Chapter 30 The girl is like a flower bud growing from ruins
I didn't expect to get up there so easily. Something about the rosewood feels a bit off.
Rongxing was hiding behind a pillar in the attic and waving at her: "Huali, over here."
"Such a grand setup, yet there's not a single person here." Rong Xing frowned. "No, I need to do some divination."
He sat cross-legged on the ground, rocking the tortoise shell up and down again while muttering incantations.
As the copper coins spilled on the ground, the two of them looked over together.
Rongxing was shocked. "It's an ominous sign! A terrible one!" This is it! He grabbed Huali and tried to leave. The next moment, the sound of a mechanism turning came, and the door opened automatically.
The divine artifact, the Blessing Lamp, was on full display. Contrary to what Huali had imagined, the lamp base resembled an inverted Mount Sumeru, the lamp cup was covered with wind-erosion resistant patterns, and the handle was made of two intertwined dragon bones. Red crystals were stuck between the reverse scales and barbs, and although they were unidentifiable, they emitted a very faint fragrance.
"Where's the lotus root?" Huali asked.
"The mage is downstairs." Rongxing craned his neck to look inside.
This nine-inch-long wick was not ordinary cotton thread, but solidified chaotic lightning. A translucent chain was wrapped around the base of the wick; when the mechanism was fully rotated, the chain automatically opened, ignited the wick, and pushed the lamp out of the window.
Huali wanted to get closer to take a look, but Rongxing grabbed her and gestured for her to look at her feet.
The complex magic array extended throughout the house, centered on the blessing lamp. Huali roughly counted more than a dozen of them, large and small.
Let alone the two of them, even a Nascent Soul cultivator would have a hard time. No wonder Wen Tingyun let Hua Li come up so easily.
"Is this formation related to the person who opened the Sea of Time?"
After holding his breath and watching for a few minutes, Rong Xing shook his head. "The formation is too complex; it can't be completed in a year or two."
*
Lian Zhuo looked towards the North Garden, where the barrier above remained unchanged.
The crowd had already begun to surge toward Mingyue Pavilion. He made a hand seal and leaped to the top of the pavilion to look down.
The bustling crowd all looked up, waiting for the moment when the blessing lamp would appear.
In the darkness, Karin heard footsteps going up the stairs. Her heart tightened, and the card was held between her fingers.
The person who arrived was not the mysterious figure he had imagined, but Tuowu, whom he had met at Mingyue Pavilion before.
Upon seeing Huali, Tuowu drew his sword and slashed without saying a word. His cultivation was far superior to Huali's, making it almost impossible for her to dodge.
At the same time, the blessing lamp was suddenly lit, and the barrier spun rapidly, instantly pulling the three people in.
Tuowu reacted the fastest, immediately slashing down with his scimitar to block the ground, and was sucked into mid-air, while Huali fell completely into the formation.
The imagined pain didn't come; she paused for a moment before realizing what was happening. She had no spiritual power and wasn't from this world, so the magic array was useless against her.
She got up to look at the blessing lamp.
The mechanism completed its rotation, the attic window was opened, and the blessing lamp slowly lit up with a brilliant light amidst the cheers of the crowd.
"No...no!"
Huali ran forward with all her might, barely managing to reach the patterns on the blessing lamp, the sticky blood staining her fingers red.
The next second, the magic lamp instantly exploded!
The rosewood tree by the window turned to ashes in an instant!
This time, she felt as if she were being scorched by flames, and there were many noisy voices around her, all of which were condemnations and insults.
Karin was falling, falling rapidly, when suddenly she heard a heart-wrenching scream from the darkness above her. It wasn't her name, yet it stirred a powerful urge to cry within her.
The next second, Karin suddenly opened her eyes!
It's sunset again outside Chenliu City.
She ran quickly into the city gate. As dusk approached, the number of people queuing in the city for porridge gradually decreased.
She squeezed her way to Song Ran, panting. Song Ran was taken aback for a moment, then smiled and asked, "Miss, didn't you bring a bowl?"
Still feeling the aftermath of being burned by the flames, Huali spoke up: "Lord Songran, don't you remember me?"
A look of doubt flashed in Song Ran's eyes, "Who are you, young lady?"
The Sea of Time sped up again, and this time it returned directly to the day of the Blessing of the Gods. As soon as evening fell, the scene from before would repeat itself.
Huali gave him a deep look, then turned to look for Rongxing and Lianzhuo, but after searching the whole city, she still couldn't find any trace of them.
Her time is running out.
The lights in the streets and alleys lit up one after another, and young women walked across the bridge with laughter and chatter.
The rabbit lantern in their hands emitted a warm glow, and no one knew that disaster was about to strike again.
