Seeing the state it was in, Xie Lian unconsciously reached out, wanting to pet it.
"What's wrong…?"
But Hua Cheng sidestepped and turned away, avoiding Xie Lian's touch, and smacked Eming hard on the hilt. "Nothing's wrong. Pay it no mind."
After being smacked soundly by Hua Cheng, the scimitar Eming— the cursed blade that caused all the gods in heaven to tremble at the mere sound of its name—shook even harder.
Just then, Xie Lian heard Feng Xin again in the communication array. "How could Hua Cheng use the Teleportation Array within the Heavenly Court?! How do we open this door?!"
Shi Qingxuan cried, "General Nan Yang! Me, me, me! I think I know how! His Highness and I suffered this trick of Hua Cheng's when we were on our mission. Take two dice and roll them before the door, then push to see if it'll open."
Xie Lian remembered now. Didn't he casually toss those dice around for fun earlier in the main hall? He could still clearly recall having to run so pathetically for their lives in that earthworm tunnel and from those savage spirits. He quickly called out, "Stop! Don't! Be careful!"
However, his voice never reached the communication array. His spiritual powers were probably almost depleted and would be gone entirely by the time his message was transmitted. Feng Xin seemed to have done exactly what Shi Qingxuan said without a second thought. How did Xie Lian know this? Because the next instant, Feng Xin suddenly swore loudly in the communication array. He cursed whenever he was agitated, and when he cursed, the words were often terribly vulgar—to avoid dirtying eyes and ears, his words shall not be repeated.
The heavenly officials lurking within the communication array asked immediately, "General, what's wrong?!"
Mu Qing's voice came next, and he also sounded quite dumbfounded. "What is this place?!"
It appeared that he had also gone through the door with Feng Xin.
"Be careful, guys!" Shi Qingxuan called out. "Different-numbered rolls will bring you to different places. What number did you roll?"
"He rolled a four!" Mu Qing said.
Feng Xin's cursing also carried a trace of panic and terror, and Xie Lian was worried they had met with danger.
The caster of this spell was right next to him, and he had no time to worry about any reservations. He hurriedly asked, "San Lang, what does a roll of four open to?"
"Depends," Hua Cheng replied. "The door will open to whatever the roller fears most."
Just as Hua Cheng answered, Mu Qing coolly snapped, "You fought to roll first and rolled out a women's bath! Give me the dice, I'll roll!"
Hearing "women's bath," Xie Lian covered his face with his hands.
Feng Xin had always kept his distance from women, his face changing whenever women were so much as spoken of—it was as if the female sex were savage, wild beasts. To him, a women's bath really was the scariest place on earth, worse than the immeasurable depths of tiger caves or dragon lakes.
It seemed Mu Qing had successfully snatched away the dice, and Xie Lian sighed a breath of relief. However, not a moment later, the two roared again.
Shi Qingxuan woefully called out to them, "Generals, what did you run into this time?"
There was no response, only odd burbling sounds, as if they'd been plunged into water. Everyone held their breath. After a moment, Feng Xin emerged within the array with a loud gasp, sounding as if he was spitting something out. It appeared that he had broken through the water's surface.
He yelled, "Black Marsh Crocodiles!"
As it turned out, the two of them had hardly fled two steps out of the women's bath before Mu Qing took the dice by force and rolled, and their next step had them falling into a marsh. They were immediately submerged past their waists and up to their mouths in the muddy water; after fighting to get out, over a dozen incredibly long crocodile monsters swam over to surround them. Each of the monsters was over twelve meters in length and had grown human arms and legs from years of feeding on human flesh. The sight of them moving through the marsh with those limbs stroking through the water would steal anyone's breath with fright, and it was also really grossing the two of them out. Half-sunken in the black marsh, the two fervently fought the crocodiles until Feng Xin had finally had enough.
"Give me the dice; let me roll! You didn't roll anything good either!"
Mu Qing was never one to admit defeat, and he shot a blinding spiritual blast. "Crocodile monsters are still more decent than a women's bath! Who knows what you'll roll next. Give them to me!"
"Fuckin'—" Feng Xin yelled angrily. "Didn't you already take the dice?! Where are they?!"
The two had completely forgotten they were still connected to the communication array and started throwing punches again while denouncing each other's luck in dice rolling, the dice lost and their whereabouts long forgotten. The heavenly officials in the communication array eagerly listened to them cursing at each other; the bigger the better when it came to spectacle. They were losing their minds trying to hold back their laughter, some even pounding their fists in their own seats, wishing desperately they could be watching this live to cheer the fight on.
Although Feng Xin and Mu Qing's luck didn't seem very good, those wild spirits and monsters didn't really pose any danger. Xie Lian only prayed they would give up sooner rather than later and be released from their predicament. At the same time, he was thankful that he himself didn't roll a number that called forth any horrors—that he rolled a Hua Cheng instead.
