Chapter 81-88 - Book 2 End
Chapter 81-88 - Book 2 End
Chapter 81-88
Ch.81: Land of the Tender; Body of Gold Hard-Pressed Against Desire 2
Hearing him, that young soldier’s back flinched and froze. He turned around hesitantly
but didn’t dare go over. The situation at hand didn’t allow for any time wasted, and
seeing his hesitation, temper flared in Xie Lian’s chest but he forced it down, “Don’t be
scared, I won’t do anything to you. Get over here, quick!”
At last, that boy moved. He rushed close to Xie Lian’s side but came to an abrupt stop
two feet away. Xie Lian sucked in a breath silently and extended a hand towards him,
“…Help me up, take me away.”
That young soldier very carefully took that hand and grasped it. It was like a man on the
brink of death had finally found someone to rely on, and in an instant, Xie Lian’s entire
body slackened, and collapsed onto that boy.
Sunken deep in the Tender Fragrance, his body temperature was high, his body
burning. Yet, somehow that boy’s hands were equally as hot, and there was even slight
trembling.
Xie Lian leaned on him for a bit, saved some energy, then inhaled and pushed himself
to stand. He didn’t want to have someone smaller than him support his person entirely,
but with his help, they walked agonizingly for a few steps. Those flower demons called
out to him when they saw them move away, “No, Your Highness, don’t leave us! ‘He’ is
waiting for you on the road, so if you leave here, you’ll bump into ‘him’.”
‘He’?
“Who’s ‘he’?” Xie Lian demanded.
Speaking of that person, even the Land of the Tenders were slightly terrified and after
some hesitation, they mumbled, “‘He’ is ‘him’.”
The flowers all nodded to each other: “‘He’ is ‘him’. The one who brought us here.”
Even if they didn’t dare to speak of that person’s name or identity, that half-crying
half-smiling mask immediately appeared in Xie Lian’s mind. “So what you’re saying is if I
go back now, then the one who planted you all will hunt me down halfway on the road,
but if I stay here, he won’t come, correct?”
The flower demons were pleased and noisily nodded their heads. Fury burst into flames
in Xie Lian’s chest.
To trap him without killing him in this hateful situation, were they playing with him? Why
not simply just battle to the death?
He collected himself and forced down his irritation. It seemed the other party had no
intention of facing him head on, and only wanted to damage his spiritual power, make
him fall from grace, and lose followers.
Those flower demons may not be speaking the truth, and even if they told lies, if he
thought about it, even though this boy could support him or carry him on his back, they
still might not be able to return safely. Should the other party purposely throw some
women at them halfway down the road, the situation might get even worse or more
awkward.
After some consideration, Xie Lian exhaled a feverish breath and closed his eyes. “Take
me to the cave over there.”
That young soldier followed his instructions and helped him cross through that ground
piled with corpses. When they came before the cave, Xie Lian gasped in a low voice,
“Stop.”
That little soldier halted. Even just raising a hand Xie Lian shook uncontrollably,
“Where’s your sword?”
That boy supported him with his left arm and freed the right to take out his sword. Xie
Lian extended his hand, rolled up the sleeves and revealed a small part of his arm.
Under the white moonlight, it was smooth and pale like the softest white jade. That boy
suddenly held his breath but Xie Lian didn’t notice and ordered, still in a low voice, “Stab
me.”
The hand that held up the worn sword immediately dropped. Xie Lian prompted, “Don’t
worry, just stab, and stab deeply. I need to draw an array. There’s no other spiritual
devices on hand, so there needs to be blood.”
However, that young soldier protested, “Your Highness, please use my blood!” And he
raised his own arm and carved without holding back. Xie Lian hurriedly said, “No need!
Your blood…” But his words didn’t make it in time. A deep gash had already appeared
on that boy’s arm, fresh blood flowing from it. Xie Lian sighed, “Sigh… you…
nevermind.”
Xie Lian’s blood was an invaluable holy treasure, so how could a mortal’s blood
compare? But seeing how sincere this little soldier was, he couldn’t bear to tell him that
what he’d done was pointless. Instead, he said, “Thanks. But, we still need some of my
blood as a catalyst.” Thus, Xie Lian took that sword, and with trembling hands, it took
him a few tries before successfully stabbing into the centre of his arm. Crimson holy
blood streamed down his white arm and dripped into two curved lines before the cave,
drawing two barriers. Xie Lian also took care to mix in some of that boy’s blood, and
after completing the array, the dizziness grew stronger. “…Let’s go in.”
It was dark inside the cave and that boy took out a small flare torch from inside his
robes, ignited it, and the firelight brightened their surroundings with intense light.
That young soldier’s face was hidden behind the bandages, covering him completely,
yet Xie Lian’s discomposure was open for all to see. His cold sweat sticky, his hair
disheveled, his lips red and swollen. It was the cut created when he bit his lips to
sanctify his own sword earlier. The firelight stabbed at Xie Lian’s eyes, hurting them,
and the waves of heat were also torturing him, so Xie Lian demanded immediately,
“Don’t light the fire, kill it.”
That boy immediately threw the small flare torch on the ground and stepped to
extinguish it, and they sank into darkness once more. After being helped into the cave,
Xie Lian sat himself down and seated into a meditative position. A moment later, he
spoke labouriously, “I have a mission for you, can you do it?”
“…” That boy dropped to the ground kneeling, “I’m willing to risk my life to do my duty!”
Xie Lian painfully restrained his heavy breathing and said with a forced calm, “I drew
two sets of barriers in front of the cave. The outer barrier to to ensure nothing outside
gets in; the inner barrier is to prevent anyone inside from getting out.”
He gasped harshly for air silently and continued, “There’s enough space between the
two barriers for one person. Stay there and watch over the cave entrance. No matter
what you hear outside, don’t go out. Same logic; don’t come in no matter what sounds
you hear from me.”
That boy was slightly perplexed, “Your Highness, you’re staying here by yourself?”
“Yes.” Xie Lian said, “I don’t know what I’ll do… In any case, you can’t come in no
matter what.”
Under the circumstances, Xie Lian couldn’t leave. But waiting for reinforcements, Qi
Rong was probably still stumbling down the road, and just the trip back to the royal
capital would take a long while. Who knows when reinforcements would come. He could
only seal off this small area temporarily, set off wards, and figure out a way to treat that
Tender Fragrance. He rasped, “Fruits born of flower demons are powerful temptresses.
They’re most likely going to ripen soon…”
Just then, the fragrance in the air suddenly surged, cutting off his words. That gentle
affectious scent filled the air from the ground to the sky, and the flower demons let out
ecstatic, delicate cackling, trumpeting, “MY ROOT! MY ROOT IS HARD!”
“The fruits have ripened!”
Smelling that exceedingly sweet fragrance, Xie Lian could feel his heart beating faster,
and blood rushed to his brain. He gritted his teeth, “Hurry and go! Don’t breathe in that
scent, and if they get close, don’t be scared. Nothing can cross that blood line, but as
long as your feet remain inside the barrier you can strike them with your sword.”
That boy glanced outside, nodded with conviction and rushed out with the sword in
hand, stationing himself between the two blood lines by the entrance of the cave.
Outside the cave, in that field of corpses, bushes of flower shrubberies grew vividly in
colour. That briar field were all quivering as if something beneath was about to rupture
the ground. Soon, there was indeed something that broke out – it was the head of a
woman!
That ‘woman’s’ head sprouted from beneath the soil, breathed in the fresh air above
ground, and looked to be drunk with joy, her eyes squeezing shut into crescent lines.
Following immediately after was a round and smooth shoulder, and then an entire arm
crawled out.
The fruits of the Land of the Tender were formed under the whiskers of their roots.
When their fruits ripen, they shape into various forms of women.
The time of ripening had come, and countless naked women broke out from the earth.
They raised their arms to pluck those bright red blossoms from their heads and bathed
under the moonlight, stretching their limbs to their heart’s content. It was those little
flowers that emitted that fragrant scent, but now the ones secreting that sweet odour
were those enchanting women. They patted off the remaining mud on their bodies, fixed
their hair, and walked towards the cave, giggling seductively, “Your Highness, we’re
coming!”
That sweet fragrance also suffocatingly filled the interior of the cave, and Xie Lian sat in
the lotus position with his eyes closed, chanting the ethics sutra mentally. Yet, it had
little use; those flower demons called to him without shame, chirping familiar language
like baby, sweetheart, gege, didi*, all sorts of monikers, disturbing his mind, so Xie Lian
changed to reciting out loud: “Five sights cause blindness five sounds cause deafness
galloping hunts cause madness rare goods cause obstructions… calm over impatience
coldness over heat silence is the ultimate virtue… those who are kind will receive
kindness those who are unkind will receive unkindness…”* Xie Lian had not noticed at
all that the sutra he memorized without fault was recited all over the place.
Outside the cave, the flower demons clapped and laughed tauntingly, “My dear Crown
Prince, my sweetheart, my good Highness, you’re not a monk, why are you reciting
sutras – aiyoh!”
Suddenly there was shrieking all over, and it sounded like that young soldier wordlessly
became violently aggressive, chopping and slashing madly, chasing those flower
demons away as they cried, “Murder!”
Some yelled from far away: “YOU CURSED LITTLE BRAT, LITTLE DESTROYER OF
BEAUTY! NO TENDERNESS IN YOUR HEART AT ALL!”
“Scary, scary! Vicious at such an age! Imagine him full grown!”
Those flower demons were trying to squish themselves into the cave like starving
beasts, but they just couldn’t squeeze in. They didn’t notice the blood array on the
ground and had thought the blockage was all caused by that boy. After some
discussion, they gathered not too far away and called to him, “Little gege, why must you
block us from going in? It’s not like we’re going to do anything bad, we just want to have
a good time with His Highness!”
“Be good, little soldier, and don’t hinder us from doing His Highness some good.”
“That little didi is so mean. A shame that he’s so young, too tender. He probably doesn’t
even know what ‘doing good’ means!”
The flower demons fell over themselves over another round of mocking giggles, and Xie
Lian blinked open his eyes slightly only to see at the entrance of the cave stood that
black shadow, one of that boy who, with a sword in hand, was determined to never
move even in death. Suddenly, one of the flower demons said, “I say, little gege, don’t
stick yourself in there like a hard shaft, what are you planning? Why not come with me
over there to have some fun? What sorts do you fancy? Do you like my type?”
That young soldier still didn’t respond, and those flower demons thought in order to
enter the cave they must pass by him, so they all brought forth their tricks, coddling,
“What about me?”
“How about this? Do you fancy my sort?”
“Look at me, do you like this?”
Yet, from flirts at the beginning changing to complaints then to curses at the end, that
boy still only ignored them if they were far away, and struck at them if they were close.
Xie Lian knew that before Land of the Tenders emerged from the ground, they could
change their own shapes at will. He had wanted to warn the boy but due to his current
distressing predicament he daren’t open his mouth. Finally at last when those pressing
waves of heat passed did he gasp, “Don’t look at them…”
Just fighting against the hot blood rushing to his head already exhausted him, so Xie
Lian’s voice was terribly soft and low, but that young soldier instantly heard him and
cried in response, “YES SIR! Your Highness, how… how are you?”
“I’m fine.” Xie Lian said, “If things get too hard, shut your eyes, seal your nose and your
mouth…”
That young soldier hadn’t had a chance to answer when another flower demon
suddenly burst out laughing, “I KNOW! Little guy, I bet your favourite type must look like
this!?”
It sounded as if another new Land of the Tender had emerged. There was a sudden
dead silence that blanketed outside the cave. That young soldier also seemed to have
stopped breathing.
The next second, the crashing waves of laughter of those flower demons surged against
Xie Lian, drowning him.
They clapped and screeched, “AIYOOHH!! WHAT A HAND! WHAT A HAAANNNDDD!!”
“My GOD! How did you come up with this? IT’S THE BEST HAHAHAHAHAHAH…
LOOK! THAT BRAT IS COMPLETELY STUNNED! I BET IT’S LIKE THIS!”
“IT MUST BE LIKE THIS! AND HERE I THOUGHT THAT SHITTY BRAT IS A ROCK.
WHO KNEW WE WERE WRONG! SUCH BALLS AT SUCH AN AGE!”
“You win, we are nothing! How about it, little guy? Come quick and enjoy this sweet
delicious sight!”
“There won’t be another shop that serves this dish if you leave this land. If you don’t
seize your chance now, even if you dream for eight hundred years you still won’t be able
to have a taste! Or, do you want us to give you a hand? That state… heeheeheehee…”
That young soldier was thoroughly incensed, and his tone of voice was filled with frost,
“… YOU, ARE, SEEKING, DEATH!!”
At the same time, inside the cave Xie Lian was about to reach his limit.
His sight blurred and his ears drummed, he could no longer sit up straight. He collapsed
forward and barely held himself from the ground with his hands. But, this tumble
loosened his gritted teeth, and in that moment of delirium, a painful, wretched moan
escaped his lips.
———–
●Didi is the familiar address for little brother.
●Those are verses from the Ethics Sutra (Tao Te Ching, The Book of the Way of
Virtue) by Laozi. It’s a Chinese literary classic alongside Iching and also one of
the philosophical foundation text for Taoism.
———–
Ch.82: Land of the Tender; Body of Gold Hard-Pressed Against Desire 3
TW: Graphic Self Harm
That young soldier whipped around, “…YOUR HIGHNESS?”
With one hand supporting himself off the ground, Xie Lian used the other to cover his
mouth doggedly, his breathing erratic, his shoulders shaking. Just by listening to him
and seeing his silhouette, one would probably think he was sobbing.
Never in his life, before and after ascension, had Xie Lian experienced such a grueling
ordeal. This was much more arduous than the toughest trial at the Royal Holy Pavilion.
Strength of the arm supporting his weight drained, and his body keeled over to the side.
As he laid on the ground delirious and barely conscious, he saw that boy looked as if he
wanted to enter, and Xie Lian shouted, “DON’T COME IN! I SAID DON’T COME IN NO
MATTER WHAT YOU HEAR!!!”
That boy stopped in his step, and Xie Lian laboriously flipped onto his back, facing up,
and somehow regulated his breathing despite wave after waves of heat crashing
through every part of his body. The flower demons outside the cave heard him tossing
and turning, that fire burning intensely, and they clapped while laughing, “My good
highness, why be so hard on yourself! Today you’re refusing yourself a good time
because you’re scared of losing followers; tomorrow you’ll be scared to do other things
because you’d be scared of losing followers. How is that any way a heavenly official?
More like a prisoner hands tied by those devotees! It’s not worth it being a god like that.
You’re gonna lose your place sooner or later, so why not just enjoy yourself for now?
Things come and go, no need to mind the petty details!”
Veins popped on Xie Lian’s forehead and his temper lost control. “SHUT UP!!!” He
shouted, outraged.
The flower demons naturally weren’t afraid of the him right now, and they started
teasing that little soldier anew, “Little didi, don’t you think we’re right? Hahahaha…”
“Hee hee hee… aren’t you feeling miserable standing there?”
Cold sweat had already drenched his entire body. Feeling exceedingly hot and
bothered, Xie Lian violently tore at his robes, wanting even just a sliver of coolness. As
he ripped, he suddenly noticed: how come strength was returning to his arms? Although
that bit of power didn’t last long and left just as quickly, when he checked himself, sure
enough the numbness had passed, and energy was gradually increasing. Yet, Xie Lian’s
heart was dropping.
The effect of the Tender Fragrance was numbness at first followed by mania. The
numbness had passed, so in a moment, madness and passion would fill his veins.
Although he drew two lines of barriers at the entrance of the cave, the interior one
drawn especially to prevent his crazed self from going out, but once mania took over, he
was not certain whether if the barrier would be enough to stop him. This moment of
clarity was a rare blessing, and Xie Lian grabbed on to it with both hands, thinking
rapidly of ways to handle the situation.
Suddenly, a small realization came to him: The Tender Fragrance worked rapidly;
usually the moment blood rushed to the brain all control would be lost, so how had he
managed to stay afloat until now? Was there no other reason than his exceptional
steadiness of the mind?
Thinking of this, Xie Lian inhaled a long breath and inclined his head, then he called to
the silhouette of that boy by the cave’s entrance, still looking indecisive over entering.
“You… come in.”
Hearing his call, that young soldier appeared to want to run to his side immediately, but
after a few steps, he seemed to remember Xie Lian’s angry instruction of “Don’t come in
no matter what you hear”, and he hesitated. Xie Lian was also feeling woeful at
changing his mind so quickly, and he called again miserably, “Just come in here first.”
That boy stopped hesitating and rushed in.
The tunnel of that cave was long and narrow, the interior warm and humid. Darkness
filled the space, not even raised fingers could be seen, and that boy used Xie Lian’s
rasping breaths to find where he was. Xie Lian then instructed, “Put down your sword…
put it on the ground. Right next to me. Not too far away.”
“Yes sir!” That young soldier acknowledged and handed over his only defense and
placed it where Xie Lian could easily reach for it. Xie Lian then added, “Please help me
up.”
That boy half knelt next to him and extended both his arms to help support Xie Lian.
However, the moment his hands reached out, what he touched wasn’t fabric, but
feverish skin.
