Chapter 55: The Banquet of the Hundred-Life Beauty

The Great Tang royal family, Liu Pianpian.

She sat upright in the carriage, her slender fingers clenched tight, her vermilion lips slightly pursed, her expression shifting between light and shadow.

"A country girl with a useless Spiritual Root, by what right is she personally recruited by Immortal Realm titans like Zhao Yun, Suirenshi, and Poetry Immortal Yu Xuanji?"

She gazed at Su Xiaoxiao, who was laughing wantonly on the back of a Divine Beast not far away, and gritted her teeth.

As a direct daughter of the Great Tang imperial family, she had been a favored child of heaven since childhood, skilled in both civil and military arts, proficient in zither, chess, calligraphy, and painting—when had she ever not been the center of attention?

Yet now, she was being compared to Su Xiaoxiao, who "lay around faking illness and relied on her Face to make a living"?

Even a man as arrogant as Crown Prince Li Chongjun had actually confessed his feelings to Su Xiaoxiao in public?

Her fingertips turned white, and her gaze grew increasingly cold.

She could not swallow this insult!

Just as she was plotting in her mind, the maid beside her softly advised, "Your Highness, do not bother with Su Xiaoxiao anymore. This servant just heard that the Dao Alliance has secretly dispatched the 'Thousand-Faced Thief, Zhan Zhao' to investigate her."

"Zhan Zhao?" Liu Pianpian raised an eyebrow.

The maid nodded, lowering her voice, "Yes, it is said that this divine thief once stole the 'Nine Heavens True Map' from the Heavenly Secret Pavilion, and not even the ancestral formation of the Taiwei Divine Sect could stop him for a single stick of incense."

"The results of his personal investigation confirmed that the origin of that 'Su Xiaoxiao's' Jade Slip is genuine, and her body contains traces of a hundred lifetimes of Dao, making her an extremely rare Innate Dao Body of Reincarnation. Her identity has been recognized by the official records of the Dao Alliance."

Liu Pianpian sneered, her slender fingers slowly tracing from her temple to her earlobe, while her eyes grew colder and colder. "Are you saying that if I move against her now, I am openly provoking the Dao Alliance?"

The maid paused, then nodded, "Yes. Your Highness, there is really no need to move against her again…"

Liu Pianpian, however, smiled softly, a smile that was charming and bewitching.

"No need? You are wrong. The more it is like this, the more I must move."

"She has now become the moon surrounded by stars, revered by everyone. If I can find even a single flaw in her, wouldn't that be a resounding slap in the Face to everyone?"

"What is Zhan Zhao? He can steal from the Heavenly Secret Pavilion, but I can surely tear off her mask of modesty."

Her gaze was grim as she slowly stood up, her robes shifting slightly, revealing a majesty that only royalty possessed.

"Is she not called the 'Beauty of a Hundred Lifetimes'? Then I will specifically expose the 'hypocrisy' of this lifetime of hers."

"Pass down the order to set a banquet and invite her to attend. It will be named a meeting between sisters, but in reality, it is a secret trap—I want to see how long this 'Little Fairy' with the Dao bones of a hundred lifetimes can hold out."

The next morning, at Moxiang Pavilion.

Lin Chen was helping Su Xiaoxiao comb her hair, while Xue Yao sat to the side, stuffing pastries into her mouth.

"Oh, Sister Xiaoxiao, someone sent an invitation!" Xue Yao picked up a vermilion invitation, pastry crumbs on the corners of her lips, and read, "Great Tang Imperial Princess Liu Pianpian cordially invites Fairy Su to a luncheon to forge a bond of sisterhood."

Su Xiaoxiao glanced at the invitation with a mysterious smile. "A bond of sisterhood?"

Lin Chen frowned. "You don't have to go. The way Liu Pianpian has been looking at you lately is not right."

"I am going."

Su Xiaoxiao spoke softly, a smile on her lips like the first peach blossom blooming in early spring—seemingly delicate, but actually hiding thorns.

"She invited me too urgently. Perhaps by the time I refuse, the banquet will already be set."

"Besides…" She stood up and changed into a light gauze dress, her every movement filled with a languid charm. "I am, after all, the Immortal Realm's recognized 'useless Spiritual Root' beauty. How can I not give this Princess sister some Face?"

Lin Chen glared at her but didn't say anything in the end, simply reaching into her Storage Pouch and tucking two Magic Treasures into her sleeve.

"If anything happens, remember to signal me."

