Reincarnation Girl Becomes Immortal

"Senior sister is cheating. Next time, we'll do it again next time." Yan Hongji was talking in her sleep or something else.

"A win is a win." She simply smiled and said, "The losers should be prepared. Yesterday you all promised to be my concubines."

"Huh... really?" Hongji opened her eyes groggily and said in a daze, "No, she was forced to do it."

“I said it, and I can’t go back on my word.” Xi Heng hummed a cheerful tune as the birds chirped outside, and tiptoed around to the foot of the bed, his smooth bare feet stepping on the wooden floor.

The damp wooden board made a soft sound as it touched the skin.

She reached for the clothes rack at the foot of the bed and took her black and red dragon-patterned dress from it.

While getting dressed, I felt a gaze fixed on me. Turning my head, I saw that Senior Sister Hongmiao was also half awake, squinting and quietly watching me.

"Good morning." Xi Heng used a greeting method that was not commonly used by people of this era.

"..." Then the senior sister buried her rosy cheeks into the soft pillow.

The girl chuckled softly: "Senior sister, are you still reeling from the afterglow?"

"Who told you to be so unreasonable..." Hong Miao seemed angry, but her voice was soft.

"My senior sister arrived first, so I was just giving her a taste of her own medicine." Xi Heng gave himself an excuse, stretched, and waved to the two people on the bed.

"My beloved concubines, I'm going to court now."

"Tsk." The senior sister wasn't very friendly.

Hongji remained dazed and unresponsive.

With a triumphant heart, the girl, already dressed in her full attire, opened the balcony door and used her lightness skill and flying swallow magic to return to the imperial city.

……

Volume 1: Chapter 143, Times Change and Customs Evolve

After leaving the Flower Pavilion, Xi Heng returned to the Imperial City, changed into his imperial robes, and sat on the throne to attend court.

Today's court assembly was as usual, consisting of only routine matters. After handling them simply based on her experience, she returned to her empty room in the Fuqing Palace.

Yesterday, I was interrupted by my senior sister and only managed to test the Thunder Summoning Talisman Technique before being taken to the Flower Pavilion.

There's another method of infusion that I haven't looked into much yet.

Xi Heng went to the table and opened it, only to find that it was just a method for cultivating spiritual fields, or spiritual herbs and trees.

This method can infuse ordinary flowers, grasses, and trees with a certain amount of spiritual energy, transforming them from ordinary grasses into spiritual herbs and trees. When harvested and used, they will also have more special effects.

For example, infusing growing medicinal herbs with a certain amount of spiritual energy can enhance their medicinal effects.

Furthermore, with continued infusion of spirit over time, it might even cultivate spiritual herbs and trees with their own consciousness.

However, in this degenerate age, spiritual energy spontaneously rises to the heavens, so it is unknown whether the method of infusion still has any effect.

Even if she did, it wouldn't mean much to her.

She already has enough dragon blood to cure all diseases, so there's no need to improve the quality of herbs and plants for healing.

“Other emperors would probably be quite interested in this kind of magic, but for me it’s just better than nothing…” Xi Heng put it aside, left his room and went to the training room.

Enter and sit cross-legged on a futon, surrounded by the fragrance of ambergris, close your eyes and meditate inward.

The primordial energy within the dantian has become increasingly solid, and its flow is no longer perceptible, resembling a tangible pill.

It has been nearly three years since the primordial energy was formed, but it seems that it still needs a long time to mature before it is perfect.

“The progress is less than a third,” Xi Heng guessed. “It may take another six or seven years to complete… This method of forming the elixir is really difficult. Even if one goes through countless hardships and finally gathers a trace of primordial energy, one still needs to have enough lifespan.”

Most exceptionally talented martial artists reach the level of Huajin in middle age, and they still need to gradually hone and perfect their Huajin skills, which takes a lot of time.

When one reaches the peak of the Transformation Realm, one is usually already old, and one's Qi and blood gradually weaken with age.

Even if a truly exceptional genius could devise a way to gather primordial energy and survive, they might not live long enough to perfect it.

"In this world, perhaps only I can truly achieve it."

She closed her eyes and, as always, fed her vital energy to her dantian.

……

Every morning he would attend court, then spend a short time cultivating in the afternoon, and after sunset he would do other activities as he pleased... and the days would slip away slowly like this.

Repeat, repeat, and it becomes year after year.

