Chapter 1: The Holy Maiden Returns to the Capital
The sound of wind, the sound of rain, the sound of reading—today, the National Academy could only hear the sound of reading for the time being. The snowflakes that had just begun to fall from the sky were too light and delicate. Only after a while did the students in the classrooms notice them, eliciting a burst of delighted whispers. A teacher from the Education Bureau sternly shouted a few words to suppress the faint commotion, but the moment a howling wind sounded outside the window, no classroom could remain calm any longer. The young students surged toward the windows.
The wind swept up the thin layer of snow that had just accumulated on the lawn. A white crane slowly descended from the sky, as if dancing in the snow, incredibly beautiful.
"So pretty!" the girls shouted excitedly at the sight.
With the powerful rise of the human, demon, and demonic races, the ferocious beasts that once ravaged the continent had long been forced to retreat into vast swamps and desolate mountains. Correspondingly, divine beasts and immortal birds had become extremely rare, generally only seen in the sects deep in the mountains. Most of the new students at the National Academy came from various prefectures and counties. Compared to the well-traveled people of the capital, they had rarely seen these legendary immortal birds. However, there were also those who had lived in the capital for a long time. Chu Wenbin, a transfer student from the Heavenly Academy, looked at the white crane and recalled something. Shocked, he said, "This... isn't this the white crane from the Xu Mansion?"
At these words, the area around him fell silent. Soon, all the classrooms grew quiet. The students stared at the white crane, no longer daring to make a sound.
This white crane was no ordinary crane. Its appearance represented a name—a name that, to the students, was sacred, beautiful, and not to be defiled.
At the same time, the students knew what the return of this white crane meant for the National Academy and for their dean.
As expected, not long after, a figure appeared in the students' line of sight.
Chen Changsheng walked to the lawn by the lake and stood before the white crane. The crane looked at him and nodded, then tilted its head to glance at the distant library building and the students by the windows. It seemed somewhat puzzled, as if it didn't understand why such great changes had occurred here in just one year.
Looking at the white crane, he was silent for a moment, then asked, "She... has returned?"
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Two lines shot straight into the capital—one white, one gray. The white was the crane, and the gray was the Golden-Winged Roc that Xu Yourong had taken out of the Zhou Garden.
—The reason it was gray was that this roc was not yet mature; its feathers had not yet become vibrant, let alone taken on a golden sheen. It looked dull and somewhat small, just like Chen Changsheng's first reaction—it resembled a pheasant.
As it entered the capital, the white crane let out a clear cry. The red eagles preparing to take off and intercept it naturally let it pass upon recognizing it. But this young roc, instead of following the crane to the National Academy, seemed to take an interest in these "kin" on the imperial city wall. It made a sharp turn in the air, flapped its wings, and landed on the palace wall.
They say a fallen phoenix is worse than a pheasant. This young roc looked like a pheasant, but in the end, a phoenix was a phoenix, and a golden roc was a golden roc—it could never truly become a pheasant.
It folded its wings, raised its head, and puffed out its chest as it strode toward the group of red eagles ahead on the palace wall. It looked left and right with an indifferent gaze, exuding an air of extreme arrogance and defiance.
The red eagles were the most powerful attack birds raised by the Great Zhou military. Their speed was unimaginable, and they were naturally proud and fierce, never cowering even before the most formidable enemies. Legend had it that during the Demon-Slaying War a thousand years ago, the Demon Lord of that era raised a sky-devouring beast, which was ultimately pecked to death in the blue sky by dozens of red eagles at the cost of their lives. Yet now, facing this small, pheasant-like creature on the palace wall, the primary feathers of over a dozen red eagles bristled simultaneously, showing extreme vigilance. Even the Imperial Guards nearby could feel their fear. As for the red geese perched on the side of the pavilion, they fared even worse—they were so terrified they collapsed to the ground and couldn't even stand up.
What kind of bird is this? The Imperial Guards were puzzled, watching warily as they instinctively tightened their grips on their spears.
Just then, Hong Yunlin, who had been staring blankly at the distant black sheep below the palace wall, suddenly looked up.
In a room, Xue Xingchuan, who was sharpening his spear with his mind, sensed something and also looked up.
On the palace wall, the young roc suddenly stopped because it felt a killing intent.
It looked down, its gaze landing on Hong Yunlin. It found him troublesome.
Then it noticed the source of the killing intent, looked toward that room, and realized it was a big problem.
If the Golden-Winged Roc were an adult, it could naturally ignore Hong Yunlin's provocation and wouldn't fear Xue Xingchuan, but not now.
When it saw the black sheep on the palace lawn, its gray feathers fluffed up slightly, sensing intense unease.
The world outside the Zhou Garden was indeed as dangerous as in its past-life memories. Especially this human capital—it was exactly the same as before. It had only landed to play for a bit, so how had it run into so much trouble? Just as the Imperial Guards closed in with their spears, it spread its wings and flew down from the palace wall. In an instant, it crossed the square in front of the palace, flew over several princely mansions and three straight streets, and landed on a street in the distance.
