After Provoking the Mad Beautiful Deity - Chapter 19

Filth

As the moon dipped below the willow branches, two figures drifted down from the treetops just as Siming returned.

“Strange, truly strange. How is it that I saw nothing? Could it be that my spiritual power is too weak?” Siming was utterly flustered, meeting their probing gazes. “This humble immortal saw nothing at all, Exalted One. How did you manage to perceive it?”

Hongchen massaged her forehead, sighing in amazement while not forgetting to mock: “You celestial beings truly never lack for talent.”

“I suspect the spell on those two was specifically designed to counter Siming. After all, only Siming would bother with the trivial matters of mortal fates.” Yanlai spoke these words while her gaze settled on Hongchen. “You remove their restraints.”

“Why should I be the one?” Hongchen crossed her arms, adopting an unreasonable posture. “Make her say that my spiritual power is weak, that I’m useless, and then I’ll agree.”

Siming’s eyes widened, her cheeks twitching slightly as she rolled up her sleeves to summon her spiritual sword. “Let’s test then, who exactly is useless here?”

Yanlai gave a light cough. “Siming, just say it. You can’t defeat her.”

“Who is she?” Siming lowered her hands, scrutinizing the charming young girl with confusion. But after just one glance, Yanlai stepped in front of her, shielding her like a protective elder unwilling to let Siming look further. “My disciple.”

“Your disciple? You’ve taken another disciple?” Siming suddenly recalled the young disciple mentioned in Yanlai’s letters many years ago. Puzzled, she asked, “Did you take another one, or is this the same one?”

“I had a disciple?” Yanlai was shocked. “Then do you remember what that disciple looked like, or what her name was?”

“How would I know? You only mentioned it in your letters, never even telling me the name.” Siming made a helpless gesture. Ten thousand years ago, she was merely a lower immortal, secluded in cultivation with little opportunity to visit Phoenix Mountain. By the time she emerged from seclusion, the great cataclysm had occurred, and the Phoenix Clan had been nearly wiped out by the Demon Lord Hongyan, leaving only Yanlai who had been in secluded cultivation.

Back then, she had felt relieved that her friend had survived the calamity.

Yanlai shot her a sharp glance. “Just say it already.”

“You tell me to say it, so I should? Let’s fight first.” Siming refused to yield, thinking her opponent looked no more than seventeen or eighteen, how could she possibly be a match?

“You’re so troublesome.” Hongchen cursed under her breath, forming a hand seal. A flash of light enveloped Siming, and in an instant, a rope bound her tightly.

Siming stomped her feet in frustration. “You ambushed me!”

Yanlai grew impatient. “If you keep this up, the Heavenly Emperor will learn about your mistakes.”

Only then did Siming relent, her face crestfallen as she muttered, “My spiritual power is weak, I’m useless.”

Hongchen snorted twice, gathering spiritual energy at her fingertips. With a flick of her sleeve, she dispelled the restraint on the Empress, a barrier suddenly shattered. Siming’s eyes bulged. “It truly is an immortal root, but, but who is she?”

Inside the hall, the Empress sat alone while the Emperor gazed at her palace maid, holding the maid’s hand. Yanlai covered her eyes, but Hongchen watched with great interest until suddenly, her vision blurred, a white veil covered her eyes.

This is going too far.

The three of them stood invisible in the Empress’s bedchamber, witnessing the scene and covering their eyes. Siming took the opportunity to probe the Empress’s soul.

After several attempts, she still found nothing. Crying about her own uselessness, she asked Yanlai, “Can’t you figure it out either?”

“No, we can only tell she’s a fragment of a soul. As for whose soul, I don’t know.” Yanlai told the truth. “I thought you, as the Fate Scribe, would have arranged this.”

“The restriction on her must have been placed by someone of high status, whose cultivation surpasses mine. There are only a few such individuals; we can investigate them one by one to find out.” Siming gazed into the night, her brows furrowed with worry. “Doing this violates celestial laws. I truly can’t fathom who would go to such lengths.”

Hongchen flicked her sleeve, covering the white veil, and continued watching the emperor flirt with her wife’s maid. The empress sat to the side, holding a teacup with a calm expression, as if she saw nothing. Hongchen secretly formed a hand seal, intending to teach the emperor a lesson, but Yanlai grabbed her hand. “Don’t act recklessly. This is the human emperor.”

“I know. Just like the Heavenly Emperor, full of lust and audacity,” Hongchen quipped with a laugh. “I notice the empress has a demeanor similar to yours. Could she be a fragment of your soul?”

“You’re the one missing a soul, not me,” Yanlai retorted, releasing her wrist and clasping her hands behind her back, her expression growing serious. “I suspect the empress is a strand of your soul.”

“My soul? Then the imperial consort must be the Heavenly Empress. The Heavenly Empress likes me, so she stole a strand of my soul and descended to the mortal realm to make amends with me.” Hongchen rambled nonsense, leaving Yanlai utterly exasperated, wishing she could cover that incessantly chattering mouth.

Siming suddenly turned to the two of them. “Do you know the Heavenly Empress has been in seclusion for many years?”

“Shut up! I don’t even know the Heavenly Empress. Don’t pin this on me,” Hongchen took a step back, hurriedly distancing herself. “What does this have to do with us? You’re worrying over nothing. It’s dark time to go home and sleep.”

Siming wore a pitiful expression. “I have to figure out the empress’s identity. If the Heavenly Emperor finds out, I’m dead.”

