Chapter 576 – The Kind Words of the Elder of Heavenly Secrets
Translated by: Hypersheep325
Edited by: Michyrr
After waking up early in the morning on the next day, Tang Thirty-Six, with two deep black bags around his eyes, went to find Chen Changsheng.
"What happened with you?" Chen Changsheng was very concerned over his health.
Tang Thirty-Six was very exhausted, saying, "Keeping watch is an exhausting job. Can you guys sleep a little earlier next time?"
Hearing this, Chen Changsheng felt rather embarrassed and also somewhat guilty. He said, "It's just for a few days."
"A few days?" Tang Thirty-Six's volume suddenly increased as he angrily roared, "In the capital, you also said it was just a few days, and now it's still just a few days! Then tell, just how many days is a few days? Just how many! Just how long do you plan to hide this matter?"
Chen Changsheng was speechless.
Tang Thirty-Six said to him with unbearable bitterness, "Just count this as me asking you to quickly tell the entire world. Holding and protecting secrets is truly too painful."
Chen Changsheng said soothingly, "I also empathize with what you're experiencing, but…"
Hearing the word 'empathize', Tang Thirty-Six instantly became furious. He yelled, "What? Empathize with what I'm experiencing? **** your empathy! ****your experience! This is all your concern! It doesn't have shit to do with me! You're the one obtaining all the benefits! The snow of the Orthodox Academy, the wind of Mount Han's peak, but you let me suffer! If you have the capability, give me that date and let me eat it!"
Chen Changsheng had originally felt thoroughly ashamed, but upon suddenly hearing the word 'date', he instantly grew alert. Staring back, he questioned, "What did you say?"
Tang Thirty-Six realized that he had made a slip of the tongue, but he was in no way ready to concede defeat. "What's up? I can't even get a little benefit from helping you keep watch?"
Chen Changsheng felt very helpless, saying, "Didn't we already discuss this at the start, that it's improper to listen, improper to look?"
Tang Thirty-Six feigned shock, saying,"You molested her?"
(TN: The word for 'improper' used in the previous line, 非礼, can also mean 'molestation' or 'harassment'.)
At this time, Zhexiu walked in. Seeing their combative stances, he asked, "You're going to fight?"
"No." Tang Thirty-Six used a ladder to descend, explaining, "I asked him to help me check on where my idol went, but now it turns out that he refuses to tell me."
The idol he spoke of was Liu Qing.
After the successive departures of Su Li and the enigmatic woman, the once third-ranked assassin in the world was now probably the number one assassin on the Ranking of Assassins.
But even the chief assassin was still an assassin, the number one killer still a killer, unable to be exposed to the light of day.
Just as Zhexiu once said, an assassin participating in the Boiling Stone Summit was seeking his own death.
Chen Changsheng had once asked that steward of the Pavilion of Heavenly Secrets to assist him in smoothing things over, but not long after the steward had agreed, the Demon Lord had rendered him into pearls of blood on the floor.
Thinking of how Liu Qing had been severely injured by the Demon Lord and his very unique identity, the three couldn't help but be concerned.
Within the Heaven Lake was an island, its garden pervaded and surrounded by warm mists that never lifted. Staying on that island was not necessarily comfortable, but it greatly assisted in recovering from injuries. Especially after being wounded by the biting cold of demon techniques, one could recover very quickly here.
At this time, Liu Qing was on this island, recovering from his injuries.
He did not need the concern of Chen Changsheng and his friends, and even less needed them to request the Pavilion of Heavenly Secrets to release him.
The Ranking of Assassins was issued by the Pavilion of Heavenly Secrets, but very few people noticed the significance of this fact.
The Elder of Heavenly Secrets sat across from Liu Qing and asked, "What do you plan to do now that Su Li has left?"
Liu Qing was not a member of the Pavilion of Heavenly Secrets, but he had done many things on its behalf.
In fact, even Su Li had done quite a few things for the Pavilion of Heavenly Secrets back then.
Liu Qing considered the question, finally replying, "If Sir does not oppose, I want to go to the capital."
"Go to the capital for what?"
"Kill Tianhai."
"Then, I oppose."
The Elder of Heavenly Secrets calmly said to him, "The Empress is my good friend, and I also don't want to send you to your death."
Liu Qing replied, "Then let's put it aside for the time being."
The Elder of Heavenly Secrets suddenly asked, "Chen Changsheng…just what sort of person is he?"
Liu Qing very seriously pondered this for a very long time, finally saying, "He is a good person."
The Elder of Heavenly Secrets slightly arched his brows, rather surprised by this answer.
Whether it was Su Li, Liu Qing, or even himself, none of them were good people.
What they loathed the most were so-called good people.
But when Liu Qing said that Chen Changsheng was a good person, he did not spy any ridicule or teasing on Liu Qing's face, only earnestness and respect.
This answer was very important, at least to the Elder of Heavenly Secrets.
"Since this little fellow has such kindness towards the world, I suppose I'll represent the world and return him some kindness."
"When did Sir ever have something like kindness?"
"On the verge of death, even the words are kind, let alone one's intentions."
……
……
A boat floated on the surface of the lake, breaking through the fog. It seemed like it was traveling through a fairyland.
Chen Changsheng could clearly sense that the fog and water contained some sort of defensive array. As he passed the small isles in the lake, he could see the bowing disciples of the Pavilion of Heavenly Secrets.
It didn't take long before he arrived at the island in the very center of the lake. This place was also the warmest place in all of this cold mountain range. It could even be described as blazing hot.
