National Preceptor Sunx lowered his voice.
"—When the Panlong Wasteland had beco a deathtrap and the Great Wind Army was at the end of its rope, Zhong Shengguang perford a blood sacrifice to appease a god!"
Hee Lingchuan gasped, "A divine tribute!"
Nian Songyu raised a finger to his lips and shushed him. "Shh. Quiet down. Careless talk about this will get your head chopped off."
Hee Chunhua’s expression was grim. He lowered his voice as well. "If it was a divine tribute, of course it would have been done in secret."
A divine tribute was a blood sacrifice to a deity.
The Yuan Kingdom had outlawed divine tributes, writing the prohibition into its constitution. This was a fundantal law with extrely harsh penalties. The lightest sentence for offenders was beheading, while more severe cases resulted in the execution of one’s entire clan, with no exceptions made for even the highest-ranking officials.
In truth, it wasn’t just the Yuan Kingdom. Nearly every nation had such a law, differing only in the severity of the punishnt.
Of course, Hee Lingchuan would never forget. His own family had been beheaded by the Emperor because his grandfather was falsely accused of that very cri: performing a divine tribute. The accusation itself was a thorn in the heart of the Hee Family.
However, this prohibition didn’t apply to the worship of common folk deities like Marsh Wardens, Water Spirits, wild demons, door gods, kitchen gods, or gods of wealth and fortune. After all, the people’s instinctual desire for promotion, wealth, and good health could not be suppressed.
What the various nations expressly forbade was the private worship of specific, nad deities—those the authorities labeled "Evil Gods."
For instance, the charge that had led to the execution of Hee Lingchuan’s entire clan was the worship of "True Monarch Tongming."
And here was the crucial detail: the primary basis for convicting soone of performing a divine tribute was whether the ritual involved live offerings, particularly human sacrifice. If you rely muttered a few words in your heart or offered a deity a platter of roasted chicken and cured fish, the state couldn’t be bothered with you, regardless of who you worshiped.
"Which deity did Zhong Shengguang worship?"
"Mitian."
Sunx Fuping quickly explained, "There’s no honorific title. The original text puts it simply: ’He prostrated himself in worship, seeking relief from Mitian.’ Xiluo also prohibits divine tributes, so Zhong Shengguang must have acted out of desperation. I doubt Hex Jian would have recorded the entire process in detail."
The na was completely unfamiliar. Hee Chunhua pondered, "National Preceptor, have you ever heard of this deity?"
"I have not." Sunx Fuping shook his head. "But Zhong Shengguang used a blood sacrifice, and the offering... was his own daughter!"
Hee Chunhua’s face fell. "What?"
’Zhong Shengguang was one ruthless bastard, sacrificing his own flesh and blood to a deity.’
Hee Lingchuan clicked his tongue. ’No wonder they call it an Evil God. It actually demands human lives.’
"Then what did this deity grant him in return?"
"The deity was greatly pleased and bestowed a generous gift. With it, he could face the enemy; for each one slain, a hundred would submit." Sunx Fuping spread his hands. "That’s all of the original text that can be read. The rest is smudged and illegible."
"That’s as good as saying nothing at all. If the deity was so generous, what Divine Object did it actually grant him to defeat his enemies?" Hee Lingchuan said, disgruntled. "You two ca all this way; you must have so leads, right? ’Don’t be so dramatic about it.’"
He sighed to himself. ’No matter how valiant or divinely skilled Zhong Shengguang was, once he had exhausted all mortal ans and was powerless to change his fate, he still couldn’t resist turning to a deity for help.’
’On the other hand, what power could a deity possibly have that would allow the Great Wind Army to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat and hold out for another twenty years?’
’This ignorant brat, daring to be disrespectful even to a National Preceptor.’ Sunx Fuping shot him a look. "We couldn’t figure it out from Hex Jian’s book alone. But then, not long ago, the Grand Commandant found an old letter. It was a suicide note, handwritten by one of Zhong Shengguang’s Personal Guards. When we compared the two artifacts, the truth was finally revealed!"
