The Song Dynasty was the king for thirteen years before he knew that he was Tianlong.

Chapter 185: The Sixth Level of Phantom Yin

After a while, he entered the palace and went straight to the imperial study, only to see Zhao Xu sitting behind the dragon desk, deep in thought.

Zhao Ti saluted and looked at Zhao Xu's expression, which was almost the same as last time. His blood was boiling, but there was no longer the feeling of different temperament as before.

Zhao Xu then said, "The Prince of Yan did not attend court this month. There is one thing I do not know about, so I came here today to discuss it."

Yang Jian moved the brocade stool over, and Zhao Ti sat down and said, "Sir, what's the matter?"

Zhao Xu picked up a black booklet on the dragon case and said, "Western Xia sent someone to deliver a letter to discuss the horse trade. The words are sincere. King Yan, please take a look."

"Oh?" Zhao Ti stood up and took the black book, saying, "The last time we traded horses with Xixia was in the fifth year of Yuanyou. After the transaction was completed, the other party exchanged gold, silver, grain and other items. The following year, in the sixth year of Yuanyou, they sent troops to attack Xihe, Lanmin, Fuyan and other routes and Linfu Prefecture."

Zhao Xu shook his head and said, "That's right. It was almost the same before. Every time a transaction was completed, they would send troops to attack and harass us not long after."

Zhao Ti thought for a moment and said, "Indeed, during the reigns of the late Emperor Renzong and Emperor Yingzong, Western Xia had always behaved in this way."

Zhao Xu said, "She is just like a mad dog. However, since Liang Sizhao led the army to fight in the seventh year of Yuanyou, and was defeated and lost all her shoes, the border market has not been restored. Xixia suffered a disaster last year, and I think there is not enough food. She also heard about the Song Dynasty buying horses with the Liao Kingdom, so she was anxious and took the initiative to bring it up."

Zhao Ti laughed and said, "After the Song Dynasty bought their horses, they thought they had lost out, so they sent troops to cause trouble again, hoping to seize the horses or more property and land."

Zhao Xu also smiled and said, "I have been thinking about sending troops to Xixia. Now I don't have to find a reason and can make more preparations."

Zhao Ti opened the letter, which was written by Empress Liang herself. The words were extremely humble and respectful, but it was actually all false. Liang Sizhao was a domineering and arrogant person. She wrote this letter only to exchange for food and money. Once she got what she wanted, she would turn against him.

After the exchange is completed, Xixia will have sufficient military rations and money to support the war, and the Song Dynasty will also have war horses. A new round of war will most likely begin.

After reading the Xixia letter, he asked, "What do you think, Your Majesty?"

Zhao Xu said: "Of course I want to buy it. If a war really breaks out later, I hope that with the power of this battle, the army will attack Xingqing, the horses will trample Yinchuan, and the Black Water River will be flattened."

Zhao Ti thought for a moment and said, "I also think that we should buy the horses, but we still need to plan the war carefully."

Zhao Xu said: "What do you think, Prince Yan? Please speak frankly."

Zhao Ti said: "I still think that to conquer Xixia, we must first contain Longyou. To contain Longyou, we must take Qingtang. As long as we seize the ancient city of Qingtang and take over all the land north of the West Sea, we will be surrounded. With the military strength of Xixia, it will be impossible to reach it. In this way, Xixia will naturally be destroyed."

"North of the West Sea, the ancient city of Qingtang..." Zhao Xu pondered, "The forces in the Longyou area are complex. To the south are the Tubo tribes. Qingtang City was the seat of the Tubo Dynasty's Zousiluo faction. Further west in Longyou are the Kingdom of Qiuci and the Nine Surnames Tatars, the Shazhou Uighurs, and further away is the Gaochang Uighur Kingdom."

Zhao Ti said: "I feel that the Shazhou Uighurs and the Nine Surnames Tatars have always paid tribute or surrendered, so it is not a big deal. As for the Gaochang Uighurs, they are too far away, and they are already exhausted from resisting the Eastern Karakhan Khanate further west. The small country of Qiuci is not helpful. As long as we take down the ancient city of Qingtang and push the army to Longyou, only those along the way will surrender, and we will reach the Gaochang Uighur border."

Zhao Xu pondered and said, "So... even if we don't conquer Xixia, won't we still be able to expand our territory?"

Zhao Ti said: "Qingtang has 30% of the area of Western Xia. If we take over the nine-surname Tatars of Shazhou, the area will be 80% of Western Xia. This is also the ambition of the late emperor."

Zhao Xu was silent for a long time, then sighed and said, "Longyou, Xixia, and Yanyun are all in the sight of our Great Song. King Yan... are you willing to do your best to restore the prosperity of the Han and Tang dynasties?"

At this time, Zhao Ti saw a trace of deep fatigue in Zhao Xu's eyes, and under his bright red blood, he seemed to be running out of energy.

He said: "The great unity of the country and the integrity of the golden bowl are what I wish for, so why shouldn't I do my best?"

Zhao Xu nodded and said, "Then I am relieved. Let's discuss the matter of buying horses first. Who does the King of Yan think can take the job?"

Zhao Ti said: "I think the court should have a minister who is good at calculating money and bargaining, and the Western Army should have a general who is familiar with the Hequ, Gansu, and Qinghai horses, and the two can cooperate with each other."

