Chapter 99

“This was all planned by Jingmo? What’s going on?”

Qin Cheng was extremely confused, as a variety of ideas mixed together in his mind, making him unable to come up with a reasonable explanation. In the end, he simply shook his head and said with a smile: “He built a Mausoleum and then set up a soul-locking formation? A formation that makes even the gods and immortals stay away, not even daring to step a foot inside, what’s the point of doing such a thing?!”

Su Weiran stared at Qin Cheng and spoke: “It seems that he really didn’t tell you anything.” Speaking of this, Su Weiran suddenly laughed out loud: “Hahaha! That’s right, it would be impossible for you to be willing to die in that grave otherwise. If he told you everything, he would’ve scared you away. If that were to happen, then who will he use as a guinea pig to take care of the tomb after he’s gone? He was so heartless in his last life that he could use anyone in order to achieve his goal.”

Qin Cheng was somewhat stunned. Although it wasn’t that he didn’t know Su Jingmo had the intention to use him, he couldn’t imagine what value his life could have, and simply let Su Jingmo deceive him all this time….

“By your expression alone, I can tell you don’t even know how he died, do you?”

Su Weiran narrowed his eyes and looked out of the window, at the long-dead peach tree, and said: “Su Jingmo was a man with a profoundly scheming mentality and outstanding military achievements. Back then, our elder brother, the Crown Prince, was killed by his own hands. My second Imperial brother was so afraid of Su Jingmo that he even pretended to be a madman and escaped from the Palace. In the end, he probably died as well. Without doing all this, how could he become the Emperor?”

“Ah, but in the end, Su Jingmo was indeed a great talent who deserved to become an Emperor, compared to me….” Su Weiran paused. “Although I don’t want to admit it, he was more suitable to be an Emperor than me. As Imperial brothers, we both aspired for the throne, but there’s a clear difference between us. Su Jingmo became the Emperor for the sake of the Xu Dynasty’s future and its people so that the Xu Dynasty could continue for many years to come. I, on the other hand, wanted to rule the world. I didn’t have the same aspirations for the Xu Dynasty as him.”

After saying that, Su Weiran got up and went to close the window. “There were a lot of things I wasn’t aware of until I became the Emperor myself.”

“A hundred years before the Xu Dynasty, during a chaotic period of time, the sky was filled with extraordinary visions one day. Countless lights sprinkled down from the Heavens, falling on the Central Plains. Soon, it was rumored that the bones of an immortal beast had fallen from the sky, bones that could make someone live forever, and even make them ascend to Heaven as Immortals ¹ . Ever since the Han Dynasty came to its end, the world had fallen into chaos, so who wouldn’t want to live forever….?”

“During these troubled times, the Xu Dynasty gathered a lot of strength, and our ancestors collected all the Taowu bones scattered all over the land. Then, the Xu Dynasty conquered other countries, unifying the chaotic world. However, for some reason, my ancestors set the rule that the Su family shouldn’t touch the Taowu bones for generations to come, and these were handed over to the Lin family and the Ruohua Temple to look after.”

‘ The Lin family? That’s Lin Qing’s family, right? The Ruohua Temple… that’s where monk Xu Yun lives, right? ’ Qin Cheng’s emotions stirred up. When thinking about it, Qin Cheng seemed to understand why Su Jingmo was so set on marrying Lin Qing. ‘ So it really was because he wanted to obtain the Taowu bones? ’

Although Qin Cheng thought so, he didn’t say it. He just waited for the man in front of him to continue talking.

“After he married the daughter of the Lin family and won over the Ruohua Temple, naturally, the Taowu bones fell under his control. However, how could the Taowu bones be controlled by a mere mortal? Of course, if you know how to use them, you could live forever, but if you used them badly, they would harm your health.”

“If it hadn’t been for my third Imperial brother’s health gradually deteriorating, how could I have taken the throne from him so quickly?”

