Chapter 524 – Raise Your Hand to Ask for Leave (1/2)
Chapter 524 - Raise Your Hand to Ask for Leave
Translated by: Hypersheep325
Edited by: Michyrr
Chen Changsheng walked into the alley. After a few moments, he walked out again. He stood at the entrance of the alley, seeming rather lost. He had walked through the alley two times and seen many restaurants, but he had seen nothing like the ‘Fish with Tofu’ written on the slip of paper.
Then should he just wait for her to come? He stood at the entrance of the alley, then was struck by a sudden thought. Could it be that to punish his stupidity, she had deliberately played a trick on him? Yes, that must be it, or else why would she leave on this slip of paper a location that didn't exist?
His emotions were rather complex. The snowflakes descending from the heavens gradually grew larger and the pedestrians on the street and in the alley gradually left to avoid the snow. Because of the feast today at the Li Palace, many people had gone off to the Divine Avenue to see the excitement. Business for the restaurants and taverns within Fortune Peace Road was much worse than normal, and they seemed at the moment rather cold and cheerless.
He did not leave, instead waiting in the falling snow by the alley's entrance.
……
……
The two sides of the Li Palace's Divine Avenue were illuminated by bright lanterns. As the snowflakes drifted down, the people of the capital that had come to watch the spectacle had decreased somewhat. Those who persisted, when seeing the line of luxurious imperial carriages of the aristocratic houses and various palaces entering the Li Palace, felt that this journey had not been made in vain. Tonight, the Great Hall of Light where the feast was being held was already filled with priests and ministers, as well as the people from the various academies and halls. However, that quiet and beautiful hall behind the Great Hall of Light was still as tranquil as usual.
The Pope was attending tonight's feast. He had already exchanged his hempen robe for the Divine Robe. His right hand held a ladle and he was currently watering his Green Leaf. Seeing that the Green Leaf was growing stronger and sturdier, his elderly face revealed a gratified smile. He took a soft towel that had been placed by the pot and gently dried his hands.
On the previous times Chen Changsheng had come to the Li Palace, he had noticed the changes of the Green Leaf. Since the Green Leaf World and the Garden of Zhou were the same in that both were stable shards of space and were impossible to make larger, he did not understand why the Pope paid so much care for its growth. Could it just be so that the gate to enter the Green Leaf World would be more stable? Or was it because as the Green Leaf in the pot grew stronger and healthier, the gate between the Green Leaf World and the original world would get larger and larger? If this was the case, why did the Pope want the gate to the Green Leaf World to get larger?
”In the end, this matter is still too great. Does Your Holiness not wish to consider it a bit longer?”
Mao Qiuyu calmly stood behind the Pope, his attitude very reverential, his two sleeves not trembling in the slightest.
The Pope placed down the towel and smiled, ”Upon hearing your narrative of the battle on the Bridge of Helplessness, I realized that this child is more reliable than I imagined. You also said before, solely in terms of potential and future prospects, it's really quite difficult to find a better person than him. This being the case, if I pass on the Orthodoxy to him, I can be at ease.”
Mao Qiuyu was quiet for a while, before replying, ”Your Holiness's words are true. It's just that Linghai and Siyuan are both well above Chen Changsheng in terms of cultivation and qualifications, and back then, those two also received Your Holiness's devoted care and nurturing. In my view, those two will find it very difficult to accept this affair.”
The Pope walked back to the dais, took down the Divine Crown from the glazed throne, and placed it on his head. However, he did not grasp the Divine Staff which represented the power of the Orthodoxy. In an unhurried tone, he said, ”Just count it as me being selfish. After all, this child is the only legitimate successor to the Orthodoxy. Moreover, in the future, he will have to confront this world's most difficult choice, most frustrating helplessness, most penetrating sorrow. This bestowal is just my consolation to him and also the compensation the Orthodoxy should be giving to him.”
Saying this, he slowly turned and began to walk towards that cold, stone wall. As he walked, the stone wall slowly opened, unleashing boundless light.
……
……
This was a Night Pearl that had originally sat on the edge of the Dew Platform, illuminating the capital. Due to the weathering of time, it had gradually lost its shine, so it had been taken down and placed in one of the halls of the Imperial Palace to serve as a light source. Although this Night Pearl was no longer as dazzling as it was in the very beginning, to the memorials on the desk, it was still incomparably bright.
The Divine Empress was currently perusing memorials, at the same time listening to the words echoing through the palace hall.
The elderly chief eunuch, his body bowed, stood to her right, very softly relaying to her the specific details of this morning's battle on the Bridge of Helplessness.
Chen Changsheng and Xu Yourong's battle on the Bridge of Helplessness had taken place not long after the early morning, yet both the Pope and the Divine Empress did not have people report to them on this matter until it was almost nightfall. This indicated that, unlike the view of the entire continent, these two Saints didn't much care about this battle. Even though Chen Changsheng and Xu Yourong were their most trusted juniors and were even their successors from a certain point of view, this was still, in their eyes, a trifling matter.
”…as the temple sword came from the Sword Pool. Little Principal Chen presumably left some sort of trick. The Holy Maiden was probably clear on this beforehand and so had made her preparations. Yet for some reason, still not attacking his opponent, Chen Changsheng wounded his left arm as a price to forcefully wrest control of the temple sword. Then, once more against expectations, he blocked the Holy Maiden's Rhino Horn Finger. If just discussing an exchange of swords, he can be considered to have won by half a technique, but if this were a real battle and it continued, he would probably have had no chance of victory. It's just…the Holy Maiden straightforwardly left in that manner.”
After saying his piece, the chief eunuch carefully raised his head up and glanced at her, then slowly retreated.
The Divine Empress's expression had not changed. This was the case even during the vast majority of the time when the chief eunuch was not raising his head. The talent and intellect that Chen Changsheng and Xu Yourong had displayed in the battle on the Bridge of Helplessness was sufficient to shock the vast majority of the people, but not her. Only when she heard that Xu Yourong had comprehended the Sword of Great Light did she arch her brows, seemingly quite surprised at this.
”Truly a stubborn girl.”
She threw the memorial onto the desk, stood up and walked to the doors of the hall. Her hands clasped behind her, she gazed at the distant light in the darkness. That place was most likely the Li Palace.