Chapter 192: Under The Bright Light of the Sun
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
Fang Ning finished reading the system notifications and pondered for a moment. He then told Anderson, “Andy, you did well this time, having made a great contribution. I’ve decided to make you the Deputy Head Warden of the Draconic Penitentiary, meaning you can move freely about in the prison. As soon as I have completely set up the web for you, you can check any outside info from the web anytime and combine them together with the info given by the prisoners to give me a weekly work report, consisting of analysis of the current situation as well as some ideas for any plans.”
Anderson was elated when they heard this. In actuality, from all those days together ands using their intelligence and observation skills, they already had a hunch that Their Highness, the Head Warden of the Penitentiary, and the Venerable White Dragon were probably the same person. That is, the Venerable Dragon God himself. While he was resting in there, it was probably AI that was controlling his body.
It was confirmed before, but after being dragged along by the Venerable White Dragon to play games, he believed it without a doubt.
After all, Fang Ning was no famous actor. Even if his body form and the frequency of his spirit changed, he could not change his way of speech and habits.
Fang Ning had to pretend to be the Venerable White Dragon as well as take the human shape of the Head Warden of the Penitentiary, all by himself. Once or twice was fine, but when he was playing, won’t changing back and forth and finding Anderson be suspicious for the other side?
Anderson is not worried about this, though. As long as the other party did not divulge anything, they will also feign ignorance. They had finally come this far and who knows, maybe they would be given another chance to continue their research into souls…
At that, they promised, over and over. “Don’t worry, Your Highness, I will strive my best to serve you, making my own small contribution for the good of the Dragon Clan.”
Fang Ning nodded, quite satisfied. With this smart fellow behind him, being a military advisor would be so much easier. Having dealt with this, he continued, “Oh yes, about that newly arrived Qi Mei, in the isolation cells. Go interrogate her and dig out how she uses her many magical objects, as well as any information about the Azure Mountain. Of course, you have to watch yourself and not damage the image of the Draconic Penitentiary. After all, this place is sacred.”
Fang Ning definitely did not want to question her himself. He did not want to choke to near death but end up with nothing. It is better to let the professionals do it.
Anderson naturally had no objections, as it was their job.
…
When Fang Ning was finished with his plans, Sir System was calling him again.
“The people from the Association of Spirit Kings outside are talking with Vigilante A. They definitely have a reward for us. Go deal with them, and remember to ask for more. The best, of course, is asking them whether they can give us some of the evil ghosts they caught…”
He was speechless when he heard this and checked the time. It was almost time for him to knock off. He had even planned go play games immediately after dealing with Anderson…
Fang Ning knew not to disobey Sir System’s will, and had to look through the system viewpoint. From what he saw, Sir System had returned to the Ghost Valley Mountain, regained his form as Vigilante A and dropped onto the bluestone platform in front of the Cave of Spirit Kings.
Not to mention, of course, that Sir System had still remembered what they said, the words “I will reward you later”, or it would have went home as soon as soon as he finished farming the evil ghosts…
Just then, Elder Gui Da, Gui Er, Zhu Hongying and also Qiao Zijiang gathered around Vigilante A.
Elder Gui Da was a sexagenarian, with greying temples and a grateful look on his face. He made a fist salute and said, “The Venerable One is indeed powerful. His loyalty is even higher than that of the sky and clouds, helping our Association of Spirit Kings in preventing this disaster. The entire Association is extremely grateful, and some small gifts have been prepared. After this, if The Venerable One requires our service, do send a letter. We will stop at nothing (TN: original text: jump into hot water and dance through fire, literally translated from the Chinese idiom, equivalent to going through hell) to complete it”
Hearing this, Fang Ning felt smug. If he were honest, being buttered up like this and fronting in front of others was much better than playing games… In a nutshell, he played games for his own mental enjoyment.
