Longzang

Chapter 364 True Dragon Flesh and Blood

The next day, upon re-entering the temple, Wei Yuan ventured to a new level, where he discovered several grand halls. These halls were carved from the rock, and several torches emitted a faint blue glow. Fueled by yin energy, these torches had burned for countless years without ever going out.

The walls of the main hall were carved with niches, some containing skeletons, but most were empty. The other halls were similarly empty.

It seems that these halls were originally tombs for the dead, but now most of the corpses inside have been transformed into undead monsters.

Wei Yuan sensed the blood bead on his chest and, seeing that it didn't react, felt slightly relieved. He remained extremely cautious with the blood bead given to him by the old woman, sealing it within the wound on his chest. After a night of flesh and blood regeneration, it had completely enveloped the bead, isolating it from the outside.

The old woman didn't mention the tomb, nor did she say that many of the undead monsters were villagers from this village, or their ancestors.

After passing through four burial chambers, a large hall appeared ahead. In the very center of the hall was an altar, upon which was enshrined a ferocious statue. A skeleton lay prostrate on the altar, a long sword stuck in its back.

The longsword was so decayed that it had lost all its magic over the long years. Judging from the skeleton, the assassin was most likely human, but there were some differences in its body. For example, it had several bones growing under its ribs, making it look like a child's arm. It was unclear whether it was born that way or had not fully developed.

In addition, its tailbone has several extra sections, resembling a short tail that is more than a foot long.

After examining the corpse, Wei Yuan looked at the statue.

The statue was small, but its exterior was black, and its face was extremely ferocious, as if it wanted to devour everything in the world. It exuded an aura of intense bloodlust, slaughter, and destruction, yet it was also mixed with an inexhaustible power of life.

Its origins cannot be discerned from its appearance, but when Wei Yuan's divine sense touched it, the laurel tree within his Dao foundation suddenly reacted, showing a strong desire for it.

Wei Yuan hesitated for a moment, then reached out and pinched a small piece off the statue. The statue was made of clay, and the lacquer covering it had long since peeled off, so the small piece of clay Wei Yuan pinched off contained an unusually strong smell of blood and yin energy.

Wei Yuan's heart stirred, and the clod of soil appeared in the vast landscape, then turned into a cloud of powder, drifted to the location of the Moon Laurel Immortal Tree, and sank into the ground after falling.

At this moment, the laurel tree was like a traveler in the desert who finally had water. It desperately absorbed the yin energy and blood energy from the soil, and its vitality and spirit grew at a visible speed.

As soon as the soil from the statue entered the vast land, all the immortal plants reacted, but the laurel tree was the fastest, absorbing all the soil.

However, the statue was three feet tall, and Wei Yuan only took off a small piece. With a tug, Wei Yuan pulled off one of the statue's arms and sent it into the vast land of rivers and mountains.

Blood and mud turned into rain, sprinkling onto the immortal plants. This time, the rain and dew were evenly distributed, with no one receiving more or less.

The statue suddenly opened its eyes!
These are blood-red eyes, filled with savagery. The moment one sees these eyes, terrifying magical power rushes into the sea of ​​consciousness. Ordinary Foundation Establishment cultivators will have their sea of ​​consciousness shattered and die on the spot, while Dharma Aspect cultivators will be severely injured!
However, Wei Yuan was blind at the moment and could not see.

The Daoist warrior who saw the eyes of the statue had indeed gone mad, and Wei Yuan had no choice but to erase its spirituality.

Although it had lost its spirituality, the Dao Foundation Warrior could still use it, only in a different way, requiring Wei Yuan to control it with his attention. The madness in the Dao Foundation Warrior's eyes flashed for only a moment before all its light vanished, and then it silently swung its shield, smashing the statue's head to pieces!

Wei Yuan also threw a punch, smashing the statue's body.

The statue was shattered into pieces, and a thick aura of blood shot into the sky, swirling and dancing in the hall, but it could not escape the hall no matter what it did!

Dozens of faces faintly emerged from that mass of blood energy, some panicked, some resentful, and some utterly terrified. It tried to escape, but the Red Lotus Bodhi, now just a section of tree trunk within Wei Yuan's Dao Foundation, suddenly exerted a powerful pull, drawing it gradually closer to Wei Yuan.

The blood and energy struggled desperately, but were still drawn into the vast land and mountains, and absorbed by the Red Lotus Bodhi. The Red Lotus Bodhi instantly surged with vitality, sprouting branches and leaves, and several new branches grew on the charred wooden stake.

This blood energy harbors numerous vengeful spirits, each quite powerful, but the Red Lotus Bodhi is their nemesis, purifying them one by one without hesitation.

As the Red Lotus Bodhi tree revived, a ring of fertile soil appeared around it. The earth's spirituality increased once more, and this time, three Dao Foundation Warriors were born with spirituality in one go.

This series of changes happened in an instant, and Wei Yuan was terrified when he realized what was happening.

