The two men remained motionless, silent. Neither raised their palms to investigate, nor did they raise their hands to question the situation. However, the other party had clearly sensed their presence, for after they stopped, a cold remark came from the other side.
A man said in a deep voice: "No comment."
Upon hearing this voice, Shi Qingxuan immediately ignited a palm flame. Xie Lian hadn't anticipated his sudden ignition, leaving him no time to stop it. The flames were incredibly bright, illuminating the silhouette of a man in black.
The man in black leaned against the stone wall at the end of the path, his face pale as a sheet, his black hair tangled. But within his tangled hair, his eyes were piercing, like two rays of burning ice. Though he sat cross-legged, the increasingly strong smell of blood in the air betrayed his serious injuries, clearly imprisoned. His earlier statement, "No comment," likely indicated he misinterpreted them as torturers.
Shi Qingxuan saw the man's face clearly and said, "It's you!"
The man seemed unprepared for the arrival. He paused for a moment, as if about to say, "You," but ultimately restrained himself. Xie Lian withdrew Ruo Xie, who had been secretly gathering strength, and said, "So you two know each other."
After many twists and turns, he finally found the man here. Shi Qingxuan was relieved and was about to answer, but the man said firmly, "I don't know him."
Shi Qingxuan was furious upon hearing this, and pointed at him with his folding fan, saying, "Is it shameful to know me? It's really mean of you to say that, Brother Ming, I'm your best friend!"
The man flatly refused, saying, "I don't have any friends who would run around dressed like that."
“…”
Shi Qingxuan was still wearing that purple gauze dress, which was truly...unsightly. Xie Lian wanted to laugh, thinking, "So there really are people who define themselves as 'someone's best friend.'" But perhaps this was just Shi Qingxuan's personality. Then he thought, "Brother Ming"? Of the Five Masters, wasn't the Earth Master's name Mingyi? So, Xie Lian asked, "Could this be the Master Earth Master?"
Shi Qingxuan said, "That's him. You've seen him too."
Xie Lian looked at Ming Yi and asked curiously, "Have you seen him before?" He didn't seem to remember such a person. Shi Qingxuan said, "Yes, I have."
Ming Yi said, "I've never seen it."
Shi Qingxuan said, "I've clearly seen him before, last time at Half Moon Pass."
“…”
Watching Ming Yi's face turn from pale to livid, Xie Lian finally remembered. Wasn't there a woman in black beside Shi Qingxuan the last time they met at Ban Yue Pass?
At the time, Hua Cheng had told him that this person wasn't a water master, but he was definitely one of the five masters of wind, water, rain, earth, and thunder. It turned out to be quite right. It turned out that Shi Qingxuan not only loved transforming himself into a woman, but also liked to drag others into doing so. No wonder the woman in black had such a sullen expression, as if filled with disgust. Remembering how Shi Qingxuan had repeatedly urged him to "join in the fun" before entering the ghost market, Xie Lian couldn't help but cough softly, thinking, "What a close call!"
He straightened his expression and returned to the main topic. Jun Wu had previously told him that several priests in the Upper Heaven Court had been missing for years, including the Rain Master and the Earth Master. Xie Lian asked, "Master Earth Master, was it you who sent the Fire Dragon's Roaring Sky?"
Mingyi said, "It's me."
Then we had saved the right person. Xie Lian nodded and said, "Master Earth Master is probably seriously injured. Let's leave now and talk later."
Without saying anything, Shi Qingxuan immediately squatted down and carried Mingyi on his back, saying, "Okay, let's go!"
The three of them returned along the same route. Shi Qingxuan said as they walked, "Brother Ming, you're quite a fighter, aren't you? You looked fine when we separated at Half Moon Pass. How did you get beaten up like this in just a few days? How did you offend Hua Cheng?"
There was a hint of gloating in his tone. Xie Lian thought to himself, "Hmm, that's really how friends talk. They're really good friends." Ming Yi, however, seemed unable to bear hearing Shi Qingxuan speak any longer. She blurted out, "Shut up!"
