Reborn, the daughter of the Marquisate went crazy

Emperor Yingtian has always attached great importance to his reputation. All he wanted in his life was to be remembered in history as a "holy ruler and wise monarch." When he heard that people were saying that he was a tyrant, he immediately became furious.

After the messy imperial study returned to dead silence, Emperor Yingtian closed his eyes, took a deep breath, summoned his shadow guards, and gave a series of instructions. Since he couldn't stop the gossip, he would divert the blame elsewhere. In short, he couldn't be a tyrant!

But within three or five days, rumors suddenly spread throughout Dongling, saying that this once-in-a-century snowstorm was caused by the evil Taoist priests who had angered the heavens, and that only by slaughtering all the Taoist priests in the world could the punishment from heaven be lifted.

The people's anger had nowhere to vent, and now that they had found a cause for their hatred, it was like dry wood meeting a raging fire, unstoppable. Crowds of people, holding hoes and hatchets, rushed into the various Taoist temples with red eyes.

Within a few days, every Taoist temple in Dongling was transformed into a bloodbath, with corpses piled high and blood staining the white snow a blinding crimson. Furthermore, even those lay disciples who grew their hair to cultivate their cultivation were not spared; anyone with even a passing connection to the Daoist sect was not spared from this unforeseen disaster.

The blizzard was raging, and the number of people freezing to death was increasing. Disaster relief was urgent, but the treasury was empty, and the ministers in the court were arguing endlessly.

Just as the ministers were arguing fiercely, they suddenly heard the palace door creak open without wind, and a gust of cold air swept in.

All the ministers fell silent in shock, and when they looked carefully, they saw a Taoist priest standing in the hall. He was wearing a plain Taoist robe, his hair and beard were all white, and his expression was indifferent. He looked past the civil and military officials in the court and looked directly at Emperor Yingtian who was sitting on the dragon throne.

Chu Yuncang stood at the head of all the officials. He turned his head slightly, and when he saw the Taoist priest's face clearly, he was suddenly struck by lightning. This person was clearly the Taoist priest who rushed to Jiazhou to collect his remaining soul in his dream, but the person in front of him was much older than he looked in the dream.

His heart was beating like a drum, his ears were buzzing, and he wanted to rush forward and ask clearly what the dream was all about. But he forced himself to suppress all his doubts and stood still.

Emperor Yingtian was originally resting with his eyes closed, when he suddenly heard the arguing in the hall stop abruptly. He frowned and slowly opened his eyes. When he saw a Taoist priest appear out of thin air in the hall, his pupils suddenly shrank and he was horrified.

The guards on duty in the palace finally came to their senses and rushed forward with swords drawn. The leader of the guards, Wu Xianda, held his sword in front of him and shouted sternly, "You evil spirit! This is a forbidden area. How dare you trespass?!"

The Taoist priest remained motionless, oblivious to the icy blades hurling around him. His gaze was calm as he fixed his gaze upon Emperor Yingtian. He spoke softly, "Your Majesty, I am Lingxuzi, a Taoist from Wuwang Mountain. I have defied your Majesty today, not out of rebellion, but because I cannot bear to see the thousand-year-old tradition of the Daoist sect extinguished. I beg Your Majesty to show mercy and put an end to the calamity plaguing the Daoist sect in the Nine Provinces."

Emperor Yingtian narrowed his eyes, carefully examining the man before him. Twenty years ago, before he ascended to the throne, he had once met Taoist Lingxu. Back then, Taoist Lingxu had black hair and an ethereal demeanor. But the man before him had frost-like hair and wrinkles on his face, looking fifty years older.

Everyone in the world knew that Taoist Lingxu and National Master Lingxuan were fellow disciples. Rumor had it that Taoist Lingxu was profoundly skilled in Taoism, far surpassing Lingxuan in cultivation. But now, it seemed that Taoist Lingxuan's appearance remained unchanged, while Taoist Lingxu couldn't even maintain the most basic techniques of maintaining his youthful appearance. It seemed the rumors were misplaced.

