Chapter 8: The Distant Carnage (Part 2)
Yin Chen encourages Qi Ling on with his gaze.
“Our actual gift, it’s actually……Limitless Soul Beasts?” Qi Ling tries to suppress the euphoria in his heart.
A smile of affirmation spreads across Yin Chen’s face. His eyes are as bright as the stardust. “You’re right. Since soul weapons are where the second soul beast resides, with an unlimited amount of soul weapons, in theory, we can command an unlimited amount of soul beasts.”
“My goodness! This……wow! Yin Chen, you should be the Top Lord instead! You’re amazing!” Qi Ling rushes over excitedly and envelops Yin Chen into a hug.
A grey gleam flashes across Yin Chen’s eyes unseen by Qi Ling, and this light disappears quickly into the depths of his pupils.
“Don’t hug me so tightly. You’re extremely smelly; when did you last shower? Get lost and take a bath.”
“Yes! Of course! Lord!” Qi Ling laughs heartedly as he walks out, “Then again, Yin Chen, I don’t find myself smelly at all. I’m actually really clean. It’s just because you smell so nice so you think I haven’t showered. Actually, thinking about it, do you shower thrice a day? How come your white robes never get dirty? This is actually the first time I’m seeing a man as clean as you, even cleaner than the girls in our town of Fauser……”
Before Qi Ling manages to finish his sentence, a sharp blade of ice pierces through the floor and presses right below his crotch, “Then I will turn you into a girl as well. You will be completely clean then.”
“No need! Really! From now on I’ll shower eight times a day!” QI Ling says as he scrams.
A dreamless sleep.
Perhaps it’s due to him being overworked for the past two days that his body has reached its limit. When Qi Ling lies down, he falls asleep the moment his head hits the pillow.
When he wakes up, Yin Chen is already dressed and standing like an unsheathed sword before the window. The rays of the rising sun streams in from the window, the light spots reflecting on Yin Chen’s hair. Under the light, his frosty features are as grand and n.o.ble as a snow mountain. His sharp and thick brows are like two daggers. As if golden dust has been scattered in the rays of light,
Qi Ling sighs heavily in his heart. As the saying goes, comparisons are odious therefore n.o.ble lords makes people a lot more infuriated than disciples*. Perhaps one day when he becomes a lord, he will have half of this n.o.ble aura Yin Chen has. Then again, he if became a lord, what will become of Yin Chen? “I’ll just continue being a disciple, helping him run errands and stuff. Maybe hunt for some game at times. A life like this is not bad.” Qi Ling thinks and starts giggling.
Yin Chen hears the laughter and turns; his expression when he sees the messy bed head is like looking at a mentally ill person. Qi Ling cowers under his gaze and so he gets up awkwardly and rushes to get dressed.
“Yin Chen, I thought of something after falling asleep last night.” Qi Ling says as he tugs on his pants.
“Can you speak to me after putting on your pants?” Yin Chen turns away, unable to stand him.
“Of course I can!” Qi Ling ties the sash around his waist hastily, “I remembered this last night, since our gift is Unlimited h.o.m.ology of Soul Weapons, then I should have taken a lot more soul weapons from the Grave of the Souls. Isn’t it regretful that I only took one? I won’t be able to enter the place again! You should have told me before I went in!” Qi Ling pouts as he stares at Yin Chen.
“First and foremost, you are the person who barged into the Grave of the Souls with no warning. I had a lot of things I needed to tell you, including how to exit, but you stumbled right in. Whose fault is it? You literally put up a show at the door steps of h.e.l.l for the G.o.ds of death and then went for a stroll before coming back because of sheer dumb luck.” Yin Chen reprimands Qi Ling expressionlessly.
“Secondly, even if you want to take more, that is impossible. In the Grave of the Souls, once you’ve retrieved one, it is impossible to get another. Even if you just up all your energy, you will not be able to pull another weapon from the stones.”
“That’s not right.” Qi Ling c.o.c.ks his head to the side, “Then where did all the soul weapons you dumped out yesterday come from?”
