Xie Lian said, “I’ve never had the honor of meeting the Rain Master. I didn’t even know she was a princess…”

Over there, Xuan Ji gritted her teeth and said, "What did you... do...? Why... can't I... move?"

The Rain Master turned his gaze away from Pei Ming and replied, "I brought the Rain Dragon Sword."

Xie Lian asked, “Rain Dragon Sword?”

Hua Cheng said, "The Rain Master's national treasure, the sword, has been owned by successive rulers. Refined by the Rain Master into a magical weapon, it has a natural deterrent effect on the people of Rain Master. Xuan Ji is a traitor and fearful, guilty conscience. Naturally, she can only kneel and obey."

When the Rain Master told Xuan Ji not to move, she truly couldn't. Rong Guang said, "You can't move. I'll do it myself!" He was about to stab Pei Ming again, but before he'd penetrated half an inch, a puff of red smoke erupted. With a clang, the long sword that had pierced Pei Ming's chest vanished, and a smaller sword, the length of an index finger, fell to the ground. Rong Guang angrily cried, "What's going on? Why can't I move?!"

Xie Lian and the others finally stopped watching from afar and walked out. Hua Cheng glanced at the Ming Guang Sword lying on the ground, which looked so small it almost looked like a toy, and smiled, "This makes it much easier to see."

The Rain Master said gently, "Let go, Xuan Ji."

Xuan Ji's hands began to uncontrollably pull away from Pei Ming's throat, but she was unwilling to give in. Her hands convulsed as she said, "I won't let go! I've already grabbed your hand, I won't let go!"

The Rain Master said, "If you must grab something to be content, why not pick up what you dropped on the ground and grab it again in your hand."

The power of the national treasure sword was too great, and Xuan Ji was yanked off, falling to the ground. Her hair disheveled and disheveled, she cried, "What qualifications do you have to lecture me? Do you really think you're the ruler? I think you've forgotten how you came to be the ruler! I don't recognize you, I don't recognize you!"

The Rain Master closed his eyes and shook his head slightly. Ban Yue, who was standing by, seized the opportunity and suddenly threw out a jar, directly taking Xuan Ji into it and quickly sealing it!

At this point, the source of the chaos had finally been tamed. Xie Lian walked over to Pei Ming, gave him a hand, and asked, "General Pei, are you alright?"

Pei Ming said, "I won't die... But, Your Highness," he asked doubtfully, "I say, you guys haven't been here a long time ago, have you?"

Xie Lian: “…Hahaha, how could that be?”

He picked up the Mingguang Sword, which had shrunk to a few inches on the ground. Pei Ming looked at the object in his hand and said, "Xueyu Tanhua, is your seal secure? It won't break if I press it again."

Hua Cheng said, "Nonsense. Unless you grip the hilt, inject your magic power, and resolve to release it, it will never be released by accident or by a trick."

Pei Ming finally let out a long sigh. The farmers who had escaped from Qi Rong rushed forward, as if they had seen their parents: "Master Rain Master!"

The others turned around. Xie Lian bowed slightly and said, "Lord of the Rain Master Nation."

The Rain Master had also dismounted from the black ox, holding the rope in one hand, and bowed in return, "Your Highness the Crown Prince."

As Xie Lian bowed, his gaze stumbled across her neck. He paused for a moment, then said, "Back then, when Xianle was suffering from a severe drought, I was grateful for your kindness in lending me my rain hat. It was a timely relief, but I never thanked you in person. Today, I've finally gotten what I wanted." He bowed even more deeply. The Rain Master stood still, waiting for him to finish his bow before slowly saying, "I believe you won't rest until you've allowed Your Highness to perform this ceremony. Now that it's been performed, let's forget it from now on."

She spoke in a calm, even voice, with a gentle smile, appearing remarkably composed. Suddenly, a voice said, "Hey Pei Ming, are you embarrassed? You need a woman to save you, or Yu Shi Huang! Hehe, hahahahaha..."

The Rain Master's expression remained unchanged, his composure intact, but Pei Ming's composure was less so. The black bull suddenly snorted at Pei Ming, shaking its head and swishing its tail. Although it wasn't directed at Hua Cheng, Xie Lian knew that bulls get angry when they see red. Remembering the painful experiences of being gored and chased several times, he quickly stood in front of Hua Cheng, fearing that the bull would become even more excited by Hua Cheng's red clothes. At the same time, he quickly attached a talisman to the small sword, sealing Rong Guang's mouth. Pei Ming felt it would be rude not to speak, so he touched his nose and said politely, "Thank you, Lord Rain Master, for saving little Pei."

