Chapter 91-100
Ch.91: Temple of a Thousand Lights Endlessly Illuminating the Lingering Night
Xie Lian really didn’t think anyone would actually pass the wine cup to him.
Unfortunately for him he reacted too fast and took the cup without thinking, but the
moment he did, he froze. However, when he looked to who it was that passed him the
cup, the other party was also dumbfounded – it was Ming Yi.
Turns out, earlier when the wine cup made it into Shi Qingxuan’s hand, Shi Qingxuan
thought it’d be funny and purposely passed it on to Ming Yi. However, Ming Yi was busy
stuffing his face and drinking his wine, and didn’t even bother to look up before he
passed on the wine cup randomly. Only after the cup was passed did he realize what
had happened, and also became speechless. Right at the same time, the thunder
stopped rumbling, leaving only the two staring at each other blankly.
Although the one who received the wine cup was Xie Lian, everyone’s eyes moved to
Feng Xin and Mu Qing instead. It wasn’t hard to understand why; Xie Lian had not been
heard of for eight hundred years. If this was eight hundred years ago, there’d naturally
be plenty of plays depicting his heroism, but they were long lost to time. Besides, no
one would pick such a day to set up a stage especially just to put up a play for him.
Thus, if they had to find something with the character ‘Crown Prince of Xianle’ in it, then
it’d have to be plays with Feng Xin or Mu Qing starring as the protagonist.
This was because in the plays written for the two heavenly officials in the mortal realm,
there were times they’d bring out Xie Lian, usually as a foil, a minor character, or for the
sake of making the play even more exciting, some would write Xie Lian as the villain,
arranging for plots like how the lonely, abandoned Mu Qing would be bullied, or how Xie
Lian would rob Feng Xin of his beloved, etc. If such plays were really performed at the
Mid Autumn Banquet, it wouldn’t matter if the characters in question would be pleased,
the rest of the audience would definitely enjoy it. Xie Lian held that small jaded cup in
his hand, and some heavenly officials were already urging him: “Your Highness, come
come come, down the cup!”
A few joined in on the urging, and Feng Xin spoke up from far away, “His highness can’t
drink.”
The crowd was growing restless, “Just one cup! It won’t do anything.”
Jun Wu had been sitting with his hand supporting his temple without a word, but now he
too slowly straightened, as if to speak. Beside Xie Lian, Shi Qingxuan was also asking,
“Can you do it or not? If not then whatever, I’ll help you throw the hundred thousand
merits to drop the curtains.”
“…”
Xie Lian was afraid she really would just throw out a hundred thousand merits
impulsively. No matter how generous she was that wasn’t the way to do it. Besides, he’d
seen pretty much every play there was anyway, and there wasn’t anything worth paying
attention to, so he hastily replied, “No, no, a cup shouldn’t be a problem.” Then, he
emptied the cup.
Fine brew entered his throat, the area the liquid slid past was first cool then hot. Xie
Lian was feeling a little dizzy, but the taste of that refined drink pushed that dizziness
down in an instant. The curtains all around the small pavilion slowly lifted, and the crowd
moved their gaze, ready to focus on the play.
They were amazed by what they saw. Two figures stood on stage: one was in white,
face covered in foundation, looking windswept and dusty, a bamboo hat on his back, no
doubt he must be Xie Lian; the other was a figure in red robes, hair black like raven,
handsome and brilliant, eyes bright and lively, and the snake wrapped around his arm
was stripped away by ‘Xie Lian’. Instantly, that red robed man snatched that snake
back, ditched it aside, then held ‘Xie Lian’ hand without any intent of letting go.
Watching that scene play out, it was like a knife violently stabbed his heart.
That scene astonished all the heavenly officials waiting to watch a good show, and of
course, Xie Lian himself, too, was astonished. Just then, Jun Wu who was seated at the
head of the feast chuckled, “What play is this? Seems it’s never been seen before?”
Ling Wen immediately sent for someone to investigate then replied, “It seems this play
is called “Adventures in the Kingdom of BanYue”. It’s newly written so it’s never been
shown before. Tonight is the first time it’s performed in the mortal realm.”
Shi Qingxuan turned to Xie Lian, “It’s probably written by those merchants after they
returned from the Kingdom of BanYue that last time. The merits are saved, there won’t
be a need to pull the curtains.”
Xie Lian didn’t comment. For mortals to know about the affairs of the Kingdom of
BanYue the source could only come from those merchants. He recalled that there was a
boy named Tian Sheng in that caravan who did indeed say something along the lines of
worshipping him as thanks, so perhaps this play was commissioned by him? However,
he didn’t tell Tian Sheng his name, and a young boy shouldn’t have the ability to do
something like this.
On the other side of the stage, although the heavenly officials didn’t see the play they
expected, but the performance before them was even more exciting. After all, if the
rumours were true, then the role that red-robed man played was none other than Hua
Cheng!
There were plenty of plays about Crimson Rain Sought Flower in the mortal realm.
However, it’s usually something like “The Red Demon Burnt the Temples of Thirty-Three
Gods and Not Even The Heavens Could Do Shit”, “Crimson Rain Sought Flower Hung
the Martial and Civil Gods and Slapped Them Around with But One Hand”, etc.; the kind
of plays that would make those in the heavens cry silent tears, not wanting to find out
just how those plays turned out. In any case the protagonist this time was Xie Lian, and
for everyone, it never felt like he blended in to be counted as ‘one of us’, so just
watching the play did no harm. Besides, the stage of the play was intricate, the
production exquisite, the actors extremely well made up, truly a great work of
benevolence. Thus, there were many who inwardly enjoyed the show, commenting as
they watched:
“Is that true? It must be made up. Hua Cheng would never talk like that to anyone!”
“Nonsense! Pure nonsense!”
“Who do they take Hua Cheng for in this play?! Wake up! This isn’t a romantic play,
goodness, how daring!”
This was a play written especially for him after all, so Xie Lian watched it attentively. If
he must say so earnestly, it wasn’t a bad play. The actors looked good, the story was
good, just, as one of the ones portrayed, he had a very very small criticism: the two
protagonists seemed to be overly close.
The one who played him was a really good actor, but every time he opened his mouth to
call “San Lang”, while the tone wasn’t up and down and full of yearning, Xie Lian
thought it was even more unsettling than when ‘Lady Wind Master’ called ‘Lord Water
Master’ “hubbyyyyy” earlier. Also, there seemed to be too many little gestures; hooking
arms, hugging shoulders, carrying him; somehow, there’s something that’s not right.
However, if he really thought about it, when he called San Lang, that was indeed the
way he’d call him; those intimate gestures really did seem to have been done too. He
didn’t think there was anything wrong with it at the time, but watching it now, technically
there wasn’t anything wrong still. Looking at the other heavenly officials, although they
condemned it as nonsense on their lips, they seemed to be fully enjoying the show,
watching with their eyes unmoving, their interest enthusiastic, so Xie Lian kept his
mouth shut.
As they watched, Shi Wudu suddenly spoke up, “Who are those two little squires in the
back?”
Hearing the word “squire”, both Feng Xin and Mu Qing inconspicuously froze.
“They’re not squires.” Ling Wen replied, “They should be two junior martial officials from
the Middle Court. They were appointed by the Palaces of Nan Yang and Xuan Zhen to
help His Highness out at the time.”
That the Palaces of Nan Yang and Xuan Zhen would actually send people to assist Xie
Lian was truly extraordinary news, as impossible as Pei Ming courteously rejecting the
advances of a rare beauty, and all the heavenly officials turned to look. Ling Wen added,
“They went willingly.”
Xie Lian smiled, “I forgot to ask, how are Nan Feng and Fu Yao? How come I didn’t see
them come out to play today?”
“Nan Feng… is…” Feng Xin said.
Mu Qing said flatly, “Fu Yao is in detention.”
Feng Xin immediately said, “Nan Feng is also in detention.”
Xie Lian “Oh”-ed and commented, “Both of them are locked up? What a shame.”
Whilst they conversed the curtains dropped on that exhilarating play. Although it was
determined by everyone that it was written by an ignorant believer with obscene
intentions, watching an obscene Hua Cheng was still fully entertaining, and the crowd
applauded in cheer. However, Pei Su was exiled because of what happened at the
BanYue Pass, so after the entertainment was over, everyone still had to mind Pei Ming.
“How’s your Little Pei doing, General Pei?” Shi Wudu inquired.
Pei Ming poured himself a glass and drank, shaking his head, “How well can he do? His
heart isn’t in the right place, I don’t care anymore.”
Shi Qingxuan couldn’t listen anymore and jeered, “So, in General Pei’s eyes, where’s
the right place for his heart? Your Little Pei’s future is a future, but the little lady’s future
is nothing?”
Her tone was rude and Shi Wudu’s eyes swept over, “Qingxuan, mind your manners!”
The moment he reprimanded, Shi Qingxuan lowered her head demurely. Seeing this,
Pei Ming laughed, “Water Master-xiong*, your little brother is quite impressive, and only
you can keep him in line. Him messing with me isn’t really anything, but if in the future
he messed with the wrong people, they won’t let it go so easily for your sake.”
Shi Wudu opened his fan and continued to lecture his little brother, “Did you hear what
General Pei said? Also, how many times do I have to tell you not to walk around outside
in that form all the time, what a disgrace. I don’t care what appearance you like, you
must use your true form when you’re out!”
Although Shi Qingxuan loved her lady form passionately and wouldn’t stand for his
reprimand, still she didn’t dare oppose her brother. Xie Lian thought, ‘The Wind Master
says she’s not afraid of her older brother, but that doesn’t seem to be entirely true.’ Yet
unexpectedly, Shi Wudu ended the lecture with: “What if you bump into someone strong
in both spiritual power and ill intent like General Pei!”
Ling Wen laughed unkindly, and Pei Ming almost spat out his wine again. “Water
Master-xiong! If you keep that up we can’t be pals anymore.”
After the round of feast was past, in the midst of all the socializing and networking came
the final act of the night, the Battle of the Lanterns.
Within the Heavenly Court, all the candlelights and lamps were extinguished except for
the moonlight, and all was dim. The Banquet sat near the lake, and when the clouds
and mists on the surface was waved away, through the clear moving waters the deep,
dark mortal realm could be seen.
Battle of the Lanterns was a competition to see which heavenly official had the most
number of Blessings Lanterns offered from their largest, most renown temple. One
Blessings Lantern of Everlasting Light was hard to buy with a thousand gold, and would
not easily be extinguished. The order to the Battle of the Lanterns was formed from the
lowest count to the highest, and when it was an official’s turn, the lanterns offered by
their worshippers would float to the heavens, brightening the long, dark night, beautiful
and glorious.
The Great Martial Palace had nine-hundred and sixty-one this year, a count close to a
thousand, and also a number never reached before in history. All the heavenly officials
felt that next year the count would surely break a thousand, but that wasn’t the point. If
first place would always be first place, then first place would lose its meaning, so when it
came to Battle of the Lanterns, the Great Martial Palace was automatically removed
from the competition.
What was dumbfounding was the moment the Battle of the Lanterns began, the first one
up was the Rain Master. When Xie Lian saw that one little Blessings Lantern leisurely
and errantly float up in the sky and heard “The Palace of the Rain Master, one lantern!”,
he’d almost suspect maybe he did get drunk and hadn’t sobered up. There was no way
there was only one lantern. To make sure he wasn’t drunk, he asked Shi Qingxuan, “Is
that right?”
“It is.” Shi Qingxuan replied, “It really is just the one. And that one was lit by the bull
from the Rain Master’s own house for the sake of showing face at the feast.”
Self-offering. What a familiar sentiment. Xie Lian pondered, the Rain Master controlled
rain and was thus the god of agriculture. He guessed, “Is it because the worshippers of
the Rain Master are mostly farmers so they don’t have the funds for offerings?”
“Your Highness, do you have some kind of misunderstanding of farmers?” Shi Qingxuan
said, “A lot of farmers are wealthy, ok? This was only because the Lord Rain Master had
said it was better to farm than to use the money for offerings, so the followers had
always offered fresh fruits and vegetables instead.”
Hearing this, Xie Lian was extremely envious. ‘What a marvelous thing.’ he thought.
However, Shi Qingxuan added, “And then later the Lord Rain Master also said not to
waste anything, so usually after a couple days the worshippers would take home the
offerings and eat them themselves.”
“…”
At the beginning of the battle, the numbers were all scattered and sparse, the lights
belonging to the lower ranking officials, the count never reaching over ten and no one
paid it any mind. However, as the battle continued, as the light of the lanterns grew
brighter, the more everyone paid more attention. If it wasn’t for the designated heavenly
official who announced the count, it’d be impossible to count the lanterns floating up so
tightly knit. Xie Lian didn’t know at all what was going on so he didn’t comment on
anything, only focusing on appreciating the beautiful scene of lanterns brightening the
black, long night while listening to everyone else’s analysis of how the battle was going.
Although personally, he didn’t think there was really anything to analyze. After about two
incense time, it was finally time for the grand finale. The fight for top ten of the Battle of
the Lanterns at the Mid Autumn Festival had begun.
The bottom of the top ten, Xie Lian heard the announcer official shouting: “THE
PALACE OF QI YING, FOUR HUNDRED AND TWENTY-ONE LANTERNS!”
Quan Yizhen had long since left the feast, so when the other officials heard the count
the clicking of their tongues were not hidden. That Martial God of the West was young
but his headwind was strong. To other officials of around the same years of experience,
just two hundred Blessings Lanterns was already plenty, yet he more than doubled that
count, even Lang Qianqiu who ascended earlier didn’t have as many lanterns, so he
was definitely someone impressive. However, Xie Lian felt that young man really wasn’t
that well received in the heavens, because other than himself and Shi Qingxuan, there
was practically no one else who was sincerely awed by that number.
The next one, Palace of the Earth Master, four hundred and forty-four lanterns. Other
than sipping two more mouthfuls of soup, Ming Yi didn’t express anything else, yet Shi
Qingxuan was even more excited than he was, repeatedly claiming “too few, too few”.
Because no one else was very close with the lord Earth Master, they only clapped
politely to congratulate. Soon after, it was Shi Qingxuan herself; the Palace of the Wind
Master, five hundred and twenty-three lanterns.
How popular someone was was something easily seen. Once the lantern count for the
Palace of the Wind Master was announced, Shi Qingxuan hadn’t even said anything
and the applause from the banquet roared, hollers and cheers of
“CONGRATULATIONS!” and “AS EXPECTED!” everywhere. Shi Qingxuan was quite
proud, standing up to wave at the crowd and gleefully shouted at Shi Wudu, “Ge! I’m
eighth this year!”
She was acting like a child begging her parents for rewards after having been praised
by her teacher, and Xie Lian couldn’t help but smile. Shi Wudu however, berated, “Only
the eighth, what’s there to be happy about!”
His words were truly wildly arrogant. In the entire Heavenly Court, there was no one
who was a nobody. Yet, five hundred Blessings Lanterns, ranking high as the eighth,
became nothing more than “only eighth” from his lips, so then the ones who ranked
lower than eighth, wouldn’t they be worth less than that? It wasn’t like he didn’t know
what he said was arrogant either but he had to say it anyway, because he wasn’t afraid.
Shi Qingxuan’s face dropped. Shi Wudu fanned his fan and added with difficulty, “But,
there are more lanterns than last year. Next year must be better.”
Hearing this, Shi Qingxuan smiled and laughed again. At the banquet, it was only Ming
Yi who was stuffing his face without a care and not cheering for her, so Shi Qingxuan
smacked him twice, asking for some congratulations. Ming Yi ignored her completely
and continued to devour the food. Shi Qingxuan was outraged, demanding for him to
applaud her, and next to them Xie Lian was going to suffocate from laughing.
The next up, the Palace of Ling Wen, five hundred and thirty-six lanterns.
Amongst all the civil gods, Ling Wen was considered number one. However, not too
many civil gods congratulated him and instead it was the martial gods who sent their
regards. Xie Lian congratulated him from afar, and on this end, Shi Wudu and Pei Ming
demanded he hold a celebratory feast, while on the other end, grumbles from other
heavenly officials could be heard, complaining that Ling Wen only had so many
worshippers because she used a male form, that Ling Wen kissed the asses of martial
gods seeing how they were more popular at the moment and had no time for other civil
gods, that Ling Wen held the most feasts, that there’d be escorts at those feasts, etc.,
etc. Xie Lian shook his head and had only one thought in mind: it wasn’t easy being a
woman official.
Following Ling Wen were the Palaces of Nan Yang and Xuan Zheng, each counted at
five hundred and seventy-two and five hundred and seventy-three. Mu Qing looked
pleased while Feng Xin didn’t appear happy nor angry, seemingly uncaring. Xie Lian
was mystified, how did the count come so close? That’s too much of a coincidence? He
asked Shi Qingxuan in a low voice. Turns out, because the two of them had a similar
background, similar might, and territories right next to each other, plus their unfriendly
relationship with one another, the worshippers on both sides both fought each other to
win, vowing that however many lanterns the other offered, they must offered just one
more. They didn’t ask to be number one, only just better than the other. They’d use their
everything and every year there’d be victory and defeat.This year, at the very last
second, the Palace of Xuan Zhen finally squeezed out one more lantern, winning over
the Palace of Nan Yang. The worshippers looked like they won a battle and was crazily
celebrating. Hearing this, Xie Lian couldn’t help but think: ‘Rather than fighting each
other to death outside, shouldn’t those people go home to celebrate the holiday? It’s the
Mid Autumn Festival!*’
The next one, the Palace of Ming Guang, five hundred and eighty lanterns.
This number was quite impressive. Yet, Pei Ming didn’t look pleased because compared
to the year before, the number of Blessings Lanterns the Palace of Ming Guang
received was actually less. It was a shock to have something happen to the Deputy
General Pei Su, and this year they lost close to a hundred lanterns. If it wasn’t for Pei
Ming’s strong foundation, he just might have lost more. Neither Shi Wudu nor Ling Wen
congratulated him, and only patted his shoulders.
