Shu Qing had a solid argument and two guards as witnesses. As long as the King of the Underworld didn’t pursue the matter, it was as insignificant as sneezing twice, not causing any ripples. Ultimately, the King of the Underworld ruled everything here, and everything depended on his word. Shu Qing didn’t believe the King would be angry over such a trivial matter. His current anger was mainly due to his own dissatisfaction.
After deliberately ignoring him for so many days, Shu Qing not only didn’t beg for forgiveness but also went out to cause trouble again. How could the King not be angry? Shu Qing stood up and slowly walked to the King of the Underworld.
“…Your Highness, even if you don’t believe me, you should at least trust the guards you chose, right? They said they were protecting me… although they couldn’t protect me at all and let others bully me.”
The King of the Underworld squinted his eyes and sneered. Sometimes, he admired this little butterfly. He looked so innocent and aggrieved, yet in such situations, he still managed to complain. No matter what happened, he could always narrate it in a way that was most favorable to himself.
“Others bullied you?” The King of the Underworld snorted coldly. “Who else here can bully you?”
“Why not? They laughed at me to my face, saying I was abandoned by Your Highness…” Shu Qing looked up at the King of the Underworld, his eyes brimming with pitiful tears. “I also thought Your Highness wouldn’t come to see me again…”
In his heart, he thought it would be better if he really didn’t come. If he didn’t come, he could let him go, and he could return to the Immortal Mountain sooner. But with just these two sentences, he directly covered up the fact that he didn’t go to the King of the Underworld to admit his mistake. It seemed it wasn’t that he didn’t go, but that without any instructions from the King, he didn’t dare to go.
The King of the Underworld raised an eyebrow and pinched his wrist. “Do you really think I can’t see through your little tricks?” Pretending to be obedient and docile, but actually having more ideas than anyone else. Not yielding to softness or hardness. Always listening humbly to teachings, but forgetting everything as soon as he turned around, never changing despite repeated teachings. But no one had ever dared to act like this in front of him. Even his seduction methods were so unique.
“Causing trouble every day, thinking you can get away with it by acting cute? I see you haven’t reflected on yourself at all these past few days.”
Shu Qing snorted coldly in his heart. Reflect on what? It was always the other side that came to him. If these guys could keep their tails hidden, he wouldn’t be able to catch them even if he wanted to.
Seeing Shu Qing remain silent, the King of the Underworld pinched his chin with his other hand. “Do you think by acting pitiful and innocent, you can make me forget everything and let you go?”
… Bewitching soup? Shu Qing almost couldn’t help but frown. Who wanted to give the King of the Underworld bewitching soup?
“Relying on your looks to seduce and confuse me, huh? Well, it is your best skill after all.”
“…”
This was the one thing Shu Qing couldn’t accept. He never intended to seduce the King of the Underworld. Even if he could rely on the King’s power now to act arrogantly without caring about others, if he had a choice, he would rather return to his previous position, serving as a capable subordinate. He just wanted to wait peacefully for his punishment to end and leave this place. It was the King of the Underworld who made the situation into something he didn’t like. It was the King who created all this, making his position in the Underworld awkward. And now he was accused of seduction?
Shu Qing wished he could slap the King of the Underworld too.
“Why aren’t you speaking? Aren’t you the most eloquent, the best at defending yourself?”
With a few more words, the topic inevitably returned to the matter of Shu Qing slapping the Mountain God. What the King of the Underworld cared about most was the Mountain God’s covetous intentions towards Shu Qing.
“Did you use the same method on my sixth brother that day?”
“…”
“He’s not a good person, and you might not be innocent either. Distorting the truth is your usual trick, just like this time.”
“Could it be that you tried to seduce him and failed, fearing my punishment, so you—”
Slap—
Before the King of the Underworld could finish his sentence, Shu Qing felt a surge of anger, tearing through all reason, his body soaked in a fiery bath of rage. By the time he realized it, his arm had already swung, and the slap landed squarely on the King’s face. The sound was crisp. Shu Qing’s palm stung with pain.
