Chapter Thirty-Eight: She Is Not One to Live Under Another's Thumb

The conversation was proceeding smoothly when Lang Jiuchuan suddenly collapsed to the ground, giving Jiang Che quite a fright.

"What is wrong with you again?"

Lang Jiuchuan lifted her head, her eyes burning scarlet, with golden shadows flickering within them. Terrified, Jiang Che retreated two steps, watching her with wary, vigilant eyes.

The sharp pain came and went in a flash. Lang Jiuchuan stood up, her brows furrowed in confusion, unable to fathom the cause of that sudden, intense tremor.

"Are, are you alright?" Jiang Che asked cautiously. "Is this body failing you?"

Lang Jiuchuan pressed her fingers against her wrist, where not a single pulse could be felt. "I am fine. After all, this body is only being maintained by sorcery to appear like an ordinary person; it requires thorough restoration."

Otherwise, should the incantation break, she would scatter into nothingness.

"That is exactly why I said we need to accumulate merit," Jiang Che said, slapping his palm. "That man named Shen Peng—if you save him, that would count as a deed of merit."

Lang Jiuchuan replied, "Are you certain? Some people carry the weight of thousands of sins; saving them is merely inviting trouble upon oneself."

"You can rest easy on that count. I have made inquiries, and this Shen family possesses a remarkably upright and righteous aura. That Shen Qinghe is known as 'Shen the Just'; he has cracked many bizarre cases and is a truly upright official who resolves the troubles of the people."

Lang Jiuchuan merely smiled. "Merit alone is insufficient to repair this body. I fear they cannot afford the price."

Jiang Che was stunned. "What else could be required?"

Lang Jiuchuan did not elaborate. Instead, she asked, "Regarding the four great clans you mentioned earlier, if the Imperial Clan possesses the Dao Root, how did they become the rulers?"

Jiang Che answered without a second thought. "What is difficult to understand about that? The masters of the human realm are naturally those with the greatest power. Why is it the Dantais who became the Imperial Clan rather than the other three? Naturally, it is because the Dantais suppressed the other three. What is wrong with being the Imperial Clan? Not only is the bloodline noble, but one also receives the offerings of the world. Beyond the riches of gold and silver, the power of wish-force and belief is immense. If it were you, would you want it?"

Naturally, she would. Wish-force was the most potent form of faith-based power.

Lang Jiuchuan stroked her chin in contemplation. "Setting aside these four clans with their inherited Dao Roots, do the Buddhist and Taoist schools not have men of exceptional talent? If they are inferior to the four clans, whenever they encounter powerful evil spirits or crooked paths, must they always beg these clans for help? The Imperial Clan surely would not lower themselves to resolve troubles for commoners, would they?"

"That is why they say you can offend a noble house, but never provoke a Mystic Clan; they are held aloft on pedestals, objects of worship," Jiang Che scoffed. "Seeking their assistance is not as simple as merely asking; it depends entirely on their mood. Therefore, one does not call upon them until the absolute final resort, because the price one must pay is unimaginable."

"The Buddhist and Taoist schools do have talented individuals, but those who have truly attained the Dao in the entire Great Dan Kingdom could likely be counted on one's fingers. The rest can manage minor exorcisms or rituals, but as for breaking through the gates of Heaven or entering the gates of Hell—don't even think about it. Thus, when encountering powerful malevolent spirits, they lack the strength to act on their intentions. As for those obscure sorcerers, whether they keep their names hidden or simply do not exist, I cannot say."

A thought stirred in Lang Jiuchuan’s heart. "Are you saying the Mystic Clans suppress them?"

"They either recruit them as clan elders or suppress them. Do you think they would just leave them to develop?" Jiang Che said with a cryptic smirk. "There are only so many high seats on the pedestal, and there aren't even enough for their own kin. Would you share them with outsiders?"

A violent, malevolent aura suddenly overflowed from Lang Jiuchuan.

*Bang.*

A bonsai plant beside them exploded.

