第2713章 疯批城主相爱相杀法则35，36（2合1）
Jin Chen carried the unusually vulnerable Yin Chaosheng in his arms as they passed through layers of palaces. When they arrived at the Imperial Garden, Yin Chaosheng suddenly moved, raised his head, and extended a pale finger, pointing to an inconspicuous path half-hidden by lush flowers and trees.
“I want to go there.” His voice was very soft.
Jin Chen looked in the direction he pointed. The path was winding and twisting, leading to an unknown destination, and appeared exceptionally secluded.
"Where is that?" he asked in a low voice.
"The place where I used to live," Yin Chaosheng replied, burying his face back in the crook of his neck. His voice was muffled, revealing little nostalgia, but rather an inexplicable weariness.
Jin Chen looked down at him, meeting his strangely beautiful eyes that seemed somewhat empty at the moment.
Yin Chaosheng tilted his head up and kissed Jin Chen on the corner of his lips, then stared at him intently.
Jin Chen felt a warmth in her heart, chuckled softly, and carried him into the path as instructed.
This place was indeed remote; even patrolling guards and palace servants were rarely seen.
Along the way, the palace walls were mottled and the vegetation was neglected, showing a desolate atmosphere. After walking for only half a cup of tea's time, Yin Chaosheng gently patted Jin Chen's arm, "This is the place, put me down."
Jin Chen stopped, and Yin Chaosheng landed from his arms, his bare feet stepping on the bluestone slabs as he walked towards the faded swing set in the courtyard ahead, its ropes somewhat rotten.
Opposite the swing set was a dilapidated palace gate, its vermilion paint peeling off and half-open.
Although Jin Chen had never set foot in this place, he could guess from the scene that this was probably the cold palace where the deposed empress lived.
Yin Chaosheng walked to the swing, gently stroked the rough wooden board, and after a moment turned around and sat down. He tilted his head slightly to look at Jin Chen. His face, half-hidden by his loose black hair, looked fragile in the sparse sunlight.
He gently wiggled his dangling toes, with a childlike stubbornness.
"You push me."
Jin Chen naturally agreed, walked to the back of the swing, held onto Yin Chaosheng's seemingly thin shoulders, and pushed him forward.
The swing swayed slightly, making a soft creaking sound.
It was past noon, and the sun was setting in the west.
Jin Chen then noticed that the dilapidated swing was located in the only corner of this gloomy and cold palace that was bathed in the afterglow of the setting sun.
A gap appears in the eaves of the main hall of the Cold Palace in front, allowing the dim sunlight to penetrate.
Jin Chen raised her hand to shield Yin Chaosheng from the somewhat glaring sunlight, and asked softly, "Are you feeling unwell?"
After all, Yin Chaosheng was still a vengeful ghost, and being exposed to the intense sunlight, even at dusk, was far from comfortable.
Yin Chaosheng was about to shake his head, but seeing the concern in Jin Chen's eyes, he suddenly changed his mind. The corners of his lips curved up, and his voice softened: "It hurts."
As he spoke, he reached out and grabbed Jin Chen's sleeve, pulling him slightly to sit down in an empty spot on the other side of the swing.
The swing was quite spacious. Yin Chaosheng turned to the side, wrapped his arms around Jin Chen's waist, bent down and buried his entire upper body in Jin Chen's warm embrace, resting his head on his knees.
Jin Chen touched his hair, gently combing it stroke by stroke.
Yin Chaosheng closed his eyes and remained quiet in his arms for a long time, so long that Jin Chen thought he had fallen asleep. Only then did a muffled sound come from his arms, almost a dreamlike whisper.
"I am the Crimson Yin Ghost King, and I should be ranked among the Ghost Kings of the Underworld, in charge of the netherworld."
Jin Chen paused slightly as she combed his long hair, then resumed her normal motion and replied softly, "Mm."
He gently kneaded Yin Chaosheng's earlobe, "And then?"
Yin Chaosheng scoffed lightly, as if mocking his previous unrealistic fantasies, "But I've been in the underworld for so long... that I actually want to be a human again."
He paused, a bitter feeling settling over him. “I used the merits I had accumulated over hundreds of years… to exchange for a chance to be reborn as a human.”
Jin Chen frowned, about to say something, when suddenly a strong drowsiness hit him, his body swayed, and he uncontrollably leaned to one side.
Yin Chaosheng, who had been burying his head in his arms, sat up straight and reached out to catch Jin Chen's tilted head.
He cupped Jin Chen's face in his hands, gently pressing his forehead against the other's. In his free hand, a dark shard appeared out of nowhere.
It was a remnant from the Nightmare Ghost King's jar.
Jin Chen opened his eyes and was still standing outside the Cold Palace, but the scene before him was completely different from what he had seen before.
Although the palace walls were old, they did not have the desolate and dilapidated state seen today.
