In Order To Ascend, I Became A Modern Wage Slave - Chapter 18: The Cherished Immortal Lord (17)

Chapter 18: The Cherished Immortal Lord (17)

 

“Ah. Why are you so surprised? Shouldn’t I have come in? Didn’t you lock me in?”

 

Their gazes met, and Lian Bei’s expression was utterly sincere and innocent. Xi Yu had never paid much attention to such minor details, so recalling them was slightly challenging.

 

When Xi Yu closed the door earlier, he had used some force, assuming Lian Bei would quickly back away to avoid being caught. Unexpectedly, Lian Bei, unlike most people, had darted in swiftly and ended up locked inside as well.

 

Now things were a bit tricky.

 

Xi Yu’s expression darkened, showing irritation and impatience. Standing near the gap between the doors, Lian Bei noticed his mood and sensibly offered, “I can just step out.”

 

“Stop!” Xi Yu stopped him.

 

With a ghost glaring menacingly inside and someone waiting intently outside, opening the door would only lead to chaos!

 

Lian Bei paused, his hand on the door, and turned back, waiting silently for instructions.

 

Suddenly!

 

A withered hand rested on Xi Yu’s shoulder.

 

The sudden situation prompted Xi Yu to shout, “Then stay right where you are and guard the door!” As he spoke, he swiftly turned, grabbing Shi An’s wrist, twisting her elbow, and pulling the hand off his shoulder. He spun around, shifting his weight. Shi An let out a shrill scream as her other hand slashed through the air!

 

She had carried resentment for a thousand years, her wounds unhealed. The depth of her hatred made her strength far beyond ordinary. However, compared to before, Xi Yu was slightly shorter and leaner, making direct confrontation a challenge. The more they fought, the fiercer ghosts became, while he, in contrast, would tire over time and lose the advantage.

 

Having trained barehanded for a hundred years, Xi Yu relied on his unarmed combat skills. When force didn’t work, he employed flexibility to counter!

 

Man and ghost clashed fiercely, locked in a breathtaking battle!

 

If this were a stage performance, the audience would surely be applauding.

 

Although Shi An’s strength was overwhelming, her movements were rigid and slow to respond, gradually putting her at a disadvantage. Realizing this, she quickly switched tactics. After dodging a kick from Xi Yu, she suddenly retreated and lunged toward the young woman standing paralyzed in fear nearby.

 

Xi Yu immediately gave chase but only managed to tear off a piece of Shi An’s tattered, colorless clothing. He shouted urgently, “Step back! Did you hear me? Step back!”

 

She heard him but was frozen in fear. The ghost’s ferocious face charged toward her, her legs as heavy as boulders, unable to move an inch.

 

Shi An’s teeth were sharp, her mouth open wide as she lunged forward with both hands raised. Her movement suggested she intended to capture and devour the woman. Her long nails reached the woman’s neck first.

 

“Ahhh!” the woman screamed.

 

Instinctively, she shrank back and closed her eyes, but the suffocating grip she expected didn’t come. Instead, she was pushed backward a step.

 

She froze in confusion, and so did Xi Yu.

 

At the critical moment, a tall figure had suddenly appeared, separating the two. With a casual wave of his hand, Shi An was sent flying several meters away.

 

Yet it seemed he hadn’t even touched her.

 

Lian Bei retracted his hand, exhaling. “That was scary.”

 

But fear didn’t show on his face—at least not in any way Xi Yu recognized as typical. All Xi Yu could detect was a casual remark devoid of genuine emotion.

 

“Th-thank you!” the woman said, still clutching her chest in shock.

 

Lian Bei tilted his head, puzzled. “Thank me? Are you talking to me?”

 

“Huh?”

 

“I think you’re mistaken. How could I possibly fight off a ghost? I just happened to pass by.”

 

Xi Yu, who had just restrained Shi An and tied a red rope around her wrists to immobilize her, looked over, hearing Lian Bei’s words.

 

“I was just passing by.” Lian Bei pointed to Xi Yu. “He’s the one who saved you. Thank him.”

 

“Huh?” The woman turned to Xi Yu, her voice trembling. “Th-thank you.”

