Mountain and River Festival

Chapter 356 "Calamity"

Long Qinghuang's expression was complicated.

No wonder Lu Xingzhou seemed resigned to his fate and behaved so obediently after arriving in the Demon Capital; it turned out it was all for show.

In fact, Lu Xingzhou's obedience was also for her.

You can't keep arguing back; that's just being ungrateful and will eventually wear down the mother tyrannosaurus's patience. Since the mother tyrannosaurus has already shown a willingness to try equal communication, regardless of what she actually does, you should respond to make her feel that her efforts weren't in vain.

While his obedience and cooperation were for show, the gifts were genuinely given to her.

Long Qinghuang quickly realized that Lu Xingzhou's attitude was not as rigid as before, so she quickly closed the palace door, set up a soundproof barrier, and finally sat down in front of him with a shiny gemstone in her arms.

His expression actually showed a hint of resentment.

Lu Xingzhou had no idea why she was so angry when he had given her a gift and offered to help her solve her problem.

"Where did you get this gem?" Long Qinghuang finally asked.

"The one I got from that battle in the sea, the one I used to possess Duan Ning. So, is this gem very good?"

“You don’t know its value,” Long Qinghuang said. “This isn’t just an ordinary shiny object that stores energy. This is a Soul-Binding Stone. The energy inside is also soul power. Things that can nourish soul power are extremely rare… In other words, if Duan Ning’s physical body is destroyed, the person who seizes the body can still hide here and survive, and quickly recover by absorbing the soul power stored inside, in order to seize the body again.”

Lu Xingzhou nodded slightly. In other words, if an ordinary person kept this gem as a trophy, it would actually contain the person's spirit, meaning they would be bringing death home. But his situation was clearly different; the other person's spirit had already been taken away, so the gem was now empty and had become a life-saving treasure.

“This is a priceless treasure,” Long Qinghuang declared. “It’s practically like being given a second life; its value is immeasurable.”

Lu Xingzhou responded with an "Oh".

Long Qinghuang looked him up and down: "Did you hear me?"

"I heard you, my treasure, you have multiple lives."

"So you're just going to give it away like that? No regrets?"

Lu Xingzhou turned to A Nuo and asked, "Where did this stingy little vendor come from?"

Ah Nuo didn't dare to cooperate and quietly went to get some tea and snacks.

Long Qinghuang slammed her hand on the table: "I was afraid you wouldn't know the value of things and would give them away randomly, and you're saying I'm being petty!"

The tea and snacks that were about to be taken jumped up, startling Ah Nuo so much that she pulled her hand back and missed taking them.

Stealing a glance at the two people staring at each other without anyone noticing her, Ah Nuo secretly pulled the whole plate of tea and snacks in front of her.

That's strange, aren't they hungry?

Lu Xingzhou casually took a pastry from A Nuo's plate and ate it leisurely: "It's a gift for you, how is that giving it away randomly?"

Ah Nuo: “…”

Long Qinghuang said, "Isn't this the same as you using your treasure to replace someone in the Great Qian Dynasty?"

"If it were to replace His Majesty the Demon Emperor, it might be a bit of a loss... but this is a gift for Miss Long."

Long Qinghuang clutched the gemstone and remained silent.

Ah Nuo inwardly scoffed. A ring containing several little treasures, given separately to Pei Chuyun and Long Qinghuang, had both been completely charmed. How strange! Everyone else had something to show for themselves, but why did her master's ring contain various little treasures, while hers only contained some pills…

She forgot that the value of those pills was in no way inferior to these treasures. For example, the kind that could quickly boost cultivation by taking over the body of a weak person without causing the foundation to become unstable was also priceless. However, she ate them all directly and felt nothing at all.

Lu Xingzhou said, "What I want to know now is, what kind of entanglement did the Ancient Realm and the Demon Race have in the past?"