Shi Qingxuan's question was exactly what Xie Lian wanted to know. Shi Qingxuan's question was a bit too irritating, a question only someone close to him could ask. So, he changed his words and asked, "Master Earth Master, why is Huacheng trying to embarrass you?"
Ming Yi didn't tell him to shut up, but he didn't answer either. Xie Lian glanced over and saw that his eyes were already closed. He must have been trapped underground and tortured for days, and his injuries were severe. Suddenly seeing the rescuers, he felt relieved and finally could rest for a moment. Anyway, they could talk again after returning to the heavens, so there was no rush, so he didn't wake him.
The three of them ran up the stairs. Xie Lian pulled out the dice and rolled again. In the darkness, he couldn't tell what number he'd rolled. Suddenly, a soft click sounded in front of him, and a crack opened, allowing light to filter through. Xie Lian pushed the door open, wondering, "I wonder if I'll be able to take Lang Ying away in time?" Unexpectedly, he stepped on empty air.
Xie Lian immediately shouted, "Don't come out!"
He flipped in the air and landed on something hard. Just as he was breathing a sigh of relief, thinking he was lucky he hadn't landed in a sea of fire and swords, he looked up again and thought a sea of fire and swords might be a bit less dangerous. He saw Hua Cheng's incredibly handsome face right before him, his eyebrow raised, looking at him.
This time, the stone door opened, and he stepped on empty air and fell directly onto Hua Cheng!
The stone gate led to a magnificent house. Inside, the walls were lined with a variety of weapons: knives, swords, spears, shields, whips, and hammers. It looked like a weapons collection. Any man, surrounded by such a vast array of weapons, would surely feel like he was in heaven, his blood boiling.
At that moment, Hua Cheng sat in the center of the armory, leisurely polishing his silver scimitar. Even when someone suddenly dropped from the sky onto his lap, he simply paused, unperturbed. He simply gazed at Xie Lian calmly, as if waiting for an explanation. Xie Lian, of course, had no explanation to offer, so he could only lie on his lap, steeling himself, and staring at him. Suddenly, he caught a glimpse of someone nearby, and turning to see, it was Lang Ying.
The bandaged boy sat on the ground, terrified, his head in his hands, glaring at the two of them. Xie Lian had no time to wonder why Lang Ying was there. Suddenly, he caught a glimpse of Shi Qingxuan's white boot halfway up above him. In a moment of panic, he quickly grabbed Hua Cheng's shoulders and said, "Excuse me!"
After saying that, he pounced on Hua Cheng and knocked him down.
With this lunge, Hua Cheng was flung a dozen feet away, rolling several times on the ground. He turned sharply to see Shi Qingxuan, Mingyi on his back, having already leaped down, landing safely where Hua Cheng had been sitting. Xie Lian steeled himself to turn his head again, but Hua Cheng was still staring at him, his expression mute, though his eyebrows were raised even higher.
Xie Lian immediately leaped to his feet, pulled Lang Ying with him, and retreated several feet, saying, “Sorry, sorry.”
He pulled Lang Ying behind him and whispered, "Follow me closely, be careful." Lang Ying looked at Hua Cheng, as if terrified of him, and nodded repeatedly. Shi Qingxuan said, "Don't apologize now. The priest's disappearance is entirely his fault. Your Highness, be careful."
How could Xie Lian not know what was happening? However, this was a situation he truly hated to face. He quickly glanced around. This armory had no doors, windows, or other means of entry or exit, making it impossible to escape. Xie Lian stood up straight and said, "Sanlang, let me explain."
Hua Chengdao: "Well, I'm waiting."
After hesitating for a moment, Xie Lian said gently, "I wonder what misunderstanding Master Geomancer has with you. Why don't we call it quits and discuss this peacefully?"
The best-case scenario would be for Huacheng to let them go now. While the Earth Master was injured, his life was not in serious danger, and he hadn't lost any limbs. If he stopped right there, the situation wouldn't escalate. If Huacheng let them go now, he would be putting his reputation on the line when he returned to Heaven to report. Xie Lian also wanted to try to plead with Jun Wu for mercy.
Unexpectedly, Hua Cheng put down his scimitar and asked, "Earth Master? What Earth Master?"
