Heaven-Collapsing Start [Quick Transmigration] - Chapter 32

Chapter 32

At this moment, Ji Liang wore a pure white mask on his face. The mask had no eyes, mouth, or nose, nor were there any straps tied behind his head; it appeared as though it had naturally grown onto his face.

<Faceless>

This was the yokai identity the original owner had designed for his disguise. Observing the aura around him, there was only a lingering, drawn-out demonic energy swirling about.

Under the cold moon, within the lonely ruined temple, clusters of eerie blue ghost-fire suddenly emerged, dancing in the air.

She Mengshan stepped down from the driverless carriage, his snake tail winding across the grass. Those silver-white scales seemed to shimmer under the moonlight.

He soon reached the ruined temple. Seeing the figure standing beneath the dilapidated Buddha statue, his gaze swept over the white mask on the other’s face and the faint demonic aura radiating from him. He raised an eyebrow slightly.

“What, do you still need to be this cautious when meeting me?”

Ji Liang turned around. The mask concealed his expression as he spoke in a cold, detached voice: “A lesson from the past.”

He was referring to the previous suspicion of being discovered with a yokai.

She Mengshan shrugged. “That matter was my oversight. I apologize.”

Then, he suddenly drew close to Ji Liang, his cold vertical pupils narrowing slightly.

“You didn’t come to find me. Why?”

He circled around Ji Liang, his long snake tail coiling as if to envelop Ji Liang in the center, yet he seemed to understand this man’s bottom line well, as he never once touched the hem of Ji Liang’s robes.

“You clearly could have come to find me the moment you regained your freedom, but you didn’t. Why?”

These two “whys” caused the atmosphere of the scene to stagnate.

After a long silence with no response, She Mengshan narrowed his eyes again, a hint of a chilling glint faintly leaking out.

“Or rather… Are you going to give up?”

The yokai near the capital, whether minor or great, were basically well-known to the humans. Therefore, when the original owner implemented his plans previously, wanting to trade with them carried a certain level of risk; after all, no one knew if some unexpected accident might occur midway.

Of course, with the original owner’s cautious and meticulous personality, he had naturally gone through countless trials and exclusions before selecting the best targets to exploit, and he never chose the same yokai for every strategic action.

But the silver-haired snake yokai before him was different: a loner, powerfully strong, of unknown origin, and not easily tempted. Thus, when the original owner reached an agreement with him, it basically laid the foundation for all current and future cooperation.

And the death of the Fifth Elder was merely the beginning.

At this moment, the dark clouds in the sky dispersed, and the cold moonlight spilled onto the ruined temple. Strands of light poured through the gaps in the broken roof, which, along with the flickering ghost-fire, briefly dispelled the surrounding darkness, revealing the outlines of some objects.

A silent and oppressive atmosphere flowed wordlessly through the small temple.

“Heh, if that’s really the case, then I’ll be truly disappointed.”

She Mengshan stared at the white mask, unable to glimpse a single trace of expression. Likely provoked by this person’s consistently indifferent attitude, he frowned and suddenly lunged forward, bringing them to an unprecedentedly close distance.

“And… don’t forget the promise between us.”

As he spoke, he abruptly reached out toward the pure white mask on the man’s face, seemingly wanting to peel it off and reveal the true face behind it.

However, in the next second, faster than his fingers was Ji Liang’s movement. He grabbed She Mengshan’s wrist in an instant, halting it in mid-air, unable to move a step further.

Ji Liang’s voice rang out from behind the mask, as cold and detached as the man himself.

“I have never forgotten the promise.”

He threw She Mengshan’s hand aside.

However, the silver-haired snake yokai, having had his hand tossed away, suddenly withdrew his murderous intent as if nothing had ever happened, a relaxed smile curling at the corners of his mouth.

“Hehe, that’s good then.”

He continued: “After all, in our agreement, if you fail to complete those tasks or regret it halfway…”

He tapped his sharp fingertip lightly against his own heart, smiling cruelly yet beautifully.

“…This place will belong to me.”

The original owner had used himself as the bargaining chip to reach a cooperative agreement with the silver-haired snake yokai.

…

Death held no terror for Ji Liang; compared to the endless, pathetic lives after death, it was truly insignificant.

