The Spiritual Attainment of Minghe

Having known Daji’s expectation for the future, the Taoist said with a smile, "Exactly, I saved you so you could unite with Bo Yikao, but not now, and you need to wait a while. I can teach you some transforming exercises for cultivation. If you become an immortal, you can be with Bo Yikao forever. However, you need to promise me one thing."

When hearing that, Daji’s happiness quickly vanished. Although she was inexperienced, she also knew that there was no free lunch. The man present would not save her, teach her cultivation methods, and send her to reunite with Bo Yikao without any reason. Daji asked in a low voice, "Great Immortal, what do you want me to do?"

The Taoist laughed and said, "Ha-ha-ha, Su Daji, do not worry. I scorn to threat a mortal like you and Bo Yikao. As for what I want you to do, I will let you know later." He waved his sleeves, and an auspicious cloud appeared to take them to the sky. Su Daji looked at the army led by Su Hu for the last time, and then they disappeared without a trace.

...

On the other side, Su Hu brought the Nine-tailed Fox to Zhaoge to meet King Zhou. Initially, King Zhou wanted to behead Su Hu in public. However, Fei Zhong suggested, "Your Majesty, you ought to meet Su Daji, the daughter of Su Hu. If you are satisfied with her appearance, you can forgive Su Hu. If not, you can behead both Su Hu and Su Daji in public."

King Zhou summoned Su Hu and ’Su Daji’ to the court. At the sight of King Zhou, the Nine-tailed Fox bowed and said, "Your Majesty, I, Su Daji, am the daughter of a sinner." The Nine-tailed Fox’s lips were as red as a cherry, and her bright eyes were full of tender affection. She was exceedingly fascinating while only using light make-up.

Su Daji’s sweet girlish voice made King Zhou’s mind drift away. When he came to himself, King Zhou immediately ordered his servants. "Send the beauty to Shouxian Palace and wait for me." Later, he issued a decree. "Su Hu’s whole family are absolved. Su Hu is reinstated and will become a royal relative. His salary will increase by two-thousand dan every month. I will give a banquet to him for three days in the Xianqing Hall so all the officials can celebrate him. He has to be displayed around the streets for three days. He will return home with honor, accompanied by two city officials and three military officials."

Since the Nine-tailed Fox entered the court, King Zhou was obsessed with singing and dancing day and night. He became infatuated with her and began to neglect state affairs. Even if all officials advised him, he would not listen to them. Every day, he just had fun with the Nine-tailed Fox in the imperial harem. No matter how fast time flew and how many affairs needed to be dealt with, he still paid no attention to them.

After entering the court, the Nine-tailed Fox not only pleased King Zhou with her beauty but also captived him with sorcery. As a result, King Zhou was reluctant to leave the imperial harem. Gradually, the Nine-tailed Fox also found out the benefits of being King Zhou’s concubine. Although she was just a concubine in the imperial harem, her fortune got better and better due to the dynasty’s luck. It could be called a heaven-sent fortune for her, who formerly had nothing at all.

In addition, the Nine-tailed Fox also discovered that there were a lot of tonic Spiritual Medicines, which were inexhaustible. Meanwhile, there were endless Mystical Beasts, which could be enjoyed every day. With these things, she made astounding advances in her cultivation. However, her Demon Aura was also revealed because she killed too many Mystical Beasts and her cultivation advanced too quickly.

Zhaoge was saturated with Demon Aura, which drew the attention of Yun Zhongzi, a Qi-cultivating Master in Zhongnan Mountains. He was a listed disciple of the Clan of Enlightenment, and his cultivation was very high. Seeing that Zhaoge was pervaded with Demon Aura, he went down the hill to conquer the demon. Initially, he planned to kill the Nine-tailed Fox with a wooden sword, which was a magic weapon. Unfortunately, the Shang Dynasty was not favored by the God. King Zhou listened to the Nine-tailed Fox’s calumny and destroyed the wooden sword.

Bedeviled by the Nine-tailed Fox, King Zhou became more and more silly and tyrannical and made various horrifying, cruel criminal punishments. As a result, courtiers dared not to advise him. However, Fei Zhong and You Hun were deeply trusted by King Zhou for their shameless flattery. The two often presented calumny to King Zhou, so the other courtiers feared them.

Queen Jiang, head of the imperial harem, knew all things, so she spoke bluntly to King Zhou. However, King Zhou had already been possessed by the demon for too long, so he would not care at all about what others said. Without resort, Queen Jiang could only make it hot for the Nine-tailed Fox. Unfortunately, Queen Jiang was framed by the Nine-tailed Fox and Fei Zhong. Her two sons were rescued from the execution ground and disappeared from the scene.

After Queen Jiang died, King Zhou feared that Jiang Huanchu, Queen Jiang’s father and Marquis of the East, would plot a rebellion. Under Fei Zhong and You Hun’s advice, King Zhou summoned four vassals to Zhaoge and planned to execute them all, to guard against future evil. Shang Rong, the prime minister, presented admonishment at the risk of death in the Nine Halls. Regretfully, King Zhou did not change his mind, and Shang Rong recklessly dashed out of the Nine Halls due to disappointment.

King Zhou issued decrees to the four vassals and they set off for Zhaoge. However, Ji Chang, the Marquis of the West, had already known that he would get sick before his departure. Although he would not die, he would be trapped in Zhaoge for several years. Therefore, he ordered Bo Yikao, the eldest son, to take charge of all things in Xiqi. Meanwhile, he ordered them to wait for him, rather than act rashly.

On the way to Zhaoge, Ji Chang picked up a baby. He called him Leizhenzi and took him as his hundredth son. Later, Leizhenzi was taken by Yun Zhongzi as a disciple. In the future, father and son would meet again when Ji Chang got out of trouble. Since Ji Chang knew that it would not be convenient to take Leizhenzi to Zhaoge, he had no choice but to leave Leizhenzi to Yun Zhongzi.

When the four vassals arrived at Zhaoge, King Zhou suddenly launched an attack on them. Jiang Huanchu, the Marquis of the East, and E Chongyu, the Marquis of the South, were beheaded in public. Chong Houfu, the Marquis of the North, escaped death by bribing Fei Zhong and You Hun. Ji Chang, the Marquis of the West, also escaped death, because all officials mediated for him and he was known as a man of virtue. However, he was imprisoned by King Zhou in You Li, to avoid future evil.

At that moment, Jiang Ziya had been a disciple of the Clan of Enlightenment for thirty or forty years in Mount Kunlun. He had barely reached the Realm of Veridical Immortal, which depressed the Honoured Lord of Origin. Although Jiang Ziya practiced hard and used a lot of resources, his cultivation was not as high due to his poor aptitude. If he had not been a person in the God Deification Ceremony, he might have been expelled by the Honoured Lord of the Origin.