He paused and said, "Oh, you mean the one that Feng Shi was carrying? He was just an incompetent subordinate of mine."
Upon hearing this, Xie Lian and Shi Qingxuan were both stunned. Xie Lian didn't know why he said that, but he knew there must be something behind it. Shi Qingxuan said, "This is clearly my Heavenly Court priest. You're forcing a horse to be a deer. How ridiculous."
Hua Cheng smiled and said, "Then, I wonder why you, the honorable priests of the Upper Heaven, would conceal your identities and condescend to serve as a ghost messenger here?"
Following the arc of the doomed fate, a silver crescent moon appeared. Hua Cheng continued, "If that person is truly a geomancer, he must be incredibly patient, having been acting like this for ten years. During these ten years, although I occasionally felt something was amiss with him, I never had any proof. If I hadn't gone to Half Moon Pass, I wouldn't have been completely certain."
Instantly, Xie Lian's mind raced. It turned out that the reason the Earth Master had disappeared and was trapped was because he had been hiding his true identity for ten years, working as a ghost messenger under Hua Cheng!
——To put it bluntly, he is an undercover agent.
Huacheng's words were crystal clear; how could Xie Lian not understand? He could figure out the whole story. Although Huacheng occasionally felt that this subordinate was suspicious, perhaps because he had no evidence, he kept him under observation. A few days ago, during a trip to Banyue Pass, Huacheng, in his youthful form, had accompanied him and spotted the Earth Master traveling with the Wind Master.
Although the Earth Master, at the instigation of the Wind Master, had assumed a female form, Hua Cheng was able to see through her illusion and discovered that the woman in black was none other than his own slightly suspicious ghost servant. Since she was working alongside the Wind Master, her identity was easy to guess. However, because Hua Cheng had never revealed his true face, he saw through her. A quick glance at the Earth Master prevented him from immediately noticing that Hua Cheng had also traveled to Half Moon Pass.
Perhaps he didn't know it at the time, but in retrospect, realizing something was amiss, he quickly evacuated. So, after the incident at Banyue Pass was resolved, Huacheng immediately left Puqi Monastery, likely to settle accounts with him. It was probably during Huacheng's pursuit, in dire straits, that Mingyi unleashed the Fire Dragon's Roaring Sky technique, prompting Junwu to seek out Xie Lian and ask him to make this journey.
It was a scandal that the Celestial Priests, instead of doing their jobs properly in the Upper Heaven, had been lurking in the Ghost Realm for decades in disguise. Who knew what they were up to? Xie Lian didn't quite understand the intrigues between the two realms, nor did he want to understand. But if Mingyi were to continue being imprisoned and tortured here, and eventually fall, the feud between Heaven and Earth would become even greater. Using this as an excuse, the Celestial and Ghost Realms could openly wage war, wouldn't the situation become even more chaotic? On that day, Huacheng wouldn't be immune. After much deliberation, he could only say, "Sanlang, I hope you'll show some mercy today."
Hua Cheng stared at him for a moment, then said calmly, "Your Highness, actually, there are some things that you should not get too involved in."
Logically speaking, Hua Cheng always called Xie Lian "brother", so when he changed to "Your Highness", it should have made people feel strange. However, Xie Lian did not feel that way at all.
When others called him "Your Highness," many did so without emotion, as a matter of business, like Ling Wen. But many others, like Ling Wen, called him "Your Highness" with a sense of mockery, like calling an ugly beauty, deliberately and with a hint of irony.
But when Huacheng called him "Your Highness," it was a word he cherished with great care. Although he couldn't put it into words, Xie Lian simply felt that when Huacheng called him "Your Highness" it felt different from when others did.
He had originally thought that if Hua Cheng refused to release him, he would have to take the initiative, and take advantage of the opportunity. But now, it was difficult for him to take action no matter what. Shi Qingxuan listened to the two people's conversation and thought that it seemed that neither of them would take the initiative to attack, so he might as well be the bad guy. So, he fanned out and shouted, "Wind!"