He spoke as he walked, "I rolled snake eyes earlier. Does that mean every time I roll a two, I can see you?"
As soon as he asked the question, he realized his words implied a bit too much, as if he had dearly wanted to see Hua Cheng.
But Hua Cheng replied, "No."
Xie Lian felt a little awkward and scratched his cheek. "Oh. So that's not it. I was wrong, then."
Hua Cheng, walking in front of him, said, "If you want to see me, it won't matter what you roll. I will appear."
"…"
Xie Lian swallowed hard and forgot everything else he wanted to say. He hadn't had the chance to dissect the meaning of those words before another voice spoke within the communication array.
"Let me!"
Not long after those words were spoken, a blinding white light slashed across the sky, and then there was the earth-shattering sound of metal cracking. Hua Cheng and Xie Lian's path was blocked.
When the white light cooled and slowly faded away, Xie Lian finally saw what had flown in to block them: a sword.
His eyes slowly widened, and his pupils shrank.
The sword was long and slender, embedded deep in the ground on a slant. The body of the sword itself was still quivering from impact. Its blade was deep and foreboding, forged from what looked like black jade, smoother than a mirror—and if anyone were to approach, they could see their own reflection within it. The blackness was disrupted by a thin, silver-white line running vertically down the heart of the blade; it cut the blackness in half, like a ray of sweet love.
The name of this sword was Fangxin.
A figure landed in front of the sword and said, "This is your sword."
After the death of the State Preceptor Fangxin, the sword he carried. was kept by the Crown Prince of Yong'an. The one who had thrown the sword Fangxin and blocked their path was none other than Lang Qianqiu.
It would appear that though Feng Xin and Mu Qing had failed, Lang Qianqiu managed to roll the right numbers. It really couldn't be said whether it was because of his luck or Xie Lian's misfortune. The only thing that could be said with certainty was, of the two crown princes, Lang Qianqiu had always been the more fortunate.
Hua Cheng stood with his hands clasped behind his back. He moved slightly, but Xie Lian immediately stretched out his hand to stop him.
He said in a low voice, "Let me."
Lang Qianqiu blocked the road, their only path through the heart of the valley. "Duel me. No matter how it ends, even if I die at your hand, I won't ask for any reparations, and I don't need you to ask the Emperor for banishment either."
Anyone could tell that until his demands for this fight were satisfied, he would never rest.
After a long pause, Xie Lian finally nodded his head slowly.
"Fine."
He took a few steps forward and approached the sword, gripped the hilt, and pulled it from the debris.
"You asked for this," he said softly.
After hundreds of years, Fangxin had finally returned to his hands, and it moaned softly in Xie Lian's grip. Standing close by, Hua Cheng's eye also flashed sharply at the sound of that sword's incessant cry.
With sword in hand, Xie Lian swung and pointed it to the ground before saying coolly, "However this duel ends, do not regret it."
"I won't!" Lang Qianqiu shouted.
Lang Qianqiu was so tense it felt like his head was going to split. Both his hands clutched his greatsword tightly, his eyes focused, his breath held; his sight was locked onto Fangxin—the sword that was black as jade —not daring to be careless for even a moment.
Xie Lian took a sudden step and lunged forth. Lang Qianqiu's eyes focused, ready to strike, when his body froze. It was as if he had been suddenly trussed up, and he fell heavily to the ground.
He looked down to find that he really was bound! A snow-white silk band had come out of nowhere and wrapped around his body several times like a venomous snake!
Lang Qianqiu had been taught swordsmanship by the State Preceptor Fangxin ever since he was young, and he revered the man deeply. This was why the moment Xie Lian gripped his sword, all of his attention was on him and his movements. He never noticed the white silk band that snuck behind to ambush him. How could there be such a shameless trick up his sleeves?!
Seeing that Ruoye succeeded, Xie Lian instantly relaxed his tense expression and fretful heart. He tossed Fangxin aside and heaved a long sigh, wiping away his sweat.
"Phew, that was close."
Lang Qianqiu lay on the ground struggling to break free. He didn't know how vicious that white silk band could be, and the more he struggled, the tighter it bound him. He cried angrily, "State Preceptor, what is this?! Let me go and fight me to the death!"
Xie Lian wiped sweat from his forehead and replied, "We already fought to the death. The thing that's binding you is one of my spiritual devices. You already lost."
Lang Qianqiu was incredulous. "How can this count? When I said 'fight to the death,' obviously I meant using a sword! If you're a man, use a sword! Ambushing me with a white bandage? How despicable!"
He genuinely thought the sword was the best of all weapons and wasn't thinking much about his words, but he sounded like a male heavenly official who was prejudiced against another male heavenly officials using white silk bands: he was insulting Xie Lian for not being a man. But Xie Lian didn't care whether he acted like a man or not. He'd cross-dressed before, and he'd hung the words "I can't get erect" on his lips. Nothing could get to him.
