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

Chapter 399 Gourd, Crystal Coffin, Severed Hand

First, go to the first altar table and observe the gourd on it that was dark in color.

Now that you can see it up close, it seems that this gourd is not naturally formed, but rather artificially created.

But because of the wear and tear of time and damage, it has become so dilapidated.

Zhao Ti pondered for a moment. The gourd was not one of the three items mentioned on the stone tablet. Could it be that there was a hidden world inside, with one of the three items hidden inside the gourd?
He cautiously reached out to touch the gourd, but it didn't react at all. He then gently squeezed it, and his fingertips felt cool to the touch, indicating that it was indeed made of metal, most likely gold.

Zhao Ti's gaze then shifted to the mouth of the gourd, where there was a lid. He thought for a moment, then gripped the gourd's waist with one hand and reached for the lid with the other.

"So tight?" He tried to pull it out, but couldn't budge it.

"It seems that just reading books without exercising won't give you enough strength." He sighed inwardly, gritted his teeth, pressed his left hand down, and pulled his right hand up with all his might.

A few breaths later, a dull thud was heard, and Zhao Ti stumbled back a few steps, almost falling to the ground, as the gourd lid was finally pulled out.

Before he could regain his footing, he hurriedly looked at the gourd on the table and saw it shake a few times, then suddenly a puff of white smoke came out of its mouth.

The white smoke emerged from the gourd's mouth, gathered into a thin line, and drifted upwards. When it reached a height of about four or five feet, a banner appeared above the smoke.

The banner's pole was only about the thickness of a finger, and the banner itself wasn't very large when spread out. It looked tattered and riddled with holes, as if it had suffered some serious damage to cause it to be in this state.

The tattered banner now emitted a few colorful rays of light. The banner itself was hollow and hazy, displaying faint black and white energies. Within these energies, tiny green tadpole-like characters could be seen swimming back and forth.

In just a short while, the underground palace was filled with mournful winds, gloomy fog, and dark clouds, as if it had transformed into another world.

Zhao Ti was astonished upon seeing this. It seemed that this banner was the Demon-Summoning Banner. Even in such a broken state, it could still display extraordinary phenomena, clearly a rare treasure.

He took two steps forward and examined the banner for a long time. As the name suggests, the Demon-Summoning Banner should be used to summon demons. However, the banner was just standing on the white mist of the gourd, seemingly in a daze, and it was unclear how it could summon demons.

As he was pondering this, he suddenly saw the white mist gradually fade, then sway left and right, no longer a straight line, but curving, as if it could not support the demon-summoning banner standing above.

Zhao Ti frowned upon seeing this, but then he heard a "whoosh" sound as the white mist scattered in all directions, and the banner sank straight down, instantly falling back into the gourd.

"This..." He couldn't help but rub his head. It seemed that the item was seriously damaged. Not only did it fail to attract any monsters, it also fell back down on its own.

Zhao Ti walked back to the table, shook the gourd, and heard two "gurgling" sounds inside before falling silent. The demon-summoning banner did not reappear; instead, it seemed to be dead.

He closed the gourd lid with a regretful expression, thinking that the crow would probably be disappointed to see this demon banner. The thing was too badly damaged and was an ancient artifact, so it was probably difficult to repair, or even impossible to repair at all.

Zhao Ti sighed and walked to the second altar table, on which sat a small, palm-sized crystal box.

Upon closer inspection, the small box resembles a coffin shrunk countless times, complete with a lid and body, its shape exactly like a coffin.

The small coffin was carved from crystal, and one could vaguely see inside, as if something was lying inside.

"Could it be..." Zhao Ti wondered to himself, could it be the corpse of the Feather Spirit Demon inside? This demon had a delicate figure, like a butterfly or a bee, which made it possible for it to be placed in this small crystal coffin.

He stretched out two fingers to pinch the crystal coffin lid, but saw no resistance. The lid was indeed movable, and he picked it up in an instant.

Zhao Ti then looked into the coffin, his eyes widening slightly, and he froze.

The inside of the palm-sized crystal coffin was far more translucent than the outside. A few dried pink petals were laid on the bottom of the coffin, and a petite and delicate body was curled up on them.

She seemed to be a young girl shrunk countless times, her eyebrows and eyes still retaining the enchanting beauty of her former life. Her eyebrows were curved with a touch of allure, her eyelashes were long and thin, like butterfly antennae covered with morning dew, and the blush that had not faded still floated on her eyelids. Her lips were half open, and a bit of rosy red, like a crushed pomegranate seed, remained there, not sucked away by the years.

This tiny person had radiant, jade-like skin. Though her hair was as fine as a hair, it was still clearly visible, each strand tinged with a pale gold. Her palm-sized body was wrapped in a flowing gauze dress, as if she were merely dozing. She looked like moonlight that had been frozen for millennia. So many years had passed, and even though the crystal coffin had turned slightly yellow, she hadn't changed at all. With each breath Zhao Ti took, the hem of her gauze dress trembled slightly, as if she were about to open her eyes. Her breath was fragrant, as if she were murmuring something.