Up until now, Xie Lian discovered, the count for the Blessings Lanterns of those
heavenly officials were all very close together, only tens and twenties apart, no one
really standing out, which meant, everyone’s pretty much the same, and no one was
really winning. He was just thinking this when that announcer official shouted, “THE
PALACE OF THE WATER MASTER, SEVEN HUNDRED AND EIGHTEEN
LANTERNS!”
The banquet was in an uproar and the sound of amazement was everywhere.
Once the heavenly officials all came to, they fought each other to send forth their
congratulations. Shi Wudu only sat there and didn’t rise, not looking like he was
particularly impressed, and that all this was perfectly natural. This was probably the
second heavenly official who came that close to the count of the Great Martial Palace in
the past several centuries. The first time Xie Lian ascended was too far in the past, and
the Blessings Lanterns back then were even harder to come by so it couldn’t be
compared. However, they say “Man Dies for Wealth, Birds Die for Food”*, the people’s
passionate love for money will never decrease, as expected of the God of Wealth!
Shi Qingxuan was even more excited than as if she was to receive seven hundred
lanterns, and applauded with force, shouting to Xie Lian, “IT’S MY BROTHER! IT’S MY
BROTHER!”
Xie Lian laughed, “I know, it’s your brother!”
At the banquet, it was still only Ming Yi who was working hard at eating, all by his
lonesome. Truthfully, Xie Lian thought out of everyone present, only he took the ‘feast’
literally and seriously, attending specifically for the food part, as if having played the part
of a spy at the Ghost City starved him and he was working to refill his stomach to the
brim tonight. When Xie Lian thought back to the street food sold at the Ghost City stalls,
he could understand wholeheartedly, and couldn’t help but wonder, would Hua Cheng
ever stroll through the Ghost City streets every now and then?
The most thrilling mystery had now been revealed, and tonight, each heavenly officials
watched plays to their hearts’ content, socialized, and now satisfied, they rose to their
feet ready to take their leave. Unexpectedly, Shi Wudu suddenly frowned, snapped his
fan shut, and spoke, “Wait.”
If anyone else were to say “wait” they probably wouldn’t be as effective. However,
someone like Shi Wudu was known as the ‘Water Tyrant’ for a reason. Like he was born
to give command, the moment he opened his mouth others couldn’t help but to obey, so
everyone sat back down in their seats, confused, “The top ten are out, does the Lord
Water Master have anything else to add?”
‘Was he going to give out merits too?’ Xie Lian wondered.
“The top ten are out?” Shi Wudu fanned his fan.
No one knew what he had meant, only Shi Qingxuan who suddenly cried, “…No. NO NO
NO. THE TOP TEN AREN’T ALL OUT! — Even if we count the Great Martial Palace,
only nine have been announced so far!”
Everyone was stunned and soon they started muttering, “Only nine?”
“Really, I counted, there really was only nine!”
“Someone else is ranked higher than Lord Water Master???”
“What?! Who can it be? I don’t know anyone like that?!”
Just then, a bright light white as day exploded into the blackened night.
That light was lanterns.
Like thousands upon millions of fish swimming through gorges to the sea, countless
lanterns slowly floated up.
They shimmered and gleamed in the dark night, radiant and brilliant, like floating souls
of a magnificent dream, exceedingly beautiful, brightening the blackened mortal realm.
In the face of such a striking sight, none could speak and all held their breaths, their
words broken.
Xie Lian watched that sky full of lanterns in dumbfounded awe. It was like his breathing
stopped and nothing could be heard, and he remained dazed for a good while. It was
only after some time before he realized something wrong.
The eyes of every heavenly official at the banquet were on him. Turns out, that
announcer official had raised his trembling hand and pointed at him.
Bewildered, Xie Lian asked, “…What is it?”
No one answered, and Xie Lian pointed to himself, “…Me?”
Next to him, Shi Qingxuan patted his shoulder once, “… Yes. You.”
“…”
Xie Lian was still in shock, “Me what? What about me?”
That announcer official swallowed a couple times with difficulty and finally spoke again.
Thus, the hundreds of heavenly officials present heard a voice trembling with disbelief.
“Qiandeng Temple*, the Palace of the Crown Prince, three… three…”
“Three thousand lanterns!”
——–
●‘Water Master-xiong’ is Pei Ming calling SWD ‘Water Master Bro’.
●The Mid Autumn Festival, like Lunar New Year, was a time for family reunions.
Xie Lian was amazed that MQ and FX’s followers would rather fight over offering
lanterns than go home and be with family.
●‘Qiandeng’ translates to A Thousand Lights
——-
Ch.92: Temple of a Thousand Lights Endlessly Illuminating the Lingering Night 2
Three thousand lanterns!
All was silent when suddenly, there was a tidal wave-like uproar.
Never, not even the Great Martial Palace that always sat at the head, solid as the
mountains, had anyone won three thousand lanterns in one night at the Mid Autumn
Festival Banquet. In fact, no one had ever imagined such a number. Even just one
thousand was already difficult to pass. Three thousand. That was truly unheard of, not a
precedent in history, and it was even more than the count of all the other top ten
heavenly officials added together!
One can imagine, at that moment, just how incredulous every official was, and some
even blurted out, “That must be a mistake!”
“It must’ve been counted wrong…”
Yet, nevermind thinking that that announcer official had been counting for the Mid
Autumn Festival’s Battle of the Lanterns for years could just happen to be wrong this
one time, just by looking at that massive band of flowing lights, even if they were to
backtrack a million steps, that number count couldn’t be wrong, and even if it was wrong
the miscount could only be less, not more. Thus, another heavenly official said, “Could it
be that those lanterns aren’t real Blessings Lanterns? Maybe they’re just ordinary
lanterns?”
That basically meant “It’s fraud!”, and there were a few who agreed. However, Shi
Qingxuan spoke up, “How can they be ordinary lanterns? Ordinary lanterns and the
Blessings Lanterns have completely different makes, and they can’t fly up to the
heavens, so how could these be fake?”
If it was Xie Lian who argued then the rest would probably continue to doubt. Yet
because it was Shi Qingxuan who spoke up, and Shi Wudu was also present, no one
dared say much else. Hitting a dead end, they changed track, “Everyone, where is this
‘Qiandeng Temple’? When was it built? Who built it? Does any heavenly colleague
know?”
The announcer official replied, “No… but “Qiandeng Temple” was clearly written on the
lanterns that floated up.”
“But I’ve never heard of any ‘Qiandeng Temple’?!”
“Yea, me neither!”
Xie Lian finally snapped out of his shocked reverie, and when he heard the complaints,
he said quite earnestly, “Everyone, truth to be told, not only have you all never heard of
it, I haven’t ever heard of it either.”
There was no way this came about naturally?!
All of the officials lost their minds, destroyed by this unexpected thunder, incredulous
and disbelieving, their tongues spitting with talk. Xie Lian really wanted to tell them: “It’s
only a game, why is everyone taking it so seriously?” However, first, very few took this
‘game’ as a game, and second, he ranked first place in this ‘game’, so if he said
anything he’d be asking for it. The other heavenly officials couldn’t say it either because
they didn’t place first, so if they said anything it’d be downplaying their not getting
number one, making it sound exceedingly awkward.
Just then, Pei Ming chuckled, “I did say that Crimson Rain Sought Flower didn’t kidnap
His Highness out of ill intent but no one believed me. Now will you all believe me?”
With his reminder, everyone was enlightened in an instant.
If it really was Hua Cheng, then, it wasn’t impossible for him to simply light up three
thousand Blessings Lanterns like it was nothing!
Was there anything going on between Xie Lian and Hua Cheng, and just what kind of
relationship did they have was truly a mystery. At the moment, the majority still thought
it was more believable to say Hua Cheng did this out of ill intent. There was no reason
why Hua Cheng who had always been unfriendly towards the heavens would suddenly
change his attitude in the face of Xie Lian. Yet, based on Hua Cheng’s inconceivable
lawlessness, he could very well become nice towards someone out of the blue without
reason. After this Mid Autumn Festival Banquet, it’d be hard pressed to say Hua Cheng
had ill intent. After all, it was three thousand Blessings Lanterns! Even for the Water
Master who controlled wealth, this wasn’t something he could do just because he
wanted to. Amidst all the chaos, suddenly, the sound of steady clapping came from the
head of the feast.
The officials looked to the sound and saw Jun Wu clapping slowly as he smiled to Xie
Lian, “Congratulations, Xian Le.”
Xie Lian knew Jun Wu intended to help take the heat off of him and was grateful,
bowing his head. Jun Wu sighed in awe, “You always manage to create miracles.”
Seeing that exchange, the feast quieted down. After some hesitation, all finally took Jun
Wu’s lead and applauded, sending their congratulations.
With this, no matter how shocked, all the heavenly gods had to admit that this Highness
the Crown Prince had always produced phenomena. It was like this back then, and it
was most certainly the case now!
The Mid Autumn Festival Banquet had ended and the relentlessly rumbling Thunder
Master also packed up. The one who cheered the hardest throughout it all was of
course Shi Qingxuan, no matter whose ranking rolled out she would be the first to
applaud. Except Pei Ming’s. At first Xie Lian wondered if his stealing the Water Master’s
thunder, bumping him from second place to third place, would cause his ire, but looking
at Shi Wudu, it didn’t seem he was displeased. Pei Ming and Ling Wen both
congratulated him, and afterwards the three started planning to whose little mountain
hot springs they would go for tuina massage. Hearing them, Shi Qingxuan asked, “Ge,
you’re all going out to play again?”
Shi Wudu folded his fan and answered, “En.”
Ling Wen crossed his arms and chuckled, “Lord Wind Master, want to come and play
too?”
“No, I’ve already got plans with people.” Shi Qingxuan said.
Shi Wudu frowned, “I hope it’s not with anyone unsavoury.”
“Is there anyone more unsavoury than General Pei?” Ling Wen quipped.
“Noble Jie, shut up now.” Pei Ming warned.
Xie Lian waited until after the two brothers spoke a few words to each other then
prepared to leave the banquet with Shi Qingxuan. On the way out they bumped into Mu
Qing, and who knows if he was watching Xie Lian, but he didn’t look so pleased
anymore. Feng Xin however, was the exact opposite. When he rose to his feet to leave
the feast, he called to Xie Lian, “Congratulations.” Xie Lian nodded to him too, “Thanks.”
Lang Ying was settled in the Palace of the Wind Master at the Heavenly Court. That
child looked to be clean and tidy but still rather shy. When Xie Lian picked him up and
descended, he didn’t talk much on the road. Xie Lian first went into town to buy some
fresh fruits for him to eat and didn’t go immediately straight back to Puqi Village. He first
went into a piece of nearby woods.
Sure enough, that piece of woods was quite lively; a bare chested young man was
yelling and cussing, hung upside down by a white silk band. Profanities and vulgarities
spilled from his mouth and a little child squatted under him, slapping away mosquitos.
Xie Lian made Lang Ying stand outside, and he himself strolled over leisurely. When
that young man saw him he raged, “XIE LIAN YOU PIECE OF SHIT, FUCKING LET ME
DOWN THIS INSTANT! I’M GONNA DIE I’M GONNA DIE I’M GONNA DIE!”
Xie Lian however, said warmly, “It must be years since you last got bitten by mosquitos.
Is it so bad to give you a taste of being alive again?”
That young man was indeed Qi Rong. Xie Lian had expected him to be troublesome,
that for sure he’d instigate Guzi to help him cut Ruoye, so Xie Lian had already
instructed Ruoye that should Qi Rong try to escape, drag him to the woods and take
care of him. Qi Rong was using the flesh of another against Xie Lian, and Xie Lian
couldn’t beat him to a pulp, but he could still make him suffer some little pains of the
flesh. Xie Lian had chopped lumber and scavenged before in this area, and suffered
getting bitten all over by mosquitos. Currently, it seemed, Qi Rong was also bitten all
over, looking more miserable than dying, and cussed loudly, “WHERE’S YOUR SNOW
WHITE LOTUS HEART! WHY CAN’T YOU PRETEND TO BE A SICKENINGLY
SWEET GOOD PERSON NOW!”
Guzi hugged Xie Lian’s leg and wailed, “GEGE, PLEASE LET MY DAD DOWN! HE’S
BEEN HANGING FOR SO LONG!”
Xie Lian ruffled his hair and immediately, Qi Rong yelped as he fell to the ground in a
heap.
To return to Puqi village, they must traverse through that maple woods. Xie Lian gripped
in his hand a bare-chested, cussing young man and behind him followed two little kids,
one crying and sobbing, the other sullen and quiet. ‘What a freakish group.’ Xie Lian
thought. As they hiked up the hills, he cautioned to the two little ones behind him,
“Watch your steps. It’s easy to trip here.”
That was the truth. Sometimes when Xie Lian was late in returning from town after
collecting scraps and walked this path at night, maybe it was because of his luck, but
he’d always trip or fall. Hearing this, Qi Rong immediately cried, “DEAR GOD! PLEASE
MAKE THIS PERSON FALL TO HIS DEATH RIGHT HERE RIGHT NOW!”
Xie Lian found that hilarious, “You’re a ghost, what are you doing begging the
heavens?”
Just then, he suddenly felt like there was a warm glow faintly emerging from the far
distance, and the dark, obscure path on the ground seemed to be illuminated, the road
brightening. When he looked up, sure enough it wasn’t just his imagination. There really
was light in the horizon.
It was light from those three thousand Blessings Lanterns of Everlasting Light.
The floating lanterns flowed in the night sky, imposing and invigorating, even the shine
of the stars and the moon was overcome. Xie Lian watched, dazed, and after a
moment, he sighed a whisper, “…Thank you.”
Qi Rong didn’t know what that was about and snickered, “Why the fucking thanks?
Other people are just playing around, they’re not lit for you, stop thinking so highly of
yourself.”
Xie Lian grinned but didn’t say anything and didn’t rebuke either. He only said, “To have
beauty exist in this world is already in itself something to be grateful for.”
There’s beauty in his heart and he wasn’t afraid of any killjoys. Borrowing the light of
those lanterns in the distance, he continued forward.
—————
Ch.93: Pregnant with Evil; A New Wave Disturbs Peace
It didn’t take more than two days before Xie Lian came to face a major crisis.
There was nothing to eat in the shrine.
If he was by himself, in a day he’d only need just a couple steamed buns with a small
plate of pickled veggies, maybe pick some cucumbers from the fields to munch, and
he’d take care of himself perfectly, the offerings of daily needs from the Puqi villagers
more than sufficient. Yet now, there were three more mouths to feed in the shrine. Two
live humans and a half-dead ghost; it didn’t take long before they cleaned him out of his
rations.
The two children were alright at least. Qi Rong the half-dead ghost, possessing a full
grown man refusing to come out, cussed Xie Lian out on one hand for feeding him shitty
food, but ate more than anyone else on the other. Xie Lian really wanted to stuff a
blackened pan down his mouth.
After making sure the pan couldn’t be easily pulled out, Xie Lian decided to take the two
little ones out to walk around the markets, see if they could collect some junk then find
them a good meal.
If it’s said that Xie Lian’s luck was usually bad, then the Xie Lian today had especially
bad luck. After walking around town, there was actually not a single scrap to be
collected. Finally, he stood at a crowded intersection and made a decision: he would
pick up his old line of work.
Thus, he settled the two kids aside before he stood in the middle of the intersection and
called out in a loud and clear voice, “DEAR FOLKS AND NEIGHBOURS! TODAY IS
THE FIRST TIME THIS SERVANT HAS COME TO THIS TREASURED PLACE. I WILL
PERFORM A FEW SHAMEFUL TRICKS. THEY ARE EMBARRASSING BUT I HOPE
EVERYONE WILL CUT ME SOME SLACK AND GIVE THIS POOR MAN A HAND,
DONATE A BITE TO EAT, GRANT SOME COINS FOR THE ROAD…”
Xie Lian had the air of a saint, the appearance of a cultivator, his sleeves clean and
fluttering, his voice clear and sonorous, energetic and invigourating. Many on the streets
who were idle soon came and surrounded him.
“What can you do? Show us something neat.”
“How about plate spinning?” Xie Lian said cheerfully.
The crowd waved their hands, “That’s not hard at all, it’s child’s play! What else can you
do?”
Xie Lian then said, “How’s shattering boulders on my chest?”
The crowd groused, “That’s too old school, too old! Anything else?”
Only then did Xie Lian come to realize, even street performances needed to catch up
with the times. All of his best tricks were now nothing more than yesterday’s news, and
there were none left who’d appreciate his craft. The crowd was going to break up, and
without any other choice, he brought out his ultimate technique, and took out from his
sleeves a set of protection charms he made with his own hands and called out again,
“Free protection charms for watching the performance! They’re handmade, don’t walk
on by and miss out on this chance!”
Hearing that there were freebies, the dispersed crowd soon came back, “What kind of
protection charms? Which temple blessed them? Is it the Heavenly Martial Emperor?”
“Do you have any for wealth? Give me a wealth charm please, thanks!”
“I want one from Ju Yang, please save one for me!”
“No, no.” Xie Lian explained, “The one I’m giving away is from the Crown Prince of
Xianle, blessed by Puqi Shrine, for sure effective.” Of course it’d be effective. Other
heavenly officials had at least thousands of people praying to them daily, their ears rang
with white noise, and even just a little too much they’d pass the work down to the junior
officials under them. As for Xie Lian, at most he’d only have a few praying to him at
once, so who’s more likely to actually hear prayers?
The crowd clicked their tongues, “What the hell, we’ve never heard of him before!” Xie
Lian added, “It’s ok if you’ve never heard of him. Puqi Shrine is located just seven miles
out at Puqi Village. Everyone’s welcome to pay a visit, and there’s no need to bring
offerings…” Before he even finished, the crowd had already broken up. Every single
one of the spectators littered the charm away soon after, and Xie Lian trotted over to
pick them up, patting them clean before stuffing them back into his sleeves, not looking
the least bit bothered. As he picked, a pair of cloth shoes stopped before him.
Xie Lian looked up and saw Lang Ying’s raven black eyes peeking out from under the
bandages, watching him intently.
“What’s wrong?” Xie Lian asked gently, “Go over there and sit with Guzi. Just wait for
me for a bit.”
