I am the Ruler of the Kingdom of Mysterious-Chapter 221 - 189: Reputation Damaged

Sang Que once read a phrase that said, if someone wasn’t treated well by their parents as a child, when they grow up and have children of their own, they tell themselves not to be like their parents. They tend to compensate and love their children doubly, becoming the kind of parents they dreamed of having.

Although they are not father and daughter, He Buning’s kindness to Xia Chan might also stem from this kind of compensatory mindset, compensating for his own childhood.

If it were her playing this sister role, because she has a sound mind and such a mission, He Buning’s vigilance toward her would surpass everything.

But with Xia Chan, who is foolishly innocent, whose greatest daily dream is simply to be fed, with no ambition at all, He Buning’s guard relaxed, his repressed family affection and his own longing for familial love would unconsciously emerge.

Cui Cheng was about to take the desserts when He Buning quickly grabbed the whole plate and handed it to Xia Chan. Xia Chan hugged the plate and stuck out her tongue at Sang Que, then turned and ran, afraid that Sang Que might snatch it back from her.

Cui Cheng’s hand awkwardly paused in mid-air, suspecting that He Buning was deliberately opposing him.

With a bit of time left before the Curse Ghost appears, and with nothing else to do, Cui Cheng placed his saber on the table.

"Sang Er, I’ve always heard you’re quite skilled, dare to spar with me?"

Sang Que’s eyes lit up slightly, but then she noticed Cui Cheng’s empty right sleeve and dismissed the idea.

"Another day then."

Cui Cheng used to be a formidable fighter in the military, with a Big Gate Saber that defeated many enemies. Later, he lost an arm, rendering most of his martial arts obsolete.

Sparring with Cui Cheng wouldn’t be fair to him and wouldn’t be any fun either.

Besides, Cui Cheng just helped her with the promotion to Silver Traveler. It wouldn’t seem right to knock him down in front of He Buning.

"Right, right, tonight the urgent thing is to dispel the Curse Ghost. After you remove the curse, we’ll arrange another match," Cui Cheng nodded.

With Cui Cheng chatting with He Buning that night, Sang Que finally didn’t have to forcefully participate in the conversation.

Last night, the Curse Ghost came around midnight. Sang Que first took Xia Chan to sleep in the room, letting Xuan Yu watch over her at night.

After Xia Chan fell asleep, Sang Que stayed in the room for a while. Without a phone, it was indeed quite boring. She sat cross-legged by Xia Chan’s bed, going through a session of visualization.

After the Gambling Ghost incident, the incense she acquired through rumors was quickly dissipating. Fortunately, her Silver Travel Token was being expedited, and her mom’s novel was gradually gaining momentum with a slowly increasing fan base.

If she persisted a bit more, she’d soon regain balance.

Around eleven, Sang Que heard snoring. She stepped out of the room and saw Cui Cheng slumped on the chair, head up, mouth wide open, sleeping soundly.

He Buning sat upright as before, holding a nameless book, sipping tea he brought himself, and reading by candlelight.

Even so, his brows were furrowed all the time, annoyedly glancing at Cui Cheng when the snoring grew loudest.

Influenced by Cui Cheng’s snoring, Sang Que began to yawn frequently as well.

Sang Que immediately became alert; the Curse Ghost was about to arrive!

A curse, without a powerful and trustworthy friend, is indeed quite difficult to handle on one’s own.

Previously unaware that the arrival of the Curse Ghost would make people fall asleep, now knowing, she could resist with foresight.

She struggled to stay awake, feeling her eyelids growing heavier, the corners of her vision slowly enveloped by darkness, with the scene in front of her starting to blur and shake.

A cold wind blew, the candle on the table abruptly extinguished.

"Who’s there!"

Cui Cheng stood up in an instant, drawing his saber, his eyes bright and alert, unlike the snorer from a moment ago.

In terms of instinctive vigilance, Cui Cheng was somewhat like Sang Que. Though asleep, any slight movement would wake him up immediately.

Amidst the sound of a baby’s cry, He Buning calmly closed the book upside down on the table, watching as Sang Que leaned against the wall, trying hard to stay awake, nodded slightly, and then stood beside her, readying himself.

Two dark shadows appeared separately from the beam and the corner of the room, still looking like beast-like infants, their whole bodies pitch black except for blood-red eyes.

Yet compared to yesterday, the figures of the two Curse Ghosts appeared more illusory in He Buning’s eyes, indicating that today’s Curse Ghosts were stronger than yesterday’s.

Sang Que couldn’t see the Curse Ghosts, but she could feel the gaze from two entities. Standing behind He Buning, she saw a faint black line extending from her, reaching toward He Buning.

Is this the Curse Line? How should it be cut off?

While Sang Que was pondering, Cui Cheng shouted in anger, "Tiny Curse Ghosts, how dare you act rashly!"

Before the Curse Ghosts could pounce, Cui Cheng swung his saber with his left hand at the corner of the room.

