Love & Redemption
Chapter 151: Volume 4 Hua Meng Sudden Split - 8 Spiritual Beast (6)

Chapter 151: Volume 4 Hua Meng Sudden Split Chapter 8 Spiritual Beast (6)

Xuanji returned to her guest room, her heart brimming with satisfaction. Yu Sifeng had already packed up, sitting by the window, drinking tea. She pounced on him joyfully and exclaimed, "Si Feng, listen to me! Tengshe said he’s willing to help me now! The method you taught me really worked!"

Yu Sifeng grunted, a mischievous smile on his face as he said, "Just as I thought, a beast is a beast after all, and cannot be treated like a human."

Seeing that Xuanji had been crawling in and out from under the table, getting her head covered in dust, he couldn’t help but say, "Clean yourself up a bit, and once those four constables have finished packing up, we’ll be on our way."

She did as told, washing her face, and as she looked at herself in the copper mirror, she saw the sorry state of her face. Her eyebrows had been burnt into a disarray, completely gone on the left, and only a small part remaining on the right, looking terribly unsightly. Her face fell, and she mourned, "So ugly... will my eyebrows grow back?"

Yu Sifeng leaned over to take a look and could hardly suppress a laugh. But seeing her pitiful, wistful eyes, he managed to hold it back and patted her head, saying, "Don’t worry, I’ll draw them for you."

Xuanji’s eyes immediately lit up, and she said excitedly, "Si Feng, you can draw eyebrows, too? I don’t even know how!"

He mumbled a half-hearted response, remembering how Liu Yihuan used to go on and on about women’s business in front of him every day. Not just eyebrows, but hairdos, pearl hairpins, clothes, and so on—he spoke with such relish. Later, when Si Feng didn’t understand, he pestered him to give him ink and brush and personally demonstrate. Such a fine young man he was, innocent and pure, and yet had been loaded with all these nonsensical matters without reason.

Seeing Xuanji’s expectant look, he smiled softly, took some water, and prepared the verdigris. Now, it seemed he should be thankful to Brother Liu for his previous teachings, which were proving to be useful. He dipped the brush into the verdigris with care, lifted her chin with one hand, and studied her face closely.

She had an oval face, so the short and thick eyebrows that she had were not quite suitable. Her wide brow and full forehead were the signs of a broad mind. Thus, the curved crescent moon eyebrows would be the most appropriate. This was his first time trying it on a girl, and he couldn’t help but feel nervous, his wrist trembling slightly as he lightly traced a beautiful arch over her bare brows.

"It tickles, Si Feng," Xuanji dared not move, yet the touch of the brush tip on her face was unbearably ticklish, and she couldn’t help but grimace.

"Shh, it’s almost done, don’t move." After comparing both sides for quite some time, he added a few more strokes.

Xuanji suddenly remembered something and said with a laugh, "Once, early in the morning, when I went to see father and mother, I also saw father drawing mother’s eyebrows! But he wasn’t as skilled as you are."

It turned out that eyebrow drawing was a joy shared between husband and wife, not to be spoken of in front of others. Xuanji, unaware of these nuances, spoke innocently.

Yu Sifeng’s face turned red, and he said hastily, "I...I’m just—I’m just helping out, you’ll have to do it yourself next time!" In his haste, his wrist shook, and he drew a weird long line on her face. He quickly took a cotton cloth dipped in water to wipe it off.

"If you can paint, why should I bother doing it myself?" Xuanji touched his face, and said with a laugh, "It’s so warm, are you embarrassed?"

Yu Sifeng lightly slapped her hand away, and carefully drew her eyebrows again. This time they were symmetrical, perfect crescent moon eyebrows. After looking from side to side for a while, he finally put down the brush, satisfied, and said with a smile, "Take a look—how is it?"

Xuanji looked into the copper mirror and, indeed, they were flawlessly drawn, almost identical to her original shape. She was so delighted that she hugged his arm, saying incessantly, "You are so talented! Much better than when father paints for mother! Mother always says father is clumsy!"

"I mean... let’s not talk about this anymore..." Yu Sifeng’s face turned red as if it were about to explode, trying to change the topic, but then someone knocked twice on the door. Both of them turned their heads to see Tengshe leaning against the doorway with a mischievous grin, humming with laughter, "Had enough affection? Those constables are getting quite anxious. If you’re not done being affectionate, make sure to close the door. Never heard of ’what the eye doesn’t see, the heart doesn’t grieve over’?"

