Chapter 18: Unformed Authority
In the deep of night, heavy snow fell in Tangcheng.
On the ring highway, thick fog enveloped the area, and a series of oppressive, sorrowful sobs echoed.
“Waa waa… waa waa waa… Yuan Ye and Tan Caizhu…”
“Don’t worry, Yuan Ye and Tan Caizhu are just buying time for us. They’re very strong and won’t get into trouble.”
“But… waa waa waa…”
“Stop crying! You’re a grown man, how can you still be so whiny?!” Looking at Liu Banxian, whose tears flowed down his face, Jumeng impatiently yelled.
After saying that, perhaps it agitated her chest wound, and she suddenly coughed violently, splattering bl**d onto Liu Banxian’s shoulder.
Smelling the metallic scent of bl**d, Liu Banxian froze for a moment, trembling as he tried to turn back, but a pale small hand pushed him back.
“Don’t look back, no matter what happens, just keep running forward…” Jumeng spoke calmly, pausing halfway before quietly adding, “…if you don’t want to d*e.”
After that, she pressed both hands onto Liu Banxian’s shoulders, suddenly exerting strength and leaping into the air, spinning gracefully before landing on Liu Banxian’s shoulders, facing backward.
The biting cold wind blew fiercely, and snowflakes fluttered in the air, creating a vast white expanse. In the distance, the buildings were reduced to vague outlines, as if the wind and snow had draped a shroud over the night.
In the snowstorm, the girl stood with her arms crossed in front of her chest, her gaze cold and fierce. The hem of her qipao danced violently in the wind, and her legs, as white as jade, emerged from beneath the dress, stained with bl**d, resembling a blooming rose.
Noticing countless spirit energy fluctuations approaching, Jumeng frowned slightly and murmured to herself, “Have they caught up? They’re quite fast…”
Hearing her voice, Liu Banxian recalled the man who led the attack on the pawnshop, his heart tightened, and his body shivered involuntarily.
He moved stealthily in the dark, getting closer step by step, emitting a strange, terrifying laughter akin to the cries of crows.
The dreadful shadow rose like a large wing, oppressive and terrifying, reeking of decay.
“M-Master, what on earth is that thing?” Liu Banxian asked weakly, “Isn’t he a follower of Qunyang? Why would he…”
“Qunyang just placed part of her consciousness and power onto that guy,” Jumeng replied nonchalantly.
After all, as long as I’m alive, that troublesome little child cannot fully awaken and can only peep into the human world in this manner.
But merely carrying a part of Qunyang’s power isn’t enough to pose such a threat to Jumeng. The reason he could push her to such an extent is largely due to the group of dark fellows he gathered.
Those guys have a mixed background, including lone spiritual ability users, followers of other deities, and members of the Solar Eclipse Society and Miracle Cult. It’s unclear how the Crow Slave managed to gather them.
It seems that some tempting promise must have been made.
In this world, only interests can motivate those ravenous wolves to team up against a common enemy, Jumeng thought.
Seeing her remain silent for a long time, Liu Banxian became anxious, and instinctively looked back, his footsteps faltering.
A mysterious light source from behind pierced through the wind and snow, illuminating Jumeng’s pale profile with a blinding golden-red glow.
It looked like a myriad of lights suddenly shining forth from the darkness.
As Liu Banxian gazed at those light sources, a daze washed over him, and in an instant, the howling wind, the light sounds of footsteps on the snow, heavy breathing, and the pounding heartbeat all vanished, leaving only a rhythm-less sound akin to the flapping of wings.
Realizing something was off, Jumeng looked down, rolled her eyes, and kicked Liu Banxian’s head hard with her heel, saying, “I told you not to look!”
“Turn around and run for your life! The scene ahead will be quite bloody, children shouldn’t look…”
That kick, despite having little force, struck Liu Banxian’s nerves like a heavy hammer, shocking him awake, and he hurriedly turned his head away, regaining his focus.
“Now that’s more like it!” Jumeng glanced at Liu Banxian, saying casually, “Come, let me give you a buff!”
