Chapter 499: Lao Ai's Past
Translator: StackThatCoin Editor: Hitesh_
Wu Qi sat on a big chair with his legs crossed, staring at Lao Ai with a smile on his face.
The smile made Lao Ai feel ill at ease. He made a face at Wu Qi and gave himself a brief inspection, but he could not find anything unusual. "What are you smiling at? What's so funny?" He growled as he stared at Wu Qi. "Since I've 'killed Reverend San Le', I am now the master of Euphoria Heavenly Palace. As the master of the palace, my duty is to maintain an intimate relationship with all the female cultivators!"
Wu Qi grinned, then put up a straight face as he softly slapped his body and said, "From today onward, this puppet will replace you as the master of Euphoria Heavenly Palace. I need your help, as well as Madman Xue."
"Are you encountering troubles?" Lao Ai asked with a frown.
Wu Qi nodded seriously and said in a sincere tone, "I don't have the ability to solve this trouble, but it can be quickly solved with your help. Also, I've bumped into an old friend there, Lu Buwei."
"Lu Buwei!" Lao Ai's long hair stood on their ends suddenly as he sprung to his feet, staring at Wu Qi as he bellowed, "That old codger is there too?"
Wu Qi stared back at Lao Ai and did not speak a word.
"Are your trouble related to Lu Buwei?" Asked Lao Ai after taking a deep breath, his voice fierce.
Wu Qi nodded and said, "If you can help me solve that trouble, you can always take the opportunity and kill Lu Buwei with another's hand."
Vaguely, Lao Ai's eyes glistened with tears. "If this is the case, I'll bring Madman Xue and help you." He said while gnashing his teeth, "Lu Buwei, oh Lu Buwei, you schemed against me in those years, causing me... Ha, although it was Ying Zheng who had killed my two children, but how could that have nothing to do with you? I was loyal to you, yet you framed me just for the sake of solving your own calamity!"
Wu Qi did not speak but kept staring at Lao Ai, whose eyes were swimming with tears. Those words Lao Ai had just said out of pure agitation had really surprised him. When that was cross-referenced to what he had read in some historical texts, he found it rather amusing.
"We are not in Great Yan, and Yan Dan is not here to restrict me... Hehe, I'll definitely settle all scores with Lu Buwei this time!" said Lao Ai with a deep voice, "Wu Qi, you better don't hide your treachery and act in a slick way. I need your support in killing Lu Buwei. So long as I can kill him, you can take away all his treasures. I need none of them!"
"Fine, so long as you can help me to solve the trouble, it's not a big deal to kill Lu Buwei," said Wu Qi with a nod.
Lao Ai fixed his eyes on Wu Qi's face, and Wu Qi fixed his on Lao Ai's. The peerless devil had tears welled from his eyes, while a bright, cruel gleam was flickering in the puppet's eyes. For that moment, it was as if both men had exchanged their roles, as if Wu Qi had become the heartless devil.
Lao Ai laughed a strange laugh, waving his hand as he clad himself in a silk robe.
He seated himself on a chair. "Do you want to hear my story?" said Lao Ai indifferently, "A story that Yan Dan will never tell you. Even if he would, there is absolutely no way he can clearly explain the entanglement of causes and effects. No one else is clearer about the old scores, except us who are involved."
"Do you have the mood to tell me that right now?" asked Wu Qi with a smile.
After a brief moment of silence, Lao Ai nodded and said, "I feel like wanting to say something suddenly. But... how is it even possible for me to tell them these things?"
'Them?' Wu Qi realized that the 'them' Lao Ai mentioned was actually referring to Yan Dan, Ying Zheng, Tian Dan, and many others who came from the same place, the same time period as him. With his proud and arrogant temperament, how was it possible for him to share his secret with those acquaintances? Lao Ai would never allow himself to show his weak side before them. He could weep before Wu Qi, but he would never show his weakness before Yan Dan and the others.
The story was rather simple. It was just like what was recorded in those historical texts which Le Xiaobai had read, but came with a greater detail.
In those years, Lao Ai was just one of Lu Buwei's retinues. He did that to feed his mouth, to quench his thirst for wine, and to get a woman who could warm his bed. Because of his extraordinary innate talent, Lu Buwei had sent him into the palace to become the bedmate for Ying Zheng's mother.
"It was the first time in my life that I had devoted my true love for a woman!"
Lao Ai confessed as he tucked his hands under sleeves. For that moment, his evil and wicked temperament seemed to vanish completely. He stared at Wu Qi with a frank and honest expression in his eyes. He looked just like an old teacher who was giving a lecture about the rise and fall of a dynasty in a classroom.
"It was the also first time in my life that I had a child with a woman."
He raised his head. Wu Qi saw two streams of tear evaporate from his cheek. His face looked calm now, ancient and solemn like an old, weather-washed locust tree. "Things went well initially. I was pampering the woman who I loved the most, and who loved me the most in the imperial harem, while Lu Buwei held the absolute power in the imperial court, doing all kinds of things at will. I had never fought against him. My only wish was to live a peaceful life in the imperial harem with my woman and my children," he said coolly.
"A decent wish, but too bad..." said Wu Qi as he clapped his hands.
Lao Ai squinted, fixing his malevolent eyes at Wu Qi. "But, too bad that Lu Buwei and Ying Zheng began fighting each other for power. He had regarded me as the best probe, the best blade that could attract Ying Zheng's attention. As a result, I started a coup and rebel, then Ying Zheng fought back and killed me. My woman was placed under house arrest until her death many years later, and my two boys were smashed to death by Ying Zheng."