 

But Xi Yu immediately denied it, saying, “It wasn’t me.”

 

“Huh?”

 

Xi Yu obviously didn’t believe Lian Bei’s explanation. Suspicious, he questioned, “Didn’t I tell you to guard the door? Why are you suddenly here? How did you wander so far?”

 

“Well, I realized there’s more than one door here. Since the front door was quiet, I thought I’d check the back.”

 

Xi Yu looked over and indeed saw a back door.

 

Lian Bei was taller and bulkier than him, his physique undoubtedly decent. But for someone to punch a thousand-year-old ghost and send her flying several meters, only a deity could manage that. Unless… Xi Yu’s gaze drifted to the teardrop mole at the corner of Lian Bei’s eye, which seemed to glimmer with his faint smile.

 

Unless this man, so pale and delicate like winter snow, with his gentle and subtle demeanor, was actually…

 

Lian Bei speculated aloud, “Perhaps it was the intervention of the God of Cherished Love. After all, we’re standing under his statue.”

 

“It wasn’t him!” the female ghost suddenly screeched, struggling violently.

 

Though still bound, she was unable to break free. Xi Yu glanced at her and decided to address the current threat first. Frustrated, he snapped at Lian Bei, “Are you scared?”

 

“Yes, I’m scared,” Lian Bei replied honestly.

 

“If you’re scared, stay where you are! Go to the back door, stand still, don’t move, don’t look, don’t listen. Got it?”

 

Lian Bei turned to the woman behind him. “Come on, let’s hide.”

 

“Alright.”

 

“Be good.”

 

Xi Yu couldn’t eliminate the ghost, but standing in front of a god’s statue gave him leverage. Once he extracted the truth, he could pray to the god for help. Whether or not the god appeared, solving this problem wouldn’t harm his reputation. On the contrary, responding to a plea for help would earn him merit.

 

Such a win-win situation was bound to make the God of Cherished Love take action.

 

With this in mind, Xi Yu turned his attention back to Shi An. Sternly, he questioned, “You said earlier that the one who struck you wasn’t the God of Cherished Love. Then who was it?”

 

“North Sovereign Lord,” Shi An croaked. But as soon as she said it, she began denying herself. “No, it’s not him. He’s long fallen. It’s… No, it is him!”

 

Contradictory, self-negating, utterly chaotic.

 

Xi Yu pressed further. “If it’s him, what are you trying to do? If it’s not him, then what are you trying to do?”

 

Blood-red tears slowly trickled from Shi An’s eyes. Her mouth twisted into a grin, intercepting the tears as they fell. Her teeth were unnaturally sharp—proof that she had consumed humans after becoming a ghost, causing this grotesque transformation.

 

Shi An spoke, “I never told you three words.”

 

Then, as if to mock, she repeated them herself: “I said, save. Save. Me.”

 

The air froze.

 

The female ghost continued hoarsely, “Later, I went to pray to the Northern Sovereign Lord. I begged him… to save me… Then I was suppressed under this house for nearly a thousand years. And now, I’ve met you again.”

 

“Although it’s been a long time, I accept it!”

 

Shi An stared at him intently. Her eyes were murky, and Xi Yu noticed a bloody hole on her head. She had been brutally bludgeoned to death by her husband with a sharp weapon.

 

She resented her husband’s betrayal, her own naivety, and her stubbornness. In the end, she became a ghost, wreaking havoc in the human world until her husband, who had ascended to godhood, suppressed her within a mountain. This gave rise to the Luoan Temple.

 

Luoan. Luo means settling, falling, or descending…

 

Wait!

 

Luo Nan, Luo An… Luo Nan, Luo An… Xi Yu didn’t believe that her so-called husband, obsessed with worldly admiration, would choose the same temple name twice. Surely, he would have sent dreams to others to change it. Even if he did, naming it something like Ai An or Si An, symbolizing undying love between husband and wife, would have been more likely to gain public favor.

 

Thus, if the name was given by others, then… the two must share the same meaning.

 

Grrrrk—

 

The sound of a door creaking open made Xi Yu react immediately. He didn’t move but instead turned his head to look behind him.