As soon as she finished speaking, Liu Banxian’s body jolted, and a tree-like complex sigil appeared on his chest. Following that, his spirit energy, which was on the verge of depletion from previous exertion, revived as if rejuvenated, flowing continuously into his limbs and bones.
Like a withered tree flourishing in spring.
With his spirit energy replenished, he narrowed his eyes slightly and increased his speed, running forward with all his might, snow kicked up by his legs swirling into mounds higher than a person.
At that moment, a cacophony of screeching cries came from behind.
In the wind and snow, countless fire crows shot towards Jumeng like arrows, their heat melting the snowflakes as they left trails of water in the air, splashing down to the ground, quickly closing in on Jumeng and releasing staggering heat.
Jumeng gazed ahead, her eyes, as deep as jade, reflecting the forms of those fire crows as she softly said, “Spring brings a lot of rain; I say, spring wind turns into rain…”
As her voice fell, a warm breeze suddenly arose, scattering the wind and snow wherever it passed. Fine rain threads, as delicate as cow hair, fell from the sky, enveloped by Jumeng’s powerful spirit energy, penetrating the bodies of those fire crows like countless steel needles.
“Puff—puff—puff—!”
Accompanied by the light sound of flesh bursting, the dark bl**d of the fire crows splattered, resembling black flowers blooming in the air.
Yet the rain threads maintained their momentum after piercing through their bodies, smashing down to the ground like sniper bullets, leaving behind a multitude of “b*llet marks” in a series of muffled sounds.
The cries of the fire crows filled the air, and Liu Banxian secretly breathed a sigh of relief, thinking that Jumeng could summon the wind and rain with her words, hence escaping shouldn’t be too difficult.
However, just as that thought flashed through his mind, he heard a loud shout from afar.
“Dare I ask, without the rising sun, where does the warm spring come from?”
As the voice fell, Jumeng felt a disturbance in the spirit energy fluctuations. The spring wind and rain, which had gathered around her due to her authority, instantly dissipated into nothing.
In some sense, she was originally the companion urban legend of Qunyang, and the enemy’s authority naturally suppressed her.
But now, only a follower of Qunyang had come.
Regaining her composure, Jumeng suppressed the turbulent bl**d surging within her, gritting her teeth stained with bl**d, coldly stating, “I command the world with the title of the Wood Emperor. Spring arrives, and withered trees flourish, blossom anew!”
As her voice fell, a green pillar of light descended from the void, enveloping Jumeng.
The pillar extended upwards, gradually dimming until vanishing in the horizon, while its roots spread downwards, as if penetrating the earth.
In an instant, numerous trees sprang up from the solid asphalt road, growing rapidly in the snowstorm, transforming into a row of ferocious giant trees, with countless parasitic roots sprawling from them.
From a distance, the ring road was suddenly covered with flowers and trees in just a moment, as if it had transformed into a primordial forest.
Among the dense forest, those roots swayed like webs, blocking the advancing fire crows, rapidly strangling them, draining their spirit energy and flesh, and blooming clusters of colorful flowers on the branches.
The withered corpses of the fire crows shattered, falling like coal dregs, swirling with the snowflakes, creating a stark contrast of black and white.
“In the noon sun, there resides Qunyang, also known as the three-legged crow, seen as great floods devastating the land, extinguishing all life.”
From afar, another loud shout resounded. The remaining fire crows flapped their wings in unison, converging in the sky into a huge fireball, showering the earth with scorching light. The incredible heat stirred up waves of distorted hot air in the atmosphere.
Amidst the blazing sun, flames quickly ignited among the towering trees, turning into a raging inferno. Under the cover of flames, those twisted, fierce giant trees continuously emitted cracking sounds, swiftly withering away.
Charred tree trunks crashed to the ground, producing a huge sound, shaking the entire elevated road, which was quickly reduced to dust, carried away by the wind.
Invisibly, Qunyang’s authority violently collided with Jumeng, her power suppressed once more. Her complexion turned pale; she coughed up dark bl**d, covering her chest with one hand, gasping fiercely for a moment, then stabilized herself and gradually sat on Liu Banxian’s shoulder.
In the face of most of her power being suppressed, she could only rely on that unformed authority, Jumeng thought.
