From a small soldier in the frontier army, an immortal god of war was born

Chapter 122 Bone Washing and Sacrifice; Qiling Mountain (Please subscribe~)

She seemed to be hesitant to speak, as if she felt it was something difficult to mention.

Weng Meng, who was standing next to him, couldn't help but come over and said proudly, "Mr. Liu, Ms. Jiang, you don't know this."

"Here in Xiou, we have been protected by Apuyule for generations, so every household has enough food to eat, a house to live in, and a comfortable life..."

After his long and rambling explanation, Wu Fengdeng and the other man finally understood what he was saying.

They believed that all the tribes in Xiou, including the entire Baiyue land, were able to continue and develop under the protection of Apuyou, also known as Chiyou.

Therefore, everyone is in awe of Apuyu. Every year at the end of August, they will hold a sacrificial ceremony and worship, presided over by the Thousand Witches Gang, and sacrifice a pair of bone boys and bone girls to Apuyu to repay its gift.

The reason why they are called bone man and bone woman is also related to a local funeral custom.

Bone washing burial.

This custom is quite special. After a person dies, they will be simply buried or the coffin will be sealed and put aside.

When the time is right, the museum will be reopened. When the skin and flesh are all rotten, the skeleton will be taken out, cleaned and sealed in an urn. Only then will it be buried in a real and solemn manner.

The procedure for offering sacrifice to Apuyu is exactly the same, except that the so-called "bone grafting" will be performed before that.

Every year, the locals select a boy and girl from newborn babies and implant the "sacred bones" into them when they are one month old. When the children grow up and the sacred bones are fully grown, they are eligible to be sealed in the Apuyu's palace.

A Xuan was the bone girl chosen seventeen years ago, and was scheduled to undergo bone washing and sacrifice in August this year.

To Wu Fengdeng and his companions, this sounded very cruel to the children, but in the eyes of the locals it was the supreme honor.

Only by sacrificing the bone man and bone woman to Apuyu will this god bless this world to avoid disasters, and ensure smooth sailing and a peaceful and prosperous life.

In return, the families who offer bone washing sacrifices will receive generous treatment and rewards from the village and have a noble status. When it comes to selecting people, it can be said that they compete fiercely and fight for the position.

That is why Weng Meng is so proud and regards this as the greatest pride in his life.

Stupid.

This was the only thought in Wu Fengdeng's mind after listening to it.

Although there are martial arts and magic in this world, the practice of sacrificing human lives in order to gain safety is pure nonsense.

The reason why the land of Baiyue has been safe and become a paradise over the years is entirely because it is far away from the Central Plains and poses no threat to the vassal states, so they were left alone.

Otherwise, why did Gou Jian, who unified the Baiyue, and became the hegemon, suffer a great defeat later? If there was really a Chiyou protecting and assuring him, why would this place be divided into so many tribes and still be in a safe place today?
If the old man saw this, he would jump out of his coffin!
But although he understood, he didn't intend to say much, as he should respect the local customs. Jiang Qiyu, on the other hand, felt more sympathy and regret.

"Liu Guoguo, Sister Jiang, so you have saved our entire Lingxi Village!"

Ah Xuan didn't look worried at all at this moment, and she was still smiling sweetly: "If I don't come back, Apuyu will definitely punish me this year, and then I will be in trouble!"

The ripples on her silver crown, swaying with fragmented light, were very clean and pure.

Wu Fengdeng nodded slightly, and then stopped asking questions, saying calmly: "In that case, we'll take our leave. Miss, which direction is Qiling Mountain?"

Luzhu pointed to the east, where a mountain that looked like a human face was lying down. "That's it. We'll be there in half an hour."

"Thank you."

Wu Fengdeng then said, "If the people from the Thousand Witch Gang come looking for us, you should tell them the truth. We are going to Qiling Mountain."

He knew that after he left, the Thousand Witches Gang would most likely come knocking on his door, which would then be a disaster for Luzhu's family. Everyone has their own share of responsibility, and he didn't want to involve others.

But before they could move, Ah Xuan jumped out and grabbed Lu Zhu's hand and said coquettishly, "Mom, can I take Liu Guoguo and the others out to play?"

"I haven't been to the mountains for a long time. If you're worried, I can go there on my bicycle."

Seeing Ah Xuan's eager eyes, Lu Zhu's eyes moistened slightly, and she forced a smile and said, "Okay, go and have some fun."

It is now mid-August, and there are still ten days until the bone washing sacrifice at the end of the month, which means that Axuan still has ten days to live.

Luzhu couldn't bear to deprive her of this last moment, especially when facing Axuan's brilliant smile, she felt her nose sore and her breathing quickened.

"Mr. Liu, my youngest sister can lead the way for you."

Wu Fengdeng saw the pain in her heart and stopped refusing.

Looking at this whole family, only Lu Zhu could make him feel the reluctance and sadness as a mother.

This is mother, the same everywhere.

"Ah ball!"

