I, the military god of the Tang Dynasty, have risen since I destroyed the Turks

Chapter 784 Ancient Tomb Portraits
Liu Jin's fingers trembled slightly as he held the brocade box and walked along the deepest corridor of the palace toward the Cold Palace. The moonlight was fragmented by the high walls, dappling the bluestone slabs. Behind him followed two eunuchs, each carrying a pale white lantern, which made the three of them look as pale as ghosts.

"Steward Liu, this time...this time it won't be like this again..." a young eunuch said, his voice trembling.

"Shut up!" Liu Jin shouted sharply, but involuntarily touched his neck. In the past sixteen years, seven batches of eunuchs had been sent to the Cold Palace, and each one who returned never lived more than three days. Rumors circulated in the palace that a vixen-like woman was imprisoned there, draining people's life force.

The three stopped in front of a deserted courtyard. The three characters "Jingxinyuan" on the gate were already faded and illegible, and nine black iron chains were wrapped around the door knocker—a restriction personally set up by the former leader of the Quanzhen Sect.

Liu Jin took a deep breath and took out a strangely shaped key from his pocket. The moment the key was inserted into the lock, he seemed to hear a faint sigh coming from inside the courtyard, which startled him so much that his hand trembled and the key almost fell to the ground.

"His Majesty's things must be delivered," Liu Jin muttered to himself, as if trying to bolster his courage.

The courtyard gate creaked open, and a musty, stale smell wafted out. The courtyard was overgrown with weeds, except for an old plum tree stubbornly blooming with pale white flowers. The doors and windows of the main house were tightly shut, and a blurry figure of a woman was reflected in the window paper.

Liu Jin gestured for the two young eunuchs to remain in the courtyard, then cautiously walked to the front of the house and placed the brocade box on the steps: "Your Majesty, His Majesty has sent this old servant to deliver something."

The house was silent.

Liu Jin waited a moment, and seeing no response, turned to leave as if granted a pardon. Just then, the door opened silently, and a pale hand reached out and took the brocade box inside.

“Tell the Emperor,” a hoarse female voice came from inside the room, “Sixteen years have passed. Does he still dare not come to see me?”

Liu Jin knelt down with a thud, his forehead pressed against the cold stone slab: "Your Majesty, please forgive me! This old servant was only following orders."

"Get out," the woman said coldly, then began to cough violently.

Liu Jin scrambled out of the courtyard, while the two eunuchs were already pale with fright. Just as the three of them stepped out of the courtyard gate, they heard a loud bang from inside, followed by a woman's painful groan.

"Steward, do we want some?" the little eunuch asked, trembling.

"Run if you want to live!" Liu Jin shouted sharply, running towards the light without looking back. He didn't see that behind him, a trickle of black blood was slowly seeping from the crack in the door.
At the same moment, the Tomb of the Living Dead in Zhongnan Mountain

Yang Guo stood at the entrance of the ancient tomb, gazing at the familiar stone tablet, his heart filled with mixed emotions. Sixteen years had passed since he parted ways with Xiaolongnu in the Valley of Heartbreak, and he had never returned here. The four large characters "Tomb of the Living Dead" on the stone tablet were still clearly visible, though they bore the marks of time.

"Long'er." Yang Guo gently stroked the stone tablet, as if he could feel his lover's warmth through the cold stone. He took a deep breath and used his lightness skill to leap into the tomb.

The tomb passage was deep and winding, but Yang Guo remembered every inch of it clearly. He skillfully avoided the traps and quickly arrived at the main burial chamber. Moonlight streamed in through the gaps in the ceiling, illuminating the stone coffin—the final resting place of his ancestral master, Lin Chaoying.

Yang Guo suddenly froze on the spot. On the stone wall beside the coffin hung a portrait he had never seen before! It depicted two identical women in white, one cold and aloof, the other gentle and charming. Each wore a jade pendant at their waist—the very same pair of jade pendants with dragon and phoenix designs!

"This is..." Yang Guo leaned closer to examine it and discovered that the inscription in the lower right corner of the portrait read, "Self-Portrait of Chao Ying, presented to her two disciples," dated sixty years ago. "Two disciples?" Yang Guo was startled. He had always believed that the Ancient Tomb Sect only had its founder, Lin Chao Ying, and had never heard of her having any disciples, let alone two!

