Author: 年终 / Nian Zhong

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

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Chapter 148: The Unawakened God

Fang Xiu’s left eye throbbed with pain, the white pupil within spinning erratically in its socket. He gently pressed the eye to calm it, his attention fixed entirely on the sealing ritual ahead.

As long as he witnessed the process, Bai Shuangying would be able to fully decipher it. He knew that everything unfolding before him held the key to freeing Bai Shuangying from his seal.

With the shock of revelation piling on, A’Shou had yet to recover. Fang Xiu needed to keep watching until the very end.

Inside his flesh, Bai Shuangying curled inward, greedily watching everything. Another consciousness was thrashing violently within him, flooding him with pain, but Bai Shuangying didn’t care.

Whatever destruction that presence might cause, it couldn’t be worse than what he had already endured.

Half a step away, A’Shou finally reacted to the truth before her. “That man in black is…?”

The glow of the spell shimmered in Fang Xiu’s black eye, his voice still tinged with a faint, amused tone. He didn’t answer directly but changed the topic with practiced ease.

“Next, let me predict everything step by step.”

He moved his fingers in a gesture like shifting chess pieces on a board.

“This happened suddenly, but the immortals aren’t fools. It’s unlikely Zhuang Guiqu will tamper with the seal directly. He’ll maintain humility and let the immortals finish the sealing process carefully.”

Not far away, hundreds of Immortal E’s flickered in the air. From them stretched chains of karma, replacing the earlier spellwork, binding Bai Shuangying tightly within the Xushan region.

Two immortal envoys stood to either side, sandwiching Zhuang Guiqu in the middle. Zhuang Guiqu assisted openly and generously in the sealing, showing no sign of hidden agendas.

One hand held the Heaven-Breaking Divine Art to shield against corruption. The other radiated brilliant light, helping the Immortal E’s generate karma chains. These threads wrapped around Bai Shuangying’s flowing form, clinging to him like a thorn, preventing his energy from spilling outward.

As the chains multiplied, his fluid shadow became increasingly solid. Judging by his struggles, Bai Shuangying was more furious than pained—like someone being held back by a hundred hands.

Among the immortals, Zhuang Guiqu’s movements were just as fast. But judging from the dimmer glow of his magic, he ultimately couldn’t match the real gods.

The chains of karma gradually took shape. The Immortal E’s summoned vast amounts of yin energy. The pain faded. Soaked in thick yin energy, Bai Shuangying’s thrashing lessened slightly, though the rage in his form remained palpable.

Everything went exactly as Zhuang Guiqu had described.

A glimmer of pride flickered across Zhuang Guiqu’s face, quickly followed by satisfaction.

Fang Xiu understood his thoughts perfectly.

The immortals saw Bai Shuangying as an uncontrollable Corner of Heaven’s Will. Zhuang Guiqu saw him as a simple-minded beast. But after spending so much time with him, Fang Xiu knew the truth.

Bai Shuangying was like someone stung by a roadside wasp. The pain was intense, and now he wanted to destroy the entire hive.

The chains currently wrapped around him were too few. This painless sealing was like a rainstorm. Given the choice, he would rather stay indoors and wait it out, then go destroy the hive when it cleared.

…He just hadn’t expected the rain to last so long.

“Once the seal takes initial form,” Fang Xiu said softly, “Zhuang Guiqu will seize the moment to express remorse. He’ll swear not to interfere with the construction of the Disaster Relief Tower and hand over full control to the immortals.”

“Not only that, he’ll insist that a dedicated altar to the ‘God of Xushan’ be placed inside the Tower to show reverence to the Corner of Heaven’s Will.”

A’Shou stiffened in shock.

Every room in the Disaster Relief Tower had an altar. They had always been there. No one remembered where they came from, and no one had ever questioned them.

…But they had always been there.

Fang Xiu had barely finished speaking when Zhuang Guiqu began.