A sudden gust of wind blew up in the armory. The numerous weapons on the shelves on all sides vibrated faintly, humming continuously. There was a loud "crackling" sound, and Xie Lian felt dust falling overhead. Looking up, he saw that the wind had lifted one side of the roof, creating a huge crack.
The armory had no doors or windows. Shi Qingxuan had no intention of attacking, but wanted to pry open the roof and fly out!
In the fierce wind, Hua Cheng's black hair and red clothes also fluttered in the wind, but he did not move. He said: "You have a fan, what a coincidence, I have one too."
As he spoke, he produced a small golden fan from his bosom. It was small and exquisite, its ribs and blade crafted from pure gold, its hue beautiful and tranquil. A white jade pendant hung at the end. Hua Cheng twirled it in his hands a few times, unfolded it, and smiled silently, his murderous aura inexplicably elegant. With a flick of his hand, a gust of wind, carrying a few glittering golden dots, struck. The three of them ducked, only to hear a sudden, violent "thump, thump" sound. Looking back, they saw rows and rows of gold foil nailed to the ground. Each thin piece of foil, driven only an inch into the ground, demonstrated its sharp edge and its ferocious force.
Hua Cheng flipped his hand again, and another gust of golden dust blew. The wind from Master Qingxuan's fan was powerful, but the stronger it was, the more dangerous it was. The armory was only a large hall, with limited space. Some of the strong wind from Master Qingxuan's fan would rebound and scatter around the room, carrying hundreds of pieces of gold foil in a frenzy of dance around them. Xie Lian, worried that the gold foil might injure anyone, protected Lang Ying and said, "Master Fengshi, please stop for a moment!"
The gold foil had already brushed past Shi Qingxuan and Mingyi several times, and Shi Qingxuan wanted to stop, but the roof, lifted by the wind he was driving, had cracked. If he stopped now, the roof would fall down, and all his efforts would be wasted. At this moment, the gold foil dancing around them suddenly flew upwards. There was a clang, ...
As soon as he landed, the man said loudly, "Master Wind Master, I'm sorry, I just can't stay still!"
Shi Qingxuan was overjoyed and said, "Qianqiu has come just in time!"
The young man was handsome and bright, carrying a heavy sword on his shoulder, the hilt of which was as wide as a grown man's palm. It was Lang Qianqiu. His heavy sword shone with a golden brilliance, but upon closer inspection, it was not a golden sword. Instead, the blade had absorbed the sharp, thin gold foil, so densely packed with it that the huge sword appeared to be made of gold.
The iron used to forge Lang Qianqiu's heavy sword was extremely rare, taken from the heart of a magnetic mountain. It possessed a remarkable ability to attract metal. As long as the magical power contained within the weapon remained within a certain limit, he could grasp the hilt and, with a single thought, absorb any metal weapon held by another, melting it and absorbing it. Sure enough, in a short while, the entire layer of gold foil was absorbed by the heavy sword, vanishing without a trace. Seeing this, Hua Cheng laughed heartily, put away the gold-leaf fan, twirled it a few times in his hands, and squinted his eyes, saying, "How could you, a celestial priest, be so stingy and short-sighted that you wouldn't let go of gold after seeing it?"
If these words had been addressed to Xie Lian, he would have simply pretended not to hear. However, these words were addressed to Lang Qianqiu, a member of the royal family who had always despised money and treasure. Hearing his enemy's taunts, even though he knew they were malicious provocations, he became furious and shouted, "Stop confusing right and wrong!" He raised his heavy sword and slashed at Hua Cheng. Hua Cheng, scimitar in hand, formed several silver flowers with one hand and calmly raised his sword to meet the attack.
Lang Qianqiu used all his might in this strike. He was a young, inexperienced man, fearless as a tiger. However, Xie Lian had already seen the huge disparity in their strength. If he had truly struck down with this sword, he would have been dead!
Even though Shi Qingxuan, who didn't use a sword, couldn't see the specific difference, he was still inexplicably frightened and shouted, "Qianqiu, don't take it head-on!!!" However, the arrow was on the string, and it was at a critical moment. How could it be stopped by just a shout?