He hurriedly searched the tomb for more clues. In a hidden compartment, he found a yellowed booklet with the title "Supplement to the Jade Maiden Heart Sutra" on the cover. Turning to the first page, a few lines of delicate handwriting came into view:
"I have taken two disciples, one named Mochou, the other Moyou. Mochou is fierce, so I will pass on to her the Phoenix Pendant; Moyou is gentle, so I will pass on to her the Dragon Pendant. When the two pendants are combined, their skills will be perfected; when separated, both will be injured."

Yang Guo's hand trembled, and the booklet nearly fell. Li Mochou! He knew that name all too well—it was the infamous "Red Serpent Fairy" of the martial world! But wasn't she a traitor who had been expelled from her sect? How did she become the disciple of the sect's founder? And who was "Moyou"?

Scrolling down, Yang Guo discovered something even more astonishing:

"Mo You and Zhou Botong, a disciple of the Quanzhen Sect, secretly pledged their love and she became pregnant. To preserve the reputation of both sects, I ordered her to live in seclusion in a valley behind Zhongnan Mountain. Later, she gave birth to a daughter, whom she named..."

The writing was completely obscured by a large patch of blood, making it illegible. A thought flashed through Yang Guo's mind like lightning: Could Long'er be that child? And where is her mother, "Mo You," now?
Suddenly, faint footsteps echoed from the depths of the tomb passage. Yang Guo turned alertly, his Gentleman's Sword already drawn: "Who?"

A dark figure slowly emerged from the shadows. In the moonlight, Leng Qingshuang's pale face was ghostly, and the slender sword in her hand gleamed coldly: "Young Master Yang, we meet again."

Yang Guo pointed his sword directly at Leng Qingshuang's throat: "You've been following me?"

Leng Qingshuang didn't answer. Instead, she looked at the portrait, a strange light flashing in her eyes: "It's a beautiful painting, isn't it?" She suddenly rolled up her left sleeve, revealing a magnolia flower mark on the inside of her wrist. "Do you recognize this?"

Yang Guo was struck dumb – this mark was exactly the same as the one on Xiaolongnu's body!
"Who...who are you?" Yang Guo's voice trembled.

Leng Qingshuang gave a strange smile: "Who am I? I'd like to know too." She suddenly pressed her temple, a look of pain on her face, "Every time I see these things from ancient tombs, my head... Ah!"

She abruptly ripped open her collar, revealing a gruesome brand on her collarbone—the character for "slave"! "Sixteen years ago, someone pierced my head with seven gold needles. I don't remember many things," she cried, crouching down in anguish. "But I know... the woman in the painting with the dragon pendant...that's me."

Before he could finish speaking, Leng Qingshuang suddenly launched an attack, her slender sword piercing Yang Guo's heart like a venomous snake! The sword was incredibly fast, and although Yang Guo hastily parried, he was still slashed on the shoulder, and blood immediately stained his blue robe.

"You!" Yang Guo exclaimed, both shocked and furious.

Leng Qingshuang's eyes had regained their icy coldness: "His Majesty has ordered that you be taken back. If you dare to resist..." She flipped her left hand, revealing a small porcelain bottle. "This is the antidote to the 'Seven Deadly Heart-Corroding Pill.' If you want to save that woman in the Cold Palace, then obediently come with me."

Yang Guo was deeply shocked: Who was the person in the Cold Palace? Why did they need an antidote? Could it be...?
In the instant he was distracted, Leng Qingshuang's swordplay suddenly changed, unleashing a move called "Cold Moon Peeping at Man" aimed straight for his throat. Yang Guo hastily dodged, but was caught off guard by a shower of fine, hair-like golden needles flicked out from her left hand!

At the critical moment, a white figure darted down from the crack in the tomb roof, sweeping away all the golden needles with a flick of his sleeve. The newcomer landed lightly in front of Yang Guo; with white beard and hair, it was none other than the Old Urchin Zhou Botong!
“Little girl, it’s not right to use the kung fu I taught you to harm people!” Zhou Botong said with a rare serious expression.

Upon seeing Zhou Botong, Leng Qingshuang reacted as if she had seen a ghost, taking several steps back: "You...you are..."

(End of this chapter)