Xie Lian knelt down next to Lang Qianqiu. "You were simply unprepared. You never said I had to use a sword, so I used your loophole. Who are you gonna tell? Ambush is a battle tactic; cunning well used is called intelligent strategy. If your opponent had been anyone else, you would already be dead."
Hua Cheng stood not far from the two and huffed a soundless laugh. But Lang Qianqiu was shocked to his core.
When this man was still the State Preceptor of Yong'an, he'd always taught him about being honorable and conscientious: press forward with indomitable will and make an all-out effort. He'd never thought there'd be a day he'd hear such words from the lips of his once-teacher. He was dumbfounded.
"State Preceptor, you've changed so much. You weren't like this in the past."
"I've always been this way, actually," Xie Lian replied. "You just didn't know. I remember telling you a long time ago not to venerate me as an incorruptible saintly figure, since I'm not who you think I am in your head. In the end, you've only disappointed yourself."
Xie Lian rose to his feet. "Have a good, long think about it. And next time, don't fall for your opponent's tricks."
Seeing that he was about to walk away, Lang Qianqiu immediately called out, "Stop!"
Xie Lian stopped.
Lang Qianqiu gritted his teeth and finally ground out the words, "You…owe me an explanation."
"What kind of explanation are you looking for?" Xie Lian asked.
Lang Qianqiu's voice quivered. "State Preceptor, my royal parents and I, did we not treat the remnants of the Xianle people well?"
"…"
That was indeed the truth.
Even after the Kingdom of Xianle fell, many of the surviving citizens never forgot their roots. After the Kingdom of Yong'an was established and began its rule, those people and their descendants continued to live on as the people of Xianle and often clashed with people of the new kingdom.
The first few generations of the Yong'an monarchy ruled with force and cruelly massacred many Xianle survivors when protests broke out. On the other side, there were underground alliances formed by the Xianle people to plot assassinations of the Yong'an nobility; they even succeeded a few times. This continued on, and the end result was a deep-seated hatred on both sides.
However, during Lang Qianqiu's generation, the attitude toward these remnants of Xianle was one of gentleness, the complete opposite. Lang Qianqiu's parents had wanted to unite the country of the old and the new, and against many Yong'an voices of dissent, the king granted a princely
title—Prince An Le—to a descendant of Xianle royalty. The king even made him Lang Qianqiu's playmate to demonstrate their sincerity. Lang Qianqiu himself had viewed Xianle well and never held prejudices from any past hatred.
"You…" Lang Qianqiu said, "After what you did, there were many who said there must've been Xianle forces behind the incident. Many advised me to use that as an opportunity to thoroughly wipe out the Xianle people."
Hatred between Yong'an and Xianle ran too deep. Anything that happened to either side, they would deem the other the mastermind.
Lang Qianqiu continued, "But I overruled them all. Since you never gave any details about your identity, I told them you were definitely not a man of Xianle. That was how so many people of Xianle escaped death and avoided genocide. Because I forbade it."
Of course, that was a good deed. But thinking back on it now, the good deeds he'd done made him feel all the more aggrieved. It wasn't that his actions were unjust; the deed itself was correct. He simply felt deeply wronged. He'd acted with such benevolence, but he didn't receive equivalent kindness in return.
Lang Qianqiu's tone grew pleading. "State Preceptor, that day was my birthday."
He struggled against Ruoye's hold and strained to lift his upper body.
"Are you toying with me? A Xianle man killed my entire family, but I still have to follow his teachings and help all Xianle people? Are you toying with me on purpose?!"
Xie Lian didn't respond, and Lang Qianqiu continued to shout accusations.
"Was it because your seventeenth was a trial that you had to turn my seventeenth into a trial too?"
Xie Lian still didn't respond.
Lang Qianqiu's anger flared, and he yelled, "If that was your intention, then I won't let you have your way!!"
Xie Lian's eyes widened at those words.
Lang Qianqiu couldn't stand, but his eyes flashed bright and his tone turned determined, as though a roaring flame were blazing within. He continued on, as if personally aggrieved, but also as if he was declaring war.
"If you want me to fill my heart with hatred like yours, I surely won't! If you're going to force me to abandon myself like you did, I refuse! I will never! No matter what you do to me, I will never become like you!!"
It was a declaration so heroic Xie Lian was stunned just listening to it. A brief moment later, he pfft-ed and burst out laughing, sound returning to him at last.
Lang Qianqiu's eyes had been flowing with fiery tears, filled with passion, but all that was deflated by Xie Lian's laugh. Bewilderment and anger filled his chest. Xie Lian clapped as he laughed uproariously.
"Good! Well said!"
Xie Lian couldn't remember the last time he'd laughed so heartily, and it took him some time before he could stop. He rubbed his eyes. "Good. Remember what you said today—that you will never become like me."
Hua Cheng still had his arms crossed and watched with a cool eye. Just as Xie Lian finished speaking, there was suddenly a blast of red smoke before him!
