In the deserted tent, a man lay with his body tensed, fists clenched, and brows furrowed, in a restless sleep.
“……Not allowed…... We absolutely will not allow it……” he murmured, shaking his head in his sleep, “You cannot leave Us……”
The curtain of the tent was slowly lifted, and a pair of black cotton shoes gently stepped in.
“...... Even if you die, We will, We will dig you up……” The man was still caught up in the internal conflicts in his sleep, oblivious to the presence of an intruder.
The intruder tiptoed to the bedside, pulled out a sharp dagger from his sleeve, put it against the man’s wrist and slowly made a cut. In an instant, crimson blood flowed out, and the intruder quickly caught it with a small bowl.
“Fourteen, can you hurry up? I asked you to take a bit of his blood to draw into a small bowl, not to act like a thief. Do you have to be so sneaky?”
The ‘Holder of Panacea’ said impatiently, standing in the doorway.
“Isn’t it because you are afraid he might suddenly go crazy that you ordered me to do this dangerous job! It’s really annoying to always be asked to do such bitter work wherever I go! I won’t take such an arduous task again next time!” Fourteen grumbled aggrieved in a low voice. But as soon as he turned around, he immediately resumed a simple and honest expression, “Please wait a moment, ‘Holder of Panacea’, it will be done soon!”
After filling the small bowl, Fourteen immediately hit Hong Xu pressure point to stop the bleeding, and walked out while holding the porcelain bowl with both hands.
Hong Xu suddenly opened his eyes and jumped up from the bed, staring with a vacant look blankly ahead at the deserted tent. Suddenly as if thinking of something, he suddenly stood up and ran out of the tent in a hurry. Like a gust of wind, he swept through the grassy slopes full of white sheep and stormed into the tent of the ‘Holder of Panacea’.
Although he had a manic episode last night, there had still been a hint of clarity in his consciousness. In a daze, he seemed to have heard someone say that the person was still alive. When he woke up this morning and thought about it carefully, he could not help but feel a burst of ecstasy in his heart. So he quickly ran over, only to find an empty bed.
“Where is he?” Hong Xu roared loudly, pointing at the neatly folded bedding.
The ‘Holder of Panacea’, who was fiddling with herbs, looked up from his work and gazed at the bewildered man in front of him.
“I am asking you, where is he? Where did you take him?” Hong Xu approached, his eyes terrifying as he gritted his teeth and questioned sharply.
Please read His Majesty's Hostage Chapter 85 on Project Bezemwagen :-)
“Here you go again with your madness! Isn’t he in your tent? A person of that size, and you still cannot see him?” The ‘Holder of Panacea’ replied displeased.Upon hearing these words, Hong Xu was stunned for a moment, and then, like a gust of wind, he stormed out again!
“Can it be!”
As soon as he had thrown open the curtain, he really saw that the young man was lying peacefully on the bed. Hong Xu excitedly picked up the young man with a calmly sleeping face and kissed him on the lips again and again.
The emotion of loss and gain overflowed from his eyebrows, and in an instant it turned into a softness between his eyes.
Putting his ear against the young man’s frail chest and listening quietly to that strong and steady heartbeat, Hong Xu murmured with satisfaction, “Baby, thank you for staying alive! My darling!”
***
The moon was bright, the stars were sparse, and the night was cool as water.The man standing in the tent, wearing only a single layer of clothing, quietly gazed at a certain point in the night sky. This kind of self-tormenting behavior caused a thin layer of frost to form on his brows and temples.
“Your Majesty, it is getting late, you should rest! You have to go to court tomorrow!” the housekeeper, who was over fifty years old, reminded him softly.
“En……” After a moment of pause, he suddenly spoke up and asked, “Housekeeper, do you think he will forgive me?”
“Your Majesty..., this servant does not dare to make any assumptions!”
“That is right, you are not him, so how can you know if he will forgive me?” the man said as if he were talking to himself.
“However, we will see each other soon, ZiLi!”
***
“You quack, you said he would wake up today! But why is he still like this? Did you actually help him cure the poison? Or can’t you cure him at all and are afraid of ruining your reputation, so you are deliberately fooling us?” First thing in the morning, just after leaving the door, he met this evil tyrant who could only roar at others.Please read His Majesty's Hostage Chapter 85 on Project Bezemwagen :-)
"Hmph, now you are really destroying the bridge after crossing the river 1 ! Before, you were happily screaming ‘Holder of Panacea, Holder of Panacea’, but in the twinkling of an eye, you’ve changed to calling me a quack?” the ‘Holder of Panacea’ said mockingly.“Then tell me, if the poison has been cured, why has he not woken up yet?” Hong Xu questioned loudly. If it had been in the past, he would have immediately given the order to drag the person outside and chop him to pieces! He despised quacks!
“I did say that he would wake up today, but I did not specify when!” Ever since he met the other, the ‘Holder of Panacea’ found that his patience was rapidly decreasing. He really could not stand this rude and unreasonable man.
Hong Xu still had not settled the score for deliberately making him climb the cliff to pick useless herbs, and now if he had to add another thing to the list, he would definitely have a reason to do the other in. “All right, that is indeed what you said, but if it will not change today as you claim, I will run your reputation into the ground and will let you become a quack doctor that everyone condemns!”
The ‘Holder of Panacea’ glared at the other hatefully, knowing that a nasty person that would kick a benefactor in the teeth would look exactly like that.
As the two were engaged in a silent battle, the Clan Elder came over with a beaming face and said, “It turns out that both of you are here, that is great! That saves me the trouble of making two trips.”
Essentially this was someone else’s territory, so the two of them had to temporarily withdraw their warring gazes and they turned to the Clan Elder to ask, “May we know for what important matter the Clan Elder has come?”
