Chapter 57: Divergent Paths

Half an hour earlier...

The communication basin began to ripple, and soon, the face of Huang Chenyuan appeared reflected in the water. His expression was cold and indifferent, no words wasted. Seeing King Shouxi before him, he said directly:

“Have you come to a decision?”

“No need to think. I have decided—this demon must never die by my hand!” King Shouxi’s gaze fixed unwaveringly on Huang Chenyuan, as if piercing through the gently rippling water to meet his face, resolute and unyielding. “The king’s own kin—who dares harm them?”

“There is no longer a king of men. Now there are only gods and immortals!” Huang Chenyuan’s eyes blazed with anger. “Man and demon cannot coexist; it is the will of Heaven. Do you dare defy it?”

“The will of Heaven?” King Shouxi smiled coldly, his tone detached. “Or the will of man?”

Huang Chenyuan’s fury gathered on his face as he stared fixedly at King Shouxi. The king returned his gaze with equal indifference. Their eyes locked in silence for a long moment, though separated by countless miles, the tension between them threatened to erupt at any instant. Then suddenly, Huang Chenyuan sighed, his anger fading away, his face returning to its usual calm.

“Zhengbei, how long has it been since we last met?”

King Shouxi slowly withdrew his gaze, thoughtful, and after a moment said, “Since the Battle of Bear Mountain—seven years.”

“Indeed. That time at Bear Mountain when you saved me—that should have been the last time we met,” Huang Chenyuan nodded slightly. “I didn’t expect that after seven years, you still wouldn’t agree with my methods.”

King Shouxi’s eyes deepened, and he slowly shook his head. “Our paths, though connected, differ. We act separately. I won’t force you, and you need not force me.”

“You still have the same stubborn temper as when we were young,” Huang Chenyuan shook his head with a reminiscent smile. “Back when we beat up that brat Ji, my father even broke his bamboo board, yet you still wouldn’t admit fault and nearly got beaten to death.”

The depth in King Shouxi’s eyes softened, a smile gradually appearing, though he still shook his head. “My master beat me to appease the Ji clan. He might have truly beaten me to death? As for you, you admitted fault, yet still didn’t escape a beating!”

“Whether it was a beating to death or not is hard to say, but if you had admitted fault, you might’ve gotten fewer blows, right?” Huang Chenyuan’s aged face creased with laughter. “Just one sentence, yet you refused to say it.”

“That’s the difference between us,” King Shouxi said. “If you’re not wrong, why admit fault?”

“I told you, it’s just one sentence...”

Halfway through, Huang Chenyuan stopped, laughing without a trace of anger, only fond memories. “Forget it, forget it! We are no longer young. Why quarrel over these things? As long as our paths connect, why bother with right or wrong, or which road to take?”

“It’s good you’ve come to understand that,” King Shouxi’s eyes shimmered slightly as he nodded. “If that’s so, then this demon...”

“Handle it as you see fit.” Huang Chenyuan said bluntly. “Life or death, prison or freedom—decide for yourself.”

King Shouxi nodded, pondering for a moment before saying, “Let it go. Since Xiyi is no longer in danger, I will let it return.”

“I said it’s up to you. Once you decide, it is,” Huang Chenyuan considered, then added, “Letting it go might be better. After all, the Tushan clan is powerful. If you truly provoke its father and brothers, that could be problematic. But...” He hesitated briefly, then abruptly changed the subject, uttering something entirely unrelated to their previous conversation:

“I heard you’ve reached the stage of crossing the tribulation?”

“Crossing the tribulation” is the path for Qi cultivators to ascend to immortality, much like a civil service exam. Pass, and one ranks among the immortals; fail, and one falls back into reincarnation. This applies equally to humans and demons. The only difference is that humans, upon reaching this stage, may choose whether to cross the tribulation and become celestial immortals or remain earthly immortals. Demons, however, are forced to cross the tribulation whether they wish to ascend or stay among mortals. This is the greatest grievance demons have against Heaven.

Only a handful of Qi cultivators in the Great Zhou have reached the tribulation stage, a testament to King Shouxi’s great cultivation. Yet upon hearing Huang Chenyuan’s remark, he merely smiled faintly, his expression unchanged. “Xuanji and Dingchen—aren’t they the same?”

The two he mentioned were naturally King Xuanji and King Dingchen, descendants of Jiang Shang and Yang Jian. Rumors of their reaching the tribulation stage had surfaced several years before King Shouxi. So when Huang Chenyuan brought it up, King Shouxi immediately thought of these two.

Huang Chenyuan nodded. “Indeed, they reached it before you, yet they have not crossed to become immortals. They remain in the Great Zhou. With war stirring, it’s said that Tianshan Dun has formally invited King Xuanji to assume leadership of Dunshou and guide the Tianshan Dun.”

At this, Huang Chenyuan smiled and said, “But these are just rumors. What Xuanji truly thinks—who knows?”