The explosion caught Xie Lian off guard and he jolted, thinking Lang Qianqiu might've used some weird trick. He dodged away rapidly, his senses on alert. However, the blast was disruptive in sound only and didn't pose any danger. When the smoke cleared, Lang Qianqiu had disappeared from where he lay. What was left was a budaoweng doll, swaying left and right.
The budaoweng doll had a very round face and body, like a giant calabash gourd. Its brows were long and its eyes black; the expression on its face was strong and good-natured like that of a tiger, though also brimming with naivete. At present, it was glaring, plump with anger, and it carried a fat sword on its back, mightily gallant in its form. It was exactly like Lang Qianqiu, except as a big, lovable toy.
Xie Lian stopped smiling and exclaimed, "Qianqiu?!"
Having lost its target, Ruoye returned with a whoosh and wrapped itself back around Xie Lian's wrist. Hua Cheng walked over leisurely and flicked the budaoweng doll with his finger, snickering.
"Why does he look so foolish no matter what form he takes?"
Xie Lian picked up the budaoweng doll and didn't know whether to laugh or cry. "This…this… San Lang, is this Qianqiu? Why did he turn into this? Stop playing around with him and change him back."
"Nah. Bring him along and let's go," Hua Cheng replied.
"Go where?" Xie Lian asked.
Hua Cheng didn't answer. Dice were tossed up, and they landed in his palm. In a blink, a cave appeared before them.
To turn someone into a budaoweng doll was such a mischievous spell, very much Hua Cheng's style, but it was also hard to undo. In any case, Xie Lian couldn't unravel it, so he simply held the doll in his hands. He was just about to follow Hua Cheng when he remembered Fangxin was still tossed aside on the ground and doubled back to pick up the sword. He strapped it onto his back, then followed Hua Cheng inside.
They hadn't been walking for long before the narrow path they'd started on at the cave entrance began to get progressively wider. Footfalls echoed, and a faint light appeared in the distance ahead of them, and they could hear singing.
When Xie Lian was led to Paradise Manor in Ghost City, he had also heard singing, but the graceful songs of the charming female ghosts at Paradise Manor were enticing and beautiful—intoxicating like soft whispers from the Land of the Tender But the singing that they heard now was more like the chaotic caterwauling of demons, disorderly and awful. The two were nothing alike.
Xie Lian couldn't help but ask, "San Lang, what is this place?"
"Shh," Hua Cheng quietly shushed him.
Xie Lian's question was already spoken in a near whisper; hearing the shush, he practically held his breath entirely. He soon discovered why they needed to be silent. Several floating green ghost fires drifted over from farther down the path, and when the balls of flame came close, he saw they were little ghosts dressed in green.
On the head of each little ghost there was a small torch light, as if each one was a big green candle. There was nowhere to hide in this cave, and the path was narrow. Xie Lian was about to reach for Fangxin, but upon deciding Ruoye would be better suited for this situation, he dropped his hand again.
But as the little ghosts passed them, they didn't bat an eyelash before moving on, still whispering amongst themselves. It wasn't that they didn't see them but more that they didn't think it strange to see them. Xie Lian looked at Hua Cheng, but the one standing next to him wasn't the exceptionally handsome red-clad ghost king he knew but rather another pale little ghost with a green flame on his head.
So it seemed that Hua Cheng had changed them into fake skins without Xie Lian noticing. Thinking that he must be bearing a green flame upon his head as well, Xie Lian couldn't help but raise a hand to feel around.
"Why must we…"
Why must they change their appearance into something so bizarre?
Although he trailed off, Hua Cheng obviously knew what he wanted to say. "I mentioned that the Green Ghost Qi Rong's tastes are vulgar. All of his lackeys have to dress like this."
Xie Lian hadn't expected Hua Cheng to bring him to the Green Ghost Qi Rong's territory.
Whenever the Heavenly Realm or the Ghost Realm mentioned Green Ghost Qi Rong, they all had to comment on how uncouth he was, and Xie Lian couldn't fathom why. But now that he'd learned that all of his little ghost subordinates had to dress uniformly like this, he could finally understand somewhat. If he only judged him by that self-given title of his, there was some peculiar form of elegance to the sound of "Night-Touring Green Lantern." But to literally have these "green lanterns" wandering around at night, there was indeed a gap between his initial impressions and reality.
"Didn't you already destroy his lair?" Xie Lian asked.
"I did, but he escaped," Hua Cheng replied. "Escaped for fifty years and built a new one."
Xie Lian hugged the Lang Qianqiu budaoweng doll close to his chest and—after making sure no one was around—whispered, "San Lang, are you here to find the Green Ghost? Why don't you undo Qianqiu's spell and let him go before that, and then I'll accompany you?"
Hua Cheng obstinately refused. "No, bring him with you. I need Lang Qianqiu to meet someone."
