Chapter 21

After finishing his story, Xiao Sheng asked again, "Lord Guan, you mentioned the Spirit Sect and Ling Zhiling just now. What exactly do you mean by that?"

Guan Canghai sighed and said, "Your Highness, have you ever heard the phrase, 'Level the Eastern Wasteland, capture Ling Zhiling alive'?"

"…No, never," Xiao Sheng replied curiously. "If it's about capturing her alive, then Ling Zhiling must be a person, right?"

"Exactly. Ling Zhiling is a person, and more specifically, a woman of extraordinary beauty, one who could topple kingdoms."

Mentioning Ling Zhiling, even the old eunuch Guan Canghai's face lit up, as if he had suddenly become several years younger. He seemed to have completely forgotten his earlier worries and spoke with great enthusiasm, "Your Highness is still young, so you wouldn't know. Let me tell you the details…"

At that moment, Guan Canghai began to recount the story in detail.

Over a decade ago, when the current emperor, Emperor Xuan, had just ascended the throne, the Da Hao Dynasty was still in a period of recuperation and construction, and the people's lives were generally quite poor.

In contrast, the Eastern Wasteland had been profiting from years of war, making it very wealthy. Therefore, in the eyes of many people in the Da Hao Dynasty, the Eastern Wasteland was a land of gold, a paradise on earth.

Who wouldn't want to live in paradise? Thus, at that time, whether it was the Central Plains, the Western Border, or even the Northern Frontier and Southern Miao, everyone took pride in imitating the Eastern Wasteland. Everything from clothing, food, shelter, and transportation to even the way people spoke was highly sought after. Some officials of the Da Hao Dynasty even bowed and scraped to merchants from the Eastern Wasteland, just to get them to do business locally.

In such an environment, the most beautiful woman in the Eastern Wasteland, Ling Zhiling, naturally became even more popular. This first beauty was none other than Ling Zhiling.

Ling Zhiling's status was the same as Yu Xuanyi; she was a courtesan in a brothel. She was stunningly beautiful, with a face that could topple kingdoms and a charm that could make fish dive and geese fall from the sky. Not only was she famous in the Eastern Wasteland, but her reputation had also spread to the Central Plains. Many people in the Central Plains dreamed of seeing this first courtesan of the Eastern Wasteland, but few ever got the chance.

Thus, someone came up with the slogan, "Level the Eastern Wasteland, capture Ling Zhiling alive."

Of course, this phrase was mostly a joke. However, it gives you an idea of how much charm Ling Zhiling had at the time.

Actually, there was no need to use force to see Ling Zhiling. The year after this slogan was coined, it happened to be the 90th birthday of the Empress Dowager. The royal family of the Da Hao Dynasty invited artists from all over the country to perform in the capital for the celebration.

Ling Zhiling, along with her troupe, set out from the Eastern Wasteland and traveled thousands of miles to finally reach Luoyang. Wherever she went, the streets were packed with people. Not only did commoners go crazy over Ling Zhiling, but even high-ranking officials spent large sums of money just to have a drink with her.

At that time, Emperor Xuan was still young and found this curious. So he went incognito to watch Ling Zhiling's performance. Once he saw her, he too became one of her admirers. He then summoned Ling Zhiling to the palace for a private audience.

Ling Zhiling stayed in the palace for three days. What exactly happened during those three days, only the two of them knew. However, many people saw her entering and leaving the palace.

Guan Canghai had only recently entered the palace at that time and had the fortune to see Ling Zhiling up close. The impression was so deep that even now, he could vividly recall the scene.

Soon after, it was the Empress Dowager's birthday. According to the schedule, Ling Zhiling was to perform on the grand stage.

However, no one could have expected that at the climax of the performance, all the people in the palace, including the maids, eunuchs, and guards, suddenly went mad and started attacking each other with knives. Chaos ensued. Ling Zhiling then pulled out a dagger and attempted to assassinate Emperor Xuan amidst the chaos.

Fortunately, at that time, the two leaders of the Daozhen Northern and Southern Sects, who were among the top ten martial arts sects, were present. Both were super-strong martial artists at the innate level. They immediately captured Ling Zhiling and quelled the riot.

The Empress Dowager was furious that such an incident occurred on her birthday and wanted to have Ling Zhiling executed. However, Emperor Xuan defended her and insisted on investigating the truth before making any decisions.

The investigation revealed a shocking truth. Although Ling Zhiling appeared to be just a courtesan, she was actually the current Holy Maiden of the Spirit Sect, one of the top ten sects. The chaos in the palace was caused by the Spirit Sect's most powerful treasure, the Netherworld Pearl.

The Netherworld Pearl was a unique magical artifact that could manipulate people's minds and deceive the world. Wherever it went, society would be in turmoil, and the world would be in chaos.

Even the closest of family members, such as spouses or parents and children, would turn against each other once influenced by the Netherworld Pearl, following the orders of its holder to cause destruction. They would believe they were working for a better home, ignoring any advice to the contrary and stubbornly persisting, even to the point of sacrificing their lives. It was truly terrifying.

