Forty Millenniums of Cultivation, page 609
But what happened later that transformed Ba Yanzhi into 'Chaos'?
The second illusionary world was in a dry world below a bleak, yellow sky.
The plants on the mountains far away had all been chopped, revealing the bare rocks. Some of the rocks were already battered with shockingly large holes, as if the skeleton of the mountain had been dug out and exposed to the air.
On the drought-stricken land, a thick, long line of people was wriggling forward slowly, which was made up by thousands of starving civilians.
It was a planet of hunger.
Countless starving civilians, together with their entire families, moved slowly toward their hope while they carried their only belongings that were bundled in ragged cloths.
Occasionally, some of the staggering civilians would fall silently, but those behind them seemed to see nothing and simply step over their bodies. Even their family did not have much time to look at them and hurried to follow the line.
The years of war had completely destroyed the feelings of the ant-like people.
The destination of the line turned out to be a vast valley in which a large area of camps had been established temporarily. Behind the camps, deep inside the valley, enormous teleportation arrays more than a hundred meters in length and width had been set up.
Colorful beams shot out of the teleportation arrays now and then, piercing into the sky and showering the clouds in glamorous colors, as if they were a city of the deities. All the starving civilians were granted hope again and moved faster while shaking their limbs that were no thicker than straws.
Li Yao saw that countless starving civilians entered one side of the valley. There was no telling what kind of procedures they went through in the continuous camps, but when they walked out again from the other side, they had already become stronger and more muscular, with features of the demons on their bodies.
However, compared with the demons forty thousand years later, the features of the demons on those people were still sparse. Some of them had darker skin, some had grown horns or small tails, and some had longer canine teeth. Nothing more.
Ba Yanzhi was still wearing black armor, but his armor had been carefully cleaned and lubricated with oil, which made it as reflective as a mirror. He no longer had the ragged appearance from the first memory piece. Instead, his face was red, and he was commanding the starving civilians who had gone through mutations to get into the teleportation arrays in high spirits.
One teleportation array could accommodate almost a thousand starving civilians. After a flash, a thousand people disappeared. There was no telling where they had been sent.
"Master!"
Suddenly, six civilians, who were apparently a family, with long horns on their head and thicker noses, ran out of the line and bowed toward Ba Yanzhi. "Thank you for saving our lives! Thank you for saving our lives! Without you, our entire family would have been boiled and eaten up already!"
Ba Yanzhi observed them for a moment and burst into laughter. He patted one of the muscular men's shoulders and said loudly, "Zhang Niuer, it's you! I did not expect that you could become so strong after you drank the 'Divine Water of Kunlun' even though you were as thin as a lath. Your name is particularly suitable for you right now. Hahahaha! What about your new appearance? Have you been used to it?"
"You will not be hungry anymore!" Ba Yanzhi promised them. "When you arrive in the Green Wolf Planet, a certain coverage of land will be allocated to every household. Even part of the production in the mother lodes will be redistributed to you, too! As long as you are willing to work hard, your life will certainly be better in the future!"
"Thank you master. We cannot return your favor even if we work as bulls and horses—"
While talking, Zhang Niuer seemed to have realized that his current appearance was more or less similar to bulls and horses, and he was amused by himself.
Ba Yanzhi smiled, too. He said firmly, "There's no need to work as bulls and horses for me. If you really want to return my favor, just live a good life on the Green Wolf Planet and try to develop the place into a new, prosperous world!
"With the resources that you collect on the Green Wolf Planet, more starving civilians will be fed, and the war between us and the Mystic Moon Sect and the Dragon King Brotherhood can be ended. Chances are that you will be able to return to your home one day in the future!"
"If we are really given a piece of the land, we will not be coming back! Home? Wherever I can feed my children will be my home!" Zhang Niuer said boldly.
Ba Yanzhi was dazed for a moment, before he nodded. "Well said, Zhang Niuer. The home is where the stomach can be fed. Go now to build our home!"