“Haha, it’s not that important. It’s just that my son just had a baby. Today he has to go to the temple to ask the Head Lama 2 to pray for blessings and bestow him a name! According to our custom, the more lively the event, the more auspicious it is. So, I would like to invite you both to attend the ceremony. What do you think?”
“Congratulations to the Clan Elder on the addition of a new member to the family. I would be delighted to attend the ceremony!” the ‘Holder of Panacea’ said.
“Haha, very good!” The Clan Elder laughed and turned to Hong Xu again to enquire, “I wonder if the traveler would honor us with his presence?”
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Hong Xu initially intended to refuse, as no one had ever possessed enough prestige to invite him for such a trivial matter. But on second thought, considering the hospitality these people had shown them since their arrival, he felt it would be too impolite not to attend. Therefore, he reluctantly nodded in agreement, but on the condition that he would be allowed to bring the young man in his arms along. Because the other could wake up at any moment, he wanted the first person the young man saw upon waking to be himself.***
The group rode horses towards the temple several li away, and it was not long before they saw the pointed roof of the Lama’s temple.There were already Lamas waiting at the door, and both the Clan Elder and the Head Lama put their palms together in greeting.
“Welcome, everyone. We are already ready, please follow the Clan Elder and me!” one of the Lamas spoke.
As everyone dismounted, Hong Xu followed the crowd forward. Just as they reached the entrance, the previously meek-looking Lama standing aside suddenly raised his head, and with his gaze sharp as he looked at a point beside Hong Xu, said, “Evil Creature, is this Buddhist holy ground a place where you can come?”
Everyone who heard that looked at Lama in bewilderment.
“What happened?” another Lama walked over and asked.
“ Senior brother 3 , just now a wandering soul intended to enter the temple along with this benefactor!”
“Oh? Is that so? This Buddhist holy ground is not a place that can be easily approached by ordinary wandering souls! But that one actually managed to get here? This matter is not simple! Wandering souls can drain people’s vital energy, making the strong weak, the weak sick, and the sick on the verge of death! Benefactor, you must be very careful!”
Hong Xu frowned, then all of the sudden looked down at the young man in his arms and asked, “Great master, can you see if his unconscious state is related to the wandering soul?”
“Let me take a look!” The Head Lama opened the young man’s eyes, then made a gesture in the air, touching the young man at the space between the eyebrows. After a long while, he opened his eyes and said, “The situation is not good! This benefactor is already a living dead with his primordial spirit separated from his body. His soul is weak, easily attracting wandering souls to possess him!”
***
He shivered and huddled in the corner of the bed, wrapping himself in the felt that still carried the familiar scent of the man, which gave him some comfort.That Buddhist monk just now was absolutely terrifying! Just one glare from the other made him feel as if his soul were about to disperse instantly.
Truly frightening, it seems better to just stay here obediently!
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*Ting, ting, ting…*Suddenly, he heard the sound of small bells ringing outside.
He covered his ears in horror.
What is that sound? It’s so unpleasant!
“ Svāhā, Hūṃ, Tathā 4 , Svāhā, Hūṃ, Tathā……”
The sound, growing progressively more intense, pierced through his eardrums and drilled straight into his head.
Stop ringing! Stop chanting!
The sound coming from all directions, from the Lamas ringing the bells, was like waves narrowing towards him as the center, rapidly tightening and turning into solid rings that tightly bound his body.
The chaotic turmoil made his heart pound against his chest, like a trapped beast going mad.
“Aaahh――” he screamed and stumbled out of the tent, only to see a circle of more than a dozen Lamas surrounding him.
Please read His Majesty's Hostage Chapter 85 on Project Bezemwagen :-)
“Svāhā, Hūṃ, Tathā, Svāhā, Hūṃ, Tathā……” the Lamas chanted while shaking their bells.He felt a powerful force pressing down from above, like a collapsing roof.
***
Hong Xu watched expressionlessly at the wandering soul in the center, whose figure appeared and disappeared. It should have been very young at the time of death, only sixteen or seventeen years old.It was rolling on the ground with its hands over its head, seemingly enduring great agony. Its mouth opened and closed as if shouting something.
“Benefactor, how do you wish to deal with this wandering soul? Should we just drive it away or let it be completely annihilated?”
Annihilate it, let it be annihilated, Hong Xu was about to say, but why did he suddenly feel ill at ease? Had he also been affected by it? Thinking of this, Hong Xu could not help but become furious. It was because of it that his precious one remained in an unconscious state!
“I want it to be annihilated!” Hong Xu said through gritted teeth.
***
He was horrified by the sudden intensification of the formation’s qi. The attack, carrying a threat of death, transformed into a sharp feathered arrow shooting straight at the space between his eyebrows.He quickly rolled over and narrowly avoided the horrible arrowhead, but the murderous intent from the arrow still scorched his skin. Before he could catch his breath, another golden arrow aimed directly at his forehead.
He looked in despair at the arrow of death that came closer and closer. Would he have to experience this feeling again? His body shattering and seeing his blood splattering around like a bloody mist in the final moments before consciousness faded. Did he really have to perish in such a cruel manner?
Hong Xu, breathing somewhat heavily, looked at the wandering soul in the center that suddenly exuded infinite sorrow. Suddenly, its lowered head lifted and stared directly at him. Hong Xu was struck with a sudden shock. Those eyes... Why were those eyes so familiar? Clear and transparent, glinting with cunning when playing small tricks, shimmering like the ocean when happy, fiercely glaring when angry at him...... Hold on, something is not right! Impossible, this wandering soul......
But as Hong Xu looked at the arrow about to pierce through, he was overwhelmed with deep fear.
“Nooo――”
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