The two hurriedly stood up, their faces red, and went downstairs with their bags.

Although Xuanji and Yu Sifeng had resolved the strange fire incident, without tangible evidence, they certainly couldn’t push Tengshe in front of the Chief Constable and say: "This is the arsonist." Even if the Chief Constable were willing to believe them, exposing his identity in the mortal world was never a good thing for Tengshe.

It seemed that the reward of 600 taels of silver was out of reach now, and they would also have to return the fifty taels of deposit money.

The thought of being penniless again immediately caused Xuanji’s face to fall. Constable A, seeing their gloom, spoke to comfort them, "Miss and young master, don’t worry. We are willing to testify for you both that it was you who quelled the strange fire. Besides, this young master..." He looked somewhat fearfully at Tengshe, who was squatting beside them, "This young master is also a witness, having seen both of your divine might that night with his own eyes. The Chief Constable is not an uncompassionate person, even if he doesn’t believe, we will ensure that the deposit belongs to the two of you."

Yu Sifeng said with a smile, "Thank you, brothers, for your troubles."

The constables had long admired their ability to ride on clouds, and seeing Yu Sifeng so amiable and cultured, they couldn’t help but want to get to know him better and chat. Xuanji went over and tugged at Tengshe’s silver hair, ignoring his annoyed retaliation, and whispered, "Could you at least figure out some evidence to prove that we calmed Tengshe’s Fire?"

Tengshe rolled his eyes at her, snapped, "No! Don’t bother me with such trivial matters!"

Xuanji frowned and said, "Fine, then, when it’s time to give back the silver in our possession, we’ll be penniless and won’t be able to afford delicious food—you better not complain!"

Tengshe glared at her, a headache forming at the thought of the delicious food from the mortal world. That was his main reason for following Xuanji; now even that was gone, why bother accompanying her anymore?

"Aren’t you supposed to be the War God General?" he started chuckling maliciously again, "Summoning a bit of wind and rain to refresh the scorched land should be easy for you, right?"

Xuanji wondered aloud, "How would I know how to summon it? Besides... controlling the weather seems to be the duty of the cloud and rain masters, why would I know how to do that!"

"Aren’t you a General? Can’t even handle such a minor task?"

"You’re calling me for such a trifle, are Divine Beasts just freeloading now?"

"Pah! You’re the one who freeloads! Today, I’ll let you witness the power of Tengshe! Move aside!"

Tengshe’s fiery temper was immediately ignited. He jumped up, turned around, and walked away, his voice cold: "Hold your jaw in place, lest it falls off later!"

"Eh? This gentleman?" The constables saw Tengshe quickly walking away, soon disappearing without a trace, and couldn’t help but be greatly astonished.

"Don’t mind him, just throwing a tantrum," Xuanji coughed twice, walked over, put on a "genuine immortal" demeanor, and said: "Although the strange fire is quelled, the land here is scorched and damaged. Therefore, I will summon rain soon to moisten it, so next year trees can grow and grass can flourish, preventing this place from becoming a barren mountain."

The constables, hearing that she possessed such abilities, admired her so much that they practically wanted to prostrate themselves, repeatedly saying: "That’s a great kindness! Is the female immortal about to cast the spell? Do you need dog blood or candles?"

Xuanji shook her head, "Dog blood and candles are just folk spells. I don’t need those. With a mere thought, sweet dew will naturally arrive. Just wait for it."

Yu Sifeng knew she didn’t possess such abilities and quietly pulled her aside, whispering: "Who can summon the wind and rain? Be careful not to burst your bluff."

Xuanji laughed: "It’s not me, it’s Tengshe. He said to hold our jaws, let’s see how he summons the wind and rain."

Yu Sifeng was skeptical. Tengshe was of the fire element, and summoning wind and rain was far from his capabilities. Even in Heaven, calling upon Wind Deity and Rain Master was no small matter, and if it alarmed the Heavenly Emperor and angered him to take Tengshe back, it would be seriously bad news.

While he was pondering, he suddenly saw a huge cloud of mist rising from Yellow Bird Slope, flying higher and higher until it covered the entire sky, darkening the surroundings and thunder echoing faintly. The constables seeing such a divine act, were so excited they nearly knelt down in worship. Even Yu Sifeng and Xuanji were startled, having not expected him to truly make it happen.

