Breaking Army - Chapter 11

While Xiao Chen was enjoying the Lantern Festival in the mortal realm with carefree abandon, Xiang Zhi and Geng Xie, who had infiltrated the Heavens, had to rush back to their posts. For two youths who had lived in total freedom for a thousand years, they were finally experiencing the bitter exhaustion of a hard day’s work.

Mortals release river lanterns and sky lanterns to pray for blessings, but those sky lanterns never reach the Hall of Clouds. Even immortals have their own troubles.

The guards of the Crown Prince’s palace worked in shifts. When it was Geng Xie’s turn to enter the inner hall, it was already night. Ci Shu sat alone in the study by candlelight, a solitary figure against the stillness. Geng Xie stood there for a moment before speaking up with a distinct lack of protocol, “Your Highness, you’ve been busy all day. Aren’t you going to rest?”

Ci Shu didn’t scold him for his lack of manners. Without looking up, he replied in a gentle voice, “You’ve only just ascended, so you might not be used to it. Celestial beings do not need food, nor do they need sleep.”

“Look at you,” Geng Xie countered. “Even if the body doesn’t tire, doesn’t the spirit get weary? Celestial beings are still people, aren’t they? Don’t they have the same seven emotions, six desires, troubles, and pains?”

Ci Shu let out a light laugh. Geng Xie grew even bolder. “The Emperor pushes so much business onto you brothers, why doesn’t he just abdicate and let someone else take over?”

“Watch your tongue,” Ci Shu finally looked up from his scrolls to warn him. There wasn’t much blame in his tone. After those two cautionary words, his voice trailed off into a melancholy sigh. “His Majesty is simply too tired. Since Mother left, his heart and strength… sigh.”

Thinking of something, Ci Shu whispered, “The current Taibai Star Lord is exactly like the one from years ago.”

Geng Xie dropped his playful act and stood up straight, his tone turning unusually serious. “I’ve read the records since coming to the Heavens. There is no such thing as reincarnation for Star Lords. No matter how much the current Taibai resembles the old one, he isn’t the same person. Whether a Life Star births a new Star Lord after one returns to the universe is entirely up to fate.”

“I know,” Ci Shu murmured. “Star Lords are born from the stars, and the Guardian Goddess was born from the Great Chasm. Taibai and Mother both sacrificed themselves to the seal. Now that a Star Lord has been reborn, if there is even a sliver of hope, His Majesty might be waiting, waiting for the Goddess to return. Cheng Feng and I are the same…”

At the intersection of Heavens, Demons, and Ghosts, there lay a Great Chasm where turbid resentment gathered. At the north and south ends of the chasm were the eyes of a massive sealing array. The Guardian Goddess was born from this chasm, tasked with protecting the seal. Three thousand years ago, the Heavenly Emperor met the Goddess at the seal and fell in love. She became the Empress, the mother of Ci Shu and Cheng Feng.

A thousand years ago, the seal fluctuated. If the turbid resentment had been left unchecked, the world would have suffered. The northern and southern eyes of the array cracked. The Goddess used her flesh and soul to stabilize the Southern Seal, while the Taibai of that era sacrificed his life as a Star Lord to stabilize the Northern Seal, calming the chaos.

The Goddess was born from the chasm, so her divine power could naturally return to the seal. However, no one else had a fate heavy enough to match, which was why the original Taibai had to sacrifice himself. Because of this, Geng Xie, who was far away in the Star Realm at the time, had no favorable feelings toward the Heavens. The seal’s fluctuation had been caused by some traitorous element within the Heavenly Realm, yet it had cost Taibai his life. Now that Xiao Chen had also run into trouble in the Heavens, Geng Xie had made up his mind: even if Zi Wei sent a whole circle of people to stop him, he was going to see the Heavens for himself.

After arriving, he saw that while there were many incompetents, the Crown Prince… was at least decent.

After speaking, Ci Shu shook his head with a smile. “Why am I telling you all this?”

“I have a terrible memory. If you have grievances, you can pour them out to me. If you don’t want me to remember, I’ll forget it the moment I turn around.” Geng Xie reached out and physically closed the scroll in front of the Prince. “You just said it yourself, even the Emperor gets tired. Since you want to share his burden, you have to take care of yourself. Now, go rest.”

Strangely enough, Ci Shu hadn’t felt tired before, but talking to Geng Xie had diverted his focus. Looking at the closed scroll on the desk, he actually couldn’t bring himself to open it again. Was he truly feeling heart-weary?

Regardless, rest was indeed necessary. Ci Shu stood up. “You must be careful when you’re in front of the hall. Taking such liberties tonight, if some of those civil officials saw you, they’d be sure to stab you in the back with their words.”

Geng Xie laughed loudly. His expression was one of total indifference, showing no fear of being reported. “Understood. I only act like this in front of Your Highness.”

