Chapter 15: Local Land Gods |
Shěn Lí was afraid physical exertion would make the poison spread even faster, so she wasn’t too picky and chose the first room they came across to rest in. She laid Xíng Yún on the bed and looked around. There wasn’t a single soul in sight. She could only clench her teeth and do what she could to lessen his pain. Picking up his hand she quickly bit the back of it. “This will help to alleviate some of your pain. I don’t know how to heal you and the doctors around here won’t have the ability. I’ll have to leave the city and search in the outskirts of the wilderness to find one of the local land gods to heal you. It may take me some time, so just be patient and wait here for me. Don’t move or go anywhere.”
“Where would I go? Besides, look at me. It’s not like I can move anyway.”
Shěn Lí stood up and looked down at him silently. “I . . . I may not come back. But rest assured that the one I send will cure you.” She turned away before speaking again in a much more somber and grudging voice. “The distance between us . . .is as wide as the mountains and as deep as the lakes. It is doubtful we’ll ever meet again . . .Take care of yourself. For these past days . . . thank you for your care.”
And just like that Xíng Yún was left alone in the room. He was silent for some time. Then he smirked and spoke to himself, “Using that kind of voice to thank me. You sure are unwilling . . .” The cold air blew into the room despite the closed windows making the small hairs on his body stand up. He pressed his lips tightly together and sighed. “Woman, even after all this time . . . you still didn’t look properly at me.” Always making other people feel like they’re on the losing end.
. . .Originally Shěn Lí commanded Mò Fāng to stall her pursuers for half a day. She knew he would try his best, but she didn’t hold out much hope. He wouldn’t last long against the elites in the demon army. This was why she had to leave the palace as soon as possible. If the army found her in the palace, it would only bring trouble to Xíng Yún, then all the effort she put in would have been wasted. Although she was unlikely to escape from their pursuit, she could at least better her odds by fighting in the forest. She was going to give it her best, even if her strength was only 70-80% recovered.
Shěn Lí didn’t waste any time. She sped through the capital and the outskirts of the city and didn’t stop until she reached the wilderness. She found a mountain and perched on top of it to better survey the land. By this time, the sun was shining almost directly overhead and she could see the morning dew and fog had completely dissipated, giving her a clear view ahead. A quick glance around and she was able to find the place with the most spiritual energy. She leapt up, her robes fluttering with the speed of her movement. With her palms out she commanded, “Come!”
Light poured out of her outstretched palm spreading quickly around her entire body. The rocks shook and all the wildlife nearby, fled sensing danger. She landed easily in a clearing in the forest. In this clearing were many figures of different forms and genders, some human shaped, some not. They stood looking in fear at her waiting for the light to disperse.
Shěn Lí knew that the demonic aura she unleashed would scare them but she had no time to explain. Their fear was also useful so she put on a cold expression. “Who here knows how to heal?”
The local land gods looked at one another before a young man with antlers on his head finally stepped forward. “ . . .I . . .” The moment Shěn Lí’s eyes fell on him he immediately cowered, covering his face with his arms and screamed, “Ah! Don’t kill me!”
After this explanation everyone sighed in relief. So that was why. An old man with a white beard stepped forward. “I see. Hú Lù, you go with this person.”
Hú Lù quivered uncontrollably as he looked at Shěn Lí.
Shěn Lí said, “I can’t go. You’ll have to go and find this person alone.” She stared at Hú Lù coldly before continuing. “How long will it take to heal this type of wound?”
“A . . . about half an hour.“
“Good.” Shěn Lí waved her hand and her spear appeared. She raised it up then slammed it down with a thunderous bang, burying the hilt three inches deep into the ground.
Hú Lù couldn’t help but raise one leg up to his belly and wrap his arms around his chest before screaming again. A cold sweat broke out on his forehead and he became even more nervous. Sssss . . . scary!
“If you’re not back in half an hour I will use this spear to kill everyone here within a three hundred mile radius.”
Hú Lù’s legs went soft and he laid petrified on the ground.
Shěn Lí looked up at the sky. “Time starts now.”
The bearded old man angrily stepped forward and shook Hú Lù. “Still not leaving?!”
Hú Lù came to his senses and burrowed into the ground. Shěn Lí could see that the small gods were visibly afraid of her, but she was too lazy to bother with them right then. Her attention was on the dark clouds forming in the sky. They covered a large area and was clearly in the direction of the capital. If she was correct, the cloud represented the number of people sent to bring her back. Such a large number? The Demon emperor had to be hell bent on bringing her back.
She clenched her hands into fists really hating Fú Róng with all her heart. The Immortal emperor wasn’t exempt either. But the one she hated the most was that unknown idler who proposed the marriage alliance between the Immortal realm and the Demon realm. As if a marriage would really bring the two realms closer. Please. It was a joke she wished she wasn’t a part of. If those in the Immortal realm could make the lives of demons living in the Demon realm better, that would be great. But instead, what they had were immortals with too much free time on their hands playing matchmaker to consolidate a “friendship” between the two realms.
