Текст книги "Благословение Небожителей. Том 6 (ЛП)"

Автор книги: Мосян Тунсю

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Текущая страница: 2 (всего у книги 20 страниц) [доступный отрывок для чтения: 8 страниц]

Xie Lian had never imagined that this web would be so strong and cunning!

The moment Xie Lian fell into the pit, the white tendrils of silk charged forward and trussed him up. The rest of the silk tendrils crawled along to further secure the “cocoons” that trapped Nan Feng and Fu Yao.

Fu Yao was absolutely furious. “How come you fell in too? Now look at us—three stupid fools! Let’s all just die here together!”

“What are you griping about?” Nan Feng shot back. “This only happened because he was trying to save us!”

Xie Lian, on the other hand, was tumbling about and laughing. “Ha ha ha, ha ha ha, ha ha ha ha…”

Nan Feng and Fu Yao looked at him, dumbfounded.

“Did you hit your head on the way down? Have you lost your mind?” Fu Yao asked.

Tears rolled from the corners of Xie Lian’s eyes, and he said with much difficulty, “N-no, ha ha ha… What’s with this web…? Why is it…so ticklish?! I can’t… Ha ha ha ha…”

The silk bed had caught him gently when he fell, and the tendrils that had bound him seemed to touch him with care and love. They brushed softly against Xie Lian’s body while they worked, as if they were tickling him.

Xie Lian curled into a ball, fighting back with tenacity. “No, don’t, wait! Stop! Stop! I give! Stop!”

Only then did the white silk tendrils bind his hands behind his back and stop their ticklish dance. Nan Feng and Fu Yao stared at him.

A moment later, Fu Yao said grumpily, “How come it was so rough when it tied us up but so lenient with him? It hasn’t even covered his face.”

Xie Lian finally caught his breath. “Aren’t…aren’t your faces uncovered too?”

Fu Yao rolled his eyes. “They were covered. We had to use our teeth to tear holes after we woke up. We couldn’t have shouted otherwise.”

Xie Lian tried struggling a bit, but the silk webbing was tough and unyielding; plus, his ribs faintly hurt from laughing too hard. For now, he was out of commission. He decided to relax a bit, lying down flat.

“So how did you two end up here?”

“Don’t know,” Fu Yao replied. “When the avalanche hit, snow came crashing down on us. When we woke up, we were already here.”

“No, no, no,” Xie Lian said. “I mean, why did you come to Mount Tonglu?”

Fu Yao was furious the instant the topic was raised. “I was pursuing that ghost woman Lan Chang and the fetus spirit! Who knows why he’s here!”

“Me?! I’m here to chase after that mother and child too…” Nan Feng answered.

“Then why didn’t you go after them?” Fu Yao spat. “Why did you hit me?! I… My general already said that he had nothing to do with the fetus spirit. He didn’t kill either of them! His goodwill was taken for ill; there’s honestly no point in trying to be a good person!”

Xie Lian mediated out of habit. “All right, all right, stop, I understand the situation now. Stop fighting, stop arguing. You’re the ones who caused that avalanche, so can you just give it a rest? Let’s think of a way out together.”

However, Nan Feng was incensed. “Does your general really not realize how he usually acts? He has no right to complain if people are suspicious of him!”

Fu Yao glared. “What did you say?! I dare you to say that again!”

Nan Feng glared even harder. “I do dare, and I will say it again! You never had goodwill for anyone! You just want to show benevolence to people you can’t stand so you can secretly feel all smug about it later. You’re after your own satisfaction, and you love to watch everyone else make fools of themselves. Don’t give me that ‘goodwill taken for ill’ garbage, and don’t you dare think that you’re a good person! Genuinely good people aren’t like you—you’ve never been one!”

Veins popped on Fu Yao’s forehead, and his lips began to twitch. “You’ve made all that up! It’s pure nonsense!”

“You know best whether it’s nonsense—as if I don’t know you!” Nan Feng shouted.

Those veins now bulged all the way down Fu Yao’s neck. “What right do you have to lecture me? Looking down on people from so high up—careful, you might fall and break a leg!”

“I’m better than you at everything!” Nan Feng yelled. “Do you think no one knows about that shitty stunt you pulled back then?!”

