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

Chapter 332 Adorned in fine silks and fragrant robes, his poetic fame resounds throughout the capital.

"Yuan Xiaoxian..."

Seeing the puzzled looks on the faces of the generals, Zhao Ti slowly said, "She is Princess Cheng'an of the Liao Kingdom. I had a past relationship with her, but I don't know how I ended up in Mi'e River."

Upon hearing this, all the generals lowered their heads and remained silent. Zhao Ti calmly said, "On the battlefield, it is a matter of war. Now that Song and Liao are enemies, we should naturally distinguish between public and private matters. There is no need to overthink it."

Everyone agreed, but still didn't raise their heads. Zhao Ti frowned and said, "Come out of the tent with me and see why she's here."

Having said that, he got up and walked outside. The generals exchanged glances and hurriedly followed.

Stepping out of the command tent, one sees heavy snow falling, goose feathers fluttering down, and the world covered in a pure white blanket.

He then mounted his horse and headed towards the camp gate. After a short while, he emerged from the gate and saw a lone rider standing in the distance amidst the vast expanse of heaven and earth.

Immediately, a slender figure appeared, half-covered in a white fur coat by the heavy snow, her white fur coat adorned with silver, her skin as white as ice and her bones as white as jade. Against the backdrop of the snowy sky, she appeared utterly lonely and desolate.

Zhao Ti narrowed his eyes slightly. Although the snow was falling and the north wind was blowing, making it difficult to see the other person's face clearly, he recognized her as Yuan Xiaoxian just by her graceful figure.

Yuan Xiaoxian bowed respectfully from her horse, her voice like pearls falling on a jade plate: "Your Highness, it's been a long time. How have you been?"

Zhao Ti pondered for a moment. It had been a long time since they last met. But what was the other party doing in Miechuan? And why was he leaving the city alone at this moment? Did he have some deep scheme in mind?

"Very well, I wonder what brings Princess Cheng'an here? I have already left the camp, so please speak freely."

“Your Highness…” Yuan Xiaoxian’s voice was low and somber: “Why does Your Highness speak in such an unapproachable tone? Can’t you come and see me if there’s nothing wrong?”

Zhao Ti remained silent upon hearing this, feeling that Yuan Xiaoxian was acting strangely. Although they hadn't seen each other for a long time, Yuan Xiaoxian hadn't spoken to him like this since the Lantern Festival.

Seeing that he remained silent, Yuan Xiaoxian said, "Has Your Highness forgotten the story of 'Searching for him a thousand times in the crowd, only to find him suddenly turning around in the dim light'?"

Zhao Ti's eyes flickered slightly. Snowflakes pelted his face and fell into his neck and collar. The silkworm poked its head out and sucked it all into its belly with a strong suck.

Just then, Yuan Xiaoxian recited: "The east wind releases a thousand trees of flowers at night, and blows down stars like rain. The road is filled with the fragrance of precious horses and carved carriages. The sound of phoenix flutes moves, the jade pot shines, and fish and dragons dance all night."

"Moths and willows, golden threads, laughter and fragrance linger. I searched for him a thousand times in the crowd, then suddenly I turned around, and there he was, in the dim light."

"These are His Highness's words," the generals whispered among themselves.

Zhao Ti did not write many poems, but each one is a masterpiece. This poem, "Green Jade Table for the Lantern Festival," was praised by the literary circles of Tokyo as the best Lantern Festival poem of all time as soon as it was published, and was highly regarded.

“I think I’ve heard a rumor that Your Highness wrote this poem… for a princess of the Liao Kingdom,” Zhe Yanzhi whispered.

"I...I've heard of her too," Yao Youzhong said in a low voice. "Could it be Princess Cheng'an?"

“Yes, yes, that year I was awarded the seventh-rank military officer title. When I went to the capital to meet the emperor, it was during the Lantern Festival. I went out to admire the lanterns at night and heard that His Highness Prince Yan’s ‘Qingyu’an’ had suddenly appeared and caused a sensation in the capital. Princess Cheng’an of Liao and the grandson of the emperor, Yelü Yanxi, were both present when this poem was written. Many people saw it.” One of the generals said.