Xie Lian was curious. Hua Cheng didn't act like he cared much for Lang Qianqiu, so why would he take him specially to meet anyone? But things were awkward on both sides, so he couldn't speak any more on the subject. When the two finally emerged from the cave and the tunnel opened to a wider space, only more caves appeared to greet them.
There seemed to be caves and tunnels dug all over this mountain; caves connecting caves, tunnels leading to more tunnels. Each entrance had many ghosts with green lanterns on their heads going in and out, like a giant beehive or an anthill. If Xie Lian had come in by himself, there was no way he'd remember the path. And yet Hua Cheng acted like he was at home and traversed the various tunnels and caves without hesitation, exceedingly at ease, like he knew the paths by heart.
The two of them both wore their little green-flamed ghost skins, so no one stopped them on their journey. Xie Lian exhaled in relief, but Hua Cheng thought he was sighing and asked, "What's wrong?"
"Nothing," Xie Lian said. "I thought you would attack the lair head-on instead of sneaking in. I'm not too good with fighting, so I'm relieved."
He meant it when he said he wasn't "good with fighting." While he was skilled in combat, he had trouble dealing with the aftermath. Hua Cheng seemed to puff out a laugh.
"I did attack head-on the first time, but the moment Qi Rong found out, he ran away," Hua Cheng said. "This time I'm here for the ghost himself, so of course I can't have him notice I'm here."
Is the Green Ghost the person who San Lang wants Lang Qianqiu to meet? Xie Lian wondered. Is there a relationship between the two of them?
Well, whatever he wants to do, I'll go with him. I'll ask him to undo the spell on Qianqiu later.
Xie Lian still had the burning of Paradise Manor on his mind, so he couldn't help his guilty conscience. As he was thinking, Hua Cheng spoke.
"That useless trash can't do anything, but he's very vigilant. These little ghosts can't get near him, and it's not easy to disguise oneself as the henchmen he trusts. There's only one way to get close to him."
Just then, four little ghosts came by, laughing and chatting. Hua Cheng slowed his steps, and Xie Lian followed his lead. They saw that the little ghosts had a queue of bound humans behind them, dragged along by a long rope.
Among the collection of humans, some were ragged and unkempt and some wore extravagant clothes, but they all seemed to be young men and women under the age of thirty. There was even a child, clutching the sleeve of one of the young men; they were probably father and son. All of their hands were bound, each looking terrified and some even ready to faint as they trudged through the demonic cave. They brushed past Hua Cheng, and without missing a beat, he turned around and seamlessly joined the end of the march. He gently elbowed Xie Lian, and he imitated Hua Cheng's actions. When he looked over, Hua Cheng had already changed skins again —this time, he was a clean-cut young man. Xie Lian knew he probably looked similar.
The little band made twists and turns through the tunnels and caves. The little ghosts leading the group seemed quite content in their duties, and from time to time, flaunted their meager authority, yelling and snarling at the prisoners behind them.
"No funny business! No crying! If you ruin our great ghost king's appetite with your faces all covered in tears and snot, we'll teach you what it's like to want to die!"
Out of the Four Great Calamities, there had never been any rumors that the three supremes devoured human flesh. Only the Green Ghost Qi Rong was gluttonous in this manner; no wonder his peers and enemies alike scoffed at any mention of him, mocking him as unsightly and ignorant. Earlier, Hua Cheng said there was only one way to get close to the Green Ghost Qi Rong—it appeared that mixing in with the "food" was the plan. As he walked, Xie Lian reached for Hua Cheng's hand. Once he succeeded in grabbing hold of it, he felt Hua Cheng freeze like he wanted to pull away. It wasn't that Xie Lian didn't notice, but given the circumstances, there wasn't much room for thought. He held Hua Cheng's hand tight and lightly drew a word on his palm: "Save."
Since Xie Lian had seen their plight, he had to save these people. The gesture was meant to inform Hua Cheng of his intentions.
After the word was written, Hua Cheng gently folded his fingers and
closed his palm. A moment later, the group left the tunnel and made their way into a massive cave.
As soon as they entered the cave, a mass of densely packed objects appeared in their vision. Xie Lian squinted up at them, not quite able to tell what those objects were, when he felt Hua Cheng grip his wrist and draw a few words on the back of his palm: "Watch your head. Don't touch."
At first, Xie Lian thought that there were many rags hanging from above, but when he looked closer, his pupils shrank—what rags? It was clearly a large crowd of densely packed people, suspended in midair with their feet up and heads down.
The forest of upside-down corpses!
But despite the suspended dead bodies, there was no bloody rain. It was because these corpses were all dried, not a drop of fresh blood left flowing in their veins. Those dried corpses all looked like they were in pain, their mouths open wide, and there was a thin layer of snow-like crystals on their bodies and faces. Salt.
