Chapter 496: Only by Fearing Might Do They Cherish Virtue

Chapter 496: Fear of Might Breeds Gratitude for Virtue

This time, they made no pact—it was meaningless.

There was no need to speak of settling down, raising a family, or tending to a husband and children; Zhao Changhe had never planned such things. Wandering the world together was their path.

When one tires of flying, there must always be a place to rest.

Just like now, nestled in his embrace, the two of them had not changed this position from start to finish.

He held her, his chin resting on her shoulder, listening as she imparted teachings one after another, his heart at peace.

She leaned against him, equally serene.

"This banquet is hardly to my liking. Once we've eaten our fill, shall we head back?" Yue Hongling stared absently at the bonfire below for a long moment, then pouted with a curl of her lip. "Boring. Might as well go back to dual cultivation."

Who knew if she truly found it dull, or if the long embrace had stirred her desires, making her crave more intimacy with her man but finding the occasion inconvenient.

Zhao Changhe grinned. Speaking of it now, it really felt like talking about paying tribute. But it was still early, and the effects of the pain-transferring Gu hadn't worn off yet—no fun at all...

Zhao Changhe sharpened his gaze and spotted Sisi, standing before a statue with a scepter in hand like Athena, lecturing her handmaidens. He could vaguely hear her talking about forming a queen's guard, selecting clever and reliable women. The stern, serious look on her face as she gave orders and chose candidates was utterly unlike the Sisi he knew.

Zhao Changhe slapped his own butt.

Yue Hongling: "?"

In the distance, Sisi suddenly covered her rear, glancing around—the sacred, solemn aura instantly vanished.

How could Yue Hongling know what was happening? She asked in confusion, "What are you doing?"

"Cough." Zhao Changhe cleared his throat. "A mosquito bit me."

As he spoke, he scratched.

Sisi nearly jumped up.

Zhao Changhe was delighted. Now he understood what San Niang had been so amused about all day—some things could only be enjoyed in private glee.

Yue Hongling, oblivious to his antics, mused to herself, "Forget it. We just dual-cultivated not long ago—I don't want to seem insatiable. I'm not Sisi in disguise."

Zhao Changhe: "emmmm..."

In truth, it was Zhao Changhe who felt unsatisfied, since the Gu had transferred most of the sensation away. If not for the fact that dual cultivation had indeed healed his injuries, he'd wonder who he'd been toiling for all afternoon.

Yue Hongling turned out of his embrace and laughed. "On second thought, it might not be appropriate for you to leave just yet. There might be matters requiring your word, since you're the true holy envoy. I know nothing of these things; standing here dumbfounded is pointless. I'll go back first to recover and consolidate my second-layer secret treasury."

Zhao Changhe nodded. That made sense. Hongling loathed such politically charged ceremonies; she'd rather rest. But while she could leave, he had to stay, ready to handle any situation that arose.

For instance, now, with his senses extended, he could hear many people discussing the saintess's coronation as queen—"wondering what the holy envoy will decree."

Hmph. Sisi wanted to be queen?

Interesting.

Yue Hongling, fed and content, left gracefully to rest and heal. No sooner had she gone than Sisi slipped in, casting him a plaintive glare. "What are you doing?"

"Huh?"

"What 'huh'?" Sisi bit her lower lip and sidled up to him. "All talk, no nerve. If you've got the guts, really scratch me?"

Zhao Changhe looked up at the sky.

Sisi cooed, "Do you like how I'm dressed today?"

Zhao Changhe stole a glance and had to admit that such regal attire gave her an air of majesty and splendor, a far cry from the seductive, bare-waisted, bare-footed little enchantress she usually played.

Especially with the scepter in hand—it added a certain flair.

"Is this your royal robe?"

"Something like that... Did you hear?"

"Hmm?"

"What do you think? Will you allow it?"

Zhao Changhe was taken aback, then chuckled. "You really need my permission to dare? Since I promised not to enslave you, just be yourself."

It should have been reassuring words for Sisi, but for some reason, disappointment flickered in her eyes. She quickly suppressed it and said softly, "But I'm willing to listen to my lord."

"Is that so?" Zhao Changhe asked.

"Yes," Sisi sighed.

Sisi knew she was reaping the bitter fruit of her past evasiveness and the backlash of her earlier attempts to control him—Zhao Changhe no longer trusted her words, instinctively suspecting hidden motives.

Yet now, she truly had none. No woman could resist a man willing to suffer a thousand cuts to save her.

But Zhao Changhe's distrust was understandable—crying wolf was like that.

A woman who had been acting since their first meeting, and even after their reunion... Sisi herself wasn't sure if there was still a hint of playing the victim in her.

"Go ahead and do it," Zhao Changhe was saying. "I hadn't thought much about it before, but now I see it's in line with the times. And though monarchy is backward, compared to tribal systems, it's a significant step forward in civilization. There's no reason to stop it."

Sisi: "?"

She couldn't understand what he meant by progress and backwardness.

Zhao Changhe continued, "I think I get why tonight's banquet was so solemn—it's basically a prelude to the coronation, isn't it?"

"Yes. The rituals of ancestor worship, deity worship, and prayers are complete. We only await the holy envoy's word." Sisi said, "Do you see that statue over there?"

