The Terror of the Heavens Begins with Gu

Chapter 174 Decay and Awakening

The damp soil gradually covered Li Zhen's entire body.

His body had completely lost sensation; he could neither feel dampness nor coolness, but only the increasing pressure on his body.

Logically speaking, even if he drank the deadly poison, he wouldn't feel much pain. However, Li Zhen, curled up in the pit, gradually felt discomfort coming from his abdomen.

The sensation wasn't very strong, but it was extremely strange, as if insects were gnawing at his abdomen.

The soil pressing down on him seemed to come alive, constantly wriggling and clinging tightly to his body.

In the midst of that soil, Li Zhen vaguely heard the howling wind and strange wails.

It was as if countless hands were gripping his body and soul, dragging him down relentlessly.

Is it communicating with the power of the underworld?
Li Zhen remained calm and focused, knowing that this was the first stage after being buried using the method of resurrection from the dead, followed by the stage of the body gradually decaying.

To complete the first resurrection after nine deaths in such a brutal way actually requires consuming the fortune of the person who carried out his instructions and adjusted the details of the ritual for him every night.

If Yuan Zhenxia were replaced by someone else, or even the protagonist of some movies, they might not be able to withstand this kind of strain.

Li Zhen couldn't fall asleep or induce a coma; he could only try to distract himself by processing Fang Zhongxin's memories in his mind.

The strange pain emanating from his abdomen grew stronger and stronger, gradually spreading throughout his body.

……

After filling the pit with the excavated soil, Yuan Zhenxia, ​​as instructed by Li Zhen, tamped down the soil on the pit, creating a compact little mound on the spot.

Then, he went to the altar that Li Zhen had set up, burned three piles of paper money in front of the altar, and finally poured the bowls of blood on the altar onto the mound where Li Zhen was buried, staining the small mound with a layer of scarlet red.

Looking at the small mound of earth, Bazhu asked with some concern, "You were so ruthless, leaving no air holes at all. Won't he... suffocate?"

Yuan Zhenxia said dismissively, "Didn't you realize that this friend was actually a dead man?"

“A dead person?” Baju looked up in surprise. “How is that possible? This person looks like a living person. He can walk, jump, and talk.”

Yuan Zhenxia put the bowl back on the altar: "Those who can walk and jump are not necessarily alive. This ancestor of the Gu clan can also walk and jump, but it is not alive either."

"My friend, his breathing is barely perceptible, and his heartbeat seems to have stopped... He even has lividity on his body, how could he possibly be alive?"

"The world is vast and full of wonders. I don't know where this friend came from, or how he survived. I'll talk to him again after he recovers from his illness."

Bazhu shook her head: "I thought our Gu clan's witchcraft was already amazing enough, but I never imagined there were such bizarre spells in this world. You really don't recognize this person?"

Yuan Zhenxia shook his head: "I don't remember anything, but I believe this friend really came to save me, so I'm also very curious."

The demon fetus fell from the banshee's body to the ground, crawled onto the altar in a bizarre manner, drank the remaining blood in one gulp, and finally looked at Yuan Zhenxia with strange eyes.

Yuan Zhenxia was startled and quickly said, "Your master told me to guard this place. If you do anything reckless, you'll be finished when he comes out."

The ghost fetus let out a strange cry and dragged its body like an octopus, listlessly walking towards the cave entrance.

Yuan Zhenxia added, "You can't go out. If you disrupt your master's arrangements outside, you'll be in trouble too."

The ghost fetus yelled and quickly ran behind the small mound of earth, curling up and lying down.

Seeing that the ghost fetus was obediently staying in the cave, Yuan Zhenxia breathed a sigh of relief.

Baju said, "These monsters are not easy to deal with, so you have to be careful."

"By borrowing their power, I should be able to intimidate them for a while." Yuan Zhenxia looked at Bazhu. "I'll be waiting here for half a month. What are your plans?"

“I’m going to wait here for my fiancé, Black Dragon, to come back.” Baju walked to a clean rock and sat down.

