Scourge Messenger

Chapter 315 Bone Script
While Yan Qing and Murong Hui were relaxing in the hot spring, many people couldn't sleep because of them.

The Guiding Lands, downtown, Bone Scrolls Square.

This is the largest open space in the Demon Gathering Land, teeming with the most demons. Groups of fourth-rank demons roam this area, resembling the chaotic end times described in Buddhist scriptures. Any messenger who comes to this area will voluntarily sheathe their weapons and even speak in hushed tones. No one can bear the risk of angering the demons; it is a despair they cannot withstand.

In the center of the open space, there are four skeletal ghouls, each fifteen feet tall. They have eight arms, six of which are playing musical instruments. Each pair of hands plays one instrument, for a total of nine instruments. These nine instruments are the nine most popular musical instruments in the North. The "Heaven and Earth Unparalleled Music" played by the skeletal ensemble is the origin of vocal music in the North, with a history that can be traced back to tens of thousands of years ago. Coupled with the collection of poetry and books in this secret realm, the Demon Gathering Land can be called the source of North culture.

The skeletal wraith's remaining two arms held a massive stone tablet with a document that was always blank, and no one could leave any mark on it. For many years, the messengers from the North had taken the blank skeletal document for granted.

Until yesterday.

"How come there's another person! Can they bring others along?" Du Lizhu, the second daughter of the powerful Du family in Huai Shuo, stared at the skeletal document in disbelief: "I'll offer a million spirit jades, who will bring me along!"

"You think you can buy a Foundation Establishment Pill for a million? I'll offer ten million!"

"Han Liuling, your family only has one dilapidated secret realm. Can you afford ten million?"

"If I could buy a spot for the Foundation Establishment Pill, I'd have my dad sell the secret realm and all our family assets and he'd still say I'm filial!"

More than a hundred messengers from the North were gathered in the Bone Scrolls Square, encompassing most of the participants from the Guiding Lands. They stared at the Bone Scrolls, their eyes revealing undisguised longing.

On the skeletal document, two columns of images appeared, each with three titles: "Blood Sea Sect Trial Partitioner," "Flesh and Blood Puppet Follower," and "Current Rewards."

The first column displays a portrait of an ordinary-looking, burly man from the North, next to which is a portrait of seven demons. Any messenger familiar with the Demon Gathering Lands would recognize that these seven demons are all mechanical, their bodies made of steel gears.

The second column shows a young man with his head wrapped in bandages and his face covered in bandages. Next to him is a picture of a demon that looks like a skeletal dragon that appears on the outskirts of the town.

The sudden changes to the documents were surprising, but if it didn't concern them, everyone would just glance at them and remember them. The problem was the rewards displayed at the end of those two columns, which got everyone excited:

The first column: "Rare Foundation Establishment Pill - Mechanism Enhancement: During Foundation Establishment, any token can be consumed to arm oneself, increasing one's health, spirit, and dexterity based on the strength of the token."

The second column: "Ordinary Foundation Establishment Pill - No Enhancement: An ordinary Foundation Establishment Pill, very ordinary, even if you eat it, you may not be able to successfully establish your foundation."

This didn't just happen today. After the bell rang yesterday, the first column of "Northerners" was already registered in the Bone Scrolls, and the initial reward was just ordinary Foundation Establishment Pills.

Although it caused a sensation at the time, most people were just surprised and suspicious. After all, there had never been a similar situation in the recorded history of the Demon Gathering Land. Faced with an unfamiliar phenomenon and a huge reward, the first reaction of the Northern Messenger was to retreat, fearing that he would be drawn into the vortex of destruction of his family and clan.

For hundreds or thousands of years, no one discovered the secret of the Demon Gathering Land. Only this person was able to discover it. Is it possible that a huge force is lurking behind him? Is it possible that... Ying Le is fishing for him?
There are indeed fools who shout "Grandpa, I want it!" when they see something good, but in the North, especially under Ying Le's rule, they have been almost entirely wiped out. This is because Ying Le particularly enjoys using pretexts to kill indiscriminately from a moral high ground. Every few days, she would ride her war chariot to hunt down people in Qi, arresting villagers and asking if they knew any纨绔子弟 (sons of wealthy families) or corrupt officials. If so, she would massacre entire families, clans, and villages, each time implicating at least hundreds or even thousands of people. This ruthless slaughter terrified the powerful clans of the North, to the point that when Jianlou Xian saw Ying Le's elite guards appear, he would be utterly terrified and dare not resist.

But now that the Bone Scrolls have been refreshed, a second trial participant has appeared who can obtain the Foundation Establishment Pill!
One person might be an exception, but two people are very likely to have discovered the hidden secret of the Demon Gathering Land! As long as you master this secret, you can obtain the Foundation Establishment Pill reward from the Demon Gathering Land just like them!

Realizing this, even the lowest-ranking messenger would be moved.

