Forbidden Land of the Divine Lord
A-Qiu, standing behind, could only see his white robes tremble slightly, and her heart was also deeply shaken.
After a long pause, Wan Qiqing said, word by word, "To lead the Divine Weapon Hall, one must be decisive in battle and act at the right time. This requires not only superb martial arts skills, but also a transcendent and calm state of mind."
He turned back and stared intently at A-Qiu, saying, "But my state of mind is not without flaws, regrets, and weaknesses!"
At that very moment, in his staggering figure, A Qiu saw both an overwhelming sense of brokenness and despair.
That was the most disheveled she had ever seen her master in her life.
As an assassin, A-Qiu had been in extremely dangerous situations many times in his life, facing life and death as if walking on flat ground, without ever having any hesitation or delay in his mind.
But as she stood outside the ruined palace of Liyang, gazing at the ancient building hidden in the dust and smoke of the pile of stones, she felt her heartbeat suddenly quicken.
The fingers hidden inside the sleeves trembled slightly, uncontrollably.
The massive, dilapidated palace of Liyang stood bathed in the setting sun, its soft, hazy glow stirring a deep chord within her memory, momentarily leaving her bewildered. She had once remained unmoved by Wan Qiqing's hallucinatory flute music, resolutely severing the sound with her dagger, but now, facing this silent, ancient palace, she couldn't help but feel her heart pounding, her thoughts surging.
Some familiar, fragmented impressions, like fleeting shadows, swept across the lake of my heart.
She wanted to freeze the moment and capture it, but no matter what she did, she couldn't see it clearly.
But Ah Qiu has always been resolute; once he sets his goal, he will not waver or change it due to emotional fluctuations.
She made it clear to herself that the purpose of her trip was to visit the ruined palace in Liyang to pay homage to the gods and seek the original forms of the "Shao" and "Wu" dances. At this moment, she was not carrying a sword. However, as was her habit over the years, the "Assassination of Qin" inscription remained on the inside of her right arm, ready to be drawn at any time if necessary.
She took a deep breath and calmly raised her voice, saying, "Le Shiwanqiu of the Dayan Division sincerely requests an audience with Lord Liyang."
Whether it was an illusion or not, this ruined palace ground, which was originally quiet and solemn, seemingly deserted, seemed to subtly change its atmosphere as her voice rang out, as if a hidden life force was flowing within it.
The change was not obvious, and an ordinary person might not have noticed it. But Ah Qiu's senses were so sharp that, although he could not directly observe the color of the clouds like the great witches Qi Luo and Qi Shang, he could still perceive the subtle changes and flows of the atmosphere within them.
Like a desolate wasteland, suddenly a spring breeze blows, and green grass sprouts, swaying gently.
Even with her confidence, she couldn't help but feel a mix of doubt and skepticism.
After all, gods had always been just legendary figures to her. Even after hearing Qi Luo, Qi Shang, and An Daoling repeatedly confirm it, she still found it difficult to truly feel awe for the being in Liyang Palace.
It was more curiosity than respect.
Judging from Liyang Shenjun's reaction, he was not averse to her visit.
A-Qiu felt relieved and brought her mind to a state of clarity and tranquility, like still water. She walked forward and pushed open the heavy stone door.
The stone gate rumbled like muffled thunder as it rolled across the ground. Without further hesitation, A Qiu stepped inside, leaving only a sliver of sunlight winding its way out behind him.
After she pushed the stone door open, it automatically slammed shut behind her.
The world fell silent for a moment. The people and noise outside the ruined palace, once isolated by the stone gate, seemed to become something from another extremely distant world.
A Qiu's heart involuntarily quieted down, sinking into a silence so profound you could hear a pin drop.
Strangely, despite being confined to this secluded palace, she felt no tension of impending doom. Instead, she seemed to feel a sense of peace and relief.
It was as if all the burdens on his shoulders were shut out the moment the stone door closed.
She suddenly understood why ordinary people, and even some high-ranking officials, liked to worship gods and Buddhas, or invite shamans to perform incantations.
This is because the halls naturally possess a tranquil and mysterious atmosphere, enough to allow mortals, weary from the hustle and bustle of the world, to lay down all their burdens. And for ordinary people burdened by worldly troubles, even a moment's respite is beneficial.
It is likely that during those turbulent years in the palace, when the legacy of the Music Bureau could not be continued, the Temple of Music Goddess held such significance for Lady Sun.
The dimness inside the hall did not prevent A Qiu from seeing clearly. With her eyesight, she could see the surrounding scenery clearly and gasped in surprise.
Both were abandoned palaces, but the Qiwu Palace she had visited was in a much better condition than this one. Qiwu Palace was simply empty and uninhabited, yet its buildings and furniture were all in perfect order, and it also housed no fewer than ten thousand volumes of books, classics, and rare artifacts.
But the ruined palace of Liyang can only be described as "hasty and haphazard." Looking at this hall alone, the few remaining tables, shelves, and chairs that barely resemble their original forms are mostly decayed. The vast hall is now just bare walls.
A Qiu couldn't help but suspect that no one had been here for at least a hundred years.
But thinking about it, that might not be entirely true, since there is at least one Divine Lord of Liyang here.