The mere mention of this mysterious incident seemed to inflame Fu Yao even more, his fire fueled by shame. “Yes, I admit I did it! But how much better are you than me, really? Acting like you’re the model of loyalty—didn’t you ditch the boss too when you got a wife? Didn’t your wife and son suddenly become more important?! Everyone does things for themselves; everyone makes themselves top priority! Aren’t you embarrassed to keep hanging that ancient shitty deed over my head?”

When he heard “wife” and “son,” Nan Feng’s outrage exploded. “You fucking… You! I…? You?”

Although neither could move, they were so intent on their argument that they didn’t realize the way they addressed each other had slipped. They had dropped “your general” and “my general” in favor of “you” and “me,” and in their fury they had completely failed to notice what this exposed. Only now did they realize their error.

Xie Lian had long since stopped talking. Nan Feng and Fu Yao both whipped their heads over to look in Xie Lian’s direction and saw that he’d silently flipped on the silk bed, turning over and only showing them his back.

“Um…I saw nothing. Wait, I mean, I heard nothing.”

“…”

“…”

Xie Lian faced the stone wall as he politely asked, “Are you two going to keep this up? I won’t comment on anything else you were discussing, but, um…I do think that someone’s wife and son should be most important. There’s nothing wrong with that—it’s basic human sentiment. But all this ancient history…let’s not stew in it. Let’s think of a way to escape—”

“You already knew?” Fu Yao cut him off.

Since it didn’t seem he could get away with it any longer, Xie Lian could only concede. “Yeah…”

“When did you find out? How did you find out?” Fu Yao said in disbelief.

Xie Lian didn’t have the heart to tell the truth. Instead he replied, “I forget exactly.”

The real answer was that he’d known everything for a very, very long time. He’d already vaguely suspected it on Mount Yujun, and by the time they set foot in Banyue Pass, he’d confirmed it.

These “junior martial officials from the Middle Court”? They didn’t actually exist. “Nan Feng” and “Fu Yao” were merely clones created by Feng Xin and Mu Qing!

Fu Yao seemed like he couldn’t believe his real identity had been seen through so easily, and he began to relentlessly interrogate Xie Lian. “When? How? There must’ve been something that gave it away—what was the flaw?!”

“…”

Xie Lian really couldn’t bear to tell him the truth. There weren’t any secrets to give away because they had flaws all over them!

The three grew up together, after all—how could Xie Lian not recognize the way they behaved and spoke? From the sloppy fake names2 to the completely unchanged personalities, it was too easy to guess. If he hadn’t realized who was behind those two skins, he would've lived all these years for nothing.

There were always some things one couldn’t say…and some things one couldn’t do. For example, one couldn’t easily roll their eyes or cuss when minding their behavior as a heavenly official. But they could be much freer and more relaxed while wearing a different identity. Thus, Xie Lian never felt the need to expose them.

Fu Yao—no, now he should be called Mu Qing—gritted his teeth and said coldly, “So…you’ve known who we are for a long time, but you never said anything. You quietly watched us put on an act. Am I correct?”

Chapter 93:

Cave of Ten Thousand Gods—Faces of the Ten Thousand Gods Revealed

SEEING THAT HE was taking the matter quite hard, Xie Lian decided to try to give some guidance.

“Actually, it’s not that big of a deal…”

Mu Qing sneered. “I knew I was right! Was it fun? Did you enjoy watching me act? Hmm?!”

Now that they were being honest with each other, Mu Qing was honestly tearing him a new one. Nan Feng—or Feng Xin, rather—only looked awkward at first, but in the end he couldn’t let Mu Qing’s words slide without comment.

“What’s with that tone?”

Mu Qing was pale-faced and thin-skinned, and his entire head turned bright red whenever his blood started rushing—making it impossible to hide that he was upset. He whipped his head around.

“What tone? Don’t forget you’re one of the jesters here too! I’m not as generous as you are, to have no complaints about being someone’s entertainment for so long!”

“I wasn’t trying to watch you guys make fools of yourselves,” Xie Lian said.