Three transparent, thin wings extend from each side of her body, like a butterfly. The uppermost wing is larger, outlining a graceful arc shape, while the lower secondary wings are slightly smaller, making her look both cute and pitiful. The two lowest wings, however, lie quietly like ribbons.

These thin wings were originally more crystalline and transparent than crystal, but under the reflection of the pearly light above, they shimmered with iridescent light, dazzling the eyes like a precious treasure.

Time may have aged outside the coffin, but the Feathered Demon has remained unchanged. Even though she has been dead for thousands of years, she has preserved her beauty and charm within this crystal.

Looking at the tiny girl in the coffin, Zhao Ti found it hard to believe that this was a kind of extraterrestrial demon. This was clearly a little fairy like a butterfly spirit. How could it be a cruel and tyrannical demon that devoured the flesh and blood of living beings, not even sparing its own kind, and taking pleasure in destroying everything?

He took a deep breath and slowly lowered his hand, intending to close the crystal coffin lid. But just as he was about to close it, he paused, unable to resist raising his wrist to take another look at the beautiful little figure inside, before finally putting his hand down completely.

Zhao Ti stood in front of the table and pondered for a while before deciding to take the corpse of the Feather Spirit Demon away. The other party was too amazing to him. Even a ferocious creature like a demon could have such a charming appearance.
This is probably a characteristic of demons, a natural means for celestial demons to bewitch enemies and other species. But... regardless of whether they are demons or not, since they have been dead for thousands of years, I can just take them with me. I am just curious and want to study and explore them. I have no other improper or bad intentions.

Zhao Ti turned and walked towards the third table, where a sandalwood box about the length of a forearm was placed. If there were no surprises, it was the so-called Succubus Hand.

He thought to himself that most demons are ferocious, and those like Yu Ling are extremely rare. So this succubus's hand is probably different from a human hand. It might be the claw of a hideous, ugly beast.

Zhao Ti paused for a moment, looking at the sandalwood box. He prepared himself mentally, so that even if it was something extremely evil, he would not be shocked or afraid, but would just treat it as ordinary.

Then he gently lifted the wooden box at the opening. Like the small crystal coffin, the wooden box was opened with little effort, and he looked inside.

Upon closer inspection, he was stunned. Instead of the ugly, bluish claws that had appeared in the box, he found a perfectly smooth, white hand, even more lustrous than jade.

The hand was severed at the wrist, and the cut revealed fine veins and blood vessels, yet it was the same white jade color. It did not appear terrifying at all; instead, it possessed a sickly yet alluring beauty, like a work of art, leaving people in awe.

Under the shimmering light of the pearl, the deep purple-black of the sandalwood box made the hand appear even whiter and more lustrous. The knuckles were slightly curled, as if the hand had just picked a flower, and the nails were tinged with a faint pink, almost imperceptible.

When the light fell upon it, the hand seemed as if it were about to rise at any moment, its fingertips brushing against the box wall. Although it was clearly a severed hand that had been broken off for countless years, it seemed to be full of life, as if it was just resting temporarily in this wooden box.

Zhao Ti was stunned for a long time. How could there be such a hand? Not to mention a demon like the Heavenly Demon, even among humans, such a perfect hand is rare.

He examined it more closely. It should be a left hand. This kind of demon called a succubus was killed in the great war back then, and only its left hand was left as a trophy of the human race, which was obtained by the monks who built Feilai Temple.

Because of their size and location, these hands and the remains of the Feathered Spirit were extremely difficult to forge into weapons or magical artifacts, but it would be a pity to destroy them. Therefore, the monks built a pagoda to suppress them, and they have been preserved to this day.

Nowadays, let alone the thousand years the monks spoke of, several thousand years have passed. These two objects could no longer possibly retain any demonic nature and should be just like ordinary things.

Zhao Ti slowly stretched out his arm. As if possessed, he wanted to touch the succubus's hand. The hand looked nothing like flesh and blood, which greatly surprised and puzzled him.

His index and middle fingers gently pressed against the back of his hand in the box, feeling soft and elastic, and seemingly... a trace of warmth.

Zhao Ti's expression changed drastically in an instant. He hurriedly pulled back his wrist and arm, and took two or three steps back. How could this severed hand still have warmth?

This should never happen. This hand was already dead when it lost its bloodline supply, and it was suppressed under the tower in the box for thousands of years. It could not possibly have any vitality again.

Or... is this also a characteristic of the Heavenly Demon? Even if this so-called succubus dies, her body is not cold, but retains warmth?
Zhao Ti composed himself, went back to the front, and slammed the lid shut. The severed hand was rather strange, and no matter the reason, it was not appropriate to take it outside the underground palace.

He then walked to the second table, carefully picked up the crystal coffin containing the Feather Spirit, and gently put it into his bosom. He then went to the first table, picked up the golden gourd containing the Demon-Summoning Banner, and turned back towards the round gate of the underground palace.

But just a few steps away from the round gate, he suddenly heard a "thud" behind him. He subconsciously turned around to look and his expression immediately changed.

Then, the sandalwood box on the third table opened by itself, revealing a severed hand standing upright inside, palm facing him, as if gazing at him...

(End of this chapter)