Lang Ying was quiet. Just then, the two doors to a mansion at the end of the large street
suddenly burst open, and a man was thrown out, angry shouts following behind him:
“QUACK DOCTOR!”
The pedestrians on the streets immediately rushed over to watch the show. The
thundering footsteps trampled by, and those protection charms that weren’t yet picked
up were instantly crushed, dirtied, and ripped. Xie Lian watched speechlessly, and gave
up on saving them. He made Lang Ying go back to watch over Guzi, then he himself
went to check things out. As he approached the entrance to that mansion, a man
looking to be a wealthy merchant was arguing with an old man who looked like a doctor.
That wealthy merchant raged, “WHAT DID YOU TELL ME WHEN YOU CAME
YESTERDAY? DIDN’T YOU SAY THERE WAS NOTHING TO WORRY ABOUT? HOW
DO YOU EXPLAIN TODAY? MY WIFE DIDN’T FALL OR EAT ANYTHING BAD, SO
HOW DID THINGS BECOME LIKE THIS?!”
That doctor, however, cried injustice, “When I came to diagnose your wife yesterday she
was perfectly fine! I think in regards to this, you need to find a cultivator, not a doctor!”
That wealthy merchant was outraged, he stood with a hand on his hip and the other
pointing accusingly, “MY SON ISN’T LOST YET SO WHY ARE YOU CURSING HIM,
YOU FAKE DOCTOR! WATCH YOURSELF, I JUST MIGHT SUE FOR ALL OF YOUR
ASSETS!”
The doctor picked up and held his medical case, “Even if you sue me there’s nothing to
be done. I really can’t read that pulse! I’ve never seen anything like it before in my life!!”
The crowd jeered, “Find yourself a new doctor!” “Maybe go find a cultivator!”
Xie Lian instinctively felt there was something off about this affair, and raised his hand in
the sea of people, “Please look here! There’s a cultivator here! I’m a cultivator!”
Everyone turned to look at him, puzzled, “WEREN’T YOU A STREET
PERFORMER???”
Xie Lian explained politely, “That was only a side gig. Thank you.” He walked up to the
merchant, “Will you bring me to go see the esteemed madame?”
Within the mansion came a series of shrill screaming, no doubt all the ladies in waiting
were panicking. The new doctor called by the wealthy merchant wasn’t going to arrive
just yet, and men in desperate plight will do anything, so he really dragged Xie Lian in
the door to see his wife, and Xie Lian grabbed that doctor on the way in too.
When the men entered the bedchamber, there was blood all over the floor, and upon the
large flower curtained bed laid a young woman, her face white as a sheet from severe
pain. Her agony was so acute she’d almost hug her belly and roll about had the ladies in
waiting not hold her down. The moment Xie Lian walked through the door, he could feel
all the hairs on his back stand.
That chamber was heavy with the essence of evil, and that essence came from one
place.
That woman’s belly!
Xie Lian immediately blocked everyone behind him and shouted, “DON’T MOVE!
THERE’S SOMETHING IN HER BELLY THAT’S NOT RIGHT!”
That wealthy merchant was terrified, “Is my wife about to give birth?!”
That doctor and the older ladies in waiting couldn’t stand for that ignorance and said,
“It’s only been five months, how can she give birth now!”
That wealthy merchant raged at the doctor, “If she wasn’t going to give birth and you
have no clue what’s wrong then you’re a quack!! YOU CAN’T EVEN READ A PULSE!”
That woman was going to faint, and Xie Lian shouted again, “EVERYONE, BE QUIET!”
Then he flipped out Fang Xin. Seeing that he suddenly unsheathed a long, black
weapon, everyone jumped in surprise. “WHAT ARE YOU PLANNING?!” Then they saw
Xie Lian drop his hand, and that sword actually floated in mid air!
Now everyone was astonished.
Fang Xin hung from above, the tip of the blade facing down, pointing at the swollen belly
of that woman. The killing aura of the sword was intense, and the crowd saw that
woman’s belly suddenly move, a lump of flesh raised up, jerking left, then right. It
thrashed about until finally, that woman hacked and coughed violently, a stream of black
smoke emerging from her mouth!
Fang Xin had been waiting, and that sword immediately struck that black smoke. That
woman let out a long wail, “MY SON!” And instantly passed out on the spot.
Xie Lian called back the sword and sheathed it anew on his back then turned to the
doctor, “It’s fine now.”
The doctor was eyes wide mouth open, and Xie Lian waved in front of him a couple
times before he hesitantly approached. That wealthy merchant looked joyous, “Is my
son safe?”
However, after the doctor felt the woman’s pulse, he said, his voice trembling with
trepidation, “It’s gone…”
That wealthy merchant was dumbfounded, and after a moment of shock, he roared,
“GONE? HOW DID SHE JUST MISCARRY?!”
Xie Lian however, turned to face him, “The madame didn’t miscarry, the baby is gone.
Gone, do you understand?”
“What’s the difference?” That wealthy merchant demanded.
“Quite different.” Xie Lian said, “Miscarriage is miscarriage. ‘Gone’ means this: there
was indeed a child in madame’s belly at first, but now, that child has disappeared.”
Sure enough, the abdomen of that woman was swollen at first, but now, there was no
sign of external injury yet it had shrivelled down, looking exceedingly unnatural. That
wealthy merchant was shocked, “…wasn’t my son just there in her belly?!”
“The one inside earlier wasn’t your child,” Xie Lian explained, “The one blowing up
madame’s belly was that cloud of black smoke!”
—
After the doctor made sure the woman was only passed out and there wasn’t any
life-threatening signs, they left the chamber. That wealthy merchant asked, “Sir
Cultivator, how should I address you? Which temple did you come from? Which deity do
you worship?”
“No need for the ‘Sir’ and the name is Xie.” Xie Lian responded, and at first he wanted
to say he was from “Puqi Shrine”, but when the words came to his lips, for some reason
it turned into “Qiandeng Temple”.
When those three words left his lips, his face was oddly hot. That wealthy merchant
“oh”-ed and said, “I’ve never heard of it before. It must be far?”
Xie Lian didn’t know how far it was either, and answered softly, “En…”
After a few courtesy greetings, that wealthy merchant finally came to the point, his voice
full of horror, “Daozhang*! What was that monster earlier? What my wife nurtured in her
belly, had it always been… that thing? That cloud of black smoke?!”
With the subject change, Xie Lian also turned serious. “It might not have always been
that way. Didn’t you say when the doctor came yesterday, madame was still perfectly
fine? Her pulse was alright then, but it messed up today, so I’m afraid, it was only last
night that something happened to the baby. Please think, last night, did the madame do
anything? Or did anything strange happen?”
“Nothing happened at all last night,” That wealthy merchant said, “My wife never left the
house! Ever since she paid her respects at the Palace of Ju Yang and received this
child, we built a small Ju Yang shrine at home, and she’d chant and burn incense
without ever leaving the front or back doors. She’s extremely devout!”
“…” Xie Lian thought if Feng Xin knew someone worshipped him like this then it’d really
be a riot. After some thought, he asked, “Then, did she have any strange dreams?”
That wealthy merchant blinked, and said, “Yes!”
Xie Lian was re-energized, and that wealthy merchant continued, “Daozhang, you have
such godly premonitions! My wife really did have a strange dream last night. She
dreamt a small child playing with her, calling her ‘mom’. Halfway through the dream she
felt something kicking her belly then she woke up. Afterwards she came to me happily
to tell me that the child in her belly couldn’t wait to see mom and dad’s faces, so the
child came to greet her first. I was humouring her at the time too!”
In an instant Xie Lian figured it out and said firmly, “It’s that child that’s problematic!”
After a pause, he asked, “Around how old was that child? How did it look like? Did the
madame say anything?”
That wealthy merchant was covered in cold sweat from shock, “I’m afraid she won’t
remember. At the time she already told me she wasn’t sure how old the child was, only
that it should be fairly young, begging her to hold it, and when she held it it was light.”
Xie Lian hummed then said, “I’m going to ask a few more questions, please answer
them honestly, otherwise I won’t be able to find truth in all this. First, are there any
conflicts between wives fighting for favour? Second, had this madame ever aborted a
child?”
Asking about conflicts between wives fighting over favours was to see whether if this
was a curse that came from mad jealousy. When women who had been locked in a
deep harem got jealous, they could do anything; asking about abortion was because if
the child was aborted over questionable reasons, then there may be grudge left behind
in the mother’s body, making the new baby suffer.
Under Xie Lian’s repeated questioning, that wealthy merchant admitted to everything
truthfully. Unbelievably, everything was spot on. Not only did he have a number of wives
in his household, bickering nonstop everyday, he also had a lover waiting for him to
bring her in. Afterwards, the madame’s servant girl also reported that her mistress was
originally only a mistress and had once been pregnant. She listened to flawed diagnosis
of street homeopaths that declared her baby a girl, and since she wanted a boy to
strengthen her foothold, she aborted the child. After listening to all this, Xie Lian could
feel a headache coming on. That wealthy merchant was anxious, “Daozhang, could this
be the revenge of that unborn baby girl?”
“That’s a possibility,” Xie Lian said, “But not entirely. After all, madame couldn’t tell how
old that child was in her dream, and whether if it was a boy or a girl.”
“Then… then Daozhang,” That wealthy merchant asked frightfully, “Since that cloud of
black smoke only just filled my wife’s belly last night, then… where did my own son go?”
———
●‘Daozhang’ is the polite address for cultivators.
Since cultivators cultivated spiritual power, they were also considered exorcists,
which was why the doctor told the merchant to look for a cultivator instead of a
doctor.
———
Ch.94: Pregnant with Evil; A New Wave Disturbs Peace 2
“He was probably devoured.” Xie Lian answered.
That wealthy merchant shuddered, “D-Devoured?!”
Xie Lian nodded. That wealthy merchant was panicking, “Then, DaoZhang, what should
I do now? I’ve got another mistress who’s pregnant, what if that monster comes again?!”
There was another pregnant woman in this household?!
Xie Lian raised his hand, “Calm down. Let me ask another question: Does the madame
remember where she met the child in her dream?”
That wealthy merchant said, “She said it was hazy but it seemed to be a large mansion,
but she doesn’t remember much else. It was only a dream, who could remember
anything so clearly?” Then he gritted his teeth, “I… After over fourty years I’m finally
expecting a son, what misery! DAOZHANG! YOU WILL CATCH AND KILL THAT
MONSTER, RIGHT? I CAN’T LET IT HARM ANY MORE OF MY FAMILY!”
“Don’t panic, don’t panic,” Xie Lian comforted, “I will do my best.”
That wealthy merchant was joyous and he rubbed his hands together, “Good good
good, does DaoZhang need anything? Any sort of compensation won’t be a problem!”
Xie Lian declined however, “I don’t need any compensation, but I do have a few things
I’d like to request your help for. First, please find me a set of casual women’s clothing; it
has to be loose enough that men can wear it, and also, I’m afraid I will need a lock of
hair from the expecting mistress for drawing spells.
That wealthy merchant gestured to the servants, “You taking this down?”
Xie Lian continued, “Second, please advise your expecting mistress to sleep in a
different chamber, but no matter where or when, if she should hear the voice of a
strange child calling her ‘mom’, do not answer. Absolutely do not answer, best if she
doesn’t even open her mouth. Even though when people dream they often don’t realize
they’re dreaming, their senses and awareness dulled, but if you repeatedly remind her
next to her ear, have it deeply ingrained in her mind, maybe it would work.”
That wealthy merchant acknowledged the instruction. Xie Lian then said, “Third, I have
two little ones out with me today, please take care of them and give them something to
eat.”
“Small things like that, nevermind two requests, even one hundred of them and I’ll do it
for you!” That wealthy merchant exclaimed.
Finally, it’s come to the most important item. Xie Lian said, “Four.”
He took out from his sleeves a protection charm blessed by Puqi Shrine, and passed it
up with both hands, speaking in a solemn tone, “Please take this protection charm and
yell “Your Highness the Crown Prince please protect me!” – that way, this whole affair
will be marked under the title of my shrine.”
“…”
That night, Xie Lian once again changed into women’s clothes.
Although he was no stranger to crossdressing by now, it was still his first time
pretending to be a pregnant woman. It didn’t take him half the incense time before he
put makeup on. He stuffed a pillow into his belly, then took that lock of hair from that
expecting mistressing and hid it into the pillow, then laid on the bed. He was calm and
composed, slowing his breathing, and it didn’t take long before he fell deeply asleep.
An unknown amount of time passed before Xie Lian slowly opened his eyes. Before his
vision was no longer the bedchamber of that wealthy merchant’s mistress, but an
exquisite pavilion.
Xie Lian’s first reaction was to feel whether if Fang Xin was still next to him, and when
he felt it, he relaxed. Fang Xin was a sacred sword after all, so it was tied tightly unto his
person. After, he slowly sat up but felt the bottom of his palms to be sticky, and when he
raised his hands to look, he found himself lying on a bed that was covered by terrifying
large pools of blood, not yet dried, dying half of his body red, shockingly alarming.
Xie Lian was used to seeing strange sights, so he got off the bed, walked a couple
steps, and suddenly felt something fell off of his person. He looked down and it was that
pillow, and he hastily picked it up and stuffed it back into his belly anew. When he took
another couple steps, his belly fell again, so Xie Lian had to keep holding onto it with
both hands as he looked around.
Having grown up in a palace, he was influenced by the things he saw and heard,
unconsciously absorbing his surroundings. When it came to beauty, Xie Lian had his
own set of judgments. This little establishment, to him, might be exquisite, but it was
filled with an air of fragrant enticement, so if he had to guess, this might be a restaurant
or a place of entertainment. Also, in comparison to the style of architecture of the day,
this style was really quite old, very much like a building from hundreds of years ago, but
he couldn’t tell where.
Thus, this wasn’t likely to be the haunting of the fetus spirit aborted by that wealthy
merchant. This was because when evil spirits create illusions, they could only use what
they know. It was obvious that an old establishment of centuries old could only come
from evil spirits equally old. After having walked around once, there was no one, and
Xie Lian returned to the chamber where he had first lain down.
It was a woman’s bedchamber. There was a chiffonier, the drawers could be pulled out,
and inside were baby clothes and such toys like dolls and rattling drums. Xie Lian
checked each item carefully and found they were all brand new, indicating the lady of
this room loved and cared for those objects. Meaning, to this ‘child’, this woman was full
of love and affection.
He rummaged around some more, and suddenly, Xie Lian was taken aback. In those
baby clothes was a protection charm, and that protection charm was his!
Flabbergasted, Xie Lian had to verify it thrice. It wasn’t a mistake. It was very much his
protection charm. And, it wasn’t the same simple protection charm he went up the
mountains to pick herbs for, sewed, drawn, then tied with a red thread by his own
hands. This was the protection charm that eight hundred years ago, at the peak of the
prominence of the Crown Prince of Xianle, almost everyone in the country owned. The
material and designs were all intricately elegant, and where it came from, whether if it’s
been blessed, were all written on it.
Could it be, the lady owner of this establishment was once his worshipper?
Just then, in the dead silence, Xie Lian suddenly heard a series of teehee sniggles.
It was the sniggles of that baby, extremely abrupt, and it echoed everywhere, its
whereabout obscure. Xie Lian didn’t move or react, but his mind was racing: that voice
sounded familiar, where had he heard it before? Just where?
Then it hit him, and in his mind rang the voices of a small child: “New bride. New bride,
new bride in the new red marriage sedan.”
“Brimming tears, through the mountain pass, smile not under the bridal veil…”
It was the voice of that child spirit he heard at Mount YuJun when he was in the
marriage sedan!
When Xie Lian snapped out of it, the laughter of that child spirit also came to an abrupt
stop. He turned around swiftly but saw no shadows.
After the affair of Mount YuJun had passed, he’d also asked after the child spirit in the
spiritual communication array, but back then everyone told him there was no child spirit
or anything of the sort to be found on the mountain, and it was only he who heard that
child spirit’s voice. Yet now, this was the second time this child spirit had appeared
before him, so was this a coincidence? Or was it intentional?
That child spirit stopped laughing, and called out, “Mom.”
This “mom” came from somewhere close but Xie Lian couldn’t figure out where it came
from. He stood there unspeaking, holding his breath, his ears intent.
After some silence, the voice of that child called out again, “Mom. Hold me.”
This time, Xie Lian finally figured it out – that voice came from his belly!
Xie Lian had both his hands holding up the fake belly and it was only now that he
astonishingly realized that without knowing when, the pillow in his hands had become
heavier. He smacked it once soundly, and a lump of something came tumbling out of his
clothes, seemingly to be a palish white little child, spewing something out of its mouth
before scrambling away into the darkness and disappeared. Xie Lian rushed up to see
and the things it spewed out were some lumps of threads and a lock of black hair. It
seemed his illusionment spell worked. That little ghost had wanted to devour Xie Lian’s
‘child’ the way it did that pregnant woman’s, but instead it devoured the cotton stuffed in
Xie Lian’s robes. Soon after, Xie Lian heard that thing cry sharply again, “MOM!”
No matter how it called, how pointedly it cried, Xie Lian still held back, never opening his
mouth. He determined that the child spirit was a fetus spirit, and this chamber was it or
its mother’s room where they once lived. Evil spirits took the form and age of when they
died, yet it had mostly shown itself as a cloud of black smoke or a blurry white shadow,
which meant the spirit itself didn’t know how it should look like, so it had no proper form.
Also, the baby clothes in those drawers clearly hadn’t been worn yet, plus that
terrifyingly large pools of blood on the bed, Xie Lian deduced that the lady of this
chamber must’ve miscarried, and her unborn child already had shape then and retained
a little bit of its own conscience. After becoming a fetus spirit it wanted to return to its
mother’s belly but ended up knocking on the doors of the madame of that wealthy
merchant.
When it called out “mom” in that woman’s dream, it was the wrong move for her to open
her mouth to acknowledge it. It must be said that the bond between ‘mother’ and ‘child’
were special, and the acknowledgement was a form of ‘permission’. When she opened
her mouth she gave that evil thing the chance to enter, and the little ghost snuck in, slid
into her belly, and devoured the fetus that was originally there, a cuckoo in the nest. Xie
Lian might be a man, but he wasn’t very sure whether if he opened his mouth the child
spirit would also take the chance to sneak into his belly. Just in case, he’d best keep his
mouth shut.