Those hands immediately shrank back. Xie Lian himself felt burnt by that boy’s hot
hands, and only then did he remember he tore off his upper robes earlier in the midst of
madness. Men naked from the waist up usually didn’t mean anything, except under the
current circumstances, it was a little more awkward. But there was no need to highlight
that awkwardness; they just need to do what they must. That boy seemed to realized it
too, and he didn’t wait for Xie Lian to say anything before he reached out again, circling
his arm around Xie Lian’s bare shoulders to help him up, then immediately let go. Xie
Lian leaned against the wall of the tunnel, his back pressed against the cool rocky wall
and felt some relief. Noticing that the other backed away a few steps, he hurriedly said,
“Wait, don’t go out yet!”
That young soldier heeded his every word, and immediately halted. “Cut off a lock of my
hair. I have need for it.” Xie Lian said.
That boy acknowledged the order and reached out again. However, nothing could be
seen clearly in the darkness, and Xie Lian’s long locks were cleanly tied behind his
back, so his first contact wasn’t Xie Lian’s hair, but instead he accidentally felt the skin
of Xie Lian’s chest, soft and supple with a sheen of glistening sweat. Xie Lian was
already in torment and that boy had touched somewhere sensitive. It was as if a jolt of
electricity shocked through his torso, spreading pleasure throughout his whole body,
and he moaned softly.
The two in the cave instantly froze.
The flower demons outside the cave were desperately trying to listen in so how could
they miss it? They giggled, “My gosh, what are they doing in there?”
“So embarrassing!”
“I daren’t listen!”
Listening to their teasing his suffering, Xie Lian gritted his teeth, “YOU–!”
That boy immediately dropped his hands at the sound of Xie Lian’s fury, afraid to make
any more contact. Obviously Xie Lian wasn’t furious at him; in his eyes that little soldier
was nothing more than a child. He softened his tone, thinking the boy was probably
scared of offending him, and said, “Don’t panic, continue. Don’t mind them.”
That boy croaked, “Yes sir.” But he did indeed seemed to be panicking, feeling
everywhere he shouldn’t, and every time he found he had touched the wrong place his
hands would shrink back. In the end he couldn’t but only trace his hands up Xie Lian’s
chest to find his hair, flaring unspeakable pleasure and agony in Xie Lian. Such misery,
Xie Lian longed to smash his head against the tunnel wall and just pass out for good.
Finally, that boy felt Xie Lian’s throbbing adam’s apple and sought behind the neck,
grasping a lock of hair. With only a few strands in his grip, he very carefully cut with the
sword and said instantly after, “Your Highness, it’s done!”
Another small bout of strength returned to Xie Lian just then, and he raised his hand,
“Give me your hand.”
That boy heeded, and from his hands, Xie Lian retrieved those long, thin strands and
tied them into a knot onto a random finger of that boy’s hand. That boy was baffled, and
he asked with a quivering voice, “Your Highness, what’s this?”
Xie Lian sighed, “The flower demon’s poison is about to enter second stage. I need to
borrow your sword. If anything wants to harm you later, just raise this hand and it can
protect you. Now, leave.”
A moment later, that young soldier returned to the entrance of the cave. Those flower
demons thus became rowdy again, “Out again?”
“Finally.”
“Blocking us outside like this while you went in yourself. Little buddy, you’re not very
nice!”
At that same time, Xie Lian could feel more strength surging through his limbs. He
sucked in a deep breath, grabbed the worn sword that young soldier left behind with his
right hand, steadied his spirit, raised the sword, and made a cut on his left arm.
In a flash, it was like the fog had lifted, and his senses refreshed.
He knew it!
Blood streamed down Xie Lian’s left arm, but it was like he had finally grasped a lifeline
in the midst of that chaos.
The fragrance of Land of the Tender could aggravate one’s temper and arouse deep,
slumbering urges. Typically the stronger the repressed urge, after taking in the
fragrance, the stronger the rebound. As for what Xie Lian repressed deep down, taking
‘lust’ away, there was only the urge to kill left.
This “Urge to Kill” couldn’t be referred to monsters or demons. He had slain much evil in
the past so it didn’t count as any sort of repression. The target to be killed must be
human or a god in order to inflict the sense of transgression. Before entering the cave,
Xie Lian cut himself in order to draw the arrays and so blood was spilt. It was somewhat
effective against the Tender Fragrance because injuring himself was also a form of
inflicting harm.
At the end of the day, ‘lust’ and ‘murder’ were both extremely aggressive desires, and
Xie Lian had even heard that some thought the nature of both were one and the same.
Then, using himself as proof, there was indeed an alternative method to pass the
current trial.
Sure of his own reasoning, Xie Lian cut another line on his left arm without hesitation,
and each cut brought more clarity to his mind. He was just rejoicing and didn’t realize
that the Tender Fragrance was stirring more evil within his body, and when that urge to
kill was satisfied, instantly, another wave of pleasure poured through his person.
That sudden surge of pleasure coursed through him from head to toe, easily breaking
the wall of defense he painstakingly built, and by the time Xie Lian had realized it, he
was already quietly moaning.
If it wasn’t only him inside the cave, Xie Lian wouldn’t be able to believe that sound
came from him. He shuddered violently and widened his eyes, thinking, ‘This method
should’ve worked, so why would this happen?’
He glanced at the sword and suddenly remembered: that young soldier had used it to
cut down the stems of those flowers, and had struck the humanoid flower demons. The
blade was covered in the sap of those Land of the Tenders. He used twenty percent of
his power to make the first cut on his arm, and the same relieving effect could only be
achieved if he used thirty percent of his power to cut. Wasn’t this no different than
drinking poison to quench thirst?
Madness must’ve gone to his head, otherwise he should’ve already noticed this. Xie
Lian cursed himself mentally, but since the act had already been done, he could only rip
off a piece of his left sleeve to wipe crazedly at the sword, then tear off his right sleeve
to stuff it in his own mouth, biting it down mulishly, and do his best to restrain himself.
The damned quiet moans continued to escape through his bit lips and gritted teeth
intermittently. However, voices echo within caves, and every small sound was amplified
and reverberated outwards. That boy heeded his instructions and covered his eyes,
using only his sense of hearing to work, and his ears became more sensitive, so there
was no reason he noticed nothing. Unable to hold back any longer, he asked with a
quivering voice, “Your Highness?”
To be in such an unspeakable state was the biggest shame of his life. Xie Lian could
hardly imagine what would happen should anyone see him now, and even submerged
in darkness he could not tolerate the thought. He yelled, “DON’T COME IN!!!”
However, that piece of cloth was still stuffed in his mouth so his command only sounded
like muffled whimpering, exceedingly pitiful and wretched. Hearing him, that young
soldier became even more agitated.
———-
●[斷髮/ 結髮夫妻] The traditional wedding ritual of spouses cutting off a lock of
their own hair, intertwining and tying them together symbolized “Til Death Do Us
Part”. Xie Lian cutting off a lock of his hair to tie around Hua Cheng’s finger might
be as inconsequential as Lan Wangji biting Wei Wuxian’s arm, but it’s a point of
interest anyway knowing MXTX, lol. (Obviously Hua Cheng thought more of it
than Xie Lian did since he tied the red string of fate on his finger later?)
———-
Ch.83: Land of the Tender; Body of Gold Hard-Pressed Against Desire 4
TW: Graphic Self Harm
Xie Lian’s left arm was bleeding profusely from the gash he created himself, but at the
end of the day, it was only self ‘harm’, not ‘murder’, and so the urge wasn’t fully fulfilled.
His mouth slackened and that stuffed piece of cloth fell from his lips. Xie Lian became
more aggressive, and stabbed his left leg. It was a deep cut; the sound of the blade
penetrating his flesh was clear. That young soldier couldn’t stand back anymore and ran
towards him. Hearing his hurried footsteps, Xie Lian backed away in terror. Even when
his back was pressed against the wall he continued to push backwards, “NONONO!
DON’T COME NEAR ME, DON’T…”
The second blood barrier by the entrance of the cave was drawn especially for Xie Lian
to bar himself, but it couldn’t bar that boy so he still had a chance to return to safety. But
the Tender Fragrance poison was about to enter second stage, and if that boy
approached, Xie Lian could very well end his life right then and there, and spare him no
chance of escape. He was terrified he’d kill that child by accident and could only avoid
him. That young soldier heard the terror in his voice and called anxiously, “Your
Highness…”
The urge to kill was boiling in his blood. He raised that worn sword with his shaking
hand, and a voice inside his head screamed, “I WON’T DIE, I WON’T DIE, I WON’T
DIE!!!”
The next moment, in a split second decision, the blade turned.
In the darkness, that young soldier could see a cold light flash by and he yelled, “YOUR
HIGHNESS!!!”
The sword had struck, and it penetrated Xie Lian’s own stomach, nailing himself dead
onto the ground!
A sharp pain exploded from his abdomen, spreading throughout his whole body,
dispersing the heat. Xie Lian’s hands were gripping tightly onto the hilt, his eyes bulging.
He choked a cough, a thin thread of blood flowed down from the side of his lips, his
breathing stagnated, and he stopped moving. That young soldier was dumbfounded,
and fell to his knees next to his body.
Just then, there were screeching and shrieking outside the cave: “WHO ARE YOU!”
The voices of the flower demons were delicate but shrill, and their shrieks piercing to
the ears. Yet, there was another who thundered louder, dominating over all of their cries:
“WHAT THE HELL!!!”
Hearing that angry roar, Xie Lian suddenly sucked in a breath anew.
Feng Xin!
Another muffled voice said, “It’s Land of the Tender. If you don’t want to get poisoned
then cover your face.”
That was of course the Mu Qing who already had his face covered. Feng Xin covered
his face but then seemed to have seen something, and muffled an angry shout, “IS
THAT… YOUR HIGHNESS? YOUR HIGHNESS?? FUCK! WHAT THE FUCK!! WHAT’S
THIS!”
Mu Qing also let out an “eh?” and noted, “What a disgraceful sight!” But his tone wasn’t
as angry as Feng Xin’s, more like the reaction of having heard someone utter a bad
joke. Xie Lian laid inside the cave and couldn’t hear what they were saying, but he could
guess that those flower demons probably showed their naked selves before them,
looking highly inappropriate. Feng Xin was cursing uproariously, “HURRY AND BURN
THEM! DON’T LET ANYONE ELSE SEE!”
Soon, there was a field of flames and the sound of burning. In that roaring fire, the
shrieks and curses of those flower demons gradually disappeared. “Make sure to burn
thoroughly. That fragrance from those flower demons is poisonous, if there are any
leftover seedlings they’ll come back.” Mu Qing said.
Xie Lian sucked in a breath, waited, then coughed weakly once, but the other two
immediately heard his voice and charged to the cave yelling, “YOUR HIGHNESS, ARE
YOU IN THERE?”
“…I’m here…” Xie Lian called.
Even though he tried to steady his voice, but it was still weaker than his normal self. The
two of them rushed over but was stopped by the barriers outside the cave’s entrance.
However, they were very familiar with the arrays drawn by Xie Lian and knew how to
break them. Feng Xin ignited a palm torch, walked a few steps, and before the deepest
of the cave was illuminated, he suddenly called, “Who’s there?”
Mu Qing was alarmed too, “Is there someone else in the cave?”
“Don’t worry. Just a little soldier.” Xie Lian said.
The two dropped their guards and entered. The bright firelight brightened the entire
cave with a warm orangey glow, and illuminated the Xie Lian who laid there on the
ground, his long hair strewn about, his robes shredded, and a long sword impaled
through his abdomen, nailing him to the ground.
The two were horrified by the sight. Feng Xing leaned over, “WHO DID THIS?!”
“Me.” Xie Lian replied.
Mu Qing was aghast, “What happened?”
Xie Lian shook his head, “I don’t want to talk about it. This only happened because
there was no other way. Hurry and free me from this.”
Mu Qing approached and pulled out the sword with a frown, throwing it to the side with
a clang, and that young soldier retrieved it. Feng Xin helped Xie Lian sit up, covered him
with an outer robe, and only then did Xie Lian finally recounted roughly the ghastly night
with the Land of the Tender. “You guys came faster than I expected. Where’s Qi Rong?”
“Qi Rong got locked up by the king in the palace,” Feng Xin said, “He’s too overbearing
in the markets, so of course he was an easy target. But he knew to find us after he got
back, so not too bad.” So it seemed that as much as Qi Rong despised those two
servants he still acknowledged how competent they were. The two had planned to have
one stay behind to guard the fortress, but Qi Rong was screaming and howling with a
sword smeared in Xie Lian’s blood, so they thought the danger might be more than they
expected, and decided to both come together in the end. The Hill of BeiZi was thick with
the essence of evil, so it wasn’t hard to find, which was why they were so quick in
coming.
Although Xie Lian possessed an ascended body, normal blades could not hurt his
essence and a jab to himself like this wouldn’t kill him, still he had never really truly lost
in a battle of life and death in his twenty years, and this was the very first time he had
gotten so heavily wounded, so he needed time to recover. And so, Feng Xin carried him
on his back on their return to the royal capital. Foreign pain stabbed at him from his
stomach, making Xie Lian furrow his brows but he tried to control himself, “Did you guys
bump into anything on your way here?”
“No.” Mu Qing replied.
Xie Lian sucked in a breath and said, “Be careful, there are inhuman creatures about…”
He had wanted to tell them about that white-clothed being, but because he was really
quite exhausted, and seeing from the peripheral of his vision that young soldier
following behind with that bloody steel sword in hand, he finally relaxed, closed his eyes
to restore his energy, and fell deeply asleep.
Since he had capriciously descended into the mortal realm, Xie Lian had not closed his
eyes to rest for over a month, and with stacking pressure growing, this whole ordeal
finally crushed him, and he was comatose for three whole days. After three days he
woke with a start and found himself inside his bedchamber. The ceiling above was
glamourous and beautiful – it was the palace – and he immediately sat up, “Feng Xin!”
Feng Xin was just outside testing his bow, and entered when he heard the call. “Your
Highness!”
Xie Lian’s stomach injury was long healed, and he immediately jumped off the bed,
“Was I knocked out for a long time? Did anything happen?”
“Relax.” Feng Xin said, “It was only a few days. There were no enemy attacks. If there
was, wouldn’t I have already woken you up? Go back to bed, you forgot your shoes
again.”
Calmed, Xie Lian went back to bed. After a pause, he asked, “Where’s Mu Qing?”
Just then, Mu Qing walked in too, holding the prepared robes in his hands, “Here.”
He attended to dressing the Crown Prince, and Feng Xin spoke up beside them,
“However, even though we didn’t battle in the past few days, we did find something out.”
“Find out what?” Xie Lian asked.
“Didn’t we say before that there’s something off with Yong’an? That there might be
reinforcements? We went to scout the Hill of BeiZi and saw several people that were
dressed like our people but had a weird accent. They didn’t look like they were from
Xianle. I captured them, and sure enough there were other kingdoms supporting them
from the shadows, secretly shipping supplies and arms.”
Otherwise, with so many people of Yong’an squished on a barren hill, there was no way
they could support themselves until now surviving on wild roots and weeds!
Feng Xin cussed, “Fucking fakers pretending to be all friendly gotta stir shit up now,
hoping Xianle would fall completely into chaos!”
The Kingdom of Xianle possessed a vast territory with bountiful resources, its wealth
abundant, its production of precious jewels plentiful, and the nearby kingdoms had long
watched with eyes green with envy. Xie Lian had expected this and shook his head
gravely. He recalled something else and asked, “Where’s that child?”
“Which one?” Feng Xin asked, “Oh, that little soldier? We were rushing you to the
Guoshi that day, no one cared for him, so he probably went back to his troops.”
Dressed, Xie Lian lowered his arms and sat down poised on the bed, “That child was
pretty skilled, I think he’s got really good potential with the sabre. If he’s taught well he’d
definitely be spectacular when he’s older. Mu Qing, remember to find him for me when
you get a chance. Settle him well. He could be appointed.”
Xie Lian was someone who loved those who were skilled in martial arts, and just had to
appoint them to his side just so he could watch them everyday and soak in delight. This
wasn’t the first time he made such a comment, but it was the first time it was directed to
a child. Mu Qing heard him make those “really good potential with the sabre”,
“spectacular when he’s older” remarks and his expression turned unreadable,
scrunching up the hair band he’d just untied from Xie Lian in his hand, and turned
around to throw it to the side.
Feng Xin on the other hand, remarked, “That brat only looks to be about fourteen or
fifteen, isn’t that too young? What’s he gonna do after getting appointed?”
Mu Qing spoke up too in a flat voice, “It’s not proper. It’d be against military rule.”
“A god can descend into the mortal realm, so what can military rule do to me?” Xie Lian
said, then praised, “You guys should’ve seen the way he killed those binu’s! It was so
good!”
Speaking of binu, that strange white-clothed being flashed before his mind. “Your
Highness, why have demons like those Land of the Tenders appear on the Hill of BeiZi?
That’s never happened before?” Feng Xin said.
Xie Lian rose to his feet, “That’s what I wanted to tell you guys that day.”
Finally free, he recounted his meeting with that one who bore the crying-smiling mask.
The three of them talked it over but didn’t dare to be negligent, and decided in the end
that it was better to report it to the heavens. Thus, once Xie Lian left his bedchamber, he
briefly met with the king and the queen before hurrying to the Great Martial Hall on
Mount Taicang.
