Scourge Messenger

Chapter 111 Entry and Exit Mechanism
Do you know about the decree for rewarding good and punishing evil?

Yan Qing really didn't know; he had only heard others discussing it in the Mansu Forest, but hadn't investigated it: "I only know it's very precious."

Shang Xinlei gave him a deep look and said, "If a messenger wants to enter the Divine Marquis's Mansion in the Third-Rank Secret Realm, he must possess the Order of Rewarding Good and Punishing Evil. This has been the only method since ancient times. Of course, this is no longer the only way. Other messengers can also kill us to gain the opportunity to enter the Divine Marquis's Mansion and receive the reward."

Yan Qing vaguely understood her meaning: "Some secret realms require you to hand over certain items to enter?"

Shang Xinlei nodded: "It is said that the Jinghua Dream Theater, the third secret realm of the Jie family, also requires dancers' shoes to enter. Moreover, the dancers must be at a level close to the Dao, which means they must be proficient in basic dance steps to meet the requirements. Therefore, the Jie family has cultivated the largest song and dance troupe in the entire Central Plains. There are even festivals about dancers in the area throughout the year. Any child with dancing talent can be adopted by the Jie family in order to cultivate as many dancers as possible to collect their shoes."

"The scholars, tailors, and gamblers mentioned in this door are probably not ordinary people; they must be the best in their respective fields."

"Whatever the entrance to the secret realm demands, it must be; no one can deceive the secret realm." She looked at the golden gate before her, her eyes filled with admiration, fear, but mostly bewilderment: "Was this gate moved here by Emperor Liang Taizu? Could a Foundation Establishment messenger have done something like this? How exactly did he dismantle the entrance to the secret realm?"

Yan Qing wasn't as surprised as Shang Xinlei. After all, if even the turquoise slab used for human-machine verification could be dismantled and used as a safe's switch, it wasn't surprising that Liang Taizu would dismantle the entrance to the secret realm and use it as a door. If Liang Taizu was a thief, then his style of theft could be described as 'ruthless and merciless,' showing absolutely no courtesy to the secret realm.

“If cheating isn’t an option…” Yan Qing glanced back at the secret vault: “This place doesn’t seem like it would hide a scholar’s ​​pen or a tailor’s needle…”

"We can't get out."

Shang Xinlei slid down the stone wall and sat on the ground. Her tight night pants outlined her rounded buttocks and fleshy thighs. She lowered her head and stated the cruel truth simply and bluntly: "How could the royal family be stupid enough to put the key to unlocking the lock in the secret vault? If they wanted to enter the secret vault, they would definitely collect it in advance. These items are not hard to find. Where in Jiangnan City would there be a shortage of scholars, dancers, tailors, and gamblers?"

“I should have thought of that earlier… In any case, the royal vault is a place to store valuables. Even ordinary warehouses have early warning and anti-theft mechanisms, so it’s impossible for the royal vault not to have them. But because the vault is so well hidden, it’s impossible to send people to guard it. It’s understandable that there is no early warning mechanism, but it’s impossible that there is no anti-theft mechanism.”

"What ingenious security measures... They're useless to the royal family; they'd certainly prepare the necessary items before entering. But for thieves, it's a disaster. Thieves can't possibly be so well-prepared, and they can't contact the outside world or even call for help. There's no food here, not even any blood-replenishing pills."

"No one knew, no one listened, no one could save them. This was Emperor Taizu's punishment for the thieves. In despair and silence, they could only watch helplessly as the treasures in the secret vaults were filled, and they died of hunger."

"I've been planning to enter the secret vault all along, thinking that the Shao royal family was incredibly arrogant to leave it underground unattended." Shang Xinlei raised her head and said self-deprecatingly, "It turns out that when we entered the secret vault, we also entered a tomb that was prepared for us arrogant people a hundred years ago."

Silence fell over the secret vault. Shang Xinlei closed her eyes and took a deep breath, but she still couldn't calm the fear in her heart.

Of course she was afraid of death, very afraid. She had been pampered since childhood and had never suffered much hardship. How could she not be afraid of death? Especially the most terrifying death of starvation. She would rather commit suicide than be tormented by hunger to the point of madness.

If she couldn't choose where she would die, she would at least choose a painless death, and preferably one that would preserve her beauty.

She opened her eyes and saw Yan Qing still standing in front of the secret vault door. Perhaps because death was approaching, she suddenly became curious about some trivial matters: "Yellow Dog, where are you from? Jiangnan? Chang'an? The North?"

