Ch.136: My Puqi Shrine Will Collapse Supremely 2
Yet unexpectedly, no one in the spiritual communication array was listening to him. It was like something big had happened, and every heavenly official was blabbering noisily. Xie Lian heard Feng Xin yell, “Your Highness? DID YOU SAY SOMETHING? IT’S REALLY CHAOTIC HERE RIGHT NOW…”
Xie Lian raised his voice, “FENG XIN! I SAID, LING WEN WAS THE ONE WHO CREATED THE BROCADE IMMORTAL! SHE’S RUN AWAY WEARING IT, WATCH OUT FOR HER!”
“WHAT?!” Feng Xin shouted, “THAT’S HAPPENED?!”
Xie Lian was about to expand on the details when the noise by his ear abruptly stopped, and nothing more could be heard. Taken aback, he tried calling again, “Everyone? Is everyone still there?”
He called a couple times but no one answered. Hua Cheng spoke up, “It’s no use. The spiritual communication array of the Upper Court was set up by Ling Wen, she must’ve broken it up just now. It’ll need to be rebuilt.”
“Whatever shall we do then?” Xie Lian gaped. Usually when he communicated with the Upper Court, it was either through the spiritual communication array or through Ling Wen directly, or the Wind Master. He didn’t know the verbal password of any of the other heavenly officials. Now that he could no longer depend on Ling Wen or the Wind Master, and the communication array was destroyed, what should he do?”
Hua Cheng seemed to see through his worries and said, “Don’t worry, didn’t gege already report the key issue? Not all the heavenly officials of the Upper Court are idiots, and Jun Wu is also in the Heavenly Court right now. It’ll be fine once the message passes through.”
Xie Lian thought that too and nodded. After his mad dash, they’ve already crossed through several mountains tops, leaving those masters far behind them, but it seemed they wouldn’t be able to keep up with the Brocade Immortal and Quan Yizhen after all.
Hua Cheng added, “If gege still wants to investigate the Brocade Immortal, you’ll have to hurry.”
However, Xie Lian shook his head. “That was before. Qi Ying’s already chasing after Ling Wen, so right now we’ve got more important matters in our hands. San Lang.” He stared intently at the Hua Cheng in his arms, “Your form… it seems to have changed again.”
Before when Hua Cheng was disguised as Lang Ying, he was still in the appearance of a fifteen to sixteen year old boy and it wasn’t easy for Xie Lian to carry him. Even if he could it didn’t look good. But now, Hua Cheng’s body seemed to have shrunk in size, looking to be at most eleven or twelve, and Xie Lian could carry him singlehandedly and have him perch on his arm. Be that as it may, Hua Cheng’s air of steady calm never changed. “It’s a non issue. Changing form is only a temporary plan. After the whole thing is over my old self will return.”
He unwrapped the bandages on his head as he spoke. On that snow white face, a pair of deep, black eyes watched Xie Lian, and between his brows were still shadows of that handsome young man. It was clearly the face of a child, but his air and expression was the laid backness he always assumed.
Xie Lian watched him dazedly, not speaking a word.
Hua Cheng frowned slightly, “Your Highness, you…”
Suddenly, Xie Lian’s other hand reached out and squeezed his cheek.
This was so out of the blue, Hua Cheng widened his eyes as his face changed shape from the squishing, “…GEGE!”
Xie Lian laughed, “Hahahahahaha… Sorry San Lang, but you’re too cute I can’t help myself, hahahaha…”
“…”
Xie Lian squished him tenderly as he said gently, “Then, San Lang, are you going to keep changing? Are you going to turn into a toddler of five or six? Or even better, a little baby?”
Hearing his hopeful voice, Hua Cheng replied helplessly, “I’m afraid I will have to disappoint gege.”
Xie Lian dropped his hand and grinned, “Nonsense. San Lang has never disappointed me. I’m really happy to have this chance to protect you.”
However, Hua Cheng said glumly, “I’m not happy.”
“How come?” Xie Lian asked.
Hua Cheng voice turned cold, “I.. hate looking like this!”
Xie Lian could detect a trace of loathing in his voice and was slightly taken aback. Hua Cheng lowered his head, “I don’t want you to see me in such a helpless form, and I absolutely didn’t want you to have to protect me!”
