Author: 年终 / Nian Zhong

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

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Chapter 151: False Ending

Bathed in the radiant glow of countless of Immortal E’s, Fang Xiu thought rapidly.

If the enemy was so determined to grant his wish, it certainly wasn’t out of kindness or charity.

Fang Xiu recalled that ever since they entered Immortal Encounter E, every person whose wish had been granted had died—from the ghost immortal Lord Haibo to the believers of the Guishan Sect. They all perished the moment their wishes were fulfilled.

Considering the legend of the God of Xushan …

The Immortal Encounter E’s death taboo was likely: “When you’re wish is granted, the story ends”.

If this truly was the Immortal Encounter E’s death taboo, then its overwhelming power and the absence of survivors made sense. In times of desperation, people inevitably developed unrealistic hopes.

As long as the Immortal Encounter E could grasp even a sliver of possibility, no matter how distorted the result, both sacrificial victims and Underworld messenger would obediently be destroyed.

…In other words, besides this one, the other two taboos weren’t fatal.

“Don’t let that thing fulfill your wish,” Fang Xiu immediately warned A’Shou.

As for Bai Shuangying, he understood. His ghost—no, the God of Xushan—didn’t even have a concept like “wishes”. Bai Shuangying simply acted on his desires. His actions were, above all else, unrestrained.

Fang Xiu’s own vague and unlikely wish was indeed to be with Bai Shuangying forever. But so what? It wasn’t for Zhuang Guiqu—especially not a fake Zhuang Guiqu—to act as his romance consultant.

The only vulnerability was A’Shou.

A’Shou was a ghost immortal. A vengeful spirit that had ascended must have obsession in her heart. That meant “an unachievable yet deeply craved wish”. The Immortal Encounter E’s restraint over ghost immortals was undeniably fatal.

Ghost immortal A’Shou, well-read in records of E’s resolution, was experienced. “Understood. Having your wish granted is the death taboo.”

Fang Xiu nodded and quickly continued, “Later, Bai Shuangying and I will take the front…”

“Pfft.” A’Shou suddenly laughed aloud.

She confidently stepped in front of Fang Xiu, returning to her appearance in the blood-soaked wedding robes. Yin winds surged around them, and the blood shields swayed. A’Shou, on the other hand, swung her longsword into a steady defensive stance.

Then she canceled her concealment and revealed herself before the enemy.

Standing beside Fang Xiu in matching red garments, she instantly became the more obvious target.

Zhuang Guiqu continued directing the immortals in their preparations for the sealing spell.

Celestial weapons from the front rows came flying, and several waves of disruption spells were cast by the immortals. All of them were blocked by A’Shou. The blood shields shattered again and again. A’Shou’s wedding robes fluttered as she extended her blood-soaked arms, summoning even more invisible shields.

Zhuang Guiqu stared intently at A’Shou for a moment. His eyelid twitched, and he decisively gave up. Blood shield fragments and spell lights flew through the air. Fang Xiu stared wide-eyed in shock.

What was this? Zhuang Guiqu would rather take on him and Bai Shuangying together than try to break through ghost immortal A’Shou?

“You do what you need to. I’ll take the brunt of it.”

A’Shou gave Fang Xiu a back view as red as fire. “My wish? I doubt he has the guts to fulfill it.”

Fang Xiu: “You…”

“Back then, that bastard Zhuang Guiqu pulled the troops into Xushan and got them all killed. The border army lacked food and supplies. I led the army to reclaim lost ground, but we couldn’t hold it. We were forced to retreat step by step.”

Her voice was eerily calm.

“That idiot emperor would rather believe Zhuang Guiqu could defy fate than open his eyes to the battlefield. To make sure that bastard Zhuang could handle Xushan, he even married me off to the enemy, just for one peaceful night. On my wedding day… I killed to my heart’s content.”

She had hidden the soft sword that had accompanied her through life and death in her belt, smiling through clenched teeth while drinking with her enemy general. At the height of the banquet, she drew her blade and launched a furious slaughter inside the enemy camp.

Her friends and loved ones were massacred. Her homeland was seized. Her army starved. The lands she had known for years shrank again and again…

Why should she care anymore about royal dignity?

Better to kill to her heart’s content and die with honor.

The banter vanished. The wine cup shattered. Amid wails and screams, enemy soldiers swarmed from all directions to subdue her. She danced with her sword, ignoring her accumulating wounds, slashing fresh bursts of blood from her enemies.

Thus, the sword that had accompanied her for years became an E in blood. A’Shou herself ascended into a ghost immortal on the spot. When the Underworld’s emissaries arrived, all they found around her were blood pools frozen with ice shards and mountains of corpses.

As for the obsession of ghost immortal A’Shou—

“I want my homeland returned to our lands.”

“Unfortunately, it belongs to another nation in the human world. The borders have been set for nearly a thousand years. Unless the Immortal Encounter E can incite war to reclaim territory, there’s no hope.”

Fang Xiu: “…”

That wish was heavy. He suddenly felt his own desires were rather modest.

No wonder A’Shou had become one of the strongest ghost immortals. The boundaries between life and death were already stark, and the human world had known peace for ages. Her obsession was difficult to erase, and even harder to realize.

Seeing Fang Xiu speechless, A’Shou sighed with emotion. “If it could really expand the territory, dying here would be worth it.”

Fang Xiu solemnly replied, “Times have changed. You should focus on holding the line.”

A’Shou: “……”

Fine. She knew full well the human world was unlikely to go to war.

Knock, knock, knock. Knock, knock, knock. Knock, knock, knock.

Just as she was fending off the attacks, the eerie knocking began again, echoing across the battlefield.

Light of magic pierced the bloodstained bridal veil.

