[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-the-dragon-lies-hidden":3,"chapter-the-dragon-lies-hidden-the-dragon-lies-hidden-chapter-975":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","The Dragon Lies Hidden",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2290273,4477,"Chapter 975","the-dragon-lies-hidden-chapter-975",975,"\u003Cp>Xiang Weiyuan fought two against one, using various means to kill the Zhao Duke. Though the Duke was only at the Beginning of Divine View, with this stepping stone, Xiang Weiyuan had officially entered Gao Xiu’s ranks through slaughter.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thinking of the Duke’s fate, Xiang Weiyuan sighed. The Immortal Path was perilous; even a Divine View cultivator could fall without warning, and not even an Immortal had foreseen the Duke dying at his hands. Otherwise, the Duke would never have dared to unfold his Heart Realm so openly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As he sighed, Xiang Weiyuan’s surroundings suddenly shifted, and he found himself within the small courtyard of the Xianjun of Deriving Time.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Xianjun of Deriving Time gestured for Xiang Weiyuan to sit, then placed a cup of clear tea before him and asked, “What is planted in the lotus pond?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xiang Weiyuan blinked. “Green lotus!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The green lotus was so obvious—how could an Immortal not see it?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“What is planted in the lotus pond?” The Xianjun repeated, his tone heavier.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At that moment, Xiang Weiyuan suddenly understood the Xianjun’s meaning: the green lotus was merely an outward manifestation. The Xianjun wanted to know what karmic cause the young monk had actually planted.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This question stumped Xiang Weiyuan. To him, it was simply a green lotus—simple, direct. What karma could there be? Besides, if even an Immortal couldn’t see it, how could he?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But he dared not say so to the Xianjun’s face. Sitting in the courtyard, he sent his spiritual sense into the Pure Land Cave Heaven and stared at the green lotus for a long time—yet saw nothing at all.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Xianjun did not receive an answer, but seemed unsurprised. He said, “Perhaps the timing has not yet come, the heavenly pattern not yet revealed. Keep watch. If you gain any insight, remember to tell me.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As Xiang Weiyuan was about to take his leave, the Xianjun of Deriving Time handed him a tea box. “Here are a few leaves I drink daily. Take them. Next time you drink tea before others, you must drink something fine—don’t bring shame to my Tai Chu Palace.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xiang Weiyuan joyfully accepted it. Upon returning to his own realm, he immediately opened it and saw seven neatly arranged Immortal tea leaves. He froze—this meant he could only drink it seven times before others? That number was insufficient.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Immediately, Xiang Weiyuan’s mind wandered. He summoned the Fat Immortal of Moon Cassia and had her issue a task under his name into the mortal world: How to drink tea before others without consuming the tea leaves, yet still make them know the cup contains Immortal tea.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As soon as the task was issued, the mortal world fell silent. Xiang Weiyuan felt countless eyes watching him. But he quickly comforted himself: this task was issued by the Fat Immortal of Moon Cassia—what did it have to do with him?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hmm? Fat Immortal of Moon Cassia?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But military affairs were urgent. Xiang Weiyuan focused his mind entirely on the battlefield, with no time to study Yue Mu Gui’s figure, and returned to his own realm.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He had already ordered dozens of Foundation Establishment warriors, each leading a small unit, to scatter in all directions, meticulously surveying and recording terrain. He also split off more than ten thousand-man detachments to seize the remaining counties of Yu Yang Commandery and expel the local officials.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Several newly built floating airships had just arrived, delivering large quantities of grain and specially prepared sand.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This sand had been refined by the Elder of Hoeing Grain: just a few catties evenly scattered over an acre of land rendered it utterly barren—more ruthless than salting.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Though barren of grain, it could grow a cotton called Red-Stem Cotton. This cotton yielded high output, with long, thick fibers, far easier to process than traditional cotton, doubling its yield. The coarse cloth it produced was not comfortable, but it compensated with abundance and low cost, and could replace Spiritwood Silk to make gunpowder—slightly more expensive than fertilizer explosives, yet more powerful.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was winter; the fields had already been harvested. Xiang Weiyuan arranged for people to spread the sand across the fields while dispatching over a thousand articulate literati, dressed as commoners, to infiltrate villages and spread rumors: next year, this land would suffer heavenly disaster—nothing would grow. Those who stayed would starve, but those who went to Qingming would eat meat!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was called a rumor because the disaster here was not heavenly—it was man-made.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yu Yang Commandery bordered Qingming. Locals had long heard tales of Qingming’s divine-like life and envied it. But Zhao Guo’s life was still stable; most commoners couldn’t even read, and many had never left their county in their lives. As long as they had food and land, they had no desire to move.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yet though they did not wish to move, Xiang Weiyuan had his own methods. Each literati spoke eloquently, painting Qingming as unparalleled on earth, then offered to arrange their relocation. In Qingming, every household would receive land.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Naturally, as payment, villagers had to pay a travel fee—not much, beyond any one person’s means, but easily pooled by a few households. The fee was collected per village: once paid, they waited for transport—whether one hundred or one thousand, the fee remained the same.\u003C\u002Fp>",883,"2026-06-20T03:38:38.899Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","42d3289c184707a2074237b57ec1c036b1fc1e1d32b1cd7b9cd4dafc06b52034","the-dragon-lies-hidden-chapter-976","the-dragon-lies-hidden-chapter-974",1000,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fthe-dragon-lies-hidden-cover.jpg"]