If this was the past, Xie Lian would’ve gone to the Heavenly Court directly to tell Jun Wu
face to face. Yet the circumstances had changed; he was the one who deserted the
Heavenly Court and it was like handing the keys back. Even if he wanted to go back the
doors would be locked. Plus he left with such upset and spoke with such friction in the
Great Martial Hall, that he was a little embarrassed to face Jun Wu. Thus, with great
reverence he lit a few giant sticks of incense in the Great Martial Hall, and passed on
the message to the divine statue of the Heavenly Martial Emperor, hoping that he would
hear it. However, the number of incense respects Jun Wu received were at least eight
thousand to ten thousand, an overwhelming amount, with a number of big believers
mixed in. Whether if he would really hear his message would depend entirely on
chance. Xie Lian didn’t dare leave things be for too long either, and immediately
returned to the battlefront to continue his watch over the fortress city.
Maybe it was because the damage inflicted in the first battle was too great and their
reinforcements were cut off secretly by Feng Xin and Mu Qing, Yong’an seemed to have
changed tactics and didn’t recklessly attack again. After a few months, they fought a few
small battles but didn’t lose too gravely. Compared to the first battle, those bouts were
nothing. That strange white-clothed being didn’t appear again either. Thus, the royal
capital of Xianle was growing slack, and Xie Lian himself found a rare chance to leave
from the front lines, strolling through the royal capital to relax a bit.
He stepped onto a small stone bridge, stirring long twines of the weeping willow next to
the bridge, and watched lively, red koi fish swish their tails swimming happily through
the coursing waters below, feeling envious. He was lost in thought for a while when
suddenly he felt eyes staring at him from behind, and when he turned his head, there
was no one there. Puzzled but not sensing any malintent or killing intent, Xie Lian didn’t
mind.
After crossing the bridge, he strolled along the Martial Deity Avenue, and passersby on
the road bowed to him excitedly or reverently or delightfully, greeting “Your Highness”.
Xie Lian nodded and smiled, and after walking for a while, he felt that staring gaze on
his back again.
This time, he took it to heart, and whipped around without warning, catching the culprit.
Behind a willow tree there was a flash of a shadow. Xie Lian walked up and was about
to grab at the person when he realized with a start that it was that boy with his head
wrapped in bandages. “You’re…?”
Even with bandages wrapped all over his head, that boy still raised to cover his face
with crossed arms, leaving only a bright eye peeking through his patched sleeves. He
stammered, “Y-Your Highness, I didn’t mean to.”
Xie Lian pointed at him, “You’re from that night…”
He trailed off, recalling immediately what exactly transpired that night many months ago
and just how discomposed he was. Images filled his mind and he reddened, feeling
slightly awkward, and hurriedly cleared his throat, “So it was you. I was going to look for
you a while back, but with so much on my plate I’d forgotten. Ahem, aren’t you a soldier
in the army? Why are you in the city?”
Hearing him, that boy was taken aback and replied, a little mopingly, “I’m not in the army
anymore.”
Xie Lian was bewildered, “Huh? Why not?”
That boy was even more bewildered, “I… got kicked out. Your Highness, did… did you
not know?!”
Xie Lian was perplexed, “Know what?”
He had clearly told Mu Qing that that child was a good sprout to be settled and
appointed, so how did he get kicked out of the army after Xie Lian’s specific
instructions???
That boy looked to be both excited and happy, immediately dropping his arms, “So Your
Highness hadn’t known! I had thought… I thought…”
Xie Lian was becoming more and more curious, “Come, tell me, why did you get kicked
out? Who kicked you out? Why did you think I would know? Also, what had you
thought?”
That boy made a giant step towards him, but before he could speak, just then from the
Martial Deity Avenue came a loud, horrified scream, “AAAAHHHHHHH—!!!”
Xie Lian whipped his head around and saw a man holding his face, running and
stumbling in his direction.
—————-
●MXTX Author Notes: Xie Lian is a serious martial arts otaku! – All the peeping
flowers got burnt to death by the straight dudes.
—————-
Ch.84: From the Earth of BuYou Forest, Human Face Disease Breaks Out
He was a tall and burly man, dashing crazedly, and many on the streets fell as he
rammed past. They complained loudly, “What gives!”
“What’s up with the heated run on such a hot day…”
“Wow, my first time seeing anyone come out without wearing their face*.”
Many started laughing as they commented since they weren’t really angry anyway. But
that man rampaged all the way, and crashed himself head on with a large, luxurious
horse carriage, and blood splattered on the spot!
He fell back first onto the ground in a heap, and the pedestrians who were joking around
all screamed. The horse carriage owner was also shocked, poking his head out to ask,
“Who was that? Who crashed into me?”
Everything was so sudden, Xie Lian had to put the matter with the boy onto the back
burner for now, and he rushed over. “What’s happened?”
That man who rammed his head into the hard, solid carriage seemed to have passed
out, his disheveled hair blocking his face, and there were a number of people
surrounding him carefully and watching. Before Xie Lian got close however, he suddenly
leapt up in a fit, and wailed, “I CAN’T STAND IT ANYMORRREEE! SOMEONE!
SOMEONE KILL ME! HURRY, SOMEONE COME KILL ME!!! PLEASE!”
A few of the other burly men passing by couldn’t watch anymore and commented,
“Which house let their psycho lose? Take him away, jeez…” They were originally going
to arrest that man, but just when they approached, when they saw that lunatic’s face up
close, they all screamed too, and backed away in a hurry: “WHAT IS THIS
MONSTER!!!”
That psycho man however, chased after them, crying in a manic, “HURRY AND BEAT
ME TO DEATH!!!”
Those men were horrified, and just then as Xie Lian approached, they saw it was His
Highness the Crown Prince and rushed to hide behind him like he was a divine reprieve.
Without blinking, Xie Lian raised his leg and kicked, knocking that crazy man down and
he tumbled a few times, ending up like a mud-covered dog. Some pointed at him: “Your
Highness! This man… this man… he has… HE HAS!!!”
No need for them to point it out, Xie Lian also saw it – this man had two faces!
Technically, it was one face with another grown from it. The second face was squished
on half the cheek of that crazy man, about the size of a palm, and although this man
was young, that small face was a wrinkly old man, ugly to the core!
Xie Lian was also shocked to the core, his mind filled with only one thing: What is this
monster?!
He immediately gripped the sword hung on his waist and unsheathed it. That sword was
an enchanted weapon gifted him by the Heavenly Martial Emperor – HongJing. Ever
since he met that white-clothed character, he kept the sword on his person at all times
in case there was a need for it, and just maybe he’d get to see that creature’s true form
one of these days. Under the current circumstances, that sword was certainly useful,
and once unsheathed, the shine of that blade was brighter than snow. Yet, when he
looked, the reflection on that blade did not change whatsoever. It was still just this man,
and it was still just those two terrifying faces. That meant this crazy man wasn’t in any
shape or form a monster or a demon, that he was indeed human!
However, was there really anyone in the world who would have such a growth? If he
was born this way, then how could it not be known within the royal capital within years?
Xie Lian was both astonished and suspicious, and suddenly, someone on the side
spoke up with a quivering voice, “How… how did he become like this?”
Hearing him, Xie Lian immediately sheathed the sword HongJing and turned his head,
“You know him? Was he not like this before?”
A number of people replied: “We know him! We used to work with him. Of course he’s
not like this. Before, his face… how could it have something like this!!!”
Seeing that the crowd was growing bigger, almost to the point of blocking the whole
main street, with a grave expression, Xie Lian inhaled and shouted loudly and clearly,
“EVERYONE, DON’T COME CLOSE. IT’S NOTHING, BREAK IT UP!” That bandaged
boy helped him keep the crowd away but Xie Lian didn’t notice. He was busy calling for
Feng Xin and Mu Qing in the communication array: “Come quick to the Martial Deity
Avenue in the royal capital!”
After lowering his hand, he saw another close by who looked tentative and floundering,
exceedingly hesitant, so Xie Lian took a step towards him, “Do you have something you
want to say?”
With the Crown Prince’s query, that man seemed to have found courage and said, “Your
Highness, there’s something I don’t know if I should tell…”
Xie Lian had no time to listen to him ramble winding words, and cut in bluntly, “Get to
the point!”
“A few days ago, some bumps appeared on my chest; three big ones and two small
ones, I didn’t feel anything, they don’t itch or hurt, and they actually feel pretty good
when you nudge at them. I don’t think much of them but seeing this buddy here, I’m
feeling pretty… like I might be punished for something, yanno, haha.” He laughed flatly
and loosened his robe, showing his chest, “There’s nothing wrong with me… is there?”
The moment he took off his robe everyone fell silent. On the chest of that man wasn’t
just “some bumps”. It was clearly the blurry face of a woman with all five of her senses
intact!
That man looked down and was also shocked, “HOW DID IT BECOME LIKE THIS?! IT
CLEARLY WASN’T THAT… THAT…” Lifelike? Realistic? No matter what adjective used
they’re all fully horrifying!
Everyone onsite was terrified, and in spite of himself, that man grabbed onto the hem of
Xie Lian’s robe and cried, “YOUR HIGHNESS SAVE ME!”
At that same moment, Feng Xin and Mu Qing received his call and came rushing over
by the towers. Seeing the picture before them they both furrowed their brows, and Feng
Xin shouted, “STAND BACK! WHAT ARE YOU PLAYING AT?”
Xie Lian didn’t have the time to explain. He patted that man’s shoulders and comforted,
“Don’t worry. Keep calm.” His tone of voice was warm and firm, serious but kind. That
man thought Xie Lian had everything under control and believed without a doubt that a
small matter like this was nothing to His Highness the Crown Prince, and so he relaxed.
However, Xie Lian’s mind was in tumult.
That “Human Face” was actually something that grew gradually! And those with the
symptom – he shall call it ‘symptom’ for now – it wasn’t only just the one person. Then,
dare he assume there were many more?
He immediately gave Feng Xin and Mu Qing a rough account and commanded, “Report
this to the palace, pass down this order: Search the whole city and see if there’s anyone
else with similar affliction. Do not miss a single one!”
Because that thing was so shocking, once the king received the news he made it a
priority, dispatching a large number of troops to search and investigate, the work highly
efficient and effective. By that night it was confirmed: Within the entire royal capital,
there were already five people with somewhat visible faces growing on their bodies.
Those five, either they saw and didn’t take it to heart, or the ‘faces’ were growing in
areas not easily detected. Plus the ‘faces’ didn’t itch or hurt, so they wouldn’t have
noticed. Other than that, there were over ten others who had shallow bumps appearing
on their bodies, no doubt the still immature ‘faces’.
In this group of twenty some people, there were more women and youth, and when they
were sent forth before Xie Lian one after the other, they were filled with unease and
greeted each other, comforting one another at the same time. Initially, Xie Lian was
speaking to someone on the side taking care of some business, but when he noticed
them, he felt something was amiss. He asked, “Do you all know each other?”
The officials who worked all night briefly glanced at their report and replied, “Your
Highness, many of them live on the outskirts of the royal capital, fairly close together, so
maybe they’ve crossed paths as neighbours.”
Many who lived in the same area? Mu Qing was aghast, “People who lived close
together all grew those human faces? That thing is contagious???”
Xie Lian thought of it faster than he did, he just didn’t say it as fast. Immediately he
commanded, “Isolate them! Disperse the non-affected, don’t let anyone come close to
this place. Find a place to quarantine everyone here!”
“A contagious strange disease”. When those words leaked out, it was more effective
than the order to disperse any strong-arming troops. Not only did the onlooking crowd
scattered, more than half the houses on the street emptied out. Xie Lian ordered for the
officials and soldiers he appointed to gear up for protection, and brought those twenty
some people to the outskirts of the royal capital where some of them lived.
Nearby the residential area on the outskirts there was a large forest called the BuYou
Forest. The government officials had intended to build a quarantine there to temporarily
settle the “sick”. However, when they entered the woods, while others were busy
building camp, Xie Lian was feeling more and more unsettled the more he walked. Feng
Xin and Mu Qing noticed too. It was Feng Xin who spoke up first, “Your Highness, isn’t
this where that Lang Ying…”
Xie Lian dropped his hands by his side, frowning deeply, “Yea. It was here.”
This BuYou Forest was the very place that Lang Ying had bare handedly dug and buried
the dead body of his son!
Having realized this, the three looked at each other. Although they can’t put their fingers
on it, a rough guess was forming in their minds, pushing for them to start searching for
the place where Lang Ying had buried the corpse that day. Yet, it had been months, and
with so many trees in the BuYou Forest, how could they possibly remember exactly
which tree the child was buried under?
Just then, an indescribably foul stench wafted in the air.
That disgusting stink was somewhat like that of a rotten corpse, but it was even more
suffocating. Just one breath and it could knock a man out. Others smelt it too and
started backing away, covering their noses and fanning, “What’s over there?”
“What’s going on! It’s worse than a ten-year old pickle jar!”
Xie Lian rushed forward and followed that terrifying smell, and sure enough he came to
a familiar looking crooked tree. The earth under the tree was slightly raised, forming a
benign mound. The soldiers raised their swords and gathered to protect Xie Lian, but he
raised his hand to stop them. He said gravely, “Be careful. Normal people shouldn’t
come close.”
The not normal people Feng Xin grabbed a shovel offhandedly and approached. After a
few shovels that mud mound became a ditch, the foul stench grew heavier, and Feng
Xin dug more mindfully. After another few shovels, a small black thing was dug out, and
it seemed to be squirming.
Feng Xin slowed his movement, and the soldiers reacted like they were facing a great
enemy. Suddenly, the earth arched up, and a swollen, bloated giant body broke out from
the soil, exposing itself before the torch-holding crowd.
That rotten foul stench surged instantly, and most of the people onsite threw up on the
spot. Xie Lian’s pupils shrank.
That thing couldn’t be described as ‘human’ anymore. Anything would be more human
than it. No one would be able to tell that this gigantic corpse was once a small,
emaciated child!
The urge to vomit rolled up to his throat, and Xie Lian looked away. Feng Xin and Mu
Qing were dumbfounded too, blurting “WHAT’S THIS?!” “Is that a curse or a simple
rotten corpse??”
No matter what that thing was, Xie Lian knew what they needed to do, “Stand back! The
further the better! I’m going to burn that thing!”
He raised his hand and a large stream of flames blew out. Just as the fire was ablaze
and the smoke was thick, the sharp sound of a battle horn from the distant royal capital
came, loud and shrill calling all to order.
The three looked up at the same time; that was the signal of an enemy attack. Feng Xin
cussed, “Fuck, of all times they had to come now!”
Feng Xin’s face was dark, looking gloomy even under firelight, “Maybe, this was
intentional?”
Xie Lian made the call, “Mu Qing, you stay here and take care of this. Feng Xin, you
come with me. We’ll repel them first. Remember, don’t let them notice any weak points!”
That night, the two hurriedly rushed out of the city fortress, and hurriedly fought a battle.
Although that battle came out of the blue, they still won. Even if they won however, none
of the Xianle soldiers, Xie Lian included, felt the joy of victory.
The “strange disease” that appeared so randomly came to be called the “Human Face
Disease” by the people. Words of it passed through the royal capital like lightning,
causing uproar and great unease.
The king had considered blacking out the news, but the first victim rampaged the
streets; there were countless witnesses so this was something that couldn’t be hidden
from the start. Besides, the Human Face Disease was spreading rapidly, in just six days
over fifty people found similar affliction appearing on their bodies.
All at the same time, the sieges from Yong’an were increasing. Attacked from both
sides, Xie Lian could barely find the time to go to Yong’an and create rain. All the
spiritual power and energy for it was all spent at the quarantine in the outskirts instead.
Within the chilly BuYou Forest, large fields of suggested tents and huts were built. Xie
Lian crossed through a ground full of patients. This quarantine started with twenty some
people, but soon it turned into a size of hundreds, and growing ever the bigger.
Everyday Xie Lian would come if there was time, and use his power to relieve the
horrifying symptoms of those affected. However, he still couldn’t cure the root cause,
and what the people had hoped was to have him heal them completely.
As Xie Lian walked, a young man lying on the ground suddenly raised his hand and
tugged the hem of his robe, “Your Highness, I won’t die, will I?”
Xie Lian was about to respond and noticed that this man looked familiar. Upon a closer
look, wasn’t he the passerby who gave him an umbrella on that rainy day he learned
Xianle was short on water?
Recalling that day, that rain, that umbrella, warmth filled Xie Lian’s heart, and he knelt
down, gently patting that young man’s arm, telling him in a serious tone, “I will do my
best.”
That man seemed to have received the hope to survive; his eyes twinkled with joy,
repeating “good, good” and laid down again. From those fervent eyes, Xie Lian could
tell they truly believe he could do it. Thus, everytime he met those eyes, a sense of self
blame would grow deep in his heart, and the need to find a cure growing more
desperate.
After making a round through the quarantine, Xie Lian found a place to sit. Mu Qing
started a campfire, and Xie Lian sat, deep in thought. Some distance away, a few
errand boys walked off carrying a stretcher, muttering to each other, yet somehow their
words had reached Xie Lian’s ears:
“How many is this now?”
“The fourth or fifth I think.”
On the stretcher was a patient who died in the BuYou Forest. In truth, it was hard to die
from the Human Face disease. Yet, that was what’s even more frightening. Without
death it meant for the rest of the victims’ lives, those things would stay on their bodies.
Just thinking about it would make one lose the will to live. Especially young women,
they care for their faces, so if something like that were to grow on somewhere important
like their face, most would choose to end their lives.