Thus, keeping his lips tightly sealed and gripping Fang Xin in hand, Xie Lian searched
for traces of that child. Xie Lian possessed an exceedingly strong instinct when it came
to danger, something that was refined through thousands of battles. WIthout needing to
look clearly, as long as he had a hunch where it was he’d thrust his sword, and he’d hit
the mark nine times out of ten. Although in the illusion created by that child spirit Xie
Lian’s strikes were weakened, but after getting struck multiple times it was probably
feeling rather choked up too. After a while, Xie Lian suddenly felt a sharp pain on the
bottom of his foot. It seemed he stepped on something extremely sharp, and he paused
slightly.
That child spirit saw him falling for its trap and let out short spurts of sly cackles. The
voice was tender but it shouldn’t have come from a small child, more like a malicious
grown man, the contrast sharply distinct, making one’s blood run cold. However, Xie
Lian’s face never even twitched, and he didn’t stop in his step; he flicked his hand and
struck out the sword again, jabbing right on target!
That child spirit yelped in pain, having burned himself, and hid far, far away. Only then
did Xie Lian take a look down to glance under his boot, and turns out he stepped on a
small, thin needle that was stood straight up. It was obviously placed by that child spirit
on purpose, and it seemed it was hoping for Xie Lian to cry out in pain. However, it
miscalculated. Xie Lian was very good at tolerating pain, and nevermind stepping on a
needle, if his leg was clamped by a large snare he wouldn’t utter a sound if the situation
called for it.
That tiny little needle was deeply ingrained, and Xie Lian had wanted to pull it out at
first, but since that child spirit ran away after having devoured nothing, he was afraid it’d
take this chance to escape and go harm others, so he chased after it out of the chamber
with that needle still stuck in his foot. After a while he stopped feeling the pain and ran
like the wind. There was no sight of that child spirit anywhere in that building, and Xie
Lian was just feeling baffled, ‘Did it actually become scared of my attacks?’ when just
then, a window not far away opened by itself without a breeze.
Xie Lian immediately rushed over and approached, but then was shocked by what he
saw. Outside the window there were no sights of streets, no mountains, no pedestrians,
only a deep, bottomless lake.
On the other side of this lake was a house, and in that house sat two small children. It
was Lang Ying and Guzi who were sitting at a table eating. Yet, they didn’t notice at all
that just above their heads was a thick, black swirl of smoke, teehee-ing and cackling,
crying crisply, “MOM! MOM!”
Xie Lian’s heart instantly dropped, his hands gripped the window sill, about to call and
warn them, but then he remembered not to open his mouth and forced his voice back
down.
Although this was nothing more than that child spirit’s illusion, but he didn’t know
whether if Lang Ying and Guzi were really pulled in, and if so, then any harm that
happened to them here would affect their real bodies. He wanted to find a vase or
something to throw over as a warning, but he couldn’t even find anything. Tables and
chairs wouldn’t fit through the window, and then there was that lake between the two
buildings, so did this mean he had to swim over?
Just then, Guzi, looking tired, yawned. That cloud of black smoke gathered and looked
as if it was about to sneak into his mouth.
The defenses of children’s bodies were very weak, even without permission maybe that
thing could intrude, and Xie Lian had no time to think about swimming. In a split second
decision, he shouted, “CLOSE YOUR MOUTH! RUN!”
The moment the words came out, Lang Ying and Guzi jolted and closed their mouths in
surprise, leaping to their feet. That child spirit however, had suddenly disappeared, and
the next second, a cloud of black smoke exploded in Xie Lian’s face.
Even though Xie Lian closed his mouth the moment he shouted, he could already feel a
stream of cold air going down his throat, that black smoke entering his stomach, his
innards freezing as if everything would be frozen in a second. Xie Lian gritted his teeth,
hastily tore apart a few protection charms, took out the herbs and charmed papers
within and chewed them with force, swallowing them. It didn’t take long before his throat
itched, and that cloud of black smoke was retched out!
Xie Lian covered his mouth with his sleeve, coughing nonstop, choking with tears, and
his mind was rapidly trying to think of a way to counter it. After that cloud of black smoke
was puked out it still swirled and clung on to him relentlessly, thus Xie Lian pressed onto
the window sill, raised himself up and leapt, jumping into the lake outside.
SPLASH, and Xie Lian plunged deep into the heart of the lake. He held his breath,
crossed his legs and arms, and assumed a sitting position, musing, letting his body
slowly sink into the bottom of that freezing lake. Once his heart beat returned to normal,
he looked up and could somewhat make out that black fog swirling above, sealing the
entire surface of the water. Once he emerged he must take in a deep breath, and
should he inhale, he’d for sure suck that child spirit into his stomach. If a full grown man
was to have a giant, swollen belly, it definitely wouldn’t be very funny.
However, jumping into the water was only to give himself some time to think. It didn’t
take long before Xie Lian came up with an idea and thought, ‘So what if I swallow it? I’ll
just swallow Fang Xin too after.’ He had also learned that trick when he performed on
the streets, and although it might hurt, but whatever, as long as the child spirit could be
captured.
His mind made up, Xie Lian released his arms and started swimming to the sides.
However, a muffled, deep sound of sloshing water came from above, and suddenly, a
vast, burning, vivid crimson red appeared before his eyes.
Thick, winding raven black locks filled his vision, splashes and air bubbles bubbled
furiously, and nothing could be seen. Xie Lian blinked, trying desperately to strip away
the thousands upon millions of crystal like bubbles. But then, he felt a pair of strong
arms. One hand circled around his waist, and the other grasped his chin.
In the next second, something cold and soft covered his lips.
———–
Ch.95: Mind in Disarray but Say Not the Tender Heart is Too
In that instant, Xie Lian’s eyes bulged.
Never in his life had anyone treated him this way before.
First, no one dared; second, no one could. However, this person was swift like the devil
and appeared so suddenly that before he even had the chance to defend himself, he’d
fallen into such a state. Freaking out, he was flustered and his limbs were thrashing,
desperately trying to push the other away but instead he choked on large mouthfuls of
water, gurgling as strings of crystal water beads gushed out from his mouth. This was a
big no-no under water. Thus, the hand around his waist held him tighter, their bodies
pressed closer together, and Xie Lian’s struggling hands were firmly folded and crushed
against his own chest, unable to move. His lips were still securely sealed, the kiss
deepening, and a stream of gentle, chilled air slowly passed through. Dumbfounded and
helpless, as he began to accept his fate, Xie Lian finally saw clearly the face of this
person. It was Hua Cheng.
The moment he realized it was Hua Cheng, he stopped struggling, and innumerous
random thoughts popped into his mind, all inappropriate for the time and place, such as:
So it was Hua Cheng! No wonder he’s cold. Ghosts don’t need to breathe but he can
still deliver air to me?! Don’t ghosts sink in the water?
Just then, Hua Cheng suddenly opened his eyes.
To be staring into those dark eyes at such a close distance, Xie Lian instantly froze, and
soon after he started struggling again, his arms flailing, like a duck so dumb and
awkward it was drowning itself. The raving arms were easily stopped by Hua Cheng,
and with his arm still firmly around Xie Lian’s waist, he took him and swam towards the
surface speedily. It didn’t take long before the two broke through the surface.
The waters were freezing and the air was cold too, yet, Xie Lian’s whole body was
burning up. The moment they floated to the top, Xie Lian wanted to turn away, but that
cloud of black smoke was still swarming above the waters, watching with predatory
eyes, and when it saw someone emerge, it immediately flashed forward to plunder. Xie
Lian only turned his head a little bit before Hua Cheng pulled him back with a hand
behind his head. Their lips hadn’t separated for even a second before it was pressed
tightly against each other once more. Xie Lian’s lips were aching and numb from the
kiss, feeling as if he were going to lose his senses. If this was anyone else he would’ve
long stabbed with his sword, but this just had to be Hua Cheng, so he was completely at
a loss on what to do, his tears ready to fall from distress. Just then, beyond Hua
Cheng’s face, he saw thousands upon millions of silver butterflies break through the
water next to them.
Accompanied by a sharp trill, that thick rain of butterflies shot out from the surface like a
bullet, their wings reflecting a cold glare, sharp like the blade, and within moments that
child spirit screamed from the slashing, the black smoke dispersing, and it tried to flee in
all directions. However, the web of those butterflies enveloped from the earth to the
heavens, sealing it within, and no matter how much it rammed and pounded it couldn’t
break through. Hua Cheng’s eyes had never lifted even once, and with Xie Lian in his
embrace they once again dove into the waters. After a while, the two lips finally parted.
Once separated, another stream of air bubbles spewed from Xie Lian’s mouth, and Hua
Cheng freed a hand, tossing out a dice. That dice actually spun in the water, rapidly too,
and it spun out a strong, whirling current before finally stilling. Afterwards, the two once
again broke through the water surface.
This time, the shore was not far away, and only then did Hua Cheng bring Xie Lian to
swim over. Who knows what shore it was either, there were lights and voices of crowds,
seemingly close yet far away. Behind them over the waters, that troop of butterflies shot
into the sky with that cloud of black smoke in their captivity, flying towards the faint lights
in the distance, leaving behind a trail of long wails from the child spirit, “MOOooom —
!!!…”
The two of them climbed ashore, sitting heavily onto the ground, and looking at each
other thus, Xie Lian was finally able to take a good look at Hua Cheng.
In reality, the two of them had only parted ways for just a few days, but Xie Lian felt like
it had been a long time since they last met. Every time they met Hua Cheng looked
good in different ways. The Hua Cheng this time seemed to be older by a couple years
compared to the last time. His face had always been handsome, shimmering brighter
than the waters. His locks were exceedingly black, his skin extremely white, and on the
right side of his cheek was a very thin, small braid, a red string threading through it
intricately. This was the first time Xie Lian realized that above Hua Cheng’s forehead
was a widow’s peak, and it made his face look even more shapely and alluring. The
black eyepatch that covered an eye emitted traces of killing aura, softening that refined
charm, making his good looks reach an almost perfect balance.
Hua Cheng’s brows were knitted, as if trying to hold back, and after panting softly a few
times, he opened his mouth to speak, his voice distinctly lower than before, “Your
Highness, I…”
From the hair on his head to all over his body, Xie Lian’s entire person was dripping with
water. His lips were swollen, his eyes blank, and it was only after a good moment of
disoriented daze before he mumbled, “I… I… I…”
His stammering “I”s continued before suddenly, he randomly popped out, “I’m a little
hungry.”
Hearing this, Hua Cheng was taken aback.
Xie Lian hadn’t yet recovered from the shock, and said in a state of jumbled mess, “No.
I… I… I’m a little sleepy…”
He flipped around, his back facing Hua Cheng, and bent down to his knees, his hands
touching the ground, fumbling as if looking for something. Behind him, Hua Cheng
asked, “What are you looking for?”
Xie Lian subconsciously didn’t dare to look at him, and said incoherently, “I’m looking for
a thing. I’m looking for my bamboo hat. Where’s my bamboo hat?”
If it was anyone else watching this scene play out, they would certainly yell, “He’s done
for! He’s gone stupid!” But in reality, it was only because Xie Lian had never
experienced something like this before, and the shock was too great, making him lose it
a little. Xie Lian crawled on his hands and knees, shuffling away with his back still facing
Hua Cheng, mumbling, “…I, I can’t find it. I’m leaving now. I’m going home to eat… I
need to go collect some scraps now…”
“…”
“I’m sorry.” Hua Cheng said.
Feeling that the voice behind him was coming closer, Xie Lian jumped to his feet and
cried, “I’M LEAVING NOW!”
This cry was like a cry for help. Hua Cheng hastily said, “No!”
Xie Lian hurriedly tried to run away, but within a few steps out his foot twisted, and he
fell back onto the ground. Looking back, there was a trail of blood behind him, that
needle deeply embedded in the bottom of his foot was completely stuck in. Hua Cheng
immediately seized his ankle, his voice alarmed, “What’s wrong?”
Xie Lian immediately tried to pull his leg back, “Nothingnothingnothing, it doesn’t hurt at
all, it’s fine!”
Hua Cheng was slightly angered, “How can it not hurt!” Then his hands moved – he
was actually going to remove his boot! Terrified, Xie Lian crawled forward again,
exclaiming as he crawled, “NO, NONONO, THERE’S NO NEED!”
He kept crawling, trying to scamper and Hua Cheng held on to him, stopping him from
doing so. It was complete pandemonium and it finally alerted everyone else on shore. A
roaring crowd, chattering and blabbering, a large group of who knows what kind of
weirdos all came to surround them, clamouring, “WHO GOES THERE! HOW DARE!
DON’T YA KNOW WHAT THIS PLACE IS? ARE YA DONE WITH LIFE OR DID YA
WANNA DIE AGAIN? I… BLIMEY, AIN’T THIS MY LORD?!”
The crowd of ghosts immediately hollered in unison, “GOOD DAY YER OL’
LORDSHIP!”
Xie Lian let out a wail in his head, wishing desperately he could cover his face with his
hands. This was the Ghost City!
There were quite a number of ghosts in the crowd he remembered seeing roughly from
the last time he came by, Xie Lian even saw a familiar hog head. The two of them were
drenched from head to toe, surrounded by countless humans and ghosts alike watching
them, and Hua Cheng still had his hand on his ankle not letting go. This was such a
shocking scene that it finally snapped Xie Lian out of it. But who knew that once the
crowd of ghosts recognized Hua Cheng, they became even more excited, shouting, “MY
LORD! ARE YOU TRYING TO RAPE SOMEONE?! DO YOU NEED HELP?! WE’LL
HELP YOU HOLD THEM DOWN!”
“SCRAM!” Hua Cheng ordered.
That crowd of ghosts hastily scrammed. But even if they were to watch from afar, not
daring to come close, Xie Lian still wanted to just pass out and end everything, because
Hua Cheng had risen to his feet, bent down and gently swept him up into his carry, and
walked with heavy steps to leave the shore.
Xie Lian was still dressed in women’s clothing, and could only be grateful that pillow
was no longer stuffed in his belly, otherwise it’d paint an even more terrifying picture.
However, the frightful thought finally brought him completely back to the present. He
struggled a bit in Hua Cheng’s arms but didn’t succeed, so he cleared his throat softly,
“…San Lang, I’m sorry. I sort of lost it just now, how embarrassing.”
What had happened just then was really too great of a shocking blow for him. The word
‘blow’ was tentative, but this was his first time after all. However, it wasn’t only just
because it was his first time. In the many centuries past, it wasn’t like there weren’t any
seductive women ghosts who tried to tempt him with their naked bodies, but Xie Lian
had never reacted this embarrassingly before. So why did he turn into such a state
now? He could only guess that it must be because Guoshi had only ever taught him
how to defend against women but not against men, and he had no experience, which
was why he hadn’t known how to react.
Thinking back on the way he’d conducted himself, Xie Lian was slightly ashamed, and
felt maybe he overreacted, thinking San Lang had meant well, but ended up scaring him
to this point, truly he was being too impolite. Hua Cheng however, replied, “Nothing of
the sort. I was the one who crossed the line and offended gege. San Lang is in the
wrong and apologizes.”
Seeing that he didn’t take anything to heart, Xie Lian secretly let out a breath of relief. “I
was in dire straits and you were only trying to help, it wasn’t really a big deal anyway.
Oh that’s right,” He suddenly remembered what he was doing, “San Lang, why have
you suddenly appear again? Where’s that child spirit?”
Hua Cheng however, replied in an authoritative tone, “Treating your wounds comes
first.”
In between their exchange the two had already arrived before a magnificent building,
and when Xie Lian looked up, the entrance hung the title ‘Paradise Manor’.
He was astonished. Had that burnt Paradise Manor really been rebuilt that fast? And it
looked exactly the same as the old one. Yet with a guilty conscience, Xie Lian was too
embarrassed to ask about it. Hua Cheng entered, carrying him in his arms, and
mounted that black jaded divan. Xie Lian sat on the divan, and Hua Cheng himself half
knelt below, holding Xie Lian’s injured foot, checking the tiny puncture dyed by blood
underneath.
The position made Xie Lian feel uncomfortable, and he cried, “No!” and made a move to
get down, but Hua Cheng pushed him back, swiftly removing his boot and sock with a
steady hand.
This foot also happened to be the one with the cursed shackle, a deep black chain
locked around that clean and white ankle, a powerful contrast. Hua Cheng’s eyes only
lingered for a moment on that soft ankle before his palm was pressed against Xie Lian’s
injury.
“This might hurt a bit,” Hua Cheng said, “Don’t hold back, gege. Cry out if it hurts.”
———–
Ch.96: Mind in Disarray but Say Not the Tender Heart is Too 2
“I…” Xie Lian said.
Before he finished his sentence, he felt Hua Cheng squeezed with a bit of force, a
series of pain crawled up his leg, and he couldn’t help but shrink back.
Although Hua Cheng’s strength was already extremely controlled and this little bit of
pain was nothing to Xie Lian, but for some reason, in front of him, Xie Lian seemed to
be unable to hide away his pain. Maybe it was because of what Hua Cheng told him
beforehand and he tried too hard to hold back and it backfired on him. Sensing Xie Lian
shrinking back, Hua Cheng instantly held his ankle tighter and reassured with a soft
voice, “Don’t worry. It’ll be over soon. Don’t be scared.”
Xie Lian shook his head, but Hua Cheng’s hands had become even gentler, his hand
operating speedily, and when he raised it again, that tiny little needle was already
extracted. “Alright, it’s done.”
Xie Lian focused his eyes and saw the tip of that needle was glistening with vicious
poison. Hua Cheng closed his five fingers and crushed it easily into a small waft of black
gas, dissipating into the air. Seeing this, Xie Lian put aside all his discomfort and
commented soberly, “What heavy air of grudge. A typical fetus spirit shouldn’t have
spiritual power this strong.”
Hua Cheng stood up, “You’re right. So, this fetus spirit must not be from a normal
miscarriage.”
