Chapter 189 Totem, Ruined Temple
Chapter 189 Totem, Ruined Temple
The riverbed is real.
What just happened was not an illusion.
Fu Shaoping glanced at his surroundings warily. There was yellow sand all around. He looked up, but there was neither the sun nor the moon, just red and yellow.
Fu Shaoqing, Fu Shaohong and the other three who were with him mysteriously disappeared behind them after stepping into the vortex passage.
Elder Yunshan did not provide any information about Minghuangtian.
Fu Shaoping was somewhat confused:
"Where can I find the Pure Yang Jade in this damn place?"
"Let's find a place to settle down first."
After coming out of the river.
All I could see was a vast expanse of desolate ground, without a single bit of green.
Walked all the way.
Slowly, some withered tree stumps appeared before my eyes.
Suddenly.
There was a faint noise in the distance.
Fu Shaoping had an idea and took out the invisibility cloak from the chaotic space and put it on. After checking that there was nothing wrong, he tiptoed forward. When he got closer, he saw a little light of fire.
A hundred steps away.
But I saw a group of people holding torches. They were wrapped in black cloth, leaving only their eyes exposed.
In front of them.
On a dead tree more than ten meters high, a woman in a single layer of clothing was tied to the tree.
At her feet, a man had his hands and feet tied up, forced to kneel on the ground, a rag stuffed in his mouth, and a dense mass of firecrackers wrapped around his body.
at this time.
A hunched-backed woman walked out from a group of people in black robes.
He tore off the black cloth covering his face and spit viciously at the woman tied to the dead tree, his eyes full of resentment:
"You are a jinx who brings bad luck to your husband and children. You killed my son before he even got married. I welcomed you home with such kindness, but you didn't know how to be grateful and behave like a wife. You didn't stay faithful to my son and instead hooked up with that low-class guy, you shameless whore. I shouldn't have rescued you from the river Styx in the first place, and I shouldn't have agreed to let my son marry you. You damn jinx! If it weren't for you, my son wouldn't have died at such a young age. I'm so tired of seeing my son off at such a young age."
The woman kept on chattering.
Suddenly.
There was a sound of footsteps.
Someone immediately stepped forward and pulled her away, whispering:
"The priest has arrived."
The old woman shuddered when she heard that, and quickly stopped talking. She followed the crowd and dispersed to both sides to make way for a passage.
But a man in a high priest's robe slowly came over. The red-haired man stood in front of the dead tree, looked around at everyone, and said loudly:
"Nangong Ning is not a good woman and has committed adultery with a married man. According to the rules of our Qiushan Village, she should be set on fire to warn the world."
talking.
The high priest took the torch handed over to him and threw it directly at the man kneeling on the ground. The firecrackers wrapped around the man immediately caught fire and the man let out a miserable cry, which soon became smaller. When the man fell to the ground, the firecrackers on his body were still burning. When the last one exploded, his whole body had turned pitch black and his body was covered in blood.
The high priest motioned his subordinates to come forward.
The man in black robe reached out his hand and checked the breath of the fallen man.
Replied:
"Sir, Guishan has been executed."
The high priest nodded slightly upon hearing this.
Fetch another torch.
"Boom!"
At this moment, a muffled thunder was heard from the sky.
The originally quiet people in black robes were all shocked and began to discuss:
"It's been a year of drought. Could it be that God has opened his eyes and it's going to rain?"
"You're thinking too much. God must be fed up with this and wants to kill that bitch Nangong Ning!"
"That's right. We in Qiushan Village shouldn't have taken in these outsiders. They are all ominous people."
"Why was the Luoye Village next door wiped out overnight? It was because some good people took in those outsiders!"
"If she is not of our race, her heart must be different. Even if Nangong Ning didn't steal anyone, we will burn her alive!"
Everyone was talking a lot.
The high priest stopped and looked up at the gray sky.
He raised his hand to stop everyone from talking.
His eyes narrowed slightly.
He threw the torch in his hand directly at Nangong Ning who was tied to a dead tree.
The torches fell on the high piles of wood.
There was a bang.
The woodpile that had been dry for nearly two years was immediately ignited, and the fire quickly grew larger.
Everyone threw their torches over, and the fire became even bigger.
Just now.
A flash of lightning streaked across the sky.
Drops of water fall dripping.
Then there was a downpour, and the rain instantly put out the fire.
Otherwise.
