This Is My Planet - Chapter 95 - Chapter 95 – Zhaoye
In Xia Guixuan’s long life, he had always identified as human from birth until now. He had even almost forgotten that he had fox bloodline…
But he did have fox bloodline.
“Sui Sui white fox, nine tails entwined. My family Jia Yi, honored guests as kings. Forming families and homes, I create prosperity. At the juncture of heaven and man, thus it shall be.”
This was the “Song of Tushan,” the tribal blessing song when his grandmother married his grandfather. His grandmother was a legitimate princess of Tushan, a pure nine-tailed white fox, as pure as can be. (¹)
His grandmother was likely the world’s first documented wife waiting stone, the first female poet and singer. The lyrics she composed were just one line: “Awaiting the arrival.” (²)
The backstory of the lyrics: his grandfather was controlling floods and passed by his home three times without entering.
It seemed he ran away just four days after their wedding… His father was born without ever having seen his grandfather.
Hmm… In some ways, maybe it was really genetic… His grandfather was great for the world, so he was great too. Yeah.
So when Yin Xiaoru asked back then, “If you don’t care about appearances, why make yourself so handsome?” Of course, it’s natural, these genes, wouldn’t being anything less than handsome be unworthy of fox spirit lineage?
Speaking of which… The evolution of the divine descendants in this world might indeed be related to his hybrid origins, combining these native beings and human forms to create a new race. If that’s the case, the fox tribe among the divine descendants might be a higher race, an innate mark engraved in the “Heavenly Dao,” making comprehending his Dao laws simpler for them.
Yan Wuyue’s talents were exceptionally high, reaching level 5 in just a hundred years, probably also due to her mixed heritage.
As Xia Guixuan reminisced, both High Priestess Shang and the elder were initially stunned, then simultaneously overjoyed. “Is it true?”
Their voices trembled with disbelief, as if their excitement was about to overflow.
Xia Guixuan sighed. “Do you want me to grow fox ears for you to see? I can transform into anything, but what can it prove? Believe it or not, it’s up to you.”
“No, no, no, Divine Creator said it, so we believe!” The elder was ecstatic.
High Priestess Shang’s expression was different from before. She didn’t seem very convinced before, but now there was clear joy in her eyes. “This at least proves that our innate feeling all along wasn’t wrong. The Divine Creator indeed has a strong connection with the fox tribe, this is right.”
Xia Guixuan glanced at her. “You’re not a fox, but you have a similar aura… like a bestowment.”
“Yes.” High Priestess Shang hesitated for a moment, then whispered, “My situation is also somewhat complicated. I’ll report to the Divine Creator later.”
“I don’t want to inquire. Your affairs have nothing to do with me. After all, you haven’t even told me your name.”
Priestess Shang felt embarrassed and whispered, “I am Zhaoye… Not everyone among the divine descendants has a surname, ‘Shang’ was granted by the former king, to facilitate dealings in human society.”
After a pause, she pointed to the assassin elder. “This is Elder Langya of the wolf tribe.” (³)
Xia Guixuan’s expression was somewhat ambiguous. What do I care about fangs? But what about your own name…
Zhaoye understood his meaning and felt even more embarrassed, bowing her head.
Zhaoye, at first listen, didn’t sound particularly special, and even sounded nice… But thinking about it carefully, wasn’t it a bit like a horse’s name?
Yes, she was a Snow Jade Unicorn.
The former king’s mount.
She wouldn’t have revealed this casually if it weren’t in front of trusted people. It’s no wonder she covered it up for so long.
“Anyway…” Xia Guixuan didn’t dwell on it. “Originally, you had a demon king, who was from the fox clan, right? Then that person was deceived by humans and disappeared, becoming the trigger for the rift between humans and divine descendants?”
“More or less.” Zhaoye said, “Under the pressure of long-term warfare with the Zerterians, the divine descandants naturally also had the most talented individuals gathering to unite and end the situation of infighting that had lasted for over twenty thousand years, and secretly laid out plans in Great Xia. This Cultivators Association wasn’t created by me, but by our king. I’m just continuing her unfinished business.”
“Was the king a man or a woman?”
“A queen.”
“Does she have a descendant in Great Xia?”
“We’re not certain… And it’s not like every fox is a royal descendant. Of course, if the age matches, the possibility is higher.” Zhaoye glanced at Elder Langya, her expression peculiar. “Regarding what Elder mentioned about Yin Xiaoru…”
Langya was sweating profusely. “Uh…”
I didn’t mention it; you all heard it from the corpse. This is too unreasonable. If we one day truly serve that little fox as queen, knowing i once called her ‘brain-damaged’ and a ‘simpleton,’ how am I going to face it…
He gritted his teeth and decided to speak up, “Master, you’ve already been bestowed with the king’s bloodline, so you are of royal descent. You can be a king yourself! While we recognize bloodline, we value strength and merit even more! Supporting a senseless girl like this will only make things messy, and few others will approve of it. What’s the use?”
