I, who disguised myself as a woman, turned out to be a queen! ?

Chapter 1173 An Uncontrolled Blade and a Mad Empress

On the road from Jingzhou into the territory of the capital.

A Taoist priest and a Buddhist monk were traveling together.

The Taoist priest wore a lotus crown and a black Taoist robe, with a white longsword hanging at his waist. Although his attire gave him a refined and otherworldly appearance, he was actually unusually tall and his robe was bulging, making him look exceptionally robust and muscular. He also had large, protruding earlobes and narrowed eyes, making him look nothing like a good person.

The old monk beside him wore a white robe. If you looked closely at the scripture patterns on it, you could see that they were actually outlined and embroidered with genuine silver and gold silk threads. Moreover, there was a white lion embroidered on the shoulder of the robe, which was not easily visible.

The monk had a handsome face and at first glance looked like a monk in his early twenties who had just started his career.

He held an equally ornate Zen staff in one hand and a purple-gold alms bowl in the other.

However, one thing was quite strange: the monk's alms bowl was filled with leftover rice.

The monk stepped aside, then looked at the Taoist priest and finally decided to speak: "This knife that is kept in Longhu Mountain should not have been taken out. Even just walking beside you, I could feel the malevolent aura emanating from it."

The three disciples of the Old Celestial Master of Longhu Mountain who are still alive today are Qing Shuang, Chang Chun, and Chen Xin.

Except for Chenxin, who was taken in by the old celestial master a few years ago, the other two have lived from the past to the present and have experienced countless life and death.

The man before us is Changchun, who is also the third great-uncle of Longhu Mountain.

Changchun looked at the old monk beside him with great respect, "Master asked me to pick it and bring it to you, so I brought it."

The monk frowned: "Has the old Celestial Master become senile?"

Changchun stared intently at the monk, already preparing to attack.

The monk waved his hand dismissively: "A slip of the tongue. Stubbornness—the Old Master himself was like that, and the disciples he taught are, one has a bad temper, and the other is as stubborn as you. I heard that Chen Xin is also a good-for-nothing?"

But as he said this, the monk looked at the long box wrapped in cloth on Changchun's back: "The origin of the knife is also recorded in my Jade Dragon Temple. It should not have been born. The fact that it could be suppressed by the swords of your successive Celestial Masters shows that its malevolent aura is not something that ordinary people can control."

Changchun remained expressionless: "If Master says it should be born, then it should be."

The monk smiled gently upon hearing this: "All are predestined, all are not. Does the Celestial Master intend to give this sword to Yunxiao, the Empress, or that child Kuyue? Since it is being sent to the capital, only those three who practice swordsmanship can handle it. The Fifth Pair and Liu Huangwu are not qualified yet. But it should be Her Majesty the Empress."

Changchun spoke up: "Master Longshi, my master asked me to deliver the knife, so I delivered the knife. I don't know anything else. I didn't ask anyone from the Shence Mansion either."

Upon hearing this, Longshi, a living Buddha from Kunlun Yulong Temple known as "Ksitigarbha," scoffed and looked at Changchun: "Your master tells you to die, and you go too?"

Changchun nodded without hesitation: "If my master tells me to die, then I will die."

Long Shi waved his hand and then said, "If you hear the true Dharma in this life, you will fall into the three evil realms for countless eons. If your master really lets innocent people die so easily, I'd like to see what kind of methods this old Celestial Master of the Zhengyi Sect has to offer."

As he spoke, the monk turned and continued on his way.

Changchun remained expressionless as he walked beside the senior figure.

The two met, and since they had the same destination, they naturally decided to travel together.

However, Long Shi gazed at the main road ahead, observing the pedestrians: "When I was discussing Buddhism with the old monk from Lotus Temple who was about to pass away, he mentioned your affair with Qing Shuang. He said that when you were a monk at Lotus Temple, your murderous nature remained unchanged, and he had no choice but to cripple your cultivation, making you an ordinary monk. Unexpectedly, Qing Shuang brought the Old Celestial Master here. The Old Celestial Master told you, 'For thousands of years, the soup in the bowl has been filled with deep grievances and unquenchable hatred. If you want to know about the calamities of war in the world, just listen to the sounds of slaughter at midnight.'"

Changchun spoke up: "My master has enlightened me."

Long Shi glanced at Chang Chun: "So you abandoned Buddhism for Taoism?"

Changchun quickly replied, "Tao is Buddha, and Buddha is Tao; there is no difference. My master said that what people should cultivate is themselves, and he made me think clearly about 'what kind of thing I am.'"

Long Shi's lips curled up. No wonder he had his cultivation destroyed and started over, yet he still managed to reach this level. His state of mind was truly extraordinary. This Taoist priest really knows how to teach people.

But he stopped talking about these things and said, "Now that you've gone down the mountain, you shouldn't be going to the capital, but to that no-man's-land. All the old demons that your master didn't kill back then are there."

Changchun said, "I won't go unless my master gives the order."

Long Shi continued, "Back then, when you and your dozen or so fellow disciples went down the mountain to fight, you were ambushed and betrayed by those members of the Demonic Sect who harbored resentment towards your master. This left you trapped in the mud and surrounded by the Northern Desert Army. Only a few of you managed to escape. Later, one of you died practicing a technique that you couldn't master, leaving only two of you. Don't you hate those members of the Demonic Sect?"

