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墨書 Inktalez
Human Sacrifice
The starlight dimmed over the desolate wilderness of Futu Ridge, where everyone was on edge, and chaos reigned.
Villagers from various settlements were not only rushing out from Winding Mountain Road but also fleeing from other directions towards the mountains.
Except for the forbidden area to the north of Futu Ridge, all other directions had been completely surrounded. After several villagers were killed, no one dared to rush out again; they all retreated back to Bright Moon Village.
Throughout it all, the army surrounding Futu Ridge remained silent, killing anyone who attempted to escape.
In a state of panic, the village leaders of Futu Ridge shouted through loudspeakers, but their pleas fell on deaf ears.
"Why are you slaughtering us? What have we done wrong?" someone cried out.
"You will face retribution for killing villagers; the Snake Goddess will not spare you!"
"Please, don't kill us!"
The desperate cries echoed from the windows of Futu Stupa, and I could faintly hear them even in the forbidden area.
The Snake Goddess had instructed Guo the Blind to take me to Dragon Vein Burial Ground. The cave inside Futu Stupa was the entrance that Mr. Chang and I had used to enter Dragon Vein Burial Ground.
At that moment, the underground world was brightly lit. Amidst the dazzling shadows, I saw a scene even more bizarre and magnificent than what I had witnessed before.
A massive trench split open on both sides, with enormous adjacent caves dotting the mountain walls. These caves might be interconnected, and some protruding rock formations were carved into strange statues resembling totems of certain deities from Buddhism and Taoism.
From these dark caves, I could vaguely smell a foul odor wafting out.
In this underground world, the center of the trench was dominated by towering Magma Columns. These Magma Columns resembled artworks formed by stacking thousands of stone blocks together and then pouring lava over them from top to bottom.
The sound of chains clanking against the rocky walls was the binding force of the Dragon Vein, securing each Magma Column between the Trenches. This sight stretched endlessly, leading to an unknown destination.
The stone staircase we stood on spiraled around one of the massive Magma Columns, descending to the lowest level. The light below was dim, but the greenish glow of jade illuminated the entire underground space. Instead of lava and grotesque corpses, rows of white vegetation resembling trees emerged from the depths.
Occasionally, hissing sounds echoed through the cave as I followed Guo the Blind to a massive altar dragged above these Magma Columns. At that moment, Guo Huaiyi and Crystal Coffin had vanished without a trace.
Guo the Blind pointed to the altar we were on and said, "What we see now is the altar built by the Ming Dynasty's army back in the day. Such a structure would take years for modern people to construct, yet it was completed in just a few months back then. You should know the cost."
In ancient times, whether constructing Langhuan Palace or the Underground Great Wall, or even pyramids and Futu Ridge, it often required tens of thousands or even hundreds of thousands of people to complete. Ancient construction tools were simple and rudimentary, primarily relying on human labor. Monarchs could rarely wait for ten years; they demanded completion within months. Thus, workers had no choice but to toil day and night, resulting in casualties in the thousands by project completion.
Guo the Blind continued, "Since ancient times, commoners have been treated like dogs. Before the blood sacrifice of Three Thousand Young Boys and Girls, countless lives were lost while building this Dragon Vein altar. Afterward, Three Thousand Young Boys and Girls perished here; their blood pooled together and flowed into the Dragon Vein to secure the Ming Dynasty's everlasting dominance. You have the Zhou Compass; I can show you what happened back then."
I took out the Zhou Compass, and Guo the Blind grasped my hand, adjusting the needle. The mechanism of the compass clicked as circles of Light Shadow scattered outward, transforming the entire underground world in an instant.
Before Guo the Blind and me stood an altar filled with people—soldiers with serious expressions wielding long spears flanked either side while bound Child Sacrifices occupied the center. Most were around sixteen or seventeen years old, though some were as young as seven or eight.
"Let me go! I don't want to be a sacrifice; I want to go home!" cried a beautiful girl.
The soldiers parted to make way as General Chang Yuchun strode confidently toward the center of the altar. The slight clinking of his armor accompanied him as one hand rested on his sword at his waist.
Two boys held back the crying girl beside them, urging her to stop, but she continued to wail. Chang Yuchun approached her and pinched her chin, saying, "To be sacrificed for the eternal Ming Dynasty and for my Emperor Zhu Yuanzhang is a great honor for you. Why are you crying?"
