Chapter 565 - 275: The ’Bei’ Character Tribulation (2)

Chapter 565: Chapter 275: The ’Bei’ Character Tribulation (2)

Wounds left by the [Abyssal Claw] were incurable. They would remain in a state of "bleeding" unless Zheng Xiu canceled his Incarnation.

Last night, the fight between Zheng Xiu and Feng Bei had gotten heated. Feng Bei had shattered a mountain peak with a single slap of her palm. Amidst the ruins, the two of them had pummeled each other. Zheng Xiu’s eyes had turned red with fury, and he fought until his electric saw nearly fell upon Feng Bei’s back. A moment of clarity made Zheng Xiu stop.

’If it weren’t for the Madness Invasion, this would be a perfect Incarnation.’ Zheng Xiu silently blamed himself, but on second thought, ’Isn’t Madness just another form of Restriction?’

Following the "rules" and obeying the "Restrictions"—this was how a Path Mystic Skill was supposed to be.

Zheng Xiu suddenly thought of Jiang Gaoyi. Although Jiang Gaoyi had entered the [Official] Path some time ago and grasped the skill of "Reading the Room," his single-minded focus on being an official meant he never developed his Miracle Technique further. He had rules but no Restrictions. As a result, to this day, Jiang Gaoyi had shown no other special abilities besides being able to read people’s micro-expressions.

’Even for the same Path, or even the same person, different methods of development will give birth to different Miracle Techniques. Even if the rules and Restrictions only have subtle differences, the final results could be vastly different.’

Zheng Xiu believed that while his understanding of the "Path" system wasn’t exhaustive, he still knew more than most. The majority of Odd People who had glimpsed a Path knew what their powers did, but not how they worked, and they wouldn’t delve into the underlying principles.

As he approached Feng Bei’s courtyard, the Orange Cat was lying quietly by the door, looking listless. Usually, Feng Bei would make fried fish cakes for the Orange Cat’s breakfast first thing in the morning. Today, there were no fried fish cakes, and the Orange Cat was in a bad mood.

Zheng Xiu tiptoed closer and asked in a low voice, "Where is she?"

"Meow, meow."

The Orange Cat lazily lifted a paw and pointed at the room.

"She’s awake?"

"Meeeoow..."

The Orange Cat lay back down, closed its eyes, and adopted an air of wanting to be left alone.

"Alright!"

The man and the cat communicated without a hitch.

Ever since Zheng Xiu discovered that chatting with cats could invisibly level up his [Foreign Language] skill, he figured teasing them a bit more could never be a bad thing.

’Who would refuse the chance to master another [Foreign Language]?’

He walked to the front of the house. The door was ajar, not even bolted. A bad feeling suddenly struck Zheng Xiu. Just as he was about to turn and leave, the door was flung open with a WHOOSH. A pair of fair, slender arms grabbed his clothes, and in a classic case of a woman overpowering a man, the Red King was dragged into the room.

Zheng Xiu’s vision blurred. The world spun for a moment, and in the blink of an eye, he was pinned to the floor. A delicate, bare foot deftly pushed open his robes and pressed lightly against his chest, tracing circles.

"Feng Bei" swept her hair back and, smiling, pointed to the wound on her forehead. "Look what you’ve done."

Although the two of them had flattened a mountain last night, neither had been in mortal danger.

It was just that Zheng Xiu had accidentally damaged Feng Bei’s brain.

Zheng Xiu didn’t answer. The bare foot slowly moved downward.

GULP.

"Can I take this to mean... you’re deliberately acting this way?"

With his vital spot under control, Zheng Xiu swallowed hard and forced out the words.

"What do you think?"

"Feng Bei" covered her mouth, giggling. Her endless charm seemed to make the temperature in the room rise by several degrees.

The events of last night had left just one small side effect:

Feng Bei had used the "Luohe Divine Arrow" too many times last night. She was... a little stuck and couldn’t change back.

...

After barely escaping from Feng Bei’s devilish foot, Zheng Xiu clutched his lower back and fled the Red King Mansion, his steps unsteady.

He had just stepped out of the Prince’s Mansion gate, planning to go hide out at the Disaster Prevention Bureau for a bit.

"HSSS..."

The hissing of a viper came from overhead. The snakes in her hair were beaded with dew; she had clearly been squatting on the gate all night.

"Where’s the little brother?"

The moment Snake saw the Red King, she twisted her hips. Her snake-like waist moved lithely as she blocked the Red King’s path, pressing her question.

"Quick! Qing Pi! Get her!"

SWOOSH! A cloud of smoke appeared at his call and enveloped Snake.

Snake became disoriented in the smoke.

Zheng Xiu ran off without looking back.

First, the four Orchids. Then, a brain-damaged Feng Bei who couldn’t tell if she was Feng Luohe or Feng Bei. And now Snake, who seemed to have her sights set on Zheng Er... Zheng Xiu vaguely sensed that a series of strange events had been unfolding around him recently.

