Mountain and sea lantern

Chapter 654 Judge's Pen

Wu Jinliang, suddenly subdued, was in a state of shock. He was startled by the sneak attack and watched helplessly as the huge guillotine fell. He didn't know whether to protect himself or Shi Chun. Outsiders could not understand his feelings at this moment.

I was completely stunned, and my mind went straight to the point of thinking, "It's all over!"
He truly believed it was all over, that Shi Chun was finished, and that he was finished along with her.

At the same time, I also regretted it a bit. Why did I come out to see this at this time? It's better to lose one than two at the same time.

That's how people are; they don't know what regret is until they hit a wall.

A hush fell over the audience, with only the sharp sound of the guillotine blade slamming down.

The tremor of the guillotine sliding down traveled from the beams to the grooves, and the necks of the row of prisoners could clearly feel it. Shi Chun was truly driven to despair this time, and he finally understood what it meant to be too clever for one's own good.

Kneeling behind, Granny Qi watched Shi Chun wriggle and struggle in front of her, feeling a mix of emotions. She never imagined that getting involved with that guy would cost her her life.

Previously, those executed were mostly derelict officials of the royal court. Now it's the turn of outsiders like them. Many members of the Bai clan and disciples of the Extreme Fire Sect who were waiting to be executed were trembling as they watched the blood flow like a river. Every time the guillotine fell, it felt as if blood was splashing onto their faces.

The smell of blood at this moment, and the feeling of being on the verge of death, made some of them want to vomit. It was a completely different feeling from killing someone with their own hands and seeing blood.

The audience members who were connected to the criminals being executed held their breath. Some felt a chill run down their spines, while others couldn't bear to look. Miao Yilan, for example, closed her eyes and turned her head away.

There were also those who gloated, such as Gong Shaoci.

Daozhen, standing before the mirror in the main hall, turned his gaze toward the Demon Queen the moment the guillotine fell.

He wasn't interested in the killing; he was more concerned with the Empress's reaction.

It turned out that the Empress Dowager remained calm and composed, showing no intention of sparing the life.

This made it even harder for him to dispel some of his doubts.

Suddenly, he noticed that the Empress's expression changed drastically, and her gaze towards the mirror intensified.

He suddenly turned his head to look at the mirror image, and saw a golden light flash across the sky above the sea of ​​people, just barely hitting the falling giant guillotine.

Or rather, it passed through a giant guillotine.

Almost everyone in front of the mirror changed color, especially Queen Xin, whose face showed fury. How dare someone interfere with the execution in the Dongsheng Royal Court in public!

Only Yin Luo, the patriarch of the Qingqiu Fox Clan, showed a slight twitch in her eyebrows but no reaction; this turn of events seemed to be within her expectations.

Those at the execution ground vaguely felt a golden light flash overhead, followed by a crisp bang. The sound wasn't loud, but it was clear enough for those far away to hear, as if the giant guillotine had pierced through.

What's going on? Shi Chun, whose neck was resting on the guillotine, also heard the noise, but he couldn't see anything because his head was being held in place by the tight chain. However, he did think of something positive: had Situ Gu and the others finally made their move?
Then came a loud bang that made his neck go numb, his jaw hurt, and his ears were ringing.

Then something warm was poured over his face from both sides, flowing down his face and into his eyes. He blinked hard and saw red blood, and he also saw heads tied with chains on both sides falling to the ground and bouncing around.

Coupled with the numbing pain in his neck, he cried out in his heart, realizing what it felt like to have one's head fall to the ground, and that consciousness could remain so clear even after one's head was severed.

The body, which had been tense and struggling, suddenly relaxed.

With your head already off, what's the point of struggling? Save your energy.

The sudden limpness in his body caused a pulling sensation that made him feel uneasy again.

If your head is cut off, can you still feel the connection to your body?

He subconsciously turned his head to look at the left and right sides.

Although he couldn't look up, he could still tilt his head slightly from side to side, and with his eyes able to look sideways, he immediately saw the streaks of blood on the ground and realized his visual height.

He quickly twisted his neck and struggled again, only to realize that his neck was still on his head.

The guillotine has already fallen, how come everyone else's heads have fallen off but yours haven't? What kind of nonsense is this?

This kind of good thing is so good it's almost unrealistic, completely unrealistic.

Make some noise! ​​Why is there no sound at all? Why is there no crying or wailing after the execution?
Little did they know, everyone on and off the stage was stunned by the sight before them, and even those who had been weeping forgot to cry.

So he wondered, is this what the soul feels like after death?
He moved his body again and found that he was still bound by the chain. He was puzzled. Surely, after a person dies, their soul can still be bound by this chain. Could this chain from the Eastern Victory Royal Court be some kind of magic weapon?
The elation of surviving a disaster was completely absent from his mind at this moment.

In short, without knowing the truth, his mind was filled with all sorts of thoughts about life and death, and he couldn't be sure that he had crossed the line between life and death.

The truth is, under the guillotine on the stage, only the chains binding him were still making sounds of struggle.

The guillotine was on the front, and his head was still swaying before it hit the ground.

Behind the guillotine, only his waist and buttocks were still writhing, like a maggot in a pupa.

