Reincarnation Girl Becomes Immortal

The woods surrounding Jinshi City were set on fire at some unknown time, and most of the trees were burned to charcoal, making them unusable for making siege weapons.

If we absolutely have to make it, we'll probably have to send people to cut down trees more than ten miles away, make it, and then transport it here.

But that would be too time-consuming and labor-intensive. What could have been done in about twenty days would now take a whole month to complete.

Xi Heng looked at the scorched, barren land and forest, feeling somewhat displeased.

She actually hoped the siege would start as soon as possible so that she could take advantage of the chaos and wreak havoc in Jinshi City.

"Hopefully there aren't any Transformation Realm experts from Tianliang stationed in the city. If there are, save the game immediately."

"Speaking of which, if I could engage in life-or-death battles with martial artists at the Transformation Realm repeatedly, as long as I wasn't instantly killed every time, my swordsmanship should improve rapidly..."

"What is this? Doctor Strange? Dormammu?" Xi Heng sighed, rubbing his forehead.

"I don't want to keep dying either, it's really painful... But if I really have the chance, I might as well give it a try."

As for the pain, it shouldn't be too uncomfortable once you get used to it, right?

Standing on a high hill, Xi Heng saw smoke rising from the distant military camp, and grain transport convoys arriving one after another from the north.

"It seems like it's really going to take a while... Aren't the Zhao soldiers, who are attacking the city, in a hurry?"

"That's true. The northern border hasn't been attacked yet, so there's no need to worry about Yanmeng Kingdom moving south. The situation shouldn't be too urgent... The only thing we need to watch out for is the reinforcements from Jinshi City. The Ever-Victorious Army shouldn't be too afraid."

Xi Heng thought that these Zhao soldiers should be able to easily deal with the miscellaneous soldiers and generals of Tianliang.

After a month-long journey, the Ever Victorious Army traveled from the north of Great Zhao to the southeast, yet their army remained disciplined and showed no signs of fatigue, displaying high morale.

I'm afraid that as long as logistics and supplies are sufficient, 10,000 Ever Victorious Army soldiers in the Northern Frontier can rival 100,000 in the Heavenly Plains.

The more Xi Heng thought about these things, the more he felt that Zhao Qianyuan truly deserved to die.

How on earth did that guy manage to squander the entire Zhao Kingdom into this dilapidated state? He couldn't be the greatest spendthrift in the world...

If there is a hell after death, then the former emperor of the Great Zhao Dynasty would surely have beaten and scolded each and every one of his unworthy descendants, Zhao Qianyuan.

"If Zhao Qianyuan hadn't existed, and had been replaced by a slightly more normal emperor, the Great Zhao dynasty could have lasted at least another one or two hundred years, right?"

Although dynasties will eventually come to an end, the current Zhao state is still strong and powerful, and it is clearly not time for it to decline.

As Xi Heng pondered this, he felt murderous intent again, wanting to find another Zhao Qianyuan to kill, hoping to further refine his sword intent.

Unfortunately, Zhao Qianyuan is already dead in this life, and it wasn't her who killed him.

"Tsk."

Xi Heng turned his gaze back to reality, looking at the seemingly endless Zhao army camp ahead, and muttered to himself:

"Building siege ladders would take at least ten days, wouldn't it?"

She didn't know much about siege warfare; she was just guessing.

"If we need to build even larger items, it will probably take even longer, and the day of the siege may still be a long way off... I guess I've arrived too early."

"However, I should be able to kill some villains and bandits in the city during this time, which will allow me to hone my sword intent."

There are quite a few people in Jinshi City. In the past few months, the city guards of Tianliang have been poorly managed and may have formed many criminal gangs. It would be good to kill some of these villains first when we enter the city.

Xi Heng turned her gaze to the side of the towering and wide city wall, an area that was not surrounded by the Zhao soldiers. She planned to sneak in from there.

She gently flicked the reins, letting the horse gallop for over ten miles until it reached a secluded, grassy forest where she tied the reins.

The reins were long enough, and the lush grass around it was enough for it to graze for a while. Xi Heng planned to come back every few days to move the tethered horse to a different spot so it could continue grazing, which could be considered raising a horse.

Having done all that, she tossed her bundle up to a high tree branch, letting the wind sway it.

With only a bag of silver, Xi Heng used her light-footed skills to go to the location on the city wall she had chosen.

After finishing, it was already dark.

As the sun dipped below the horizon, the sky and clouds were tinged with layers of darkness.