That street was bustling with noise and excitement. Standing on the palace wall, one could vaguely see a magnificent carriage slowly advancing down the street.
When the soldiers saw the strange bird land on that carriage, they realized it must be from the Holy Maiden Peak and thought, no wonder it was so fearsome.
An official hurried over to report a piece of news just received.
"The previous Holy Maiden has abdicated? Xu Yourong is succeeding her?"
Hearing this, Xue Xingchuan looked toward the distant street, shocked, wondering what had happened at the Southern Stream Monastery that caused such a major upheaval.
For the disciples of the Southern Stream Monastery and the people of the southern lands, Xu Yourong was the future Holy Maiden. For the people of the Great Zhou capital, Xu Yourong was their pride, as she had grown up here. As news of Xu Yourong's formal succession as the Southern Holy Maiden spread, the capital's citizens, who had lined the streets to welcome her, fell silent for a moment in shock, then erupted into thunderous cheers.
Children chased alongside the carriage on the roadside. Young women waved handkerchiefs and flowers. Devout believers knelt where the carriage passed, ceaselessly chanting blessings. The eyes of young men burned with passion—even though the wind carried light snow and the weather was bitterly cold, it couldn't dampen the capital's fervor. When the wind lifted the carriage's curtains, faintly revealing the figure of the young woman inside, the atmosphere reached its peak. Many, ignoring the scolding of the palace priests, the obstruction of the city gate cavalry, and the wary glances of the southern cavalry, crowded toward the middle of the street. Though they were ultimately stopped by the cavalry, they couldn't stop the things they threw.
In an instant, flowers, rare in the deep winter, rained down like droplets. In no time, Xu Yourong's carriage became a sea of flowers.
Washed fruits and melons were thrown without restraint into the hundred or so carriages. In one of the rear carriages, Ye Xiaolian reached out and caught a bright red holy fruit. She took a gentle bite, finding it wonderfully sweet and sour, and her eyes narrowed with joy. Of course, like the other senior sisters in the carriage, her joy came more from the enthusiasm of the capital's citizens—thinking how much the Zhou people revered the Holy Maiden, it seemed that after the north-south unification, the Holy Maiden Peak's status might not decline and could even improve. The unease caused by the monastery master's sudden departure greatly diminished. With seven parts joy and three parts pride, they thought, "Legend has it that when Zhou Yuren entered the capital back then, it was probably no more than this."
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"When Zhou Yuren entered the capital back then, he was almost stared to death. I remember I was young then, sneaking a look from the Cheng Lake Tower with the young lady of the Scholar's Mansion. What a commotion..."
Perhaps because seeing Xu Yourong reminded her of her younger self, the Heavenly Sea Holy Empress rarely showed a nostalgic mood. But it lasted only a moment before she returned to her usual calm demeanor and said, "If you don't want to be stared to death, you need a thick skin and a strong body."
In the eyes of the world, Xu Yourong had always been the serene and aloof fairy. Only before her Holy Maiden teacher and the Empress did she act most naturally, saying, "A thick skin... isn't exactly a good thing."
The Holy Empress looked at her, a warm expression in her eyes, and said with affection, "What's good about a thin skin? Look at your little face, all red."
There was naturally deeper meaning in this exchange. Both the thick skin and the strong body were the Holy Empress's guidance for her.
To firmly hold the position of the Southern Stream Monastery's master and ultimately be recognized as the Holy Maiden of the entire southern lands, in the Holy Empress's view, ruthlessness was a necessary condition.
A thick skin meant a ruthless heart. Only by being strong enough oneself could one have the power to act ruthlessly when needed.
"To strengthen the body, shouldn't we start eating?"
Mo Yu stood to the side, arranging the dishes. Seeing Xu Yourong's somewhat dazed expression, she knew she either didn't want to respond or had spaced out like she did as a child. Smiling, she changed the subject.
The Holy Empress said, "Kids these days don't like listening to us old folks talk anymore."
Xu Yourong said softly, "Your Majesty isn't old. Your Majesty will never be old."
Mo Yu shuddered at this and said, "Haven't seen you in a few years, and your little mouth is still this sweet."
"Don't talk while eating."
The Holy Empress picked up her chopsticks, placed a dish in Xu Yourong's bowl, and then began to eat.
In the vast palace, there were no eunuchs or maidservants—only the three of them, making it feel very empty.
Especially after they started eating, no sound was heard, making the scene somewhat eerie.
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(The new chapter of Ze Tian Ji has begun. My leader and I have already passed the Shanhai Pass. I know we're slow, just like writing a book, but that's how we stay steady... Let me report to everyone: since my saved drafts are really running out, to avoid as many breaks as possible, I'll be switching to one chapter per update for a while. Please be aware.)