"Your Highness once said that all things have passed, and that the truly remarkable figures are those of today. Your Highness is indeed a remarkable figure," another officer said.

"Your Highness is a man of both literary and martial talents, and a dashing and romantic figure. I admire you greatly."

"Yes, I admire him immensely too!"

"Shut up, all of you!" Zhe Keshi glanced at Zhao Ti and gently stopped everyone, thinking to himself, "Is it appropriate for you to be talking about this right now? You bunch of clueless idiots who can't even tell who's who."

Zhao Ti looked at Yuan Xiaoxian and said, "I will not forget the poem, but Princess Cheng'an did not come here simply to reminisce, did she? Please speak frankly if there is anything you need."

Yuan Xiaoxian smiled charmingly: "Your Highness, you are still as insightful and perceptive as ever. Since that's the case, I will no longer hide anything. I have come for the Holy Sect's priest, Xiao Xuan."

"You came for Xiao Xuan?" Zhao Ti nodded; that reason made sense.

Yuan Xiaoxian's master is a high priest of shamanism. Last time he went to the shamanic church, Yuan Xiaoxian was there too. She probably hasn't returned to the capital yet. It's normal for her to come and rescue the southern shaman priest after he captured him.

“It is indeed Xiao Xuan,” Yuan Xiaoxian said. “He overestimated himself and secretly plotted to assassinate Your Highness. He will surely be captured by Your Highness. I have been ordered by my master to come and discuss with Your Highness whether he can be released and allowed to return.”

"Let him go back?" Zhao Ti narrowed his eyes: "Princess Cheng'an, you know he came to assassinate me. Don't you know what his punishment should be?"

“Of course I know, that’s why I came to Your Highness to discuss this, to see if Your Highness could show leniency, spare his life, and let him return to the sect,” Yuan Xiaoxian said with a smile, as beautiful as a spring flower blooming amidst the falling snow.

"Show him leniency and spare his life?"

"Your Highness, this matter is open to discussion. My master said that the Holy Church will agree to any conditions Your Highness may set."

"You'll agree to all of that?" Zhao Ti's lips curled up slightly.

"Your Highness wouldn't mention something that the Holy Church can't do, would you?" Yuan Xiaoxian said quietly.

Zhao Ti remained silent in thought. Was this Xiao Xuan really that important? It was understandable that the other side would send people to rescue him after he had captured him, but the claim that the entire shamanistic sect would agree to his conditions was just a load of nonsense.

"You really agree to all of them?" He smiled slightly.

"As long as the Holy Church can do it." Yuan Xiaoxian said with a smile, "Since Your Highness is willing to discuss this, and things are not clear here, why not go into the camp to talk in detail?"

Zhao Ti thought for a moment, then ordered those on either side, "Bring her in." He then turned his horse around and went back to the camp ahead of them.

A moment later, in the central command tent, Zhao Ti sat behind a desk, looking Yuan Xiaoxian up and down.

Yuan Xiaoxian hadn't changed much since their parting in Tokyo that year, nor had she changed much since they met at the Shamanic Church, but for some reason, Zhao Ti always felt that something was a little off.

Yuan Xiaoxian exuded a captivating charm, alluring and alluring, her every smile and frown mesmerizing, making it impossible to look away.

She was originally a clever and quick-witted person, but now she has become charming and alluring.

"What is Your Highness looking at?" Yuan Xiaoxian asked with a charming smile.

“Time flies, and it has been a long time since we last met. I wondered if Princess Cheng’an had changed at all, but I did not find any changes,” Zhao Ti said. “Really no changes?” Yuan Xiaoxian said, “You are young and full of life, so naturally no changes can be seen. But if the world changes and time passes, and the world becomes distant, I’m afraid Your Highness will not recognize me.”

Zhao Ti shook his head: "Princess Cheng'an is joking."

