Reincarnation Girl Becomes Immortal

As a result, a large area around the site was filled with a burning smell, making people want to cough.

"This taste seems a little off..." Xi Heng vaguely sensed.

Where can you find wood that smells slightly acidic when it's burning?

She then tiptoed down from the eaves to the ground.

The ground was covered with a layer of ash, which would cause dust to fly up as soon as it landed.

The closer you get to the embers of thatched house, the stronger the strange sour smell and the aroma of charcoal become, and the heat ripples outwards in waves.

Xi Heng circled the house and found that the ashes were almost entirely filled with firewood, along with several strangely shaped charcoal pieces.

After carefully examining it by the dim light of the embers, she realized that the strangely shaped charred charcoal was actually a completely burned head.

It's unclear whether the head is still attached to the body. The head is supported by a grid of charcoal and ash. Now that it's completely burned, only the horrifying skull is visible above the ashes.

Its head was gaping open, its charred face contorted, and its eyes were wide open in a frenzy, as if it had suffered unimaginable pain before it died.

No wonder there was a strange, sour smell in the smoke; it turned out there was a corpse in the ashes.

"It seems there's more than one..." She saw several other blackened heads sticking out from inside, some large and some small.

Although the sight before him was somewhat frightening, Xi Heng remained unmoved.

She had seen even more terrifying sights, and she had created them herself.

She was just curious about who these people were and why they had been captured and burned alive.

"But since they've already turned out like this, it's impossible to tell who they are anymore..."

Xi Heng casually drew his sword and brushed away the ashes. The heads and bodies below them were burned dry and oozing oil, and their clothes were also in terrible condition.

"That cult recruited the people of Tianliang, and then needed to kill people as human sacrifices. Perhaps the people they killed were the original inhabitants of Jinshi City?"

If that's the case, the people who remain in Jinshi City are living worse and worse lives.

Even if they flee the city and become refugees, ordinary people without money or connections can easily suffer misfortune on the road if they are even slightly unlucky, ending up with their families destroyed and their lives ruined.

The same applies to those who remain in the city.

So how can ordinary people protect themselves wisely?

Xi Heng shook his head and was about to sheathe his sword and leave when he heard a series of footsteps beside him.

She turned around and saw the cult woman, whose posture, clothing, and makeup were all bizarre, now holding a torch and leading four knife-wielding cult members as they approached with heavy steps.

"Oh?" Xi Heng narrowed his eyes.

Although she had sensed a gaze hidden in the darkness, it vanished in an instant. She initially thought it was just an ordinary person who hadn't had time to leave, but moments later it attracted a group of cultists.

"Who dares to spy on my master's altar?" the woman leading the way cried out.

"I was just curious why the wood smelled sour, but when I came closer, I found eight human skulls."

Xi Heng spoke frankly, flicking his right wrist to create a sword flourish that revealed a cold glint, and asked the other party in return:

"Who are you burning? Are they ordinary civilians? Or bandits and tyrants?"

The woman opened her mouth, revealing two long teeth on her lower jaw. After chewing for a moment, she answered the question with a question: "Are you from out of town?"

"I am new here today, what can I do for you?" Xi Heng frowned.

"The body we are offering at the main altar is that of you, the outsider," the woman suddenly said, pressing the torch she was holding to the ground.

The flames flickered and trembled, and four cultist guards stepped forward.

"Obey your head and surrender! Though your body will be destroyed by the sacred fire, the Heavenly Venerable can save your defiled soul." The woman clasped her hands together and spoke in a strange voice, admonishing her:

"Burning the tattered body in the sacred flame, what joy is there in living, what sorrow in dying?"

"If you dwell in that land, happiness and light will endure forever!"

……

Chapter Sixty-Six: Abandoning the Light for Darkness

Seeing several simply dressed, unassuming cult members approaching with knives, Xi Heng merely chuckled mockingly.

"Ah."

She was just worried about not having anyone to kill when someone offered her their head.

Shouldn't we thank them?

