Chapter 64: Unbelievable

( ) Chapter 75: Unbelievable

Yue Ji stood there, feeling uneasy. From the guards' expressions she could already see that, as someone infected with corpse rot toxin, they did not welcome her. Her body was still very uncomfortable, but compared with yesterday she felt much more spirited. She could not be sure she was truly fine. She had also thought she shouldn't drag her sick body back here, for if the corpse rot toxin were not fully cleared it would bring disaster upon the whole tribe.

But if she didn't return here, where could she go?

After a long while, a footstep sound came from ahead, and two squads of guards appeared in view. The line of people started from the largest tree in the middle and stretched to about ten steps in front of her, forming two neat ranks. After the troops were arranged, two senior elders under the tree accompanied a beautifully dressed, elegant young lady who suddenly emerged from a tree hollow, gracefully walking toward them. That lady was her mother, also the tribe's chief.

"Yue'er!" the beautiful lady said, her face full of surprise, "Why did you come back?" Her voice contained concern and also reproach.

Yue Ji lowered her head gloomily, "I... I..." She wanted to say that she had been rescued on the sky burial platform by several outsiders, but she knew that the Undead never dealt with outsiders. If she said that, her mother would surely blame her for keeping it secret, perhaps even go looking for them. Her tribe had over five hundred members, while they were only seven; they would surely be killed by the tribe. Since they had saved her, she thought she should conceal the matter, as a way to repay their rescue. The words reached her mouth but she swallowed them.

"The senior elders have already performed the rites for you. Why did you leave the Heavenly Altar on your own? That will anger the Heavenly God, you know?"

"I... I feel a bit better, so... so I wanted to see mother."

"A bit better?" She glanced at the two senior elders. Indeed, when she was taken to the Heavenly Altar that day, she was on the brink of death. For someone infected with corpse rot toxin to walk back from the Altar to here was truly unbelievable, and her expression had improved a lot since that day.

The two senior elders, who were also beautiful young women, exchanged a look, and one said, "Did something happen?"

Yue Ji buried her head, not knowing how to speak.

"What exactly happened?"

Her mother's stern tone forced her to answer, "Someone..."

"Someone?" the three exclaimed in surprise.

"What kind of person?"

Yue Ji shook her head and said, "I don't know either. I just felt an unbearable sorrow at the moment I was about to leave mother. A person who looked like us but without horns appeared beside me. He said something, but I was in such pain that I couldn't hear what he said. After he finished, he left. When he was gone, I gradually stopped feeling so painful, slowly regained strength. I waited a night but the Heavenly God never descended to take me. Lying there was uncomfortable, I wanted to move my limbs, and before I knew it I had walked here."

The two senior elders whispered, "How could someone appear on the Heavenly Altar?"

The other senior elder pondered, "Even severely injured, she managed to come here; could Yue'er have been fortunate enough to encounter the Heavenly God?"

"The Heavenly God only takes people. If he truly wanted to save someone, why would Yue'er look so pale? It must just be a reflection of light."

"Oh right..." Yue Ji opened the bundle containing Lulu Meat and said, "I was starving then; after waking up I saw this hanging on the tree. I don't know what's inside, but it smells good, seems like that person left it. Mother, would you like to try?"

When the meat can was opened, a burst of meat aroma wafted out. The Undead eat only raw meat, so such a scent would not normally arise. A guard looked at the tribal chief and gestured whether to take it.

One senior elder stopped her, saying, "Yue'er is afflicted with corpse rot toxin. Although she is improving, we still cannot determine whether the person she met was the Heavenly God; perhaps it was an elf. If that's the case, her toxin hasn't been fully cleared. If the tribal chief were to take her in, it would endanger the chief and everyone. So she cannot be brought back now. If she doesn't want to miss the Heavenly God's blessing, she should return to the Heavenly Altar."

The tribal chief, of course, understood the stakes. He lowered his head, nodded, and in a deep voice said, "It's all my fault, mother. You went to seize the Life Spring for the whole tribe, exhausting yourself and becoming heavily poisoned, while I, as your mother, was powerless. The Heavenly God has shown mercy; I cannot bear to send my Yue'er away so soon, and I wanted to see her once more before she departs. For us Undead, corpse rot toxin is incurable. If it weren't for fearing a leaderless tribe, I would truly wish I could go with you, but now, for the sake of the whole tribe, you... must quickly return to the Heavenly Altar..." As he spoke, he gently wiped away a tear.

Yue Ji nodded faintly. Although she had long anticipated this outcome, being driven out by her own people left a bitter feeling in her heart. She suddenly recalled the sisters who had fought side by side with her just days earlier; they were the ones who had carried her to the Heavenly Altar that day. She hurriedly asked, "Mother, what happened to Shan Ji and the others? Why haven't we seen them?"

"They... they also contracted corpse rot toxin and went to the Heavenly Altar the day before yesterday."

Yue Ji led the tribe into the valley to seize the Life Spring, which is the very foundation of the Undead clan. She took a hundred people, but the area was saturated with corpse rot toxin, causing the entire force to be wiped out. Only she was rescued by six sisters. On the day of the funeral, those six personally carried her to the Heavenly Altar, so those six also became infected with corpse rot toxin.

Yue Ji felt a weight in her chest. The sisters had gone to the Heavenly Altar the day before, now two days ago; wouldn't that mean their lives were in danger? Since she could not stay here for now, she needed to hurry to the Altar to check on those sisters. She said, "Mother, take care, everyone take care," then turned and left.

"Yue'er," the tribal chief called out mournfully.

Yue Ji turned around.

The tribal chief, with a hint of reluctance, said, "Would you like to take some food? It's a long way from the Altar."

Yue Ji forced a smile, shook her head and said, "No need, thank you, Mother. There are still some provisions left here, enough for my journey back."

Having said that, she vanished into the forest without looking back.

…

As time passed, Yue Ji's body continued to improve, and she grew more convinced that the toxin inside her had been neutralized by those humans. Yet her mood remained very heavy; even though her body was now fully recovered, returning to the tribe in the short term was impossible. Unless she could survive a month and return in good health, they could not be sure the corpse rot toxin was completely cleared. She worried even more about the safety of the six sisters and hoped to find Li Bucai and his group soon, hoping to cure those six sisters as well.

She walked slowly until evening, ate a little, and after her body had improved further, she breathed a sigh of relief, feeling that her lightness skill was no longer hindered. She then set off without delay, racing through the night toward the lake. When she reached the lake, it was almost dawn. She arrived at a mountain hollow, but no matter how she searched she could not find the tents; the camp had long been abandoned.