GB Chapter 46

Chapter 46

Fang Suihan still remembered the scene when he first met Zhao Huan. He had lingered in the world for too long, and although he no longer had any attachments, he still hoped to have some kind to chat with. Therefore, when he sensed a new ghost god being born, he left Huanhun Island, which he had not visited in a long time, and stepped into the mortal world once again.

The root cause of Xishang’s demise was the chaos caused by demonic cultivators. Although Xiliang replaced it, Fang Suihan didn’t have much ill will towards it.

When he went into seclusion, Xiliang was at its most prosperous. Coming back to the mortal world, the flames of war were like before, he couldn’t help but sigh that people were creatures who didn’t learn their lessons. No matter how sorrowful they had been, they would forget the past lessons as long as they spent some time recovering from their injuries, and would once again kill each other for interests and power.

Since obtaining the Book of Heaven Without Words, Xiliang rarely had any wars. The few large-scale conflicts were from friction with Jianghu cultivators. Although this was the best golden age for the common people, some of the royal family were quite dissatisfied.

No wars meant no military merits. The result of the legitimate son inheriting the throne peacefully was that other princes had no chance to succeed. This generation of Xiliang’s chosen new emperor was still the empress’s legitimate son, Zhao Huan. However, this time, this gentle third prince defied his mother’s wishes and insisted on not marrying the daughter of the empress’s family, determined to make the woman he loved his empress.

In Zhao Huan’s view, after he signed a contract with the celestial beast, he would spend his whole life guarding the Xiliang empire. He was willing to protect the people of the world and stay in the palace to work hard on political affairs. Since he had already dedicated his entire future to Xiliang, wasn’t such a small request to marry a woman he loved not too much to ask?

Zhao Huan didn’t know that for the empire, as long as the ruler was a diligent and loving emperor, the harem didn’t matter. However, what his mother, the empress wanted was not a good emperor, but an obedient one. Therefore, he was no longer needed if he did not obey.

On the night before his enthronement, his mother revealed the palace guards’ deployment to the demonic cultivator Feng Xie. Zhao Huan, who had not yet inherited the power of the celestial beast, was kidnapped. Subsequently, the empress tried to support the fourth prince to succeed to the throne. Prince Liang took advantage of the chaos to force his way into the palace and seize the Book of Heaven Without Words from his critically ill father. All the members of the royal family, who were not willing to be lonely, fought for the supreme position. From the beginning to the end, no one went to save him.

Unlike the God of Lamentation, the God of Joy was not a ghost god born naturally. Feng Xie tried to destroy the prince’s will with all sorts of cruel tortures. However, no matter how he was treated, the man always maintained his pride as an emperor, and never begged for mercy until the moment of his death. Enraged by this, the demonic cultivator tried to refine him into a magic tool spirit to be tortured for eternity using the grievances of the wronged souls caused by the war in Xiliang until the God of Lamentation arrived.

Zhao Huan didn’t know how many days he had been surrounded by the wailing of the wronged souls. He only knew that one day, the thick blood mist suddenly dispersed. Accompanied by the sudden morning glow, a refined young man in pale mourning clothes pulled him out of the pool of blood.

This was a scene he had thought about countless times when he was first captured, but he didn’t dare to think about it anymore. When it really came, it felt like a dream. Although the person in front of him was so unfamiliar, he still tried his best to maintain the demeanor of a royal and suppressed all pain and sadness, only asking, “Who are you…?”

“Fang Suihan.”

After calmly stating his name, the young man lowered his eyes to look at him. The morning light fell on his jade-like face, reflecting a faint smile. Even now, just thinking about it made him feel inexplicably at peace.

Later, Xiliang was destroyed in the war. Feng Xie, who escaped injured, died at the hands of He Huan. Zhao Huan’s grievances of being betrayed and dying tragically before ascending to the throne, and the hatred generated by the people of Xiliang during the war, gave birth to the God of Joy. He followed the God of Lamentation and learned how to use the power of the ghost gods, and from then on, he regarded Fang Suihan as his teacher.

Zhao Huan did not hate the mortal world. Even though Xiliang had disappeared, he still sincerely hoped that the world would be prosperous, and the people would live and work in peace. Therefore, wherever the God of Joy went, everyone would receive good fortune, and the words of blessing he spoke would surely come true.

Once he thought that this was heaven’s compensation for him. That was, until the Heavenly Dao Alliance discovered that those who had been blessed by the God of Joy would inevitably encounter misfortune after a short period of happiness. He then learned that this was heaven’s punishment for him.