Zhao Xu asked, "What does the Prince of Yan think of Cai Jing?"

Zhao Ti said: "Cai Yuanchang is indeed good at this and also good at managing finances, otherwise Your Majesty would not have asked him to manage the Ministry of Revenue before."

Zhao Xu smiled and said, "He does have some skills in this regard. Which general of the Western Army do you think can serve as the deputy envoy?"

Zhao Ti shook his head upon hearing this: "I don't know about this." Zhao Xu said: "Zhe Keshi came to Beijing a while ago, and I transferred him from the deputy commander of the army of Huanqing Road to the governor of Ningzhou, so I will send him there."

Zhao Ti said: "Your Majesty knows how to use people well."

Zhao Xu thought for a moment and said with a smile, "Since the King of Yan mentioned the ancient city of Qingtang and said that Longyou was taken over, can we go to Xixia together and borrow the road to see it? And by the way, secretly decide on the matter of buying horses?"

Upon hearing this, Zhao Ti sighed inwardly, knowing that he could not escape this mission anyway. However, he also wanted to see the actual situation in Western Xia and the Qingtang area of the West Sea, so that he would have an idea of what to expect if a war broke out in the future.

At this time, he stood up and said, "It is okay for me to go, but I can stay hidden in the delegation. I may also leave early and head south. I need to find someone to replace me."

Seeing that he agreed, Zhao Xu was overjoyed and said, "Prince Yan is willing to follow and make his own decisions. I agree to all of this. If you need to leave early, it will be easy to find a replacement. I will ask Zhe Keshi to order the Military Affairs Department to make the arrangements."

Zhao Ti nodded: "But I can't go right away, I have to rest for a few more days."

Zhao Xu said: "If you obey the King of Yan, I will give him another half month's vacation."

Zhao Ti smiled and said, "I obey your command."

Afterwards, he left the palace and went straight back to his mansion. After thinking for a moment, he called Ah Zhu to the bathing room to prepare water, intending to practice the Huan Yin Qi.

Now with the help of the Shenzu Sutra, the Huanyin Qi has already reached the critical point of the sixth level. It is estimated that after a few more days of practice, a breakthrough will be achieved.

After Ah Zhu finished her preparations, Zhao Ti asked her to leave the ice silkworm behind and prepare some clothes and other things in advance. He told her not to be disturbed and then go into the pool.

He circulated the Phantom Yin Meridian and saw wisps of cold air slowly rising above the pool. Seeing this, the ice silkworm in the crystal pot jumped out and dived into the pool.

But then, in the blink of an eye, he was thrown out by Zhao Ti, jumping around in the corner, and didn't dare to come over again.

At this moment, a huge amount of true energy was running through Zhao Ti's body, and all his meridians and acupoints were covered by the phantom yin true energy.

Heaven produces one water, and earth completes it. The Taiyin meridian seems to exist and not exist in the body, transforming into other meridians and acupoints. Taiyin covers all things, and one water integrates everything.

After a big circulation is completed, the twelve main meridians, eight extraordinary meridians and three hundred and sixty acupoints in the body will faintly transform into a pattern, presenting the appearance of a legendary ancient mirage beast.

At this moment, all the meridians and acupoints are connected together, but most of them are hidden by the Phantom Yin Meridian, and what appears in the inner vision is the shape of this beast.

Zhao Ti inhaled slowly, and the meridian pattern in the shape of the mirage beast was not obvious. He exhaled gently, and the meridians of the mirage beast disappeared. It seemed that all the meridians and acupoints in the body no longer existed, as if it was an empty valley.

A mirage illuminated by a dream.

He breathed in and out continuously, and illusions appeared and disappeared in his body, sometimes real and sometimes unreal. It seemed that one moment was real and the next moment was false, and he kept jumping between reality and illusion.

The sweat on Zhao Ti's forehead turned into ice, like the interlaced wolf's teeth under the eaves in winter. His expression was dull and stiff, without the slightest expression.

At first, this kind of switching was extremely painful, as if his whole body was torn apart. He even felt as if he had stepped into nothingness and no longer existed in this world after each switch. But the next moment he could feel his own existence again, as if he had returned from the abyss.

He didn't know how long it had been, a quarter of an hour, an hour, or even a day and a night, his breathing began to become smooth and smooth, and the pain gradually disappeared. The Qi in his body gathered more and more, so much that he didn't need to guide and dredge it carefully. Just a thought and the Huanyin Qi would start to flow, and the pattern of the ancient mirage beast would flicker on its own, appearing and disappearing.

Suddenly, Zhao Ti felt a strange sound coming from inside his body, like the sound of opening a bottle cap, or like opening a door with a "pop" sound.

The sound was not heavy but pleasant and somewhat gloomy. He felt as if his body had become lighter, as if he were floating on a feather. He was clearly sitting in the pool at this moment, yet he felt as if he was floating on the water.

As he circulated his true energy, he knew in his heart that he had cultivated to the sixth level of the Huan Yin Sutra, the state of great success.

Zhao Ti slowly opened his eyes, and his expression changed slightly.

He saw a strange scene before him and the corners of his mouth twitched involuntarily.

Just after being promoted to the sixth level, the hallucination of the Illusionary Yin Sutra came?
(End of this chapter)