Chapter 50: Fú Shēng Reappears |
[March 20, 2021]...
Shěn Lí could tell the air had worsened considerably the moment she stepped in the Demon realm. It was far worse than the usual miasma. A powerful sense of ruthless maliciousness permeated the atmosphere, which was three times more polluted than before. Even those in the capital were anxious.
Shěn Lí had a calm expression on her face as she walked from the center boulevard to the royal palace. It was clear from the scope of damage how much turmoil the Demon realm had been in. The buildings were blown to pieces, the once snow-white banners now lay in a heap, neglected to the side, while the streets themselves were cold, empty and lifeless. The city resembled a ghost town more than it did a capital.
The guard in front of the palace gate had a strip of white mourning cloth tied around his forehead. His expression was not the usual calm expression expected from a guard. It looked like it took everything he had to affect an imposing air. The guard on the left saw someone approaching, but couldn’t tell who it was. He raised his spear and shouted, “Halt!”
Shěn Lí frowned. “Why are you so flustered?!” The guards were stunned at the harshness of her voice. Upon seeing who it was, one of the guards curled his mouth in an expression that was difficult to read. Was he laughing or crying?
“Your Highness . . . Your Highness is back.” His legs went soft and he crumbled to the ground. He fiercely knocked his head twice against the ground. “Your Highness has returned! Your Highness has returned!”
The other guard stared silently at Shěn Lí as he wiped at the tears in his eyes. Shěn Lí clenched her fists.
“How shameful! To let your king witness this level of emotion.” She continued in a dignified voice. “For this king, no matter what happens afterwards, you are all generals and shouldn't be crying like so. If this king sees you crying again, then chop with you!"
The two guards kowtowed to the ground.
“Replying to Your Highness, the emperor is recuperating in his room in the palace.”
“He has not awakened yet?”
“No, not yet.”
Shěn Lí’s heart burned. The demon emperor was an excellent strategist and a powerful force to be reckoned with. Not to mention Qīng Yán and Chì Róng were always by his side guarding him.[notes] It would have been extremely difficult to injure him. But now for him to be so gravely injured . . .
Shěn Lí practically dashed to the Demon emperor’s room. She saw maidservants move to and fro before she even got close. They carried basins in their arms. Whatever liquid they emptied out stained the ground red.
Could the emperor’s injuries be worsening? Anxious, Shěn Lí rushed into the chamber. The various officials greeted her as she entered, but she didn’t have the mind to respond and directly walked around the screen instead. The doctor there couldn’t stop her from lifting the curtain around the bed dais.
They had not changed the emperor’s clothes and blood was still dripping from his neck. The cloth that the medical officer pressed to the wound soon became soaked and a new one was replaced by a maidservant as the used cloth was taken away to be washed.
The blood on his lapel, how many times had it been dried only to become soaked again? They only removed the jaw part of his mask feed him. The color of his exposed lips showed how bad his condition was.
His lips . . . they were blue.
Shěn Lí took the boxes out and announced. “These pills are from the Immortal emperor. See if they are of any use.”
The officials did not bother with etiquette and promptly took the box. They poured the pills out one by one. After carefully identifying them, one was placed in the emperor’s mouth. Soon the blue in his lips faded and the blood flow at his neck stopped.
“The pill works! The pill works!” The ecstatic medical officers bowed to Shěn Lí “It is truly the Demon realm’s good fortune to have Your Highness.”
“Enough with the flattery. Tell me about the wound the Demon emperor suffered.”
They looked at each other for a moment until finally and older medical officer replied. “Your Highness, the demon emperor suffered a sword wound to the neck. It was not a heavy wound, just a minor cut, however, because of the poison, the Demon emperor lost consciousness.
Shěn Lí frowned. “What kind of poison?”
“A miasma-type poison. It takes away a person’s rationality before making them lose consciousness. They will not awake afterwards. The poison also affects the body’s ability to heal, so the cut won’t close. This type of miasma poison is different from other types of poisons. It doesn’t harm other living beings, but does tremendous damage to us demons. It’s as though it was designed specifically against the demon race.”
Miasma . . . Shěn Lí couldn’t help but think about Yáng Zhōu city and the poison Fú Shēng had created. The poison hadn’t been that powerful[notes] and was easily disbursed by Xing Zhi. Were the two poisons related?
Shěn Lí stayed by the demon emperor’s side for a while. She Li could imagine how pale his face was underneath the mask. The blue had receded and now they were a pale white color. Her fists clenched on their own as she quietly looked at him. “Where were Qīng Yán and Chì Róng?”
“They were not here when the battle happened.”
Shěn Lí’s face sank. The coincidence was too much; it was like everything had been calculated. She was silent for a moment before asking, “The generals . . . where are the generals who perished?”
“They are still in camp beyond the city. It will be a few days before they can be buried.”
“Why?”
The guard’s voice dropped significantly. “In accordance with military protocol, generals can only be buried after all soldiers have been buried.”
Shěn Lí turned and looked at him blankly. “Five days have passed and the soldiers have not been buried yet?”
The guard bowed his head.
