GB Chapter 25
by VolareIt would probably be unbelievable if word got out that a Ghost God could be so childlike. Watching him carefully light the lanterns and send them off with the Yin wind, Qian Ren thought that perhaps not having his memories wasn’t such a bad thing for Zhuge Qingtian. Those who become Ghost Gods must have experienced the most unwilling death in life, a resentment that could not be resolved even if their enemies were all dead. Once he remembered, this person might find it difficult to laugh as happily as he does today.
As if validating his guess, Zhuge Qingtian finally released the last lantern, looking somewhat reluctant as he watched the paper lotus drift away with the waves. Though he knew that the final outcome would be either sinking in the deep sea or being washed back to shore, he still hoped that the bright river lantern would truly float to the ends of the earth and never extinguish.
Zhuge Qingtian did not like to look at the dark side of things. Just as he would admire the beauty of a falling leaf without considering that it also represented the aging of the plant, he simply lowered his eyes and did not watch the departing lantern any further. Instead, he looked up at Qian Ren and asked, “Wife, what kind of person is the God of Joy?”
Zhuge Qingtian’s familiarity with the portrait and Lüling’s judgment both proved that the God of Joy had some connection to him. However, due to being besieged by the Heavenly Dao Alliance, the God of Joy’s attitude towards the human realm had always been quite hostile. Regarding this, Zhuge Qingtian, who liked the human realm, was ultimately worried.
The origins of the God of Joy are still a mystery. Qian Ren couldn’t determine what kind of person he was either. At this moment, he simply suggested, “I think you can go ask the God of Lamentation.”
He didn’t say this casually. Among the current three Ghost Gods in the Ghost Domain, the God of Lamentation has the clearest origins. Apart from his once famous name in the world, he also never hid his identity.
The God of Lamentation’s name is Fang Suihan, a well-known minister from the previous dynasty. Before the current Li Dynasty was established, the force that unified the world was named Xiliang. Before Xiliang, there was the Xi Shang Dynasty where Fang Suihan lived.
At that time, the Demon Lord had just fallen, the world was newly settled, and the power of the Jianghu was far less prosperous than it is now. The major towns that were ravaged by demons were also in ruins. In that era when the world still trembled with fear of demons, Fang Suihan became the last glimmer of light for the Xi Shang Dynasty. He was born into a noble family, apprenticed under a contemporary famous Confucian scholar. At a young age, he had passed the three imperial exams in a row and also had great cultivation talent. He was very familiar with the righteous path in the Jianghu. After experiencing various departments in the court, he rose to the position of Prime Minister.
When the Demon Lord destroyed the world, not only did the common people suffer, but the powerful nobles also suffered heavy losses. Therefore, after the Xuanmen eliminated the Demon Lord, the court’s reconstruction project became a channel for officials to recover their losses. At that time, the demonic cultivators were clearly in decline, but the heavy taxes and corvée labor put the people into another purgatory. Although the emperor knew the suffering of his people, the court could not withstand another upheaval, and the royal family also needed to quickly replenish their coffers, so they could only turn a blind eye and quietly burn the petitions written in blood by ten thousand people.
While the entire officialdom had reached a tacit agreement to keep silent about this matter, only Fang Suihan, who had already risen to the rank of prime minister, stood up. He gathered the scholars of the world and appealed three times, imploring the emperor to share the joys and sorrows of the world. In these extraordinary times, it was even more important to recuperate and not lose the hearts of the people.
“I beg, if one commoner of the world eats chaff and wild vegetables, the officials of the court cannot eat meat and gruel. If one refugee of Xi Shang has not been settled, the royal relatives should not rebuild their palaces. If the people die, the world dies. If the world dies, so does Xi Shang. If the path to saving the country must be stained with blood, then let it begin with me!”
That day, the prime minister stood straight under the dragon throne. Facing the uproar of the court, he did not flinch. Of course, he knew of the agreement that the wealthy families had reached, and he also knew of the royal family’s indifferent attitude. But these things could only be done in secret; no one had the guts to declare it loudly in the court hall, but he dared to pretend that nothing had happened. He believed that what was in the dark could never openly reach the stage, and in the end, he did win.
The emperor still wanted the reputation of being a ruler who saved the country, so he gave Fang Suihan the power to supervise the officials and let him oversee the reconstruction of the entire country but did not give him any guards for protection. At that time, Fang Suihan, who had become a thorn in the side of all the nobles, relied only on his fearless courage and the spontaneous help of righteous people in the Jianghu. But with just these, he gradually purged corrupt officials from the court, and he didn’t even spare his own Fang family.
Fang Suihan had three disciples in his life. The first was a poor scholar who had sworn to follow him to the death. When his family’s life was threatened by the powerful officials of the court, he was forced to collude with them. After being found out to have sold out his colleagues, he was personally beheaded by Fang Suihan.
The second was the son of his brother, who had chosen to follow him because he admired his uncle’s integrity. However, when the Fang family’s embezzlement of food and occupation of people’s land was exposed, he destroyed the evidence and framed the victim. Fang Suihan ended his life with a cup of poison, executing family to uphold justice.
The third was the last emperor of the Xi Shang Dynasty. After gaining power, Fang Suihan knew that the emperor was too weak to deter the court. So he supported his disciple whom he had trained to the throne. They worked together to clean the entire court. However, it was also this proud disciple who used a scheme to lure in a fairy of Xuanmen, directly causing Fang Suihan to be killed at his wedding banquet.