Under Zhuang Guiqu’s guidance, a golden bell phantom protected the immortals. Countless karmic chains surged and intertwined, clashing with a grating sound. The knocking Fang Xiu had created was nearly drowned out.

The moment the sealing spell was completed, countless bizarre celestial artifacts activated together. The blinding light made it impossible to keep one’s eyes open. The flood of karmic chains roared toward Fang Xiu. Zhuang Guiqu crouched low, hiding within this tidal wave of karma.

I know exactly how to control what comes next—

[That man in red was clearly controlled by the Corner of Heaven’s Will, trying to bluff his way through and catch them off guard. Zhuang Guiqu stayed alert, provoking the immortals into giving their full response.]

[The sealing had missed this remnant once. Trying the same trick again was too risky. Zhuang Guiqu knew he couldn’t afford to be careless. Even a lion uses its full strength to catch a rabbit. He had to use his strongest power to seal Fang Xiu.]

[…That way, it would appear natural.]

[But the karma from the Immortal E’s still wasn’t enough. He had to use the newly sealed Corner of Heaven’s Will. His plan was proceeding smoothly. The creation of the Immortal Encounter E had already begun. Now he just had to draw in even more karmic entanglements.]

[Deception was his greatest strength. He would surely succeed.]

A’Shou clenched her teeth and forcibly intercepted the incoming swarm of celestial artifacts.

Just like the blood-drenched wedding feast of a thousand years ago, they all swarmed toward her together, battering her body with countless wounds. Her bridal gown was torn to shreds. On one side, peachwood swords rained down. On the other, demon-banishing bells resounded.

Righteous energy suppressed evil spirits. Amid the intense divine aura, A’Shou’s vision blurred and distorted.

Ah, such a familiar sensation. Back when she was dying from blood loss, her sight had looked the same.

Her injured hand moved, the tip of her soft sword tapping the ground.

She instinctively stopped trying to analyze the attacks. She no longer tried to set up elaborate blood shields. She simply swung her soft sword with all her might, draining every last bit of yin energy from her body.

She could only block so many attacks. Fang Xiu behind her might get hurt, but preserving the formation’s integrity was her sole priority.

Zhuang Guiqu clearly saw this as well.

He remained hidden behind the celestial artifacts and sealing chains. His hand traced patterns in the air, chanting softly. A’Shou miscalculated and his palm brushed her, nearly making her cry out in pain.

What was happening?

This wound was different from those caused by divine force. A’Shou watched in horror as the wound squirmed, forming tiny characters that burrowed into her flesh.

You are a righteous warrior who cares for the world. Your mind has been corrupted by the evil spirit behind you. Come back. That side is dangerous.

Look ahead. The gods of the Heavenly Court are here. Look behind you. That thing is more twisted than any evil being.

Cognitive contamination had arrived.

A’Shou instinctively halted her assault and looked toward the enemy. What she saw was golden light and righteous presence.

Yes, she knew her own nature. She couldn’t be a shameless person… Her head spun badly. What that man said was probably true…

Then a sudden sharp pain jerked her arm.

[The Guishan Sect created the Immortal Encounter E, corrupting the Corner of Heaven’s Will.]

[The Immortal Encounter E becomes a weapon, bringing about a great catastrophe in the human world.]

…She had carved those words herself, mimicking the handiwork of a particularly wicked human. She remembered her own handwriting.

A’Shou looked ahead at the seemingly righteous Zhuang Guiqu, then back at Fang Xiu, who wore a half-smile and bore heterochromatic eyes. She blocked another wave of spells with her sword.

“I only trust myself,” she said hoarsely. “You don’t look despicable enough.”

Zhuang Guiqu’s face twitched.

But that moment of hesitation was all he needed. He didn’t waste time arguing. Like a slippery eel, he slipped past A’Shou and lunged at Fang Xiu. Threads of karmic power streamed from his fingertips, combining with the sealing chains to bind Fang Xiu.

[At the same time, he deliberately exposed a vulnerability.]

[The man in red carried the power of the Corner of Heaven’s Will. At this distance, they would not let that vulnerability go. He would be severely wounded, then taken as a hostage.]

[That would force the immortals to hesitate, giving the man in red a chance to help the girl hide again and regain the upper hand.]

[From there, Zhuang Guiqu could continue deceiving, manipulating the flow of battle. He would lose gloriously, convincingly, ideally after a desperate final blow that made the enemy believe they had truly won.]

Then he could seize the moment—that instant when Fang Xiu fully believed he had triumphed and would remain with Bai Shuangying. That moment when Fang Xiu’s wish would be realized.

But the story could not end like that. It needed to go further—

[Once the situation was disrupted, he could strike from close range. When facing a power of equal origin, tactics would matter more than brute force.]

[He trusted that the soft-hearted gods would do everything to protect him. If his sneak attack succeeded, the man in red would surely fail.]

If I can complete this setup, Fang Xiu and Bai Shuangying will be sealed at the story’s end.

Then the story can conclude smoothly.

……

In the blink of an eye, Zhuang Guiqu exposed a seemingly natural vulnerability and crept ever closer to Fang Xiu.

However—

Knock, knock, knock. Knock, knock, knock. Knock, knock, knock.

The knocking rang in his ears, making Zhuang Guiqu frown.

…Despite the opening, Fang Xiu didn’t strike.

Instead, he plunged his fingers into the freshly healed wound on his abdomen and tore it open.

What burst out wasn’t blood, but blood-like threads of karma.

From the blood-colored strands, deep within his black abdominal cavity, a white eye appeared.

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The author has something to say:

Next chapter should wrap up things up—just a few more left to finish the arc!

Bringing out the “knock knock knock” basically means it’s time to come clean with A’Shou (?

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