Scourge Messenger

Chapter 162 The Secret Realm That Has Never Been Reset

As darkness fell, the mountain village came alive with activity, decorated with lanterns and colorful streamers, bustling with activity.

Before coming here, Yan Qing had guessed countless times what the Demonic Path's Perilous Land would look like, but all his guesses were nothing more than images that would be difficult to pass censorship on mysterious websites. After all, how could a place where a bunch of hooligans, bandits, and murderers lived be a civilized city?

Therefore, he had never fantasized about infiltrating the mountain stronghold and colluding with the demonic messenger. It wasn't that he wanted to show how righteous his values ​​were; he simply couldn't bear to see human suffering. As a result, the atmosphere near the Pingcheng military camp had improved a lot, because Yan Qing would occasionally control Ye Si to go to the city to buy daily necessities. On the way, if he encountered Bai Bao or anyone else who dared to bully the weak, he wouldn't bother to ask and would just kill them.

This naturally attracted a lot of criticism, but Ye Si had Jiang Shi as his backer, and the two of them were boosting Pingcheng's GDP by farming dungeons every day. If anyone dared to cause them trouble, the commoners who followed them around and profited from their misfortunes would be the first to object. Originally, Yan Qing was prepared to overturn the table, but gradually everyone adapted to his moral bottom line.

Even in the Shu Dao Mountain, Yan Qing had no intention of changing his style. He had already prepared himself mentally from the moment he came up with the name 'Bunny Girl Warrior'. Although Yao Shiyuan is now the Great Protector and has reached an agreement with Banruo to explore the Corpse Forest, if anyone dares to do evil in front of Xiao Hao, even if he is a Blood Element, he will die.

He can't change the world, but the world can't change him either.

But what Yan Qing saw left him speechless: the open space in front of the Demon-Slaying Hall was divided into three areas. In one area, a stage was set up where a troupe was performing and the audience was cheering. In another area, dozens of gambling tables were set up, with all kinds of dominoes and dice, and the gamblers were shouting and yelling. In yet another area, there were only a few long tables, which were filled with wine jars, and a group of rough men were dancing shirtless and clapping to the beat.

If it weren't for the fact that more than half of them had red names (indicating negative status), this place would look like an ordinary village where a group of people would gather together to chat, joke, and have fun after a long day of work.

"If you're interested, you can come and have some fun when you get back," Prajna said from behind them. "Except for Beiyou, who doesn't like crowded places, this humble monk and Xuexiang often mingle with everyone. The mountain stronghold is boring and quiet; it's only in crowded places that our mood improves."

"Would any opera troupe be willing to come to a place like this?" the pharmacist asked.

"Of course there are. Next month, there will even be a dance troupe trained by the Jie family. Many of the guys who work outside will come back specifically for this reason."

Prajna said, "This humble monk knows what you are thinking. In fact, most people didn't dare to come to the mountain stronghold at first, which is why we attached so much importance to the security of Chang Le City. Those who didn't dare to come to the stronghold might dare to try Chang Le City. There are more fun things to do in Chang Le City than in the mountains, and many people would be willing to go down there to relieve their boredom. Later, everyone found that we really kept our word, and gradually some people were willing to go up the mountain. After all, the money offered by the stronghold is twice that of Chang Le City, but it only takes half a day to get up the mountain."

"It seems to have cost quite a bit."

"Every month, the income from the stronghold and Chang Le City is divided into ten parts. Half goes to the Grand Protector, and the other half is used for things like this." Prajna pointed to the various facilities in the stronghold: "If we don't pay ten times the price, who would be willing to come to the stronghold to build walls? Do you expect these murderers and arsonists to fix the roofs?"

"Can't you just not pay them?" Bunny Girl asked, puzzled. "Or you could detain them and make them work like slaves."

Prajna glanced at her sideways, "Your accommodations are not bad, are they? Although they can't compare to the grand inns in Chang'an, they have everything you need, and the buildings are sturdy."