*
Within the barrier above Mingyue Pavilion, Lianzhuo stared at Huali weaving through the crowd, her incantation condensed in her palm but was completely absorbed by the massive magic array.
He remained silent for a moment, then sat cross-legged in mid-air, forming hand seals, and his cultivation level surged to the Nascent Soul stage.
At the same time, a lotus pattern appeared on his forehead.
The poison flared up again, but he forcefully forced it back. Lian Zhuo cut her finger and drew a talisman in the air. Golden light instantly formed a huge "卍" shaped Buddhist seal, which descended like an umbrella.
Suddenly, they were blocked in mid-air by the resentment of the entire city, unable to move an inch.
"This is..." A look of surprise flashed in Lian Zhuo's eyes. After a moment of thought, he tore off a piece of the robe from his sleeve and covered his eyes.
In an instant, the people who were laughing and joking were stripped of their flesh and blood, the lanterns under the eaves broke and turned to ashes, and the river under the bridge dried up, revealing the bones that had not yet been completely eroded.
All the lights in the city went out, leaving only flickering phosphorescent glow.
Even Buddhists were shocked by this scene.
*
"My lord, I have thrown the human girl into the magic array as you instructed. As you predicted, she has a special constitution and is not controlled by the array." Tuowu knelt on one knee to report.
“Chen Liucheng is strange. The higher one’s cultivation level, the less one should be near the Blessing Lamp. It’s good that she went.” Wen Jin’s voice was indifferent. “It’s good that she’s not dead. If she is, we’ll replace her with another one.”
Tuowu nodded in agreement, “But that girl has a soul oath contract made by your mother. If she dies, the soul oath will backfire.”
Wen Jin scoffed, his eyes filled with unyielding icy coldness. "You think I'm afraid?"
Tuowu broke out in a cold sweat instantly: "This subordinate dares not."
"Get lost."
*
Hua Li ran to Mingyue Pavilion as fast as she could. Wen Tingyun was standing at the door, not at all surprised by her appearance. He smiled and said, "It seems you have failed."
"You knew all along, didn't you? The spontaneous combustion of the Blessing Lamp was pre-designed; it wasn't activated by human intervention." Huali glared at him hatefully.
Wen Tingyun remained noncommittal. "So what? If I can't take this lamp, no one else can either. Since that's the case, isn't it just perfect?"
"But those innocent people knew nothing and just died tragically."
Among them were little girls under four years old, young women waiting for their sweethearts to propose after the festival, and merchants who were busy from morning till night. What did they do wrong?
Looking at Hua Li's reddened eyes, Wen Tingyun said with amusement, "Everything has a cause and an effect. If you knew the key to it, you might not be as indignant as you are now."
"But the price of knowing the truth is repeated, gruesome deaths. Do you dare?"
Whether it was the half-demon at the beginning, Wen Jin, or even him, everyone knew how to solve the mystery, but so what?
The higher one's cultivation level, the greater the restrictions one faces.
Wen Tingyun looked at the city lord's mansion not far away, especially that person. With the day of the return of the soul approaching, he would not risk forcibly changing cause and effect.
Even Ao Bai peeked out from behind Hua Li and hesitated, "Host..." This is not just talk. Although you won't really die, the feeling of facing death every time is real, and the pain is real too.
No one can watch themselves be burned to ashes, once, twice, three times, or even more.
Karin remained silent, her hands slowly clenching into fists.
Countless times she had asked herself why she was the one who came to this damn cultivation world, and why she had to do those impossible tasks.
But honestly, didn't she feel smug about being chosen by fate? Did she think she was incredibly cool to be able to use those awesome cards and become a magical girl?
The answer is yes.
Since they enjoy the benefits, shouldn't they bear the corresponding responsibilities?
She can complain and slack off, and even go crazy, but she can never give up.
Huali's eyes gradually became clear and firm. She took a deep breath, turned around, and rushed towards the blessing lamp.
A few minutes later.
The magic lamp was lit, exploded, and Huali died.
Memories flooded back like a tide, only to abruptly cease in an instant.
Not enough, not enough. She needs to uncover more buried truths during her death fall and find the mastermind behind it all.
Opening her eyes, Huali spat out blood and ran towards Mingyue Pavilion again.
Explosion, death, wake up again. Another explosion, another death, another wake up...
Wen Tingyun, who had been smiling, finally stopped smiling when Huali ran past him for the eighth time.
Within the barrier, Lian Zhuo gazed with complex emotions at the stubborn and tenacious girl who was traversing through the scorched earth and white bones. She was like a flower bud growing in the ruins, slowly blooming, so bright that it was impossible to look away.
Tuowu's eyes flashed with admiration. "This little girl has some talent. If she had grown up in the Demon Clan, she would definitely have achieved something great."
Wen Jin paused slightly as he tapped the edge of the table and looked into the ruins.
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