He had a vague answer to this question in his mind. However, Hua Cheng's reaction was quite different from what he expected.

After a moment of silence, Hua Cheng suddenly said, "I'm sorry."

Xie Lian was puzzled: “What?”

He originally thought that if the "Thousand Lanterns Temple" was not a hoax, then the most likely person to be related to it was Hua Cheng. But no matter whether his guess was right or not, Hua Cheng had no reason to apologize. Hua Cheng did not answer, but only motioned for him to walk forward with him, and Xie Lian followed his lead. The two walked for a while, and when they turned a corner, their sight suddenly became clear, and a palace with spiritual light flowing quietly appeared in front of Xie Lian.

For a moment, his breathing stagnated.

In all directions there was the ghostly scenery of black and red, and within this encirclement, the palaces were magnificent, with thousands of bright lights, like a fairyland.

Such a palace based on light and splendor is located in a ghost market full of dragons and snakes and demons. It is so out of place, yet so shocking. The moment you see it, it will leave an indelible impression in your mind. After a long while, Xie Lian said: "...This is..."

The two stood in front of the palace, looking up. Hua Cheng also raised his head slightly and said, "A few days ago, the Mid-Autumn Festival came. I thought that my brother would probably participate in their boring game every year in the upper heaven, so I built this place to give my brother some fun and relieve his boredom when he attends the banquet."

“…”

His way of "relieving boredom" is nothing short of astonishing. In order to "find some fun" for Xie Lian, he built a temple and lit up 3,000 eternal lanterns for blessing!

Hua Cheng lowered his head slightly, straightened his cuffs, and continued, "I didn't want to teach you this because I arranged it without permission. I built your temple in this messy place. I hope you won't be surprised."

Xie Lian shook his head immediately. Hua Cheng actually felt that he had caused him trouble, so he didn't want him to know. He didn't know what to say. At this point, thanking him again would be too weak, so Xie Lian calmed his mind, took a deep breath, and concentrated on appreciating this "Thousand Lanterns Temple". After a moment, he tilted his head and said, "This palace is magnificent and ingenious. It can't be built in a few days. Did Sanlang build it recently?"

Hua Cheng smiled and said, "Of course not. Brother, you're right. This place was built a long time ago, but it couldn't be used, so it has been hidden and I've never let anyone in. But I have to thank brother for finally finding a use for it, so it can now see the light of day."

Hearing this, Xie Lian actually breathed a sigh of relief.

Since it was built a long time ago but has never been used, it must have been originally intended for other purposes, and it is now being used. Otherwise, if Hua Cheng really built a palace for him, he would be even more uneasy. Of course, given Hua Cheng's personality, it is also possible that he built it purely for fun. Although Xie Lian was very curious about what Hua Cheng originally intended to use such a building that was so different from the ghost market for, he still suppressed the urge to ask. Asking too much is not a good habit. Who knows when you will ask something you shouldn't ask?

Hua Cheng said: "Go in and take a look?"

Xie Lian happily said, “Of course.”

The two walked side by side, slowly entering the palace and strolling on the jade paved floor. Looking around, the temple was spacious and bright, but there were no statues of gods, nor cushions for believers to kneel and worship. Hua Cheng said, "It was completed in a hurry, and there are many careless and inconsiderate places. Please forgive me, brother."

Xie Lian smiled, “No. I think it’s very good, very good. It’s just right to not have the statue and the cushion. It’s best not to have them forever. But why is there not even a plaque?”

This question was not meant to be an accusation. It was just that there were several jade and flower pavings in the temple with the words "Qian Deng Temple" carefully carved into them. The plaque on the front door was not hung up, so it was not because of haste. That was why he asked out of curiosity. Hua Cheng smiled and said, "There is no way. I don't have many people who can write here. Look at the group just now. They are good enough to be able to read. Brother, do you have any favorite calligraphers? I will ask them to write this sign for you. Or, I think the best way is for you to write one yourself and hang it on the Qian Deng Temple. That would be perfect."

As he spoke, he pointed to the altar in the main hall. The jade table was extremely long and wide, with offerings and an incense burner neatly arranged on it. There were also pens, inkstones, paper, and an inkstone, and the fragrance of books was refreshing. The two of them walked forward, and Xie Lian said, "Why not ask Sanlang to help me write?"

Hearing this, Hua Cheng's eyes widened slightly, as if he had not expected him to say that, and asked: "Me?"

Xie Lian said, “Yeah.”

Hua Cheng pointed at himself and said, "Do you really want me to write it?"

Xie Lian noticed something and asked, "Sanlang, is there any difficulty?"

Hua Cheng raised an eyebrow and said, "It's not difficult, but..."

Seeing that Xie Lian had been waiting for his answer, he put his hands behind his back and said helplessly, “Okay. But, I can’t write well.”

This is strange. Xie Lian really couldn’t imagine that Hua Cheng would do anything wrong, so he smiled and said, “Oh? Really? Write one and let’s see?”

Hua Cheng asked again: "Do you really want me to write it?"

Xie Lian took a few pieces of white paper and spread them neatly on the jade table. He smoothed them out carefully with his own hands, then picked up a purple brush and handed it to him, saying, “Come here.”

Seeing that he was ready for everything, Hua Cheng said, "Okay. But don't laugh."

Xie Lian nodded: “Of course.”

