Ming'guang looked over Pei Su calculatingly. "You're Little Pei?"
"I am," Pei Su answered.
Ming'guang narrowed his eyes and glanced at Banyue, taunting, "I heard you threw away your heavenly official status for a little girl? Haha, Pei Ming, didn't you always used to say 'brothers like limbs; women like clothes'? Why's your descendant nothing like you? He doesn't even have a tenth of your eye for picking women; this Guoshi of Banyue looks like a little quail, what the hell? Were you maybe cucked all those hundreds of years ago, and raised someone else's spawn? Hahahaha…"
"Nothing but nonsense," Pei Su said, then shot a blast from his palm.
Ke Mo also leapt into the air, roaring, "WE ARE SWORN ENEMIES!"
Ming'guang shouted, "HEY! BIG GUY, WE'RE ON THE SAME SIDE!"
Ke Mo turned his head back and saw Ming'guang jumping up. He transformed into a long-bladed verdant sword and flew into his hand. Ke Mo opened his large palms, like iron fans, and clutched onto the hilt; a black aura instantly exploded from his giant body.
A menacing corpse taking a demonic sword in hand was like a savage beast growing venomous fangs!
Earlier, when Pei Ming tapped Xie Lian's face with E'ming, it had given Xie Lian an idea. Although he couldn't quite understand why, he felt maybe the same trick could help Hua Cheng. He was going to sneakily transfer some air to him while no one was looking; to see if it would bring some relief. However, watching the dire situation unfold, he couldn't help but shout.
"WATCH OUT!"
It was awkward for Pei Ming to join the fight, so only Pei Su and Banyue banded together to attack. While one was sharp and direct, and the other agile and eccentric, just their physical strength wasn't enough; Pei Su had no spiritual power, and Banyue possessed no aggression. Facing Ke Mo, who had both spiritual power and aggression, they were feeling the strain.
Banyue had just been berated by Ke Mo, so she was too embarrassed to throw any more scorpion-snakes. But Pei Su had no such concern, and threw snakes out like rain while Ke Mo roared unceasingly with fury. It was only thanks to the protection of Ming'guang's sword aura that none of the snakes dared approach. After Xie Lian watched the fight for a while, he began to relax. This was because he could tell Ke Mo and Ming'guang didn't match well.
Ke Mo grew up in the Kingdom of Banyue and was used to wielding a mace. He was used to large and heavy weapons, so a sword was not something he was skilled with. Even if he possessed unimaginable strength and the weapon in hand was incomparably sharp, together they might not be able to unleash their full capabilities, and wouldn't be able to learn the tricks of the trade immediately. Thus, Xie Lian seized this chance, and clapped his palms together in a prayer towards Hua Cheng.
He said, "Forgive me!"
But when he looked at this handsome, snow-white little face before him, with those eyes closed, Xie Lian felt it was difficult to make a move. Finally, he made up his mind, and shut his own eyes to press close. But in his moment of nervousness, he missed and ended up kissing Hua Cheng's forehead. It was light and gentle, but his heart was crushed.
Next to him, a voice spoke up: "Your Highness, you've gotten it wrong. What's the use in kissing the forehead?!"
Xie Lian almost fell over from shock. When he turned his head to look, Pei Ming was crouched down next to him.
Sounding unusually indignant and resentful, Xie Lian said, "General Pei, can you not look?!"
Pei Ming raised his hands. "Alright, alright, alright, I won't look."
Then he turned around to watch the fight on the other side. After observing for a while, he piped up, speaking to Ke Mo, "You don't use swords like that. If you don't know how to use swords, then don't use them!"
Naturally, Ke Mo didn't understand, but the Ming'guang in his hands said, "Yeah, unlike you, who personally snapped swords, and can only stand around uselessly while criticizing!"
Just as he yelled, Pei Ming suddenly flew in and entered the brawl, landing in front of Ke Mo. Ke Mo swung the sword, but there was an exceedingly crisp CLANG! This strike didn't hit anything, and when he looked down, he was dumbfounded.
The Ming'guang sword in his grip was snapped once again!