"To build a house, you need carpenters, stonemasons, blacksmiths, and bricklayers. The bigger the house, the more people you need. If we just kidnap people from outside to work, how many years would it take to build the stronghold? The quality can't be guaranteed either. I don't want to hear the sound of raindrops dripping in my room when I'm sleeping on a rainy day. It's as unpleasant as the sound of a wooden fish drum."

"Moreover, we need many, many things from outside the mountains. Looting can't solve everything, but reputation and spirit jade can."

Xue Xiang sneered, "In the end, it's just that there are too few people around. If it were a military town, why would it need to go through all this trouble? Just conscript people directly, who would dare to disobey? In this world, only the righteous can be shameless; there are plenty of people for them to squander."

"How often are these banquets held?" the Bunny Girl asked.

"It happens every day." Prajna said calmly, "The demonic path is a group of patients who feel abandoned by the world and resent everything. Living in a drunken stupor is the only effective medicine. They have to sleep with one eye open when they are drunk, let alone when they are awake. If you don't get them drunk, they will kill everyone they meet at night."

Yan Qing's heart stirred. Prajna's words didn't seem to be describing someone else, but rather like she was expressing her own feelings. Yes, everyone yearns for a better life. Would bad people really like living in a gloomy, dark place filled with screams and mountains of corpses and seas of blood? The perilous lands of the demonic path are perilous lands of the righteous path, but they are the only place where the demonic path can find protection. If one cannot even relax here, what difference is there between inside and outside the mountains?
The reason why Prajna and the others spent so much money to make the mountain village lively was probably because they could only feel a little warmth when they looked at the noisy crowd.

"Let's go." Bei You came out of the Demon-Slaying Hall, his hair, clothes and face covered in murky paint. He even tasted the paint on his fingers.

Everyone turned their attention away and followed Bei You to the forbidden area behind the mountain stronghold.

This place was heavily guarded and fortified. When the group entered, Yan Qing discovered that the guards here did not seem to be red-named monsters. They were likely normal messengers who had not fallen into the demonic path. Unlike the madmen outside, these people were very rare and controllable talents in the stronghold. The fact that they were assigned to guard this place was enough to show the importance that the three protectors attached to it.

After traversing a long passage, they soon approached a grove of trees. Light green ripples appeared outside the grove, and relevant information popped up on the screen:

"Forest of Bones"

Background: The Corpse Forest was originally Juxian Manor, whose master, Long You, was a renowned hero known throughout the land. Upon learning that the current leader of the Buddhist sect, Fu Xiang, was actually a descendant of the Blood Demon Sect and had betrayed the righteous path by murdering his relatives and friends, Long You gathered his friends at Juxian Manor to discuss how to deal with Fu Xiang. Unexpectedly, Fu Xiang took the initiative to come and destroy Juxian Manor. Due to the overwhelming resentment of Long You and his companions, Juxian Manor transformed into an extremely yin place, teeming with immortal ghosts. Perhaps only by letting them avenge their grievances can the karmic debt here be resolved…

Challenge Level: 35~45

「Number of challengers: up to 20 people」

Objective: Kill 'Corpse King' Longyou

A level 35 to 45 dungeon? Yan Qing was slightly taken aback. Although he didn't know much about "The Messenger," this kind of level jump meant that... this dungeon might contain rewards for the third or fourth class advancement!
More importantly, a level 3 messenger does indeed have a chance to conquer this secret realm!
No wonder Si Wuxie's inheritance has been here for almost a hundred years without any Foundation Establishment messengers coming to claim it. For Foundation Establishment messengers, this is a true fourth-stage secret realm! If there are too few people, they can't get through it; if there are too many people, everyone gets very little. It's very tempting for third-stage messengers, but it's a bit of a waste for fourth-stage Foundation Establishment messengers.

Moreover, Si Wuxie is a messenger of the demonic path, which means that his most powerful weapon and token must be the Asura token that others cannot use!

"By the way," Prajna suddenly said, "have you ever wondered why those qualified to govern the secret realms of Shudao Mountain are all called Great Protectors?"

"The title sounds nice," the bunny girl said leisurely. "If it were me, I wouldn't like a bandit-like title like 'leader' either."

"That's part of the reason," Prajna said with a smile, "but more importantly, we are indeed protecting the Dharma. You might think I'm just trying to glorify myself, but you'll understand when you go inside."

