Chapter 81 Royal Hunting Grounds
As the footsteps faded into the distance, Shinju's shoulders slumped, and he silently squatted down, stuffing the "Five Ultimate Sutras" back to the bottom of his bag.
It's just that he's back to being alone. On the path of cultivation, he's relied on himself for ninety percent of the time. It's just that he can no longer hear that person softly call him "Qing'er," and he can no longer see that person gently lift the corner of their lips—that smile might be for anyone, but never for him…
And all of this was given up voluntarily by him, so what right does he have to... pretend to be reluctant to leave?
Shinjuku wiped his stinging eyes, his fingertips damp with moisture.
Numb gaze gradually fell on the scarlet sachet at her waist, which was almost touching the ground.
Let's take it off.
That's what he thought, but the moment his jade-like fingers touched the string holding the sachet, he suddenly stopped. It was a knot that could be as simple as a stick of incense burning, yet it took him the time it takes to untie it.
Looking at the small, delicate sachet that could be held in one hand, even without using his divine sense, he knew perfectly well what was inside and what it represented.
Mayu suddenly felt as if his heart had been ripped out, and he took a deep breath.
After hesitating for a long time, Shinjuku did not put the sachet into his bag, but instead put it in his sleeve pocket before lying down on the bed.
The heat on his back was intensifying, and Shinjuku felt as if he were immersed in boiling molten iron. His skin was as thin as paper, unable to withstand the heat spreading to his internal organs. However, all of this was no match for the discomfort in his chest.
He gently pressed the sleeve of his robe against his heart, finally finding a moment of warmth and coolness.
Because his divine sense could detect movements within a ten-mile radius at will, Zhen Su deliberately shielded it, thus missing the terrifying celestial phenomenon.
The palace was eerily quiet at night, so quiet that not even the slightest breeze could be heard. Although his divine sense was shut down, Shinju's hearing was still far more acute than that of an ordinary person. Yet, he still couldn't hear anything, except for a clap of thunder in the latter half of the night.
The next morning.
The sky was cloudless, and the Jinchi Pond, as clear as a palace, was reflected in its mirror-like surface, where the water and sky blended into one. Even the gentle breeze was as soft as silk, without causing the slightest ripple.
Such clear and crisp autumn weather undoubtedly foreshadows a successful hunt today.
But while the Crown Prince and the others thought this way, when they saw the Poison King and his attendant Qing, they always felt a strange sense of disharmony compared to yesterday.
Shinjuku stood beside the King of Venom, looking down at the light blue sachet still tied to his waist, and subconsciously pressed down on his sleeve.
I thought he wouldn't wear it anymore, but that doesn't necessarily mean anything. Maybe he just doesn't care. On the contrary, it makes it seem like he's taking the sachet seriously.
As Shinjuku thought about it, he became somewhat sullen.
Compared to the melancholy Shinjuku, Zashiki-warashi seemed perfectly normal.
There was no intention to distance herself from or mind Masaya. She was served by Masaya just as she usually was, except that there were no more accidental attacks and no more stealing kisses when they were too close.
His eyes had lost their usual gentleness and were filled with an unreadable depth. Shinju could sense that the King of the Poison King would stare at him intently from time to time, but it was normal for the other party to hold a grudge against him. If it were him, he would only think that the King of the Poison King's attitude was already unusually indifferent.
As expected, he wasn't worth the King of Poison's attention... Once he's freed from the influence of his demonic possession, he'll eventually come to his senses.
It's just unexpected that the King of Zhen recovered so quickly. Who knows when or if he will strip him of his official position and replace him with someone else to serve him, so that he will never have to see him again.
The moment of complete separation and end is yet to come.
Unable to contain his anger no matter how much he thought about it, Shinjuku simply gave up thinking, stared blankly into his bloodshot eyes, and pounded the ground beneath his feet as he followed beside the King of Poison.
"Your Majesty, have the rules for today's hunt been changed?"
Perhaps feeling that they didn't perform well yesterday, some people were thinking about whether they could try a different way of playing.
Upon hearing this, the King of Poison paused for a moment before saying, "Team up in pairs, and each pair must include someone who didn't shoot an arrow yesterday."
"..." The people below fell silent. Apart from those family members who knew nothing about riding and archery, who else could they team up with? This was definitely going to increase the difficulty!
The Crown Prince was also stunned. His first reaction was that his father was going to openly team up with Attendant Qing.
Shinju subconsciously assumed that the King of Poison was looking for someone else to team up with, completely forgetting that he had only drawn his bow yesterday and had not actually shot an arrow.
So when the family members rushed forward, Shinjuku almost impulsively tried to drag the King of Venom into the house, but in the end he didn't move an inch, only looking with red eyes at the men who came to ask the King of Venom to team up with them.
One person alone dared not do so, but once someone took the lead, the others would be unwilling to fall behind. Thus, these male family members surrounded the King of Zhen, each playing with their hair, their eyes sparkling, and whispering to the King of Zhen if they could be on their side, showering him with the most flattering words.
Although they all had second thoughts upon seeing Masakatsu yesterday, it must be said that they were indeed quite handsome, renowned beauties in the capital. Otherwise, they wouldn't have been chosen by their patriarch and brought to the hunting grounds, all to win the favor of the King of Poison.
