Chapter 4094: Laying the Cards on the Table
The Glazed Divine Palace floated above the vast, boundless cosmic nebula. Stars, like gems, dotted the colorful nebula, and occasionally, streaks of divine light could be seen flashing by.
Zhang Ruochen wore a green robe, his hair tied up with a wooden hairpin, giving him a refined, scholarly appearance with an ethereal, immortal aura. Carrying a bamboo painting tube, he walked up toward the divine palace.
Over a dozen stone clan divine beasts of various forms guarding the palace saw this intruder. They bared their fangs and claws, smoke billowing from their noses, exuding fierce killing intent. But with just a single glance from Zhang Ruochen, the ferocious stone beasts retreated like frightened kittens, lying down on the ground.
"Greetings, Lord Imperial Dust!"
Two female divine generals of the Soul-Suppressing Clan knelt on one knee before the main gate of the divine palace.
Lianxi had been cultivating under Lady Shiji. Naturally, the cultivators of the Soul Realm and the Soul-Suppressing Clan had relocated to the starry regions surrounding the Glazed Divine Palace.
Lianxi walked quickly out of the divine palace. Her loose, dark black mysterious robe contrasted sharply with her fair, snow-white skin. She possessed the aura of the Indestructible Infinite level, yet within her eyes hid an indescribable, unfathomable tenderness like flowing water.
She had always been an extremely contradictory person. From the cold and aloof Shadowless Fairy at the beginning, to the scheming and calculating Great Xi King, then to her patient and submissive period in the Hell Realm, followed by her return to the Heavenly Court as the radiant and sacred Palace Master of the Judgment Hall, and later as Empress Xi and Soul Mother.
Now, there was no longer any obvious light or evil about her. She had truly grown into a powerhouse of her generation, possessing extremely high attainments in both spiritual power and martial arts.
"Greetings, Lord Imperial Dust."
Lianxi bowed slightly at the palace gate, but she also blocked Zhang Ruochen's path.
Zhang Ruochen smiled warmly, raised his hand, and walked inside, saying, "What's the relationship between us? Why be so polite with me?"
"Lord Imperial Dust!"
Lianxi called out to stop Zhang Ruochen, looking somewhat troubled. "The Empress's rules..."
"I understand. I bathed and burned incense before coming. Smell for yourself if you don't believe me." As Zhang Ruochen entered the divine palace, he saw a beam of light shine down upon the divine throne above, and then Lady Shiji's incarnation sat down upon it. She was still as beautiful as ever, stunningly graceful, with cloud-like hair and flowing ribbons, but she had no image of a powerhouse at all, leaning sideways against the back of the throne.
Lady Shiji propped her head up with one hand, saying, "Where has Lord Imperial Dust been for these past five hundred years? Do you know how many cultivators in the world are looking for you?"
Zhang Ruochen walked step by step to the center of the great hall. He glanced at a small door covered by a bead curtain, ten zhang to the right of the divine throne. Passing through that door led to the Hundred Flowers Garden Small World.
The Hundred Flowers Garden Small World was Lady Shiji's private residence, isolated from the outside world.
"Of course, I was in seclusion healing my injuries. The battle with Corpse Yan left me severely wounded." Zhang Ruochen let out a long sigh.
Lianxi, who had followed in from behind, had two divine generals of the Soul-Suppressing Clan bring a chair and place it behind Zhang Ruochen.
Zhang Ruochen did not sit down. Instead, he placed the painting tube in his hand on top of the chair.
Lady Shiji was visibly moved. "I've already heard. You joined forces with Heavenly Mother to confront the Primordial Ancestor, and you almost fought to a draw."
"A draw? How could it be that easy? Those are just exaggerations from the lower-level cultivators!"
Zhang Ruochen's eyes held both intense fear and boundless longing. "If Corpse Yan had truly gone all out, Heavenly Mother and I wouldn't have been able to hold on. If Ling Yanzi hadn't intervened, I'm afraid..."
Lady Shiji asked, "What exactly is the situation with Ling Yanzi? Why did the Ancient God Nest suddenly disappear again?"
Zhang Ruochen opened his mouth to speak, but then thought of something. "Empress, I have come in my true body, yet you greet me with an incarnation. How can I discuss such important matters with you like this?"
Anyone could hear the dissatisfaction in Zhang Ruochen's voice.
Lianxi quickly interjected, "Facing a Primordial Ancestor puts immense pressure on anyone. The Empress is at a critical moment in her cultivation, trying to break through to the Primordial Ancestor realm as quickly as possible. Please be understanding, Lord Imperial Dust."
