Heaven Official's Blessing: Tian Guan Ci Fu (Novel) Vol. 2(32)

“Mm…you finished your business so fast?”

“It’s finished,” Hua Cheng replied. “Just another gang of useless trash embarrassing themselves, that’s all.”

The tone in which he said “useless trash” was very familiar, and Xie Lian guessed, “Did Green Ghost Qi Rong come and cause trouble?”

Hua Cheng laughed. “That’s right. Didn’t I tell you that many have their eyes on my place here? Qi Rong has wanted Ghost City for himself for years now, but the most he can ever do is want and burn with envy. So every so often he’ll send some even more useless underlings to cause mischief. Nothing worth mentioning. Don’t worry about it. Actually, I just happen to have a place I want to show gege. Might gege grant me the pleasure?”

“Of course,” Xie Lian replied happily.

Traversing the long corridor, Hua Cheng led Xie Lian to another lofty great hall.

The doors of the hall seemed to be made of steel with violent beasts carved upon them, horrible and terrifying. The moment Hua Cheng approached, the beasts parted and opened the doors. A blast of killing intent assaulted Xie Lian before he even stepped foot into the hall, and he tensed, veins popping on his hands, prepared to face anything.

However, once he saw clearly what was inside the hall, he blinked. His defenses melted away in an instant, and his legs moved on their own, bringing him inside.

Within the great hall, all manner of weapons were hung on all four walls. There were sabers, swords, spears, shields, whips, war hammers… It was an armory!

Any man finding himself in an armory such as this, surrounded by all kinds of weaponry, would feel as if he were in heaven, and his blood would boil with excitement. Xie Lian was no exception; his eyes were wide and his face bright. The last time he had felt such exhilaration was in Jun Wu’s armory.

Although his expression remained schooled, he was already so excited he was stammering, “May…may I touch?”

Hua Cheng smiled. “As gege likes.”

Xie Lian’s hands instantly flew out to feel the various weapons hung on the walls, so absorbed he couldn’t tear himself away. “These…all of these are masterpieces! This sword is splendid, a battle of one against many would most definitely bring out its godly powers! This one too! Wait, and that saber…”

Hua Cheng was leaning on the wall near the door, watching Xie Lian’s face flush with delight. “Gege, what do you think?”

Xie Lian was examining each piece so intently he was reluctant to turn around. “What do I think, what?”

“Do you like it?” Hua Cheng asked.

“I do!” Xie Lian replied.

“Do you like it a lot?” Hua Cheng asked again.

“Very much!” Xie Lian exclaimed.

Hua Cheng seemed to have snickered, but Xie Lian didn’t notice. His heart was busy racing as he unsheathed a cold and shimmering verdant blade at least four feet long, marveling as he did so.

“Has gege found any that he particularly fancies?” Hua Cheng spoke up again.

Xie Lian’s entire face was bright and glowing, and he was unable to stop singing praises. “Yes! Yes! All of them!”

“Originally, I was thinking gege didn’t have any useful weapons on hand, so if there was anything here you fancied you could just take it for yourself,” Hua Cheng said. “But since gege likes them all, I’ll give them all to you.”

“No, no, no, there’s no need,” Xie Lian quickly said. “I have no use for weapons anyway.”

“Really?” Hua Cheng said. “But I clearly see that gege loves swords?”

“Liking them doesn’t mean I have to own them,” Xie Lian said. “I haven’t used one in years. Just looking makes me happy. Besides, I’d have nowhere to put them if you gave them all to me.”

“That’s easy to solve,” Hua Cheng replied. “I’ll give this entire armory to you.”

Xie Lian took that as a joke and grinned. “There’s no way I could take away a room this big.”

“No need to take it away,” Hua Cheng said. “I’ll give you the property too. Just come visit when you’re free.”

“No, it’s okay,” Xie Lian said. “An armory requires constant maintenance. I’d hate to neglect the weapons.”

Xie Lian placed the sword carefully back onto its holder and said nostalgically, “Once upon a time, I owned an armory like this too, but it was burned down. All of these weapons are precious devices to be desired; you have to cherish them, San Lang.”

“That’s easy too,” Hua Cheng said. “If I’m free, I can help gege maintain the armory.”

Xie Lian laughed. “Well, I certainly don’t have the guts to ask My Lord the Ghost King to do chores for me.”

All of a sudden, Jun Wu’s warning right before he left for this mission echoed in Xie Lian’s mind: “The scimitar Eming is a cursed blade, a blade of misfortune. To forge such an evil weapon would require terrifyingly cruel sacrifice and bloody determination. Do not touch it, and do not let it touch you either. If you do, the consequences will be unimaginable.”

Xie Lian contemplated but still decided to ask in the end. “But San Lang, none of these weapons are a match against your scimitar Eming, right?”

Hua Cheng cocked his left brow. “Oh? Has gege heard of my scimitar too?”