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墨書 Inktalez
Human Sacrifice
In the towering mountains, beneath dark clouds, lightning flashed and thunder roared as fierce winds howled and rain poured down in torrents.
Everyone was drenched in the rain, but Guo the Blind, standing atop a tree, remained untouched, his clothes billowing without a single drop of water on him.
Under the impact of the rain, a layer of energy surrounding Guo the Blind was clearly visible to all.
Guo the Blind declared, "I will pass. If my Dao Body is still intact, I can kill each one of you with ease. None of you will escape today!"
"You are truly arrogant," Li Fugui retorted, gazing up at Guo the Blind from the ground.
"Arrogance or confidence? Why not test it and find out?" Guo the Blind challenged.
"Then I will give it a try!" Li Fugui shouted angrily, suddenly charging down the mountain, leaping toward Guo the Blind perched on the treetop.
A look of disdain crossed Guo the Blind's face as he pushed forward with one hand from a distance. The raindrops around him gathered like a torrent, and as Li Fugui soared through the air, he felt an unexpected shift in the trajectory of the falling raindrops before a tremendous force sent him flying backward into the muddy slope below.
However, just before hitting the ground, Li Fugui hurled his spear at Guo the Blind. The spear sliced through the air with incredible speed, reaching Guo the Blind in an instant.
Gathering energy in his palm, Guo the Blind pushed against the spear. The spear trembled but passed through the protective energy surrounding Guo the Blind, heading straight for his flesh.
In a moment of desperation, Guo the Blind spun around just in time; the spear grazed his chest, tearing his clothing and drawing a line of blood.
When a practitioner reaches a certain level in Taoism, they generate Dao Fire within their bodies, and an invisible energy naturally emanates from their skin. This energy can ward off evil spirits and purify oneself while also providing some defense against external threats.
The first time I saw this kind of energy emanating from Guo the Blind was in a desolate area beneath Winding Mountain Road. At that time, Huang the Lame had brought Huang San'er to investigate where a bus had fallen off a cliff. Both Guo the Blind and I were hiding in the grass, but no insects dared to approach him.
Guo the Blind fell from the tree, looking at the wounds on his body with immense anger. With a wave of his sleeve, Li Fugui was sent flying once again.
With arms outstretched amidst the splashing rain, a spear shot towards him from a distance, soaring over his head and heading straight for Li Fugui.
Li Fugui frowned and grasped the spear, but as it pierced through his palm, it also stabbed into his chest.
"Grandpa!" Huzi cried out as he rushed towards Li Fugui, who was injured in front of the villagers of Futu Ridge.
"Don't come over!" Li Fugui glared at Huzi, fearing that Guo the Blind would take the opportunity to harm him. The people from the Daoist Sect were unpredictable in their murderous intent, and their dark arts were imperceptible to ordinary people.
Without even looking back, Guo the Blind waved his sleeve, sending Huzi flying away. Fortunately, several villagers caught him, preventing him from sustaining serious injuries.
"This is what you forced me to do," Li Fugui said fiercely as he pulled the spear out of his chest. The wound visibly healed at an astonishing rate.
Guo the Blind squinted in confusion, but just then, a bullet suddenly sliced through the rain and shot towards his face.
The shooter was none other than Liu Quan, who was fiercely loyal to Li Fugui.
Amidst the cacophony of rain, Guo the Blind was caught off guard and hit in the chest by the bullet. He clutched his chest as Dao Qi surged within him, pulling the bullet into his palm. Li Fugui turned and shouted, "Heart!"
Before Liu Quan could comprehend what was happening, he was shot through the head.
Guo the Blind gritted his teeth and said, "I really am getting old; even fish and shrimp can hurt me now."
Stepping forward, Guo the Blind leaped ten meters up to where an officer on the mountain shouted, "Fire!"
In an instant, soldiers all over the mountain opened fire on Guo the Blind. Thousands of bullets pierced through the rain towards him. Terrifyingly, these bullets and raindrops suddenly froze in mid-air. Guo the Blind clenched his fists tightly as Dao Qi surged around him. With a loud roar, a powerful gust of wind erupted from him, scattering outward. With a thunderous boom, all the bullets flew back towards their origin.
Just as the bullets were about to strike the soldiers, they suddenly froze in mid-air and silently fell to the ground.
Everyone was horrified, unable to believe that one person's power could stand against thousands. The powerful firearms had failed to kill the old man before them, and he had nearly wiped them all out.
Guo the Blind was equally astonished, for someone had forcibly halted his Daoist Arts. His face turned pale as he questioned, "Snake Goddess?"
"Guo, do not kill these people. I am but a decaying tree, rising from the earth, and I need to replenish my energy," a voice boomed in everyone's ears, sounding as if it came from the sky or perhaps from underground.
At that moment, the mountains trembled, and from within Futu Ridge emerged one after another of enormous white snakes. Each White Serpent measured twenty to thirty meters long, covered in white fur, with fierce eyes and roaring mouths.
In an instant, the surrounding mountains of Futu Ridge were swarming with these massive White Snakes. As soon as they appeared, they charged into the crowd, scattering both soldiers and villagers alike.
In the underground caverns, more White Snakes emerged, slithering up to the mountain peak in search of food.
Meanwhile, in the distant forbidden area, several peaks suddenly shot up into the clouds. Amidst the earthquakes and tremors, the mountains surrounding Futu Ridge erupted violently; soil rolled over as hundreds of soldiers fell into collapsing terrain.
