ABRIWMTHM Chapter 92

That day, Er Ya asked Shi Xing to help Chi Yao address two issues in the mid-level mental sea. As Shi Xing performed the treatment, Er Ya recorded the data and discovered that Shi Xing’s healing mental power was more effective on Chi Yao than her own. Meanwhile, without the aid of the contract, the healing mental power could be exerted more thoroughly.

Shi Xing didn’t understand, “Why does the healing slow down once the contract is established?”

Er Ya pondered for a moment and came up with an absurd answer, “Maybe… your mental power contract absorbs some.”

As soon as the words left her mouth, they felt a glow emanating from the contract hovering above Chi Yao’s mental sea, as if it acknowledged this.

Er Ya: “…”

Shi Xing: “…”

Er Ya: “I remember you saying before that you could transmit mental power to the contract, and it could absorb it, right?”

This time, before Shi Xing could respond, the contract emitted an even brighter light in their perception.

Er Ya pinched her brow.

Shi Xing tried to feed some of his mental power to the contract. Goodness, it was all absorbed, not a bit went into Chi Yao’s mental sea.

Er Ya fell silent again.

She had to affirm, “Looks like it’s true.”

Without waiting for Shi Xing to speak, Er Ya made a decision: “Then don’t use the contract for the external mid-level issues; just rely on your rank to handle it directly.”

“Today is just the beginning. Going forward, to catch up on the progress, after each treatment, I’ll only leave you enough mental power for daily activities, making sure your health doesn’t go awry, okay?”

Upon receiving a definite answer, Er Ya decisively said, “Alright, let’s go with this. If you have any remaining mental power tonight, feel free to decide whether to provide it to the contract.”

The contract seemed to understand, its glow dimming.

Shi Xing nodded and curiously asked, “Where does the contract’s energy come from?”

Er Ya pointed at Chi Yao.

Chi Yao had a calm expression.

Shi Xing: “?”

Er Ya: “You thought it exists independently? How is that possible?”

“It must rely on the mental power of the bound individual to sustain its energy. So if the bound individual’s condition is good, it can absorb more energy and function better. If the condition is poor… well, you’ve seen it before; it can only barely hold on…”

“As for how it transforms or alters the absorbed mental power of the Imperial citizens, only the vanished Blue Star might know.”

After the treatment ended, and after discussing the follow-up schedule, Er Ya, citing the absence of Yan Changyue, sent Shi Xing to retrieve some crystal fruit. Shi Xing complied cheerfully, rolling up his sleeves to choose the sweetest ones in the kitchen.

Once they faded from perception, Chi Yao asked, “You sent him away; what did you want to say to me?”

Er Ya didn’t like eating fruit, and this was clearly an excuse.

And there were only three people in the shielding room; sending Shi Xing away must mean there was something to discuss without him.

And indeed, there was.

Er Ya glanced at Chi Yao, straightforwardly stating, “In your perception, Shi Xing’s mental sea hasn’t expanded much lately, right?”

Normally not paying attention, Chi Yao measured and compared it carefully and responded, “It seems… yes.”

“Don’t always bully Star Star.” It was a non-sequitur, and Er Ya added.

Chi Yao raised an eyebrow, “?”

Er Ya: “Too many traces, I saw them.”

Chi Yao immediately denied it, “Impossible, I didn’t leave any in obvious places.”

Er Ya: “…”

Er Ya lifted her eyelids and looked at Chi Yao coolly, suddenly saying, “Is everyone in your Beierman family this thick-skinned?”

Chi Yao replied calmly, “My blood relation with Fei Chu is through the Chi family; it has nothing to do with Beierman.”

After a moment of silence, Er Ya didn’t argue further and stated the truth: “The essence of Shi Xing’s mental power has become increasingly mixed with your mental power’s aura.”

In other words, Shi Xing had absorbed quite a bit of Chi Yao’s mental power.

And since Shi Xing wouldn’t really use Chi Yao as a substitute for crystals, the origins of this change were self-evident.

Chi Yao clearly stated, “I knew it couldn’t have been seen.”

Er Ya: “…”

Finally, Chi Yao returned to the topic, “So, what do you want to say?”

Er Ya: “Shi Xing has been matched with you for almost a year, right?”

Chi Yao nodded, “After the new year, it’ll be a year. His birthday is soon, and Xu Jin is currently planning it.”

Er Ya: “In the first year, he absorbed a lot of energy from high-level star beasts in the Northern Territory, and it was all fresh. The maturity period is divided into two stages; if you break it down further, it can be three phases. Towards the end of the first stage, his mental power level will be relatively close to that of the post-maturity period. The second year, he’ll grow other things.”

Er Ya succinctly stated, “For this treatment, I need him to still be in the first stage; do you understand?”

