Shi Qingxuan, his jaw grasped, took a few gulps, then choked hard, spitting out most of the liquid, a mess on his chest. He screamed, banging his head upwards, knocking over the bowl. Shi Wudu's face darkened. "Throw it! Keep throwing it! What are you afraid of? There's plenty of medicine. For every bowl you throw, I'll bring you twenty more! I'll keep pouring it down until you've finished!"
Shi Qingxuan roared, "Ah!!! Could you please just leave me be and let me fend for myself?"
Shi Wudu said sternly, "I'm your brother. If I can't control you, who else can?!"
Shi Qingxuan fell silent, his head turned away. After a while, Shi Wudu sat down beside the couch and said in a softer tone, "I'll go fix your fan for you."
Shi Qingxuan said, "I don't want that fan anymore."
The Wind Master loved his supreme magical weapon, the Wind Master Fan, and would play with it whenever he had the chance. Even in the dead of winter, even the gentle waving of the fan remained unmoved by thunder. Now, he was saying he no longer wanted the Wind Master Fan. Xie Lian was increasingly puzzled. Shi Wudu said, "That's fine. I'll refine a new magical weapon for you."
Shi Qingxuan turned his head again and said, "I don't want a new one either! Please let me go."
Shi Wudu turned around and asked, "Go down? Where to go?"
Shi Qingxuan said, "Go down to the human world. I don't want to stay in the heaven anymore. I don't want to be an immortal anymore!"
Veins bulged on Shi Wudu's fair forehead. He said, "What a joke! You don't want to be a god, but go to the human world? What do you think the human world is? Stop embarrassing yourself! How many people have waited for years to ascend, and how many priests in the Middle Heaven are vying for admission to the Upper Heaven? I don't think you understand!"
Shi Qingxuan angrily said, "Yeah! I don't know! I just want to be a wandering knight immortal, is that not okay?!"
Shi Wudu said: "No! Go and dream of being a free and easy wandering knight! I..."
At this moment, his face changed, as if a psychic had reached him and reported some news. Shi Wudu stood up suddenly, placed two fingers on his solar plexus, and listened for a moment. His expression grew increasingly solemn. After a moment, he said to Shi Qingxuan, "Stop causing trouble! I'm busy these days and don't have time for you! Once I overcome my third tribulation, you won't be messing around with me like this anymore!" With that, he swept out of the bedroom.
After he walked away, Xie Lian quietly climbed down and pushed the window open, but it wouldn't budge, presumably because it was blocked. He was afraid to force it open, fearing a warning spell might have been cast, so he lowered his voice and said, "Master Wind Master, Master Wind Master?"
Shi Qingxuan stirred on the couch, turned around, and said happily, "Your Highness the Crown Prince?!"
Xie Lian said, "It's me. What's going on with you? I can't open the door or window. Can you find another way to get in?"
When normal methods of opening doors and windows are impossible, it's easy to imagine how a martial god would find a way to enter a room. Shi Qingxuan hurriedly said, "No, no, no! Please don't break them down! The doors and windows here are all covered with magic. If you force your way in, the entire Feng Shui Mansion will know someone's coming. Except for me and my brother, no one else will have to open them from the inside."
Xie Lian asked, “But you were tied up like that again?”
Shi Qingxuan struggled frantically and said, "Your Highness, wait a minute! Watch me break this rope..."
“…” Xie Lian watched him roll back and forth on the couch, sometimes bent like a shrimp, sometimes straight as a piece of iron, struggling immensely. He whispered encouragement, “Try hard, sir!”
The rope binding Shi Qingxuan, at a glance, didn't look like a magical weapon. Even with Wind Master's magical power, it could have broken with just a flick of his finger. So why hadn't it broken even then? Could it be that Shi Qingxuan was truly so badly injured that he couldn't even break free?
At that moment, there was a sudden, unsettling noise beneath Shi Qingxuan's bed, and a hand reached out from beneath. Xie Lian was startled, his scalp throbbing. He exclaimed, "Master Feng, be careful! There's someone hiding under your bed!"
Shi Qingxuan's expression also changed: "What?!"
Before he could finish his words, a dark shadow quickly crawled out from under the bed, stood in front of his bed, and looked down at him condescendingly.
This man, dressed in black and wearing a ghost mask, had no idea when he'd hidden under the bed, nor what he was planning to do. Shi Qingxuan was bound to the bed, thrashing around frantically, trying to break free. Xie Lian, barred from the door by restrictions, was in dire straits. Just as Xie Lian was about to break in through the window, he saw the man thrust the ghost mask upwards and whisper, "Shut up!"
