Invasion Myth: Starting with the Schoolteacher

Chapter 912 Familiar Breath

What's even more terrifying is that these attacks are completely unpredictable, and their operating mechanism seems to have transcended the realm of divination!

It's like a master swordsman randomly slashing around!
"What...what kind of monster is this?!"

This was his final desperate cry before his consciousness was completely extinguished.

When the indescribable chaotic sword light finally faded, this eccentric sorcerer, born into the Sima clan, who considered himself a genius and aspired to surpass Marquis Wu, returned to the world completely, just like the monk Sewu and the Taoist Li before him, leaving not a trace behind.

After that, it was time for Baoantang to expertly clean up the battlefield.

Looting the corpse and collecting the spoils, purifying the remnants with the Southern Ming Fire, erasing the traces of the earth's devouring, and finally using the Buddhist Heart Sutra to deliver the souls of the dead—the entire process was smooth and highly professional.

But those golden eyes, hidden deep beneath the Huai River, narrowed slightly at this moment, revealing a hint of confusion and inquiry.

He had indeed detected many extremely faint yet strangely familiar auras from the chaotic aftermath of the battle...

The Yangtze River, Ksitigarbha, Guanyin, Taihu Lake, Yunmeng, and the stars.
The feeling was fleeting, yet it stirred a ripple in His usually calm mind.

Since being unexpectedly awakened from a long slumber by the aura of "King Yu" a year ago, He has been quietly observing this world that is both familiar and unfamiliar.

He discovered that Kyushu seemed to have reached an extremely special juncture.

The sky was much cleaner than ever before, lacking the aura of "immortals and Buddhas" that He had once loathed.

On the earth, humanity seems to have become weak and frail, and the once-prosperous human fortune is visibly declining and thinning.

In theory, this should be His best era.

Without those suppressions and constraints, He could have...

But... after much hesitation, sensing the still chaotic and unpredictable vortex of cause and effect in the outside world, especially the familiar feeling from that fleeting glimpse just now, He finally suppressed the urge to reveal Himself and chose to continue to lie in wait and observe.

'Let's wait and see.'

On the other side, after confirming that there were no more hidden dangers in the surrounding area and that everything was in place, Shi Wang sent a safety signal to Xu Xuan outside the fog.

"Everything went smoothly?" Xu Xuan's voice came through the mist, carrying a hint of confirmation.

"Successfully." Stone King replied sullenly.

"That's good." Upon hearing this, Xu Xuan finally lowered his guard a bit.

His biggest worry was Wuzhiqi, who was said to have been suppressed by King Yu under Turtle Mountain in the Huai River.

If that being's true form or remnant consciousness were truly nearby, and our group were fighting so fiercely and violently right at His "doorstep," according to the ancient records of His volatile temper, He should have already jumped out and overturned the table.

But now everything is calm...

"It seems that people really shouldn't scare themselves."

Xu Xuan chuckled and shook his head, feeling that he might be being too sensitive. "The Dragon Lord is the same. He makes even a hint about an opportunity sound mysterious and cryptic."

He waited cautiously outside the fog for the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, and after confirming that there were no further disturbances, he slowly stepped into the still-lingering thick fog and headed towards the center of the battlefield inside Xuyi.

As soon as they stepped into the center of the battlefield, they saw the Stone King's enormous body approaching.

The giant stone palm held a woman covered in blood and in a sorry state, as if it were carrying a rag doll.

It was Xia Ji herself.

Without a shred of pity, Shi Wang threw her to the ground with a thud. The woman let out a painful scream and curled up on the ground, her once beautiful face contorted with pain and fear.

Immediately afterwards, two sharp sword lights clashed down, the cold blades tightly gripping her slender neck. Any slight movement would result in her being decapitated.

The Justice Team went to great lengths to uncover this cunning true form.

With his keen sense of the earth's yin energy, Stone King, along with two swordsmen, overturned several suspected hiding places.

After smashing several fleshy clones used to deceive the eye, they finally managed to pull her out of an extremely hidden groin on the banks of the Huai River.

After Ji Dongming's death and the annihilation of the Jia family's retainers, the formation sealing off the three counties had already collapsed.