In that instant, Sang Que suddenly heard a shout of battle cries that soared into the sky, overwhelming the sharp cry of the baby, as if thousands of troops and horses were rushing forth from Cui Cheng’s saber, carrying an unstoppable momentum of smashing everything, victorious or not returning.

Sang Que saw nothing, but goosebumps rose all over, and her blood boiled inexplicably.

The ’aura’ on Cui Cheng’s body was similar to the Evil Qi on Sang Que’s Hundred Victory Saber, yet stronger, more vibrant, and righteous, formed from years of life-and-death battles on the battlefield, stained with the blood and morale of tens of thousands or even hundreds of thousands of people.

This made Cui Cheng, although an ordinary person, capable of slaying evil spirits and ghosts with this aura, unstoppable in all fronts like a naturally born Evil Person.

The Curse Ghost in the corner was crushed by Cui Cheng’s saber, and the one on the beam leaped down but was also crushed in mid-air by a backhand swing from Cui Cheng, just as He Buning raised his hand.

The weight quickly lifted off Sang Que, the drowsiness dissipated, and she felt energetic again.

He Buning rubbed his fingertips, lowering his hand, "Captain Cui, excellent saber technique."

Cui Cheng chuckled, "You’re unnecessary here; it’s just some Curse Ghosts. See, you were so frightened you had to call me here to oversee."

He Buning remained expressionless; he preferred stability, not wanting any accident to happen, causing harm to Sang Que, who was a rare talent.

He Buning didn’t wish to argue with Cui Cheng. That Sang Que could hold on was a big surprise, indicating that Sang Que’s soul strength was extraordinary.

"Are you approaching the fourth layer?" He Buning asked Sang Que.

Sang Que nodded, not denying it.

"Do you know the conditions for your Evil Spirits’ advancement?"

This question, Sang Que indeed didn’t know how to answer. Hesitating, she mentioned only two of the conditions.

"Sacrifice a fourth-layer Evil Ghost, create a case that can terrify ten thousand people."

Upon hearing this, Cui Cheng was surprised first, "Is your Evil Spirits advancing to a few layers? Aren’t these the conditions for advancing to the fifth layer?"

Sang Que earnestly replied, "My Evil Spirits are quite special."

"What’s so special about a pig killer’s?" Cui Cheng blurted out, responding to what Yu Da had told him. That morning, Yu Da went to the Evil Suppression Bureau canteen to pull out a pig, saying Sang Mulan’s Evil Spirits had backfired and needed a pig sacrifice.

Not only did he see it, but many Day Traveling Envoys at the Evil Suppression Bureau also saw it, and now everyone knew Sang Mulan’s Evil Spirits was a pig killer.

Sang Que nearly had her jaw drop in shock. Since when did Yin Child become a pig killer? Even He Buning was slightly startled.

Suddenly, a gust of Yin Wind rose around Sang Que, stirring the Evil Mist around her; Yin Child was angry!

Sang Que hurriedly backed away, pressing down on her chest with her right hand, secretly using the Yansheng coin to threaten Yin Child, calming it down.

"What did I say wrong?" Cui Cheng didn’t understand at all, only recognizing that Sang Que’s Evil Spirits was a bit fierce.

Just a pig killer, isn’t it allowed to mention it?

Sang Que remained silent, continuing to suppress.

After Sang Que calmed down, He Buning said, "I will report this to General Cao of the Evil Ghost Bureau. If there is a chance, the Evil Suppression Bureau will arrange something for you; first, stabilize your Heart Lamp, and I will expedite the delivery of your Silver Travel Token to you."

The Silver Travel Token can bring a maximum of five hundred incense, reaching the fourth layer, the Heart Lamp requires over eleven hundred wishing power of incense.

He Buning did not doubt Sang Que’s other sources of incense. Among Yin Walkers roaming the land, accumulating five hundred incense is not a difficult task.

When He Buning first met Sang Que, she brought out nearly a hundred people from Black Mountain Village. That life-saving grace alone could provide her incense.

"Just endure through tomorrow night, and your curse will be lifted. However, tomorrow won’t be as easy as the last two days; you should be prepared. Let’s call it a day; rest well tonight." He Buning took his leave.

Cui Cheng nodded at Sang Que, "Rest assured, I’ll be here tomorrow, these mere Curse Ghosts can’t harm you."

Saying that, Cui Cheng caught up with He Buning, and the two left together.

Sang Que suddenly felt a bit emotional. In modern times, even Grandma Xu said there was no solution to the curse, yet in the Deceit Dynasty, it was resolved easily.

The difference in strength made the act of exorcising ghosts, which was very difficult in modern times, so simple in the Deceit Dynasty.

Sang Que’s mind began to waver. Perhaps, in the future, when encountering difficult Evil Ghosts in the modern world, she could bring them to the Deceit Dynasty for eradication, leveraging its power, as long as she didn’t casually release the Evil Ghosts causing innocent deaths.