Seizing this chance, Pei Su threw another large wave of scorpion-snakes over, like spilling a large vat of dye, covering Ke Mo with dark wine-red from head to toe. He growled as he desperately tried to smack off those slippery snakes off his body.
Pei Ming, on the other hand, looked down at that sword and said, "You know my techniques inside and out, and naturally, I'd know where you'd break the easiest."
Banyue dropped from the sky with two pots raised. Without a word, she plummeted with the mouths of the pots facing down, trapping and detaining the shocked Ming'guang and the roaring Ke Mo within.
With this, Xie Lian finally breathed a sigh of relief, inwardly remarking, "More people definitely get things done faster!"
Banyue sealed the clay pots and shook them in her hands, pressing her ears close to listen for the echoes inside.
Xie Lian hastily chided, "Banyue, stop playing around. Put them away and be careful not to let them escape."
Banyue nodded. She crouched in front of Xie Lian and looked at Hua Cheng.
"General Hua, is this your son?"
Xie Lian smiled. "Regrettably, he's not."
But soon, he couldn't smile anymore. Banyue "oh"-ed and said, "I saw you kiss him earlier, and thought that he was."
"…"
Xie Lian didn't want to say anything anymore, and covered his forehead with his palm. Banyue, however, seemed to find Hua Cheng rather precious. She pulled at one of his little braids, speaking with deep concern.
"He seems to be sick. Should I put him in the pot to have him recuperate? Last time after I entered General Hua's pot, I felt I recovered really fast."
Pei Su finally walked over. "No need. Stop minding him, His Highness will take good care of him."
"Oh," Banyue said.
Just then, Pei Ming glanced at her. "You're the Guoshi of Banyue?"
He watched Banyue condescendingly from above; Banyue, who was crouching on the ground and shrouded in his shadows, nodded. Pei Su took a step forward, but Pei Ming pushed him aside and came before Banyue, seeming to want to observe her closely. Yet unexpectedly, when he was only about two steps away from her, Banyue's face suddenly dropped and she zoomed to hide behind Xie Lian, like she couldn't get away fast enough. However, judging from
her expression, it didn't seem like she was scared. Everyone was puzzled, but Xie Lian soon understood.
He courteously hinted, "General Pei, um…the Ghost Scent Candy…"
Pei Ming blinked, his face growing dark. It seemed the sweetness of that Ghost Scent Candy hadn't gone away; since Banyue was a female ghost, she wasn't able to withstand that vulgar essence of evil, and fled from the stink…
Xie Lian couldn't help but smile, but immediately schooled his expression. "Why has Lord Rain Master also come to Mount Tong'lu? Where is My Lord? How come you're not all together?"
"Due to the arousal of ghosts, large numbers of inhuman creatures banded to swarm towards Mount Tong'lu. When they passed by Yushi Country, they captured some farmers as rations. At the time, both Lord Rain Master and the Guardian Steed were not present; it was after learning of this incident that we've come in pursuit," Pei Su explained. "We were together at first, but on the way, we heard Your Highness yelling for us in Banyue tongue, so we split to come check things out."
At the time, Xie Lian was only shouting randomly out of urgency, and hadn't thought they were actually close by; hitting the mark by fluke. That Yushi Country had the appearance of a quiet small village, so it wasn't strange for ghosts to pass by and stupidly grab people.
Pei Ming frowned. "Before, I couldn't find you in the mortal realm. How did you end up with Lord Rain Master? Don't tell me you were chasing after the Guoshi of Banyue."
Pei Su lowered his head slightly. "No. It was Lord Rain Master who saved me."
Turns out, after Pei Su was exiled to the lower realm, he had been traveling all over aimlessly. Since he was so free, he went and knocked over Qi Rong's little lairs a few times. Irked, Qi Rong wound up a large gang of who-knows- what to surround and destroy him. If Pei Su had spiritual powers, then those crude nobodies wouldn't have been able to do anything to him. But he now possessed a mortal body, so when attacked by hundreds of ghosts, he sustained injuries in the end, trapped in a miserable predicament. As he was fighting and hanging on by a thread, the Rain Master happened to pass by riding the ox, and lent a helping hand. After clearing his identity and story, Pei Su was taken to Yushi Country to recover.