Su Xiaoxiao blinked. "Signal you? Do you mean—"

Lin Chen blushed. "Just go!"

The Great Tang guesthouse, deep within the flower hall.

Gold-threaded curtains hung down, and incense smoke curled in the air.

Liu Pianpian, wearing a flowing, iridescent Princess Yunshang, greeted her at the door with a gentle smile.

"Fairy Su's arrival brings light to my humble abode."

Su Xiaoxiao was dressed in plain white, her skirt hem soft, her brows and eyes slightly lifted. "I have heard that the Princess is unparalleled in both talent and beauty. Seeing you today, it is indeed true."

The two appeared to be laughing and chatting happily, but in reality, each was harboring her own schemes.

They had been seated for only a moment when a cup of "Heavenly Star Jade Brew" was brought to the table.

Liu Pianpian said softly, "This wine is brewed in the ancestral lands of the Taiwei Divine Sect. It must be blended with star spirit dew. It is clear and sweet upon entering the mouth, and it can reflect a person's heart and spirit, revealing one's true nature and soul."

"I hear that Fairy has undergone a hundred lifetimes of Reincarnation and has a pure Heart-Nature. Why not have a taste?"

Su Xiaoxiao's eyes shifted; she picked up the wine cup and drank it all in one gulp without the slightest hesitation.

[Just this? You want to harm me? Watch me give you a real performance.]

In an instant, the wind in the hall stopped and the clouds ceased; the fragrance of wine permeated the air, and faint phantoms appeared around her.

—A songstress in green robes playing a flute, standing in a rainy alley in the south of the Yangtze River;

—A female general in battle armor, standing on the battlefield, swinging her blade to slay enemies;

—A woman in plain clothes holding a zither, sitting under flowers, plucking the strings and singing;

The phantoms whirled a hundred times, a hundred lifetimes appeared, and finally, they condensed into a wisp of Dao intent that returned to the center of her brow.

Everyone was stunned.

Liu Pianpian's hand gripping the wine cup paused, and the smile on her Face almost couldn't be maintained.

She had intended to use this to expose Su Xiaoxiao's "true self," but she hadn't expected it to instead allow her to openly display the power of her "hundred lifetimes of Reincarnation"!

Su Xiaoxiao smiled unhurriedly, a mysterious smile on her Face.

"This wine tastes good, but whether it reflects the heart and spirit is not for me to say—it depends on who drinks it."

"If you have the courage, why not have a cup yourself?"

Liu Pianpian's eye twitched, and just as she was about to speak, she suddenly heard applause from outside the door.

"Good to drink, wonderful to drink! This Young Master shall have three cups right now!"

The person who arrived was none other than Crown Prince Li Chongjun, in silver robes with a white sword, his features picturesque. His gaze fell straight onto Su Xiaoxiao, his infatuation unhidden.

"If Fairy enters my Li family, I am willing to swear to remain chaste for a hundred years, swearing never to fail you!"

"…"

The atmosphere froze for an instant.

Liu Pianpian finally couldn't take it anymore. With a "bang," she slammed the table and stood up, saying coldly:

"End the banquet! End the banquet!!"

The people around were stunned, and the laughter at the banquet ceased abruptly.

Su Xiaoxiao held the wine cup, her eyes smiling as she tilted her head slightly. "Oh? What is wrong, Princess Liu? Is the food not to your taste?"

Her voice was soft and her tone gentle, but it felt like a feather scratching at Liu Pianpian's heart, stoking her anger even more.

"Stop pretending!" Liu Pianpian stared at her coldly, enunciating every word. "What is your background? Do you really think everyone has stopped investigating?"

Crown Prince Li Chongjun frowned, stood up, and took a step to block in front of Su Xiaoxiao, saying in a deep voice, "Pianpian! This is a place where the Dao Alliance is hosting a banquet, not a place for you to throw a tantrum!"

"You are speaking up for her? What do you take me for?!" Liu Pianpian's eyes reddened, and she bit her lip. "What is my status, what is my background? I am a dignified Great Tang Princess, a talented woman of the Eastern Region, skilled in both civil and military arts—in what way am I worse than her?"

The expressions of those around them changed slightly, and awkwardness arose for a moment.

Su Xiaoxiao then gently put down the wine cup, stood up, and performed a curtsy, her brows and eyes curved into crescents:

"Your Highness, if you truly feel aggrieved, then I shall withdraw from this banquet. However…"

Her tone shifted, her gaze clear and calm. "This is not a place you can just end whenever you say so."