In the deepest recesses of the cave, the lights shone bright; there was a giant chair, a long table, golden goblets, and jaded utensils. Such extravagance made it look more like a royal banquet hall than a deep mountain cave. A bit farther away from the long table there was an enormous steel cauldron, big enough that more than ten people could swim within. Red, boiling water bubbled in the cauldron; if anyone should accidentally fall in, it would be mere seconds before they were cooked through!
The four little ghosts ushered the group of prisoners toward the cauldron, but some fell to the ground shivering in fear when they saw what was waiting for them. In the midst of all the yelling, hitting, pulling, and dragging, Xie Lian suddenly felt that beside him, Hua Cheng's arm had gone stiff and he'd stopped moving.
He turned to look and saw that although Hua Cheng still wore the appearance of a clean-cut young man, his eyes were blazing with rage.
Hua Cheng was always smiling, but Xie Lian knew that his true emotions were always hidden deep within. Xie Lian had never seen such violent, blatant fury in his eyes. He followed the line of Hua Cheng's sight, and in the next moment, he felt his own breath hitch.
Before that giant, extravagant chair knelt a person.
Or so it seemed, but upon a closer look, it was actually a life-sized stone statue of someone. It was a rather interesting statue: sculpted in akneeling position, its back facing him, its head downcast. It was the very picture of a "homeless stray dog." One had to assume that the only purpose of making such a statue was to humiliate its subject.
And Xie Lian didn't need to turn the statue around to know that its face must be exactly the same as his own.
Generally, people didn't know what their own backs looked like, but Xie Lian was different. He was more than familiar with how his own back looked.
When the Kingdom of Xianle first fell, to relieve themselves of anger, the people burned down his eight thousand crown prince temples and desecrated all of his statues, stole the gems on their swords and cleaned their attire of gold. Yet after all that, the rage continued to burn, and so they came up with a new idea: building kneeling statues like this one.
The crown prince, once so highly venerated and worshipped, was sculpted into the form of one kneeling down and begging for forgiveness. These statues were placed in crowded areas of town so everyone was free to spit at or kick them when they passed and, in doing so, rid themselves of misfortune. Worse, some even had him sculpted prostrating and used the statue directly as a threshold so that tens of thousands would walk all over it. In the first ten or twenty years after the Kingdom of Xianle fell, those statues were a common sight in many cities and towns. And so how could Xie Lian not recognize his own back?
Just then, the voice of a young man said, "That mangy little cur Pei Xiu had to cling to the leg of that manwhore dog Pei just to ascend in such a pitiful way, so who does he think he is? He's nothing more than an exiled stray right now. Ruining my plans… Once I'm through with him, even after the winds dry up his corpse, no one will dare go to collect it!"
Before the person himself had even appeared, they could already hear his insults. Xie Lian gazed over and saw a figure clad in green strut into the cave. Due to reasons not worth mentioning, Xie Lian couldn't help but look at the top of his head first, and he was actually kind of disappointed to see that the figure only had a mask on and no light above his head. A bunch of little ghosts dressed in green crowded around this green-clad man, and he stood there surrounded by a circle of green light. This had to be one of the Ghost Realm's Four Calamities: the Green Ghost, Qi Rong.
Ever since Nan Feng had first mentioned the name, Xie Lian had kept it in the back of his mind, wondering if this Qi Rong was the same Qi Rong he knew. However, there was an unspoken rule that, demon or ghost, one was to hide their real name and bury their past life. Because of this, he didn't think they were the same person, only that the fake name had coincided with the real one. But from the looks of things, he was more than certain that this was the Qi Rong he remembered. How could there be a second Qi Rong who was obsessed with the statue of the kneeling crown prince? And why would his voice sound so familiar?
The little green ghosts that surrounded Qi Rong were loudly proclaiming him king and talking all at the same time. Xie Lian figured out some of what had transpired from their chatter. It seemed that when Qi Rong sent a few of his henchmen to Ghost City, they failed to cause any havoc and were decimated by Hua Cheng. He then regrouped and prepared to fight again, but before the second round had even started, the henchmen bumped into the exiled Pei Xiu on the road. Although exiled in the Mortal Realm, Pei Xiu nevertheless was once a heavenly official and also had nothing better to do—thus, when those henchmen bumped into him, he thought he might as well clean them up. And so they were decimatedonce again.
The moment Qi Rong received the news of how many henchmen he'd lost in such a short time, he was furious and started cursing nonstop.
"Like ancestor, like descendant—that damned manwhore Pei Ming probably has sores all over his crotch. I should chop off both his and Pei Xiu's rotten dicks and hang them at their temples, then whoever worships them will bleed pus with every step just like them!"
Xie Lian really had to suppress the urge to cover his ears. When Feng Xin got upset, his curses were the same, also too vulgar for the ears; but as much as he swore, it was obvious that his were only words of temporary anger with no real ill intent. Qi Rong's curses were different—their targets could have no doubt that he truly wanted to condemn them to die as crudely as his curses, and he was wholly unafraid to take cheap shots, thoroughly crass and obscene.
