Chapter 15 This Time I'm the Older Brother
The old ancestor was determined to die.
Lingtian's blade had become dull. Thirty million years ago, Zhao Fengchen used it to cut open a melon brought from the human world. This knife was hard to sell; it sat gathering dust without anyone buying it. That day, he found it handy and used it to cut the melon.
Celestial weapons cannot be tainted by mortal affairs; to do so would be to tarnish their worth. Frustrated, Zhao Fengchen rolled up the blade. He simply put the sword in the storeroom, only remembering it today when the Emperor came to his door.
He originally intended to sell it directly to him, but he didn't expect that Duan Jiuyou was buying it on his behalf. So, after a while, his attention shifted from the knife to the man.
Zhao Fengchen said, "This knife is not unusable. To restore it to its original state, you only need to sharpen it a couple of times on the Tian Shi Chu."
The implication is that although it's dull, if you find that thing and sharpen it, it'll definitely still work.
Duan Jiuyou raised an eyebrow and asked him, "How many spiritual treasures would it cost to buy another Heavenly Timing Pestle?"
Zhao Fengchen knew she had misunderstood, and sighed, "This money, even if I wanted to, I couldn't earn. There are two of these Heavenly Time Pestle pieces. One is with me; it's been worn down from making so many divine weapons, and now it's smooth and flat, even more translucent than a peeled egg. The other one originally belonged to my elder brother, Zhao Fengli, but one time he was passing by Zhaozhao Mountain and accidentally dropped it, and now he can't get it back."
Duan Jiuyou narrowed his eyes. "You mean Zhaozhao Mountain where Quling crosses the river?"
That was an unreasonable place. The mountain lord, Du Heng, was a strange and eccentric scoundrel. Anything that fell into his territory, no matter what it was, belonged to him.
Whether the owner wants to retrieve the item depends on Du Heng's mood. If he doesn't want it, he can redeem it by paying a few spiritual treasures. If Du Heng wants to keep it, he won't care about any amount of spiritual treasures.
The immortals and deities complained bitterly about this, but this rule of "taking without giving" was permitted by the Heavenly Emperor.
Why was it approved? There are certainly some reasons for it.
Qulingdu River was originally a molten mountain river, with molten currents flowing through it that could destroy everything. In order to cut off this molten mountain river, the mountain lord Du Heng sacrificed himself, his body becoming a mountain and his divine power becoming a shield, forcing the river to stagnate, thus protecting several sacred mountains outside Qulingdu River.
Du Heng's sacrifice was too great, so since the formation of the Quling River, successive emperors have been very tolerant of him. In the words of Emperor Yan Xing, the first emperor in the Heavenly Realm to allow Du Heng to "legally collect" things: "Since he began guarding the Rongshan River, he has never been able to leave this place. It's like a child picking up some glowing little treasures from the ground, so let him keep them."
It was also from this emperor's reign that Quling Crossing the River received the legal permission to collect magical treasures and divine weapons.
Duan Jiuyou's face was ashen. If what Zhao Fengchen said was true, the Heavenly Time Pestle had been taken by Du Heng for a long time. If he were willing to sell it, it would have returned to Zhao Fengli's hands long ago.
But in this world, apart from the Lingtian White Blade, there is no other weapon that can safely bring back the creature within the core.
"That's thousands of lives," she murmured to herself, looking towards the imperial capital.
These lives are a rare achievement for the imperial court, and for her, they are lives she absolutely cannot abandon.
We must save lives and accumulate merit.
In just a few breaths, Duan Jiuyou made a decision. He stretched out his small hand into the Emperor Jiang's sleeve, took out his Qiankun bag, and threw 200,000 spiritual treasures to Zhao Fengchen.
"I've bought the knife, and I want it now."
…… ……
"You're going to go with him to cross the river at Quling?"
It was only then that Zhao Fengchen realized things were not simple. His eyes were rather long, and when he was thinking, they would unconsciously take on a fox-like appearance. He shifted his gaze to Di Jiang. When the other party was reprimanding him earlier, he had already changed back into his own clothes. Although his attire seemed simple, it possessed a hidden sophistication.