Maybe it was because Hua Cheng’s age had diminished that even his emotions seemed to be rippling. Xie Lian felt his heart stir and hurriedly hugged him in his embrace, lightly patting his back as he laughed, “Then according to you, I might as well just die since you saw me in a mess so many times. Besides, it’s not like you’re completely useless right now, you’re just temporarily storing your powers, that’s all.”
“…” Hua Cheng buried his face in his shoulder and grumbled in a muffled voice, “It’s not the same. Your Highness, I have to be the strongest. I have to make myself stronger than anyone else. Only then can I…”
Although his voice was young and tender at the moment, there was still a faint trace of fatigue. Xie Lian soothed, “You’ve always been the strongest. But, you don’t need to be every waking moment of every day. Just… think of this as giving me some face, and let me protect you this once. Please? Ok?”
It was a long time before Hua Cheng lifted his head from his hug, and he placed his hands on Xie Lian’s shoulders, watching him, “Your Highness, wait for me.”
“Alright, I’ll wait for you.” Xie Lian promised.
Hua Cheng assured again very seriously, “Give me a little time, I’ll be back very soon.”
Xie Lian smiled, “No rush. Go at your own pace.”
The next day, the two came to a small town.
Xie Lian was holding Hua Cheng’s hand, and the one adult and one child strolled along the streets, chatting leisurely. Xie Lian asked, “With the reopening of Mount Tong’lu, all the preceding Ghost Kings are affected by the tremors. So does this mean that Black Water is the same?”
Hua Cheng had one hand courted behind his back as he held hands with Xie Lian with the other and replied, “Yes. But our situation’s different, our training methods are different, so naturally our ways of resisting provocations are also different.”
“For example?” Xie Lian asked, “How does he resist aggravation?”
“Hibernation, probably.” Hua Cheng replied.
The words “Eat when hungry, sleep when full” appeared in Xie Lian’s mind.
Hua Cheng continued, “When Black Water was a mortal, he suffered the torment of jail.
With only one meal every three days, even if he was given swills he must swallow.
Hunger ruined his stomach; sometimes he’d feed nonstop, sometimes he’d reject eating anything at all.”
“No wonder he was so impressive in devouring everything.” Xie Lian mused.
In truth, in He Xuan’s situation he could focus on devouring hungry ghosts, because he possessed that attribute by nature, so hungry ghosts should be more to his taste. Yet in all the five hundred some ghosts and demons devoured by Black Water Demon Xuan, the majority were water ghouls. It must be because he remembered the face of Shi Wudu, and in order to break his water magic, He Xuan did so intentionally. And when he swallowed too much, after a while he would need to slumber to digest.
“Indeed.” Hua Cheng said, “I might as well mention that Qi Rong feasting on human flesh was him trying to imitate He Xuan on purpose.”
Xie Lian was speechless for a moment and thought, ‘How can feeding on humans be the same as feeding on ghosts?’ Then after pondering, he asked, “Then that forest of upside down corpses? Could it be he was trying to imitate you?”
“Correct.” Hua Cheng replied. “Because he wanted to achieve the same bloody rain sceneries but didn’t know how I did it, so, he simply and vulgarly hangs rows of dead bodies in the air.”
“…”
Today, Xie Lian could finally understand completely why every time Qi Rong was mentioned, no one knew what to say. He had all the appearances but none of the class.
Xie Lian sighed as he thought, ‘Qi Rong had taken Guzi away, who knows if the poor child was eaten or abandoned. Wind Master… who knows if Black Water took him away. Pray they’re both safe.’ Then he asked, “What about your Ghost City? Won’t anyone go stir up trouble there?”
Hua Cheng replied, “I’ve locked up the Ghost City when I left, and leaked some false information of my whereabouts. Even if anyone tries to start trouble, if they can’t find me they won’t be too hard on them. But I’m sure there are plenty of eyes watching that place right now.”
Hua Cheng couldn’t return to the Ghost City and Xie Lian couldn’t take him to the heavens either, lest he be exposed by a heavenly official, so the two frolicked in the crowds of the mortal realm without a destination in mind.
