Chapter 60 Tide Sacrifice, Thousand Souls, Incense Burning 2 All around was a vast expanse of white...
All around was a vast expanse of white, with only the altar in the distance remaining.
"Waaah... Is anyone there? Help me..."
Yao Xu's voice came from the bottom of the pit. The two hurriedly stepped forward, and when they stood on the round platform, they were shocked to see Yao Xu and Mi Qing with their hands bound, buried among a pile of "people." Rather than people, they were more like human skin.
Their bones and blood had long since dissolved, leaving only intact skin shells, outwardly indistinguishable from ordinary people. But these skin shells were stretched and twisted, their hair disheveled, piled up in an extremely bizarre posture at the bottom of the pit, forming a mountain. Facial features were invisible, yet their expressions were palpable as grotesque; at first glance, these human skins seemed to still be flowing. At this moment, a skin was lying on Yao Xu's body, a clump of messy hair from its head plastered to his face.
Feng Xi raised his hand and scooped the two of them up from the bottom of the pit. Yao Xu struggled for a moment, but Mi Qing's head drooped, and she didn't respond. Yan Chao went forward to check on her and thankfully, she had only fainted. Yan Chao found a wound on the back of her head that was still bleeding, as if she had been hit by a blunt object, but her wound was covered with a blob of colorful, oily stuff. Yan Chao rubbed some between his fingers and smelled it. The pungent smell made her frown immediately, and she casually wiped it on the ground, and it evaporated.
Just as she was about to apply medicine to Mi Qing, Yao Xu sat up abruptly. Yan Chao then remembered that his mouth was still gagged. Feng Xi glanced at him, raised her hand, and slapped him hard on the back. Yao Xu let out a "whoosh" and spat out the clump of dark green, fishy-smelling algae from his mouth.
Yao Xu bent over and vomited for a long time, still concerned about Mi Qing's condition as he did so: "...How...how is she...?"
Yan Chao coughed, suppressing a laugh, his hands continuing to clean the wound, and said, "She's fine."
Yao Xu nodded. The thought of being inexplicably dragged away, waking up to almost being sacrificed, and now being made to suffer so much made him feel utterly hostile to this place! He was angry and about to vent when the urge to vomit surged again, his mouth filled with a complex taste, as if he were about to empty his stomach completely. The puddle in front of him was truly a sight to behold, and Feng Xi gave him a disgusted look.
After a long while, Yao Xu finally recovered. As soon as he straightened up, he saw a horrifying scene. He pointed forward, trembling, and said, "What...what is that?"
Upon hearing this, Yan Chao and the other man turned around and saw that the open space they had just left was now covered with human skin!
Unlike those at the bottom of the pit, they were all embedded in the ground in bizarre postures, as if they had grown out of the earth. The entire ground was petrified, with shell-like protrusions scattered throughout. When Feng Xi approached, he saw that these seemingly flowing human skins were actually hard to the touch and would crumble at the slightest touch. They were terrifying in appearance, their faces filled with terror, but their eyes and limbs all pointed in the same direction.
That was the other side of the island. The three exchanged a glance and decided to go there together. Yao Xu carried Mi Qing on his back, and Yan Chao gave him a pill: "Take this, it'll make you feel better."
The four arrived at the back of the island, surrounded by overgrown weeds, with a tall stone gate standing not far away. An inscription in Xi Zhe script was carved on the gate, but due to its age, the characters were somewhat blurred. One phrase was still legible: "The sea remembers everything." As soon as the four reached the gate, it opened automatically, revealing a bottomless stone staircase, like an underground palace.
Feng Xi said, "I'll go first."
Yan Chao quickly said, "Then I'll cover the rear." Before Yao Xu could speak, he added, "Mi Qing hasn't woken up yet. If you're in the middle, we can look after each other if anything happens."
As soon as she finished speaking, Mi Qing slowly woke up, and the pain in her head returned. She couldn't help but frown: "What happened to me?"
Yao Xu looked at her with concern and asked, "You're injured. How are you feeling? Where does it hurt?"
Mi Qing steadied herself on the ground and said, "I'm fine, don't worry." She looked around at her surroundings. "Where am I? What just happened?"
Yan Chao recounted everything that had just happened to her. After listening, Mi Qing said, "I never imagined that the world-renowned Xi Zhe tribe would use human sacrifices... So this is the mysterious island that the Xi Zhe tribe later moved to?"
Yan Chao nodded and said, "It was a lucky accident, I suppose."
Mi Qing said, "Then what are we waiting for? Let's go in quickly!"
Feng Xi glanced at her and said, "Let's proceed in the order we just discussed."
