Dao Cheng Gui Xian

Chapter 163 Saint or Demon? I'll Chop Off Your Head!
Li Wushou's pupils suddenly contracted.

What a great high priest! What a magnificent presence he has!

Last night's experience, besides making Li Wushou keep thinking about what the Grand Priest was after, also made him think about what he was after.

Li Wushou was also pondering a question at the same time: what exactly was the basis for the so-called ancestral god's approval?
After checking all the members of the Luotou clan on the platform, Li Wushou finally concluded that the key should be the two gods!
These two gods should be quite special within the Luotou clan.

The only known individuals, besides the Grand Master of Ceremonies and his grandson, are the son of the Minister of Military Affairs who was eaten.

The reason why the ancestral god of the Luotou clan is about to die should be related to these two gods.

If the two gods in the remains in the mountain chamber came from the High Priest, then where did the two gods of the Luotou clan's ancestors go?
And whose are the two gods on Luo Fan's body?

Li Wushou always felt that the second god within Luo Fan was more insane and sharp.

This was clearly not something a child under ten years old could cultivate. Li Wushou guessed that it was the second god of the Luotou clan's ancestors.

Therefore, Luo Fan was originally a new body prepared by the High Priest for the ancestral god!

If we assume the worst about this high priest, then things will get interesting!

Nine years ago, this high priest manipulated his son and daughter-in-law to eat the son of the Martial and Execution Minister, who possessed two gods. Nine years later, last night, the high priest manipulated his grandson to eat the flying skull demon that his son and daughter-in-law had transformed into.

So, was it really true that Luo Fan lost control and ate his parents' internal organs in the ancient temple?
Couldn't it be that he was suddenly awakened when the High Priest manipulated Luo Fan to eat his parents?

From this perspective, making Luo Fan eat his parents whole should be part of his plan.

Only then was it worthwhile for him to spend fifteen taels of gold to hire Li Wushou to escort his son and daughter-in-law back to the Luotou clan.

If it's really just about finding a new vessel for that ancestral god, then the son of the Martial and Execution Minister should be able to meet the requirements.

Why bother going through all this trouble?

There is only one reason why the High Priest did this.

Just as the paper goddess impersonated Li Wushou to pass for the real thing, the Grand Priest also wanted to take his place!
Li Wushou was speechless. How could he encounter such rebellious people wherever he went?
Moreover, this Grand Priest is even more ruthless than Zhu Sihai!

This ancestral god is his ancestor!

Of course, this was just Li Wushou's worst-case scenario; what if the other party really was a saint?

"If he is truly a saint, then this trip can be considered a travelogue, and we should reduce the amount of incense we burn!"

With his mind focused on the Three Immortals Pavilion, Li Wushou murmured to himself.

The old beggar rolled his eyes upon hearing this. He had thought Li Wushou would say that if the other party was a saint, then the incense offerings would stop.

However, Li Wushou is still young.

The other party's heart is far more ruthless than Li Wushou imagined!

With the announcement of the High Priest
The heads hanging on the sacred tree immediately stopped crying out.

The branches swayed gently and slowly drooped down, with the seventeen heads aligned in a line with the head of the high priest.

The children, trembling with fear, stared in terror at the bizarre scene on the altar.

Even Luo Fan, who was constantly encouraging himself, felt a chill run down his spine because he saw a head hanging next to his grandfather's head that looked exactly like his own.

Is this the sacred fruit that Grandpa was talking about?

How come this sacred fruit looks exactly like me, except that it's a little smaller?
"Hiss! Head!"

"Ah~ so many heads~!"

"This head is just like mine!"

The other children also noticed this and gasped in surprise.

"quiet!"

The Martial Justice Minister stood to the side, and upon hearing the children's commotion, he gave a cold snort. The children immediately fell silent; apart from Luo Fan, the other children were all familiar with this Martial Justice Minister.

After the children quieted down, Wu Xing Situ spoke again:
"The ceremony begins, let's harvest the sacred fruit!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the sacred tree above them lowered its branches again, this time a full seventeen branches, which wrapped around the seventeen children and pulled them toward the roots of the sacred tree.

The altar was cleared, and the children who had been bowing in worship disappeared.

The bowing members of the Luotou clan slowly rose, then straightened their bodies as if trying to see what would happen when the sacred fruit was picked.

But this is clearly wishful thinking. With the ancestral hall blocking the view, unless these children have climbed to an extremely high place, or they themselves fly up with their heads off.

Li Wushou, however, was not subject to such restrictions, and he raised his perspective to focus on the roots of the sacred tree.

Seventeen children have begun to climb the sacred tree.

Climbing trees is not difficult for these children, but the rotting wounds on the broad tree trunks are like swamps of flesh and blood, constantly trapping the children inside.

Because of the child's constant struggle, worms that cry out in pain would occasionally emerge from the rotting tree trunk, their sharp spines causing the child to wail and cry.

Both physical and mental strength were honed to the greatest extent.

Luo Fan was among them, struggling to cross one rotten tree pit after another.

He climbed very quickly and was in the first group.

For him and the children in the first group, the greatest pain was not actually the tree pit and the baby-crying insects in it, but rather the rustling leaves all around.

The leaves revealed human faces, rustling like whispers, constantly tormenting his mind.

They had to concentrate their minds to the extreme just to ensure they wouldn't fall from the tree.

Li Wushou watched from afar, guessing that this was actually preparation for the flying skull. With limbs exhausted and powerless, and the mind focused and concentrated in the brain, was there hope for flying the skull?
No wonder the High Priest always said that the Luotou clan strictly forbade flying skulls in front of ten-year-old children.