Unexpectedly, just as the sword and the knife were about to collide, a ball of extremely dazzling white light exploded in the armory.
The white light was so immense that it practically enveloped the entire armory, momentarily blinding everyone's vision. All they could see was a blinding expanse of white. Xie Lian, however, had been prepared and could barely see. With his right hand, he gathered all the mana he had borrowed from Master Qingxuan, transformed it into flames, and launched it in one direction!
One side of the armory suddenly burst into flames. Immediately afterwards, Xie Lian flung out Ruo Xie, causing it to bind him, Shi Qingxuan, Mingyi, Lang Qianqiu, and Lang Ying together, and shouted, "Master Wind Master, raise the wind and ascend!"
Although Shi Qingxuan couldn't open his eyes yet, he did as he was told. He raised his fan and swung it vigorously. A tornado of wind rose from the ground and finally broke through the roof that had been shaking!
Ruo Xie tied up the five people and flew straight into the sky. In mid-air, several people finally regained their sight. Shi Qingxuan saw flames rising into the sky and thick smoke billowing a few feet below. It turned out to be the fire in the armory. The fire was not burning strongly enough. Fearing that Hua Cheng would catch up, he thought to himself, "I'll add more fuel to the fire. Goodbye, no need to see me off." Then he turned around and slapped him.
This truly fanned the flames. The strong wind carried the flames to other rooms, igniting most of Ji Le Fang into a sea of red. Amidst the crimson flames, Xie Lian could still see a distinct crimson figure. He was too high up to see clearly, but he had a hunch that Hua Cheng was standing there, looking up at him.
He didn't chase after them, but he didn't try to put out the flames either. He simply stood there, letting the blaze rage. Screams filled the streets of the Ghost Market outside Ji Le Fang, and people fled. Xie Lian had only intended to light a small fire, so that Hua Cheng wouldn't have time to chase them while they escaped, delaying them for a while. He had never expected the fire to burn so fiercely. That was Hua Cheng's residence!
Thinking of this, Xie Lian suddenly felt short of breath. He suddenly grabbed Shi Qingxuan, who was fanning desperately, and said in a hoarse voice, "Master Feng, please stop fanning! If you continue, everything will burn up!"
Shi Qingxuan felt a wetness on his shoulder after the grab, and also smelled an unusually pungent smell of blood. He turned around and said in surprise, "Your Highness, what happened to your hand?"
Xie Lian's right hand was drenched in blood. His entire arm was stained with gore, and the trembling he felt was more than just a slight sensation. However, he still held onto the white silk tightly, preventing the others from being blown away by the strong wind. Shi Qingxuan asked, "What's wrong with you?!"
Seeing that Shi Qingxuan had calmed down, Xie Lian finally released his hand and shook his head, saying, "It's alright! Stop fanning me. Let's just go up and forget about it."
He didn't say much, but Shi Qingxuan immediately understood and asked, "Was that white light you? Your Highness, did you separate the two of them?"
Xie Lian simply said, "I am a swordsman after all."
Shi Qingxuan's guess was correct. Just before Hua Cheng and Lang Qianqiu were about to clash swords and blades, Xie Lian dodged forward.
He picked up a sword from the weapon rack beside him, inserted it between the knife and the sword, and made two moves in total.
The first move was to knock back Lang Qianqiu's heavy sword, and the second move was to suppress the scimitar's fate.
The force of these two moves was not only powerful, but also controlled to an extremely delicate degree. Therefore, although Xie Lian blocked the sword and knife, there was no rebound attack. Because Xie Lian was caught in the middle, he had already used the sword and his one arm to absorb both attacks.
Lang Qianqiu's heavy sword was relatively unstoppable, but Hua Cheng's blade was truly unstoppable. Since the sword Xie Lian casually drew was stored in Hua Cheng's armory, it was naturally a precious blade. Hence the huge burst of white light that erupted when the weapons clashed. However, after these two moves, the first blow was cracked by Lang Qianqiu's heavy sword, and the second blow was directly shattered by the scimitar.