Xi Heng responded with his sword, flicking his ash-stained longsword to unleash a fleeting red light, causing the nearest knife-wielding cultist to abruptly halt.

In the blink of an eye, a more pronounced slanted red line appeared on the surface of his skin from his shoulder to his waist, splitting his entire body into two parts.

The flesh slid, the wound became a cross-section, and half of the body slid off.

With a few wriggling sounds of slime, his head and half of his upper body fell to the ground with a thud.

The heart, cut open at the cross-section, was still contracting and expanding, with streams of blood gushing out.

Seeing the familiar flow of blood, a glint of light flashed in Xi Heng's eyes.

She was about to continue wielding her sword to kill, but the other three cultists with knives looked astonished and dared not approach, even taking several steps back.

The woman with the strange appearance stopped praying and frowned deeply.

"Not going to fight anymore?" She tilted her head and took a small step forward.

As Xi Heng took a step closer, the followers retreated several steps in succession. Although they still wanted to maintain their dignity, they were clearly aware of the difference in strength between the two sides, and now they didn't even dare to raise their swords.

"It's boring."

Behind them, the cult member reacted quickly; after a moment of astonishment, she immediately bowed her head and apologized.

"We were blind to your greatness and did not know that you were a master of internal strength. We hope you will forgive us... The Jingming Sect has some wealth and can offer one hundred taels of silver as compensation!"

"One hundred taels? Are you kidding me?" Xi Heng wasn't about to let it go so easily.

She thought she could have a real fight, but the opponent surrendered as soon as she swung her sword, which left her feeling unsatisfied.

The woman gritted her teeth:

"Would three hundred taels be acceptable? Please, lady, pretend this never happened today."

“That’s quite a lot…” Xi Heng was almost ready to agree.

However, she didn't come to Goldstone City to make money.

So, she pressed her advantage, saying:

“I’ve noticed that your faith doesn’t seem to be that strong.”

"I interfered with the altar and killed your Jingming Sect followers, yet you still want to give me treasures and gold?"

"You may be able to swallow your pride and beg for mercy, but can the Pure Fire Celestial Venerable above you maintain a respectable image?"

The woman in the distance had an increasingly gloomy and eerie expression.

Xi Heng continued:

"If he really exists, he would probably be furious upon learning of this and punish you, wouldn't he?"

"The Pure Fire Bright Venerable is infinitely compassionate, having come to universally save all sentient beings; those who believe will receive eternal life." The other party's voice grew increasingly somber.

"You are not a follower of my sect, so please do not speak ill of the Heavenly Venerable!"

"What if I insist on saying more?" Xi Heng had no kind words for someone who wanted to kill him.

"Then we must throw you into the sacred fire and burn you to ashes." She gritted her teeth, changing her attitude as she approached step by step, speaking with conviction.

The three surviving cultists with knives looked at each other, but dared not follow the high priest any further.

The torch swayed as she walked, and the pale-haired female priestess's face became increasingly ferocious. The long teeth in her mouth kept swinging. When she came to within five meters of Xi Heng, she suddenly moved and hurled the torch at Xi Heng with both hands.

The flames traced an arc of light in the air. Xi Heng glanced at it, then casually raised his longsword and severed the end of the torch.

"That's it?"

Seeing the other party's aggressive demeanor, she assumed it was at least a hidden strength, but it turned out to be just a master of manifest strength.

The woman spat out two sharp, long teeth from her mouth like throwing knives or hidden weapons, but Xi Heng easily dodged them by slightly turning his head.

Immediately afterwards, the torch, which had been cut in half, was swung over, only to be chopped off again by the sword blade, turning the long staff into a short one.

Just as Xi Heng was getting bored and was about to retaliate and take the enemy's life, the other party suddenly opened his left hand towards her, and a yellow light shone from his palm.

"Hmm?" Xi Heng's heart skipped a beat as he suddenly felt threatened, and at the same time he raised his left arm:

"open!"

Her five fingernails grew wildly, instantly transforming into a dense canopy of bones.

