The Song Dynasty was the king for thirteen years before he knew that he was Tianlong.

Chapter 269 Take action
The noise outside the courtyard finally subsided after a while. Changchun Hall couldn't find anything wrong with the old Taoist priest, so they turned around to go to his house to check again.

Seeing this, the old Taoist priest became anxious and followed behind, muttering incoherently. Meng then stopped selling the dream.

Zhao Ti remained silent for a moment, and just as he was about to enter the kitchen, he saw Zhong Ling cautiously come out of the house.

Her cheeks were flushed, and when she saw Zhao Ti, she quickly lowered her head: "Your Highness, please go back to your room and rest. I'll fetch water and cook."

Zhao Ti said, "We don't need the water. I'll tidy up the yard myself." With that, he walked to the well and lowered a wooden bucket to draw water.

After a while, the two finished their meal, and then they heard a commotion on the street outside.

Upon going outside to observe, it turned out that someone had secretly slipped out of their home to wander around. After all, there had been no such ban for hundreds or thousands of years, and the residents of the town were not used to it at all, so they couldn't help but step out of their homes.

Then you hear the people from Changchuntang shouting loudly, "Just one more day, just one more day and the inspection will be finished. Everything will be back to normal by tomorrow morning."

One resident said, "We've searched all day with no results. If we still haven't found the evil monk by tomorrow morning, won't we have to stay home again?"

The people from Changchun Hall said, "How could that be? The Valley Master has already come out of seclusion. Let alone a demonic monk, we will surely be able to find him, even if he is a demon."

Upon hearing this, the residents grumbled under their breath and returned home. Zhong Ling asked, "Your Highness, will you find the demonic monk?"

Zhao Ti said, "It's almost certain we can find it, but I'm afraid..."

Zhong Ling asked, "What are you afraid of?"

Zhao Ti smiled slightly: "I'm afraid the evil monk has accomplices, and is not alone."

"Accomplices?" Zhong Ling asked in surprise. "This valley is secluded. It's possible for one person to sneak in, but how could there be more than one?"

Zhao Ti said, "It's extremely difficult for someone to come in undetected. The worst-case scenario is that they crawled out from somewhere in the valley. Since one of them has managed to come out, there's no doubt that a second one could do it."

“This…” Zhong Ling looked thoughtful upon hearing this.

Zhao Ti said, "Since they have been hiding for many years, it is possible that only one person came back then. There may have been several demonic monks lurking in the valley."

Zhong Ling said, "Your Highness, what about the search in this valley..."

Zhao Ti pondered for a moment and said, "Let's see. If I'm not mistaken, chaos will break out in this valley tonight."

In the wooden building in the center of town where Chunniang lived, Changchunzi sat behind a table with his brows furrowed and his expression heavy and complicated.

Chunniang asked, "What is Father still worried about?"

Changchunzi shook his head: "Naturally, I'm worried that there's more than one evil monk."

Chunniang said, "How could that be? Could it be that not just one person escaped from the abyss back then?"

Changchunzi glanced at her and sighed, "We have no choice but to take this precaution."

Chunniang asked anxiously, "Father, have you informed Kunlun?"

Changchunzi nodded: "The message was sent out last night that Kunlun has people stationed at the opposite snow mountain, and they will probably be here soon."

Chunniang said, "We've searched for so long and haven't found any trace of the demonic monk. If there really is more than one, then tonight..."

Changchunzi said, "Let's strengthen our defenses. I'll go and take another look at the entrance to the abyss in the cave. If the evil monk made a pact to cause trouble at this time several years ago, things won't be safe there either."

As he spoke, he got up and went downstairs. Chunniang watched his figure disappear, her expression solemn and melancholy.

Before long, the sun set and dusk fell again. Zhao Ti sat in the courtyard teasing the lightning ferret, while Zhong Ling peeled a basket of beans beside him.

As the setting sun shone down, its warm rays bathed the two of them in a dazzling display of red and yellow light, leaving Zhong Ling momentarily stunned.

The little sable chirped at her, and she was momentarily stunned. A blush rose on her face, and she stole a glance at Zhao Ti.

Zhao Ti noticed her gaze and smiled, "What were you daydreaming about just now?"

Zhong Ling said, "The sunshine is so warm and comfortable. I even forgot to shell the beans. I feel like I'm about to fall asleep."

Zhao Ti said, "If there were no evil monks in Changchun Valley and people didn't know martial arts, they could live a peaceful life, which would be a paradise."

Zhong Ling suddenly bit her lip, mustered her courage, and looked him straight in the eye: "Your Highness, I..."

Zhao Ti looked at her; her round face had a small dimple at each corner of her mouth, her appearance was bright and lovely, and she had an innocent and carefree look.

