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

Chapter 340 Drinking, sex and wealth
“Brother Mo, this… is a bit too extravagant,” Zhao Ti said.

He had originally thought that having a meal wouldn't hurt, but he hadn't expected such a lavish banquet, which he felt was a bit excessive.

A virtuous person does not seek to be full when eating, nor to be comfortable when dwelling. He is diligent in his work and cautious in his speech, and he seeks guidance from those who possess the Way. Eating and drinking should be moderate; one should not overeat or indulge in delicacies. One should avoid losing one's true nature due to the pursuit of culinary pleasures.

A virtuous person should exercise restraint over their desires, curbing their inflated urges to achieve spiritual elevation, practicing self-discipline and cultivating their character.

This idea does not deny the legitimate need for food, but rather opposes indulgence and debauchery, advocating the use of reason and morality to control desires and cultivate a virtuous and noble character.

"No extravagance, no ostentation." Mo Xun shook his head with a smile: "Compared to Brother Zhao's two poems, what are these fine wines and delicacies? Fine wine has a price, but knowledge is priceless."

Zhao Ti said, "Brother Mo, this cannot be generalized."

Mo Xun said, "Brother Zhao, you don't know how popular I was at the poetry gathering. I even won the praise of Miss Luofu, who invited me to another poetry gathering next time."

Zhao Ti remained silent upon hearing this. Luo Fu was the most talented and beautiful woman in Yuzhou City. She was the daughter of Qin Xuanzhi, the Prefect of Yuzhou, who was the second son of the Qin family, one of the eight great families of the Great Qian Kingdom.

With her natural beauty and favored by the emperor, her bright eyes shone like pearls, and her kind and intelligent nature came from a distinguished family. She was Qin Luofu, a talented woman from Yuzhou.

Luo Fu was proficient in everything from playing the zither, chess, poetry, painting, wine, flowers, swords, flutes, zithers, music, and tea. She was not only admired by scholars in Yuzhou, but her fame even spread to the capital of the Great Qian Kingdom, Qianjing.

Even the Wan Cui Lou in Qianjing ranked her as one of the top ten beauties in the world.

This "famous flower" is not the flower of a courtesan in a brothel, but a famous flower from a prestigious family, who is both stunningly beautiful and exceptionally talented. It is an extremely high title among ladies of noble birth.

Zhao Ti naturally admired Luo Fu, having seen her once from afar, but that was all; he had no other thoughts.

A virtuous person seeks knowledge, cultivates sincerity, rectifyes his mind, refines his character, regulates his family, governs the state, and illuminates his virtue throughout the world.

A great man should strive to achieve great things and put aside personal feelings for his children.

"Brother Zhao, why don't you come with me to the next poetry gathering?" Mo Xun said again.

“Brother Mo, I am focused on my studies and cannot participate in these poetry and prose gatherings. I appreciate your kind offer,” Zhao Ti said, bowing slightly, his face expressionless.

People should have self-control and not be misled by external things, becoming so deeply entangled that they cannot extricate themselves. They should not be elated by external gains or saddened by personal losses, but should maintain a righteous mind and conduct themselves properly.

Although poetry gatherings were often held by scholars and literati, they were mostly about romance, gaining fame, and showing off, and were of no benefit to studying. Therefore, even with Luo Fu, the most talented woman in Yuzhou, present, Zhao Ti did not want to participate.

Mo Xun smiled, then clapped his hands and said, "Pour the wine."

As his voice fell, a group of maids walked out from the side and went to the two men's tables to open the wine jugs and jars and begin pouring wine.

There are more than a dozen kinds of wine glasses. First, fill one round, and each type of wine glass is for a different wine.

After pouring the wine, the maid stood aside waiting for instructions. Mo Xun picked up his cup and said, "Brother Zhao, these are all famous wines in the world. Today, let's taste them one by one and drink until we're drunk."

Zhao Ti glanced at the wine cups on the table and shook his head inwardly. If he had known that the feast was so extravagant, he would have politely declined to come today. But now that he was already sitting here, he couldn't be impolite.

