Chapter 218

"Really, unbridled and free-spirited…… I, I love it so much!"

Several clumps of luminous mushrooms emitted a hazy glow, lighting up the elongated stone cavern.

Old Tie stood on the ground, eyes wide as he watched the black wind-sand vortex coalesce before him. Faint light flickered; in the stone cavern several tens of li away, every move of Xuan Zhu, Taotie Ying, and the others was clearly visible.

Within the black vortex, some subtle sounds of misty drizzle came through, subtle and unspeakable.

Yan Hanlu had already fled with two curved blades in her arms, leaving no trace; to her, the scene inside that black vortex was simply too unbearable.

Within a stone cavern seven or eight li in radius, Shibao had been burned to ashes by the Golden Ox tribe in a single blaze; its walls and buildings were smashed to pieces, utterly turned into ruins.

A pair of girls seized from Shibao, just like Wa Yao, were sealed in thick profound ice, planted at the edge of the stone cavern; a few Golden Ox tribesmen lit a bonfire nearby, roasting meat and drinking wine while guarding them.

Other Golden Ox tribe members, numbering over a hundred, scattered in all directions; they guarded the several passageways of the stone cavern, likewise eating meat and drinking wine, enjoying themselves, and never glancing further into the cavern.

The clansmen brought by Taotie Ying…… over a thousand people guarded the great serpent Yi and those black-snake youths, feeling wronged as they set up camp in the rugged, winding passageway.

Xuan Zhu forbade them from entering the stone cavern, from straying far, and further warned them that if they lost the great serpent Yi and other sacrificial offerings, they would surely suffer severe punishment.

Already several days have passed; these members of the Taotie clan have been feeling wronged as they live in the passageway.

Conditions were harsh, living there uncomfortable, yet they had no choice. Some Taotie clan members whose ages were not far from Taotie Ying's were even more envious and jealous, listening on one side to the subtle sounds coming from the stone cavern, while muttering softly to themselves.

Inside the stone cavern, Cang You's body, a hundred meters long, coiled into a circle.

A golden pillar stood at the center of the circle coiled by Cang You, with eighteen golden pillars of the same specification erected around it, and a thin sheet of silver gauze hung over the golden pillars.

The gauze was highly translucent; through it one could see a thick felt laid on the ground, atop which lay an extremely splendid spider-silk bedding.

In the pile of brocade, the naked Taotie Ying lay spread-eagle, his limb joints pierced by ice spines as thick as a thumb; Cold Qi froze his joints, leaving him stiff and immobile.

Xuan Zhu was likewise naked, emitting a soft, subtle chuckle, a continual 'hee-hee' like a frenzied demon spider, vigorously writhing atop Taotie Ying's body.

Once handsome and vigorous, with a jade-like countenance and a sturdy, stalwart build, Taotie Ying now resembled a dehydrated dried cucumber, his face gaunt, his skin revealing an unhealthy pallor.

His once bulging muscles had collapsed, his entire body of fair skin sagging limp, his body occasionally trembling, his eyes filled with extreme terror and despair.

Taotie Ying never imagined, even in his dreams, that the exalted, supremely noble divine envoy Xuan Zhu would do such a thing to him.

Nor did he expect that the formerly pleasurable, enjoyable activity would be turned by Xuan Zhu into something akin to torture.

Taotie Ying felt like a dried-out roasted mushroom, all his juices squeezed dry; if pressed further, he believed he would die here.

The vast vitality and spirit brought by his powerful Taotie bloodline, together with the abundant essence blood from the extraordinary beasts he had devoured over the years, nearly dried up completely in just these few short days.

Not only his body.

Looking inward at Taotie Ying's brow, his life pool—once vast, sturdy, radiant all over, wrapped in countless divine runes—had now dimmed, its surface continually sprouting countless fine cracks.

Within the life pool, the 'life pool primal fluid' representing Taotie Ying's soul power and cultivation had dwindled to a thin layer, with a thin mist hovering above it—this is the life pool primal fluid constantly evaporating, constantly being drawn out of his body.

If the life pool collapses, Taotie Ying's cultivation will plummet back to the Chonglou Realm……

And the severe blow to his soul from the life pool's collapse would make it utterly impossible for Taotie Ying to maintain cultivation at the Chonglou Realm.

He might possibly fall back to the Ganxuan Realm, the heavenly lock of Chonglou would re-form and re-seal him.