Xia Ji's first thought was to use the Huai River's waterways to escape eastward into the sea, where she could then soar freely like a bird in the sky.

Unfortunately, she ultimately could not escape the clutches of Baoan Hall.

Not only was she caught up, but all four of her limbs were broken by the Stone King's brute force. Even the core that sustained her power was cracked by the Southern Ming Fire Sword Intent. At this moment, she was exhausted and had no power to resist.

Now that the suspects are in place, it's time for the much-anticipated interrogation.

Xu Xuan stepped forward, adopting a kind and approachable demeanor, and flashed his signature gentle smile.

But the Shengxie Sword in his hand, which hummed and exuded an ominous, hungry aura, was nimbly turned and played with between his fingertips.

The sharp tip of the sword would occasionally "unintentionally" point in Xia Ji's direction, as if it would fly out of her hand at any moment and accurately pierce her head.

"Cough cough,"

Xu Xuan cleared his throat and spoke in as gentle a tone as possible, trying to ease the tense atmosphere.

"Don't be nervous, relax. We are Baoan Hall, a righteous organization that speaks the truth and follows the rules."

“Our principle has always been to never let a bad person go free,” he paused, his smile becoming even more “kind,” “but we will never wrong a… good person.”

Upon hearing this, Xia Ji, who was already trembling, suddenly shuddered.

His body trembled even more violently, and the fear in his eyes was almost overflowing.

Am I a bad person or not...? Do you think I don't know myself?!
She suppressed her fear and tried to buy time through silence, while secretly activating her most powerful allure.

Invisible ripples spread out quietly, and a sweet and alluring scent filled the air.

Now it is the real body, and the charm derived from the accumulation of a thousand years of beauty is far beyond what the clone can compare to. Even the back of her head can bewitch thousands of men.

She finally understood: stone spirits were a different species and didn't fall for this trick at all.

Those two little girls were too young to understand what love between men and women was; their minds were frighteningly pure.

Only the young man leading the group was a normal, hot-blooded man!

This is her only chance! If only she could…

If I can pull off a stunning comeback, conquer him with my unparalleled charm, and then take control of that seemingly powerful "Justice Bao'an Hall"...

The thought of that wonderful future made Xia Ji almost tremble with excitement.

It was as if I could already see myself turning the tables and taking control of everything.

Wouldn't that be... incredibly pleasurable?
Just as she was immersed in the wonderful fantasy of making a comeback and taking control of the Bao'an Hall, Xia Ji suddenly felt a chill on her back!
A broken demonic sword, exuding endless ferocity and resentment, mercilessly pierced her back.

The sword contained the three poisons of greed, anger, and ignorance, which were like billions of red-hot steel knives that instantly invaded the depths of her soul, beginning to cruelly cut and corrode her soul, which had been condensed over thousands of years!

"Woo——!!!"

The excruciating pain far surpassed the physical suffering; Xia Ji suddenly opened her mouth, about to let out a heart-wrenching scream.

However, a cold, hard, clearly specially made block of steel was shoved into her mouth with practiced precision and brutal force.

All the screams were silenced, leaving only a series of muffled, painful whimpers.

Shengxie Sword was indeed the "little trash" Xu Xuan mentioned, but that was only in comparison to the more monstrous beings within Baoan Hall.

In the outside world, this demonic weapon, born of evil thoughts and feeding on evil spirits, is an absolutely vicious and unparalleled weapon that can stop a child from crying and is coveted by even the greatest demons!

five minutes later.

The Victory Sword was slowly drawn out, and the foul aura on the sword seemed to intensify, emitting a pleasant chirping sound.

The steel block, bearing deep teeth marks and filthy blood, was also removed.

Xu Xuan looked at Xia Ji, who was almost limp on the ground, her eyes unfocused, and only twitching instinctively. A slightly apologetic expression appeared on his face as he explained gently:
"I'm sorry, conventional interrogation methods are of little effect on the body of a corpse demon, and your soul is too special."

"So I had no choice but to resort to a little... rather primitive and direct method."

"hope you do not mind."

What else could Xia Ji do?

Her unfocused eyes strained to focus, meeting Xu Xuan's "sincere" gaze. Almost driven by survival instinct, she forced out a broken, hoarse voice from deep within her throat:

"It's...it's...okay..."