“This humble Taoist caused quite a commotion, though it was for the greater good. Still, it was disrespectful to the heavens and earth. The sealing tower is a thousand-year legacy. As a mere mortal, I will not flaunt my limited skills.”

He bowed deeply to the two immortals. “Now that the calamity is resolved, I thank you on behalf of all living beings.”

The fortune immortal paused, then nodded approvingly. “To know when to advance and when to retreat—well done.”

The sorrowful ghost immortal added, “I’ve no interest in taking advantage of a mortal. Since the method came from you, you may make a wish.”

In A’Shou’s stunned gaze, Zhuang Guiqu bowed solemnly. “I only ask that the God of Xushan have an altar in the Tower, and that sinners of the mortal world offer their living souls there constantly. Should anyone die within the tower, let them serve as offerings to the God of Xushan.”

“Even if the seal breaks in the future, the god may continue receiving endless yin energy. In this way, penance never ends. Eventually, anger will fade, and the mortal realm may enjoy lasting peace.”

Such a noble and selfless proposal—it sounded like Zhuang Guiqu asked for nothing in return.

He had stirred the board to bring the immortals down from the heavens. He began with protecting humanity for centuries.

He offered solutions amid fire and chaos, adopted a humble stance to make amends, and, after a successful sealing, stepped back of his own accord…

If A’Shou hadn’t been trapped in this hellish place and seen the truth herself, she might have praised him as a truly “remarkable man”.

But what about Fang Xiu, who saw through it all…?

“Finally, he would take advantage of the gods’ relaxation, and he’ll ask the immortals to monitor him constantly until the end of his life.”

Fang Xiu spoke with sarcasm.

A’Shou: “???”

“I know full well that no amount of worship can atone for today’s offense against the heavens.”

Before A’Shou had recovered, Zhuang Guiqu bowed again. “I did manipulate you all, and this sealing followed my proposal. Naturally, you bear doubts.”

“I am old and have little time left. Why not assign Underworld agents to watch me constantly, until I die and vanish completely?”

“If that can buy peace for heaven and earth, I would die content.”

“…The Corner of Heaven’s Will has been controlled, and the sealing process is airtight. He’s afraid the immortals will turn on him next and eliminate the real threat, so he’s taking the initiative.”

Fang Xiu sneered. “He’s angling for a peaceful death. And along the way, securing a pardon if he ever steals the Heaven-Breaking Divine Art.”

Sure enough, after witnessing Zhuang Guiqu’s “righteousness”, the two immortals had no reason to object. They nodded in agreement.

When a person dies, the light goes out. There is no reincarnation. Unless he ascends in daylight or becomes a ghost, no amount of merit or wrongdoing will matter after death.

With their approval, Zhuang Guiqu smiled radiantly. The childlike face beamed with joy, but under the shadow it was a little terrifying.

Not far away, Zhuang Feng, who had witnessed it all, remained prostrate. The book beside him fluttered open on its own, the pages rustling faintly.

“Frankly, with his level of deceit, Zhuang Guiqu could’ve easily used his reputation to ascend through worship.”

“With his magical talents, he could have designed a suitable E and become a ghost immortal.”

Having watched the entire sealing process, Fang Xiu finally turned to A’Shou, his mismatched eyes glinting.

“But he chose neither… A’Shou Jie, do you understand now who the man in black is?”

That strange being who had once naively asked people about their wishes.

A’Shou’s soft sword clattered to the ground. She held her head with both hands, her pupils trembling violently.

Yes.

In the mortal version of the tale, the Corner of Heaven’s Will became a lowly evil spirit imprisoned beneath the tower. Xushan became the holy mountain of the Guishan Sect. And Zhuang Guiqu—he was the God of Xushan who walked among men.

Over centuries, the story was retold, reshaped. Those old tales of wish-granting would morph into legends of the “God of Xushan”.

And the Guishan Sect would worship this “God of Xushan” with unshakable devotion.

