His succinct statement sent the entire Great Hall into chaos!
Immediately, the ministers objected unanimously, "Your Highness, you must not!"
Liu Yu, too, expressed his disapproval. He knelt to the ground on one knee. "Your Highness, exorcism is different from martial Qi. This time, the hostile ghosts, that can possess humans, will be present as well, you…"
"So, the hostile ghosts will possess me?" A half smile was painted across Baili Jia Jue's lips. "I'd like to see which hostile ghost has the guts to possess me."
Liu Yu parted his lips as if he had something to say.
Meanwhile, Helian Wei Wei had already brought Baili Jia Jue into his position. "Later, you must stand behind me. I will be on the front line dealing with the hostile ghosts. Remember, never let the ghosts see you. Otherwise, with your beautiful face, the ghosts will probably r.a.p.e you."
Having heard this, Liu Yu was stunned. R.a.p.ed? Is this even important now?
"Alright." At this moment, His Highness was surprisingly obedient. He casually followed behind Helian Wei Wei as if he was waiting to be served, looking as elegant as always.
The little one shook his head and thought to himself, the Master has absolutely no shame. How can he be at ease and let Third Aunt fight alone in front while he hides behind her and absorb the aura of resentment?
Green Dragon and Fire Qilin knew exactly what was going on. Normally, the hostile ghosts would not appear in front of the Master. They would, after sensing the danger, immediately flee the scene.
However, since the Princess Consort would be shielding the Master, the hostile ghosts could barely detect his presence.
Then, the Master would only have to simply just stand there and bathe in the aura of resentment.
Certain habits that the Master have were indeed… too repugnant.
Baili Jia Jue was exceptionally calm. He threw a glimpse at them coldly before he said in an unvarying tone, "If you truly are capable, you can get someone to fetch you food too. Never mind about Little Seven, but Qilin, your embroidery skills aren't half bad and it's been hundreds of years. Where is your female mythological beast?"
Fire Qilin straightened its neck before it looked away as tears silently escaped its eyes.
Is it necessary to drop such a personal attack on me? Fire Qilin certainly knew that, to date, it had not found its other half! The Master must have mentioned about its d.e.s.i.r.e to search for a female mythological beast with intention!
"Why are you crying?" Baili Jia Jue comforted it half-heartedly via his consciousness stream. "Otherwise, as a last resort, I'll have Green Dragon marry you."
What have I just heard? Fire Qilin thought to himself.
Meanwhile, Green Dragon thought, is the world going to end?
Helian Wei Wei turned around and looked at the two mythical beasts that had transformed into their human forms. She reckoned that His Highness' statement had apparently triggered them and effectively plastered a terrified expression on the two wicked yet charming faces!
It is terrifying! The little one watched silently from aside. He had an intense urge to hug the Master's t.h.i.g.h tightly. Therefore, he took a step forward with his short legs before he squatted by Baili Jia Jue's feet.
The Third Prince was unlike any of the other princes.
Once he made up his mind, no one could stop him.
However, the Third Prince had never been exposed to the Art of Yin and Yang in Exorcism.
If anything went wrong, what could the War Dragon Dynasty do?
Naturally, Zongzheng Yu Er did not want to see Baili Jia Jue in danger. At this moment, she could not help but remind him in a concerned tone, "Your Highness, the power of the hostile ghosts are very different. Once you are possessed, the consequences are inconceivable. I think it's better for you to…"
"Yu Er," Zongzheng Wen Ren interrupted her coldly. Standing upright in the center of the Great Hall, he gazed at Baili Jia Jue. "Since Brother Baili wants to give it a try, you shouldn't try to persuade him. You should just stand aside and watch."
Zongzheng Yu Er clenched her right fist. "Brother, you promised me that you would try your best to resolve the issue peacefully!"
"I always want to make peace with them. As long as Brother Baili promises to take you as his primary consort, then we can skip this match." Zongzheng Wen Ren rose to his feet with his hands rested behind his back. Putting on an expressionless face, he added, "It solely depends on Brother Baili's decision."