Zheng Xiu searched all over the streets and finally found Wei Chen by the roadside, running a stall for Bone Divination.

"A word in private!"

"Blind Chen Wei" had built up quite a reputation in the bustling city. Many people had come seeking him out. His stall was surrounded by several rings of people. Wei Chen sat on a small stool, smiling as he performed bone readings one by one, seeming to enjoy himself.

Zheng Xiu booked a private room at the Fragrant Pavilion for a secret talk with Wei Chen.

He first asked about the current principles of the court, the situation between the two nations, the problem of the Northern Barbarians, the people’s livelihood and economy, and the way of an Emperor. After Zheng Xiu had asked a series of sensitive questions, Wei Chen listened quietly the whole time, a smile on his face, without saying a word. Finally, Wei Chen’s pale pupils shifted in Zheng Xiu’s direction, and he sighed softly. "Everything I know, I have already confided to you, Red King. Even if you ask ten thousand times, my answer will remain the same."

"If I am not mistaken, Red King... you have something else on your mind?"

Wei Chen’s eyes were blind, but his mind was not. He quickly saw that the grand topics the Red King was asking about were all things he had asked before, meaning he had a different request.

Zheng Xiu asked curiously, "Your ’Bone Divination,’ is it actually accurate, or are you just making things up?"

Wei Chen chuckled. "It’s not for me to say whether it’s accurate or not. If you are curious, Red King, why not try it for yourself?"

He extended his palm to Zheng Xiu. The hand was covered in gruesome, terrifying burn scars.

Zheng Xiu took a shallow breath and placed his hand in Wei Chen’s palm.

Wei Chen used both his hands to carefully feel Zheng Xiu’s palm bones, kneading and probing, causing Zheng Xiu’s knuckles to occasionally let out a crisp CRACK.

"Such a heavy... baleful aura."

Wei Chen muttered to himself, "Red King, have these hands of yours recently wielded a weapon of great evil?"

Zheng Xiu was stunned. He was about to say no, but then he remembered that when he had used the [Zheng Kuang] Projection last night, his hands had transformed into long, fleshy saws—the [Abyssal Claw] that came with that special role. The words died on his lips. ’He’s really that accurate?’ he marveled inwardly.

’This Wei Chen really is something else.’

The "Fireworks" Wei Chen had displayed before, and now his "Bone Divination," both seemed completely unrelated to Wei Chen’s [Usurper] Path. The [Usurper] from two hundred years ago was Cheng Xiao, who had killed the reigning Emperor. The strange abilities displayed by the two men were so vastly different that Zheng Xiu couldn’t figure out what the [Usurper] Path’s true Miracle Technique was.

When he and Feng Bei were calculating the Path Map, Feng Bei had mentioned that a [Physiognomist] Path had appeared long ago. Very few with real talent could actually enter that Path, and most of those in the market were just charlatans. The [Bone Divination] that Wei Chen was now displaying was subtly different from the "Divination Sale" of a [Knife Seller]. Strictly speaking, it was more like the work of a [Physiognomist].

’Wait a minute.’ At this thought, Zheng Xiu’s heart skipped a beat as an absurd idea surfaced. ’Could it be that the [Usurper] Path allows one to steal the Path Mystic Skills of others for their own use? Is that why it’s called "Usurper"?’

’Usurping... the ranking of the Paths?’

Zheng Xiu was lost in thought and didn’t answer Wei Chen’s question. But to Wei Chen, Zheng Xiu’s silence was an answer in itself. Wei Chen nodded, smiled, and continued the bone reading. After about the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, Wei Chen’s expression shifted several times before his brow relaxed. He shook his head. "I have something to say that you may not like to hear, Red King. If you don’t believe it, just take it as my nonsense. You don’t have to take it seriously."

"Speak freely."

Wei Chen considered for a moment, then smiled. "Your Highness has had quite a bit of romantic fortune lately."

Zheng Xiu opened his mouth but said nothing, remaining noncommittal.

Wei Chen paused, shook his head, and gave a wry smile. "Perhaps my skills are lacking, or perhaps Your Highness’s bone structure is truly one in a million. I can only feel that Your Highness’s bones are like a flower in the fog or the moon on the water—they seem clear, but in reality, they are ever-changing and inscrutable."

Zheng Xiu nodded calmly. "In plain English."

Wei Chen froze for a second, then pressed his lips together. "Your Highness is a true Odd Person. Your fate is difficult to predict; fortune and calamity are separated by a razor’s edge. A strong romantic fortune often conceals a hidden disaster."

Zheng Xiu understood this time. With a strange expression, he said, "Are you saying that I’m fated to have trouble with Orchids... ahem, with romance lately?"

Wei Chen nodded. "If I haven’t misread, Your Highness will soon face a calamity... a great one. But resolving it is also very simple." He smiled, dipped his finger in his wine cup, and wrote a word on the table.

"You only need to avoid this word."

Zheng Xiu’s pupils contracted.

On the table, the water stains crookedly formed the word "North."