Jin Chen heard a baby crying loudly from inside the palace. She saw the deposed empress, who looked haggard but still exuded elegance, holding the infant in her arms and weeping with joy.
The baby had delicate features, and one could vaguely see the outline of its future stunning beauty.
That was the birth of Yin Chaosheng.
Jin Chen became an uninvolved bystander, forced to witness the long-buried past.
The images flashed rapidly.
Ten years later, the old imperial advisor brought his young female disciple, whose features already showed a cold and stern expression, into the palace.
The old imperial advisor advised the emperor, who was in his prime, stating bluntly that the sixth prince, Yin Chao, had a flawed destiny, was imbued with malevolent energy, and would absorb the dragon's energy, thus endangering the foundation of the nation.
The emperor, blindly believing in magic arts, actually listened to this and forcibly reversed Yin Chao's fate using a secret method.
From then on, there was no longer a sixth prince, Yin Chaosheng, in the palace, only the "Princess Chiyin," whose name was bestowed upon her by the old imperial advisor and whose status was awkward.
The deposed empress who gave birth to him was reinstated to the position of empress only a few years later. She was then accused of witchcraft again, banished to the cold palace, and died suddenly in the palace five years later.
At that time, the emperor was ill, and the old imperial advisor once again advised that Princess Chiyin was cursed with a solitary fate, which would bring misfortune to her family and country. If she was not stopped, it might harm His Majesty's health and shake his imperial aura.
These few scenes depict the twisted and painful fifteen years that Yin Chaosheng, as a "human being," personally experienced.
He has not yet awakened the memories of the Ghost King. In this cannibalistic palace, his identity is unknown and his gender is ambiguous. He is regarded as an omen of misfortune by everyone and can be despised and trampled on by anyone.
After being called "princess" for so long, amidst those malicious and indifferent gazes, even he himself often felt disoriented, unable to distinguish whether he was a man or a woman.
I can't tell what he is.
That year, the old national advisor passed away, and his female disciple succeeded him as national advisor.
She offered the increasingly frail emperor a miraculous elixir and bluntly stated that His Majesty and the princess were incompatible due to their conflicting energies, and only one could survive.
Whether it was his fate being reversed at the beginning or now being pushed out as a sacrifice to prolong his life, Yin Chaosheng has never been within the scope of choice; he is always the one who is abandoned.
As Jin Chen watched these scenes unfold, he suddenly recalled why Yin Chaosheng was always so persistent, even self-destructive, in those bizarre jars in the Ghost City, forcing him to make choices time and time again.
Jin Chen sighed softly with heartache, seeing Yin Chaosheng dressed in a striking red outfit, his eyes lifeless.
The imperial edict, issued in bright yellow, granted the princess the right to sacrifice her life for His Majesty, and she requested to be thrown into a well.
Caisson...
In an instant, Jin Chen's mind flashed the image of the deep, dry well next to the swing set in the Cold Palace courtyard!
His pupils trembled, and the scene before him shifted to the day Yin Chaosheng received the imperial decree.
Outside the Cold Palace, he was surrounded by the Imperial Preceptor and his disciples. Their long swords were drawn, gleaming coldly, leaving Yin Chaosheng no chance to escape.
Dressed in elaborate red robes, Yin Chaosheng held the imperial edict that would determine his fate, and slowly and stiffly walked towards the well that had been cursed with a soul-stealing spell.
On his other side, the sunlight generously shone on the lonely swing.
The swing was empty, swaying gently in the breeze.
Jin Chen watched helplessly, not caring that this was just an unchangeable past.
They didn't care that he was just a spectator.
How could he just be a spectator?
Jin Chen rushed into the illusion.
Clang!
Jin Chen snatched a longsword from a disciple's hand, the tip of which pointed directly at the Grand Preceptor.
The Imperial Advisor turned his head in astonishment, unable to comprehend this sudden turn of events.
Jin Chen was already furious, so her moves became increasingly fierce, containing power that did not belong to the illusion. In just a few moves, the Imperial Preceptor and her disciples disappeared in the chaotic scene, like wisps of smoke blown away by the wind.
Jin Chen turned around.
Yin Chaosheng was already standing at the edge of the well; one more step forward would mean certain doom.
Jin Chen reached out her hand to him, her gentle touch reassuring.
“The water in the well is cold,” he said.
"Come down."
The boy standing by the well trembled slightly, slowly turned his head, and looked at the strange man who had suddenly appeared.
His voice was dry, a result of long-term indoctrination with despair.
"Who are you? They say... Father Emperor's illness was all caused by me, only I died..."
"The emperor has nothing to do with me."
Jin Chen slowly approached, reached out, and grasped the boy's cold fingers with utmost care.
The faint warmth from her fingertips pierced Jin Chen's heart, reminding her of Yin Chaosheng's perpetually cold body temperature in the ghost city, a result of being soaked in well water.
"I only want to save you," Jin Chen said, looking at him and enunciating each word clearly.