An endless silence enveloped the fear, shrouding the moment. After a long time, the King of the Underworld’s voice broke the silence. “Heh.” His fingers lightly touched the part Shu Qing had slapped, which was now hot and painful. The King couldn’t believe what had just happened, laughing in anger. “You dare to lay a hand on me?”
“…”
Sweat beaded on Shu Qing’s forehead, his chest heaving, his mind a chaotic mess of white spots. The King’s words had indeed made him very angry. But how could he lay a hand on the King of the Underworld? Was he tired of living? Regret crept into Shu Qing’s heart, yet he felt he couldn’t control it. The emotion had come so impulsively and suddenly, like a fire burning from his stomach to his head, burning away all his consciousness. By the time he realized it, all he felt was the pain in his palm.
What to do? What to do, what to do? Would the King of the Underworld kill him? Now, forget about being abandoned; he was probably going to be chopped into pieces and then ground into dust. Shu Qing closed his eyes, panicked for a moment, but eventually calmed down. So be it. The slap had already been delivered, and time couldn’t be turned back.
“…I thought that even if Your Highness was fierce and strict, you would be reasonable and clear about right and wrong.”
As the King of the Underworld said, no matter what happened, he could always present the situation in a way that was most favorable to himself.
“I can’t leave the Underworld, so why would I provoke the Mountain God? That day, he clearly came to me, taking liberties first… As for why he would take liberties with me, it’s obviously because he doesn’t get along with Your Highness and wanted to use me to disgust you.”
After all, the worst outcome was being chopped into pieces, so he might as well say these words to his heart’s content.
“If I had nothing to do with Your Highness and was just an ordinary servant, would the Mountain God bother to approach me?”
“Is it me he’s targeting? Clearly, he’s targeting Your Highness. He just doesn’t dare to confront you directly, so he took it out on me.”
Shu Qing spoke fluently without taking a breath. “Tonight, Your Highness is the same. You obviously understand the Mountain God’s intentions, but you don’t dare to be his enemy, so you take it out on me.”
“…I don’t dare to be his enemy?”
The King of the Underworld’s voice was sinister, with a hint of a smile, making one’s heart shiver. Shu Qing’s heart raced, his stomach clenched, and his muscles tensed. But having said this much, there was no turning back.
“…Isn’t that so?”
He chose to continue speaking.
“…Your Highness knows I’m not at fault, yet you take it out on me. Isn’t it because you’re afraid of the Mountain God and venting on me?”
“Do you know what you’re saying?”
Shu Qing swallowed. “…I know what I’m saying. Does Your Highness know what you’ve done?”
“Your Highness punishes and mocks me, but what effect does it have? Even if I die here today and someone else takes my place in your room, will the Mountain God relent and make peace?”
“Whoever takes my place in your room, it will be the same… If Your Highness truly believes it’s my fault, you might as well give me to the Mountain God. Maybe if he’s happy, he won’t trouble you anymore.”
It sounded like he was trying to sow discord, but the relationship between the Mountain God and the King of the Underworld was already fractured without anyone’s interference. Shu Qing’s words were exaggerated, but they were also the truth. He was the one who was inexplicably disgusted by the Mountain God, and yet the King of the Underworld turned around and slandered him. He couldn’t stand it.
After saying all this, they stood facing each other in a silent standoff, neither speaking. The longer the silence, the more uncertain Shu Qing felt, a thin layer of sweat forming on his back. Who isn’t afraid of death? If he really died tonight because of a slap, he wouldn’t be able to forgive his impulsiveness. But just when Shu Qing thought he couldn’t escape, the King of the Underworld turned and left without a word. His robes fluttered as he strode away, his anger evident, shaking the screens and furniture outside.
Although he didn’t know what would happen next, at least for now, there was a moment to catch his breath. Shu Qing collapsed onto the bed, gasping for air, only to realize how weak he felt, his stomach aching with spasms.