Zhao Changhe nodded. It was an abstract statue, a fusion of many animals, he guessed. But it wasn't a treasure—likely newly carved, as the original from the previous era must have been destroyed in the cataclysm.

Sisi explained, "That's the ancestral god statue. Our sanctuary is there. If you agree, we'll go now, make a public announcement, and then we'll create some luminous phenomenon around the statue. Then I'll be crowned. To the Xia people, it might seem hasty?"

"That's about right. All those tedious formalities are laughable." Zhao Changhe said, "And you still need to create a phenomenon at this point?"

"There are stubborn conservatives and dissenters. Something is needed to suppress them, or blood might be shed. They may not believe in the phenomenon, but their tribes do."

"Makes sense." Zhao Changhe shook his head and took her hand. "Let's go. Get the coronation done. Hongling finds this environment boring anyway. Better to finish early and start celebrating tomorrow—dancing and singing, isn't that better?"

Sisi looked at his hand holding hers and smiled sweetly.

It wasn't taking advantage—it was the natural intimacy of familiarity.

When they reached the statue before the sanctuary, many tribespeople were already waiting. Seeing them approach, they knelt and prostrated.

Zhao Changhe indeed noticed some resentful glances. These weren't necessarily directed at Sisi or her conservative opposition—they seemed aimed at him, the holy envoy. Was it because he was Xia?

Recalling that the Xia reinforcements were still camped at the foot of the mountain, none allowed up, he figured he was right.

Zhao Changhe felt a twinge of displeasure. Truly, matters of clan and state couldn't be resolved by favors alone.

Favors were quickly forgotten, as if owed.

Instead, they resented being commanded, or perhaps that the saintess was being taken by a Xia man.

As he pondered, Sisi slowly stepped before the statue, raised her scepter, and declared loudly, "The holy envoy conveys the ancestral god's decree: from this day forth, the Spirit Tribe shall be proclaimed a nation!"

At the same time, whether through her handmaidens' machinations on the statue, a brilliant radiance shot into the sky, illuminating the night.

Someone frowned and glanced at Zhao Changhe.

Where was the divine decree?

Such tricks—who could they fool?

Just as they were about to speak, Zhao Changhe, without a change in expression, secretly connected the third page of the Celestial Book to the statue.

Then upon that radiance appeared various dragons, phoenixes, qilin, vermilion birds, and black tortoises, including their sacred beast, the Blood Ao, and a primordial vitality and power spread in all directions.

Those who had frowned became wide-eyed and dumbfounded; the words they wanted to say were completely stuck in their throats, not a single syllable uttered.

Before the sacred hall there was utter silence, then like a toppled domino, the quiet began from the mountain peak, all the way down to the mountainside, to the foot of the mountain; a hundred thousand Spirit Clan stood silent, staring wide-eyed at the celestial phenomenon in the sky.

Why are the Spirit Clan called the Spirit Clan? It is not because of the Blood Ao, nor because of the Gu.

Rather, it is because they comprehend the spirit of beasts.

This auspicious omen of myriad beasts—if not the Spirit Clan's god, then what else could it be?

After a full half-cup of tea of stunned silence, a sharp-witted elder cried out loudly: "We humbly obey the divine oracle!"

Instantly, from the sacred mountain above and below, a roaring tide of voices: "We humbly obey the divine oracle!"

Sisi raised her scepter high.

"Hail Your Majesty!"

"Hail Your Majesty!"

"Your Majesty, please enter the sacred hall!"

"Rumble!" The golden gates burst open with a thunderous sound, revealing a vast hall before them, brilliant with pearls shining as bright as day.

Sisi slowly entered, dragging her long gown, followed by a group of people kowtowing with every step.

Zhao Changhe glanced around; the sacred hall was lined with statues of various divine beasts, and the central throne was made of pure gold, gleaming radiantly.

Sisi explained in a low voice: "This sacred hall was formerly used by the clan chief for sacrifices. Since the forbidden land's enslavement, the hall has never been opened... for fear of misunderstanding by the forbidden land."

Zhao Changhe thought to himself, That's not what I wanted to know. It's that you, a small clan in a corner, are really damn extravagant—this gold, these luminous pearls, tsk...

Maybe this is what it means to be a king.

He pondered for a moment, then strode forward and actually sat down on the main throne first.

Bestowing favors alone only makes people take them for granted; one must have authority. Back when he was pretending, these fools showed more reverence than now—how ridiculous.

Sure enough, this posture of sitting high on the throne while the Spirit Clan entered kowtowing step by step actually left them without any defiance; not a single one dared to utter a word.

Sisi was startled for a moment, then seemed to understand something. She smiled slightly and knelt before him: "Please, Holy Envoy, bestow your blessing."

Zhao Changhe said flatly: "All of you wait outside."

At that moment, only Sisi had entered; the others were still outside the threshold of the hall. Hearing this, they looked up in astonishment.

Zhao Changhe waved his hand, and with the Crane Control Skill, he accurately pulled the stone door's mechanism.

The gates closed with a "rumble," and the crowd knelt outside, watching helplessly as the man sat on their sacred throne, and the newly crowned queen knelt before him, slowly bowing her head.

"Boom," the stone gate shut tight, and they could no longer see.