Supreme Golden Palace

Chapter 142 Cloud Chamber (Part 1)

Yang Jian gazed at the jewels swaying in Dugu Jialuo's hair and sighed inwardly.

What he said was partly true and partly false. The main reason was that he was hesitant about how to use Li Yuan. Li Hu and Li Bing were pillars of the state for two generations, and the Tang State Duke's mansion had a vermilion gate. Although Li Bing's early death had somewhat diminished its prowess, it was still one of the most deeply rooted branches among the Eight Pillars of Guanzhong.

When he replaced the Zhou dynasty as Grand Chancellor, what he feared most were these deeply entrenched powerful clans. Li Hu's Longxi Li clan and Li Bi's Liaodong Li clan were both families with generations of high-ranking officials and noble lineages.

Therefore, Yang Jian was more cautious when employing Li Yuan.

After all, Li Yuan was different from Lü Shang. The Lü family became prominent because of Yang Jian, and their honor and disgrace depended on the Yang family. Yang Jian trusted Lü Shang.

While Yang Jian and his wife were enjoying their intimate moments in their bedroom, Lü Shang had already stepped out of the imperial city on the bluestone slabs.

Three candles were lit on the bronze lamp tree in front of the palace gate, and the twilight gave the vermilion door studs a dark gold patina.

The carriage of the Duke of Qi's mansion was parked three zhang in front of the palace gate, and the coachman sat upright on the carriage shaft with his back straight.

"Your Highness?"

The coachman called out softly, holding the whip loosely in his palm but showing no intention of raising it.

Lü Shang raised his hand and pressed it on the carriage shaft, his fingers touching the cool wood grain. He looked up at the gradually setting red sunset in the west, chuckled, and said, "Return to the manor."

"drive,"

He stepped into the carriage, leaned against the wall, and the driver obeyed, cracking the whip as the carriage rolled over the cobblestone road.

"Western Liang,"

The wheels creaked as Lü Shang sat in the carriage, gazing through the gap in the curtain at the palace walls and eaves rushing past, muttering to himself.

"The connection with the Yang family is growing ever deeper,"

The wheels rolled over the bluestone slabs of Zhuque Street. Dusk had fallen, and the lights of the taverns on both sides of the street lit up one after another, casting a warm red glow on the streets.

After passing through two neighborhoods, Lü Shang, through the curtains, suddenly heard a commotion ahead, mixed with children's exclamations and women's whispers.

The green horse of the Duke of Qi's mansion slowed its pace at the vermilion balustrade. The scent of rouge from the marketplace drifted into the carriage through the gaps in the curtains, and the clamor from the street corners became increasingly clear.

“Stop the carriage,” Lü Shang raised an eyebrow, and for some reason, suddenly felt something and spoke.

"Yes,"

The coachman tightened the reins, and the carriage slowly came to a stop at the street corner. The carriage shaft swayed slightly, and Lü Shang lifted half of the curtain to look towards the noisy crowd.

Under the paulownia tree not far away, a group of people had gathered, with two people standing in the center.

One was a young man dressed in plain blue robes, fiddling with a three-foot square paulownia wood chessboard. The other was a middle-aged Taoist priest with a round head, broad forehead, thick ears, long eyebrows, deep-set eyes, and a red nose.

Upon seeing the two men, Lü Shang's expression turned solemn. He lightly tapped the carriage wall with his fingers, and the driver, understanding, hurriedly jumped off the carriage shaft and brought over a footrest.

After Lü Shang got up and got out of the carriage, he looked at the two people again through the crowd. He saw that the Taoist was looking down at the chessboard. His thin fingers tapped on the squares, and the wooden board made a clear and melodious sound, like metal striking stone.

"A deity?"

His brow furrowed slightly. His martial arts skills were almost superhuman, reaching the pinnacle of humanity. Yet, upon seeing these two, he felt an unfathomable sense of their profound depth.

Given Lü Shang's cultivation level, let alone ordinary Daoist Earth Immortals, even a top-tier Earth Immortal who had survived both the Thunder and Fire Calamities wouldn't be able to sense this. The only explanation for Lü Shang's inability to see through it is that this being is no longer a cultivator from the mortal realm.

