Author: 年终 / Nian Zhong

Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/

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Chapter 126: A Perfect Match

Fang Xiu slept for a long time.

Bai Shuangying, having nothing better to do, paced the small room, poking around here and there. On the altar by the door sat the relics of six past rituals, all neatly arranged. Mei Lan’s scarf had been folded into the shape of a bird and leaned artfully against a vase.

It was still the same room, but Bai Shuangying’s mindset had completely changed.

As soon as tens of thousands of chains were broken, he immediately began to corrode the remaining seals. Even if Fang Xiu couldn’t help, within just a hundred years he could break free on his own.

Now that he was one step away, Bai Shuangying no longer felt anxious.

A hundred years was enough for a full human lifetime. Once the human he cared about was gone, he would unseal himself, just in time.

Tired of pacing, Bai Shuangying sprawled back on the bed and resumed admiring Fang Xiu’s sleeping face. After all the chaos in the tomb, Fang Xiu looked thoroughly exhausted, with faint shadows under his eyes.

Bai Shuangying couldn’t resist reaching out and gently covering Fang Xiu’s forehead. His power seeped into Fang Xiu’s soul, slowly nourishing it.

Although Fang Xiu managed to maintain his sanity in the final stages, the corrupted cognition and memories still lingered. He had only kept the damage minimal by fragmenting his consciousness and using poison to fight poison.

For an ordinary person, this level of contamination would have caused a complete mental breakdown. Yet his human remained unchanged. He was still the same Fang Xiu he knew.

This person was far more interesting than any straightforward path to unsealing.

As Bai Shuangying thought and touched, he happened to look down and saw Fang Xiu’s eyes open. The human looked back at him with eyes full of laughter.

“Hungry?”

“Not too bad,” Bai Shuangying replied with a graceful smile, “but a bite wouldn’t hurt.”

……

Fang Xiu wrapped his arms around his ghost’s neck and gave him a five-minute-long good morning kiss.

In his dreams, he kept reliving the karmic memories tied to the Grave-Sealing E, which left him with a lingering headache. Only after that crisp, clear kiss did he feel a little more awake.

Sitting up at the head of the bed, Fang Xiu let out a long breath.

“The karma behind the Grave-Sealing E is a real headache. Watching it once felt like living ten lifetimes.”

Bai Shuangying was in a particularly good mood. “Oh?”

“It was the obsession of a craftsman.” Fang Xiu rubbed his temples.

In a time of chaos when warlords vied for power, a genius craftsman fled north with his child and nearly starved to death on the road.

Luckily, they encountered a group of soldiers. The leader, moved by the child’s pitiful state, gave them some dried food and taught them how to dig up cicada larvae from the woods to roast and eat. The craftsman followed the instructions and survived.

Later, as kingdoms rose and fell, the child grew up. The craftsman, having no more worldly attachments, set out to find his benefactor and repay the life-saving favor.

By coincidence, that benefactor had become a minor king. The craftsman found him and volunteered to design the royal tomb and to seal himself inside to ensure no one else could learn the secrets of its construction.

For this reason, he prepared the plan meticulously.

He recruited laborers from across the land, assigning each to separate tasks. He studied wood and stone construction in solitude, determined to complete the tomb’s core by himself. He tirelessly refined his blueprints, editing and rewriting them over and over in pursuit of perfection.

“I can still remember those diagrams,” Fang Xiu groaned, rubbing his head hard.

Unlike earlier E’s where their karmic stories itself were terrifying, this one’s terror was being bombarded with math, physics, chemistry, and engineering. Pure technical data was rammed into his brain. Additionally, the Grave-Sealing E had left behind a mountain of corrupted data in his mind. If he’d been even slightly weaker-willed, he would’ve forgotten who he was.

Bai Shuangying sat upright beside him, listening intently.

“That jade cicada was originally a family heirloom. It was a jade paperweight passed down for generations. He carved it into a cicada as a burial item, hoping to die with dignity.”