The Rain Master was also very polite and said, "It's just a small favor."

Banyue came over and grabbed Master Yu's sleeve, saying, "Master Yu, Brother Pei Su has fainted from hunger..."

Hua Cheng looked up and said, "Let's go back to the ground first."

The people of Rain Master Township were the most effective solution to the problem of food and clothing. Since Rain Master was in charge of farming, they always carried food with them. Back on Earth, the night had passed and the sun had risen. Rain Master retrieved seeds from his black ox's sack, found a patch of land, and sowed them there. Soon, a small crop sprouted.

A few of the hungry people cheered. Xie Lian, remembering that Guzi hadn't been eating well the past few days, woke him up. However, the first thing Guzi did after waking up was to ask where his father was, thinking he'd left him again. He cried for a while, and Yinyu had no choice but to give him the hideous green tumbler to play with. Hearing that this was his father, Guzi was overjoyed and stopped crying, hugging him while eating sweet potatoes. Xie Lian, Huacheng, Yu Shi, and Pei Ming sat on the other side, discussing business.

Ahead, the bronze furnace was already visible. A closer look revealed that the mountain below was stained crimson in vast swathes, as if stained with blood. Above, a blanket of snow covered the mountain. Xie Lian said, "If necessary, we'll probably have to climb the snowy mountain. Not only General Pei, but also Banyue, Guzi, and the others will have to stay here. We can't go any further."

Pei Ming used the medicine bottle to plug the wound and shook his head, sighing, "It's been a bad start, a series of setbacks."

This eight characters truly described his entire journey; he was truly unlucky and depressed. The Rain Master sat beside Xie Lian, pondered for a moment, and said, "Your Highness, you have come here to capture all the demons and monsters that might become extinct. However, there is one person you should be wary of."

Xie Lian perked up and asked, "Master Rain Master, did you encounter anything on the way?"

The Rain Master nodded slightly and said, "On the way here, I saw a young man in white."

Xie Lian uttered a soft "Ah" and said, "We've heard about what you're talking about along the way. Many demons and monsters are terrified of him, and we almost ran into him ourselves. Did you see him with your own eyes? How did you escape?"

Master Yu said, "I'm ashamed. It was all thanks to the incredible strength of the guardian mount, and the young man's lack of interest in engaging. Otherwise, it's hard to say what would have happened."

Xie Lian asked again, “What does he look like?”

Master Yu said, "I can't see his face clearly because his face is covered in bandages."

With his face covered in bandages?!

Xie Lian was stunned: “Lang Ying?!”

Pei Ming frowned and said, "Your Highness, do you know him?"

Xie Lian said, “I’m not sure either.” He immediately turned to Hua Cheng and asked, “Sanlang, Lang Ying is indeed in the Ghost Market, right?”

Hua Cheng also looked solemn. After a pause, he said, "It was true before, but it's hard to say whether it is true now. Brother, why don't you ask again to clarify."

Xie Lian continued to confirm, "Master Yushi, this young man in white with bandages all over his face you're talking about is probably in his early teens, or maybe a little older, anyway, a very thin young man?"

Unexpectedly, the Rain Master replied, "No. The young man is about sixteen or seventeen, and about the same height as Your Highness."

"Huh?" This was beyond Xie Lian's expectations. He said, "Sixteen or seventeen? Lang Ying isn't that old."

Was it really him? Based on the information available, it was impossible to guess. Pei Ming threw away the empty medicine bottle and said, "It will all end up in the copper furnace anyway, so just wait."

After all, he was a Martial God, and his recovery ability was incredibly fast. After using up a bottle of elixir, the serious wound had healed by 60% to 70%. At this time, the Rain Master tilted his head slightly and asked, "Why doesn't General Pei have a sword?"

Pei Ming seemed caught off guard by the Rain Master's question, and for a moment he couldn't think of a response. Meanwhile, Pei Su, who had finally woken up, ate a roasted sweet potato and said, "General Pei's sword was broken."

Pei Ming said, "Eat your sweet potato."

Pei Su fell silent. After listening, Master Yu thought for a moment, took off his sword, and handed it to Pei Ming with both hands.

