Chapter 69

Translated by boilpoil Edited by boilpoil

So, when Bai Lianhua thought about his contemporary identity in the world and thought about the antagonist who was his objective, he truly felt hopeless.

It was really embarrassing to admit he was afraid of ghosts, and even if he said it the Bai family would probably not be understanding… Then he’d just keep rather just have them misunderstand him as having zero talent.

Besides, it might be a bad thing for people to be exiled, but it’s quite the opportunity for him instead. How else could he have met the antagonist who hadn’t been sealed up for too long yet at that time without arousing suspicion?

Not to mention influencing the antagonist as a strong, never faltering white lotus.

Even if it’s quite the appalling circumstances, this is why the system arranged for his identity in the world that way.

Though, the end he met in this world… Seriously. Even if he did complete his mission he feels really depressed thinking about it.

While Bai Lianhua is quickly going over everything related to Li Wenge, for Li Wenge himself who has finally found a trace of Bai Lianhua’s existence, he feels really bitter to see Bai Lianhua who’s still clean as ever even when he’s become a ghost. He actually wasn’t brave enough to take one more step forward, frightened he might scare the scaredy-cat off.

It’s really nice how Bai Lianhua is still the same in appearance as ever… it’s really not nice that he’s the same as him now.

When he first met Bai Lianhua, he was already sealed up for more than two centuries. He who has lost most of his powers could only hang out in the Bai family’s home grounds, like any other ghost.

He personally saw Bai Lianhua being exiled here… While they did give him what his disposition deserved on the surface, he was always mocked in secret beneath the surface, saying that he has a bad fate.

Or why would he have been noble-born but failed to inherit a single bit of his parents’ talents? So that he doesn’t waste resources hogging at the line of succession, they just half-forced him here.

Bai Lianhua wouldn’t say anything when he hears that. Instead, he would run off to quiet places to sit and doze off alone.

Li Wenge felt this newbie was quite the pushover. When he was examining him casually though, he was surprised to see that he could see his existence.

This was quite shocking for him… He’s definitely not as powerfully imposing on the world as before, he’s weakened. Without any actual cultivators here, since being sealed up he hasn’t been seen by anyone for a long long time.

——This would prove that the little guy named Bai Lianhua isn’t actually talentless after all.

What makes him even more interested is the attitude of the guy after seeing him. He first panicked, trying to back off as much as possible, but then he suddenly seems to realise something and starts beaming… He seems to be scared of him but also happy to discover him. What a contradictory attitude.

It was only after they became familiar that Li Wenge knew that in Bai Lianhua’s eyes, he himself, his entire ghost form appeared clean and tidy. He felt much more comfortable being with him than those ghosts which might be missing an eye or half a brain that he used to try to practise ethereal cultivation techniques on.

In Bai Lianhua’s words, it was “amazing. You’re the ideal ghost I thought I would never meet… You’re not foul at all.”

Li Wenge was amused. The little brat must have thought he was just a regular ol’ ghost… That’s a bad attitude, yo. Ghosts aren’t necessarily only stronger when they are more ghastly in appearance.

But perhaps because he looked normal, so while Bai Lianhua was still scared, he did his best to overcome it and approach him.

Li Wenge was also quite amused looking at Bai Lianhua who despite being scared shitless he still had to put up this strongman front to not show it.

——This appearance was also much more lively than when he always appeared indifferent in front of his family clan members.

“You’re scared, aren’t you?” Li Wenge pokes right through his guise into the nervousness he thought he’d been hiding well, “how does it feel like to go as stiff as a wood?”

Then the person would look at him with these widened eyes in reflex, and then admits while slouching like a balloon having its air released, “it actually feels really depressing.”

“Then why are you still coming here?”

Bai Lianhua, quietly, “I want to train my guts.”

——Right. Without any buffer, immediately using the biggest boss level ghost here for guts training. Do you seriously still need all those guts you clearly have already trained?

Li Wenge’s interest was piqued.

“Sure. I’ll help you train your guts then.”

The first time he actually closed in on him, he didn’t quite restrain himself properly and actually scared his pants off. The little guy completely avoided him for three days walking away from him every time he saw him. After that, he learned to take it step-by-step, only teasing him lightly, not putting him under too much pressure.

When Bai Lianhua became scared, his pair of eyes would widen up into these two big, big circles, and he would hold his breath until he almost suffocates himself. Yet, he still persisted, preparing mentally for next time and then merrily come visit again… It’s really a cute thing to see.

This lasted until when finally Bai Lianhua could remain calm in his presence.

Li Wenge thought that this meant the guy would stop visiting him. Though, that wasn’t the case as he would still look for him every now and then.

He couldn’t help but ask, “if it’s for guts training, I don’t think you’re that scared of me now.”

Bai Lianhua nodded obediently, “yes, that’s right.”

“Then why keep coming?”

“Because… You see. You’re a lonely ghost, I’m a lonely person. We can accompany each other.”

Li Wenge suddenly found it impossible to tell him that all the nearby ghosts were actually chased away by him and he wasn’t lonely.

He realised that he was touched that Bai Lianhua decided to accompany him.

To be honest, back then, if Bai Lianhua stopped visiting him altogether, he probably wouldn’t have been able to hold back and look for him himself.

He liked being with Bai Lianhua… Really, really liked it.

He didn’t even care that Bai Lianhua had the Bai surname at all.

