Xie Lian was furious, and pulled out the sword from his chest. He was about to stab him again, but he found that there was no trace of blood on the sword. In an instant, he became clear-headed, turned the sword around, and cut off the head of the young man in white. It was easy to cut off, but after the head was separated from the body, both sides quickly deflated and turned into a flat skin bag.

This body is just an empty shell!

The two times he saw this thing, he used a fake body, and his real body never appeared once. Although he was not surprised, Xie Lian still hated it very much. He stabbed the limp head and body with his long sword. The sharp sword energy shattered the skin, but he still didn't feel satisfied. Feng Xin couldn't bear it anymore, so he stopped him and said, "Your Highness! This is just a shell."

However, this shell looked exactly like Xie Lian when he was young, so it looked like Xie Lian was cruelly slaughtering himself, which was a somewhat uncomfortable scene. Xie Lian took a few deep breaths, threw away the sword, sat on the ground, and said, "I know! But he dared to use my face!"

He was really furious. They both squatted in front of him. After a moment of silence, Feng Xin said, "Your Highness, are you feeling better? Don't take this thing's nonsense seriously. It's just a joke."

Unexpectedly, Xie Lian said, “No, he said something that didn’t make fun of me, but…”

Feng Xin was surprised: "Did he really tell you how to lift the curse?!"

Xie Lian reached into his hair with his right hand and said, “He didn’t tell me how to solve the Human Face Plague. What he told me was… how to create the Human Face Plague!”

Both of them were stunned: "Made?"

Xie Lian nodded, looked around, and decided not to stay in Beizipo, so he left first. He didn't want to see the soldiers' evasive eyes, nor did he want to hear the patients' wailing and dissatisfaction, so he returned to the prince's bedroom in the palace that Xie Lian had left vacant for many years.

After closing the door, Xie Lian managed to calm down, sat down, and said in a deep voice: "Those 'human faces' growing on human bodies are all the souls of the dead people in Yong'an. Some died on the battlefield, and a larger part died in the drought."

Mu Qing was not surprised and said, "No wonder the people of Yong'an are so insulated from the human face plague. Of course, their own people will not fight against their own people."

Feng Xin frowned: "Those who died in the drought were not killed by the people in the Imperial City. Even if they have resentment, they shouldn't be directed at this side, right?"

Xie Lian sighed and said, “That being said, you know that when a person dies, their soul will go through a period of chaos.”

For a period of time after a person dies, the soul is like a newborn baby - confused, half-conscious and half-awake, not knowing who it is, where it is, or what it is doing. The duration of this period can be long or short, depending on the individual and the opportunity. This state is called the "chaotic period."

In this case, their relatives or lovers can guide these souls or influence them. The folk custom of calling back the souls on the seventh day of death is based on this principle.

Xie Lian said, “He… told me that the Yong’an soldiers have strong resentment and intentions to attack the Imperial City, and many of their parents, wives, and children died in the drought.

"These dead souls have nowhere to rely on and will be affected by the emotions of their relatives. He uses the sharp wills of these soldiers to instill hostility towards the people of the Imperial City, driving them to live in the bodies of the living and compete for their nutrients.

"Because these souls of the Chaos Period have been repeatedly told one thing: if it weren't for them, you could have survived."

Feng Xin said: "What kind of crazy idea is this? Who should live and who should die?"

Xie Lian covered his forehead and said, “Lang Ying had accidentally buried his son’s body in the imperial city before, and this became the trigger for his practice. I asked him to tell me the solution, but he talked for a long time and ended up telling me the whole set of curse techniques. What does this mean?”

It is not possible to break the curse just by knowing the spell. Feng Xin cursed: "I am just teasing you. What the hell, I fuck you!"

Mu Qing said, "He's not teasing you. He has indeed told you the method."

Xie Lian and Feng Xin raised their heads and turned their heads, asking, "What's the solution?"

Mu Qing said: "The solution!"

His eyes sparkled, as if he had discovered a secret, and he said, "The curse on Yong'an's side was effective because they had a grudge against Xianle. But, doesn't Xianle have a grudge against Yong'an, too?"

Xie Lian opened his eyes slightly, his breathing stagnated slightly. Mu Qing continued, “Since he has told you the method of the curse, then you can use the same method to fight back, and create a human face plague that only infects the people of Yong’an! Think about it, in order for the curse of the human face plague to be effective, there must be living people to support it. As long as they are infected with the plague and can’t take care of themselves, or even no living people are left, won’t it collapse on its own?”

Xie Lian had never thought of this method before. He was stunned for a moment after listening to him talk. After a while, he blurted out, “Absolutely not!”

Mu Qing said: "Why not? Don't forget, they were the ones who cast the curse first."