At this time, Axuan ran to the backyard happily. Before the crisp sound faded, she was seen walking out leading a huge creature.

Black and white, as fat as a ball, chewing a piece of bamboo in its mouth, simple and adorable...

Wu Fengdeng's mouth twitched when he saw this. He didn't expect to see national first-class protected waste here.

"Qiuqiu, we can finally go out and play!"

Ah Xuan hugged the fur of the iron-eating beast and rubbed it, which made Jiang Qiyu beside her purse her lips slightly and subconsciously hold Wu Fengdeng's hand tightly.

"Good, very pleasant."

After much hesitation, the three people and the bear finally set off.

After leaving Lingxi Village, there is still a green ocean as far as the eye can see to the east, and the brown mountain road winds away, with a very pleasant scenery.

Perhaps girls are born with no resistance to cute things. After hesitating for a while, Jiang Qiyu couldn't help but ask Axuan if she could ride the iron beast.

"Okay, okay, Qiuqiu is very fat, Sister Jiang, come up quickly!"

A Xuan enthusiastically took her in and helped her sit on the seat. Jiang Qiyu was a little nervous at first, with her mouth opened tightly, but she soon adapted to the situation. She buried her hands in the fur of the ferruginous animal and explored, enjoying the experience very much.

roar~
The combined weight of less than 200 kilograms was no pressure for the iron-eating beast. Instead, it enjoyed the caress of the two women and growled with satisfaction.

"How's Sister Jiang? Aqiuqiu is much better than your horse!"

"Yeah, do you usually ride it when you go out?"

"I seldom go out. Usually my mother rides it to collect herbs."

……

Wu Fengdeng was walking on the side, listening to the conversation between the two girls. He turned around, looked at the big furry head, and couldn't help but reach out and touch it.

Smile lightly.

We, Old Wu, have also touched national treasures!
At this time, the breeze is blowing, the sea is green, colorful butterflies and birds are flying, the fragrance of the mountains and forests is refreshing, and the beautiful woman is by my side, it is really quiet and beautiful.

Wu Fengdeng used to be in a place where there were battles everywhere and there were mountains of corpses and seas of blood. Now he feels that the years are peaceful and quiet, free from all worldly desires.

If he wasn't in a hurry to deal with the hysteria, he would really hope that time would pass slower.

……

Noon, Lingxi Village.

Hundreds of villagers knelt tremblingly by the water. The bodies of Pangdun'er and the other four had already been drained of blood. Several men wearing geometric flowery clothes and bandanas on their heads only stood up after they had finished the examination.

One of them said to the tall and thin man in front of him, "Master Priest, Awei and the other four were all killed by the strong force. The wounds were clean and they were killed in one blow. Judging from the force alone, they are at least in the late stage of the Strong Bone Realm."

The tall and thin priest nodded indifferently, his eyes paused on Weng Meng, and asked: "This year's bone girl is from your family, right?"

"Yes Yes Yes."

"Awei abused his power and deserves death. This matter has nothing to do with you. Everyone, stand up."

"Thank you, Master Priest, thank you, Master Priest!"

When they heard that the Thousand Witches Gang had not held them responsible, all the villagers finally let go of their worries and stood up tremblingly from the ground. "Where did they go?"

"Qiling Mountain, they are going to Qiling Mountain!"

Weng Meng replied quickly.

"Didn't you run away? Haha."

The priest was quite surprised when he heard this. He thought that after they killed the people from the Thousand Witches Gang, they would quickly row away and leave Xiou, but he didn't expect that they would still have the leisure time to travel and enjoy the scenery.

Just based on this mentality, he is not an ordinary person.

"Master Priest, should we chase them and kill them? They dared to kill our people in our Thousand Witch Gang's territory. It's obvious that they don't take the Thousand Witch Gang seriously."

Someone beside him asked in a cold voice, which made Luzhu's family break out in cold sweats again.

The Thousand Witches Gang is always vindictive, and I can't escape being hunted down by them...

Unexpectedly, the priest slapped the man on the spot, and the crisp sound attracted a lot of attention.

"How dare you! We, the Thousand Witches Gang, have always been aboveboard in our actions. These four people, A Wei, abused their power, were greedy for money and bullied others. They deserve death. That Young Master Liu just did it for us!"

"With your awareness, how dare you call yourself a subordinate of Apuyu!"

"Yes, yes, this subordinate deserves to die!"

The man immediately knelt on the ground and kowtowed repeatedly to apologize, which stunned the people around him.

When did the Thousand Witches Gang become so upright?

The priest had an indifferent expression on his face, and his deep eyes were filled with cunningness, making it impossible to guess what he was thinking.

He's not stupid.

Just now they all guessed that Young Master Liu was at least in the late stage of the Strong Bone Realm, which would make him a priest-level figure in the Thousand Witches Gang. Moreover, he was so young, so he must have an extraordinary background.

Only a fool would do such a brainless thing as offending a young man for the sake of these four losers like Awei.