Shi Qingxuan's eyes widened and he said, "Brother Ming? Brother Ming! Brother Ming, my god, my good brother, hurry up! Help me untie me!!!"
Ming Yi tore the ropes off his body with one hand. Shi Qingxuan, having freed his limbs, climbed to his feet, rushed to open the window, and grabbed Xie Lian's hands, shaking them fiercely: "Your Highness! Thank you for remembering me!"
Xie Lian patted his shoulder and slid lightly into the bedroom. He asked, “Isn’t this bedroom restricted? How could Master Geomancer enter?”
Mingyi said, "It's just my job."
After saying this, he seemed to realize something was wrong. He picked up the rope on the ground, looked at it, and asked Shi Qingxuan, "How come you can't even break free from this little thing?"
Xie Lian also took a closer look. That rope wasn't just some magical weapon; it was simply an ordinary rope. With a Wind Master's immense magical power, how could he have been trapped by something like that for so long and still not be able to break free?
Shi Qingxuan's face froze. Mingyi suddenly grabbed his left wrist, his expression stern, and asked, "What's going on?"
Xie Lian also grasped Shi Qingxuan's right wrist, examined it for a moment, and said in astonishment, "Master Feng, how could this be?"
There was actually no magic power at all in Shi Qingxuan's body!
Then, Xie Lian realized, "Is it that bowl of medicine?"
Remembering the potion Shi Wudu had just forced upon him, and Shi Qingxuan's resistance, Xie Lian immediately crouched down to examine the medicine. Shi Qingxuan replied, "No."
It wasn't the medicine that was to blame. Xie Lian had some knowledge of medicine, and from the scent, he felt it was a painkiller and tranquilizer, perhaps with a slight sleep-inducing effect, but that wasn't surprising. It seemed that when Shi Wudu grabbed his brother's hand at the drinking table and immediately changed his expression, he must have noticed it at that moment. He had given Shi Qingxuan this medicine, presumably for his own good, but for some reason, Shi Qingxuan didn't appreciate it.
No wonder Shi Qingxuan didn't respond to his spiritual communication. It was simply because his once-powerful magical powers were now completely gone, and no matter how he looked at them, he looked no different from an ordinary person. Xie Lian subconsciously blurted out, "Master Fengshi, have you been demoted?"
Otherwise, how could it suddenly become like this? But he didn't have any cursed shackles on him, and if someone was demoted, it would be impossible to hide it; the news would spread throughout the Upper and Middle Heavens in an instant. Shi Qingxuan's face turned pale, and he seemed to be a little unsteady. Xie Lian supported him firmly and asked, "Why did Master Shuishi tie you up?"
Shi Qingxuan finally came to his senses and said, "Yes, my brother. Let's go quickly while my brother is away. Leave first!"
After saying that, he crawled under the bed. Xie Lian squatted down and said, "Master Wind Master!"
There was a hole under the bed, leading nowhere. Shi Qingxuan slipped in and disappeared. Mingyi lowered her head and prepared to go in. Xie Lian thought about it and decided to follow. But Mingyi retreated and said, "Your Highness, please don't interfere."
Xie Lian was stunned by his interruption and said, “Master Feng has helped me many times. This time he’s in trouble, I can’t just stand aside.”
Mingyi said, "He usually speaks up for justice a lot, but when something goes wrong, he stays out of it most of the time."
Xie Lian said, “What happens to others is none of my business. As long as you understand the whole story and confirm that my help is not needed, I will naturally withdraw.”
Shi Qingxuan's voice came from under the bed: "Why don't you follow? The cave is about to close!"
Sure enough, the hole under the bed was gradually shrinking. Seeing this, Mingyi quickly entered, followed by Xie Lian. The three of them crawled through the tunnel Mingyi had opened for a while. Xie Lian looked back and saw that the hole had closed. It was truly amazing. He whispered, "Master Geomancer, how did you dig this tunnel? I've never heard of a cave being dug beneath the immortal palace in Xianjing." After all, the foundation of Xianjing wasn't mortal soil.
