[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-the-first-iron-rice-bowl-of-great-jin":3,"chapter-the-first-iron-rice-bowl-of-great-jin-the-first-iron-rice-bowl-of-great-jin-chapter-381":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","The First Iron Rice Bowl of Great Jin",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":20,"prevChapterSlug":21,"totalChapters":22,"novelImage":23},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":16,"volume":17,"translator":18,"content_hash":19},152067,261,"Chapter 381: Besieged","the-first-iron-rice-bowl-of-great-jin-chapter-381",381,"\u003Cp>Hua Changxi learned from the boy with ghostly eyes that there was indeed a dark well as deep as an abyss under the mass grave, and thus guessed that the Ghost Fire Well was most likely located in this area.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When she had previously investigated the mass grave, she had not detected any spatial fluctuations, so she had not thought about it being a blessed land.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Now, after leaving the mortuary, Hua Changxi returned to the mass grave, and this time she investigated more carefully.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Finally, when her divine sense swept over the center of the mass grave, she discovered traces of a formation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Someone had set up a concealment formation to mask the spatial fluctuations!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hua Changxi's expression turned somewhat grave; she was worried that someone might have already taken control of the Ghost Fire Well.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was not that she had to claim every blessed land for herself.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>However, based on her previous experiences with the Karmic Fire Platform, the Nine Heavens Fire Spring, and the Li Fire Cliff, the masters of those blessed lands had all received clear instructions: the twelve blessed lands were meant to serve the Vermilion Bird Army.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But now, whoever occupied the Ghost Fire Well had actually attacked the Vermilion Bird Army!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This completely contradicted the fundamental purpose of the blessed lands.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She also wondered whether the missing Vermilion Bird soldiers had something to do with the Ghost Fire Well.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Afraid of scaring the prey away, Hua Changxi did not rashly probe deeper and withdrew from the mass grave.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Changxi.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As soon as she came out, Hua Changxi saw Tong Yao, who was also searching the mass grave area. Besides him, there were several groups of cultivators from other factions in the distance.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Tong Yao walked up to Hua Changxi and sighed, \"That flying technique of yours is amazing—it left me far behind, and I couldn't even track your whereabouts.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hua Changxi smiled modestly and then asked, \"Why are you here?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Tong Yao countered, \"And why are you here?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hua Changxi: \"…I just wanted to come and see which side would dare to attack the Vermilion Bird Army.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Tong Yao's expression turned serious: \"I heard it was a giant hand formed from black mist that attacked the Vermilion Bird Army.\" He paused, looking around the mass grave. \"This place is filled with eerie yin energy; that black mist is most likely ghostly qi.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hua Changxi frowned: \"This mass grave seems to have been abandoned for a long time. I can't figure out why such a huge amount of ghostly qi would accumulate here.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Tong Yao seemed to think of something, pressing his lips together and furrowing his brow.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seeing his reaction, Hua Changxi voluntarily shared some of her findings: \"In this area, aside from a dilapidated mortuary a few li away, there are almost no human settlements within tens of li. That is highly abnormal.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Tong Yao then said: \"There was once a very tragic incident of entire villages vanishing here.\" He paused. \"Not just one village, but seven or eight villages in a row—all the villagers disappeared overnight.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"The imperial court sent the Ministry of Justice, the Court of Judicial Review, and the Embroidered Uniform Guard to investigate, and the final conclusion was that it was a rampage by ferocious beasts.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"But what kind of ferocious beast could silently spirit away so many villagers?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"The court's explanation was hardly convincing. The first person to speak out in disbelief was the county magistrate Song Weimin. It was also his continuous memorials that eventually led to the relocation of the surrounding villages.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"After that, this mass grave was abandoned.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After hearing this, Hua Changxi's eyes flickered.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The people from several villages had vanished mysteriously, and the court claimed it was a ferocious beast's rampage—either they had failed to investigate anything, or they were deliberately covering something up.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hua Changxi looked at the mass grave, her expression suddenly changing as she remembered something.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The first time she met Prince Shou, she had smelled a nauseating odor on him. Now that she thought about it, it was very similar to the smell here at the mass grave.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Was it the imperial family that had taken over the Ghost Fire Well?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A sharp light flashed in Hua Changxi's eyes. She looked at Tong Yao and asked, \"When did the villagers disappear?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Tong Yao: \"It was about ten or twenty years ago.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hua Changxi squinted.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The villagers' disappearance, the Vermilion Bird soldiers' disappearance, the stench, the Ghost Fire Well, the ghost hand...