Qin Cheng didn’t doubt what Su Weiran had said. ‘ Although Jingmo never told me whether he died by Su Jingyan’s own hands, he did say that there was no use in mentioning it now. That statement on its own was a tacit admission, right? ’

“Hmm, you said that he built the Mausoleum on his own, but why did he ask you to bury him there?” Qin Cheng asked.

“Didn’t I say earlier that my ancestors vowed to never touch the Taowy bones? Later, I learned that it was an oath made between my ancestor and an Immortal in order to guard the Taowu bones, so these would never be used by humankind. In exchange, my ancestors were given the power to conquer the whole world….”

Su Weiran looked at Qin Cheng, to see whether he had figured it out. The corners of his mouth raised slightly in an almost imperceptible smile, but then he hurried to cover it up: “When the Taowu bones appear, the world will be plunged into chaos. Su Jingmo touched the Taowu bones, and according to the oath set by my ancestors, the Xu Dynasty will disappear from history. Before his death, Su Jingmo united with Xu Yun, the monk from the Ruohua Temple, in order to preserve the last bit of evidence the Xu Dynasty existed, creating a formation with the Taowu bones so that Su Jingmo’s soul wouldn’t be destroyed or sent to hell. This had to be done, to preserve the history of the Xu Dynasty in this world. I had to bury him there.”

“You don’t know the horrors of Heavenly punishment. The Xu Dynasty was struck with natural disasters one after the other. The evil situations we had to endure are things you can’t even begin to imagine. Even if I had the will to stop it, I was powerless against the rule of Heaven. The reason why you haven’t found any other Mausoleums from the Xu Dynasty, except for the tomb in Ninghua Village, is because all of them were destroyed alongside the country.”

“No, there was another tomb in Pingyao. I’ve seen it, and it was in good condition.”

“What about now?” Without waiting for Qin Cheng to reply, Su Weiran added: “The only tomb that hadn’t collapsed is the one with a formation inside, the rest were all destroyed a thousand years ago. Even now, Ning Qing’s tomb has collapsed without the Taowu bones to support it.”

Qin Cheng looked at the man in front of him without saying a word.

Everything this man said explained perfectly what has been happening so far. However, Qin Cheng didn’t want to believe it all. If everything he said was true, then the Xu Dynasty’s demise was caused by none other than Su Jingmo….When thinking about Su Jingmo, Qin Cheng simply couldn’t put him together with the man Su Weiran talked about. A sinner who caused the downfall of his own country.

However, it must be said that everything this man had said was reasonable and well-founded….

It’s just that Qin Cheng couldn’t help but feel that there was something amiss.

“I know that you’re in love with Su Jingmo, so you cannot believe me. But you must know that I’m telling you this not to make you believe in me, but because I’m advising you to stay away from Su Jingmo. Haven’t you realized how close you are to death?”

“I know….”

“You know? Ha, how would you know? It’s impossible for you to really know the truth, otherwise, you wouldn’t continue to trust Su Jingmo.”

Su Weirean approached Qin Cheng, step by step, and said with a serious tone: “Do you know why you’re in this state? That’s because Su Jingmo forcibly melted the Taowu bones in the tomb into your body, resulting in your current half-dead appearance.”

“What?!”

“You almost died at his hands, didn’t you? He should’ve used the Taowu bones to renew your life, fusing them to your body.”

“Then, he tried to save my life….”

“Hahahahahaha, save you?! Mr. Qin, no wonder he chose you. It’s not a good thing to trust Su Jingmo that much. Do you know what the Taowu bones will do to your bones and blood? Even if you try to hold on to your life, in less than a year, you will certainly die….”

These words were like the ones Qu Zhiwen frequently said, which also made Qin Cheng worry.

In the end, every word this man had said was to convince Qin Cheng to stay away from Su Jingmo. However, what’s the use of staying away from Su Jingmo? Qu Zhiwen advised him, more or less, with the ethics of a Heavenly Master. But why was this man advising him?