The boy by the well tilted his head, his memories gradually overlapping with those of the nightmare.
Yin Chaosheng looked at Jin Chen and suddenly smiled, the smile breaking through the numbness and death on his face, carrying a hint of relief.
It was as if all he sought in this endless cycle of suffering and waiting was this very moment.
This is the person.
[The villain's darkening value is detected -20, totaling 36! 】
[The villain's heart rate is detected +10, totaling 90! 】
Without further hesitation, Yin Chaosheng leaped from the edge of the well, but instead of falling into the dark abyss, he plunged into Jin Chen's arms.
In an instant, the cold, dilapidated palace around them, everything, shattered like a broken mirror, vanishing completely.
Open your eyes again.
Jin Chen was still sitting on the faded swing, with Yin Chaosheng nestled in his arms. The afterglow of the setting sun cast long shadows of the two of them.
Jin Chen lowered her head and gently stroked the wetness at the corner of Yin Chaosheng's eyes with her fingertips. Yin Chaosheng noticed and his eyes reddened as he stared at Jin Chen.
Jin Chen felt a surge of warmth in his heart and leaned down to kiss him.
Yin Chaosheng wrapped his arms tightly around Jin Chen's neck. In the heat of their passionate kiss, Jin Chen felt tears welling up from under his tightly closed eyelashes and sliding down his cheeks.
Yin Chaosheng's tears flowed even more profusely, as if he wanted to wash away all the grievances and despair of the past few centuries in this one kiss.
The deeper his kiss, the more fiercely he wept, determined to never part from his only source of warmth and salvation.
On the other side of the palace.
Fu Lingjing practically tumbled and crawled into the Hall of Mental Cultivation.
His face was contorted with excitement, and his chest heaved violently. Just now, the mysterious immortal in his mind had finally broken through the forbidden spell set by Jin Chen.
"Useless! I've gone to so much trouble to help you. If you mess this up again, you'll bear the consequences!" The immortal said with great disdain.
"Grand Preceptor! Grand Preceptor!"
Fu Lingjing knelt down with a thud. "I have a secret to report. That Princess Chiyin—no, she's not a princess at all! She is…"
The force that had previously hindered his speech surged again, making his throat tighten. With the help of the immortal, Fu Lingjing forcefully broke through the barrier and roared out.
"He is Yin Chaosheng, the lord of Ghost City, Yin Chaosheng!!"
"……What!"
The Imperial Advisor, seated at the head of the table, suddenly slammed his hand on the table and stood up. "Yin Chaosheng is the lord of the Ghost City?"
The Imperial Advisor certainly knew that Princess Chiyin's name was Yin Chaosheng, but...
Princess Chiyin.
Yin Chaosheng.
These two seemingly unrelated identities suddenly overlapped, and details she had overlooked were pieced together: the timing of the princess's awakening, her unusually cold aura, Jin Chen's unusual attitude, and the old emperor's sudden serious illness...
damn it.
And there was also her master, the old national advisor who had long since passed away, and the plan he had murmured to himself countless times during his lifetime.
I see! I see!
The old imperial advisor reversed Yin Chao's life destiny not to suppress the Yin evil, but to use this body with its special destiny as a vessel, a bridge connecting Yin and Yang, to steal the imperial dragon energy and the fortune of the human world.
The old imperial advisor probably didn't expect that Yin Chaosheng was actually the Ghost King... No, he did expect it, otherwise why would he have named Yin Chaosheng Chiyin?
Even the imperial advisor was somewhat confused.
She frowned, unable to understand how the old imperial advisor had kept something from her back then.
Now this ghost king dares to return to the mortal realm as a princess and infiltrate the palace...
What does he want to do? Overthrow the imperial power, or completely break down the boundary between the living and the dead?
Neither of these is permitted!
The hesitation on the Imperial Advisor's face vanished, replaced by an almost fanatical resolve and killing intent.
She must seize this opportunity to completely eliminate the biggest hidden danger and prevent future troubles.
"Send the order!"
The Grand Preceptor's majestic shouts echoed throughout the Grand Preceptor's Hall and spread to all parts of the palace.
"All disciples and all talented individuals stationed in the palace, assemble immediately."
She stepped out of the palace gate, her figure hovering in mid-air, her long robes fluttering in the night wind, her voice like rolling thunder echoing throughout the palace.
"The Lord of the Ghost City has infiltrated the palace, plotting wickedness. This ghost is the root of chaos between Yin and Yang, endangering all living beings. Join me in slaying this ghost, destroying the Ghost City, and restoring peace to the world!"
"Slay the Ghost King! Destroy the Ghost City!"
A chorus of agreement immediately arose.
Countless figures flew out from all parts of the palace, sword lights, talismans, and magical artifacts piercing the night sky, surging towards the Cold Palace.
A chilling atmosphere enveloped the entire imperial city.
