Chapter 213: Good News, Bad News
“What’s wrong with that?” After a slight hesitation, Luxianbei answered Longxiang, “As long as you don’t mind, we would be more than happy to join you on the campaign.”
She had originally come here to find out why God Realm Yumen had been sealed for a thousand years, trapping countless beings, and the war between Nanling County King and Shaman Queen was the main reason for that tragic ending.
Being able to observe closely and gather enough information while minimizing Shen Baiwei’s use of her unstable spirit patterns was the best outcome.
It was like attending a concert where you had only bought third-class tickets, happy to merely hear the sound and see a figure, but unexpectedly being invited to the front row interaction area; one should feel pleased about it.
The most important thing was, since they couldn’t defeat him or leave, could she really refuse Nanling County King?
If she refused and he got unhappy, it would be like a mountain bandit capturing a lady of the manor, binding her and hanging her on horseback—eventually, she would have to face it. It was better to take the initiative and enjoy it a little.
“However…” Luxianbei thought, taking advantage of Longxiang’s moment of silence to add expressionlessly, “We can only agree to travel with Your Majesty, but please don’t have any expectations of us.”
“In short, even if you are in danger, we will not reach out to help… Although we do have that capability, being a bystander who points fingers at other people’s family matters, or even intervening, is impolite and against etiquette, wouldn’t you agree?”
“Conversely, if you can cut a path and achieve victory, we will only quietly watch you behead Shaman Queen from the sidelines.”
Even if killing any random one of the three giants would ensure Yumen Pass would not be as it was, the thought of attacking a key NPC during a cutscene seemed bad. Luxianbei thought.
Upon hearing Luxianbei’s words, Longxiang’s face showed surprise again, and he laughed, “Haha, wonderful! However, hearing you say that makes me even more curious about your origins.”
“Such a poised lady is indeed rare; I mostly encountered them in Dongdu or Chang’an.”
Around Yumen Pass, there were even fewer ladies who dared to say “behead Shaman Queen,” and even the three characters “Shaman Queen” were rarely spoken aloud, as if mentioning them would summon her like a vengeful ghost.
“If Miss Shen doesn’t mind…”
Before Nanling County King could finish his sentence, Luxianbei suddenly interjected, “Zhenwu Chunyang, Zixiao Huanghuang, have you heard of them?”
“This…” Longxiang frowned, recalling carefully before shaking his head, “I have not heard of them.”
Though he said that, he silently noted “Zhenwu Chunyang, Zixiao Huanghuang,” preparing to investigate later.
Unknown? That’s just right! Luxianbei thought, looking at Longxiang with an expression of pride mixed with disdain, as if being proud of her mentor.
Although the ancestor of Dachunyang Palace also lived in the Tang Dynasty, at that time, he probably had just quelled the urban legends around Zhenwu Mountain and constructed his Taoist temple not long ago; its scale was likely no bigger than the small Taoist temple where Qing Ji lived. If Longxiang had heard of it, that would be unusual!
It was like those big shots who were still tinkering in warehouses, garages, and rented rooms, with no one aware they would change the times in the future.
Seeing Luxianbei’s expression, Longxiang was briefly stunned before laughing unbothered, “No problem, heroes do not ask about origins! I find the conditions Miss Shen just mentioned acceptable; you two may follow me.”
After speaking, he turned around and led the way out of the small courtyard.
“Wait!” Watching his back, Luxianbei lightly called out.
“What else is there?” Longxiang turned back to ask.
“There’s also her!” Luxianbei pointed at Shen Baiwei in front of the small house, explaining, “I agreed to go with you, but my sister hasn’t agreed yet!”
“However, rest assured, just give me a moment to persuade her!”
“Moreover, we’re unlikely to return anytime soon; we both need to prepare, don’t we?”
Longxiang looked at Luxianbei, then at Shen Baiwei, and smiled, “Miss Shen has a point; I will wait outside.”
With that, he directly stepped outside the small courtyard.
Watching Longxiang’s figure disappear behind the wooden door of the small courtyard, Luxianbei finally sighed in relief, feeling like she had escaped a great burden.
