Xie Lian was beyond outraged. He yanked the sword out of the creature's chest and was about to thrust again when he realized there wasn't a trace of blood on the blade. Instantly he understood and changed course, slashing off the white-clothed creature's head. The decapitation was swift, and when the head and its body were separated, both shriveled up into a heap of skin bags.
That body was an empty shell!
Twice he had met this creature, and twice he had used a fake body; not once had he shown himself in his true form. Although unsurprised, Xie Lian was still filled with furious resentment. His sword vented his anger on that soft, limp body, the sharp aura of the blade slashing the skin bag to shreds, but still he wasn't relieved. Feng Xin couldn't watch anymore and tried to stop him.
"Your Highness! It's only a shell."
But that shell was the exact image of Xie Lian's younger self, so it looked like Xie Lian was cruelly mutilating himself—it painted an uncomfortable picture. Xie Lian heaved a few deep breaths, then threw the sword to the side and sat on the ground.
"I know! But I can't believe he dared use my face!"
He was so very angry, and the other two crouched down in front of him. They waited in silence for a moment before Feng Xin spoke up.
"Your Highness, do you feel better? Don't take his bullshit to heart, he's just playing with you."
But Xie Lian replied, "No, some of the things he said to me weren't a joke, it's just…"
Feng Xin was shocked. "He actually told you how to lift the curse?"
Xie Lian's right hand grabbed at his own hair. "He didn't tell me how to cure Human Face Disease, what he told me was…how to inflict Human Face Disease!"
The other two were aghast. "Inflict?"
Xie Lian nodded, then looked around. He felt it was best not to stick around Beizi Hill and that they should leave before talking. He didn't want to see the soldiers avert their gazes nor hear the cries and whines of patients, so he returned to his bedchambers at the palace, which had been left empty for many years.
Once the doors were closed, Xie Lian finally managed to calm down somewhat. He sat down and spoke gravely.
"The faces growing on those people are dead souls from Yong'an. Some are those who died on the battlefield, but the majority are those who died in the drought."
Mu Qing wasn't surprised. "No wonder no one from Yong'an was infected with Human Face Disease; of course they wouldn't attack their own people."
Feng Xin frowned. "Those who died in the drought weren't killed by those in the imperial capital. Even if they hold a grudge, there's no reason to target us."
Xie Lian breathed a sigh. "Even if that's the case, you both know that when a person dies, there's a period of confusion."
When a person passed away, there was a period of time when their soul was like a newborn baby—barely conscious, half-cognizant, unaware of who they once were, where they were now, or what they were doing. Depending on the soul's affinity, that period could be long or short and was called the "Period of Confusion." Under those circumstances, the family or lovers of those spirits could guide or influence them, and the funerary custom of "Calling Spirits on the Seventh Day" was based on this.
"He…told me that the soldiers of Yong'an harbor an intense animosity toward the capital," Xie Lian continued. "That their parents, spouses, children—many of them died in the drought.
"The souls of the dead are unconsciously affected by their families' emotions, so he used the strong will of those soldiers to instill enmity within the souls. He urged them to take on others' living flesh as a host and to fight for nourishment within their host's body.
"It worked because those souls, in their period of confusion, were repeatedly indoctrinated by one thought: 'If not for them, you could've survived.'"
"What kind of hellish belief is that, thinking you can judge who deserves to live or die?!" Feng Xin asked.
Xie Lian covered his forehead. "Lang Ying unintentionally buried the body of his son here at the capital, and that became a fuse for the creature'scurse. I told him to give me a
cure, but even with all that talk, all he told me was how to cast the curse. What in the world?"
A curse couldn't be lifted simply by knowing how it had been cast. Feng Xin cussed.
"He is playing with you. What the hell. What the fuck!"
Mu Qing, however, piped up. "He wasn't playing with you. He did tell you the way."
Between Xie Lian and Feng Xin, one looked up and the other turned his head.
"What way?"
"The way to lift the curse!" Mu Qing replied. His eyes were bright like he'd discovered a secret. "Yong'an's curse works because they harbor hatred toward Xianle. But Xianle doesn't harbor any less hatred toward Yong'an!"
Xie Lian's eyes widened slightly, and his breathing hitched.
"Since he told you how to cast the curse, then an eye for an eye—you can cast the same curse and inflict Human Face Disease upon those in Yong'an!" Mu Qing continued. "Just think, the curse only works if there are live people powering it with their emotions. Once they're infected by the disease, they'll be too busy dealing with it, and maybe in the long run there won't be any of them left to power it. And then the curse will break itself!"
Xie Lian had never thought of it that way. The explanation dumbfounded him for a moment, but then he blurted, "Absolutely not!"
"Why not?" Mu Qing pushed. "Don't forget, they were the ones who cast the curse first."