Li Wenge whose mind was completely on Bai Lianhua then, couldn’t stand seeing Bai Lianhua treated badly after that.

——They said you have a bad fate? Then I made it so you had to have a good fate. Everywhere you went, the ghosts would never ever cause any ruckus whatsoever.

The Bai family trained in ethereal cultivation, true, but those that were assembled here were all regular people without talents for cultivation. So of course they would be quite fearful of these inexplicable supernatural elements.

——You were afraid of ghosts, so you couldn’t train… But I can. With me here, no ghost would be unwilling to heed your orders.

Li Wenge didn’t dare actually recognising Bai Lianhua as his master, as it would likely have impacted his longevity, but he felt that he could still help achieve Bai Lianhua’s wishes nonetheless… He felt depressed again though when he thought about how he didn’t actually have enough power to do that right that instance.

Even so, Li Wenge never tried to take advantage of Bai Lianhua who, as a member of the Bai family, could unseal him. Not only was there a great price to pay, he would also appear as if he lied to Bai Lianhua all along.

Yet these things were never certain in the world——Perhaps because he had managed to acquire emotions unique to humans that ghosts shouldn’t possess, or perhaps because he who had rejected the idea of being ordered around so resolutely had genuinely felt like recognising him as his master… Anyway, not even he knew why, or how, that it managed to trigger something in the original seal created by that cultivator, causing the seal to start degrading from its original completely stable form.

Li Wenge was happy at first, with this hope of him becoming free being visible.

Yet, when the main branch of the Bai family sensed this seal destabilising, they followed their ancestor’s advice and didn’t dare treat it lightly. After careful investigation, they locked onto Bai Lianhua.

Li Wenge knew that it was himself that got Bai Lianhua implicated… Even if he never knew anything about this or the seal nor did he do anything to it voluntarily from beginning to end.

He might have wanted to take this chance and fight with his life for a complete escape with the seal destabilising, but the Bai family’s communication has made him realise that no matter what, one thing was certain. He and the fortune of the world were linked. If he escaped this weakened state, the world would never see peace again.

Without a seal, then he who was already led onto the path of cultivation would end up growing up into the Ruler of Ghosts regardless of his own will, and propagate the polluted qi… His cultivation made it an uncontrollable inevitability. He would be able to train himself and make the process go even faster, but it was practically impossible for him to slow it down or stop it.

If he ran away alone without Bai Lianhua, he would definitely be pushed out as the scapegoat of all this and be damned. If he took him away, then he would be forced to confront the predicament of choosing either he or the righteous cultivable qi of the world. He might even force himself to stand opposing the righteous side of the world.

Li Wenge was quite frustrated thinking about it.

… Bai Lianhua was such a scaredy-cat too. If he saw ghosts appearing left and right in this future world, he would definitely be shivering, no?

Of course, he could also choose to remain sealed quietly, but given it’s already diminishing now, and with the Bai family being weak like this nobody could seal him up again… The deterioration of the seal would also be speeding up too with the destabilisation currently existing. Even if he did say, the situation would devolve eventually.

——Bai Lianhua was already being punished right there and then, too.

After a long silence, he ignored Bai Lianhua’s firm objection, and made a deal with the Bai family’s leader to choose to self-eradicate.

… He never thought there would come a day when all these grudges he built up since becoming an ethereal cultivator, especially that of being sealed would be let go of his own volition.

His so-called master back then also wanted him to ‘leave’ this world of his own volition back then too. He never did though. Yet, after so many years Bai Lianhua has succeeded.

Then, at least, Bai Lianhua would no longer be a ‘bedamned criminal’ now.

What Li Wenge didn’t expect was that, while he was ridding himself of his own cultivation amount and they thought he was dead being this invisible, transparent ethereal qi soon to dissipate, Bai Lianhua was forced to commit suicide.

——The person he treasured, for whom he even chose to leave of his own volition, was, in the eyes of the others, just a piece of trash who had no cultivation talent and only brought trouble to the family. Of course they would choose to get rid of him no matter what. They even exploited the loophole in the deal of them never physically harming Bai Lianhua themselves.

Li Wenge knew that if someone passed away without great grudges and unresolved obsessions it was unlikely for someone to turn into a ghost, but they would rather disappear completely. With Bai Lianhua’s personality… Li Wenge, at that moment, did all he could to try to retain Bai Lianhua’s soul.

There was a moment when he thought he’d succeeded as the silhouette of Bai Lianhua’s soul became visible. Yet, it wasn’t a moment later when Bai Lianhua drifted away rapidly and disappeared from his senses.

He, weakened to the core, couldn’t reach him at all.

He suddenly felt an overwhelming desire to live. And he who was ‘dead’ after having gotten rid of basically himself, even having essentially damaged what made him ‘him,’ was no longer restricted in movement by the seal. Yet, he couldn’t catch up to him.

All that Li Wenge could do was to absorb the polluted qi of the world at the highest, most reckless pace possible without considering the consequences while searching for the whereabouts of Bai Lianhua.

So, now, finally, when Bai Lianhua finally reacts after such a long daze and murmurs with a surprised tone, “thank god, you haven’t disappeared,” Li Wenge’s voice was trembling, “no, I haven’t… But I almost thought you did.”

I have used all the power I had just to guide your soul from dissipating entirely, so that at least you could remain in soul.

Yet, even if I were once capable of commanding thousands of ghosts, I couldn’t find a single trace of you until now.

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