He raised a glass of wine and said, "Brother Mo, I am of limited capacity, I will only have a small sip."

Mo Xun laughed and said, "Brother Zhao only knows how to read books and pursue knowledge every day, but he doesn't know that there are many wonderful and enjoyable things in the world besides reading."

Zhao Ti smiled but didn't say anything.

Mo Xun continued, "What is the purpose of studying? In books, you will find beautiful women, riches, and abundant wealth. Isn't it all for these things? Once you pass the imperial examination and achieve high honors, your fame will spread, and you will have access to wine, women, wealth, and power. Only then will your hard work be worthwhile."

Zhao Ti thought for a moment and said, "Serve the country, repay the court, fight on the border, and protect the people."

Mo Xun said, “If a man wants to fulfill his life’s ambition, he should diligently study the Six Classics by the window. Brother Zhao’s so-called service to the country and fighting on the frontier is nothing more than seeking merit and being enfeoffed as a marquis. Although we do not have such merit and title at the moment, we have fine wine and delicious food in front of us. We can obtain them without studying. Why do you hesitate, Brother Zhao?”

He downed the wine in his cup in one gulp and continued, "Such a delightful experience can be had without passing the imperial examinations. Why hesitate, Brother Zhao?"

Seeing this, Zhao Ti had no choice but to take a sip. The wine was mellow and delicious, and it made him feel like he was floating on air.

Mo Xun then repeatedly urged Zhao Ti to drink and eat, but Zhao Ti only took a small sip of each wine before putting it down, and he only tasted the food briefly before stopping, not eating much.

Mo Xun shook his head and said, "Brother Zhao is too unpleasant. Bring on the song and dance."

Then a group of women dressed in colorful clothes came out. Each of them was young and beautiful, with seductive eyes, revealing their snow-white necks, arms, and slender ankles.

The Shao music that had been played earlier had been changed at some point and replaced with a cheerful dance tune. The girls danced gracefully to the melody, like colorful butterflies, beautiful and alluring.

Zhao Ti sat upright behind the desk, his gaze unwavering as he quietly observed.

At this moment, Mo Xun beckoned, and a young girl came forward and nestled into his arms, feeding him with a cup in her hand. Mo Xun looked satisfied and then turned to Zhao Ti to offer him another drink.

A beautiful young woman with an oval face and two dimples walked gracefully to Zhao Ti's desk and said softly, "Young master, let me feed you."

Zhao Ti replied expressionlessly, "No need."

The young girl looked pitiful. After filling her cup with wine, she leaned into Zhao Ti's arms. Zhao Ti quickly dodged to the side, saying, "Miss, please have some self-respect."

The girl's expression changed, and she said, "Young master, have you not taken a liking to me?"

Zhao Ti shook his head solemnly and said, "That's not it. It's just that I'm not used to it."

Upon hearing this, the young girl smiled and said, "Young master, what's there to be uncomfortable about? You'll get used to it after a while. You'll soon be familiar with how I serve you."

Zhao Ti said calmly, "No need, please go back, young lady."

The girl looked at Mo Xun sitting in front of her. Mo Xun's expression was slightly displeased: "Brother Zhao, you refuse to drink or eat, and now you refuse to be served. What is the meaning of this?"

Zhao Ti smiled wryly and said, "Brother Mo, I'm just not used to it. I usually eat simple meals at home and don't need anyone to serve me. This is fine."

Mo Xun pondered for a moment and said, "Brother Zhao's family is of ordinary means. He spends a lot of money on his studies, writing materials, and clothes. Although inviting Brother Zhao to dinner can help us get along, it is really not of much help to him."

Zhao Ti, not knowing what he meant, said, "Brother Mo, what you mean..." Mo Xun suddenly raised his hand and clapped his hands: "Present the gift I prepared for Brother Zhao."

Then a man dressed in black, resembling a servant, walked out from behind, carrying a wooden tray covered with a piece of red silk.

The man in black approached Zhao Ti's desk, and Mo Xun said, "Open it."