Shěn Lí’s mind went blank. She stood up, then took a slow full breath and closed her eyes to calm her emotions. “Guard the Demon emperor carefully. Make sure he wakes up as soon as possible.” Shěn Lí disregarded proper etiquette and immediately left the chamber after speaking. She called forth a cloud and went outside the city to the military camp.
Even from a distance, Shěn Lí could smell the powerful stench of decay blowing in the wind. She could make out the sounds of people crying as she got closer. They were hoarse, mournful wails of anguish. Shěn Lí quickly flew by the area then swooped down into the army barracks. The soldiers were busy and didn’t see her. She had to drag one over and ask where the generals were.
His gaze was dull. He looked at Shěn Lí for a long time before light slowly shone in them. “Your Highness . . .” He called out in disbelief. He became excited when he saw she didn’t disappear. Grabbing her hand he said, “Your Highness . . . Your Highness is back . . .” His face flushed and he yelled out to everyone, “Her Highness is back!”
Everyone stopped working and looked over at them. They were overjoyed to see Shěn Lí, but their joy only made her heart heavy.
The Demon realm was an organized place with rules and standards. These soldiers shouldn’t behave as though she was their savior. They should behave according to structured protocol and follow whatever plans were laid out, regardless what may have happened prior.[notes] They wouldn’t behave this way normally, even after losing a campaign. And yet now . . .
The situation was more dire than expected.
Two generals appeared in front of Shěn Lí as she was thinking this. She immediately greeted them. “General Dāo Mù, General Shǐ Fāng . . .” She had only started her greeting when both generals knelt to the ground, and smacked their foreheads against the hard ground in a deep kowtow with a resounding thump.
“This general is incompetent!”
“This general is guilty!”
Their foreheads hit the ground fiercely with a tremendous amount of force, embodying their unreconciled anger and regret.
“Generals . . .” No matter how much she reminded herself to be calm and to remain composed, Shěn Lí couldn’t help but be moved. How big the blow must have been to depress their spirits to such an extent. She reached out to support them up. “Tell me what happened so I can understand properly.”
The generals slowly got up. They led Shěn Lí to the rear barracks as they explained. “Five days ago, a group of men on horseback attacked from the south.” They had only started explaining and the expression on General Dāo Mù’s face was already depressed. Shěn Lí found it strange. In the end, General Shǐ Fāng had to take over. “The other party was only two-hundred strong . . .”
Shěn Lí was shocked. “How many?!”
“Two Hundred.”
Shěn Lí suddenly understood why the soldiers were so demoralized. There were over 100,000 soldiers and 200 generals in the capital, yet they were trampled to such an extent?
“What was the other party’s background?” Shěn Lí’s voice was soft. Even if she hadn't participated in the fight, the numbers hit her hard.
“They flew the flag of the Northern Sea’s clan. Their soldiers were big and wore no armor. They were shirtless and carried no weapons. They fought with their bare hands, breaking necks, and beating everyone to death with brute strength. They ripped people apart, limb from limb.” Shǐ Fāng’s voice was well-modulated and calm, but the words were still shocking to hear. “Their skin was different from ordinary people. The soldiers couldn’t pierce through with swords or spears. The generals with Taoist training were only able to hurt one or two by pouring qi into their weapons.”
“Do we have any remains?”
The two generals glanced at each other. “No, their corpses were taken back by the enemy, but we are certain at least 30 were decapitated. The emperor killed eight or nine by blasting them to pieces.”
Shěn Lí thought for a moment. The description made her think of the three temple men she fought in the mortal realm. If it were them, and there were two hundred of them . . . indeed their strength couldn’t be underestimated. Remembering the mysterious Fú Shēng, Shěn Lí asked, “Did they have a leader?”
“A young man. He looked no different from an ordinary person, except his swordsmanship was strange. He was the one who injured the emperor.”
Fú Shēng’s figure immediately appeared in Shěn Lí’s mind. It made sense once she thought about it that way. The big guys were his subordinates and the poison miasma was his thing. But how was he a member of the Northern Sea clan? He was in the mortal realm capturing land gods before, then just a while ago he feigned an attack on the Immortal realm only to turn around and attack the Demon realm . . .
“He attacked the Demon realm . . . why?”
General Dāo Mù heard her muttering to herself. His hands clenched. “He took the emperor’s golden seal.”
The golden seal represented the ruling authority in the Demon realm. Shěn Lí’s brow furrowed as she thought about the riots happening all over the Demon realm. Was this really about seizing power? What kind of rights could they seize with the seal?
While thinking all this, Shěn Lí reached the funeral hall where the bodies of the fallen generals were stored while they awaited proper burial. Her face was grave. Everyone yielded to Shěn Lí as she entered.
A row of coffins – dozens of bodies. Shěn Lí knew all their names, but some of them, she couldn’t recognize their faces. They were unrecognizable – their bodies weren’t even whole anymore. Shěn Lí stopped in front of a coffin. Only a sword and some broken pieces of armor lay inside. It was covered in a thick layer of blood.
“Who is this?” Shěn Lí asked.
“It is General Mò Fāng.” A general from behind replied. “He was on the battlefield and desperately beheading three of the enemy when he was surrounded all sides. He was swallowed alive . . .”
Mò Fāng . . . was swallowed by the enemy?
Swallowed?
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