Just then, a soldier brought in milk tea. Yuan Xiaoxian held a cup, seemingly afraid of getting burned, and used her fur coat to support it. Her jade-like hands moved back and forth, her slender fingers gently tapping the tea, which was quite adorable.

“Your Highness, how could it be a joke?” She raised her face, her starry eyes blinking. “Youth is fleeting. Just because things don’t change now doesn’t mean they won’t change forever. That’s why there’s a poem that says, ‘Don’t waste your golden robes, cherish your youth. Pluck the flowers while they bloom, lest you break the branches in vain when there are no flowers left.’”

"Gather ye rosebuds while ye may..." Zhao Ti stroked his chin, looking at Yuan Xiaoxian's slightly loosened fur coat, revealing a moon-white undergarment, and slowly took a breath.

“That’s right.” Yuan Xiaoxian’s cheeks flushed slightly as she looked at the charcoal brazier in front of her. “The fire is too strong, and I’m feeling a bit hot.”

As she spoke, she untied the belt at the front of her fur coat, revealing white trousers and a slender, graceful figure underneath.

Zhao Ti glanced at the table, then looked away, took a sip of the milk tea on the table, and slowly said, "Princess Cheng'an, is the Shamanism truly willing to pay any price to save Xiao Xuan's life?"

"Your Highness, how can we get Priest Xiao released?" Yuan Xiaoxian nodded, her voice melodious: "As long as the Holy Sect can do it, we will agree."

Zhao Ti said, "I have heard that the Shamanism has gathered the power of the entire religion and joined forces with many immortals from the grasslands to resurrect a being. I wonder what kind of being it is, whether it is a god or a ghost?"

Upon hearing this, Yuan Xiaoxian raised her eyelashes slightly and smiled, saying, "So Your Highness knows about this matter. But it's no wonder. This matter has caused such a stir that all the immortals of the grasslands have gathered at the Holy See in Khatun City. It's inevitable that rumors will spread."

Zhao Ti shook his head: "I didn't hear the rumors from somewhere. It was a fox spirit who tried to assassinate me in Wulahai. After being captured, it confessed. However, it didn't know what the shamanism was trying to resurrect. By the way, Princess Cheng'an, don't you want to rescue that fox spirit as well?"

"So it's a fox spirit." A pink light flashed in Yuan Xiaoxian's eyes and she said, "I don't concern myself with matters of the immortals. There are people specifically in charge of matters of the immortals within the Holy Sect. Moreover, fox spirits are different; they are personally managed by the fox spirits."

“A celestial fox…” Zhao Ti said, “What’s the difference? Isn’t it still a fox spirit that has become a deity, no different from a celestial being? Why put the word ‘celestial’ first?”

“Your Highness, it is naturally different. The Celestial Fox is a true immortal, and is not the same as those other immortals.” Yuan Xiaoxian smiled gently.

"A true immortal?" Zhao Ti's gaze fell on her neck, noticing its delicate, snow-white texture, as lustrous as jade. "Are there really immortals in this world?"

"Of course there are. The Immortal Fox came to this world countless years ago, following the Ancestor across the star path, and watched the Ancestor create the Great Grassland with his own hands."

Upon hearing this, Zhao Ti narrowed his eyes. He had been viewing the portrait of the shamanic patriarch at the shamanic church and had some doubts in his mind.

The shaman ancestor, upon seeing the portrait, seemed to have descended from the starry sky, traversing the vast expanse, searching for a star path. However, he could not be entirely certain of the painting's meaning, so he remained perplexed.

But now, hearing Yuan Xiaoxian confirm that, as depicted in the portrait, the ancestor did indeed come from beyond the heavens, the confusion turned into bewilderment. How could the shaman ancestor have crossed the starry sky and come from outside?
He looked at the clothing, mount, and other details of the shaman ancestor in the painting, and it strongly resembled the image of Tongtian Jiaozhu of the Jie Sect.

How could the Tongtian Sect Leader come from outer space? How could he be the founder of Shamanism? And how could he have created the Great Grassland with his own hands?
They don't match at all, and what's even more wrong is the timing; the timings don't match at all.