Pei Ming seemed to be somewhat astounded. "Lord Rain Master didn't give you trouble?"
According to Shi Qingxuan, Yushi Country and the Palace of Ming Guang had disagreements in the past; hundreds of years ago, the Rain Master knocked off Pei Ming's earlier deputy general. It seemed Pei Ming didn't think the Rain Master was someone generous.
Pei Su, however, said, "No. Lord Rain Master never gave me a hair of trouble. On the contrary, I've received much support."
Just then, an echoing voice suddenly sounded: "Rain Master? Is the Rain Master someone from the Kingdom of Yushi?"
Xie Lian replied without thinking, "That's right."
But after he answered, he noticed that voice belonged to Ming'guang. He was locked into the pot, but was still listening intently for the situation outside. After Xie Lian responded, he clicked his tongue.
"Pei Ming! Did you sleep with so many women just to produce this kind of useless descendent?! He actually needed the protection of someone from the Kingdom of Yushi to survive, and he's even speaking well of them! Truly, each generation gets worse than the one before it! HA!"
Hearing him, Pei Ming looked somewhat ill at ease. Xie Lian couldn't understand, and asked Banyue in a whisper, "Do you understand what he's saying?"
"Not really," Banyue replied. "But, I think I've heard Pei Su-gege say that, before his general ascended, he was a general of the Kingdom of Xuli."
"…"
Was there anything wrong with Pei Ming being the general of Xuli?
Very much so!
Because, as far as Xie Lian knew, the Kingdom of Yushi had been flattened by the iron steeds of the Kingdom of Xuli!
Banyue added, "Lord Rain Master was the last ruler of the Kingdom of Yushi."
No wonder Pei Ming always looked strange whenever the Rain Master was mentioned, and no wonder the Rain Master didn't hold back when disciplining that former deputy heavenly official. Turns out, both parties held a long and ancient grudge.
It must be known that, to heavenly officials, it certainly was more than natural for kingdoms of the mortal realm to fight and annihilate one another; the acts of these plays progressing on endlessly. But when it came their own turn, it was often hard to let things go. If one must stand in the same court as the one who annihilated their own kingdom, and that man cavorted in the heavens, exceedingly flashy, then it must be vexing.
Pei Su added a talisman to the surface of the pot, and Ming'guang's voice came to an abrupt stop.
Pei Su asked, "Why has the general come too?"
"Isn't it all so I can drag you back sooner?" Pei Ming replied.
Xie Lian remembered Hua Cheng's words. It seemed this was the "benefit" Pei Ming negotiated with Jun Wu when being dispatched to Mount Tong'lu.
Pei Ming patted Pei Su's shoulder. "Since you're here, do me proud. If you perform well here, then perhaps you can be pulled back to the Upper Court earlier."
Pei Su hadn't yet answered, but the charmed talisman on the pot in his hand burnt up. It was Ming'guang locked inside who had used his fury to burn the talisman.
"PEI MING!!! DO YOU STILL REMEMBER WHAT YOU SAID BACK THEN?!"
Pei Su was about to add another taliman to shut him up, but Pei Ming stopped him.
"I've spoken too many words in this lifetime. What are you referring to?"
Ming'guang spat hatefully, "Do you still remember what excuse you used to kill all those subordinates who followed you for years? 'Some people can be killed, some can't; some things can be done, some can't.'—Sounding like you possessed the heart of Buddha, forgiving of all! And now? Did you think no one knows what despicable deeds your Little Pei has done? WORD HAS ALREADY SPREAD! And here you are, trying to wipe his ass and help him hide his past? So the brothers who followed you to battles from north to south deserved to die, but when it came to your descendent, he didn't? SOMEONE LIKE YOU WHO TOSSES USED CLOTHES AND DITCHES USED LIMBS, IS YOUR LITTLE PEI A GEM, AND THE REST OF US WEEDS?!"
He roared furiously and mindlessly, but Pei Ming listened to the end.
