Chapter 58058 Back
Time flew by like a wild donkey, and in the blink of an eye, more than half a month had passed. During this time, the vortex hadn't appeared. The three of us continued along our original route towards the capital. Along the way, the scenery gradually changed from lush green mountains and forests to flat and fertile fields, and the population gradually became denser.
Along the way, we encountered monsters and goblins several times.
One evening, I was drinking tea at a tea stall and heard the stall owner say that there was a ferry just ahead, but unfortunately it was abandoned. It was said that there was a demon haunting it, so he advised us to take another route.
Hearing about the monster, Nezha's eyes lit up. So we headed straight to the ferry, a shabby old one indeed, with calm waters. We waited until nightfall.
Just when we thought that the monster would not appear, something came walking on the water. From a distance it looked like a floating leaf, but when we got closer we saw it was a human figure.
To call her humanoid wasn't entirely true. Her upper body vaguely resembled a woman's, with cascading black hair, and her face was indistinct. But below the waist, the scene was completely different. Eight slender, dark limbs emerged from her abdomen, gently touching the water's surface, creating ripples.
This spider's body was permeated with moisture, its skin pale to the point of being almost transparent. Wherever she passed, she left a faint trail of silvery thread, shimmering in the moonlight before disappearing back into the water. A pair of fangs between her lips trembled slightly, occasionally spitting out extremely fine silk threads, weaving an invisible web.
The most curious thing about her eyes is that they don't look like anything from a distance, but up close you realize they aren't human eyes, but eight compound eyes clustered together, mostly black and a little white. Reflecting the moonlight, they take in everything around them, from front to back, left to right. When she stares at you, it's like she's watching countless versions of you, sending a chill down your spine.
But just as we got a clear look at the spider demon's eyes, a web descended from the sky, enveloping us. Before I could even make a hand gesture to control the water, a blazing golden light flashed beside me. Without even standing up, Nezha hurled his flaming spear through the air. The spear, carrying a scorching heat wave, pierced the webs, streaking across the river, creating a channel of water that pierced the side of the spider demon. Wherever it passed, the webs dissipated in smoke, even the moisture evaporated. Nezha sheathed his spear and uttered an impatient "Boring!"
"This monster often appears in the middle of the night, setting traps. Fishermen and woodcutters often try to avoid it, fearing they will become the souls caught in its nets. Some people are deceived by its appearance and willingly approach it, only to be transformed into a dry skeleton and sink to the bottom of the water, becoming its food."
Another time, we stayed overnight in a dilapidated temple. In the middle of the night, the flying fairy on the mural came to life, with fluttering clothes and a sweet smile. Her eyes flashed with a faint light that could absorb people's essence. She held up some nectar and asked us to drink it.
Little Lotus was sitting by the window, gazing at the waning moon, lost in thought. That was until the fairy floated before him. For some reason, a fierce gleam suddenly shone in his eyes, and he hurled the Qiankun Circle. Without even a shriek, the monster instantly transformed back into the mottled mural on the wall, devoid of any spirit.
I saw a fairy with a small lotus face floating in front of me. Instead of being scared, I was more curious.
Women's small lotus...
But before anyone could appreciate it, the fairy that looked like a little lotus screamed and turned into a wisp of green smoke.
I:……
From this we can see that the fairy on the mural should be seen differently by everyone. What I see is a small lotus, but is it me that the small lotus sees?
I asked Nezha what the fairy in front of him looked like, but he avoided the question, which made me even more curious.
Perhaps the most dangerous time was when he was resting at a mass grave. He encountered a group of ghosts that had cultivated into shape with the help of evil spirits. They rushed towards him in a black mass, bringing with them a sickening stench and resentment.
At that time, Little Lotus merely raised her hand, and a beam of golden light shot out. At first, it was only the size of a bell, but it grew in the wind and suddenly transformed into a huge shield, hovering in the air. It was the Nine Dragon Divine Fire Shield.
"fall!"
He gave a command, and the divine fire shield descended with a thunderous bang, like a net that stretched heaven and earth, leaving no room for escape and trapping the minions within. Within the shield, a world of its own emerged, a world of suffocating heat and dead silence.
No matter how hard those minions attacked the wall, the Nine Dragons Divine Fire Cover remained motionless.
Little Lotus made a hand gesture and shouted, "Where is the Nine Dragons? Why don't you start a fire?"
In an instant, the scene inside the cover changed drastically.
Nine fire dragons, each with majestic scales and awe-inspiring power, detached from the scarlet-golden wall, swirling and wagging their tails. Nine deafening dragon roars echoed within the confined space, threatening to rip apart the soul. Immediately afterwards, the nine fire dragons simultaneously opened their massive maws, spewing forth an endless stream of Samadhi True Fire.
In an instant, the entire enclosure was transformed into a blazing sea of fire, with raging flames and surging heat waves. Space was scorched and slightly distorted. Metal and stone instantly melted upon contact, and spiritual energy was instantly incinerated upon contact.
The screams of the ghosts were like cold water falling into a boiling pot, quickly vaporizing under the burning fire. Those ghosts that were not covered were skewered by Nezha's flaming spear.
After the minions were destroyed and Little Lotus took back the Nine Dragons Divine Fire Cover, I immediately mobilized nearby water sources to flush the area to confirm that there were no sparks.