All of these movements were completed in a flash, so fast that they were almost invisible to the naked eye. Shi Qingxuan saw the horrific state of his right arm and thought it was probably a bloody mess. He thought to himself, "Your Highness is too fierce, daring to take two blows with one hand! The Flower Crown Martial God, one hand holding a sword, the other holding a flower. I originally only remembered the flower holding, but forgot that he ascended to heaven with the sword." Thinking back to the close call just now, he was secretly frightened, "Luckily, Your Highness took those two blows, otherwise Qianqiu would have been cut into pieces by the Blood Rain Tanhua."
Thinking of this, he took the time to glance at Lang Qianqiu again. Although Lang Qianqiu looked perfectly fine, he looked dazed, as if his soul had flown away. He couldn't help but wonder, "Could it be that Qianqiu was stunned by Huacheng's knife attack??"
Riding the gust of wind, the group finally soared to the heavens. Towed and carried, they rushed through the Ascension Gate and headed straight for the Divine Martial Hall. Lang Ying, unable to enter the hall, was conveniently placed in a side hall by Xie Lian. Since no one was on duty, he called out from within the spirit communication array, "Excuse me, are there any immortals here? Please hurry to the Divine Martial Hall! This is an emergency! A priest has been injured!"
As he shouted, Shi Qingxuan snapped his fingers and finally changed back into his white Taoist robe. He waved his hand and a hundred thousand merits were dispersed, saying, "It's the two priests!"
Xie Lian hurriedly said, "Speak kindly, don't waste your merit. Everyone will come naturally when they hear it. Don't get excited."
Shi Qingxuan said, "No, Your Highness, you must know that spreading merit is a hundred times faster than speaking nicely!"
Soon, a voice from afar said, "Who's hurt?"
When the voice said "who," it was still in the distance. By the time it had uttered the last word, the person had already appeared. It was Feng Xin. He entered the hall, looked at Xie Lian, then at Lang Qianqiu, and his expression faltered slightly. Xie Lian said, "I'm fine. Master Geomancer is probably seriously injured."
After a moment of silence, Feng Xin said, "What happened to your right hand?"
At this time, another voice said, "So what if he's injured? There are so many priests in the Heavenly Court, and every patrol is bound to be without injuries."
The voice was extremely refined and gentle, yet the words weren't particularly appealing. Naturally, it was admiration. He entered the Divine Martial Hall, looking first at Xie Lian, then at Lang Qianqiu. But his expression was completely different from Feng Xin's. He raised his eyebrows slightly, as if he was waiting for a good show. Seeing Feng Xin looking at Xie Lian's arm, he sneered faintly, leaned over to check on Ming Yi, and said, "Is this the Master Earth Master?"
During this time, many other priests arrived one after another. Earth Master Yi was a mysterious figure, often elusive. It was almost the first time for many present to see him, so they couldn't help but stare intently. Everyone was confused, unsure why they had been summoned so suddenly, but having received the Wind Master's kindness, they couldn't help but come and see. Xie Lian said to Feng Xin, "Thank you very much. But it's okay, it will heal on its own."
Feng Xin didn't say much, and said, "Be careful."
Xie Lian whispered his thanks again, then turned around to see Lang Qianqiu staring blankly at him. He asked, "Your Highness Taihua, what's wrong with you?"
Feng Xin also noticed that Lang Qianqiu looked a little strange and asked, "Is His Highness Taihua injured somewhere?"
Xie Lian pondered for a moment and said, "I don't know. Let me take a look." As he spoke, he stretched out a hand and touched Lang Qianqiu's eyebrows.
Unexpectedly, Lang Qianqiu was quick-witted and grabbed his wrist.
Although Lang Qianqiu's expression still showed some hesitation, as if he had discovered something but was unsure, there was already a fire burning in his eyes. Xie Lian could clearly feel a tremor spreading from his arm to his own.
The surrounding priests all sensed something was amiss and began whispering to each other. Shi Qingxuan and Mu Qing both stood up. Feng Xin said, "Your Highness Taihua, what are you doing?"
Lang Qianqiu finally spoke. He only said two words, but Xie Lian's heart sank.
He gritted his teeth and said, "...National Master?"
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
