Zhou Wendi, Zhou Wendi, Phoenix Flower Prime Feng Lan, Divine Firmament Palace Lord Shen Qian, Flowing Island Great Emperor Youjing, Xuanyuan Wutian, Ancestor Yun Tian, Ancestor Han Tian, Sword Master Wen Qing, Sword Elder Qing Shuang.
Nine of the Twelve Villains had appeared.
Youjing had died at the hands of Zhan Wu. Shen Qian had been lured away from Shenxiao Palace by Zhou Wendi and then besieged by Saint Emperor Jiang and Zhan Guang He.
Forty years ago, the Xuanyuan Royal Family had been annihilated in the Battle of Proud God. Xuanyuan Wutian's whereabouts were unknown. Qin Hao still hadn't found his whereabouts. Yuntian Ancestor and Hantian had retreated to their ancestral home. It was not easy to kill them without attracting attention.
In contrast, Sword Elder Qing Shuang and Wenqing Sword Master had changed their appearances and retreated to the mountains. One had become a nun, while the other had been forced to call herself a Mountain God. They relied on eating babies to prolong their lives. It was easier to kill them.
Qin Hao was not afraid of exposing himself. Now that he had stepped out of the True Self and peeked into the Unblemished Great Path, he was very close to the peak of his previous life. There were few people in the four regions who could threaten him. If he fought with Zhan Lou again, he would not be beaten like he was in Burial Valley. He might even have a chance to kill Zhan Lou.
Of course, he might have to pay a price.
Therefore, he was not afraid of anyone. Even if he barged into the Zhi's home and Yuntian Palace, he was confident that he could forcefully take the heads of the two old things. However, that would alert the enemy and cause panic in the East Continent. It would make the other villains vigilant and affect their revenge.
Especially on the War God Temple, Zhan Wu had the Sunset Bow, which would be a huge hindrance to Qin Hao. Qin Hao did not want to meet the Sunset War God yet. That was the next step of his plan.
Nine Veins of Phoenix Flower, Wuhuang Land on the sixth island.
Sanjiangkou.
In the vast and boundless North Territory, Sanjiangkou was an inconspicuous small city under Wuhuang's control. In this small city, Ascension Village was even more inconspicuous. It was like a grain of sand in the vast sea and a speck of dust in the desert, as if it had been forgotten by the world.
However, in the Three Rivers region, the small Ascension Village was well-known far and wide, because the villagers worshipped a True God. The True God revealed itself, and its divine might was boundless. Every year, a solemn ceremony was held, and it would protect the peace of the village.
With the protection of the God of Blue Frost, the villagers of Ascending Heavens Village lived a good and prosperous life.
The only sad thing was that the villagers enjoyed too much peace. The wealth they had was exchanged with the cruelty of their own flesh and blood. As soon as the child was born, before he even had a sip of his mother's milk, he had to be sent to the temple to be offered to the true god.
Every year, it was the same. The scene of flesh and blood being separated, and the heart-wrenching cries of the mothers were moving.
Although this matter was cruel, it was fortunate that the requirements of the true god were not high. Every year, only one child, regardless of gender, was needed as soon as the child was born. According to the village chief's message, the "Son of Heaven" was to be led back to the heavens, back to the realm of gods.
"Every fifteenth full moon night is the day when the Great God of Blue Frost descends. The Great God's magical power reaches the heavens. As the king of the gods, he is also supported in the realm of gods. In order to quell the chaos of the gods in the wilderness, his divine body was greatly damaged, and he lost ninety-nine million nine hundred and ninety-nine doppelgangers. Therefore, on the fifteenth full moon night, the descending child is the Great God's doppelganger. The god said, summon him to the heavens and return to his original body. Only then will the eternal pain that the Great God bore for the people of the world be healed.
Pious prayers came out from the shabby thatched cottage. It was so solemn, making people yearn for it, but also sorrowful.