Zhaoye and Ling Moxue both looked at him with curious expressions.
Langya looked at himself, finding nothing amiss.
Zhaoye spoke leisurely, “Is it possible that your brain has been a bit fuzzy after being resurrected… Have you forgotten what identity the Divine Creator holds?”
Langya was dumbfounded. Xia Guixuan… Identity… A celebrity? No… Yin Xiaoru’s boyfriend?
Langya’s face turned green.
He probably almost lost his life a few minutes after being revived…
“It’s nothing.” Xia Guixuan patted his shoulder kindly. “I agree with your viewpoint. Don’t bother her anymore.”
“…”
Zhaoye’s eyes showed a hint of something, and she remained silent with her head bowed.
“Alright, I have a rough idea of your situation. We’ll discuss the details later.” Xia Guixuan pondered for a moment. “For now, let’s focus on what’s in front of us.”
He paused and chuckled, “Gongsun Jiu feigning a minor injury as a serious one is to cooperate with the divine descendants and deceive the Zerterians, drawing them into the game. We know about this, but humans and other divine descendants don’t. Right now, the human military is in turmoil, clamoring to fight the divine descendants; the divine descendants probably also think that the human forces are leaderless, seeing it as an opportunity. If we delay any longer, instead of tricking the Zerterians into the game, we might end up in a real fight…”
Zhaoye couldn’t help but say, “I think Gongsun Jiu intends to let the initial phase of the fight happen for real. Otherwise, this deception wouldn’t be convincing. This deputy marshal is quite ruthless; he’s as resolute as iron, not as soft as he appears.”
Xia Guixuan remained noncommittal. “From a battlefield commander’s perspective, it’s understandable. Langya, return and try to stabilize the Wu Xiang cultivators there. Even if a fight breaks out, control the scale. Don’t let the Wu Xiang on one side and warships on the other create chaos.”
Zhaoye interjected, “Elder Langya may not be able to stabilize the situation. It must be me…”
Xia Guixuan stared at her with a smile that wasn’t a smile, but there was a hint of coldness in his eyes. “Do you think I’ve forgotten that you conspired with the Azure Dragon, acting in my name?”
Zhaoye turned cold all over.
This Divine Creator had always been smiling, seemingly easy to deal with. Now, with a single cold look, he instilled fear in her heart, a hidden power that even several former kings combined couldn’t match.
Turning one’s face was as easy as turning a book page. Serving him was like serving a tiger; this “Divine Creator” is definitely not a good person, at least he was not in the past. Don’t think he’s easy to deceive.
Xia Guixuan said lightly, “I asked you to go find medicine for Elder Langya earlier, it was to see if you would escape to set up a plan. Now it seems you’ve done well… Whether you’ve leaked information to the Azure Dragon for preparation, I don’t know, and I don’t care.”
Zhaoye was drenched in cold sweat. “I’m only a collaborator with it. I can’t control it. it’s not my puppet… Honestly, even if I go back, I can’t really set up any plans. If the Divine Creator trusts me, I can go back to continue collaborating with it. When the Divine Creator arrives, I can strike back and make amends.”
Xia Guixuan raised an eyebrow. “Are you betraying it?”
Zhaoye gritted her teeth. “That Azure Dragon is not one of our divine descendants; its origins are unknown… I was only using it to gather people’s hearts and unite the divine descendants strength. Now that the true Divine Creator is here, what use is there for it?”
Xia Guixuan stared at her coldly for a while before suddenly laughing. “Alright, then go back.”
Zhaoye breathed a sigh of relief. “Rest assured, Divine Creator. Since I know that you are from the fox clan, my thoughts have changed.”
Xia Guixuan didn’t comment, letting her leave.
Soon, only he and Ling Moxue were left in the secret room. Ling Moxue had been silent all day, standing behind him like a sword attendant. It wasn’t until now that she spoke softly, “Master, she’s probably not trustworthy. Even in her current tone, her loyalty to the Fox King surpasses her loyalty to you.”
Xia Guixuan smiled faintly. “I know… Even her loyalty to the Fox King is probably just a show put on for us, an excuse for her change in loyalty. In reality… she probably only serves herself.”
( T/N: (¹) In Chinese mythology, Tushan is associated with the legendary Empress Tushan Shi (涂山氏), who was said to be the wife of the great Yu the Great (大禹), the founder of the Xia Dynasty and a legendary figure who is famous for controlling the Great Flood. “Tushan” also refers to a specific place in ancient China.
(²) The “Wife Waiting Stone” (望夫石, Wàngfū Shí) is a motif found in Chinese folklore and mythology, symbolizing loyalty and devotion.)
(³) Langya means Wolf Fang, Zhaoye sounds like a mount’s nickname)