And perhaps he would never again have the chance to reopen the heavenly lock of Chonglou.

Xuan Zhu's skin was pure white and flawless, suffused with a layer of deep rosy glow; her whole body glistened with moisture, exuding an awe-inspiring vitality and youthful vigor.

She smiled at Taotie Ying, lightly patting his cheeks with both hands.

"Mortal, perk up, smile…… Do you feel wronged? Why put on this lifeless zombie face for anyone to see?"

"Heh, Taotie bloodline? Taotie, a ferocious beast, with a strong physique capable of devouring all things……"

"I'm not interested in your ability to devour all things; a strong physique…… well, that's about it."

Xuan Zhu's eyes shifted; she lifted her head and softly laughed: "Nine months ago, I led a team to breach an extremely hidden dragon nest; the dragon prince of that nest had a frame far sturdier than yours."

With a faint smile, Xuan Zhu leisurely said: "In that case, Taotie is inferior to true dragons; that's hardly surprising……"

Taotie Ying drew a deep breath.

His chest rose, the outlines of several ribs clearly visible beneath his withered skin.

He strained to open his mouth, whispering: "Taotie bloodline, inferior to true dragon…… divine envoy…… spare me…… spare me…… your…… mercy……"

Xuan Zhu smiled until her eyes narrowed to slits, a heart‑breaking charm bursting forth; an uncontrollable flush of deep red rose on Taotie Ying's bluish skin.

Taotie Ying was terrified out of his wits.

This was the last trace of his natal essence blood, just a tiny bit.

If even this trace of natal essence blood were drained, he would inevitably have his soul and spirit scatter, dying on the spot.

"Really boring……" Xuan Zhu gazed at Taotie Ying, his pupils dilated, drenched in cold sweat from fear, and leisurely said: "Weak, truly weak, you mortals…… No matter what strange talents or bloodlines you have, what divine abilities or secret arts…… weakness is your very name."

She gave a light snort, Xuan Zhu rose slowly, leisurely picking up a fur robe and slipping it on.

"Still, mortals are mortals, fundamentally incomparable to the youths of my divine clan."

Xuan Zhu stroked her own body with arrogance, looking down at Taotie Ying's face of fortunate survival, and drawled: "This body, after all, is not my true form, which lets you gain such an advantage…… Were it my true form, touching it would likely freeze you into ice shards."

She pursed her lips and smiled, Xuan Zhu softly said: "So then, mortal…… how will you thank me? As a mortal, able to touch my body…… how will you show gratitude?"

Taotie Ying trembled, he pulled out several stalks of high‑grade vitality‑boosting yuan grass and hastily stuffed them into his mouth.

"Exactly, that's right." Xuan Zhu laughed: "Hurry and eat more good stuff, fatten up your body; in a couple days I'll come to indulge you…… heh, if you can't…… "

Xuan Zhu glanced at the passageway where the Taotie clan's cultivators had set up camp.

Taotie Ying's body twitched, and he hastily laughed: "Divine Envoy…… among the brothers I brought, there are quite a few sturdy, handsome young men…… please, help yourself."

Xuan Zhu let out a 'pfft' laugh and lazily snapped her fingers.

The golden pearls vanished, the gauze vanished, the thick felt and brocade pile disappeared; Xuan Zhu leisurely stepped on Cang You's tail, walked along his long body to his head, and lazily sat upon the throne between his two horns.

Cang You shifted his body, slowly crawling a few steps to the side.

The naked Taotie Ying lay like a heap of cheap sugarcane husks, listless on the cold stone floor.

Xuan Zhu smiled sweetly, and drawled: "If it weren't…… for a squad already rushing here, I wouldn't let you off so easily…… heh, mortal…… "

She glanced askance at Taotie Ying; on Xuan Zhu's sweet‑smiling face, her two icy eyes showed no flicker of emotion: "Mortal, mere consumable…… "

Several Golden Ox tribesmen guarding a passageway rose to their feet, letting out low‑pitched 'moo‑moo' cries.

A unit of over two hundred people, clad in black tight-fitting armor, wearing black face masks, their bodies suffused with a bloody smell and thick killing intent, walked out of the passage.

Amid the rebukes of the Golden Bull Clan, most of the black-armored cultivators obediently stayed at the passage entrance; only seven or eight leaders, each carrying nine ice coffins condensed from mysterious ice, stepped forward cautiously and carefully toward this side.

