Chapter 922
Not Afraid
Pan Yun shook her head, her eyes shining: "But I know it's a very fierce and dangerous thing."
“They are demons,” Zhang Li said. “These demons have been appearing in the world since the Southern Song Dynasty. The more turbulent the world is, the more rampant they become. Through the Southern Song and Jin-Yuan dynasties, especially the Later Yuan Dynasty, these monsters committed evil everywhere. Until the Ming Dynasty was established, Emperor Taizu ordered my Zhang family to lead all the Taoist monks and cultivators in the world to suppress them.”
"Among them, the three most evil and most powerful demons are stationed in three directions of Longhu Mountain. The demon under the Cliff of Contemplation was the most powerful one back then, while the other demons are stationed in four directions, suppressed by the dragon vein. This time, the late emperor was in trouble, and the Ming Dynasty almost fell. The fate of the country is related to the dragon vein. These demons all want to take the opportunity to emerge. That's why I asked you to go back and investigate the Dragon Map. If you want to be a true national advisor, you must know about this."
Pan Yun's eyes darted around. It was clear that the Zhang family had been in charge of this matter all along, and her senior sister was asking her to take over as the Imperial Advisor, which meant that the Zhang family was trying to take away their power.
First, divide power; then, fight against this treacherous imperial advisor; finally, leverage the situation to unite people's hearts and minds and carry out reforms...
Pan Yun's mind was racing with a whole host of scenarios, and her eyes were filled with admiration as she looked at Xuanmiao: "Senior Sister, you're amazing!"
Xuanmiao, unaware of the turmoil in her mind, merely glanced at her before saying, "Under the Cliff of Contemplation lies a ferocious beast with the bloodline of the Taotie. The formation has just been reinforced, and it's currently in a state of agitation. Would you like to go down and take a look?"
Pan Yun: "Under the suppression of the formation, can it swallow me whole?"
Xuanmiao: "If we're too close, maybe."
Pan Yun hesitated, but she really wanted to watch.
Taotie is an ancient ferocious beast.
Although this is not a Taotie, it has Taotie blood. According to the laws of nature, once an animal reverts to its ancestral form, and if its ancestor is powerful enough, it will continuously increase its ancestral power during its growth, and eventually it may truly become something like its ancestor.
In the past life, spiritual energy revived, and demons and monsters emerged one after another, including many monsters that exhibited ancestral traits.
However, very few demons have returned to the level of ancient ferocious beasts and divine beasts.
Pan Yun felt that she might only ever see one of these ferocious beasts, the Taotie, in her entire life.
Unlike contemporary people's attitude towards ferocious beasts and demons, Pan Yun was an enlightened person from the 26th century.
She wouldn't dare say she was from an animal protection association, but she still held a protective attitude towards a monster that was on the verge of extinction and had only a trace of its bloodline left.
So Pan Yun hesitated for a moment before nodding and saying, "I'll go take a look, but I need to make some preparations."
Xuanmiao assumed that her preparations included bringing more magical artifacts, talismans, and other life-saving items. She had always known that while her junior sister was sometimes reckless and disregarded life and death, she was mostly concerned about her own life.
So Xuanmiao nodded in agreement and said, "I'll give you a day to prepare. Come here to see me at noon tomorrow."
Pan Yun agreed.
After Pan Jun left happily, Cheng Lingzi stared at Xuanmiao.
Xuanmiao frowned, looking back without flinching: "What are you looking at?"
Cheng Lingzi: "Let's see if you're too smart or if you've suddenly become brain-dead. Not everyone can pull off the 'letting the wolf into the house' tactic."
Xuanmiao: "She is not a wolf."
“I’m not talking about her,” Cheng Lingzi said. “Have you thought about what will happen a hundred years from now? Perhaps it won’t even take a hundred years. The struggles in the court are not like the struggles in my Zhang family. They can change in an instant. The emperor trusts her now, but what about next year? What about three to five years from now? Even if she can retire successfully, who will take over? Once the imperial edict is transferred from the Zhang family to the court, it will be difficult to take it back.”
Xuanmiao said, "I can't let a minor setback deter me from further action. I'll just hand over the Dragon Map before she leaves."
