The Disfigured Beauty Becomes a Succubus to Repay Her Debt

Chapter 21: Chapter 21: Code 0-15 Dragon Pearl

Jiang Chaosheng was seeing Li Qinglian in a new light.

’He even had some tricks up his sleeve, managing to fool a Taboo Item back into the antique shop?’

Under the suppressive power of the antique shop, no Taboo Item could ever stir up trouble.

Fortunately, Li Qinglian hadn’t had the heart to erase the Dragon King’s resentment inside the Dragon Pearl.

Erasing the Dragon King’s resentment would have, at best, yielded an obedient Taboo Item. Nothing more.

But what if the Dragon King’s resentment was left intact?

’This could be an opportunity to learn the origins of these Taboo Items!’

Whether it was the Scythe of Death, Cain’s Seal, or the Soul-Sealing Demon Jar, none of them could have appeared out of thin air.

As the Manager of Antique Shop Zero, he was, of course, a firm believer in the existence of Deities.

The ’0’-series of numbered Taboo Items were the very proof that Deities had once existed.

Perhaps, with Jiang Chaosheng’s planning, the remnant soul of the Dragon King in the Dragon Pearl could regain its sanity and become a living Deity in this world!

Jiang Chaosheng needed to know where Antique Shop Zero came from. He needed to know how the Taboo Items truly came into existence.

Jiang Chaosheng was different from the other Managers.

The other Managers spent their lives chasing after Taboo Items. To put it bluntly, they were controlled by Antique Shop Zero.

What Jiang Chaosheng wanted was to completely control Antique Shop Zero and wield all its Taboo Items as his own.

Know your enemy and know yourself, and you will never be defeated.

Therefore, obtaining more information about Antique Shop Zero was crucial.

’What about retrieving the Taboo Item, the Evil Crow? And learning the origin of the Taboo Items from it? That wouldn’t work. According to the previous Manager’s notes, that Evil Crow is a complete idiot. It knows nothing and only possesses empty Divine Power.’

Jiang Chaosheng stared at the simple, unadorned Dragon Pearl, murmuring self-deprecatingly:

”A mad god. Interesting.”

’He was a madman, too—and he had a doctor’s note to prove it.’

Jiang Chaosheng reached out and touched the Dragon Pearl.

In the next instant, the Dragon Pearl erupted in a blazing white light that swallowed Jiang Chaosheng whole.

...

Jiang Chaosheng’s vision returned, and he looked from side to side.

This was no longer the familiar Antique Shop Zero.

It was bright all around, a vast expanse of white with no distinct objects.

”I’m in Antique Shop Zero. It’s impossible for any force to have taken me away, so I must still be in Antique Shop Zero.”

Jiang Chaosheng tried to take a step forward.

He couldn’t feel the ground beneath his feet, yet he definitely had the sensation of walking.

Jiang Chaosheng murmured:

”Perhaps... this is an illusion, a mental world, or a dream.”

WHIMPER, WHIMPER...

Jiang Chaosheng heard crying. The sound was aged and desolate.

Jiang Chaosheng’s gaze searched the vast whiteness for the source of the sound.

A hunched-over old man in black robes, his head full of white hair, suddenly appeared less than a meter in front of Jiang Chaosheng.

Jiang Chaosheng didn’t make a single rash move.

The previous Manager had said that this Dragon King was mad, highly aggressive, and had even nearly plunged the previous Manager into a deep slumber.

Jiang Chaosheng was certain of one thing: he was now in a mental world.

Otherwise, the Dragon Pearl wouldn’t have the ability to attack anyone.

The old man in black continued to cry, his shoulders shaking violently.

Jiang Chaosheng just watched him quietly.

He felt no reverence for the god, no curiosity, no fear.

This bizarre standoff continued for an unknown length of time.

Gradually, he began to feel bored.

Finally, the old man in black spoke his first words:

”Sob... I’m filled with such hatred, such resentment... I refuse to accept this... sob...”

’Maybe this Old Dragon King is starting to get bored, too?’

The old man in black’s crying grew louder and louder, turning from sobs to wails:

”My son is dead! My beloved consort is dead! I want revenge! I want revenge!”

Jiang Chaosheng didn’t respond, quietly listening and watching from behind the old man.

The old man in black stopped crying. His shoulders were no longer shaking, and he muttered to himself:

”...I failed... I failed... I was plotted against.