Just as Yuan Zhenxia was about to speak, he suddenly heard a faint but dense gnawing sound coming from the mound of earth.

He turned to look at the small mound and found that the ghost fetus seemed to have heard the voice as well, and was staring intently at the small mound where Li Zhen had been buried.

So fast?
Is today the first day of burial?
Without delay, Yuan Zhenxia arrived at the altar and used a shovel to carefully scrape away the black ash from the burning paper money onto the small mound.

A gentle breeze arose, carrying some black ash into the air.

Yuan Zhenxia listened attentively for a moment.

The gnawing sound grew louder and louder, giving him the illusion that tiny insects were gnawing at his body.

He looked at Baju and noticed that she was rubbing her arms with both hands, and her expression had become a little strange, obviously she had also experienced that strange feeling.

This made Yuan Zhenxia feel slightly uneasy.

It seems these next two weeks won't be easy to get through...

"Haven't they come out?" As dawn broke, the high priest, standing by a pile of withered grass opposite the cave, rubbed the scars on his face and looked at the cave entrance, asking in a low voice.

A middle-aged man standing next to the high priest answered in a low voice, "No, they haven't come out since last night. Neither Baju nor those two men have."

The high priest frowned: "What exactly are they doing in there?"

Last night, that horrible little devil followed him around, urging him to do things. If he hesitated even slightly, the little devil would punch and kick him, making his whole body ache.

The little devil disappeared after daybreak.

The high priest finally got his own free time.

Even at night, when the little devil disappeared, he remained fearful and dared not make the slightest move.

The middle-aged man standing next to him asked cautiously, "Those drugs... are we going to put them in their food? We've prepared a very large dose. Even if an elephant ate that stuff, let alone a few people, it would surely die within a few days."

The high priest nodded, then immediately shook his head: "Baju is still inside. Although the drug isn't very obvious, it definitely won't escape her senses. Don't put any drugs in their food for now. Wait until they're off guard."

As he said this, Li Zhen's image appeared in his mind, which shows who he was truly afraid of.

The middle-aged man responded.

The high priest withdrew his gaze and lowered his voice even further: "When you go to deliver the things, you will have a chance to see clearly what they are doing inside. It doesn't matter if you don't understand. When you come back, report to me in detail."

"I understand."

"Don't make a fuss about sending people out. Don't tell anyone. As soon as those two return, whether or not they brought someone back, bring them to see me immediately."

"High Priest, rest assured, I will definitely get things done!"

The high priest patted the man's shoulder with a smile: "I definitely believe you. The previous clan leader is long dead, and the black dragon won't be back anytime soon. Who else but you can sit in the position of clan leader?"

The man nodded and bowed, laughing a few times.

The high priest then turned to look at the cave.

What he fears most now is the witchcraft that person may have already cast on him.

Although the man had never performed any witchcraft in front of him, he knew from the powerful sense of oppression he felt when facing him that the man's witchcraft skills were definitely very high, at least far above his own.

This made him afraid to even run away.

That person isn't stupid; they must have already used some tricks on him.

Knowing how terrifying witchcraft was, he knew that if he were to fall under that person's spell, running away would be the worst course of action.

So he was eager to know what the man was doing inside the cave.

Without warning, the high priest's vision changed, and everything he saw was tinged with crimson.

The high priest subconsciously raised his hand and rubbed his eyes.

A sharp pain shot through his heart, as if something had bitten him hard.

The pain spread throughout his body in the blink of an eye, causing the high priest to feel dizzy and fall weakly backward to the ground.

The indescribable pain surged through his body like a tidal wave, making him tense and his face turn deathly pale.

His bloodshot vision grew increasingly blurry, and the sounds he heard became increasingly indistinct.

"High...Priest, are you...alright..."

……

Upon hearing someone enter the cave, Bazhu went straight out, took the item, and returned to the cave, giving the person no chance to spy inside.

She placed the food on the rock and woke Yuan Zhenxia, ​​who was dozing off, inviting him to eat. "I've checked these things; none of them are poisonous. You can eat them without worry."

