Chapter 229: Valkyrie (Revised)

The setting sun splashed over the ten thousand li of mountains and rivers, merging into a single hue with the firelight and bloodlight.

Tens of thousands of demonic beings, carrying puppets and towering ghostly mists, turned the wilderness into a hell of evil ghosts; ghostly wails and wolf howls surged like a tidal wave, resembling a death decree harvesting the human world:

"Roar!!"

"Ah—"

……

A divine figure with a head of crimson hair billowing in the air stood before a tide of sharp blades; his full golden armor and nine-foot golden spear, gleaming under the sunset, became the only light in the blood-and-fire purgatory.

After glancing back at the fleeing allies, the golden-armored divine figure dragged his head of red hair and charged alone into the calamity that would destroy the world; the long spear in his hand raised a shriek that tore the sky, and where he passed, broken blades fell like butterflies and severed limbs like leaves!

Countless demonic beings and evil ghosts were torn into fragments amidst the clanging of colliding broken blades; tattered limbs fell into the river of blood, emitting dull thuds like drumbeats.

The single suit of golden armor was like an unyielding deity; ghost envoys from the ten directions and demon generals from north and south all turned into lonely wandering souls beneath the spear's edge; the blood-and-fire purgatory was also torn open by Jin Guang into a rift, raising the dawn's first light within the purgatory.

But human strength eventually reaches its limit, while demons and ghosts are endless!

The golden-armored divine figure forgot how long he had fought in the tide; isolated and without aid, he saw no glimmer of hope, only his strength draining bit by bit, his breathing growing heavier, and the spear edge he wielded beginning to tremble, yet the tide before him still had no end.

Before she ran out of arrows and supplies, she finally saw someone arriving from behind; it was a cultivator with five weapons suspended behind his back, whose overwhelming power was no less than hers, the Northern Border's number one martial artist hailed as the 'Valkyrie'.

But seeing the scene of inevitable defeat like a purgatory, the newcomer merely said from afar:

"Daoist friend, hold on a moment longer; Shang will go assist Ye Ci in surrounding and killing the Corpse Ancestor."

With those words, he turned and left immediately.

Seeing this, the golden-armored divine figure did not retreat; instead, like a killing machine, he ravaged the ghost tide, trying to buy even a single breath of time for his allies.

But after piercing through the entire blood plain, she discovered that the Corpse Ancestor, who had transformed into myriad forms, had his true body hidden right here, attempting a feint to break out of the Dragon Cloud Valley behind her, and the heavenly net laid by the entire Righteous Path.

Facing a certain death, the golden-armored divine figure did not retreat; instead, dragging her head of red hair, she used her mortal body to clash head-on with the only Seventh Realm successor of Wu Zu!

Although she barely withstood a single strike from the demon blade Na Xie, before her broken body fell to the ground, a flowing light still lit up the sky, along with a shout that made both the Righteous and Unorthodox Paths tremble in fear:

"Wakaka! So the true body is hiding here. Purple Encampment constellations, Xuanji Cave Spirit..."

Then the sky was blocked by a coiling-dragon red umbrella; a Taoist nun no taller than a green onion dragged Lei Guang to tear the sky, raining down an boundless thunder array that locked down the entire blood plain.

The white-robed scholar holding the King's Order, the jade-faced monk displaying the Golden Body Dharma Image, the old man of the Wu Sect holding the Soul-Commanding Banner, the yellow-robed Taoist holding the Five Elements Seal, and others, surged from the four corners of the sky, making the entire blood plain bizarre and colorful.

And Shang Lianbi, who had left first, only arrived tardily once the advantage was secured.

The golden-armored figure, leaning on his long spear and standing in the pool of blood, saw Master Sikong Shitang binding souls and spirits; the Corpse Ancestor, not yet thirty years old, ceased fighting back and spoke those words:

"Compassion does not command armies; affection does not establish affairs. Master truly did not deceive me."

Master Sikong Shitang's Dao Heart shattered; he sat alone on the ground, like an old man who had lost his son in his twilight years.

However, that demon god who had nearly destroyed the entire world ultimately vanished completely beneath the blue sky and bright sun.

Seeing this, the golden-armored divine figure finally relaxed her tense heart, closed her eyes peacefully, and her broken body collapsed, accompanied by the faint sound of a weapon hitting the ground.

Thump—

But when she opened her eyes again, she found the battlefield silent as a grave.

The Taoist nun no taller than a green onion lay on the ground with the demon blade Na Xie piercing her chest; surrounding her were the mutilated bodies of Monk Yu Nian and True Person Huang Lin, while the blood-stained head of the white-robed scholar was held in someone's hand.

That person wore a black robe, with five immortal weapons suspended behind his back, standing above the sky like a deity descended to the world!

……

The golden-armored divine figure suddenly awoke, flipping up from the magnificent phoenix bed, and gazed at the vast city outside the sky pavilion.