The moon-white robe was embroidered with a pattern of five bats and flowers, the black cloak was embroidered with dark clouds eating the moon, and the unicorn sash at the waist was not something an ordinary immortal would wear. Then, thinking of the blue magic light in the other party's hand just now.
Zhao Fengchen's gaze hardened.
"He is—Duan Jiuyou! You're insane! What are you doing…"
Are you looking for death?!
Zhao Fengchen's face turned pale. He never expected that the Lord of the Great Wilderness was still alive, and he never expected that Duan Jiuyou, who had personally killed Dijiang, would be involved with this person who had almost turned the world upside down.
He grabbed Duan Jiuyou's arm and dragged him to a corner, demanding, "What exactly are you trying to do? If Bai Yanxing finds out, how will your Ao Clan face the Heavenly Realm? The new dynasty has just been established, and the remnants haven't been eliminated yet. They can't be completely wiped out, and you're already associating with him? This is a capital offense, punishable by having your immortal bones removed and being struck by lightning!"
Duan Jiuyou remained calm: "What am I afraid of? I'm not afraid of pain, nor am I afraid of death. But you, why are you so nervous? Are you afraid of being implicated by me? Haven't you lived enough yet?"
Zhao Fengchen didn't expect Duan Jiuyou to say anything sensible. He walked a few steps with his hands behind his back, then suddenly turned around: "I'm not afraid to die with you, but he—"
Zhao Fengchen pointed excitedly, then quickly withdrew his finger as if afraid of being discovered by Di Jiang: "He's incredibly vicious! He'll eat people without spitting out the bones! You're trying to save people from 'hell,' do you have a death wish? Jiu You, you can live in a daze, but you can't ruin the common people. You should know very well what kind of person Di Jiang is!"
"I'm not really sure."
Compared to Zhao Fengchen's excitement, Duan Jiuyou was much calmer. She looked over Zhao Fengchen's shoulder at the Desolate Clan Chief, whom the world avoided like the plague, not far away. She didn't know much about him; based on historical records alone, he was indeed not a very good-looking man. He was oppressive, ruthless, and cruel; apart from being good-looking, he was almost entirely useless.
But the emperor outside of historical records also has his endearing qualities, such as his inner grumbling about his subordinates, his quiet acts of kindness, and his love for sweets.
Everyone has two sides. Even a high priestess like her, who has served nine emperors, has many flaws, let alone the imperial court.
“Maybe he thinks differently from you,” Duan Jiuyou said.
"How is it different? You've only known him for a short time. I think you're just bewitched by his face!"
Zhao Fengchen's words were rather sarcastic; he admitted that the other person was better looking than him.
"It's not just his face. He's not a bad person, but he's cold-mouthed. You guys don't really understand."
Duan Jiuyou spoke very softly; a long wind blew past the corner of his clothes, easily burying those words. Zhao Fengchen's face remained indignant, still unable to understand.
Di Jiang glanced sideways.
He heard it.
An hour later.
Duan Jiuyou and Di Jiang fell into the clouds on Luoxia Mountain near Quling Ferry.
Duan Jiuyou pulled Di Jiang to squat on the mountaintop, overlooking the bustling little town called "Zhaozhao" below.
Du Heng was not lonely. Although he could not leave Quling, he single-handedly created a city. He transformed the magical treasures, wild animals, and even broken stones and tiles that had fallen into his territory into people who could walk upright. They learned to live like humans and to do business. The Heavenly Timing Pestle that Zhao Fengchen mentioned, which was not taken away, must have been among these people.
“We can’t alert Du Heng. If he finds out, it might alert Bai Yanxing,” Duan Jiuyou said to Di Jiang. “I’ve thought of a relatively safe way. The two of us will disguise ourselves as commoners, sneak into the city, find the Heavenly Time Pestle that has transformed into human form, turn it back into its original form, sharpen the Sky-Piercing White Blade, and then use the Forgetfulness Incantation to make it forget everything that happened before. Then we can leave Quling without anyone noticing.”
Di Jiang glanced at Duan Jiuyou's current attire.
This person was the type to act on a whim. Before falling into the clouds, she had already "changed" her clothes. At this moment, she was wearing an ochre headscarf, a maroon cloth robe, and her skin was slightly loose. She had completely transformed into the face of a middle-aged woman around fifty years old.
