I Killed Gods and Demons in Song Dynasty

Chapter 126 The Power of Seventy-two Transformations
"Funeral?"

Li Qingyun looked at the sackcloth-clothed peasant in front of him and was speechless for a moment. After a while, he said:
"I'm sorry, I didn't know there was a funeral in your house. Please accept my condolences. Where is the mourning hall? We brothers will also go and burn some incense."

It is unknown when the monster in the river will appear, and it will take several days to wait in Huojia Village. Li Qingyun is not in a hurry, but plans to build good relations with the villagers here and get their support.

Seeing him ask this, the peasant looked sad, pointed to the road behind him listlessly, and said:

"Just walk along the road until you reach the river. But don't talk too much when you get there, so as not to disrupt the sacrifice."

Li Qingyun and Fang Shuan looked at each other and both felt that the villager's attitude was a little strange. It seemed that the funeral here was not simple.

……

On the banks of the Bian River, the lights are dim, like eyes peeping in the dark, emitting an eerie light.

The ancestral hall of Huojiaji is the oldest building in the town. The walls are covered with moss, and the stone lions at the door have long been mottled, with their mouths open, telling of the vicissitudes of time.

At this moment, the place is filled with the smoke of incense and light blue smoke fills the air. Even in midsummer, there is still a heavy chill.

Two boys and girls knelt on the makeshift altar, huddled in a corner, their faces full of helplessness and sadness.

The boy was probably only eight or nine years old, with tears in his eyes, but he didn't dare cry out loud.

The girl was younger, perhaps only four or five years old. She clutched the boy's clothes tightly, trembling all over, her big watery eyes filled with fear.

Under the altar, a shriveled elder was half-naked, holding a magical instrument and muttering something, as if he was conversing with the gods.

His voice was low and hoarse, with a hint of uneasiness, as if he was not sure whether what he was going to do next would really bring peace to the town.

Behind the elder, some older villagers nodded silently along with the chanting, the expressions on their faces solemn and pious, as if this sacrifice was an indispensable part of their lives.

The old villagers held various offerings in their hands, including fruits, cakes, and paper money. They placed these offerings one by one on the offering table in front of the altar. Their movements were slow and heavy, as if they were completing an extremely sacred task.

Outside the ancestral hall, more villagers gathered together, with different expressions on their faces. Some were silent, some were afraid, and some did not hide their disgust.

They talked in low voices, occasionally casting worried glances toward the altar.

An old woman held the Buddhist beads tightly in her hand, chanting non-stop, with a gleam of prayer in her eyes:

"My grandson, don't blame grandma for being cruel. This is God's will. You saved more than a thousand people in the town and accumulated great merit. You will definitely be reborn into a good family in your next life..."

Farther away, some young villagers, although without any signs of resistance on their faces, had flames of anger burning in their eyes.

Shitoudan was a young boy in his teens. He couldn't stand this practice and whispered to his friend beside him:
"A Guang, is there really nothing we can do? Are we just going to watch these old guys sacrifice Niu Wa and Chun Hua to the river monster?"

The man called Ah Guang was also a young man of seventeen or eighteen years old. When he heard this, he gritted his teeth and said in a deep voice:
"What can we do? Our 'City God' has been eaten by the river monster. Now the elders and those old stubborn people hold the power in the town. Who dares to oppose them at this critical moment?"

"But what if the river monster eats the sacrifice and refuses to leave? If it demands a pair of boys and girls every month, who can bear it?"

There was a hint of trembling and anger in Stone Egg's voice.

Ah Guang did not answer. His heart was also filled with helplessness and indignation. He looked up and stared at the altar. The candlelight on it flickered, as if mourning for the children who were about to be sacrificed.

The water of the Bian River flows gently, shining coldly in the sunlight, as if it is the sneer of a river monster, mocking the ignorance and fear of mortals.

At this time, everyone was longing for a hero to appear from the sky, slay the river monster, and break this terrible fate.

Soon, under the altar, the elder's chanting gradually became quieter, and a trace of fatigue appeared on his face, but more of it was an inexplicable determination.

He put down the magic weapon in his hand, walked up to the two children, and said softly:

"Children, your sacrifice is for the safety of the entire town. Don't be afraid. The gods will guide you on your way to the afterlife and bless you with blessings..."