Therefore, the silver-haired snake yokai’s threat was trivial to Ji Liang, but this meeting served to temporarily appease the other party.

Back at the Ji family’s main house, one day, the Chief Steward brought a servant dressed in common clothes to Ji Liang. The servant looked somewhat familiar; after a brief reflection, Ji Liang realized this person belonged to the original owner’s father’s side.

As expected, the moment the servant saw Ji Liang, he explained his purpose. It turned out he had been sent to ask Ji Liang to return to the branch family home, as the anniversary of the Lady’s death was approaching the mother of the original owner who had died because of him at birth.

Over the past ten-plus years, as the original owner’s achievements grew higher and now that he had even become the Family Head the minor branch family of his father, which was originally on the verge of ruin, had risen in status accordingly.

However, likely because his father could never move past the fact that the mother died because of him, the connection between the two parties had been sparse over these years, and the father had never once visited the main house.

Yet, in all these years, he had never mentioned having the original owner return to pay respects to his mother, so this time, it was worth pondering.

In the original owner’s hazy memories, his father’s tall figure always seemed very far away. Every time the small child ran over happily, he only received his father’s cold expression, not understanding why his father wouldn’t hug him.

When he grew older, he gradually understood: it turned out he had caused his mother’s death, so it was only natural for his father to blame him.

In his small childhood, he felt not a single bit of warmth from familial bonds.

It could be said that behind every hateful person, there is likely a tragic side. Do not advise others to be kind without having endured their suffering.

The attendants soon packed the travel necessities. At an hour when the sky was just beginning to brighten and the morning mist had not yet fully dispersed, the carriage carrying Ji Liang set off from the main house.

The morning mist permeated the mountain forests, and the temperature was somewhat low. When they were halfway through the journey, a fine drizzle began to fall from the grey sky.

The carriage hurried through the drizzle, accompanied by a squad of strong warriors wearing sharp swords.

By evening, the weather cleared, and the glow of the setting sun spilled over the earth, staining half the sky red.

Stepping through the lingering rays of the sunset, the carriage drove into a town and slowly came to a stop in front of a residence that was both strange and familiar.

It was “strange” because he hadn’t returned in over ten years; the surrounding environment seemed to have been renovated. Though there was some familiarity, it was mostly strange.

“Since you’ve come, enter.”

The original owner’s father was still a man in his prime, though his temples had grown more white hair than before, and his face seemed to have aged significantly.

Seeing Ji Liang, his expression remained unchanged, appearing much like the version in memory. In contrast, the old servant standing two steps behind him had a look of obvious joy on his face.

“The Young Master is back… oh no, I should now address the Young Master as the Lord Family Head.”

The old servant was the one who used to serve the young original owner. Ji Liang felt a slight stir in his heart; he turned toward the old servant and nodded gently.

“Qiuniang’s death anniversary is the day after tomorrow. Until then, you will temporarily reside in your old courtyard.”

“Yes, Father.”

Without needing an attendant to lead him, the elegantly poised white-clad figure left directly, disappearing around the corner. One could still vaguely see the shadow of the child he once was, yet he had now grown to be exceptionally outstanding.

Ji Yugeng’s gaze finally betrayed a hint of complexity resembling both gratification and a sigh.

The original owner’s courtyard was exactly the same as it was in his childhood. All the items and decorations, even some childhood toys, remained clearly in their original places without being moved or lost.

However, after the passage of ten-plus years, there wasn’t a speck of dust on them, indicating that someone frequently wiped them down.

“Every year, this old servant wondered if the Young Master might return.”

Leading a few attendants, the old servant said to Ji Liang with a smile, “Welcome home, Young Master.”

Tragically, however, this home was as good as non-existent to the original owner.

Ji Liang nodded slightly and said, “Thank you for your hard work.”

“It’s no hard work at all. Seeing the Young Master is what makes this old servant happy.”

Though he knew in his heart that the Young Master’s status was different from the past and was now extraordinarily noble, the old servant still habitually addressed him as Young Master, just as he did in his childhood.

Ji Liang didn’t mind the form of address. After all, one thing was more important: what was Ji Yugeng’s purpose in having him return, besides paying respects to the original owner’s deceased mother?

The answer to this question would likely surface before long.