Finally passed this hurdle of Nanling County King! Although the troublesome method of solving the problem was to create a new, larger trouble…
After slightly adjusting her state, Luxianbei looked at Shen Baiwei, leaned closer, and expressionlessly said, “I have good news and bad news; which do you want to hear first?”
After waiting a moment without a response from Shen Baiwei, she continued, “The good news is that Nanling County King will no longer trouble us.”
“And the bad news?” Shen Baiwei instinctively asked.
“The bad news is that we might have to march with him.”
Shen Baiwei, “???”
————————
Having left the simple small house’s yard, Longxiang returned to the winding alley, walking on the thin layer of fine sand on the ground. Not even twenty meters away, he was stopped by Hong Bian, who suddenly appeared from a corner.
He looked like a highwayman.
“How’s the situation? Have you educated those two ladies? Are they willing to turn over a new leaf?” Hong Bian asked anxiously.
Longxiang looked at Hong Bian, rubbed his nose, and said seriously, “The situation is more complicated than I imagined.”
“Complicated?” Hong Bian frowned. “Do they refuse to cooperate?”
“They are very cooperative, it’s just…” Longxiang hesitated, as if feeling guilty about something, exchanging a glance with Hong Bian before quickly looking away.
“Just?” Hong Bian asked. “Did you see that their cooperation was just for show and not genuine?”
“Not at all!” Longxiang shook his head, silently sighing, “From my observation, the more talkative Miss Shen is not a bad person and has her own ideas. She possesses a certain quality that does not yield to men, so she likely won’t do anything detrimental to Yumen Pass; it’s just…”
Hong Bian had great faith in Longxiang’s judgment. After hearing the first half of his words, he had felt somewhat reassured, but upon hearing “it’s just,” he became anxious again.
“Just that I impulsively invited them to join my campaign.”
As he spoke, Longxiang recounted Shen Baiwei’s true intentions that he had gleaned from her.
“Join the campaign? That’s good, but…” Halfway through his statement, Hong Bian realized, and his expression changed, exclaiming, “No! Absolutely not!”
While speaking, his expression changed as if he were walking down the road, noticing a house on fire and, realizing it was his own, was suddenly alarmed.
However, this wasn’t merely Hong Bian overreacting.
He had detected qualities in the two Shen ladies that were similar to Shaman Queen, which could bring chaos and destruction to this world.
On the battlefield, where situations could shift in an instant, having such two dangerous individuals by Longxiang’s side could potentially throw Yumen Pass and even this world into irrecoverable chaos at a critical moment.
How could he not panic?
“Alright, alright!” Longxiang patted Hong Bian’s shoulder, reassuring him, “I know what you’re worried about, but…”
Halfway through his sentence, he paused, slightly squinted his eyes, and suddenly transformed from a somewhat cynical state to a sharp one, like a sword honed through numerous strikes, causing one’s heart to tremble.
“But, with me here, even if they truly want to act improperly, it would be a path to d*ath.”
“Moreover…” Longxiang spread his hands, “When I invited them, I certainly considered the consequences. Didn’t I just say? If they harbor ill intentions, I will educate them properly.”
“While they only wish to be bystanders now, after seeing the actions of that b*stard Que Pijia, they might change their minds and side with us!”
Don’t they want to watch? Then let them watch properly! After witnessing the tragic state of countless lives, the difference between good and evil will be easily discerned from their reactions… Longxiang thought.
Hong Bian looked at Longxiang thoughtfully, brow furrowed. He had seen this aspect of Longxiang before when he first mentioned Xia Lianqing.
At that time, Longxiang knew Xia Lianqing was a spy but ignored his advice, not only failing to capture her immediately but also continuing to maintain contact, and even… developing to the point of sharing the same bed.
“Ah—!” After pondering for a moment, Hong Bian sighed deeply, “You always do this, liking to take risks.”
Just like when you saved me back then… Hong Bian supplemented in his heart.
Ignoring the risks, in an urgent war situation, bringing back a person who emitted strange spirit energy fluctuations from the desolate Gobi Desert was indeed an extremely dangerous act.
Not to mention, there might be a large number of pursuers arriving at any moment.