He tapped the dragon throne lightly with his fingertips, a meaningful arc curling up at the corner of his lips: "Oh? Taoist Priest wants me to protect the Taoist sects in the world. I wonder what bargaining chips you can offer to tempt me?"

Taoist Lingxu's expression was as calm as the abyss. He said slowly, "I wish to open the Supreme Mysterious Altar and use my humble Taoist practice to calm this raging snowstorm."

Emperor Yingtian's eyes suddenly fixed, and after a long moment, a sharp arc appeared at the corner of his lips. "Alright, I grant your request. Tomorrow, the Taoist priest will perform a ritual. If the wind and snow subside, I will order the officials and soldiers of each prefecture to protect the Taoist sect. But if the wind and snow don't stop... I will hang the Taoist priest's head on the Suzaku Gate as a warning to others."

Taoist Lingxu bowed his head in greeting, his voice as calm as an ancient well. "Your Majesty's words are golden, and I will bear them in mind. This altar must be set up in Suzaku Square outside the palace gate, facing the Big Dipper. Your Majesty, please order the preparation of three kinds of animals and five kinds of grain, as well as ninety-nine eternal lamps, to correspond to the number of days in the sky."

He lightly swept the whisk in his hand, bringing up a gust of breeze: "Tomorrow at 3:15 pm, I will open the altar and perform a ritual."

As soon as Taoist Lingxu finished speaking, his figure vanished without a trace. Everyone was shocked. Where he had stood just now, not even a single footprint remained. It was as if he had been banished from the world, or perhaps it was all a dream...

……

Within an hour, the news that Taoist Lingxu would hold a ritual to ward off the snow disaster tomorrow spread throughout the streets and alleys of Shengjing City like falling snowflakes.

At that time, Xie Qingli was in the backyard of Tingyu Tower, discussing with the head Zou Er how to deal with Xie Jingyuan's missing person list. Suddenly, she heard the news from Taoist Lingxu. Her fingertips trembled, and the teacup in her hand fell to the blue brick floor with a "pop". The scalding tea splashed on the corner of her skirt, but she was completely unaware.

She stood up suddenly and rushed out of the room like an arrow. Leng Shuang hurriedly grabbed her fox fur cloak and chased after her.

Taoist Lingxu did not hide his whereabouts, and in just a cup of tea, the two found the inn where Taoist Lingxu was staying.

From afar, the inn's entrance was already tightly packed. High-ranking officials in brocade hats and sable furs mingled with commoners in coarse linen, eagerly awaiting their arrival in the snowy wind. On either side of the vermilion-lacquered gate stood two young Taoist children, whisks in hand, their blue robes stained with snow.

Xie Qingli squeezed through the bustling crowd, but suddenly stopped three feet from the inn's steps. In her previous life, the one who received the true teachings from Taoist Lingxu was her, wearing Lu Li's skin. Now, in this new life, how could Taoist Lingxu, a person he had never met, recognize her?

Suddenly, the door of the inn creaked open, and Taoist Wuyou stepped out quickly. He walked straight to Xie Qingli and whispered, "Miss Xie, Master wants to see you."

Xie Qingli's pupils trembled slightly, and her feet felt light as if they were walking on clouds. In a trance, she had already followed Wuyou through the corridor. When they reached a quiet room, Wuyou stepped aside and stopped, gently raising his chin to indicate that she could go in alone.

Her fingertips trembled slightly as she slowly stepped into the room. Looking up, her head of frosty white hair stung her eyes. She felt as if she had fallen into an ice cellar, a sweet and fishy feeling welling up in her throat. She trembled and said, "Master... Taoist priest, your hair..."

Taoist Lingxu gazed at Xie Qingli, the fine lines in his eyes shimmering with the soft light of reunion after a long separation, a stark contrast to his cold and distant demeanor in his previous life. He slowly raised his hand and said gently, "Foolish child, could it be that after living this life again, you can't even recognize your master?"

Xie Qingli was shocked and stumbled back half a step, almost knocking over the celadon vase behind him: "Master, you are also reborn? But...but my previous life was not what I am now..."