Lu Shang carefully examined the two men. Amid the exclamations of the women and children around him, the chessboard, which had been empty, suddenly became covered in ink, forming landscapes between the squares.

The peaks rose one after another, with clear springs and waterfalls cascading down. The splashing water droplets from the waterfalls actually soaked the clothes of the spectators in the front row. Someone in the crowd exclaimed and stepped back, only to see the waterfall transform into a silver-scaled koi carp, swimming towards the edge of the chessboard with its tail swaying, reflecting shimmering scales.

Upon witnessing the young man's abilities, Lü Shang narrowed his eyes.

Then, under Lü Shang's gaze, the ink-colored landscape on the paulownia wood chessboard suddenly evaporated, transforming into a misty, bluish-green haze.

"The boy rides the waves and plays among the blue clouds, come!"

The young man's finger traced the upper right corner of the chessboard, and the clouds seemed to be gently cut open by the spring breeze, revealing half a cold moon. The moonlight shone on the waterfall in the center of the chessboard, and the silver-scaled koi carp instantly shed its scales, transforming into a barefoot child treading the waves.

The boy held a jade flute and played a clear and melodious tune. Wherever the flute's sound reached, the frost on the temples of the onlookers reflected a five-colored halo under the lamplight.

"Let's see what this humble Taoist has to say."

Seeing the young man's amusing antics, the middle-aged Taoist priest also became playful. He took out a pill from his robes, and as the pill fell into the ink-black landscape, the mountains, rivers, clouds, and mist suddenly contracted.

On the pill, a miniature version of Chang'an city appeared, with carriages and pedestrians on Zhuque Avenue, no bigger than a grain of rice, yet clearly discernible.

"A world unfolds within a sleeve, time stretches endlessly within a pot,"

The Taoist stroked his beard, and with a flick of his sleeve, fine snowflakes began to fall from his pill, landing on the streets and taverns, shimmering like gold foil.

At the same time, auspicious snow fell from the sky, gently covering the entire street. An old woman in the front row had a patch of snow on her temples, but she didn't feel the chill.

"What a magnificent mustard seed containing Mount Sumeru!"

Seeing this, Lü Shang took a half step forward, his sleeve brushing against the shoulders of the onlookers. The crowd instinctively moved aside, making way for a space of about ten feet.

He stared intently at the immortal technique that blended reality and illusion. The Chang'an city within the pill was exactly the same as the real thing, even the bronze beast with rings on the Vermilion Bird Gate.

What's even more amazing is that where the snowflakes fell, the three characters "Qu Mi Chun" on the tavern sign emitted a warm light, as if the aroma of wine could truly penetrate the vast snow fog.

The young man and the middle-aged Taoist both saw Lü Shang's actions.

The middle-aged Taoist priest looked up, his eyes like deep pools, a smile playing on his lips, and said, "Why does Lord Lu have the leisure to watch this humble Taoist perform magic tricks?"

Lu Shang's sleeves drooped slightly. When he heard the Taoist speak, he was not surprised that the other party recognized his identity.

He shifted his gaze from the shrunken Vermilion Bird Gate within the pill, a slight smile playing on his lips, and said, "Daoist, you are too modest. This method of containing Mount Sumeru within a mustard seed is beyond the reach of ordinary cultivators; how can it be called a magic trick?"

"I have admired the immortal path since childhood, but I have no affinity with immortals and have not been favored by the immortals. Although I have taken another path and have cultivated some skills, I am still far behind the two of you who have achieved the same level of cultivation."

"The county magistrate is being too modest,"

Upon hearing Lü Shang's words, the middle-aged Taoist clapped his hands and laughed. With a flick of his sleeve, the miniature city of Chang'an within the pill suddenly vanished, and the snowflakes, like gold foil, transformed into fireflies, swirling around Lü Shang's robes.

"Lord Lu is renowned in the northern frontier for his unparalleled martial prowess. With a single bamboo whip, even gods and demons would flee in terror. Although I live deep in the mountains, I have still heard of your illustrious name. You are too modest."

The young man beside him spoke calmly, tapping the chessboard lightly with his fingertips. The ink-wash landscape painting was rolled up like a scroll, and the paulownia wood chessboard returned to its plain state. Only a trace of moonlight remained at the corner, flickering in the twilight.

(End of this chapter)