Upon inquiry, it transpired that Geomancer Mingyi was once a skilled craftsman. Throughout his life, he built bridges, roads, mountains, and houses, benefiting countless people, earning him the privilege of ascending to heaven. Nowadays, before any major construction project breaks ground, people pay homage to the Geomancer, praying for its success. After his ascension, he refined a magical weapon: a crescent-shaped shovel. Legend has it that there's no mountain this magical shovel can't level, no cave it can't dig, no house it can't enter. This proved to be a significant advantage when he went undercover in the Ghost Market. He could simply dig a hole in any secret room he wanted to open, and it would close again. If Huacheng hadn't beaten him so hard he vomited three liters of blood, severely damaging his magical powers, he might have escaped the dungeon with that precious shovel.
The Earth Master had never before tried this shovel in any of the priests' celestial palaces, nor had he often flaunted the magic weapon, always keeping it hidden. It was better not to show off. Most of the priests' magic weapons in the Upper Heavenly Court were quite elegant, with books, brushes, swords, folding fans, guqins, and flutes. If a priest here were to carry a shovel in and out all day, it would be quite a sight to behold and a loss of image. After hearing this, Xie Lian couldn't help but wonder, if we want the dilapidated buildings at Puqi Monastery to be repaired soon, shouldn't we also pay our respects to the Earth Master?
After climbing for a while, Xie Lian heard Mingyi ask Shi Qingxuan in front of him, "Was it done by the Immortal Baihua?"
Xie Lian also wanted to know if this was the case. If the Immortal Baihua had truly harmed Shi Qingxuan to this extent, word would surely spread throughout the celestial realm, causing immense panic. A demon that could cause a priest to lose his magical powers in a short period of time, reducing him to a mortal state! It was obvious that everyone would be in danger. Shi Qingxuan remained silent for a moment regarding such a serious matter, but then said, "No matter who did it, this matter ends here."
This reaction is totally wrong.
If he was framed, he shouldn't have this kind of attitude no matter what, especially since Shi Qingxuan was not someone who would suffer in vain.
Suddenly, Xie Lian had a bad guess. Although it was bad, it could explain everything.
At this moment, Mingyi suddenly said, "Silence."
The three people in the tunnel held their breath. Mingyi held up a flame from his palm, dimly illuminating the small area. The other two looked at him.
Mingyi seemed to be trying to communicate with a spirit, but Shi Qingxuan's powers were completely drained, making it impossible to communicate with his mind. So he resorted to writing in the air with his finger. Where his fingertip passed, a streak of ink remained, like thick ink dripping into clear water and dispersing. The other two could see clearly: he had written: "Don't speak, don't move. Wait."
After the person finished reading, he blew silently, and the words dissipated into the air. Xie Lian still had some remaining magic power, and he wrote a line on the handle: "What are you waiting for? Until when?"
Mingyi wrote: "Wait for the people up there to leave."
Xie Lian and Shi Qingxuan simultaneously looked upwards. It turned out that the tunnel opened by Mingyi's precious shovel in Xianjing passed through certain immortal residences and temples. Around this time, a priest appeared right above them.
Listening intently, he could hear the steady sound of footsteps, slowly approaching, seemingly pacing the room. Xie Lian concluded this person was a Martial God. Martial Gods often possessed highly sensitive senses, and if they emitted even the slightest suspicious sound, they could be caught red-handed. Shi Qingxuan couldn't communicate with spirits or write, so he could only mouth his accusations silently. Xie Lian read it twice before understanding what he was saying: "Brother Ming, why didn't you avoid the temples and palaces? Couldn't you dig underneath Shenwu Street?"
Ming Yi wrote indifferently, "This palace was originally empty, and Shenwu Street is now full of pits."
Xie Lian also wrote, "Yes. I saw it on the way here just now. The street is full of potholes, some of which are even several feet deep. There are holes dug underneath. If you look up carefully, you might be face to face with someone."
So, the three of them said nothing, transformed into three motionless stones, and patiently waited for the priest to leave. After waiting for a long while, Shi Qingxuan mouthed, "Has he left?"
Mingyi shook his head. Shi Qingxuan's forehead veins bulged, a look remarkably similar to his brother's earlier angry expression. He muttered silently, "Who's being so nagging? It's not even time to sleep, and what priest would sleep anyway? Is that a toilet or something?"
In fact, strictly speaking, priests didn't need to go to the toilet. When he mouthed the word "toilet", Xie Lian suddenly felt a chill run down his spine. He pushed the two people in front of him hard, kicked his feet at the same time, and fell backwards.
A sharp sword suddenly stabbed down from above the tunnel, with fierce force and murderous intent, and just pierced the ground between his legs.
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