Chapter 46: Gaochang Part 2

Xiao Kun led Xiang Xian through the camp. The War Dead Corpse Ghosts parted to the sides, kneeling on one knee. Zheng Yong and Wang Zongshi had returned to the army, standing one on each side of Jing Pian Ge. Jing Pian Ge sat on a large boulder in the center, waiting for his son to report.

“Xiao Kun, I’m exhausted,” Xiang Xian said.

“We’ll head back to the city to rest soon. You can sleep as much as you want tonight,” Xiao Kun said. “You heavily wounded Yan Yan, so they won’t come again for a while.”

Upon reaching Jing Pian Ge, Xiao Kun took out the captured Great Si Ming Flute and Zenggu Drum. At such a moment, if he wished, holding these two magic treasures that commanded the War Dead Corpse Ghost army, he could easily supplant Jing Pian Ge and become the new Ghost King.

But he had no interest in being king. He simply tossed them over.

“Very good,” Jing Pian Ge said. “I guess you’re full of resentment right now, but this is your mission.”

Xiang Xian sat to the side. Jing Pian Ge didn’t tell them to leave, nor did he speak further. He only examined the crack on the Great Si Ming Flute against the light of the setting sun.

Jing Pian Ge sighed.

“Hand it over,” Xiang Xian said. “Maybe I can fix it for you.”

In the tense atmosphere, Xiao Kun’s attention shifted thanks to Xiang Xian. “You can repair a magic treasure of this caliber?”

Jing Pian Ge sent the Great Si Ming Flute over with Magical Power, and it floated into Xiang Xian’s hands.

“Magic treasures get damaged just like mundane items—nothing more than patching and mending,” Xiang Xian said casually. He found an inconspicuous crack on the Great Si Ming Flute and added, “Clamp the clamps, mend the mends. As long as the Talismanic Runes and Magic Array flow patterns aren’t ruined, it can always be made usable after repair.”

Thus, Jing Pian Ge and Xiao Kun, father and son, watched as Xiang Xian repaired this peerless magic treasure. The Great Si Ming Flute was made from the finger bone of the Celestial Maiden Hanba, and the Zenggu Drum was covered with the skin of the Drought Fiend. Materials to repair these two treasures no longer existed in the world.

But who was Xiang Xian? If he couldn’t repair such treasures, no one could. He said, “Lend me a bit of the Ghost King’s blood.”

Jing Pian Ge drew a dagger and sliced his palm, handing over his indigo-blue blood. Xiang Xian took out a vessel and began boiling the blood. Once it turned into a flowing wisp of green smoke, he guided it with Magical Power, slowly injecting it into the crack.

Under the setting sun, the valley was bathed in molten gold. In the silence, Xiao Kun spoke.

“In the past, when you went to the Central Plains, it was only to find a way to counter Mr. Liu’s lineage and retrieve the Wheel of Fate.”

“Correct,” Jing Pian Ge replied.

“With the Jumang Leaf in Master’s hand,” Xiao Kun slowly pieced it together afterward, understanding Jing Pian Ge’s actions over these years, “you temporarily gained a Half-Human Body, allowing you to meet Mother.

“You knew your own strength well. Without the Ghost Clan’s two great dharma artifacts, you couldn’t contend with Mr. Liu and the King Mu behind him.

“You had an idea: to leave behind a child.

“And so, I was born. To replace you, to make up for this mishap as much as possible.”

“You guessed correctly. Your birth was part of my plan,” Jing Pian Ge said. “What I couldn’t accomplish doesn’t mean my son can’t. Your Half-Demon Body is the best foundation for carrying out this task. Did you figure it out yourself, or did your brother remind you?”

Xiang Xian never looked up, unwilling to interject in the father-son conversation.

Xiao Kun’s tone was calm. “Does it matter? Because of your bloodline, I endured endless humiliation and exclusion in the Liao Kingdom. From childhood, my maternal uncle’s family treated me as a monster. I had no friends. After Mother died, I had no home, no family. Do you know how I’ve survived these years?”

Jing Pian Ge said, “Le Wan Shuang surely didn’t treat you well either. She loved me for a long time and originally thought I’d accept her when she gave me that leaf.”

“Why did you choose my mother later?” Xiao Kun asked. “Instead of Master?”

Xiao Kun and Jing Pian Ge met each other’s gazes, Ghost Pupil Light gleaming.

“Because the Kunlun Divine Envoy governs ‘life,’ and the Abyss Divine Palace governs ‘death,’” Jing Pian Ge said lightly. “The powers of life and death repel each other. If I had been with Wanshuang, the child we bore would have been a complete, true monster. Only your mother could withstand my demonic power.”

But Xiao Kun read another thought in his father’s heart—the true reason was—

Because I love Xiao Shuang. Love defies reason.

The conversation ended. Xiang Xian held the Great Si Ming Flute and raised it slightly, examining it in the last rays of the setting sun.

“You’re not alone,” Xiang Xian said casually with a smile. “You have me, Xiao Kun.”

Xiao Kun glanced at Xiang Xian, suppressing the intense emotions surging deep within.

“What else did you come here to say today?” Jing Pian Ge continued. “To seek justice for your father abandoning you back then? You heard it yourself—you now have your own brothers, things you want to protect…”

“Do you know who’s been the most pitiable person all these years?” Xiao Kun stepped forward, his voice trembling, fist clenched tightly.

Jing Pian Ge sized up Xiao Kun. The two were like the same person on opposite sides of a mirror, seeing each other across time.

“…This is ‘fate.’ In the passage of time…”

“It’s my mother!” Xiao Kun suddenly roared in fury. His rage whipped up qi, exploding outward. He charged at Jing Pian Ge with his fist raised!

Xiang Xian set down the Great Si Ming Flute.

At the deepest twilight, Xiao Kun landed a solid punch on his father, the sound echoing like an explosion. “Do you know how many years she waited just to see you one more time—!”