Forbidden Read!
Chapter 12 (part 1)

Chapter 12 (part 1): The Ghosts in the Red Bandage Burn the Temple of the Martial God and Literature

As he had expected, on the teenager's face was a serious burn scar. However, under that blood red scar, it could faintly be seen three or four very small human faces.

The human faces were about the size of a baby's palms, spread obliquely across his cheeks and forehead. Since they had previously been burned, each of those faces looked wrinkled and looked as if they were squealing in pain. With those squealing and strange looking mini-human faces crammed into a originally normal human face, it was truly more terrifying than any ghost!

In that short time, after he saw that face, Xie Lian felt as if she was thrown into a nightmare. The overwhelming fear made his entire body numb, to the point that he was unconscious as he stood up. He was also unaware of what kind of expression appeared on his face, but it must have been very frightening.

The teenager had already slowly and hesitantly taken off his bandage, he already felt uneasy. Seeing his reaction, he took two steps back, seemingly realizing that Xie Lian could not accept his face like this. As if wanting to protect himself, he suddenly covered his terrifying face, leaping from the ground, before shouting and fleeing towards the depths of the forest.

Xie Lian chased after him and shouted, "Wait! Back!"

But because he had been standing still for a while before finally reacting, and with how the teenager had more memorization of the mountain routes (had been used to hiding and escaping in the darkness), he said, it goes without saying that the teenager will disappear without a trace. No matter how loud Xie Lian shouted, she would not come out. With no one around to aid his quest, and his spiritual power being so weak, made him unable to use the spiritual communication array; he ran around the mountain and searched for an hour without success.

When the cold wind blew, Xie Lian's mind became clearer and then she realized that randomly fumbling like a headless housefly would produce nothing. He gathered his thoughts back together and thought, "Maybe he'll go back on Little Ying's corpse."

Xie Lian then returned to the Guang― Ming Templebut she was shocked.

Xie Lian was greeted by a group of people dressed in all black who were all gathered in the forest behind the temple. With a serious face, they carefully lowered forty or so corpses from their hanging positions on top of the tree. In front of the forest stood a tall figure with arms crossed, watching the group of people. His head turned, revealing an elegant yet cold face belonging to a young man, who turned out to be Fu Yao. It seemed like he had traveled back to Heaven, before bringing back a group of heavenly officials descending from the Xuan Zhen Palace Hall to come help.

Xie Lian was just about to speak when the sound of footsteps came from behind. It was Nan Feng who had also finished delivering the villagers and had just returned. When he saw the scene, he glanced at Fu Yao and asked, "Aren't you running away by yourself?"

The way he said it was extremely unpleasant, causing Fu Yao to raise her eyebrows to show her displeasure. Xie Lian did not want them to start arguing at such a critical moment as now so she interrupted, "I asked her back to bring reinforcements."

Nan Feng grinned, "Then where are our reinforcements? I think at least, you'll make your General come personally."

Fu Yao replied nonchalantly, "When I came back, I heard that General Little Pei has already arrived here. So, I didn't waste any time looking for our General. Moreover, even if I tried to find her, with how busy she was, she would not have the time to come."

To be honest, according to Xie Lian's understanding of Mu Qing, even if that General had the time, he still wouldn't have come personally. But the current Xie Lian did not have time to think more about the topic and tiredly said, "You guys don't argue now, help me find a bandaged teenager first."

Nan Feng furrowed his brows and asked, "Didn't he just be with you, watching over the girl's corpse?"

Xie Lian replied, "I told him to take off his bandage and scare him."

Fu Yao's lips twitched. "That's impossible. Your crossdressing hasn't reached a scary point yet."

Xie Lian sighed. "Blame me for being so agitated that I didn't react in time. Little Ying had just died, so her emotions were already provoked. Then, he thought I was scared of his face. Maybe he couldn't bear the blow, so he ran away."

Fu Yao deflated her nose and asked, "Is he really that bad?"

Xie Lian replied, "It's not a question of whether he's ugly or not. He. has a Human Face Disease."