He thought for a moment, then suddenly reached out and grabbed one of her small hands. Zhong Ling trembled involuntarily, her face flushed with embarrassment, and she lowered her head slightly.

The lightning ferret looked at this scene with some confusion, made a "cooing" sound, stood up, and gestured with its two little paws.

Zhao Ti raised his arm and grabbed it, then stuffed it into his robe. Unable to break free, it immediately pretended to be dead.

"Your Highness..." Zhong Ling felt her face burning as if it were on fire. The other person's hand holding hers felt like it was being electrified, and her body felt tingly and numb.

Zhao Ti gently stretched out his arm and pulled her into his embrace. He felt her fragrance filling his arms, her softness like boneless silk, yet her body burning hot.

Zhong Ling kept her eyes tightly closed, her long eyelashes trembling, and her heart pounding wildly.

"Your Highness, I..." Zhong Ling's voice was weak and barely audible.

Looking at her fair and rosy face, her innocent and pure expression, and the sweet fragrance wafting towards him, Zhao Ti couldn't help but lower his head and touch her cheek.

Zhong Ling was struck dumb, and immediately grabbed Zhao Ti's arm with both hands, her eyes opening involuntarily.

Zhao Ti lowered his head again and gently covered the other's small mouth. Zhong Ling immediately made a "woo-woo" sound, but only for a moment before she hugged Zhao Ti tightly...

After a long while, Zhao Ti released her hand. Zhong Ling, blushing, hurriedly ran out of his embrace, then picked up the beans from the basket and rushed to the kitchen: "Your Highness, I, I'll go cook..."

After it got completely dark, the two ate dinner in the room and then began practicing their martial arts.

Around 7 p.m., suddenly shouts and noises came from outside the courtyard. The noises came from different places, some near and some far.

Zhao Ti walked to the window with his hands behind his back. Under the night sky, many places in the town were lit up with red dots, which were obviously lanterns and torches.

Then the sounds of fighting arose, and shouts of "Catch the demon monk!" and "The demon monk has appeared!" came from several places.

Zhong Ling then stopped her breathing exercises and said, "Your Highness, has the evil monk been discovered by the people of Changchun Hall?"

Zhao Ti nodded, went back to the table to drink a glass of water, and then said, "I heard shouts coming from several places, so there must be more than one demonic monk."

"Can Changchun Valley capture all these monks?" Zhong Ling asked curiously.

“The strength within this valley is far beyond what outsiders can imagine. Look at those ordinary residents, they might be quite old, but they could all be top-notch experts. Capturing them shouldn’t be a problem, but I’m afraid…” Zhao Ti pondered.

"What's there to be afraid of?" Zhong Ling asked.

"I'm afraid there might be other wicked monks popping up from somewhere. These monks have been lying in wait for a long time, enduring many years, and they're showing up at this moment to stir up trouble. It's unlikely they don't have some backup plan," Zhao Ti pondered.

Zhong Ling was about to speak when Zhao Ti gave her a subtle wink. She immediately fell silent and looked warily out the window.

A few breaths later, a very slight creaking sound came from the door outside, followed by footsteps entering.

"Who barged in uninvited?" Zhao Ti asked.

The footsteps stopped abruptly in the hall outside.

"If you don't speak up, I'll call for help," Zhao Ti said calmly.

"Don't shout, don't shout, Brother Zhao, it's your elder brother." The person outside coughed lightly and said, it was actually Ximen Yan's voice.

"Brother Ximen?" Zhao Ti glanced at Zhong Ling, gesturing for her to come closer, then asked with slight surprise, "Brother Ximen, what brings you here?"

The footsteps resumed, and then the door was slowly pushed open, revealing a figure—it was Ximen Yan. Ximen Yan said, "Brother Zhao, is anything happening tonight? Is everything alright?"

Zhao Ti looked him up and down a few times, then asked suspiciously, "Brother Ximen, you still haven't told me why you came here? I heard that Changchun Hall is arresting the evil monk outside, you..."

Ximen Yan nodded: "It's to capture the evil monk. Changchun Hall is short-handed, so I was also conscripted to help search for and capture him."

Zhao Ti's eyes flickered, but he remained silent.

Ximen Yan said, "Just now we discovered the traces of the evil monk. He had been disguised as a villager for many years. After being exposed during the investigation, he fled to a distant place. Changchun Hall chased after him, but my lightness skill was almost not enough to catch up, so I fell behind."

Zhao Ti hesitated for a moment and looked at him, saying, "I heard that there seems to be fighting in more than one place outside. Why didn't Brother Ximen go to help elsewhere and instead came here?"

