National Division

Chapter 154 The Eldest Princess: Well, she did forget just now.

The night falls and the lanterns come on.

Shen Xian took out the Daoist manual from his Sumeru bag again and studied the Daoist methods recorded in the manual by lamplight. As his cultivation entered the Heavenly Gate Realm, he was able to begin to learn some talisman techniques.

Just then, the princess's familiar voice came from outside: "Shen Xian, are you in the room?"

Shen Xian looked surprised, got up, and pushed open the door. He saw that the princess's fair and snow-white face was covered with worry.

"Your Highness, what brings you here?" Shen Xian asked.

The eldest princess snorted coldly, her tone tinged with anger, and said, "I really couldn't stand that guy surnamed Yang, so I came here to find some peace and quiet."

Shen Xian was speechless for a moment.

But I also understand the eldest princess to some extent.

Attracting unwanted attention can sometimes be quite annoying.

"What's wrong? Cultivating? Is it inconvenient?" Beneath her delicate eyebrows, the beautiful woman's clear, bright phoenix eyes swept over the young man, asking with a half-smile.

"Convenient, convenient," Shen Xian said hastily, a strange feeling welling up inside him. He extended his hand in invitation, "Your Highness, please."

This princess gives him the feeling of a female hooligan. Is she going to force herself on him?

The princess stepped into the room and sat down on a pear wood chair. The phoenix-winged gold hairpin on her elegant hair shimmered under the lamplight, further enhancing her beautiful face.

The beautiful woman sat down as well. Beneath the exquisitely patterned collar of her dress, a large expanse of snow-white skin shone brightly in the lamplight. She asked, "How is your cultivation going?"

Shen Xian said, "I have entered the second realm of immortality, the Heavenly Gate, and have recently been familiarizing myself with the Daoist techniques."

The princess's beautiful face was radiant with a smile as she softly said, "The essence of Taoist magic lies in the word 'magic.' By borrowing magic to perform its functions, one can attain the wonders of Taoist magic."

Shen Xian said, "Your Highness is right."

The eldest princess said softly, "At the Heavenly Gate Realm, one has begun to develop divine consciousness, which is the foundation for cultivating the Dao. If you have any questions about cultivation, you can ask me."

Shen Xian nodded, listening to the soft whispers in his ear.

Turning to look at that charming and radiant face, illuminated by the lamplight, she was as beautiful as a peach blossom, and for a moment I was stunned and lost in thought.

The eldest princess chuckled and asked, "Why are you looking at me? Is there something on my face?"

Shen Xian blurted out, "Your Highness truly looks more beautiful than any flower."

Upon hearing this, the princess's heart trembled, and she said with a shy reproach, "Such a young age, yet you're so glib."

On the fair-skinned beauty's cheeks, two blushes seemed to rise, appearing even more radiant and peach-like under the glowing candlelight.

Shen Xian thought to himself, "You haven't even tried it, so you can't just say you're smooth-talking."

For a moment, the atmosphere in the private room became somewhat romantic and ambiguous.

The eldest princess finally broke the silence and asked, "What are your next steps in advancing the troops?"

"As for the Corpse Yin Sect, the demons have already retreated and gathered in Ningyang County. My left and right gate guards can lead their troops to approach Ningyang in the next few days and strike directly at the enemy's lair," Shen Xian said.

The eldest princess nodded and said, "That's good. We should press on with our remaining strength and not seek fame like Xiang Yu."

Shen Xian said, "That is exactly right."

The princess suddenly raised her beautiful eyes and stared at the young man. Her charming voice seemed to carry a hint of something inexplicable: "You gave the Taoist He Shou three poems, but you haven't given me one yet."

Shen Xian was taken aback for a moment upon hearing this, then hesitated before saying, "Your Highness, please allow me to think about it."

After thinking for a moment, I had an idea.

"So fast?" Beneath the princess's curved, trembling eyelashes, her beautiful, watery eyes seemed to gleam with a strange light.