Rubbing his eyes, Yuan Zhenxia washed his face with water brought in from outside and ate something with Bazhu.

He and Baju agreed that he would be responsible for keeping watch at night, while Baju would be responsible for safety during the day.

Of course, it's not just the high priest outside that needs to be watched out for, but also the ghosts inside.

After finishing his meal, Yuan Zhenxia reminded Bazhu to be careful of the high priest outside, and then fell asleep again after not sleeping all night.

One day, with nothing to do, Yuan Zhenxia, ​​who was sitting by the mound of earth reading to pass the time, heard some unusual sounds.

He put the book down and listened intently to the sounds coming from inside the mound of earth.

Last night he heard gnawing sounds, but now he hears a sticky wriggling sound, as if something slimy is wriggling under the mound of earth.

Following Li Zhen's instructions, Yuan Zhenxia arrived at the altar, lit three incense sticks, placed them next to the mound of earth, and then covered the mound with the clean linen cloth from the altar.

Strangely, the slippery sound was isolated by a piece of cloth within the small mound of earth, so Yuan Zhenxia never heard it again.

The little devil who appeared at the cave entrance watched as Yuan Zhenxia finished doing all these things.

Yuan Zhenxia looked up and smiled at the little devil.

The little devil smiled back, then disappeared, presumably off to find some fun somewhere.

On the third night, Yuan Zhenxia heard a similar sound of bubbles bursting coming from the mound of earth.

Upon hearing this sound, Yuan Zhenxia's mind conjured up images of Li Zhen's body continuously bubbling and then bursting, which made Yuan Zhenxia feel somewhat nauseous.

Following Li Zhen's instructions, Yuan Zhenxia lit three incense sticks in front of the mound, and then smeared half of the mirror hanging on the mound with blood, turning it red.

After Yuan Zhenxia finished doing these things, the mound of earth seemed to undergo some inexplicable change, which made Yuan Zhenxia feel uneasy.

Logically speaking, if a person is buried in such a hot environment for three days, the body should have already begun to decompose, and there should be no miracle.

But Yuan Zhenxia inexplicably believed that Li Zhen, buried in the mound of earth, was definitely not dead, or rather, that he would definitely come back to life.

On the fourth night, Yuan Zhenxia heard a chilling sound of bones grinding together and bones breaking.

On the fifth night, Yuan Zhenxia finally smelled the indescribable stench that should have been there, as if after so many days, the internal organs buried under the mound and Li Zhen's body had finally begun to rot.

Yuan Zhenxia buried the moldy rice, soaked in blood, at the spot where Li Zhen's head was buried.

Awakened by the stench, Bazhu pinched her nose and said to Yuan Zhenxia, ​​"Is this the smell of a decomposing corpse? Can...can he really be resurrected?"

Just as Yuan Zhenxia was about to speak, he caught a glimpse of the little ghost appearing behind Bazhu out of the corner of his eye. He quickly gestured to Bazhu to stop talking nonsense, and then said to the little ghost, "She's talking nonsense. These changes all happened in the order your master instructed, which means the ritual is effective."

The little imp chuckled, snapped the neck of the big-headed imp in his hand, then stepped on the tail of the rotting cat that was trying to escape, and dragged the tail out of the cave.

Soon after, the high priest's screams echoed from outside.

Bazhu, who was inside the cave, was terrified.

Since Li Zhen buried himself, the vampires, banshees, and red-eyed bats have all fallen silent. The ghost fetus, which huddled beside the mound of earth, only occasionally stirs up some activity. Only the little devil is very active, causing the high priest a great deal of misery.

Yuan Zhenxia wiped his sweat: "Be careful what you say in the future. These ghosts are all very petty."

"If this friend comes back to life, all will be well; if he doesn't, we'll all be buried with him."

Having understood Yuan Zhenxia's meaning, Bazhu broke out in a cold sweat.

……

"Useless! You took so many things from me, yet you didn't even dare to try to break the spell on me?! You're truly useless! What use are you to me?"

"Agula, watch your words! When you were taking the things, you said you just wanted to take a look and that it was okay if you couldn't help. What do you mean by saying this now?"

