Records of Mysterious Things in the Southern Dynasties

Chapter 490 The Overlord removes his armor
While Ayao was fighting the Overlord one-on-one, the others were not idle either. Faxiu, wielding the Nanming Lihuo Sword, cleaved away countless ghost soldiers who rushed towards them.

Su Xiaoxiao plucked the pipa powerfully, producing a resounding and fierce sound that defeated one ghost army after another.

Chen Lingzhi also wielded a soft whip that resembled a serpent, whipping away countless fish that had slipped through the net.

“There are too many ghosts, we can’t possibly defeat them all!” She said to Su Xiaoxiao in a deep voice while brandishing her whip, “Since the vengeful ghosts are all formed from resentment, let’s try to win them over psychologically.”

"Okay." Su Xiaoxiao said in a deep voice, "Cover me."

"Don't worry." Chen Lingzhi suddenly increased the force in his hand, and the soft whip drew a sharp circle on the surface of the river, stirring up a towering curtain of water.

The water curtain actually shimmered with a faint golden hue, and any ghostly soldiers who rushed into it vanished into thin air with screams...

Fa Xiu was stunned. He could see clearly that it was a drop of blood from Chen Lingzhi's fingertip that had merged into the water curtain.

That drop of blood was actually golden... and you still say you're not a fortune teller?

Su Xiaoxiao didn't care about any of that; she focused all her attention on playing the pipa piece "The Hegemon Bids Farewell to His Concubine"!
With a deep and powerful strumming, the mournful melody quickly spread, bringing the Hegemon and the Chu army back to their last battle before their deaths...

They recalled the heavy mood with which the Hegemon-King mustered his troops for the last time in a desperate situation.

The pipa music grew faster and faster, so fast it was almost suffocating. They recalled the despair of the battlefield at Gaixia, where even after charging left and right with Xiang Yu and killing countless enemies, they still couldn't break through the Han army's ambush from all sides. In the end, they suffered heavy losses, their strength exhausted, and could only retreat back to their camp in despair.

At this moment, the pipa played a heart-wrenching melody, and the sounds of Chu songs from all sides rose up, forming a stark contrast to the tragic battle and desperate fighting that had preceded them. This only deepened the sorrow of the Overlord and his soldiers, who all ceased fighting, immersing themselves in the desolation of their final night…

Then the beautiful Yu Ji came to the side of the defeated Xiang Yu, removed his heavy armor for the last time, and bandaged his wounds.

Faced with this scene, the once high-spirited Overlord finally succumbed to despair and sang in a hoarse voice:

"My strength could uproot mountains, my spirit could cover the world. But the times are against me, and my steed will not go."

My steed will not go, what can I do? My beloved Yu, my beloved Yu, what will become of you?

Upon hearing this, Consort Yu sang in sorrow:

"The Han army has seized the land, and the songs of Chu echo from all sides. Your Majesty's spirit is broken, what reason do I, a lowly concubine, have to live?"

Having said that, he drew his sword and committed suicide in front of the Overlord...

Overwhelmed with grief, Xiang Yu embraced Yu Ji and wept bitterly.

The soldiers of the three armies also cried out in unison, "Overlord, Overlord, will we never be able to return to Jiangdong?"

~~
Su Xiaoxiao's pipa music completely disoriented the King of Chu and the soldiers of Jiangdong, making them lose all sense of time.

Those Jiangdong ghost soldiers who remained steadfast in their loyalty to Xiang Yu even in death wept bitterly amidst the music, their weapons falling into the river. Xiang Yu's Overlord Halberd remained suspended in mid-air, veins bulging on his forehead, unable to extricate himself from the agony of defeat.

"Please, young lady, have mercy." At this moment, a figure in a red dress appeared on the river. The beautiful woman with long, flowing hair and a sorrowful expression was none other than Yu Ji.

Yu Ji's ghost moved lightly to the side of the small boat, bowed gracefully, tears staining her rouge, and said in a plaintive voice:
"After the defeat at Gaixia, eight thousand Jiangdong soldiers were buried far from home. My king is caught in a dilemma: if he lives, he has no face to face the elders of Jiangdong; if he dies, how can he face his soldiers in the afterlife? He has been blaming himself for hundreds of years without relief. Please, young lady, stop tormenting him."

“But we’ll have to wait until the Overlord lets us go first,” Chen Lingzhi said loudly. “We are just passing through Xiling Gorge and have no intention of arguing with the Overlord. How about we let each other go?”

