Chapter 033: Misfortune Ahead

Of course, the art of deduction was not omnipotent. If the gap in strength between Wang Bo and his enemy was too great, even a successful deduction would be useless.

Take Ilúvatar, for example. Even if Wang Bo deduced that the other would kill him with a single finger, what good would it do? Even if he racked his brains, he could not defeat Ilúvatar.

After all, the gap between them was simply too vast.

As Wang Bo pondered, he heard Yuan Tiangang urging him again, but he was not annoyed. Having accepted the other's favor, it was only fair to help him out.

"Alright, let's go."

After handing Yuan Shoucheng's deduction technique to Little White, Wang Bo followed Yuan Tiangang through the teleportation gate and entered the center of power of the Great Tang.

In fact, this was not Wang Bo's first time here.

Wang Bo had been to several Great Tang worlds, entering the imperial palaces of both Chang'an and Luoyang. Although each world's palace had subtle differences, they were generally very similar.

Before long, Wang Bo arrived at the emperor's bedchamber.

Entering the chamber, Wang Bo saw a man with dark circles under his eyes, a pale complexion, and clad in a dragon robe.

Without a doubt, this was the emperor of the Great Tang, the famous Emperor Taizong of Tang in history.

At this moment, Emperor Taizong held a scroll in his hands, reading intently, but his health was poor. Not only were his eye sockets dark, but even his eyes were bloodshot.

However, thinking that the other had been unable to sleep for several days and nights, Wang Bo found it normal.

If an ordinary person encountered such a situation, they would have died from exhaustion long ago. But now, the person facing this was the emperor, the supreme holder of power in the Great Tang.

Too many people served him. Not only was he nourished with ginseng and deer antler, but cultivators likely also infused their vital energy into the emperor's body to prevent his essence from depleting.

Thus, even if it were seven more days, there was no possibility of sudden death.

The reason the other looked so miserable was not so much physical as mental fatigue, or rather, spiritual fatigue. That was more troublesome.

"Your Majesty," Yuan Tiangang stepped forward and called softly.

Hearing this, the emperor looked up, put down the scroll, and said, "It's Minister Yuan. You come to see me late at night. Do you have good news to tell me?"

Yuan Tiangang nodded and said, "Indeed, Your Majesty. This old Daoist has found someone who can cure Your Majesty."

A flicker of excitement passed through the emperor's eyes. He scanned the bedchamber, his gaze falling on Wang Bo. "You mean this man?"

"Exactly."

The emperor looked Wang Bo up and down, sat up straight, assumed the imperial posture, but asked amiably, "And you are..."

Seeing the emperor about to put on a show of humbling himself before the wise, Wang Bo rolled his eyes, stepped forward, grabbed the emperor's head, and said, "Enough nonsense. Let's treat the illness."

With that, his formidable solar true qi surged into the emperor's body.

Wang Bo's solar true qi, having undergone many transformations, was now impervious to all evils. As the warm, sun-like true qi flooded into the emperor's body, the emperor felt as if he were soaking in a hot spring, warm and incredibly comfortable.

He couldn't help but moan.

At the same time, wisps of black qi emerged from his seven orifices.

Wang Bo reached out and grabbed the black qi, binding it with his solar true qi.

These black qi had been clinging to the emperor's brain like a stubborn disease, clearly the culprit behind his sleeplessness.

It must be some kind of malicious curse.

By capturing the black qi, Wang Bo had naturally broken the curse.

Though it seemed effortless, Wang Bo knew the curse was far from simple; otherwise, Yuan Tiangang would not have sought his help.

Clearly, this was a very profound curse, and few in the Great Tang could have resolved it.

Seeing Wang Bo holding the black qi, Yuan Tiangang asked cautiously, "Your Majesty, how do you feel now?"

The emperor said with a strange expression, "I... I feel much better."

He had never seen a cultivator so presumptuous toward him. He was the emperor of the Great Tang, the supreme mortal ruler. Even immortals and gods treated him with courtesy.

Someone like Wang Bo, who scolded him for talking too much, was indeed rare.

Though a bit angry, the emperor's anger subsided after experiencing the other's skill. After all, capable people were often unruly.

The emperor understood this well.

So he decided to hold back and win the other over with his charm.

Seeing that the emperor did not fly into a rage, Yuan Tiangang breathed a sigh of relief. If the emperor had punished Wang Bo for the great disrespect, he wouldn't have known what to do.

Fortunately, this emperor had some tolerance.

But he hadn't expected Wang Bo to be so insolent toward the emperor. After all, this was the supreme mortal ruler, protected by the power of the human way. Ordinary cultivators wouldn't dare treat the emperor like this.

Yet this one completely disregarded the emperor.

But now was not the time to discuss that. Seeing the black qi in Wang Bo's hand, Yuan Tiangang quickly said, "This is the curse that caused Your Majesty's sleepless nights, isn't it?"

Wang Bo nodded. The emperor's gaze was also drawn to it, and he couldn't help asking, "Now that the curse is lifted, am I safe?"

Yuan Tiangang shook his head and said, "Your Majesty, though the curse is lifted, the vengeful spirit that cast it has not been found. Until that spirit is found, Your Majesty will not be safe. This old Daoist ventures to ask: does Your Majesty know who this vengeful spirit is and why it cursed you?"

Hearing this, Wang Bo realized that the curse was not cast by a person but by a vengeful spirit. But what kind of vengeful spirit was so powerful that it could curse an emperor?

This was a Journey to the West world. Though the emperor was an ordinary man, he was protected by the power of the human way.

Basically, he was impervious to all evils.

To bypass the power of the human way and curse an emperor was no easy feat, yet the other had succeeded. What was more interesting was that the curse was cast not by a person but by a vengeful spirit.

This vengeful spirit was truly formidable.

The emperor hesitated a few times and said bitterly, "Minister Yuan, must I say it?"

Yuan Tiangang said, "If Your Majesty insists on not speaking, then the only option is to go to the underworld in person and file a complaint."

The emperor said, "Didn't I already send someone?"

Yuan Tiangang shook his head and said, "Your Majesty, a few days ago you dispatched the Demon-Suppression Bureau to the underworld, but there has been no news. This old Daoist fears that those you sent have already met with misfortune."