“And stop thinking everyone is as narrow-minded as you are,” Feng Xin added. “His Highness still tried to help you even when your shitty deeds landed you in Heaven’s prison…”

“Ha! Oh, thank you so much. But I ended up in prison thanks to your son! What, you wanna fight for real?! You’re not afraid to sire a son, but you are afraid to talk?!”

Feng Xin really wanted to knock him dead for raising the subject of his son. Unfortunately, all three of them were still rolled up tight by the silk webbing, so he couldn’t move a muscle. Feng Xin and Mu Qing could only curse at each other, all manners and class gone.

Feng Xin’s face was getting redder and redder from anger, and Xie Lian was afraid he’d blow his top soon and start cursing up a storm. So Xie Lian tried to wiggle a bit, managing to rock back and forth a few times and eventually roll to Mu Qing’s side.

“Mu Qing, Mu Qing? Can you try turning around?”

Mu Qing stopped his yelling and took a breath. “What do you want?”

“Feng Xin is too far away—I can’t roll over there. But since we know these webs can be torn by teeth, I want to try to break the bindings on your wrists,” Xie Lian explained.

Mu Qing glared at him for a moment, then his expression swiftly cooled as he gazed upward like a dead fish looking at the sky. “No thanks.”

“I really do want to help,” Xie Lian said helplessly.

“Your Highness possesses a body of a thousand gold. I can’t possibly trouble such greatness,” Mu Qing said coldly.

Feng Xin cussed. “What the actual fuck?! Why are you being so sarcastic at a time like this?! Huh?! He’s helping you, trying to save you, but you’re acting like he owes you!”

Mu Qing’s head shot up. “Who asked him to help? Xie Lian! Why do you always show up at times like these?!”

Xie Lian was a little bewildered, and he vaguely remembered that Mu Qing had asked him the same thing a long time ago. How did he answer him back then? He couldn’t remember.

“Is there something wrong with showing up at times like these?”

Mu Qing lay back down. “Doesn’t matter. I don’t need your help.”

“Why?” Xie Lian questioned. “Everyone needs help sometimes just to get by.”

“Don’t bother with him anymore,” Feng Xin said. “He’s just a show-off. He thinks he’ll lose face if he gets help from you.”

Mu Qing and Feng Xin kept at each other’s throats while the wraith butterfly leisurely danced around Xie Lian—it was unhurried and calm as it shimmered with faint silver light. It made Xie Lian remember something, so he interrupted their sniping.

“Stop arguing, you two. It’ll be more of a joke if anyone else sees you like this. And someone will be along to help us soon.”

“No one in Heaven or on Earth will heed a call from this hellish place, so who’s gonna come save us?” Mu Qing said derisively. “Unless…”

A particular person came to mind before he finished, and he trailed off abruptly.

Feng Xin, however, asked directly. “Crimson Rain Sought Flower came with you?”

“You trust him that much?” Mu Qing asked doubtfully. “You sure he’s gonna come?”

Xie Lian was confident. “He will come.”

Hua Cheng had been behaving oddly for a while. Several times, he almost suspected the Hua Cheng next to him was fake. Nonetheless, his instincts told him that was impossible.

“Even if he wanted to, how would he find this cave?” Mu Qing added.

“Why don’t we holler some more?” Feng Xin suggested. “The more people, the louder the noise.”

“No need,” Xie Lian said. “We only need to sit and wait. No, just lie down and wait. Because Hua Cheng and I are joined by a red string—”

Before he even finished his sentence, he could see Feng Xin and Mu Qing’s faces twitching like worms had crawled into their ears.

“—What’s with that look?” Xie Lian asked. “Don’t misunderstand. I’m not talking about some frivolous notion about the ‘red string of fate.’ It’s a spiritual device! Just a spiritual device.”

Only then did they stop twitching.

“Oh, I see,” Feng Xin replied.

Mu Qing was doubtful. “What kind of spiritual device? What does it do?”

“It’s quite useful,” Xie Lian said. “It’s a red string tied on both our hands that invisibly connects the two of us, and one can use it to find the other. It will never break as long as one of us is still breathing—”

The others couldn’t listen anymore and cut him off.

“How is that any different from a red string of fate?! It’s exactly the same thing!”