No one understands the power of Foundation Establishment better than the people of Qi. For the past ten years, everyone has lived under Ying Le's terrifying rule. Almost everyone has friends or relatives whose families were wiped out by Ying Le. Every powerful family in the north considers ancestral worship and incense offerings their top priority, not because they deeply respect their ancestors, but because they can only derive a semblance of security from these ethereal rituals. But what if my family could produce a Foundation Establishment cultivator?

What if I could build a foundation?
"Does anyone recognize them? Anyone who can come to the Demon Gathering Land must be from the Qi Kingdom!"

"Actually, this person looks quite like one of my servants. Could we be related by blood?"

"He's wrapped in bandages, deliberately concealing his identity. I'm sure he's someone we know!"

"The bandaged man and Murong Hui have hidden themselves."

The Bone Scrolls Plaza fell silent for a moment, save for the mournful strains of "Peerless Music." Du Lizhu frowned and looked around: "Who was speaking just now?"

"Miss Du, you've been the Murong family head's shadow since you were little. Could it be that you have some news?" someone asked quietly.

"Whether it's true or not, it's none of your business!" Du Lizhu looked over and said seriously, "Don't you all know how much Master Zijie dotes on Sister Hui? Stop thinking such things!"

The Du family of Huai Shuo had once received favors from Yan Zi Murong and had followed in the footsteps of the Murong family for generations. Du Lizhu had even grown up with Murong Hui, so she naturally couldn't just stand by and watch them turn their anger on Murong Hui.

“We have no intention of harming the Murong family head; we just want to find this bandaged man.” A gloomy young man with heavy shackles on his right hand pushed through the crowd and stepped forward. “Even if the Murong family head is listed on the Bone Scroll, no one would dare to harm her. But the listed person is just a strange, shrouded figure, who might not even be from Qi. Does the Murong family head want to abandon our Northern Lands for an outsider? Or does the Murong family want to keep the secret of the Foundation Establishment Pill to themselves and not allow us to make contact?”

Du Lizhu took a step back. There weren't many third-tier messengers entering the Demon Gathering Land, and the gloomy young man in front of her, Luo Jing, was one of them. She was only a second-tier, and a 'minor second-tier' one who had been fed with secret manuals. Facing an elite third-tier like Luo Jing, she was already at a disadvantage in terms of aura and dared not be aggressive.

"You're arguing without even knowing if the information is true or false? Maybe someone made it up. What if you end up getting nothing and offending the head of the Murong family to death?"

A steady voice came from the crowd, and everyone looked over to see a man in a blue robe wearing a demon mask. Luo Jing, showing a hint of apprehension, calmly said, "Chu Yaksha, you've actually come to the Demon Gathering Land? What else is there to attract you here?"

"I can't bear the title of Yaksha now, just call me Chu Lin." Chu Lin let out a hoarse chuckle: "I come to the Demon Gathering Land every year around this time when I have time, but I prefer to act alone, so no one knows about it. Luckily I came this year, otherwise I would have missed such a big event."

"No matter what, we must find those two people on the document!" Another fiery red-haired beauty crossed her arms and said coldly, "Whether it's cooperation or coercion, this concerns the opportunity for the Foundation Establishment Pill, and I, Wei Weiwei, will never miss it!"

Du Lizhu dared not speak anymore. She hadn't expected that the Demon Gathering Land, a place that was usually only frequented by low-level messengers, would have three elites who had reached the third rank this year: 'Ghost Blade' Luo Jing, 'Yaksha' Chu Lin, and 'Fire Red' Wei Weiwei. And this didn't even include Murong Hui, a regular visitor to the Demon Gathering Land!
Aside from Chu Lin leaving to act alone, Luo Jing and Wei Weiwei have begun recruiting other messengers from the North. Finding people in the vast Demon Gathering Land is crucial, and manpower is key. Moreover, finding people is only the first step; the subsequent competition is the main event—no one will give up Foundation Establishment Pills, and no one will want less!

But why would anyone link Murong Hui to the bandaged figure on the document? Is it true, or a deliberate frame-up? Speaking of which, given the drastic changes to the skeletal documents, why didn't Sister Hui, who loves to join in the fun, show up? Could it be…?

The thought of the Foundation Establishment Pill caused Du Lizhu's mind to race, but she finally turned and headed towards the outskirts of the town. Many others shared her sentiments. While the Foundation Establishment Pill was indeed priceless, the problem was that they were merely messengers and had no right to step into this vortex. Rather than staying here as cannon fodder and benefiting others, it was better to spread the news as quickly as possible!

Those who remained were either won over by the third-tier messengers or harbored the ambition of "the oriole in the rear," hoping to seize the Foundation Establishment Pill amidst the chaos of battle.

The once peaceful and tranquil place where demons gathered was completely transformed into a treacherous and chaotic land of carnage on this night.

(End of this chapter)