When his true abilities were exposed, those who had previously regarded the God of Joy as a god of fortune and wanted to be close to him in every way all avoided him like a venomous snake. Only Fang Suihan rescued him from the encirclement of the Heavenly Dao Alliance again and brought him to the Ghost Domain.

At that time, he was already too weak to stand. He grabbed the man’s lapel and let his vulnerability be seen for the first time. He asked, “Teacher, have I done anything wrong to the world? I’ve clearly been trying to learn how to handle political affairs as my father had hoped, and as the Imperial Tutor taught, I’ve tried to love all the people in the world. I’ve never let my personal desires override the world. Is it something that needs to be punished so much just for defying my mother’s wishes and choosing a woman I love?”

“The world is unfair. The only way to make it as fair as you want it to be is to become the master of the world. That’s why the throne is so tempting. That being said, even if you become an emperor, even if you obtain the strongest cultivation in the world, there will always be times when things don’t go your way, because people are inherently complex and pitiful creatures.”

Fang Suihan had stood in the court for many years and had personally experienced Xishang’s darkest period. No one knew better than him to what extent people could twist themselves for power. He abandoned his disciples, his family, and even all his human emotions and desires, turning himself into the fairest enforcer of the law. However, even so, the world did not become clear.

Fang Suihan died, and Xishang was still destroyed. He gained the hundred-year reputation of being the number one teacher in the world. But even the most powerful teacher could not save a corrupt dynasty. The only thing people could do was completely cut off the rotten part and then grow again in pain. A hundred years later, when the new part rotted again, they would repeat the same mistakes.

Zhao Huan had done nothing wrong as a person, but as a member of the royal family, he was not ruthless or heartless enough. He did not guard against his mother and brothers, and that was the biggest mistake. However, this kind of royal family where only those who had no affection for their parents and relatives could win would eventually lead to its destruction. An emperor could be heartless, but not unfeeling, because a person who only had himself in his heart could never bear the weight of the world.

Having witnessed two dynasties heading towards destruction, Fang Suihan understood everything very clearly. However, the emperor who was waiting for an answer in front of him, although he had a noble identity, was still just a young man of twenty years of age. Since his dynasty had already collapsed, there was no point in him shouldering the darkness of the royal family.

Thinking this, he reached out to the ghost god who was still lost and offered an invitation that spanned two dynasties, “Since you can’t figure it out, then just watch with me. We are already dead, and we have endless time to wait. Let us see with our own eyes whether this world will repeat the tragedy and head towards destruction, or whether it will one day learn from its lessons and become the peaceful world we once hoped for.”

Even so, the world of the God of Lamentation was bleak, just as his aura would turn everything around him to a pale white. Fang Suihan never had any expectations for people.

The ghosts of Wanguishu Academy came and went. All sorts of tragic events in the world were conveyed to his ears through the ghosts’ weeping and cursing. In the end, he would just calmly offer advice and send them away, neither with wind nor rain, neither sunny nor cloudy.

What was amazing was that next to such a Fang Suihan, Zhao Huan gradually recovered. At first, he was cooped up in his room, not interacting with anyone. Gradually, he was able to read books and play chess with people in the academy.

Later, he didn’t know when, but some ghosts from the remnants of Xiliang came to Huanhun Island. He bid farewell to his teacher and led the fierce ghosts that followed him to build a new city in the sea.

After hundreds of years, Fang Suihan had long since become accustomed to parting. He thought that Zhao Huan would never return, just like the ghosts of the past. Who knew that just a year later, that dazzling red figure would appear in front of him again, pulling him into the depths of the sea, which no one had ever set foot in before.

Ghosts did not need to breathe, so they could move freely even under the sea. However, when they were alive, they were humans after all. Except for water ghosts, very few ghosts were willing to stay in the dark deep sea for a long time.

Fang Suihan didn’t expect that Zhao Huan would build a city at the bottom of the sea, and even more so, he didn’t expect that a place that was originally so dark that even ghosts were unwilling to stay would become so colorful and dazzling after his management.

It was an underwater city that could never be built by human hands. Using sea fish and jellyfish as light sources, huge shells and various corals were stacked into magnificent palaces. Although it was still under construction, the city’s main thoroughfares, east and west markets, and civilian residences had all been clearly planned. There was even a maze area formed by reefs, where several little ghosts were playing happily.

