Transforming into a stunningly beautiful fox spirit, leaving a scar on the heart of a prodigy.

Inside the obsidian hall, the light was dim.

There are no windows here, only a few eternal lamps made of deep-sea silver that emit a faint, cold light.

The air was filled with a musty, earthy smell, the unique scent of something buried deep underground for years, mixed with a faint sandalwood fragrance, but it couldn't mask the stench of decay.

The main hall was extremely spacious, with only a few thick stone pillars, a stone chair at the top, and a few guest seats placed on both sides below.

Everything was black.

Black floors, black walls, black chairs.

The oppressive color scheme makes one feel a tightness in their chest as soon as they walk in, as if a huge rock is pressing on their heart.

Liu Qingshan walked in front, leading Su Qing and Gu Xiang to the head seat on the left.

"My humble abode is simple; please make do with it."

While Liu Qingshan spoke politely, his eyes kept lingering on Su Qing, as if trying to glean some clue from this "Empress Houtu".

Su Qing ignored him and walked straight to the black stone chair.

She glanced down at the hard, cold stone, her brow furrowing almost imperceptibly.

Before she could even speak, a slender hand reached out.

Gu Xiang took out a snow-white, soft cushion from his storage ring at some point.

That was snow fox fur from the far north, each hair crystal clear, radiating a faint warmth, a priceless tribute.

Gu Xiang casually laid the cushion on the stone chair, carefully smoothing out the wrinkles and even testing its thickness to make sure it was soft enough, before turning to Su Qing and speaking gently:

"Sit down, this stone is too hard and cold."

(Your uncle spoils him, doesn't he?)

This series of movements was fluid and natural, as if he were not the prime minister of the Great Zhou Dynasty who came to question him, but a personal steward serving his wife.

The air in the hall seemed to freeze for a moment.

Zhao Shanhe and Elder Tie, who followed in, were dumbfounded.

What... what kind of operation is this?

This is the council hall of the Mountain Moving Sect, a solemn and dignified place. Are you here for a picnic?

Liu Qingshan's eye twitched slightly.

He had lived for hundreds of years and had seen arrogant and domineering people, but he had never seen anyone who was so... so unapproachable.

Su Qing, on the other hand, found it quite agreeable.

She sat down as if it were the most natural thing in the world, sinking into the soft snow fox fur and comfortably squinting her eyes.

"You're very thoughtful."

Su Qing glanced at Gu Xiang, her eyes conveying a subtle intimacy that only the two of them understood.

Gu Xiang smiled but didn't say anything. He simply stood silently beside Su Qing, like a guardian deity.

Liu Qingshan suppressed his doubts, walked to the main seat, and waved to his disciple to serve tea.

Soon, two disciples came up carrying a tray.

The teacup was also made of black clay, filled with cloudy tea that gave off a bitter taste.

"This is the 'bitter heart tea' unique to my Mountain Moving Sect."

Liu Qingshan picked up his teacup, blew away the foam, and said calmly, "This tea grows thousands of feet underground, where it never sees the sun. It is extremely bitter at first, but has a long-lasting sweet aftertaste and can help stabilize one's Dao heart."

"Please have some, both of you."

Su Qing picked up the teacup, brought it to her nose, and smelled it.

A strong earthy smell hit my head.

She frowned and forced herself to take a small sip.

"puff--"

The next second, Su Qing spat the tea onto the ground.

A puddle of water on the black jade floor stood out starkly.

The hall fell silent once again.

Elder Tie's fist hardened, and veins bulged on his forehead. If Liu Qingshan hadn't stopped him with a look, he would have rushed up and started slashing.

This is a blatant slap in the face!

Su Qing took out a silk handkerchief, elegantly wiped the corner of her mouth, and slammed the teacup heavily on the table.

Elder Liu.

Su Qing raised her eyelids, looking at Liu Qingshan with a cold gaze, her voice filled with undisguised disdain.

"The tea is too bitter, and the words are too empty."

"Let's not put on this show of everyone having a good time here."

"I'm a picky eater. I can't stand your muddy soup from the ground, nor can I stand your roundabout platitudes."

Su Qing leaned forward slightly, and the oppressive aura of the Nine-Tailed Celestial Fox was instantly released. Although she was only a soul now, the nobility and domineering aura originating from her bloodline made everyone present feel breathless.

Where is my tree?

Su Qing went straight to the point, giving Liu Qingshan absolutely no face.

Liu Qingshan's hand, holding the teacup, froze in mid-air.

His smile froze for a moment, then slowly faded, and his eyes became deep and thoughtful.

"Your Majesty, I do not understand what you mean."