Moreover, they now have a mission to accomplish. The distinguished guests from the Yin-Yang School who came from the State of Chu were the ones who the three witch masters personally wanted to entertain, and they would not dare to neglect them even if they were given ten times the courage.

That's why he performed this drama of sacrificing his own relatives for the sake of justice in front of everyone.

"Throw the body up the mountain. This matter ends here. We still have to go and receive the distinguished guests from the State of Chu."

"Yes!"

……

Before Qiling Mountain, turn the last corner.

"Xiao Guoguo, look, this is Qiling Mountain!"

A Xuan stepped down from the iron-eating beast and raised her slender fingers high.

Wu Fengdeng followed his gaze and didn't feel anything when he looked from a distance, but now when he looked up, he could feel the grandeur and height of Qiling Mountain.

It is still dense green, climbing up to occupy most of the sky, with no end in sight.

"Brother Fengdeng, this mountain is so high!"

Jiang Qiyu also tilted his neck upward, his little face full of amazement.

"Of course. We often say here that Qiling Mountain was where Apuyu practiced in the past. It used to have a very high status in Xiou."

"Now, there are herbs everywhere in the mountains, and most of the people who come here are witch doctors like my mom."

While introducing, A Xuan led Wu Fengdeng and the other man up the mountain along a hidden path. Thanks to her guidance, otherwise this hidden stone road would have been difficult to find.

As soon as you walk in, it's like entering a green ocean. The world becomes quiet and all is silent, with only the rustling sound of leaves.

Roar roar~
At this time, the iron-eating beast barked twice, and its fat body like a ball rolled and crawled to the bamboo forest next to it, opened its mouth and started to eat with relish.

"Don't worry about it. Qiuqiu likes eating bamboo shoots the most."

A Xuan pulled Jiang Qiyu up the mountain road, and then her eyes lit up and she pointed excitedly at a huge tree in front of her.

"Found it! Found it!"

Wu Fengdeng looked up and saw that it was just an ordinary tree. The only special thing was that there were several scratches on it, evenly distributed from the knees to the shoulders, a total of sixteen.

Ah Xuan stroked them one by one and introduced them with a smile: "This tree was planted by my mother!"

"Every August on my birthday, my mom would bring me here to spend a day and carve my figure on the tree with a knife."

"Look, I'm much taller than last year!"

Ah Xuan stood in front of the tree, the last scratch stopping at the level of her eyebrows.

"Yeah, you've really grown a lot taller this year." Jiang Qiyu's eyes were slightly moist.

Ah Xuan curled her lips, put her hands on her hips and said, "Hey, don't be like this! I'm very happy!"

"Although I can't come again this year, my mother said that after the bone girl is sacrificed to Apuyu, she will soon become a cat and can go wherever she wants without any restrictions."

After she reminded him, Wu Fengdeng noticed the so-called scratches on the tree. Upon closer inspection, they were actually simple dragonflies.

For some reason, my calm mood suddenly became a little depressed. Looking at the shallow dimples on Ah Xuan's face when she smiled, the broken sunlight made her look very lively.

Wu Fengdeng couldn't help but think of the time when she was on the boat, when she had pricked up her ears and listened attentively to Jiang Qiyu's description of the outside world, as if she didn't want to miss a single word. She still remembered clearly the light of ambition and yearning in his eyes.

She must be...longing for freedom.

Wu Fengdeng took a deep breath and said in a deep voice, "Keep going up."

"Okay! Come with me!"

With Axuan as their skilled guide, Wu Fengdeng and the other two successfully reached the top of Qiling Mountain in less than half an hour.

The view suddenly opens up, with the azure blue sky and sea, and the surging white clouds, sometimes rolling and sometimes relaxing.

"Xiao Guoguo, that is the spirit tree!"

Wu Fengdeng looked in the direction where Axuan pointed, and indeed saw a huge tree that was so thick that it took three people to hug it.

It is more than two meters tall, with deeply wrinkled bark, thick branches, and a very dense crown. The overall shape is very similar to the Welcoming Pine that Wu Fengdeng had seen in his previous life.

"Spiritual trees, it seems there is nothing special about them."

He looked at it carefully, and then looked at the soil under the tree, which was full of weeds and wild flowers, which were also very common vegetation.

No matter how you look at it, this has nothing to do with the Crimson Pearl Grass.

Could it be that the rumor is wrong?

Wu Fengdeng frowned slightly. Being vigilant by nature, he took out the portrait given to him by Qingdai and the image of the crimson pearl grass that he had just asked for from Luzhu.

After a careful comparison, they are indeed exactly the same.

"Brother Fengdeng, how is it?" Seeing that he was frowning, Jiang Qiyu quickly stepped forward and asked.

Wu Fengdeng hesitated for a moment, then put away the portrait and said seriously: "The Crimson Pearl Yao Grass recorded in both is indeed the same herb. Let's stay on Qiling Mountain for a while and check the situation here."

"This is the only clue and hope at the moment."

(End of this chapter)