"Didn't you say your witchcraft was incredibly powerful, and that no one within dozens of kilometers could compare to you? How come you can't even solve this little... problem of mine?"

"Is this all the trouble you've got? You know perfectly well who you've offended. If you don't want to live anymore and want to end your suffering, I'll grant your wish!"

"Ha, kill me?! Come on! Kill me!"

Under the scorching sun, the high priest, his face covered in bruises and looking extremely haggard, glared at a dark-faced middle-aged man standing in front of him with bloodshot eyes.

Today is the sixth day since that person came to the Gu Clan.

During those six days, the man never left the cave.

Baju and the other man rarely left the cave, only occasionally venturing out to see the sunlight.

Since the first sudden onset of labor pains, the high priest has been experiencing increasingly severe contractions every day over the past few days.

The onset of this pain was completely unpredictable, sometimes during the day and sometimes at night. No matter what methods the high priest tried, he could not suppress the pain.

This morning, the excruciating pain reached its peak, giving the high priest a taste of what it meant to be worse than dead.

Not only that, but today he experienced terrifying hallucinations for the first time.

Caught completely off guard, the high priest severely injured several Gu clan men, nearly killing them outright.

Unable to solve his own problems, he had to pay a heavy price to hire an outside helper.

Who knew that after paying the price, the guy he hired would say he couldn't help him? How could he not be furious?
The dark-faced man stared at the high priest for a long time, then laughed instead of getting angry: "Agula, you have offended someone you should not have offended. I dare not kill you because I do not want to offend that person. You can only die at that person's hands. It is useless for you to provoke me now. Just wait to die."

At their level, whether they can dispel someone's witchcraft and what level the other person is at can be determined simply by trying.

Since he knew he was no match for the other party, he naturally wouldn't risk offending them.

The dark-faced man turned and left after speaking.

Watching the dark-faced man's retreating figure, the high priest's expression grew even more unpleasant.

Just as the man was about to enter the grove, the high priest suddenly called out to him: "I'll give you everything I promised. Go and invite that man here for me."

The dark-faced man stopped, turned around, and looked solemnly at the high priest: "Are you really going to invite that person?"

The high priest gritted his teeth and said, "I'm about to die, what do I have to worry about?"

"Then you'll regret it." The dark-faced man threw out those words and turned to disappear into the grove.

The grove of trees suddenly transformed into a "forest of corpses" in the high priest's eyes, causing his pupils to shrink sharply.

"It's all an illusion, it's all an illusion..."

He tapped his head, turned around, and staggered towards the Gu clan's residence.

At night, as Li Zhen had instructed, the high priest prepared the fresh blood and meat that Li Zhen needed.

As he handed the blood and chunks of flesh to the imp, the high priest knelt down and pleaded pitifully, “I’m in so much pain… I had another hallucination today, which almost prevented me from doing my job for that one inside. Could you… could you please beg that one inside to lift the spell on me? I promise I will do my job properly!”

He had begged the imp many times before, and thought the imp wouldn't respond this time either. But the imp rolled its eyes, said "Wait for me to come back," and then disappeared from the high priest's sight.

Is there really any hope?
The high priest was somewhat surprised.

……

Inside the cave, the little devil put down the blood and chunks of flesh and immediately turned and ran out of the cave.

After glancing at the energetic little devil, Yuan Zhenxia picked up the fresh blood and chunks of flesh, held his breath, walked to the mound, and buried the blood and flesh in four different locations.

No new sounds came from the small mound that day, but the stench became even stronger, filling the entire cave with a nauseating odor.

Under such a foul odor, Bazhu and Yuan Zhenxia had little appetite for two consecutive days.

Hearing the high priest's pitiful cries coming from outside, Yuan Zhenxia shook his head helplessly.

Another day passed, and the stench gradually weakened to the point of being barely noticeable.

All movement within the small mound disappeared, and it looked like an ordinary mound.

Thirteen days after Li Zhen was buried, some changes finally began to appear on the small mound of earth...

(End of this chapter)