Chapter 30 Entering the Delusion, a Heart Awakens, Appreciating the Lotus 2. Feng Xi looks a little...
Feng Xi didn't seem surprised at all; on the contrary, she was very happy and said, "Then can I call you Chaochao?"
Yan Chao smiled and said, "Of course. But aren't you going to ask me why I have another name?"
Feng Xi stepped forward and said, "It's normal to fabricate identities when traveling, so what's so strange about changing your name? The fact that you're willing to tell me proves that you trust me, so why should I ask any more questions?"
Yan Chao chuckled for a moment and said, "I think what you said makes a lot of sense."
Yan Chao stepped forward and looked him over.
Before, when he was still Lianxi, Feng Xi always wore his black hair in a high ponytail. Now, however, he was dressed in flowing blue, his silver hair cascading down his shoulders, his handsome features striking, both ethereal and otherworldly, half-real and half-illusory. The hairband he wore before, combined with the silver lotus tassel hair clip, rustled in the wind, adding to his noble air. He still wore the silver wolf-shaped earring on his right ear, exuding a wild and untamed spirit. Dressed in blue robes and white boots, he stood with his hands behind his back, his tall figure slender, and said with a half-smile, "How does it look? Are you satisfied?"
Yan Chao leaned closer, looking down at him, and said, "Is this your true form?"
Feng Xi raised an eyebrow and said, "It's the real deal."
Yan Chao nodded and muttered to himself, "I didn't expect them to look so alike."
Feng Xi asked, "What did you say?"
Yan Chao said, half-sincerly and half-teasingly, "I say, wearing a mask is a wise choice for you. You're so beautiful, if your followers and believers knew, they would probably raze your city to the ground."
A barely perceptible smile appeared on Feng Xi's lips as he said, "They won't see it." With that, he put his mask back on.
Previously, all that was known was that Young Master Lian was decisive in killing and ruthless, combining kindness and severity, and was revered by all ghosts, yet they also kept their distance from him. They couldn't see through him or guess his true intentions, but they knew that with him around, the ghost realm would never be in chaos.
Yan Chao wondered if it was just his imagination, but he always felt that when he put on the mask, he became a different person, the legendary Prince Lian, while the person behind the mask was himself, Feng Xi.
A surge of indescribable emotion welled up within Yan Chao, who thought, "Achieving the throne of the Ghost King and unifying the entire Ghost Realm is no easy feat. He must have endured countless hardships to get to where he is today. If only that incident hadn't happened..."
"Chaochao, have you ever impersonated someone else?"
"Every morning."
"Every morning..."
"Chaochao, what's wrong?"
Yan Chao was lost in thought. Feng Xi called her several times before she suddenly came to her senses. She stared blankly at Feng Xi and said, "I'm sorry, what did you say? I didn't hear you clearly."
Feng Xi chuckled helplessly, and slowly said, word by word, "I'm asking you, have you ever impersonated someone else?"
Yan Chao thought for a moment and said, "Yes, but it wasn't like you people with magic, who can change their appearance at will. The result after I disguised myself..."
I still prefer me the way I am.
Feng Xi thought of someone and said, "There's a ghost here who's just like you. If you meet her, you'll probably get along very well."
Yan Chao asked curiously, "Who is it? Who is it?"
Feng Xi deliberately kept everyone in suspense, saying, "Come with me, and you'll see her in a little while."
Yan Chao followed Feng Xi out of the main hall. Looking back, he saw the large characters "Hall of Delusion". As they walked up the long corridor, the lingering souls in the pools on both sides were so frightened by Feng Xi that they hid back at the bottom of the pools without making a sound, and the surroundings instantly became quiet.
Yan Chao suddenly thought of a saying: What's more terrifying than ghosts is people.
It might not be a person; it could be an even more powerful ghost.
What a magnificent city of illusion, what a magnificent palace of illusion, and what a shrewd young master Lian.
On their way out, they encountered some more Ya Xin and ghost messengers. They all bowed to the two of them, and Feng Xi nodded in acknowledgment. Yan Chao walked behind her, suddenly feeling a bit smug, as if he had experienced what it was like to be a ghost king. Thinking this, he couldn't help but laugh out loud.
Feng Xi stopped and turned to look at her, asking, "What's making you laugh so happily?"
Yan Chao didn't hold back and laughed, "The name Chunshan Tower is already impressive enough. Today, I've also had the pleasure of experiencing what it's like to be a Ghost King. Of course, I'm very happy!"
Feng Xi said, "But you don't seem like someone who likes these titles."
Yan Chao paused for a moment, then said calmly, "I really don't like it. The higher you stand, the greater the responsibility you have to bear."
"There are some things I can't escape, and I will accept them with equanimity, but that is my own choice, not something imposed on me by others."
"It's like someone making grand pronouncements about saving the world, but I have no interest in the world. But if one day someone tells me that this is my destiny, I will definitely say, 'This is my own choice, not because anyone chose me.' But I think Heaven wouldn't be so blind as to choose me to save the world."
"I will do everything I can to protect the people I care about. I will never be manipulated by anyone, and no one can hurt me in the slightest."
Yan Chao's last few words were firm and resolute, as if no one could influence her decision, and no one should try to harm her; if they did, they would pay a heavy price.
Feng Xi looked at Yan Chao, and after a moment of silence, he chuckled and said, "What a coincidence, I have no interest in the common people either." After saying that, he put away his smile and said seriously, "I swear, no matter when, where, or what happens, I will never hurt you."
As he said this, Yan Chao unexpectedly saw a hint of regret and remorse in his extremely serious eyes.
Yan Chao asked almost subconsciously, "Will you appear in front of me whenever I need you, just like this string of sandalwood beads?"
