su Xiao'Er and left the Prince's Residence.

He had spent an entire day and consumed one hundred and forty-four Elixirs from twelve furnace batches to finally complete his Foundation Establishment.

To Su Han, it was as if a page in his life had been turned. Unfolding before him was a brand-new chapter for him to write as he pleased.

And if he wanted this brand-new chapter to be thrilling and exciting, he needed to light up Skill Trees to intercept Dao Rhymes and feed back his cultivation base, while simultaneously acquiring various skills to enhance his Combat Power.

But Skill Trees weren't the kind of thing that would just run up to him while he sat at home.

After wandering around Lingzhou City with Su Xiao'Er for half the day, Su Han hadn't seen a single wild Skill Tree.

He had, however, seen the branches of a few Skill Trees sticking out over the walls of some family compounds from afar as they passed by.

Yet, despite discovering these Skill Trees, they were all planted on other people's properties.

Other people's Skill Trees were owned items. Even if he wanted them, he would need the owners' permission.

Lighting up someone's Skill Tree, intentionally burning his own clothes, and then running into their house to play the victim like he did at the Gao family's home—doing that once was enough.

After all, he was the dignified Crown Prince Jing. He had an image to maintain!

Therefore, after wandering around the entirety of Lingzhou City, Su Xiao'Er noticed something very strange.

For some unknown reason, his Crown Prince was pacing back and forth around the back wall of the Lord Governor's mansion.

Every time he passed the apricot tree sticking out over the wall, he couldn't help but look up at it.

So, as they passed beneath this apricot tree for the thirteenth time, seeing his Crown Prince look up yet again, Su Xiao'Er finally couldn't hold back his doubts any longer.

"Crown Prince, isn't it just an apricot tree? You've looked at it thirteen times.

"Even if the few red apricot flowers on the branch sticking out over the wall are pretty, there's no need for you to pace back and forth looking at it thirteen times, is there?"

Su Han was speechless.

"Su Xiao'Er, what did you just say?"

Su Xiao'Er lowered his head. "Forgive me, Crown Prince."

"No, I'm telling you to repeat what you just said."

Su Xiao'Er gritted his teeth. "It's just an apricot tree. Even if the red apricot flowers growing over the wall are pretty, there's no need for you to pace back and forth looking at it thirteen times."

"Red apricot flowers? Over the wall? Pacing back and forth?"

Suddenly, it was as if something clicked in Su Han's mind.

"Spring's boundless beauty cannot be contained; a branch of red apricot reaches over the wall."

Su Xiao'Er praised, "Crown Prince, good poem! Good poem! I was wondering why you were pacing back and forth. So you were waiting for poetic inspiration."

Su Han shook his head. "No, the main point I want to express is... a red apricot reaching over the wall."

"A red apricot... reaching over the wall?"

Su Xiao'Er subconsciously glanced overhead, where... several apricot blossoms were blooming beautifully.