Chapter 33 033 Bao Jing, being a woman, is a sin (Chapter...)
"Zhiwei, don't let this illusion collapse!"
The vajra's light faded, gradually returning to calm. The cold glint in Zhiwei's eyes vanished, returning to their usual dark color. He flashed in front of Yun Tianjiao, firmly grasping her wrist, as if afraid of losing her again.
"Is Your Highness alright?"
Yun Tianjiao shook his head, "I'm fine." Then he looked at the groom in red clothes and a mask. At this moment, the groom had stopped moving and stood in place like a puppet.
Zhiwei said, "This mountain lord is not in the same space as us. I'm afraid we can't do anything to him unless we completely destroy this illusion."
The look in Yun Tianjiao's eyes when she looked at the mountain lord was no longer filled with fear and wariness. After a moment of contemplation, she tried to speak and sang a mournful ballad.
"Joy fills the door, flowers adorn the hall, a blood-red wedding dress, a blood-stained lock, welcoming the bridal sedan chair, crossing the Magpie Bridge, this journey is one of no return, drowned in a pig cage, submerged in a lotus pond, to be a woman is a sin..."
This song was heard by Yun Tianjiao in his consciousness after his five senses were sealed. Zhiwei naturally did not understand what she was doing. However, the mountain lord groom with the ghost mask heard the song and finally no longer had no reaction as before, as if he could not see or hear them.
He tilted his head slightly, facing Yun Tianjiao, seemingly engrossed in listening.
At the same time, the puppet brides that Zhiwei had scattered inside the hall were restored to their original positions.
Zhiwei's expression darkened, and he raised the Vajra Pestle again, but Yun Tianjiao gently stopped him with a raised hand.
Yun Tianjiao shook his head slightly at him, indicating that he should calm down, and continued chanting.
Faintly, the sound of weeping and sobbing could be heard from inside the hall. Upon closer inspection, the source turned out to be the mountain lord wearing the ghost mask.
This is the sound of a woman crying.
Yun Tianjiao also stopped humming, looked at the Ghost-Faced Mountain Lord, and asked softly, "Zhen'er, is that you?"
The ghost mask on the face of the Ghost-Faced Mountain Lord cracked open and shattered into pieces, revealing the girl's delicate and youthful face.
At the same time, the red veils of the puppet brides in the hall fell to the ground one after another, revealing the faces of young girls, each unique. They were all in the prime of their lives, adorned with heavy wedding makeup, yet each bore traces of tears.
Yun Tianjiao's expression was solemn as he explained to Zhiwei, "Just now, my five senses were sealed, and I heard these girls talking to me deep in my consciousness. It turns out that this illusion was not created out of thin air by divine power, but rather by sealing the spirits of these girls and using their memories to maintain this illusion."
Zhiwei immediately understood, "So these are all real girls who were forced to marry the mountain lord, tortured to death by evil spirits, and whose vengeful spirits are not at rest."
Yun Tianjiao nodded and said, "If you forcibly destroy this illusion with your magic, although we can get out, these girls will also be destroyed and will probably never be able to reincarnate. It would be better to help them pass on to the afterlife."
"Alright." Zhiwei put away the vajra, made a hand seal, and prepared to perform a ritual to deliver the deceased.
Suddenly, someone shouted from behind them, "Wait! Don't perform the ritual for these dead yet!"
Yun Tianjiao turned around, looking completely bewildered.
The person who came was none other than Zhen'er's father.
"Oh dear, don't perform the ritual yet, we need to preserve this illusion." Zhen'er's father muttered to himself for a while, then realized something when he saw Yun Tianjiao's ghost-like expression, and transformed into the appearance of Mo Bei, the God of War.
"Divine Lord Mo Bei?" Yun Tianjiao was even more surprised. "What are you...?"
Mo Bei raised his sleeve to wipe the sweat from his forehead, looking extremely anxious. "I am the accompanying deity of this illusion. Without further ado, I will send you out first."
Without waiting for Yun Tianjiao to say anything more, Mo Bei waved the palace lantern in his hand, unleashing a gentle yet powerful divine force that instantly kicked the two of them back to the Boundless Secret Realm.
In the blink of an eye, the two returned to the stone steps plaza.
Yun Tianjiao angrily cursed, "What are these people doing? Using the memories of the dead girls to create illusions, making them wish they were dead, is this really the work of gods?"
Zhiwei's eyes also revealed a mocking look, "Maintaining such an illusion would require a lot of divine power to create out of thin air. If there is a more effortless way, why not do it? It must be that some god learned that there were evil spirits causing trouble, eliminated the evil spirits, sealed the scene, and kept it for the trial."
Yun Tianjiao felt a tightness in his chest as he listened. "But how innocent those girls were! They couldn't even die peacefully, let alone find peace in death. However, why did God Mo Bei suddenly appear? And why did he stop us from performing the rituals to help those girls' souls find peace?"