A hint of worry appeared on Ximen Yan's face: "Isn't it because I'm worried about Brother Zhao and his brother? I'm afraid that the evil monk will come and harm you. You're new here and young, so your martial arts skills are probably not high enough. If the evil monk really comes, I'm afraid you won't be able to defeat him."

Upon hearing this, Zhao Ti showed a relieved expression and cupped his hands, saying, "Thank you very much, Brother Ximen. Please come in quickly, Brother Ximen, don't stand at the door."

Ximen Yan nodded and walked into the house, then glanced around the room and laughed, "You said before that you were just friends, but I think you two are clearly a couple."

Zhao Ti asked in bewilderment, "Brother Ximen, where did you see that?"

Ximen Yan pointed to the bed and laughed, "Don't these two pillows here prove it? Originally, each room in these empty courtyards had only one pillow. Now that they're all here, doesn't that prove you two are husband and wife?"

Upon hearing this, Zhong Ling blushed and lowered her head. Zhao Ti looked ashamed and said, "Brother Ximen, please forgive my rudeness. We haven't officially tied the knot yet, so it's not appropriate to address each other in public."

Ximen Yan nodded: "It's alright. We're all people of the martial world, why bother with so many formalities? Just call me whatever you want."

Zhao Ti nodded and continued, "Brother Ximen, please sit down and have some water. There was such a commotion outside. Just how many demonic monks were there? Have you caught a single one?"

Ximen Yan sighed, "I originally thought there was only one, but who knew that three or four were found in the house in the east of the town. One has already been brought to justice, and the rest escaped. However, the valley is not very big, so I estimate that they will be captured and killed soon."

Zhao Ti said, "These evil monks are really despicable. I don't know what their background is. I couldn't sleep all night after returning from Widow Qin's house. I hope Changchun Hall can kill them all as soon as possible and restore peace to the valley."

Ximen Yan looked at Zhao Ti with a deep gaze and said, "Is that so? Brother Zhao, is that really what you think?"

“Of course that’s what I think, Brother Ximen, why…” Zhao Ti suddenly widened his eyes: “Brother Ximen, why did the skin on your face fall off?”

At this moment, a piece of skin was seen dangling down on Ximen Yan's cheek, with a piece of flesh still attached to it, and bright red blood was gushing out, dripping onto his collar.

Ximen Yan reached out and touched it expressionlessly, then sighed, "They had already grown together, and the marks were barely visible. I never expected the people from Changchun Hall to be so ruthless... Brother Zhao, do I look like a demonic monk to you?"

Zhao Ti blinked: "Brother Ximen... what are you talking about?"

Ximen Yan asked, "Do I look like a demonic monk, brother?"

Zhao Ti reached out and pulled Zhong Ling behind him, his voice somewhat strange: "Brother Ximen, you don't look like a demonic monk to me. Aren't monks supposed to be bald? Your hair is so thick, you don't look like a monk at all."

Ximen Yan laughed and said, "Hair grows... It's a pity that I am a demonic monk. Today I will have to borrow Brother Zhao's identity for a while."

As he spoke, he raised his hand forward, his arm instantly growing more than half a foot long, moving with lightning speed to grab Zhao Ti's face, while his other hand shot out an object that flashed red light and struck Zhong Ling behind him.

The little sable on Zhong Ling's shoulder immediately made a "sizzling" sound and darted forward with a "whoosh," but it bumped into Zhao Ti's back and fell to the ground, dizzy and disoriented.

Zhao Ti stood up at some point, and one hand had already grabbed Ximen Yan's wrist. Ximen Yan's arm was flashing with golden light, but it could not penetrate him at all.

Zhao Ti looked at the golden light and shook his head, saying, "I knew Brother Ximen wasn't a demonic monk. How could a demonic monk have such abilities? He's far too weak."

"You, you..." Ximen Yan's expression changed drastically: "Who exactly are you?"

Zhao Ti smiled slightly and lowered his voice, saying, "Actually, I might as well tell Brother Ximen the truth... I am the demonic monk."

"This is impossible!" Ximen Yan's eyes were sinister. At this moment, golden light emanated from his body, turning him into a golden man. He clapped his other hand forward, with faint chanting of Buddhist hymns.

Zhao Ti said, "Why is that impossible? Look, I also know Buddhist techniques, and they are much more powerful than your intimidating golden light."

He unleashed the Dragon Elephant Prajna Palm, its deep, rumbling thunder carrying the sounds of dragons and elephants as it met the opponent's attack. A muffled groan followed, and Ximen Yan was sent flying. The arm Zhao Ti was holding was torn off, blood flowing freely.

Zhao Ti tossed his severed arm to the ground, stepped forward, and shook his head, saying, "Brother Ximen, do you know the consequences of impersonating a demonic monk?"