“The Grave of the Souls constantly produces soul weapons and there are constantly disciples who enter to retrieve them. After they become the lord, there will be new disciples who go in again. People die all the time and will disappear, but soul weapons won’t. They will constantly be abandoned in corners of the world. Most of the time, when lords know that they are reaching the end of their life, they will quietly go to an inhabited place to await their death, and so, throughout the unknown amount of years in the history of Aslan, there are actually many soul weapons left behind by previous lords. It’s just that these soul weapons have been absorbed into their bodies and synced with their unique ways of soul bending so even if someone else gets it, the weapon is useless to them. To them, these weapons are just beautiful but useless junk, but to us, those with the gift of Unlimited h.o.m.ology of Soul Weapons, these are treasures.”
“You found all these soul weapons? So awesome……” Qi Ling looks at Yin Chen with shining eyes.
“Yes. Before I bestowed your seal, I did not have a disciple so I was free to wander around. In those few years, I’ve walked all the lands on this Mainland and collected many powerful weapons.” Yin Chen nods.
“Woah! Then can you show them to me again? I only had time to be surprised yesterday so I didn’t see them very clearly.” Qi Ling gestures wildly with his hands, seeming extremely excited.
“Of course,” Yin Chen narrows his eyes, “not!”
Qi Ling: “……” The words “you a.s.shole” roll around in his throat but he dare not utter them out loud.
At this moment, the door opens to reveal QI La. His long and n.o.ble role is filled with a sense of mystery. He stands quietly at the door with a smile on his face, looking like a mysterious black cat.
“Yin Chen, Qi Ling, come to my room for a moment. Guishan Fenghun, Guishan Lianquan and Tianshu Youhua are all there. I have something to say.”
“Okay.” Yin Chen nods.
A large smile blossoms on Qi La’s pretty face, as if ripples on the surface of the lake caused by spring rain, seeming enchanting.
After Qi La left, Qi Ling drapes his arm over Yin Chen’s shoulder and sighs, saying: “Yin Chen, don’t you think Qi La is much too pretty? A man with such a face, what in the devil’s world. Although you are also really good-looking, but standing beside him……you lose completely……”
“I just think that you,” Yin Chen slaps Qi Ling’s arm off of him, “have a problem.”
“Please, what problem do I have,” Qi Ling bears his teeth happily as he dismisses Yin Chen’s words, “It’s his face that’s the problem.”
Yin Chen leaves for Qi La’s room without looking back.
Qi Ling chases him to Qi La’s room. When he pushes open the door, he sees that aside from Qi La who is perched on the window sill, Yin Chen, Guishan Fenghun, Lianquan and Tianshu Youhua are all already in the room. They are gathered around a large table with a serious expression. Qi Ling stops fooling around and closes the door behind him softly before moving to sit beside Yin Chen obediently, looking like a little puppy dog.
Qi La turns to face the people in the room, resulting in the light shining on his face les than before. His handsomely beautiful features are drenched in the soft and tender light of the room.
“All of you must have a lot of questions to ask. You can do so now.”
“Qi La, let me ask you first. Since all of the chess you create pieces in Aslan, then why did both of the ones in the Grave of the Souls lead to the Relic of Youtuer? Did you switch the one that was supposed to bring the disciple smoothly to the Abyss Corridor after they’ve successfully retrieved the soul weapon?”
The atmosphere in the room cools rapidly. An unseen tension fills the air.
“What did you just say?” Qi Ling whips his head around to look at Yin Chen, “How did you know we were at the Relic of Youtuer? I don’t recall telling you that?”
“After you fell asleep last evening, I met Qi La in the corridor. I asked him about what happened in the Grave of the Souls.” Yin Chen seems unhappy at Qi Ling b.u.t.ting in but he still answered his unimportant question patiently.
“Ah! You met up secretly behind my back while I was asleep?” Qi Ling’s eyebrows shoot up, “Sigh, it’s a good thing that Qi La isn’t a woman, if not it will be hard to explain. Then again, Qi La looks like this so it’s already hard to explain……sigh!” He sighed heavily and poured himself a cup of water helplessly. He fails to see the ashened faces of Yin Chen, Qi La, Fenghun, Lianquan and Tianshu Youhua.
Qi La clears his throat awkwardly. It sounds even more awkward in the deadly silent room. Turning to Yin Chen who has ‘Qi Ling I am going to kill you’ painted on his face, he says: “I brought your disciple out from the Relic of Youtuer, you need not feel indebt to me, and you need not think about the reason for me doing so. All you need to know is that I’m doing this only due to the previous Top Lord Gilgamesh. I will be indebted to him my entire life, and so, for his previous Disciple of Heaven, Lucifer, I will repay this to you. From now on, I no longer owe him anything.”