Zhang Ruochen turned to look at her. "Lianxi, whose side are you on?"
"I..."
Lianxi didn't know what to say.
"When did the broad-minded Lord Imperial Dust become so petty? I thought it was just a rumor, but it turns out to be true. Zhang Ruochen, you really have changed." Lady Shiji teased.
"Women need more discipline, otherwise they become increasingly unruly. Lianxi used to be so gentle and obedient. It's all your fault, Empress, for spoiling her."
Zhang Ruochen looked up at Lady Shiji, his gaze gradually softening. He opened the painting tube that was on the seat. "Before coming, I bought a gift for the Empress. I believe you will surely like it."
What was inside the painting tube was, naturally, a painting.
The scroll unfurled in Zhang Ruochen's hands, hanging down to the ground.
The person in the painting was none other than Lady Shiji.
She wore a light blue dress, a jade hairpin in her hair, and a vermillion butterfly flower ornament between her eyebrows. The lines were soft, vivid, and natural.
But after Lady Shiji looked at it, she frowned deeply, disgusted. "Where did Lord Imperial Dust buy this painting? It's painted... I can't even say it's average. It's simply atrocious."
"This doesn't even look like the Empress!"
Lianxi took the painting and also frowned deeply.
Zhang Ruochen laughed. "This is already the level of a master from the mortal world! But he has never seen the Empress; he only copied it from a painting by a previous artist. Besides, how many people in the world have seen the Empress's true face? No matter how good the painter in the world is, they can hardly capture one-tenth of the Empress's beauty."
"Except for Su Zilian back then!"
After saying this coldly, Zhang Ruochen stared straight at Lady Shiji's star-like eyes.
Lady Shiji said reproachfully, "Su Zilian's painting skills have already entered the Dao. Even that Fourth Confucian Ancestor from your Kunlun Realm might not be able to compare. And you dare to compare her to a mortal painter?"
"Su Zilian's peak cultivation only reached the Heavenly Venerable rank, but the Fourth Confucian Ancestor was a Half-Ancestor. Both are famous for their painting, but I still think the Fourth Confucian Ancestor is the superior one." Zhang Ruochen said.
Lady Shiji smiled disdainfully. "In our era, whether that so-called Fourth Confucian Ancestor could even reach the Half-Ancestor realm is debatable. Besides, how can painting skill be judged by cultivation level?"
"That's true! The Empress must have treasured the painting Su Zilian made for you for so many years, loving it dearly. It's a pity it was destroyed during the battle with the Soul Mother in the Soul Realm."
Zhang Ruochen seemed to suddenly become interested. "How about I paint one for the Empress?"
A moving smile appeared on Lady Shiji's lips, seemingly able to captivate souls. "Lord Imperial Dust has such refined tastes?"
"I wouldn't be interested in anyone else. The Empress is the most beautiful woman in history, ancient and modern. Being able to paint for you is my honor." Zhang Ruochen said.
"Your words have truly piqued my curiosity. Lord Imperial Dust's painting shouldn't be bad, right? Where? Right here?"
Lady Shiji put away her lazy posture, sat up straight, her waistline appearing even slimmer, her jade neck as slender as a white swan's, exuding a sense of pure pride.
Zhang Ruochen shook his head. "Painting an incarnation would inevitably lack form and spirit."
Lady Shiji smiled charmingly. "Zhang Ruochen, oh, Zhang Ruochen. You insist on seeing my true body today?"
"It would be best if I could see the true body! By true body, I don't mean the physical body, nor the Six Directions Heavenly Venerable Cauldron. The Empress should understand what I mean, right?" Zhang Ruochen said.
Lady Shiji's eyes narrowed slightly, her smile fading. "What riddle is Lord Imperial Dust playing at now?"
Zhang Ruochen laughed heartily. "Haha! Let me go to the Hundred Flowers Garden Small World and have a good talk with the Empress."
No one could stop him. Zhang Ruochen walked straight towards the door covered by the bead curtain and veil, and then entered the Hundred Flowers Garden.
Passing through the space door, he was immediately greeted by blue skies, white clouds, the fragrance of flowers, and the songs of birds. Strange flowers and rare herbs could be seen everywhere, along with endless pavilions and towers, quiet and secluded, a place to escape the world.
Not far away, the Six Directions Heavenly Venerable Cauldron floated on the surface of a lake.