At a glance, Fang Suihan could tell that this was not a game, but a long-term residence built with the characteristics of ghosts in mind. Ghosts had no sense of touch and did not need to rest. All dwellings were meaningless to them. However, looking at the fierce ghosts who were busy building the city, Fang Suihan suddenly realized that perhaps they were indeed not needed, but that did not mean they were without meaning.

Looking at the always calm God of Lamentation’s eyes finally revealing a hint of surprise, the God of Joy seemed to have regained the sense of accomplishment he had felt when he submitted a perfect strategy to the Imperial Tutor. He then laughed and said, “Teacher, the ancients said, ‘Misfortune is where happiness leans, happiness is where misfortune hides.’ Becoming a ghost god is indeed painful, but when I used this power to build Yindu, I was still a bit happy, it had been a long time.”

Fang Suihan had met many resolute people in his life, but only he had misjudged Zhao Huan. He had thought that this was just a weak young man standing in a peach blossom forest and grieving for his lost country, but it turned out that this person, although trampled into the bottom mud by the world’s malice time and time again, climbed up step by step and never surrendered to any enemy. He was wrong, he should not have underestimated any emperor in this world.

He sighed softly, and for the first time, he sincerely said, “You are very impressive. Those who can become ghost gods are indeed extraordinary.”

Zhao Huan had become much more composed after going through so many hardships. Although he was happy to be praised by his respected benefactor, he also noticed the subtle emotions in his words, so he asked, “May I ask why teacher is sighing?”

“I was just thinking that if you had succeeded in ascending to the throne, you would have definitely been a very good and benevolent ruler.”

Fang Suihan’s words came from his heart. Since ancient times, famous officials had chosen their masters. If there had been a prince in Xishang who had been as ambitious as Zhao Huan, he would have done his best to support him as emperor. It was just a pity that a good minister like Fang Suihan did not meet a wise ruler with the world in his heart, and that Zhao Huan, who was willing to shoulder the burden of the world, did not meet a famous minister who could guide his growth as an emperor. In the end, all they could do was let out a helpless sigh in the face of the destruction of their country.

The surroundings of the God of Lamentation never showed any signs of life. Fang Suihan knew that he was old, and he did not want the hopelessness that came from the vicissitudes of the years to affect the young man. He glanced at the coral that had instantly lost its bright colors after being corroded by his ghost domain, and then said softly, “I am gratified that you can cheer up. However, for the sake of Yindu, which you have worked so hard to build, it’s better not to bring me here again.”

“Is it that everything in the world is uninteresting to teacher?”

He hadn’t expected that even such an underwater landscape couldn’t make Fang Suihan smile. Zhao Huan couldn’t help but ask this question, but the only answer he got was a light shake of the man’s head.

The reason why the God of Lamentation was the strongest ghost god was because nothing in the world could restore his hope. Ling Sui Daoren had joined forces with several Nascent Soul cultivators who were good at exorcising ghosts in an attempt to convert him, but they had hurt their own cultivation heart instead. The Dao Lord of the Profound Sect had a conversation with him all night long, but could only sigh and leave. He Huan once said that perhaps only when there was no evil in the world and the world was at peace could the God of Lamentation successfully leave the world. However, all cultivators knew that there would probably never be such a day.

Zhao Huan was not unaware of this. Even though he knew it well, he still solemnly said to him, “In the past, every time I was in a desperate situation, it was teacher who saved me. So, even though it’s hopeless, I still want to make teacher’s world no longer be a pale white. Anyway, ghost gods have endless time, so please indulge me in messing around this once.”

Now, it had been more than a hundred years since Yindu was established. Fang Suihan had also become accustomed to Zhao Huan bringing him to see new and interesting things from time to time. Although he had no interest in them, he was grateful for his good intentions. He originally thought that the long time would pass like this. One day, when the chess game was over, the red-clothed young man opposite him suddenly raised his head with nostalgia. He said, “Teacher, the peach blossoms outside of Chang’an City are blooming. I want to go back.”

Since learning that he would bring disaster to the people as soon as he appeared, the God of Joy had consciously stopped approaching the mortal world. Fang Suihan didn’t know why he had suddenly brought it up. He only said indifferently, “The Heavenly Dao Alliance will not allow ghost gods to appear in the mortal world.”

“A few days ago, a ghost told me that he had seen Fei Xin in Chang’an.”