Ci Shu laughed too. Geng Xie’s personality was very much to his liking. The man possessed a free-spirited, uninhibited nature that Ci Shu lacked and deeply admired. Being around Geng Xie was comfortable. He feigned a serious expression. “Mmh, being so insolent only in front of me is bold enough. Come outside the hall and have a drink with me. The Acacia flowers in the courtyard are in full bloom, it would be a pity not to appreciate them.”

Acacia flowers were popular in the Heavens and could be seen everywhere. However, Geng Xie had just learned that the poison in Xiao Chen’s system contained Acacia. He kept his expression neutral. “As you command, Your Highness.”

Fine scenery and fine wine made for a wonderful time, but unfortunately, Xiao Chen, wandering the mortal realm, had no one to share a drink with. Given Mu Qing’s low alcohol tolerance, Xiao Chen didn’t dare let him touch a drop.

The mortal realm had the most living creatures among the six realms. Though human lifespans were short, they were endless, passing knowledge down through generations. Through their own way of living, humans had built a flourishing prosperity.

The best time to see the lanterns of the festival was naturally at night. Mingxiao City was a sea of people, bustling and vibrant. There were many types of lanterns: large lantern floats pushed through the streets, sky lanterns that could be flown into the air, and river lanterns that drifted with the current.

Looking at the sky lanterns rising into the night, Xiao Chen was reminded of the sky in the Underworld. There were even more lamps there, and he wondered if they also carried the prayers of those who sent them.

Tonight’s market was called the “Xiao Market.” Besides various lanterns, there were many stalls selling painted fans, sachets, and masks, which were also very popular. Xiao Chen and Mu Qing were both too handsome. Along the way, they had already been pelted with sachets by many young women and men, leaving them both smelling incredibly fragrant. When people spoke to them before giving a sachet, they could politely decline, but some just took advantage of the festive chaos to toss one without needing a response. On a night like this, objects carrying heartfelt intent couldn’t just be thrown away. They tied the sachet strings together, otherwise, they wouldn’t have been able to carry them all.

As they walked past a mask stall with their string of sachets, Xiao Chen suddenly stopped Mu Qing.

Mu Qing turned around and was caught off guard as a mask was pressed onto his face.

He instinctively reached up to steady the mask, looking at Xiao Chen in confusion. Though it was sudden, he didn’t move to take it off.

The mask Xiao Chen had chosen for Mu Qing was a half-mask, covering the upper half of his face. Xiao Chen looked at his exposed lips and jawline, carefully recalling Rong Yuan’s appearance, only to realize with regret that it was hard to compare, after all, even their heights were different.

However… after Mu Qing put on the half-mask, Xiao Chen finally remembered where his sense of familiarity had come from.

“The way you look in a mask reminds me of an old acquaintance.”

They followed the riverbank to the lower reaches. There were fewer people here as most were releasing lanterns upstream. The water’s surface flickered with lantern light, but the bank was perfectly peaceful. Mu Qing and Xiao Chen sat down by the shore. After setting down the sachets, Mu Qing’s hands were finally free to “speak.”

“I look like him?”

“Actually, not really.” It was just that their builds were similar, and the colorful mask gave him a momentary flicker of a distant memory. Xiao Chen smiled faintly. “I don’t know what he looked like. That kid was always in a mask too, and he loved wearing a ghost mask, he never showed his face. His temper was completely different from yours. He was like a wild cub, biting anyone he could catch. He was fierce to enemies and bared his teeth at his own people too.”

Mu Qing gave a slight smile. “Sounds like someone who didn’t know any better.”

Xiao Chen stared at the river. The night ripples were illuminated by the lanterns, making the water clear. His gaze turned distant as he reminisced. “But he was talented. I felt that if someone taught him well, he would surely become a great man. So, I took him under my wing and kept him by my side. It was only for three years, not much time together, and it was so long ago. If I hadn’t met you, I probably wouldn’t have had the chance to think of him.”

Those were the days when he led armies to suppress chaos across the three realms. The brat in the ghost mask had appeared out of nowhere. Judging by his build and voice, he wasn’t very old, yet he was almost peerless in the army. His spiritual energy was gold, a proper citizen of the Heavens. He was covered in thorns, full of distrust for everything around him, and he fought with a vicious, bloodthirsty intensity.

When Xiao Chen had grabbed him by the scruff of the neck to pull him back, the boy had been so blinded by bloodlust with the enemy in front of him that he had ignored a hidden arrow.

“Kid.”

Xiao Chen had cleaved through the monster before them with a single strike. Blood slid down his precious sword. Both his blade and his robes were unstained, forming a sharp contrast with the wild boy’s blood-soaked black robes. The ghost-masked boy stared blankly as Xiao Chen stood before him. The Star Lord didn’t turn around, but his voice reached the boy’s ears clearly through the din of the battlefield.

“I can see you want to live. Why do you rush to your death the moment you pick up a sword?”

Slaughter should be for the sake of the Way, to protect all living things. It is not a path of mindless violence, but a means to seek protection. That was the path of the Broken Star.

The gods sit on high, yet they understand the suffering of the common people.