Zongzheng Yu Er looked Baili Jia Jue expectantly.
However, that man had never once laid eyes on her since the beginning. He was busy stroking Helian Wei Wei's silky hair. His side profile seemed so exquisite and attractive.
As if she was fed to the gills, Zongzheng Yu Er growled at Helian Wei Wei, "Third Princess Consort would rather put the Third Prince at risk than take a step back?"
Helian Wei Wei raised one of her brows and glanced at Zongzheng Yu Er. With an overpowering aura of a queen, she replied, "He is, in fact, the safest by my side. So, why should I take a step back? Furthermore, Princess Zongzheng, has your Imperial Mother never taught you not to snatch what doesn't belong to you? Baili Jia Jue is mine. How many times do I have to repeat this until you understand? Huh?"
"Why do you have to think of me like that?" Zongzheng Yu Er bit her lower lip as she looked at Baili Jia Jue affectionately. "I merely don't want His Highness to get hurt."
For once, Baili Jia Jue finally glanced at Zongzheng Yu Er, but his gaze was ice cold and his tone was still flat as before. "People of the Xuanyuan Dynasty, if you want your princess alive, it's better for you to keep her mouth shut."
Chapter 676 - Mocking The Third Prince For Not Knowing Exorcism?
Everybody looked at Zongzheng Yu Er upon listening to Baili Jia Jue's words.
Their thoughts were shown in their eyes, what kind of woman is she?
Previously, Third Prince had bluntly expressed his stance. Yet, she continued to blatantly cling onto him.
All in all, Xuanyuan Kingdom was a great kingdom, but her actions had brought shame upon the country.
Initially, Zongzheng Yu Er reckoned that Baili Jia Jue would save her some face, considering that she was, nonetheless, a princess from another nation.
She did not expect him to be such a stony-hearted man!
Elder Xu Wu wore a glower face as he went forward to grab Zongzheng Yu Er's hand and spoke in a muffled tone, "Princess, please stop talking. The Third Prince is an unyielding man. You'll ruin your reputation if you continue to speak."
Zongzheng Yu Er knew exactly how the bystanders were judging her now. She felt as if she has gotten a slap in the face and her cheeks were badly bruised!
She was puzzled. She reckoned that she was being considerate to Baili Jia Jue. However, not only he was unmoved, he even had intentions to finish her off in return for her kindness.
How did this happen?
Zongzheng Yu Er's eyes were brimming with tears.
As her brother, Zongzheng Wen Ren could not stand by and watch as his sister was being bullied. His expression turned cold as he spoke, "Has Brother Baili not considered about the relationship between the countries when you spoke?"
Baili Jia Jue threw a glance at him and replied with an indifferent tone, "Before you think about the relationship between our two nations, you should teach your sister to be a reserved woman and not to lose her pride when she falls for a man. Has Xuanyuan Kingdom grown to be such an open-minded country that encourages its people to not be restrained by moral and dignity?"
They were perplexed by Baili Jia Jue's words.
At this moment, even the exorcists of Xuanyuan Dynasty, too, felt that their princess' acts were indecent.
They turned to look at Zongzheng Wen Ren in synchrony.
Zongzheng Wen Ren clenched his fists. He did not predict this outcome before he came to the Capital.
His sister was supposed to be welcomed with open arms and wed the prince honorably.
With royal intermarriage between the two kingdoms, this would not only enhance Xuanyuan Dynasty's reputation, it provided an opportunity for them to leave their troops in the Capital.
But, now... Zongzheng Wen Ren narrowed his eyes but his smile remained. "The idea of royal intermarriage was brought up by your country's minister before I came to the Capital. However, since that minister has already been beheaded by Brother Baili, Yu Er will not mention about this matter again. It's not a big deal. Yu Er was merely being kind and thoughtful when she reminded Brother Baili about it. Yet, it was a little over the top for Brother Baili to bring in moral and dignity."
After Zongzheng Wen Ren twisted the words, it had turned into an agreement between the two nations and embellished the fact that Zongzheng Yu Er was being overzealous.