At this moment, most of the gods and pilgrims had emerged from their respective trial illusions and were gathered in front of the light screen, whispering among themselves. Occasionally, a few words would slip into their ears, all of which mentioned Shen Qiongzhi's name.
Yun Tianjiao suddenly had a bad feeling. She turned to look at the light screen and saw a sea of fire on it, with nothing else visible. She immediately recognized this sea of fire as the Sea of Desire, the "fire basin" that the bride had to cross.
Logically, after this round of competition, the gods should have appeared to announce the results, but there has been no movement for a long time. For a time, there were many different opinions, but without exception, they all said that the Prime Minister's daughter, Shen Qiongzhi, had an accident.
Yun Tianjiao grabbed the nearest deity and asked, "Why is everyone saying that Miss Shen had an accident?"
The celestial being naturally recognized Yun Tianjiao's identity and was quite polite. "Your Highness the Princess and the Celestial Being Zhiwei came out late and are unaware that Miss Shen and Immortal Lord Zhujing entered the sea of fire around the same time as the two of you, but their figures were quickly engulfed by the flames and disappeared from sight. They haven't reappeared since."
Someone else chimed in, "This sea of fire is a sea of lust. Everyone is guessing that Immortal Lord Zhu Jing probably couldn't resist the allure of this sea of lust and did something shameful to Miss Shen."
When Yun Tianjiao mentioned Immortal Lord Zhu Jing, the first image that came to mind was that of the virtuous and upright immortal. As the saying goes, a gentleman is like water. If there is any god in the world who deserves such a title, it is none other than Zhu Jing. It is impossible to associate such a person with shameful behavior.
Yun Tianjiao was filled with trepidation. He waited for about an hour and a half before there was finally movement from the stone steps. This time, the Heavenly Venerable Lin Yuan did not appear. Only Yu Li, Mo Bei, and Gong Xin descended to announce two pieces of news on behalf of the Heavenly Venerable.
First, this round of the Ascension to Immortality Conference has officially ended. The champion is the Heavenly God Zhiwei, who will be granted the Reincarnation Mirror, a magical artifact of the Divine Venerable Mobei.
Secondly, Zhu Jingxianjun, bewitched by the Sea of Desire, accidentally killed the accompanying pilgrim Shen Qiongzhi and has been brought back to the Heavenly Court for trial.
Immediately, teleportation arrays lit up all around the stone steps plaza, and the gods and pilgrims who came to participate in the competition were teleported away one after another.
This grand ascension ceremony began with great fanfare, but unexpectedly ended in such a hasty manner.
"Venerable Zhiwei, oh no, I should call you Immortal Lord Zhiwei now. Congratulations! Here, this is your prize as the champion of this competition." Divine Lord Mobei took out the Reincarnation Mirror from his sleeve and stuffed it into Zhiwei's hand as if it were just a simple doll.
"Lord Mo Bei." Seeing that he was about to leave, Yun Tianjiao called out to stop him.
"Oh? Your Highness, is there anything else?"
Yun Tianjiao remembered that she had promised General You Wei that she would ask Mo Bei Shen Zun for a personal blessing letter for his wife, so she said, "I have a friend who would like to ask you for a personal blessing letter."
When Mo Bei Shen Zun saw that Yun Tianjiao wasn't talking about Shen Qiongzhi, he breathed a sigh of relief and generously wrote a blessing note and handed it to Yun Tianjiao.
Yun Tianjiao took the letter and asked, "How exactly did Shen Qiongzhi die? Where is her body? She was the daughter of a prime minister of a country. She entered this Boundless Secret Realm and died so inexplicably. We should be given an explanation."
Mo Bei, the Divine Lord, stiffened, somewhat embarrassed: "Alas, Your Highness, haven't you also heard those rumors? Since it concerns Miss Shen's reputation, we cannot disclose the specific details to the outside world. But please rest assured, we are still investigating this matter. Now that Zhu Jing has been brought to justice, we will definitely give Yun Chi Kingdom and the Shen family an explanation."
Yun Tianjiao wanted to press for more information, but Mo Bei, the Divine Lord, was clearly unwilling to say anything more.
"What about the undead girls in the Puppet Bride illusion?" Yun Tianjiao asked one last question before Mo Bei Shenzun's figure disappeared.
Mo Bei, the Divine Lord, waved the palace lantern in his hand. "They were just some low-energy spirits. They have already been released from suffering and will not bother you again. Please rest assured, Your Highness." Then he winked playfully at Yun Tianjiao. "You've worked hard these past few days. Your Highness can finally get a good night's sleep tonight."
The tragic lives of dozens of deceased girls are less important to the high and mighty gods than a single night's restful sleep for the princess.
At this moment, Yun Tianjiao suddenly understood Shen Hengzhen a little.
Is the indifference of the gods a salvation or a disaster for the common people?
...
