Chapter 575: The True Crux of the Matter
"What's wrong?" Tang Thirty-Six asked.
Back then, on the cliff face, when Chen Changsheng wanted to confirm whether that man dressed like a tourist was the legendary Wang Zhice, the other party had merely smiled and shaken his head without speaking. However, the old man accompanying him had said very seriously that this was a secret of heaven that could not be revealed, or else they would incur divine punishment...
"This matter... I probably shouldn't speak of it."
Chen Changsheng looked at Tang Thirty-Six and Zhe Xiu, a troubled expression on his face. "You can't tell anyone else."
Tang Thirty-Six and Zhe Xiu exchanged glances for the third time that day.
Silence once again fell over the room.
No one knew how much time passed before Tang Thirty-Six and Zhe Xiu nodded.
Seeing this, Chen Changsheng felt relieved. He knew very well that once these two friends of his agreed to something, they would definitely follow through.
"Your luck... is really good."
Tang Thirty-Six said to him, his tone filled with emotion, and one could even detect a faint trace of envy. Money could move the gods, and there were very few things in this world that he couldn't accomplish, so he rarely envied anyone. But Chen Changsheng's fortune and opportunities were enough to make him envious.
The legendary Wang Zhice was still alive and had reappeared in the world, and Chen Changsheng had seen him, precisely when he was being hunted by the Demon Lord. At that moment, besides someone like Wang Zhice, who was not supposed to appear at all, who could have saved him?
From Xining to the capital, Chen Changsheng had heard the assessment that he had good luck far too many times. He knew very well that his fate was not good, but being told so often, he sometimes couldn't help but wonder: could these encounters he had be the starry sky's compensation for his destiny?
Tang Thirty-Six was now puzzled. "Since Lord Wang is still alive, why hasn't he appeared all these years?"
Zhe Xiu said expressionlessly, "Why should he appear?"
Tang Thirty-Six said, "Whether it's to fight against the demons or to strengthen our Great Zhou..."
He stopped mid-sentence because he suddenly understood the meaning behind Zhe Xiu's words. No one knew what had happened before Wang Zhice disappeared back then, but the entire continent knew that the Taizong Emperor had never really liked him. And if he truly did appear, how would the Great Zhou court treat him?
As for fighting the demons... Wang Zhice had already done too much. The entire human world had no right to demand more from him.
"How many days have I been unconscious?" Chen Changsheng finally thought to ask this question.
Tang Thirty-Six was still immersed in the shock of Wang Zhice being alive and ignored him.
Zhe Xiu held up five fingers, like a palm.
So he had been unconscious for five days. Chen Changsheng wondered what had happened on Cold Mountain during this time and asked, "Any new developments?"
Zhe Xiu thought for a moment, realized there was too much to say, so she simply shook her head and directly slapped Tang Thirty-Six on the back, snapping him out of his daze.
Tang Thirty-Six then recounted the tense situation on the continent and the strained atmosphere on Cold Mountain.
"Then... will the Stone Boiling Assembly still be held?"
"According to Mao Qiuyu and the King of Linghai, if you remained unconscious, they were going to take you back to the capital, and the assembly would naturally end. But now you're awake."
"Have all the people attending the Stone Boiling Assembly arrived? Did they encounter any danger?"
Tang Thirty-Six gave him a deeply meaningful look and said, "Everyone who was supposed to come has come. No problems."
Upon hearing the news of Chen Changsheng's awakening, Mao Qiuyu and the King of Linghai came to the small building to inquire. After confirming that his body was fine, they withdrew their proposal to return to the capital. Important figures from the Heavenly Mechanism Pavilion also came to visit, their attitude very respectful, even overly humble, and they mentioned that in a few days, the Heavenly Mechanism Old Man would personally come to see him, and so on...
Chen Changsheng found it hard to understand. He thought that even if he was the Pope's successor, it shouldn't cause the Heavenly Mechanism Pavilion to be so deferential. Moreover, the Heavenly Mechanism Old Man, as the foremost of the Eight Square Winds, was a figure of immense status. And why would he need to wait several days? Could it be that during the process of the Demon Lord breaking out of the formation, the Heavenly Mechanism Old Man had been seriously injured?
