The blood in his body seemed to freeze, the temperature dropping rapidly as if it were frozen. Shu Qing’s standing figure began to tremble. He hadn’t yet recovered from the shock of the pregnancy, and now he was hit with an even more desperate blow. Shu Qing couldn’t believe it. How did the letters he exchanged with Xiao Cao, the ones he wrote to the Immortal Lord, end up in the hands of the King of the Underworld? Where did it all go wrong? No matter how powerful the King of the Underworld was, he couldn’t have suspected this far, right? Could it be that Chun Li betrayed him? But why would Chun Li betray him at such a time?
Shu Qing couldn’t speak, his whole body trembling and gradually weakening, as if his strength was being drained bit by bit. He had to support himself on the table beside him just to barely stand. What was there to explain? After reading the contents, the King of the Underworld had already guessed what he was planning.
“I’ve been too lenient and indulgent with you! You dare to plot these things behind my back!” “Ha, why aren’t you speaking?” “Where’s all that eloquence you usually have? Are you just going to admit it now?” The King of the Underworld’s voice was filled with cold murderous intent, gritting his teeth in anger. It seemed that if Shu Qing dared to say a word, he would reach out and strangle him. How could Shu Qing dare to speak?
His mind was blank, the only thought left was that he felt he was doomed this time, the King of the Underworld would never let him go… But was he really going to die like this? Shu Qing still felt unwilling, instinctively wanting to defend himself. His mouth opened and closed, his lips trembling, and finally, he asked a question that even he found inexplicable. “…What did you do to Xiao Cao?” Could it be that the King of the Underworld sent someone to follow Xiao Cao? Is that how he discovered the clues? Is Xiao Cao still alive? Or is he already dead?
The King of the Underworld sneered, “You actually have the leisure to worry about others?” “When did you become so considerate, always thinking of others?” “Or is it—you’re like this with others?” The King of the Underworld said, shaking the letters in his hand, “With your Immortal Lord, I see you’re indeed more affectionate… So much longing and concern, I’m almost moved by your friendship.”
“…” In the Underworld, he had been unable to contact the Immortal Lord. Finally, he managed to send a letter and received the Immortal Lord’s forgiveness and apology… Shu Qing was happy, and he got a bit carried away, responding with some bold words, expressing his longing. The more joyful he was then, the more terrified he was now. Shu Qing was even more puzzled. Logically, these letters should all be with the Immortal Lord, so how did they end up in the hands of the King of the Underworld? Could it be… the King of the Underworld did something to the Immortal Lord?!
Remembering that the King of the Underworld dared to directly kill the Mountain God, Shu Qing’s heart trembled again, directly magnifying this suspicion. Does the King of the Underworld need a reason to act? As long as he has the thought, it’s enough. Shu Qing was a bit anxious, cutting through the endless panic to find a sliver of clarity, and asked, “…What did you do to the Immortal Lord?”
The King of the Underworld didn’t answer immediately. But his expression became even more fierce, his eyes filled with murderous intent, viciously crumpling the letters in his hand. “Ha, I really haven’t had the chance to do anything to him, but you’ve reminded me, I should go kill him now!” Shu Qing didn’t doubt the truth of these words at all. His weakened body squeezed out a few strands of resistance, quickly blocking the King of the Underworld. The excessive anxiety made Shu Qing unable to think rationally. He only thought of stopping the King of the Underworld, and his body moved instinctively, directly reaching out to strike at the King of the Underworld.
The King of the Underworld didn’t know that Shu Qing’s spiritual power had deepened significantly, nor did he expect him to suddenly make a move. Although he quickly dodged, unharmed, he was still surprised by Shu Qing’s powerful strike… and extremely angry! No matter how strong Shu Qing was, he was not a match for the King of the Underworld. The King of the Underworld didn’t move an inch, his figure barely swaying, only slightly tilting his head, unmoving and unyielding, but his heart felt as if it had taken the blow directly, spreading sharp pain.
The King of the Underworld’s eyes widened in anger, “You dare to strike me… For this Immortal Lord, you dare to harm me?!” “What kind of remarkable deity is he that you protect him so fiercely? I insist on killing him!” The King of the Underworld roared, “Is this your wholehearted devotion?! You speak so nicely, but your heart is with this Immortal Lord!” “Does he know you’ve become my concubine in the Underworld?” “Does he know how happy you are in my bed?! When you’re with me, are you thinking of him—”
Slap—
The last sound from the King of the Underworld was accompanied by the sound of Shu Qing’s palm striking his face hard. The sting on his face appeared after a silent pause of two seconds. The King of the Underworld touched the painful skin with his fingers, unable to believe that Shu Qing had hit his face again. “You’re courting death!!” Anger burned through the King of the Underworld’s entire soul, his eyes blazing with violent fury, as he reached out and forcefully grabbed Shu Qing’s neck. It was a retaliation that Shu Qing couldn’t break free from.
When the King of the Underworld pressed Shu Qing’s neck against the wall, the surrounding scene changed drastically in the blink of an eye. Instantly, they went from the mansion in the Human World back to the sleeping quarters in the Underworld. “You’ve crossed my line time and again. Since you want to die so much, I’ll fulfill your wish!!” The King of the Underworld was extremely angry, the more he thought about it, the angrier he got. Recalling every word, every longing in the letters, his grip unconsciously tightened. At that moment, he was truly aiming to kill. He might as well strangle this little butterfly to death. If he died, it would be clean.