Another sighed, “Sigh! When will this end!”
Another said, “We have His Highness the crown prince, we won’t lose. Just relax.”
The one who complained said, “I’m not afraid of losing battles. But with the situation like
this, does it matter if we don’t lose battles? It’s not easy for us civilians to live on like
this, sigh… nevermind, nevermind. I’m not complaining. Just pretend I said nothing. I
said nothing.”
If Feng Xin was there he would’ve immediately rushed up to cuss them out. Mu Qing
however, only gave Xie Lian a look, and continued to build the fire, not saying anything.
Only when those two were completely gone did he say flatly, “Ignorant commoners only
know how to blame others and the heavens. Did they think a martial god had control
over everything?”
Xie Lian shook his head. What those men said had their logic. He was a martial god;
when he made part of the army there would be no battles unwon. Yet, at times like
these, what use was it to win battles? Forming an army was to protect the civilians, yet if
the civilians were all suffering from the attacks of a plague, then wouldn’t their
advantage turn into a joke?
Just then, the campfires wavered, and another sat down next to Xie Lian. It was Feng
Xin who had returned. Xie Lian asked immediately, “How is it?”
Feng Xin shook his head. “It was exactly the same as when you searched. There’s no
traces of Lang Ying on BeiZi Hill, and nothing of that white-clothed character. Who
knows where they’re hiding, and there’s no way of confirming whether if they’re the
ones behind this. Also, the Yong’an people were all fine like we suspected, not a single
case of the Human Face Disease.”
Mu Qing poked at the fire, “The royal capital and BeiZi Hill are so close, there’s no way
no one was infected. It’s easy to see that they must be the ones behind all this.”
Many believed this secretly, and thinking this way made sense. However, even if they
accused Lang Ying secretly or openly, the man was well hidden away and they couldn’t
find any proof, so they could do nothing.
They suspect the Human Face Disease was started by a curse, and the source of that
curse was the corpse of Lang Ying’s son. Yet, if it was a curse, then it was a good one.
It didn’t leave any traces for them to investigate, so there was no evidence to confirm
their suspicions. And who knows, maybe this Human Face Disease was nothing more
than a new, naturally formed plague? There was no way Xie Lian could draw any
conclusions on what the disease actually was unless they apprehended the suspect.
He had given the Heavenly Court a rough report of his assumptions too. Yet, as
aforementioned, Xie Lian had descended under violation, unlike the past where if he
wanted to report he could very well just barge into the Great Martial Hall and scream in
Jun Wu’s ear, now he had to do it by the books. It must be known, that ‘by the books’
meant: if lucky, just throwing out some hefty merits and words will pass through to the
heavenly officials; if unlucky, he might be forced to go through complicated red tape
roped in endless delays. Afterwards it’d still be some heavenly officials who’d be sent
forth. Xie Lian himself was a heavenly official, and other than Jun Wu, there were very
few who could match him in power, so the heavenly officials sent forth might not even
be effective. Jun Wu carried a heavy burden, by mortal words he was a ‘machine’, so
there was no way he could come to Xie Lian’s aid in person. Thus, his reporting was
only for show, and Xie Lian didn’t expect anything to come of it.
Moreover, none of that was what’s on Xie Lian’s mind, it was another problem. He
spoke, “If we assume that Yong’an used a curse for the sake of defeating the royal
capital, then the most effective attack would be to the army. Once the army falls,
wouldn’t that be the same as opening the gates?”
It wasn’t that there were no victims of the Human Face Disease in the army, but in
comparison, they were few in numbers, only three or four affected. And once they were
sent to quarantine, the situation was immediately under control and nothing spread.
Feng Xin seemed to have thought of something and said, “Maybe they think even if they
defeat the army, with you around they’d still lose, so they gave up on the army and
targeted civilians directly?”
Hearing this, Mu Qing chuckled dryly. Feng Xin immediately reacted, “What are you
laughing about?”
“Nothing. You always manage to bring up good points. I have nothing to say.” Mu Qing
replied.
People who bore the intent to snipe at others but still pretended to sound courteous
annoyed Feng Xin the most, so he ignored him completely. “If it was them, then they’re
despicable. Fight honestly on the battlefield if they’ve the guts, but don’t use shady
tricks to harm innocent civilians!”
Xie Lian wholeheartedly agreed and sighed, “I’ve been thinking these past few days just
what causes infection. We have to know the causes before we can control the disease.”
“Isn’t it obvious?” Feng Xin said, “Infection comes from getting too close, touching,
drinking the same water, eating together, sleeping together or whatever.”
Xie Lian rubbed his forehead, “On the surface that’s not wrong. But, take the army for
example, the soldiers in the army all drink, eat, and sleep together, and are in closer
quarters than any other households, so why aren’t there more soldiers infected?”
Mu Qing furrowed his brows, “So what you mean is, even under the same
circumstances, with different body types, some will be infected and others not. You want
to find out just what type of people are immune against the Human Face Disease,
right?”
Xie Lian raised his head, “Mu Qing, you understand me. That’s exactly it. If we can find
that out, then there might be a way to stop the Human Face Disease from spreading.”
Mu Qing nodded, “Good. Then let’s look at it this way: what kind of people are more
likely to get infected? What type of patients dominate the quarantine of BuYou Forest?”
Xie Lian walked through the camps endlessly the past few days and could answer even
with his eyes closed. He said immediately, “Women, children, teens, seniors, and young
men who are smaller in build.”
Feng Xin wondered, “So only the weak gets infected? Should we have the king order for
everyone in the royal capital to work out and strengthen their bodies?”
“…”
“…”
Xie Lian and Mu Qing both gave him a look, not wanting to respond. After a pause,
Feng Xin himself added, “Wait, that’s not right.”
————-
●“Face” refers to shame, but the man was punning on the guy being both
shameless and hiding his face at the same time.
●MXTX Author Notes: The corpse of Lang Ying’s son is probably like a bloated
cadaver… but because it’s kinda gross I won’t describe it in detail… just imagine
it.
————
Ch.85: From the Earth of BuYou Forest, Human Face Disease Emerges 2
Obviously it wasn’t right, because the first victim that rampaged the Martial Deity
Avenue was a healthy and strong burly man, so the theory didn’t hold up.
Just how were the soldiers infected with the Human Face Disease different than other
soldiers, Xie Lian thought of many possibilities and had tried testing his guesses. But no
matter from which angle, there wasn’t anything overly obvious that differentiated them
from the others. Every infected victim, no matter their looks, their body type, their status,
their temperment, everything was all over the place, impossible to draw a conclusion on
the defining criteria. Could it be that whoever got infected really was a matter of
chance?
Xie Lian mumbled to himself, “Just what had those soldiers done in order to stop the
spreading of the Human Face Disease? In other words, just what did they do that was
more often done than civilians…”
When he came to this thought, his eyes suddenly widened, and his face paled. Hearing
that his voice stopped abruptly, Feng Xin asked, “What’s wrong, Your Highness? Have
you thought of something?”
Xie Lian had indeed thought of something. He thought of a logical theory, but at the
same time, it was a terrifying one.
He stood up in a flash and blurted, “No way! No, no, it shouldn’t be like this. It can’t be.”
Feng Xing and Mu Qing immediate rose too, “What is it?”
Xie Lian held his forehead and paced back and forth, raising his hand, “Hold on. I…
have an absurd guess. It shouldn’t be true, but I need to test this out.”
“What guess?” Mu Qing asked, “How will you test it? Do you need me to find you
someone?”
Xie Lian immediately rejected the idea, “No. We can’t use a live person for testing. What
if I’m wrong?” It was more like he hoped he was wrong, even better if he was way off
the mark. Mu Qing frowned, “Your Highness, if you need to ascertain whether if you’re
right or wrong, you’ll need a live person for testing. That’s the best way. Just standing
here brooding won’t do any good.”
Feng Xin frowned too, “Can’t you see he’s troubled? Stop saying things that annoy
people.”
Mu Qing turned to him, “Weird. And what exactly did I say? Didn’t I speak the truth? At
this point what’s the use in being all indecisive and hesitant?”
Feng Xin was disgusted, “Do you have to judge everything based on how useful
something is? We’re talking about a live person here. Not even a bit of hesitation, aren’t
you a little too collected?”
“Collected?” Mu Qing countered, “You actually want to say ‘cold blooded’, right?”
Xie Lian hadn’t the patience to ease up the fight between the two like he usually did,
and said, “The two of you can start arguing over a single word, what a disgrace! Stand
here for an incense time. No one’s allowed to move within that time. Same old rules.”
“…”
“…”
Hearing the words “same old rules”, both Feng Xin and Mu Qing’s faces changed
colours. Xie Lian waved, “Heaven Official’s Blessings. Start.”
A moment later, Feng Xin said, gritting his teeth, “…Blessings Shine From Up High.”
Mu Qing gritted his teeth too, “…High Imitation No Thought.”
Feng Xin was in trouble, “Thought… Thought…”
He was deep in strenuous thought trying to think of a way to continue, and Xie Lian
turned to enter the BuYou Forest to find those three infected soldiers for questioning.”
By “Same Old Rules” it was an idea Xie Lian had come up with to distract the other two.
Feng Xin and Mu Qing would snipe at each other at every chance, starting disputes
from nothing. At first Xie Lian would make them stand in silence for an incense time
without speaking to one another until they’ve calmed down, but it wasn’t very effective.
Afterwards, Xie Lian decided to change it to Idiom Trains, and once there was an
established winner and loser, they’d have no time to worry about their original conflict
and would instead do their best to crush the other in training idioms. After discovering
this effective method, Xie Lian felt the world became more peaceful, and was quite
satisfied. Forcing them to train idioms now was also somewhat of a way to have
everyone ease up a little.
Yet this ease didn’t last for long. After an incense time, Xie Lian returned. His face was
grim and he instructed, “Bring me all the soldiers who lived in the same quarters as
those infected soldiers, I need to question them.”
Those two were already stumped many times, and seized their own proper little
victories, so when they didn’t need to train idioms anymore, they both sighed in relief.
“That’s fine too. But using such a roundabout way to find proof it might not guarantee
the accuracy of your find.” Mu Qing said.
Feng Xin had already turned to heed his orders. Xie Lian called him back, “Wait! It’s
already deep into the night. Questioning them now would be too much of a stir, and we
can’t call forth too many at a time either, it’d be too conspicuous. The things I want to
ask must not be known or leaked. If you go now we won’t be able to hide anything.”
Feng Xin turned his head, “Then what should I do? Bring them over to you one by one
to have you interrogate them privately?”
“There’s no other way.” Xie Lian said, “Tomorrow, bring the soldiers who are close to the
victims to me one by one to my chambers, and don’t let them know that others have
been questioned. Remember to order them not to tell anyone, otherwise…”
He breathed in deeply and sighed, “Nevermind, just threaten them. Just say if word got
out they shall be executed without mercy. The more savage the better.”
“Questioning them one by one, how long would that even take?” Mu Qing commented.
“It doesn’t matter how long it takes,” Xie Lian said, “The more I ask the more I can be
sure. I… absolutely need to get to the bottom of this and there mustn’t be any
mistakes.”
Thus, the next day, Xie Lian sat in the chamber that was temporarily assigned to him
atop the towers, and personally interrogated over three hundred soldiers.
As for the questions he posed, all three hundred of them all gave the same answers.
After questioning each other, Xie Lian’s face would grow a shade darker. After it was
done, when Feng Xin and Mu Qing entered the room they saw Xie Lian sat by the table,
a hand holding up his forehead, unspeaking. It was a while before he slowly spoke up,
“You two stay and guard the city gates. I’m going to make a trip to Mount Taicang.”
Feng Xin asked hesitantly, “Your Highness, did you find something out from all the
questioning? Is it a curse or…?”
Xie Lian nodded. “It’s come to light. It’s a curse.”
Mu Qing was solemn, “For real?”
“Without a doubt.” Xie Lian said, “And I also found out just what type of people would
get infected and what type wouldn’t.”
Even if those were the words spoken, on his face there was not a trace of joy from
solving a mystery, and so Feng Xin and Mu Qing felt things might not be that simple.
However if Xie Lian didn’t take the initiative to tell them, then as his subordinates it
wasn’t their place to ask, and so their hearts sank silently.
Mount Taicang, the Royal Holy Pavilion, the highest peak, the Great Martial Hall. Guoshi
was paying his respects within clouds of incense smoke. Xie Lian crossed the threshold
of the hall and immediately went straight to the point, “Guoshi, I need to see the
Heavenly Emperor.”
Guoshi finished paying his respects and turned his head, “Your Highness, the gates of
the heavenly realm no longer open to you.”
“I know.” Xie Lian said, “But right now I’ve just ascertained that the Kingdom of Xianle is
currently under the attack of a malicious wave of curses never seen before. This isn’t a
natural disaster, it’s the workings of inhuman creatures. Please give me a hand and
request for the Heavenly Emperor to descend and possess your spirit so I can report
this information to him directly. Maybe he’d know what the source of all this was, and
perhaps find a turning point.”
Ever since he’d returned to the mortal realm, he had reported to the Great Martial Hall
thrice. Yet the first two times weren’t sincere and were only done out of habitual
courtesy. Only this time, he really wanted to seek help.
Guoshi sat down on a chair and said, “It’s not that I don’t want to help you, Your
Highness, but there’s no longer a need for it. Even if I give you a hand now, and the
Heavenly Emperor descends and possesses my body, the answer you will receive from
him will only disappoint you.”
Xie Lian’s face dropped slightly, “Do you know something? Do you know just what that
cry smile mask wearing white-clothed being is?”
“Your Highness, do you still remember what I told you?” Guoshi said, “That in this world,
fortune, good or bad, is predetermined.”
Xie Lian was startled and didn’t speak. The Guoshi added, “Originally, many of those
from Yong’an were destined to die, but you transferred water and created rain, and gave
them a breath of relief. Yet, you cannot save them completely from the drought, settle
their future, and so now, they are in the Yong’an army upon BeiZi Hill fighting for their
futures.”
“Originally, the royal capital was destined to be in a state of decline, but you personally
descended, and used your own powers to turn things around, and gave the royal capital
a breath of relief. Yet, you didn’t steel your heart to annihilate the Yong’an rebel army
and root them out. Instead you allowed them to survive until now. Like roaches they only
get stronger with each battle.”
Guoshi asked him in wonder, “Your Highness, may I ask what you are doing? Are you
perhaps waiting for both sides to realize their mistakes? To repent and renew? To
reunite as one country once more?”
An odd sense of shame budded within Xie Lian’s heart, yet, it soon turned into
confusion as he thought to himself, ‘That’s strange. Whether if I save or protect people,
it was all because they were innocent and didn’t deserve death. Everything I’ve done
were done after serious consideration and every choice was made after much struggle.
Yet, why does it sound so laughable coming from another’s mouth? Why does it sound
like I’ve achieved nothing, that everything is such a… failure?’
That word appeared in his mind and he immediately blocked it out. Guoshi added, “You
used your divinity to interfere in mortal matters. The predetermined fate of the Kingdom
of Xianle has been turned completely upside down by you, a complete and utter mess.
For the sake of balance, nature will breed other things to bring everything you’ve
deranged back on track. I don’t know what that creature was, but, I am certain, it was
born because of you.”
“…”
Xie Lian’s form faltered. Guoshi continued, “I am also certain that should the Heavenly
Martial Emperor see you, he will also tell you the same thing, because this was the
reason why he didn’t want you to descend in the first place. But I felt that even if he told
you then, you would’ve more than likely come down anyway. Young people are like this,
unheeding of advice. They won’t believe they can’t walk until they’ve fallen.”
Xie Lian was in disbelief, “So you mean to say that the cause of this Human Face
Disease was me?! So by that so-called predetermined fate logic, everything that
uncrying, unlaughing creature does is my fault? So, the Heavenly Court wouldn’t even
bother with this whole thing?”
“You can think of it that way,” Guoshi said, “But that’s not altogether right either. After all,
if you must read fortune all the way, you can also blame your father and your mother,
because if they didn’t give birth to you, then you wouldn’t have ascended, and thus you
wouldn’t have descended. Reading like this, you can blame your entire Xianle ancestry.
So, discussing who is at fault for the cause is meaningless.”
“As for your last question, that’s right, they won’t. Because the Kingdom of Xianle was
destined to fall. Since you’ve extended your hand and messed up this game of chess,
then, there will for sure be another hand that returns all the messed up pieces back in
place.”
Xie Lian took a deep breath, not wanting to discuss whether if the Kingdom of Xianle
was destined to fall. He closed his eyes for a minute then said, “Then answer me,
Guoshi. If I disappear now, will that creature also disappear?”
“I’m afraid not.” Guoshi replied. “Easy come, hard to leave. That’s the same for gods,
and ghosts and demons are no different.”
Xie Lian knew any more talk would be pointless. The only one who could keep fighting
was only himself. He bowed to Guoshi, bidding farewell, and prepared to leave. Behind
him the Guoshi called, “Your Highness! How do you plan on walking your path from now
on?”
Xie Lian had his head down, “If nothing changes even if I disappear, then I will fight it to
the end. This is my only path.”
After a pause, he raised his head high and enunciated every word, “I don’t care if it’s a
hand or what, but the people I protect will never become its pawn.”
Half a month later, Lang Ying lead the Yong’an army and attacked once again.