“Lianquan and I do.” Guishan Fenghun suddenly speaks up seriously, “You didn’t leave Lianquan behind. We will always remember this kindles. Lianquan’s life is given by you so when the day comes that you want it, we will return it to you wordlessly.” Lianquan’s eyes are filled with respect as she looks at the firm expression on her brother’s face.
Tianshu Youhua sits at the side clenching her teeth, saying nothing. She doesn’t want to give her life to Qi La. Although Qi La is a top n.o.ble lord, her bloodline is a lot n.o.bler than them. She sits at the side in silence.
Qi La doesn’t care for her at all. He turns and nods lightly to the Guishan siblings, his intent unknown.
Yet Qi Ling is completely dumbfounded, “You’re saying that Yin Chen is……the disciple of the previous Top Lord? ……Then isn’t he……but he’s also the Seventh Lord, then what is he…….” Puzzled, he turns to stare at Yin Chen. Yin Chen answers with a roll of his eyes.
“In the territories of Aslan, there are a few most ancient and most important chess pieces and these were planted when the Silver Priests came into existence. Countless generations of the Third Lord was responsible for maintaining and protecting these main chess pieces. The two located in the Grave of the Souls are some of the earliest ones to come into existence. Before this, there has always been one that leads to the Abyss Corridor and the other leading to the Relic of Youtuer. However, to outsiders, this chess piece is known to lead to death. Although this is not the most accurate description, but it’s also the right one. Because the people who enter the Relic of Youtuer do not have much chances of leaving there alive. However, a few days ago, I sensed three disciples entering the Relic of Youtuer at the same time. It puzzled me at that time. I asked around and understood that one of the most recent disciples to enter the Grave of the Souls is the Seventh Disciple, which is Yin Chen’s disciple, that is why I decided to enter the place and retrieve him from ‘death’.”
“Then do you know why all of us entered the Relic of Youtuer? It’s because there’s a problem with the chess pieces. Both of them led to the relic. Aren’t you trying to kill us? You are the one responsible for the chess pieces so of course you should be the one to rescue us. You’re speaking as if you’ve done us such a big favour! We are already very generous to not put the blame on you!” Tianshu Youhua suddenly yells as her face flushes in anger.
“If I did not owe him, I would not have entered to rescue all of you even if there is a problem. When a disciple dies, there will be new disciples. Even if a lord dies, there will be new lords. This by itself is of no importance at all.” QI La looks tenderly at Tianshu Youhua with his beautiful and soft smile. Despite that, his gaze is like ice, releasing bitter coldness. Tianshu Youhua shivers under his stare and says no longer. Closing her mouth, she sits at the side wordlessly.
“Then have you figured out why there was a sudden problem with the chess pieces?” Yin Chen stares into Qi La’s alluring eyes as he asks.
“This I really don’t know.” A light smile grazes Qi La’s face, making him look enigmatic. “Among all the lords in the lands of Aslan, I am the only person who knows how to create chess pieces. It is impossible to change the direction of the chess piece unless it is by the Third Lords of the other countries. However, there is another possibility……but the odds are close to none!”
“What is it?” Lianquan asks.
“The Silver Priests changing the chess pieces themselves.” Qi La wipes the grin off his face and says seriously.
“This is impossible. If the Silver Priests wants a few disciples to die, they can ask directly ask the Forth Lord to convey the Red Alarm to Nether, they need not go through that much trouble.” Guishan Fenghun shakes his head, unable to accept this conjecture. However, after the words left his mouth, the horrifying scene of the Silver Priest’s life disappearing in the Abyss Corridor appears before his eyes. He looks up and meets Yin Chen’s gaze coincidentally. He sees the same fear in Yin Chen’s eyes. That scene really is something that, once you’ve seen it, it will be ingrained as a nightmare in your mind forever.
“Speaking of the alarm, I just remembered, aside from there being a problem with the chess piece, there’s also a problem with the alarms. The White Alert of retrieving the Resurrection Chain was pa.s.sed on to Qi Ling, Youhua and I, all three disciples. Unless it is to see us kill each other in the Grave of the Souls?”