The cauldron's body was oblate-spherical, about two meters high. Its six legs were each entwined with the engraved marks of a strange beast: Golden Crow, Phoenix, Red Centipede, Divine Dragon, White Fox, and Demon Spider.
From the hollow patterns on the cauldron's body, dark qi and dark rules continuously emanated.
These dark qi and dark rules surged into the lake water, making it a hundred, a thousand times blacker than ink.
Zhang Ruochen used his divine eyes to look at the bottom of the lake. There was a semi-transparent palace at the bottom, built upon an altar.
Lady Shiji's true body was sitting inside the semi-transparent palace.
Lianxi chased into the Hundred Flowers Garden and saw this scene. "The Empress's cultivation has long reached the level of a Quasi-Ancestor. To break through to the Primordial Ancestor realm, she must first detach herself from the Dark Cauldron, completely separating her physical body and the cauldron's body, no longer being restricted by it. This step is extremely dangerous and is also when the Empress is at her weakest. Therefore, she ordered that no cultivator be allowed to enter the Hundred Flowers Garden."
"It seems I was somewhat presumptuous!" Zhang Ruochen said.
"Splash!"
Suddenly, a huge whirlpool appeared on the lake's surface, and endless dark qi surged towards the bottom of the lake at an accelerated pace.
Zhang Ruochen could see that the dark qi contained soul mist belonging to Lady Shiji.
To extend her lifespan, Lady Shiji had hidden her soul within the Six Directions Heavenly Venerable Cauldron, becoming its artifact spirit, living a second life. And now, all her divine soul was being drawn out of the cauldron and into her physical body.
At the bottom of the lake, inside the semi-transparent palace, every inch of Lady Shiji's skin emitted a jade-white radiance. The radiance continuously increased, like a brilliant divine lamp, extremely dazzling.
When the radiance dissipated, Lady Shiji appeared by the lakeside. She wore a light blue straight-cut long skirt and a white bodice, her chest contour full. She stood just seven steps away from Zhang Ruochen.
She opened her palm, and the Six Directions Heavenly Venerable Cauldron flew over from the lake's surface, shrinking continuously until it was the size of a bell.
Zhang Ruochen said, "Congratulations! The Empress's physical body is now completely separated from the Dark Cauldron, no longer restricted by it. In the world today, no one should be closer to the Primordial Ancestor realm in cultivation than the Empress."
As the dark qi dispersed, the lake surface became clear again, with blue waves rippling.
Lady Shiji's beauty was truly unmatched. Just standing there, she merged with everything around her, infusing the entire world with spiritual energy, like a celestial painting, making people unconsciously fall into a trance.
Faced with such a beauty, even the worst state of mind would become joyful.
Lady Shiji looked at the reflection of the red towers and green willows on the water. "What use is a high realm? If we were to really fight, I might not be a match for Lord Imperial Dust. Are you still going to paint that painting?"
"That depends on whether the Empress shows her true body." Zhang Ruochen said.
Lady Shiji said, "Lianxi, you may withdraw first!"
Lianxi felt that Zhang Ruochen's visit to the Glazed Divine Palace this time was very unusual. His conversation with Lady Shiji was full of hidden meanings, but she couldn't figure out the reason.
"Lianxi, go ahead!"
After Zhang Ruochen also spoke, Lianxi finally left the Hundred Flowers Garden Small World.
Lady Shiji said, "I once asked you a question. Who is more beautiful, me or the Moon God? You fobbed me off. Now I want to ask again."
"Is that question really that important?" Zhang Ruochen said.
Lady Shiji turned around, her breathtakingly beautiful immortal eyes staring straight at Zhang Ruochen. "Of course it's important! You have already tasted the clear beauty of the Moon God. Don't you want to taste the softness and smoothness of Shiji?"
As she spoke, she gracefully slipped off her outer robe, and the long skirt fell down past her legs.
The white bodice on her chest was still there, but her slender, full jade arms and her flawlessly beautiful back were exposed. Her collarbones were very prominent and also very sexy.
The bodice did not completely cover the most mysterious and beautiful part of her body.
Zhang Ruochen only gave her a light glance. He had to admit, it was an ultimate visual experience. No one could have imagined Lady Shiji would present herself in such a manner before a man.
She was such a beauty-loving woman, stunning through the ages. Even so-called divine maidens and fairies could hardly compare to her.
A peerless Half-Ancestor who should have had nothing to do with seduction and lust was now seemingly offering herself willingly. No matter how strong-willed a man in the world was, he could not resist.