The girl glared fiercely at Chang Yuchun and spat in his face. "You burn and kill indiscriminately; you spare no commoners! Only a blind fool would protect the Ming Dynasty! I curse you..."
With a swift motion, Chang Yuchun struck her with a crescent blade at the center of the altar before she could finish her sentence. Her head hung precariously by a thin layer of skin between her neck and shoulders as she fell motionless, blood spraying forth.
I stood right where her blood pooled; it splattered across my face as I instinctively took a step back.
A wave of fear swept through those present; they trembled in silence while some children began to sob uncontrollably.
Chang Yuchun immediately drew his sword and killed two people, saying, "Whoever dares to cry again will be exterminated along with their entire clan!"
Some children still wanted to cry, but the youths nearby covered their mouths to silence them.
A young man stepped forward and shouted, "My entire clan has already been wiped out. Everyone in the Village has been killed by you, so I am not afraid of you!"
"Very well!" Chang Yuchun approached the young man with his sword drawn.
The young man glared at Chang Yuchun and said, "I curse you to have no descendants, to consume your wife and mother, and to die a terrible death!"
Chang Yuchun thrust his sword into the young man's neck, dragging him to the blood trough in the center of the altar and pouring his blood into it.
"I curse you to have no descendants, to consume your wife and mother, and to die a terrible death!" all the Child Sacrifices shouted in unison.
Furious, Chang Yuchun yelled, "Kill them all!"
"General Chang, the sacrifices must have their blood flow into the sacrificial trough. If you kill them in another way out of anger, the sacrifice will be interrupted. If His Majesty holds you accountable, who will take responsibility?" Li Shanchang walked over from one end of the sacrificial bridge.
Chang Yuchun snorted and ordered the soldiers to force the Child Sacrifices around the sacrificial trough, pressing their necks against the crescent-shaped blade. One by one, vibrant lives faded away in humiliation and resentment.
I turned the compass needle back to its original point, and everything before me vanished.
Guo the Blind smiled and said, "Can't bear to watch?"
I rubbed my eyes and asked, "What use is it for you to show me this?"
Guo the Blind replied, "I just want you to see how cheap human life is in the eyes of some people. This has nothing to do with the relationship between rulers and the ruled; as long as there is a difference in class, a person's life is not much different from that of an ant. Even those in the Daoist Sect see mortals as mere ants, easily killed at will."
"By that logic, the Snake Goddess also possesses contempt for all living beings. If she were released, wouldn't it be even harder to restrain her?" I said.
"Guo the Blind said, 'The Snake Goddess is different. Seven hundred years ago, she was already three hundred years old. Even if the White Snake has transformed, its lifespan is limited. However, Chang Yuchun and Li Shanchang wounded her and cast her into the Dragon Vein Blessed Land. The Snake Goddess's true form can stabilize the Dragon Vein, and at the same time, the Dragon Vein can nourish her, but the price is that she can never leave. After a thousand years, the Snake Goddess has cultivated a human form and soul, which is unprecedented in Daoist Sect history. She has witnessed the vicissitudes of life and the warmth and coldness of human nature, far older than the Old Scholar. Do you know what is most terrifying for humans?'
I frowned at Guo the Blind, who continued, 'It is loneliness—being trapped in eternal darkness, immortal yet devoid of light. The Snake Goddess only desires freedom. Moreover, she has lived for a thousand years; her time is running out. If she does not escape soon, she will not survive.'
I looked at the ancient oil lamps on both sides of the mountain and the glowing jade below and asked, 'What happened to the Three Thousand Young Boys and Girls?'
'They all died, including all the soldiers,' a cold voice suddenly echoed from below.
Then, a massive White Snake slithered up from beneath the altar. It coiled around the sacrificial bridge, its body as thick as a water barrel, covered with a layer of white fur.
When Mr. Chang was swallowed by the giant snake earlier, I hadn’t paid attention to its appearance. Now seeing it up close filled me with dread, my hair standing on end.
The snake's eyes were entirely orange-yellow, with pupils like sharp black spikes in the center. Its fangs protruded from its upper jaw, and it even had two horns on its head that looked somewhat deformed.
Long hair grew from just below its head; it seemed to sense my fear and paused in place. The dense hair on its neck moved like fleshy wings, rising and falling with its breath.
I had never seen such a large creature up close before.
'Are you the Snake Goddess?' I asked."
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