Chapter 122 - 119: The Creator of the Eternal Corridor

Chapter 122: Chapter 119: The Creator of the Eternal Corridor

Daji waved her hand casually.

An Lushan was sent flying like a puppet with its strings cut, smashing hard onto the solid golden bed.

He coughed up blood, his face pale, and groaned,

"Foster Mother Goddess, don’t kill me! Foster Mother Goddess, don’t kill me! Someone, help! Someone!"

But how could there be anyone here?

An Lushan struggled on the bed for a moment before dissolving into a cloud of black mist and disappearing.

A moment later, the black mist re-formed into the dapper, portly man, who sat back down at the golden dining table and began gnawing on a Golden Apple whose skin he couldn’t even break.

He mumbled incessantly,

"Why did you rush to tell your father?"

His voice was filled with regret.

Jiang Chaosheng glanced at the old, fat man imprisoned in the Golden Hall.

He was no longer aggressive, as if Daji had beaten him into submission.

Jiang Chaosheng took out the Compass and, following the needle’s direction, walked into the darkness in the depths of the hall.

「...」

They were back in the corridors of the Worker’s Department Store.

The surroundings were dilapidated, filled with the stench of decay.

The needle of the Compass was trembling violently.

They were getting closer and closer to the location of the Eternal Corridor’s creator.

Daji suddenly stopped and said softly,

"I think... I sense a familiar aura."

Jiang Chaosheng looked back at Daji, slightly stunned.

Two tear tracks streamed down Daji’s beautiful, aloof face.

She reached up to touch the tears, her lovely eyes filled with confusion.

’Why am I crying?’ Daji wondered.

As she followed Jiang Chaosheng, drawing nearer to the creator, an endless sorrow began to envelop her.

Jiang Chaosheng faced forward and kept walking.

His mind was racing.

’Could the creator of this Eternal Corridor be a mythological figure from Daji’s era?’

’Feeling sad...’

According to the legends, there were two people who could make Daji feel sad.

One was Jiang Ziya, who killed her.

She would feel sad for herself.

The other was King Zhou of Shang, whom she had enchanted.

She would feel sad for King Zhou.

But in the end, myths were just myths. The Investiture of the Gods was hardly proof.

It was unknown whether the so-called Immortal Slaying Flying Knife even existed.

In fact, if that thing truly existed and was still around, Antique Shop Zero should have had a record of it.

As they walked toward the darkness, some points of light appeared ahead, allowing them to see their surroundings a little more clearly.

On the moldy walls, where the plaster was peeling, words were scrawled crookedly in what looked like fresh blood.

"Barbarians from all corners invade our Great Xia—this is the shame of Great Xia’s Emperors!"

"You are the most incompetent Emperors I have ever seen!"

"Under all heaven there is no land that is not the king’s; to the borders of the earth, there are none who are not the king’s subjects!"

"How dare you ruin the Great Xia Dragon Vein?!"

"Demon Queen! Demon Queen! Demon Queen!! Ruining the foundation of my Great Xia!"

Jiang Chaosheng muttered,

"Is the creator of this Eternal Corridor some kind of roasting machine?"

Jiang Chaosheng could tell this passage was a tirade against the Qing Dynasty.

Many people believe that during the Qing Dynasty, the Xia Kingdom’s territory was the largest in its history.

Because of this, countless people have sung the praises of the Great Qing’s vast domain.

But in reality, those people didn’t know one thing.

As early as the time of the Emperor of Zhou, it was believed that all the lands within the four seas were ’the king’s land.’

And "all the lands within the four seas" was meant literally.

Everything under the heavens, the entire Blue Star, the whole world—it was all Great Xia’s territory.

The "Myriad Nations Paying Homage" during the Great Tang period didn’t mean that various countries came to the Great Tang to show friendship.

The kings of those nations came as vassals to pay respects to their Celestial Khan, their Great Emperor, their Upper Emperor.

Even up to the Ming Dynasty, the laws of certain countries required the Ming Emperor’s approval, and a single imperial edict could quell a war in another nation.

The goal of the ancestral Emperors had always been the entire world.

The international status of Great Xia’s subjects back then was unparalleled.

There was no talk of "lapdogs" or "runaways" like there is now.

They have forgotten the glory of their ancestors.

If you even mention things like "Under all heaven there is no land that is not the king’s" or "Myriad Nations Paying Homage," they’ll think you’re just some ultranationalist blindly praising your ancestors.

Just as the bloody words on the wall said, they ruined the foundation of the Great Xia Dragon Vein.

Jiang Chaosheng continued walking forward.

The bloody writing continued.

"A beggar becoming Emperor? Now that’s badass!"

"Zhu Di! A true son of the Zhu Family!"

"That bastard! That bastard Zhu Qizhen!"

「...」

"The Sheep-Leading Ceremony! You are a disgrace to all Emperors!"

"Why must women bear the blame for the mistakes of those incompetent Emperors?"

