The Boisterous Wind and a Genius’s Demolition

The Underworld had been quite lively recently. This was entirely due to Gong Nianxian, the chatterbox.

After being ignored for several months, he had begun a vengeful barrage of words.

He not only pestered the Ghost General, talking incessantly from dawn till dusk. When no other ghost paid him any mind, he would simply converse with himself.

One could seriously suspect that being left out to dry for months had driven him mad.

“You old ghost, you’ve been fiddling around for ages. Are you actually going to get this done?”

Gong Nianxian muttered, watching the Ghost General set up the array. “If not, I can take over. It’s quite simple to help Su Mo achieve true demonic cultivation.”

The array was designed to draw in primordial qi, a truly profound and mysterious creation.

The Ghost General had meticulously carved each intricate line of its patterns alone, a task that had consumed several months.

The sheer scale of this endeavor far surpassed that of the previous occasion, when he had restored Lian Huan’s soul.

His certain ‘little wife’ had even grown angry over this, locking the Ghost General in their room for days and nights without respite.

Gong Nianxian, having overheard, offered his assessment: ‘Like a wolf and a tiger, utterly unstoppable.’

With a gesture akin to swatting a fly, the Ghost General fanned a gust of wind past Gong Nianxian’s ear, stating impatiently:

“Do you enjoy talking so much? Or perhaps you miss the distant views from above?”

Recalling the months he had spent suspended in the sky by nine chains, wailing like a ghost day and night with no one for company, a shiver of dread ran through Gong Nianxian.

He instinctively drew in his neck, touched the buffalo horns on his head, and whistled as he departed.

‘…’ A rare moment of peace, yet the Ghost General’s ears seemed to be hallucinating.

He kept feeling as though a mosquito was buzzing persistently nearby.

Turning his gaze, he spotted Gong Nianxian in the distance, crouched in a corner, speaking to a withered blade of grass with dramatic inflections in his voice.

It was like a one-man show.

“Where are the Zhenheng Two Generals?” The Ghost General’s face darkened as he spoke in a low, resonant voice.

“General!” Two towering ghostly figures materialized, stepping out from the shadows to reveal their ferocious countenances.

One wielded a whip, the other a staff. Their long, flowing sashes swayed at their sides as they moved with a peculiar, rocking gait.

It resembled the Seven Star Step, emanating an aura of righteous power.

With a wave of his hand, the Zhenheng Two Generals understood, immediately moving towards Gong Nianxian.

They declared:

“The General is at work! Uninvolved parties are not permitted!”

Raising his innocent, large black eyes, Gong Nianxian pointed a finger at himself, then towards the Ghost General.

His expression was utterly guileless.

“I…”

“Let’s go.” Forcibly swept away, Gong Nianxian was on the verge of tears.

This was a loophole the Ghost General had painstakingly discovered after days and nights of deliberation, hidden within Gong Nianxian’s oath.

Through this, he could finally make Gong Nianxian quietly disappear.

“Finally.” The Ghost General found his peace, dedicating himself fully to preparing for Su Mo’s resurrection.

The restoration of a soul was exceedingly difficult; the three ethereal souls and seven corporeal souls were all indispensable.

Su Mo possessed all of them, though their quantities were somewhat diminished. It required a unique secret art, burning incense offerings to generate soul from soul, and spirit from spirit.

Coupled with the Ghost General’s vigilant, round-the-clock supervision and adjustments, her soul could gradually recover naturally.

It was estimated that this process would take three years.

“Three years, not long,” the Ghost General mused, a frown etching his brow. “Fortunately, Su Mo used a promise before her death, allowing me to intervene in time… but what exactly did ‘I’m about to hang up’ mean?”

He decided he would question her about this “encrypted” message once Su Mo had fully recovered.

****

The Ghost General rose and departed, carried aloft by a chill, spectral wind.

From his aerial vantage point, he happened upon a pavilion whose design was quite bizarre.

Entirely black, crafted from subterranean dark rock, its roof was a massive, flattened boulder.

With such an enormous slab overhead, its minimalist design made one feel that the four supporting pillars might collapse, sending it crashing down onto anyone below.

Pausing, the Ghost General approached, only to see the True Demon Gong Nianxian inside, idly caressing a teacup and gazing sideways at the scenery.

“…When did you build this?” the Ghost General asked warily, scrutinizing the massive stone overhead for any signs of movement.

Pushing forward a cup of tea, Gong Nianxian raised a finger. Both his head and his hand—two ‘heads’ as it were—shook as he chuckled:

“You must have underestimated me, old friend. Such a brilliant design must, of course, be a spontaneous creation. To act on a whim is precisely what a true demon like myself should do.”