She didn't show any unusual expression, and her words and actions were very appropriate. However, Pei Ming's expression changed slightly, as if he saw her handing over a poisonous snake. He hesitated for a moment and said, "Thank you. But this is the national treasure of the Rain Master Kingdom. I'm afraid it's not appropriate to hand it over to me."

The Rain Master said gently, "The Rain Master Kingdom was destroyed a hundred years ago. General Pei is a martial god and a master with a sword. Now, since we are trying to stop the Ghost King from emerging, this sword will be more effective in your hands than in mine."

Pei Ming hesitated for a moment, but still politely declined, saying, "I, Pei, thank the King of Rain. It's not necessary."

Seeing this, Rain Master no longer forced them. They chatted for a while longer, Rain Master even asking if they had any news of Wind Master. Xie Lian then learned that the Wind and Wind Masters had a good relationship. Shi Qingxuan often visited Rain Master Village for food, drink, and fun, but he hadn't been there for a long time since the Black Water Incident. Rain Master had even sent people out to look for him, but to no avail, and he couldn't help but sigh.

They agreed to rest for another hour before continuing on their journey. Xie Lian walked a distance and wanted to find a tree to lie down against, but Hua Cheng had found a pile of rope and cloth from somewhere and built two swing beds between two trees. The two of them jumped on them to their heart's content and lay down very comfortably. After lying there for a while, Xie Lian rested his head on his hands and asked curiously, "Sanlang, why do you think General Pei didn't take Master Yu's sword?"

A martial god has lost his weapon and instead of finding one quickly, is he just waiting to be beaten?

Hua Cheng also rested his hands on his head and said leisurely, "Pei Ming, while he likes women, doesn't seem to look down on them. He must be very angry and embarrassed to be rescued by a woman, a woman he knew before. Besides, the Rain Master had taken his descendants before, so he probably thought the Rain Master was deliberately making fun of him this time. How could he possibly take the sword?"

The two swing beds creaked and rocked together. Xie Lian said, "Ah, what an inexplicable pride. By the way, Sanlang, I wonder if you noticed that Master Yushi has an old wound on his neck."

Hua Cheng said, "You can guess it without even paying attention. 'The princess committed suicide.'"

Xie Lian stood up slightly and said, "As expected."

Hua Cheng said, "Brother, have you noticed that Master Yu speaks a little slowly? It's probably due to an old neck injury."

Xie Lian said, "Ah, I thought it was just personality. But then again, if she was a princess, why would she commit suicide? Xuan Ji's words, 'Have you forgotten how you became the ruler?' It really makes me wonder. How did she become the ruler?"

Hua Cheng also stood up and said, "It's a long story, let me make it short."

It turned out that although Yu Shi Huang was a descendant of the royal family of Yu Shi Kingdom, she was firstly a daughter and secondly born to a palace maid, so her status was not high. In addition, she was shy and not good at speaking. None of her fifteen older brothers and sisters, as well as her younger brothers and sisters, were more favored than her.

The royal sanctuary of the Rain Master Kingdom is the Yulong Temple. Traditionally, each successive ruler would select a royal descendant to be sent there for retreat, praying for favorable weather, peace, and prosperity, as a sign of sincerity. While this may sound grand, it's actually a daunting task, as Yulong Temple practices austere cultivation. No servants or valuables are allowed, and the attendants are expected to perform labor. In the past, it was a slog, and only if someone unlucky enough took their turn would they pay a large sum for a replacement. But when it came to this generation's turn, there was no need to choose; the Rain Master Huang was immediately chosen.

Hearing this, Xie Lian shook his head. Although they were both members of the royal family and had trained in the same imperial academy, Master Yu's experiences were vastly different from his own. He said, "No wonder Xuan Ji doesn't seem to think highly of Master Yu."

Hua Chengdao: "Of course. Although Xuan Ji is not a princess, she also has a distinguished family background and many suitors. She is much more respected among the princes and nobles than Yu Shi Huang."

However, Xuan Ji had gotten herself into this state, so it was no wonder she couldn't stand the Rain Master, who was still able to farm peacefully. When the Rain Master advised her to let go, she was afraid that it was just condescending and sarcastic talk.

In short, from then on, Master Yu lived a life of seclusion in the royal temple. Until one day, several distinguished guests came to Yulong Temple.