The boy Niu Wa raised his head, tears glistening in his eyes, and said in a voice as soft as a mosquito:
"Grandpa Elder, will the gods really bless me? I don't want to die, I want to be with grandma..."

The elder's cloudy eyes flashed with pity, and then he regained his serious expression and nodded:
"Yes, although you won't be able to see grandma anymore, but in your next life you will go to a good family, have meat for every meal, and have new clothes every day."

The girl Chunhua held Niu Wa's hand tightly and said tremblingly:

"I'm scared, I want to go home..."

The elder sighed, picked her up with one hand, held Niu Wa with the other hand, and slowly walked towards the river.

Seeing this, the villagers knelt on the ground, clasped their hands together, and began to pray devoutly.

Although the young man A Guang and Shi Tou Dan were reluctant, they had no choice but to kneel down, feeling unwilling in their hearts.

The prayers of the crowd echoed in the air, and soon the river water began to fluctuate abnormally, as if some mysterious power began to respond to them.

Seeing this scene, even A Guang and others couldn't help but feel awe and buried their heads deeply.

The elder's eyes became more determined, and he took big steps, leading the two children towards the river...

"Stop!"

At this moment, a loud shout resounded through the sky, startling the villagers and making them look up.

I saw a tall young man in a dark gown with a sword hanging from his waist, standing at the intersection. He looked majestic and seemed out of place in this land.

The elder was also startled by the deafening shout, then he came to his senses, frowned, and said sternly:

"Stop making noise! ​​A ceremony to worship the gods is being held here, so don't act wildly! If you anger the river god, you will suffer!"

The person who came was Li Qingyun. He had excellent hearing and heard everything that happened here from a long distance. He simply abandoned his horse and rushed over using his lightness skills.

Seeing this foolish sacrificial ceremony, he was furious and cursed:

"Ridiculous! What a bullshit god! It's nothing but a demon. For your own safety, you actually sacrificed innocent children. Do you have any humanity left?"

The villagers looked at each other in bewilderment. They had never seen such a bold person. Even the "City God" who used to protect the entire town had to show respect to the elders and never dared to shout.

The elder's face turned pale and he was shaking with anger:

"You bold lunatic, who are you? Do you know what you are talking about? This sacrifice is related to blessing the safety of more than a thousand households in the town. How dare you blaspheme the gods? Do you want to kill everyone!" As he said this, he looked around and said angrily, "Hurry up and capture this blasphemous lunatic and offer him to the river god to calm the god's wrath!"

As soon as he finished speaking, more than a dozen elderly villagers responded, each holding a rake or hoe, and rushed towards Li Qingyun.

Li Qingyun sneered, and rushed into the crowd in a flash, hitting people everywhere with his fists, not caring about their age, he would beat them up.

But in the blink of an eye, those elderly men and women fell to the ground, groaning in pain.

"I am Li Qingyun, an official under the command of Justice Bao in Kaifeng Prefecture. I am here to kill the river monster. If you dare to resist me again, don't blame me for killing you with my sword!"

Hearing this, there was an uproar in the crowd.

No matter how ignorant the villagers of Huojiaji were, they had always heard of the name of Bao Qingtian, the Justice of the Southern Court. When they heard that someone was coming from Kaifeng Prefecture, they immediately began to waver.

Especially the young people, they stood up after hearing the words, their fear gradually subsided, and they looked at Li Qingyun with hope in their eyes.

Ah Guang bravely asked:

"Are you serious? You can kill the river god, oh no, the river monster?"

"Of course it's true." Li Qingyun glanced at him, "That's why I came here."

At this time, the elder who was holding the two children suddenly shouted:
"Nonsense! Even the City God was eaten by the River God. You are just a little kid, still wet behind the ears. What right do you have to brag?"

He looked at the villagers who were ready to make a move and said, "Don't believe him! This guy is not from our town, and his heart is not on our side!

"If we anger the river god, he will just walk away, and we will be left to bear his wrath. It will be too late to offer sacrifices then!"

After hearing this, the villagers, whose minds had just become active, felt as if they were poured with cold water, and the flame of hope in their hearts was extinguished again.

Yes, this young man is so young, how capable can he be? Can he be more powerful than the City God who protects Huojiaji?

