Chapter 3: The Return of the Soul (03)

A cold sensation touched Liu Che’s forehead, and his eyes shifted slightly.

It felt as though he had woken up, but not entirely.

He recalled the recent events about the Divine Maiden.

—–

In the Great Ancestral Temple, the Divine Maiden descended with Emperor Gao.

She wore a black gown, with red characters inscribed on the hem—characters Liu Che didn’t recognize.

The red and black colors were deeper and more solemn than the imperial robes Liu Che wore, the most honorable and majestic of hues.

As she walked past him, she was barefoot, and her white calves, exposed beneath the hem of her gown, resembled frost and moonlight.

She knelt on Liu Che’s lap, the black and red of her gown blending with his own ceremonial robes, her body so light it seemed weightless.

She touched the wound on his forehead, her fingers cold and sharp.

Liu Che suddenly snapped back to reality.

He was drenched in cold sweat, and his vision blurred. After a moment, he realized there was no one kneeling on his lap. The Divine Maiden had returned to her previous position.

Liu Che raised his hand and slowly touched his forehead.

It was intact, unlike what he had imagined—it wasn’t as if his skull had been ripped open and his brain removed. His fingers only encountered a bit of dried blood and smooth skin.

The wound… had healed.

A bundle of herbs slipped off his shoulder, and Liu Che stared at it, dizzy for a long while.

——

The system felt inexplicably deflated and weakly explained, “I didn’t order you to do this, but we need to talk about sustainability… hahahah…”

As it spoke, its voice grew smaller, feeling increasingly awkward.

Lin Jiu quietly listened to the system finish before replying, “The emotional value has gone up, right?”

The system: “…”

It had indeed risen, and quite dramatically.

It had to admit, this completely surpassed the system’s expectations.

Before, it always thought emotional value was like “a fleeting glance, a stir in the heart,” or “gentle affection, deep emotions.”

But encountering Lin Jiu, it learned that emotional value could also stem from shock, fear, extreme joy, or extreme sorrow.

“So bizarre,” the system murmured, “I’m starting to worry about Liu Che’s physical and mental health.”

On the topic, it suddenly remembered something, “How did you heal Liu Che’s wound so suddenly? Do you have healing abilities?”

Lin Jiu seemed unaware of the system’s probing tone and casually responded, “I don’t have healing abilities.”

“I did encounter another system before, one that was good at healing. What I did earlier was draw energy from it, and there was only that little bit left. Once I used it on Liu Che, it was gone.”

The system let out a sigh of relief. “It’s gone… that’s good. I didn’t mean anything by it, it’s just that outside energy could interfere with our mission.”

But it cautiously asked, “What was the name of that system?”

“It was called the Lord God. It liked to ask people a question.”

Lin Jiu slowly said, “Do you understand the meaning of life? Do you truly want to live?”

The system suddenly felt a chill and pondered for a while, unable to find the reason. It could only attribute it to a mere illusion.

As for the “Lord God,” the name sounded arrogant, but it had never heard of it. The question was strange, perhaps it was just some obscure system.

And since Lin Jiu said that it was good at healing, the most powerful ability must have been the strange healing energy used earlier.

But that energy was so thin, it was used up after healing Liu Che’s minor wound, so there was no need to worry.

Thinking of this, the system casually asked, “Where is that system now?”

“It’s dead. I killed it,” Lin Jiu said.

“Ha, you’re really funny,” the system thought Lin Jiu was joking. How could anyone kill a system?

Even if the so-called “Lord God” was just some unheard-of, obscure system, it was impossible for Lin Jiu to destroy it.

But the system didn’t care much, so it didn’t ask further.

Inside the carriage, the atmosphere was strange.

How should it be described? If before, there was at least one person who could be considered human, now it seemed like none of them looked human.

Especially Liu Che, whose face looked the most bizarre, the most unpleasant, and the most abnormal.

The system, in a complicated mood, said, “I’ve had plenty of hosts before, but you’re the first to make the scene so bizarre.”

“Just… bizarre. You know what I mean?”

After those words, the system suddenly froze.

Three seconds later, it said, “Congratulations, you’ve unlocked a special achievement: [The Longest Road].”

“The road we’ve walked together feels endless, a lifetime passes in just a single glance.”

“Special achievement [The Longest Road] has been saved. Emotional value earned during this achievement period is doubled. Congratulations.”

