Chapter 34: It Seems His Name Is Li Shimin

Qin Jiajia blinked hard and refreshed her monitor repeatedly. The more she refreshed it, the more familiar the image looked.

How could a Tang Dynasty painting evoke such a feeling in her? Could it be that she had encountered so many things related to Zhou Qing recently that it had become a form of muscle memory?

Something wasn't right. She took another look.

She was so absorbed in the painting that she didn't even hear the person in charge speaking nearby. By the time she snapped back to reality, the man in the white lab coat had finished introducing the room's artifacts and was standing by the water tank holding the painting.

"...You might want to pay special attention to this artifact."

He gently stroked the water tank, his fingers pointing at the painting inside. "The Cultural Relics Bureau has conducted a preliminary examination and confirmed it was painted during the Zhenguan period of the Tang Dynasty. It is among the earliest of this excavated batch. Furthermore..."

He pressed a button on the side of the tank. A low hum, like a small engine, filled the room. As the tank vibrated, it slowly rotated, flipping the painting fixed inside to reveal a line of inscription on the back.

*Immortal under the Moon, painted in the sixth year of Zhenguan.*

Judging by the brushwork and the mounting, it was clearly a palace commission. Given the era, it must have been painted under the order of Emperor Taizong, Li Shimin.

"So, who is the person in the painting? Any clues?" someone asked. "Could it be related to Yuan Tiangang?"

"We can't be sure. At least for now, it doesn't look like it."

The man in the lab coat tapped the tank. "According to the inscription, Taizong referred to this person as the 'Immortal under the Moon.' At the dawn of the Tang Dynasty, when he was still the Prince of Qin fighting in all directions, he received the help of an immortal to escape from a desperate situation."

"By the beliefs of that time, this was proof of Taizong’s divine mandate. Even if its value isn't on par with the items of Yuan Tiangang, its historical significance is substantial."

Throughout ancient history, terms like "divine mandate" and "blessings of the immortals" were unavoidable rhetoric for imperial families. If an outsider were here, they would surely laugh off such feudal superstition.

But everyone present had signed a transcendental confidentiality agreement; they knew how much turmoil, invisible to ordinary people, lay behind this "feudal superstition."

"That covers everything. Let's get to work," the man in the lab coat said, looking around. "Mo Kai, you're still in charge of the modeling. Wang Yujie and Zhong Xia, you handle the scanning. Then, the restoration work will be given to..."

He listed everyone in the room, his gaze finally landing on Qin Jiajia.

"As for our newcomer... Xiao Qin, you should have learned how to use the database at the Environmental Bureau, right? You'll be in charge of resource retrieval. Our underlying database is linked with the Environmental Bureau, so you can just log in with your original account."

Qin Jiajia acknowledged the order. While it was called resource retrieval, it was essentially using specific algorithms to search through the various official histories of the mundane world for logically consistent passages to use as reference—like a supercharged, upgraded version of an academic database.

Although it sounded low-level, this work was actually crucial in transcendental research.

Historical records in the cultivation world were mostly organized by sect, resulting in fragments that were highly subjective. They often needed to be cross-referenced with mundane annals of the corresponding period to map out the true sequence of events. The collision between these two sources often yielded surprising revelations about historical truths.

Footsteps echoed as people dispersed to their stations. Qin Jiajia walked toward her assigned equipment. Before she left, she glanced back at the portrait one last time.

*Immortal under the Moon...*

She recited the three words silently in her heart, withdrew her gaze, and turned away.

...

November, 619 AD. Fangshan, Jin Prefecture.

Under the night sky, raging flames soared, instantly igniting half of the mountain peak.

The firelight illuminated the stone piles scattered across the mountain. Among the rocks lay dozens of corpses dressed in Taoist robes, each bearing the emblem of the Jiuli Immortal Alliance. Those emblems, soaked in the blood spilling from the bodies, were swallowed by the flames within seconds.

Higher up the mountain, Zhou Wuqing waved his hand gently, dissipating the immeasurable true fire that surrounded him, then turned to look at Ye Qiansheng standing beside him.

"There are no survivors left," Zhou Wuqing said. "Let's head back."

Ye Qiansheng responded softly, wiped the blood from her spiritual sword, sheathed it, and drifted into the air to fly beside him.

"Colluding with the barbarian gods of the grasslands to bring the Tujue into our borders... I never imagined such villains could exist within the Immortal Alliance."

As she flew, looking at the scarred land below, her tone carried a hint of sorrow. "In their quest for power, these rebels have become increasingly unscrupulous. At this rate, who knows when the Central Plains will see peace again."

"It's been over four hundred years; when has this world ever known peace?" Zhou Wuqing replied. "Ever since that Emperor Yang Guang died, the mundane world has spawned a dozen more royal courts. Perhaps there will be another hundred years of fighting."

As if to confirm their words, after they flew over another mountain range, the terrain opened up, revealing the frozen Yellow River. Looking closely, one could see flickers of fire jumping on both sides of the riverbank, like the camps of a mundane army.

The two did not change course, flying directly overhead without attracting any attention; even the scouts would never think to look for gazes from the sky.

Zhou Wuqing signaled to Ye Qiansheng, slowed his pace slightly, and looked down at the scene below.

It was indeed an army, likely tens of thousands strong. Judging by the condition of the camps, they had been stationed there for quite some time. Further out, one could see banners planted around the perimeter, the prominent character "Tang" fluttering in the wind.

Although the worlds of immortals and mortals were separate, having lived through centuries of chaotic times, he had seen similar scenes often. He knew at a glance that this force was engaged in a war of attrition against an enemy.

He just didn't know where their opponent was.

He continued flying forward, his eyes scanning the surroundings, finally settling on a mound about ten miles from the military camp.

At the top of the mound, two mortals in Tang army armor were dismounting to rest. One was old, the other young. The older man looked to be around thirty, while the younger one looked barely twenty. Curiously, based on their movements and equipment, it seemed the younger one was the commander, while the older one was his attendant.

They appeared to be scouts who had come to probe enemy positions. Their reconnaissance work finished, they left their horses to graze and found a sheltered spot to rest. They were clearly exhausted, and soon after sitting down, they both fell into a deep, snoring sleep.

The sleeping figures were reflected in the eyes of the two cultivators above. After a moment, Ye Qiansheng let out a soft exclamation.

"That young commander looks familiar. I saw him near Jinyang a few days ago."

She gazed at the figures by the stone pile, a realization dawning on her. "He seems to be the second son of the Duke of Tang, of the Guanlong region. He is skilled in military strategy and has recently become quite famous in the mundane world. I believe he is called... Li Shimin?"