Qin Cheng didn’t believe that the man in front of him would be worried about him, or that he was afraid that Qin Cheng’s life was in danger when he said those words. Although what he said wasn’t necessarily false, he certainly concealed a lot of things. Su Jingmo did lie to Qin Cheng, that was a fact, but compared to this unfamiliar person, Qin Cheng would rather believe in Su Jingmo’s lies.

“You may think ‘it doesn’t matter if I die or not, I can always die inside the tomb’, right? Among thousands of people, you’re the only one willing to die in that tomb, remaining generation after generation, neither disappearing nor being reborn.”

Qin Cheng ignored his mockery and asked: “You said that Su Jingmo is using me, right? What can he use me for? Make me die in the tomb to accompany him for eternity? Even if he doesn’t say it, I will still do so willingly.”

“Eternity? Didn’t you lose sight of him a while ago? Why do you think that happened? The jade pendant he gave you doesn’t work anymore?”

‘ The jade pendant?! How does he know?! ’

“It’s not that hard to figure out.” Su Weiran glanced at Qin Cheng and continued: “But that isn’t important for now. You need to understand that Su Jingmo has supported the tomb for 1600 years. This tomb is like a time bomb. Although the demon messengers ² cannot enter, do you really think the Heavens will let it go? How much damage has Su Jingmo’s soul endured for the past 1000 years? Do you know? Of course you don’t. He’s going to disappear from earth!”

“….Impossible….”

“Whether it’s impossible or not, go ask him yourself.” Su Weiran said as he looked at Qin Cheng with an expressionless face. “If he disappears, what do you think will happen to that big Mausoleum? What will happen to the evidence that proves the Xu Dynasty really existed? You should know after seeing what happened when Ning Qing left his tomb.”

“Collapse….”

“Not only will it collapse, but it will also be utterly destroyed. Therefore, Su Jingmo needs a person, no, he needs a soul. Someone that will volunteer to stay there and continue to support that tomb until all the history gets revealed to the public. The formation requires a soul who’s willing to stay in the tomb, only like that will the soul not turn into a fierce ghost consumed by resentment, becoming one with the formation itself.”

After saying this, Su Weiran looked solemnly at Qin Cheng, and added: “You’re the only one who is willing to stay there and support the tomb after Su Jingmo is no longer there.”

“He didn’t tell you this because he was afraid you would begin to feel hesitant. As long as there’s the slightest trace of hesitation in your heart, your soul will resent having died, and the tomb will collapse. This is the only way.”

Qin Cheng suddenly clenched his fists. When seeing this, Su Weiran added: “You should consider the things I told you. Once you have it all figured out, we can talk about something else.”

With that said, Su Weiran left the room. After the wooden door was closed with a ‘creak’ sound, the room was completely silent.

Qin Cheng was left in the room, all on his own.

However, Su Weiran wasn’t aware of one thing. Although Qin Cheng had heard each and every one of his words, in the end, the sentence that echoed the most in his mind was: “He’s going to disappear….”

With such a thought, Qin Cheng’s clenched fist was faintly trembling….and the sadness slowly spread from the bottom of his heart, while thick darkness spread all over his mind.

Wooooh this chapter is filled with a lot of information, but…. should we trust Su Weiran? Or should we trust in Su Jingmo, like Qin Cheng does??? 👀👀

The next chapter will be the 100th!!! Can’t believe we already made it this far! We will be 44 chapters away from the ending ah!!

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Footnotes

<ol><b>羽化登仙</b> <b>yǔ huà dēng xiān</b> ; It literally means ‘to become as light as a feather and ascend to heaven as an immortal’. It comes from the Taoist belief that when one reaches the ultimate level of cultivation, one can escape from the cycle of life and death, old age, sickness, and death. <b>鬼差</b> <b>guǐ chāi</b> ; They’re responsible for catching and leading the souls of the deceased to the Underworld, where they will be judged before their new reincarnation.</ol>