As he pondered these and many other questions, time slipped by until late at night. Everyone inside and outside the small building had fallen asleep. The National Education cavalry and the experts of the Heavenly Mechanism Pavilion patrolled vigilantly not far away. The surroundings were completely quiet, with only the clear sound of the lake water lapping against the rocks.
After waking up, Chen Changsheng had asked Tang Thirty-Six if all the people attending the Stone Boiling Assembly had arrived and if they had encountered any danger. Tang Thirty-Six had replied that everyone who was supposed to come had come, his words carrying a hidden meaning. That was because only he knew who Chen Changsheng was truly asking about.
When everyone on the peak had fallen asleep, the person who was supposed to come finally arrived.
The window was pushed open, and the lake breeze, carrying a faint warmth, drifted in. Along with it came a graceful figure.
That figure, accompanied by the lake breeze, floated directly to his bedside, sat down, and asked softly, "How are you?"
Chen Changsheng looked into her eyes, as clear as autumn water, and saw the concern in her gaze. He suddenly felt that being injured wasn't such a hard thing to accept.
"I'm fine. Really."
The person who came was naturally Xu Yourong.
Hearing Chen Changsheng say he was fine, she still didn't feel reassured. She closed her eyes, raised her right hand, and aimed it at his brow from a distance.
A holy, clear light descended, entering Chen Changsheng's body.
There were very few people in the world who could use the Holy Light Technique to such a level. Besides the Pope and the three Red Cardinals of the Azure Thirteen Divisions, she was probably the strongest.
Chen Changsheng only felt a gentle breeze brush his face, then enter his body. The true essence in his meridians flowed joyfully like a spring stream, and his injuries gradually healed.
"Thank you."
"Who was that person, really?"
The former Southern Holy Maiden and Su Li had drifted away together. Now, the Southern Creek Sect was led by a young girl like Xu Yourong, so some information couldn't be obtained too accurately.
"It should be the Demon Lord," Chen Changsheng said.
The room was very quiet. After a long time, Xu Yourong reached out and patted the back of his hand, saying, "As long as you're fine."
It was obvious that she had never done anything to comfort someone before, so both the patting motion and her tone of voice seemed somewhat stiff or clumsy.
She didn't ask how Chen Changsheng had survived, but Chen Changsheng didn't intend to hide it from her, even though during the day he had told Tang Thirty-Six and Zhe Xiu that this matter couldn't be mentioned.
"I might have met Lord Wang Zhice."
Upon hearing this, Xu Yourong was truly shocked. The middle-aged scholar by the stream had created countless bloody and terrifying scenes, revealing an incomparably powerful level of strength. Coupled with the reactions of the strong figures in the human world, she had long since basically confirmed that the other party was the Demon Lord. She had only needed final confirmation from Chen Changsheng. But she never expected to learn from him the earth-shattering news that Wang Zhice was still alive.
To her, this was even more shocking than the news of the Demon Lord's reappearance in the world.
Wang Zhice held a very special position in the history of the human world. Back then, when the allied forces of humans and demons fought against the iron cavalry of the demons, the Taizong Emperor was the commander-in-chief and the leader, while Wang Zhice was the deputy commander. He personally led the allied forces deep into the Snow Plains for tens of thousands of li, pressing straight towards Snowfall City. In terms of merit alone, he was in no way inferior to the Taizong Emperor; one could even say he deserved the highest credit. If it weren't for the Hundred Herb Garden Incident and other complicated reasons, and the Taizong Emperor's deep dislike and fear of him, he would have absolutely been qualified to be ranked first in the Lingyan Pavilion.
Although this news was shocking, Xu Yourong quickly came to her senses and asked, "Why did the Demon Lord come to kill you?"
In the eyes of Tang Thirty-Six and Zhe Xiu, how Chen Changsheng managed to survive the Demon Lord's attack was the most important thing, and they assumed everyone was most concerned about this question. Xu Yourong didn't think that way. She was much calmer and more clear-headed, directly asking about the true crux of the matter.
...
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(See you in the evening.)