Chương 54: I Will Laugh

Action followed quickly. Fang Cheng left Li Shuyan in the room to draw the portrait. He leaped into the air and looked down over all of Xiangshi City. After the great battle, the ground was cracked. Several massive fissures ran from the southern market to the northern gate. Everywhere they passed was rubble. The houses along the streets had collapsed. The surviving citizens stood amid the ruins, numb and lost.

They looked up, not at the tiny figure of Fang Cheng, but at the sky covered in dark clouds, pressing down as if about to crush them. The rain still fell. Soaked by the black clouds, the raindrops were as dark as ink. They opened their hands and their mouths, welcoming the darkness, but made no sound. Dead silence. Only the sound of raindrops hitting their cheeks, and the cold rain sliding down their throats.

Warm mouths melted the cold rain, turning it into steam that rose slowly, like the cooking smoke from their kitchens, but without a breeze to carry it. The steam rose, pushing back the falling black rain, breaking through the dark clouds, punching a hole in the blackened sky. A beam of sunlight broke through the torn heavens, falling on Xiangshi City, on Fang Cheng's back, and on the faces of every citizen. Under the sunlight, each person glowed with golden light, solemn and majestic as Buddhas.

The Buddha said: What you do in this life determines what you receive in the next.

"My wife and children are dead. My house is gone. Hahaha. This is all karma from my past life. Hahaha. I deserved it. Who told me to be a beast in my past life!" The Buddha also said: What you do now determines what you receive in the future.

"They died well! My parents deserved to die! My wife and children deserved to die! They suffered enough in this life. They will be reborn into good lives. And I am left alone. Even better. Come on. Torture me more. Give me more suffering. Hahaha. In my next life, I will definitely be a person of high status. Hahaha. Just thinking about it makes me happy. I do not even want to die anymore..." Laugh. Such good news deserves laughter. Hahaha...

They all laughed like mad, bending over, lowering their heads, kneeling on the ground, covering their eyes and noses. They laughed until their bodies shook. They laughed until tears streamed down their faces. They laughed until their tears ran dry. The black clouds above were dispelled by the laughter. The rain stopped. More sunlight poured down, illuminating everyone, making them shine so brightly it was blinding. Look away. Do not shine on me. I am going blind. Hahaha. Being blind is good.

Blind in this life, you will have a thousand-mile vision in the next. Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author's consent. Report any sightings. High above, a figure absorbed even more sunlight, radiating dazzling golden light. He was the sun. No, he was their Buddha, their bodhisattva who saves the suffering. The Emperor had finally descended!

"My Buddha! Take me with you! Take me to my next life! I promise I can endure suffering! Wuwuwu... Please, take me..."

"Emperor! Take me with you! I will be your ox, your horse, your dog, your chicken. If you tell me to go east, I will never go west. If you tell me to kill and burn, I will pick up a cleaver and go!"

"Bodhisattva! I kneel to you! Take me home, to the pure land without suffering. Let me serve you!"

"Brother! My good brother! In my next life, I want to be reborn into a rich family, a noble daughter! Hahahaha. And then I will have many babies with you, Brother! Hahahaha..." All the citizens of Xiangshi City gathered around, worshiping the figure in the sky, prostrating themselves before him. Cries, shouts, laughter, and strange moans mixed together, filling the entire city. Fang Cheng stood above them all. It was so noisy. His ears were full of noise. He felt sick. His stomach churned. Damn it.

Even eating a Heavenly Demon had not made him feel this bloated. What was going on this time? Was it because the crayfish came from a ditch?

"Alright. I am going to find somewhere to throw up. You all play by yourselves... hiss, hiss, hiss..." Fang Cheng left those words and turned to fly away quickly.

"Do not go, my Buddha!"

"Emperor! Where are you going? Take me with you!"

"Bodhisattva! My merciful bodhisattva! Before you go, please stab me to death so I can be reborn!" The people wailed as they watched Fang Cheng leave. They had lost their master. Their hearts were dark and lost. Now it was Hao'er's turn to take the stage.

"Everyone, do not panic. The lord you just saw is the City God of White Flower City. He came to Xiangshi City to save you, and he will take you to a happy new life in White Flower City. Now, line up. One by one. Register. Do not push, do not cut in line. Anyone who disobeys will not be reborn in their next life. Squad Leader Zhang, lift your head. Stop sticking your butt out. Call your brothers over to help keep order. And you, from the prison, what is your name... Lin Gang, right?

Round up the surviving Yamen officials and runners and help me register everyone. And you, you, and you. You doctors and medics form a medical team. Tally the wounded. Treat the critically injured first. If someone cannot be saved, let them die. Do not waste medicine." Qin Hao commanded calmly and methodically. With his reassurance, every survivor regained hope, filled with longing for a happy future in White Flower City. After an unknown amount of time, Fang Cheng finished throwing up.

He had not actually vomited anything, but his stomach felt much better. He wiped his face with clean water and returned to the scene. By then, Qin Hao had almost finished the tally. He was about to call the people to set off when he sensed someone approaching. He turned and saw Brother Fang. He reported immediately, "Brother Fang, the situation is better than I expected. About fifty thousand people survived, and most of them are young laborers. Many of the textile workers are still alive.

Unfortunately, our best worker Xiao Cui died. But Zhuangniu is alive. He fell from the sky and got injured, so he will need about a month to recover."

"Good work, Ah Hao." Fang Cheng patted Qin Hao's shoulder.

"Thank goodness you were here. I would have been lost dealing with all these people."

"No, no, no, Brother Fang. It is all thanks to you. If you had not killed the Heavenly Demon, all the people in the city would be dead. I would not have had anyone to deal with."

"That is true." Fang Cheng nodded. He continued, "By the way, Ah Hao, do not forget to tell the people about my rescue. The more detailed, the better."

"I understand, Brother Fang. It will give them hope to keep living. I have already sent Squad Leader Zhang to do it."

"Haha. Well done." Fang Cheng patted Qin Hao's shoulder again and let out a happy sound.

"... hiss, hiss, hiss..."

"Brother Fang, I think I heard something strange." Qin Hao looked nervous as he spoke. For some reason, he felt like a Heavenly Demon was hiding nearby. Fang Cheng scratched his head and quietly pressed his tongue down, answering vaguely, "What strange sound? I did not hear anything."

"Oh, maybe I misheard. I just got free from the demon's corruption, so my ears are still not clear." Qin Hao laughed, also feeling he was being too jumpy. With Brother Fang by his side, what was there to be afraid of? It was the demons who should be afraid.