“I’ve already taken off my mask, why don’t you take it off too? We’re all trapped here anyway, and unless the royal family suddenly comes down to check, we won’t be able to get out.”

"I bet you're really ugly, that's why you don't dare take off your mask."

Seeing that Yan Qing still didn't respond, Shang Xinlei's voice grew softer and softer.

Looking at the cold and fussy man before her, she wondered if he couldn't accept this fact. He had so many loyal subordinates, like the leaders of assassin and intelligence organizations in stories, stirring up trouble in the shadows, harboring ambitions to overthrow the world. The protagonist had to go through countless hardships to even see him. He was the kind of person who was described as a hero in life and a ghost in death. In the end, he was going to die in this place, neither making a name for himself in history nor leaving a lasting infamy. He would just be a failed thief, rotting away in obscurity underground.

Besides, there's a beauty like Jiang Shi waiting for him outside. Is he thinking about Jiang Shi right now? But I'm thinking too. If Jiang Shi were trapped with me, I'd feel happy even if we were starving. Shang Xinlei also felt a little guilty, after all, Yan Qing had fallen to this state because of her, but there was also a trace of inexplicable relief, like a beautiful flower blooming in the mud—thankfully he was there, so she wouldn't be alone on her journey to the underworld.

She carefully stood up and walked behind Yan Qing, hesitating for a long time before saying, "Actually, there might not be no hope. With such a commotion tonight, the royal family might send someone down to check the secret vault, and then we'll have a chance to escape..."

"The royal family also conducts regular inspections of the secret vaults; we might be able to hold out until then..."

As she spoke, Shang Xinlei herself became more energized, and most of her fear dissipated. After all, as long as someone came down to check the secret vault, they would definitely be saved. However, at this moment, Yan Qing said, "Even if someone comes down, we won't be able to escape. They only need to block the entrance to the cave to catch us. Even if we manage to escape through the entrance, how can we escape the palace guarded by the Foundation Establishment messenger? At that time, our identities will definitely be exposed."

exposed.

Fear gripped Shang Xinlei's heart like a demonic claw, and she trembled all over.

She couldn't imagine the consequences of her identity being exposed. Infiltrating the palace, stealing from the secret treasury, assassinating the emperor—any one of these actions, if associated with her, would have a devastating impact on the Shang family. Perhaps the Shang family would still be the Shang family, but her father, mother, brother… her closest relatives would all be implicated, even though she had never done anything for them and had always been taken care of by them.

For a moment, Shang Xinlei felt as if she couldn't breathe. She wanted to comfort Yan Qing, but she couldn't comfort herself. She didn't want to die like this, but the price of living was too high for her to pay. She might even be happier to die, at least she wouldn't be resented by her family while she was alive.

She slowly slumped to the ground, her vision gradually blurring. She tried to wipe away her tears, but the more she wiped, the more tears flowed, and even her breathing turned into sobs.

The royal vault may not have been a grave; she drove herself to her doom.

A roll of toilet paper was handed to her. With teary eyes, Shang Xinlei looked up at Yan Qing, then at the rough toilet paper in her hand. She wiped her face haphazardly and asked incredulously, "Where did you get this toilet paper?"

“I always take it with me when I go out, just in case I need to use the restroom?” Yan Qing glanced at her: “You peed in your eyes, don’t be shy.”

Shang Xinlei was speechless, unsure whether to laugh or cry. She whimpered, snot running down her face, making her mask sticky. She quickly wiped it clean with toilet paper, but the paper was really rough. She was delicate and had never used such cheap personal items before. After wiping for a while, her whole face was red and burning, making her look like a little kitten.

Seeing this, Yan Qing burst out laughing, unable to hold it in any longer. He crossed his arms and laughed heartily. Shang Xinlei was heartbroken and was both angry and annoyed by his laughter. She couldn't help but punch him, but Yan Qing dodged it. "Next time, can you wear a mask before you pee through your eyes? You look so ugly when you cry, hahaha."

"Mind your own business!" Shang Xinlei retorted. "Besides, I don't look ugly when I cry. I've looked in the mirror!"

"Really? Isn't it ugly to have snot running down your face?"

"You saw it wrong!"

After several unsuccessful attempts, Shang Xinlei gave up. After all that trouble, her regret lessened considerably, replaced by shame for her earlier humiliation and anger towards Yan Qing.

Looking at Yan Qing, who remained calm and composed, she suddenly thought of a possibility.

"Do you have a return order?"

(End of this chapter)