This statue is extremely insidious; its eyes are cursed, and anyone who makes eye contact with it will be cursed—it's practically impossible to defend against. Having been tempered by yin energy for thousands of years, the curse has become incredibly powerful. If Wei Yuan himself were to see it, he would likely be severely injured, if not driven mad.

Fortunately, Wei Yuan was blind, rendering the idol's trap useless.

After the statue shattered, an iron ring rolled out from inside. Wei Yuan immediately sensed the immense Yin energy contained within the ring, so he picked it up.

The moment the iron ring appeared in his hand, countless images flooded Wei Yuan's consciousness! In that instant, Wei Yuan seemed to experience another life. His earliest memory was of a young girl who spent her days endlessly cultivating, severely punished for even the smallest mistake. The village elders said she was a genius of the tribe, and only in this way could she become strong and avenge her ancestors.

The little girl, unable to endure the endless torment and punishment, tried to escape, only to be caught time and again. She contemplated ending her life, but each time she awoke, discovering she was immortal. Her elders, upon learning this, became even more enraged, beating her to the point of near death each time she was caught and escaped.

One day, her blood unexpectedly saved an elderly elder, and from then on, she had to bleed him every day.

Upon reading this, Wei Yuan instinctively shuddered, as if he were experiencing it himself, and he completely felt the despair, resentment, and fear in the little girl's heart. In the girl's memory, the sky was always gray and black, always filled with storms and lightning, and there was never any sunshine.

A shadow began to appear in her heart.

Later, when the girl grew older, on a rainy night, after being beaten and punished again, the elder utterly humiliated her.

The shadow expanded instantly, almost completely obscuring her heart.

After being seriously injured during a mission, she met a young man from the Liao ethnic group. The young man rescued her, cared for her, gave her an iron ring, and then let her go. The shadow in the girl's heart faded somewhat.

Another mission, and the target is him.

The girl abandoned the mission, and upon returning, she was subjected to even more severe beatings and humiliations. By this time, all the elders had already insulted her, without exception.

The girl escaped and tried to find him, but he had already been killed by other assassins sent by the elders.

The shadows completely engulfed the girl. She returned to the village, slaughtered all the elders, and then released something that should never have been released. It was a twisted mass of flesh, a strange dark purple, brimming with indescribable vitality. Though only the size of a fist, it seemed to contain the ancient behemoth of an entire race.

The girl wanted to destroy the village that had tormented her since childhood, and everything around it. But just as the seal of flesh and blood was about to be fully broken, a sword pierced her from behind.

She turned around and saw the young Liao tribesman who should have died. This young Liao tribesman was no longer gentle and considerate, but rather arrogant and condescending.

"Why?".

"Because we share the same blood and origin, we are all descendants of the same great being. We are destined from birth to kill and devour each other. Only the one who kills all their brothers and sisters will be the final victor and receive its inheritance!"

"But I... I only want to be with you..."

“I knew your identity from the first time I saw you. But you were too oblivious, you didn’t awaken your hunting instincts, and you didn’t realize my identity at all. So I deliberately let you go, because only in this way can I find your people, and find the part of the divinely bestowed inheritance that belongs to you, which is this piece of true dragon flesh and blood in front of you.”

"But why would there be a mission to kill you?"

The Liao youth sneered: "Your people make a living by assassinating, so finding a way isn't difficult. I was the one who issued that mission. You failed, so they'll naturally send someone else. You've told me about your situation, and I know you're only one step away from madness. Seeing my corpse will drive you completely insane."

An overwhelming weariness welled up in the girl's heart, and her vitality quickly faded.

Since he wants his life, then give it to him. After all, living only means eternal darkness, coldness, and pain...

The Liao youth picked up the strange piece of flesh, his face contorted with fervor: "True dragon flesh! I've already completed one hunt. With this, the other descendants will surely not escape my pursuit! Hahahaha..."

After a long laugh, he suddenly stared at Wei Yuan and said, "...Including you!"

Wei Yuan instantly broke free from the sea of ​​memories.

The owner of these memories, that girl, was also of the Liao ethnicity. These memories vaguely correspond to the murals in the temple. Could it be that some great being left behind many descendants, who then slaughtered and devoured each other, with the ultimate victor receiving its inheritance?

Similar events have occurred throughout the history of cultivation. However, if a powerful being of this level is involved, there must be many hidden secrets, and the powerful being must have left behind countless cover-ups. Unless one is directly involved, the truth may remain unknown until the final revelation.

However, Wei Yuan had a gut feeling that the Liao youth's final words to him, "Including you," were meant for him.

If the corpse before the altar is indeed the girl from back then, then she has been dead for countless years, even the magic sword is beyond repair. How could that Liao youth have seen himself across thousands, even tens of thousands of years? And how could he be certain that he too is a descendant?
More importantly, so much time has passed, is he still alive? If he is still alive, judging from his long lifespan alone, he should have already ascended to immortality.

(End of this chapter)