Special Achievement? Lin Jiu was confused.

The system explained, “When the host and the target character do something special together, if the target character feels a strong emotional response, there is a chance to trigger a [Special Achievement].”

“During the achievement period, the emotional points the host gains will be doubled.”

“Doing something special together, with a strong emotional response?” Lin Jiu repeated the two conditions thoughtfully.

The system didn’t notice Lin Jiu’s unusual reaction. It was feeling a bit complicated. “But actually, [Special Achievement] shouldn’t be like this.”

“For example, this [Longest Road], the usual way is for Liu Che to develop the thought of growing old together with you during the journey, not for him to think he’s already died once.”

Lin Jiu didn’t understand, “What’s the difference between these two?”

The system thought it might be better to just give Liu Che some leeway and get it over with.

The carriage stopped. The road had come to an end, and Weiyang Palace had arrived.

Weiyang Palace was the residence of the Han Emperor, built on the site of Qin’s Zhangtai.

When the Han prime minister Xiao He built Weiyang Palace, the guiding principle was “Without grandeur, there is no majesty.” This meant that if there were no grand palaces, the majesty of the emperor could not be showcased.

The “grandeur” in practice meant size — as large as possible, as large as it could be.

This simple idea, when taken to the extreme — with Weiyang Palace reaching unimaginable proportions — created a vast, imposing atmosphere.

Walking through such a massive palace complex, the towering palace walls stretched out of sight.

Inside it, a person felt like an ant in the human world, silently overwhelmed by the palace.

It was easy to imagine that when ministers and officials visited the emperor, as they walked the long palace path, each step made them feel more small and fearful.

The grandeur of the palace pressed in on them, and the people shrank until they became mere ants at the emperor’s feet.

The Han emperors were not gods, just mortals. But anyone who entered the palace, be they officials or slaves, was beneath him, just ants under his feet.

In this way, what made him different from the gods?

Weiyang Palace was his temple, where he sat, overlooking the world.

Lin Jiu said to the system, “Weiyang Palace is really impressive.”

The system, unaware of any impending danger, cheerfully replied, “Yeah, Weiyang Palace is indeed remarkable.”

Lin Jiu didn’t respond.

“By the way, after triggering the [Special Achievement], the achievement template is now open. There’s actually an achievement about Weiyang Palace,” the system continued.

Lin Jiu became interested, “What is the achievement?”

The system said, “Let me check. If you do it now, this one seems good: [Enter the Han Palace]. The way to complete it is to live in Liu Che’s chamber.”

Lin Jiu said, “That sounds perfect, very fitting.”

The system eagerly gave Lin Jiu some advice, “Anyway, you already have the title of the goddess. Just find an excuse, like praying for blessings or driving away evil spirits, and stay a few nights in Liu Che’s chamber. This achievement will be easily completed.”

Lin Jiu said, “No problem, I’ll handle it, don’t worry.”

The system confidently said, “Then there’s nothing to worry about, I trust you.”

After saying that, Lin Jiu tilted her head and softly asked, “Is this the emperor’s palace? Where does the emperor live?”

Who was she asking? Of course, it was Liu Che.

The system got excited, “Alright, ask Liu Che where he lives, and then propose to pray for him!”

At this moment, Liu Che was right next to Lin Jiu.

It wasn’t that he didn’t want to leave, but according to the system, his entire being screamed “Let me leave.”

However, as the master of Weiyang Palace, he had to personally arrange accommodations for the high emperor and the goddess.

Just then, he heard the goddess speak. Her voice was like pearls and jade, carrying an indescribable purity, as though she was not of this world.

The goddess referred to him as the “human emperor,” a term from ancient times, which sounded strange today.

But when spoken by the goddess, it didn’t feel odd.

She must be a goddess who had lived from ancient times until now. Had she addressed the ancient emperors like this?

Liu Che was lost in thought for a moment, his mind still in a daze, but his mouth automatically responded with respect, “I currently live in the greenhouse palace.”

The system exclaimed excitedly, “Oh, the Greenhouse Palace! Pray for blessings, pray for blessings!”

Lin Jiu said, “Then you move out today.”

Liu Che was stunned, and the system froze.

The system said, “Huh? What?”

Lin Jiu stared at Liu Che and repeated, “You move out, I want to stay in the Greenhouse Palace.”