“This young lady is unaware of something, but the Ghost King possesses an ancient treasure called the ‘True Spirit Rank Chart.’ The names of emperors, generals, sages, and worthies throughout history are all inscribed on this chart after their deaths, and they are compelled to serve him.” Yu Ji sighed, “Unless you eliminate your inner obsession, you will forever be subject to the Ghost King. Otherwise, with my king’s pride, how could he possibly serve as a gatekeeper for the Ghost King?”

"Xiang Yu's obsession is nothing more than his defeat at the hands of Liu Bang, and his inability to face the elders of Jiangdong," Chen Lingzhi said loudly to him.
"But seven hundred years have passed, the Han Dynasty founded by Liu Bang is long gone, but the name of the Hegemon-King has only grown louder. You should let it go!"

"I had a thousand chances to kill Liu Bang, yet I squandered them all. In the end, Liu Ji succeeded in turning the tables and establishing the Han dynasty for five hundred years. How can I forgive him?" Xiang Yu said bitterly. "Liu Bang won because he was an emperor, while Your Majesty lost because you are a hero. Heroes are often no match for emperors, but compared to cunning and scheming emperors, our Chinese people admire a resolute hero like Xiang Yu more," Chen Lingzhi shook his head and said solemnly.

"As the saying goes, the Great Wall stretches for ten thousand miles, yet all ambitions for hegemony vanish in an instant. Where are the descendants of Liu Han now? The world only remembers Xiang Yu, the King of Chu..."

She paused, then continued with a nostalgic expression, "I have a good friend who once wrote a poem that serves as proof—'To live, be a hero; to die, a ghost of valor. Even now, I think of Xiang Yu, who refused to cross the Yangtze River.'"

"So, Your Majesty, would you rather be a hero admired by all, or a ruthless emperor?" Chen Lingzhi asked in a deep voice at the end.

Upon hearing this, Xiang Yu's pained expression eased considerably, and his furrowed brows relaxed. He slowly said, "Your friend is indeed a confidant of mine."

"It's a pity that my good friend also sacrificed himself to cover the army's retreat." Chen Lingzhi said, and also bowed to the Overlord, saying, "I beg the Overlord to cherish heroes and let us go to pay our respects to the Ghost King and bring him back to the human world."

Upon hearing this, the Overlord opened his eyes, looked at the women with pleading faces, then at Yu Ji, and saw her smile and nod. Finally, he slowly nodded, swung his Overlord Halberd, and said in a deep voice, "Go!"

"Thank you, Overlord." Upon hearing this, everyone felt as if they had been granted a pardon and quickly set sail to pass through the checkpoint.

The Overlord and Consort Yu stood side by side, watching the small boat sail away into the distance.

The sky gradually returned to its original color. He turned back to look at the Jiangdong brothers on the warship and asked, "Do you still blame me?"

"No blame!" the soldiers replied in unison.

"Really?" Xiang Yu asked uncertainly.

“Really!” The soldiers nodded emphatically, “We have never blamed the King.”

"Then am I really a hero?" Xiang Yu asked Yu Ji again.

"Of course," Yu Ji said with a smile. "For thousands of years, when people mention heroes, the first person they think of is Your Majesty. Even I have benefited from this honor."

"..." Xiang Yu remained silent for a long time, then suddenly smiled with relief and said, "It's not bad."

Then he said to his generals and soldiers, "Let's go, follow me back to Jiangdong!"

"Yes!" the soldiers responded loudly. The warship slowly turned around and sailed downstream.

"Your Majesty, let's go home too." Yu Ji slowly walked towards Xiang Yu.

"Let's go home." Xiang Yu smiled, and the two intertwined their fingers. Their figures gradually became transparent and disappeared into the beautiful Xiling Gorge.

P.S. This is the last volume.

This book was a completely new attempt by the monk, and as we all know, it was a failure...

Although the book's performance was less than satisfactory, the monk remained very dedicated to writing it, without cutting corners. Firstly, to be worthy of all the paying readers, his bread and butter; secondly, to be worthy of the book itself and of his own hard work.

I think that if I write a satisfying ending to this volume, I'll have accomplished both of these goals.

Actually, given the significant risks involved, I didn't create a very long outline before writing. This volume's conclusion is, in a way, a normal ending. It's more accurate to say that some of the filler material has been removed…

Thank you all for your continued support. I will definitely bring you a wonderful ending.

Don't worry, after the ending, I'll write a few more side stories as requested...

(End of this chapter)