The man in black robe couldn't care less at this point.
Everyone was excited:
"It's raining, it's raining, hurry, go home and get some water, oh my God is really merciful."
Everyone ran home without hesitation, fearing that they would be a little slow and miss the water.
In the blink of an eye.
The area in front of the dead tree became empty.
Only Nangong Ning's mother-in-law, the high priest Li Cangming and two subordinates Li Wei and Li Wei were left.
The old woman was not willing to accept that Nangong Ning did not die:
"Master Priest, the sky lantern ceremony has not yet been completed. Should we wait until the rain stops before continuing?"
The two subordinates, Li Wei and Li Wei, looked at each other. Li Wei took a step forward, approached the high priest Li Cangming and whispered:
"Sir, this sky lantern is a one-time thing. If it happens again, it will break the rules. In addition, the rain from heaven means that this is Nangong Ning's fate. Since God doesn't want her, we shouldn't be the bad guys."
Li Wei also chimed in:
"Sir, we have been experiencing drought for nearly two years, and it is not easy to wait for a rain. If we light the sky lanterns twice and the drought continues, I am afraid that the people in the village will put the blame on you. It is not worth it for Nangong Ning, who deserves to die."
There was a thoughtful look in the eyes of High Priest Li Cangming.
As the high priest of the village.
There has been no rain for the village in the past two years, and its prestige has declined.
The purpose of choosing Zhong Nangong Ning to light the sky lantern this time was to re-establish his prestige. Now that the goal has been achieved, there is no need to light the sky lantern again.
High Priest Li Cangming looked at the old woman and said:
"Aunt Qiu Chang, we in Qiushan Village have always followed the rules. We only light the sky lanterns once."
Without waiting for the old woman to speak.
High Priest Li Cangming changed the subject and continued:
"Although the sky lantern is only lit once, we are not obliged to free Nangong Ning from the punishment tree. Do you think she can survive the night in the wilderness?"
This statement came out.
The old woman's eyes flashed, she nodded repeatedly, turned around and threw a stone at Nangong Ning, then left with the high priest and the other two and returned to Qiushan Village.
Fu Shaoping, who was hiding in the dark, watched a good show.
Seeing that the high priest and others were no longer visible, he took off his invisibility cloak and walked to the dead tree.
When Nangong Ning saw Fu Shaoping, her face, which had originally seemed hopeless, immediately showed excitement. She glanced up and down at Fu Shaoping's clothes and even cried out in excitement.
Fu Shaoping took a step forward and tore away the rag that was stuffed in Nangong Ning's mouth.
Nangong Ning was instantly delighted:
"Fellow Taoist, save me!"
Fellow? !
Fu Shaoping narrowed his eyes slightly and asked tentatively:
"You are."
"Fellow Daoist, I am Nangong Ning, a disciple of Tiannanxing in Jinzhou. Five years ago, I accidentally fell into the Dark Emperor Heaven while exploring an ancient cultivator's cave. Since we are both cultivators, please save my life. I will definitely repay you and will never forget your kindness in saving my life."
Jinju?
That is the Central Plains, which is tens of thousands miles away from their Quzhou.
How did the other party end up in this Hades Heaven?
and.
Five years have passed.
This Nangong Ning couldn’t find a way to leave this place?
From the vague conversation between the villagers just now, he had already understood that the Qiushan Village was obviously not friendly to outsiders. He was unfamiliar with the place and needed a guide. Fu Shaoping was decisive. He swung the Blood-Drinking Knife in his hand and cut the rope on the other party.
Nangong Ning was overjoyed.
She didn't expect Fu Shaoping to be so easy to talk to. She thought he would bargain:
"Fellow Daoist, we should not stay here any longer. Please follow me."
Nangong Ning led the way in front.
After the heavy rain.
The dirt road became muddy.
Nangong Ning turned around and around, constantly changing directions. After an unknown amount of time, a bare stone mountain appeared in front of her. On the back of the mountain, Nangong Ning pushed the stone and a passage appeared in front of her. Nangong Ning was in front and Fu Shaoping was behind. After entering the cave, the stone door rumbled and closed again.
The cave suddenly became pitch black.
but.
Nangong Ning seemed to be able to see it.
There were a few crackling sounds, and a spark was lit, and the cave was soon illuminated by the campfire.
Nangong Ning sat by the campfire, looking at the red flames, then glanced at Fu Shaoping, and suddenly choked up.