Hearing those three words, the movements and expressions of Nan Feng and Fu Yao immediately stiffened.

They finally understood why Xie Lian was so agitated.

Eight hundred years ago, the Royal City, the Ancient Kingdom of Xian Le had been swept away by the plague. In the end, the whole kingdom was destroyed.

When people get sick, a small swelling will first appear in their body. Then, the swelling will grow bigger and harder, and begin to hurt. Soon after, they will begin to realize that the swelling will begin to become uneven, having three sunken spots and one convex, looking like.

After that, its features would become clearer until finally, it would resemble something similar to a human face. And if ignored, more human faces would grow on their bodies. It is reported that some faces grow for so long that they cultivate their own characteristics and can even open their mouths to speak or shout.

And the name of this plague, is Human Face Disease!

Fu Yao's face changed several times before she let go of her crossed hands and said, "How is it possible! The plague was eradicated centuries ago. It can't show up again."

In response, Xie Lian only said one line of sentences. "I didn't see wrong."

Nan Feng and Fu Yao realized that they were completely unable to refute. What Xie Lian said, no one could refute her.

Xie Lian further added, "His face had burn scars before, probably because he was trying to burn those faces."

For those suffering from human facial ailments, many of them, had the first reaction of taking a knife and cutting that monstrous object from their bodies, or using fire to burn it to death. They will not hesitate to sever their limbs or break their bones if they contract the disease.

Nan Feng spoke as he muttered, "Then, he doesn't seem like an ordinary person. He might even have lived on this earth for several centuries. But more importantly, is the disease contagious?"

Although with all these problems making them a headache, this matter was still something that Xie Lian had pondered calmly. He replied with certainty, "No. Human face disease is highly contagious. If the illness in the teenager was contagious, then everyone in Yu Jun Mountain had already been infected by him now given how long he had been hiding there. He should have healed. It's just, he can't remove the scars left behind."

The three of them could not risk recklessly. Fu Yao seemed to have quite a high position in the Xuan Zhen Palace Hall, and thus summoned a Heavenly Official to explore every inch of Mount Yu Jun. Despite this, they still could not trace the whereabouts of the teenager. Unfortunately, he must have escaped from the mountain and disappeared within the crowd.

For the time being, they could only return to Heaven and request the help of Ling Wen Palace Hall for this matter before waiting for further news. The disease in the teenage body is not contagious. At least one such fact is something to be happy about. But Xie Lian recalled her frightening appearance. If his appearance was known after leaving the mountain, he was afraid that everyone would see him and call him a monster, cursed, beaten and even killed. It would be best to find him as soon as possible.

Without wanting to delay any longer at Mount Yu Jun, he took Little Ying's corpse and went down the mountain. Since he was so unfocused, only when the tea presenter yelled at him did he realize that he was about to enter Xiaofeng Xian Dian's tavern while holding a corpse in his hand. He repeatedly apologized and went to look for someone to help him bury Little Ying's corpse before returning to the tavern. After he finally took care of everything, and then sat down, Xie Lian quietly sighed.

One problem was finally resolved; yet he felt as if the last few days after his ascension were more exhausting than collecting trash for an entire year in the human world. Climb up and down, jump on the roof and jump over walls, roll over, shout, and even make costume changes and crossdress. All the bones in his body were like they were about to crumble and come off, yet there were still many unsolved puzzles and loose ends to deal with. He really wanted to hang a sign on his back saying, 'Good is not as good as collecting trash' and promoting it to the human world.

Fu Yao flipped the front end of her robe and sat down next to Xie Lian's hand. Unable to hold it in anymore, he turned his eyeballs towards her and asked, "Why are you still wearing those clothes?"

Fu Yao said, "Maybe it's because you look too happy while wearing it."

Nan Feng was running around all day, but now he also finally got a chance to sit down and rest. He said, "No need to remind me. Little General Pei won't care about what you wear. Even if you dress ten times stranger than your current clothes, she won't say a word when she returns."