The round-faced girl reached out and lifted the red silk, revealing a layer of silver ingots that shone with a white luster. There were ten ingots in total, in the form of official silver, each ingot weighing fifty taels.

Zhao Ti was taken aback: "Brother Mo, what is the reason for this?"

Mo Xun laughed and said, "Brother Zhao is unwilling to eat and drink freely, nor is he willing to be served by beauties. I will give Brother Zhao five hundred taels of silver as a token of my gratitude."

Zhao Ti paused for a moment and said, “Brother Mo, although my family is of ordinary means, I have a house to live in, clothes to wear when cold, food to eat when hungry, and a bed to sleep in. I have no problem making a living. Since I have given you this poem, I have never thought of repaying you. As long as you remember this friendship, that is enough. I absolutely cannot accept this money.”

Mo Xun said, "Brother Zhao, why refuse such a small amount of money? Studying doesn't necessarily have to be arduous. Wouldn't it be better to have a beautiful woman by your side, adding fragrance to the incense burner?"

Zhao Ti stood up from behind the desk and shook his head: "The saying goes that a gentleman loves money, but he acquires it in a proper way. However, for me, this way is not acceptable and goes against my principles. Brother Mo, please take it back."

Mo Xun's face showed some anger: "Brother Zhao, I have treated you with great hospitality and even given you silver. Your actions are truly displeasing."

Zhao Ti said, "I thank Brother Mo for his hospitality, but I absolutely cannot accept the money. I have eaten and drunk my fill and need to go back to my studies, so I will take my leave now."

He said this while bowing to the other person with his sleeves clasped together, then walked around behind the desk and went straight downstairs.

Mo Xun watched his retreating figure, her eyes flickering, a strange expression appearing on her face.

When Zhao Ti arrived downstairs and stepped out the door, he suddenly felt his foot slip. Instantly, his thoughts returned to him, and he realized that he was looking inward at the inner landscape of his body.

The power of the dharma is like the Yangtze River, flowing endlessly, with its essence ultimately condensing on the Azure Dragon Ridge of the third floor of the Twelve-Story Tower.

He slowly opened his eyes and looked into the pitch-black room, no longer knowing what time of night it was.

Recalling the inner demons that had plagued him just now, Zhao Ti frowned. He hadn't expected that the Great Medicine Demon Tribulation corresponding to the third layer of the Azure Dragon Spine would be so peculiar, completely different from the tribulations of the past.

The Great Medicine Demon Realm Tribulation means the temptation of the devil, the allure of the heavenly demon.

Zhao Ti recalled the events of his calamity and suddenly understood. It turned out that it was the four things: wine, women, wealth, and anger. Demons use the four most common things in the world to confuse people. If one cannot hold onto any one of them, becomes confused and falls into a trap, then one will go astray and become possessed by demons.

In particular, one type of Qi is hidden among the three and is extremely difficult to detect.

During the tribulation, he wrote two poems for Mo Xun. Mo Xun took his poems to a poetry gathering and received praise from Luo Fu. She even invited him to the next poetry gathering. Luo Fu was the most talented and beautiful woman in Yuzhou, and he admired her even during the tribulation. So how could he not be angry when he heard about this?
She was angry at herself for sending the poem to the other person, angry at the other person for not mentioning that Luo Fu was also attending the poetry gathering, angry that Luo Fu had praised the wrong person and invited the wrong person to another poetry gathering.

As expected, there was still some danger. Zhao Ti narrowed his eyes slightly. Once he went into qi deviation, even if his realm could still be stabilized above the Azure Dragon Spine, he would probably end up seriously injured or mentally deranged.

He pondered for a moment, then continued to visualize the image of the God of War. As the sky outside the window began to lighten, the image of the God of War, with six heads riding peacocks burning with green flames and holding a divine spear radiating boundless light, had fully materialized.

The entire room was illuminated by the green flames of the green peacock, except for the spear in the God of War's hand, which emitted a dazzling golden light, as striking as the sun in a green sea.

Zhao Ti let out a long breath and slowly withdrew his magic power. Just as he was about to get up from his bed, he suddenly realized that the Illusory Yin True Qi in his body was starting to move.

