“…It really is. It’s the old crown prince, the Crown Prince of Xianle! I saw him once from a distance!
“Didn’t they say the crown prince went missing?”
“I heard he ascended.”
“Why is he like this…? What’s with the sword? Did it really stab him all the way through? Scary…”
“Enough gawking! Let me through, will y’all let me through? I’ve got places to be!”
This street ended in a fork where the road split into two separate directions. Since the crossing was being blocked by a crowd of people, the carriages that came along couldn’t get through, and drivers descended from their vehicles to check things out. It was causing quite the commotion.
Suddenly, someone shouted, “Wait! He seems…to be saying something?”
The crowd quieted down. Everyone held their breaths and listened intently, trying to pick up his voice. No one on the outer edges could hear anything, so a moment later they shouted, “What did he say? Did he tell you what happened?”
The ones in the front called back, “No!”
“Then what did he say?”
“He said, ‘Save me.’”
Xie Lian lay flat on the ground. After those two words, not another sound escaped his lips. The people crowding around him reacted to the statement with varying emotions, expressions, and degrees of puzzlement.
A chubby man who seemed to be a chef said, “Save him? How do we save him?”
Someone took a guess. “He probably meant to ask for help pulling the sword out?”
The chef looked fairly gutsy and was ready to go and give it a shot—however, he was held back by several hands.
“Don’t, don’t, don’t! Absolutely do not!”
The chef was confused. “Why not?”
“You mustn’t! Haven’t you heard? Didn’t Xianle lose the war?” the bystanders explained. “Why did they lose the war? Because of Human Face Disease. And why did that plague descend? Because there was a God of Misfortune, and it was—”
“God of Misfortune?! Really?!”
The moment those words were said, any chance of someone recklessly stepping forward was dashed. In an instant, the area around that enormous human-shaped pit was entirely empty of people.
After all, no one knew exactly what had happened to the crown prince of the previous dynasty. Was he a God of Misfortune? Would they contract that horrifying disease if they came in contact with him? Or would they find themselves mired in bitterly bad luck? Besides, it seemed like he wasn’t going to die for the time being even if they didn’t pull the sword out—if he could fall from who-knew-where and crash so loudly from such a height without dying, then he was beyond human.
A moment later, someone said timidly, “Maybe we should report this to the authorities…?”
“Didn’t they say this Royal Highness ascended and became a god? What’s the use in reporting this to the authorities?”
“Then what should we do?”
The crowd squabbled amongst themselves but couldn’t come to a decision. In the end, they sent someone to report the incident and promptly washed their hands of any further responsibility.
“You want to lie there? Well then, just lie there. Let’s leave him be.”
Thus, Xie Lian remained sprawled in the human-shaped pit, watching the curious heads peeking in above him gradually decrease in number until they completely disappeared. The blocked carriages detoured around him, and the children playing in the streets were dragged back inside by their parents. Every so often someone would pass by, but they kept their distance. Xie Lian was expressionless throughout, speaking not a single word more.
A water merchant finally couldn’t bear the sight any longer. He whispered to his wife as she watched the stall, “Is it really all right to leave him like that? Why don’t I give him a cup of water?”
The water merchant’s wife hesitated for a moment and scanned their surroundings, then whispered back, “Let’s not. If he really is a God of Misfortune, then who knows what could happen if you get too close?”
The water merchant was also hesitant and looked around. The other merchants were all staring at him from their stalls, their expressions nervous—it seemed that if he were to approach that pit, they had drawn their own lines and would stay far, far away from him in turn. In the end, he didn’t dare step forward and abandoned the idea entirely.
Xie Lian remained like that from the thin mist of morning to the blazing midday sun, then to dusk, and on until deep into the night.
Many people saw him during that time, but those who approached were very few, and there certainly wasn’t anyone who would help pull the black sword from his stomach.
In the deep of night, there was not a soul on the streets, but Xie Lian still lay there on the ground and watched the skies above. The stars twinkled in the dark sky, and his thoughts were meandering and mysterious. Suddenly, clear, crisp laughter sounded from above the pit.
“Ha ha ha… What are you doing?”
After receiving so many visits from the owner of that voice, Xie Lian no longer reacted as violently as he once had. When he didn’t receive his customary angry, panicked “welcome,” the voice’s owner took the initiative and walked over himself. He stood by Xie Lian’s head and bent down, and his voice seemed almost a little disappointed.
“What are you waiting for?”
That half-crying, half-smiling mask was upside down, and coincidentally also blocked Xie Lian’s entire field of vision. They faced each other like that, with only centimeters between them.
“Get the hell out of here. You’re blocking my view of the sky,” Xie Lian said coldly.
White No-Face wasn’t the least bit upset at being told to get the hell away. He straightened up with a laugh, and his reply sounded quite affable, like an elder tolerating a spoiled child. “What’s so good about the sky?”
“It’s prettier than you,” Xie Lian snapped at him.
“Why the temper?” White No-Face asked. “It wasn’t me who stabbed you this time, and it wasn’t me who left you here. You did all this yourself. Even if you haven’t gotten the results you were hoping for, you still can’t blame me.”
Xie Lian said nothing.
“You’ve wasted an entire day here,” White No-Face continued. “What exactly are you trying to prove? Or are you trying to convince yourself of something?”
“It’s none of your shitty business,” Xie Lian said.
White No-Face chuckled sympathetically. “Silly child. Did you think someone would help you pull out that sword?”
Chapter 104:
Man in Abyss Receives a Bamboo Hat in the Rain
“I KNOW NO ONE WILL COME, but it’s none of your shitty business,” Xie Lian retorted with force.
“Then why did you poke a hole to lie down in?” White No-Face languidly asked. “Are you trying to get some attention? No one will cry over you.”
“I’m doing this because I want to,” Xie Lian countered. “It’s none of your shitty business.”
“If someone does come to help you, what will you do? And if no one comes, what will you do?”
Xie Lian didn’t answer his questions but instead started cursing. “Why do you talk so much shit?! I’m gonna throw up! It’s none of your shitty business, none of your shitty business!”
Even as his words became more vulgar and rude, his tone more frustrated, he still only knew so many curse words.
White No-Face laughed out loud in amusement. “Silly child.” He sighed and turned around. “Just as well. Either way, there is only one day left. It’s fine to let you foolishly struggle for a bit. Regardless, no one will come give you a cup of water or help you pull out the sword. Remember…”
White No-Face reminded him once more of the consequences.
“Tomorrow at sunset, if you still haven’t unleashed the plague of Human Face Disease, the curse will fall upon you.”
Xie Lian listened quietly and didn’t move a muscle.