“Later, he realized he could never create a truly perfect design. For every inch of good, evil rises an inch higher*. Even if his tomb stood strong for a century, the world would eventually catch up.”

*(道高一尺，魔高一丈) Idiom that originally was used for religious admonition to practitioners to be vigilant against external temptations, now it’s more so used to highlight how as one achieves a certain level of success, the obstacles encountered will become greater (AKA The higher the stakes, the greater the resistance).

Fang Xiu shrugged. “Right up to the moment he died in the tomb, he was still terrified his construction might fail and bring harm to the benefactor. That’s how the Grave-Sealing E came to be.”

After that, it was targeted by evil spirits and eventually refined into an Immortal E, but that was a different story.

“A man’s obsession becomes an Immortal E yet still fails to protect.” Fang Xiu yawned and summed it up. “There’s no such thing as a flawless plan.”

“Not even yours?” Bai Shuangying asked curiously.

Fang Xiu paused mid-yawn, silent for a moment. “Not really, no—because I met you. Sometimes… I often wonder—”

He glanced at the curious ghost beside him and swallowed the rest of what he was going to say.

Dissatisfied, Bai Shuangying leaned in and bit him a few more times.

There was still a thin veil between them—Fang Xiu’s plan, his identity. Both kept silent about it, peacefully working as partners.

But only two rituals remained.

Bai Shuangying’s fingers itched to tear that veil. He had thought that once he had a way out, his interest in this man would fade. But instead, he was getting more and more curious.

On the other hand, Fang Xiu didn’t show much concern for him, which left Bai Shuangying feeling breathless and frustrated. He wanted to rip that stupid veil apart.

After a bit of back-and-forth, Fang Xiu’s tongue had gone slightly numb. He panted, his dark eyes occasionally dropping in thought, as if he was scheming something.

At the top of the Disaster Relief Tower

Watching A’Shou write her report with lifeless eyes, Dian’er’s paper face twitched. It lifted the corners of its mouth only to force them down again.

Was there anything more satisfying than “watching your boss fall into the same pit you once did”?

Still, it could sense the killing intent radiating from A’Shou and didn’t dare to laugh aloud.

“That Cen Ling kid really knows his way around Underworld rules,” A’Shou said darkly.

Using massive amounts of yin energy to refine his soul and approach a ghost immortal’s body was absurd enough. But since he did it in the human world, he just needed a “sect artifact and secret technique” excuse to fend off scrutiny.

There was no such thing as “suspicious amounts of yin energy” crimes in the human realm, so she couldn’t cross boundaries to intervene. All she could do was watch.

No wonder he was willing to trade that ace for Mei Lan’s life. It had nothing to do with the Guishan Sect tampering with Immortal E’s.

“Tsk, my Lady, the guy’s refining his soul to become a ghost immortal on one end and stealing Immortal E’s on the other. Isn’t it obvious?” Dian’er sniffed. “I used to think they got targeted just ‘because they killed too many’. But now? Bad intentions all around.”

A’Shou narrowed her eyes. “Have you finished checking the Tower’s array?”

“I have, I have. There are no issues,” Dian’er replied quickly. “I even checked staff logs and maintenance records. There is no dereliction of duty. Everyone’s been careful.”

“Hah. Not a single breach in our outer defenses, every spell perfectly functional, yet someone just walked in and took an Immortal E. The luminous cup is really gone.”

A’Shou crumpled the edge of her paper in frustration. From top to bottom, the whole affair was absurd.

Dian’er offered a silver lining. “Well, at least they can only take Immortal E’s during rituals. If they could just waltz into the human world and snatch them, why go through all this trouble to… To…”

It knew what was sealed under the Tower, but the name hovered just out of reach.

A’Shou furrowed her brow, but the doubt faded before it formed. A new thought quickly took over.

“It’s not that simple. Their goal in unleashing this so-called ‘Great God of Calamity’ isn’t just to destroy the tower.”