Before this, he had to work hard, waking up before dawn to go to school, having to work overtime in his job to get any results and recognition from others. Now, he just had to lie down to get even better mental enjoyment, all this thanks to being taken over by Sir System…
Sir System felt nothing towards all these things, but only cared about destroying evil ghosts and practicing martial arts. He was human, a normal ordinary human, not a saint or a fairy and thus enjoyed this feeling of being given recognition and becoming the center of everyone’s attention…
At this, Fang Ning felt guilty because he had taken so much advantage of Sir System. Sigh, the next time he lent it money, he would spare the interest…
Fang Ning rested a moment and rapidly recollected his thoughts before smiling slightly and feigning wisdom and bravery. “Ha ha, I have always placed heroism first, and I especially cannot stand those who use their strength and power to bully the vulnerable. Qi Mei not only relied on her power to bully others, but tried to harm the name of the Dragon clan. That is too evil of her, and I have locked her in the Draconic Penitentiary with the prison sentence of five hundred years. Only when she shows genuine, sincere repentance for her mistakes will she get to be freed earlier.”
Qiao Zijiang, hearing this, felt shaken. Captain Ren had already updated the data on Vigilante A. Not only did he manage to kill her, but also imprison her soul in that place. This man was definitely special.
All the others were naturally surprised and fearful, and when they heard of it, they thought of something resembling the Celestial Dungeons in Heaven, or some other equivalent.
Elder Gui Da respectfully said, “The Venerable One is truly kind, and we are very awed by this. I have already ordered my subordinates to prepare a light banquet in the cave, and we invite you to enter and partake in this occasion.”
Fang Ning nodded and allowed Elder Gui Da to lead him in, the others following closely behind.
Zhu Hongying, watching the great, imposing back of the figure, felt waves in her heart. This was what a great hero, a great ranger was. Just like their own Bodhisattva; someone to be admired and respected in their Association.
Lu Er, Ma Da and Niu Si all cowered behind.
Ma Da was secretly happy, and said quietly to the others, “The Great Hero has probably forgotten about us. This is good…”
Niu Si chimed in, “Yep, we can also follow Big Sister up to the feast to eat something good.”
Lu Er still felt puzzled as he thought back. He said unpleasantly, “He did chase me for four hours that time. I don’t think he would forget you two. And you still want to join the table…”
Ma Da and Niu Si, hearing this, rolled their eyes and said doubtfully, “On what level the great hero must be, if he could still remember us.”
They did not know, that Sir System truly would not forget them.
Fang Ning, on the other hand, truly had forgotten about them. It was just that they had not been up to anything bad, and based on their speech and behavior, were unlikely to fulfil the condition of being injured by Fang Ning. So, he did not have to worry at all.
Fang Ning did not know that his every move was enough to make others anxious and afraid.
Now, he just wanted to talk and laugh with the senior members of the Association, as well as two members of the Truth Department, acting and bragging to the fullest, not blushing as he made the victories of Sir System his own glorious deeds…
“That time I went to an arcane realm, I bumped into a Pond-level king cobra causing havoc there. No one could do anything until I wielded the Sword of Divine Punishment, combining the morality of the people, and eventually vanquished the scoundrel…
“And last time, the descendants of the Hindu Trinity was daring enough to invade our realm. I fought them for three hundred rounds and forced them to show their ultimate power before escaping…”
Sir System could not bear it, and while it kryptoned its experience points and sped up the production of equipment, it reminded him. “Hey, Great Billionaire Host, pause a moment before you continue your boasting, I haven’t told you the thing I told you about…”
Fang Ning, uncaring, said, “Hang on, don’t panic and let me go on. I don’t get to do this very often, you know?”
As he finished talking, he lost control of his body. Definitely should not have been too arrogant.
The System said, “Hmm, I’ve heard that your Association has innumerable trapped evil ghosts in this Ghost Valley Mountain, but probably has some hidden problems. Since I’m here, I should help to the best of my ability. Why don’t we leave this banquet for a while, and you take me to defeat those evil ghosts. My Draconic Penitentiary is large and heavily guarded, which means I can imprison any number of evil ghosts and not worry about them escaping.”