Just then, a masked man entered with his head down, a clay pot presented with both
his hands, and he handed it to Hua Cheng. Xie Lian unconsciously checked to see if
that man’s wrist still carried that cursed shackle, but this time the man’s sleeves were
tied down fully and completely. Hua Cheng took the pot with one hand and glanced at it,
then turned around to pass it to the Xie Lian sitting on the black jaded divan. Xie Lian
hadn’t yet reached over and the muffled sound of a child crying could be heard from
within, and it seemed something was madly knocking about, making the clay pot shake,
unable to remain standing up, so he became more cautious.
When he took that clay pot, he peeled up a small corner of the seal and peeked in, and
could feel a sense of dreadful cold rush up his spine.
Inside the pot laid a puddle of something like a fetus. Although both the arms and legs
were grown out, they were weak and powerless, and the head remained obscured in
the shadows. All in all, it was no more than a lump of twisted organ.
This was its true form!
Xie Lian immediately resealed the pot and said, “I see.”
He once heard that there were those who would search for pregnant women who hadn’t
yet reached term, and they would cruelly cut out the children from the women’s wombs,
transforming the fetuses into little demons to perform spells, urging them to do harm,
either to protect the castor or for the protection of a dwelling and luck. By the sight of
this, that fetus spirit was no doubt the product of such an evil spell, and its mother might
very well have been Xie Lian’s worshipper once, otherwise there wouldn’t be his
protection charm tucked in the clothes of that child yet born.
Xie Lian hummed then said, “This fetus spirit was captured by you, but would San Lang
mind if I take it back with me to investigate? Because I’ve already bumped into it once
before at Mount YuJun, and since this was the second time it’s appeared before me, I
don’t know if it’s mere coincidence or if there’s some kind of a connection.”
“If you want to take it, then just take it.” Hua Cheng said, “Even if I didn’t appear you
would’ve still captured it.”
Xie Lian chuckled, “Be that as it may, San Lang still caught it so effortlessly, much more
so than if I was to try.”
It was an offhand comment, but Hua Cheng remarked, “Is that right? And if I didn’t
appear, how did you plan on capturing it? Eat it into your stomach then swallow the
sword too?”
“…”
He had actually hit it right on the mark.
There wasn’t any trace of displeasure on Hua Cheng’s face, but Xie Lian somehow felt
maybe Hua Cheng was a little mad.
Instincts told him that if he didn’t answer right, Hua Cheng would become angrier. Just
as he was thinking of a response, he suddenly felt his stomach shrink slightly, and
without thinking, Xie Lian said, “…I’m a little hungry.”
“…”
It was only after the words had left his lips did Xie Lian realize what he had said. Too
embarrassed to see the reaction on Hua Cheng’s face, Xie Lian explained himself
honestly, “This time it’s true…”
A moment later Hua Cheng finally “pfft”-ed and laughed out loud.
Once he laughed, it was as if all of Xie Lian’s gloomy clouds dispersed, and he sighed a
breath of relief. Hua Cheng on the other hand, was half laughing, half sighing, and
nodded his head, “Alright.”
Hua Cheng had wanted to keep him and set out a feast at Paradise Manor, but when
Xie Lian heard “set out a feast” he knew it’d be too big of a deal, and suggested instead
that the two go out for a stroll and find something to eat at the same time. Hua Cheng
agreed to it.
It was quite warm within Paradise Manor, and while the two entered dripping wet, they
were both dried soon after. However, Xie Lian’s dress in women’s attire was awfully
conspicuous, so he still borrowed a set of clothes from Hua Cheng, changing back into
clean, white robes. Afterwards, the two set out, and even after having walked for quite a
distance the wailing of that fetus spirit could still be heard, the cries of “mom” ringing in
the air, demonstrating its dogged tenacity. However, there were already howls and wails
of demons and ghosts all over the Ghost City, and so its cries were drowned within, not
the least bit noticeable.
The main street of the Ghost City was bustling as always, and either side of the street
were stalls selling exotic foods. Although the demons and ghosts remained the same
ones, their attitudes towards Xie Lian were completely different than the last time he
wandered. Hua Cheng walked next to him, shoulder to shoulder, and the bizarre looking
stall owners all came out to greet them with smiles, fighting each other to welcome them
into their abode, bowing almost halfway, reminding Xie Lian of a random idiom: The fox
assuming the power of the tiger*.
Other than paying respects to Hua Cheng, there were hundreds and thousands of eyes
watching Xie Lian with heated eyes, as if judging and conjecturing. Just who was he to
be able to walk shoulder to shoulder with the Lord of the Ghost City? This made Xie
Lian wonder if maybe he made another wrong decision. To be positioned in the flowing
current of monsters and demons, before the eyes of millions, Hua Cheng seemed to be
quite at home, and he asked, “What do you want to eat?”
Finally seeing a stall that was selling something that wasn’t that weird, Xie Lian wanted
to end things quickly and said, “This one’s fine.”
However, Hua Cheng said, “Not this one.”
“Why?” Xie Lian was curious.
Hua Cheng didn’t say a word, but gestured for him to look inside. Xie Lian took a look,
and when the stall owner saw them stopping before him, he rubbed his hands in
excitement as if waiting to welcome them in, nervously wiping the tables, chairs, and
benches vigourously. However, what he was using to clean the furniture was his tongue.
“…”
Although the bowls and cutleries were dripping with shimmering beads of water after
having been licked by that wide and long tongue, reflecting a shine that made them look
brand new, still Xie Lian decided to abandon that stall resolutely, and hurried away. After
a few steps, he saw another stall; a chicken soup shop that appeared cleanly put
together, the sign in front of the door said “Home raised chicken, slow cooked broth.
Made fresh, guaranteed clean”. Xie Lian stopped, “Oh, chicken soup. How about a
bowl?”
Hua Cheng, however, said again, “Not this one either.”
Xie Lian blinked, “Is it a problem with the plates or is it with the chicken?”
Hua Cheng brought him into the shop, pulled aside a set of curtains, and gestured for
Xie Lian to look. Curious, Xie Lian poked his head in, and immediately became
speechless. Inside the kitchen was an enormous pot, a roaring fire beneath it, and
steam rolled out of it. Inside the pot was a large man with a bright red cockscomb on his
head and he was simmering in the boiling waters happily taking a bath. Next to the pot
were many buckets and they contained salt, pepper, herbs, and other such seasonings.
In the shop front a customer yelled, “BOSS, ADD MORE SALT TO THE SOUP! IT’S
TOO PLAIN!”
As he bathed, that man grabbed a large handful of seasoning and smeared it on
himself, rubbing them hard into his body with a towel, increasing the flavour. Then, he
let out a long crow: “COCK-A-DOODLE-DOO!”
Xie Lian dropped the curtains and silently walked out.
After making a large round, the two finally found a shop, its specialty being “Authentic
Delicacies of the Mortal Realm”. Although, Xie Lian was suspicious of just how
‘authentic’ it was. For example, as far as he knew, mortal chefs wouldn’t use the meat of
large, hard-to-hunt monsters to make skewers. Nonetheless, in comparison, this shop
was the most normal.
The moment the two sat down, the crowd of ghosts who had been following behind
immediately approached and surrounded them, attentively soliciting to add more dishes
to their meal. That hog butcher carried with him a thick, white human leg, slapping at it
soundly, and cried with a rough voice, “MY LORD! DO YOU WANT FRESH THIGHS?!
THIS JUST CAME IN!”
The crowd yelled at him, “GET OUTTA HERE! D’YA THINK THE LORD’S FRIEND
WOULD EAT THAT SHIT? YA TAKIN’ HIM FOR THE GREEN GHOST? MAYBE YER
OWN THIGHS WOULD BE MORE EDIBLE!”
“WHAT A STRONG STENCH OF BLOOD! YER DISGUSTING PEOPLE!”
That hog actually raised one of his pig legs and shouted, “IF MY LORD AND MY
LORD’S FRIEND LIKE IT, MY OL’ LEG IS NOTHING, I’LL BUTCHER IT! LEMME TELL
YOU, MEAT ON MY OL’ FLESH IS DEFINITELY FULL OF FLAVOUR!”
Xie Lian couldn’t help but smile and ate his porridge with his head down. Hua Cheng
ignored them pointedly, so that crowd of ghosts and demons fervently tried to push their
goods unto Xie Lian, blabbering:
“Street food specialty: brain juice! Brains of monsters specially picked, each one with
cultivation of over fifty years! Smell this delicious fragrance, my good sir!”
“This duck blood pudding is really good, quack! Look, quack! It’s freshly cut from me
own flesh, quack! Won’t you give it a try, quack!”
“Our fruits are authentic fresh fruits of graveyards, we don’t pick the ones grown on
dead bodies, it’s true, not a word of lie…”
Mountains and mountains of food were given, so much that Xie Lian was having trouble
seeing all of it, and he thanked them endlessly. He didn’t want to put down this wave of
fervent affection, but at the same time, so much of those exotic street foods were really
hard to accept, and in the mess of things, he saw Hua Cheng sitting there, his hand
supporting his cheek, watching him with a big smile. Xie Lian looked around him,
cleared his throat, then whispered in a small voice, “…San Lang…”
Only then did Hua Cheng speak up, “There’s no need to mind them, gege. They’re only
overly excited because there’s a guest.”
A ghost immediately said, “MY LORD, DON’T SAY THAT! IT AIN’T LIKE WE GET
EXCITED OVER JUST ANYONE! IF THE LORD IS OUR GRAND DADDY, THEN THE
LORD’S GEGE IS OUR GRAND UNCLE*…”
“YEA! OF COURSE WE GOTTA GET EXCITED WHEN GRAND UNCLE COMES
AROUND!”
Xie Lian didn’t know whether to laugh or cry, wondering whatever the heck were they
even saying, and Hua Cheng too, shouted, “Stop that nonsense! Shut up!” The crowd of
ghosts hurriedly acquiesced, “YES SIR! MY LORD IS ABSOLUTELY CORRECT.
WE’RE SHUTTING UP. IT’S NOT GRAND UNCLE!”
Just then, unexpectedly, a few of the female ghosts who had been giggling on the side
finally couldn’t hold back anymore, and called out, “Hey! You… weren’t you that
daozhang gege who told Lan Chang you couldn’t get it up?”
“…”
Xie Lian almost spat out his mouthful of porridge on the spot.
It was like that crowd of ghosts had discovered a major secret and they exploded,
“HOLY SHIT! YOU’RE RIGHT!”
“IT’S HIM IT’S HIM IT’S HIM! LAN CHANG WAS GOING AROUND TELLING
EVERYONE!”
The smarter ghosts were hastily smothering the mouths of those chattering ghosts,
however, Hua Cheng had no doubt heard. Xie Lian peeked up and saw Hua Cheng
cocking an eyebrow, watching him with an unreadable eye, as if trying to make sense of
what “get it up” had to do with Xie Lian. Originally, that was the excuse Xie Lian had
used when that female ghost had been clinging onto him, and even though he was
made fun of by the crowd at the time, he could face it like it was nothing. Yet now that it
had been thrusted in front of Hua Cheng, Xie Lian couldn’t endure it, wishing
desperately he could just choke himself to death with a mouthful of porridge.
“I…” Xie Lian started.
Hua Cheng seemed to be waiting patiently for him to continue, but how could something
like this possibly be explained? Was he really going to argue with a straight face that he
was not, in fact, impotent?
Xie Lian finished lamely, “…I’m full.”
That wasn’t a lie, he really was full, so he stood up immediately and hurried out of the
stall. Behind him, that crowd of ghosts carried their mountains of delicacies and exotic
dishes howling nonstop, “MY, MY LORD! YER NOT GONNA EAT ANYMORE?!”
Hua Cheng ran after him too but took a spare moment to look back and ordered again,
“Scram!”
That crowd of ghosts hastily scrammed again. Ahead, Xie Lian walked randomly, but
seeing that those ghosts and demons didn’t follow, he slowed his pace to wait for Hua
Cheng. It didn’t take long before Hua Cheng came forward with his hands clasped
behind him, speaking in a serious voice, “I hadn’t known gege has such an unspeakable
affliction?”
Xie Lian immediately cried, “I DON’T!”
Then he lamented woefully, “…San Lang.”
Hua Cheng nodded, “Very well. San Lang understands. I won’t speak another word on
the subject.”
He put on the face of one extremely good and obedient, but very obviously faking it. Xie
Lian remarked, “You’re so insincere.”
Hua Cheng laughed, “I promise, you will not find another person who is more sincere
than me in this world.”
Hearing that familiar response, Xie Lian laughed too.
A moment later, he asked in a sobering voice, “San Lang, do you know where Qiandeng
Temple is?”
———–
●[狐假虎威] ‘The Fox Assuming the Power of the Tiger’ - one who is weak
appearing to be strong only because they’re next to someone powerful.
●The Chinese have a very strict hierarchy by age, and addressing another by a
title older than one’s own generation is meant as a form of respect since one is
lowering one’s own status. The ghosts here are saying whatever in order to
please Hua Cheng and his friend, it has nothing to do with Hua Cheng’s actual
age.
Conversely, Qi Rong addressing himself as ‘This ancestor’ is him shamelessly
raising his own self importance.
———-
Ch.97: To Compose in Nuit Blanche; Fragrance Added by Red Sleeves*
Xie Lian actually already kind of knew the answer to this question. However, Hua
Cheng’s reaction was largely different than what he expected.
After a moment of silence, Hua Cheng suddenly blurted, “I’m sorry.”
“What?” Xie Lian was confused.
At first he had thought if ‘Qiandeng Temple’ wasn’t some kind of a joke, then the one
who would have the most connection to it could only be Hua Cheng. But no matter how
off he might be with his guess, there was no reason for Hua Cheng to apologize. Hua
Cheng didn’t respond, and only gestured for him to keep walking onwards with him, and
so Xie Lian followed his lead. The two walked for a while, and after making a turn, the
sight before him opened to a broad horizon; a bedazzling, transcendent temple quietly
appeared before Xie Lian’s eyes.
In an instant, his breathing stopped.
All around was the smoky dark and vivid crimson scenery of the ghost realm, yet
surrounded by such an ominous backdrop stood that temple, beautiful beyond words, its
thousands of lights enchanting like that of paradise.
That a temple with brilliance and enlightenment as its core would sit within the rowdy,
chaotic pandemonium the likes of Ghost City, it was opposingly conspicuous yet
awesome. The second it’s been seen it would leave an unerasable deep impression. It
took a while before Xie Lian could speak, “…This…”
The two stood before the temple, and Xie Lian raised his head to look. Hua Cheng also
lifted his head slightly and explained, “It was the Mid Autumn Festival a few days ago,
and I figured gege would probably join them in their annual boring games, so I set this
place up to give gege some amusement while attending the banquet, make things
interesting.”
“…”
His way of “make things interesting” was rather too shocking. For the sake of Xie Lian’s
“amusement”, he built a temple and raised three thousand Blessings Lanterns of
Everlasting Light!
Hua Cheng lowered his head, fixed his sleeves, then added, “I hadn’t wanted you to
know because I set this up on a whim. I built gege’s temple in such a chaotic place, pray
gege isn’t offended.”
Xie Lian immediately shook his head. Hua Cheng actually thought he was giving Xie
Lian trouble, so he didn’t want him to know. Xie Lian really didn’t know what to say. At
this point, to say his thanks again would fall flat, thus, Xie Lian steadied himself, sucked
in a deep breath, and proceeded to admire this ‘Qiandeng Temple’ attentively. A
moment later, he inclined his head and asked, “This temple is gloriously magnificent, the
artistry and craftsmanship in its build is divine; it couldn’t have been constructed in mere
days. San Lang, you didn’t just build this recently, did you?”
Hua Cheng smiled, “Of course not. Gege has a good eye, this was built a long time ago.
I never found a use for it, so I had it hidden, and there’s been no one who have been
allowed in before. I’ll have to thank gege for finally giving it a purpose, and have it see
the light of day.”
Hearing this, Xie Lian let out a breath of relief.
If it was built a long time ago but never had a use and had other intents at the
beginning, then it was only adopted out of convenience. If Hua Cheng really had
constructed a temple just for him, he would feel even more uncomfortable. Of course,
with Hua Cheng’s personality, it could very well have been built out of pure
entertainment. Although Xie Lian was really curious as to why Hua Cheng would
construct a building that was so completely different than the rest of the Ghost City, still
Xie Lian held back the impulse to ask. It wasn’t a good habit to pry too much; who
knows if one was to step on a mine?
“Want to go in and take a look?” Hua Cheng asked.
“Of course.” Xie Lian answered cheerfully.
Side by side, the two entered the temple leisurely, strolling through the path paved by
jaded stones. Looking around, the interior of the temple was wide and open, but it didn’t
have a divine statue nor the cushions used for worshippers to kneel. Hua Cheng spoke
up, “This was built in a hurry, so if there’s anything amiss, pray gege won’t mind.”
Xie Lian grinned, “Not at all. I think this is very nice. Very, very nice. It’s good that there
isn’t an idol or any cushions, best if there won’t ever be any. But, how come there’s no
establishment plaque either?”
This wasn’t a criticizing question; only, within the temple even the jaded stones that
paved the paths had been delicately engraved the words ‘Qiandeng Temple’, and only
the establishment plaque above the entrance was missing, so naturally it couldn’t just
be a simple overlook, which was why Xie Lian was curious.
Hua Cheng chuckled, “It couldn’t be helped. There’s not really anyone here who can
write. Look at the crowd earlier, it’d already be impressive if they could recognize letters.
Does gege like any particular calligraphy professors? I’ll invite them over to help
compose for the plaque. Or, the best solution in my opinion, is if gege yourself should
draw up a sign, and hang it here at the Qiandeng Temple. That’d be more than
amazing.”
As he spoke, he pointed to the altar in the great hall. That jaded bureau was
exceedingly long and wide; orderly decorated upon it were various offerings, an incense
burner, and there were even brushes, inkwells, and paper; a refreshing flavour of
scholarship. The two approached and Xie Lian said, “Then how about San Lang
compose one for me?”
Hearing this, Hua Cheng’s eyes slightly widened, as if not expecting him to say that,
“Me?”