After thanking him multiple times, Zhang Niuer and his family joined the crowd in a hurry and boarded the teleportation array along with other bizarre-looking civilians whose eyes were shining with hope. After glamorous flashing, they marched into their new home!
The memory piece was like a mirage and soon dispersed. Butterflies of light and shadow danced and formed the third scene. This time, Ba Yanzhi returned to the headquarters of the Ultimate One Sect. He was back at the splendid palace again.
The palace had expanded and looked even more spectacular than last time. Every corner of the palace was extravagant, as if it were a palace in the heaven. Even the stele of 'Ultimate One Sect' was now decorated with eye-catching adornments.
But Ba Yanzhi's miserable scream was echoing inside the splendid palace like the cry of a ghost.
"You lied to me, leader. You lied to me!"
Kunlun is a divine mountain in Chinese mythology, which has been explained earlier.
"Niuer" means "bull".
Chapter 918: Divine Water of Kunlun |
"You promised me that every mortal who took the Divine Water of Kunlun would be given part of the land and the mother lodes after they arrived on the Green Wolf Planet and the Desolate Yellow Planet. You said that all they needed to do was pay a tax of twenty-five kilograms of crystals!
"But the result of a secret investigation is that the mortals who went to the two planets were not given any part of the land. They lost their freedom and were locked up as slaves. Also, they were forced to work in the deep, dark mother lodes day and night because they had to submit fifty kilograms of crystals every month!
"Abundant as the resources of the Green Wolf Planet and the Desolate Yellow Planet might be, it is impossible for a miner to excavate so many crystals in one month!
"Countless people were killed either by exhaustion or because of explosions and collapses!
"The Ultimate One Sect is keeping everything a secret. At this moment, countless mortals who are left with no choices still regard the Green Wolf Planet, the Desolate Yellow Planet, and other undeveloped planets as their last hope. They are going to drink the Divine Water of Kunlun and build their new home!
"Why did you lie to those mortals? Why did you lie to me? Why!"
Ba Yanzhi's clothes were tattered, his face swollen. There was also a broken flying sword on his shoulder blade. Every step that he took forward would leave a bloody footprint behind.
He had paid a high price after barging into the headquarters despite blockage!
"How bold of you!"
Countless Cultivators in golden armor crowded forward and suppressed Ba Yanzhi's shoulder with their blades.
"You are just an insignificant deacon. How dare you trespass on the headquarters unannounced?"
Ba Yanzhi's knees were uttering cracking noises, but he gritted his teeth to keep standing, with fury beaming out of his eyes.
Inside the palace, the eight-trigram seat that the leader of the Ultimate One Sect sat on had been upgraded to one that was carved out of marrow crystals in the shape of a lotus, making him even more brilliant and look like a deity.
On the eight-trigram seat, the leader of the Ultimate One Sect slowly flew over to Ba Yanzhi. He gestured for the Cultivators to move their blades away and spoke gently. "There's no need to be anxious, Yanzhi. I know that you've contributed a lot to the 'Expedition Operation'. You are acting silly because you are too concerned about it. I don't blame you.
"As for the drudgery of the new worlds, it can't be helped.
"Those settlements have only just been established from scratch. Naturally, hard work is required. Also, right now, we are at the most critical moment of the final battle. Tremendous assets are being consumed on the frontline on a daily basis. Therefore, we must hurry to collect more in the rear in case our endeavors are sabotaged at the last moment."
Ba Yanzhi was dazed. "What 'final battle'? Haven't we reached a truce with the Mystic Moon Sect and the Dragon King Brotherhood?"
The leader smiled and said, "That's thanks to you, Yanzhi. Before, the Ultimate One Sect, the Mystic Moon Sect, and the Dragon King Brotherhood had been in conflict for years, and we were all exhausted and running out of resources. The war could not be fought anymore. There was no choice but to cease it.
"However, you found the Divine Water of Kunlun and organized the Expedition Operation, which significantly enhanced the capability of the Ultimate One Sect. Now that we are obviously stronger than the two sects, there is no way that we can show mercy to them and allow them to grow into bigger trouble in the future."