Xie Lian felt that tonight, she had actually given this little Heavenly Official so much hard work, so she poured him a cup of tea. After thinking back on General Pei Little's cold expression and comparing it to Xuan Ji's crazy expression, he said, "This Little Pei General is completely calm. What a great calm."

Nan Feng drank that cup of tea and then chimed in with slight objection, "You shouldn't judge him just by looking at his polite and gentle appearance. Like his predecessors, they were both difficult to deal with."

Xie Lian was a little more beginning to understand, and regarding this matter, Fu Yao also agreed and said, "Pei Su is a novice who rose about two hundred years ago, and regarding this matter, Fu Yao also agreed and said, "Pei Su is a rookie who rose about two hundred years ago, but his strength was extremely strong and he rose through the ranks very quickly. When he was appointed by General Pei, he had just grown up. Do you know what he was doing at the time?"

Xie Lian asked, "What?"

Fu Yao coldly replied with a single line of sentences, "He slaughtered everyone in the city he had captured."

When Xie Lian heard that, she was pensive but not surprised. In the Heavenly Court, emperors, kings and generals were everywhere. The phrase "A military achievement resulting from ten thousand dried up bones" is used to describe the problem of conquering and defending a kingdom. If you have the desire to be immortal, you must first become a famous individual. And under our feet, we walked on the bloody path. Fu Yao concluded, "In the Heavenly Court, there are only a few people who are easy to get along with, and no one can be trusted."

Xie Lian listened to his tone, which sounded as if it came from a person experienced in warning young people, and wanted to laugh. He guessed that maybe Fu Yao had gone through a lot in the Heavenly Court, so he felt very knowledgeable about this topic for him to the point of speaking in such a way. But he also knew that even though he had ascended three times, the time he spent in heaven each ascension was so quick and short, like the lifespan of a cactus blooming at night, lost in the blink of an eye. If one were to discuss the matter about comprehending the immortal beings around them, he would really be no match for these two little Heavenly Officials.

Seeming to disagree with Fu Yao's words, Nan Feng said, "Don't be an overly vigilant person. There were good and bad ones everywhere, and there were still some trustworthy Heavenly Officials in the Heavenly Court."

Fu Yao however replied, "Haha, trustworthy Heavenly Official, are your words referring to your General?"

Nan Feng replied, "Whether referring to my General or not, I don't know. But that's definitely not your general."

Facing a situation like this, Xie Lian had long since gotten used to it, no longer outside of reasonableness. Moreover, there was still something on his mind, so he didn't even have the energy to try and shift the subject.

With all the things that had happened in the North, he returned to Heaven. First, he went to Ling Wen Palace to tell her about the situation regarding the teenager wrapped in bandages, entrusting Ling Wen to look for her in the human world. Hearing the news, Ling Wen's face became serious and agreed to her request. He added, "Ling Wen Palace Hall will do everything to look for him as we can. But who would have thought that this visit to the North would be related to so many things. We really have troubled you, Your Majesty."

Xie Lian replied, "I must thank those two little Heavenly Officials for volunteering to help, and Little General Pei from Ming Guang Palace. I really don't know how to thank them."

Ling Wen said, "Since the matter was caused by Old Pei's bad relationship, then Little Pei would naturally deal with it. He was used to cleaning up the mess, so there was no need to thank him. If Your Majesty doesn't do anything else, when you return, may I trouble you to check out the spiritual communication array? Everyone still needed to gather and discuss the matter."

Xie Lian also had many unanswered questions. After leaving Ling Wen Palace, he circled around aimlessly, before he found himself on a small stone bridge.

The stone bridge crossed the flowing river. The river water there is so clear, that you can clearly see the movement of the clouds floating below. Passing through the flowing water and clouds, you can even see the undulating mountains and the large expanse of square-shaped cities of the world below. He thought to himself: "This is a nice place" and then sat down on the bridge, before silently reciting the password and joining in the spiritual communication array.

