Chapter 20: Heavenly Palace Raid, a Short Salutation to Scare the God

There was a confusion of twinkling silver light, and Xie Lian's unthinking reaction was to block with his hand. Ruoye, who was always wrapped around his wrist, would attack automatically if dire circumstances required it. Yet not a single silver butterfly attacked him; instead, they flew around him to furiously charge the two behind who had been fighting just moments before.

Feng Xin and Mu Qing had suffered before at the hands of those wraith butterflies—they knew how powerful they were and didn't dare to be careless. In only a blink, they'd both raised their hands at the same time and cried, "Shield!"

Millions of silver butterflies surged toward them, flapping their wings to summon blasting winds, but there was an invisible wall blocking them. The butterflies smashed against it like a tempest, like the battering of hail, and white lights flared from the friction with fiery sparks. The two had cast a spell to protect themselves, but even against a magical shield, the wraith butterflies were forceful and relentless, as crazed as moths confronting a flame. Despite mounting that spiritual defense, the two were pushed back by the relentless barrage of butterflies.

A moment of carelessness would give the enemy the upper hand. If they didn't release the shield, the butterflies would continue to push closer. If they did, there'd still be no chance for them to grab for their weapons before the swarm overtook them. Both Feng Xin and Mu Qing mentally

groaned, gritting their teeth to hang on. Feng Xin stole a glance and saw Xie Lian was still standing right where he had been, with his head lowered. Not knowing what was wrong, he shouted to him.

"Your Highness, be careful! Don't just stand there—come behind the shield!"

And yet, when Xie Lian turned his head, not a single hair upon it had been harmed. He frowned. "Huh?"

The two looked closely and almost spat blood on the spot from their furious shock. Xie Lian was staring at them in blank confusion, a wraith butterfly held in one hand. Earlier, when the butterflies were gusting through like wild winds, there was one that was a little slow and couldn't keep up with the rest. As it flapped arduously in front of Xie Lian, he had a simple thought: that poor little silver butterfly was working really hard, but it couldn't fly anymore. And so he unthinkingly extended his palm just beneath it. Wings flapping happily, that silver butterfly had landed on his palm and now wouldn't leave.

Both Feng Xin and Mu Qing popped veins on their foreheads. "Don't touch that thing with your hand!! Don't you know what it is?! It's dangerous!"

Just then, Xie Lian felt a tightening on his wrist. Someone had grabbed hold of him and pulled hard. His entire body was drawn into the darkness beyond the door.

Although he was shrouded in darkness, he didn't feel any alarm or anxiety. This darkness was like a layer of gentle armor; not only did he not sense any danger, it actually somehow calmed him down.

Even if the person within the darkness hadn't shown himself, with those silver butterflies, was it so hard to guess?

Mu Qing cried in disbelief, "What audacity! You dare come cause mischief in the Heavenly Court?! What impudence!"

A voice laughed. "We're all the same. Weren't you heavenly officials of the Upper Court equally impudent in my territory?"

Even though Xie Lian already knew who had grabbed him, he was still a little startled to hear that familiar voice so close by.

Feng Xin shouted, "Hua Cheng, the Heavenly Emperor is here in the Heavenly Court. You let him go!"

Hua Cheng clicked his tongue. "Do either of you have the ability to make me?"

With that taunting question, the giant doors closed heavily with a bang.

Xie Lian sensed a hand gripping his wrist firmly, guiding him swiftly along. It was black as pitch all around them, and the silver bells on those black boots chimed in his ears. The ground beneath their feet was uneven; the doors hadn't led them to the bright, open great roads of the Heavenly Capital but rather to a remote mountain valley.

Hua Cheng must've used the Teleportation Array to connect the front entrance of the Palace of Xianle to this mountain valley. But how did he do it? One would surely have to be a heavenly official to be in a position to do that, no?!

Xie Lian was about to speak when a voice exploded in his ear.

"Your Highness! Where are you?!"

It was Feng Xin. His voice was by his ear, but his person was not— he had shouted from within the communication array. Xie Lian's eardrums hurt from the noise and were further blasted by the terrified voices of several other heavenly officials.

"What's going on, General? Did something happen?"

Mu Qing also entered the communication array. "Bad news! Where's Ling Wen? Report to the Emperor—Xie Lian ran off!"

He usually spoke gently and courteously, but now there was a flustered tinge to his voice.

Ling Wen reacted immediately. "What? I'll go to the Palace of Xianle to take a look!"

An official cried in shock, "The Laug—His Highness ran off? Wasn't he detained in the Palace of Xianle?!"

Shi Qingxuan entered the communication array. "I just saw a bunch of junior officials of the Middle Court guarding the palace. You can only enter but not leave! How could he run off?"

Feng Xin exclaimed, "What do you mean, 'ran off'? Stop adding to the confusion!"

"Well, he ran off with someone," Mu Qing said.

"He was KIDNAPPED!" Feng Xin clarified angrily. "Your Highness, can you still hear us? Where are you right now?!"