After months of countless battles big and small, the Yong’an troops could now finally be
called an army. They were no longer those forlorn refugees, but a proper army with
considerable strength!
It was like Lang Ying had evaporated from the mortal realm for a long time, and this
time, when Xie Lian saw this man again on the battlefield, having waited for so long he
didn’t waste his breath and dashed straight past the troops, facing him, and struck with
his sword, shouting, “WHERE’S THAT WHITE-CLOTHED MAN?”
Lang Ying blocked his sword and didn’t answer, fighting back with vigour. Xie Lian
pressed onto him with each step, “You know who I’m talking about. My patience is
limited!”
Unexpectedly, Lang Ying stared at him and asked, “Your Highness, didn’t you say that
Yong’an would continue to rain?”
Xie Lian hadn’t expected for him to ask that question. Startled, words got stuck in his
throat, “I…”
He did indeed promise Lang Ying that Yong’an would rain. However, in the past many
days, the number of infected by the Human Face Disease within the royal capital had
been increasing exponentially, and they were reaching almost five hundred at this point.
Those five hundred victims couldn’t all be settled in the BuYou Forest, and that
quarantine camp was running out of space. The government officials were debating
over moving to a farther, bigger place. Most of Xie Lian’s powers had been used to
relieve the symptoms of those five hundred people, and had none left to create rain in
Yong’an. Since he couldn’t make use of the Rain Master Hat, he felt bad keeping
someone else’s spiritual device in hand, and so with no other way, he sent Feng Xin to
the Kingdom of Yushi to return the Rain Master Hat to the Rain Master and gave thanks.
Xie Lian struck again, yelling angrily, “I created that rain! Don’t you have any clue why
it’s stopped?!”
The angrier he became, the more calm Lang Ying was. “That has nothing to do with me,
I only know that even without the Human Face Disease your powers won’t last for long;
just like how even with your rain, not many will survive in Yong’an. It’s all pointless. Your
Highness, why do you think you can achieve anything you want to do? Rather than
putting my fate in your hands, I choose to put it in my own.”
Something from that speech had provoked Xie Lian, and the intent to kill flared.
His blade turned slightly, and his left hand raised. A voice screamed inside his head: Kill
this man, and the remnant Yong’an army will be nothing to be afraid of!
Since the first time they met, this was the very first time Xie Lian had steeled his heart to
kill Lang Ying. However, unexpectedly, when he sent a blow from his palm and blasted
Lang Ying’s heart, he spewed blood from the blow but the blast did not penetrate his
heart, and instead was repelled.
Astonished, Xie Lan couldn’t believe it, and backed away a few steps, “YOU?!”
Xie Lian knew very well what it was that repelled his attack.
Those who were destined for greatness in the mortal realm, like kings, geniuses, and
vigilantes, whenever they come to a dire situation, their bodies would naturally radiate a
protective aura, shielding them against harm. Most of them have the potential for
ascension. Lang Ying was no more than a boor yet he radiated that very protection
spiritual aura, and it was even one that was exceedingly rare – the aura of a king!
Xie Lian didn’t dare to think what it meant, and suddenly he felt his heart go cold. It was
Lang Ying’s sword that thrusted and impaled his chest.
In that battle, there was no victory or defeat on either side.
There were still many who perished from Yong’an’s side, but this time Xianle wasn’t any
better. If it was anyone else, they could say it was a hard-won battle, but to Xie Lian, this
was definitely defeat.
This was the first time he was at a disadvantage, moreover, although Lang Ying was still
no match for Xie Lian and retreated with injuries in the end, many saw the scene where
Lang Ying had stabbed him. Xie Lian could probably guess that there were many
soldiers talking behind his back: His Highness is a martial god, how could he be
stabbed? Aren’t we the army of god? How come we didn’t achieve an overwhelming
victory like before? However, Xie Lian had absolutely no time for such noise, because
Mu Qing had informed him, today, another hundred some Human Face Disease
patients had been sent to the BuYou Forest.
One short day and over a hundred!
Now, the first group of Human Face Disease victims had worsened severely, not a
single spot on their bodies could be seen and had to be covered in thick covers, lest
they scare people. However, even through the covers those bumps could still be seen
on the body’s contours.
Xie Lian walked around to alleviate the symptoms, and when he finally finished a round,
Feng Xin pulled him aside and asked him in a low voice, “Your Highness, what
happened on the battlefield today? How could you get stabbed by that boor? You also
struck him so many times why don’t you just kill him?”
Xie Lian didn’t want to tell him that there was now a layer of a king’s aura on Lang Ying
that not even heavenly officials could touch, and could only grimace. It wasn’t that he
didn’t want to kill him, it was that he could no longer kill him. All the spiritual powers in
his attacks were dissolved by that king’s aura, and nothing worked against Lang Ying.
When he realized this, he instantly changed to fistfighting, but that Lang Ying was thick
skinned and could withstand quite the beating!
Just then, a distance away there was suddenly a loud wail, “YOUR HIGHNESS SAVE
ME!”
Xie Lian was just accepting a bowl of water that Feng Xin passed to him and that wail
came just as he was taking his first sip. Xie Lian choked, and didn’t have the time to
stop before he rushed over. The one who wailed was that young man who gave him that
umbrella, and because Xie Lian was extra warm towards him, his screaming for help
was also extra frequent. At first the part of this man that grew a face was his knee, Xie
Lian casted his power to control the disease from spreading, and so only his left leg had
the face and nowhere else. Right then, he was kicking that leg madly, going hysterical.
Xie Lian held him down and comforted, “Don’t move. I’m here!”
That young man was frightened to the core and grabbed onto him, “YOUR HIGHNESS!
YOUR HIGHNESS, SAVE ME! I felt an itch on my leg just now like some weed was
scratching me, but when I, when I looked down, I saw those things… their mouths were
opening and closing, moving, they’re moving! THEY’RE EATING GRASS!!! THEY’RE
ALIVE!!!”
Hair on Xie Lian’s back raised instantly. He looked down and sure enough, on that
young man’s left leg, there were over ten faces tightly pressed together, many of their
mouths had grass, some were even chewing like they were starving!
Many of the patients started screaming, the crowd blew up in uproar, and Feng Xin and
the soldiers had to use force to subjugate them to prevent a riot. Xie Lian used a hand
to hold that young man down, and turned to another beside him to ask, “Can this leg still
work?”
All the nursing staff at BuYou Forest had to be in full gear, and were dressed in
bandages and capes, wrapping themselves tight, their faces unrecognizable. One of the
workers on the side answered, his voice sounded like a boy, “No, Your Highness! His
leg is already forfeit. We don’t know what else is festering, the leg is heavy like a block
of lead, and we could hardly move it. The infection is also climbing, soon it’ll grow
beyond the leg and reach the waist.”
Xie Lian had done his utmost to use his powers for healing, yet, that young man’s leg
could be said to be beyond saving, having lost almost all normal functions. Just then,
one of the doctors whispered, “Your Highness, in my opinion, the only thing we haven’t
tried is cutting off the part with the faces, and see if that’d slow down the fester…”
The only way Xie Lian could think of was also this, “Then cut it off!”
That young man immediately cried, “NO!” He was terrified of having his limbs cut off, but
at the same time he didn’t dare to hug his deformed leg, and cried in pain, “MY LEG IS
NOT FORFEIT! Maybe it’ll get better… YOUR HIGHNESS! Don’t… don’t you have any
other way to save me?”
Xie Lian didn’t want to answer with “I’ll do my best”, or “I’ll try” anymore. His sight was
going dark, and he replied, “Sorry, I don’t.”
That His Highness the Crown Prince would say such a thing, it was the first time,
shocking everyone present. There were some who lost it right then and there and
screamed, “NO? YOU’RE HIS HIGHNESS, YOU’RE A GOD, HOW DO YOU HAVE NO
WAYS? WE’VE BEEN WAITING FOR YOU TO COME UP WITH SOMETHING FOR
DAYS, HOW CAN YOU HAVE NOTHING?!!”
The one who spoke was immediately held down by someone, yet it wasn’t Feng Xin or
Mu Qing. Mu Qing was silent and frowning, seeming to have thought Xie Lian’s answer
was too blunt and couldn’t comfort the masses. Feng Xin on the other hand was further
away yelling at the particularly rowdy patients. Xie Lian was battered and exhausted
recently, his sword never sheathed and hung on his waist. When the blade came close
to that leg, one of the ‘faces’ felt the chill of the blade’s aura, and suddenly stopped
chewing. It opened its mouth and let out a shrill scream.
That thing actually screamed!!!
Although the sound was soft, but it most definitely came from that leg. That young man
screamed, almost fainting from fright, and he clung onto Xie Lian crying, “YOUR
HIGHNESS SAVE ME! SAVE ME!” At the same time, where on his waist close to his
thigh, three shallow sores appeared. That doctor shouted in alarm, “Your Highness, it’s
spreading! It’s spreading! The infection is spreading out of the leg!”
No matter how much spiritual power was spent, Xie Lian still could not control that
young man’s condition in the end. Seeing that those horrifying things were about to
spread over his entire body, and once that happened there would be no going back.
Could they really do naught but sit back and watch?
Xie Lian gritted his teeth, “Let me ask you one thing. Do you or do you not want this
leg? I can’t guarantee what would happen once it’s gone. If you don’t want it just nod
and we’ll operate immediately, if you want it then don’t nod, and we’ll figure it out!”
That young man was breathing heavily, his eyes blank from terror, his mind lost, and it
was like he was nodding but also shaking his head. Those faces on his left leg started
screaming one by one as if welcoming their new ‘companions’. In between all the
“YEEEE”s and “AAAAHHH”s, the delight on their faces was apparent, and their little red
tongues were quivering. It was hard to imagine just what the insides of that young man’s
left leg looked like, just what it harboured.
This couldn’t be delayed any further. Xie Lian instructed that doctor, “Cut it off.”
That doctor, however, waved his hand rapidly, “Your Highness, forgive me! I’m not very
sure either, and I don’t dare operate in a place like this. If cutting doesn’t do anything,
then we shouldn’t take this risk!” He cursed himself for speaking up, the nail that stuck
out got hammered down, what was he doing fighting for such a terrifying job? He
escaped back to the crowd and stopped talking.
That young man was mumbling repeatedly, “Your Highness save me, Your Highness
save me!” Yet Xie Lian’s mind was completely blank, a voice full of hopelessness also
rumbling inside him: “—who can come and save me…!”
It was noisy and rowdy all around, screaming and crying everywhere. Those twisted
little human faces squished below were also wailing, and in that moment, Xie Lian
thought he saw hell.
It was like he was peering at this hell but at the same time unseeing, and with cold
sweat rolling, he widened his eyes, raised his arm –
The sword slashed down, and blood splattered.
———–
Ch.86: From the Earth of BuYou Forest, Human Face Disease Emerges 3
“AAAAAHHHHHH—”
That young man was only half conscious at first, but after Xie Lian cut off his left leg, he
snapped awake and screamed madly, “MY LEG! MY LEG!”
Xie Lian knelt in that pool of blood, his white robes stained and spotted, doing his best
to hold him down, “It’s over! Doctors, stop his bleeding!”
The doctors present were flustered, forgetting themselves, and Mu Qing couldn’t watch
any longer. He stepped forward, “Don’t trouble yourselves.” And he took out a small
medicine bottle, a faint smoke flowing out, slowly stopping the bleeding. Xie Lian also
wrapped the wound with a spiritual aura. As for that cut off leg, it laid on the ground all
by its lonesome. Suddenly, it quivered, like a live creature it continued to squirm even
having been parted from the body. Xie Lian raised his hand and a fire roared, torching
that leg into nothing but black ashes. That young man wailed, “MY LEG!”
Xie Lian checked his waist side and saw that Human Face Disease didn’t continue to
fester, his eyes brightened and said delightedly, “It’s good, it’s stopped. It’s not
festering!”
That young man finally stopped his tears and opened his eyes, “Really? Is it really
better?”
The crowd all sucked in their breaths, unmoving and hesitant, but after a moment,
someone shouted, “Your Highness, help treat me too!”
Another boy’s voice rang out from not far away, “Don’t be ridiculous! We can’t be sure,
what if it relapses after a while?”
Thanks to that voice’s reminder, Xie Lian calmed down too. “That’s right, we can’t be
sure right now. We need some time to observe.”
Another piped up, voice trembling in fear, “How long do we need to observe…? I can’t
wait any longer. If we wait… if we keep waiting, this thing will spread to my face!”
Another just gave up altogether, “I’M WILLING TO TAKE THE CHANCE!” Soon,
hundreds within the BuYou Forest became unruly and noisy, all begging, “Your
Highness, please we beg you, relieve us of this suffering!”
The masses started prostrating towards him with Xie Lian worshipped in the centre, and
although an awkward situation, Xie Lian didn’t dare to be careless. “Everyone please
get up first. After some time if this man didn’t relapse, then I will do my utmost to treat
everyone…”
It was some time before the people were comforted, having made many more promises
and settled that young man with the amputated leg elsewhere, Xie Lian sat down under
a tree. Mu Qing looked around before speaking in a low voice, “How could you just chop
off his leg directly? If the man in question didn’t beg you to do it himself, don’t just take
the reins. What if it didn’t work even after you amputated that leg? The one he’d hate
would become you.”
Xie Lian’s heart was still racing, a hand covering his face, he croaked, “…the situation at
the time couldn’t wait. He won’t answer me, and the doctor didn’t dare to operate, I
couldn’t just stand by and watch the infection fester. Someone had to make a decision
on what to do. I really…”
For once Feng Xin looked worried, “Your Highness, I think you better take a rest. You
really don’t look that good. We’ll take over for you for the time being.”
Xie Lian also felt he couldn’t hang on anymore, and nodded slowly, “Alright. I’ll rest here
for a bit. We’ll be heading back soon, so don’t go too far.” Just then, there was another
wail from within the forest, and Feng Xin and Mu Qing left to go check it out. Xie Lian
sat and zoned out for a bit before lying down on the ground right there.
If this was the past, if no one would build him a perfumed tent and a tusk bed, he would
never have just lain on muddy ground out in the wild. Under the current circumstances
however, he really didn’t have the energy to trouble any errand runners, even the grime
and blood on his robes were uncleansed before he dropped his head and passed out,
still dirty and unkempt.
An unknown amount of time passed, and cloudily hearing Feng Xin calling him, Xie Lian
jerked awake, sitting up immediately, and felt something on him slip off. When he looked
down it was a patched, worn quilt that someone must’ve used to cover him when he
was resting. Xie Lian rubbed his forehead and spoke to the Feng Xin who approached,
“I don’t need this, you can give it to the patients instead.”
Feng Xin was slightly taken aback, “Huh? What do you mean? This quilt? That wasn’t
from me. I only just got back.”
Xie Lian turned his head, “Was it you, Mu Qing?”
“It wasn’t me either.” Mu Qing said. “Maybe it was one of the devotees living in camp
who brought it for you.”
Xie Lian looked around but didn’t see any one worth noting and shook his head,
thinking, “I actually didn’t sense anyone get close, what a shameful state.” He folded the
quilt and laid it on the ground before rising to this feet, “Let’s go.”
Xie Lian left with a heavy heart, and very soon, the thing he feared happened.
It was only two days later when Xie Lian visited BuYou Forest again, and some of the
doctors informed him: At night, some ten Human Face Disease patients ignored the
warnings and snuck up, some used fire to burn their sores, some used knives to slice
away their flesh, and there were many, that due to mishandling, lost too much blood and
didn’t dare tell anyone, hiding under their blankets quietly, and died equally silently.
Xie Lian had only just left the battlefield and he received such news. Standing before
hundreds and watching those bloody, crying patients, he finally lost his temper, “WHY
WON’T YOU ALL LISTEN TO REASON? DIDN’T I SAY THAT WE HAVEN’T
CONFIRMED THIS METHOD COULD CURE THE ROOT CAUSE OF INFECTION?
HOW COULD YOU ALL BE SO FOOLISH!”
It was the first time he had gotten so mad in front of so many devotees, and the masses
bowed their heads silently, afraid to speak. Xie Lian was really quite furious and couldn’t
help but lecture a bit more, and as he berated, someone spoke up unexpectedly, “Your
Highness is invincible, so of course you’d call us foolish, but aren’t we all just overly
concerned with our conditions that we had no choice but try foolish methods!”
Although this individual didn’t oppose him openly, still he was dripping with sarcasm.
Hearing him, blood rushed to Xie Lian’s head and he snapped, “What did you say?”
That person immediately shrank back into the crowd and disappeared. Feng Xin was
further away and didn’t hear, otherwise he would’ve cussed them out already. Mu Qing
noticed that the mood of the crowd was going in the wrong direction, and cautiously
chose not to provoke any more outrages. Seeing that Xie Lian didn’t actually respond,
another piped up, “Your Highness, if you can’t save us then we gotta save ourselves.
Don’t worry, we won’t waste your holy medicine or spiritual power.”
It was hot blood that rushed up at first, but now Xie Lian felt immense cold as he
thought, ‘…What the heck? And did I ever concern myself with those holy medicine and
spiritual power? Clearly I only stopped them because amputation might not work, so
why did they have to say it like I’m haughty and only speaking empty words? I can’t feel
their pain but if my desire to help them wasn’t sincere, why in the world would I give up
being a heavenly official and find trouble for myself down here???’