Xie Lian stood up suddenly and said, “No means no. Also, you are wrong. Yongan’s soldiers must be hard to be infected with the human face plague, just like Xianle’s soldiers. Don’t ask me why, I…”

Mu Qing said quickly: "Then it's good even if only civilians are infected! They don't have the complete protective equipment and manpower of the Imperial City. Once the human-faced epidemic breaks out, the epidemic will inevitably spread faster, and they will have no power to fight back! It's the same to threaten them to stop cursing and surrender by threatening the safety of the civilians behind them. They can't afford it any more than the Imperial City!"

Xie Lian rejected it immediately: “Even worse! Don’t you remember what we said about them when they attacked innocent civilians in the Imperial City? Despicable. If we do the same thing as them, won’t we become the despicable people we call ourselves? How is this different from them?”

Mu Qing suppressed his excitement and said, "Your Highness, don't forget who it was who lured you into the land of love with the threat of death. It was the 'innocent' civilian you mentioned."

After saying this, Xie Lian hesitated for a moment.

To be honest, it is impossible not to care. But in the end, he still said: "Yes, there are indeed such people. But that is because such people are often the most enthusiastic and rush to the front, so you can only see such people. But in fact, most civilians don't know anything at all. If you go to Beizipo more often, you will know that many people don't even know why they are fighting. They just go wherever there is food and seek to survive. Mu Qing, what you are suggesting me to do now is to save a group of innocent people and kill another group of innocent people. I..."

He sighed and said, "I'd better think of another way."

Mu Qing's tone was a little bad, and he said sarcastically, "Why should I go to Beizipo to care about how the enemy's people live? Forget it. Your Highness, you are so considerate of others, but others have never considered you. Aren't you a sucker?"

Xie Lian felt depressed and lowered his head in silence. However, the image of the leg that was full of human faces and still twitching and squirming after being cut off appeared in his mind. After hesitating for a long time, he finally shook his head and said, "In the final analysis, I am not considering others, even if I am only considering ourselves. Curse is a double-edged sword, hurting others and oneself. In order to curse others, the living people must be full of resentment, and the dead people cannot rest in peace. They suffered in life, and after death they have to live in the flesh of others and become that kind of monster. You saw what was on that person's leg that day. How much better are those lingering 'human faces' than the infected people? Curses will backfire one day, and there will be no good end."

After being rejected again and again, Mu Qing was about to lose his patience and said, "If they don't get a good ending, you won't get a good ending either! You don't have a third way, and you can't find a second glass of water. Wake up, Your Highness! You don't have time."

Xie Lian felt his head getting a little hot, so he closed his eyes and said, “…Don’t say anything for now, let me think about it.”

“…”

Mu Qing finally couldn't help it and started to curse, "You are really... You are the one who is suffering and entangled. Now that the solution is in front of you, you are also unwilling to do it. You are really... You will never stop. This ghost look is so annoying. Your believers are really unlucky!"

Feng Xin listened to their argument for a while, but because he couldn't come up with any good ideas, he didn't interrupt them. Suddenly, he raised his hand and slapped them, cursing, "Are you done yet?"

Mu Qing was knocked back a few steps by his palm, and Xie Lian asked, “Feng Xin?”

Feng Xin said, "Your Highness, please ignore me!" He then said to Mu Qing, "What are you mad about? Tell me, what are you mad about? I have tolerated you for a long time, but today I can't bear it anymore. I really can't stand you. You are obviously a deputy general. Without your promotion, you don't know where to go. Why do you always act like you are the smartest, you know the most, and you are better than him? If you are really that capable, why didn't you ascend to the sky before your Highness did?"

Mu Qing said: "I...!"

Xie Lian pulled him: “Forget it, Feng Xin, Mu Qing is also worried about the situation…”

Feng Xin interrupted, "He's not anxious at all! Your Highness, I tell you, he's just looking for an opportunity to teach you a lesson. He won't let go of any opportunity to show that he's better than you, because he really thinks he's better than you! He's so cold and indifferent, and I don't see him love Xianle Country that much. How could he be anxious now?"

After that, he turned to Mu Qing and said, "Do you think I can't see that you think His Highness is a fool? I tolerate your sarcastic and secret eye rolling. I also tolerate your never standing in the right position in the heaven. You like to show off. It's not the first time anyway. Okay, let you show off. Anyway, you are not capable of making a big fuss. If His Highness doesn't bother with you, I won't bother with you. But since you are so arrogant, don't blame me for being rude! Listen carefully: I'm not surprised that you like to use such despicable means, but His Highness is His Highness. No matter what he does, you should be respectful to him, stop pointing fingers, and stop not knowing who you are!"