The two returned to the palace via the teleportation array late at night. Yun Tianjiao declined Yun Tianqi's suggestion to throw a welcome banquet for her and took Zhiwei back to her Chang Le Palace.
"I'm afraid the Shen family is about to be overthrown by now." She lay on the large phoenix couch, looking at the curtains above, and seemed to see Shen Hengzhen's crazed face.
“Miss Shen voluntarily accompanied Immortal Lord Zhu Jing to the Ascension Ceremony; it has nothing to do with His Highness,” Zhiwei reassured her.
Yun Tianjiao turned over and buried his face in the blankets, still feeling a bit unreal.
Is that cheerful and lively little girl really gone just like that?
Yun Tianjiao's feelings for Shen Qiongzhi had always been complicated. Privately, she didn't want the Shen family's power to advance further, and in fact, she didn't want Shen Qiongzhi to become the Empress, as her personality wasn't suitable. However, because of their childhood friendship, she liked and cared for her very much, hoping that she could live a happy and smooth life.
Unexpectedly, this pampered young lady, who had always been spoiled and pampered, did not even survive, unlike her, who was cursed with death.
Life is unpredictable. From now on, I'm afraid no one will ever call her "Sister Tianjiao" again.
"I need to go to the Shen residence first thing tomorrow morning," Yun Tianjiao muttered to himself, as if only in this way could he feel a little better.
She had to do something.
"Your Highness, let's think about tomorrow's matters tomorrow. You're tired, you should rest well." Zhiwei brought over some calming soup, preparing to serve it to Yun Tianjiao.
Yun Tianjiao raised his eyelids to look at Zhiwei, then held out his hand to him, "Give it to me."
Zhiwei was taken aback, then understood. She took out the Reincarnation Mirror of the God Mo Bei from her sleeve and presented it with both hands.
Yun Tianjiao took the treasure mirror. As expected of a divine treasure, it was not only dazzling in appearance, but also heavy and cool to the touch. It was definitely not an ordinary item.
"Are you really willing to give this to me like this? This is a divine treasure; I might not return it to you," Yun Tianjiao teased deliberately.
"I only participated in the Ascension Ceremony for Your Highness's sake. If Your Highness wishes, I would gladly give you my life, let alone this precious mirror."
Zhiwei had said similar things before, but Yun Tianjiao never took them to heart, thinking they were just sweet words to please her. However, hearing them again now, he couldn't help but be stunned.
She refused to look into Zhiwei's eyes, nor did she respond to such a confession, only pretending to be engrossed in playing with the Reincarnation Mirror.
The back of the mirror is inlaid with dazzling gemstones, making it luxurious and beautiful. It is connected to a silver carved handle, while the front is gleaming silver and used to reflect people's vision.
Yun Tianjiao stared at himself in the mirror for a long time, but could only see a slightly tired face, and couldn't make out anything about himself.
"How do I use this thing? How can I see my own reincarnation?"
Zhiwei's dark eyes gazed over, unblinking, his voice deep and slow: "It's already late today, Your Highness, do you really wish to see it now?"
Yun Tianjiao raised an eyebrow slightly and met Zhiwei's gaze. She wondered if it was just her imagination, but she felt that Zhiwei seemed to be very much looking forward to her prying into her past life.
"Since I can't sleep anyway, instead of thinking about Shen Qiongzhi, I might as well wait and see."
Zhiwei pondered for a moment and then said, "Alright, I'll help Your Highness."
He made Yun Tianjiao get up from the phoenix couch, held the precious mirror and sat on the side of the couch, while he knelt behind her, loosely wrapped his arms around her, and grasped her wrists with both hands.
The posture was extremely ambiguous, and Yun Tianjiao could even feel Zhiwei's warm breath gently brushing against the back of his neck.
Zhiwei silently chanted the incantation, her hands emitting a continuous stream of divine power. This divine power then flowed through Yun Tianjiao's wrists into her hands, which held the Reincarnation Mirror...
The Reincarnation Mirror, which originally looked no different from an ordinary mortal mirror, began to glow brightly due to the input of divine power.
The silver mirror no longer merely reflected Yun Tianjiao's face; instead, it was enveloped by mist, as if wisps of water vapor were flowing from the mirror, gradually filling the entire palace.
"The goddess desires to dream..."
Yun Tianjiao heard a distant voice.
The sound came again and again, getting closer and clearer, carrying the force of thunder, as if it were crashing down from the sky.
"The Goddess Desires Dream... The Goddess Desires Dream!"
She felt as if she had been suddenly thrown into an icy lake, a chill running through her from the inside out.
Her eyes suddenly widened, the world turned upside down, and the sea and land changed dramatically; she felt as if she had been sucked into another world.
[The First Volume - The Ascension Ceremony - End]
-----------------------
Author's Note: Sorry for the long hiatus. During this time, I've revised the entire previous chapters, adding some content and deleting some verbose parts. Don't worry if you don't want to go back and read the previous chapters; it won't affect your reading experience.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com