Never in his life had he ever been stabbed by another’s words and never had he been
wronged like this. Thousands of thoughts filled his mind but none of them could be
formed into words, because he knew this was all because he couldn’t find the cure for
the Human Face Disease, and his devoted followers were finally losing their patience.
The suffering of those citizens were a hundred times more difficult to live with than his
hardships, so he could only clench his fists, cracking his knuckles. A moment later, a
sudden punch landed on a tree next to him.
That tree cracked and snapped, making the people jump, ending their whispers. Only
then did Feng Xin who was further away noticed something wrong and rushed over,
“Your Highness!”
After landing that punch, Xie Lian was able to relieve that breath of anger, and
somewhat calmed down. Yet, in that dead silence, another spoke up, “Your Highness,
there’s no need for you to be so angry. Everyone here is a patient, and we’re all your
followers. No one owes you anything.”
Once the words were spoken, many nodded secretly. Although the voices were quiet,
still Xie Lian’s senses were sharp and could hear every sound clearly; the crowd were
grumbling: “Finally someone who dared speak the truth. I’ve been holding it in, afraid to
say anything…”
“Didn’t they used to say His Highness the Crown Prince was a gentle soul?…So he’s
actually like this in person…”
In that endless tides of talk, Xie Lian unconsciously took a step back. In his twenty
years, he had never been terrified before any enemies, he had never been afraid. Yet at
that very moment, an emotion akin to terror was rolling through his heart. Just then, he
heard another person whisper: “With such an impressive might, why not go set fire to
the enemy camps, instead of having us suffer battles like this!”
Hearing those words, he couldn’t stand there any longer.
Of course he knew that the him now was nothing like that sword and flower holding,
smiling and kind martial god on the altar!
Xie Lian turned and dashed, running out of BuYou Forest like he was escaping, and
behind him, Feng Xin and Mu Qing yelled, “YOUR HIGHNESS! WHERE ARE YOU
GOING!”
There was suddenly an upheaval in the crowd; it seemed a young nursing staff
suddenly started beating some of the patients out of the blue, causing others to join in
the brawl. Yet, Feng Xin and Mu Qing had no time to worry about them anymore. They
called forth troops to take care of the situation and immediately ran after Xie Lian.
The direction of his flight was BeiZi Hill, one of his steps and it was a few meters, and
soon he came to the top of that densely wooded mountain top. Xie Lian’s eyes were
going red, and he shouted into the forest, “COME OUT!!!”
Feng Xin cried after him, “Your Highness! What are you doing coming here!”
Xie Lian yelled to the sky, “I KNOW YOU’RE HERE, COME OUT!!!”
Mu Qing called out, “If he’d come out just by your call, then we wouldn’t need to…”
He trailed off and fell silent. Behind the three of them came a series of crunching
sounds. Whipping their heads around, and the one sitting upon a vine watching them
was no other than that white-clothed creature with his left face crying and the right
smiling.
It actually heeded the call!
Xie Lian immediately lost it at the sight of him, charging at him crying sharply, “I’M
GOING TO KILL YOU!!!”
That white-clothed being lightly evaded him, his large white sleeves looked like the
wings of a butterfly dancing, elegant and beautiful. Feng Xin and Mu Qing let out an
“eh?” and was about to aid him but they abruptly noticed something extremely alarming,
and stopped their movements, their faces aghast. Xie Lian on the other hand, was filled
with rage and noticed nothing. He unsheathed his sword as Feng Xin shouted, “YOUR
HIGHNESS! DIDN’T YOU SEE, HE…” Xie Lian’s hand was already choking the neck of
that white-clothed being, the other holding his sword, pointing it at his heart. That
white-clothed being was clearly under constraint but suddenly he burst out laughing.
That laugh was sonorous and gentle like that of a young man, and Xie Lian thought it
was familiar like someone he knew, but in his rage he couldn’t think of who that voice
belonged to, and that moment of confusion didn’t last. Soon enough, that white-clothed
being sighed, “Xie Lian, Xie Lian. It won’t matter how much you struggle. You’re going to
lose. The Kingdom of Xianle is doomed!”
Xie Lian was raging, and slapped him without pause, “WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU
ARE? NO ONE GAVE YOU THE RIGHT TO TALK SO SHUT UP!”
For him, it was an exceedingly rude gesture. The head of that white-clothed being was
turned from the slap but he righted it again, “Do you really want me to shut up? Alright,
alright. But, actually, there is a way that can turn your defeat into victory. It would only
depend on your willingness to do it.”
If he hadn’t added the last line, Xie Lian would’ve ignored him. But in that last line, Xie
Lian thought just maybe there could be some truth in his words. There was a way, but
there was a heavy price he needed to pay. He blew out a breath and said gravely, “What
way? If you want me to do something then just say it, and stop wasting my time!”
“Come closer and I’ll tell you.” That white-clothed being beckoned.
“Fine.” Xie Lian acquiesced.
Feng Xin was alarmed, “Your Highness! You’re not actually…” but then he saw Xie Lian
penetrating the heart of that white-clothed being with his sword and leaned down,
“Speak.”
With an exceedingly soft voice, that white-clothed being whispered in his ears, and no
one else heard exactly what he said. Yet the more Xie Lian listened, the wider his eyes
became. After a while, he slapped the creature again, unable to hold back. He yelled, “I
DIDN’T SAY TO TELL ME THIS! WHAT I WANT IS A SOLUTION! A CURE!”
“I did tell you; that was the way.” That white-clothed being said. “It all depends on if
you’re willing to do it.”
Xie Lian’s face twisted, “…just what do you want? Who are you?”
That white-clothed being chuckled, “Who am I? Can’t you take off my mask and see for
yourself?”
Xie Lian already had that very intent, and pulled off that half-crying half-smiling mask in
a fit. The next second, his entire person froze.
Behind that mask, the one smiling at him, was a pale and handsome face of a young
man, his eyes twinkling with life, his lips curled into a smile, his expression endlessly
gentle and modest.
It was his own face.
————–
Ch.87: Gilded Figure; Exertion to Block Celestial Ruin
Xie Lian was beyond outraged. He pulled out the sword impaled on that chest and was
about to thrust again when he realized there wasn’t a trace of blood on the blade.
Instantly, he understood, and changed the course of the blade, slashing off the head of
that white-clothed youth. The decapitation was swift, and when that head and its body
were separated, both shriveled up and became a heap of skin bags.
That body was an empty shell!
Twice he met that creature he had used a fake body, and not once did he show himself
in his true form. Although not surprised, Xie Lian was still filled with angry resentment,
his sword venting his anger on that soft and limp body, the sharp aura of the blade
slashing the skin bag into shreds, and still he wasn’t relieved. Feng Xin couldn’t watch
anymore and tried to stop him, “Your Highness! It’s only a shell.”
Still, that shell looked exactly like Xie Lian’s younger self, so it looked like Xie Lian was
cruelly mutilating himself, painting a distressing picture. Xie Lian heaved a few long
breaths, threw the sword away to the side, and sat on the ground, “I KNOW! BUT I
CAN’T BELIEVE HE DARED USE MY FACE!”
He was furious to the core, and the other two knelt down next to him, silent. A moment
later Feng Xin spoke up, “Your Highness, do you feel better? Don’t take his bullshit to
heart, he’s only playing with you.”
However, Xie Lian said, “No, he said some things that weren’t a joke, just…”
Feng Xin was shocked, “He actually told you the way to lift the curse?”
Xie Lian’s right hand grabbed at his own hair, “He didn’t tell me how to cure the Human
Face Disease, what he told me was… the way to inflict the Human Face Disease!”
The other two were aghast, “Inflict?”
Xie Lian nodded, looked around, and felt it was still best not to stick around at BeiZi Hill,
and decided to leave first. He didn’t want to see the soldiers’ averting gazes nor the
cries and whines of patients, so he returned to his crown prince bedchambers in the
palace that was left empty for many years.
It was after closing the door did Xie Lian somewhat calm down and sat down, speaking
in a grave voice, “Those ‘faces’ grown on those people were all the dead souls of
Yong’an. A part were those who died on the battlefield, but the majority were those who
died in the drought.”
Mu Qing wasn’t surprised, “No wonder none from Yong’an were infected with the
Human Face Disease; of course they wouldn’t attack their own people.”
Feng Xin frowned, “Those who died in the drought weren’t killed by those in the royal
capital, so even if there’s a grudge, there was no reason to strike here?”
Xie Lian breathed a sigh, “Even if that’s the case, you both know that when a person
dies, there’s a period of confusion.”
When a person had passed away, there was a time when their souls were like a
newborn, barely conscient, half cognizant, unknowing of who they were, where they
were, what they were doing, and that period could be long or short depending on their
own affinity. That period was called the ‘Period of Confusion’.
Under those circumstances, the family or lovers of those spirits could guide them or
influence them. The common custom of ‘Calling Spirits on the Seventh Day’* was based
on this rationale.
Xie Lian continued, “He… told me, that the soldiers of Yong’an harboured an intense
animosity and hostility towards the royal capital, and their parents, spouses, children,
many of them all died in the drought.”
“Those souls of the dead would unconsciously be affected by their family’s emotions,
and so he used the strong wills of those soldiers to instill enmity within the spirits and
urged them to take on living flesh as a host and fight for nutrients within their host’s
body”
“And this worked because those spirits in their period of confusion were repeatedly
indoctrinated by one thought: that if not for them, you could’ve survived.”
“What kind of bullshit belief is that, who deserves to live and who deserves to die??”
Feng Xin commented.
Xie Lian covered his forehead, “Before, Lang Ying had unintentionally buried the body of
his son here at the royal capital, and that became a fuse for his curse. I told him to give
me a cure, but with so much talk, all he told me was the entire process of how to cast
this curse. What the heck?”
A curse couldn’t be lifted just by knowing how it was casted. Feng Xin cussed, “He’s
playing with you. What the hell. What the fuck!”
Mu Qing, however, piped up, “He wasn’t playing with you. He did tell you the way.”
Between Xie Lian and Feng Xin, one looked up and the other turned his head, “What
way?”
“The way to lift the curse!” Mu Qing replied.
His eyes brightened as if he discovered a secret, “Yong’an’s curse works because they
harbour hatred towards Xianle. As for Xianle, there isn’t any less hatred harboured for
Yong’an!”
Xie Lian’s eyes widened slightly, his breathing hitched. Mu Qing added, “Since he told
you how to cast the curse, then, an eye for an eye, you can cast the same curse and
inflict the Human Face Disease upon those in Yong’an! Just think, the curse can only
work if there are live people working it. Once they’re infected by the disease, they’d be
too busy dealing with it, and maybe in the long run there wouldn’t be any of them left, so
the curse would break itself!”
Xie Lian had never thought of it that way. Listening to him explain, Xie Lian was
temporarily dumbfounded. A moment later, he blurted, “Definitely not!”
“Why not?” Mu Qing pushed, “Don’t forget, the ones who casted the curse first were
them.”
Xie Lian instantly rose to his feet, “No means no. Also, you’re wrong. And it must also
be difficult for the Yong’an soldiers to get infected just like the soldiers of Xianle. Don’t
ask me why, I–”
Mu Qing immediately cut in, “Then just infecting civilians is fine too! They don’t have a
complete set of first aid resources and hands like the royal capital, and the moment the
human face disease erupts, it’d spread much faster, and they’d have no way to fight
back! Threatening the safety of the civilians behind their backs to stop their curses and
force them to surrender is the same thing, they can’t compete with the royal capital in
exhausting resources!”
Xie Lian instantly rejected the idea, “Absolutely not! Don’t forget what we called them
when they attacked the innocent civilians of the royal capital: Despicable. If we do the
same thing, then won’t we become the same despicable people? How is that different
from them?”
Mu Qing schooled his excitement, “Your Highness, don’t forget just the kind of people
who died to lure you into the Land of the Tender. They’re what you called ‘innocent’
civilians.”
Once that was said, Xie Lian fell into hesitation.
To be truthful, there was no way for him not to take that to heart. However, he still
replied, “That’s right, there were certainly those kinds of people. But that was because
those who charge at the forefront are the most passionate, so you only saw those types
of people in your eyes. But in reality, the majority of the civilians know nothing. Go to
BeiZi Hill and you’ll see. A lot of them don’t even know why they’re fighting. They’ll go
where there’s food; they just want to survive. Mu Qing, what you’re advising me to do
right now is to save a group of innocent people by killing another group of innocent
people. I…”
He sighed, “Let me try and think of another way.”
Mu Qing’s tone was growing impertinent and somewhat mocking, “Why would I want to
go to BeiZi Hill to care how enemy civilians get on? Please. Your Highness, you’re so
considerate of others, but they have never been considerate of you, doesn’t that suck?”
Xie Lian was despondent, and lowered his head, yet the image of that leg packed with
those faces that continued to squirm even after having been cut off floated in his mind.
After hesitating for a long while, in the end he still shook his head, “At the end of the
day, this isn’t in consideration of others. Even in consideration of ourselves, a curse is a
double-edged sword in itself; it hurts others and ourselves. In order to curse others, the
living caster must have a heart filled with poison, and those who died also cannot rest in
peace. They already suffered enough whilst alive, and even in death they must live on
in another’s flesh, turning into monsters. You saw those things on that man’s leg that
day. How were those ‘faces’ that were desperately trying to live any better than those
infected by the disease? A curse will always rebound one day, and no one will receive a
good end.”
Having been spurned repeatedly, Mu Qing was losing his patience, “BEFORE THEY
REACHED THEIR BAD END, WE’LL ALREADY HAVE PERISHED! YOU DON’T HAVE
A THIRD PATH AND THERE IS NO SECOND CUP OF WATER. WAKE UP, YOUR
HIGHNESS! YOU’RE RUNNING OUT OF TIME.”
Xie Lian could feel his head burning and closed his eyes, “…don’t say anymore. Let me
think some more.”
“…”
Finally, Mu Qing couldn’t hold back anymore and started cursing under his breath, “You
really are… the one suffering indecision is you, now with a cure in hand, the one
refusing it is also you. You’re really… really annoying. Look at the state of you, just
looking at you is a pain. Your worshippers must’ve collected bloody misfortune for eight
lifetimes!”
At first Feng Xin was listening to their argument glumly but because he couldn’t
contribute any better ideas he didn’t join in. Right then he suddenly raised his hand and
shoved, yelling, “ARE YOU DONE!”
Mu Qing was shoved back a few steps, and Xie Lian looked up, “Feng Xin?”
“YOUR HIGHNESS, DON’T MIND ME!” Feng Xin shouted, then turned to Mu Qing,
“WHY ARE YOU SO IRRITATED? TELL US, JUST WHAT EXACTLY IRRITATES YOU?
I’VE TOLERATED YOU FOR A LONG TIME, BUT I WON’T HOLD BACK TODAY. I
CAN’T FUCKING STAND YOU. YOU’RE NOTHING BUT A DEPUTY GENERAL;
WITHOUT HIS HIGHNESS’ APPOINTMENT WHO KNOWS WHERE YOU’D BE, SO
WHY DO YOU ALWAYS ACT LIKE YOU’RE SMARTER, SHARPER, AND STRONGER
THAN HIM? IF YOU’RE REALLY THAT AMAZING, WHY DID HIS HIGHNESS
ASCEND AND NOT YOU?”
“I–!” Mu Qing cried
Xie Lian pulled at him, “Let it go, Feng Xin, Mu Qing is just anxious over the current
situation–”
Feng Xin cut in, “ANXIOUS MY ASS! YOUR HIGHNESS I’M TELLING YOU, HE ONLY
WANTS TO FIND A REASON TO LECTURE YOU; HE WON’T LET GO OF ANY
CHANCE HE GETS TO SHOW HOW HE’S BETTER BECAUSE HE BELIEVES HE’S
BETTER! A COLD PERSON LIKE HIM, YOU DON’T USUALLY SEE HOW MUCH HE
ACTUALLY CARES FOR THE KINGDOM OF XIANLE, SO NOW HE KNOWS TO BE
ANXIOUS?”
He turned to Mu Qing again, “YOU DON’T THINK I CAN’T TELL YOU THINK HIS
HIGHNESS IS A FOOL? I CAN TOLERATE YOUR SARCASM AND ROLLED EYES, I
CAN ALSO TOLERATE YOU STANDING WHERE YOU SHOULDN’T. YOU LIKE TO
SHOW OFF, IT’S NOT THE FIRST TIME, SO FINE, GO SHOW OFF, YOU’RE NOT
GOOD ENOUGH TO WOW THE HEAVENS ANYWAY. HIS HIGHNESS DOESN’T
MIND SO I DON’T GIVE A SHIT EITHER. BUT SINCE YOU’RE GONNA CROSS THE
LINE, I’M NOT GONNA STAND BACK. LISTEN UP: I’M NOT SURPRISED YOU LIKE
USING DESPICABLE TRICKS, BUT HIS HIGHNESS IS HIS HIGHNESS, NO MATTER
WHAT HE DECIDES, YOU BETTER RESPECT IT. DON’T YOU BE POINTING
FINGERS AND FORGET WHO THE FUCK YOU ARE!”
While Feng Xin yelled, Xie Lian tried stopping him multiple times, but it might be
because he’d been holding back for too long and so couldn’t be stopped at all, spilling
everything in one go. With every word, Mu Qing’s face paled a shade. At first he jerked
as if wanting to fight back, but at the end, he stopped, unspeaking, and glared at Feng
Xin gravely. Xie Lian was furious, “ARE YOU DONE? DO YOU WANT ME TO KICK
BOTH OF YOU OUT?!”