Besides, the Bian River is wide, deep and fast. Even if the river god cannot defeat the young man in front of him head-on, who can find it if he dives into the river?
Thinking of this, suspicion and hostility once again appeared in the eyes of many people. However, before these emotions had time to sprout, they saw waves crashing against the shore.

The river water not far away suddenly became turbulent and turbid, and a long, dark shadow suddenly appeared in the wide Bian River.

The villagers were stunned for a moment, their pupils suddenly shrank, their hair stood up, goose bumps appeared all over their bodies, and the fear in their hearts spread instantly.

The black line quickly stretched and grew larger, and in a moment it occupied most of the river surface, blocking the flow of water.

It was actually the body of a terrifying beast!

"The river god is coming!"

Someone screamed, and there was chaos inside and outside the ancestral hall.

The elder held the child in his arms, a pious look on his face, and said loudly;
"River God! Huo Jiaji offers a sacrifice to you, please have mercy and protection!"

The young bullfrog and Chunhua were so frightened that they had lost reaction, shivered with their eyes closed, and could not even move.

The next moment, the black shadow slowly emerged from the water. Its huge body was more than ten feet long, covered with hard scales that exuded a metallic luster, and it constantly stirred the river water.

Immediately afterwards, a ferocious head with two sharp horns was raised!
This is actually a dragon!
"Ow!"

The dragon opened its bloody mouth with sharp fangs and let out a heart-shaking dragon roar, as if it wanted to devour everything!
The sound waves swept across the village, and the villagers were terrified. They crawled on the ground, covered their ears with their hands and begged for mercy, looking towards the river in horror.

The huge head of the dragon blocked out the sky and cast a huge shadow on the ground, and its body was about ten feet thick, standing in the river like a towering tree.

The powerful monster that had been wreaking havoc in the upper reaches of the Bian River finally revealed its true face.

The dragon looked down from above, with a cold look in its two vertical pupils. It looked at the villagers kneeling on the ground as if they were ants, and spoke in human language:

"Two pairs of boys and girls every month, I promise you good weather and good harvests!"

There was a barely perceptible glimmer of joy in the elder's cloudy eyes. The river god finally responded and even offered a price!

Two pairs of boys and girls every month is nothing. If there are no such things in the town, you can buy them outside. As long as the whole town is peaceful, spending some money is not unacceptable.

What’s more, with the blessing of the river god, there is hope for a good harvest every year, and maybe everyone can live a good life!
He quickly pulled the two trembling children in his hands to the front and shouted:
"Thank you, River God, for your protection!"

The dragon nodded slightly, obviously very satisfied, and then gently waved its claws, and the wide Bian River suddenly rolled up waves several feet high, like a pair of giant hands, rolling towards the two little kids.

The villagers were horrified to see such a miracle, but at this moment, a black light split the sky and rushed towards the terrifying waves, like a sharp blade, instantly tearing the waves like the sky into pieces.

A look of surprise flashed across the dragon's eyes, as if it had not expected that someone would dare to resist it.

However, the next moment, a figure in a green robe came walking on the waves and stretched out his hands to grab its huge body.

Compared with the dozens of feet long dragon, Li Qingyun's figure was incomparably tiny, and his crystal-like jade fingers were so tiny that they could be ignored. But these ten fingers gently pressed on its scaly body, and with the blessing of tremendous force, they pierced into its flesh fiercely until both arms were submerged in it.

Immediately afterwards, a piercing pain came, and the dragon felt its flesh and blood being torn apart bit by bit by an irresistible force, almost being ripped open.

When had it ever suffered such a great loss? Under the stimulation of the heart-wrenching pain, the pupils in its eyes flashed with ferocity, and it opened its mouth wide and bit towards its own abdomen.

Weak human dares to come and die?

Li Qingyun looked at the dragon biting towards him, sneered, and used the transformation power of the Nine Revolutions Yuan Gong.

"Change!"

Suddenly, his body began to swell with the wind, his muscles expanded rapidly, and his arms became as thick as iron towers, filled with infinite power.

In the blink of an eye, a giant who was more than ten feet tall and stood tall appeared in front of everyone. He grabbed the dragon tightly with his two big hands, his muscles bulged, and he pulled hard!
Wow!

The arrogant dragon was torn apart from the middle, its scales shattered, and blood rained down from the sky, dyeing the entire Bian River red...

……

(End of this chapter)