So Hua Cheng took the pen and began to write seriously. Xie Lian watched from the side, and the more he watched, the more unpredictable his expression became.

He really wanted to hold it back, but he couldn't. Hua Cheng scribbled on the paper and said in a warning and joking tone, "Brother."

Xie Lian immediately straightened his expression and said, “My fault.”

He didn't want to, but what could he do? Hua Cheng's handwriting was so funny! !

Even the craziest cursive calligraphy that Xie Lian had seen was not as wild as this one. This wildness was mixed with a kind of perverse evil spirit that would probably make the calligraphers roll their eyes and faint. Xie Lian struggled for a long time before he could barely make out the "sea", "water", "Wushan" and "cloud". He guessed that he must have written "Once you have seen the sea, all other waters are but puddles; after having seen Wushan, all other clouds are but clouds".

Thinking of Hua Cheng, the tyrant of the ghost world, who was so feared by gods and ghosts, and finally showing such an expression about something, and it was about writing, he couldn't help laughing so hard that his stomach muscles twitched. He picked up the work that Hua Cheng had completed in one stroke with both hands, pretended to be calm, and said: "Yeah. It has personality and is unique. It has a 'style'."

Hua Cheng put down his pen, still in a very serious manner, and smiled with a sidelong glance: "Are you crazy?"

Xie Lian pretended not to hear and commented seriously: "In fact, it is not difficult to write well, but it is difficult to write your own 'style'. If it is just good-looking, but the good-looking is stereotyped, it is also inferior. Sanlang's style is very good, with the style of a great man, swallowing mountains and rivers..." There are eight more words at the end: mountains and rivers are broken, wars and chaos. There is no way, it is also very hard to make up words to praise people. Hua Cheng raised his eyebrows higher while listening, and asked doubtfully: "Really?"

Xie Lian asked, “When have I ever lied to San Lang?”

Hua Cheng slowly added some new incense to the small golden tripod beside him. Amid the smoke and fragrance, he said nonchalantly, "I really want to write well. But no one teaches me, so I don't know what the trick is."

He asked the right person. Xie Lian pondered, “There’s really no trick, it’s just…” After thinking for a while, he finally felt that words alone could not express everything, so he moved closer, picked up the pen, and wrote two lines next to the poem written by Hua Cheng on the paper, finishing it in one go. After studying it for a while, he smiled and sighed, “I’m ashamed. I haven’t had the opportunity to write for many years, and I’m not as good as I used to be.”

Hua Cheng stared at the four lines of words that were so different in style, especially the last two lines that Xie Lian wrote: "I am too lazy to look back at the flowers, half because of my cultivation and half because of you." He read the poem over and over again, his eyes lingering on it. After a while, he looked up and said, "Can you give me some advice?"

Xie Lian said, “I dare not teach you.” Then, he began to explain the essentials to Hua Cheng, without reservation, sharing with him all the experience he had learned from studying calligraphy when he was young.

The incense was wafting, the lights were bright, Xie Lian was talking seriously, Hua Cheng was listening attentively. In the hall, the words were spoken slowly and softly, the images and voices were very gentle. After a while, Xie Lian said, "Come and try again?"

Hua Cheng said "Oh", took the pen, and wrote a few words seriously. Xie Lian watched him, folded his hands, tilted his head, and said, "It's interesting. But..."

However, he always felt that there was something wrong with Hua Cheng's writing. After frowning and observing for a while, he suddenly realized what was wrong - Hua Cheng didn't hold the pen correctly at all.

Even the way he holds the pen is a mess, of course it's wrong!

Xie Lian didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. He stood closer and without thinking, he stretched out his hand to correct her, saying, “You’re holding it wrong. It should be like this…”

As he extended his hand, he suddenly felt that something might be a little inappropriate. The two of them were not a master and a disciple, and such a hand-in-hand teaching was a bit too intimate. But since he had already made a move, there was no point in taking it back rashly, as that would seem deliberate. Therefore, after hesitating for a moment, he still did not withdraw his hand. Thinking about it again, didn’t Hua Cheng teach him how to roll the dice in the ghost gambling house last time? Although Xie Lian felt that he didn’t learn anything that time, and still had a vague feeling of being cheated afterwards, this time, he really wanted to teach Hua Cheng something. So, Xie Lian’s warm palm rested on the cold back of Hua Cheng’s hand, gently holding it, guiding his brushstrokes to move, and whispered: "Like this..."

Feeling that Hua Cheng's hand was holding the pen in a frenzy, he used a little force to control it and correct it. After a while, he felt that his hand was moving even more frantically and out of control, so he had to hold it tighter. The words written by the two of them were crooked and unsightly. The more Xie Lian wrote, the more he felt that something was wrong, and he couldn't help but say, "This..."

Hua Cheng seemed to have succeeded in his mischief and let out a low laugh. The ink was all over the paper, and Xie Lian said helplessly: "San Lang... don't do this. Study hard and write well."

Hua Cheng said: "Oh."

It was obvious that he was pretending to be serious. Xie Lian shook his head, feeling both amused and annoyed.

Although Hua Cheng's hand was cold, he held it in his hand, but it felt like he was holding a branding iron, and he didn't dare to use more force. At this moment, Xie Lian's eyes suddenly swept to the edge of the altar and froze.

He glanced sideways and saw a small flower placed alone in the corner of the jade table.