Chapter Forty-Seven: Lamborghini!

Awkwardly, not a single person responded to Nezha; it seemed an unspoken understanding had arisen among them all. Until the King acknowledged Nezha, none of them would do so. Realizing he was being ignored, Nezha could do nothing. Now, he was no different from an ordinary child—powerless, unable to fight, and when he tried to provoke, he was simply disregarded. In Jiang Yuan's eyes, he was just an elementary school kid; who would bother quarreling with a child?

Zhang Kui smoked contentedly, while Li Jing, lacking the support of his magical power, was already beginning to sway unsteadily, much as Zhang Kui had when he first started. Jiang Yuan watched the pair, a faint smile on his lips. By the rules, these two had overstepped the bounds of propriety between king and subject, but his mood was good, and he was not the same King Zhou as before. He considered it a brief holiday for his two followers.

At last, the two finished their cigarettes. Jiang Yuan quietly waited for Li Jing's reaction. Driven by respect for the king, Li Jing forced himself to smoke it to the end. Afterward, just like Zhang Kui, he paused for a moment, while Lady Yin supported him with concern—why did her husband seem as if he were drunk?

"General Li, take a moment to sense any changes within you. The benefits will become clear," Zhang Kui said with a playful smile.

Li Jing focused on himself. His eyes, a moment ago clouded, suddenly narrowed in shock.

"My spirit sense?" Li Jing asked in disbelief, unsure if this was truly the effect of the cigarette he had just smoked.

Zhang Kui nodded, confirming his suspicion. "You guessed right, General Li. The divine object bestowed upon you by His Majesty will increase your spirit sense. If I'm not mistaken, with this growth, you are not far from the Golden Immortal realm."

Li Jing, face alight with excitement, bowed deeply to Jiang Yuan. "Your servant thanks Your Majesty for the generous gift. I will not fail in my duty to guard Chentang Pass!"

"This is only what you deserve, General. When you ascend to the Golden Immortal realm, remember to bring me the good news. And if True Immortal Taiyi comes for Nezha, tell him to seek me instead," Jiang Yuan replied with a cold huff.

"Yes, Your Majesty," Li Jing answered respectfully.

Jiang Yuan summoned the Amethyst Qilin. Seeing this, Zhang Kui called forth his own steed, the one-horned Wuyan Beast—two majestic divine beasts side by side. As Nezha hesitated over which mount to choose, Jiang Yuan reached down and pulled him onto the Amethyst Qilin.

Zhang Kui spoke with some concern, "Your Majesty, the seal on General Li's son's powers will soon fade. Shall I reinforce it for a while longer?"

Jiang Yuan shook his head calmly. "No matter. Let him ride with me."

"Understood. I shall keep an eye on Nezha for Your Majesty," Zhang Kui replied dutifully.

Jiang Yuan smiled. Even if Nezha regained his powers, there was no guarantee he could match him. With the power of the Genesis Life and Death Divine Art, he felt certain that within his own realm, he was invincible.

"This is as far as you need accompany us, General Li." With a wave, Jiang Yuan truly took the reins of the Amethyst Qilin and departed.

Li Jing watched his king ride away, feeling a twinge of melancholy.

Lady Yin, witnessing all this, teased, "What, are you already missing Nezha as soon as he's gone?"

Li Jing glanced at his wife, forcing a smile. "I was just wondering if our king can truly turn the tide in these times of peril."

As he drew closer to the Golden Immortal realm, Li Jing could sense the fading fortune of the Shang Dynasty. The signs were ominous. Recently, he had heard of the phoenix singing to the west of Qi, and wondered if this, too, was a sign of Shang’s declining fate.

"And if His Majesty cannot?" Lady Yin asked curiously.

Li Jing looked at her, his tone grave and deliberate. "Then we must be prepared to give our lives for the kingdom."

"But what about Nezha..." Lady Yin hesitated; she cared not for her own fate or her husband's, but for Nezha, she could not help but worry.

"No one else is to blame—it is only because he is my son," Li Jing said with resolve.

Lady Yin sighed, saying nothing more.

Seeing his wife's sorrow, Li Jing hesitated, then tried to comfort her. "Nezha’s master is True Immortal Taiyi, who is a disciple of a Sage. So, what fate awaits our son is still uncertain."

At this, hope flickered in Lady Yin’s eyes—so long as there was a chance for Nezha’s survival.

Li Jing gazed after Nezha, remembering how his wife had lain in bed for three years, pregnant with their son. That was why he had treated Nezha so harshly. He knew how spirited and quick-tempered his wife once was, and now, seeing her so gentle with Nezha, he could not help but place great hopes on the boy. The hearts of the couple were now polar opposites: Lady Yin only wished for her son's safety, while Li Jing hoped his son would surpass him one day.

There is no shame in a son outshining his father; on the contrary, it brings great comfort.

But Nezha knew nothing of his parents’ expectations. All he was thinking about was how to trick King Zhou into giving him another cigarette.

Nezha decided to take the initiative, whispering to Jiang Yuan, "You’re the Supreme King of Shang, the ruler of all under heaven—you must have many treasures, right?"

"What are you trying to say?" Jiang Yuan replied blandly, not taking the bait.

Hearing the king respond, Nezha felt a surge of hope.

"I’d like to see some of those rare treasures you have," Nezha ventured.

"If you want something, just say it," Jiang Yuan replied.

"I want to try one of those cigarettes you gave my father," Nezha said, eyes wide with anticipation.

Jiang Yuan looked down at the boy in his arms, a faint smile on his lips. "And who do you think you are right now?"

"I'm your disciple, aren't I? Didn't you say so to my parents?" Nezha replied matter-of-factly. Right now, all he wanted was a cigarette. He had completely forgotten about any enmity between himself and Jiang Yuan.

"And what about your master, True Immortal Taiyi?"

"He’s my master too. Can’t I have two masters?" Nezha retorted.

So this is how shameless Nezha is, Jiang Yuan thought. No need to be polite.

"Oh? If you want to be my disciple, then you must do as I say," Jiang Yuan said evenly.

"Does that mean I can have a cigarette?" Nezha pressed.

"No. We’ll talk about it later," Jiang Yuan refused without hesitation.

"What do you mean, ‘later’? I want it now! When is ‘later’?" Nezha protested, rolling around in Jiang Yuan’s arms, utterly unreasonable.

"When I say later, I mean when you’re grown up."

"That excuse again! Why do all you adults use the same reason?" Nezha complained.

"You’ll understand when you’re older."

"So this ‘later’ is also when I’m grown up?" Nezha asked, confused.

"Exactly," Jiang Yuan replied unhurriedly.

Nezha fell silent. If everyone treated him like a child, what more was there to say?

Then, as if remembering something, Jiang Yuan smiled and said, "You can’t have a cigarette, but there is another fascinating treasure I can show you."

"What is it?" Nezha asked, his eyes lighting up.

Jiang Yuan gave the reins a gentle tug, bringing the Amethyst Qilin to a stop. Then he produced the Lamborghini he had won in a lottery. To think the first person to take a ride in this sports car would be Nezha and not a beautiful maiden—Jiang Yuan couldn’t help but marvel at fate’s unpredictability.