God of Xushan. God of Calamity. Forgotten Corner of Heaven’s Will.

A cultivator, a God of Xushan, a false god known to the world.

Zhuang Guiqu didn’t need secret erosion or high-level deception.

He simply sat calmly at the bargaining table, predicted every move of the other side, and laid bare every piece of leverage they had.

And what he wanted was simple.

Amid the chaotic web of karma, as long as followers of Guishan entered the Disaster Relief Tower, they could siphon yin energy from the “altar to the God of Xushan”.

As for the true god, the real God of Xushan, Bai Shuangying would be starved, struggling to break free. And to escape discreetly, the Corner of Heaven’s Will must first “pollute its karma” and erase its identity.

In this way, karma would increasingly shift toward Zhuang Guiqu, the God of Xushan, and the cycle would spiral downward.

A hundred years from now, people would praise the benevolent God of Xushan, slayer of evil.

A thousand years from now, even immortals would forget the furious being imprisoned at the Tower’s base.

By then, the cult could raise a new “living ghost immortal” strong enough to forge the tale of the God of Xushan into a new Immortal E.

If Heaven acknowledged its ascension, then with an Immortal E that powerful, all karma would converge on one being:

Zhuang Guiqu would awaken inside the piece of Heaven’s Will.

The figure in black was just the “God of Xushan” who existed in the story. He had not yet fully awakened.

“He’s insane.” A’Shou murmured. “Zhuang Guiqu is utterly insane. He wants to twist fate itself. He wants to become the will of the Corner of Heaven’s Will.”

“Ghosts and gods will fade. Some are strong, others weak. But Heaven’s Will remains, eternal and supreme.”

Fang Xiu gently stroked Bai Shuangying’s white eye and added as if it were the most natural thing in the world:

“So long as the title ‘God of Xushan’ exists as a Corner of Heaven’s Will, the world only knows that the God of Xushan exists.”

“But from the start, no one ever knew ‘Bai Shuangying’.”

No one knew his quiet nature. His rage. His initial curiosity—that hand he once extended toward the porcelain figure, toward the human world.

That small twilight moment would vanish into history, covered by new stories.

And those stories, read by others, would create new karma. Like creeping figs on a great tree, they would never stop siphoning everything that once belonged to Bai Shuangying.

“But before any of this can happen, Zhuang Guiqu must die, body and soul.”

A’Shou’s voice turned dry. “How can he be sure the god that awakens inside Heaven’s Will will be him?”

“Zhuang Guiqu doesn’t need certainty. He just needs ‘possibility’.”

Fang Xiu replied without hesitation.

“Even if he fails, that reborn God of Xushan, born of an Immortal E, would be the Guishan Sect’s greatest weapon—enough to overturn the three realms.”

“I don’t understand.” A’Shou was completely lost. “Why take such a risk? Why not just become an immortal?”

“Because he can.”

“…What?”

“He imagined such an outrageous path, and it’s theoretically possible.” Fang Xiu stared at her, bewildered by the question, his tone utterly matter-of-fact.

“Why wouldn’t he do it?”

In that instant, it wasn’t just A’Shou.

Even Bai Shuangying, hidden within Fang Xiu’s body, felt a nameless chill run through him.

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The author has something to say:

Bad news: The boss is about to wake up.

Good news: The boss is still kind of dumb before he wakes up (?

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Kinky Thoughts:

Ah… This is why I love Nian Zhong’s writing so much. The plotlines converging together. All the little hints and foreshadows leading up to this revelation. Even the comparison using the creeping fig mentioned in arc 1. And god Corner of Heaven’s Will the writing is amazing in these past few chapters.

I feel like I need to take notes whenever I read one of her works. There’s just so many little bits and pieces of hints scattered throughout the novel that you’ll miss if you don’t keep track… though without knowing the entirety of the plot, it’s hard to look for what they are… Which is why you should read them again!

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