Cheng Lingzi scoffed, "You're being too naive. Once someone has ascended the throne, they're unlikely to step down and relinquish power. How can you be sure that Pan Jun will be willing to return the imperial map in the future?"
Xuanmiao: "I believe her."
Cheng Lingzi frowned.
“Because we all know that it’s safer and more secure for the Zhang family to have the Dragon Map in their hands than for the imperial court.” Xuanmiao said, “My junior sister is not a power-hungry person. When she does things, the people come first.” Cheng Lingzi: “People can change.”
Xuanmiao turned and left: "Then let's wait until Senior Brother changes before we talk about it."
Seeing her throwing a tantrum, Cheng Lingzi snorted coldly, but seeing that she had reached the mountainside in a few steps, he quickly said, "Come up and talk to me when you have time these next few days. The academy is keeping the disciples locked in classrooms to prevent them from causing trouble, and my Repentance Cliff has become much quieter."
Xuanmiao pretended not to hear.
Pan Yun, who was running wildly down the mountain, ran all the way to the cafeteria.
The cafeteria is bustling with activity as it prepares dinner for the teachers and students.
Pan Yun had just peeked out when the old Taoist priest grabbed her by the collar and pulled her out.
Pan Yun realized that she couldn't escape it.
Tsk tsk tsk, isn't this senior who serves meals to teachers and students better than those two old ancestors?
The Zhang family has no foresight.
Pan Yun stood there obediently.
"It's you?" The old Taoist priest released his grip and asked, "Why aren't you in class? What are you doing in the cafeteria? Who's on duty for your class today? Don't you know the students on duty are supposed to take the food back with them?"
It's so pitiful that students are even deprived of their right to go out for a meal and some fresh air.
Pan Yun replied respectfully, "Replying to Senior, I'm here to order food."
"Ordering food?" The old Taoist priest frowned. "Who is your academy's master? How can he order food at a time like this?"
Without hesitation, Pan Yun said, "Zhang Ziwang, this meal is for a very, very senior person."
The old Taoist priest stared at her intently. Pan Yun blinked her big eyes and met his gaze. After a moment, he chuckled and said, "Alright, what kind of dishes do you want to order?"
He slapped out a menu, raised his chin, and said, "Order."
She knew the cafeteria food all too well; none of it was what she wanted, except for steamed buns and dumplings.
Pan Yun pressed down on the menu: "Senior, I don't want any of these. I want big chunks of meat, big chunks of meat, and more big chunks of meat!"
"Are you feeding pigs?" The old Taoist priest casually picked up the whisk next to him and slapped it on her head, saying, "Little thing, I've already treated you well enough. How dare you call your master by his name? If we're really entertaining an important senior, do we need to order food from the canteen? Do you think the Zhang family's big kitchen, small kitchen, and the chefs in the Immortal Pavilion are just for show?"
Pan Jun paused for a moment before saying, "It gives me another idea, but I think our cafeteria chefs cook very well, no worse than theirs."
Two round heads poked out from inside the door, laughing so hard their eyes were almost closed: "Uncle-Master, I think this student is right. The cooks in our cafeteria are all pretty good."
"Go, go, go," the old Taoist waved them back to prepare the meal, and said to Pan Yun, "You're full of lies, I'm not helping you anymore, you don't even have the right to order from the menu."
After saying that, he reached out and grabbed the menu and put it away.
Pan Jun quickly replied, "Senior, I'm not lying. It's true, Zhang Ziwang is indeed my headmaster. It's just that I've never been convinced by him, and since we're of the same generation, I dare to call him by his name directly."
The old Taoist priest stared intently at Pan Yun for a while, then said "Oh," and added, "I remember now, you're Zhang Li's junior sister. How is Zhang Li? Is the battle down the mountain over?"
Pan Yun: "...It's all over now. Senior Brother Zhang Liuzhen has already succeeded as the head of the family, and the memorial to the court requesting an official title has been sent out."
The old Taoist priest said, "Now that the fight is over, why haven't you released the students yet? And you, no one else has come out, how did you get out? You came to order food, not to celebrate, right?" (End of Chapter)