A gentle night wind entered the room; outside, the city dense with human smoke and fire remained in a state of song and dance.

But her face showed no hint of joy at a false alarm; instead, she turned to look at that suit of golden armor standing in the hall, rubbed her brow, and let out a long sigh:

"Haa..."

Tap tap tap...

Perhaps hearing the commotion, footsteps came from outside the bedroom.

Then the female official Hongdou appeared beyond the screen, kneeling and bowing her head:

"Has Empress Dowager had another nightmare?"

Empress Dowager Guo pondered for a moment before restoring her usual imperial dignity like a female emperor, her tone calm:

"It is nothing, an old ailment. Any leads on the trouble in Lizhou?"

"Shen Cang from the Ministry of Punishment has already led a team to investigate; accompanying him is that little Constable named Jiang Xian. Results should come soon."

Empress Dowager Guo rose from the phoenix bed and walked alone to the terrace outside the hall; wearing a pale gold loose nightgown and being far taller than ordinary people, the breeze outlined her dramatic curves on the silky garment, making her back view look like a goddess from the heavenly palace:

"The Southern Dynasty envoys arrive today. Xie Jinhuan is not among them; are there any current leads on his whereabouts?"

"Hmm... not yet. The Court of Imperial Rites said Xie Jinhuan seems to have gone to the Southern Frontier; whether he will come is uncertain."

"This child will definitely come. Have the subordinates pay a bit more attention."

"Yes, Your Majesty."

……

After giving her orders, Empress Dowager Guo stood alone atop the towering sky pavilion, overlooking the vast city.

Although her back view resembled an empress of the immortal palace, she was not a true god no matter how strong; human strength eventually reaches its limit, and she could not suppress the surging undercurrents beneath the human smoke and fire, nor did she know when her 'divine assistance' would ever reach this point...

——

At the same time, Lizhou.

The cold wind, carrying flying snow, sprinkled upon the small county town south of Lizhou.

Two fine horses came from the south and entered the city gate at midnight; Meiqiu, who had been sleeping the whole way, poked her head out from under the cloak and looked at the still-open hotpot shop:

"Gurgle gurgle?"

Xie Jinhuan, riding the horse, took a map from his chest and checked the route by the lantern of a roadside tavern, exhaling white mist from his mouth:

"We are still over a thousand li from Yanjing; we likely won't catch up with the envoy team. Let's rest for the night in the county town and continue the journey tomorrow."

Bu Yuehua followed at his side, wrapped tightly from head to toe; because her soul was injured, she had been dozing off for most of the journey. She said nothing now, following behind and watching Xie Jinhuan inquire about lodging. Linchuan County is located in the central part of Lizhou, situated on a major transportation route, gathering countless merchants from the Southern Dynasty and the Western Regions.

Xie Jinhuan had originally planned to find any random place to stay, but because of the heavy snow making travel difficult, all the caravans had taken shelter in the city, and nearly every inn was packed to capacity; while brothels still had some rooms available, bringing a personal beauty inside would likely not be approved by Nangong Xianzi.

After walking along the street for a moment, the two discovered a caravan camped right by the roadside, forced to set up there due to the crowd and lack of space; the caravan consisted entirely of westerners wrapped in thick sheepskin coats, all of considerable skill, guarding more than a dozen carts of goods.

Among them was a man wearing a white fox fur coat, his head braided with countless tiny plaits, inspecting the carts and speaking in a local dialect:

"Kushka, Yazatashim..."

Bu Yuehua briefly sized up the caravan and thought it looked like an easy target, but she was no southern bandit and had no ill intentions—she merely asked curiously:

"Where is this caravan from?"

Xie Jinhuan gave it a glance: "The flag is from the western kingdom of Shajie; they're famous for lapis lazuli and beauties. These people are clearly heading to the capital to celebrate the young emperor's birthday—telling their men to guard the carts well, since all the Central Plains folk are wolves with ill intent..."

"?"

The man in the fox fur, whose cultivation seemed quite advanced, turned his head upon hearing them and glanced at the two passersby.

Bu Yuehua was slightly startled, and only after walking a few steps further did she ask curiously:

"You understand western dialects?"

Xie Jinhuan had been grinding since age three, and the red-haired, green-eyed Hu Ji—whose breasts were bigger than her head—was one of his dream targets for a concubine; not being able to communicate properly was unthinkable, so he replied humbly:

"When my father was county constable, he often caught western pickpockets and undocumented migrants, so I picked up a few phrases—I don't know much."

"Oh..."

Bu Yuehua thought Xie Jinhuan's knowledge was remarkably broad, and after a moment's thought, she asked:

"How do you say my name in western dialect?"

Xie Jinhuan paused slightly: "Ai Guli—it means 'moon flower' in the west; you could also interpret it as 'flower like the moon.'"

