Chapter 713
Chapter 713
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>Translator: Ryuma
>Chapter: 713
>Chapter Title: The Hour
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Chapter 713: The Hour
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> Enduring the pain, Lv Xiucai understood that the white donkey by Shiniang’s side had died, and the rumors said the Unborn Venerable Mother needed to reincarnate on six white donkeys.
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> Once tattooed with the white donkey, he would become the Unborn Venerable Mother’s mount, no longer a mere mortal to be trifled with.
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> This was his chance, one he needed to seize, even if it meant paying all sorts of agonizing prices—but right now, he didn’t want to give up his opportunity to grow stronger.
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> Before long, a white donkey gradually took shape on Lv Xiucai’s back. As it grew more complete, Lv Xiucai began to feel as though something extra had appeared on his body.
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> The sensation was utterly bizarre. Lv Xiucai had only ever felt this way briefly during spirit possession rituals in the past.
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> If possession before had only been momentary, now he could maintain it indefinitely.
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> “Now you’re one step closer to the Unborn Venerable Mother than ordinary believers. This is an honor that brings glory to your ancestors—cherish it well, and don’t break the precepts.”
Lian Zhinbei instructed Lv Xiucai.
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> Feeling the changes in his body, Lv Xiucai nodded excitedly. He couldn’t wait to find some Dharma Cult beasts to test his skills on.
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> Just then, the area outside the house suddenly grew lively. When Lv Xiucai, bare-chested, stepped out, he instinctively squinted his eyes.
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> Unbeknownst to him, the sky had already brightened. The other White Lotus followers were anxiously packing their luggage onto the carriages.
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> Normally, the sky wouldn’t be light yet at this time, but because one hour was missing, daybreak had come far earlier than usual.
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> “Let’s go, let’s go! Brothers and sisters, hurry up! Let’s spread the Unborn Venerable Mother’s mercy to every head in Later Shu! Skip lunch—make do with dry rations!”
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> Hearing this, Lv Xiucai instantly understood what was happening. After resting for so long, it was time to move out.
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> He didn’t care about anything else at the moment and rushed straight toward his quarters. As long as he could kill Dharma Cult beasts, he’d always be the first.
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> To Lv Xiucai’s surprise, however, the White Lotus followers and Senior Brother Li didn’t follow the same path as the imperial troops. Instead, they parted ways and left on their own.
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> Lv Xiucai felt puzzled, but seeing Master’s unpleasant expression, he wisely kept quiet.
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> Just as he thought a long journey lay ahead, Lv Xiucai noticed Master’s sullen face from the carriage. “There’s a stench of blood. Head south!”
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> The caravan began to move, heading south as per Li Huowang’s orders.
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> They traveled like this for two hours, yet saw nothing.
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> No one in the group raised any objections, though—because they could all smell the blood-and-rot stench in the air growing ever thicker.
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> The nauseating reek of blood and decay hung thick, spreading like morning mist in all directions.
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> Clearly, no mere one or two corpses could produce a smell like this.
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> Finally, after cresting a hill, they spotted the source of the stench: a wall of heads, a massive bulwark built from death and rot!
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> The enormous wall was strung together from countless human heads, filling the air with blood and decay. The sight filled everyone with despair and oppression.
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> A deathly silence spread through the group, the atmosphere so heavy it left every person struggling to breathe.
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> By rough count, at least several hundred thousand had died here.
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> Suddenly, Li Huowang moved. He stepped forward and walked slowly toward it alone.
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> As he drew nearer, Li Huowang discerned more details.
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> He realized these were all men, most wearing helmets—they were Later Shu soldiers!
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> The closer he got, the thicker the stench became, and the uglier Li Huowang’s expression grew.
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> The Dharma Cult’s intentions weren’t hard to guess. Fearing the Later Shu emperor would persuade his soldiers to surrender, they’d simply slaughtered them all and built this pyramid of skulls!
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> Li Huowang reached the base of the wall and looked up at those ashen faces.
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> Their expressions weren’t twisted in agony; they hadn’t been killed by force.
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> Eliminating future threats? A show of force? Or both? Li Huowang didn’t know.
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> But what he did know was that Later Shu was finished now.
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> With the soldiers all dead and the civilians bewitched, there was nothing left.
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> In the battles against the Dharma Cult to come, this place was utterly useless.
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> Gazing at the corpses, a thought suddenly struck Li Huowang: with so many dead at once, the Death Officer of Life below Qingqiu must be stuffed to bursting.
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> At that moment, the heavens and earth shifted violently. A tremendous rumbling shook the ground as the entire wall of heads collapsed, the dense mass of skulls crashing straight toward Li Huowang.
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> Li Huowang had thought something might be hidden inside the heads, but he soon realized the tremors came from deep underground. The earth dragon was turning over again.
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> “Xuan Pin! I know you’re watching me! What the hell is going on?!”
Li Huowang bellowed into the pile of heads surrounding him.
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> As expected, Xuan Pin’s body rose from the ground. “Xu Shi is gone. The Dharma Cult destroyed another dragon vein.”
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> Li Huowang cursed viciously. “Weren’t all the dragon veins recovered? Where’d they get another one to destroy?”
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> “As I said, there are sixteen dragon veins in total, once held by sixteen realms. It seems the Dharma Cult stole one from elsewhere.”
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> No sooner had she spoken than several rotting heads nearby opened their mouths in unison. “Death comes from the west. Rest in peace.”
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> “Clang~!” Li Huowang’s sword instantly cleared its sheath, ready to slash at the reanimated heads.
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> “Easy now—these are elders from the Temple of Intermediate Dusk, our own people.”
Xuan Pin blocked Li Huowang and explained.
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> “What they mean is, the destroyed dragon vein belongs to the Kingdom of Anxi. To the right of Nanping lies Si Qi, and to the left, the Kingdom of Anxi—another dragon vein there. Looks like the Dharma Cult found this side too tough and shifted their efforts.”
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> At that instant, the ground tremors intensified. The heavens shifted again as the sun in the sky visibly raced across it.
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> “You Shi is gone too.”
Xuan Pin stated concisely.
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> “Sorry, I have business to attend to—I’ll head back first. Great Elder, if it’s convenient, please come as well.”
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> With that, Xuan Pin’s body vanished.
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> By now, Li Huowang had no need to guess where this latest destroyed dragon vein had come from. No matter the source, it changed nothing—the dragon vein had been destroyed.
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> “No time to waste! To Si Qi!!”
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> Li Huowang and Li Sui each pulled out sheets of turmeric paper, swiftly drew talismans, and slapped them onto the backs of the draft horses.
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> The sturdy horses reared up with a neigh and charged madly over the shaking ground, trampling the heads as they went.
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> Not long after they left, a figure emerged from the pile of heads.
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> “That’s the Li Huowang?”
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> “Yeah, that’s Li Huowang.”
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>(End of chapter)