In the thatched cottage, Qin Hao listened to the legend of the "god". Facing a skinny old man, he clasped his hands together and muttered: "Pious to the courage of the god, pious to the generosity of the god, pious to the god."
In the end, he put down his hands respectfully.
"Tomorrow is the fifteenth full moon night. Another doppelganger of the Great God will be led back to the realm of gods. Young man, your luck is really good. You are lucky to be able to see the miracle."
The old man was as thin as firewood, sitting on a straw mat. Under the dim candlelight, his shriveled and freckled face was like that of a dead ghost. It made people wonder if he would fall apart if he was hit by a stick.
"Ninety-nine million nine hundred and ninety-nine doppelgangers, how long will it take for the injuries of the god to heal?"
Qin Hao asked.
"That's why we, the people of Ascending Heaven Village, have to work hard to have more children in order to bring glory to the heavens. Whoever gives birth that night will have a higher income than the other villagers. This is also the compensation given by the god, because the people who give birth this year are the god's heavenly father and heavenly mother. Pious to the god's generosity …" The old man closed his eyes and muttered. Every time he finished a sentence, he would add the words "the god's generosity".
Qin Hao looked at the old village chief speechlessly. The old man was too deeply poisoned. He felt that it was funny in his heart. Although he shouldn't laugh, there were so many innocent children who died in the village. According to the village chief, the Great God Qing Shuang had been revived here for more than three hundred years. Every year, one child would be more than a hundred thousand lives.
This old man Qing Shuang pretended to be a god, but he was completely inhumane.
Fortunately, Qin Hao had come. He helped the villagers and the old man Qing Shuang escape. After tomorrow night's ceremony, the injured great god would no longer have to suffer the pain of having his soul devoured. Qing Shuang would truly ascend to the heavens.
Looking at the shabby cottage, the mountain wind poured in through the cracks in the twisted walls and the holes at the bottom of the wall that had been bitten by rats. The kind old village chief looked at the dim candlelight with a pious expression, which couldn't help but make people sigh with emotion.
"You should rest. I was just passing by and had the honor to admire the miracle. I will leave after tomorrow night's ceremony."
Qin Hao got up and said.
"Pious to the god's bravery, the god's generosity, the god's mercy."
The old man closed his eyes and muttered.
"The god's mercy."
Qin Hao returned the greeting and turned to walk out. The village chief was old and had been a servant of the god for so many years. He was cautious and conscientious, but his residence was far from being as good as the other villagers. The shabby cottage was incompatible with the other sturdy houses. He was the only one who didn't mix well in the big Ascending Heaven Village.
He was really an elder worthy of respect.
"Yuan Venerate."
The old man's eyes suddenly opened and a cold smile appeared under his messy white beard. Another one who was giving him money. He hoped that the harvest this time would be better than the previous one. Otherwise, he would have to waste his Emperor qi to go out and plunder again before 'bestowing' the lowly and filthy villagers outside. These animals were truly insatiable.
Three hundred years! To Sword Elder Cyan Frost, who was trapped here, this was a huge expenditure.
The next day, the sun rose from the east, embellishing the view with dew. Standing on a high place and looking down at Sanjiangkou, one could see three large rivers winding their way over, converging into a torrent that rushed down the cliff. It was deafening and rather magnificent.
Qin Hao made a rough estimate. There were more than 200 households in this village, but the population was much denser than that of ordinary villages. There were more than 1,000 people. Most of them were children, and the ratio of young to old was seriously imbalanced. It was obvious that the ignorant villagers had suffered greatly in order to have a baby on the fifteenth full moon.
Qin Hao released his telekinesis slightly and enveloped the entire Sanjiangkou. With a glance, he could clearly sense that there were more than 70 newborn auras in the mountains. Among them, more than 20 were still in gestation, while the other 40 had already been born. Fortunately, the children who were born early had missed the fifteenth full moon and were able to survive safely.