 

The divine statue stood in the center of the temple, only about the size of a human head. Regardless of its size, a statue’s placement is always meticulous, with one rule being that its orientation must not contradict the house’s layout. Given that this temple had doors both at the front and back, it meant that the back of the Xi’ai Deity wasn’t actually the back but…

 

Because the statue was too small, Xi Yu had only taken a brief glance upon entering and didn’t notice anything unusual. Looking again from the side, he suddenly realized that behind the head of the Xi’ai Deity, there was another figure. The two figures sat back-to-back, their backs tightly pressed together, seamlessly merged!

 

Two combined into one statue!

 

Save—save—me—

 

As he was lost in thought, Shi An broke free from her restraints and bolted toward the back door. At the same time, he heard Luo Yang shouting, “Crap, crap, crap! Lian Bei, quick! Catch that woman! Damn it! Don’t just stand there! You’ve seen the ghost, and you’re still praying? Praying, my ass! I’ll give you a promotion and raise when we get back, okay? This is the 21st century! We believe in the nation, the government, and the Communist Party of China! Stop messing with this feudal superstition!”

 

“Oh my god, oh my ancestors!”

 

Judging by Luo Yang’s shouts, Xi Yu could already deduce what was happening without even arriving.

 

Fortunately, Xiao Mingqiang was short and petite. Luo Yang managed to carry him and run for a while, even with Shi An in pursuit. When Xi Yu arrived, Shi An had just snatched Xiao Mingqiang from Luo Yang’s grasp. Luo Yang, undeterred, bravely fought back, foolishly trying to retrieve him.

 

Shi An glanced at him disdainfully and easily slapped Luo Yang away with one hand. Xi Yu reacted quickly and caught him, but even so, Luo Yang couldn’t withstand the blow. His eyes rolled back, and he fainted.

 

“…”

 

Xi Yu checked his pulse to confirm he was still alive, then tossed him over to Lian Bei, instructing, “Take care of him too.”

 

“Alright.”

 

Shi An had taken Xiao Mingqiang but didn’t do anything to him as Xi Yu had feared. Instead, she tossed him aside. Xi Yu’s attack missed, and she brushed past him, heading straight for Lian Bei.

 

Lian Bei stood in front of the woman, glanced at Xi Yu, and slightly tugged at the corner of his mouth. He quickly raised his hand to block the ghost’s attack, exchanging a few moves with her.

 

Xi Yu warned the still-rebellious Xiao Mingqiang, “If you don’t want to die, stop thinking about praying and leave here as soon as possible.”

 

Xiao Mingqiang’s bloodshot eyes stared at Lian Bei and the woman behind him. He demanded, “I’ll leave, but I want her to leave with me!”

 

In such a situation, leaving separately was the safest option. However, Xiao Mingqiang refused, launching into a tirade against Xi Yu: “Why make me leave first? What’s the point of getting me out of here? What are you planning? What’s their relationship? Are you all in this together? You want me out first—who’s praying, him or her? Don’t think I’m an idiot! Yang Xue, you bitch, get over here!”

 

Xi Yu’s goodwill was taken for granted, and his patience snapped. He punched Xiao Mingqiang, knocking him out. Finally, the noise stopped, and he felt much better.

 

Indeed, for those who don’t understand reason, only force works quickly.

 

Lian Bei, though appearing frail, managed to fend off several attacks. This time, Xi Yu didn’t hold back just because the ghost was a woman. Within a few moves, Shi An was subdued.

 

Under Xi Yu’s restraint, Shi An’s hoarse, sharp voice was grating, like sandpaper scraping iron. She screamed hysterically, “Why save him? Why, for what reason? Just because he’s a man? Does that mean he’s inherently blameless and superior? Even in death, he’s worshiped by the world. Why?”

 

Death?

 

Xi Yu suddenly understood. “You killed him?”

 

Hearing this, a chilling smile spread across Shi An’s face. Her eyes turned blood-red, filled with excitement, pride, and triumph. Blood trickled from the corner of her mouth. She licked her sharp teeth as if savoring some delicacy, laughing eerily.

 

“I ate him.”