The probability of issues during the first stage of the maturity period is relatively small. The second stage may seem slow-growing, yet the mortality rate is historically the highest during this period.

Chi Yao lowered his gaze for a moment, “Do you think my mental power…”

Knowing that persuading Chi Yao would be futile, and not wishing to pry or listen to any private interactions between the young couple, Er Ya only said four words, “Just in case.”

When Shi Xing returned, the two had just finished a conversation filled with intricacies.

He had not heard that conversation laden with hidden meanings.

The New Year was approaching, and Shi Xing’s birthday was before it. Xu Jin had consulted both Shi Xing and Chi Yao and ultimately decided not to make a big announcement; instead, they would hold a birthday celebration for Shi Xing within the palace, organized by Chi Yao’s fixed followers.

The weather in the Imperial Capital was relatively warm, with snow typically falling for only two months each year.

As the snowfall duration gradually increased, Shi Xing’s life was quietly changing.

First, regarding the military aspect, Chi Yao had previously mentioned wanting to allocate troops from the First Legion to Shi Xing, and finally, he had the time to act before the new year. Aside from a few small teams that couldn’t be moved, nearly all the remaining six or seven teams, upon consulting the heads, expressed a willingness to be assigned to Shi Xing. The one team that remained silent was not that they didn’t want to go, but rather their vacation timing perfectly conflicted with Shi Xing’s arrival at Chi Yao’s side, leading them to believe the odds were slim, so they simply chose not to mention it.

Chi Yao discussed with Shi Xing, and aside from the team that originally belonged to Fei Chu, he allocated the team led by Tan Jue and another familiar leader to Shi Xing’s command, with Fei Chu acting as the intermediary to facilitate their integration.

Then there were the internal affairs.

With the daily treatments for Chi Yao and the military integration now scheduled, Tang Mi’s and Wei Wan’s feedback method was no longer sufficient; delays had become too long and wasted Shi Xing’s time, along with the two civil officials.

Chi Yao noticed something unexpected during a palace meeting, as Ren Yan Yong raised his hand, stating he could assist Shi Xing with daily governance on a one-on-one basis.

Everyone in attendance cast surprised looks at Ren Yan Yong, causing his face to flush with embarrassment.

Fearing that others might think he was trying to curry favor with Shi Xing, Ren Yan Yong straightened his face and awkwardly explained, “I’m just concerned that His Highness may not handle matters delicately enough. The Empire will still need to rely on His Majesty and him in the future, so since I have time lately, cough, it should be me.”

After completing his statement and fearing others wouldn’t believe him, he added, “After all, the time isn’t long every day.”

What was genuinely needed was someone who could make decisions immediately.

Tang Mi’s administrative skills were still lacking in some aspects.

And if there were differing opinions, they could still report to Chi Yao afterwards. But switching from Tang Mi to Ren Yan Yong meant that the parts of public affairs that had already reached consensus could move into the next process on the same day.

Chi Yao smiled and, not waiting for Ren Yan Yong to change his mind, confirmed it immediately.

In the beginning, those living in the dwelling were worried the two would have conflicts, yet Shi Xing, who remained very obedient regarding knowledge he didn’t understand, treated Ren Yan Yong’s coming to the palace like a pilgrimage. Gradually, they discovered a different side of Shi Xing, and both got along well; later on, Shi Xing even offered crystal fruit to Ren Yan Yong.

While the attendants were taken aback, one day, Ren Yan Yong also took a fruit out of the palace, seemingly casually but with every gesture revealing intention, flaunting it in front of his old friend Wei Zhen.

These were all small changes in life.

But the results brought about by these changes were direct.

Ren Yan Yong felt that Shi Xing learned very quickly, transferring part of the Elder Council’s matters that required royal approval but had been neglected by Chi Yao over to Shi Xing. As the New Year approached, looking at how proficiently Shi Xing handled things, Chi Yao replaced Ren Yan Yong with Wei Zhen to teach Shi Xing the Senate’s thinking patterns.

And predictably, after a while, Wei Zhen also left the palace with a smile on his face, carrying crystal fruit.

Shi Xing’s representation in the Senate had increased.

Gradually, with a subtlety that was slow but substantial, he was firmly entering the Imperial internal affairs system, gaining his own voice.

The busy days flew by, and as the New Year and Shi Xing’s birthday neared, Er Ya finally announced that the mid-level treatment of Chi Yao’s mental sea was completed. She granted him two days of rest and began preparations to clear the inner layer.

Chi Yao’s inner mental sea could only be accessed through the contract. There would be losses in healing mental power, but there was no other choice.

After all, given Shi Xing’s current situation, he couldn’t reach that depth solely relying on his own mental power.