It's fair to say that everything except the people is wrong.

As for Murong Longcheng, based on his description of the dream, he was suspected to be the reincarnation of the Supreme Being, but that is also incorrect. How absurd is it for a sage to be reincarnated?

And then there are those wicked monks, the Shambhala Buddhist Kingdom, all sorts of traditions, the scenes they present, and the words and deeds of those wicked monks are all incomprehensible and illogical.

At that moment, Zhao Ti suddenly felt a chill in his heart. The world around him seemed so unfamiliar, as if it were not the world he knew, but a strange place.

Where am I? Is this a strange place?
But that's not right either. History remains the same. Looking at history books, there are no obvious changes. Even if martial arts existed, history wouldn't have changed much. It was only after my arrival that the wheels of change began to turn.

As the sense of unfamiliarity gradually disappeared, Zhao Ti's expression became complicated and unfathomable. What exactly was going on? What mysteries were hidden in this world that he did not know about?

"Your Highness..." Yuan Xiaoxian began, "What is Your Highness thinking about?"

“Oh…” Zhao Ti raised an eyebrow: “Princess Cheng’an said that the celestial fox followed the shaman ancestor and crossed the starry sky to come here. Where did it come from?”

“This…” Yuan Xiaoxian shook her head: “But no one knows. It must have come from some place in the Heavenly Palace of the Immortal Realm, right? Such a secret and ancient matter is not recorded in the sect.”

"The Celestial Palace?" Zhao Ti said, "What celestial realm? That's utter nonsense."

"Maybe there is." Yuan Xiaoxian's beautiful eyes sparkled as she looked at Zhao Ti.

"It's impossible." Zhao Ti said with certainty. The existence of gods, ghosts, demons, and Buddhas is all logical and can be deduced from human nature, but as for immortals, there is no basis for it.

"Your Highness, why don't you think about what conditions you can offer in exchange for Master Xiao?" Yuan Xiaoxian said slowly, her expression strange and a mysterious smile playing on her lips.

"Princess Cheng'an hasn't yet explained what kind of being the Shamanism is reviving by pooling the power of the entire religion and the grassland immortals." Zhao Ti picked up his milk tea cup and took another sip.

“Your Highness may have made a mistake. It’s not resurrection, but awakening,” Yuan Xiaoxian said softly. “It’s awakening a being who also came to this world with the shamanic progenitor.”

"Another being who came to this world following the shamanic progenitor?" Zhao Ti frowned. "Then they belong to the same category of demons and ghosts?"

"I don't know the specifics. Only the High Priest knows the true details of that being. Your Highness... let's submit the terms of the exchange."

"What are the terms of the exchange?" Zhao Ti waved his hand. "The high priest of the shamanism may not understand me, but does Princess Cheng'an not understand me? Do you think I would let the person who tried to assassinate me go?"

“Your Highness, the so-called ‘not letting go’ probably just means the conditions aren’t right. If the conditions are high enough, I believe there’s nothing that can’t be done,” Yuan Xiaoxian said.

"Not high enough conditions?" Zhao Ti smiled. "If we really want to talk about conditions... the Shamanism can't accept my conditions at all. If I send the High Priestess to beg me in person, will she come?"

“I’m afraid that’s not possible…” Yuan Xiaoxian shook her head: “Master will not leave the grasslands, and the Holy See will almost never leave either. They will not come to see His Highness about Xiao Xuan’s matter.”

“That’s it,” Zhao Ti said. “The conditions I proposed are simply impossible for the shamanism to meet, so how can we talk about replacing them?”

"Your Highness..." Yuan Xiaoxian gently bit her lip upon hearing this, then stood up gracefully, her eyes brimming with tears, slightly tipsy, and walked slowly toward Zhao Ti.

"Your Highness may consider... other conditions."

Yuan Xiaoxian walked to the side of the large table, her fur coat silently slipping off, revealing a moon-white undergarment underneath, exuding a delicate fragrance, graceful and charming.

(End of this chapter)