That was the woman from the Zong clan who Zhao Huan had once fought with his mother to make empress. Later, he heard that the nobles of Xiliang were all beheaded and displayed by the new dynasty, and she herself had been expelled from the mortal world by the Heavenly Dao Alliance. So, he had given up on that. However, now someone was saying that she was still alive. He couldn’t let it go after all. He could only sigh,

“I know that after two hundred years, ordinary people would have long since died. That might be a woman who looks like her, or maybe it’s just her descendants. But no matter what, as long as there is a possibility of her waiting for me, I have to go to Chang’an.”

If it were before, Fang Suihan would not stop him from fulfilling his obsession. But now, he hesitated. When He Huan arrived, Fang Suihan learned about the woman. She had fallen into the demonic path to avenge Zhao Huan, killed many people, and harmed many people. She was no longer the same as she was before. In the end, she chose to die together with the owner of the Tian Shu Pavilion. And this had already happened many years ago.

He didn’t know what Zhao Huan’s mood would be when he heard this news. However, it wouldn’t be happy, that was for sure.

Fang Suihan had an agreement with the Heavenly Dao Alliance that as long as the cultivators did not attack the Ghost Domain, the ghost gods would never set foot in the mortal world. He never favored anyone when he was alive, but now he wanted to, but could not, so he had to maintain a calm expression and say, “I have an agreement with the Heavenly Dao Alliance that I will never allow ghost gods to disturb the mortal world. If you want to leave the Ghost Domain, then you must defeat me.”

“Teacher, you are the most respected person in the world to me. But I, don’t want to admit defeat.”

Fang Suihan’s impartiality was known to the whole world. Zhao Huan did not doubt this either. Therefore, he just launched challenges year after year, trying his best to wait for the day when he would defeat his teacher and set foot in the mortal world.

Fang Suihan knew that this was not a long-term plan. He thought that it would be better to know later. Perhaps he would slowly give up. However, just before this year’s Zhong Yuan Festival, he received a letter from the God of Joy.

“Teacher, I have found the son of my eldest brother and also heard the truth. You have been stopping me from returning to Chang’an because you knew that Fei Xin was already dead. She did indeed do many evil things in the demonic path, but only I am not qualified to blame her. It is because I did not protect myself and did not protect her. Thinking this way, it seems like being punished by heaven and becoming a ghost god isn’t so innocent after all.

Huai’an is the only relative I have left in this world. He has been a gentle and good child since he was young. I will hand over Yindu to him, and he will stay with teacher in my stead in the future.

Thank you for indulging my nonsense these past years. After seeing you for the last time this Zhong Yuan Festival, I will go to Chang’an. This time, I hope to be able to sleep permanently in the imperial mausoleum of Xiliang.

I’m sorry, I promised to watch the end of the world with you, but I chose to withdraw halfway.”

At that time, Fang Suihan thought that the God of Joy was going to break through with the determination of being eliminated by the Heavenly Dao Alliance, and return to the mortal world. He had even prepared to help the other party. In this year’s Zhong Yuan Festival competition, at the moment he received the letter, the God of Lamentation decided to lose to the God of Joy.

For ghost gods, being able to disappear in the place where they want to sleep is a happy thing. Fang Suihan had long been accustomed to living alone. There was no need for Zhao Huan to continue to stay in this world and endure those painful memories because of him.

That was what he thought at first.

Although Fang Suihan was known as the God of Lamentation, he was not a true god after all. He did not expect that the Heavenly Dao Alliance would use Zhao Jicheng to approach Zhao Huan, nor did he know that the way Zhao Huan had chosen to withdraw was to sign a contract with the Book of Heaven Without Words and give the power that belonged to the God of Joy to his nephew.

What Zhao Huan was thinking was that the reason why the Heavenly Dao Alliance prohibited ghost gods from going to the mortal world was only because their power would cause chaos in the world. Now that he had given up the cursed power of the ghost god and become an ordinary ghost, he could naturally go to Chang’an and sleep there. He understood Zhao Huai’an’s nature and knew that this nephew was one of the few affectionate people in the royal family, so he told him how to use the Book of Heaven Without Words.

The only wish of the God of Joy was to return to the mausoleum where his ancestors were buried and quietly be a dead man. He had no intention of taking back the power of the ghost god that he had given to his nephew. However, he did not know that the nephew who came to him was not Zhao Huai’an, but Zhao Jicheng, and he did not expect that he would be handed over to the Heavenly Dao Alliance by the person he trusted right after he had transferred his power.

Perhaps the God of Lamentation was right. People are creatures who don’t know how to learn from their lessons. In the past, he did not guard against his mother, so he ended up dying tragically. This time, he still chose to believe his relatives, and the result was the same betrayal.