"Ai Guli..."

Bu Yuehua nodded slightly, finding the name quite pleasant, but since Xie Jinhuan was her junior, chatting like this might lead to moonlit romance—so she suppressed the urge to ask what his name was, and turned back to glance at the western caravan:

"The young emperor of Zhou will be twenty soon, right? Is this his coronation?"

An emperor's coronation signifies the formal transition to sovereign rule; the regent, Empress Dowager, and other power-holders must return the imperial seal within three days. Historically, emperors usually assumed power by fifteen or sixteen; to wait until twenty was extremely rare.

Although Xie Jinhuan hadn't actively sought to learn about the Northern Zhou, he knew the young emperor Xiao Yang was about his own age; at six, he'd secretly sighed—look at these native locals, six years old and already emperor, wielding the power of the realm, sleeping with his wet nurse, sucking on his fingers while reading memorials, while I still had to go to preschool...

So the young emperor of Zhou was likely truly twenty this year, but given the current situation in Northern Zhou, Empress Dowager Guo would never relinquish power—this could easily turn into a "Divine Dragon Coup"...

He remembered the "Divine Dragon Coup"—when the Crown Prince led court ministers to kill the female emperor's lovers and forced her to abdicate. What were Empress Dowager Guo's lovers...?

Oh my god...

Xie Jinhuan felt this trip to Yanjing might not go as smoothly as he'd expected, but since he was already here, no matter how big the problem, he'd have to face it—he simply said:

"We'll know once we get to Yanjing..."

As they chatted idly, they nearly circled the entire Linchuan County before finding a small inn in a corner; even Meiqiu shook her head at the place's condition, and without even hinting to the Shopkeeper, they were left with only one room—man and woman alone, forced to share.

Xie Jinhuan didn't mind; after entering the second floor, he sealed all the drafty windows with rags and made Meiqiu a bird's nest out of his wide-brimmed hat.

Bu Yuehua followed him inside, removed her white cloak, revealing a deep blue dress that clung tightly to her figure, and her calm, elegant mature face—her peach-blossom eyes carried a certain awkwardness, like a mature female elder sharing a room with a vigorous young boy.

As Master Wan Yi's teacher, she had always maintained proper boundaries; aside from being hugged twice in the Fire Phoenix Valley, there had been no special issues between them.

But problems arise when a man and woman sleep together—could even the great ice lump Nangong Xianzi not stir up something perverse? She didn't believe her own Wu Sect witch self could maintain her spiritual core more firmly than a seductive Daoist nun—so after thinking, she said:

"Why don't you sleep first? I'll keep watch; we'll switch shifts in the second half of the night."

Xie Jinhuan finished sealing the windows and turned to look at the composed, serene "Little Mistress"—though he didn't revere ritual propriety, he knew it was inappropriate to flirt recklessly given their status, so he thought for a moment:

"Before I left, the imperial court showed me the Divine Martial Scripture. Hua Jie is a martial cultivator—why not let me teach you?"

Bu Yuehua had asked Wan Yi to find the Divine Martial Scripture hidden in the Imperial Astronomical Bureau to prepare for entering Super Rank, but that damn girl had been too busy sleeping with men and remembered nothing—so when Xie Jinhuan offered voluntarily, she was delighted:

"Won't this leak out?"

Xie Jinhuan taught directly only to avoid wasting time waiting for Wan Yi to drain him—he replied:

"As long as Hua Jie keeps it secret and doesn't tell anyone else."

"I'm only learning for myself—how could I possibly leak it to outsiders?"

Bu Yuehua sat down at the round table and gave Xie Jinhuan's body a brief appraisal:

"Are you teaching me now?"

Xie Jinhuan sat across from her and paused slightly:

"Hmm... The Divine Martial Scripture is too vast, synthesizing all the best elements of ancient cultivation techniques for contemplation—it can't be taught by speech or demonstration. It requires the secret method of the Hidden Immortals' 'Dream Transmission'—that is..."

Bu Yuehua wasn't stupid; upon hearing "dream," she glanced toward the bed:

"We have to sleep together? Jinhuan, you're Mu Jie's lover—you can't just because we're alone..."

"Hey!"

Xie Jinhuan quickly raised his hand: "Hua Jie, don't misunderstand—I truly have no other way to teach. We'll enter the dream together by secret method—you'll see it yourself. We don't need to lie on the bed; we can sit right here."

"..."

Bu Yuehua saw Xie Jinhuan's expression was upright, with no lewd intent, and nodded slightly:

"Then try it."

Xie Jinhuan said nothing more, sat on the chair, silently called upon his ghost bride for assistance, then pretended earnestly:

"Hua Jie, you must take off your hairpin first—it has too much yang energy, and won't allow hypnosis."

"Oh..."

"Heavenly spirit, earthly spirit..."

(End of Chapter)