Feng Xin’s face was completely red, blood obviously rushed to his head, and he
stiffened his neck to counter, “Kick me out for all I care. I don’t give a shit about being a
heavenly official! If it wasn’t for Your Highness’ appointment, I really don’t care for it. But
even if you boot me back to the mortal realm and I become human again, I will still be
loyal to you, Your Highness. At your command, I will be the first to charge forward, but I
will not stand for a traitor! This guy, if he can’t use you to become a heavenly official, he
might not even follow you. I bet he doesn’t even have anything good to say about you.
THERE! I’m done!”
At first, Mu Qing was silent, his hand covering his mouth, but having held back for so
long too, he couldn’t put up with it anymore either and yelled back, “FUCKING USE
HIM? WHAT A BEAUTIFUL SPEECH, WHAT DO YOU KNOW!”
Xie Lian was going mad, “BOTH OF YOU SHUT UP!!! SHUT UP!!!”
The two bit back their retorts with immense difficulties. The dispute this time was too
big, and even idiom trains couldn’t save them. It was a while before Xie Lian could push
down his fury and scowled, “…in any case, cursing is a no go.”
Mu Qing sneered but still he acknowledged, “Hm. You’re the boss.”
Feng Xin was more succinct, “Yes sir.”
Mu Qing cleared his expression and said, “If there’s any consequences, Your Highness
would take on the burden yourself anyway.”
Feng Xin clicked his tongue but didn’t say another word. Xie Lian acquiesced
immediately, “Of course. I’ve already decided—”
Just then, the three of them all felt violent quaking, their bodies swaying, and Xie Lian
was bewildered, “What’s going on?”
Feng Xin was the first to react, “Earthquake!”
With earthquakes come casualties. Xie Lian shouted, “SAVE THE PEOPLE!”
Just as they were about to rush out, a person rolled out from under the bed and he
extended his arm, “Cousin! Cousin, don’t forget about me!!! Take me along too!!”
Seeing him, Xie Lian was even more perplexed, “Qi Rong, why are you in my
chambers?!”
He couldn’t possibly fathom the bizarre life Qi Rong led, having nothing better to do than
to gather and collect anything related to Xie Lian all day. He also didn’t know how long
Qi Rong’s been listening in on them in secret, but with such a dire situation at hand, he
didn’t have the time to question him. He grabbed Qi Rong’s arm and ran, and disposed
of him in an open area. It was chaos within the palace, and countless attendants
screamed as they rushed out from that extravagant building. He cried loudly, “IS
ANYONE HURT? IS THERE ANYONE STUCK?”
Fortunately, it didn’t take long before the earthquake stopped, and after inquiring, it
seemed there were no wounded or dead. Still, his heart was tight. Suddenly, there was
another scream, and many were pointing at the sky behind him. Xie Lian whipped
around and his pupils shrank. At the centre of the palace was a gigantic, glamourous
pagoda, and it was slowly leaning.
The Celestial Pagoda was going to collapse!
This Celestial Pagoda, its full name being ‘The Pagoda of Celestial Being’, possessed
centuries of history, and was one of the symbols of the Xianle Palace. It was also the
tallest building in all of the royal capital, sitting in the heart between the palace and the
fortress city. It was a renown landmark. If this pagoda fell, there would be innumerous
casualties; the palace attendants and the pedestrians on the streets outside the palace
all started fleeing with even more madness. Seeing this, Xie Lian’s right hand
immediately moved to cast spells, and yelled in the direction of Mount Taicang: “COME!”
That pagoda continued to lean slowly, and just as it had bent to one third of the way
down, the masses suddenly felt another wave of quaking.
This tremor also came from the ground, yet, it was different than that of an earthquake.
The tremors came one at a time, having its own regular rhythm, and it became faster
and faster, closer and closer. When that pagoda seemed to have leaned some more,
the people finally realized that tremor was the footsteps of something.
A giant golden statue of over five meters tall, a sword in one hand, flower in the other,
its body glowing, and it was walking towards the palace in large strides!
Someone immediately shouted in amazement, “ISN’T THAT THE CROWN PRINCE
STATUE FROM THE XIANLE PAVILION AT THE ROYAL HOLY PAVILION?”
Soon, many more recognized it, “IT’S TRUE! IT’S THAT GOLDEN STATUE! LOOK, IT’S
COMING FROM MOUNT TAICANG!”
Every step that golden statue took was a number of miles, but it didn’t step on anyone.
Thump-thump, thump-thump, it stepped into the palace like it was flying, and caught the
Celestial Pagoda that was falling, stopping the ruinous situation.
Under the setting sun, that golden light shone, that glowing gilded figure raised both
hands, and with its might, it exerted all its strength to hold up the gigantic pagoda that
was almost collapsed. It was the very picture of a miracle, shocking countless witnesses
into awed silence. Xie Lian slowly dropped his hand and looked to that divine statue.
Seeing that handsome, calm gilded expression, a flicker of bemusement flashed in his
mind.
———-
●[頭七叫魂/ 頭七] Calling the Spirit on the Seventh Day – it’s a common belief that
souls of the dead return home on the night of the sixth day to the morning of the
seventh. There are many different rituals depending on the region on what is
done when the spirit returns.
———-
Ch.88: Vow to Never Forget, Never!
It was the very first divine statue the people built for him, and it was also the most
magnificent and stately divine statue.
In the past, seeing that version of ‘himself’, Xie Lian had always simply accepted it
without thinking there was any problems. Yet at this very moment, he felt that golden,
scintillating giant figure endlessly foreign and couldn’t help but think: ‘Is that really me?’
On the side, Feng Xin and Mu Qing went about separately to check to see if there were
any trapped victims that wasn’t yet found. That flicker of bemusement flashed by
quickly, and seeing the crowds settling, Xie Lian breathed a sigh of relief.
But before that breath was completely exhaled, he suddenly felt a heavy weight on his
body, and his heart tightened.
That Celestial Pagoda was too tall and too heavy after all.
That divine statue also seemed to think its burden strenuous, its hands slightly
trembling, its feet sinking into the ground, and that gigantic golden body was also
slightly bent from the pressure; only that smile remained unchanging. Seeing this, Xie
Lian immediately cast another spell. However, when the spell was cast, his heart
dropped. Not only did the golden statue not straighten up, it was pressed down even
further, looking like it might not hold on any longer.
Xie Lian’s hands, too, started trembling. He had never felt like this before. As far as he
knew, whatever mountain he’d punch, that mountain must fall; should he stomp, the
earth would quake. He had never felt so deeply this concept called “strength falling
short of desire”.
With no other choice, Xie Lian gritted his teeth and leapt into the air, landing and seating
himself on the foot of that gigantic golden statue before he raised his hands to cast
spells once more with force. This time he entered the front lines himself, and sure
enough that golden statue rose again, its head shot up, raising that leaning Celestial
Pagoda up once more.
Although he managed to bear its weight, both Xie Lian’s back and his mind were
already rolling with cold sweat. However, the countless people outside the palace were
ignorant of his unspeakable hardship and were already approaching to prostrate at the
miraculous golden statue wave by wave, hollering, “His Highness the Crown Prince has
shown his divine spirit before us in the kingdom’s time of need!”
“YOUR HIGHNESS YOU MUST SAVE US!”
“SAVE THE PEOPLE! PROTECT THE WORLD!”
Xie Lian was gritting his teeth, and it was a while before he spoke with difficulty,
“Everyone please stand up and back away. Go further, don’t stand around here, I…” He
trailed off, suddenly realizing he was actually running out of breath. His voice was
drowned in tide-like cheers, and the more he wanted to amplify it, the smaller he found
himself to be. Xie Lian took a deep breath and was about to shout when a hand
suddenly grabbed his ankle. He looked down and it was Qi Rong. He immediately said,
“Qi Rong, hurry and go tell everyone not to hang around here, the pagoda might
collapse!”
Those words were blurted out unintentionally, and when Xie Lian realized what he had
said, his blood ran cold.
The him in the past, nevermind speaking those kinds of words, even the thought of
them would never have entered his mind. Even if the sky was going to fall he’d believe
he could support it. But the him now, he realized something alarming: he no longer
believed.
Not only did the people stopped believing in him, even he could no longer believe in
himself.
Qi Rong responded instantly, “How can it collapse? Aren’t you holding it up?!”
Hearing him, Xie Lian felt his heart drop again. Qi Rong didn’t notice his darkening
expression nor his eyes going wild at all, “Cousin, let me help you.”
Xie Lian was taken aback, “Help me? How?”
Qi Rong immediately said without thinking, “Didn’t you say you know how to inflict the
Human Face Disease? Tell me how to do it, and I’ll help you curse Yong’an. I’ll help you
kill them!”
…So he did hear everything they discussed when he was hiding under the bed!
Xie Lian was growing weak from rage, “You— you fool! Do you know what a curse is?”
Qi Rong replied looking nonchalant, “I do. Isn’t it just a curse? Cousin let me tell you, I
have quite the talent in this area. I curse my dad often, maybe he even died from my
curses, you…”
“…” Xie Lian couldn’t listen anymore and said, “Just go.”
“No! NO!” Qi Rong exclaimed, “Fine, don’t tell me how to cast the curse.Then tell me…
how can I avoid getting infected by the Human Face Disease?”
Xie Lian’s heart continued to drop, and Qi Rong added, “You know how, right? You knew
why the soldiers weren’t getting infected, no? Cousin, tell me why. Please?”
There were still many palace attendants gathered nearby, and who knew just how many
ears were listening. Xie Lian was afraid leaking that information might start something,
so he remained silent. However, sure enough some people couldn’t hold it back any
longer and raised their heads to ask, “Your Highness! Is that true?”
“You really know how to cure the Human Face Disease?!”
“Why didn’t you say anything?”
The eyes of those people along with Qi Rong were all going wild, and Xie Lian kept his
mouth shut tightly, squeezing out but a few words, “NO! I DON’T KNOW ANYTHING!”
There was a small disturbance in the crowd but it didn’t escalate. Just then, Feng Xin
returned. He saw from afar Qi Rong leaning near Xie Lian and shouted, “WHAT THE
HELL ARE YOU DOING!”
Xie Lian immediately ordered, “Feng Xin, come take him away!”
Feng Xin acknowledged and came forward, but Qi Rong latched on to Xie Lian and
cried impassionedly, “Cousin, you’re going to defeat Yong’an and chase them all away
for sure, right! YOU’LL PROTECT US FOR SURE, RIGHT! RIGHT?!!”
If this was a few months ago maybe Xie Lian would still emphatically answer with fervor:
“I will protect you all!” But now, he didn’t dare. Qi Rong’s expression was exceedingly
agitated, and Xie Lian was slightly puzzled watching him, because he knew very well
that Qi Rong was not the type to be concerned with the kingdom nor its people. Even if
the kingdom was doomed, he should be more scared than anything, so why was he so
agitated? A moment later he suddenly remembered something. That father of Qi Rong
seemed to also be from Yong’an.
Hearing no response from him, Qi Rong’s voice suddenly grew cold, “COUSIN! YOU
WON’T REALLY LEAVE IT BE, RIGHT? ARE YOU JUST GOING TO LET US BE
TRAMPLED AND RIDICULED BY OTHERS LIKE THIS? DO WE REALLY HAVE NO
OTHER WAY?!”
At his demand, Xie Lian could feel his heart breaking. Because, he realized, Qi Rong
wasn’t wrong. In the face of everything, he really… really didn’t know what to do!
“Let me go request the king to detain him again.” Feng Xin said.
Even whilst being taken away Qi Rong was still struggling, and he roared, “YOU HAVE
TO HOLD ON! YOU CAN’T FALL!”
He couldn’t fall!
Xie Lian himself knew that he couldn’t afford to fall. Even if the nearby civilians escaped,
this Celestial Pagoda must not fall. If it collapsed, not only would the centuries old royal
monument be destroyed, the main part of the Martial Deity Avenue along with many
residences would all be demolished. Moreover, within the pagoda were countless rare
treasures, centuries old scrolls passed down from countless ancestors of generations
past. They couldn’t be moved in time, and if the pagoda collapsed, they would all be
gone. If it collapsed, it would also bring down with it the eminence of royalty in the
Kingdom of Xianle.
However, his spiritual power, like the water source of Yong’an, seemed to be draining by
the day. In order to support that gigantic golden statue, he couldn’t leave for the
moment, and could only pass on the duty of guarding the fortress city to Feng Xin and
Mu Qing, while he himself staunchly remained where he was, and meditated in forced
calm. Because that five meters tall golden statue was the divine statue worshipped on
Mount Taicang within the Royal Holy Pavilion, after Xie Lian summoned it over, the
devotees had no idol to worship and the swarm of them came over too to pray to it
under the open skies. Although this was the palace and outsiders shouldn’t have been
able to enter, yet first the earthquake had collapsed a part of the palace walls; second it
was chaos within the royal capital and there weren’t enough authority to go around; and
third, any more oppressive authority might cause another riot, so the people had to be
let through.
Xie Lian chose to settle where he was, and the king and the queen would visit him
everyday. Days passed in a blur as he spent all of his power holding that Celestial
Pagoda up on one hand, and on the other trying to restore energy, waiting for the day
he would be released. The king didn’t have it any easier than him; his hair was now
more white than not, and even though he was obviously in his prime, he looked to be
over fifty. When the father and son saw each other, although unspeaking, yet they were
more at peace with each other than ever before.
The queen watched Xie Lian grow up, and had only ever seen her beloved son in a
state of elegance and divinity, yet now, watching him miserably guarding the place,
exposed to the harsh elements and still refusing to let anyone close to help cover him,
she was filled with sorrow and grief, standing under the scorching sun herself to shield
him from the rays with an umbrella. After a while, Xie Lian was afraid she’d be tired, and
spoke up, “Mother, go back, I don’t need this. Don’t come near here, and don’t let
anyone else come close, I’m scared that…”
But what he was scared of in the end never left his lips. The queen’s back was facing
the devotees gathered there, and having held back for some time, at last tears still
streamed down, “My child, you’ve suffered. Why… why would such punishment befall
you!”
In order to hide her sallow and pale face, the queen’s make up was heavy, yet with
tears, the foundation still melted, revealing a woman who was no longer youthful. She
grieved for her son, cried for her son, but she didn’t dare cry out loud, scared that the
people would notice. The king held her shoulders, and Xie Lian watched her in a daze.
The first thing people thought of when they’re in a state of suffering was their loved
ones, and to Xie Lian, that person was no doubt his mother. Maybe saying it out loud
would be pointless, but after days of exhausting strain, having been cut down again and
again by knives, at that moment, he really wanted to turn into a ten year old child and
run into his mother’s embrace to bawl.
Yet, every road walked that led to this day was chosen by himself. His parents’ were
already in a difficult situation, and with so many citizens watching, he could not show a
trace of weakness. If even he couldn’t hold on, who could?
Thus, Xie Lian spoke against his heart, “Mother, don’t worry. I’m alright. I’m not
suffering.”
Suffering or not, only he knew in his heart.
A few palace attendants came to assist the king and the queen, and after they
reluctantly left, Xie Lian passed out for a short while, exposed under the scorching sun.
An unknown amount of time passed, and when he opened his eyes again, dusk was
settling in the skies, the setting sun shone its last rays, and below him there weren’t
many devotees left.
However, when he looked down, he saw that not far from his person was a small,
lonesome flower.
Xie Lian wasn’t very sure just when that such a flower was placed, and he extended a
hand to pick it up.
It was a tiny flower. A flower that was snow white, its stem lush green, its stalk thin and
weak, carrying tear-like dew, looking pitiful. The faint fragrance was familiar, and
although ordinary, it was touching.
He held the flower tight in spite of himself, and pressed it near his heart.
Just then, a sudden stench of blood overtook that faint fragrance. Xie Lian looked up
and his sight was muddled as a shadow came at him screaming, “WHY! WHY!!”
Startled, Xian Lian pushed that person away and tried to bring forth strength, “WHO?!”
That push made that person tumble and roll on the ground. Xie Lian still had to support
that five meters tall golden statue and didn’t dare to rise, and didn’t dare to go close, but
it only took a second for him to recognize who it was. That individual only had one leg –
it was the young man who once gave him an umbrella and the one he personally
amputated!
That young man was covered in blood, his palms bloody. He had actually came crawling
using both hands and foot, and there was a horrifying trail of blood behind him. He sat
up with difficulty and Xie Lian asked dumbfounded, “Why, why are you here? Weren’t
you recuperating at BuYou Forest?”
That young man didn’t answer him and crawled closer using his limbs. Because he only
had one leg, it was a horrifying sight. Xie LIan exclaimed, “You–!”
That young man lifted the pant leg of his remaining right leg up in a fit, demanding,
“WHY!”
Upon a closer look, on his right leg was a twisted human face!
This was one of the things Xie Lian worried about the most, and sure enough it
happened. If he wasn’t already seated, he might have fallen over. That young man
slapped at the ground and roared, “WHY DID YOU CUT MY LEG OFF! IT STILL
RELAPSED! MY LEG IS ALSO GONE! WHY?! GIVE ME BACK MY LEG! GIVE ME
BACK MY LEG!”