Liu Qingshan put down his teacup, his tone still calm, but with a hint of coldness: "Although the Moving Mountain Sect has declined, it is not a place to hide filth. If Your Highness has lost something, you should look for it elsewhere. Why come to my sect to question me?"

"Pack."

Su Qing sneered: "Keep pretending."

"Zhao Shanhe and his gang have confessed everything they've said outside."

"In order to prolong the life of your half-dead ancestor, you did not hesitate to use the Devouring Heaven Bag to travel tens of thousands of miles and uproot my original body."

"What, you dare to do it but not admit it?"

Liu Qingshan's gaze suddenly swept towards Zhao Shanhe, who was standing in the corner.

Zhao Shanhe was so frightened that he knelt down on the ground with a thud, trembling all over, but dared not utter a single word in his defense.

Liu Qingshan took a deep breath, knowing he couldn't hide it any longer.

He slowly stood up, his aura began to rise, and the pressure of the peak of the Transformation Realm surged towards Su Qing and Gu Xiang like a tide.

"Since Your Majesty already knows, then this humble Taoist will not hide anything from you."

"That's right, that phoenix tree is indeed in the forbidden area of ​​my sect."

"But that wasn't stealing; that was taking back what belongs to my Mountain Moving Sect!"

Liu Qingshan's voice suddenly rose, filled with grief and indignation: "Ten thousand years ago, our ancestor kept his promise and made an agreement with the owner of that tree, and the whole clan migrated here, enduring endless suffering."

"Now that the tree has matured, and our ancestor's lifespan is nearing its end, it is only natural to take its life force to prolong his life!"

"Since Your Majesty is the goddess Houtu, who has received the incense offerings of our sect for ten thousand years, you should protect our sect, not cut off our sect's livelihood for the sake of a mere tree!"

Liu Qingshan spoke these words with such self-righteousness, as if they were the victims.

"It's only natural?"

Gu Xiang suddenly laughed.

That was a laugh born of extreme anger.

He stepped forward, blocking Su Qing and completely deflecting Liu Qingshan's oppressive aura.

"What a self-evident truth."

Gu Xiang's voice was soft, yet it felt like a knife scraping across Liu Qingshan's face.

"Whether you are protecting it out of a promise or out of greed, you know the answer in your hearts."

"Does ten thousand years of protection mean you can claim something that belongs to someone else?"

"According to your logic, the Great Zhou royal family has ruled the country for three hundred years, so shouldn't the country forever belong to the Li family, and the people deserve to be exploited?"

A surge of righteous energy emanated from Gu Xiang, coalescing into a colossal Dharma image behind him.

It was a scholar holding a book, his face blurred, yet he stood tall and upright.

"I have studied the classics for twenty years and have never heard such a shameless argument."

"Today, I will teach you what true principles are."

With a flick of his wrist, Gu Xiang conjured a longsword in his hand.

The sword's blade was as smooth as water, its cold light gleaming fiercely.

"Hand over the sycamore tree, or..."

"I will dismantle your Mountain Moving Sect and take the spoils yourself."

As Gu Xiang finished speaking, the temperature in the entire hall plummeted.

Elder Tie roared and grabbed his giant axe, ready to charge forward.

Liu Qingshan narrowed his eyes, and a yellowish-brown seal appeared in his hand. It was the Mountain-Moving Sect's treasured artifact, the Mountain-Turning Seal.

War is imminent.

Su Qing sat on the snow fox fur cushion, looking at the back of the figure blocking her way.

She didn't move or speak.

But a hint of warmth appeared in those originally cold eyes.

That idiot.

She's clearly here to live off a woman, so why does she always insist on paying the bill?

but……

It feels so good to be protected like this.

Su Qing picked up the cup of bitter tea and gently swirled it.

"Lord Gu."

She spoke lazily.

"Go easy on me, don't damage my tree."

Gu Xiang didn't turn his head, his voice gentle: "Don't worry, Madam, I know what I'm doing."

The way he called her "Madam" was perfectly natural.

Liu Qingshan's face instantly turned ashen.

He finally understood the relationship between the two.

This is hardly some manifestation of the Earth Goddess.

This is clearly a pair of notorious thieves who came to cause trouble!

A Spray of Plum Blossoms: Questioning the Guilty

The palaces stand tall, shrouded in the dust of time; the tea is murky, but the words spoken are true.

A soft red cushion protects the beauty, her smile concealing a dagger, her words tinged with frost.

Greed and delusion have ruined this body for millennia; a tree has no roots, and calamity arises from greed and anger.

A scholar stands at dusk, sword in hand, asking not of the gods, but of his own soul.