After a while, a maid cautiously entered to clean up, bringing a bowl of sugar water for Shu Qing. “Little Immortal… His Highness has left. Have some water to calm your nerves…” The maid and guards had been quite frightened by the sounds of the argument inside. When they heard the loud slap from Shu Qing, they were almost scared out of their wits. They thought Shu Qing would at least be obedient in front of the King of the Underworld. They didn’t expect him to dare to hit the King.
Shu Qing, pale-faced, shook his head. “I don’t want to drink it. Take it away.” The maid didn’t insist but couldn’t help asking, “Little Immortal… how could you lay a hand on His Highness?”
“I couldn’t hold back.”
“…”
But seeing Shu Qing so pale and frightened for the first time, the maid thought he was genuinely scared and didn’t say more. “Little Immortal, you should rest. His Highness probably won’t come back. He’s definitely still angry. Apologize to him tomorrow.”
…
But how could he sleep? Shu Qing lay on the bed, eyes closed, the room returning to silence, yet the emotions in his chest surged and roiled, unable to calm down. Just as he was finally feeling a bit drowsy, the door was kicked open with a heavy thud. A cold wind filled with murderous intent rushed in. Shu Qing instantly jolted awake, sitting up in bed. Turning around, he faced the King of the Underworld, who was exuding a murderous aura. In the King’s hand was a long sword, its blade reflecting a sinister and terrifying light in the dim room.
Shu Qing’s eyes widened, thinking the King had truly come to kill him, instinctively shrinking back into the bed. But in the next second, the King of the Underworld tossed the sword aside and spoke. “You were right.”
“…”
Shu Qing was confused, not daring to respond, until the King threw down something else from his other hand. Only then did Shu Qing notice, his gaze drifting over to see—it was the Mountain God’s head. His heart pounded like a drum, shocked to the core. Shu Qing felt as if he couldn’t breathe, looking back at the King, noticing his clothes were stained with blood, his face and hands covered as well.
Shu Qing stared wide-eyed, unable to react, just breathing heavily and staring blankly at the King. The King’s voice, when he spoke again, was filled with a cold, damp murderous intent. “You were right.” The King repeated, “The one I should punish most is him. How dare he covet what’s mine? He deserves to die a hundred times over.”
And Shu Qing had never felt so clearly and vividly the King’s identity and the fear he could bring. This was the ruler of the Underworld. The king who controlled life and death. “My punishment for him was to kill him.” The King pointed at Shu Qing. “Next is you. You’ve repeatedly disobeyed me, causing trouble, and now you dare to lay a hand on me.”
“…”
“Tell me, how should I punish you?”
“…”
Seeing Shu Qing’s pale face, his soul seemingly absent, truly frightened, the King laughed. “I’ve been too lenient with you. You really don’t know what I’m like when I’m truly angry.” The King removed his outer robe, approaching with a body full of murderous intent and the smell of blood. “Are you scared?” “You should be. In the future, listen to me and don’t make me angry… If it happens again, I’ll cut off your claws.”
Shu Qing didn’t respond, nor did he resist, surrounded by the cold brought by the King, so much so that he didn’t even notice when his thin clothes were torn off. When the indescribable pain brought him back to his senses, his body felt nailed to the bed, even breathing was difficult. The coldness brought by the King was chilling, yet his body was hot, causing Shu Qing great pain. It was punishment. It was taming, a warning.
The King gripped his neck, not letting him feel suffocated, but not allowing him to breathe comfortably either. Shu Qing trembled all over, finally responding with resistance. “…No, let go! I don’t want this!” But he couldn’t even fight back against the King’s palm. “You have no right to make any demands of me. You’re just a bed warmer for me… You should be grateful I can’t bear to kill you now, or you’d have been chopped to pieces long ago.”
Shu Qing couldn’t hear anything, struggling to crawl forward, but unable to move an inch. “Your Highness, I was wrong. I know I was wrong… I won’t dare again…” Tears of extreme fear fell, Shu Qing was truly scared, begging for mercy in a way he never had before. The King pressed him down tightly. “It’s good you know you’re wrong. Listen to me in the future.” “Though I can’t bear to kill you now, I can still f*** you to death.”
[Author’s Note] Case solved, so our little butterfly was scared away (?