That group of little green ghosts agreed with Qi Rong loudly. He probably remembered the able subordinates he'd worked so hard to raise and continued.
"Too bad that fiery, good woman Xuan Ji was captured by those two shameless Pei curs and was wronged so miserably. She can't be saved, even now!"
Xie Lian couldn't fully agree with those words. Indeed, Xuan Ji had a tragic story to tell, but not everything was General's Pei's fault like Qi Rong described. After all, those ten brides were kidnapped by Xuan Ji herself, and she was the one who killed them in cold blood. Fiery for sure, but whether or not she was a good woman was debatable. But to say Little Pei only ascended because he kissed up to General Pei was something Xie Lian couldn't agree with at all. After seeing so many ascend and fall over the years, there was one thing Xie Lian could say with absolute certainty: the skilled may not always ascend, but the ascended are always skilled. If one was powerless, then no matter who promoted them, they would not be able to overcome their Heavenly Tribulation and could at most be an official in the Middle Court. The only other issue was that ability did not equal status and that luck was also an important element—otherwise, Pei Xiu would've established his own independent temple by now.
Obviously, those things weren't within the realm of consideration for Qi Rong. He swore like there wasn't a single person in the Three Realms he didn't want cursed to death. He called Pei Ming a rotten manwhore, Little Pei a kiss-ass, Jun Wu a faker, Ling Wen a damned bitch, Lang Qianqiu a moron, Quan Yizhen dog shit, the Water Master blackhearted, the Wind Master a tramp—he probably didn't know Shi Qingxuan was actually a man. If Xie Lian wasn't seeing it now with his own two eyes, he wouldn't be able to believe anyone could be so resentful. Finally, Qi Rong made it to the main point, which was how Hua Cheng and that lurking Ship-Sinking Black Water looked down on him. They were mere supremes; one day for sure he'd make them kneel before him.
Xie Lian knew he should be angry hearing this, but because it was impossible to imagine how that would ever play out, he couldn't help but find it hilarious instead. He stole a glimpse at Hua Cheng. Hua Cheng himself didn't react but was instead still staring at that kneeling stone statue.
Finally, thank the gods, Qi Rong seemed to be assuaged by his tirade of abuse and changed the subject. "How did that thing go that I sent you guys to do? Have Quan Yizhen and that manwhore Pei started fighting yet?"
He sat down as he spoke, lounging on his luxurious throne. He raised his legs and rested his boots on the shoulders of the statue, using it as a footstool.
Xie Lian had been holding on to Hua Cheng's arm and stopped him immediately when he felt him shuffle a step forward. He worried that his tug back might not be enough, so he drew another word in Hua Cheng's palm: "Thanks."
Hua Cheng recognized the word. He lowered his head and glanced at Xie Lian, who was watching him with gratefulness in his eyes, thanking him for his good intentions. Then Xie Lian shook his head lightly and drew the words "listen" and "heaven."
Judging by Qi Rong's talk, it seemed he sent some henchmen to complete a task, and it had something to do with those two heavenly officials. It couldn't be anything good, so Xie Lian had to keep listening. As for the statue getting used as a footstool, considering he'd been used as a threshold before, this really meant nothing to Xie Lian. It was only a piece of rock, not really him. Although he had only written those three simple words, when their eyes met, Xie Lian knew Hua Cheng had understood their meaning. Hua Cheng slowly gripped his hand tight and turned his head away, so Xie Lian could no longer see his expression.
A little green ghost spoke up. "We've followed our king's instructions and spread the rumor that Pei Ming wants to make Pei Xiu the Martial God of the West. It's becoming more and more of a riot by the day, so we used that as an excuse and desecrated hundreds of Ming Guang temples disguised as devotees from the Palace of Qi Ying. And no one was the wiser! Ha ha ha, my king may not know, but all his devotees are really stupid! They saw us smashing temples and smashed along with us with even more enthusiasm!"
Qi Rong approved. "Keep fueling them! Quan Yizhen can endure it, but I refuse to believe that manwhore Pei can put up with it!"
Even if the rumors they were spreading weren't exactly false, malicious talk like this was still full of ill intent. Especially vile was doing something as unscrupulous as disguising themselves as mortals to sabotage temples and incite discontent. No wonder that whenever Qi Rong was mentioned, everyone in the heavens said that although he wasn't that capable, he was truly extremely annoying.
Xie Lian noted mentally, If there's a chance, do tell Jun Wu to watch for any discord between those two heavenly officials that others might have sown.
When Qi Rong finished talking business, he lay back, and his long legs resting on the statue changed position. The little ghosts immediately knew what to do and went to the small band of humans to pick out the best cuts. The one child in the group was probably not even ten years of age and wasn't very aware of his predicament. He blinked his large eyes and held on tight to his father's shirt, tugging at it the more scared he became. His young father's face was ashen pale, shuddering while trying to comfort him: "Don't be scared, don't be scared." Yet it was obvious he himself was terrified to the bone.