Seeing Hong Bian’s frown ease, Longxiang knew he had understood his intentions, raised his hand, and patted his shoulder, saying, “Can you help me? Get two sets of Longxiang Army armor and lead two horses over.”
Hong Bian, “…”
In the entire Yumen Pass, the only one who could make this generation’s holy monk lose composure continuously and treat him like a servant would probably be the beloved County King!
“Oh! And one more thing!” Just as Hong Bian was about to leave, Longxiang suddenly called out to him again.
“What is it?”
“Have you heard of ‘Zhenwu Chunyang, Zixiao Huanghuang’? Do you know where it comes from?” Longxiang said seriously, “This was mentioned by that Miss Shen and seems related to her teachings.”
Hong Bian thought for a moment, shook his head, “Never heard of it.”
——————
On the other side, inside the simple small house.
Although Shen Baiwei had been observing the interactions of Disaster and Longxiang from a distance, perhaps due to the influence of Longxiang’s frightening spirit energy fluctuations, she hadn’t clearly heard their complete conversation.
What she picked up was fragmented and insufficient to piece together the whole picture.
When Luxianbei came to her and explained the situation while informing her they would be marching with Nanling County King, she became quite distraught.
“I knew it! I knew it!” Shen Baiwei glared at Luxianbei, her chest rising and falling violently, and after a while, she couldn’t complete her sentence.
She had suspected the calamity had been silent for so long, perhaps plotting something big.
But she never expected the disaster would be so large, so unacceptable…
After all, it’s the God Realm’s ruler, Nanling County King, one of the main figures behind the whole incident at Yumen Pass!
Good news and bad news? This is like a doctor telling a patient’s family, “I’m sorry the surgery failed, but the good news is, the second coffin today is half price.”
“Don’t look at me with that kind of gaze…” Luxianbei said expressionlessly, “This is their territory, and they’ve come to us; do you think we have any room to refuse?”
“To refuse that County King, unless there is power to oppose him. The only one I can think of who could stand against him is Shaman Queen… Do you want to run to Shaman Queen?”
“I think that guy probably won’t be as easy to deal with as County King; going to him might get you captured and stripped n*ked to reward his soldiers.”
Although Luxianbei was advising her kindly, Shen Baiwei heard it as if she had activated the “marketing account selective presentation mode,” startling her.
What?! She still wanted to approach Shaman Queen?
That’s too terrifying!
Shen Baiwei knew she was being irrational, but she really struggled to control her emotions.
In fact, she used to be a very calm person until she encountered Disaster…
Disaster seemed to have some maddening magic.
Seeing that normal means could not persuade Shen Baiwei, Luxianbei pondered for a moment and decided to adopt a straightforward and rough approach.
“Forget it! Since you are unwilling to go with me, I will go myself.”
“However, as you know, I have a habit of meddling; if I happen to see something I don’t like and no one stops me, I might simply intervene.”
“Shen Baiwei, although I don’t want to harm your body out of impulse, the situation compels me… sigh, it’s pointless to say more, I’m off, take care, Miss Shen!”
After saying this, Luxianbei turned and strode towards the door.
Shen Baiwei initially thought this was just a provocation from Disaster, but as she watched his figure disappear behind the shabby wooden door, she realized that he seemed to truly be leaving. Coming to her senses, she bit her lip and hurried after him.
“…”
Upon further reflection, Disaster had a point!
With Nanling County King personally inviting, we truly had no room to refuse, and if we were merely bystanders, it wouldn’t have much impact on the past…
But if I don’t go to supervise and let Disaster run amok, that would be a huge issue…
Shen Baiwei thought as her pace involuntarily quickened.
However…
Once outside, passing through the winding, narrow alley outside the small thatched house and just arriving at the main street, she froze in place.
She saw Disaster and Longxiang, each leading a steed, squatting on the stone steps by the street, whispering as they spotted her approaching figure.
“See, I told you she would definitely come! I understand her so well!” Luxianbei said expressionlessly.
Longxiang nodded and praised, “Miss Shen is truly a master strategist!”
Shen Baiwei, “…”
For a moment, she felt as if she were looking at two dogs.