Long Qinghuang hesitated for a moment, then shook her head and said, "The ancient realms are not a group of forces, but rather they are mutually restraining. They all have their own ideas about this realm, but their ideas are not necessarily the same... so it is difficult to judge what they want to do. In fact, the ancient realms originally posed no threat to this realm because the boundary membrane is stable and they do not communicate with each other. But in the last hundred years, I don't know if the boundary membrane has a problem or if they have found a way to smuggle themselves in, but more and more people are reaching out, and the methods are becoming more and more diverse."

Lu Xingzhou noticed that she said "nearly a century", not "recent years".

If we take a century as the dividing line, then it aligns with the changes at Danxia Mountain. Maha was probably among the first to reach out, and perhaps it was because of him that others found a way to smuggle themselves across? Or perhaps he did something that caused a problem with the boundary membrane?
Long Qinghuang continued, "Currently, although they have many methods, in my opinion, they are still closer to smuggling. For example, none of the newcomers are above Huiyang level, and even among those at Huiyang, not everyone can come directly. The Battle of the Sea proved that many things require the method of possession..."

Lu Xingzhou asked, "Are you sure any of them are stronger than Huiyang?"

“Of course there are, our ancestors were…” Long Qinghuang paused, seemingly realizing she had misspoke, before continuing in a seemingly reckless manner, “The Holy Mountain is the place blessed by our ancestors, and it is very important for the evolution of the demon race. For example, it is very difficult for ordinary plants and animals to become demons in your Great Qian, and it may only happen very occasionally, perhaps only one or two, but it is very easy in the Demon Realm… This is the foundation for the reproduction of the demon race, and it cannot be lost.”

"Is this the sacred mountain we are on now?"

"No, it's elsewhere. This is just our Dragon Cliff." Long Qinghuang said, "Generally speaking, humans are absolutely not allowed to set foot on the Holy Mountain, but you are different. You have made a great contribution to the rescue of the Holy Mountain this time. If you want to go to the Holy Mountain for a look, I will make arrangements."

Lu Xingzhou nodded. In truth, even with his cultivation and knowledge, he might not be able to discover anything by going to the Holy Mountain. Besides, it seemed that even if he went to their important breeding ground, it wouldn't be of much significance. The Ancient Realm might have a need for it, but he didn't. So he wasn't in a hurry and simply said, "You can handle it as you see fit."

Long Qinghuang glanced at him.

She knew perfectly well that the matter of the Ancient Realm was something Lu Xingzhou himself cared about deeply; frankly, it was a collaboration. Yet, for some reason, she always felt that he was only helping her—a feeling that came out of nowhere. To dispel this feeling, Long Qinghuang deliberately asked, "You captured their Yin Spirits at sea before, right? What are the results of the interrogation?"

Lu Xingzhou scratched his head when asked the question. The two Yin Gods had been divided among the Ye sisters, and they should have each gained something. However, he hadn't talked about this when he was "chatting on the phone" with Ye Tinglan, so he didn't know what their results were.

However, it can be determined that Duan Ning and her group have no connection with the demon race, otherwise Ye Tinglan would definitely have mentioned it in that previous "phone call".

He then said, "They're still interrogating me, I don't know yet. I'll let you know when there's a result."

The atmosphere froze at this point.

He knew he possessed the means to communicate remotely with Ye Tinglan, but he dared not tell Long Qinghuang, lest it cause trouble. So how could he obtain information from Ye Tinglan, and how could he use it to communicate with Long Qinghuang?

As expected, Long Qinghuang also realized this, and slammed her hand on the table angrily, saying, "I think you just want to find a chance to run away!"

Lu Xingzhou looked at her helplessly.

Long Qinghuang always felt her heart soften under his gaze. She angrily got up from her seat and went straight out the door: "Anyway, now that everyone thinks you're living in the Empress's palace, your reputation is ruined, and those women won't want you anymore! You might as well behave yourself!"