Hongchen remained expressionless, pulling Yanlai to leave and get some sleep. Just as she turned, a low murmur came from behind, making her freeze. Immediately, a pair of hands covered her ears as Yanlai urged, “Let’s go back.”

The human emperor embraced the palace maid, while the empress sat motionless like a wooden doll, staring blankly into the void, her eyelashes trembling slightly but never blinking.

In the next moment, Hongchen grabbed Siming by the neck and dragged her out of the imperial palace. “Are you fucking deprived of love or something? What kind of lousy fate is this? We might as well kill the empress now.”

Siming was terrified, but Yanlai restrained the furious Hongchen, her face filled with pity. “This wasn’t her doing.”

“Are all you immortals a bunch of weirdos who enjoy watching others suffer?” Hongchen fumed, her hair standing on end as a red glow enveloped her body. The glow transformed into flames and rushed toward Siming.

Siming could only defend herself, but the gap in their cultivation was vast. She was suppressed to the point of gasping for breath. “Great Deity, Great Deity, where did you pick up this disciple?”

Yanlai, still injured and unable to fully recover, intervened without hesitation to stop Hongchen. Standing between them, her spiritual power depleted, Hongchen’s flames instantly engulfed her. Yet, the fire did not harm her.

Shocked, even Hongchen froze in place. Yanlai stood bathed in flames, completely unscathed. Hongchen stared blankly at her own hands, then suddenly raised them, meeting Yanlai’s cold, vacant gaze. In an instant, Yanlai extinguished the light on her body.

The source of Hongchen’s fire spells was the Phoenix Flame within her.

The clan records hadn’t lied she had indeed taken on a disciple and passed on her Phoenix Flame. Taking a deep breath, the girl stood under the night sky, once again clad in a red dress, her bare feet surrounded by blooming red flowers, her face flushed with color.

At that moment, Siming took the chance to flee. “I’ll go back and investigate. Farewell for now.”

Hongchen snapped back to attention, hiding her fire-wielding hands behind her back as she smiled at her. “My flames actually couldn’t harm you.”

“Do you know why?” Yanlai didn’t look up, her gaze fixed on the red flowers beneath her feet. The corner of her lips twitched slightly as she muttered self-deprecatingly, “I once took on a disciple named Hongyan.”

The night was profoundly dark, thick as spilled ink.

She spoke slowly. Hearing this, Hongchen brought her hidden hands forward, examining them over and over, carefully pondering before falling into silence.

Just then, decadent music drifted from the hall. Frowning, she set aside other concerns, forming a hand seal to gather spiritual energy and cast a protective barrier around the empress, shielding her from obscene sights and sounds.

She turned and left.

Yanlai glanced back at the bedchamber before following in Hongchen’s footsteps.

Upon returning to their quarters, the attending palace maids, who had been waiting for some time, had prepared hot water and fresh clothes. They approached Hongchen first, asking, “Miss, would you like to bathe and cleanse yourself?”

Hongchen nodded and followed the maids away. Yanlai watched her retreating figure, her heart feeling heavy.

The maids led Yanlai into the hall to serve her tea. With only one bathing chamber available and Hongchen using it, Yanlai had no choice but to wait.

During this interval, the maids brought hot tea and pastries. Having practiced inedia for years, Yanlai had no appetite for the snacks and idly rearranged them on the plate while the maids stood by quietly.

Having endured millennia of solitude, she was accustomed to loneliness. Yet in the days since she began following Hongchen, though exhausted, she had to admit there was much more liveliness.

Leaning lazily against the round-backed chair, she felt the hall grow inexplicably cold.

The boundless night brought a chilling stillness to the room.

When Hongchen returned, Yanlai remained seated where she was. As Hongchen approached, Yanlai lifted her head, her eyes shimmering like spring water. She smiled. “You’re back.”

Fresh from her bath, Hongchen had changed into a silk robe, a white inner garment layered with a red sheer outer coat. The contrast of red and white was striking. Her long hair was tied up high with a wooden hairpin, the elegant updo lending her a refined grace quite unlike her usual untamed demeanor.

“Would you like to go wash up?” Hongchen asked.

Yanlai shook her head, prompting Hongchen to immediately frown in disapproval. “Go bathe. Everything is ready.”

“I don’t care for the water of the mortal realm,” Yanlai refused again.

“You’re so troublesome. What’s wrong with mortal water? Will it poison you? So finicky.” Hongchen sat down, pondering for a moment before asking, “How about water from the demon realm?”

Yanlai couldn’t help but laugh. “Why do you indulge me like this?”

“Aren’t we going to become cultivation partners? What’s wrong with indulging you?” Seeing Yanlai’s puzzled expression, Hongchen earnestly explained, “Among humans, betrothed couples are affectionate before marriage. Naturally, I’d give you whatever you want.”

Yanlai: “…”

“After humans marry, the men show their true colors. Look at the emperor, childhood sweethearts, tsk tsk, disgusting.” Hongchen rambled on, a hint of a smirk playing on her lips, her face full of disdain. “Don’t worry, after we become cultivation partners, I’ll still treat you well.”

“Hongchen, what if? I was your master? Would you still want to become cultivation partners with me?” Yanlai suddenly spoke, her gaze cold.

Hongchen raised an eyebrow. With her fair complexion and stunning silk robes, she smiled, a trace of mockery curling her lips. “When I set my mind to something, there is nothing I cannot achieve.”