As its territory gradually expanded, the Tianzhao Kingdom also incorporated a large area of ​​grassland in the southern part of the Yanmeng Kingdom.

The Dark Heavenly Sect continued to expand, no longer limited to the Tianzhao Kingdom, but also spreading to many other surrounding countries.

Western barbarians, the Yanmeng people to the north, and other nomadic peoples around them, along with the Baekje Kingdom which relied on the sea for its livelihood, were also rapidly infiltrated by the Dark Heavenly Cult.

Within the imperial city, emphasis was continuously placed on engineering and science. The Hanlin Academy promoted science and engineering studies, rewarded skilled craftsmen extensively, and disseminated relevant papers and books. Local schools gradually began to have teachers who taught engineering and science, and the imperial examinations gained an additional subject that earned extra points.

A great deal of knowledge in medicine, engineering, astronomy, and other fields flowed out of the palace, and basic knowledge began to spread widely.

In addition to schools, cities and towns across the country opened "literacy halls," which were spacious and resembled preaching altars. Lectures were held during the residents' free time, and people of all social status and age could enter to study.

Literacy rates gradually increased, and libraries and reading rooms of all sizes were established in various places.

Commerce circulated throughout the country, and people could enjoy products from all over the country without having to travel far. During this period, there was also a trend of wearing Hu-style clothing.

Meanwhile, as Baekje was completely infiltrated by the Dark Heavenly Sect, the entire country almost became a shipbuilding base for the Heavenly Zhao Kingdom. It had extensive exchanges with the Heavenly Zhao Kingdom in terms of shipbuilding technology, and now the ships that flowed out have been scattered to major ports along the coast of the Heavenly Zhao Kingdom.

People frequently explored the sea, fisheries flourished, and several maritime trade routes were gradually established.

The imperial court established the "Maritime Trade Office" to manage overseas trade, encouraged the opening of sea routes, and promoted merchant fleets to trade with other countries, whether near or far.

The opening up of domestic agricultural and handicraft policies led to the development and prosperity of a large number of handicrafts, which in turn promoted the construction of many trading ports. In addition, the academic atmosphere that Xi Heng deliberately fostered also supported the development of trade in distant seas and facilitated exchanges with countries large and small around the world.

The development of commerce and overseas trade made the Tianzhao Kingdom increasingly wealthy and prosperous. The currency issued domestically circulated among neighboring countries and was even used as local currency by some small countries. The domestic and international situation was stable, and the world was almost at peace.

The people living in this prosperous land firmly believe that Tian Zhao is the most civilized and powerful country in the world.

Kyoto and its largest port city, Pearl City, are gradually developing into a global metropolis, attracting a large number of foreign immigrants and international students.

The new legal order was proclaimed to the world by Emperor Xi Heng, who affixed his imperial seal.

Compared to the past, this new law places more restrictions on officials, while handling crimes committed by ordinary citizens in a more civilized manner. It severely cracks down on abuse of power and corruption, punishes wrongful convictions caused by torture and forced confessions by the Ministry of Justice, and narrows the scope of clan punishment and collective punishment.

After three years of this, the number of death row inmates nationwide decreased significantly. By the sixth year of the Taiheng era, there were only thirty-six death row inmates left for the entire year.

At the end of the year, when the court held its trial, His Majesty Tian Zhao allowed them to go home to make their final arrangements and to face execution the following autumn.

In the autumn of the seventh year of the Taiheng era, all thirty-six death row inmates were returned, none of them escaping.

……

As the national situation continues to improve, Xi Heng's own strength is also gradually increasing.

The primordial energy within the body is getting closer and closer to perfection; if there were a progress bar, you could probably see that it has already progressed halfway.

At the end of the seventh year of Taiheng, she handed over the already stable court affairs to Chuxiao and Chen Fenghuo to manage slowly, and then went south under the guise of a private visit, taking her senior and junior sisters to the economically prosperous coastal areas for leisure and inspection.

In recent years, the coastal areas have developed rapidly. Among them, the most important port, Pearl City, is the main altar and grand sacrificial site of the Dark Heavenly Sect. Now, the prosperity of this place is comparable to that of the capital, attracting people from all over the surrounding areas to come and work.

If we wait another ten years, it might surpass the capital.

"Ah-woo." Xi Heng picked up a small piece of wild yellow croaker meat and put it to his lips.