"I could understand why Ying Zheng did that. He was the King of Great Qin, so he could never tolerate the fact that his mother had given birth to two boys with me, a fake eunuch. But, I can never forgive Lu Buwei's betrayal! I served him faithfully, obeyed all his orders in the imperial harem, and never once went against his will. Yet, despite everything, he kicked me away like I was just a crippled old dog, murdered my boys, and tormented my woman!"
"Sure enough, there are plenty of reasons for you to settle the scores with him," said Wu Qi with a sigh, "Lu Buwei is in Miao Ying Palace's good graces right now. I need you to seize that grace from him, and I've already come up with a game plan. You just have to slightly show off your ability in seducing women, and you will have a very high chance of success."
"You want me to seduce some woman? That's a piece of cake," said Lao Ai as he stared at Wu Qi.
"She is a Gold Immortal."
The broad smile on Lao Ai's face froze instantly. "What? A Gold Immortal?" he cried out shockingly.
Wu Qi nodded seriously and said, "Not only is she a Gold Immortal, Miao Ying Palace is a power from the Fiend League. She is a Saint Fiend Immortal of Gold Immortal level. I fear that she might kill you instantly should you provoke her," said Wu Qi with a grin, "Immortals from the Fiend League kill without batting an eye. It is considered nothing for them to kill someone at will, should that someone upset them."
Lao Ai hesitated, sinking into a deep pondering with a frown on his face. At last, he clenched his jaw and said with a nod, "Although she is a Gold Immortal, she is still a woman."
Lao Ai had regained his confidence and courage over time. "I can take her down so long as she is a woman!" Words spewed out from his tightly clenched teeth, "Lu Buwei has actually found a Gold Immortal to back him up? For this alone I'll have to ruin his scheme. Otherwise, should he obtain some benefits from that Gold Immortal, the possibility for me to kill him would get slimmer."
Wu Qi nodded slowly and said with a deep voice, "And, Patriarch Miao Ying is a Primordial Immortal! When you are seducing Goddess Miao Xin, do pay some attention to the Patriarch and try to win her favor as well. If you are able to also... well, never mind, it is basically impossible. A Primordial Immortal will never be moved by sexual passion."
Unconvinced, Lao Ai opened his mouth and wanted to boast that he could also take down a Primordial Immortal. But, he did not have the courage and face to say that. A Gold Immortal was already a tough challenge, let alone a Primordial Immortal! That was an existence who was no longer a human, and only heaven knew if they still had emotions in their heart.
Noticing Lao Ai's weird expression, Wu Qi said coolly, "Perhaps… a Primordial Immortal can release you from the restrictive spell buried in your soul?"
Lao Ai's muscles tensed up as he sprung to his feet abruptly, panting heavily as he fixed his gaze at Wu Qi.
"Maybe she can, or maybe not. In any case, at least there is some hope if you are willing to give it a try," said Wu Qi as he smiled faintly, without even looking at Lao Ai.
Lao Ai took a deep breath and nodded heavily.
Both men proceeded to discuss in whispers. After some while, Lao Ai issued a few loud calls, and soon, Supremacy Three Flame swaggered out from behind the hall with Madman Xue following behind.
When the company was done with their discussion, the puppet constructed a small teleportation formation in the hall. Lao Ai strode into it with Madman Xue, and at the same time, Wu Qi cut off his connection with the puppet. The bright gleam in the puppet's eyes faded away, now looking cloudy and dull.
A strong light rushed out from underneath the earth in a barren mountain about one million miles away from the Dark Abyss of Northern Ocean, amidst which, a small teleportation formation made its appearance. Before long, Lao Ai and Madman Xue walked out of it. They stooped to glance around, then quickly buried the formation, unleashed their sword beams, and began to fly toward the Dark Abyss, laughing and joking all the way.
Gingerly, they approached the Northern Ocean. Just as what Wu Qi had expected, a few patrolling Yakshas darted out from under the ocean, bound up the pair of master-and-disciple with water ropes, and dragged them back into the Dark Abyss.
An hour later, Wu Qi met the pair of master-and-disciple in the mine.
With a grim face, he came before Lao Ai and Madman Xue, and swiftly snatched a storage bracelet from Lao Ai's wrist. Inside the bracelet were some energy stones and herbs which Lao Ai had brought here for him. The poor Wu Qi had finally become slightly richer now.
Both of them were subsequently shoved into one of the pits by the Yakshas, increasing the number of coolies in the mine by two.
Two days later, Lao Ai's mocking voice was suddenly heard coming from one of the pits, "Useless shits, and you called yourself a man? Haha, there are only some little things in the mine car. I can push it everywhere I want even with this treasure of mine, and yet you've failed to drag it?"
Soon, a loud exclamation echoed out from the pit.
Ten fully loaded mine cars were lined up in a row, and Lao Ai had exposed the lower part of his body, using his man part to push them up the steepest tunnel in the mine. Step by step, he ascended in a state of ease.
All male cultivators had their faces turned ashen, while a bright gleam could be seen flickering in all female cultivators' eyes. As for those simple-minded, savage Yakshas, they were exchanging glances, covering their male parts with a feeling of smallness.
Wu Qi gave Lao Ai a glance, who was throwing his head back and yelling complacently, and he called out in an indifferent tone, "Somebody, go invite Senior Miao Yue here. Tell her that I have an important matter to report."
A Yaksha, who had been staring Lao Ai blankly for some while, spun and sped away.