Xie Lian was taken aback. “No, I don’t think so… It’s different!”

“And just how is it different? It’s exactly the same thing, all right?!” Mu Qing exclaimed.

Xie Lian pondered the matter only to discover that it was true! The more he thought about it, the more he realized that the intent and function of this spiritual device really was quite similar to a red string of fate.

Just when he began to think he should drop this train of thought, a voice came from above.

“Gege? Are you down there?”

The moment he heard that voice, Xie Lian instantly felt himself relax. He looked up.

“San Lang! I’m down here!” Then he turned to the other two in the pit. “You see? I told you he’d come.”

Feng Xin and Mu Qing both made complicated expressions when they saw how happy he looked. Hua Cheng didn’t peek his head over the edge, but all of them could hear the helpless way he spoke.

“Gege, I said not to run off. Now what should we do?”

Xie Lian was confused by his tone, and his delight faltered. “Huh? Is this silk webbing that difficult to deal with? Can’t Eming slash through it?”

“The silk isn’t the difficult part…” he thought he heard Hua Cheng mutter faintly, but the words were so quiet he wasn’t sure whether they were actually said.

A moment later, Hua Cheng quietly spoke. “Eming’s not in a good state right now.”

Xie Lian found this strange. Wasn’t Eming perfectly fine and completely energetic just a little while ago? How could there be something wrong with it now?

Next to him, Mu Qing humphed. “No need to ask him anymore. How could the scimitar Eming be in a bad state? He’s clearly looking for an excuse not to help.”

“Don’t say that,” Xie Lian countered.

Xie Lian thought it was more likely that Eming was being disciplined and Hua Cheng wasn’t allowing it out.

Suddenly, a black shadow flashed above, and a figure dressed in red landed soundlessly at Xie Lian’s side. Hua Cheng leaned down to hold Xie Lian’s hand.

“San Lang, why did you jump down too?” Xie Lian cried when he realized who it was. “Watch out for the spider silk!”

Sure enough, the white silk tendrils were flying at him in an attack, but Hua Cheng didn’t even spare them a glance. He gave a casual wave, and hundreds of silver butterflies shielded his back, forming armor with their wings. They started ruthlessly fighting the silk tendrils.

Hua Cheng tore away the white silk that bound Xie Lian, then held him around the waist and shook out a red umbrella with his free hand.

“Let’s go!”

The other two were dumbfounded when they saw that he had zero intention of saving them. “Did you forget something?”

Xie Lian hadn’t yet spoken, but Hua Cheng looked back.

“Oh, that’s right.”

The heavily bound Fangxin flew straight into Hua Cheng’s hand, and he passed the sword to Xie Lian.

“Gege, your sword.”

“…”

That was what he forgot?!

Feng Xin and Mu Qing both cried, “Hey!”

Hua Cheng hugged Xie Lian closer and flung out his arm to open the red umbrella. “Gege, hold on tight to me!”

With that, the umbrella started flying upward, taking the pair along with it. Xie Lian hugged him tightly as instructed, and the other two began to scream again in earnest when they were about six meters off the ground. Xie Lian didn’t know whether to laugh or cry.

“I haven’t forgotten you!”

He sent Ruoye out from his wrist, which wrapped itself around the two giant cocoons a few times and began to drag them along behind the umbrella.

When they were halfway out of the pit, Feng Xin cried, “Wait! Wait! I left something behind!”

“What is it?” Xie Lian called back from above.

“A sword!” Feng Xin shouted. “It fell into the corner!”

Xie Lian looked down, and, sure enough, a sword’s hilt was barely visible in all that white silk. He made Ruoye stretch out further to wrap the sword, and he pulled them all out together. Finally, all four made it back onto solid ground.

Ruoye threw the two thick cocoons to the ground and hurriedly wrapped itself back onto Xie Lian’s wrist, trembling slightly. It almost seemed like it was terrified of the white silk webs, which were so much like itself but so aggressive and evil. Xie Lian soothed Ruoye while cutting the webbing on the cocoons with Fangxin. The moment Feng Xin and Mu Qing could move, they both leapt to their feet and ripped off the rest of the webbing. Xie Lian held out the sword Ruoye had helped bring along toward Feng Xin. Finally getting a good look at the blade, he stared at it in amazement.

