Nightmare Light

Chapter 257 The Boy in Front of the Offering Platform
Explosions and shouts of killing.

Blood and fire.

Inside the dark and oppressive underground palace of the mausoleum.

Hundreds of twisted and hideous humanoid monsters, dressed in tattered military uniforms, charged toward the Dragon Head Lord with shouts.

They made simple hand gestures and formed an indomitable formation.

In a fierce and resolute manner, it collided violently with the Dragon Head Lord.

But they did not use conventional methods.

But...

boom!
boom!
boom!
One after another, the soldiers of the Steelbone Army self-destructed.

The sudden and continuous explosions shook the entire underground palace of the mausoleum.

Many stones broke and fell.

Amidst the deafening explosion, Dog Brother's grief-stricken cry could be heard: "Don't destroy my ancestors' tombs!"

"My lord! This place is about to collapse! Your subordinate should protect you and Miss May and get out first!" the Night Wanderer shouted.

Lin Wang didn't speak. He stomped his foot, and a pure white ice surface spread out from his feet, growing and covering the entire underground palace.

Half a minute later, the entire underground palace was covered by a thick layer of ice and stabilized.

When the explosion ended and the smoke cleared, the Dragon Head Lord emerged proudly from the smoke, and everyone was shocked and filled with despair when they discovered...

He was almost completely unharmed.

The Steelbone Army soldiers had completely vanished without a trace.

Lin Wang stood in front of Lord Longshou.

"Night Wanderer".

"My subordinate is here."

"Ferry people across."

"Subordinates take orders!"

After the Night Wanderer finished speaking, he circled in the air, and with a flick of his wrist, the sickle transformed into a paddle.

He floated in the air and swung his oars three times toward the spot where the Steelbone Army soldiers had died.

The Night Wanderer abandoned his usual obsequious and lewd tone, adopting an extremely serious and solemn manner as he spoke in a loud voice.

"You have defended our land and protected our people, fighting to the death against the enemy... You have rendered meritorious service! Now that the debt has been repaid, we are granted permission... You may cross over!"

"It can be done!"

"It can be done!"

After three commands, many translucent white figures appeared in the air.

In the dim light, one could vaguely see that these figures were dressed in neat military uniforms, and most of them were young men with short hair.

They waved and nodded to the crowd, then turned and walked into nothingness, disappearing into the air.

Throughout this process, Lord Longshou remained silent.

After the Night Wanderer finished performing the rituals for the Steelbone Army soldiers, He spoke.

"Lord Night God... are you a newly promoted immortal? There are still immortals who can be promoted now? Could it be that Zhili is still alive?"

After saying that, He shook His head again: "It's not important, none of these things are important."

He then extended his right hand towards the crowd: "Would you like some sacrificial cake?"

After He finished speaking, Lin Wang narrowed his eyes: "You're conscious? A corrupted immortal can actually be conscious?"

The Dragon Head turned his head, his brownish-yellow eyes fixed on Lin Wang.

He grinned, revealing a cruel smile: "I am the Lord of the Life and Fire of All People, in charge of the livelihood of all people under Heaven, and in charge of the power of the Emperor!" Suddenly, a wriggling motion occurred on his shoulder, and with a snap, a dark, twisted mass of flesh emerged, which quickly transformed into a second head, resting on his shoulder.

Then, a third head emerged from the other shoulder.

"See that! My strength has already reached the monarch level! Mere pollution..."

Huang Liangye let out a sharp cry: "Ah! I remember now! You said back then that your strength had already reached the Monarch level, but because... why was it again? You said you wanted to wait a few more years before advancing!"

The Dragon Lord lowered his head and glanced at the large yellow rat on the ground: "Oh, you're that little fellow who stole my offerings... If I remember correctly, you and Zhili are blood relatives?"

With a squeak, Huang Liangye scurried onto Dog Brother's shoulder and hid behind Dog Brother's head: "I'm not afraid of you!"

Lord Longshou snorted and grinned.

He toyed with the sacrificial cake full of eyeballs in his hand: "My strength has long reached the level of a monarch, and I am the master of the life-giving fire of all people under heaven. What ability does a mere primordial being have to corrupt me?"

With a flick of his wrist, he picked up the sacrificial cake, and amidst its sizzling sound, tossed it into his mouth, chewing it with a sickening crunch.

"I was corrupted voluntarily."

"Voluntary?!" Lin Wang frowned. "Why?"

"Don't rush, Northerners." Lord Longshou glanced at Lin Wang. "You'll enjoy this story."

He sat down cross-legged in front of the crowd.

But its enormous body is still taller than people standing up.

He flipped his right hand and took out another piece of sacrificial cake. He looked up, put the cake in his mouth, and chewed it.

Many years ago, there was a little boy.

“That child was special. Every time he came to burn incense for me, in addition to the normal incense offering, he would stay and talk to me for a while.”

"Sometimes it was just casual conversation, sometimes we'd talk about everyday things. Each time, after we finished, the child would say to me as he was leaving..."

The Dragon Head Grandfather paused, then imitated a child's voice and emphasized, "Grandpa Kitchen God, thank you for listening to me! I'm leaving now! I'll come to see you again another day!"

“Every now and then, the child would come to my temple, clean the temple and wipe the statues, and then talk to me for a while before leaving.”

“At that time, I already had the ability to advance to the True Lord level,” said Lord Dragon Head. “But when an immortal advances to the True Lord level, the heavens and earth shake, and many people die.”

"I thought to myself, I should stay with that child until he dies, and then I will be promoted."

"Later, when the child grew old, I infused him with some of my power, allowing him to live a hundred years longer in the human world... and I also watched over him for a hundred years longer."

"So, you ask me why I didn't advance to True Lord? Because I wanted to protect this child... Of course, after he died, I willingly allowed myself to be corrupted by the Primal Source and became Zhi Li's enemy."

Lin Wang frowned, puzzled: "Why would you willingly allow yourself to be corrupted and become the goddess's enemy just because that child died?"

"Hmph... Do you know how that child died?"

"If mortals live an extra hundred years, wouldn't they die peacefully in their sleep?"

"Ridiculous! I hold the lives of all people in my hands! By personally intervening, how many more than a hundred years could a mere mortal gain in life?" The Dragon Lord suddenly raised his voice and roared, "He starved to death!"

After saying this, He sighed and returned to His calm voice.

“That year, there was a great disaster, and many places suffered poor harvests. That child… was already over a hundred years old at the time.”

“He climbed into my temple, wanting to clean the temple statues one last time. But he was too hungry and too weak.”

The Dragon Head Lord raised his hand and pointed in a direction at his feet.

“That day, he just leaned against my altar, looking up at me. He said to me, ‘Grandpa Kitchen God, I’m too weak... I can’t help you bathe anymore…’”

"I am the Kitchen God! The master of fire for all living beings! The master of imperial power! Yet I can do nothing! For immortals cannot interfere with the workings of the mortal world! I cannot meddle in the authority of other immortals!"

He roared, and with a trembling hand, produced another piece of sacrificial cake, which he then extended to the crowd.

"I...cannot even give him a piece of sacrificial cake!"

(End of this chapter)