With this thought in mind, she clasped her hands in a gesture of respect, looked around, and said loudly, "Thank you for granting me an audience, Divine Lord." At the same time, she couldn't help but wonder: since this Divine Lord had let her in, why was he unwilling to show himself to her? Although gods may also be formless and intangible, judging from the legend that the Divine Lord of Liyang had subdued poisonous snakes and ferocious beasts in this place, he should have a human form.
Looking closer, she noticed that the hall was completely empty, with no statues or memorial tablets. She thought the deity was quite otherworldly.
Lost in her thoughts, she looked around, completely unaware that her movements might have been observed by the god, whose whereabouts were unknown.
A voice said calmly, "Is this place beautiful?"
The voice seemed to be unusually low or deliberately altered, yet it was still clearly the voice of a young man, somewhat strange, but very steady.
If A Qiu hadn't already had experience dealing with Li Wujiu within the forbidden area of the Hidden World Sect, she would have been utterly shocked.
Li Wujiu spoke to her in her mind in the same way. This is probably how it is when one reaches a state of profound cultivation. But Li Wujiu is not a god; he is merely a cultivator in seclusion.
Having learned from this experience, A-Qiu was not alarmed. However, the question posed by the deity was quite difficult to answer, because the harshness and simplicity of this place were immediately apparent. To answer "beautiful" would be a lie, and too insincere. Yet, this was A-Qiu's first visit to this place, and he was not familiar with the deity before. To truthfully answer "simple" would be impolite.
She thought for a moment and said carefully, "The God Lord is detached from worldly affairs and not burdened by external things. I greatly admire such a carefree and self-possessed state of mind."
The deity snorted and said, "So you find this place too cold and harsh. It must not be as comfortable and luxurious as the place where you used to live."
A Qiu secretly wiped the cold sweat from her forehead and carefully said, "You can't say that." For some reason, the god's words sounded a bit strange, as if he cared a lot about her opinion on the ruined palace in Liyang. But how could the dwelling place of gods be judged by the reasoning of mortals?
A Qiu couldn't understand his meaning, so he carefully replied, "Actually, A Qiu grew up in the wilderness and snow, sometimes living in caves and sometimes sleeping in the open. At least here, Lord Shenjun, there are roofs and walls to shelter you from the wind, so... A Qiu doesn't think it's that simple."
Everything she said up to this point was the truth. Assassins primarily focused on martial arts cultivation; whether their dwellings were luxurious or humble was of little concern to them. Of course, her senior brother, Gongyi Xiu, might be a bit picky, but that was merely his personal style.
But when she mentioned this, she was also somewhat surprised by her own unusual behavior.
She was a Lanling Assassin, and one of her trainings was to never reveal any details about her life to anyone.
Even when she was with Gu Yi, she never talked about her childhood.
But why do they involuntarily talk about their childhood experiences when facing this mysterious deity?
The deity was slightly taken aback, and after a moment he said, "When you were a child, it turns out... you had such a hard life?" His tone was filled with suppressed shock and disbelief.
Ah Qiu quickly replied, "Therefore, Your Majesty need not worry that Ah Qiu will think your divine palace is not good. As long as one has a place to live, that is enough."
Lord Liyang remained silent for a moment before asking, "What brings you here?"
Just as A Qiu was about to answer, something unexpected happened.
A sudden surge of bloody stench swept over, instantly filling the entire space.
As soon as A Qiu sensed something was wrong, he instinctively grabbed the "Assassinate Qin" weapon and flew backward quickly until he stood still against a stone pillar.
The stone gate was now closed, and looking around the entire hall, this was the best location.
Before she could react, a violent upheaval came from the back hall, almost like the sound of flying sand and stones.
And above her head were two eerie green beast eyes, like lanterns.
Its coiled body meanders out, covered with hard and colorful scales, each scale as big as a bowl and glistening with luster.
Even with A Qiu's extensive knowledge and experience, having fought against ferocious beasts and poisonous insects many times, he still did not recognize what it was. He couldn't help but feel a chill in his heart, and his hand holding the assassin trembled unusually.
She could tell at a glance that with such thick scales, even with the sharpest weapon, it would be difficult to penetrate it.
Moreover, with a body nearly ten feet long, the small wound inflicted by the assassination attempt on Qin would probably not be enough to shake it in the slightest.
She immediately recalled the legends of ferocious beasts and monsters that devoured people at the Liyang Divine Palace, and her heart sank.
Her dagger gleamed in the darkness.
The emerald green gaze hovered above her head, staring directly at her, but made no further move.
Because the divine lord's rebuke had already rang out: "Zhulong! Do not be presumptuous!"
She thought to herself that this monster was called Zhulong, but its appearance was like a snake but not a snake. Unlike a snake, it had a large, protruding horn on its forehead.
Seeing the monster called Zhulong coiled up, head held high, motionless, she felt a little relieved and said, "Aqiu has come to see the ancient sacrificial dances of Shao and Wu, used to worship the gods of heaven and earth..."
Before she could finish speaking, a sudden change occurred. The once peaceful and still Zhulong, upon hearing the name "A Qiu," suddenly raised its head and charged towards her with the speed of a whirlwind.
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