“This is…Hongjing? Nan Feng, did your general repair that sword?”

It was an offhand comment, but the moment the words left his lips, he realized how bad it sounded. Feng Xin and Mu Qing were still in the forms of “Nan Feng” and “Fu Yao,” and Xie Lian had forgotten that their identities had been exposed and was still subconsciously going along with their act. Although he’d intended to be considerate, that consideration simply led to awkwardness. The two of them fell into a strange silence.

Feng Xin couldn’t mask his expression—discomfort surfaced on his face. He transformed back to his true form and took the sword.

“Yes…it’s fixed. There are plenty of ghosts on Mount Tonglu, after all. Flashing it around makes things easier.”

Xie Lian took a peek at the one who shattered Hongjing, who was standing right beside him. He cleared his throat softly. “Sorry for the trouble.”

After all, it wasn’t easy to repair a sword that had been shattered to pieces.

Mu Qing also transformed back to his true form and brushed off the rest of the silk webbing on his sleeves. “It’s good that it’s fixed. So many of the nefarious creatures here are adept at disguise. If someone’s not good at using their brain, using Hongjing is the only way they’ll see through deception.”

Feng Xin was pissed. “Who are you calling brainless so passive-aggressively? Did you think I wouldn’t notice?”

And there they went again. Xie Lian shook his head and turned to Hua Cheng. “San Lang, I ran off too quickly before. Sorry for leaving you behind.”

Hua Cheng tucked the umbrella away. “Don’t worry. As long as gege doesn’t run off like that again.”

Xie Lian grinned, but just as he was about to speak, he saw that Mu Qing’s glance at Hua Cheng had turned into a strange, pointed stare.

“Mu Qing? What is it?” Xie Lian asked.

Mu Qing immediately snapped out of it and gave him a look. “Nothing. I’ve just never seen Crimson Rain Sought Flower like this and found it curious, that’s all.”

Xie Lian couldn’t fully believe his explanation. While this likely was the first time Mu Qing had seen Hua Cheng’s true form, he’d certainly seen Hua Cheng in his youthful body, and the two skins weren’t remarkably different. So why that look?

The four left the cave, but after only a few steps, Feng Xin asked in astonishment, “…What is this place?”

Mu Qing was also stunned. “What happened here?”

They had been trapped at the bottom of the silk webbing pit, so they hadn’t had a chance to investigate the situation outside. They were astonished at the sight of innumerable unique divine statues filling cave after cave, and shocked to learn that there was such a mysterious place and such uncanny craftsmanship beneath this great snowy mountain.

“This is a Cave of Ten Thousand Gods,” Xie Lian explained.

Mu Qing scanned their surroundings and mumbled, “Who knows how many years and how much blood and sweat it’d take to build something like this. This is honestly…honestly…”

He seemed at a loss for words to describe it. Xie Lian could understand his feelings. After all, a stone cave like this was meant for cultivation and worship of the divine; his parents had constructed caves like this for him. What heavenly official wouldn’t be astounded by such a massive Cave of Ten Thousand Gods? If one of their own statues was worshipped in a place like this, it would be a huge boon to their divinity.

“What god is worshipped in this cave?” Feng Xin asked, confused. “Why are all the faces covered?”

“Naturally, it’s to prevent future passersby like us from seeing,” Xie Lian replied.

“Now that’s strange,” Mu Qing said. “They could’ve just smashed the statues’ heads; why go through all this trouble? Thin veils like these won’t stop anyone who really wants to see.”

As he spoke, he walked over, intending to peel away the veil of the nearest divine statue. Xie Lian hadn’t had the chance to stop him when there was a chilling flash. The tip of a silver blade loomed mere centimeters away from Mu Qing’s fingers.

Murderous intent made the air between them grow tense.

“What are you doing?” Feng Xin asked in alarm.

Even with that blade so close, Mu Qing didn’t seem scared at all. “Your scimitar looks just fine. Why’d you tell us that it’s ‘not in a good state’?”

Hua Cheng stood directly behind him and said lazily, “Didn’t anyone teach you not to randomly put your hands on things in other people’s territory?”