As they spoke, they entered the Forest of Corpses one after another. Before Yan Qing went in, he noticed that the Pharmacist Yuan was slightly behind, seemingly hesitant, but he quickly caught up and entered the secret realm side by side with the Bunny Girl.

Contrary to its name, the Forest of Corpses wasn't as terrifying as one might imagine. At most, it was just a bit eerie. Inside the forest was an extremely grand manor with no name on the plaque above the door. White lanterns hung on either side, each bearing the character "奠" (meaning "offering" or "condolence"). As Prajna and the others approached the gate, the lights in the white lanterns suddenly went out. It wasn't terrifying, just a little frightening.

"Little sister, aren't you afraid?"

Bunny Girl looked at Pharmacist Wish and noticed that her hand gripping the Soul-Severing Spear was trembling slightly.

"Only my brother is afraid of this kind of thing, big sister, are you not good enough?"

Yan Qing thought to herself, "I'm not afraid at all. I've played Resident Evil before, and Messenger is an all-ages online game. There's no way it could have any disgusting scenes. How could it scare me?"
"How could that be? I was just worried you'd be scared!" Pharmacist Yuan said firmly, but as the bunny girl walked forward, she quickly followed, saying, "Be careful, let's walk together!"

They arrived at the front hall and found Prajna and the other two waiting in the entryway. Prajna, seeing them, stepped aside to let them see the scene in the front hall clearly: "Look."

"How is this possible!" the pharmacist exclaimed.

In the innermost part of the front hall, there was a huge pile of skulls, layer upon layer, as if they had become a new life. In fact, it was also a demonic unit called the "Undying Skull Tower".

But what surprised the apothecary was not the creature itself, but the six zombie demons surrounding it! They wore straw hats, carried long swords, and had eerie green flames floating in their eyes. They were heavy and stiff, like nine iron towers!

"We've only brought in five people, how could so many demons appear?" The Pharmacist's expression was grave. "The number of demons is closely related to the number of people entering. For seven demons to appear simultaneously, at least fourteen people would need to enter!"

Yes, Yan Qing had also discovered that the fewer people there were, the fewer demons there were in the secret realm. However, there was a minimum limit. If Jiang Shi went to solo the Zhen San Shan dungeon, then at least three demons would appear in each batch, which was the same as when Jiang Shi's group of six went in to clear it.

"If we go back out and only one person enters, he will also see that there are seven demons inside," Prajna said.

"Could there be at least seven demons in the front hall?" the bunny girl wondered.

"Before Si Wuxie set up the inheritance, this secret realm had been explored by others," Bei You said calmly. "According to the notes of predecessors, at least four demons would appear in the front hall of the Corpse Forest."

Why are there always seven demons here?

When this question popped into Yan Qing's mind, he immediately thought of the most likely answer.

"Could it be..." The Pharmacist's gaze swept past the front hall, looking into the depths of the manor: "This secret realm has never been reset?"

Prajna nodded slowly. "Exactly. Only in this way can we explain why there have always been so many demons in the Corpse Forest. If the secret realm is not reset, then the number of demons in the secret realm will increase accordingly based on how many people have existed in the secret realm at the same time. Even after the messenger left, the number of demons will not decrease. The only good thing is that the strength of the demons changes with the strength of the messenger, otherwise we would only see fourth-level demons when we enter."

"We are called the Great Protectors because we have been controlling the maximum number of people who can enter the Forest of Corpses at any one time. Once the number exceeds this limit, the demons in the Forest of Corpses will increase permanently, unless we can conquer the secret realm."

"But we haven't seen anyone else along the way, and the demons in the front hall are still there." Bunny Girl looked around: "Won't the secret realm reset if no one's there?"

"Yes, the secret realm will reset if no one is there," Bei You confirmed.

Conversely, since the secret realm never resets, there can only be one possibility.

"There's someone deeper inside the secret realm?" Pharmacist Yuan enunciated each word with barely concealed horror: "Could it be... Si Wuxie!?"

　Thank you to the new leader of 'Ning Xiaoxiang'.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)