“Yea.” Xie Lian replied.
Hua Cheng pointed at himself, “You really want me to write?”
Xie Lian noticed his discomfort and asked, “San Lang, is there something wrong?”
Hua Cheng cocked an eyebrow and replied, “Nothing’s wrong, it’s just…”
Seeing that Xie Lian was waiting for him to answer, he clenched his fists and replied,
somewhat helplessly, “Alright. It’s just, I don’t write well.”
Now this was something new. Xie Lian really couldn’t imagine there was anything Hua
Cheng couldn’t do well. He smiled, “Oh? Really? Write something and show me?”
Hua Cheng asked again, “You really want me to write?”
Xie Lian took out a few sheets of blank paper, laid them out neatly upon the jaded
bureau and attentively flattened them, then he picked out a fine looking purple brush
and put it into his hand. “Come.”
Seeing that he had everything prepared, Hua Cheng said, “Alright, fine. But don’t
laugh.”
Xie Lian nodded, “But of course.”
Thus, Hua Cheng took the brush and started writing, assuming an air of seriousness.
Xie Lian watched, standing next to him, but the more he watched, the more his face
changed colours.
He really wanted to hold it in, but he couldn’t do it. Hua Cheng, while drawing madness,
writing recklessly on that paper, chided half warningly half jokingly, “Gege.”
Xie Lian immediately schooled his expression, “My bad.”
He didn’t want to, but what could he do? Hua Cheng’s writing was just too funny!!!
In all the history of crazed writing Xie Lian had ever seen, none even held a torch
halfway to Hua Cheng’s wild brushwork, and within the wildness carried a malevolent
whirlwind and the air of evil. If any calligraphy professors were to see this they’d
probably roll their eyes back and perish on the spot. It took a long time and it was with
immense difficulty before Xie Lian could make out “the sea”, “waters”, “the peak”,
“clouds” and other such devilish characters, and guessed Hua Cheng must be writing
“No water’s enough when you have crossed the sea;
No cloud is beautiful but that which crowns the peak*”
Thinking of how Hua Cheng dominated the ghost realm, feared by all of heavens and
hell, finally showed such an expression on something, and when he wrote it was such
verses, Xie Lian was going to burst his gut holding in his laughter. He picked up with
both hands the end product Hua Cheng completed with but one swing of his hand, and
forcibly pretended to be calm, “Good. It’s got such personality, a great sense of unity. It’s
got ‘style’.”
Hua Cheng placed the brush back, looking poised and proper, and squinted with a
smile, “Madness, you mean.”
Xie Lian pretended not to hear, and started commenting with an air of seriousness, “In
truth, it’s not hard to write well, it’s writing with ‘style’ that’s what’s difficult. If it was only
to look good, but looked exactly the same as thousands others, then it’d still be nothing
more than common. San Lang has a good foundation, the talent of profession, the force
to swallow mountains…” there were two other idioms that followed: Broken landscapes,
ruined armies. It couldn’t be helped; making up praises was also quite hard. Hua Cheng
stood there, and the more he listened the higher his brows raised. He asked doubtfully,
“Really?”
“When have I ever lied to San Lang?” Xie Lian said.
Hua Cheng calmly and lazily added a few incense blocks into the small golden vessel
on the side, and in the midst of fresh, faint fragrance, he conversed with an air of
nonchalance, “I do want to write well, but there’s no one to teach me, and I don’t know if
there are any tricks to it.”
He certainly asked the right person. Xie Lian hummed and replied, “There’s really no
trick to it, just…” Xie Lian contemplated, but felt that in the end he couldn’t just tell and
not show, so he shuffled closer, picking up the brush himself, and wrote down the last
two verses to the poem Hua Cheng had written. It was done all in one breath, and after
staring at it for a moment, he laughed with a sigh, “Much ashamed, I haven’t had much
chance to write in many years, so it’s not as good anymore.”
Hua Cheng stared at the four verses that looked as different as heaven and hell, the
characters with styles foreign of each other, especially the last two verses Xie Lian
added – “Crossing through blossoms the eye is lazy; Half fate in cultivation, half fate in
the one”. He put the verses together and read them over a few times, his eye twinkling
and unmoving. It was a moment before he looked up, “Teach me?”
“Well I daren’t lecture.” Xie Lian said. Thus, he began to tell Hua Cheng all about the
introductions to calligraphy without holding back, providing insights and personal
reflections of when he practiced calligraphy in his younger years.
The perfumed air wafted gently, the bright lights shimmering. Xie Lian lectured earnestly
and Hua Cheng listened intently. Within the great hall, they chattered lightly and
leisurely, their voices low, painting a picture of softness. After a while, Xie Lian
prompted, “Why don’t you try again?”
Hua Cheng “Oh”-ed and took the brush from his hand, and composed himself solemnly
before writing down another few characters. Xie Lian stood next to him and watched,
crossing his arms, and inclined his head, “Interesting. But…”
But, he still felt there was something wrong with the way Hua Cheng wrote. He
observed with a frown for a bit and suddenly realized just where it went wrong – Hua
Cheng wasn’t holding the brush right in the first place!
Even the way he held the brush was all over the place, of course it’d go wrong!
Xie Lian didn’t know whether to laugh or cry and stood closer, extending his hand to
correct him without thinking, “You’re holding it wrong, it’s like this…”
It was only when he reached out did he suddenly realize it might be inappropriate. The
two weren’t teacher and young disciple, so to instruct with hand over hand may be
overly familiar. However, since the hand was already out, there was no reason to pull
back; it’d only seem overly self-conscious otherwise. Thus, after some hesitation, Xie
Lian didn’t remove his hand. Then he thought, the last time at the Gambler’s Den, didn’t
Hua Cheng teach him how to roll dice with hands over hands like this too? Although Xie
Lian felt he learned absolutely nothing last time, and there was even a slight sense he’d
been deceived somehow, this time he was sincere in wanting to teach Hua Cheng
something. Thus, Xie Lian’s warm palm was at ease, pressing close against Hua
Cheng’s cold hand, gently holding it, and carried it to guide the brush across the paper,
whispering, “Like this…”
He could feel under his hand Hua Cheng’s brush growing wilder, so he exerted some
force to control it, correcting its path. However, it didn’t take long before it went even
more off course, resisting the control, so he could only grasp it tighter. The characters
drawn through the power of the two combined were crooked and twisted, unseemly and
ugly, and the more Xie Lian guided the more he felt something was off, and finally he
couldn’t help but gape, “Wha…”
As if his silly prank was a success, Hua Cheng snickered softly. The ink on the paper
was chaotically tyrannical, and Xie Lian was exasperated, “San Lang… don’t be like
this. Learn properly. Write properly.”
“Oh.” Hua Cheng acquiesced.
Just one look and it was obvious he was only pretending to be serious. Xie Lian shook
his head, feeling ridiculous.
Hua Cheng’s hand may be cold, but in his grasp, for some reason, it felt like a lump of
hot coal, and Xie Lian didn’t dare to hold on any tighter. Just then, Xie Lian’s eyes
suddenly swept to the edge of the altar, and he stopped.
When he looked over, at the corner of the jaded bureau, there was a tiny, lonesome
flower.
——–
●[紅袖添香] ‘Fragrance Added by Red Sleeves’ is a verse that described the
luxury of a happy marriage, as “red sleeves” symbolized a bride, and “adding
fragrance” depicted a scholar studying with the accompaniment of a beautiful
woman. MXTX was using the verse as a pun.
●离思
[曾經滄海難為水，除卻巫山不是雲
取次花叢懶回顧，半緣修道半緣君]
Ache of Separation (From my Wife)
No water’s enough when you have crossed the sea；
No cloud is beautiful but that which crowns the peak.
I pass by flowers that fail to attract poor me
Half for your sake and half for Taoism I seek.
(Translation from
http://www.chinesetimeschool.com/en-us/articles/chinese-poem-think-of-my-dear
-wife/)
This was a poem written by the Tang poet Yuan Zhen, expressing his undying
love and devotion to his dead wife. After seeing the vast sea (his wife), other
bodies of water could no longer compare; after removing the clouds and mists of
Mount Wu (his wife), no other landscapes could compare. Walking through
bushes of flowers (other women), his mind is only focused on his cultivation and
his wife.
The first two verses are currently used to express the nostalgia of having had
something good and beautiful, and the loneliness of having nothing else that can
compare thereafter.
——-
Ch.98: Bizarre Game Plan; Doors Open to the Fetus Ghost Thief
Xie Lian blinked. A fargone memory was like a dust-covered picture, and when he tried
to wipe it clean, it was still blurry. He loosened his hand and picked up that flower,
solemn and wordless. Hua Cheng put down the brush too, and quietly grinded the ink,
“What is it?”
“…” Xie Lian smiled, “Nothing. Just, this flower is refreshing, I’ve always liked it.”
It wasn’t rare to see offerings of flowers in temples and palaces. Only, most would use
bright reds or purples, large bouquets of fresh flowers or handmade fake ones that
would never wilt. After a pause, Xie Lian said, “Could it be that ‘Crimson Rain Sought
Flower’ sought for this kind of flower?”
Hua Cheng smiled, “Gege has the premonition of gods.”
In between laughter, the two finally completed a set of composition together, and the
subject was still those four verses. Hua Cheng picked it up to admire it, looking very
pleased, “En. Pretty good. Frame it.”
Hearing him say “pretty good” Xie Lian “eh”-ed. When he heard “frame it”, Xie Lian
“eh”-ed again. “You’re not thinking of hanging it on the wall, are you?” If his deceased
teachers were to see Xie Lian’s involvement in such a set of composition, they’d
probably rise from the dead to haunt him as a zombie. However, Hua Cheng only
laughed, “No. I’m keeping it for myself. I’m not showing this to anyone.”
Just then, the two suddenly heard faint series of screaming from the outside:
“FIRE!”
“FIRE!”
“PARADISE MANOR IS ON FIRE!”
It was exceedingly quiet inside the main hall of Qiandeng temple, and since the two
both possessed stronger than normal senses, the moment they heard they instantly
looked at each other, and Xie Lian blurted, “Paradise Manor again?”
The words already left his lips before he realized it was silly to say “again”. Hua Cheng
didn’t seem worried, and unhurriedly put away the compositions, “No need to worry.
Gege just sit here and relax. I’ll be back shortly.”
As if Xie Lian could sit back and relax. “I’ll come with you!” He said, and hastily followed,
feeling a little bummed, ‘How come every time I come, Paradise Manor gets set on fire?’
His title of God of Misfortune was about to be ratified again. Although this time it had
nothing to do with him, but being sorry was practically a habit by now. The two of them
rushed back to Paradise Manor, and on the way the entire main street was heavy with
smoke, little ghosts and monsters screaming and howling as they ran back and forth
with buckets of water. When they saw Hua Cheng and Xie Lian arriving, they all called
out, “MY LORD! DON’CHA WORRY YER OL’ LORDSHIP, THE FIRE AIN’T BIG, IT’S
ALREADY PUT OUT!”
Hua Cheng didn’t show any response, but Xie Lian however, let out a breath of relief
and said gently, “Thank goodness! Thanks for everyone’s hard work.”
The little ghosts hadn’t expected any kind of gratitude, and the “thanks for your hard
work” came from the lord’s friend no less, so they all became excited with delight, “NOT
HARD! IT’S NOTHIN’ MAJOR!” “IT’S OUR DUTY!”
Only then did Xie Lian realize, for him to show gratitude was rather inappropriate
because he wasn’t the master of this establishment. However, since Hua Cheng himself
hadn’t said anything, if Xie Lian said something it shouldn’t be too horrible. He
reprimanded himself mentally and stopped worrying. The two entered Paradise Manor
and looked at where the arson started, and sure enough it was only a small area,
nothing more than the corner of an insignificant small house. No wonder the fire was
extinguished so fast.
Yet, after this was confirmed, Xie Lian became alarmed. He turned to Hua Cheng, “The
arsonist wasn’t trying to play an ignorant, gutsy prank, and this wasn’t for torching
anything either, more like a red herring, attracting everyone’s attention away.”
But, if that was the case, what was the distraction for?
In a flash, Xie Lian figured it out, “THAT FETUS SPIRIT!”
Before when they left Paradise Manor, even having walked a long way that fetus spirit
continued to wail and cry, the sound of its sobbing sharp to the ears, even calling for
mom at times. Yet now, that voice was gone!
The two then rushed to a side chamber outside the main hall of Paradise Manor to
check. When the two had left, Hua Cheng had casually placed the clay pot that
contained the fetus spirit on a desk, and before them, that clay pot was still there, but
when Xie Lian reached out and grabbed it, he immediately felt the weight was different;
it was too light. When he opened it, sure enough, there was nothing inside.
There was no way whatever was locked up within the clay pot could break that seal. Xie
Lian immediately said, “Someone let the fetus spirit loose.”
Hua Cheng however, didn’t look fussed at all, “It was stolen. That thing was injured in
the troop of butterflies and badly wounded. it couldn’t get far on its own.”
“Then that’s easy to take care of.” Xie Lian said, “San Lang, does your Paradise Manor
have guards that patrol the premises? See if they saw anyone suspicious.”
“There are none.” Hua Cheng said.
“…” Xie Lian blinked, “None?”
“Yea. There’s never been any.” Hua Cheng replied.
No wonder when he snuck around Paradise Manor last time there were no guards to be
seen. Xie Lian had once thought it was because they were hidden too well so he didn’t
notice, but he didn’t realize there actually weren’t any. Slightly stunned, he said, “You’re
that lax about Paradise Manor?”
“Gege, have you ever paid attention to the doors in Paradise Manor?” Hua Cheng
asked.
Xie Lian thought about it and replied, “No, I haven’t. Could it be there’s something
extraordinary about them?”
“Correct.” Hua Cheng said.
He pointed at the set of the doors to the side chamber and said, “If one is not the master
of this establishment, then those who take without permission what was originally inside
that didn’t belong to them, even just one item, they won’t be able to open the doors, and
they would be trapped inside the room.”
Xie Lian recalled the last time he came to Paradise Manor, and at the time he had
always opened doors with dice, and when he finally left, it was through the whirlwind
created by the Wind Master, raising the roof, and avoided leaving through the ‘doors’.
Those were all images of violence, and the more Xie Lian remembered the more he
thought he should stop thinking, feeling slightly ashamed. After a pause, he then asked,
“Then say if San Lang were to steal a spiritual device from me and kept it within
Paradise Manor, since I was the original owner of the device, can I not take it away?”
Hua Cheng raised his brows, “Of course not. Once it’s in my hands it’s mine. But, don’t
wrong me, gege, I would never steal any of your spiritual devices.”
Xie Lian cleared his throat, “Of course. I knew that. That’s why I said ‘if’. Besides… I
don’t really have any spiritual devices worth stealing anyway…”
Hua Cheng’s jokes ended there. He smiled then continued, “So, to steal something from
me without notice is impossible. Naturally, there’s no need for guards.”
Xie Lian’s first reaction was, the one who stole the fetus spirit didn’t leave through the
doors and employed a different method. But looking around, this side chamber’s roof
showed no damage, the floors looked pristine, and the walls were fine too, not a trace of
any break-ins. He couldn’t help but come with a more skin-crawling thought:
Could it be the one who stole the fetus spirit hadn’t left, and was still in this side
chamber?
Although there was nowhere in the side chamber to hide, still there were plenty of ways
in the world to go invisible. Maybe that thief was near them this very moment, watching
their every action quietly. Xie Lian looked around intently, vigilant of any odd movement
in the air. Yet whether if it was his eyes or his instincts, both told him that there was no
third person or ghosts. He might have to pursue a different train of thought. Just then,
Hua Cheng chuckled, “There’s no need for gege to be concerned. I have my own way of
finding the fetus spirit thief.”
He actually looked mighty confident. Xie Lian turned to him, and after musing for a
moment, Xie Lian became pleasantly optimistic too.
The two waited in silence. After a while, the sound of commotion came closer, and a
large group of ghosts, demons, and monsters all came pouring in, gathering outside the
side chamber like a flock of flappy birds, “My lord! What does your ol’ lordship desire,
calling us over?”
At minimum this crowd was close to a thousand in number, and had it not been for the
large courtyard and chambers of Paradise Manor, they might have not all fit. The one
who brought them was that masked man, and he reported to Hua Cheng, “My lord,
everyone who appeared on the streets today should all be here. The Ghost City is also
locked down, no one can leave.”
It was the same voice of that young man from the last time, and Xie Lian couldn’t help
but steal a glance at him. The ghosts cried, “My lord! Did ya catch the one who set the
fire?”
“They sayin’ somethin’ was stolen, even! They tired o’ livin’ or wanna die again or what!”
“SO INSOLENT! SETTIN’ FIRES AN’ STEALIN’ SHIT, THEY’D DARE MESS WIT’ THE
GREAT ANCESTOR! THERE’S NO WAY MY LORD WILL LET ’EM GO?!”
“…”
Although that crowd of ghosts weren’t talking about him, but as the one who set the
building on fire the last time, kidnapped someone, and was let go by Hua Cheng, Xie
Lian felt like he was pierced by countless arrows, and softly cleared his throat, feeling
more and more guilty. He peeked a look at Hua Cheng but coincidentally met eyes with
Hua Cheng who also swept an unreadable look over, and Xie Lian immediately dropped
his eyes. Then, he could hear Hua Cheng say flatly, “The one who stole the fetus spirit
can come forward yourself, don’t waste my time.”
The crowd was shaken. “Among us?”
“I thought it was something from the outside…”
“Who the hell is it, just go forward already!”
A moment later, the wave had calmed but no one came forward. Hua Cheng said, “Very
good. Brave as expected. Men on the left, women on the right, divide and line up.”
Although the demons and ghosts were puzzled, they didn’t dare to disobey Hua
Cheng’s word, and immediately did as told, forming two large groups. The male ghosts
squished on the left, their voices rough; the female ghosts were thus on the right, each
seductive and flirtatious. Hua Cheng and Xie Lian shared a look, then went directly to
the right side, walking through the female ghosts, tossing them looks, going through ten
with each sweep of their eyes. After many steps, when Xie Lian walked past a female
ghost, he paused slightly. This female ghost wore a long dress, her face heavy with
layers of white powder, terrifyingly pale, her real face indiscernible. However, that
exaggerated pretty face was somewhat familiar, and Xie Lian called out, “My lady Lan
Chang?”
