The Ninth Lady is a rebellious person.

Chapter 579 The Executioner, an Accomplice to the Tiger
The Corpse Demon has been eradicated, but the trouble it caused remains unresolved. During its existence, it has bitten people without knowing their true nature, and it doesn't discriminate based on location, only seeking to indulge itself. In some remote areas, people are isolated from the world and unaware of the symptoms of this corpse poison. When it takes effect, it spreads, infecting many people. Some even die from severe poisoning before they can be cured, turning into corpse demons that then go on to harm others.

This vicious cycle led to some people being able to detoxify, while others continued to die, and some even became corpse demons, causing chaos in Dadan.

Furthermore, what Master Zhishang was worried about actually happened: the Zhengyang Dispelling Miasma Talisman needed for the antidote was difficult to draw. One talisman was needed for each pot of antidote. Even though many Taoist priests participated, only Taoist priests who had attained enlightenment could draw the talisman, which made it even more precious.

Things are valued for their scarcity, and human nature is inherently selfish. Some officials are so afraid that their own people won't get a bowl of medicine that they dare to take risks to profit from it. They prioritize their own influential figures, leaving the most ordinary people without a bowl of antidote and dying in vain.

After this incident, the new emperor, under the "tyranny" of the Holy Maiden, executed two or three families, totaling nine generations, to quell the selfishness of the people. He then issued several decrees, ordering the establishment of medicine dispensing stalls in every county. He also ordered the guards to travel to every village, beating gongs and drums, to offer free medicine to anyone suffering from corpse poison. He also ordered a thorough investigation to determine if any cases of poisoning had gone unreported. Not enough men? Then conscript able-bodied men, five hundred coins each, there were plenty of people to do it.

This top-down approach had an effect; although the corpse plague had not completely disappeared, it gradually stabilized, and the number of deaths decreased. However, the damage to the body, especially for those who were seriously ill, was indelible.

Lang Jiuchuan drew countless Zhengyang Dispelling Miasma Talismans, which Gong Qi and Shen Qinghe took to lead people to relieve suffering, but Gong Qi and the others were terrified.

She was too calm, a calmness that seemed to conceal an endless storm, ready to erupt at the slightest spark.

After hearing that Lang Jiuchuan had drawn a large stack of Zhengyang Poisoning Talismans and given them to Gong Qi, Princess Tantai remained silent for a long time. She was still that same A Qing, the A Qing whose only stubbornness was her mouth, the little girl who could hold the great Dao of the common people in her heart.

When the people are in trouble, she is selfless and just like she was back then.

then……

Princess Tantai's expression changed instantly when she thought of what she had said about Pancheng. What Lang Jiuchuan was doing now was very similar to what happened back then. Was this a coincidence?
Her heart began to pound, and she felt even more panicked when she thought that the Imperial Advisor had not shown up.

Could it be that this was done intentionally?

Suddenly, a presence appeared behind her. Princess Tantai froze, turned around, and saw her. Her gaze was complicated: "You've come."

She sized up Lang Jiuchuan. She came from the Yin Road and still carried a chilling aura. Her aura was also more restrained. After not seeing her for some time, her cultivation had improved and she had become more spiritual.

The more she felt that her merits were profound, the more panicked Princess Tantai became, as if she could see Lang Jiuchuan's future.

Lang Jiuchuan examined her entire soul consciousness before setting up a barrier and getting straight to the point: "The corpse plague is rampant, the people are suffering, and countless lives are lost. As the national advisor, he not only fails to save the world, but is even the executioner of this disaster. Now, will you still unhesitatingly help that hypocrite achieve the so-called Great Dao he speaks of?"

Princess Tantai's delicate body trembled almost imperceptibly, her hand in her sleeve clenched quietly, and her face, which had already become much thinner due to the corpse poison plague, turned even paler.

Her pale pink lips parted slightly, but she couldn't utter a single word in response.

After the incident with the corpse poison plague, she asked the Imperial Preceptor to come down the mountain, only to receive a prayer for the well-being of the people. She then asked him to draw a talisman to dispel the miasma, but was met with an even colder rejection and an indifferent statement that fate had its own plan.

He said that the hope of survival in this disaster did not lie with him. She understood. In Langjiuchuan, she was the one who saved people from suffering, but she was inevitably filled with sorrow, especially when she saw the seriously ill dying one by one. Even with the best antidote, they could not be saved. Listening to their painful screams, the tower of faith in her heart had long been filled with cracks.

No, what does Lang Jiuchuan mean by "executioner"?
"The executioner?" Her voice was weak, as if she could hardly believe her ears.

Lang Jiuchuan sneered: "That's right, that corpse demon was created by him. Surprised? Excited?"

boom.

Princess Tantai took two steps back in shock, bumping into a teacup on the table, which fell to the ground with a crisp sound.

She didn't care, but stared at Lang Jiuchuan as if she had seen a ghost, her face pale, and said sharply, "Impossible, how could he do such a thing that would cause chaos in Dadan?"

"Only when Da Dan is in turmoil will I have the opportunity to save the world and accumulate countless merits, faith, and vows, won't I?" Lang Jiuchuan smiled coldly. "If I cannot save people from suffering, then he can still harvest the life force and fortune of countless lives for his own use. Are you satisfied with this answer?"

Her gaze was too sharp. Princess Tantai lowered her head and dared not look directly into Lang Jiuchuan's eyes. Her fingertips trembled. This was just as she had guessed, but how could she believe it?

"Admit it," Lang Jiuchuan sneered, "what he upholds is not some glorious path, but the ultimate selfishness that treats all things as straw dogs, a road to heaven paved with the lives of ordinary people. And you, you are an accomplice to evil, a henchman of tyranny!"

Princess Tantai suddenly looked up, her lips trembling, her eyes filled with pain and struggle: "I didn't!"

Lang Jiuchuan looked at her haggard face, which had become from drawing the miasma-dispelling talisman and coordinating various matters these days. There was even a dark circle under her eyes. The holy maiden of the altar, who should have been high above, had finally descended to the mortal world for the sake of all living beings.

She sighed softly and said, "Ah Yue, you are very intelligent, otherwise he wouldn't have chosen you to be his personal tutor. You should be able to figure out the truth."

Princess Tantai scoffed self-deprecatingly: "Intelligent? I am not as intelligent as you. I was just a playmate of yours, and a substitute. I was never anyone else. Now that you are gone, I am not even worthy of being called A-Yue. Instead, I bear your name as his only disciple. You are the invisible disciple. No, I am the one!"

From beginning to end, Lang Jiuchuan was the only disciple whom the Imperial Preceptor had carefully nurtured, and she, Princess Tantai, was merely a substitute.

That's why she desperately wanted to be seen and recognized. Her surname was Tantai, and the Imperial Preceptor was not only her teacher but also their Tantai ancestor. He had done a lot for the well-being of Dadan. She followed him, served him, and helped him achieve the Great Dao. What was wrong with that?
But now, all his actions are nothing but a meticulously planned conspiracy, and her following him is a ridiculous joke.

Princess Tantai closed her eyes slightly, took a deep breath, and resumed her usual indifference, asking, "Did you come here just to tell me that he is the mastermind behind this plague?"

Lang Jiuchuan shook his head and said, "The Tantai clan will produce an exceptionally talented person every hundred years. One will die and then be reborn. Have you ever thought about whether there is anything wrong with this pattern?"

Princess Tantai's expression suddenly changed.

(End of this chapter)