“It’s not your territory, so whose justice are you upholding?” Mu Qing countered.

“I just don’t want to cause unnecessary trouble,” Hua Cheng said flatly. “This is Mount Tonglu, after all. Who knows what could happen if the veils are removed?”

“I can’t believe there’d come a day when someone as arrogant as Crimson Rain Sought Flower would be afraid to cause unnecessary trouble,” Mu Qing said.

He moved his hand downward to touch the statue’s carved robe. The scimitar Eming followed and pointed at him once more.

“I’m only trying to touch the stone now, not remove the veil. Why is Crimson Rain Sought Flower stopping me again?” Mu Qing questioned.

Hua Cheng shot him a fake-looking smile. “I’m preventing you from causing problems.”

Xie Lian put himself between the two. “Stop, stop. It’s not like we have to see which god is being worshipped here. We shouldn’t stay here too long anyway, so let’s just go. Don’t forget that we still have a mission to accomplish.”

Hua Cheng stared at Mu Qing’s hand. “Since that’s what gege wants, have him put his hand away and I’ll let it go.”

“Mu Qing, back off, all right?” Xie Lian said.

Mu Qing glared at him. “Are you nuts? Why shouldn’t he back off first? What if I back off and he doesn’t?”

Between a heavenly official and a ghost, Feng Xin naturally chose to stand on the side of the heavenly official. “At most, we’ll accept both sides standing down at the same time.”

Hua Cheng showed no signs of doing so. “You wish.”

Seeing that neither side would give in, Xie Lian rested a hand on Mu Qing’s arm. “Mu Qing, drop it,” he urged gently. “You’re the one who started this, so you should be the one to let it go. All right? Can you think of it as giving me some face? I swear that if you back off, San Lang will keep his promise.”

Although Mu Qing was clearly reluctant, he held the stalemate for another moment, then slowly dropped his hand. They all returned to the road. Finally, the tension relaxed, and Xie Lian sighed in relief.

They reached another fork in the road, and Xie Lian turned to Hua Cheng.

“Which way do you think we should go this time?”

Hua Cheng picked a path, seemingly at random. “This way.”

Feng Xin and Mu Qing had been walking behind them and appeared to be at each other’s throats again, but Mu Qing briefly paused their argument.

“How did you decide?” he asked. “Why this way?”

The two in front turned their heads to look at them.

“It was random.”

Feng Xin frowned. “How can you pick randomly? Let’s not go blindly—we might tumble into another pit.”

Hua Cheng smiled. “Even if we fall into a pit, I have ways to pull His Highness out. You can follow us if you’d like, or you can head off on your own if you’d prefer. To be honest, I’d rather not have to rescue you again.”

“You—!”

That was just the way Hua Cheng spoke—even if he had a smile on his face and his words were perfectly polite, it always sounded fake. The faker his smile, the more his tone enraged people, so much that Feng Xin nocked an arrow on his bow.

Xie Lian knew that he wouldn’t actually shoot. “Sorry about this, Feng Xin. But considering our current situation, it really makes no difference which way we go.”

Hua Cheng laughed heartily. “Ooh, I’m scared. Looks like I’d better stay far away from you.”

He waggled his brows at Xie Lian and really did put some distance between them. Xie Lian knew he was just trying to leave the other two behind, and he smiled as he shook his head. He was about to follow Hua Cheng, but without warning Mu Qing reached out and pulled him to a stop. Xie Lian looked back, bewildered.

“Mu Qing? What is it?”

Mu Qing didn’t answer. Instead, he simply shouted “Now!” Then he grabbed Xie Lian and dashed off down the other path.

Ahead, Hua Cheng had noticed that something was wrong, and he turned back to look. But Feng Xin had already punched the stone wall. Boulders rumbled and crashed down, blocking the road behind them. Mu Qing and Feng Xin rushed forward and slapped fifty or so talismans to the rocks in the span of a second. Hua Cheng was now separated from the three of them by the pile of boulders.

As it turned out, Feng Xin and Mu Qing hadn’t been arguing when they were trailing behind them earlier—they had actually been discussing how to launch this sudden attack!