“Hey! Later, when I use that strength, you might be affected, but don’t be scared; it’ll be fine in a few days. If I lose consciousness by then, you can take me back to Chunfeng Residence.”
Yuan Ye had gathered information several times after retrieving Jumeng’s various items from Chunfeng Residence, and that gang of thieves had ransacked the place before retreating.
Even though that gang might search Chunfeng again after escaping, at this moment, any place around Tangcheng was under their surveillance, so it was better to try hiding in plain sight.
Thus, Chunfeng Residence was both the most dangerous and the safest place; they likely wouldn’t expect me to dare return there under such a big risk! Jumeng thought.
Seeing Jumeng still care about him in such a situation, Liu Banxian felt warm in his heart, thinking she must have been concerned about his safety, which was why she hadn’t exerted her full strength. Now that the situation was dire, it was acceptable for him to be affected.
Realizing this, Liu Banxian nodded vigorously, “No problem! You can do whatever you want!”
“Very good.” Jumeng nodded slightly, then took a deep breath, activating the unformed authority within her.
“On a fine day of spring, the wind warms the jade hall, bathing in the spring light, water and milk blend, may there be many children and grandchildren in the future!”
Liu Banxian, “??? ”
What is she doing reciting this? Isn’t this a wedding blessing? What effect could it possibly have?
Just as Liu Banxian was filled with doubts about Jumeng’s bizarre behavior, he suddenly heard a sound of gongs and drums in a daze, inexplicably feeling a sense of joy that lifts the spirit in the face of good fortune.
Accompanied by the sound of gongs and drums, images of him with his late wife, from their acquaintance and understanding to their union, and their daughter’s birth flashed through his mind like a revolving lantern.
And then…
As all the images faded, he seemed to see a goddess in a blooming dress standing alone in the nine heavens, casting a gentle gaze on the earth, and ear-splittingly, numerous men and women recited ancient poems in worship of deities.
“…In the hall, O beauty, suddenly meeting my eyes. Not speaking upon entry, nor taking leave, riding upon the return wind, carrying the cloud flag…”
Once all the strange phenomena began to disappear, Liu Banxian recalled the poems he had heard and fell into a trance for a moment before snapping back to reality, his eyes wide open.
He knew where that poem came from and what it described, and recalling Jumeng’s earlier words about potentially affecting him, he suddenly felt a jolt of alarm!
That poem came from “Nine Songs: Lesser Fate,” a song and dance dedicated to the goddess of marriage, Lesser Fate.
What he heard described countless women attending the deity’s worship ceremony, all wishing for perfect love and good children, who cast beseeching gazes at the goddess in the nine heavens, and she returned the glance of understanding, fulfilling everyone’s beautiful wishes.
“…”
Could it be… Jumeng has acquired part of Lesser Fate’s authority?
Wait, that’s not the point!
The point is, since Jumeng mentioned it might affect me, does that mean…
As Liu Banxian reached that thought, something wriggled in his lower abdomen, like a swirling mass of gas, bearing life within.
It felt akin to having consumed that legendary Mother River water.
“Oh no, d*mn it! Master, master, this this this…”
“Shut up!” Jumeng irritably scolded in a low voice, “Haven’t you been searching for your daughter? You’ll have a daughter soon.”
If you want a daughter, just give birth!
Liu Banxian, “??? ”
“No, master, I’m not, I didn’t, please don’t say such things!”
I was looking to find my daughter, not to gain a new daughter in this way! Liu Banxian thought, tears of anguish welling in his eyes.
“d*mn it, I was just joking with you! Why are you crying again?” Jumeng said in a deep voice, “Don’t worry, this portion of my authority is still unformed, and in a few days, your belly will go down.”
As she spoke, she glanced back at the empty road, secretly sighing in relief. “Right now, those guys are influenced by my authority; they should temporarily be unable to catch up. Just head to Chunfeng Residence…”
As Jumeng continued speaking, her voice grew quieter and her breath weaker, eventually causing her hands to droop as she slumped on Liu Banxian’s shoulder. Darkness enveloped her as she fell into unconsciousness.
(I will update another chapter later.)
