HCB Chapter 465: The Holy Maiden of the Nation (2)
Chapter 465: The Holy Maiden of the Nation (2)
The Emperor of Dong Tang was a little confused. Although he had heard the rumors about the National Protector Saint a long time ago, it seemed that it had always been just a legend. However, the National Master had always been secretive, and his divinations had always been very accurate. Since he came to the palace in person, it meant that the National Protector Saint must be a real person. However, they were really puzzled by what the National Master said.
The Taoist in green robe stroked his beard and said profoundly, "To put it bluntly, whoever gets this girl will get the world. I wonder if Your Highness is interested in this."
The Emperor of Dong Tang was astonished. "Is what the Imperial Master said true? Is there really a woman with such a destiny in the world?"
The Taoist in green robes nodded slightly, "How can the Dragon God's dream be false?"
"In that case, I wonder where the Saint is now?"
"I observed the celestial phenomena at night earlier, and there's no doubt that the Saint is now in the palace. Coincidentally, I heard that His Highness brought a woman back from outside the palace. I wonder if I could meet her. If I'm not mistaken, that woman is probably the Saint Protector of the Nation."
"How is this possible!" Tang Yi said in disbelief, "That woman isn't from our country, so how could she be the Protector of the East Tang?"
"Your Highness, you may not know that in ancient times, one of the Holy Maidens who protected the nation was exiled to another country, and thus her bloodline was lost. However, because she was a branch of the Dragon Clan, my ancestors of the Lan family did not pay much attention to it at the time. It was only in recent years that the Holy Maiden lineage in our country was almost extinct. Only then did I consult the ancient texts and learn of this story. I believe that the woman Your Highness brought back must be a branch of the Holy Maiden lineage. Otherwise, the Dragon God would not have appeared in my dream for no reason."
The Emperor of Dong Tang was surprised when he heard this. The things in this world are really strange and incredible. If these words had not come from the mouth of the National Master today, he would never have believed such a mysterious thing.
After the Taoist priest in green robes finished explaining, he asked, "Now, can I meet that distinguished guest?"
The Emperor of Dong Tang said with some embarrassment: "Yier, you should talk to the Imperial Master about this matter."
"Oh? Is there something unspeakable hidden in this?"
Tang Yi sighed and said, "Master, if you had come a day earlier, you might have met that woman. But now, I'm afraid..."
"Why is that?"
"Last night, she used a magic potion to knock out the palace guards and disappeared inexplicably."
"Missing?"
Tang Yi nodded in affirmation. "I've had people search the entire imperial city, but she's nowhere to be found. It's really strange. The guards at the palace gates all said they didn't see her leave."
"Is there such a thing?"
The Taoist priest in green robe narrowed his eyes slightly, as if thinking about something. After a while, he smiled slightly, "Perhaps, I know where the Saint Girl is now."
The Emperor of Dong Tang was delighted upon hearing this. "Then I would like to ask for your guidance, Imperial Master."
"Actually, the Saint hasn't gone anywhere. She's right here in the palace."
"How is this possible? The entire palace has been searched thoroughly. She has nowhere to hide."
The Taoist in green robes smiled and said, "That's not necessarily true. My Lan family has protected the Dong Tang royal family for generations. I don't think there are some secrets that even Your Majesty doesn't know."
The Emperor of Eastern Tang and Tang Yi exchanged a glance, puzzled, "From what the Imperial Master said, could there be some secret passage within the Imperial Palace?"
"There isn't a secret passage, but there is a forbidden area in the palace that Your Majesty might not know about."
"Forbidden area? I've never heard of it before. Even my ancestors never mentioned it when they were alive. Is there any place in this palace that we can't go to?"
The Emperor of Dong Tang felt a little unhappy. All under heaven belonged to the king, but now the imperial teacher told him that there was a place right under his nose that he could not go. He really could not accept it.
The Taoist in green robes saw what the emperor was thinking but didn't point it out. He simply explained, "This is a secret that has been passed down through the generations of my Lan family. Actually, I've only seen it in the books passed down by the family, and even I'm not entirely sure of its exact location."
"After all this talk, where exactly is this so-called forbidden area?"
"The book records that the entrance to the forbidden area is extremely secret and is located underwater. The forbidden area is where the Dragon God lives. No one except the Lan family and the Saint Girl can enter without permission."
"Under the water? Could it be the lotus pond in the imperial garden?"
Tang Yi suddenly spoke, his expression was very confident. He suddenly remembered that Princess Xingluo fell into the water and Yu Qingli went down to save her. Now that he thought about it, she might have discovered something under the water at that time. But it has been a day and a night. Can a person really survive for that long under water?
Seeing Tang Yi's determined expression, the Taoist in green robes nodded with satisfaction, "It seems that Your Highness has already thought of it. Your Highness is indeed destined to be with the Saint. The Saint can return to Dong Tang and enter the forbidden area. Everything is destiny."
Tang Yi had a complicated expression. So, his meeting with Yu Qingli was actually an inevitable fate?
"Your Highness, there is no time to lose. Now that we know where the Saint is, we should get her out as soon as possible!"
