Heaven Official's Blessing Chapter 199-200

Xie Lian lay upon the frigid ground, his face still concealed by the half-crying, half-smiling mask. Beside him, White No-Face seemed to be admiring this visage that bore his own likeness. The mask was affixed to Xie Lian’s face with a strange sort of power, rendering his attempts to remove it futile. “Just keep it on,” White No-Face declared. “Cease wasting your strength on pointless struggles. Do you wish to depart from this place? As long as you adhere to my guidance, you can easily shatter the confines of the Kiln.”

Xie Lian chose to ignore him. White No-Face, perpetually seeking disdain from Xie Lian, would not desist. He sighed, “We could have become the most formidable master and disciple, the closest of friends. Why must you insist on being so defiant?”

Finally ceasing his efforts, Xie Lian responded with evident disgust, “Refrain from adopting that tone, as if you have weathered all of life’s storms and seen through the hearts of men. I truly have no desire for a teacher and friend such as yourself.”

His revulsion was unmistakable. White No-Face sneered, “I am aware that in your heart, only Guoshi and Jun Wu are capable of guiding you, am I not correct?” His tone was peculiar, laced with contempt and mockery. Xie Lian, unwilling to engage further on that topic, shifted his focus to a different inquiry. “Lang Ying, was he the very first Crown Prince of YongAn?”

Lang Ying hailed from YongAn and had contracted the human-face disease. That young crown prince was the sole individual Xie Lian could conceive of as a potential candidate. White No-Face confirmed, “Precisely. He was that Crown Prince whom you incapacitated, abandoned within the Palace of YongAn, and subsequently cremated after dismembering Lang Ying’s corpse into countless fragments.”

The Crown Prince of YongAn was, in fact, Lang Ying’s nephew. It was likely then that the remnants of the human-face disease had infected him. Xie Lian then inquired, “Why did his affliction not spread to others?”

White No-Face explained, “Because the inhabitants of the Palace of YongAn discovered his infection. To prevent any further contagion, an order was issued to secretly suffocate him with a blanket. However, he resisted, fought back, and ultimately escaped.”

Following this, YongAn issued a public announcement stating that both the King of YongAn and the Crown Prince had succumbed to illness. Through some internal power struggle, another of Lang Ying’s nephews was elevated to the position of Crown Prince – this individual being Lang Qian Qiu’s ancestor.

“How did you manage to deceive him?” Xie Lian pressed.

“I did not deceive him,” White No-Face replied. “I merely conveyed the truth regarding the perpetrator responsible for his transformation into such a grotesque being. In exchange for a portion of himself, I promised to aid in his vengeance.”

“You call that ‘a portion’?” Xie Lian exclaimed incredulously. “You devoured all of him as sustenance!”

White No-Face stated softly, “Given his appearance, neither man nor ghost, no one would treat him with sincerity. Thus, his continued existence in this world was inherently an ordeal.”

Suddenly, Xie Lian spoke, “Your Royal Highness?”

“…”

In that precise moment, Xie Lian perceived that the creature had likely intended to respond to that address but restrained itself. Consequently, Xie Lian tried once more, “You. You are the Crown Prince of WuYong, are you not?” The instant these words left his lips, he could feel the stifling heat within the Kiln solidify. This question had been on Xie Lian’s mind since the moment he had fallen into this place.

The comprehension of the language spat from the mouths of those Corpse Eating Rats likely stemmed from a memory and feeling transference onto him by one of Jun Wu, Guoshi, or White No-Face. This implied that at least one of them originated from WuYong. As Jun Wu came into being after the fall of the WuYong Kingdom, Guoshi and White No-Face emerged as the primary suspects.

Why had Hua Cheng been ejected from the kiln? It could not be because he had achieved the Supreme status, for Xie Lian had confirmed with him that even Ghost Kings who became Supremes could re-enter the Kiln, much like a heavenly official facing another Heavenly Calamity post-ascension. Yet, he had still vanished partway. The most plausible explanation Xie Lian could conceive was that this Kiln operated under White No-Face's command!

Then, what was White No-Face's most probable identity?

After a moment of profound silence within the oppressive darkness, Xie Lian declared with newfound certainty, "You are the Crown Prince of WuYong."

Finally, White No-Face broke his silence.

He lunged towards Xie Lian, his palm strikes sharp and potent. This time, it was Xie Lian's turn to evade. Leaping upwards, he queried as he dodged, "Your Highness, I have a question for you. How is it that you never reveal your true face to anyone?"

White No-Face responded darkly, "Your Highness, I warn you not to address me with that title."

"You address me as 'Your Highness,' so why can I not do the same for you?" Xie Lian retorted. "Since you refuse to answer, I shall deduce it myself. There are but two potential reasons why you conceal your true visage from all. Firstly, you are someone I already know, or someone I do not know, but whose identity would be instantly recognizable upon seeing your real face. Or secondly, your true appearance is so grotesquely ugly that you cannot bear to behold it yourself! Much like..."

With two swift whizzing sounds, a sharp pain surged up his arm. White No-Face had forcefully seized him. "My dear crown prince, have you grown so familiar with me that you no longer feel the need for fear?"

His voice was laden with icy frost, and despite the pain, Xie Lian clung to his senses. White No-Face seemed genuinely enraged, and he picked up that black sword, pressing it towards Xie Lian. "The name you gave this sword is Fang Xin?"

Watching with unwavering eyes as the chilling blade edged ever closer to his throat, Xie Lian's expression remained resolute. "Is that a problem?"

White No-Face scoffed. "You possess no talent for naming. Listen closely, the original designation of this sword is 'Zhu Xin'.*"

Suddenly, Xie Lian's eyes widened. "WHO'S THERE?!"

However, White No-Face did not even glance back. "You intend to employ a child's trickery against me?"

Xie Lian looked bewildered. "You... did you not notice?"

"There is nothing there, so what is there to notice?" White No-Face replied icily.

He hadn't noticed, but Xie Lian certainly had.

Moments before, the reflection of the firelight on the ground had glinted off Fang Xin's blade. This light had then flashed across the stone wall above them. It was in that fleeting instant that Xie Lian glimpsed a face.

Xie Lian could attest that he was not mistaken in his sighting. He had undeniably seen a human face, a colossal human face!

White No-Face's cultivation was undoubtedly superior to Xie Lian's, so how could he possibly have missed it?

Unless... it was something far more terrifying than White No-Face!

The duration of his glance at that face was exceedingly brief, yet the vision was indelibly etched into his memory; that