That rainy day, that young man was face full of smiles when stuffing that umbrella into
Xie Lian’s hands, yet before him now he was in a state of madness, and the difference
was too striking, Xie Lian’s mind was in chaos, a complete mess, and his voice
trembled, “I…”
It took him moments before he snapped out of it and said, “Let… let me help you!”
Immediately he casted a spell to suppress the evil poison on that young man’s leg. Yet
unexpectedly the sound of wailing came from all around, and several people also came
at him, crying: “Your Highness save me!”
“Your Highness, SAVE ME!”
“YOUR HIGHNESS, LOOK AT MY FACE, I’VE CUT HALF MY FACE SO WHY IS IT
STILL NOT HEALED, WHY? JUST WHAT DO WE HAVE TO DO TO CURE IT?”
“YOUR HIGHNESS, LOOK AT ME, LOOK WHAT I’VE BECOME!”
Scene after scene of bloodiness continued to be shoved before him, and Xie Lian’s
eyes were wide with shock, waving his hands in who knows what direction, mumbling,
“No, I don’t want to look, I DON’T WANT TO LOOK!”
Turns out, once all the Human Face Disease patients from BuYou Forest relapsed, a
riot erupted and they actually fought through the soldiers and doctors guarding and
nursing them, escaping the camps to come look for him!
Since they had all escaped, if he didn’t immediately suppress their infection, the disease
might spread faster. Xie Lian closed his eyes and tried to transfer power, wanting to help
alleviate their symptoms and relieve their pain for the time being. However, just when
that group was taken care of, immediately more poured in to surround him: “YOUR
HIGHNESS, ME! HELP ME TOO!”
Surrounded by over ten people, Xie Lian faintly felt the golden statue above seemed to
be swaying, and fear filled him, “Wait, wait! I–”
Someone couldn’t hold back and cried, “NO, I DON’T WANT TO WAIT, I’VE ALREADY
WAITED FOR TOO LONG!”
“YOUR HIGHNESS, WHY WOULD YOU TREAT HIM BUT NOT ME?”
Soon, the voices around him changed:
“HOW COME WHEN YOU TREAT HIM HE WAS GOOD AS NEW, BUT I’M NOT ANY
BETTER? AREN’T YOU A GOD? WHY ARE YOU SO UNFAIR! I DEMAND JUSTICE!”
Xie Lian argued back, “No, I’m not being unfair! This isn’t on me, your symptoms are
different –”
“IF YOU’RE GOING TO HELP, HELP ALL THE WAY. NOW YOU WANNA DROP
EVERYTHING, WHAT EXACTLY ARE YOU PLAYING AT? IS IT UP TO YOU?”
Xie Lian was having trouble catching his breath, “I’m not dropping anything, I’m just–
just wait –”
“DON’T YOU KNOW HOW TO CURE THIS DISEASE?”
Xie Lian opened his mouth, “I—”
“IF YOU KNOW WHY WON’T YOU TELL US???”
Xie Lian grabbed his own head, “I DON’T KNOW ANYTHING!”
“YOU’RE LYING! I ALREADY HEARD SOMEONE TALKING, YOU KNEW! I’VE SEEN
THROUGH YOU! YOU WON’T TELL US BECAUSE YOU JUST WANT US TO KEEP
BEGGING YOU LIKE THIS SO YOU CAN TRICK OUR DONATION MONEY! LIAR!
YOU’RE A LIAR!”
“WHAT’S THE CURE, JUST TELL US! TELL US NOW!!!”
Xie Lian’s face was white as a sheet, his eyes blank, with countless hands shoving him
around, and there was even a pair maliciously strangling him, until finally something
hilarious happened. He was clearly a god of heaven, but at that moment, there was a
tiny voice crying at the bottom of his heart: “…save me–”
There seemed to be someone pulling those hands away, but at the same time not, he
wasn’t very sure, only that those faces full of bloody scars, those people missing limbs
looked as if they were going to shred him to pieces and devour him. Who knew how
long it’d been when in the far distance came the demon-like wails of a horn. The
masses only cared for their own cries and tearing, ignoring that horn completely, but Xie
Lian snapped out of it instantly. That was the sound of Yong’an’s victory horn!
He couldn’t sit there nor hang on any longer. His body bent and he keeled over. At the
same time, that five meters tall gilded figure he worked so hard to uphold mimicked his
movement, and as if it suddenly lost life, it collapsed boomingly.
Soon, along with it, was another loud, rumbling sound, and that gigantic and heavy
Celestial Pagoda came crashing down, crumbling like that golden statue.
The gilded figure shouldn’t have broken, yet because Xie Lian had injected too much
spiritual power into it, hoping it’d hold up that Celestial Pagoda, it had long become
fragile. The patients that escaped BuYou Forest were fleeing, dying, getting hurt. Within
the palace and upon the streets, the people ran madly, some dodging the fragments of
that Celestial Pagoda, some dodging those horrifying disease victims. With both hands
grabbing his own head, Xie Lian ran and stumbled out of the gates of the city fortress.
The fortress towers were ablaze, the smoke black and heavy, and Xie Lian rushed up to
the terrace, passing by numerous distraught soldiers fleeing. Once at the terrace he
didn’t know what to do either, and could only look down below in bemusement. Without
knowing when or how, tears had streamed down his ashened face. In that blurry field of
vision, corpses filled the fields, and only the silhouette of a white-clothed individual was
distinct, his large sleeves fluttering. That figure wasn’t a youth but a man, and when he
turned his head, he saw Xie Lian from afar, waved at him in a carefree manner, and
looked as if it was about to disappear.
Seeing this, Xie Lian cried sharply, “DON’T GO!!!”
The first two times he saw him, he used his fake skin. This time, Xie Lian’s guts told
him, this must be his true form! Thus, he crossed over the fortress wall without
hesitation and leapt, jumping off the walls.
In his life, Xie Lian had jumped from an extreme height countless times. Depending on
his strong spiritual power and his martial might, he could land safely every time. Every
time he was pleased and full of pride. Every time, it was the very picture of a celestial
descent they spoke of in the legends. This time, however, he was no longer a legend.
When he landed, it wasn’t steady and his foot twisted. A needle sharp pain instantly
shot from his leg to his entire body.
He had broken his leg.
—
Breaking a leg wasn’t really anything, and it soon healed. Only, ever since that day, it
was like Xie Lian had become an entirely different person.
It was like he had lost his spirit and no longer divinely invincible. After the first defeat,
there would be a second, and then a third… he didn’t want to unsheathe his sword nor
enter the battlefield anymore, but because there was no one who could shield and
replace him, he could only bold-headedly go forth. Once on the battlefield, he didn’t
slack off either; he really did his utmost, but for some reason, even though he was
clearly a young man barely past twenty, the hand holding the sword was already
shaking like that of an aged elder.
Shuddering with a heart filled with fear, yet he couldn’t explain who or what exactly he
was afraid of. In the end, the soldiers who used to revere him gradually lost patience.
Xie Lian knew that a rumour had started going around among them: How is he a martial
god? More like a god of misfortune!
However, he couldn’t rebut, only because he himself started wondering: had he really,
maybe, turned into a god of misfortune?
It would’ve been good if that was the only issue, but to the Kingdom of Xianle, the real
dooming catastrophe was the Human Face Disease, and finally, it had completely lost
control.
Five hundred, one thousand, two thousand, three thousand… in the end, Xie Lian no
longer dared to ask just how many people were affected today.
As if like his final sentence, that day, the heavenly realm finally opened its gates to him
and sent a message: Your Highness, it’s time to return to the Heavenly Court.
What would be waiting for him when he returned he couldn’t say. For once Feng Xin
and Mu Qing looked agitated. Xie Lian however, had his mind on something else. He
said to the two, “Before we leave, I want to go somewhere to have a look.”
“Where?” Feng Xin asked.
“The Royal Holy Pavilion.” Xie Lian said.
After a moment of silence, Feng Xin said, “Don’t.”
But Xie Lian had already walked away by himself. “Your Highness!” Feng Xin cried, but
seeing that he couldn’t be stopped, he and Mu Qing could only run to follow.
The three of them hiked up the mountain on foot.
The Holy Royal Pavilion was where Xie Lian’s first holy temple was erected, and it was
also there where his first divine statue was built. However, under the instructions of
Guoshi, those three thousand disciples had already been sent away, and the Royal Holy
Pavilion now was only an empty establishment.
When they reached halfway up the mountain, Xie Lian looked down. He could see fire
ablaze everywhere in the royal capital, the flames reflecting a sky full of stars, a
beautiful sight to behold. Feng Xin however, yelled angrily, “Those mad men!”
Xie Lian only watched the flames, his eyes unmoving, and Feng Xin shouted again,
“Stop looking! There’s nothing good to see!”
In the past recent days, Feng Xin had yelled at Xie Lian countless times: Do you enjoy
straining yourself, or what? But truthfully, Xie Lian didn’t know what he wanted to do. He
only knew that once another one of his temples got burnt down or desecrated, he
couldn’t help but want to go take a look. Yet once he’d seen, he couldn’t speak nor stop
anyone, and could only stand there and watch. What’s there to see? He didn’t know
either.
Just then, the light of fire blazed up on the Crown Prince Summit. Feng Xin was aghast,
“They couldn’t even let the Royal Holy Pavilion go?! Did someone dig their ancestors’
graves or som…”
He trailed off and shut up. This was because he realized, before them, the sufferings of
many of those from Xianle were worse than the joke of “digging ancestors’ graves”.
However, that fire wasn’t great, and it soon died down, seeming to have been
extinguished by someone. Now Feng Xin was surprised. These days, there were only
people who dared to set fire, not extinguish fire. If there was anyone who would step in
and talk down or stop those angry mobs from setting fires and destroying temples, then
they would be treated like the very ‘God of Misfortune’ Xie Lian himself, and get beaten
to death. Because of this, the three of them no longer dared to reveal their spirit before
mortals, and had long hidden away their forms.
All along the way up the mountain the three could hear the sounds of a brawl, and once
they reached the Crown Prince Summit, sure enough, that Xianle Pavilion had already
been mostly torn down, leaving only the frame and walls of the great hall. That giant
divine altar no longer had a divine statue, and there was a gang of hoodlums fistfighting
in front of that decrepit hall entrance, screaming as they fought: “YOU FUCKING MUTT!
SHITTY BRAT! DID YOUR WIFE LOSE HER FUCKING VIRGINITY HERE OR WHAT,
IS THIS BROKEN SHRINE YOUR PRECIOUS DICK OR SOMETHING?!”
Just one look and Xie Lian knew that those people didn’t come to destroy his temple out
of anger. They were only a group of gangsters who’d only dream of chaos and were
either taking advantage of it, or was simply playing around and came to burn the temple
down for fun. However, at this point he didn’t really care what kind of people were
tearing his temples down. Just then, in that crazed brawl, the exceedingly vicious voice
of a boy broke through and rang to the night sky: “SCRAM!!!”
Listening closely, it was actually one person fighting many. Moreover, that one person
was only ten something years old, still very much a child, but even then he was
relentless and didn’t seem to be losing ground. However, it was still one against many
after all, and that boy’s face was already covered in blood and grime, littered with blue
and purple, and cuts all over, so much so his actual appearance was no longer
recognizable.
“That brat will definitely grow up to be a good man!” Feng Xin commented.
Just then, there was a malicious glint in one of the men’s eyes as he lifted a giant rock
from the ground and was about to bash it on the back of that boy’s head. Xie Lian saw
and waved his hand once. The rock in that man’s hands instantly rebounded, smashing
into his own face, and he screamed as blood splattered out of his nose. That boy was
stunned, but immediately whipped around and raised his fist for another bout of berserk
beating. His fighting stance was too terrifyingly overbearing, scaring away that gang of
young men, and they pointed at him as they fled, shouting empty threats, “FUCK! JUST
YOU WAIT! WE’VE GOT MORE GUYS AND WE’LL GET YOU!”
That boy sneered, “YOU DARE COME BACK AND I’LL FUCKING KILL YOU!!!”
Those guys were terrified and ran faster. With the brawl over, that boy rushed to a small
mound with a fire that was already extinguished, and vigorously stomped on it, killing
the last bit of sparks, before entering the great hall. He picked up a piece of paper from
the ground, carefully flattening it, and hung it in mid air before finally, he sat down and
leaned against the altar, zoning out.
Xie Lian walked over, lightly sweeping past and leapt onto the altar, and discovered
what that boy hung in the air was a painting. The brushwork was rough, obviously done
by someone who had never learned how to paint. Yet every stroke was serious and
sincere, depicting the solemn figure of the God-Pleasing Crown Prince. It seemed this
was used to replace that divine statue he had summoned away.
“It’s pretty well painted!” Feng Xin remarked.
After the past many days, Feng Xin finally saw someone who would still defend Xie
Lian, and was already so excited he almost joined the fight earlier to help the boy out,
so obviously he harboured good feelings for the kid. Mu Qing however, only looked
down, his eyes shimmering as if recalling something, but didn’t say a word. Xie Lian
raised his hand and gently flicked that painting.
It wasn’t particularly obvious; it only looked like a breeze blowing by. Yet, that boy shot
up the head that was laid on his hugged knees, that tired injured face instantly lighting
up, and he called out, “Is that you?”
“That brat’s pretty sharp?!” Feng Xin was amazed.
“Let’s go.” Mu Qing said.
Xie Lian nodded lightly and was about to turn around to leave when that boy pounced
on the edge of that altar, his breathing slightly accelerated, “I know it’s you! Your
Highness, don’t go! I have something to say to you!”
Hearing him, the three of them were taken aback. That boy seemed to be quite nervous,
his fists clenched, “Even though, your pavilions and temples are burnt down, but… don’t
be sad. I will build you many more temples in the future; bigger, more elegant, better
than anyone else’s. No one will be able to compete with you. I will!”
“…”
The three were speechless.
That boy’s attire was dirty and unkempt, his face muddy and grimy, covered in bruises
and cuts, looking sad and pathetic, yet he spoke such ambitious, bold words, sounding
truly laughable, making one feel rather complicated. Seeming to be afraid his voice
might not reach the ear of the other, he circled his hands around his mouth, cupping
them, and shouted towards the painting hung above the altar, “YOUR HIGHNESS! DID
YOU HEAR ME? IN MY HEART, YOU ARE GOD! YOU ARE THE ONLY GOD, THE
ONE TRUE GOD! DID YOU HEAR ME?!”
He screamed himself hoarse to the point where the entire Mount Taicang seemed to be
echoing his voice: — DID YOU HEAR ME!
Xie Lian suddenly burst out laughing. This laugh came too abruptly, making both Feng
Xin and Mu Qing jump. Xie Lian shook his head as he laughed. That boy obviously
couldn’t hear him, yet he seemed to have sensed something, his eye bright, looking
around. Suddenly, a drop of ice cold water fell on his cheek. That boy’s eye bulged, and
in that instant, in his eye was the reflection of a snow white figure. He blinked, and when
he opened his eye again that reflection was gone.
Seeing that Xie Lian actually showed himself for a second, Feng Xin spoke up, “Your
Highness, just now, did you…”
Xie Lian looked dazed, “Just now? Oh, my power’s drained, and it slipped just now.”
That boy straightened up, rubbed hard at his eye, as if trying desperately to retain that
ephemeral shadow. Xie Lian, however, closed his. A moment later, he spoke, “Forget it.”
There was finally a response yet it was those words. That boy’s eye first lit up, his lips
curling, but soon after it became shock, and the curve of his lips fell, “…What? Forget
what?”
Xie Lian breathed a sigh and said to him in a soft voice, “Forget me.”
That boy was stunned and silent. Xie Lian continued to talk to himself, “Let it go. Soon,
no one will remember anyway.”
Hearing this, that boy’s eye widened, and silently, a stream of tears rolled down and
washed a trail of pale white on his grimy face. He swallowed hard and gaped, “I…”
Feng Xin seemed to not be able to bear the sight anymore, and spoke up, “Your
Highness, don’t say anymore. You’re breaking the rules again.”
“Hm, I’m done. But, I’ve already broken so many rules, just a few words won’t hurt.” Xie
Lian said.
He didn’t let that boy hear the last line. The three descended from the altar and walked
towards the entrance of that broken great hall. The winds of the night blew, and Xie Lian
shook his head.
He was still a heavenly official for the time being and technically he couldn’t feel ‘cold’.
Yet, at that very moment, he really felt a bone-biting chill.
Just then, unexpectedly, that boy they left behind in the great hall suddenly muttered, “I
won’t.”
He clearly couldn’t see Xie Lian and company, but he somehow accurately grasped the
right direction and charged out, shouting to their retreating backs, “I WON’T!”
The three of them turned their heads, and saw the single eye of that boy, so bright it
pierced the soul; that battered face was both furious and sad, both joyous and wild.
In the midst of pouring tears, he cried: “I WON’T FORGET.”
“I WILL NEVER FORGET YOU!!!”
———-
●MXTX Author’s Note: We’ve finally reached this point… in a broken and defeated
temple with a soon to be forgotten god and a young devout follower was the first
image that floated in my mind for this novel, and was also what first gave me the
impulse to write it. I’m the kind that would write up an entire book just for a
scene… all this plot planning exhausted me…
To be able to follow the journey to this point is not easy, so thank you, thank you,
I love you all. But… writing this is even harder [covers face] this book is killing
me.
Alright, the second book is done. The third book will return to normal, present
timeline.
———-
Book 2 End