Even though Zhang Ruochen had seen countless beauties, he only dared to look at Lady Shiji's still-concealed upper body. When his gaze moved to her waist, he immediately closed his eyes, not daring to look at her completely exposed lower body.
A triumphant expression appeared on Lady Shiji's cheeks. Her voice was charming: "Wasn't Lord Imperial Dust asking me to show my true body? This true body of mine has never been shown to any man. I haven't even fully revealed it yet, and you've already closed your eyes."
Zhang Ruochen said, "I just feel that for a woman like the Empress, once she actively undresses, most of her beauty and temperament are lost. Before, I might have thought the Empress's beauty surpassed the Moon God's. Now, I have a different answer!"
A cold gleam flashed in Lady Shiji's eyes, but it quickly turned into indifference, as if she didn't care at all how Zhang Ruochen saw her.
She walked barefoot to Zhang Ruochen, her jade legs long and straight. "I have always cherished my body and beauty the most. Do you know why I can be so unreserved in front of you?"
"I'm also very curious?"
Zhang Ruochen could smell Lady Shiji's body fragrance. It was as if his entire body was soaking in a hot spring. Most of his body was becoming softer and softer, including his bones, as if they were melting.
Lady Shiji chuckled. "You will know in the future. Now, tell me, what exactly do you want to know?"
"Can the Empress put on some clothes first?" Zhang Ruochen said.
Lady Shiji said, "If you don't even dare to look directly at my body, where do you get the courage to barge into the Hundred Flowers Garden?"
Zhang Ruochen let out a long sigh. "Fine! I admit that the test of beauty is fatal to any man. The only reason it hasn't been fatal yet is that the beauty encountered isn't fatal enough. But, Empress, do you really think beauty can make me degenerate? Can it make me give up pursuing the truth? There is another way to break a beauty trap: to play along with it. Beauty is like delicious food. It's most tempting when you see it, smell it, but haven't tasted it. Every time you taste it, its appeal decreases a little. Eventually, it won't be fatal anymore. How many times do you think this trick can work on me, Empress?"
When Zhang Ruochen opened his eyes again, Lady Shiji was already fully dressed, like a fairy in a painting, holy and elegant, as if any man touching even a single finger of hers would be a desecration.
Zhang Ruochen said, "All cultivators in the world know that the Immortal is related to a painting. This painting was sought by the Heavenly Demon and the Immovable Bright King Great Venerable, and in this era, the Fourth Confucian Ancestor is also seeking it. That painting was painted by Su Zilian. Lady Shiji and Su Zilian lived in the same era. Do you know this painting?"
Lady Shiji said, "Su Zilian painted many paintings in her life. Who knows which one they are looking for?"
"I know. It's a painting about the Kasyapa Buddha." Zhang Ruochen said.
Lady Shiji gently shook her head. "I wouldn't know about that."
"Indeed, so many long years have passed. It's inevitable that the Empress might have forgotten some things. How about I help the Empress recall?"
On the bluestone path, Lady Shiji walked ahead, and Zhang Ruochen followed behind. On both sides, the foliage was lush, and occasionally, brightly blooming strange flowers would reach out, weakly blocking the way.
The woman was like jade, the man like a pendant. They looked like lovers on a secret rendezvous, whispering sweet nothings that no one else could hear.
Zhang Ruochen said, "Su Zilian was a descendant of the Twelve-Tailed Heavenly Fox, the most stunning and outstanding powerhouse of the White Fox Clan. It's just that her painting skills were so profound that later cultivators overlooked this point. Later cultivators also don't know that Su Zilian was breathtakingly beautiful."
Lady Shiji said, "Lord Imperial Dust even knows this?"
Zhang Ruochen said, "Eighty thousand years ago, I went to the White Fox Clan and conducted a detailed investigation into Su Zilian, checking all the archives about her. From the ancient records, with just the one line 'Her beauty surpasses ancient and modern,' one can imagine how beautiful Su Zilian was. It's a pity that such a peerless beauty, who painted countless works in her life, left behind not a single painting of herself. Don't you find that strange, Empress?"
Lady Shiji said, "There have been countless beauties throughout history. Only a handful have left behind paintings."
Zhang Ruochen smiled and shook his head, clearly not agreeing with this view. He continued, "Legend has it that the Empress loved beauty to the extreme. In your era, any woman who was named the most beautiful under heaven would not live to see the next day. I'm curious, why did a woman praised as 'Her beauty surpasses ancient and modern' survive?"
