Early the next morning, a maid entered the room to wake Daji.
Daji, whose body had already been possessed by the Nine-Tailed Fox, appeared perfectly normal. Her expressions, features, movements, and mannerisms were no different from before, with not the slightest hint of anything unusual.
The Nine-Tailed Fox had long since devoured all of Daji's memories, flawlessly imitating every word and action. Only compared to yesterday, there was an inexplicable trace of indifference and detachment in her tone.
Su Hu merely assumed that his daughter was exhausted from the long journey and gave it no further thought. He immediately ordered the troops assembled and continued toward Zhaoge.
Zhaoge City's Wumen Gate stood majestic and towering. The white marble railings of Nine Dragon Bridge bore carvings of dragons playing in the water, while the glazed tiles of Nine-Room Hall gleamed with a solemn golden light beneath the sun.
The call of summons echoed layer upon layer, like a great bell rolling over the Danbi:
"Summon Su Daji, daughter of the Marquis of Jizhou, to attend the court!"
The Nine-Tailed Fox possessing Daji wore a plain palace gown embroidered with crabapple blossoms. Moving with the grace of a willow bending in the breeze, she crossed Nine Dragon Bridge at an unhurried pace and arrived before the dripping eaves.
She gathered her robes and knelt, holding a ceremonial ivory tablet high as her soft voice rang out clearly:
"This guilty subject, Su Daji, wishes Your Majesty ten thousand years, ten thousand years, ten thousand times ten thousand years!"
King Zhou still carried a trace of lingering anger, but the moment he raised his eyes and glanced at her, it was as though his soul had been snared.
Her dark hair was piled high at her temples, her face fair as an apricot blossom