As he entered, he met a rare uproar within the spiritual communication array. Many voices were talking to each other, everything was extremely chaotic. The first thing he heard was Feng Xin's curse, "Damn it! Have you chosen which mountain to hold it? That female ghost Xuan Ji had gone mad, no matter how much we questioned her, she would only shout wanting to see General Pei and refuse to tell us the whereabouts of Green Ghost Qi Rong!"

General Pei Kecil said, "General Xuan Ji has always been a stubborn and passionate person."

Feng Xin's voice became even more furious, "Little General Pei, has that General Pei of yours returned? Hurry up and let her meet the female ghost, and ask her about the existence of Green Ghost Qi Rong so that we can get rid of her faster!"

Feng Xin was at least used to dealing with women. To make him interrogate a female ghost, Xie Lian could not help but sympathize with him.

General Pei Kecil replied, "It is useless even if he meets with General Pei. He'll only get crazier once he sees it."

Another voice then rang out, "Corpse Forest Hanging again.Qi Rong's taste was always low grade, unpleasant."

"Even their Ghost Realm insulted him for having terrible tastes, so it was clear to everyone that his taste was indeed a very low grade."

All Heavenly Officials interacted peacefully. They are all very familiar with each other. As a newcomer who had ascended eight hundred years ago, Xie Lian should have remained silent in her place without speaking. But after he listened for a while, he could not help but cut in, "Sorry, is that about the Hanging Corpse Forest on Mount Yu Jun? Is Green Ghost Qi Rong also in the region?"

Since he did not so often speak within the spiritual communication array, his voice was not known to everyone. When the Heavenly Officials were thinking whether they should answer him or not, the first person to answer him unexpectedly was Feng Xin. He replied, "Green Ghost Qi Rong is not at Mount Yu Jun. But what happened in the Hanging Corpse Forest was the actions of the female ghost Xuan Ji, because of her request and as a deduction for her."

Xie Lian further asked, "Is Xuan Ji a Green Ghost subordinate?"

General Pei Kecil replied this time. "really. General Xuan Ji died a few hundred years ago, even though he had hatred, he was always powerless to cause trouble. But the incident only lasted until two hundred years ago. Green Ghost Qi Rong found her and saw that she had the same taste as him so she appreciated him so much. He took it and made it one of his subordinates, causing his spiritual power to increase significantly."

The meaning behind his words was basically, the female ghost Xuan Ji who caused trouble could not blame him on General Pei, as he originally did not have the ability to cause trouble. If they wanted to blame someone, then the one to blame was Green Ghost Qi Rong, because he was the one who had taken Xuan Ji and given him the ability to hurt people. Originally, the Heavenly Officials present all thought that this was all a disaster caused by General Pei's karma. They simply did not voice their opinions out loud, but General Pei Kecil could still feel them. With a gentle and unwieldy warning aimed at all of them, they immediately hid their thoughts even deeper into their hearts. Xie Lian asked again, "Then has Mount Yu Jun been thoroughly investigated? There should be children's spirits there."

This time, Mu Qing's voice that appeared, did not sound cold or warm as she asked, "Children's spirit? What child spirit?"

Xie Lian thought to herself, Fu Yao might not tell her about the details. It was even possible that he who came out to help her was kept secret, so he did not mention Fu Yao by name just in case it could get her into trouble. He replied, "In the palanquin, I heard the laughter of a child speaking by singing children's songs as a warning. At that moment, there were two other little heavenly officials present, yet none of them sensed its existence, so the spirit power of this child should be extraordinary."

Mu Qing said, "No children's spirits were found in the search on Mount Yu Jun."

Xie Lian felt this was very strange, didn't the spirit of the child come to warn her? When he thought about it, he suddenly recalled something else and asked, "By the way, I also met a teenager who could order silver butterflies around at Mount Yu Jun. Does anyone know who that is?"

The noisy and chaotic spiritual communication array suddenly became silent as the words came out.

This kind of reaction, Xie Lian had already expected it, so she just waited patiently. After a while, Ling Wen finally asked, "Your Highness Crown Prince, what did you just say?"

Mu Qing coldly replied to him, "He just said, he met Hua Cheng."