Actually, he just wanted to gamble once. Since he was going to disappear anyway, he only hoped that the world he had come into contact with before leaving would be warm and trustworthy. Unfortunately, he was unlucky. No matter the past or present, things always went against his wishes.

Looking at the waves washing the shore, Fang Suihan could not imagine what Zhao Huan’s expression would be when he was betrayed by his nephew. He had not interfered in mortal disputes for a long time, so long that the world had forgotten that the God of Lamentation was once a ruthless man of a generation, Fang Suihan, who had made the court of Xishang run with rivers of blood.

After a few days, He Ku had investigated and found out the righteous sects involved in this incident. The instigator was the Taiging Sect, which had close relations with the Tian Shu Pavilion in the past. However, it didn’t matter what their names were, because they would not exist after today.

He glanced at the majestic gates of the righteous sects. The young man in mourning clothes was still as calm as ever. He only raised his hand slightly and threw out a stack of white paper money. However, with such a simple action, the same paper money fell like snowflakes. With him as the source, everything within sight faded to leave only a pale white. This was the unique ghost domain of the God of Lamentation – “The country is ruined, and the world is in mourning.”

“God of Lamentation, you promised the Heavenly Dao Alliance that you would never set foot in the mortal world again!”

The birth of a ghost god had always symbolized the arrival of a disaster. He heard someone questioning him, but he did not turn his head to see who it was. His face was as calm and indifferent as when he looked at the colleagues who were sent to the guillotine by him, “Yes, I broke the agreement. If you don’t like it, you can destroy me, if you can.”

Fang Suihan was a civil official who did not have much martial power but could decide people’s lives. The God of Lamentation was a mourning ghost who had no means of attack but was invincible because within his ghost domain, no one could maintain their will to live.

“Living, really has no meaning…”

“A person like me, it’s better to die sooner…”

“Heavenly Dao? Justice? I already feel that everything is meaningless. Even if I don’t do anything, things won’t get any worse…”

The God of Lamentation walked from the gates to the dungeon as if taking a stroll. Wherever he passed, all the living suddenly lost their will to live. There were those who hanged themselves, those who jumped into lakes, and countless others who committed suicide with their swords. Even Nascent Soul cultivators would become dull-eyed and allow their cultivation to dissipate. He did nothing, but he was just a little angry, so he no longer suppressed his aura.

Therefore, people always repeat the same mistakes, hurting those they should not hurt and angering those they should not provoke. They really are tragic creatures.

When the restrictions were opened, the God of Joy, who was sitting in the center of the seal, still maintained his elegant posture. He was the last emperor of Xiliang. Even if he was betrayed and fell into the hands of the enemy, he would not show any weakness. Even when all the truth was revealed, what he gave to Zhao Jicheng was only a contemptuous look from above. It was such a strong demeanor that made the Taiging Sect afraid to act rashly. They were afraid that the pain would give this ghost god new strength, so they could only seal him here and wait for a Transcending Tribulation cultivator to destroy him after things were done.

However, when he saw the God of Lamentation slowly approaching, his eyes finally softened little by little, and in the end, he only sighed as usual, “Teacher, I’ve troubled you again.”

“Come back. A new ghost god was born this year. You’ll like him.”

The God of Joy had been in trouble three times in his life. Every time he thought everything was over, it was the God of Lamentation who appeared before him. Fang Suihan’s voice was as calm as ever. In front of this ghost god, he seemed to always be the young student who sat at his desk waiting for his teacher’s instructions. However, this time, the God of Joy finally let go. He reached out and grabbed his teacher’s sleeve, his words filled with the indifference of someone who had been through countless hardships, “Teacher, I don’t want to go back to Chang’an. Let me take a look at the river lanterns of Huanhun Island, okay?”

“You can watch for as long as you want. This lantern festival was originally held for you.”

Fang Suihan didn’t know how long it would take him to recover from this blow, but he knew very well that this person would be able to stand up again. And as the teacher who guided the God of Joy, what he had to do now was to bring the man back and then say softly, “There are a lot of people here, don’t get lost.”

The author has something to say: Zhuge Qingtian (throwing his head): Third Uncle, let’s hug and cry together, both of us have been tricked!

Zhao Huan (catching the head in shock): He actually threw a head over, who is this silly child from?

Fang Suihan: Oh, I suspect he is your son.

Qian Ren: Are you sure you didn’t put a green hat on Prince Liang?

Zhao Huan: ???