Helian Wei Wei was pondering about how to answer on behalf of His Highness when she heard a fruity and cold laugh rang in her ears. "Yes, she's so kind that she wants to break up a couple and be the third wheel of our relationship. Xuanyuan Dynasty has certainly enlightened me with your definition of kindness."
Zongzheng Wen Ren was taken aback by Baili Jia Jue's remark and his face turned sombre.
Zongzheng Yu Er was so ashamed that she wanted to hide under a rock.
Helian Wei Wei genuinely thought this exchange was unnecessary as no one could ever win an argument against His Highness.
Seeming to have realized that he could never win Baili Jia Jue over, Zongzheng Wen Ren threw a glance at the two exorcists who were possessed by the hostile ghosts. Immediately, his gaze deepened. "Since Brother Baili doesn't appreciate the gesture, then let us proceed with the competition. The hostile ghosts are very different from human beings. They will not be convinced by you. Brother Baili has to be more vigilant in order to prevent further disturbance."
All of the ministers were anxious for Baili Jia Jue. Now, they had heard what Zongzheng Wen Ren had to say, they were further perturbed when they saw the two exorcists who were impeded by the Peach Wood Sword. The exorcists were constantly extending their hands. The eyes of one of the exorcists were even glimmering with Qi of Yin.
Zongzheng Wen Ren paced forward to the center of the hall with a yellow rune in his hand. He lifted his gaze and powerful spiritual aura immediately attached on the yellow rune!
"This is, indeed, our Crown Prince Wen Ren!" the exorcists exclaimed their heartfelt admiration. "This is my first time seeing such pure spiritual aura. I am curious how things will turn out when the judge appears."
Zongzheng Wen Ren heard this and his lips curled into a smile. Since Baili Jia Jue is unwilling to comply, I'll teach him a lesson and show him how I'm going to win the competition!
"You can now release one of the possessed exorcists. Elder, work with me and fully purify him," Zongzheng Wen Ren turned to address Elder Xu Wu.
Elder Xu Wu got into his position and nodded at Zongzheng Wen Ren.
Subsequently, the man, who was guarding the possessed exorcists, loosened the bind.
Zongzheng Wen Ren recited a certain incantation. The yellow rune in his hand seemed to have received his order and began to levitate in the air. Vaguely, the crowd could make out a silhouette in a black robe. On its head sat a paper hat which was only worn by the dead. It was staring right at the hostile ghost.
The hostile ghost instantly gave up on attacking Zongzheng Wen Ren and turned to bite Elder Xu Wu!
He was extremely agile, which was an impossible feat to pull off by a normal human. Meanwhile, his teeth continued to click impetuously, making an extremely terrifying scene.
To avoid being possessed by hostile ghost, one must avoid any physical contact with the person who had been possessed by it.
This was the most difficult part for the exorcists. Owing to the advent of the judge, the hostile ghost had successfully escaped from its initial shell and was ready to possessed whoever it touched.
Zongzheng Wen Ren's plan was to exterminate it after it was completely released.
Elder Xu Yu chanted an incantation and immediately created a screen between him and the hostile ghost!
The hostile ghost relentlessly extended its claws to scratch the screen.
Zongzheng Wen Ren swiftly turned around and took out another yellow rune.
Supposedly, he would only succeed after he applied the fifth yellow rune. The first four runes that represented the north, south, east, and west were meant to trap the hostile ghost, while the fifth rune was the one that struck the targeted ghost.
However, no one expected the hostile ghost to shift its attention back to Zongzheng Wen Ren and charged toward him when he was about to apply the fifth yellow rune!
Fortunately, Zongzheng Wen Ren reacted quickly and he took a step back before he chanted the incantation to restrain the hostile ghost.
The onlookers noticed the sweat that soaked his forehead. If it was not for Elder Xu Wu who was profoundly experienced and utilized the incantation, Zongzheng Wen Ren would not have be escaped so easily.
After they had successfully subdued the hostile ghost, Zongzheng Wen Ren heaved a sigh of relief under his breath.