“The messages are responsibility of the Tiange, for the answer to this question, you’d have to ask the Forth Lord, Thalia.”
“Thalia? A woman? A female lord?” Qi Ling stands up abruptly and chokes on his water.
Guishan Lianquan frowns as she addresses him in a tone that is reprimanding but funny at the same time: “Is a female lord so weird? There are two future female lords sitting right before you at this moment. Why didn’t you shoot up when you met us?”
“Oh. Yeah.” Qi Ling scratches his head and sits down, as if deep in thought, “This is the first time I’m hearing about the existence of a female lord so I may be a bit too excited.”
Yin Chen who is sitting beside him clenches his fists together and tries his best to hold back his anger.
“Then what about the Relic of Youtuer? What sort of place is that? I’ve never heard about it before.” Guishan Fenghun asks Qi La.
“You should not question this anymore. There are many secrets on the Aslan territories. Disciples do not know some secrets. The lower leveled lords don’t know other secrets. Of course, there are secrets that even I do not know. Among all lords, the one that knows the most is the Forth Lord, Thalia. Maybe all of you really should make a trip to Tiange……” Qi La looks at Yin Chen and the Guishan siblings, a smile shrouded in a layer of mystery graces his features, the smile is so light that a gentle breeze will blow it away.
The Guishan siblings and Tianshu Youhua returns to their rooms, leaving Yin Chen, Qi Ling and Qi La in the room.
YinChen stands up and moves before QI La, using his watery eyes, he looks at him and asks: “You said you’re returned all your debt to Lord Gilgamesh, do you really think so?”
“If not?” Qi La replies with a tense smile, his gaze resembling the flickering lights at night during a downpour.
“What about the days from before? Have you forgotten everything? At the time, Gelanshi, Dong He and I, the Heaven, earth and sea disciples, we viewed you and our lord as G.o.ds in our hearts. Those days, you must remember them.”
“What if I do? So many years has pa.s.sed. He has never appeared. Maybe he is already dead. Who knows?” Qi La replies.
“He is clearly not dead and you know it. Me standing before you at this very moment, the fact that I am still the Seventh Lord is enough proof that he is still alive.”
“Yin Chen, you are also a person who has many secrets. You are not more foolish than anyone else yet you know how to pretend to be more foolish more than anyone else. You know, I’ve always been suspicious that, actually Gilgamesh is long dead and you’ve already inherited the entire soul’s return circuit of the previous Top Lord long ago. Because Gelanshi and Dong He are all dead.” Qi La stares into Yin Chen’s eyes, his gaze as sharp as a dagger that is attempting to cuts its way into Yin Chen’s soul, “Am I right? Lucifer.”
The atmosphere in the room is suffocating and cold.
After returning from Qi La’s room, Yin Chen and Qi Land has not spoken a single word to each other. Yin Chen sits alone on a stool, staring unseeingly and unmovingly at the tea set on the table.
Qi Ling clears his throat and asks Yin Chen softly: “Yin Chen, you said that you still being the Seventh Lord is enough to prove that the previous Top Lord Gilgamesh is still alive, what does that mean? I don’t really understand.”
Yin Chen snaps back to reality. His harsh gaze softening and warming up. His expression also lightens considerably. He looks at Qi Ling and replies tenderly: “You do know that the difference in level of soul powers between the lord and the disciple is as vast as the distance between the heavens and earth.”
Qi Ling nods.
“The reason for this difference is not due to the acc.u.mulation of experience or difference in soul weapons. The most fundamental reason is that, when the lord willingly steps down or if the lord dies, the original soul’s return circuit in the disciple will be replicated and fused with the original one. This change in soul powers is not just a double increase, but as much as a leap ten times the original amount. The pa.s.sing down of the First Lord is also different. The Top Lord has three disciples – the heaven, earth and sea. At the very moment when the lord dies or steps down, two of the three disciples will die instantaneously. The last one remaining will have three souls’ return circuits at the same time, and this will allow his soul powers to reach a peak that no other can attain. This is also why, throughout the pa.s.sage of time, the Top Lord is always much more powerful than all other lords.” Yin Chen glances at Qi Ling, his expression resembles a calm lake at sun down, filled with the sorrow of dusk, “I am the previous, previous disciple of heaven, Lucifer The other two disciples of my status, the disciple of the sea, Gelanshi and the disciple of earth, Dong He, they are both dead.”