A deafening roar echoed as a colossal snake head broke through Futu Stupa from below. It surged upward, causing nearby mountains and giant trees to topple. In the chaos, I led my mother frantically toward the center of Futu Ridge.
The earth-shattering roar filled our ears as the gigantic snake head pierced through the clouds. It opened its mouth wide, swallowing dark clouds and lightning. In an instant, blinding sunlight illuminated the ground of Futu Ridge. Everyone witnessed a serpent as thick as a mountain emerging from the earth. It moved slowly around Futu Ridge's mountains, causing them to crumble and shake.
As this immense serpent completed its circle, it raised its head. Its tongue extended several hundred meters long, reflecting everyone in its deep yellow eyes. Its massive mouth formed a curve that resembled a smile.
During this time, everyone screamed in madness; their desperate cries filled the air. A few brave villagers were so terrified that they dropped dead on the spot, their pupils dilated.
Although Futu Ridge was not large, it housed at least a dozen villages within it. The surrounding mountains stretched for at least fifty or sixty miles. Yet the giant serpent coiled around them completely, with an extra long tail draped beyond the mountain range.
The serpent's body was covered in long hair resembling Birch Trees. It dawned on me that what I had seen at the bottom of Dragon Vein Burial Ground—those Birch Tree-like pillars—were actually hairs from this giant serpent's body.
The giant serpent had a pair of slightly deformed horns atop its head, and its abdomen revealed hints of malformed flippers. Beneath its fur, the snake's skin was marked with deep folds that extended several meters, resembling scales from a distance.
All the soldiers were so frightened that they dropped their weapons and collapsed to the ground, while the villagers of Futu Ridge knelt in reverence, chanting the name of the Snake Goddess.
Many were so terrified that they lost control of themselves, trembling all over and unable to lift their heads.
Before the giant serpent, both ghosts and deities, as well as villains, appeared utterly insignificant.
It was then that I understood why, for generations, every hundred years a Daoist Grandmaster would come to Futu Ridge to reseal the great serpent. I realized why the Old Scholar would rather indiscriminately kill innocents and treat his disciples with such cruelty just to seal the Futu Stupa atop the serpent's head.
Because the great serpent should not exist in this world.
I finally grasped the meaning behind Chang Yuchun's words in the Light Shadow of the Zhou Compass.
The White Snake, which had cost eight thousand elite soldiers to capture, had likely already reached a length of a thousand meters over six hundred years ago—at least two village distances. Previously, Mr. Chang and I had speculated in the underground world that Li Shanchang's blood sacrifice of Three Thousand Young Boys and Girls might have been aimed at the White Snake rather than the Dragon Vein.
The White Snake, having undergone blood sacrifice, had its lifespan significantly extended and its vitality became even more resilient.
Over these six hundred years, the White Snake had been consuming Spirit Energy from the Dragon Vein day and night to strengthen itself. Now, the entire Dragon Vein underground had dimmed and been nearly depleted; it had grown powerful enough to swallow clouds and exhale mist, instilling a sense of helplessness in anyone who dared to resist.
"A thousand years have passed; how time has changed everything," a voice resonated with profound melancholy yet immense power. The giant serpent's mouth did not move; it spoke entirely through thought.
At that moment, everyone remained prostrate on the ground, too afraid to look up. I searched for Huzi but found no trace of him; Li Fugui had also vanished. They must have escaped outside the mountains before the giant serpent emerged.
Guo the Blind stood at the foot of the mountain, his face pale. It seemed he had never imagined that the true form of the Snake Goddess would be so colossal.
I grasped my mother's hand tightly, fearing she might be scared. I looked up into the eyes of the giant serpent and asked, "Are you the Snake Goddess?"
"Not bad, my dear. Thanks to you, I am finally free," the Snake Goddess said.
I suppressed my fear and asked, "Now that you are out, this is the human world, ruled by mankind. No matter how large your form is, you cannot oppose everyone. You must know the consequences of bringing disaster upon the living."
A faint laugh echoed back. "I have never intended to bring disaster upon the world. Six hundred years ago, nor now. Just because I am a great serpent, humans fear me and believe I will cause calamity. They captured me and buried me in the dark underground for the sake of their so-called Nation's stability."
"Since the Snake Goddess means no harm to anyone, please let us go," I pleaded.
The giant serpent rested its head on its body, its tongue flicking out from the mountain towards me before retracting. The lazy laughter continued, "I have no intention of being enemies with humanity, but I cannot forget the grievances they have caused me. As for those from the Daoist Sect, I will kill them one by one. I have seen too much of humanity's mutual slaughter. After all, those present today are meant to die; why not offer your precious lives as a sacrifice to me?"
"Snake Goddess, we are your most loyal servants. The people of Futu Ridge revere you as a deity and would never dare to disrespect you. Please spare us poor souls!"
"Please, Snake Goddess, show mercy and let us go."
The pleas rose and fell like waves, but the Snake Goddess only laughed heartily. She twisted her massive body, her head as large as a mountain moving down towards the village. Some villagers were so frightened that they fled in all directions.
At that moment, a terrifying light suddenly shone from the depths of the Snake Goddess's eyes, captivating souls. In an instant, everyone except my mother and me, along with Guo the Blind standing nearby, stood up in a daze and began walking towards the Snake Goddess.
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