The torrential rain came in an instant, and within a hundred miles, everything was covered in dense curtains of rain. Everyone was soaked to the bone, feeling the heat dissipate, refreshed from their toes up by the coolness. Xuanji was laughing gleefully when suddenly she remembered something, raised her hand to her face, and indeed found it covered in ink. She lamented, "Ah, my eyebrows..." The eyebrows Yu Sifeng had drawn for her were completely washed away by the rain.

Seeing her comical browless appearance, Yu Sifeng couldn’t hold back a burst of laughter, softly saying: "It’s okay, I’ll draw them for you again after the rain stops."

The downpour lasted for more than an hour before it slowly abated. As the rain stopped and the clouds cleared, the bright sky gradually became visible again. Xuanji wiped her face with her sleeve, though it was hardly effective as the sleeve was wetter than her face. Tengshe staggered down from Yellow Bird Slope, a smug look on his face, and as he approached, he snorted mockingly: "So? Did you hold your jaws in place?"

Xuanji, seeing his remarkable ability, couldn’t help but change her opinion and sincerely said: "Tengshe, you’re really amazing. How did you call forth the heavy rain?"

His face darkened, and he said through gritted teeth: "I...I have great powers, summoning wind and rain is beneath me... I had just... asked for a favor..."

"You asked Wind Deity and Rain Master?" Yu Sifeng was somewhat surprised.

Tengshe turned away with disdain: "Who’d call upon them! They’re all bootlickers! I called an old brother! Why ask so many questions!"

Yu Sifeng, with his insighful mind, saw through it easily and chuckled: "You called Ying Long, right?"

As Ying Long was of the water element, bringing wind and rain was a trifling matter for him. When Tengshe mentioned he asked a brother, it must be someone of equal standing, and that was almost certainly Ying Long.

Tengshe looked at him as if he had seen a ghost, mumbling something under his breath. This little ghost was like a mind reader; nothing could be hidden from him, which was really frustrating. With a gloomy face, he suddenly remembered how he had summoned Ying Long for help, only to be mocked for becoming a mortal’s spiritual beast, deepening his irritation.

"However, you’re lucky to be with her. That girl used to be the War God General! Both the Heavenly Emperor and Emperor Hou Tu were quite indulgent towards her. For such a heinous crime that would normally obliterate both spirit and soul, she emerged unscathed, which shows how important she is to those above. Once her reincarnation cycle is complete and she returns to the Heavenly Court, you as her spiritual beast will benefit!"

Ying Long’s chilly voice still echoed in his ears, and though he had always spoken in that tone, it was annoying to hear.

"Right, your unsanctioned descent to the Lower Realm went unnoticed. Emperor Bai sent a message for you, since you’re so keen on the Netherworld, the task of checking the Sea Stabilizing Iron Chain is yours now. You always compete with Vermilion Bird, and this time you couldn’t stand that he was assigned to investigate the chain, so you sneaked out. If Vermilion Bird weren’t so indifferent to compete and the higher-ups weren’t so partial to you, you would’ve been in great trouble. Well, now the mission is yours, and yet you’ve become some sort of spiritual beast. Let’s see how long your luck lasts."

Although Ying Long’s words were somewhat sour, they made sense. Though he was annoyed that Vermilion Bird could come and go as he pleased in the mortal world, prompting him to steal the mission this time, he never disclosed his deeper reasons to anyone.

That demon confined in the Netherworld, he hadn’t seen it in a long time. This descent might allow him a chance to see it again, right? These two mortals also seemed to have some connection to Buzhou Mountain. It might be worth following them, for in the end, he might get what he wished for.

"Tengshe! Let’s go, don’t space out!" Xuanji called out to him from up front while carefully putting on her cloak, protecting the eyebrows Yu Sifeng had just drawn for her from getting smeared by any more wind and rain.

At a glance, no one would guess she was once the awe-inspiring, ferocious War God General. How could such a delicate little girl bring him any "benefit"? Dismissing the thought, Tengshe rolled his eyes internally and briskly caught up with her.

"I know of a place in Lutai Town with tasty treats, come on, or I won’t treat you," she called out.

Her words immediately touched his heart of stone, making his eyes gleam with excitement, and he quickly followed her lead. (To be continued. For follow-up events, please visit www.qidian.com. More Chapters are available, support the author, support genuine reading!)