If it weren't for the impatience and menacing aura emanating from the King of Poison, these people would probably have tried to attack him.
Just as Shinjuku couldn't bear to watch any longer and turned to leave, the King of Poison suddenly spoke.
"I will not participate."
These words struck like a thunderbolt, and the young masters' faces immediately flushed with a mixture of emotions. Fortunately, the Crown Prince then stepped forward and invited one of the young masters to team up with him. Although the other noblemen, who were skilled in martial arts, looked down on these weak and helpless male relatives, they found the Crown Prince's gesture truly gentlemanly. Moreover, given their social graces, they quickly understood and also stepped forward to invite him. The situation then eased.
Soon, only Shinju was left beside the King of Poison, as if the place had been cleared out.
It turned out that this was a way to divert everyone away. The Crown Prince, turning around, couldn't help but show admiration on his face, and understanding the implication, he led his men onto horseback and into the woods.
Shinju turned around, wondering what the King of Poison was up to.
King Zhen glanced at Shinjuku, then got up and walked towards the stable.
Shinjuku lagged a few steps behind, but eventually caught up.
Then, Shinju saw that the King of the Poisonous Beast had led out a horse, which turned out to be a short-legged horse called "Kifu".
The King of Zhen held the reins, staring coldly at Shinju without uttering a word.
Shinjuku was unsure of the King's intentions, but he also didn't know whether he should speak up. So in the end, under the King's gaze, he rode on "Kifu".
Instead of chasing the Akhal-Teke horse "Fengzhui" beside him, the King of Zhen led "Qifeng" into the forest.
Instead of venturing deeper into the stream, they followed the stream and found a secluded spot.
The King of Zhen suddenly turned around and said to Zhen Su, "I want to go fishing."
Shinjuku was taken aback, looked around, and wondered if he was supposed to conjure up a fishing rod by hand?
Then King Zhen added, "Those who are hunting should have fishing gear."
The implication is quite clear.
"I will go and fetch it." Shinju bowed his head and accepted the order, then turned and left without mounting the dwarf horse.
As Shinju's figure disappeared behind the shadows of the trees, the King of Poison's dark eyes darkened, allowing no light to penetrate them.
The sky suddenly darkened. Although there wasn't a single cloud, the azure sky seemed to have been smeared with ink, gradually turning into a purplish-red as it spread. But the strange phenomenon from the previous night did not reappear.
The King of Zhen stroked the smooth mane of the dwarf horse, his cold gaze tinged with mockery.
Before long, Shinju brought out the fishing gear and the prepared fish bait. When the King of Zhen saw that there was only one set of fishing gear, he didn't say anything. After taking it from Shinju, he picked up a large rock and sat down.
Shinjuku then realized that he should have brought out another seat.
However, since the King of Zhen did not order him to go again, he was not in the mood to go. He stood at a distance from the stream, watching the King of Zhen skillfully bait the hook and cast the line.
The hook, adorned with a brown fish bait ball, plunged into the water with a whoosh, sinking into the shallow stream, its feather float swaying gently with the current.
In such a crystal-clear stream, it might be faster to catch fish directly by hand, and fishing would be much more difficult than in a typical deep river.
To everyone's surprise, a fish soon took the bait, making quite a commotion. Upon closer inspection, the fish was not large, but it turned out to be a rather precious white-skinned catfish, a rare delicacy even in the imperial cuisine. Its body was covered with crescent-shaped scales, making it easy to identify.
However, the King of Poison seemed oblivious, staring motionless at the water's surface.
Seeing that the strong fish was about to break free of the hook, Zhenwang remained unmoved. Zhenshu almost wanted to speak up to remind him, but as soon as the words were on the tip of his tongue, he keenly sensed something was wrong and wondered if Zhenwang was trying to entice him to speak.
Hesitating for a moment, the white-armored fish suddenly sprang up and swam away, escaping the hook.
The Poison King retrieved the fishing rod, baited it again, and threw it back into the water.
Shinjuku felt a pang of regret and sat cross-legged on the edge of the large rock, somewhat sullen.
In the blink of an eye, the float sank again, this time hooking a chub. Its stripes, resembling both emerald and blue jade, shimmered in the water, yet this time the chub remained motionless, not even blinking.
Let the fish finish eating the bait without reeling in the line. Naturally, there's no real bite, and the fish will swish its tail and drift away leisurely.
Masakatsu bit his lip, but ultimately remained silent.
So the True Monk remained silent, and the King of Poison remained silent; the two of them stayed silently by the stream for two hours.
As noon approached, the sky grew so dark it seemed as if it were about to release a layer of ashen liquid. The King of Zhen pinched the bridge of his nose and said, "Let's go back."
The King of Zhen then brought over the drowsy little horse that had been lounging in the woods. After Zhen Su climbed onto it, he led them toward the hunting grounds and stables.
"Hmm," Mayuki answered in his mind.
After retrieving their horses from the stables, they returned to the imperial palace.
As soon as they stepped into the main hall of the Lianshui Palace, Zuo'er and You'er, travel-worn, rose and went to King Zhen, reporting, "Your Majesty, the giant scorpion is gone!!"
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Author's Note: Sorry for the long break. Updates will resume every other day.
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