"You, you're from Kunlun..." Ximen Yan leaned against the wall and exclaimed in a trembling voice, "You were sent by Kunlun Mountain to deliberately lure us into this trap during this great upheaval?"

Zhao Ti chuckled: "What Kunlun? I have no idea about that."

"Then you..." At this moment, half of Ximen Yan's face had fallen off, shaken by the Dragon Elephant Prajna Palm, and beneath the skin was bloody flesh, making it impossible to see what he originally looked like.

Zhao Ti walked up to him and said, "Brother Ximen, tell me, where exactly did you come from in this valley? If you satisfy me, I won't hand you over to the people of Changchun Valley."

Ximen Yan's eyes were vicious. He gritted his teeth and suddenly began to chant scriptures in a low voice.

It was an unknown scripture, and the words were indistinguishable. The sound was as faint as the chirping of insects, but it was like the sharpness of needles and knives, disturbing the mind and spirit.

Zhao Ti said, "Ling'er, plug your ears."

Zhong Ling responded and covered her ears. Zhao Ti looked at Ximen Yan and smiled, "Brother Ximen, what kind of scripture is this? I've never heard of it before. Could you have made it up? Brother Ximen is indeed a fake sorcerer."

Seeing that he remained unmoved, Ximen Yan suddenly opened his mouth and spewed out a cloud of red mist. Within the mist, countless tiny insects, like dust particles, seemed to be moving, making a chilling sound as if their teeth were grinding together.

With a flick of his sleeve, Zhao Ti sent all the red mist flying back, which landed on Ximen Yan's face. The dust-like insects immediately burrowed into his bloody skin, and many even got into his eyes.

Ximen Yan let out a painful groan. Zhao Ti said, "Brother Ximen, it's not too late to tell me your true colors now. I can still save you."

Ximen Yan did not answer, nor could his expression be seen. Suddenly, he raised his remaining hand and slapped it against his chest. It was unclear what he had in his arms, but a flash of fire appeared, and his whole body burst into flames.

His face contorted in the flames: "Brother Zhao, I remember you. I'll come back for you..."

Zhao Ti's eyes turned slightly cold. The monks he had killed before had said the same words. He smiled coldly, raised his palm and struck forward. The palm wind directly extinguished the flames and smashed Ximen Yan to pieces.

Just then, the sound of a creaking door came from outside, followed by footsteps walking through the hall towards them. A young monk dressed in a spotless, moon-white robe appeared in front of them.

He glanced around the room, then his gaze fell on Zhao Ti: "Senior Brother Fu Tuo?"

Zhao Ti smiled at him, and with lightning speed, he was already in front of the monk, reaching out to grab his collar.

The white-robed monk's expression changed drastically. He slid backward and threw a punch forward.

Zhao Ti neither dodged nor evaded, but directly grabbed the fist with his palm. The white-robed monk let out a low roar, and the fist's wind shattered, the force seemingly capable of melting metal and stone.

Zhao Ti narrowed his eyes, and the eleventh level of the Dragon Elephant Prajna Technique surged forth, as if destroying dry and decaying things. The sounds of bones shattering and tendons tearing were incessant. The white-robed monk let out a miserable scream and was directly knocked to the corner of the wall, resembling a pile of minced meat.

Zhao Ti walked over slowly. The monk still had a faint breath left. He didn't use his full strength and said calmly, "Where did you come from?"

The monk was unrecognizable, yet he seemed to be gritting his teeth: "You Kunlun people shouldn't be so smug. Before long, all the Buddhas will descend and surely destroy your Kunlun..."

"Destroy Kunlun?" Zhao Ti nodded: "Alright, but there are Buddhist sects in this world that preach and believe in various Buddhas. Aren't all those Buddhas you mentioned just demons in disguise?"

"Hahaha..." The monk suddenly laughed: "Aren't all the monks in this world usurped by you Kunlun people? You are the demons, and you are still saying that we are fake. How ridiculous."

"Usurped by Kunlun?" Zhao Ti frowned. What was the relationship between Buddhism and Kunlun? Why would Kunlun want to usurp Buddhism? Moreover, he had never seen any temple in the world have any dealings with Kunlun.

He pondered for a moment and said, "Talking nonsense!"

The monk stopped speaking and took a deep breath. Suddenly, his fleshy body swelled up rapidly, as if it were about to explode.

Zhao Ti raised his hand and unleashed a Phantom Yin Finger strike, causing the monk's body to immediately deflate and he to lose all his breath.

"Your Highness, what should we do with these corpses?" Zhong Ling stepped forward, her face pale.

"No need to do anything, it's too late," Zhao Ti said, shaking his head and turning to look out the window.

(End of this chapter)