Xie Lian instantly rose to his feet. "No means no. Also, you're wrong. It's likely that the Yong'an soldiers have the same immunity as the soldiers of Xianle.. Don't ask me why, I—"
"Then infecting only civilians is fine too!" Mu Qing immediately cut in. "They don't have the capital's medical resources and helping hands. The moment Human Face Disease erupts, it'll spread much faster, and they'll have no way to fight back! Threatening the safety of the civilians to stop their curses would be exactly like forcing them to surrender. They can't compete with the capital in a battle of resources!"
Xie Lian instantly rejected the idea. "Absolutely not! Don't forget what we called them when they attacked the innocent civilians of the capital: despicable. If we do the same thing, won't we become just as despicable? How would we be any different?"
Mu Qing schooled his excitement. "Your Highness, don't forget the type of people who died to lure you into that Land of the Tenders snare. That's who you're calling 'innocent civilians.'"
Once that was said, Xie Lian fell into hesitation. To be honest, it was impossible for him not to take that incident to heart. Nonetheless, he stood firm.
"There are certainly those types. But that's because those who charge at the forefront are the most passionate, so they're the ones you see. In reality, most of the civilians know nothing. Go to Beizi Hill and you'll see," Xie Lian said. "Many of them don't even know why they're fighting. They'll go where there's food; they just want to survive. Mu Qing, what you're advising me to do right now is to save a group of innocent people by killing another group of innocent people. I…"
He sighed.
"Let me try to think of another way."
Mu Qing's tone was growing impertinent and somewhat mocking. "Why would I want to go to Beizi Hill to see how enemy civilians get on? Please. Your Highness, you're so considerate of others, but they've never been considerate of you. Doesn't that suck?"
Xie Lian was despondent and hung his head. The image of that legpacked with faces floated to the top of his mind, the leg that continued to squirm and twitch even after it had been severed. He hesitated for a long while, but in the end he still shook his head.
"At the end of the day, this isn't me being considerate. Even if we only consider ourselves, a curse is a double-edged sword by its very nature —it hurts us while it hurts others," Xie Lian said. "In order to curse someone, the living caster must possess a vicious heart, and those who died also cannot rest in peace. They suffered enough while alive, and now in death they must live on as monsters in another's flesh. You saw those things on that man's leg that day. Those faces that were desperately trying to live —how is a life like that any better than living as the one infected? Curses will always rebound one day, and no one will come to a good end."
Having been spurned repeatedly, Mu Qing was losing his patience.
"Before they reach their bad end, we will have already perished! You don't have a third path and there is no second cup of water. Wake up, Your Highness! You're running out of time."
Xie Lian could feel his head burning, and he closed his eyes. "Don't say any more. Let me think about it."
"…" At last, Mu Qing couldn't hold back any longer and started cursing under his breath. "You really are… The one suffering indecision is you. With a cure in hand, the one refusing it is also you. You're really… really annoying. Look at the hellish state of you—the mere sight of you is a pain. Your worshippers must've reaped enough bloody misfortune for eight lifetimes!"
At first, Feng Xin had listened to their argument glumly, and because he couldn't contribute any better ideas, he didn't join in. But at that, he suddenly raised his hand and shoved.
"Are you done?!"
Mu Qing was shoved back a few steps, and Xie Lian looked up.
"Feng Xin?"
"Your Highness, don't mind me!" Feng Xin shouted, then turned to Mu Qing to continue. "Why are you always so irritated? Tell us—just what, exactly, irritates you? I've tolerated you for a long time now, but I'm not going to hold back today! I can't fucking stand your type; you're nothing but a deputy general, and without His Highness' appointment, who knows where you'd be?! So why do you always act like you're smarter, sharper, and stronger than him? If you're so competent, why did His Highness ascend and not you?"
"I—!" Mu Qing cried.
Xie Lian pulled at him. "Drop it, Feng Xin, Mu Qing is just anxious over the current situation—"
"Anxious, my ass!" Feng Xin cut in. "Your Highness, I'm telling you, all he ever wants is to find reasons to lecture you; he won't let go of any chance he gets to show he's better than you, because he genuinely, seriously believes he's better than you! With an apathetic person like him, you don't usually see any sign that he actually cares about the Kingdom of Xianle. But now suddenly he's anxious?"
He turned to Mu Qing again. "You really think I can't tell that you think His Highness is a fool? I can tolerate your sarcasm and those rolling eyes, I can tolerate you always standing where you shouldn't in the Upper Court. You like to show off and it's hardly the first time you've pulled this shit, so fine, go show off, you're not good enough to wow the heavens anyway. His Highness doesn't mind, so I don't give a shit either. But since you're gonna cross the line, I'm not gonna hold back. Listen up! I'm not surprised you'd leap at the chance to use despicable means, but His Highness is His Highness—no matter what he decides, you better respect it. Don't you dare be so critical, and don't forget who the fuck you are!"