As the Hee father and son listened intently, the mystery was finally revealed: "The treasure bestowed by the Mitian God is what Zhong Shengguang called the ’Grand Square Pot.’ In truth, it’s the nest of the Mind-Bending Insect."
’Mind-Bending Insect?’ Hee Lingchuan had to admire whoever ca up with that na. ’So straightforward. You hear it once and you know exactly what the bug does.’
But his father imdiately made things complicated again. "Doesn’t this thing have a more formal na? The ’Three Corpses Insect’?"
"That’s right, the Three Corpses Insect," Nian Songyu said with a smile. "It is fundantally formless and intangible, residing separately in a person’s head, abdon, and feet, where it stirs up malicious thoughts and anxieties. For both Martial Artists and Mages, the first step toward true mastery is Slaying the Three Corpses to shatter their earthly attachnts. But the average soldier has no defense against it, making it a superweapon on the battlefield."
"But an army’s potent aura of bloodshed, coupled with the protection of the nation’s fate, naturally suppresses most forms of Magic and evil influences," Hee Chunhua noted.
Hee Lingchuan already knew this.
Army barracks were never haunted. Furthermore, large-scale Magic and Divine Techniques were rarely effective on a battlefield, unless the Mage or Military General casting them was also powerfully blessed by the nation’s fortune.
Typically, only a National Preceptor—like National Preceptor Sunx standing right before them—could manage such a feat.
Sunx Fuping clapped his hands. "The Three Corpses Insect, however, is a natural part of the human body! It isn’t repelled by auras of bloodshed or Primordial Power, so it can attach to enemies with ease, forcing them to obey new commands and turn on their own allies. It is, in effect, a Divine Artifact!"
Hee Chunhua finally understood. He let out a long sigh. "In other words, you have co for this Divine Object?"
"Precisely." Sunx Fuping had finally laid everything bare. "It helped Zhong Shengguang defend his city then, and it can help us defeat our enemies now. And you needn’t worry about the Three Corpses Insects in the nest being dead. The creatures require neither air nor sustenance."
Hee Lingchuan suddenly interjected, "The Grand Commandant you ntioned a mont ago... who is that?"
The hearts of both father and son had skipped a beat when they first heard the title "Grand Commandant."
"Who else?" Nian Songyu arched an eyebrow. "The current king’s father-in-law, of course. The National Pillar General and Grand Commandant, Dongg Haoming!"
’Here it is.’ Hee Lingchuan and his father exchanged a look, both thinking, ’Just as I suspected.’
In just two short months, a Guard from the Pillar Kingdom General Mansion, the son of the Xunzhou Governor, and the Da Yuan State Preceptor had all appeared in Black Water City one after another. This was no coincidence.
Only now was the connection between them all finally becoming clear.
Hee Chunhua feigned surprise. "To think the Grand Commandant was the one who found this lead. Then the two of you have co here to...?"
"His Majesty the King and the Grand Commandant conferred and dispatched to the Panlong Desert. I must retrieve the Grand Square Pot before those fiends at Woling Pass finish building their ships and take to the water!" Sunx Fuping gestured to Nian Songyu. "I passed through Xunzhou, where General Nian sent his finest n to assist under the command of Captain Nian. But here in Black Water City, we need a guide, we need manpower, and we need other assistance!"
"Retrieve the Grand Square Pot?" Hee Lingchuan glanced at his father’s expression before putting on a look of shock. "Hold on, you don’t actually intend to charge into the Panlong Desert, do you? The Red Cliff Road is about to close! Every child in Black Water City knows that going in there now is a death sentence!"
His voice grew louder as he spoke, his performance fueled by genuine panic.
’I’ve only had a little over fifty days of peace, and now this trouble cos knocking?’
’Saving the world, turning the tide against impossible odds... I hate all that stuff! I just want to be a useless, do-nothing rich kid living off his dad’s influence!’
Hee Chunhua also chid in gravely, "Entering the Panlong Desert now ans almost certain death. The two of you aren’t from Black Water City; you haven’t witnessed how savage the Panlong Desert truly is. Even Divine Techniques are of little use there."
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