Though he said nothing more, King Shouxi sensed a ripple beneath his words. Just as he was about to contemplate further, a sharp arrow whistled through the night, suddenly exploding over Xiyi!

Their eyes met, and in that instant, both men’s faces changed.

This matter seemed to be the very issue Huang Chenyuan alluded to but did not state outright.

From that glance, King Shouxi immediately understood what Huang Chenyuan meant. With a soft murmur, his body shot straight upward like thunder, heading straight for the prison.

Time then returned to over an hour later.

After King Shouxi had pursued the escapee out of the city, near the county magistrate’s residence, in a small courtyard, two figures clad in guard uniforms appeared, gripping standard long spears as they hurried toward the city wall.

The city was in chaos. Night guards were mobilized en masse, all posts supporting each other, rushing to the walls. Some already knew of the jailbreak; others were still dazed, but all were hastened by officials to prepare for defense.

In such a scene, the hurried movements of two low-ranking guards would go unnoticed.

These two were none other than Liu Chou and Qingmei, disguised.

This was part of Liu Chou’s plan. Whether Guan Lan was dispatched or someone else took the blame was irrelevant. Liu Chou was uncertain if this would outpace King Shouxi’s pursuit and allow them to escape by boat. Thus, in the plan, he ultimately chose to go against the current—to slip into the wilderness rather than board the cloud boat.

Soon, amid the bustling guards, watchmen, and patrol soldiers, Liu Chou and Qingmei reached the city wall and climbed up to look around. But he could not rejoice. Outside the wall lay open wilderness. With such open terrain, if they left the city together, detection and capture were inevitable within moments.

Originally, Liu Chou intended to blend with the guards and wait out the night before making his move. But now, with Qingmei by his side, much had changed. Staying meant the same deadlock as inside the city. The only way out was to risk everything—perhaps a chance at survival.

He had no choice but to gamble.

The outcome could be victory or defeat, but delaying was surely death—without doubt.

He chose to bet it all. If he could save Qingmei, that alone was a win.

Following his heart was victory.

Liu Chou took a deep breath and looked at Qingmei. Though her eyes were filled with exhaustion, a spirited light still shone within. Her gaze met his with joy. Nodding at her, Liu Chou whispered:

“Once we leave the city, if anything happens, take the Golden Eye and escape. Don’t worry about me!”

“You…”

“Now is not the time to argue. I’ll find a way to survive!” Liu Chou interrupted her unusually harshly. With a leap, dragging Qingmei along, he vaulted over the uneven battlements and jumped outside the wall. His iron spear sparked against the stone as soldiers shouted in alarm, but the two landed safely below.

Looking back, shadowy figures dotted the ramparts—countless people still fitting bolts to crossbows. The Golden Eye appeared, and Qingmei was tossed onto its back. The monkey and beast surged forward like lightning, racing swiftly away from the city.

Their direction: southeast.

Soon, Liu Chou and Golden Eye had fled several miles. The distant city walls of Xiyi became blurred and faint voices faded. Around them spread vast farmland, bamboo groves, and hills. Though these hills did not compare to the grandeur of the Qinling Mountains, for Liu Chou, they offered enough cover to hide and move stealthily.

He whistled softly. Golden Eye followed his turn, charging toward the hills...

But at that moment, a faint sense of danger crept into Liu Chou’s heart. He abruptly halted and turned around. Golden Eye slowed briefly but then surged forward recklessly into the distance.

Liu Chou’s lips twitched, forming a smile not much better than a grimace, before he looked up into the dark night.

A faint figure appeared a hundred yards away, drawing spiritual energy from heaven and earth to swirl around him, obeying his command. Liu Chou had never encountered such a sensation before—it was clear without a fight that this opponent was formidable!

The old man wore flowing robes, lacking armor but radiating an imposing aura, like a sword already drawn—glimmering brilliantly in the night, capable of cleaving mountains and rivers with a mere swing.

Liu Chou’s pupils contracted sharply. This presence surpassed even the Ghost Valley. Undoubtedly, this man’s strength was that of an immortal!

In the demon classification, this would be considered a true great demon.

Since arriving in this world, Liu Chou had finally encountered the legendary immortal. Though he had never seen him before, Liu Chou guessed the newcomer’s identity: one of the six kings of Great Zhou, a descendant of Li Jing, kin to the three brothers Jin Zha, Mu Zha, and Nezha, known as King Shouxi.

Yet even so, Liu Chou refused to surrender without a fight.

With Golden Eye speeding away, Liu Chou’s heart found some calm. Facing an opponent against whom he had almost no chance, he still smiled and said calmly, “I never imagined I’d have the chance to face the National Guardian King Shouxi in combat. Truly rare!”

His guess was correct—the newcomer was indeed King Shouxi. Liu Chou’s plan had no flaws, except for one: he had not struck the little demon earlier, which caused many unforeseen changes. And this change brought only one consequence—direct confrontation with King Shouxi.

The path he chose was one paved with blood and tears, yet he would walk it to the end.