Fu Shaoping was stunned for a moment.
After going through the gates of hell and meeting people who share the same journey, it is understandable that I feel a little sad.
Fu Shaoping didn't say anything either, just stayed quietly by the side.
Nangong Ning adjusted herself quickly.
Wipe away the tears immediately:
"Daoyou, to be honest, this is the first time I have met a Taoist since I fell into the Dark Emperor Heaven. Back then, I fell from that cave into this place. When I woke up, I found myself tied up and locked in a dark basement."
"This stage will last for three years."
"In these three years, I tried everything, but I found that I couldn't mobilize the energy in my body at all. Three years made me realize that in this world, I am no longer a high-ranking cultivator, but a weak woman who can't even lift a chicken."
"I don't want to live in vain."
"I want to escape from that dark dungeon."
"So I had to pretend to agree to marry the libertine who had been kidnapped and imprisoned for three years."
"But I was still too naive. After I came out of the dungeon, the playboy was still worried and tied me with chains. The only places I could move around were his kitchen and backyard. For two years, I got up earlier than the chickens and slept later than the dogs. I served their family like a slave for two whole years."
at last.
She got her chance.
He collected a poison from the herbs that he used to make medicine for the old woman, intending to kill the whole family. However, he was discovered by the playboy, who raised a knife to kill him. Fortunately, God saw him and he accidentally fell, and the knife hit his own forehead.
She took the opportunity to escape from Qiushan Village.
But in the end he was caught.
Moreover, he directly framed her for having an affair with the man.
Fortunately.
She survived:
"Fellow Daoist, I'm sorry I've been rambling on for so long. By the way, I haven't asked where you are from and what your name is."
"My last name is Fu, and I'm from Quzhou."
Fu Shaoping originally wanted to extract more information from Nangong Ning.
Never thought.
The other party was actually detained for five years.
In other words.
The intelligence the other party had was similar to what he knew:
“Fellow Daoist Nangong, can the high priest in the high priest costume use Yuanli?”
"No, but I heard that the priest of Minghuangtian can use the power of totems. However, the high priest of Qiushan Village is not powerful enough and can't even summon a rain."
The power of totem?
Fu Shaoping frowned.
They are just ordinary people now. If they really go against a powerful priest, they will be at the mercy of him.
and.
Judging from the situation in Qiushan Village.
Minghuangtian is obviously not very welcome to outsiders.
It rained for a while.
Nangong Ning seemed to remember something, and immediately stood up in a panic, pushed open the stone door, looked at the sky outside, and said:
"Friend Fu, it will be dark in another hour. We must quickly find a place guarded by a totem to hide."
"Why?"
Nangong Ning seemed to be still a little frightened.
There was some fear on her face:
"In this Dark Emperor Heaven, there will be strange creatures appearing at night. Only the places guarded by totems can prevent them from entering. Otherwise, I am afraid we will not survive this night."
talking.
Nangong Ning pushed the door open and walked out.
Fu Shaoping followed closely behind:
"Fellow Daoist Nangong, what do you mean by strange?"
"I can't explain it to you right away. I'll tell you in detail when we find a place to stay."
Nangong Ning stood on a huge rock. After identifying the direction, he jumped off the rock and headed southwest.
It took about a cup of tea.
A collapsed wall appeared before my eyes.
On the top of the city.
A stone tablet clearly had the words "Luoyezhai" written on it.
Nangong Ning said:
"Fifty years ago, for unknown reasons, the people of Luoye Village had their throats cut overnight, including the chief priest. When they were collecting the bodies, they found that only the outsider in their village was missing. So everyone speculated that it was the outsider who killed him."
"All the people in Luoye Village have died."
"Everyone thinks this is an ominous place, so no one wants to move in. Over time, it has become a deserted city. If the totem here has not been destroyed, we can stay here tonight."
Enter through the city gate.
After being washed by rain.
This abandoned city actually shows some signs of life.
The house had almost collapsed.
but.
In the center of the city, a stone temple stood there intact.
Fu Shaoping and the other person took a few quick steps.
He found that the gate of the stone temple was still locked, but the lock had already rusted and decayed. Fu Shaoping pulled hard and the lock broke into pieces. He pushed open the stone door and saw thick dust.
It hadn't been cleaned up in fifty years.
Dust piled up like a mountain.
(End of this chapter)