Shen Xian was silent for a moment, then said: "Clouds remind me of her clothes, flowers of her face; the spring breeze caresses the balustrade, the dew is heavy; if not seen on the Jade Mountain, she will be met under the moon on the Jade Terrace."

These are lines from a poem by Li Bai about Yang Guifei, which are now being presented to the Princess.

Upon hearing this, the princess was overjoyed. Beneath her delicate, dark eyebrows, her beautiful eyes sparkled as she gazed intently at the young man.

Shen Xian smiled and said, "Your Highness, are you satisfied with this poem?"

The princess's beautiful face was beaming with smiles, and her voice was melodious and pleasant: "Satisfied? How could I not be satisfied?"

He thought to himself, "Scholar Shen is truly a man of amazing talent; he can compose such poems almost effortlessly."

Shen Xian smiled and asked, "Your Highness, are you feeling better? It's getting late."

The princess glanced at the young man with her beautiful eyes, seemingly giving him a reproachful look, and said, "What, are you trying to get rid of me?"

A beautiful woman is like a ripe peach; when she is coquettish or slightly angry, the charm that flows from her eyebrows and eyes makes one's heart flutter.

Shen Xian raised an eyebrow, his gaze quickly shifting with a hint of unease, and said, "Your Highness, I still need to study Taoist arts later, and I fear I may neglect Your Highness."

This mature woman exuded charm with every smile and gesture, and his young and vigorous body couldn't help but feel a sense of awe.

"You can study on your own. I'll just drink tea on the side. It won't bother you." The princess smiled gently on her bright and beautiful face. "I'd like to borrow the brush and ink in your study. I want to copy down the poem you just gave me so I can enjoy it from time to time."

Shen Xian nodded, then went to the bed, picked up the book recording Taoist techniques, and without saying anything else, began to immerse himself in reading.

As she had predicted, the eldest princess went to the study, picked up a brush, and began to write on the Xuan paper.

Just then, a familiar female voice came from outside: "Are you inside?"

The princess's heart stirred, her beautiful eyes darted around, and she concealed her slender and graceful figure in the shadows.

Shen Xian finished his practice and stood up, turning his gaze to Xue Zhihua who came from outside. He said, "Zhihua, what brings you here?" Xue Zhihua's eyes were gentle and tender as she said softly, "Nothing much, just came to see you."

Shen Xian nodded.

But then the beautiful woman came closer, took his hand, and said softly, "Aren't you at the Heavenly Gate Realm? This is my Immortal Dao Notes from when I broke through to the Heavenly Gate Realm. I'm giving it to you to study."

Upon seeing this, Shen Xian lowered his eyes and looked at it, saying, "Immortal Path Notes."

The princess, who was hiding in the shadows, saw this scene and her heart skipped a beat.

Zhihua, she said something was wrong before, it seems the two of them have been hooking up for a while.

Shen Xian took the Immortal Path Notes and said gently, "I'll study them later."

As she spoke, she looked at that beautiful, radiant face, and met those soft, slightly parted lips, clearly looking like she was asking for a kiss.

Shen Xian could only say, "His Highness is still here."

The eldest princess was secretly annoyed that Shen Xian had revealed her existence.

However, now that she had been exposed, she could no longer hide herself. She came out of the study next door, her face as beautiful as a hibiscus flower, fair and rosy, and said with a smile, "I didn't bother you in any way, did I?"

Xue Zhihua blushed deeply at this moment. She had been nestled in Shen Xian's arms, but she immediately stood up and said solemnly, "Zhihua greets Your Highness."

"What a coincidence," the princess said with a smile, glancing at the two still holding hands. For some reason, she suddenly lost interest, and her smile faltered. "You two continue. I'll head back now."

Holding the banner he had written, he prepared to leave the room.

For some reason, the joy I felt just now has completely vanished.

Shen Xian said, "Then Your Highness, please take care."

The eldest princess paused for a moment, hummed in agreement, and left the room.