“Thump, thump.” He tapped a supporting pillar, then looked up at the colossal stone that momentarily swayed. The Ghost General dared not comment.

He usually didn’t even acknowledge such illegal structures; he simply demolished them.

Rolling up his sleeves, the Ghost General stated gravely:

“The Underworld cannot accommodate a genius of your caliber. This pavilion cannot remain; it must be torn down.”

“Why? Isn’t this view beautiful?” Gong Nianxian asked, bewildered, blinking his large black eyes.

Inviting the old ghost to sit, he rose and gestured towards the space beneath the pavilion.

Amidst the swirling white mist, one could observe all the various structures of the Underworld. Nestled among the mountains, they playfully hid within the sea of fog.

It was a mountain pavilion, defying the biting cold, yet it captured all the intriguing tales and sights of the Underworld.

“Indeed, it possesses its charm,” the Ghost General conceded with a nod.

The moment he nodded, trouble arose. Gong Nianxian immediately launched into speech:

“Well? Didn’t I tell you? You can question a demon’s artistic style, but you absolutely cannot question a demon’s discerning eye!”

He rattled on and on, irritating the Ghost General.

He abruptly changed the subject, steering the conversation towards other matters, hoping to control its direction and ultimately bring it to an end.

“Do you know anything of the mortal realm?” the Ghost General asked, taking a sip of tea. The cup was rather small, and the tea was gone in a single gulp.

Hurriedly sitting down, Gong Nianxian began:

“Do you remember that man who deceived Su Mo, what was his name… Xu…”

“Xu Qingzhu.” The Ghost General poured himself more tea, but finding it insufficient, he lifted the teapot and drank directly from it.

“Yes, yes, that’s him! That fellow in Dangyang County seems to have made a significant discovery. He suddenly abandoned his childhood sweetheart and left.” Gong Nianxian gossiped, utterly engrossed.

He was a master of description, recounting the scene as if he had been present, witnessing every detail.

It had the flavor of a storyteller’s performance.

“He actually made a discovery in Dangyang County? Do you know what it was?” The Ghost General didn’t particularly like Xu Qingzhu, but for Su Mo’s sake, he paid a little more attention and asked.

“What else could it be? I heard from others that breaking an Ascension Ritual leads to a backlash and death. He’s probably regretting something, having made a connection.” Gong Nianxian shook his head.

In the eyes of a True Demon like him, Xu Qingzhu wasn’t the type to love and hate with conviction; his character was poor.

Who told him to cultivate the Path of Suffering?

“My poor granddaughter,” Gong Nianxian sighed, fully embodying his role. “To have her heart deceived by such a cultivator of the Path of Suffering.”

“The Path of Suffering…” the Ghost General murmured. As an Incense God, he possessed methods to discern cultivators of the Path of Suffering.

Those who trod the Path of Suffering carried an ambiguous aura, as if a faint connection to the world still lingered within them.

A single glance at Xu Qingzhu had been enough for him to understand that the man was toying with Su Mo’s emotions.

“Regret? How ridiculous.” The Ghost General was displeased, his face grim.

“Crack…” A crisp sound echoed from directly above.

The Ghost General looked up with a questioning hum, only to see the massive stone come crashing down with a whoosh.

In his peripheral vision, Gong Nianxian stood outside, eyes wide with excitement, surveying the scene.

“Excellent smash!” he almost shouted.

Did they truly think he lacked talent? He had designed it this way intentionally, just to mess with the old ghost.

No harm would come of it, anyway.

“Boom!” With a muffled thud, the entire pavilion collapsed, kicking up a cloud of dust.

Gong Nianxian was a true genius of physics. Not a single pillar of his designed pavilion remained standing; all had fallen towards the center, performing a forbidden quartet of destruction.

“Crack!” A dark green arm forcefully pierced through the stone rubble. The Ghost General pushed his tall frame upright, slowly turning his head.

His blue-and-red facial mask stretched into a “benevolent” smile.

“My esteemed genius, do you require a bone-loosening session?” The Ghost General smiled, a smile that promised uncertain fates.

“Old ghost, I didn’t do this! It was the wind, the wind!” he protested.

Tilting his head, the Ghost General listened to the gentle breeze, feeling as though something was missing.

“Ha!” His body shook, and six arms extended.

With a swift lunge, he seized Gong Nianxian. His six hands exerted sudden force, sending a new “star” into the sky.

“Aaaahhh…” Across the horizon, Gong Nianxian’s joyful laughter echoed.

Dusting himself off, the Ghost General returned to his estate, feeling rather unamused, and remarked:

“The wind today, it is quite boisterous indeed~”