After saying that, seemingly not wanting to wait for Lu Xingzhou to argue or refute, she simply took the gemstone and ran away.

Lu Xingzhou and A Nuo turned their heads in perfect unison to watch her retreating figure, both wondering whose reputation was being ruined.

Before you've even left the palace, news of the Demon Emperor staying overnight with a man and spending the night behind closed doors for a couple of incense sticks' worth of time before leaving has already spread throughout the Demon Realm... and you're still parading around with your "token of love."

If we're really going to talk about damaging Lu Xingzhou's reputation, it's probably because Ququ said that this man was useless and finished so quickly.

That being said, Long Qinghuang might not actually care about this reputation.

She's been single for so many years, her harem empty; the demon court has probably been racking its brains trying to persuade her to change her ways. Now that her harem finally has a master, even if the prospect of a human causing some controversy, at least some demons who are eager for her to marry can accept it.

This is a common situation. When pressure to get married reaches a certain point, people will just accept any male and won't be picky.

Long Qinghuang's desire to abduct Lu Xingzhou as a "concubine" was likely partly due to pressure to get married, which is why she placed him directly in the Empress's Palace, regardless of what others said.

Not long after she left, a young palace maid timidly knocked on the door: "Your Majesty..."

Lu Xingzhou spat out his tea with a "pfft": "Don't shout like that, come in."

The little palace maid, whose race was unknown, was quite ugly; it seemed Long Qinghuang had specifically chosen her. Upon entering and seeing the handsome man with a refined and elegant appearance, the little palace maid's eyes lit up: "Your Majesty looks just like those handsome men from the fox clan!"

Lu Xingzhou: "...Are you calling me a vixen?"

"How is 'fox spirit' an insult? Isn't it just an objective term for the fox clan?"

"Forget it... Anyway, don't call her 'Your Majesty,' at least your Emperor never bestowed that title upon her, right?"

"It's only a matter of time," the young palace maid said with a grin. "His Majesty specifically sent us to serve you and ask what Your Highness needs."

"You don't need anything, just stop shouting like that."

"Actually, we also think it's a bit strange to call her that," the little palace maid whispered. "Only women should be called 'Your Majesty,' but how should the Empress and her male consorts address each other? They can't just call her 'Eunuch,' can they?"

This time it was Ah Nuo's turn to spit out the tea.

Lu Xingzhou said irritably, "Call me Mr. Lu or Young Master Lu as you please, is it that hard? I am nobody right now."

"What if you really take over the harem, sir?" the little palace maid asked stubbornly.

Lu Xingzhou was furious and said, "You can just call me Your Majesty, I don't mind."

The young palace maid covered her mouth in terror.

"Heh... You spineless scoundrel, Your Majesty, what kind of emperor do you want to be? To unify the two races with your male beauty?" Long Qinghuang sneered from afar.

Several of the dragon clan's trusted confidants stood beside him, all looking helpless: "Your Majesty, even if you took a fancy to this person's looks, giving her the rank of concubine would have been fine, but why did you take her directly to the Empress's palace..."

"A concubine?" Long Qinghuang said leisurely, "Lu Xingzhou is a great talent of the Great Qian Dynasty. He has caused us a great humiliation in this battle. In your eyes, he is just a concubine?"

“We don’t deny his abilities. If His Majesty wishes to employ him, we have no objection to offering him high-ranking positions and generous salaries. But what about the mistress of the harem…”

"Come on, you don't want him to be empress, and he doesn't want to be empress either." Long Qinghuang suddenly remembered what Lu Xingzhou said about "making outsiders think you are obsessed with men," and simply ordered: "Give me some ideas, and whoever's idea can make Lu Xingzhou willingly stay in my harem will be richly rewarded!"

The dragon clan's high-ranking officials were dumbfounded.

That's it, history really doesn't lie. From a wise ruler to a tyrant, all it takes is one scourge.

(End of this chapter)