Feng Xi said, "As long as you need me, no matter when or where, wherever you look, I will be right in front of you."
His words were incredibly sincere and solemn, but Yan Chao couldn't understand why, even though they had only known each other for a short time, they felt as if they had known each other for a long time.
Does he already know who he is?
But it doesn't feel like it. It's more like I've seen him a long time ago, but I really can't remember him.
If she had actually seen it, she certainly wouldn't forget it, but that's not necessarily true.
Yan Chao said, "It seems that ever since we met, you have been helping me, intentionally or unintentionally, but you have never interfered with me. Who exactly are you? Have we met before?"
Feng Xi did not answer her question, but said, "I think you must have traveled to many places by yourself. You know best how to protect yourself and are fully capable of handling things. If I do too much, wouldn't it backfire?"
As soon as she finished speaking, Feng Xi turned around and continued walking, saying as she went, "Yao Xu and the others should be arriving soon. Let's not be late. I'll cook today."
Yan Chao had originally wanted to ask for clarification, but upon hearing about food, she immediately forgot all about it. She jogged a few steps to catch up with him, excitedly asking, "What delicious food is on the menu today?"
Feng Xi looked at her and said, "Hot pot, do you like it?"
Yan Chaokuang nodded, rubbing his hands together expectantly, and said, "I love that! I also love spicy hot pot! And hot pot is more lively with lots of people, the most important thing is the atmosphere."
Feng Xi nodded in agreement, "I think so too. Hot pot is Yao Xu's favorite food. He insists on eating hot pot every year on his birthday. He's been doing it for so many years and never gets tired of it."
Yan Chao said, "You two have such a good relationship. I've noticed it for a long time. Although you often complain about him, you care about him the most."
Feng Xi snorted and said, "He doesn't need my concern; he needs other people's concern."
As the two walked, they arrived at Wangsheng City from Wangsheng City.
This is a city that looks quite normal, about the same size as a state capital in the human world.
Compared to what we just saw in Wangsheng City, its appearance is utterly ordinary.
But once inside the city, the scene is quite different.
This is a long street.
The street stretched as far as the eye could see, its sides crammed with all sorts of shops and vendors. People of all shapes and sizes thronged the street. Some were as fat as balls, others as thin as sticks, some so flat they were almost invisible from a different angle. But there were also some "normal" people—animal heads with human bodies, human heads with animal heads, or gods, or those that shifted between human and animal forms.
Looking up, the lights here are different from those in the human world. Various colorful fish lanterns fly everywhere, and if a passerby finds one they like, they will reach out and pick it.
But it wasn't all done with hands; some stood still with their necks outstretched, some stuck out their tongues covered in saliva, and some climbed up one after another like a human pyramid...
Once a lantern is taken down, a new one is immediately placed in its place.
Yan Chao found it interesting, but had a question: "What if several people happen to like the same lantern?"
Feng Xi chuckled and pointed to the ox spirit and fox spirit arguing over a fish lantern not far away.
The ox demon stood with his hands on his hips, fiddled with his nose ring, and said, "I, the old ox, saw this lamp first, so it should belong to me!"
The fox spirit, unconvinced, pointed at his pectoral muscles and said, "You big, stupid ox who only grows muscle and not brains! I was just a step away from that lamp. If you hadn't been so big and strong that you knocked me down, how could that lamp have been yours? It belonged to me!"
The ox demon pounded his chest and stamped his feet, then looked up and mooed a few times, shouting, "I saw it first! It's mine! You fox, stop your nonsense!"
The fox spirit flashed her tail and lashed it hard across the ox spirit's face, instantly making the ox spirit see stars. He cried out, "This lamp is mine! It's mine! Mine, mine, mine!!!"
The ox demon covered his face and feigned humility, saying, "I see you're a female fox, so I won't hold it against you! But there will be no next time!" With that, he slunk away.
The fox, satisfied with her work, removed the fish lantern, humming a little tune as she walked away with an alluring gait. She was in a particularly good mood that day, and even when she encountered a lewd, lecherous man covered in pustules, she gave him a flirtatious wink. Unexpectedly, the lecherous man mistook her for the fox's attraction to him and eagerly approached her. The fox shoved him away, wiping her hands in disgust, and said, "Get the hell out of my way! Don't ruin my good mood!"
Upon seeing this, the crowd on the street erupted in a deafening roar of laughter: "Hahahahahahahahahahahahaha..."
"It's like a toad trying to eat swan meat... No, he's even bolder, he wants to eat fox meat!"
Another burst of laughter erupted.
The demon, unable to save face, spun around and spat sticky fluid at those who had laughed at him. In an instant, those who had mocked him were covered in the fluid. Their skin immediately swelled up with large, reddish-black pustules, unbearably itchy, as if covered by thousands of ants, causing them to writhe on the ground in agony.
The demon laughed loudly, seeing that they were all no longer human, and said smugly, "You laughed at me! I'll make you all become like me!"
Yan Chao stared blankly at the scene unfolding before her for a long time, unsure how to describe her feelings, which were quite different from what she had expected.
She had thought this place might be like a city in the human world, peaceful and tranquil, but while it was peaceful, it also carried an unsettling feeling.
But compared to Wangsheng City, this place is indeed full of life.
It was truly a chaotic dance of demons, yet brimming with hope.
Feng Xi leaned close to her ear and asked, "How do you feel?"
"It feels good." Yan Chao suddenly turned around and looked at him. The two were very close. Feng Xi seemed not to have expected her to turn around and froze in place, not daring to move.
Yan Chao was also somewhat at a loss. Looking at Feng Xi who was so close, he swallowed carefully. Just as the two of them were about to take a step back, a shrill voice interrupted them.
"Young master, how have you been lately?"
The two looked in the direction of the sound and saw Heber.
That smiling scholar.
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