The entire room is in silence. Qi Ling doesn’t know what to say so all he can do is sit beside him silently.
“Since I’m still only the Seventh Lord and not the Top Lord, this is enough evidence to prove that Gilgamesh is still alive in this world. Although I cannot find him……I’ve been looking for him for three entire years…..”
Yin Chen finishes and stands to leave the room.
“Are you sure you didn’t inherit the three times of the soul’s return circuit? Perhaps your new return circuit for the Seventh Lord suppressed the one from before, so even if you did inherit it, you don’t feel it?” QI Ling calls softly after Yin Chen’s back.
Yin Chen pauses, his back tensing in the dim lighting, after a long time, he replies slowly and deeply: “I already said that, Gilgamesh is still alive.”
[West of Aslan Empire – Interior of Tiange]
There is not a single window in the empty palace hall.
Only thousands upon thousands of candles emitting golden rays of light flicker in the darkness, making everything misty and haunting.
Swirls of cold fog flows on the air close to the marbled ground. The source of this fog is unknown.
On the upper levels of this hall, many dozens of white steps lead up to a s.p.a.cious throne where two figures currently lie.
The curtains that drape among the surroundings is like a large screen that an exciting ma.s.sacre is about to be broadcasted on.
“You’re saying that, the Silver Priests, at the same time, released the Red Alarm for Yin Chen, Qi La, Guishan Fenghun, Guishan Lianquan, Qi Ling and Tianshu Youhua?” Nether looks at the Forth Lord, the female lord Thalia who is currently rested beside him and smirks, “Are you kidding me?”
“Who can joke about something like this?” Thalia gazes at Nether, “Also, if you don’t believe me, you can go to the Heart and ask them yourself, that is, if you’re not afraid of making them unhappy. If it’s not their command and I’ve relayed it to you wrong, the next thing I know, they’d be tasking you to kill me. Heh heh heh.”
“Even if this is true, this is not simple.” Nether narrows his eyes, the long frame of his eyes is filled with a beastly charisma under the ghastly candlelight, “First it’s Yin Chen, as it previous disciple of Heaven, Lucifer, you should know the level of his soul powers more clearly than anyone else. If he bestowed the previous Top Lord’s soul’s return circuit to Qi Ling, it means that I will be taking on two disciples of Heaven at the same time, that kind of gives me a headache.”
Thalia says nothing and smiles softly. She knows Nether. She knows him too well. She knows him so well that she knows he’s not taking that to heart.
“Also, not only is Yin Chen the previous Grand Angel, Lucifer, he’s also the Seventh Lord of this generation, further more, none of us knows if he’s already another Top Lord. You also know what sort of thing Gilgamesh is. Only Xiuchuan Dixang can fight against him directly, anyone else and he won’t even have to bat an eye.”
Thalia continues smiling at Nether. She is not worried at all. She knows the abilities he has.
“Oh, I almost forgot the most important thing,” Nether’s smile disappears gradually and morphs into a dense darkness between his brows, “The Red Alarm also targets Qi La. Even if you head doesn’t hurt thinking of battling him, mine does. Back in the days when Gilgamesh and him were battling, the skies and earth were turned upside down. At that time, you and I probably didn’t even catch our first soul beast yet.”
Nether looks at Thalia’s paling skin and smirks scornfully: “Figure out something yourself.”
"Alright then, I"ll handle Qi La. How difficult. If it"s not for the fact that I found that interesting treasure seven years ago, I really won"t be able to handle Qi La......" Thalia curls on the soft pelt like a cat. Her tender flesh caresses the pelt, alluring and instigating.
"Please, as if I didn"t help you get that thing......" A wicked gleam shines from Nether"s pupils, "Then again, it"s been so many years, shouldn"t that thing be unrecognizable now? Perhaps I won"t even recognise it......"
"That treasure is extremely beautiful now......" Thalia"s pupils are murky. An gust of air blows from an unknown source around the empty room of stone. The flames of all candles flicker. Her dark shadow casted on the wall resembles a beautiful female ghost.
*In Chinese, ‘comparisons are odious’ directly translates to ‘comparing one (person) to another, one is more infuriating than the other’.