Fortunately, the Netherworld Pearl was not easy to fully refine. Due to the time constraints, Ling Zhiling's Netherworld Pearl was only a half-finished product, with only one percent of its full power. Otherwise, even the two innate-level martial artists from the Daozhen Northern and Southern Sects might not have been able to control the situation, and Emperor Xuan might have been assassinated.

Emperor Xuan was a man of great vision and foresight. He knew that although the Netherworld Pearl was dangerous, if used properly, it could also be a powerful weapon against his enemies. The method to refine the Netherworld Pearl was known only to the Holy Maiden of the Spirit Sect in each generation.

In other words, if Ling Zhiling were killed, the method to refine the Netherworld Pearl would be lost forever. Moreover, Emperor Xuan had also discovered that Ling Zhiling's assassination attempt in Luoyang was actually under the orders of the Eagle Auspicious Kingdom, and there were extenuating circumstances. Therefore, he decided to spare her life and only imprison her. He then led his army to reclaim the Eastern Wasteland.

When the Eagle Auspicious Kingdom saw their plot exposed, they knew they had no hope of winning on the battlefield and retreated. The Da Hao Dynasty reclaimed the Eastern Wasteland and completed the unification of the empire.

After reclaiming the Eastern Wasteland, Emperor Xuan sent Ling Zhiling back there and ordered her to refine another Netherworld Pearl to atone for her sins. However, about half a year later, news came that Ling Zhiling had died in childbirth.

From then on, this once-famous beauty of the Eastern Wasteland was quickly forgotten. Young people like Xiao Sheng had never even heard of Ling Zhiling's name.

The assassination attempt on Emperor Xuan was a royal secret, and the royal family used various means to cover up the truth and downplay the incident. Even Guan Canghai, who served in the palace at the time, knew only the general outline of the story.

But even the general outline was enough to give Xiao Sheng some clues and allow him to make some deductions. He turned to the girl who was eating and drinking on the table, looking at her carefully. He felt a bit surprised.

According to what Lord Guan said, Ling Zhiling died in childbirth before Empress Mu entered the palace and Xiao Sheng was born. If the girl in front of him was Ling Zhiling's daughter (which was almost certain), then she should be several years older than Xiao Sheng.

However, no matter how he looked at her, the girl appeared to be only about thirteen or fourteen, much younger than Xiao Sheng. This could not be explained by delayed development. The most likely explanation was the influence of the Netherworld Pearl.

The Netherworld Pearl, the Netherworld Pearl. This thing was not only evil in name but also in function. It seemed that the method to refine it was equally evil.

Xiao Sheng, with a hint of realization, asked with a gentle smile, "Little sister, that Ling Zhiling, is she your…?"

The girl dropped the half-eaten braised trotter she was holding, wiped her oily mouth, and interrupted Xiao Sheng, saying with disdain, "She's my dead mother. What's the problem with that?"

Xiao Sheng frowned and asked, "Then why did you say earlier that she ran off with another man? Does that mean Ling Zhiling didn't actually die?"

"Idiot! Do you believe everything I say? I was just fooling you earlier, okay?"

The girl replied irritably, rolling her eyes. Xiao Sheng didn't take it to heart, but he knew that if he pressed further, he might have to face some very awkward situations.

So at this stage, Xiao Sheng felt it was better to keep some things to himself and not bring them up.

He shook his head and asked, "Little… sister, what's your name?"

"…Ling Ziling," the girl said reluctantly but still revealed her name.

"Ling Zhiling, Ling Ziling… Haha, it's hard to believe you're not mother and daughter," Xiao Sheng smiled. "So, how did you get involved with the Righteous Sect, and why did you leave the Eastern Wasteland and come to Luoyang?"

"Tsk~ If I call you an idiot, you really are one. Can't you figure this out?" Ling Ziling said with disdain, continuing, "My dead mother may be gone, but the secret of the Netherworld Pearl is still with me. After she died, I became the Holy Maiden of the Spirit Sect. I'm the only one in the world who knows how to refine the Netherworld Pearl."

"I see. A man is not guilty for what he has, but for what he possesses," Xiao Sheng sighed. This saying referred to a story from thousands of years ago in the Da Hao Dynasty.

In the early days of the Yun Ding Dynasty, before the founding emperor, Zhou Yu, had unified the world, the land was divided into many vassal states, which were constantly at war with each other. One of these states was called Zhou. The ruler of Zhou had a younger brother named Zhou Shu. He possessed a jade wall and a precious sword, both of which were highly valuable.

When the ruler learned of this, he demanded that Zhou Shu hand over the jade wall. Zhou Shu initially refused but later sighed and said, "A man is not guilty for what he has, but for what he possesses. Why should I cling to these treasures and bring disaster upon myself?" So he handed over the jade wall.

However, the ruler, not satisfied with the jade wall, demanded the sword as well. Zhou Shu felt that the ruler was too greedy and would eventually bring him to ruin. So he decided to rebel and attack the ruler. The ruler was defeated and had to flee, while Zhou Shu became the new ruler.