Xie Lian slightly knitted his brows, “You leaked false information, but Ling Wen leaked real information. I still don’t understand how she was able to see through your Lang Ying disguise.”
“What I don’t understand is something else.” Hua Cheng said.
“What?” Xie Lian asked.
“That foul cultivator Heaven’s Eye, I’ve played him a couple times, his skills aren’t bad.” Hua Cheng said.
Xie Lian agreed, “En. It’s true. He’s really got the talent and put in the effort.”
“Yea. So, why would he say that gege’s lips are covered in the essence of evil?” Hua Cheng questioned.
“…”
Xie Lian’s hands instantly clenched, but when he remembered he was still holding hands with Hua Cheng, he immediately loosened his grip. Hua Cheng pressed with a low voice, “Gege, don’t blow me off with words you’d use to placate idiots. Tell me just what exactly did I do to you that night.”
“…”
‘It’s not what you did to me, more like what I did to you…’ Xie Lian thought. Suddenly, his eyes lit up, “Wait, San Lang, look over there.”
“Gege?” Hua Cheng questioned.
But Xie Lian was already pulling him into a luxurious and lavish store on the road. The owner at the counter looked the pair of them up and down, the curious combination of a cultivator and a layman, and asked, “What can I do for you, daozhang?”
Xie Lian lifted Hua Cheng up and smiled, “It’s not for me. It’s for him.”
Hua Cheng tilted his head in his arms.
An incense time later, Hua Cheng emerged from the back of the store.
Lang Ying’s clothes fit for a fifteen, sixteen year old from before no longer fit the current Hua Cheng, so Xie Lian picked out a new outfit especially for him. The moment he emerged, Xie Lian’s eyes brightened.
What a skin as white as snow little young master!
Donned in a robe as red as maple fire, and a pair of deer leather boots hung with silver chains, Hua Cheng was both handsome and spirited. His raven locks were loose, and before he only had a thin braid next to his right cheek, but Xie Lian couldn’t help but braid another one on his left too to match, making him look even more sprightly. What’s really too much however, was his expression; his eyes were vivacious and bright, his air calm and steady, looking nothing like a child! Such a contrast, it made one hard to look away. The ladies shopping in the store were all stunned, and they gathered around in a circle, their hands clutching their hearts as they cried “Aiyoh aiyoh” in appreciation.
Hua Cheng leisurely approached Xie Lian, and Xie Lian clapped lightly, “I knew it. San Lang looks best in red after all.”
Hua Cheng helplessly pulled at the little braid on his left and grumbled, “As long as gege is happy.”
Xie Lian lowered his arm to seize his hand, and smiled as they went to the storefront, ready to pay. Hua Cheng’s outfit wasn’t cheap, and Xie Lian didn’t have much money to spare so usually he wouldn’t have entered such a store. However, he had saved up a small fortune for renovating the shrine, and now that there’s nothing left to renovate, he could buy Hua Cheng some clothes first before he worried about anything else. Just as he was counting out his coins one by one, Hua Cheng squished over to his side, and PA!, slapped a gold foil on the counter.
Xie Lian: “…”
The owner: “…”
The ladies: “…”
“There’s no need for change.” Hua Cheng said, “Gege, come on, let’s go.”
He tugged at the corner of Xie Lian’s sleeve then exited the store with his hands at his sides. Xie Lian smiled and took a few steps too when suddenly, Hua Cheng backtracked and came back in, bumping into his arms. Xie Lian held his shoulders and asked, “What’s wrong?” Then he looked up and saw the shadows of a figure in the flowing crowd on the streets, and his heart lurched too. Coincidentally, the store owner asked, “Would you two still like to purchase something else?”
Xie Lian raised his hand, “Yes. Please bring me that robe!”
———-
●MXTX Author Note: Hua Hua: That day, His Highness took me to a lavish store to buy brand names (Huh??? The crown prince is good at making pickled veggies. Because eating steamed buns and porridge all need pickles to match, he’s practiced this for centuries so he’s experienced. Besides, a majority of the time you don’t need to mind pickles when making pickles; just leave them in a corner and let chemistry do its work. Most of his failures come from his intense desire to create something new.
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