The only difference is that Daji did not dare to use her fox spirit form to kill people in the palace as she did in her previous life, nor did she dare to take the opportunity to harm loyal officials.
However, true to her fox nature, after entering the palace, she behaved docilely and was dignified in appearance. Because of her beauty, she captivated King Zhou, causing him to neglect the other concubines in the harem. The harem was, after all, the most fiercely contested place among women. Although the other concubines saw that Daji was virtuous, they were also extremely jealous and often gossiped about her to King Zhou, hoping to reduce his favor towards Daji.
However, Daji was a thousand-year-old fox demon, and a rare nine-tailed spirit fox from the primordial era. Her mind was naturally meticulous, far surpassing that of ordinary people who had only been thinking for a few decades. Although she was often slandered by other concubines, Daji dealt with them all. This made King Zhou suspicious that the other concubines were jealous, and he grew displeased with her.
Half a year later, one day, Yun Zhongzi of the Chan Sect passed by Chaoge and saw that the imperial city was filled with demonic energy. He knew that there was a demon causing trouble. Yun Zhongzi was a lucky man with a kind heart. In the Investiture of the Gods, which Xuan Tian knew in his previous life, the Twelve Golden Immortals of the Chan Sect suffered a calamity in the Yellow River Formation and their cultivation was destroyed. Only Yun Zhongzi escaped. The Antarctic Immortal did not suffer a calamity because of his relationship with Laozi. In the Investiture of the Gods, everyone in the Chan Sect was busy undergoing tribulations and went to great lengths. Yun Zhongzi, however, was simple. He burned Wen Zhong to death on Jue Long Ridge. With this one move, he easily passed his tribulation. He was truly a blessed and virtuous immortal.
Seeing strange creatures and demons causing trouble in the imperial city, Yun Zhongzi felt uneasy. So he took a withered old pine tree branch, made it into a sword, named it Jufa, and the next day, Yun Zhongzi rode a cloud into Chaoge to seek an audience with King Zhou.
Upon seeing Yun Zhongzi, King Zhou couldn't help but secretly admire him. Yun Zhongzi wore a blue gauze headscarf, with two ribbons fluttering behind his head; three dots on his forehead symbolized the three lights; and two circles behind his head represented the sun and moon. His Taoist robe was emerald green, symbolizing yin and yang; and two sashes tied in a Queen Mother's knot hung at his waist. He wore a pair of cloud-stepping shoes, which seemed to frighten even the stars in the night. Tigers on mountains crouched on the dust, and dragons in the sea knelt to greet him. His face was as white as powder, and his lips were like a drop of cinnabar.
King Zhou was a handsome and extraordinary man, but upon seeing Yun Zhongzi's portrait, he felt a pang of envy and said sourly, "Taoists really do sell their portraits well!" Yun Zhongzi was taken aback by this remark, not expecting such a response from King Zhou. Feeling somewhat embarrassed, he replied, "This humble Taoist, Yun Zhongzi, a Qi cultivator from Zhongnan Mountain, greets Your Majesty." His manner was impeccably polite, and his movements were extremely graceful.
This only made King Zhou feel more frustrated. It wasn't that King Zhou was inferior to Yun Zhongzi; the two had their own strengths. Before King Zhou became senile, he was full of vigor and exuded confidence. This was the unique charm of a king, especially a capable and ambitious one, which was something that Yun Zhongzi, a cultivator of immortality, could not match. However, Yun Zhongzi also possessed a unique immortal aura, a feeling of transcendence and being different from the ordinary. Comparing the two, King Zhou, whose mind was now clouded, couldn't help but feel a little envious when he saw someone as charismatic as Yun Zhongzi.
"Why is the Taoist priest not meditating and cultivating his qi in Zhongnan Mountain, but instead coming to my palace?" King Zhou said coldly.
Yun Zhongzi couldn't understand what he had done to offend King Zhou. He never dreamed it was just because he was handsome. Although he didn't understand, he still remembered his original purpose for coming, so he said, "The other day, this humble Taoist passed through your esteemed land and saw that the Heavenly City was filled with demonic energy, indicating that a demon was causing trouble. This palace is the residence of the Emperor and the place of faith for all people. The safety of the Emperor is related to the safety of all people. This humble Taoist, with the heart of acting on behalf of Heaven, has come to offer a demon-slaying sword to drive away the demons." After saying this, he took out a huge sword and handed it to a palace attendant.
He then said, "The Emperor may hang this sword above his bedchamber to ward off evil spirits." Without waiting for King Zhou to say anything more, he turned and left.
King Zhou was taken aback. He took the giant sword and saw that it was made of wood, yet it weighed over a hundred pounds. He was puzzled and ordered his warriors to hang the sword above his bedchamber, as instructed by Yun Zhongzi.
The demon to be exorcised was Daji, the fox demon. Yun Zhongzi thought that with this sword, everything would be fine. But little did he know that after Xuan Tian warned Daji, he anticipated Yun Zhongzi's scheme and gave Daji a technique to conceal her demonic aura. Later, Daji's actions were not as cruel as in her previous life, and Xuan Tian even rewarded her with a celestial technique. With her own talent and by absorbing the true dragon's energy from the imperial city to refine her cultivation, Daji, though still far inferior to Yun Zhongzi, was on the verge of entering the path of immortality. Her demonic aura had been largely eliminated, and with the technique to conceal it, how could Yun Zhongzi's casually forged sword possibly detect it?
When Daji learned of this, she secretly praised herself for how lucky she was to have listened to Xuantian's instructions, but at the same time, she hated Yun Zhongzi for always causing her trouble and courting death.
His eyes darted around, and a brilliant idea came to him.
Since entering the palace, Daji not only refrained from harming loyal officials and committing treacherous acts as she had in her previous life, but also frequently performed good deeds and virtues. She used the Shang Dynasty's treasury to cultivate a good reputation for herself, thus fulfilling the task given to her by Nuwa while simultaneously accumulating merit to ensure her eventual deification. Therefore, the entire city of Chaoge sang praises of Daji's virtuous name. Unlike her previous life, Daji did not disrupt court affairs. When King Zhou neglected court duties due to his infatuation with her, she repeatedly admonished him, even threatening suicide several times. She secretly instructed Fei and You to cause trouble for the ministers while simultaneously speaking favorably of them, albeit feigned. This resulted in all the civil and military officials praising Daji's virtue, commending Su Hu for having a good daughter while secretly lamenting King Zhou's mistreatment of her. Daji was exceptionally beautiful, and her name was known throughout Chaoge; men's hearts are complex, as everyone understands.
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