When they were still about a hundred meters away from Xuan Zhu and Cang You, these leaders had already knelt on the ground and performed a deep bow: 'We greet you, Divine Envoy.'

Xuan Zhu restrained her smile and looked at those leaders with a blank expression.

After a full half quarter-hour, the leaders' bodies began to tremble, and Xuan Zhu then coldly snapped: 'Mortals, you can't even utter a single pleasant compliment… but it's no wonder; probably few of you are literate now, so I can't expect much from you.'

After glancing at the few ice coffins hovering three inches above the ground, Xuan Zhu looked at those leaders with interest.

'Take off your masks so I can see what you look like.'

The leaders stared for a moment, then hastily and carefully lifted their heads and removed their masks.

Xuan Zhu's expression changed instantly; she pointed a finger, and frost condensed into dozens of long white whips that lashed down upon the leaders. Wherever the whips passed, the leaders' armor shattered, their clothes were torn to rags, and the whips carved deep wounds into their bodies.

The dreadful cold qi invaded their bodies; the leaders were beaten rolling all over the ground, and their deep, bone-reaching wounds were covered with thick ice crystals, not a drop of blood flowing out.

After venting her violence, Xuan Zhu had nearly beaten the leaders to death on the spot before she coldly said: 'You delayed so long before arriving, making me wait here for you all this time…'

'That's forgivable; you wasted my time… but time means little to me, so wait, just wait?'

'But you, you're all so ugly!'

Xuan Zhu looked at those leaders with disgust.

Taotie Ying shivered as he pushed himself up; the several ice spikes on his joints had already melted when Xuan Zhu rose.

He shivered as he stood up, then slowly and carefully put on a set of clothes.

He gloated at the leaders, no wonder Xuan Zhu said they were ugly.

These fellows were already plain-looking, each as misshapen as a lopsided melon; if Taotie Ying had ten points of looks, these guys would score at most two or three.

Being naturally ugly was bad enough, but they were also each covered with scars—blade wounds, toxin‑corroded ulcers, burn scars from fire, and some even lacked lips, revealing two rows of yellowed teeth…

With such an appearance, it's no wonder Xuan Zhu flew into a rage.

The leaders dared not struggle or distinguish; after Xuan Zhu stopped, they lay stiff on the ground for a long while, waiting until some of the ice crystals on them melted and they could move, then they propped themselves up and knelt again respectfully.

'Divine Envoy… please calm your anger… we have brought the sacrificial offerings designated by the Heavenly God.' A big man whose face had been sliced straight down the middle, leaving a deep crack and almost splitting his head in two, gave a dry smile.

'You see, we have wandered for one year and seven months, expended countless thoughts, lost more than half our brethren, and only then obtained these nine sacrificial offerings.'

The big man smiled obsequiously; every pore exuded an aura called 'soft‑boned'.

Xuan Zhu lazily glanced at the nine ice coffins and said indifferently: 'Never mind, I'll count it as some merit… guard the sacrificial offerings you've gathered; when the other two groups arrive, I'll open the altar.'

She snorted coldly, her eyes flashing with strange light, and looked toward the two hundred or so black‑armored cultivators at the far end of the passage.

'Do you have any handsome subordinates? Have them take off their face armor so I can examine them closely.' Xuan Zhu smiled seductively: 'Anyway, idling is idling… after feasting on rich food, eating some wild greens is also nice.'

Taotie Ying swallowed a mouthful of saliva on the side and gloated at those black‑armored cultivators.

Taotie Ying suddenly felt an urge… after this affair is over, should he learn from those big men and slash his own face with several crooked cuts? The next time he sees Xuan Zhu, perhaps he won't have to suffer like this.

Before those black‑armored cultivators could even reach Xuan Zhu, she suddenly frowned: 'Oh, what a coincidence… if they weren't coming, I wouldn't know where each died outside… how did they all happen to arrive together at once?'

'How dull… but that's fine too.' Xuan Zhu said leisurely: 'Let them come in; let me see what sort of goods the sacrificial items they were ordered to capture are.'

In the two passage entrances separated by several li, two groups almost simultaneously marched in.

One unit wore black armor; the tight‑fitting armor that fit their builds made them look rather stalwart and mighty.

The other unit had only about a hundred people, likewise clad in black armor.

But this group of men gave the impression… the armor had been forcibly shoved onto their bodies, and in many places the armor was distorted by their overly developed muscles…