Elder Gui Da, hearing this, was elated. He looked towards Zhu Hongying, standing to one side, and when she nodded, went on saying, “It is rare for the Venerable One to be so eager. To be honest, the Bodhisattva is merciful and is unwilling to take lives, ordering me to capture evil ghosts from all parts of China. We cannot destroy them there and then, but had to bring them back here to be trapped and imprisoned by him. Any evil ghosts which possess kindness will be taken to the back of the mountain to be taught and rehabilitated collectively.
“This mountain has a lot of Yin energy, and most of them are on their last legs, but do not cause problems. It’s just that some nefarious people look at them with interest and try to steal evil ghosts to practice evil magic. Since the Venerable One is willing to help imprison them, that will be great. Law- Enforcer Zhu, go to where the Bodhisattva is meditating in isolation and tell him about this. And while you are there, go ask for the way to remove the restraints.”
At once, Zhu Hongying got up and left.
Qiao Zijiang, seeing this, talked to Xie Dong, “Is it true, what they’ve said?”
Xie Dong nodded slightly. “Every word uttered by the Venerable Dragon God is true. It’s just that when he was boasting, some places were over-embellished… Of course that is normal human behavior. Gui Da did not lie from beginning to end. It’s all true.”
Qiao Zijiang said thoughtfully, “The acts of the Association of Spirit Kings- capturing and imprisoning them- has not escaped our notice. We originally thought that after capturing those evil ghosts, they would use them to create demon slaves and strengthen their power, which is their true purpose. Now Uncle Xie should check this, they’re eager in accepting the Venerable One’s assistance in imprisoning the evil ghosts. It looks like their purpose isn’t false- wanting to bring peace here.”
Xie Dong: “If so, the Bodhisattva of Spirit Kings really may want to do something which will very much benefit the world. Just, why did they not want to spell it out? They obviously don’t trust us.”
As the conversation went on, Zhu Hongying returned with a green jade talisman in hand.
She said, “Venerable one, this is the key to free the restraints. I’ll take you there now.”
Law-Enforcer Gui Da said politely, “Venerable one, you don’t have to rush. Let us finish the feast…”
Before he could finish talking, the Venerable Dragon God got to his feet and motioned for Zhu Hongying to lead the way.
Gui Da looked towards Gui Er and remarked. “This Venerable Dragon God was just talking and laughing with us. But when he hears about evil ghosts, he simply couldn’t wait. This is truly the mark of a great hero.”
Gui Er, speechless, answered, “Not to be disrespectful, but I think there are some similarities between the Venerable Dragon God and our Bodhisattva. The Bodhisattva shows two forms: one which does not touch the vices of the human realm, kind and fair; the other enjoying praises and flattery, connected to the earth…”
Gui Da looked around. He knew that this second elder was the wisest in the Association, and was afraid that he may be on to something.
He immediately said, “This cannot be repeated to anyone else. The Bodhisattva is the Bodhisattva, and there’s no such thing as taking two forms. The Venerable Dragon God is the Venerable Dragon God, just that he cannot bear hearing anything evil nearby, and only thinks of destroying all evil until none is left.”
…
Zhu Hongying drifted in the lead, taking Vigilante A towards the depths of the cave.
While walking, she informed him, “The Bodhisattva has already entrapped the most evil ones in the Cave of Spirit Kings. Those less powerful ones, we trap them in the mountains. Among those evil ghosts, some are people who have committed grievous evil acts. Most of them, though, have not committed crimes before death, but after they regained their vitality, become ghosts due to circumstances and various factors and get to continue living in this world. However, they thought becoming ghosts exempted them from the laws of the human realm, and thus start committing evil acts and harming humans. Out of all the ghosts we have restrained, eight to nine out of ten fall into this category. This is really quite exasperating.”
Vigilante A, hearing this, said, “It is truly sad and despicable. I have undertaken this fate in order to let all beings know; under the bright light of the Sun, in my eyes, any person who does bad things, no matter how small, is clear to me. There will be no room for luck.”
Zhu Hongying was filled with admiration at this declaration. “This great hero and our Bodhisattva are truly together on the same path. The reason our Bodhisattva cultivates in isolation is to let those ignorant spirits know that they will still be constrained after death, that there will be no free rein.”