As he walked amongst the warm mist and stepped on the slippery flagstones, several questions bubbled up in his mind. Why was the Elder of Heavenly Secrets in such a rush to see him? Putting aside the fact that he had just awakened from a coma, the Elder of Heavenly Secrets should have also have suffered significant injuries. As he thought about these questions, he gradually forgot about the stifling heat around him.
Upon arriving at the garden and seeing the Elder of Heavenly Secrets, he finally understood a few things. Although he still had no answer, he had a clue. Last year in the summer, the Pavilion of Heavenly Secrets had sent an old steward to examine the Stainless Sword in the Orthodox Academy. As it turned out, the old steward had been the Elder of Heavenly Secrets himself.
This being the case, the Elder of Heavenly Secrets had naturally not come to examine a sword, but to examine a person, to examine him.
The steward responsible for guiding Chen Changsheng respectfully invited him in, and then quietly retreated.
Chen Changsheng quietly sat down, just like an obedient junior.
If this were two years ago, he would have found it impossible to remain calm before such an important figure as the Elder of Heavenly Secrets.
But now, he had already met far too many legendary figures, even legends like the Demon Lord and Wang Zhice.
The Elder of Heavenly Secrets noticed that even as Chen Changsheng walked through such stifling hot mist, his collar remained close to his neck and his clothes remained meticulous. He was satisfied at this.
"I've met countless heroes, but you aren't one bit lacking compared to any of them."
There were no pleasantries or attempts to sound each other. This important figure, currently the oldest man in the entire continent, had begun the conversation. The Elder of Heavenly Secrets looked at Chen Changsheng and said, "I've also seen many mountains. The one that I like the most has always been Mount Feiya by the Eastern Sea, and it was that mountain that was awarded to me by the Divine Empress after I went to see you in the capital."
Only at this point did Chen Changsheng realize that a few transactions had been concealed behind this matter, and he was stunned.
It was known throughout the world that the Elder of Heavenly Secrets possessed an unimaginably supreme intelligence and a world-shaking calculation ability. In the eyes of many, if there really existed a person that could see through fate, that person was undoubtedly the Elder of Heavenly Secrets. The Divine Empress had invited the Elder of Heavenly Secrets to examine him and sent off an entire mountain, but this price could not be considered large.
He naturally wanted to know just what secrets the Elder of Heavenly Secrets had seen on his body at the time. However, even though he was the future Pope, before the Elder of Heavenly Secrets, he was still only a junior, and the tempo of this conversation was not under his control. He had many questions to ask this elder, but the elder also had many questions to ask him.
"Since the Demon Lord did not leave in the beginning, why did he leave later on?" the Elder of Heavenly Secrets asked.
After Chen Changsheng awoke, this was the question that most concerned Tang Thirty-Six and Zhexiu, because for him to be able to survive was an utterly inconceivable matter.
Even if the Elder of Heavenly Secrets could calculate the world, he still could not calculate just how he had managed to survive.
This was because he could not calculate that Wang Zhice was still alive and had, in that moment, appeared in Mount Han, appeared in front of that cliff.
Chen Changsheng had promised the old man that he would not reveal this matter to others. Tang Thirty-Six and Zhexiu were an accident, Xu Yourong was an exception.
Although the Elder of Heavenly Secrets was an exalted existence who was many generations his predecessor, he was not an accident nor an exception, so Chen Changsheng said nothing, only shook his head.
This was a very straightforward approach. The Elder of Heavenly Secrets was not angered. He only quietly gazed at him in thought, his eyes calm and incredibly perceptive, seemingly able to see through all secrets. "If you don't wish to speak of how you survived, then can you speak on why the Demon Lord wants to kill you?"
Chen Changsheng thought, the Demon Lord did not come to kill me, then he shook his head again.
It was still the very straightforward approach. He did not wish to discuss this matter because it involved his greatest secrets and fears.
"Perhaps you don't know of what happened afterwards. When the Demon Lord returned to Xuelao City, he was already heavily wounded."
The Elder of Heavenly Secrets paused here, as if giving him some time to receive and absorb the shock from this information.
Chen Changsheng really was shocked. The Demon Lord was heavily injured? Just what had he encountered after breaking through Mount Han's Heavenstone array?
"He encountered His Majesty the White Emperor."
The Elder of Heavenly Secrets did not give him too much time to speculate, straightaway saying, "Or to put it more precisely, the White Emperor had been waiting in the snowy plains for him the entire time."
Upon hearing this, Chen Changsheng's heart slowly sank. Even in this garden at the center of the island that still seemed gripped in the warmth of spring, he felt a sliver of cold.
"This being the case, the Demon Lord leaving Xuelao City and coming to Mount Han to kill you had already been calculated by someone. He…fell into a trap."
The Elder of Heavenly Secrets calmly looked into his eyes, saying, "But I have no knowledge of this trap, and the Empress also does not know. Then, do you know of it?"
Chen Changsheng was rather absent-minded at this moment, subconsciously shaking his head at these words.
During this conversation, he had shaken his head three times, but this time was completely different from the last two times. He was somewhat frustrated, somewhat uneasy, somewhat unwilling to continue thinking about it.
However, the Elder of Heavenly Secrets still gazed into his eyes, his voice still continuing.
"Since this was a trap, the architect of this trap was naturally certain that there was something on your body that the Demon Lord had to obtain, even in the face of enormous risk. Just what is on your body? Just how many people in the world know of this matter? You don't need to answer, but I advise you to think about it very carefully."
Chen Changsheng lowered his head. For a very long time, he said not a word.
……