"What?" Ba Yanzhi gasped. "The territories of the Mystic Moon Sect and the Dragon King Brotherhood are bitter cold places with barely any resources. Now that we have so many resourceful planets to develop, why do we have to annihilate the Mystic Moon Sect and the Dragon King Brotherhood?"
"It's everyone's responsibility to wipe out the evil sects. Do we need another reason?
"Besides, after years of war, many predecessors of the Ultimate One Sect have sacrificed themselves. It is our duty to avenge them so that they will rest in peace!
"Moreover," the leader of the Ultimate One Sect said solemnly, "although the territories of the Mystic Moon Sect and the Dragon King Brotherhood are bitterly cold places, don't we have a bunch of slaves that are fearless of the cold right now? Calculated in such a way, the value of the two sects is much higher."
Ba Yanzhi's face blanched. His face was so pale that even his beard was turning white at a visible speed!
He mumbled to himself in self-mockery, "So, this is the truth. You never wanted to stop the war. You will attack even more Sectors even if the Mystic Moon Sect and the Dragon King Brotherhood are exterminated!
"This is why you've turned all the pioneers into slaves!
"This is why you are producing 'Ultimate One Slave Soldiers' with the pioneers!"
The leader narrowed his eyes. "What did you say?"
"I know everything now!" Ba Yanzhi clutched two flying swords with his hands. His palms were cut by the blades, and his blood was flowing along them. With tears in his eyes, he gnashed his teeth. "Not only do you treat all the pioneers as slaves, you are also adding various kinds of poison to the Divine Water of Kunlun and running experiments on the starving civilians!
"Countless civilians have been poisoned by you!
"Even more of them have been turned into unintelligent monsters by you!
"If they drink the Divine Water of Kunlun, their appearance will have slight changes, but their head is still clear. They can recognize their family and their home, and they know how to talk and laugh!
"However, after your experiments, they've completely turned into monsters. Monsters!"
The leader of the Ultimate One Sect became gloomy. He coughed.
"Shut up!" the law-enforcing elder standing next to the elder bellowed. "Ba Yanzhi, you are merely a third-level deacon and a Cultivator in the Core Formation Stage. Watch your language!
"Ba Yanzhi, you have ill, insane intentions. You've shouted in the headquarters and disrespected the leader, which is in violation of the rules. Kneel down now!"
Ba Yanzhi burst into laughter. Two lines of bloody tears flowed out. His hair was spluttering, making him seem to be a devil. But his knees were as tough as iron and supported him to keep standing proudly.
"Huh?"
The law-enforcing elder pressed his hands. The bones all over Ba Yanzhi's body were cracking. "Kneel down, now!"
"I will not!" Ba Yanzhi went mad and pointed at the leader of the Ultimate One Sect, cursing. "Wang Qianyi, all the civilians under the government of the Ultimate One Sect regard the Ultimate One Sect as the 'heavens' and worship the Cultivators of this sect as 'gods'. But how has the Ultimate One Sect been treating them? Years of famine, decimated and ravished villages everywhere. Are they not the responsibility of Cultivators?
"As the leader of the sect, instead of planning a happier life for the civilians under you, you are savaging them as if they were beasts. You are talking about evilness, but I say that you are the greatest evil. I, Ba Yanzhi, will kneel before pigs, dogs, or devils before I kneel before a bastard like you!"
"What!"
All the Cultivators in the palace gasped.
"Ba Yanzhi, you are insane. You've been possessed. On your knees now!"
The golden hands of the law-enforcing deacon crunched every joint on Ba Yanzhi's body into pieces. Bloody mist leaked out of the pores on his body and dyed it red!
But he simply fell over. Although his bones were shattered and he collapsed to the ground, he did not kneel, nor did he stop cursing aloud until the golden giant suppressed and suffocated him.
The third illusionary world was slowly closed in the color of blood. Li Yao was sweating hard while he watched it.
Then, two thin red threads appeared in the darkness and slowly expanded to a cluster of crimson brightness. He was now in a dreadful dungeon.