Changchun shook his head: "Master killed all those who deserved to be killed. As for the rest, Master didn't ask me to kill them, so I won't go."

Long Shi chuckled and said, "That old bastard Dan Xian did take on a good disciple, unlike mine, who only wanted his wife and daughter and ran away down the mountain."

Changchun looked at Long Shi: "If you go to the capital, aren't you afraid of Yan Yunxiao? Didn't you almost get killed by her back then?"

"Don't expose someone's shortcomings," Long Shi said, remaining silent upon hearing this.

The bull's nose is the same as the red beak!
If you're not going to talk, then don't. But what you say is scathing!
Moreover, this old man Dan Xian keeps leaking everything!

However, at this moment, right behind the Taoist priest and the monk, a blood-red figure ran past like the wind, followed closely by several people wielding knives in pursuit.

The monk glanced ahead and saw that the person fleeing was a woman, holding an infant in her arms.

Behind them were a dozen or so burly men.

Their strength is not great, only below the sixth rank.

"Taoist priests and monks, get out of the way! The Giant Whale Gang is on a mission, make way!" roared one of the pursuers.

Long Shi gently raised his eyes, and the white lion on his monk's robe seemed to open its eyes. The next moment, Long Shi turned around.

Just as the dozen or so men caught up to Long Shi and were no more than a step away, the copper ring on Long Shi's monk's staff jingled.

Wow!
They didn't see Long Shi make a move, but all of the dozen or so people were lying on the ground in pools of blood.

The woman who was running away stopped in her tracks, her face filled with horror, when she saw this.

Long Shi looked at the corpse on the ground, his lips moved slightly, and he softly chanted a sutra, letting the blood slowly flow towards him.

Hell will never be emptied, and one will never become a Buddha.

What is hell? What is the human world?

Long Shi opened his eyes, ignoring the corpses on the ground. He believed that evil spirits could not be eradicated, but if he encountered them, he would slaughter them.

Changchun had narrow eyes, and he only glanced at it before ignoring it. That's how it has always been in the martial world, and it will always be so. No need for further words.

Just as Long Shi turned around...
But as if sensing something, he immediately looked at the knife box behind Changchun.

Changchun also sensed something and immediately took off his knife case and pressed one hand to the ground.

But in that instant!
The cloth covering the scabbard ripped apart instantly.

Then, a knife case completely wrapped in Taoist talismans appeared.

But the scabbard trembled, as if the thing inside wanted to come out.

Long Shi glanced back at the corpses on the ground and frowned: "Just because there's blood around, it's like this. Dan Xian must be crazy to let it be born!"

After saying this, Long Shi placed his staff to one side, then put his hands together in prayer and lowered his eyes to chant sutras.

The inscriptions on his monk's robes were subtly revealed, just like the white lion.

Changchun was also reciting the Taoist Pure Heart Sutra.

Even so, the murderous aura emanating from the scabbard immediately sent chills down the spines of Long Shi and Chang Chun.

The trembling sound of the blade was like the cry of a vengeful ghost.

The two worked together
The knife case gradually calmed down.

However, beads of sweat were visible on Long Shi's forehead.

Even on Changchun's hand, which was pressing down on the knife case, there were tiny blood vessels.

Finally, Long Shi let out a long sigh and looked at the knife box: "Back then, that woman used this knife to slaughter everyone in the martial arts world. Even those who learned from her Yiweiting sect died countless times because of this knife. According to the records of my Yulong Temple, the senior martial arts masters tried to destroy this knife together, but the malevolent energy on the blade would affect the mind of anyone who touched it, causing their character to change drastically. In the end, the Celestial Master barely managed to bring it back and hang it on your Longhu Mountain."

Changchun rewrapped the knife case in cloth. "I don't know, but my master told me to send it to the capital."

Long Shi remained silent, but the next moment he took off his luxurious monk's robe, leaving only a plain white garment underneath that didn't match his appearance. "Wrap yourself in this. There are too many ordinary people on the road ahead, so I don't want them to be affected."

Looking at Changchun wrapping the knife box in his monk's robe, whose ferocity had not diminished over the years, Long Shi dared not imagine how many people had died under that knife back then.

Dan Xian wanted to give the knife to the Empress.
What if the Empress can't control it?
……

Inside the Lingqi Pavilion, ever since the small banquet for noblewomen ended, Su Chang'an has been sitting in the hall, holding a pen, writing something.

No one else disturbed them.

But now, Su Chang'an spoke up: "I've been going in the wrong direction. I've been emphasizing how others see things, but that's not how you do it, is it?"

Su Chang'an looked up at the little black cat lying in front of the table.

The black cat turned its head to look at Su Chang'an.

Their eyes met.

The black cat's ears stood up, staring straight at Su Chang'an.

Su Chang'an continued, "Yes, you think I'm right. That's good. I knew you could understand me."

Su Chang'an ignored it and looked down at the title on the paper on the table: "On How to Change Your Image So Others Will View You Correctly."

Right next to it was a headline: "Where Did My Money Go?"

Below the title are densely packed labels with various names of palace areas, such as the Imperial Garden and the Imperial Kitchen.

But Su Chang'an's expression froze for a moment, and he looked up at the black cat: "Let me smell you, can you find my money? If you can, I'll make you cat food you've never eaten before."

The kitten sat up and tilted its head to look at Su Chang'an.

(End of this chapter)