In that moment, everyone was speaking with raised voices, and everyone was demanding answers. Once Ling Wen confirmed that the Palace of Xianle was empty, she began searching for Xie Lian's present location, and Shi Qingxuan distributed further flurries of merits. The communication array was thrown into complete confusion, everyone trying to talk at once; it was so chaotic that Xie Lian couldn't get a word in at all. He drew in a deep breath, but just as he was about to match the shouting and tell everyone to calm down, Hua Cheng suddenly turned around and reached over with two fingers.

Those cold digits gently touched his temple, and Hua Cheng chuckled.

"Long time no see. How is everyone doing?"

With the soft touch of his two fingers, Hua Cheng entered the heavenly communication array through Xie Lian. That nonchalant greeting was heard not just by Xie Lian beside him but by every flustered heavenly official within the communication array. Instantly, they fell into a dead silence.

"…"

There was a silent uproar.

No wonder! Such arrogance could only come from That Person!

Hua Cheng continued, "I don't know if you missed me, but I haven't thought about any of you at all."

"…"

There certainly were many heavenly officials in the heavens who secretly thought about him every day. But when they heard Hua Cheng say he didn't think about them at all, they began reciting scriptures to pray that the man would continue not thinking about them going forward.

Then, Hua Cheng snickered gleefully. "However, I've been fairly free recently. If anyone is feeling bored and wants to chat with me, I welcome them with open arms."

"…"

Given the circumstances, the meaning of that statement was more than obvious: "If anyone is brave enough to give chase, they'll be the next one I challenge."

It was a challenge they were certain to lose—he would surely wipe the floor with them. Was this not a blatant threat?

The communication array had previously been boiling with excitement, and some martial gods were even proactively ready to heed the call, prepared to give chase. However, with only a short salutation from Hua Cheng, all such passion disappeared. No one wanted to be remembered by Hua Cheng. And so, they all pretended they weren't present even while their ears remained closely tuned in to follow this development. At the same time, their minds were rolling with stormy waves. Such impertinence from that Crimson Rain Sought Flower! To come all the way to the Upper Court just to kidnap someone, and not just anyone, but the Laughingstock of the Three Realms who was already in hot water…

Silence befell the communication array; only Feng Xin was still swearing angrily. Hua Cheng removed his fingers as soon as he was done speaking.

Xie Lian blurted out, "San Lang…"

Hua Cheng, however, let go of his hand.

"Don't mind them," he said to Xie Lian. "Come with me."

His voice was low, the emotion behind it hard to discern. Yet the way he let go of Xie Lian's wrist was swift, almost like he'd been shaken off. Xie Lian was immediately reminded of the first time they met and how he had evaded his touch. Xie Lian froze on the spot.

At first, he had wanted to ask Hua Cheng why he had appeared so suddenly. He vaguely thought that maybe Hua Cheng had known about his house arrest and had come to his rescue, so when he called out "San Lang" a moment before, he was secretly a little happy. But with the way Hua Cheng had just shaken off his touch, Xie Lian abruptly realized—how could he think Hua Cheng would come to rescue him? He had just burned down Paradise Manor and the armory. Wasn't it more plausible that Hua Cheng had come knocking to settle the score, or for payback?

Even if, in the end, the reason Paradise Manor had burned the way it did was because Shi Qingxuan fanned the flames, he was the one who kindled the fire.

The pair walked, one behind the other. The more Xie Lian thought, the guiltier he felt.

"…San Lang, I'm sorry," he apologized in spite of himself.

Hua Cheng suddenly paused in his step. "Why are you apologizing?"

"The reason I went to Ghost City was to investigate the missing Earth Master. I didn't tell you the full truth, so that counts as a lie. And you treated me with utmost hospitality, but I burned down your Paradise Manor and the armory full of your treasures. I am so very sorry."

Hua Cheng didn't speak. Xie Lian also knew that "very sorry" really didn't amount to much and added, "But I expect I'll be banished soon. After I descend to the Mortal Realm, I'll definitely think of a way to repay you and see if I can—"

"Why should you have to repay me?" Hua Cheng interrupted.

His tone was a little harsh, as if he couldn't listen anymore, and he abruptly turned around. "Did you forget that my blade wounded your arm? I hurt you, not the other way around. Why should you have to repay me?"

Xie Lian had almost forgotten the injury of his right arm. He was a little taken aback before he remembered. "My arm? My arm's fine; it doesn't hurt. It'll be better soon. Besides, it's only like this because I charged in and struck back against you. You aren't to blame in the first place."

Hua Cheng stared at him hard, his left eye unusually bright. Xie Lian noticed that he seemed to be shaking. A brief moment later, he realized it wasn't Hua Cheng who was shaking but the scimitar Eming at his waist.

That silver scimitar, hung over the red robes, was shaking nonstop. The eye upon it, shaped by silver lines, was also quivering. If it were the eye of a child, then that child was clearly bawling.