Firelight flickered and swayed on and off the city walls.

As a martial artist with internal strength, Xi Heng was beyond the ability of these ordinary ancient soldiers, most of whom suffered from night blindness, to detect.

A swallow-like figure flashed across the night sky and landed casually inside the city wall.

The night was dark and the streets were deserted.

Xi Heng didn't find it strange. During the siege, people in the city either fled or were subject to a curfew, so it was normal that there was no one there.

But there are also some strange things...

Why can't we see a single guard patrolling the city with a lantern?

Are all the Tianliang Army so lazy that they don't care about things in the city?

Why do people still obey the curfew so well when there are no patrols?

Is there really no one left in the entire Jinshi City?

Questions floated into his mind. As Xi Heng walked around a street corner, he saw a flame shining high in the distance, and he could faintly hear people chanting.

"There seems to be a lot of people gathered over there, chanting something..."

She couldn't hear very well, so she quickly walked closer.

As the distance shortened, Xi Heng saw that the fire was not the large bonfire she had imagined, but an entire thatched house burning.

At the same time, she also clearly heard what the people gathered there were chanting.

"The pure fire illuminates the entire world, bringing constant joy, tranquility, and freedom from curses... They experience happiness without afflictions; to say there is suffering is utterly untrue..."

"I don't quite understand." Xi Heng tilted his head.

The overlapping sounds created resonance and mixing, carrying extremely far.

After rounding another street corner, the throng of people came into view.

"Those who are constantly immersed in joy and light will find no place where they may be sick... If they were to reside in that land, they would ultimately be free from all sorrow..."

There were more people than she had imagined.

The streets and squares of the city were packed with people standing densely together.

This circular plaza in the center of Golden Stone City was originally used for reading out notices, and it wouldn't feel too crowded even with five or six hundred people around it.

Now, the square is packed with people, and the surrounding streets and alleys are also crowded and noisy. It is no exaggeration to say that there are three or four thousand people gathered here.

Xi Heng stood at the back of the sea of ​​people and looked up, all he could see were heads.

They were all staring intently at the thatched house burning fiercely in the square.

The hut was piled high with firewood, almost filling the entire hut. It was quickly charred black by the raging fire, emitting wisps of blue smoke and a sharp, continuous sound of movement.

"Looking forward to the fire!"

In the center of the square, a middle-aged woman dressed in peculiar attire, holding a bell, shook it vigorously and called out.

"All places are solemn and pure, and all evil and impurity do not exist there!" the man shouted in his hoarse voice.

“The place is solemn and pure, and all evil and impurity are nowhere to be found there…” Thousands of people around heard this and recited the praise together.

The raging flames stretched up to three meters high.

Xi Heng used his lightness skill to leap onto the rooftop next to him. Even though he was a hundred meters away from the house, he could still feel the heat.

The person closest to that house must be burning hot all over, right?

Lost in thought about these trivial matters, Xi Heng stood on the eaves and looked down, listening carefully to the poems being recited by the figures in the square.

"This seems to be a proselytizing poem... and it does look like a religious conference..."

"This seems to be the legendary Jingming Sect, but isn't the Jingming Sect located in the coastal area? Why has it recently spread here?"

Xi Heng recalled that when he was emperor, he had heard some news about cults in the memorials.

At the time, she thought it was something that would happen at the end of a dynasty, so she casually stamped the imperial seal on it and dealt with it without paying much attention or even remembering the names of those cults.

Today is the first time I've witnessed it in person, and Xi Heng is quite interested.

The thousands of believers surrounding the statue recited praises several times before being stopped by a strangely dressed woman in the center with a shout.

The believers immediately fell silent, and the scene became somewhat quiet.

Xi Heng tilted his head and saw the strange woman twisting and turning in bizarre dance moves, which was truly unsettling.

The middle-aged woman, wearing a gold and silver crown, made a series of strange, incoherent sounds, and then said:

"Pure Fire Celestial Venerable! Pure Fire Altar Master! Cha Wan Eternal—"

"Great Bright Immortal Venerable, Father of the Eastern Pure Fire! Dispel the smog and oppressive air, burn away the hurricane mud, and vanquish the poisonous miasma!"

"There are demons in this mortal world! They indulge in lust and strife, and it is this very demon lord who gave birth to us, these mortal beings. We are children of the dark demon, born of original sin!" The strangely-looking woman cried out at this point:

Original sin!