However, at this moment, the judge spoke. He gently furrowed his brows and spoke with an emotionless voice, "This hostile ghost is shrouded by an unknown aura of resentment. It cannot enter the hell."
Chapter 677 - Wei Wei Joining Forces With His Highness
What?
Everyone was shocked and immediately rose to their feet upon hearing these words.
"What should we do?" Elder Xu Wu had never encountered such circ.u.mstances as well.
However, the ruthless Zongzheng Wen Ren deepened his gaze before he said, "Annihilate its soul directly."
"If we do so, the person who was possessed by it might not be able to regain his intelligence of a normal human being." Elder Xu Wu contemplated before he turned to look at the messenger who was standing far away from them. "We have a problem here. The hostile ghost can't go to hell. Later, after the judge has left, the ghoulish aura from the hostile ghost will grow. By then, we will not be able to control it anymore. Therefore, we have to destroy the spirit of the hostile ghost directly. So, Lord Wang, please prepare yourself mentally. At best, our fellow man may be able to keep his life. But, please don't wish for anything more."
The exorcists realized how bad the situation was when they heard that the hostile ghost could not enter hell.
Theoretically, regardless of the types of the spirits, the judge would be able to bring them to hell as long as he was present.
However, the judge had actually rejected their request this time.
They wanted to know the reasons behind it in order to grasp the current situation.
Unfortunately, Zongzheng Wen Ren was the only person who could communicate with the judge.
Yet, the extreme ghoulish aura of the hostile ghost did not allow them to stop and ponder the question.
The spiritual glow around Zongzheng Wen Ren's yellow runes began to fade away.
The hostile ghost was about to break free from its restraint.
Zongzheng Wen Ren flicked his fingers and all the yellow runes that were previously floating in the air swooped toward the hostile ghost. The attack was followed by a blow from the Peach Wood Sword which pierced right through the hostile ghost's head!
The hostile ghost shifted its hollow eyes before it fell sideways and black fog began to gush out of its body.
Zongzheng Wen Ren never expected that it would be so difficult to deal with this hostile ghost for he was only able to suppress it with five yellow runes. It lay flat on the ground before its body slowly cracked into pieces. However, its eerie eyes still appeared disturbing. As the wind swept across the hall, all that was left lying on the ground was the exorcist who was previously possessed.
Within a blink of an eye, the exorcist's sharp black nails had returned to its original color. However, he appeared unhinged and looked nothing like his usual self.
Anyone who was familiar with the Art of Yin and
Yang would understand the situation. The hostile ghost, who was unable to enter hell, had been completely destroyed and had greatly affected the person who was possessed.
However, this was unavoidable.
For instance, it was fortunate that Zongzheng Wen Ren had personally took care of the perilous situation. If someone else had taken his place, the ritual would be a total disaster. They would not only be incapable of eliminating the hostile ghost, but also become the next possessed target.
This was, in fact, a favorable result.
The exorcists turned their head and their eyes were flickering with admiration.
Zongzheng Wen Ren swung his painful hands as he wore a perfect smile. He was the only one who knew how fatal the incident was just now. However, he found it unnecessary to disclose these details to the others.
"Elder, how much time have we spent? I hope we didn't take a long time."
Elder Xu Wu beamed as he replied, "It took us about half an hour. But, it doesn't matter even if we spent too much time, as we are going to give way to the Third Prince nonetheless."
"Elder is certainly accommodating. I almost forgot that Brother Baili has never learned the Art of Exorcism. I reckon that he doesn't know the risk of it." Zongzheng Wen Ren grinned as he turned to look at Baili Jia Jue. "Brother Baili, you're up next. Do you want me to share some tips with you?"
Any sensible man could tell that Zongzheng Wen Ren was trying to redeem himself from being humiliated just now.
Nevertheless, this was a match between the two nations. If at this moment, the Crown Prince from one nation was to offer to coach the other Crown Prince, it was apparent that the former prince was mocking the latter for his lack of ability.
The Anarchic Consort c1-1376 Page 291