It is fresh, fragrant and delicious, and its flavor is overflowing. People who live in the palace in the capital can never taste such fresh seafood.

After taking a sip, she blinked.

"good to eat."

"Whenever my junior sister arrives in a new city, she always says this after taking her first bite at a restaurant," Senior Sister Hongmiao asked, resting her chin on her hand and leaning on the table in a relaxed manner.

"What's so bad about it for my junior sister?"

"Hmm, maybe it's just my appetite?" Xi Heng picked up a small piece of tender yellow croaker meat, chewed it slowly, and closed his eyes to think.

Since I left the palace two months ago to travel incognito, I haven't encountered any unpalatable food wherever I went.

Or perhaps it's because, through commercial circulation, restaurants in various places, as places that tourists and business travelers must pass through, have gradually adapted to the tastes of people from both the north and south, so their signature dishes are all quite delicious.

"Senior sisters and junior sisters, please start eating too." Xi Heng noticed that a dish had just been served, but only he was tasting it.

However, the senior sister didn't move: "This patrol has lasted for two months. When will we return?"

"We've only reached the southeast coast now. I... cough cough, I plan to continue my inspection tour southwards, then circle around to the west before returning to the capital." She said, "After returning to the capital, shouldn't we be launching a large-scale long-range voyage soon..."

"Speaking of which, why do you Zhao family members always seek immortality?" Yan Hongji, whose appearance and demeanor had become increasingly mature and composed, asked from the side.

Now, four years later, Hongji has become more intellectual than before. Because her martial arts level is relatively low, she cannot stay young forever. She is the one among them who has changed the most due to age.

If she was a young girl before, she already has the charm of a young woman now.

Xi Heng replied, "At the level of an emperor, nothing in the mundane world can hold any interest anymore; one can only seek the higher, more ethereal realm."

As a martial artist above the Transformation Realm, there are few things in this world that can ignite her ambition.

Only the legendary path to immortality remains, which still holds some interest.

I'm afraid anyone who reaches a high position in the world will do the same.

She's relatively normal.

"But what if we still can't find the immortals?" Hongji asked softly.

"I've done my best, that's enough." She had lived in the mortal world for so long, often entangled with the words "cultivation," yet she had never attained it.

Having been emperor for so many years, his temperament inevitably improved.

By now, I've pretty much come to terms with it.

Xi Heng chuckled softly.

"And what if we find her?" Senior Sister Hongmiao asked, raising another possibility: "Will Junior Sister ascend to the Immortal Realm and abandon us mortals?"

"..." Xi Heng didn't answer for a moment, but held the tea on the table and slowly took a sip.

After a moment, he said gently, "I will come back to visit often."

"Don't forget about us," Hong Miao clicked her tongue.

"How could that be? I could never forget it," the girl said lightly.

A moment later, another dish of food was served.

ahh-

"This one is not bad either."

Xi Heng deliberately feigned satisfaction, trying to change the subject.

Yan Hongji, however, was still preoccupied with the matter of seeking immortality.

"Does Senior Sister hope she finds it, or not?" She turned her gaze to Senior Sister Hongmiao and asked again.

"And you?" Hong Miao answered with a question.

Hongji pursed her lips and shook her head, her hair tied in a low bun with a hair ornament swaying gently.

Regardless of how her temperament changes, she remains Xi Heng's favorite in terms of appearance.

"I do not wish for that." Hongji turned her head slightly and said softly, "If we really find the immortal, Xiheng may have to leave us. No, that won't do."

Hong Miao said, "As the ancients said, 'When one person attains enlightenment, even his chickens and dogs ascend to heaven.' As her companions, you and I might also achieve immortality and ride the clouds."

Xi Heng ate his food while glancing around, not disturbing their conversation.

"Immortality...can we stay together forever?" Hongji hadn't thought about this before, and asked again.

"Who knows."

Xi Heng pouted and joined the conversation: "If the path to immortality is passable and safe, I will take everyone with me."

"But before that, we need to at least pave a path first."

She wanted to go ahead and scout things out first.

Once the path was sufficiently explored, the thorns and brambles were cleared away, making it passable.

Maybe I can bring along the people around me... probably.

"Everyone?" However, what Senior Sister Hongmiao was focusing on was not the 'immortal path' or 'bring along' in this passage.

She narrowed her eyes and asked again, "Everyone, how many people are there?"

"Eh?"