He suddenly said, "You are not Ming'guang."
The pot instantly became silent. A moment later, Ming'guang's resounding voice came.
"What bullshit are you spouting? Have you not seen whether I'm Ming'guang? Did you not see my form?!"
However, Pei Ming stated with conviction, "No. You're not Ming'guang."
The voice inside the pot was grouchy. "Then who else can I be?"
Pei Ming took the pot from Pei Su's hands, sounding sure. "I think you're Rong Guang."
When the name was called out, that pot fell into complete silence.
Hearing this name, Pei Su's eyes widened slightly.
Xie Lian asked, "General Pei Junior, who is this Rong Guang?"
Pei Su snapped out of it, and was a little hesitant before he answered. "Before the general ascended, he was the deputy general who followed him the longest, and the most capable subordinate."
And Xie Lian finally learned the story behind the General Who Snapped His Sword.
Back then, when Pei Ming was still mortal, he was successful in the battlefields of both love and war; a general who was constantly victorious for decades, without a single defeat to his name. There was naturally his own courage and skill involved, but the support of his deputy general couldn't be dismissed. This deputy general was named Rong Guang.
Rong Guang was famous for cunning deception and manipulation. Although the two had very different personalities and styles, they had known each other since they were young, and their collaboration was unexpectedly good; one in the light, one in the shadows, their relationship spanned years, a friendship made of steel. Pei Ming's sacred sword "Ming'guang"; it was a name they came up with together, a combination of the homonyms of "Ming" and "Guang" from their own names.
Pei Ming knew how to fight wars, and in a chaotic period of history, knowing how to fight wars was much more important than knowing how to make money or anything else, so naturally he continued to rise in rank. However, no matter how high he climbed, the highest he could go was "General". There could be endless honourable and esteemed titles to be hung before the word "General", but there would always be another sitting on his head; before the king, he must bow and kneel.
As for himself, he didn't have any particular opinion on the matter. However, as he sieged fortress after fortress, and the shine of glory on his armour grew brighter and brighter, the troop under Rong Guang's lead was growing restless.
Pei Ming himself was never so proud that he forgot his roots and principles, but his subordinates were swelling infinitely on his behalf.
The worst offender was Rong Guang. Since he built close ties with the soldiers, he could easily fan their hearts, and planted many ideas in the minds of veteran subordinates; like "General Pei deserves more than the status he's been given", "General Pei and us are oppressed", "the
Kingdom of Xuli needs General Pei and us to save it". They plotted and planned to invade the Imperial Palace of Xuli to name Pei Ming king, to have him lead the veteran troops to great achievement and bring them to stand at the summit as the strongest kingdom. They even concocted the grand scheme of flattening all four seas with their steeds of steel, and unifying the world.
Unfortunately, Pei Ming himself had no interest in becoming king whatsoever.
His greatest joy in life was to fight victorious battles and bed beautiful women, and he didn't need to be king to do either. Besides, although the king of Xuli wasn't anyone amazing, he didn't do anything wrong either. If he was to take over, he might not do better. To rashly cause havoc had more cons than pros, so why bother stirring up trouble for no reason? Thus, every time Rong Guang excitedly tried to throw hints at him, Pei Ming skillfully thwarted him.
After many attempts, not only was Rong Guang unconvinced, he was becoming more and more obsessed. Until finally, one day, the group of them gathered to resolve that no matter what, they shall revolt. Once the deed was done, there would be no way Pei Ming could back down.
Listening to this point, Xie Lian was speechless, thinking, "How can something like this be as easy as ushering ducks…"
Pei Su saw he was pensive, and said, "Rong Guang might not have truly wanted to name Pei Ming king, but he had to borrow the general's name to revolt. Since his prestige wasn't as high as the general's, if he raised his own flag, he might not be able to appease the people."
Xie Lian pondered. "That might not be entirely true."
The reason they used Pei Ming's name was to put Pei Ming on the throne, so naturally, Pei Ming couldn't pretend not to know what was going on. He instantly picked up the sword and led a small, trustworthy troop of soldiers, and charged the palace to fight.
And this fight was the last battle of his life.