That female ghost was taken aback, as if she was the one who just saw a ghost. Sure
enough, it was that female ghost Lan Chang who clung onto him on the streets of Ghost
City, fought with the boar butcher, laughed at his “can’t get erect” and spread that
around.
After shaking off her shock, she put her hands on her hips and raised her head, “What?
Yer the one who said ya can’t get it up! I didn’t wrong you! Ya gonna seek revenge an’
tell on me to my lord?”
Although the female ghosts were all a little nervous, but hearing her, they still giggled
softly. Hua Cheng walked over too, and even though his expression wasn’t readable,
that female ghost Lan Chang was still a little afraid, becoming demure and no longer
stirring anything up. Xie Lian said gently, “My lady can talk however she wants about a
joke like that. However, that fetus spirit has harmed many, its blood heavy, and it
shouldn’t be let loose, so please return it.”
Even with the heavy foundation on Lan Chang’s face it was still obvious her face
became paler. She backed up in a hurry, but since she was in a crowd of other female
ghosts, she didn’t get very far before she was caught, sealing her chance of escape,
and so she could only cry, “I DUNNO WHAT YER SAYIN’! WHAT FETUS SPIRIT?”
“Please return it.” Xie Lian beckoned.
“RETURN WHAT? I DUN HAVE IT! You accusin’ me of stealin’ from my lord’s house,
but everyone knows there’s no way anythin’ can be taken from my lord’s house.
Whatever we take we can’t take it out!”
The crowd of ghosts all agreed, yea, that’s right, they all knew, and even the boar
butcher was grumbling. Lan Chang added, “Paradise Manor on fire only jus’ happened.
I’ve been on the street and I never left. If I stole anything, I wouldn’t have the time to
hide it?” As she spoke she opened her arms, showing off her empty hands, and even
lifted her dress to prove she wasn’t hiding anything. However, Xie Lian pointed out, “My
lady, the last time I met you, it was freezing cold but you still dressed so lightly. Today,
the day is beautiful and yet you’re wearing a long dress? Why the sudden change? Or
are you hiding something?”
It was only after he brought it up did the ghosts realize, Lan Chang usually dressed
revealingly, and to have Xie Lian say ‘lightly’ was already very polite. On the streets
she’d almost be exposing her cleavage. However, today she was wearing a long dress,
covering her legs and waist completely, exceedingly strange. Besides, earlier when Hua
Cheng was taking Xie Lian around to stroll the Ghost City streets and the crowd of
ghosts were hollering, stuffing them with dishes, they didn’t see Lan Chang who loved
to show off and cuss the streets, passionately proclaiming “IT’S NOT ME, HE’S THE
ONE WHO CAN’T GET IT UP!”, and so they became agitated.
Xie Lian explained slowly, “You didn’t take what didn’t belong to you; you only took away
what was part of you. That fetus spirit is in your belly right this moment!”
If the fetus spirit thief had no other ways to leave and didn’t stick around in the side
chamber, then there could only be one explanation: that thief left the front doors openly.
If that fetus spirit was already born, then it would be a child, an independent person.
However, that fetus spirit was forcibly removed from its mother’s womb before it
reached term, therefore, if its mother stuffed it back into her belly, then naturally it’d
count as something that belonged to her. No, it should be said, that that fetus spirit was
no different than a piece of her flesh, a part of her body. After all, blood bond between a
mother and child was thick, and under the circumstances, they were but one body, so
that female ghost could naturally leave without harm, and exit Paradise Manor openly.
Therefore, the one who stole the fetus spirit must be a female ghost, as well as the
mother to that child. Locking down the Ghost City then bringing forth all the female
ghosts who appeared on the street before and after the fire to investigate would surely
lead them to the culprit. Thinking back, Hua Cheng must’ve thought of all this the
moment they entered the side chamber.
Suddenly, Lan Chang let out a loud scream, and grabbed her own belly in a mad fit.
———-
Ch.99: Bizarre Game Plan; Doors Open to the Fetus Ghost Thief 2
“My lady?” Xie Lian exclaimed.
Lan Chang’s face was white as a sheet and she couldn’t utter a single word. Suddenly,
it was like something in her belly exploded, and the abdomen that was flat before
swelled into a large ball, almost ripping that long dress part, and rolls of black smoke
were leaking out of the seams.
The female ghosts were loosening their hold but Lan Chang held on to her belly with a
death grip, yelling in alarm, “STOP MESSIN’ AROUND!”
It was that fetus spirit in her womb that was thrashing about. Hua Cheng said calmly,
“Gege, stand back.”
“It’s fine!” Xie Lian exclaimed.
Lan Chang fell to her knees on the ground, her face twisting with agony, “LISTEN TO
ME! BE GOOD! JUST BE GOOD!!! STOP MESSIN’ AROUND!!!”
“Lady Lan Chang, just let it out first.”
Lan Chang shook her head wildly, “NO! NONONO! I will keep him in my womb and
raise him well for sure, he won’t go out to harm anyone anymore! My lord, please I beg
you, don’t take my son away. I’ve searched for him for centuries! Don’t take my son
away! Don’t hand him to those scoundrels in the heavens!”
It seemed the ghosts and demons in the Ghost City were aware that Xie Lian was of the
heavenly realm after all. Lan Chang wailed and started rolling on the ground, holding
her abdomen, as if her belly no longer made part of her body and was instead its own
live creature, shrinking at times, swelling at times, and moved all around at times. The
black smoke was growing thicker; it must’ve regained some strength after having
recovered some in its mother’s womb, and was ready to start trouble again. The crowd
of female ghosts had broken up but went back to hold her down, yet they were
powerless, and all the other ghosts on the left clamoured, “WE GOT THIS!” and rushed
forward to push her down. It was pandemonium and Xie Lian clenched his fists,
shouting, “MY LADY LAN CHANG! THE POWER OF THE FETUS IN YOUR BELLY IS
MUCH STRONGER THAN YOURS, IT CAN HURT YOU BUT YOU COULDN’T BEAR
TO HURT IT, YOU CAN’T DO ANYTHING! IT WILL SUCK YOU DRY SOONER OR
LATER, LET IT OUT NOW!”
If Lan Chang refused to let go of the thing hidden in her belly herself, she was going to
be sucked dry and ripped apart by that cruel and violent fetus spirit sooner or later,
which would leave Xie Lian no choice but to personally cut it out himself. Although it
might be better than watching her being ripped apart by her own son, but unless there
was really no other way, it really wasn’t something he wanted to do. He didn’t want to do
it, and he certainly wouldn’t want Hua Cheng to do it for him. However, this female ghost
Lan Chang was stubborn as a mule, and even as she wailed in agony she refused to let
that fetus spirit out. This couldn’t go on for much longer, so Xie Lian would rather do it
himself. He gritted his teeth and cried, “EXCUSE MY IMPOSITION!”
However, when he his hand reached for Fang Xin’s hilt, Hua Cheng immediately held
him down, telling him with a serious voice, “No need.” At the same time, a flash of
golden light suddenly erupted from the centre of her abdomen, its rays stabbing at that
crowd of ghosts and monsters and they all screamed, fleeing to give her room, “WHAT
THE SHIT!?”
Xie Lian fixed his eyes on it, and when that golden light died down, the fetus spirit that
was desperate to rush out seemed to be fettered by something, and Lan Chang’s
abdomen flatten down to its normal form. The thing that fettered it was a belt on her
waist.
That belt looked normal and indistinct, but when Xie Lian took a good look, he was
astonished, “…Why would something like this be on you?”
Even if its colour had faded from wash, Xie Lian could tell that that belt was something
that belonged to the heavens.
There were many objects in heaven that were artful spiritual devices. Thus, only in dire
circumstances would they show themselves to protect their masters in a moment of
urgency. Also, even if the embroidered patterns on it was heavily rubbed off and
damaged, Xie Lian could still determine that it must be the ‘Golden Belt’ that only
heavenly officials could possess.
Looking at its make, it was also from one of the Upper Court!
In the heavenly realm, to gift a Golden Belt was a trendy act of elegance, and it
possessed a special meaning. If a male official was to gift his belt to another, it was a
gesture of affection, and there was no need to further explain what the ‘special meaning’
would be. Thus, something like a belt would of course not be easily given away, and not
so easily lost either. Xie Lian gaped, “My lady, could it be, your child…”
He trailed off as he suddenly remembered, that no matter if this was the lair of evil, to
inquire such personal details of a woman in public wasn’t a courteous thing to do, so he
immediately cut himself off. Lan Chang instantly cried, “NO!”
‘I haven’t even said anything, what are you saying “no” to?’ Xie Lian wondered.
He asked instead, “Did you depend on this Golden Belt to support yourself throughout
the past seven, eight hundred years?”
Hearing this, all the female ghosts were stunned, “…HOLY SHIT LAN CHANG, YER
THAT OLD?!”
“DIDN’CHA ALWAYS SAY YER ONLY THREE HUNDRED SUMTHIN’?”
“NO, SHE’S EVEN SAID SHE WAS TWO HUNDRED BEFORE!! YA FALSIFYIN’ YER
AGE!!!”
That fetus spirit had about seven to eight hundred years of cultivation, then its mother
would naturally be around that age too. However, that female ghost Lan Chang didn’t
possess that heavy of a grudge, so to be able to stay in the corporeal world for so long
as a normal ghost the Golden Belt with such immense spiritual powers must’ve helped
her out a great deal. If the father of that fetus spirit was a heavenly official, then it made
sense for it to be so vicious.
A heavenly official having had an affair with a mortal woman, who knows if he ended up
abandoning or neglecting her, but that woman met a violent end, her baby forcibly
removed from her womb. Now both mother and son had become of the ghost realm,
and that fetus could very well have murdered countless others. No matter what, this
affair was no less serious than the affair with Xuan Ji, and it even seemed rather similar.
As for how to deal with this, Xie Lian had already decided. He immediately turned to
Hua Cheng and said, “San Lang, this lady…”
No need for him to say more, Hua Cheng said, “Do what you must. No need to ask me.”
“Hn.” Xie Lian acquiesced softly.
Once receiving permission, he turned to Lan Chang. Just then, all the ghosts were
demanding, “LAN CHANG LAN CHANG, WHO’S THE DAD TO YER BABY???”
“WHAT AN OUTRAGE! DID HE ONLY CARE FOR KILLING BUT NOT BURIAL? HE
ONLY CARED TO KNOCK YA UP BUT NOT RAISE THE KID?”
“JUST WHO IS IT? YA GOTTA AVENGE YASELF!”
Lan Chang gritted her teeth and glared at Xie Lian, “…Who else can it be?”
She hadn’t said the name but Xie Lian understood, “Come to the Heavenly Court with
me.”
“NO!!!” Lan Chang immediately shouted.
Of course it was useless for her to say no; willing or not Xie Lian must take her away.
Xie Lian hardened his expression and said solemnly, “This fetus spirit is exceedingly
violent; who knows how much blood is on its hands. The case has become too
convoluted, you can’t protect it. This must be confronted and reported to the Heavenly
Court. If that heavenly official is an honest one, or if there was some kind of
misunderstanding between you, then we can have you and your child be recognized,
and have the matter with the child dealt with. If that heavenly official has wronged you or
did something even worse, then there’s even more reason for you to demand justice.
No matter what, this fetus spirit is your son, but also his son. How can anyone else
interfere if the father is ignorant of this affair?”
The ghosts all thought his speech made sense. Also, if they let Lan Chang take her son
to cause a riot in the heavens, then how exciting would that be? The bigger the chaos
the better, even! So they all urged, “Yea, Lan Chang, what are you afraid of?! Go settle
yer score with that guy!”
“If he won’t recognize you we’ll burn down his temples!”
Xie Lian turned to Hua Cheng, “I will make a trip up to the Heavenly Court this instant
and report this affair at once.”
Lan Chang however, was still objecting but knew she couldn’t stop him. After snapping
back from her shock, she suddenly bowed down to Hua Cheng and said, “My lord,
thank you for your kindness and grace in sheltering me!”
Xie Lian was taken aback, and she continued, “Lan Chang setting fires to Paradise
Manor was out of desperation, and broke the rules of Ghost City, I am ever so sorry!
Pray my lord won’t hold it against me.”
She had always been a sauntering shrew, but when she opened her mouth now, it was
as if she was a different person, making many of the demons and monsters who were
familiar with her watch in shock. Hua Cheng however, still appeared indifferent and
turned to Xie Lian, “Gege came by in too much of a hurry this time. I’ll wait for you to
come down again and host you properly next time.”
Xie Lian nodded then took Lan Chang and rushed straight to the heavens.
As he walked down the main streets of the Heavenly Court, he announced in the
spiritual communication array, “Everyone! Please do make way to the Great Martial Hall.
There’s something that needs to be discussed.” He exited the array the moment he was
done, and didn’t waste any time, bringing Lan Chang to the Great Martial Hall. Due to
the fact that Lan Chang was a female ghost and couldn’t enter the golden pavilion, Xie
Lian waited outside with her for a moment until Jun Wu himself arrived and gave
permission before Lan Chang was allowed in.
It didn’t take long before all the heavenly officials present in the Heavenly Court made
their way to the hall, and when they saw that crude female ghost in heavy makeup who
stood clashingly next to Xie Lian, they were all bewildered. A black clad heavenly official
strolled into the hall, and when he saw what was in the centre of the hall he paused for
a moment. It was Mu Qing. Lan Chang also glanced at him and immediately lowered
her head, her lips quivering. Mu Qing however, didn’t show any reaction, and only asked
plainly, “Your Highness, who is that woman?”
Hearing the word “Your Highness”, Lan Chang’s face changed and looked at Xie Lian,
as if remembering something, but wasn’t too sure. Just then, both the Wind and Water
Masters arrived too, a pair of brothers who looked quite similar to each other, each with
their own fans fanning gently, their white robes fluttering, painting a beautiful picture. Shi
Qingxuan fanned as he spoke, “Yea, Temple Master. Why did you bring up a female
ghost today?”
Xie Lian was puzzled, “Temple Master?” What Temple Master? Of Puqi Shrine? Why
the sudden address? Then he realized, Shi Qingxuan probably meant ‘Temple Master of
Qiandeng Temple’!
He didn’t know how to acknowledge the title and could only pretend he didn’t hear. Shi
Qingxuan however, was cheerfully pleased; he greeted around then turned to the ghost,
“Eh? This female ghost jiejie has something in her belly??? Why do I feel it’s…”
He said as he approached, looking like he wanted to touch. Shi Wudu snapped his fan
shut and shouted, “Qingxuan!”
Shi Qingxuan’s hand instantly shrank back, and he tried to justify himself, “I just thought
there was an aura of evil, and wanted to see if there’s something dangerous…”
Shi Wudu admonished, “You’re a man, and a heavenly official. This is the Great Martial
Hall, how can you do something so disgraceful? Don’t turn into a woman either! Even in
a woman’s form it’s equally disgraceful, change back right this instant!”
Ling Wen shook his head, folded a stack of documents and reports under his arm and
approached to place his hand on Lan Chang’s belly. After a moment of pause, he
dropped his hand and hummed, “What a vicious fetus spirit. How many hundreds of
years old?”
“About seven to eight hundred years.” Xie Lian answered.
He gave an account of the two times he met the fetus spirit, and how the fetus spirit led
to finding the female ghost after having harmed pregnant women. He didn’t bring up the
details of Hua Cheng and the Ghost City, and Lan Chang would naturally remain quiet
on the subject. After he finished, Xie Lian said, “And that was how it came to be. I don’t
know if that heavenly official is still in this world or still working, or if there’s some
misunderstanding in all this, whether if he knew? That’s why I brought this lady up
here.”
Feng Xin frowned, “If there wasn’t any misunderstanding and he knew about the mother
and child, to let them be without any communication is too irresponsible.”
Pei Ming crossed his arms and commented leisurely, “I completely agree with General
Nan Yang. This is too irresponsible. Don’t know which heavenly colleague this
discarded baggage belongs to but if he’s on duty he best come forward himself.”
Just as he finished, he felt countless eyes on him, and it was a blanket of silence inside
the Great Martial Hall.
After a moment, Pei Ming said, “…Do you all have some sort of misunderstanding of
me?”
“…” Shi Qingxuan stopped fanning his fan too and commented, “I don’t think it’s a
misunderstanding, more like we know you too well.”
Pei Ming immediately countered, “It’s not me!”
Everyone laughed dryly, and even Shi Wudu and Ling Wen didn’t look like they were
convinced. Pei Ming was growing frustrated and supported his temple, explaining with
an earnest voice, “Um… I did have some flings with women of the ghost realm before,
but I really don’t recognize this woman.”
If those words were taken seriously, it was believable. How could the man himself not
know who he had a past with? Pei Ming’s promiscuity might have been criticized by
many, but he had never denied any affairs, and never denounced anything he’d done; it
wasn’t like he couldn’t afford it. The women who had an affair with him, unless they
were like Xuan Ji who no longer wanted to follow him, they were all at least guaranteed
a life of riches and care, soaking in wealth and sweetness. If this female ghost truly had
a fleeting affair with Pei Ming whilst alive, she shouldn’t have suffered having her womb
ripped open, her son robbed, and become a vicious ghost.
Besides, Pei Ming had high standards when it came to women. Those who he flirted
with were extraordinary in appearance, and he’d also preferred beauties with a natural
look. As everyone could see in the hall, Lan Chang had such a heavy layer of makeup
on, her real face was indiscernible; her general looks, class, and behaviour were all far
different than the chosen lovers Pei Ming usually had, so when he claimed it wasn’t him,
everyone silently believed somewhat. Only, it was still just ‘silently’ and ‘somewhat’.
With such an occasion to see General Pei get checkmated, how fun was that? And so
they stood by and watched him argue with a smile, amused and entertained.