There was nothing he could do; the massive guillotine had a gap at the blade's edge above his neck, pierced by the golden light. So, when the guillotine fell, all ninety-eight heads fell off, but his remained intact, giving him a truly visceral experience of beheading.

That intense, tangy sensation is something most people can't experience.

The golden light that pierced the guillotine hovered in the air above the execution ground; it was a large, golden pen, about an arm's length long, with a faint glow.

Most people in the audience looked at the pen and had no idea what it was.

On the contrary, Miao Yilan, who couldn't bear to look directly at it, slowly turned her head to look, and was instantly drawn to it, then blurted out: "Judge's Pen?"

Gong Shaoci, standing nearby, didn't recognize it either, as he had never seen it before. After being reminded, it took him a moment to realize that since the underworld was sealed, it probably wasn't the pen from the Death Prison in the netherworld. So he tried asking, "Judge of the Prison of Life?"

Miao Yilan nodded slightly, then looked on with surprise and doubt. She subconsciously covered her mouth with both hands and discovered that Shi Chun's head had not been cut off and that Shi Chun was still alive. She couldn't believe it and blinked repeatedly, wondering if she had seen wrong.

Gong Shaoci and the others who heard this were taken aback.

Although they had never seen the Judge's Pen, they knew that the Judge's Pen of the Prison belonged to Du Huoguan, the prison inspector of the Prison, and was the inspector's magic weapon. Du Huoguan was known to the outside world as the Judge.

The reason why outsiders call him "Judge" is similar to the homophones of "Prison Master" and "Domain Master," hence the nickname "Jailer."

The underworld has a judge in the underworld, and Du Huoguan is the judge in the underworld.

Du Huoguan was a figure second only to the emperor in the Prison of Life and Death. To most people, he was an unattainable and terrifying figure. Those convicted by him were sent to the Prison of Life and Death to be punished, and once inside, they suffered a fate worse than death.

Of course, the judge's pen cannot arbitrarily frame people without evidence; if he were to openly act recklessly, the various forces outside would not allow it.

But in the cultivation world, anyone who has done bad things in private, when facing that judge, who wouldn't be afraid? They would immediately feel guilty and have to consider whether their bad deeds have been exposed.

Even Gong Shaoci was secretly terrified at this moment, and at the same time, his eyes were full of doubt. What did it mean? The judge wouldn't let Shi Chun die?
That shouldn't be the case. I've only ever heard of judges arresting people, never saving them.

Dressed as an old man, Wu Jinliang, who was frozen in place, also showed surprise in his eyes. He then wanted to slap himself twice. Chun Tian had already said that he had prepared a backup plan, and now the backup plan had come. Why did he come here? Wouldn't it have been better to just hide? Now look what happened, wasn't this just asking for trouble?

He's finally regaining his senses and is trying to figure out who arrested him.

Before the celestial mirror in the main hall, upon seeing the gleaming golden pen, Queen Xin coldly said with a grim expression, "Du Huoguan!"

A look of surprise flashed in the Empress's eyes.

At the execution site, the guards, who hadn't noticed anything amiss at first, rushed out as if facing a formidable enemy, keeping watch over their surroundings.

Three figures swept through the air, dressed in the same Heavenly Court armor as the royal court's troops. The leader reached out and grabbed a golden judge's pen, which flew into his hand and landed on his chest and shoulder as if holding a command arrow.

He had a round, smiling face and two sleazy mustaches, giving him a strong impression of a smiling tiger. In short, he was not a good person. He was born into a prison and his name was Qieshan.

They were under the command of Du Huoguan, the prison inspector.

As for the matter at hand, and that insignificant person who hasn't been beheaded yet, it's far from enough for Du Huoguan to personally handle it. Sending a lowly errand boy is sufficient.

However, Shan is also a fearsome figure. He is the kind of person who occasionally appears and arrests people, and he is both a powerful fighter and has a powerful background.

Of course, the prerequisite for fearing him is to know him; the ignorant are naturally fearless.

“A smiling tiger…” Miao Yilan muttered softly.

She was someone they recognized, but most people present did not. However, the executioner recognized her and waved for the guillotine to be raised.

Holding the judge's pen in his hand, Qieshan walked up to Shi Chun with slippery bloodstains under his feet and said with a smile, "Verify your identity."

One of the attendants immediately knelt down and removed the headband binding Shi Chun's head.

The three of them completely ignored the royal court troops surrounding them.

"It seems I really am not dead?" Shi Chun struggled again.

The giant guillotine, still dripping blood, was pulled up with a clang. Though it had a gash, it was like a curtain being drawn back, leaving the executioner and Qieshan facing each other across a groove.

The executioner had his sword drawn, the blade pressed against Shi Chun's neck. Shi Chun, who had just looked up and twisted his neck to check, confirmed that he was not dead and immediately became obedient again. He made two muffled noises, but seeing that he could not express himself and was afraid of causing a misunderstanding and being killed, he obediently put his neck back down.

Qieshan smiled at the executioner, "You look familiar, it's like we've met before."

The executioner, sword in hand, said in a deep voice, "Qieshan, what do you mean? Are you trying to storm the execution ground?"

"You flatter me. How can someone who enforces the law knowingly break it?" Qie Shan said with a smile, pointing to the judge's pen he was holding with his other hand. "What could I possibly be doing as a gofer? I'm just following orders to arrest criminals."

(End of this chapter)