Chapter 57: Subtle Relationship (1) “There’s no need to make the situation more difficult…
——In the moment of rushing towards the barrier, Xuan Chi misjudged two details.
Firstly, he hadn't expected this to be a one-sided barrier, the inner layer was hard enough to withstand Si Ling's spells amassed over 30,000 years of cultivation, while the outer layer was more fragile than a crispy shark.
Therefore, when he dived down, he originally planned to be blocked by the barrier, but the expected blockage did not appear, and he lost his balance.
Secondly, the moment the barrier was broken, Xuan Chi also found himself about to collide with Si Ling. So he wanted to turn around and support Si Ling, but Si Ling reacted quickly and dodged immediately, causing him to lose his balance further.
So his crash to the ground was indeed an accident.
...It's quite embarrassing.
Si Ling felt embarrassed when he thought about the swearing he had just done.
"Thank you." That was all she could say.
The disheveled Xuan Chi coughed with a sullen face, "You're welcome."
"It didn't help much."
Elizabeth and Fredis looked at each other, unsure what to say. It was Zhu Mengwei who found the right topic to break the awkward silence: "Um...should we take Bai Ma to the hospital?"
"And—" She pointed at the three unconscious masters and apprentices not far away, "What's going on with them?"
"Some immersive experiences." Si Ling also looked over and smiled when he saw the pain on the three people's faces.
Whether it was Gongbu who truly abused his power, or Gyaltsen and Dondup who followed him wholeheartedly, they probably never sympathized with the miserable serfs, right?
After that they can empathize.
The illusion she had created with the help of 30 years of cultivation had a different flow of time from the outside world. In the moment she left the illusion, they had already spent about half a year in the illusion.
They were serfs there, poorly clothed and hungry, and faced daily fear. They had "friends" and "family," but then watched them die in various accidents, spending the rest of their lives in numbness.
They will continue this immersive experience until the evil spirits take their lives.
Si Ling noticed Dawa again, this hateful and pathetic woman.
Since Jianzan had fallen into a coma, and there was no one to maintain the Zhushengyan spell, she had already expired. Her soul would first drift into the Western Hell, where Satan's demons would discover that she not only did not belong there, but was also designated a "Class A Wanted Criminal" by Yama himself.
Afterwards, she should be sent to the Cross-Border Contract Hall for transfer between the East and the West.
I don’t know whether she will wake up after entering purgatory, and whether she will regret how she treated Bai Ma.
As for Baima...
Seeing that her face was abnormally pale, Si Ling knew that her physical condition was worrying. But now, apart from the spirit-like gods and ghosts, there were only Elizabeth Zombie and Fredis Charred Corpse here. Whoever sent Bai Ma to the hospital would send everyone in the hospital to the ICU.
Si Ling then said, "Let's go to our school bus first and let the principal find a way. He should be able to find someone suitable to take her to the hospital."
"Ah, are you students?!?!" Li Qi blurted out, looking at Si Ling in amazement, "A ghost like you still needs to go to school?! Are you guys in the ghost world so arrogant?!"
"Not really..." Si Ling felt that this matter was difficult to explain, "We can talk about it later."
When they returned to the school bus, Si Ling learned that Lucifer had gone back to school for an urgent matter. Fortunately, Professor Mimir was still there. As a Nordic god with knowledge of the nine realms, Mimir, even with only a head left, still had numerous connections in the human world. He first had the vampires who looked most like ordinary people take Bai Ma to the hospital, then contacted several old acquaintances in the human world and asked them to take care of Bai Ma.
After that, the ghosts waited here for a few more hours. After the hell demons serving Satan came to take away the souls of the dead, everyone entered Lingbo City again from the Yin and Yang border on the Lighthouse Country side, and returned to the Ghost Academy from Lingbo City.
They left the Gobi Desert near Tumba Manor at around ten o'clock in the evening in Lighthouse Country, and arrived at Hohenzollern Castle a little after five in the morning. The morning sun was just beginning to slant down, casting a tranquil atmosphere over the ancient castle.
The students' frayed nerves relaxed, and they returned to their dormitories in groups of two or three to rest. As Si Ling exited the elevator, he told Xuan Chi and A Zhui, "I'm going to go see Principal Lucifer first."
"What's the matter?" A Zhui asked.
Si Ling shrugged. "Bai Ma is one of the main targets after all. Although it was Professor Mimir who agreed to send her to the hospital, I still think we should tell Lucifer about it. Besides..." She paused. "Fang Liyi is still in the Western Restaurant Rules Strange Story. How to deal with this strange story? Lucifer and Mammon should know about it so that they can discuss how to deal with this scroll."
"Okay..." Ah Zhui nodded and yawned, "You go ahead, I have to go back and rest."
"Good night." Si Ling nodded and smiled.
Xuan Chi thought for a moment and said, "Let's go together."
Si Ling did not refuse, and the two of them walked through the dark corridor of the castle and headed to Lucifer's office.
They didn't speak for most of the journey. The evil spirits could walk without making any sound. The early morning was so quiet that it seemed as if the world was empty.
Si Ling was thinking about Bai Ma in her mind. She was not sure how Satan, Lucifer and King Yama would view this little accident of "good bamboo shoots coming out of bad bamboo". She secretly hoped that Bai Ma would not be punished by King Yama, and secretly thought about how she could help her.