Xie Lian was dumbfounded. “What are you guys doing?”

He struggled free of Mu Qing’s grip, wanting to check on Hua Cheng behind the wall of stone. However, Feng Xin tripped him, and he and Mu Qing each grabbed one of Xie Lian’s arms and began to drag him off at a breakneck pace.

“Let’s get away, quick! Those talismans won’t last for long!” Feng Xin exclaimed.

“You have to ask what we’re doing?! There’s something odd about him—can’t you tell?!” Mu Qing reprimanded.

“How is he odd?” Xie Lian questioned.

“You’ve really gone stupid! Odd is written all over him—you’re the only one blind to it!” Mu Qing exclaimed.

“Stop talking and run!” Feng Xin roared. “Fuck, I think the wraith butterflies caught up!”

“Block the cave entrance!” Mu Qing barked.

Feng Xin continued to punch the walls as they ran, and many of the cave entrances were completely blocked by the giant rocks that tumbled down. The two dragged Xie Lian along as they fled through the endless, winding underground corridors, sending his head spinning from all the twists and turns.

“Stop! Stop!” Xie Lian shouted as they ran.

When they finally felt they’d gone far enough, Feng Xin and Mu Qing paused to catch their breaths.

Taking advantage of this break, Xie Lian said, “What I meant was, why did you two suddenly drag me away? Did you notice something?”

Feng Xin was supporting himself with his hands on his knees and panting harshly. “Let him…tell you…again.”

Mu Qing straightened up and turned to Xie Lian. “It’s so obvious! You didn’t see it? That pearl! Do you remember that pearl?”

“What pearl?” Xie Lian asked.

Mu Qing said each word slowly and clearly. “The red coral pearl from the earrings of the God-Pleasing Martial Warrior costume—the one you wore for the Shangyuan Heavenly Ceremony. The earring you lost!”

Xie Lian thought for a long while, but he still couldn’t remember. He looked confused as he tugged at his earlobe. “…Were those earrings red coral pearls? Did I lose one?”

The corners of Mu Qing’s lips twitched, and he said furiously, “You two even wrongfully accused me of stealing that pearl! How could you forget something like this?”

“It’s been eight hundred years—” Xie Lian began, but Feng Xin interrupted to rebuke Mu Qing.

“Stop making shit up! No one wronged you—you’re the one who started making assumptions all on your own!”

Xie Lian waved. “Stop fighting, stop fighting. Why are you talking about that pearl out of nowhere?”

“Because it’s been found!” Mu Qing exclaimed. “Did you see the red bead tied in Hua Cheng’s hair?”

Xie Lian’s eyes widened. “Are you saying…”

“I am!” Mu Qing stated with conviction.

“…”

So that was why Mu Qing had that weird look in his eyes when he looked at Hua Cheng earlier.

“Why would he have that red coral pearl? Are you sure you remember it correctly?” Xie Lian questioned.

Mu Qing cut him off. “I searched for that pearl nonstop for a whole year, and I’ve never stopped looking for it. I’m the only one who would never remember it wrong!”

Xie Lian crossed his arms and tucked them into his sleeves. He furrowed his brow in contemplation. “I still think you might be mistaken. There’s no reason for him to have that pearl. Don’t all high-quality red coral pearls look pretty much the same? Besides, San Lang has always liked collecting rare treasures. He’s got antiques that are thousands of years old.”

Mu Qing nodded. “Fine. Very well. You think I’m wrong? Fine. Then look at this.”

He was standing right next to a divine statue, and as he finished speaking, he yanked the veil off its face.

“Why don’t you take a look at this, then? Surely it can’t be a mistake too!”

The moment the veil was lifted, Xie Lian’s pupils shrank.

The divine statue’s face wasn’t deformed or frightening. It was the face of a young man who wore a gentle, kind expression—smiling and in high spirits. But when Xie Lian saw it, a chill raced down his spine and raised the hair on his neck.

How could it not be eerie? This face was nearly identical to Xie Lian’s own!

Looking at this divine statue so closely was like staring into a mirror. Even that smile, previously kind, now seemed disturbing.

Xie Lian couldn’t help but feel shaken by the sight of it. “This…”