…
They always dealt with these troubles with such efficiency, even a touch of nonchalance. Often, before I could even utter a word of warning, the monster had already been slain. After so many times, my initial shock gradually became accustomed to it, and I could even clean up after they attacked, or find a safe corner to continue munching on my rations or fruit.
But the further north I went, the closer I got to the legendary Bianliang, and the more I felt a sense of inexplicable melancholy in my heart.
The whirlpool never appeared. This journey seemed to have no end. If we really reached the capital, where should we go next?
The little lotus beside me was still silent most of the time. Occasionally, when our eyes met, the deep, silent sea in his eyes seemed to contain similar unspoken thoughts as mine.
That day, we crossed the last ridge and the view suddenly opened up.
At the end of the vast, flat plain, a vast, imposing city stood quietly at the junction of heaven and earth. Its walls soared into the clouds, stretching as far as the eye could see. Within, towering buildings and palaces rose in layers, countless flags fluttering in the wind. The official roads were bustling with carriages and pedestrians, the clamor of human voices faintly audible even from afar.
We have arrived in the capital.
We followed the crowd toward the city gate. The closer we got, the more we felt the imposing grandeur of this imperial capital. The walls rose to a height of more than ten feet, their bricks and stones mottled and etched with the marks of time, yet still as solid as a mountain. The moat, as wide as a river, rippled in the water, reflecting the numerous defenders and fluttering flags on the towers.
A long queue formed at the city gate: peddlers, scholars, street performers, merchants from other places... all kinds of people were waiting to enter the city. The soldiers guarding the city carefully checked everyone entering.
When it was our turn, the soldier's gaze lingered for a moment on the extremely similar faces of Nezha and Little Lotus, then he looked at me, as if he was a little puzzled about the combination of the three of us, but finally waved and let us go.
Passing through the deep doorway, the noisy sound hits you in the face.
Before me lay a vast, endless street, its bluestone paving polished to a mirror-smooth surface by countless footsteps. Shops lined both sides, wine flags fluttering, the cries of hawkers incessant. The flow of people surged like a tide, nobles in splendid attire rubbing shoulders with commoners in plain clothes and straw sandals. Sedan chairs, horse-drawn carriages, and donkey carts crammed together, yet miraculously, each kept its own course.
The air is filled with a mixture of various smells: the aroma of freshly baked pancakes, the sweet aroma of sugar-roasted chestnuts, the aroma of wine wafting from the wine shop, the fragrance of rouge and powder, as well as the smell of sweat, horse manure and dust. All of these blend together to form a vibrant and slightly chaotic atmosphere unique to big cities.
I heard that there are eight wards and 121 blocks in the city, with countless houses, shops, workshops, restaurants, hotels, inns, brothels, gambling houses, and prostitutes along the streets. At a glance, they are lined up one after another, with terraces and pavilions stacked on top of each other.
There were also some artists from all walks of life making a living in the theater, such as storytellers.
What book are you talking about? It's "Sister-in-law, Open the Door, I'm Your Brother." I heard it came from an obscure village. You say it's immoral? It's just a storybook. Would anyone imitate it and knock on their sister-in-law's door?
Hmm... seems quite exciting?
In short, the trend of immoral literature finally reached the capital.
"Actually, if we can't go back, living here wouldn't be bad..." I said, looking at the bustling capital, "but I'm not sure about Nezha."
After all, Nezha holds an official position, and he is the Marshal of the Three Altars, so it is impossible for him to stay here forever.
Nezha glanced at me, I don’t know what he was thinking.
Little Lotus asked, "Aren't you going to collect the remaining souls?"
I paused, then rubbed the back of my head. "Well, I don't think there's any point in thinking about this right now." Anyway, I don't see any downside to not collecting the residual souls. Collecting the residual souls would greatly increase your strength, but there's no downside to not collecting them, right?
Memories of past lives are meaningless, but perhaps memories of the lives before that are somewhat interesting. Could it be that once I collect all the remaining souls, I can recover my memories of the lives before that?
Well, I am a Buddhist anyway. If I can collect, I collect. If I can’t, then I don’t.
Just like I've been waiting for the vortex to arrive since I fulfilled Madam Yu's last wish, but now I've traveled all the way from Jiangnan to the capital, and haven't even seen the shadow of a vortex. Yet, the anxiety in my heart has not diminished in the slightest.
Now that I think about it, it’s quite boring.
Might as well forget about this and have some fun in the capital. Just like in the last world, because I didn't know the vortex would appear again, I had a lot of fun in the heavens. Although it appeared so unexpectedly...
Maybe it will come after I relax...
Why does it look like menstruation?
Xiao Lianhua and Nezha naturally would have no objection to my suggestion. These two people are not the kind of people who follow the rules. However, Nezha does not care much about worldly things, and he is most interested in subduing demons.
Little Nezha came to see us a few times, and when he had nothing to do, he would practice with Little Lotus and Nezha, and the three of them had a great time.
After a competition, Little Nezha invited us to visit Qianyuan Mountain. We had almost had enough fun in the capital, so we agreed.
But as soon as we arrived at Qianyuan Mountain, the whirlpool we had been waiting for for a long time appeared.
Look, it always appears so abruptly.
But this time, Little Lotus hugged me tightly.
"This way, we won't be separated."
Little Nezha shouted from the side: "Everyone, report it too! Otherwise, you will be separated from them!"
Nezha: ...
Little Lotus: ...
I:……
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