The Hen Heralds the Dawn
Ao Li, true to his word, forced out a drop of his Essence Blood.
Essence Blood are the essence of the body and the source of its strength.
Under normal circumstances, the only way to obtain Essence Blood is to kill your opponent and refine it; it is extremely difficult to obtain it peacefully.
The Dragon King of the Jing River not only helped extinguish the fire, but also extracted a drop of his Essence Blood. This situation of being schemed against time and time again left the new emperor speechless.
In short, his idea of top-level cultivators was almost completely shattered.
The news of Pilan's talkativeness also swept away his past gloom.
Never before had the new emperor been able to clearly grasp the outlines of the opposition and restraint among worldly schools of thought, nations, and secret realms.
"This child is so cute! He even has five feathers on his body; he'll definitely be a great flyer when he grows up!"
The new emperor listened to Zhang Xuezhou's nonsense, praising the little bird demon with only five feathers on its body, and felt that Zhang Xuezhou showed no fear when communicating with these demons.
Based on their strength, the new emperor believed that Pilan could kill Zhang Xuezhou with a few quick leaps.
But Zhang Xuezhou spoke to Bilan in such a strange way, even exchanging extremely intimate words. The little bird demon that Bilan had been holding in her arms and had never let go of was even transferred to Zhang Xuezhou's hands.
If we extend the timeline, the new emperor believes that Zhang Xuezhou was probably even weaker when he met Bilan.
Cultivation strength did not become a constraint for Zhang Xuezhou, but it did become a constraint for the new emperor.
The new emperor often thought about how to become stronger and more powerful, and how to endure until he was no longer afraid of any external obstacles. However, he realized that Emperor Jing's education of patience and perseverance was not necessarily the right approach.
His attempt to gain influence within the Great Han Dynasty by promoting Confucian School as a shield upon ascending the throne failed, but this should not be seen as a reason for his isolation.
If he can figure out the rules of social interaction and self-interest, he can certainly be bolder.
Mobilizing 100,000 troops to intimidate the Minyue people, but in reality, his sword was aimed at Huainan. This was not the end of his command and mobilization of the Great Han Dynasty, but only the beginning.
In the past, he needed to gamble and take risks, but now he can use Zhang Xuezhou to drive the Imperial Shuttle to travel and truly understand the situation in various places.
He might even possess the real Red Empyrean Sword.
Holding the porcelain bottle provided by Zhang Xuezhou, and gently shaking it, the new emperor could hear a sound like mercury clinking inside.
If we disregard Zhu Jiuyin, the Jinghe Dragon King is the most powerful dragon in the world, and this is also the closest the new emperor has ever come to Red Empyrean Sword according to the rules.
"Stay calm, I must stay calm right now!"
The new emperor forcefully suppressed his eagerness to return to the royal library's secret vault, and as usual, he recited a spell and put the porcelain bottle into his storage bag.
"It's such a shame that our child is only six months old and still doesn't have a name. We need to give him a good name. A name accompanies a child for life, so we must take it seriously and not let him fall behind at the very beginning of his life!"
Zhang Xuezhou was penniless, but the new emperor realized that the cartload of herbs and food he had sent was not as valuable as a few words from Zhang Xuezhou. Zhang Xuezhou simply mentioned that he wanted to name the little bird demon, and Pilan seemed to have gained some kind of recognition, and even showed a grateful look in his eyes.
The look in his eyes was so direct that the new emperor felt it was too easy for Zhang Xuezhou to befriend Pilan.
"This child lost his father before he was even born. His name needs to have a strong yang energy to balance his fate. You are very lucky to have met a learned scholar. He is extremely knowledgeable and well-versed in the classics passed down from the Great Han Dynasty. He is the perfect person to name this child!"
Later, the new emperor discovered that Zhang Xuezhou hadn't even put his mind to it and had even pushed the task of naming the child onto him.