At first, Xie Lian also thought the father was more than likely to be Pei Ming; he had a
track record after all. But watching Pei Ming’s expression, it didn’t seem like he was
lying, so Xie Lian wasn’t so certain anymore. He recalled Hua Cheng saying that Pei
Ming wasn’t a shady man, that there wasn’t anything to be afraid of, so after some
contemplation, he added, “Before, the lady Lan Chang did ask back the question
ambiguously “who else can it be”, so I had also assumed. But, since General Pei denies
such claims, maybe there’s some misunderstanding. It can’t be the same person every
time after all, so why don’t we ask around…”
Unexpectedly, Lan Chang suddenly spoke up, “It’s not him.”
Xie Lian was taken aback and turned to her. Lan Chang repeated, “It’s not him.”
Ling Wen commented coolly, “What, so it’s not?”
Shi Wudu also politely commented, “So it actually isn’t.”
“…” Pei Ming turned to Shi Wudu and Ling Wen, “I already said it wasn’t. The two of you
are adding insult to injury. Just you wait.”
The heavenly officials were all disappointed, but then became even more excited. After
all, Pei Ming had always produced wanton scandals, so even if it was him, it wasn’t
anything new. If it wasn’t him, however, it meant quite likely, there was another male
official, present or not, who might be creating a ‘new wave’, so how could they not be
thrilled?
Earlier at the Ghost City, Lan Chang had hinted clearly that it was Pei Ming, but now
she was denying it. Xie Lian could feel something amiss but didn’t make a show of it. He
inquired, “Hm. Then who is it?”
Lan Chang stared at him, her eyes unmoving, “You.”
Xie Lian thought she wasn’t finished and asked, “What about me?”
“I said, that man, is you!” Lan Chang proclaimed.
———–
Ch.100: Mad Confrontation; Laughter of Ridicule Without Closure
If Lan Chang had said something to the likes of “The one who killed me was you” it still
wouldn’t be as startlingly a bolt from the blue as this proclamation.
Xie Lian was practically knocked out by her thunderbolt. “ME?!”
Upon the throne, even Jun Wu’s hand that was supporting his temple seemed to have
slipped. The heavenly officials were all shocked into silence, then immediately turned
towards him, and Jun Wu’s hand righted itself, continuing to appear sombre with his
hand on his head. The officials then looked to Xie Lian in unison.
Was this it? The third banishment to come before the eyes of all?!
Xie Lian could only feel his entire mind numb and shaking, and forced himself to
swallow back that habitually used “I can’t get erect” that almost escaped through his
teeth.
That was only a casual excuse, not appropriate to be used in circumstances like these.
Besides, there were already vulgar commentary that passed around in private in the
Upper Court in regards to various martial gods and their attitudes towards women:
When Feng Xin saw women he’d stay respectfully far away; Lang Qianqiu blushed the
moment he saw women; Mu Qing refused to see ugly women; when Pei Su saw women
he’d be expressionless but who knows what he’s actually thinking; Quan Yizhen didn’t
even have women on his mind; and Pei Ming’s mind was all women. If Xie Lian made
his excuses now, no doubt his name would be added to the list.
Xie Lian said earnestly, “My lady Lan Chang, please calm down. There’s definitely no
such possibility.”
Lan Chang’s eyes were bulged bigger than bells, “Yes, there is. It’s you, the Crown
Prince of Xianle!”
“…”
Even though the timing of when this woman died was after his ascension and could
maybe match up, but wouldn’t he know better than anyone whether if he’d met her
before? In between all the whispering around, Xie Lian became solemn and said sternly,
“My lady, I may not be a saint, but I still know of a faithful heart. If I don’t love someone,
I will never cross any lines with that person. If I do, then even if I must beg and collect
junk, busk and perform on the streets to feed my family, I will still never allow that
person to suffer any bit of grievances. You are in the Great Martial Palace, do not speak
falsehoods.”
Shi Qingxuan piped up too, “If it really was his highness who committed such a deed,
why would he bring this female ghost jiejie up to the heavens to confront anyone? And
why is it only now that this lady Lan Chang recognized him? Just thinking about it
makes no sense.”
It was easy to see it didn’t make sense. Yet, with such a show, no one cared if it made
no sense. The crowd maintained a reserved attitude, and there was even an official who
blindly guessed, “Maybe it was like this: perhaps His Highness lost his memory so he
doesn’t remember the things he’s done?”
“Honestly, I think it’s more believable that he’s bold enough to think maybe after eight
hundred years no one would recognize him.”
Xie Lian was speechless and cautioned the crowd, “To prove something impossible by
fabricating something even more inconceivable is a dangerous path to go down, my
lords.”
On the side, Feng Xin looked like he wanted to say something, but looking like he
couldn’t make up his mind, he paused, and in the end remained silent. Jun Wu cleared
his throat and questioned, “Xian Le, how many Golden Belts did you have in your
possession in the past?”
Xie Lian covered his forehead with his hand, “…Too many. At least ten…”
Mu Qing answered flatly, “Over forty, each with different embroidery and patterns.”
It was only when the words left his lips did he realize it was improper and shut up,
because there were already people who instantly remembered that Mu Qing used to be
Xie Lian’s personal attendant, and took care of his daily living, which was how he had
known such details. Many of the officials couldn’t help but think, just Golden Belts alone
and there were over forty, this Highness the Crown Prince really lived an extraordinarily
luxurious life. Not just the others, even Xie Lian himself when thinking back felt rather
embarrassed. Back then, he’d change into a different extravagant attire everyday, and
his belts changed each time, matching with whatever outfit he had on, unlike now,
where in an entire year he’d only have the three sets of clothing to wear over and over
again. Those three sets all looked exactly the same too, and with just one look people
must think him so poor he’d only have one set of clothes to wear. Jun Wu asked, “And
where are they now, do you remember?”
Xie Lian and Feng Xin both “eh”-ed silently.
Xie Lian rubbed his forehead, “Ahem, not really. They’re things from eight hundred
years ago after all. I’ve long forgotten where they’ve gone.”
Not just because they were tossed out, but the main reason was because he and Feng
Xin often pawned items off whenever things got tight. Too much were pawned away and
whether if there were any belts left he really couldn’t remember. Feng Xin didn’t have
the heart to discuss this subject but still said, “To be able to obtain that Golden Belt, it
must’ve been given by someone else or maybe picked up somewhere.”
Jun Wu hadn’t actually expected Xie Lian to remember either and said, “Xian Le, I
remember that your cultivation method demanded a body of purity lest your spiritual
power be greatly damaged.”
“Yes.” Xie Lian said.
Shi Qingxuan piped up again, “Well. Just by looking at His Highness I can tell he
must’ve cultivated such a path, so I was right. If that’s the case, nevermind knocking
anyone up, I bet he’s never even held anyone’s hands.”
Xie Lian was about to say “that’s right”, but in his mind, suddenly, there was a pale
white, slender hand, cool as jade, reflected upon a bright red wedding veil, its third
finger knotted with a thin red thread. The “that’s right” got stuck in his throat, no longer
able to roll out. Everyone in the hall was staring at him intently, and with just one look it
was obvious that this stump meant “that’s not true”!
However, “never held hands” was too low of a standard, and even if hands were held it
wasn’t a big deal. Shi Qingxuan immediately added, “Even if he’s held hands, he
must’ve never kissed anyone before.”
Xie Lian wanted to say “that’s right” again, but this time, before his eyes suddenly
floated streams after streams of crystal like air bubbles, the translucent beads
dispersing. Then, there was an exceptionally handsome face with eyes closed, a small
widow’s peak on top of that shapely forehead, beautiful to behold.
This time, not only did not a single word get squeezed out, his entire face flushed a
bright red.
“…”
“…”
“…”
Instantly every heavenly official in the hall understood, and dry coughs sounded all
around. Shi Qingxuan was starting to regret saying anything, knocking his fan over his
own head once, and secretly passed a message to Xie Lian through their private
communication array, “Sorry about that, Your Highness. I only wanted to convince
everyone that you’re really of the innocent sort, but I hadn’t realized you weren’t. So
you’ve had such experiences, I really couldn’t tell!”
That “I really couldn’t tell” shattered Xie Lian’s will. He choked out with difficulty, “Don’t
say anymore. That was, an accident…”
Jun Wu’s hand folded into a fist and pressed it against his lips, clearing his throat loudly,
“Very good. You haven’t violated your vows in these years, correct?”
Xie Lian finally let out a breath of relief, “Yes.”
“Then that’ll be easy.” Jun Wu said. “I have a sword here named ‘Yan Zhen’* and it
possesses a particular ability. Should the blood of a virgin flow upon it, it shall not be
stained but become brighter as it is washed. Take a drop of your blood and drip upon it,
and we shall see the truth.”
Although everyone knew for years that Jun Wu had the hobby of collecting rare and
strange swords, but still all the heavenly officials thought in their minds, ‘Why does my
lord have all those messed up swords? What’s even the use in collecting those…’
Xie Lian himself was feeling more and more confused by the situation and only wanted
to end it as soon as possible. Ling Wen brought forth that sensual “Yan Zhen” sword,
and immediately slid the blade across his hand. Countless eyes watched intently, and
Shi Qingxuan clapped, “GOOD. CASE CLOSED!”
Drops of blood slid past the blade, leaving not a trace as expected. The proof was as
solid as the mountains, and the crowd could only break up, “Ah, I see.” “Then who can it
be?” Their voices lacklustre, dripping with disappointment.
Ling Wen turned to Lan Chang politely, “My lady, please tell us honestly just who this
heavenly official is. The fetus spirit in your womb is unruly and your powers aren’t
strong, so only its blood bound father can calm and discipline it. I…”
Unexpectedly, before he finished, Lan Chang pointed at Ling Wen and cried, “YOU!
THAT MAN IS YOU!”
“…”
Ling Wen: “???”
Ling Wen probably only just came from his temple to attend this meeting, and was in the
form of a man. To suddenly be pointed as the child’s father by Lan Chang, he was in
baffled shock. All the heavenly officials spat out. Pei Ming thus laughed, “Noble Jie, did
you finish administrating your reports and went to find a nice girl to knock up?
HAHAhahahahaha…”
This was probably what they called instant karma. Ling Wen shook his head and
gratefully declined Shi Wudu’s compassionate gesture of wanting to give his ‘good
nephew’ a red packet. His expression returned to normal and said, “I didn’t finish, and
I’ve no time.”
After such riotous back and forth, suspecting a number of officials, naturally no one
would believe Lan Chang anymore. Feng Xin couldn’t watch any longer and said
grumpily, “I get it. This female ghost is completely mad from the start, and is only here to
throw around blame, here to stir up trouble.”
Lan Chang cackled, sounding more and more like a crazy hag. If that should continue,
who knows who she’d accuse next, and the heavenly officials all changed their track,
“Yea, who knows, maybe that Golden Belt was stolen…:”
However, Lan Chang wouldn’t let anything go, putting her hands on her hips, she
screamed, “WHAT, TRY’NA GET AWAY? TOO LATE! NO WAY! IS IT YOU, IS IT YOU,
OR IS IT YOU!”
At this point it was obvious she was pointing fingers randomly, and even Ming Yi who
was standing in a corner silently, focusing on chewing whatever his cheeks were stuffed
with, was forcibly recognized as the father once. It was chaos in the great hall, and
everyone was fleeing, “TAKE HER AWAY, TAKE HER AWAY!” “DON’T LET HER
SPOUT ANYMORE NONSENSE!” “THIS JIEJIE ISN’T MY TYPE DON’T YOU
SLANDER ME!” “SO DISGRACEFUL!”
Jun Wu waved his hand and a junior official came in to take Lan Chang down. Even as
she was dragged out of the Great Martial Hall, she continued to scream and laugh
shrilly. The officials within the hall could finally calm their hearts and stand back in
position, their heads throbbing. At first everyone had thought the matter didn’t involve
them and was only there for a good show, but now they weren’t so sure whether if a
bucket of shit was going to get thrown over their heads, maybe even landing
themselves a new play in the mortal realm of a female ghost lover with gaudy makeup
and a ghost son who had murdered thousands. Feeling the danger, they all threw their
hands with abandon, “THERE’S NO WAY TO INVESTIGATE THIS MATTER!”
“I think she’s simply mad in the head. No need to investigate, it’d be a waste of time.
Just lock her up.”
“This can very well be the ghost realm causing trouble on purpose.”
Xie Lian didn’t agree, however, “Earlier on the way here, lady Lan Chang was quite
conscient, so why did she become this way the moment she entered the Great Martial
Hall? I’m afraid it’s not something that can be explained away with a simple “mad in the
head”.”
Thus, the crowd broke down to two sides, debating and arguing, but in the end the
conclusion was still that never-changing “We’ll see, we’ll see”. After the meeting was
dismissed, he bid farewell to Shi Qingxuan who promised he’d descend in a few days to
visit and play, and Xie Lian walked out of the Great Martial Hall, sighing mentally, “They
all say the Palace of Ling Wen isn’t efficient, but it can’t be helped. Every time we gather
to discuss anything, there’s so much noise and vaguity, and in the end the conclusions
are mostly nothing concrete, so how can the Palace of Ling Wen conduct anything?”
Just then, he sensed someone behind coming close, and he turned around to see it was
Feng Xin. Slightly taken aback, he hadn’t even greeted before Feng Xin hastily said
under his breath, “Watch out for Mu Qing.”
Xie Lian lowered his voice too, “Mu Qing?”
“When he entered the hall that female ghost reacted oddly, like she was afraid of him.”
Feng Xin said, “I don’t care for other people’s personal affairs, but in any case, you
watch yourself.” He hurried away after having his say. Xie Lian stood where he was and
waited til Feng Xin was far gone before he started again.
Even though it wasn’t noticeable in his expression, Xie Lian had actually been paying
close attention to every heavenly official’s minute expression as well as Lan Chang’s
reaction, and naturally he didn’t miss Mu Qing.
However, he didn’t think the father of that fetus spirit was likely to be Mu Qing. Xie Lian
couldn’t even imagine Mu Qing doing such a thing. To be real, Mu Qing was someone
who focused heart and mind on cultivation, improving his martial arts, and expanding
his territory, growing believers. Besides, they practiced the same cultivation method,
and would never touch women to ruin his cultivation. However, Mu Qing knew Lan
Chang; that was definitely not wrong. But with so little clues, Xie Lian shook his head
and descended from the Heavenly Court.
Although the fetus spirit was subdued, and Lang Ying and Guzi were settled in that
wealthy merchant’s abode with food and drink, there was nothing to worry about, still it
wasn’t good for him to be away for too long. If he took his time, without even a shadow
of him, that wealthy merchant would probably start grousing. Thus, the moment Xie Lian
descended he went straight for the town of Puqi. When that wealthy merchant saw him
he immediately clutched his hands and cried excitedly, “DAOZHANG! VENERABLE, A
VENERABLE! You slept in my mistress’ chambers last night and the doors were all
locked, yet this morning when we opened up, I couldn’t believe my eyes! You’d gone!
Strong! TOO STRONG! SO?! DID YOU CATCH THE MONSTER?”
“It’s caught, don’t worry. Everything’s fine now.” Xie Lian replied. “How are the two
children I brought with me?”
It was like that wealthy merchant received absolution, and he cried joyously, “Good,
they’re very good! They didn’t eat much at all! Daozhang, where’s your Qiandeng
Temple? I’m gonna go donate and return my gratitude! From today onwards, I will hang
my title as one of the worshippers in your temple, and let none fight me!”
Xie Lian didn’t know whether to laugh or cry, but no matter what he had grown new
worshippers, and one that’s rich too, so he was feeling rather glad. He lectured and
nagged to that wealthy merchant the ways of virtue, advising him not to be so
promiscuous in the future, to be more devoted and loving to his wife and family, then
finally, told him to visit Puqi Shrine on another day. Then, Xie Lian left with Lang Ying
and Guzi in tow.
The three returned to Puqi village and came before Puqi shrine. Xie Lian took that
please-donate-and-help-with-renovations sign and placed it in a more conspicuous spot,
secretly hoping that when that wealthy merchant came he could see it immediately, then
he pushed the doors in to enter the shrine. However, the moment he opened the door
he sensed something different with the place.
Walking into the shrine, sure enough, it was very different. The floors of the place had
been swept, the altar table and chairs had been wiped, dust had been cleared, and
even the trash in the corner had been cleaned out. It was like the Lady River Snail* had
paid a visit; everything was too clean.
Even Qi Rong was gone!
With his disappearance, it was like the entire place was spacious and bright, and even
the air had cleared somewhat. However, Guzi had carried in his arms the meat pies he
brought from town especially, and when he peeked in and didn’t see anyone, he was
anxious, “Big brother, where’s dad?”
Xie Lian immediately turned around. He hadn’t even left the doors before sensing a
dangerous, chilling light attacking, and instantly he pulled out Fang Xin to strike back.
CLANG! That chilling shine was struck out high into the air, falling miles out away.
He unsheathed as fast as lightning, and sheathed just as fast, returning Fang Xin to its
place. He let out a puff of breath but immediately became puzzled, ‘That’s it? How come
after that flash there’s no more follow-up moves?’
He turned to look at that chilling light; after he had struck it landed on the ground far
away, crookedly embedded into the earth. Looking at it from a far distance, that curved
silver arch was appearing more and more familiar. Xie Lian brought the two children
over, and when he saw clearly what it was, he immediately knelt down and exclaimed,
“It… Isn’t this E’ming? What’s wrong?”
Asking “what’s wrong” to a scimitar was an extremely odd sight. A few farmers who
walked past watched Xie Lian strangely, and elbowed each other secretly, “Look, that
man, he’s talking to a knife…” “Yea, I see it. That’s freaky, let’s get outta here…”
However, Xie Lian had to ask, because E’ming’s entire blade body, including the silver
contoured eye on the hilt were shaking violently, as if it had contracted a disease,
shaking harder by the minute. Xie Lian reached out in spite of himself and asked
worriedly, “Did I hurt you just now?”
———-
●[豔貞] ‘Yan Zhen’ translates to “Glamourous Virtue”.
●The Lady River Snail is a character from a folklore who once was saved by a
fisherman, and was kept in his house. When he was gone during the day she’d
transform into a girl and perform domestic duties. Once he found out they lived
happily ever after.