But when this terrifying thought truly surged into his mind, the King of the Underworld instead quickly sobered up, realizing that Shu Qing would really be strangled to death by him, and hurriedly released his grip. Shu Qing saw stars, truly thinking he was going to die just now. Finally regaining oxygen, he collapsed directly to the ground, clutching his neck, dry heaving and coughing, unable to move. The raging beast was still roaring beside him.
The King of the Underworld couldn’t bear to strangle Shu Qing to death, sparing his life didn’t mean he wasn’t truly angry. “You’ve been pretending all along by my side, everything was a lie to me!” “Your reluctance to leave, your wholehearted devotion, were all to deceive me!” “Ha, did you really think I was a fool, letting you deceive me like this?” “You’ve been secretly planning to escape, just wanting to find your Immortal Lord, right?” “Do you think I’ll let you have your way? Without my permission, do you really think you can leave?!” “Don’t forget, why you’re in the Underworld, and who sent you here, it was your Immortal Lord! He sent you here with his own hands!”
The King of the Underworld squatted in front of Shu Qing, gritting his teeth and viciously, forcefully pinching his chin. “Killing him is as easy as killing a dog, can he protect you? Do you really think he dares to become my enemy for you?” “Where can you escape to?” “Even if you could really escape, without my permission, would the Immortal Mountain dare to take you in? Do you believe that as long as I ask your Immortal Lord for you, he would obediently hand you over?”
Every word fell on his heart, more painful than any deadly weapon. How could Shu Qing not know what the King of the Underworld was saying, he was just gambling on a bit of luck before. Now that the truth was out, and the King of the Underworld was furious, that bit of luck immediately vanished. Shu Qing panted heavily, feeling like his mind was filled with only gray, white, and black swirling around, the only thought he could think of was related to the Immortal Lord—he absolutely couldn’t drag the Immortal Lord down, the King of the Underworld was a madman, if provoked, he would really go kill the Immortal Lord.
So even though he wished he could strike the King of the Underworld dead, for the sake of the Immortal Lord, Shu Qing had to endure, forcing himself to calm down. “Since I cultivated into an immortal, I’ve been under the Immortal Lord’s mountain… There, everyone looked down on me because I was born a little demon… Only the Immortal Lord treated me equally, caring for me, recognizing my abilities…” The King of the Underworld’s frown deepened as he listened, clearly not liking these words. But since Shu Qing seemed to be explaining something, the King of the Underworld didn’t forcibly interrupt, still giving him the chance to continue.
“The Immortal Lord didn’t care about my background, he went against the crowd to make me the steward of the Immortal Mountain… I am naturally grateful to the Immortal Lord… As the King of the Underworld, high above, how could you understand these feelings?” The King of the Underworld didn’t respond. Shu Qing was right, he indeed found it hard to understand. “Coming to the Underworld was my fault first… The Immortal Lord punished me impartially, there was nothing wrong with that… If I really had any private feelings with the Immortal Lord, how could he bear to send me here?” “As for the so-called longing… The Immortal Lord treated me with great kindness, longing is only natural, what’s wrong with that? The King of the Underworld is making a mountain out of a molehill…”
Listening to Shu Qing finish, the King of the Underworld’s most intense and angry phase had passed, regaining some calm. Seeing these letters, reading the gentle and obedient words Shu Qing had never shown him, the King of the Underworld truly felt like his heart was about to explode. So the little butterfly had this side too. But it wasn’t for him, it was for another man. Seeing the paper filled with longing, the King of the Underworld wanted not only to kill the Immortal Lord but also Shu Qing at that moment. How dare he put a green hat on him. The King of the Underworld had never suffered such humiliation.
It wasn’t until he heard Shu Qing’s explanation that the King of the Underworld regained some rationality—indeed, if there was really an unspeakable private relationship between them, how could the Immortal Lord bear to send Shu Qing to the Underworld? But even if there was no private relationship, Shu Qing’s admiration for the Immortal Lord was overflowing. The King of the Underworld still couldn’t tolerate it.
“Well said, but I won’t believe a word of it anymore.” The King of the Underworld’s tone was as cold as a glacier. “No matter how you explain, your arrangements in the letters clearly mean you want to escape.” “You’re truly delusional.” “Where do you think you can escape to? Let me tell you, now you can’t even leave the Underworld—no, you can’t even leave this room!” “I’ve been too kind to you, haven’t I? You’ve really become arrogant, thinking you can climb over my head!” The King of the Underworld’s eyes were sinister, wishing he could break Shu Qing’s jaw. “You should be grateful I still have some reluctance to kill you, otherwise I would have taken your life long ago!”
Shu Qing lay on the ground, his chin pinched, humiliated by violent words, his fear and hatred reaching their peak. “…No need.” He said, “I don’t need you to be reluctant, if you really want me dead… you can take my life right now.” “I want to leave the Underworld, I just want to leave the Underworld… To tell you the truth, I don’t care to be your male concubine, every night with you is disgusting!” “What did you say… say it again?!” Shu Qing sneered, “If you want to hear it, I can say it as many times as you want, what does it matter if I say it to death!” “I hate this place, I hate you!” “You treat me as a plaything to humiliate at will, how could I be devoted to you? Of course, those were words to deceive you… What, did you actually believe them?”
[Author’s Note] It’s starting, it’s starting, the part I’ve been most looking forward to has finally begun [sunglasses][sunglasses] — By the way, it seems like I haven’t given out any small red envelopes to everyone in this story so far. I’ll give out a few today. Everyone who leaves a comment before the next update will get one [sunglasses]