While Feng Xin was talking, Xie Lian tried to stop him several times, but probably because he had been holding it in for too long, he couldn't stop him at all, and he cursed out all at once. Mu Qing's face turned paler with every word he heard. He seemed to want to take action at first, but after hearing the last word, he said nothing and stared at Feng Xin with a grim look. Xie Lian angrily said, "Are you done? Do you want me to kick both of you out?"

Feng Xin's face was red, and it was obvious that he was hot-blooded. He stiffened his neck and said, "Kick me if you want. I don't care. A priest is nothing! If it weren't for Your Highness's order, I wouldn't even want to be one. But even if I'm kicked down and become a mortal, I'm still loyal to Your Highness. If you say something, I'll be the first to rush up. I despise ungrateful people the most! But if this person can't become a priest because of you, he may not be willing to follow you. I don't think he will say a good word. That's all!"

Mu Qing originally kept silent and endured for a long time, but finally couldn't help it and cursed back: "You are taking advantage of your mother! You are really good at flattering yourself, what do you know!"

Xie Lian went crazy and said, “Shut up, everyone! Shut up!!”

The two of them forced themselves to shut up. This time the quarrel was too loud, and even Jielong might not be able to save it. Xie Lian finally managed to stop his anger and said with a headache: "...In short, cursing is absolutely not feasible."

Mu Qing sneered, but still said, "Well, the decision is yours."

Feng Xin said simply, "I'll listen to you."

Mu Qing regained his calm demeanor and said, "Your Highness will definitely bear the consequences yourself."

Feng Xin sneered but said nothing. Then Xie Lian said, "Of course. I've already thought of it..."

At this moment, the three of them felt a violent tremor. As their bodies swayed, Xie Lian asked in astonishment, “What’s wrong?”

Feng Xin was the first to react and said, "The earth is shaking!"

Once the earthquake occurs, there will be casualties. Xie Lian shouted, “Help!”

Unexpectedly, when the three were about to rush out, they saw a man hurriedly rolling out from under the bed, holding out his hand and saying, "Cousin! Cousin, don't forget me!!! Take me with you!"

When Xie Lian saw this person, he was even more shocked: "Qi Rong, why are you in my palace?!"

How could he understand Qi Rong's bizarre daily life, where he would search everywhere for everything related to Xie Lian. He didn't know how long he had been hiding here secretly and listening. The situation was critical and he didn't bother to ask any more questions. Xie Lian grabbed Qi Rong and ran away, throwing him to an open place. Seeing that the palace was in chaos and countless palace servants were screaming and running out of the palace with carved beams and painted rafters, he shouted, "Is anyone injured? Is anyone trapped?"

Fortunately, the earthquake stopped soon after, and after some questioning, it seemed that there were no casualties. But he was still worried, and suddenly he heard another scream, and many people raised their hands and pointed at the sky behind him. Xie Lian turned his head sharply, and his pupils shrank suddenly. He saw that in the center of the palace, there was a tall and magnificent pagoda, which was slowly tilting to one side.

The Sky Tower is about to collapse!

This tower, whose full name is "Tower of Heaven and Man", has a history of hundreds of years. It is one of the symbols of the Xianle Palace and the tallest building in the entire Xianle Imperial City. It is located in the center of the palace and the imperial city and is a famous place. Once this tower falls, countless people will be killed and injured. The palace maids and pedestrians on the streets outside the palace will flee even more frantically. Seeing this, Xie Lian quickly formed a few spells with his right hand and shouted in the direction of Taicang Mountain: "Come!"

The tower continued to fall slowly, and when it had tilted down one-third, everyone suddenly felt another tremor.

This vibration also came from the ground, but unlike the earthquake, this vibration was intermittent, had its own rhythm, and was getting faster and closer. When the tower tilted a little more, everyone finally discovered that the vibration was actually the sound of footsteps.

A huge golden statue over five meters tall, holding a sword in one hand and a flower in the other, was covered in rosy clouds and was striding towards the palace!

Someone immediately exclaimed, "Isn't this the statue of the prince in the Xianle Palace of Huangji Temple?"

As expected, more and more people recognized it: "Really! It's that golden statue! Look, it ran down from Mount Taicang!"

The golden statue took several feet of steps each time, but did not step on anyone. Boom, boom, boom, it flew into the palace and supported the falling tower in one fell swoop, stopping its decline.

As the sun set, the golden light shone, and the brilliant golden figure raised its hands, and with its own strength, it struggled to hold up the tall pagoda that was about to fall. This was truly a miraculous sight, causing countless people to stare in amazement. Xie Lian slowly withdrew his hands, raised his head to look at the statue, and saw the handsome and calm golden face, and a trace of confusion flashed through his heart.