The wild boy looked down at his blood-stained hands, feeling for the first time that they were dirty. He tried desperately to wipe them on his robes, but he couldn’t get them clean. His clothes were already soaked through with blood, there wasn’t a single clean spot left.

The sounds of fighting died down as the battle ended. He remained standing there, staring fixedly at his hands. Then he heard a sigh. A pair of pristine hands appeared before his eyes, the fingertips glowing with light. With a gentle tap, spiritual energy flowed through him, and the bloodstains peeled away from his body. After a single sweep, he was as clean as new.

The boy was still dazed when Xiao Chen gave him a light smack on the back of the head. “Spiritual energy isn’t just for killing. Don’t tell me no one taught you that? We’ve passed through so many waterless places these past few days, and you never once used your energy to clean yourself?”

the cub’s lips moved, his voice as quiet as a mosquito. “It’s not that…”

Xiao Chen: “What?”

He suddenly raised his volume: “I did wash!”

Since the battle had just ended, most people were exhausted. Hearing this, they all looked over and burst into hearty laughter. Joy in the army was often that simple.

“What’s this? The ghost mask is actually a kid who doesn’t bathe?”

“I was wondering why he huddles in the corner every day and snaps at anyone who gets close. Turns out he just doesn’t want us to smell him!”

Xiao Chen laughed along with them. Once he had his fill of amusement, he said, “Alright, alright, stop teasing. If you push him too far, the wolf cub will bite.” Xiao Chen patted the boy’s head. “Kid, do you want to stay by my side and let me clear some of that hostility out of you?”

To practice martial arts, one must first learn to be calm. Or rather, because one must face slaughter, one must work harder than others to hold onto their original heart.

Mu Qing’s dark eyes reflected the light from the river lanterns. He gestured gently, “If you can’t remember it, it probably isn’t worth remembering.”

Xiao Chen rested his chin on his hand. After the trip down memory lane, he curled his lips into a smile. “He was quite interesting. I wonder what kind of adult he’s grown into now.”

However, up until the day the ghost mask vanished without a word, Xiao Chen never knew his real name. He called himself “Ghost Face,” a name that was obviously made up on the spot just to have something to say.

Three years isn’t a short time for a mortal, but Mu Qing thought to himself that three years was indeed too short. Despite being together day and night, they only had that little bit of time.

As the crowd thinned, the night wind grew colder. Carrying the moisture from the river, the chill seeped into the bones. Xiao Chen suddenly covered his mouth and turned his head to cough twice.

Hearing this, Mu Qing rushed to pat his back. Xiao Chen waved him off. “Cough, cough… it’s nothing.”

When Xiao Chen looked over, Mu Qing hurriedly gestured, “It’s cold at night. Let’s go back so you don’t catch a cold.”

“I’m not that… cough, cough!”

Xiao Chen had absolutely no realistic sense of his current physical condition. That poison had nearly killed him, and even after being cured, his cultivation had vanished. His very foundations had been shaken, yet he hadn’t rested at all before running from the Underworld to the mortal realm. He was so used to being powerful that the concepts of “frail” or “sick” had never even entered his mind.

Being easygoing is a virtue, but being too careless can be a problem.

It was just a couple of coughs. Xiao Chen steadied his breathing. “Aren’t you going to release a lantern and make a wish?”

Whether it was river lanterns or sky lanterns, they all carried the hopes of the people. Mu Qing shook his head. “I have already made my wish to the gods.”

Xiao Chen: “Oh? What wish? Tell me, is it for family peace, or wealth and status, or a match made in heaven?”

It wasn’t just mortals. Even immortals, demons, and ghosts, any being with a heart would find their desires and consciousness eventually flowing into the same river. The various states of existence all belonged to the living.

Mu Qing smiled faintly. “If I say it out loud, it won’t come true.”

There was such a saying? But if you don’t say it, how will the gods hear? Even if I wanted to help you, I would have to know what you want.

Mu Qing added, “Since we aren’t releasing lanterns, let’s head back. We’ve seen enough of the excitement.”

He hadn’t forgotten to urge Xiao Chen back to the inn. But indeed, they had seen enough. Xiao Chen stood up. “Fine, let’s go.”

On the way back to the inn, Mu Qing seemed to have a delayed realization. After a long silence, he asked, “Brother, what about you? What is your wish?”

Xiao Chen couldn’t help but tease, “What, if I say I have one, are we going to turn back and release a lantern?” This kid was a bit slow.

Mu Qing seemed embarrassed by his own lack of consideration and gestured that he would certainly accompany him back. Xiao Chen slyly used Mu Qing’s own words against him. “I already made a wish to the gods and it was granted, so there is no need to release a lantern.”

What he wanted, he would earn for himself. He had once wished for a golden age of peace and an end to war, so he led armies to stop the chaos. Now, he simply wanted to go home. That could only happen once his karmic debt was cleared. Asking others was useless.

Furthermore, the prosperity of the people relied on their own hard work. The sky lanterns were merely a vessel for their hopes. Tomorrow’s life would be forged by their own industrious hands. The thing worth thanking wasn’t a sky lantern, but themselves.

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