The Taoist in green robe urged Tang Yi. He was very optimistic about these two people. If the prince was really the destined person of the saint, I am afraid that the world was destined to fall into the hands of the prince.
Tang Yi was a little hesitant. The lotus pond was not small. Should he send someone down to look for it?
The Taoist in green robes seemed to see through Tang Yi's thoughts and smiled slightly, saying, "Your Highness, as long as you are willing to take the person out, I will take care of the rest. Your Highness, have you forgotten that I am the guardian of the royal family and naturally have the means to summon the Dragon God?"
Tang Yi nodded slightly. When he was young, he also studied with this Taoist priest in green robe for a period of time. Naturally, he knew something about his Taoism. Moreover, the national teacher never boasted. So, he was more looking forward to it. What does this legendary dragon god look like?
"In that case, I'll leave everything to the Imperial Master. Master, how do you plan to summon the Dragon God? Is there anything you want us to do?"
"Your Majesty, please only instruct everyone in the palace not to move around while I am casting my spell. Also, please be on guard around the lotus pond, and the ladies from the other palaces are not allowed to enter without permission. I wonder if you can do what I ask of you?"
"Don't worry, Master Imperial Master, when he casts a spell, I will order everyone to stay indoors and it won't affect him."
"That's good!"
"So when does the Imperial Master plan to cast the spell?"
The Taoist priest in green robes looked at the sky and said, "Today, 3:30 pm is an excellent time. The Crown Prince and His Majesty should burn incense and bathe to welcome the arrival of the Dragon God!"
"Yes!"
Putting aside the green-robed Taoist priest and the people in the palace preparing for the altar ritual, let's just talk about Yu Qingli who was in the giant python cave. She and Xi Luo stayed in the cave for a night and then fell into a deep sleep. When they woke up again, it was already bright outside and human figures could be vaguely seen in the cave.
The giant python was still circling in one place, looking ferocious and terrifying. If it had not been for the fact that they could not see clearly in the dim light before, Yu Qingli and the others would never have dared to be alone with the giant python. But now that they had been together for some time, their initial fear had disappeared a lot.
After waking up, Yu Qingli and the other person ate another red fruit each, and their stomachs were full. Strangely enough, although the cave was under water, it was not as cold as they had imagined. They didn't know if it was their illusion or the fruit had some miraculous effect. The two of them didn't feel cold even though they were wearing wet clothes.
While Yu Qingli could see things in the cave, she couldn't help but look around. The cave was deep and spacious, and there was indeed no exit. The place with the fruit trees was the end of the cave.
"Miss, are we really going to stay in this damn place forever?"
Xiluo suddenly asked. After clearly seeing the shape of the giant python in front of her, she had almost given up the idea of killing it. Now they were very grateful to be alive. Although she didn't know what the giant python was going to do, it was obvious that it was impossible for her to kill this monstrous python by herself.
Yu Qingli frowned slightly. She didn't know what to do at this moment. The giant python seemed to be determined to let them stay here, and she didn't know when to let them go.
"Xiluo, it seems that now we can only wait. Maybe if someone outside notices that we are missing, they will find us here."
"I hope so."
The master and servant sat down again and closed their eyes to rest. They didn't know how much time had passed, but the giant python that had been quietly coiled suddenly became agitated. The two of them opened their eyes at the same time when they heard the sound.
Yu Qingli and Xiluo exchanged a glance, "Xiluo, be careful, there's something wrong with this giant python."
Xiluo nodded and stood side by side with Yu Qingli, vaguely on guard. He looked at the giant python again, its huge head erected high, its tongue moving in and out, its pair of terrifying golden pupils staring motionlessly ahead, no one knowing what it was looking at.
"Could it be that someone else came in?" Yu Qingli guessed, but Xiluo had no hope for it. How could someone just come in casually?
After a while, the giant python calmed down again and swam towards Yu Qingli. Yu Qingli and Xiluo retreated repeatedly. Xiluo shouted, "What do you want to do, you evil beast? Get out of the way!"
As a result, the giant python didn't react at all and still swam towards Yu Qingli. Yu Qingli calmed herself down. Her intuition told her that the giant python didn't want to hurt her, so she signaled Xiluo to stop.
The giant python quickly swam in front of Yu Qingli, and its huge snake head stared down at Yu Qingli, which was creepy. After a moment, the giant snake suddenly lowered its head, as if signaling Yu Qingli to sit on it.
Yu Qingli hesitated for a moment, gritted her teeth and sat on it. Xiluo followed closely and sat behind Yu Qingli. However, the giant python did not refuse. Yu Qingli was thinking about the direction to go out. This time, the giant python took the initiative to swim out of the cave.
"Miss, it seems we misunderstood it. It's going to take us out!"
"Or maybe someone outside the cave is controlling the giant python. Xiluo, hold on tight, we should be able to get out."
Yu Qingli and the other person held on tightly to the giant python's scales, allowing it to swim out of the cave at a rapid speed.
At this time, the Imperial Garden of the Dong Tang Palace was already empty. Even the palace maids and eunuchs had been driven away. However, there were still many people gathered outside the Imperial Garden, mostly concubines in the palace.