"I can only offer their wronged souls a small measure of comfort."

「...」

"I thought that Li boy had a bit of my heroic spirit, but how could he have such a stupid great-grandson!"

「...」

"That little rogue became Emperor? Hmm... that’s fine too. A hero’s origins don’t matter."

「...」

These bloody words had basically cursed every emperor in the Xia Kingdom’s history.

The more Jiang Chaosheng read, the heavier his heart became.

Who on earth was the creator of this Eternal Corridor?

He was like an observer of the Human World’s history.

Admiring, cursing, and roasting emperors of every dynasty, while imprisoning and torturing the culprits who brought disaster.

This was an old monster who had lived for thousands of years!

’Don’t tell me this is another troublesome character, just like the Sea Coachman.’

Jiang Chaosheng thought about it and decided that was unlikely.

The Eternal Corridor was dangerous, but with the Compass in hand, he had avoided the black holes that distorted the correct path through the maze.

Those unexplored black holes in the maze must contain dangerous monsters.

There could be Demons, there could be Ghosts, and perhaps even Divine Souls like the Jing River Dragon King.

Along the way, all he had seen were imprisoned Fierce Souls and comforted, wronged souls.

Other than An Lushan, almost none of them were dangerous.

Suddenly, Jiang Chaosheng heard the sound of sobbing.

He turned his head to look at Daji.

She was staring at the writing, her face drenched in tears.

’Could this creator be Daji’s husband?’ Jiang Chaosheng wondered.

According to the Evil Crow, Daji’s husband was a Human Emperor.

If he were a Human Emperor, he would certainly be qualified to rebuke the emperors of Great Xia’s successive dynasties.

’Hmm...’

’The creator inside is most likely Daji’s husband.’

Jiang Chaosheng asked calmly,

"Will you become my enemy?"

After saying this, Jiang Chaosheng himself frowned.

’Why, on some strange impulse, did I just ask the question that was on my mind?’

According to his former self, if Daji dared to rebel, he would swing the Scythe of Death at her without a moment’s hesitation.

Whether it was the monster inside who was likely a Human Emperor or the devastatingly beautiful woman at his side, he wouldn’t soften his heart when it came time to act.

After all, if the being inside was Daji’s husband, it was highly likely she would turn against him.

Hearing Jiang Chaosheng’s words, Daji’s pretty face showed clear panic.

"Husband, everything I am belongs to you. How could I ever betray you?!"

Jiang Chaosheng turned back to look at Daji.

Her face was beautiful, tear-streaked like pear blossoms in the rain, and combined with her bone-deep panic, she looked so pitifully lovely it was as if he were the one at fault.

Jiang Chaosheng said nothing and walked toward the light.

The light grew brighter.

Before Jiang Chaosheng was an antique, classical-looking door.

On the door was a small plaque that read: Top-Rated Room.

Jiang Chaosheng raised an eyebrow.

’This is a room in an inn?’

A Top-Rated Room meant it was the most luxurious and spacious guest room in the inn.

The equivalent of a modern-day presidential suite.

Jiang Chaosheng pushed the door open.

The inside was indeed luxurious.

High, wide beams of nanmu wood, and hanging sheepskin lanterns.

In a corner, a bronze beast-shaped censer breathed out plumes of blue smoke.

Sachets of pear blossom fragrance hung all around.

Jiang Chaosheng walked in and tilted his head slightly.

What came into view was a middle-aged scholar, sitting upright before a guqin, his eyes closed in a deep slumber.

When Daji saw the middle-aged scholar, she suddenly covered her red lips and began to sob quietly.

Jiang Chaosheng carefully sized him up.

He had the air of a scholar, like a Confucian academic. He didn’t look like a Human Emperor at all.

Jiang Chaosheng looked back at Daji.

"Do you know him?"

Daji shook her head, her eyes filled with confusion.

"I... I don’t know. I just feel so sad. I... I don’t know why."

For some reason, Jiang Chaosheng felt a pang of jealousy.

His brow furrowed.

’Could I possibly be jealous?’

’What a joke!’

Jiang Chaosheng walked up to the middle-aged scholar and waved a hand in front of his eyes.

There was no reaction. It was impossible to tell if he was asleep or dead.

Suddenly, out of the corner of his eye, Jiang Chaosheng saw a small painting under the guqin table, and his pupils contracted sharply!

The background of the small painting was this very Top-Rated Room.

In the room, three people were painted.

One was the middle-aged scholar himself.

He had his arms crossed, looking furious and sulking.

The other two people...

One was a beauty in a red dress, sitting on the bed, covering her mouth as she stifled a laugh.

It was Daji!

The other was a young man dressed in black.

He was dozing off.

The scholar was sulking because of the black-clad youth, and he had clearly lost their argument!

The corner of Jiang Chaosheng’s eye twitched violently.

Because the black-clad youth’s face bore a seventy-percent resemblance to his own!

...