Li Shimin stood by and did nothing, letting Wei Zheng execute me in a dream.”

The corner of Jiang Chaosheng’s eye twitched.

’Wei Zheng... Li Shimin... a dream...’

A name was on the tip of his tongue.

’The Jing River Dragon King!’

’The Jing River Dragon King... he wasn’t just some character made up for *Journey to the West*—he was real!’

Jiang Chaosheng believed that this Jing River Dragon King was not the arrogant, muddle-headed Dragon King described in *Journey to the West*.

The original work never mentioned the Jing River Dragon King’s wife and son dying.

’He’d always found that part of *Journey to the West* strange.’

’The Jing River Dragon King violated heavenly law because of a bet with a mortal.

Logically speaking, the one to execute the Jing River Dragon King should have been the Jade Emperor, on the Celestial Court’s Demon-slaying Platform.

So how did the plot points of ”the Dragon King begging Li Shimin for help in a dream” and ”Wei Zheng executing the Dragon King in a dream” come into play?

Could it be that the creator of *Journey to the West* knew the real story of the Jing River Dragon King and added it to the novel in a cryptic way?

Was the creator a Taboo as well?

Or perhaps a buyer... or even... a Manager!’

The Jing River Dragon King’s shoulders began to tremble again.

This time, it wasn’t from sobbing.

Jiang Chaosheng heard the sound of grinding bones.

It was like a long-unused, rusted machine suddenly starting up.

CREAK... CREAK-CREAK...

The Jing River Dragon King’s body, like a wind-up puppet, turned its head mechanically, accompanied by that creaking sound:

”I was plotted against... Li Shimin had me killed... Wei Zheng abandoned me... I want revenge... I will kill the enemy who destroyed my family...”

Jiang Chaosheng saw an old face, twisted with the utmost venom and resentment, like that of a Fierce Ghost.

The Jing River Dragon King’s sinister, triangular eyes overflowed with malice as he fixed his deadly gaze on Jiang Chaosheng:

”I must have my revenge... I must have my revenge...”

The air grew damp and sticky, cold as the depths of an ancient lake.

A tangible, icy killing intent locked onto Jiang Chaosheng, as if he were the enemy.

The Jing River Dragon King was completely mad.

Jiang Chaosheng’s expression was blank.

He wasn’t about to stoop to a madman’s level.

Jiang Chaosheng spoke slowly:

”Who is your enemy?”

If a normal person had faced the Dragon King’s oppressive aura, they probably would have been scared speechless, frantically trying to escape this world.

Just like the previous Manager—Li Qinglian.

But Jiang Chaosheng was a madman, too.

A psychopath, incapable of fear and lacking all empathy.

When the Jing River Dragon King heard Jiang Chaosheng’s question, a flicker of confusion crossed his eyes.

He had originally wanted to attack Jiang Chaosheng to vent his inner resentment, but Jiang Chaosheng’s question had stumped him.

’My enemy... who was it?’

The Jing River Dragon King suddenly clutched his head with both hands, his face contorted in pain:

”Who was it?! Who was it?! Who the hell plotted against me?!”

A small smile played on Jiang Chaosheng’s lips. He dipped his head slightly, staring at the Jing River Dragon King, and drawled:

”Let’s make a deal.”

This was a mental world, but it was still inside Antique Shop Zero.

And as long as one was inside Antique Shop Zero, the rules of trade applied. A deal could be struck.

The Jing River Dragon King’s ancient face remained twisted in a grimace.

He clutched his head, intermittently pulling his hair and smacking the back of his own head.

He was trying desperately to remember, as if he hadn’t heard Jiang Chaosheng’s words.

Jiang Chaosheng continued:

”You will pledge your loyalty to me and perform Cloud Formation and Rainfall at my behest.

In exchange, I will help you find your enemy.”

The Jing River Dragon King’s body once again froze mechanically, like a wind-up toy.

His eyeballs rolled about randomly, moving fast, like two bouncy balls ricocheting inside a confined space.

Finally, his gaze settled on Jiang Chaosheng. After a long moment, his lips moved:

”Give me a time limit.”

Jiang Chaosheng said:

”One hundred years. If I haven’t found your enemy by then, you may rip my soul from my body, and I will be damned for all eternity.”

The Jing River Dragon King spoke slowly:

”Deal.”