Knowing something in advance diminishes the sense of the unknown and awe, making it difficult to concentrate one's mind.

Whether it was his imagination or not, Li Wushou stared at Luo Fan and felt that there was a faint red glow emanating from his brow, abdomen, and feet.

Nearly an hour later, Luo Fan, who had been suffering greatly, was the first to climb up the tree branch behind the High Priest's head and pick the sacred fruit that was exactly the same as his.

He happily held up the sacred fruit, intending to show it to his grandfather, but upon seeing his grandfather's serious profile, he swallowed the words in his heart.

Branches drooped down, and Luo Fan, holding the fruit, lay exhausted on the open ground in front of the altar.

Wu Xing Situ walked up to Luo Fan expressionlessly, looking down at him. Luo Fan smirked, about to greet him, when suddenly a dark shadow came hurtling towards his head.

Luo Fan jolted awake and quickly rolled over, causing a large stone lock to crash to the ground with a loud thud.

"Lift the stone lock, don't stop!"

With a command, Wu Xing Situ, hands behind his back, looked once again at the treetop of the sacred tree.

Another hour passed, and by the time the last child had picked his own sacred fruit, Luo Fan had already exhausted himself four or five times.

He was a little confused; what exactly was going on?

He was the first to pick the sacred fruit, yet he held the stone weight for the longest time?

But no one explained it to him, not even his closest grandfather, who hadn't spoken to him at all that day.

So he gritted his teeth and persevered!
Li Wushou was puzzled. Although the children were all exhausted, their minds were constantly trembling and fluctuating between their brows, clearly indicating that they had been activated to the maximum extent.

Seeing that everyone had gathered, the high priest continued in a somber tone:
"Swallow the Holy Fruit!"

Luo Fan threw down the stone lock, took the sacred fruit from his belt, and swallowed it in one gulp. He was actually quite curious about what the fruit, which looked just like his head, tasted like.

After a little hesitation, the other children also swallowed it.

Li Wushou chose a child who was a little further away from Luo Fan and watched him intently.

After swallowing this sacred fruit, it was not swallowed into the stomach and intestines like food. Instead, it liquefied instantly upon entering the throat and seeped directly into the spine.

The third cervical vertebra on the neck was instantly sealed off, and then the liquid from the sacred fruit flowed along the medulla into the space between the eyebrows.

The newly formed mental focus began to converge towards the center of the forehead.

The child's head is increasingly evolving into a separate individual.

So this is the secret of the flying skulls of the Luotou clan? Li Wushou watched with great interest.

Just then, Luo Fan opened his eyes. He was faster than these children of the same age, and his speed increased with each step.

But the moment he opened his eyes, Luo Fan suddenly lowered his head.

Li Wushou saw deep fear in the other person's eyes.

Huh? Did the other party sense it?
Soon, the other sixteen children woke up one after another. Like Luo Fan, they lowered their heads in fear, and some even became unsteady on their feet.

Wu Xing Situ stood to the side, expressionless, and shouted, "Stand still! Turn around! Look up!"

Upon hearing this, the seventeen children slowly turned around and then gently raised their heads.

The high priest on the altar surveyed the entire assembly, his head slowly rising from his neck, and spoke unhurriedly:
"Luo Tou Shi, Flying Head!"

As soon as these words were spoken, the nearly two hundred members of the Luotou clan who were watching all trembled, their heads flying high into the air, including the girl standing next to Li Wushou.

With a single glance, three or four of the seventeen standing children instantly collapsed to the ground.

Luo Fan was sweating profusely, feeling weak all over, and his body was swaying precariously.

The rest of the children were trembling all over, shaking like leaves, and some had even started to cry.

"Why are you crying? We are the Rokuto clan. The flying skull is our clan's divine power. Only by facing the fear in your heart can you become the most outstanding Rokuto clan member. If you are defeated by fear, then you are not qualified to live on the mountaintop in the future!"

The dozen or so children gritted their teeth and struggled on.

They were terrified, especially when they saw their parents' heads fly off and hang in the air looking at them.

"Plop~"

Two more fell down. Wu Xing Situ waved his hand, and several headless people walked out of the ancestral hall, their heads also hanging in mid-air.

The headless man walked into the line of children, picked up one unconscious child at a time, and retreated back into the ancestral hall.

Among the onlookers, Li Wushou spotted several disappointed faces among the pile of heads. They appeared to be the children's parents.

"Did the skull-flying attempt fail?"

Li Wushou muttered something, and the girl with her head hanging beside her replied softly:
"They can still fly their heads, but because their true spirit is scattered and incomplete, the mortality rate is very high. Even if they fly their heads, it is difficult for them to live on the mountaintop because of their instability. They can only live as ordinary people."

While they were talking, two or three more people collapsed in the arena. The reason was simple: a headless man carrying an unconscious child deliberately waved around in front of the children.

Fifteen minutes later, only nine children remained standing!

Li Wushou thought the head-removal ceremony was over. Only nine of the seventeen children had made it to this point, a near 50% elimination rate, which was outrageous.

But the Martial Justice Minister clapped his hands, and nine headless men emerged from the ancestral shrine, each holding a long sword.

Li Wushou had seen this knife style last night; it was identical to the one enshrined in the ancestral hall, clearly a replica!
The headless men walked up to the still-standing child and handed him the knife.

Nine heads suddenly flew out from behind them, stopping in front of the nine children and saying menacingly:
"Use it to chop off your head!"

(End of this chapter)