Of course she chose to "forgive" him!

In reality, Xu Xuan was not a pervert with any special fetishes.

As he said, Xia Ji's situation was indeed very special.

The Corpse Demon has extremely high resistance to physical damage, and her soul is too deeply entangled with the legends of a thousand years and the wishes of all living beings. Conventional methods such as soul searching and dream entry are very likely to backfire on her or even corrupt the caster.

Ultimately, the only safe, efficient, and non-polluting method left is to use a demonic weapon like the Shengxie Sword, which specializes in attacking the soul and amplifying pain, to conduct the most direct "consciousness communication."

"What a sin..."

Xu Xuan looked at Xia Ji, who was lying on the ground barely breathing, and sighed softly, as if he really felt a little guilty about it.

However, the Shengxie Sword, still humming merrily in his hand, made his guilt seem particularly unconvincing.

"Name, age, place of origin, marital status."

Xu Xuan's opening remarks during the interrogation had the air of a courtroom in the mortal world.

Xia Ji breathed weakly, daring not to conceal anything, and answered intermittently: "My surname is Ji, my given name is Shao... I am about nine hundred and thirty-three years old this year... I am from Zheng, and I am widowed..."

They were very cooperative and helpful.

"How did you become a Corpse Demon?" Xu Xuan continued to ask, this was the key question.

“It’s…Wu Chen…” When Xia Ji mentioned this name, her voice was filled with an extremely complex emotion, like resentment, or some kind of indescribable entanglement.

As Xia Ji's weak and intermittent explanation unfolded, a certain... gradually appeared on the faces of the four-person team listening in, along with the silent Stone King.

An expression of shock, as if "my eyes have been opened."

Even the pair of golden eyes hidden deep beneath the Huai River couldn't help but blink a few times.

It was as if it were remarking: 'This hairless female monkey... she certainly has quite a life story.'

Wu Chen, of the Mi clan and Qu family, whose given name was Wu and courtesy name was Zi Ling, was Xia Ji's last husband.

Note: Not the last man.

Wu Chen was also a remarkable figure during the Spring and Autumn Period.

When the State of Chen was destroyed, the State of Chu captured Xia Ji, who was over thirty years old. In those days, she was almost a grandmother.

But this older beauty still captured the hearts of the nobles of Chu.

When King Zhuang of Chu saw the beautiful Xia Ji, he was immediately captivated and wanted to take her as his concubine.

But at this moment, Wu Chen, a minister of Chu, said to King Zhuang of Chu: "You cannot do this. You have summoned the feudal lords to punish the guilty. If you take Xia Ji as your concubine, it will be considered lust. Lust is adultery, and adultery is a serious offense. The Book of Zhou says that you should be virtuous and cautious in your punishments. What you are doing does not conform to the principle of cautious punishment. Please think it over carefully!"

General Zifan also wanted to marry Xia Ji, but Wuchen said to Zifan, "She is an unlucky person. The men around her will be cursed to die. The State of Chen was destroyed because of her. There are so many beautiful women in the world, why do you need her!"

In the end, King Zhuang of Chu was persuaded and bestowed Xia Ji upon Lian Yin Xianglao, a Chu nobleman who had just lost his wife.

At first glance, Wu Chen, who was not afraid of royal power and spoke frankly to his colleagues, seemed to be a model of a loyal, upright, and insightful virtuous minister and scholar.

However... the real "exciting" part of the story comes later.

In the seventeenth year of King Zhuang of Chu, just as Wu Chen's "ominous" prophecy came true, Lian Yin Xianglao did not enjoy his romantic bliss for more than a few days before dying on the battlefield, and his body was never recovered.

What's even more astonishing is that his son, Hei Yao, didn't even bother to search for his father's remains before eagerly trying to "seduce" his stepmother, Xia Ji.

The character 蒸 originally means the upward movement of fire, and its extended meaning... those who know, know.

Seeing that Xia Ji had fallen into the hands of others again, Wu Chen, the "righteous gentleman" who had once righteously advised King Zhuang of Chu and Zi Fan, finally revealed his true colors and personally intervened to intercept her.

(End of this chapter)