The Xuli Kingdom and the Yushi Kingdom didn't immediately fall out; there had been some pretense and politeness beforehand. To maintain a semblance of peace, the Xuli Kingdom sent several royal family members, generals, and civil officials to attend a state banquet at the Yushi Kingdom, and to visit the Yushi Kingdom's royal Taoist temple. One day, Yushi Huang went to clean the tiles from the Taoist temple's roof, but when he tried to descend, he discovered that the ladder had been removed by someone unknown.

Everyone below thought it was funny to see someone unable to come down from the top. Even the princesses and princes of the Yu Shi Kingdom covered their mouths and laughed. Only a general of the Xu Li Kingdom laughed a few times, flew up, and brought her down.

This general was, of course, Pei Ming. Xie Lian was just thinking to himself, "General Pei is quite something," when a voice suddenly said, "Pei Ming is always like this wherever he goes, like a dog peeing everywhere!"

Xie Lian was suddenly drawn back by his malicious and vulgar metaphor. He turned around, picked up the Mingguang sword that had shrunk countless times, and said, "General Rong, when did you break through the sealing talisman? It seems you really want to speak."

Rong Guang said, "Don't confer a title on me! Let me speak! I know every dirty thing Pei Ming has done. I could talk about it for three days and three nights and never finish! He knew that Xuli Kingdom was about to attack Yushi Kingdom, but he still bewitched Yushi Kingdom's seven or eight beloved princesses and made them jealous. Do you think he is a bad person?"

It's really quite unkind. Who would have thought that you were so cheerful and friendly with me yesterday, and today you would lead the Blood Riders to raze my home to the ground? Xie Lian felt a slight pity and said, "So, the Lord of the Rain Master Kingdom used to have a good relationship with General Pei?"

Rong Guang said, "It doesn't matter. Pei Ming has only met Yu Shi Huang twice. There are so many beautiful women in Yu Shi Country that he forgot about her the next day."

It's not just women who change their minds quickly; men can actually do so even faster, though the consequences differ. A woman's anger might end with a few slaps and scratches; a man's anger, however, might end in a dismembered corpse, with no chance for complaint. The Xuli Kingdom, unwilling to maintain a false peace, fabricated a pretext for a military campaign. Pei Ming led his army directly to the Imperial Palace, forcing the then-King of the Rain Master to retreat deep within the palace, clinging to his last line of defense. But with a mere effort, Pei Ming could shatter the palace's fragile protective shell like a snail shell.

However, he did not crush it so easily. Instead, he gave more considerations and did something based on Rong Guang's suggestion.

Xuli soldiers captured hundreds of death row prisoners, disguised them as civilians, and marched them to the palace gates, demanding that the King of Rain Master come out, kowtow three times, repent for his oppression of the people, and commit suicide to apologize. If he did so, they would spare the civilians and spare the rest of the royal family. Otherwise, they would be beheaded.

He only gave the royal family members hiding inside three days. Within three days, he would kill a group of them every other day. After three days, he would rush in and kill all the royal family members first, and then kill the rest of the people.

Xie Lian said, “General Rong, this move of yours is truly both venomous and beautiful.”

Rong Guang was not angry but rather pleased with himself: "I'll take it as a compliment from you."

The reason why Xuli State attacked Yushi State can be summarized as "The ruler of Yushi State is harsh and cruel to his people, and heaven will not tolerate this. Xuli State, out of benevolence and righteousness, decided to see injustice and take the initiative to save the people of Yushi State who are in dire straits." It is very righteous and beautiful.

If the Lord of the Rain State refused to come out, it would be seen as selfish, incompetent, and completely indifferent to his people. Embarrassingly, this Lord of the Rain State constantly claimed that he "treated his people like his own children." The stark contrast between his words and actions would surely have resented the people of the Rain State, who felt they had been deceived: "Didn't you say you treated your people like your own children? Why are you asking everyone to sacrifice for you, the royal family?!" Thus, their support for the Rain State royal family was dispersed.

After killing these "civilians," when the people of Yushi Nation feared they would massacre the city next, they would announce that these people were actually prisoners in disguise, deserving death. Their purpose was simply to expose the selfishness and lies of the Yushi Nation's royal family. This stark contrast would instantly soothe the frightened people of Yushi Nation, rendering them extremely docile. The subsequent process of Yushi Nation's incorporation into Xuli Nation would then proceed much more smoothly, as public sentiment had already been chilled.