Lady Shiji said, "Why does Lord Imperial Dust think she survived? Just because she painted a picture for me? It's possible that after she finished the painting, I killed her."
It sounded like a joke, but Zhang Ruochen nodded seriously. "So, I went to look for Su Zilian's grave."
"And the result?"
"It was completely empty."
Lady Shiji let out a "pfft" laugh. "Why are you so straightforward? Since ancient times, which powerhouse isn't worried about being refined into a battle corpse after death, or having their blood and bones extracted? Women are even more worried. After we die, our physical bodies don't decay. What if someone digs us up and desecrates us? We wouldn't be able to rest in peace. So everyone takes precautions. How easy do you think it is to find the real tomb where she was buried? Besides, Su Zilian might have died in an Eon Calamity, turning to ashes. Or, it really was me who killed her, and I ground her bones to dust and scattered the ashes."
Zhang Ruochen shook his head. "How could the Empress, who cherishes her own body and beauty so much, kill herself?"
Lady Shiji stopped walking.
"What are you talking about?" she said.
Zhang Ruochen said, "I'm saying there's only one possibility. The Empress is Su Zilian."
Lady Shiji turned around, her expression cold. "Don't you think this possibility is ridiculous, Lord Imperial Dust?"
"It's not ridiculous."
Zhang Ruochen met her gaze. "'Heaven does not pity you, so you pity yourself.' That's what's written in the books about the origin of Su Zilian's name. It is said that when she was young, her homeland was in turmoil, and the Di that was suppressed by the six clans showed signs of unrest. That turmoil caused Su Zilian's entire family to die in battle. Because she was young and physically weak, she was abandoned by her clan and subjected to all kinds of bullying. For someone with such an experience, it's understandable that she would become self-pitying and self-loving when she grew up."
"Just because of that reason?" Lady Shiji said.
Zhang Ruochen said, "I want to ask the Empress a question that has always puzzled me. Yu Sanjie once told me that under your statue in the Shiji Temple, there is the character 'Di' being trampled upon. Why is that?"
Lady Shiji's gaze grew deeper and deeper. After a long silence, she said, "Su Zilian was of the White Fox Clan, while I am of the Stone Clan. The Shiji Divine Star was my previous life's true body. Does Lord Imperial Dust think that a living being of flesh and blood can turn into a stone?"
Zhang Ruochen said, "If the Shiji Divine Star was truly the Empress's previous life's true body, why would you give it to Qinger? Besides, the transformation between living beings and undead is not a difficult matter. Haven't the Great Demon God and Jiusi Yitianhuang both experienced different changes in each life? The Nine-Headed Stone Man, the Empress has seen it!"
Lady Shiji said, "So you are certain that I am Su Zilian?"
"I haven't fully confirmed it yet." Zhang Ruochen said.
"Oh!"
Lady Shiji showed a look of surprise instead.
Zhang Ruochen said, "I think the Empress is either Su Zilian or the Nether Ancestor. There is no third possibility."
"Fine, I'll go along with you. Let's say I am Su Zilian. So what?" Lady Shiji said.
Zhang Ruochen said, "If the Empress is Su Zilian, then the Empress is a disciple of the Nether Ancestor."
"In short, you are determined to label me as a cultivator of the Nether Ancestor Faction?" Lady Shiji said, sounding very helpless.
Zhang Ruochen said, "Su Zilian was abandoned as a child, but returned to the White Fox Clan with great power years later. How could that be possible without some kind of fortuitous encounter?"
"All thanks to the Nether Ancestor's help?" Lady Shiji said with surprise.
Zhang Ruochen nodded. "Su Zilian's first life was as a White Fox, her second life as a Stone Clan member, and her third life is the Empress before me. Isn't this the Undying Curse Technique that the Nether Ancestor taught the Great Demon God?"
"According to you, what about the Dark Cauldron? Which life does it count as?" Lady Shiji said.
Zhang Ruochen said, "That question is not difficult to answer! How about the Empress first let me meet someone?"
"Who?"
"The former Palace Master of the Radiant Divine Temple, Coro."
Lady Shiji's gaze gradually turned cold. She no longer had any interest in continuing the argument. "How did you know?"
Zhang Ruochen said, "The Empress used the Demon Shrine you seized from Di to draw upon the power of the River of Time, and in the Maer Temple, you saved Coro right in front of me. That was too risky! Did you really think that with your realm advantage, you could make Zhang Ruochen completely unaware? Empress, you underestimated me."