Ba Yanzhi's shoulder blades and spine had been tied up by the chains carved with spiritual stripes. His appearance had undergone drastic changes, too. Two horns that looked like enormous sabers protruded out of his forehead. Tusks bared out of his mouth. His arms could reach his feet, with villus that looked like needles all over them.
Other than Ba Yanzhi, endless bizarre-shaped creatures were confined in the enormous, maze-like dungeon.
Some of the creatures still had features of human beings, but some others were like abnormal tigers and wolves, or insects that had been enlarged thousands of times. They had lost their ability to speak and simply bashed the dirt wall futilely, raising rattling noises of the chains.
In the depths of the dungeon, miserable screams came over every once in a while, carried by the gloomy wind.
In front of Ba Yanzhi was a handsome, unblemished Cultivator wearing a white robe and wreathed in golden brightness. In the contrast of the dirty, filthy environment, he was like an angel that had descended from the heaven.
"Why?" Ba Yanzhi stared at the man. "Qing Xuzi, why do you have to do this? Why do you have to turn the ordinary people into such wretched appearances? They cannot talk or recognize their family. They don't have any human thoughts now!"
Qing Xuzi, the elegant Cultivator, smiled. "The mundane mortals have been living an ignorant life that is no different from animals' in the first place. They do not need to talk or think. All they need to do is serve the Ultimate One Sect dutifully."
Ba Yanzhi struggled to say, "They are all human beings!"
"Wrong," Qing Xuzi denied casually. "You were the supervisor of the Expedition Operation for a couple of days, and you should've seen the starving civilians in person. Lean, hideous, illiterate, and sometimes even bordering on cannibalism!
"When they are offered a few bean pies, they fight like dogs. When Cultivators extended a foot to them, they hurry to lick the bottom of our shoes!
"How are such things qualified to be called human beings?
"Only Cultivators and our descendants can be called human beings. Those things are just grass and ants. They would have been useless throughout their life!
"Right now, with the Divine Water of Kunlun, they are finally of some value and can return the nurturing and sheltering that the Ultimate One Sect has provided for them for years. It is their greatest glory. Why are you so infuriated?
"If I may suggest, you might want to worry about yourself first before you worry about other people!"
Qing Xuzi gestured and picked a bamboo cylinder that looked like green jade from his subordinate.
He slowly opened the bamboo cylinder. A cluster of weird purple gas immediately popped up.
Two of the subordinates went forward and opened Ba Yanzhi's mouth by force with specially made iron clubs and other tools. After two cracking sounds, his jaw was entirely broken.
"Thanks to your discovery on the Infinite Planet, we have now developed dozens of types of 'Divine Water of Kunlun', with different poisons and pills as ingredients, all based on the black spring!" Qing Xuzi said with a smile.
"The water that is being offered to you, on the other hand, is the latest project of our research team. I am looking forward to your new appearance after you are completely reborn.
"Hehe. With the Ultimate One Slave Soldiers that are dependable and boast endless physical strength, the Ultimate One Sect will certainly become the greatest sect in the three thousand Sectors. One day, we might even become the only Sect in the entire universe. Ours will be the only true Dao!"
Chapter 919: Total War! |
Perhaps because Ba Yanzhi's body and brain went through intense mutations after he took the 'Divine Water of Kunlun', the memory pieces that followed were broken and unsystematic. They were like a quickly-spinning kaleidoscope where countless bloody scenes of war were displayed in the mottled pieces.
In every memory piece, Ban Yanzhi was moving together with countless bizarre-looking creatures, many of which were almost identical to the bronze-blood demons and the black-blood demons of the modern era.
Their critical parts were penetrated through by chains, and they congregated into overwhelming beast tides, charging at the army of Cultivators on the opposite side with the prolonged horns!
Blade auras were sweeping, and mystic rays were exploding among them, blowing a large batch of demon soldiers into pieces. However, the survivors still marched forward, driven by an uncanny force, until they reached the battle formation of the Cultivators and killed every Cultivator that they saw!
