Chapter 282 - 178: Holy Virtue Empress

Chapter 282: Chapter 178: Holy Virtue Empress

The food arrived quickly.

Lu Changyuan never carried money, so he had to rely on the Black Skirt Fairy to pay the bill.

The chief disciple of Miao Yu Palace had plenty of her own savings, just like the Little Fairy... The last time he’d had a good meal, it had also been paid for with the Little Fairy in a White Skirt’s personal funds.

It seemed all the women around him were quite wealthy.

Sitting nearby, Su Youwan was also extremely wealthy. As the Little Ancestor of the Compassionate Palace, her coin purse was a fair bit heavier than even Qiu Yuehan’s.

’Thinking about it, maybe I really am cultivating the Dao of freeloading,’ Lu Changyuan thought.

Seeing Su Youwan patiently picking at a fish dish, her methodical movements reminding him of a pure-white cat, Lu Changyuan found it rather endearing. "Does the Compassionate Palace not forbid meat?" he asked.

The silver-haired maiden said, "We don’t. At least, I’m not required to abstain."

Lu Changyuan had been wanting to ask for a while now.

’The Ten Thousand Buddha Temple reveres the Buddhas of the Past, Present, and Future. At least it’s a temple that grew out of the folk beliefs of the Mortal World. But what in the world *is* this Compassionate Palace? Revering only the Compassionate Guanyin makes it seem less like a nunnery and more like some heretical sect.’

"Why does your Compassionate Palace only venerate Guanyin?"

Su Youwan blinked. "Because mortals need faith, and they pray most sincerely when asking for children. That’s why the Palace Master established the Compassionate Palace. We have a Magic Technique called the Seed Flower Technique. When used on mortals, it makes it easier for them to conceive, and their children are born healthier."

Unlike the Daoist Sects, which spend their time purging Demons in the White Realm, the Compassionate Palace’s main purpose in the Black Realm is to ensure the propagation of mortal bloodlines.

The Compassionate Palace exists because there is a need for it.

The Compassionate Palace isn’t a Sect for worshipping Buddhas; it’s a Sect that exists because mortals desire children.

We chose Guanyin simply because the Compassionate Guanyin is famed for delivering children.

’Fair enough,’ Lu Changyuan thought. ’They are doing good deeds, after all.’

Lu Changyuan thought for a moment before asking, "What’s the purpose of all those White Jade Guanyin statues you build?"

The silver-haired maiden replied, "That’s a secret of our Sect."

Qiu Yuehan shot the silver-haired maiden a look. "Just say what you mean."

"But Young Master Lu isn’t an outsider to me, so there’s no harm in telling him."

The Black Skirt Fairy knew Su Youwan would say something like that. She sneered without a word, instead prying open Mei Zhaozhao’s fox-like mouth and stuffing a few peanuts inside.

"There’s a Dharma in the Palace that allows us to use the White Jade Guanyin Statues to communicate with the Sect. The statues can also gather Incense Fire."

Lu Changyuan said, "Achieving the Dao through Incense Fire? Your Compassionate Palace is audacious."

The path of Incense Fire is a viable way to achieve the Dao, but it’s incredibly difficult. By absorbing the Incense Fire of mortals, one is inevitably influenced by the desires contained within it.

The Desire Demon does not affect mortals, but when mortal desire enters a cultivator’s body, it’s a different story.

The path of Incense Fire is highly susceptible to corruption by the Desire Demon.

"There’s nothing to be done. My master tried to persuade the Palace Master, but she wouldn’t listen. It shouldn’t be a problem, though. The Palace Master is a Yao Guang Cultivator. Sorting through all that Incense Fire might help her find a path beyond the Yao Guang realm."

Suddenly, a commotion erupted from the street below.

"They’re here, they’re here! Quick, let’s go see!"

From their place in the restaurant, the three of them could see the crowd on the street below pushing and shoving. The already clamorous street erupted with even more noise.

Someone stood on their toes. "Make way, make way!"

It seemed someone important was arriving. The clatter of hooves echoed on the street, and the crowd parted like water, clearing a path wide enough for the tall horses.

Lu Changyuan waved a waiter over. "What’s happening down there?"

"You must not be a local, sir," the waiter said.

’So it seems this is common knowledge, something every local knows and only a clueless out-of-towner like me wouldn’t.’

"Just tell me."

The waiter smiled graciously and pointed toward the procession. "That’s our Great Xia’s General Shi. He just won a great victory against the Great Yue Kingdom. He’s returning in triumph, so he’s been granted permission to ride through the Imperial City."

Lu Changyuan narrowed his eyes, his gaze falling on General Shi.

The desire for wealth within him stirred.

"So, does that mean the ones following the cavalry, the ones in shackles and inside the prisoner carts... are the Great Yue Royal Family?"

"That’s them," the waiter said.

"Her Highness, the Eldest Princess, is truly brilliant. It has been a long time since Great Xia has achieved such a great feat of territorial expansion."

Lu Changyuan asked who the Eldest Princess was, and the waiter patiently explained.

He spoke of how she assisted the Young Emperor in governing and of her magnanimity and benevolence, recounting every one of the Eldest Princess’s accomplishments from the past year for Lu Changyuan.

The waiter finally concluded, "She’s just as sagacious as the Holy Virtue Empress from several hundred years ago."

’If it’s really as you say,’ Lu Changyuan thought, ’then the comparison is indeed apt.’

"I recall that the Holy Virtue Empress, at the age of sixteen, usurped the throne from her own younger brother."

"Whoa now, sir, you mustn’t speak so carelessly! The Holy Virtue Empress only ascended the throne because she had no other choice. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have abandoned it without a second thought."

’No other choice?’

Lu Changyuan chuckled. "As I recall, the Holy Virtue Empress herself admitted to being a usurper."

The waiter replied, "How can that be the same?"

Historical records state that the Holy Virtue Empress was a vigorous ruler who appointed virtuous officials. In just four short years, she reformed the government, strengthened the army, and expanded the borders, laying the foundation for Great Xia’s territory for the next several hundred years.

Unfortunately, in her twentieth year, the Holy Virtue Empress suddenly ascended to become an Immortal, and the throne was returned to her younger brother.

This was all the Royal Family’s records contained; any further details had vanished many years ago.

Lu Changyuan waved his hand, dismissing the waiter.

Qiu Yuehan, still in the dark about her Eldest Martial Sister’s identity, asked, "You knew that Holy Virtue Empress?"

When Lu Changyuan didn’t answer Qiu Yuehan’s question, Su Youwan grew curious. She set down her chopsticks. "Young Master Lu, what are you looking at?"