In an instant, flames erupted from the enemy's palm and hurtled towards them—

The dimly lit square suddenly brightened, and the whooshing sound of fire filled the air.

The raging, intense flames crashed against the skeletal tree canopy, spreading and expanding with a whooshing sound.

She instinctively bent down, shrinking herself behind the canopy of the skeletal tree, but her long, flowing hair was difficult to control, and the flames scorched a few strands of the ends.

The raging fire came and went quickly; in the blink of an eye, the flames in the air vanished, and the world returned to its previous silence and darkness.

However, the intense heat caused by the flames had not yet dissipated, and Xi Heng's exposed skin was burning painfully.

She looked up and saw that the surface of the skeletal tree canopy had turned completely charred.

Upon seeing the skeleton, the woman in front immediately became horrified and her expression twisted in horror.

"You are—you are the messenger of the Dark Heaven, you are the enemy of my Lord!"

She seemed to suddenly understand something, and immediately called out anxiously to those behind her:

"Kill her! She's a demon from the Dark Heaven! Draw your sword!"

However, the three cultists wielding knives became increasingly terrified and distorted, their bodies trembling with fear, and they dared not move forward.

They were just ordinary mortals, how could they possibly fight against the demons of the Great Dark Heaven?

The main deity of the Jingming Sect is the Jinghuo Mingzun, while the villain is the Da Hei An Tian.

Its doctrines are influenced by a fusion of various religions, including the ancient fire-worshipping Zoroastrianism and the esoteric Buddhism of the Western mountains. It is a binary of good and evil, with light and fire representing good and darkness representing evil.

The Great Dark Heaven and the Pure Fire Bright Lord are locked in a fierce battle, spreading demons and monsters to erode the human world.

In their religious view, the ancestors of mankind were born from the demons and monsters of the Dark Heaven, and mankind is the descendant of the Dark Heaven. The Pure Fire Lord sent messengers to save mankind's souls.

In their eyes, the Crimson Goddess who is currently leading an uprising along the southeastern coast of the Great Zhao is the messenger of light sent by the Pure Fire Bright Lord.

The person before them, wielding bizarre skeletal magic, was also referred to by the High Priest as a demon of the Dark Heaven…

In the doctrine, demons are considered to be on the same level as the messengers of light.

How could they possibly deal with demons? The fact that they didn't immediately turn and run away upon hearing the word "demons" is already a great honor for the Pure Fire Venerable.

"What are you talking about?"

Xi Heng, who hadn't listened carefully to the Jingming Sect's teachings, couldn't understand these intricate details at all.

Her eyes lit up when she saw the strange woman use fire magic.

She was determined to get her hands on this magic.

Xi Heng shifted the orientation of the skeletal tree canopy and suddenly pushed it towards the priest's legs.

A portion of the skeleton shattered instantly, striking the air with a whoosh, as if shotgun pellets had shattered a leg.

The strange priest cried out in pain after being struck and immediately fell to the ground.

Seeing the despair on the other person's face, she realized that he had probably lost his magic, so she pointed the broken skeletal tree canopy at the nearest swordsman.

flutter--

Half of the bones shattered and sprayed out, turning the man's body into a messy and blurry mess. Without uttering a sound, he collapsed to the ground, bleeding profusely.

The cultist holding the knife was startled and quickly took a few more steps back, his legs trembling, as if he wanted to run away.

When Xi Heng pointed the remaining skeletal tree canopy at the man, a terrifying life-or-death crisis loomed before him. Yet, in a moment of trembling, a strange change occurred to his mind, and he immediately knelt, bowed his head, and kowtowed, crying out:

"Demon Ancestor! I am also a descendant of demons! Please don't kill me! From now on, I will no longer believe in the Pure Fire Venerable, I believe in the Demon Ancestor! I believe in the Great Dark Heavenly Venerable!"

He repeatedly banged his head against the ground, fearing that if he was even slightly slower, he would suffer the same death as his companion.

The faster his mind raced, the faster his head bounced up and down.