Hyun Chi suddenly spoke up, "Did I cause you any trouble?" "What?" Si Ling paused, unable to react. She turned to look at him. They were passing a torch set into the castle wall, and the alternating light and shadow made his already handsome features appear even more angular. Si Ling couldn't help but stare at him a little longer. Seeing him lower his eyes, he said, "That barrier... you can break it yourself, right? I touched the bracelet, and it made things really awkward."
"Uh..." Si Ling still felt awkward recalling that scene. She coughed and shook her head. "It was awkward, but you showed up at the perfect time. Otherwise, if I had just tried to handle the implosion myself, it would have been even worse."
She paused. "So when I say thank you...I really mean it."
"Really?" He turned his head and looked back at her. She saw doubt in his eyes, but his gaze had brightened, reminding her of the look on a child's face when he was recognized.
He's quite easy to coax.
——She was thinking this when she suddenly heard him ask: "But do you want the Emperor of Heaven to use me to make braised chicken?"
Si Ling froze as if struck by lightning.
She stiffened her neck and avoided his sight for a moment, but found that his expression was sincere. He just wanted to use this question to further confirm whether he was really not in trouble.
"Hiss...be reasonable." She was a little overwhelmed, not wanting to "reason" about such an embarrassing matter. But what bad intentions did the beast have? It was just craving an answer.
Si Ling said helplessly, "Do you still remember what you said when you gave me the bracelet?"
Xuan Chi's eyes were full of confusion.
"You said 'feathers can help improve your cultivation and protect you.'" Si Ling said expressionlessly, "...and no one told me that the full meaning of 'can protect you' is 'can summon your true self to protect you'! How would I know why the bracelet suddenly went crazy?"
At that time, she really thought that this was some kind of prank played by the ancient mythical beast, but unfortunately it was triggered at the most inopportune moment.
"Sorry..." Hyun Chi was a little speechless. He coughed dryly and stretched out his hand to her. "Give me the bracelet. I'll modify it."
Si Ling wanted to politely say "It's okay, no need", but thinking of the embarrassment of bumping into the barrier and the electric shock feeling, she silently took off the bracelet and handed it to him.
As they were talking, the two climbed the last step and came to the top floor of the castle wing. Turning right and walking a few steps, they found Lucifer's office.
It was still early, and they had no idea if Lucifer was asleep. Approaching the door, Si Ling saw it was ajar. Just as he was about to knock, he heard a sneer from inside: "Lucifer, I really don't want to see you provoking me like this—over 200 lives have been wiped out beyond your target. With all due respect, you've overstepped your authority."
Si Ling stopped her hand as she was about to knock on the door. She turned her head to look at Xuan Chi. Xuan Chi had obviously heard what was said inside and his brows were slightly furrowed.
"Well, I'm sorry." Lucifer's tone seemed a little guilty, but more of a nonchalant one. "You have to understand me. Those Eastern ghosts are really hard to control. They're far more powerful than I am. You're already doing me a favor by calling me the principal. What more can I ask for?"
The room was quiet for a while after that.
The laughter that followed became even colder: "Tsk... Lucifer, I underestimated you, didn't I? You know everything, those distant legends... I mean, about the stars..."
"Well," Lucifer interrupted, "I don't mean to refute you, but I really don't understand what you are saying."
The next second——
"Bang!" A loud noise suddenly came from inside the door, and Si Ling felt the ground beneath his feet shake.
She held her breath and looked at Xuan Chi again, then pointed at the stairs, meaning to leave first and come back later.
However, Lucifer's voice rang out again, sounding a little hoarse and difficult, but with a mocking smile: "If you want to see two Eastern friends so much, just open the door."
“…” Si Ling and Xuan Chi stopped at the same time. Si Ling thought about it and pushed the door open.
Inside the office, Lucifer faced the front door, bound to the wall behind his desk by dark red vines. A few steps from the desk, on the sofa, a middle-aged man in a black suit stood up and looked over.
This was a cold and elegant face - before meeting him, Si Ling found it hard to imagine that these two temperaments could appear in the same person, but now she saw it firsthand.
"You are..." Hyun Chi looked at the man warily. Si Ling's eyes fell on the dark golden snake-patterned brooch on his suit jacket. He raised an eyebrow and directly said his name: "Satan?"
Satan looked at her calmly and nodded like a gentleman. "Welcome to the West, my two friends. I hope you are satisfied with the Ghost Academy."
"Everything is fine, especially—" Si Ling smiled and glanced at the motionless Lucifer, "The welcome ceremony you performed by imprisoning the principal was refreshing."
Satan's stern face didn't show any embarrassment, but he looked away.
Hyun Chi couldn't help but laugh, and clapped his hands slowly in cooperation. Once, twice... Satan's face finally turned ugly amid the applause.
He raised his hand expressionlessly and retracted the vines. Lucifer was caught off guard and fell to the ground. He staggered, but he was still able to stand steadily.
"Thank you." He thanked Si Ling and Xuan Chi for helping him out without any hesitation. Then he slowly walked towards Satan and said in a rhythmic manner, "I think it's better not to make a fool of ourselves in front of our friends in the East. What do you think, my lord?"
He stopped in front of Satan, brushed the dust off his shoulders, and smiled leisurely: "There's no need to make the situation worse."
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