Establishing a Clan in the Eastern Wilderness: A Daily Divination, Cultivating Longevity in a Grotto

The mud doll raised its hand, and on its slender white fingertips, the drop of black liquid condensed again, larger and thicker than before, exuding a suffocating, decaying stench.

"I originally planned to enjoy the sacrifice first, and then play with you at my leisure. Since you're in such a hurry to die..."

Beneath the red veil, the clay-sculpted face cracked open.

The cracks spread from the corners of its mouth to the base of its ears, and from the base of its ears to its entire face. Countless black cracks covered its head like a spider web, and black liquid seeped from each crack.

"Then I'll start with you."

It opened its mouth and began to sing a ballad.

"The moonlight shines on the ground. My dear daughter is marrying her groom. Red veil, white coffin bed. First bow to heaven and earth, second bow to the parents..."

The song was clear and melodious, yet it carried an inexplicable eeriness.

With each syllable that fell, a pitch-black arm materialized in the void.

More and more arms appeared, growing denser and denser, weaving behind the clay doll to form the phantom of a thousand-armed evil god. The phantom was three zhang tall, blotting out the sky, its thousand arms like a thousand venomous snakes, dancing wildly in the night sky.

A thousand hands moved in unison.

With a slap of his arm, he crushed the sonic arrow from the black jade into fragments.

More arms reached out to grab Li Changsheng and his companions, covering the sky and leaving them nowhere to escape.

Crimson Feather flapped its wings and soared high, unleashing a barrage of fireballs from its mouth, burning the grasping arm to ashes. Ink Jade's ten fingers flew, the pipa music growing increasingly urgent, the sound waves transforming into countless tiny blades, slicing the Thousand-Handed Evil God to pieces.

But the mud doll's songs did not stop.

"Send them to the bridal chamber, send them to the bridal chamber..."

The moment the Thousand-Handed Evil God shattered, new arms grew back. More than before, faster than before, they transformed into black chains, wrapping around Li Changsheng and the other two.

Mo Yu couldn't dodge in time, and a chain wrapped around her pipa.

Her expression changed, and she plucked the strings with all her might. The sound waves exploded, shattering the chains, but the three strings on the pipa had already snapped.

Red Feather fared even worse. Three chains simultaneously bound its wings, pulling it from the air. It struggled desperately, its feathers flying everywhere, but the chains tightened more and more.

Li Changsheng was not spared either. A chain pierced through the light shield of the Seven Treasures Glazed Umbrella—the seven-colored glazed light trembled violently, almost shattering—and wrapped around his wrist. The chain was icy cold, and a decaying power corroded into his body along the chain.

The clay doll stood still, its cracked face swaying gently in the night breeze beneath its red veil:

"mortal."

"You can't even stop one of my fingers."

Li Changsheng gritted his teeth, frantically circulating his spiritual energy to force the corrosive power out of his body. His gaze swept over the mud doll—its aura remained stable and powerful; this battle was hardly a warm-up for it.

Quasi-second order.

It's just one step away from second order.

The difference is enormous.

unless--

Li Changsheng reached into his robes and took out the toe of the Heavenly Dragon statue.

As soon as the toes emerged, a faint golden light flashed.

The ballad of the mud doll came to an abrupt end.

It suddenly turned its head, its blood-red eyes fixed on the severed toe, and the smile on its face vanished for the first time.

Instead, fear took its place.

"What is that...?"

Its sound is no longer crisp, but sharp and hoarse, like metal scraping against glass.

Li Changsheng held his toes in his palm and poured spiritual energy into them frantically.

The golden light on his toes grew brighter and brighter, like a small sun illuminating the entire altar as if it were daytime.

Wherever the golden light reached, the Thousand-Handed Evil God collapsed with a roar.

Those pitch-black arms twisted, struggled, and melted in the golden light, turning into puddles of black water. The chains binding Chi Yu and Mo Yu broke inch by inch, falling to the ground like dead snakes.

The clay doll shrieked, its body beginning to melt under the golden light. Black liquid dripped from its body, landing on the ground and corroding pits that emitted bluish smoke. Its clay face melted like a candle under the golden light, its features distorted and no longer human-shaped.

"No--!"

It turned around and tried to escape.

Li Changsheng raised his hand and took out a jade box from his storage bag. He opened the box and cast a spell. A suction force emanated from the jade box, slowly pulling the melting body of the clay doll into the box.

The clay doll struggled, screamed, and cursed, but to no avail. Its voice grew fainter and fainter until it finally turned into a wisp of black smoke and was completely stored in the jade box.

"boom--"

The box lid was closed. Li Changsheng affixed a sealing talisman to the lid and put it into his storage bag.

Waves of dizziness from the depletion of his spiritual energy washed over him, and he bit his tongue to keep himself awake with the pain.

"Let's go...go see the girl in the coffin."

He propped himself up on his knees and staggered to the white coffin.

Inside the coffin, the girl lay curled up, her eyes closed, her face as pale as paper. She was still unconscious, but her breathing was steady and her heartbeat strong. The drop of black liquid had vanished the moment the mud doll was subdued, without staining her brow.

Li Changsheng breathed a sigh of relief.

Zhao Cai suddenly darted out from Li Changsheng's sleeve, squatted on his shoulder, twitched its little nose a few times, stared wide-eyed, and stretched out its little paws, desperately pointing towards the depths of the cemetery.

Squeak!

There's treasure down there!

Li Changsheng rubbed its head.

"Got it. You were the fastest to dodge during the fight, but now that there's something special, you're the first one to jump out."

Zhao Cai shrank its neck, nuzzled his cheek ingratiatingly, and then stretched out its little paw, desperately pointing towards the depths of the cemetery.

Squeak squeak squeak! Hurry, hurry!

Li Changsheng sighed helplessly, stood up, and dusted off his clothes.

"Let's go, lead the way."

Zhao Cai jumped off his shoulder, twitched its little nose a few times, and darted into the depths of the cemetery with its four paws flying.