Most of the Illusory Yin True Qi was sealing the inheritance of the Ancient Buddha of Burning Lamp in his dantian, while a small portion roamed along the line from his dantian to the Twelve-Story Xuanji Platform.

Because he couldn't unleash his full power, he rarely used it during this period. Furthermore, he had insufficient power in the other martial arts when practicing the Great Freedom Sutra and visualizing the Treasure Elephant King, so he added them all into the other martial arts. Apart from the Frost True Qi and Everlasting Spring Skill, he had no internal energy left to use.

The increase in his Frost Qi was extremely slow. Since the Everlasting Spring Technique didn't involve any external techniques, he mostly focused on channeling his magical power and using spells to fight his enemies during this period.

At this moment, he sensed the unusual movement of the Illusionary Yin True Qi and was slightly taken aback. Then, with a slight guidance, the small amount of true qi actually rushed straight up to the Azure Dragon's spine.

The Illusionary Yin Scripture is a martial art, but whether it is a martial art or a Taoist art, one must cultivate the Twelve Levels. Only after the Twelve Levels are mastered will changes begin in the upper dantian. The cultivation path is completely different.

After opening the upper dantian in martial arts, one must begin cultivating the limbs, bones, acupoints, and all tangible things in the body and blood vessels.

After one has mastered the Daoist arts and opened the upper dantian, one must concentrate on cultivating the Purple Mansion Dao Palace. The Dao Palace is divided into nine palaces, which must be cultivated one by one. Only when one reaches the Dao Palace realm can one use supernatural powers.

If one cultivates martial arts and magical power together, it is called dual cultivation of martial arts and magic.

Those who, like Zhao Ti, integrate their internal energy into their magical power are said to attain enlightenment through martial arts.

If one cultivates both martial arts and magic, and breaks through the twelfth level of each, the martial arts begin to temper every part of the physical body, while the magic begins to cultivate the nine palaces of the Dao Palace. This is called physical sainthood.

Zhao Ti guided the limited amount of Illusory Yin True Qi at this moment. However, although the amount of Illusory Yin True Qi was small, it was contrary to its usual soft and illusory state and became extremely sharp. It rushed straight up the Azure Dragon Ridge of the Twelve-Story Tower without much effort.

After circling twice, it settled to one side without moving. The power of the Great Freedom Sutra seemed not to have detected it. Exuding a demonic blue aura, it swaggered around, as if celebrating the conquest of a new place.

Zhao Ti waited for a while and, seeing that no more inner demons or tribulations occurred, he figured that regardless of whether one used magic or martial arts, once they reached the twelfth floor, each floor would only present one tribulation. He breathed a sigh of relief.

By this time, it was already broad daylight. He went out and saw that Zhou Tong was still guarding outside, so he told him to hurry up and eat and then go back to rest. Then he went to the front hall to listen to the generals report on the military situation.

Two days passed in the blink of an eye. On this day, just after the meeting in the hall had ended, Huang Tianbiao suddenly requested an audience. Zhao Ti summoned him and asked what it was about.

The old weasel bowed and said, "Young master ordered me to find a way to dispel the white mist of Wolf Mountain. My magic is weak, and I have thought about it over and over but I have not been able to come up with a solution. However, I have thought of another idea to get rid of the problem at its root."

"What do you mean by 'drawing the firewood from under the cauldron'?" Zhao Ti asked.

"Since we can't figure out a way to break through the fog, let's try to get close to that gust of wind wolf, catch it off guard, and kill it directly. That way, there won't be any white fog magic left," Huang Tianbiao said.

"To catch the thief, you must first catch the king?" Zhao Ti nodded. Since he didn't know how to break through the white mist, the only option was to find an opportunity to get close to the wolf king, kill him face to face, and prevent him from using the mist technique again.

"I understand. You can go back now. We'll go to Wolf Mountain together tomorrow." Zhao Ti waved his hand.

Huang Tianbiao responded with a "yes," then turned and left.

(End of this chapter)