Watching the princess's graceful figure depart, Shen Xian turned to Xue Zhihua, put his arm around the beautiful woman's shoulder, and said, "Your Highness was feeling down because of Zhao Wang Yang Youxing's entanglement, so you came to find me."

As he spoke, he waved his sleeve, and with a whoosh of wind, the door that had been open closed again.

Xue Zhihua gave a light snort, her clear eyes seeming to hold a hint of annoyance, and said, "You seem to be quite popular."

Shen Xian: "..."

He paused for a moment, then reached out and embraced Xue Zhihua, his soft, slightly parted lips savoring her sweetness.

Xue Zhihua gave a soft "hmm," and immediately her fair and delicate face turned as red as the sunset, her eyelashes fluttering and trembling.

Meanwhile, the eldest princess left the room with a strangely gloomy mood.

"It's just a Sage's Notes, isn't it? I have one too..."

The eldest princess thought about it, but felt that the jealousy was too obvious. In a flash, she had another idea.

She also planned to give Shen Xian a Qiankun bag.

As she spoke, she returned, and upon opening the door, she saw the two people being intimate, and her heart skipped a beat.

However, since she wasn't a young girl, she didn't take it too seriously.

"No, you two..." The princess's fair face was flushed with embarrassment and anger, clearly because she had seen the young man putting his hands inside Xue Zhihua's clothes to build a snowman.

Shen Xian quickly released Xue Zhihua and asked seriously, "Your Highness, is there anything else?"

"I thought that the Sumeru bag you usually carry doesn't hold enough, so I thought I'd give you a Qiankun bag," the princess said softly with a light laugh.

Shen Xian asked in surprise, "A Qiankun bag?"

Xue Zhihua was also flustered as she straightened her clothes. Her fair face was flushed red, and she turned her head away, not daring to look at the princess's ambiguous smile.

Could this person have deliberately returned?
As this thought crossed Xue Zhihua's mind, she subconsciously said, "The Qiankun Bag requires divine sense to open."

The eldest princess: "..."

Okay, she did forget just now.

It was as if something had gone wrong just now.

Shen Xian changed the subject and asked, "Your Highness, is there any news from the Jade Purity Sect today?"

As they spoke, he picked up a teapot with a blue and white porcelain cup, stood up, poured a cup of tea for the princess, and also eased the slightly awkward and uneasy atmosphere from before.

The eldest princess said softly, "Yuqing must have dispatched several Supreme Elders. I'm afraid there will be a good show to watch soon. It's all thanks to your previous plan that the people of Yuqing have fallen into the trap."

Shen Xian smiled faintly and said, "It can't be said that we've fallen into a trap. If it's an ancient immortal corpse, the people of the Jade Purity Sect might be able to break through to the Longevity True Immortal realm after studying it."

"You're quite the talker," the princess said with a light laugh. Beneath her delicate brows, her phoenix eyes shone like water. "I saw you using that Ink Rain Broken Blade earlier. Since you were lacking a suitable divine weapon, I had someone send one from the capital."

Upon hearing this, Xue Zhihua felt a strange sensation welling up inside her.

Shen Xian smiled and explained, "Your Highness has gone to great lengths. The Mo Yu Broken Blade is just more convenient to use. I also have the Wu Zhen Blade, which was a four-star divine weapon that the Empress bestowed upon me as a reward for my martial arts competition. I haven't used it before."

The Ink Rain Blade was chosen simply because it better suited the mindset of someone who had initially grasped the essence of the Night White Blade, and thus allowed the martial arts technique to exert its full potential.

However, why is the eldest princess suddenly being so nice to him? Is it because of "competition among women"?
However, truly liking someone does involve a strong desire to give and...possess.

"I see. Since you have it, then forget it." The princess's elegant face showed a look of realization. She said, "If anything is missing or lacking, just let me know. You are now a trusted minister of the Empress Dowager. Since the Empress Dowager is not here, I will naturally pay more attention to you."

The last sentence is unclear; it's hard to tell if it's an explanation or just self-deception.

(End of this chapter)