Below, some fanatical followers also cried out, as if this were some unacceptable fact.

"Great Bright Immortal Venerable, Father of the Pure Fire of the Eastern Land! The Immortal Venerable has dispatched the Great Envoy of Light to redeem our mortal souls burdened with original sin through great light!"

"Homage to the Great Bright Immortal Venerable, the Pure Fire Father of the Eastern Land!"

"Homage to the Great Bright Immortal Venerable, the Pure Fire Father of the Eastern Land!"

"..."

One sound after another rang in his ears. Xi Heng tilted his head, wanting to ask if the doctrines of this cult were a little too simple.

"Perhaps this simplicity is what makes it suitable for missionary work..."

As for any immortals or so-called soul-redeeming beings, Xi Heng naturally didn't believe it.

If there truly are immortals and celestial beings in this world, she would rather find them herself than listen to these shabby doctrines that no one with even a little bit of culture would believe.

"Our Pure Fire Sect's Crimson Heaven Goddess is leading a rebellion of four thousand troops in the southwest, calling herself the Great Chen!" the woman in the crowd shouted again.

"Marshal Tianliang has formed an alliance with the Goddess of our sect. All of you must protect the gold and stone for the Goddess. When the Goddess comes to the rescue, you will become pillars of our sect."

"All believers must abstain from desires and remain silent, cultivate their spiritual practice, practice vegetarianism, fasting, and prayer, so that their souls may be purified by the Great Bright Immortal Venerable, and they may ascend to the Great Bright Realm in the future and obtain eternal life for their souls!"

……

An hour later, the thatched hut was burned to ashes in the raging fire, and the entire grand cult event came to an end, with the many ordinary believers dispersing and leaving.

"The soul lives on forever..." Xi Heng heard these four words many times.

Although the physical body of a believer dies, their soul remains and can be reborn in the Great Bright Realm to accompany the Pure Fire Immortal and attain infinite bliss—this is the preaching of the Pure Bright Sect.

She had only been gone for a little over a month when she returned to find the entire city of Jinshi under the control of a cult, with countless new followers.

The leader of the Pure Fire Cult, known as the Crimson Heaven Goddess, has also led an uprising, just like Tianliang, and rumors say she has already gained momentum.

At the missionary conference just now, that strangely dressed woman also spoke:

The Crimson Goddess is a celestial messenger who descended to earth. She obtained celestial arts from a sacred mountain and is skilled in the art of Qimen Dunjia. She can cut grass into horses, scatter beans into soldiers, summon wind and rain, shift stars, ride clouds and breathe fire, summon divine generals, and command ghost officials...

It is said that after she descended to the mortal realm, she was just a fisherwoman. Later, she received the teachings of an immortal from the heavens and awakened her memories of her past life. She realized that she was actually an angel sent to the mortal realm by the Pure Fire Bright Lord, whose mission was to overthrow the Zhao Dynasty, which was ruled by tigers, leopards, jackals, and wolves, and to restore peace and prosperity to the world.

"We should ignore this cult; it didn't cause any major trouble in its previous life."

Xi Heng's mind was focused solely on the various magical techniques the preacher had just mentioned.

"Summoning wind and rain, turning beans into soldiers, summoning gods and ghosts... these are all just exaggerated claims."

"However, there might be some truth in these rumors. Perhaps this Crimson Goddess really did obtain a spellbook?"

"But there were also rumors in previous lives that Grand Marshal Fang Tiande of Tianliang possessed strength that even dragons and elephants could not match, and had an indestructible body, and could also conjure soldiers from beans..."

"If only these rebel leaders really had spellbooks, then no matter who has them now, they'll all be mine in the end..."

"If I have the chance to meet that so-called Crimson Goddess in the future, I'll investigate her."

Xi Heng took out the Blood Spirit Stone from his inventory and looked at it, wondering if the other party really knew magic and if the cost of using magic would be the same.

Perhaps it's a different system of magic; after all, if flesh and blood were used as the material for casting spells, it probably wouldn't gain the faith of the people.

She will only be called a blood demon or a witch, just like her.

Remembering the names people in the martial arts world had given him, Xi Heng rubbed his temples.

Back to the present, the mortals in the square below, along with the heretical cultists who were proselytizing, had all left.

The entire square returned to its previous empty state, with only many footprints remaining.

A large smoldering house, almost completely burned out, its surface blackened by the cold night wind, with only a faint, ruby-like glow emanating from its interior, still sent wisps of smoke drifting into the sky.