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Connecting these events, one could reasonably deduce that someone was performing some dark sorcery at the Ghost Fire Well, and the imperial family was the prime suspect.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seeing that several groups of people investigating the mass grave in the distance had already left one after another, Tong Yao said to Hua Changxi, \"Let's go too.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He paused and lowered his voice.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I heard that the reason the Lingguang Hall Master acted so aggressively before was because some Vermilion Bird soldiers had also gone missing.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"There is some sinister energy in this place. The Demon-Suppressing Army also came to investigate, but they were forced back by the dense ghostly aura.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hua Changxi looked over: \"How do you know that members of the Vermilion Bird Army have gone missing?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Tong Yao chuckled: \"The Vermilion Bird Army is not without members from prominent aristocratic families.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hua Changxi fell silent and left the mass grave with Tong Yao.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Tong Yao: \"What are you going to do next?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hua Changxi: \"I want to go and see the second place where the Vermilion Bird Army was attacked.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Tong Yao looked at Hua Changxi meaningfully: \"You seem to care a lot about the Vermilion Bird Army's affairs.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Without looking back, Hua Changxi left a single word 'Right' and rushed straight to the area where the tiger demon had attacked the Vermilion Bird Army.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Tong Yao watched Hua Changxi's back, moved his lips as if wanting to ask something, but after a moment of silence, he swallowed his words back down.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Soon, Hua Changxi and Tong Yao arrived at the place where the tiger demon had appeared, one after the other.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hua Changxi observed the terrain: \"The Vermilion Bird Army was first attacked by ghost hands, then encountered the tiger demon—a pincer attack from front and back. This is trying to put the Vermilion Bird Army to death!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As she spoke, she looked at Tong Yao.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I don't believe in coincidences. The ghost hands and the tiger demon attacked the Vermilion Bird Army at the same time. I think the ghost hands and the demons have joined forces.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Tong Yao's expression was also very serious. He thought the same way, after all, that tiger demon was a Spiritual Platform realm demon beast, which was a big shot even among the demon race.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hua Changxi's mood at this moment was quite grave. If the Ghost Fire Well was really occupied by the royal family, then afterwards, she would have to confront the royal family as an enemy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And that wasn't all—the demon race had also gotten involved.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Although the current number of the Vermilion Bird Army was not small, their overall combat strength was still insufficient.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Nascent Soul realm cultivators accounted for less than ten percent of the total Vermilion Bird Army; Core Formation realm cultivators were only about twenty percent; the vast majority of the remaining ones still had their strength stuck at the Qi Sea realm; Qi Refining realm cultivators still made up about ten percent.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The royal family captured the Vermilion Bird Army, probably to perform some kind of evil technique. But what about the demon race? Just to eat the Vermilion Bird Army?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hua Changxi looked at Tong Yao: \"Why do you think the demon race got involved?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Tong Yao: \"The demon race should be coming for Nanxiang City.\" Seeing Hua Changxi's confusion, he added, \"You don't actually think Nanxiang City is destined to be taken over by humans, do you?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hua Changxi: \"Isn't it? Isn't Nanxiang City like Xuanyuan City, a human settlement?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Tong Yao: \"Nanxiang City was indeed a human settlement in ancient times, but Nanxiang City is also the cultivation site of the Vermilion Sovereign in the Central Continent.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"For an existence like the Vermilion Sovereign, both humans and the demon race are living beings of the Four Spirit Realm. Therefore, the demon race can also take over Nanxiang City.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After hearing this, Hua Changxi felt terrible.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She definitely would not abandon the Lingguang Hall. So, one day in the future, she would have to face the entire demon race?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Tong Yao glanced at Hua Changxi: \"Fortunately, Lingguang Hall appeared several years ago and recruited so many Vermilion Bird Army members so quickly. I think the demon race is anxious, that's why they sent a Spiritual Platform realm demon to test the waters.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hua Changxi nodded randomly to show agreement, then said, \"Tong Yao, I still have things to do, so I won't chat with you.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If the demon race was lurking in the shadows, eyeing Nanxiang City covetously, and the ones who occupied the Ghost Fire Well had allied with them, then she would have to get rid of them quickly, or else she would be caught between two enemies.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No, she was already caught between two enemies now.\u003C\u002Fp>",1552,"2026-05-29T04:10:48.594Z","2026-06-01T04:29:08.487Z",1,"deepseek-v4-flash","03d8ced0097a55aa5c3c072bd88946268cef6c6716d8990ac7d4f43239e26333","the-first-iron-rice-bowl-of-great-jin-chapter-382","the-first-iron-rice-bowl-of-great-jin-chapter-380",547,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fthe-first-iron-rice-bowl-of-great-jin-cover.jpg"]