A cold edge crept into her tone. “Even if they had more Immortal E’s, they’re still just flesh and blood. They can’t withstand the human realm’s response. Besides, the humans now currently live in a peaceful, stable world. No one’s going to follow their cult.”

“But if a dark god descends and throws the world into chaos, the human realm will be too busy fighting it. With the Guishan Sect holding countless ‘immortal artifacts’, the tide could turn, even if the human world fragments, they could carve out a kingdom of their own.”

And if the human realm’s borders changed, the Underworld would follow.

A’Shou had become a ghost immortal during a time of war when the realms were fractured. Just imagining that possibility made her furious.

“…Enough. If the Tower’s clean, then we investigate the source.”

She clawed at the desk, voice laced with rage. “That so-called ‘Great God of Calamity’ won’t take orders from mortals. If they’re so confident it’ll be unsealed, they must have a plan.”

A sacred site of sealing was the foundation of all disaster relief.

According to the Guishan Sect’s plot, the endgame depended on unleashing this “Great God of Calamity”. Without it causing chaos, they had no chance of seizing power.

If the seal was compromised, it had to be addressed first.

Only after confirming its integrity could they investigate the Immortal E’s thefts.

Dian’er tensed up so hard its paper skin nearly tore. “You mean…”

“I want Fang Xiu’s team assigned to the seal site for the next ritual,” A’Shou said grimly.

“The other Disaster Resolvers are tangled in politics. But these ones? They’ve got fresh blood grudges with the Guishan Sect and the ability to back it up. They are perfect for the job.”

“B-But that place is dangerous! Wouldn’t it be better to report to the Underworld enforcers and…”

“The Tower’s in this sorry state and you still trust the higher-ups?”

A’Shou cut it off with a sharp look. “If the Shrine of All E’s is leaking this badly, the Underworld might not be clean either. This matter is critical. No leaks allowed.”

Dian’er didn’t need to breathe, but it still drew a cold shiver.

“This is too important. I’ll go myself.” A’Shou waved her hand.

“There are plenty of Immortal E’s down there. Just pick one. As for companions, anyone’s fine except Cen Ling. Let Fang Xiu choose.”

“They’re under your command. If the mission succeeds, this’ll be a major merit.”

“Understood!”

The paper figure bowed deeply, its original pale cheeks was flushed with a faint red.

But something didn’t sit right. They kept calling that sealed being the “Great God of Calamity” following the Guishan Sect’s lead… Yet it recalled that the one sealed under the Tower didn’t have that name.

The ■■■ that once made both realms tremble… The elusive ■■■… What was its name again?

Never mind. Merit comes first. Besides, Fang Xiu’s reward still needed arranging!

Dian’er shook its head and darted off.

Who would’ve guessed that before it could even come up with a sales pitch, Fang Xiu showed up on his own…

And he hadn’t brought Bai Shuangying. He sought Dian’er out alone.

“That ‘Great God of Calamity’ the Guishan Sect keeps talking about should be sealed by your Underworld, right?” Fang Xiu asked in a low voice.

“…Yes, but how do you…?”

“For the next ritual, can you assign us there?” Fang Xiu lowered his voice further. “Sealing something that powerful must involve Immortal E’s. Just set one aside for us.”

You sound like my boss. Dian’er looked at Fang Xiu speechlessly.

The problem was was, A’Shou had a goal. She knew what to check and how to investigate. No matter how smart Fang Xiu was, what could a person who didn’t even know magic do? Go sightseeing?

Still, if it meant doing him a favor, Dian’er was happy to oblige.

“Done. We’ll arrange it,” it said grandly with a wave of its tiny hand.

“Pick any team members you want. Whatever works for you.”

But Fang Xiu didn’t show his usual crafty grin. He scratched his cheek, a little embarrassed, and sincerely said, “Thank you.”

Suddenly, Dian’er had a very bad premonition.

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The author has something to say:

Xiao Bai is about to be ambushed by Xiao Fang’s thousand-year-old cat den (?

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