Duan Jiuyou said, "My magic is not as good as yours. Quickly make a hand seal and transform yourself into a seventeen or eighteen-year-old boy. I'll pretend to be you..."
"Be your mother!"
Di Jiang spoke at the same time as Duan Jiuyou, following the last syllable of her sentence.
He knew what she was planning from the moment she turned into this, but he never expected that this "slut" would actually dare to say it to his face.
He rarely reprimands others to their face, not because of politeness or manners, but simply because he feels the other person is not worthy of listening.
But Duan Jiuyou is different. She's so good to him that even someone as quiet as him can't help but want to give her a few words of advice.
“You really aren’t afraid of death,” Di Jiang said.
"Why are you swearing?" Duan Jiuyou was still surprised by the phrase "be your mother."
She said, "That's not a good attitude of yours. I was just trying to help you, wasn't I?"
Di Jiang narrowed his eyes.
If Duan Jiuyou weren't so impossible to kill, he would have died a hundred times over in front of him.
"Then what do you want to dress up as?" Duan Jiuyou asked him for his opinion.
Emperor Jiang measured the details of Jiu You's figure with his eyes, and as he withdrew his gaze, he conjured a beam of magical light. This light pressed down on them, causing them to shrink rapidly. In a short moment, two children of similar age, around seven or eight years old, appeared atop Chaoxia Mountain.
The two children were of different heights. After comparing them, Duan Jiuyou looked up with dissatisfaction and asked in a childish voice, "Why are you taller than me? And you look like you're two years older than me."
Emperor Jiang straightened his clothes and glanced at her.
“This time I’m the older brother, and you’re the younger sister.”
Duan Jiuyou made a grabbing motion and conjured a bronze mirror, which he briefly raised before putting it down.
Why don't I look like myself?
Di Jiang's childhood form was beautiful, resembling a miniature version of himself. The young boy had bright eyes and thick eyebrows, and his sickly appearance was not deliberately concealed. Despite his frail appearance, he possessed a mature and composed demeanor beyond his years.
In contrast, Duan Jiuyou was different. She was not pretty. On her round, chubby, and fair face were a pair of small eyes. Her features were vague, like a few sesame seeds that were too densely packed together. At first glance, she looked like a leavened pancake.
“This was sculpted based on Xiao Cui’s face,” Di Jiang said.
He went even further than Xiao Cui, almost to the point of uglifying her, mainly because he didn't have a deep impression of Xiao Cui's face, only remembering a general shape.
"Why didn't you press my face?" Duan Jiuyou protested.
"You dare use your own face?"
Since Du Heng intercepted the Rong Sheng River, he has never left Quling. Di Jiang is certain that Du Heng does not recognize him, but Duan Jiuyou, a "strange thing" who has been alive since the beginning of time, is different.
"Historical records state that Emperor Yan Xing, in order to demonstrate the Heavenly Realm's respect for Immortal Du Heng, specially invited the Supreme Heavenly Emperor Duan Jiuyou to personally convey the imperial decree, allowing Du Heng to freely collect magical artifacts within the Qinling River crossing territory." Emperor Jiang said, tilting his head and smiling. "It is said that you overslept that day, and Du Heng waited for you at Quling for a full three hours. When you arrived, they almost got into a fight."
His face, even when he's just joking, has a captivating charm.
Duan Jiuyou looked away in surprise. She had long known that the Imperial Territory was a "troublesome place," and seeing too much of this kind of thing would be too much for her heart to bear.
She patted her chest quietly and continued the previous topic: "I apologized to him, but he still scolded me. How could I let him nag me? He's not as old as me, but he has quite a temper. Just because he looks older than me, he really acts like an elder. Besides, the imperial decree came out suddenly. I had just set off with the army the day before and was exhausted. The next day, I was ordered to cross the river at Quling."
Born with an "iron body," she was often thought to be someone who never needed to rest and should always be available whenever summoned. The nine emperors she ruled had different personalities; some considered her a confidante, while others simply saw her as a "human shield." She didn't care about this; she was exceptionally kind to those who were kind to her, and not so open to those who weren't.
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