As Feng Xin tore into Mu Qing, Xie Lian tried stopping him multiple times, but because he'd been holding back for so long, he couldn't be stopped from spilling everything in one go. Mu Qing's face paled by a shade with every word. At first, he jerked as if he wanted to fight. But by the end, he stood unspeaking, glaring ominously at Feng Xin.
Xie Lian was furious. "Are you done?! Do you want me to kick both of you out?!"
Feng Xin's face was completely beet red with all the blood that had rushed to his head, and he stiffened his neck. "Kick me out for all I care. I don't give a shit about being a heavenly official! If it wasn't for Your Highness's appointment, I really wouldn't give a damn," he declared. "But even if you boot me back to the Mortal Realm and I become human again, I will still be loyal to you, Your Highness. At your command, I will be the first to charge forward, but I won't stand for a traitor! If this guy can't use you as a stepping-stone to become a heavenly official himself, he might not even bother following you anymore. I bet he doesn't even have a single good thing to say about you. There! I'm done!"
At first, Mu Qing was silent, his lips pursed tightly, but he'd held back for too long as well. He couldn't put up with it anymore and yelled back.
"Fucking use him? What a beautiful speech, but what do you know?!"
Xie Lian was going mad. "Both of you shut up! Shut up!" The two bit back their retorts with immense difficulty. The dispute this time was too great, and even training idioms couldn't save them. It was a while before Xie Lian could push down his fury.
"In any case…cursing is a no-go," Xie Lian stated, his head throbbing.
Mu Qing scoffed, but still he acknowledged, "Sure. You're the boss."
Feng Xin was more succinct. "Yes, sir."
Mu Qing returned to his normal impassive self and said, "If there were any consequences, His Highness would take on the burden himself anyway."
Feng Xin clicked his tongue but didn't say another word.
Xie Lian acquiesced immediately, "Of course. I've already decided —"
Just then, the three of them all felt violent tremors, their bodies swaying with the quakes. Xie Lian was bewildered.
"What's going on?"
Feng Xin was the first to react. "Earthquake!"
With earthquakes came casualties, and Xie Lian shouted, "Save the people!"
Just as they were about to rush out, someone quickly rolled from under the bed and extended their arms.
"Cousin! Cousin, don't forget about me! Take me along too!"
Seeing him, Xie Lian was even more perplexed. "Qi Rong, why are you in my chambers?!"
He couldn't possibly fathom the bizarre life Qi Rong led, having nothing better to do all day than collect anything related to Xie Lian. He also didn't know how long Qi Rong had been listening in on them in secret, but with such a dire situation at hand, he didn't have the time to question him. He grabbed Qi Rong's arm and ran, disposing of him in an open area. There was chaos within the palace, and countless attendants screamed as they rushed out of that extravagant building.
"Is anyone hurt?! Is there anyone trapped?!" Xie Lian called out loudly.
Fortunately, it wasn't long before the earthquake stopped, and after inquiring around, it seemed there were no wounded or dead. Nevertheless, he was tense. Suddenly, there was another scream, and many were pointing at the sky behind him. Xie Lian whipped around, and his pupils shrank.
At the center of the palace there was a gigantic, magnificent pagoda, and it was now tilting to the side at a dangerous angle.
The Celestial Pagoda was going to collapse!
This Celestial Pagoda—known officially as "The Pagoda of Celestial Being"—had centuries of history in its walls and was one of the signature features of the Xianle Palace. It was also the tallest building in all of the imperial capital, sitting at its heart between the palace and the city. It was a renowned landmark. If this pagoda fell, there would be innumerable casualties. The palace attendants and the pedestrians on the streets outside all started fleeing with even more panic.
Seeing this, Xie Lian's right hand swiftly moved to cast a spell, and he yelled in the direction of Mount Taicang.
"Come!"
The pagoda continued to lean slowly, and just as it bent one-third of the way down, the masses suddenly felt another round of tremors.
This tremor also came from the ground, yet it was different from that of an earthquake. The tremors came one at a time with their own rhythm, and they came faster and faster, closer and closer. As the pagoda continued to tilt, the people finally realized that those tremors were the footsteps of something.
A giant golden statue—its glowing body over fifteen meters tall, a sword in one hand, flower in the other, its body streaked with rays of light —was striding toward the palace!
"Isn't that the crown prince statue from the Royal Holy Temple's Palace of Xianle?!" someone shouted in amazement.
Soon, many more recognized it. "It's true! It's the golden statue! Look, it's coming from Mount Taicang!"
Every step that golden statue took spanned kilometers, but it didn't step on a single person. Thump-thump, thump-thump, it strode into the palace as if in flight and caught the collapsing Celestial Pagoda. That glowing gilded figure, shining with golden light under the setting sun, raised both hands and exerted all its strength to hold up the gigantic pagoda that had almost fallen. It was the very image of a miracle, shocking countless witnesses into awed silence.
Meanwhile, Xie Lian slowly withdrew his hand and looked up at his divine statue. Gazing at that calm, handsome gilded face, confusion flickered through his mind.