He blinked at Zhang Xuezhou, not immediately understanding Zhang Xuezhou's intention.
"Is he really cultured?" asked Pilanxi.
"I, a scholar of the Great Han Dynasty, would never recommend someone without talent to you. If he weren't more capable than me, I would have named your child myself!"
Zhang Xuezhou recommended the new emperor with a smile.
He recommended the new emperor for no other reason than that Zhang Xuezhou was terrible at naming things.
This doesn't mean Zhang Xuezhou was completely clueless about naming. For example, his name, "Learning is like sailing on a boundless sea," is a famous saying that connects the beginning and end of the sentence, and Zhang Xuezhou was extremely satisfied with his name.
However, the Great Han Dynasty did not have the concept of "the sea of learning is boundless," and various classic texts and famous sayings all had their own sources.
For example, the name Ao Sheng is laughable and can only be interpreted in the most common sense as "victory".
Pilan is a big-mouthed woman. Once the little bird demon has a name, it will inevitably become known to many people and then be discussed.
Zhang Xuezhou stated his requirements, and the new emperor frowned slightly before glancing at the bird demon in Zhang Xuezhou's arms.
"We have inherited the bloodline of our ancestor, the nine-headed pheasant spirit; our true form is that of a chicken!"
Demons are extremely averse to describing their true forms, and even Pilan is no exception. However, in front of her child, Pilan has no such taboos.
She looked at the new emperor with longing, clearly hoping he would choose a good name for her.
"The Nine-Headed Pheasant Spirit... So that's what she's all about!"
Although a thousand years have passed since the events of history, the fact that his name has survived in the few words recorded in history shows that Pilan's birth was indeed extraordinary.
The nine-headed pheasant spirit in the ancient texts had attained the True Self through cultivation. The only problem was that it was born in an era where Law Treasure were rampant. Its cultivation was useless, and it was suppressed and killed by magical Law Treasure. It also became a stepping stone for the Immortal Court to conquer the Heavenly Court.
"The Book of Documents records that hen roosters do not crow at dawn; the crowing of hen roosters at dawn signifies the ruin of the household. Now, King Zhou of Shang listens only to the words of his wife, foolishly abandoning his ancestral sacrifices and refusing to answer them," the new emperor said. "The original meaning of this saying is that women usurping power and disrupting the government is despicable, but since you are currently in charge as a woman, using this name actually eliminates objections. This also means that you will lead your young son out of calamity and towards strength!"
Ah~
"Let's call him 'Clockwork.' The moment he greets the morning light, he will be reborn, free from all the entanglements of the past!"
The new emperor pointed to the bird demon weighing several tens of kilograms in Zhang Xuezhou's arms, but couldn't make out its chicken demon form no matter how he looked at it.
He named the emperor so quickly that Pilan was still a little confused, but he felt that the new emperor was indeed a cultured person.
Pilan didn't understand the various rules and regulations, but he clearly heard the name.
She thanked Zhang Xuezhou with a happy expression, and also thanked the new emperor for naming her.
This made the new emperor smile bitterly, feeling that he, the one doing the work, was not as helpful as Zhang Xuezhou, who was just using his position to assist him.
"Look at Si Chen, all smiles! He seems to really like his new name!"
Zhang Xuezhou pulled up the bald little chick demon with only five feathers on its body, then looked at the beaming Bi Lan and felt that Bi Lan's mental state had become much more normal.
Although he didn't know how the new emperor got along peacefully with Bilan, Zhang Xuezhou had heard Ao Li talk about Bilan's behavior. He felt that Bilan was at high risk after giving birth and might be quite aggressive.
He was now enjoying a pleasant time with Pilan, and he felt a sense of relief.
If he could restore Pilan to normal behavior, he could even earn a favor from Ao Li.
Besides, he also helped Bilan to avoid offending the new emperor and being killed by the Demon-Revealing Mirror, thus turning him into a material for the Creation Pill.