Jiang Che: "!"

*Easy, take it easy.*

Lang Jiuchuan picked up the beautifully pruned pine tree, her voice cold. "So, if there are talented individuals in this world, they must bow to the four great clans?"

Jiang Che glanced at her and said, "We, the beast clans, believe in the law of the jungle. This is a very typical food chain..."

Her gaze was freezing!

Jiang Che wisely shut his mouth.

Lang Jiuchuan looked down, swinging the pine tree slightly. "The law of the jungle, is it?"

"What are you planning? Don't do anything reckless. Even I know this world operates by rules; you cannot break them just because you want to. Besides, you are so delicate right now that a gust of wind could blow you away." Jiang Che sensed she had awakened to something, and for no reason, was itching to challenge others. He quickly tried to dissuade her. "Even if there is something you dislike, you must wait until you are strong enough. If you act now and fail, you will just die all over again. It is not worth it."

*Damn it, she is a lunatic. If she wants to court death, I cannot follow her. Should I terminate our contract?*

Lang Jiuchuan tossed the pine tree aside. "Rest assured, I have my own rules for how I conduct myself."

"Oh? And how is that?"

"I will focus on repairing my body and let my own light shine; I will never have the leisure to go around blowing out someone else's lamp." Lang Jiuchuan revealed a chilling smile. "But if someone tries to extinguish my lamp, I will not only blow out theirs, I will pluck out their wick entirely."

She was not one to live under the shadow of others!

Jiang Che: "..."

*Understood. Your rule is: if people don't offend you, you don't offend them; if they do, you wipe out their entire clan, right?*

*This woman is insane.*

"Oh, what a tragedy! Who did this? Who smashed the young master’s pine bonsai?" a servant shrieked in interrogation.

Jiang Che came back to his senses, seeing the servant running over in a panic. He looked again—the culprit had already fled.

*Fortunately, I am not a physical entity, or else I would have become the scapegoat for that wretched woman.*

Jiang Che hurried to catch up with Lang Jiuchuan and asked, "So, what about it? Are you going to that Shen family or not?"

"Should I just show up uninvited and volunteer?" Lang Jiuchuan retorted. "Don't forget, I am currently just a young girl who should be confined to the inner chambers. It is difficult enough for me to even leave the house, and I look so frail—would they believe I have the ability to solve their problem?"

"I heard that Shen Qinghe is going to act as a pallbearer for Old Master Zhao. By the way, Shen Qinghe is a student of Old Master Zhao."

Lang Jiuchuan raised an eyebrow slightly.

*Such a connection exists?*

She did some mental calculations. Old Master Zhao had passed away two days after Marquis Lang; the funeral was to be held tomorrow.

As a junior, it was only proper to offer incense and see the old man off, especially since she had cursed him with her "crow's mouth"—she truly owed him an apology.

Lang Jiuchuan said to Jiang Che, "I will ponder how to craft the Resurrection Talisman. You go and find out what exactly happened to that Shen Peng; he surely would not have been cursed for no reason."

"Me again?" Jiang Che jumped up. "I just did a job; why must it be me again?"

"This is to save time. Or would you prefer I wait until I meet Shen Qinghe to ask? Once you have gathered the information, I can devise a solution more quickly. What is it? Do you no longer want the merit? Or can you craft a Resurrection Talisman yourself? Come, come, you go ahead if you can." Lang Jiuchuan cast a sidelong glance at him. "There are no free lunches in this world. You and I have entered into a celestial pact; it is not for one to work for the other for free. If we are to complement each other, we must divide the labor."

It made sense, but he was unhappy—and he dared not argue.

Jiang Che left in a huff, while Lang Jiuchuan went to Lang Zhengping’s study and spoke plainly.

Lang Zhengping spat out a mouthful of tea. "What? You want to go offer incense and attend Old Master Zhao’s funeral?"

*Ancestor, are you truly not afraid that the Zhao family will beat you? You actually dare to attend the funeral!*