One of the little green ghosts saw there was a child and was delighted, reaching out to grab at him. The young father yelped and jolted. Xie Lian started moving before he knew what he was going to do, but then he felt the figure next to him dart out. Xie Lian turned his head to see, and Hua Cheng had stepped out from within the crowd.
Since Hua Cheng had come specifically to seek out the Green Ghost, he should've lifted his disguise now that he'd found Qi Rong. Xie Lian had no doubt that Hua Cheng was powerful enough to destroy everything in sight, and all would be powerless to stop him. Yet Hua Cheng did not reveal
his true form and maintained the skin of that normal-looking young man as he lazily walked forward.
A number of little green ghosts raised their weapons and shouted in alarm, "Stop! What are you doing?!"
Qi Rong asked curiously, with his feet still up, "What's with that guy? Seize him."
Hua Cheng laughed. "Won't you all show a little respect in the presence of Xianle royalty?"
Qi Rong wasn't the only one shocked by those words—even Xie Lian was taken aback.
Instantly after, Qi Rong shot to his feet and snorted beneath his mask as if he'd laughed out of sheer anger. "What fucking audacity! To make such a joke before me?! Tell me then, what branch of the Xianle royal tree are you from? Which one?!"
Hua Cheng replied leisurely, "Prince An Le."
Xie Lian felt the Lang Qianqiu budaoweng doll in his arms jerk once.
Prince An Le was a descendant of Xianle royalty from the same generation as Lang Qianqiu. He was even said to have been friends with Lang Qianqiu.
Qi Rong's derisive laugh could be heard from under the mask. "Prince An Le? I think you're seeking your own death! Who told you to start shit in front of me? The person who sent you didn't teach you any history? Prince An Le was the last of the royal family of Xianle, and that family died out with him! Who are you to pretend to be Xianle royalty before me?"
Hua Cheng raised his brow. "Oh? Died out? How?"
Qi Rong shouted, "SEIZE HIM! SEIZE THAT WEIRD GUY!"
At his command, a large number of little green ghosts poured in from all around the cave, yelling. In the midst of that pandemonium, Hua Cheng only smirked faintly.
His expression had been nonchalant, but in a moment it was like a layer of frost had fallen upon his face. His form suddenly flickered and disappeared, then reappeared in a blink behind Qi Rong.
He grabbed the back of Qi Rong's head with one hand and smacked it down hard like a child playing with a ball.
"And who the fuck are you to be so insolent before me?!"
A loud BANG, and that magnificent throne was suddenly hidden by flying debris, with dust filling the air. Xie Lian tugged the young child behind his body to shield him and blocked a few small flying rocks.
When the dust settled, Qi Rong had disappeared. But on closer inspection, he hadn't disappeared; rather, his entire head was deeply embedded in the ground after Hua Cheng's strike.
Humans and ghosts alike screamed and dispersed.
"Don't run away!" Xie Lian shouted.
If the people alerted all the ghosts within the cave, they'd be killed for sure! But of course, as always, no one listened to him. Xie Lian dropped his hands helplessly.
In these circumstances, he had no time to worry about others. Across the cave, Hua Cheng slowly knelt down; he used one hand to grab a fistful of Qi Rong's hair and pried his bloodied head out of the large hole in the ground. With that motion, the body was extracted along with it. After a brief moment of observation, Hua Cheng seemed extremely amused and burst out laughing.
Although he was laughing, the light in his eyes was off by a million watts, eerie and terrifying. Ruoye flew out and struck away a few of the little green ghosts who were trying to cut down the escaping humans. Xie Lian then turned his head, his instincts telling him that something was wrong.
"San Lang? San Lang!"
Qi Rong's mask cracked, a few fragments falling. He spat up a mouthful of blood and yelled, "SOMEBODY STOP HIM! ALL OF YOU! COME AND STOP HIM!!"
Hua Cheng had been violently bashing him about earlier, but now he seemed at ease, ready to have a chat about anything and everything.
He snickered. "Oh, didn't you know? There are some things in this world that are unstoppable. Like, for example, the sun setting in the west. Or an elephant squashing an ant. Or me—taking your damned life!"
By his last line, his expression was unabashedly savage, and he raised Qi Rong's whole body high before smashing him to the ground once more!
Another loud BANG. Qi Rong's body was splayed on the ground, pulped into something worse than mush. With a soft crack, the mask on his face shattered into fragments, revealing half his face.
If anyone were to see that half, they'd discover a shocking fact…
The Green Ghost Qi Rong and the Crown Prince of Xianle—one ghost, one god, the difference of hell and heaven—looked astonishingly alike!
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budaoweng (不倒翁, wobbly old man) is an oblong doll with a weight in the bottom so that it rolls back into an upright position whenever it is knocked down.