Thus, before starting, Shi Xing specifically fed the contract for two more days, hoping it would take less intermediary charges and allow more healing mental power to project into the prince’s mental sea.

After such a long preparation, this day finally arrived.

On this day, it wasn’t just Shi Xing and Er Ya who were nervous; everyone in the palace was on edge.

Not to mention the additional guarding troops, Fei Chu, Tan Jue, and other military officers also sat in a circle outside the shielding room—fearing Chi Yao’s mental power might go out of control, they could construct an appropriate barrier.

When the treatment started, the attendants living in the dwelling were cleared to wait outside for the results.

Xu Jin looked somewhat nervous as he gazed at the dwelling, unsure of what to pray for. He took deep breaths, exhaled slowly, thought for a long time, and finally decided to leave it to fate and just wait for the outcome.

Yan Changyue had faith, always praying.

Er Ya, together with Shi Xing, reconfirmed that all injuries in Chi Yao’s mid-level mental sea had been completely cleared. Finally, Er Ya said, “Let’s begin.”

The exploration was cautious.

Er Ya: “Take it slow.”

“My mental power will stay with the contract; if anything happens, I’ll lend support; remember what I told you?”

Shi Xing wore a serious face and nodded, “Got it, regardless of other injuries, I’ll try using the mental sea to delve into the cracks first to see if I can absorb the residual star beast mental power from the prince’s mental sea.”

He was methodical and logical.

Er Ya was very satisfied, “Yes.”

“Go slow downwards; if something feels off, draw back the mental power.”

“Okay.”

Although Shi Xing had heard this many times, he showed no impatience, his eyebrows set resolutely.

Er Ya added, “When you touch the cracks, it might not be very comfortable; Your Highness, bear with it and try to control yourself.”

Chi Yao closed his eyes and didn’t respond, but Er Ya knew that discomfort had already begun.

After all, she had experienced it before.

However, her attempts had been disappointing. As soon as she made contact with the mental power at the bottom of the other party’s mental sea, the contract would become ineffective, and she would be forced out due to being overwhelmed by Chi Yao’s mental power level.

But Shi Xing was different.

He had a different mental sea and could absorb violent mental power.

It all depended on…

With this thought, in their perception, Shi Xing’s mental power had already begun to search down into the cracks.

Shi Xing: “How strange, the mental power in this area…”

“What’s wrong?” Er Ya asked, tense.

Shi Xing activated his first talent and indeed found something different.

Shi Xing: “The energy in this area doesn’t seem like the prince’s; it feels like it’s coming from the contract.”

Realizing something, Er Ya suddenly understood, “The contract’s range of effect only extends to here; it suppresses the different mental powers beneath these cracks.”

Shi Xing probed further down, frowning.

The mental power began to mix; aside from the contract’s calm mental energy, he could also sense a very active and destructively high mental power. However… instead of feeling afraid, there was an indescribable excitement surging within his mental sea.

Specifically, he felt the chaotic energy flows beneath the outer layer of his mental sea intensified, swirling back and forth in the hollow cracks.

It felt like it was emerging from the vacuum below, and it was as if this mental power stimulated his mental sea.

He…

Seemed to be drawn to something, and for a moment, Shi Xing felt a sense of daze.

When he regained his senses, Er Ya was calling for him to retreat. Just as Shi Xing snapped back to reality, he realized that his mental power had already broken through the protective boundaries of the contract and surged rapidly into the crack…

“Back, disconnect!”

“Cut off the mental power!”

After calling out twice, Shi Xing’s dazed expression alerted Er Ya that something was wrong. She quickly instructed, “Chi Yao, you cut off his mental power.”

It was Chi Yao’s mental sea, so he could certainly do it.

But it was still too late; at the moment Shi Xing’s mental power made contact with the energy in the crack, something surged through the connected mental power into his body, and it was absorbed into the outer layer. The chaotic energy flows beneath the beach became unprecedentedly active, tightly shackling this power and pushing it deeper down.

Shi Xing was not even clear on when Chi Yao cut off his mental power.

When all the energy disappeared from the bottom of his mental sea, Shi Xing’s body swayed, and he braced himself on the floor, barely maintaining his sitting position.

Er Ya: “Are you alright?”

Chi Yao: “Star Star, what happened to you?”

Two concerned faces loomed close, and Shi Xing took a moment to collect himself, touching his chest and hesitantly saying, “I’m… okay?”

He didn’t look okay at all, covered in cold sweat, his complexion pale.

But hearing his clear speech, Er Ya sighed in relief.

Just as she exhaled halfway, Shi Xing swayed again, a small motion, but to both their surprise, he suddenly closed his eyes and collapsed toward the floor.

Chi Yao reacted swiftly and caught him, both were alarmed.

“Star Star?!”

“Star Star!!”