After Fang Suihan’s death, the Xi Shang court became corrupt again and was quickly destroyed by Xiliang. While people were setting off fireworks and celebrating the demise of the old dynasty, a young ghost dressed in mourning clothes wandered over the remnants of Xi Shang’s city wall for one night before drifting away. When he appeared again, he was the God of Lamentation in the Wanguishu Academy. He spent his days guarding this isolated island, teaching ghosts to read, no longer mentioning matters of the world. His former passion and enthusiasm had turned into fleeting clouds, now, when mentioned, they were just a light smile and nothing more.
Fang Suihan’s life was legendary, but what he wanted was never attained. He wanted his parents to live a peaceful life but had to end the Fang family’s wealth to uphold justice. He wanted to see his disciples succeed, but ultimately ended their lives with his own hands. He most wanted to save his country and people, sacrificing everything and working hard for it, but in the end, the country still fell, and the people were not saved by him. He had always acted righteously, never feeling ashamed of the ideals he had always upheld, but he had also spent his whole life seeking things he could not obtain, dying with resentment.
It was for this reason that he became the powerful God of Lamentation he is now. Although for the man who always believed in righteousness, this power that causes one to lose his sense of morals was not a good existence either.
Qian Ren never exaggerated, and he made no judgments about Fang Suihan’s path. However, after hearing him out, Zhuge Qingtian couldn’t help but sigh, “So there are such amazing people in the world…”
“There are many powerful people in the world. You should learn more from them, instead of always staring at me.”
There has never been a lack of people pursuing the heavenly path in this world, whether it was Fang Suihan or his master He Huan, they all had their ideals and were willing to devote their lives to them. Sometimes Qian Ren was a little envious of their lives, which were never boring. Although he ultimately chose his own solitary path, he also felt that if he were to truly live as long as the heavens, it would be better to live like them, at least he could always find meaning in his life.
His suggestion to Zhuge Qingtian came from his own experience, but the young man completely disagreed. He tightly grasped his arm and said seriously, “But you are also very powerful, although your kind of power is different from theirs… At least for me, a river lantern held in my hand is much more useful than a salvation thousands of miles away.”
The current Zhuge Qingtian had not yet learned to use his own power, nor did he know that he could easily obtain everything he wanted. Seeing him like this, Qian Ren didn’t say anything more, only saying calmly, “So, are you ready to go meet the teacher?”
Since the God of Lamentation opened the Wanguishu Academy, he had been answering the questions of ghosts every day. Therefore, all ghosts respectfully call him “teacher.” For Zhuge Qingtian, who was also a Ghost God, there was no more suitable teacher. But although Qian Ren had explained the pros and cons to him, the young man’s expression still showed some reluctance. “Can I not go? He killed two disciples, which sounds very strict.”
Given Zhuge Qingtian’s temperament, he was naturally not afraid of being strict. Although he understood that he didn’t want to leave, Qian Ren still said, “It’s not like you haven’t died before anyway.”
Seeing him like this, Zhuge Qingtian felt even more like this person was going to abandon him. He immediately grabbed his arm and began to act like a spoiled child, “I won’t. Rather than being beaten to death by the teacher for not studying well, I’d rather be assaulted by you and beaten to death!”
“Tell me, where do you want to be buried? No need to choose, I’ll send you in right now.”
This move was always effective on Qian Ren, and it instantly ignited the Demonic Cult Protector’s murderous intent. However, this time, looking at his murderous gaze, Zhuge Qingtian did not feel the usual sense of security. After struggling internally for a moment, he ultimately did not refuse Qian Ren’s arrangements. He only opened his eyes wide and pleaded, “I will study hard with the God of Lamentation and try my best to become useful. Don’t abandon me.”
“Silly, the people who can truly stay by your side don’t care whether you are useful or not.”
Sighing and patting his cheek, Qian Ren helplessly found that although this Ghost God was very annoying and needed a beating sometimes, he was also very hard to refuse when he was truly well-behaved. Looking at the young man’s nervous expression, the thought that had occasionally risen in his mind in Jiangdu City unconsciously returned to his mind again. He subconsciously opened his mouth and said,
“Go, follow this path to the end, and you will find the Wanguishu Academy. If, after you’ve met the best teacher in this world, you still want to follow me, then come back here and worship me as your teacher.”
As soon as these words came out, Qian Ren himself was shocked, let alone Zhuge Qingtian. He rubbed his ears to make sure he hadn’t heard wrong before believing the reality. Although he didn’t understand why Qian Ren, who would usually refuse him no matter how hard he tried, would suddenly soften at this moment, he noticed a hint of remorse in the man’s eyes and knew he couldn’t give him a chance to take back his words. So he stood up immediately and settled the matter, saying firmly, “Okay, you sit here and don’t move, I’ll be right back!”
The author has something to say: Zhuge Qingtian: I understand, so the wife likes obedient and well-behaved ones!
He Huan: No, he likes the lively and active ones during the day, and the obedient and well-behaved ones in bed.
Qian Ren: Stop, what are you trying to teach him!
He Huan: Although my exquisite driving skills have been sealed by the author, I must have a successor.
The author who lives in the kindergarten: Speechless.jpg
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