From her vantage point, she could see that the black clouds had reached the capital. It made her frown. She was afraid those pursuing her would hurt Xíng Yún. But then again, she was probably just thinking too much. They couldn’t know about her relationship with him. Besides she was here in the woods, and she had just used her powers to summon the land gods, so they had to be heading in her direction soon. All the same, she would stop worrying once they moved away from the capital.
The little god from earlier, Hú Lù, seemed like an honest type. She believed he would heal Xíng Yún without any issues. Then, she could finally stop worrying about Xíng Yún, and start figuring how to escape her own marriage instead.
As the minutes ticked by, she began to get a bad premonition. The clouds remained above the capital for too long. They should have moved toward her by now. Why hadn’t they?
Suddenly the ground shuddered and Hú Lù emerged from the ground his clothes in tatters, his eyes red with tears, and his nose dripping with snot. He went to Shěn Lí with his face in his hands. “Please don’t kill me! Please don’t kill everyone here! I tried. I really tried!” He sniffled. “But I was blocked by the people there. The guys in black were all strong and fierce. I was no match for them. They beat me up badly.”
Shěn Lí’s face changed slightly. “Speak clearly!”
Hú Lù thumped his butt on the ground and wiped the snot from his nose. “I went . . . I found the one you call Xíng Yún. He knew I was there to help him. He smiled at me and even said thank you.” Hú Lù looked at Shěn Lí. “I really wanted to save him!” He sniffled again. “I was about to start when a guy in black armor and another guy in a red robe showed up. He asked me why a local god like me was in the city. I answered them straight away . . . but as a result, they wouldn’t let me heal the man! The one in red told me to come back and tell you to go to them . . . otherwise . . . otherwise they will kill the one called Xíng Yún.”
Shěn Lí grimaced. A man in black armor and a man in a red robe huh? She had a good idea who they were. To have the black and green generals appear . . . The emperor had to be really angry. She hesitated now that she knew the generals were in the picture. In her current condition, she didn't think she could escape unscathed. Aside from the two, she wondered who else had been called in to capture her.
“What about the man, Xíng Yún?”
“He’s dying. I took his pulse and found that his body is naturally weak, combine this with the exhaustion he’s suffered the past few days and his ability to fight the poison . . . well it’s not good. The poison has already made its way into his internal organs. He will die soon if no one saves him.”
Shěn Lí looked in the direction of the capital, raised her arms and called for her spear. She jumped and her figure immediately disappeared in a blast of air.
The local gods started talking as soon as she left.
“This fella . . . so scary!”
“Must be a person of the Demon realm. So overbearing and mean. Are you hurt Hú Lù?”
“Uh . . .” Hú Lù wiped at his tears. “I’m OK.”
Someone noticed something on his elbow. “Hey. What’s that there on your elbow?”
“Eh. What?” Hú Lù kept turning around trying to see what was on his elbow.
“It says “escape.’ Who would use blood to write that on your elbow?”
Hú Lù scratched his head. “Uh! That man named Xíng Yún. He must have wanted the woman to leave but she didn’t see it.”
. . .Inside the palace Xíng Yún sat quietly on the bed letting the man in red look his fill at him. He didn’t appear angry and only smiled before saying, “You’re so calm. Aren’t you worried about the situation you’re in? For a guy who looks like he’s about to keel over any second, you don’t look too concerned.”
“Will worrying let me live longer?” Xíng Yún laughed. “If so, I’ll give it a try.”
This made Chì Róng laugh. “You are certainly someone the Azure Sky king would fancy.” He turned to the door and waved his hand to the person there. “Hey Qīng Yán! You have to come over here and chat with this guy. He’s pretty fun to tease.”
The one at the door didn’t move. He only spoke from the doorway. “You should stop molesting him. You know how the Azure Sky king is.”
Chì Róng was just about to tap Xíng Yún on the nose when his hand stopped mid-air at those words. He immediately took his hand back. “Thanks for the warning. That guy can be real vindictive.”
Xíng Yún looked at the scene without saying anything, just smiled his usual smile.
Suddenly the feeling in the air changed, making Qīng Yán turn his head up. There was a shimmering light in Chì Róng’s eyes as he spoke loudly into the sky. “The Demon emperor has declared that if the Azure Sky king, Shěn Lí, refuses to return to the palace, then we are authorized to use excessive force, to break your hands and feet, to cripple and break your bones, in order to tie you up and bring you back to the palace. I’ve always been soft hearted when it comes to dealing with good acquaintances. So to force your hand, my only recourse will be to kill this man . . .”
Before his voice even faded away the roof split and a red tasseled silver spear pierced into the ground near Chì Róng’s feet. The murderous aura emitted made him take a cautious step back. This was followed by the louder sound of the roof crashing in as Shěn Lí descended. She struck out with two strokes of her spear forcing the unarmed Chì Róng to further retreat.
She went to stand next to Xíng Yún. Lifting the dazzling spear up she demanded, “With this king here, who would dare?”
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