If the Rain Master actually committed suicide, it wouldn't matter; it wouldn't have any impact. They'd save themselves the trouble of not having to kill him themselves. Besides, Pei Ming and Rong Guang both believed that the Rain Master would never commit suicide to apologize. It's fair to say that no noble would be willing to end their life after suffering such humiliation. Kneeling before the civilians and the enemy, admitting guilt, and then dying? Dream on!

Unexpectedly, just one day later, when Pei Ming was about to order the killing of the first batch of "civilians", the King of Rain Master really appeared.

The palace gate opened, and the king came out wearing the national sword. He knelt down and kowtowed three times to the people, then drew his sword and committed suicide, with blood splattering on the palace gate.

Xie Lian had already guessed what was going on and asked, “Is that Master Rain Master?”

Hua Cheng said: "Exactly."

Later, after carefully interrogating the palace maids and other royal descendants who were hiding in the palace at the time, they learned that this was what had happened:

That day, Pei Ming, Rong Guang, and other soldiers were outside the palace, shouting and pacing, laughing and laughing uncontrollably, their arrogance utterly uttered. Inside, the palace was in chaos, with people weeping and wailing. The King of the Rain Master State naturally couldn't leave to commit suicide. He sat on the throne, his face livid. A large group of brothers and sisters, who usually fought for his favor until their heads were bruised and bloodied, wailed and cried, but he didn't budge. So, one by one, they began to carefully persuade him.

All sorts of excuses were offered, such as "This is also for the country and the people," "Even if I die, my reputation will be passed down through the ages," and "If this continues, the people will suffer." However, persuasion did not move the father. As the day drew to a close, several sons grew impatient and shouted at their father in agitation.

The king was not dead yet, and he immediately hit back with his staff. In normal times, the sons and grandsons would have refrained from fighting back, but at this critical moment, who cared? So, one of the princes couldn't help but fight back, but he hit the king too hard, and the king, who was already in his sixties, was beaten so badly that he was bleeding and unable to get up.

The princes and princesses were stunned at first, but then, relieved to discover he was still breathing, they began to discuss how to drag the immobilized king out and perform the difficult kowtow and apology. They even discussed the absurd method of hanging him like a puppet, which made the old king, over fifty years old, almost suffer a stroke on the spot. Later, they decided to find two people to hold the old king up and perform the apology. However, this posed a new problem: who should these two people be? This was too dangerous. Pei Ming might get angry and shoot him to death with an arrow. You don't want to do it, I don't want to do it, and neither of us wants to do it.

The noise continued, the noise continued. At this moment, the sixteenth princess, who had been silent and ignored, suddenly spoke to the old king lying on the ground.

Master Huang of Rain said, "Please pass the throne to me."

King Yushi looked at his daughter, whom he had never looked at twice, and a tear finally flowed from the corner of his eye.

But, only one drop.

Normally, everyone fought tooth and nail for the throne, but now, no one was fighting. Whoever took the throne would die. And so, less than half an hour later, the most crude and hastily executed succession ceremony in the history of the Rain Master Kingdom took place, and the most unlikely ruler was born.

The new leader of the Rain Master Kingdom cut his throat with a sword, and blood gushed out like a fountain. It was obvious that he was not going to survive.

Pei Ming hadn't expected such a turn of events. Taking a moment between drinks to check it out, he was completely stunned. Could it be this way? Rong Guang cursed his bad luck. How could it be this way? The king had indeed apologized, but he wasn't the same king anymore! The death of an insignificant person couldn't demoralize the people, nor could it kill the old villain. Even now, Rong Guang still found it incredible: "I never thought there was such a thing as a temporary succession. Finding a scapegoat? It's outrageous!"

Although the soldiers of the Xuli Kingdom could not bear to see this absurd succession and offered to rescue her, her injuries were ultimately too severe, and the doctors declared her beyond saving. Pei Ming had no choice but to honor his previous promise and refrain from moving civilians outside the palace or killing the royal family. He bandaged the "king's" throat and safely escorted her to Yulong Temple, where he would wait for her to die and then choose a suitable location for burial in the temple's imperial mausoleum.

That night, just before Yu Shi Huang breathed her last, the statue of Yu Shi above her head sighed.

Lightning flashed and thunder roared, and the new Rain Master ascended.

Xie Lian said thoughtfully, “No wonder General Pei looked like that when he saw that sword.”