"There should be five children born tonight. Old Man Qing Shuang will definitely choose the one with the most vigorous life force and refine its flesh and blood essence. According to this situation, almost every family in the two hundred plus families are trying their best to reproduce."
Qing Shuang smiled silently. Qing Shuang was quite strict in his actions and had a good sense of propriety. If his appetite was too big, it would definitely arouse the suspicion of the villagers. Over time, it would develop into anger. One baby rising to heaven was a good excuse, but if several people rose at the same time, they would not be gods but demons.
However, the power of a firefly to fill the Emperor's Path was like a drop of water in a desert. How could it quench thirst and stabilize one's lifespan?
After all, it was against the Way of Heaven. It was inevitable that there would be some serious crimes. Even so, Qing Shuang still wanted to live. How afraid of death was Qing Shuang?
"I wanted to end you directly, but now, there's a more interesting way."
Qin Hao smiled. What would it be like when a guy who was especially afraid of death confronted a rotten person?
Soon, a day passed, and night came to Ascension Village.
However, the moon was not round that night. The dark night was like the mouth of an abyss beast swallowing the heavens. There was no moonlight at all. The pitch-black space was like a black coffin of death that enveloped Ascension Village. The mountain was especially depressing.
A large area was cleared out in the middle of the village. The villagers used stones to build a rough altar here. This place was separated from the rich East Continent by an ocean. The people raised in the Savage Land did not have the civilization and demeanor of the East Continent's aristocrats. They sang and danced in their own traditional ways, held high torches, and danced strangely. They sang piously around the altar that was full of livestock's heads, praising the great god in their hearts.
At this time, many men, women, old, and young knelt below the altar. The skinny old village chief sat on the altar. His face was painted with colorful stripes and he wore a skull witch hat. He raised his hands to the sky and cheered. In front of him, five men held a crying baby in their arms. They lowered their heads and sobbed like animals that had been labeled and were ready to be selected by the village chief. Those who were selected had to personally put the baby on the altar and recite the mercy of the people to let the "son of heaven" return to the world of the gods.
Qin Hao stood in the crowd that could barely be called a square and watched. The ceremony went on for a long time until five women who seemed to have gone crazy rushed out of the village with sticks in their hands. In the end, they were knocked down and dragged away by the strong men. Only then did the ceremony come to an end.
The villagers of Ascending Sky Village were indeed trying their best to give birth, but it did not mean that the parents were really willing to part with their children. Especially at this moment, this was human nature.
In the end, the skinny village chief chose the biggest baby who cried the loudest. He held the baby in his arms and raised it above his head as if he was respectfully sending it to the sky. The villagers' ceremony also went into the craziest stage. They cheered loudly like wild beasts, praying to the god that this year would be too peaceful and rich.
"My god is generous, my god is merciful, and bless your loyal followers."
The village chief made a strange cry and walked down the altar with the baby in his arms. Then he strode towards the temple. The village chief who was usually trembling and looked like he could be swept away by a gust of wind was now walking steadily. He took a big stride and faintly seemed to be impatient.
Qin Hao smiled coldly and said, "Respected village chief, please allow me to bathe in the god's glory and enter the temple to observe. I will be incomparably proud of my god's generosity."
The village chief stopped and cracked his ugly mouth. He slowly turned around with the baby in his arms and said, "Guest from afar, my god has bestowed upon you this honor. In the future, you will also receive the god's blessing and everything will be as you wish."
Enter the temple to observe?
Okay, that would save him a lot of trouble.
The god would directly deal with this cultivator passing by and then deprive him of all his wealth and let him sleep in the god's generosity.
"Many thanks."
Qin Hao bowed slightly. He wore a loose black robe and walked forward with a pious expression. He followed behind the village chief and walked towards the pitch-black temple at the same time.
From afar, the temple was like a hole that swallowed the living, revealing a terrifying and gloomy feeling.