The four reached an agreement and headed deeper into the underground palace. As soon as they entered, the stone door slammed shut. The path ahead was pitch black, and Feng Xi and Yao Xu each unleashed a palm flame. Instantly, a chilling wind blew by. Looking around, they saw dark algae growing on the stone steps, making the surface slippery. Feng Xi warned, "The ground is slippery, walk carefully."
At the end of the stone steps, the space opened up, revealing a vast, semi-circular space. In the center, a nine-tiered altar built of black sea-eroded rock stood silently. At its apex was a huge circular depression, a dried-up pool of blood, its inner walls etched with countless distorted, silent faces, their hollow eye sockets seemingly still enduring agony. On either side of the altar, broken stone statues stood solemnly, their hands clutching objects: jade tablets symbolizing rule, harpoons representing hunting and fishing, and rough pottery jars marking labor, silently dividing the long-decayed hierarchy. Most shockingly, on the lowest step, was a line of blurred yet sharply carved inscription: "Those who ascend drink from the spring."
The four stepped onto the altar's base, their feet sinking into the cold, rough stone. Feng Xi scanned each step, saying, "Wait. There's something wrong with these steps." He pointed to the second, fourth, and seventh steps. These three steps were noticeably lower than the others, not like natural wear and tear. It felt as if they had been crushed by an invisible, heavy burden, leaving the stone surface unusually smooth. The four then split up to examine them.
Yan Chao's gaze, however, fell upon the blood pool. She approached its edge and leaned down to stare at its bottom. In the center of those tormented faces, a teardrop-shaped hollow stood open. She softly recited, "Those who climb high drink from the clear spring..." After a moment's thought, she said, "What does this mean? Where is the clear spring? Is it in this blood pool?"
Mi Qing noticed a shadowy spot on the side of the altar. She crouched down and carefully picked up a few inconspicuous bone fragments from the damp ground, saying, "There are engravings." She handed the fragments to Feng Xi, who took them and examined them. They bore simple yet clear symbols: surging waves, heavy chains, and an empty eye. He quickly examined them, his expression grave. "There are three chain symbols. Identical chains..."
Upon hearing this, Yao Xu leaned closer to examine it, muttering, "Three chain bones, third-level low-rank... two, four, seven..."
Feng Xi suddenly looked up, a sharp glint in his eyes: "Nine steps represent nine levels. Those who ascend to the top enjoy the clear spring. Those three lower levels are the 'foundation stones' that were trampled underfoot, squeezed dry, and ultimately pushed onto this blood pool altar!" He pointed to the three chained bones, "The chains are those foreign tribes who were conquered, enslaved, and made into sacrifices. Their blood is the 'clear spring' that the 'ascendants' drink."
A heavy sense of sorrow and anger enveloped the three of them. Yao Xu said, "Bah! One of the four great tribes with a renowned reputation, yet they're doing such dirty work behind the scenes! The destruction of Xi Zhe is what they deserve!"
Feng Xi picked up the three bone fragments and walked up to the altar. Reaching the second step, he solemnly placed one fragment in the recessed area. Then he placed the fragments on the fourth and seventh steps. The instant the bone fragments touched the stone surface, a faint, almost imperceptible grayish-white light flashed between the bone fragments and the steps, and the recess seemed to be briefly "filled" by some force.
Passing through the deep passageway behind the altar, a stench of dust, decaying herbs, and an indescribable fishy smell assaulted their nostrils. They entered a vast stone chamber transformed from a natural cave. On one massive stone wall, the murals displayed stark contrasts: the left half depicted vibrant coral reefs, lively schools of fish, and graceful seaweed, brimming with life; the right half, however, was a scene of hell, eroded by viscous black, eerie deep purple, and the ghastly green of decay, depicting grotesque marine life, floating corpses, and a deathly still seabed. At the center of the murals, a whirlpool, a symbol of the ocean, lay dimly lit.
Several earthenware jars lay scattered in the corner, containing long-lost red, blue, and yellow mineral powder. In the center of the stone chamber, in a shallow stone pit, was a shard of pottery depicting a ferocious sea serpent, exuding a cold and ominous aura. Beside it were several empty small stone dishes.
Yao Xu exclaimed in surprise, "How could there be traces of the Sea Children here? Weren't they driven away by Xi Zheren long ago?"
Using the flame in Feng Xi's palm, Yan Chao pressed herself against the mural for a closer look. Her fingertips brushed the edge of the filth as she said, "Look here! Next to the source of the black pollution, there is a small 'water erosion' symbol, pale blue... Next to the purple pollution is 'burning flames,' and next to the green pollution is 'plant absorption.' This is the method of combating it that Xi Zheren found."
Mi Qing suddenly recalled seeing something that looked like a fish but wasn't before she fainted. Connecting this to the content of the mural, she said, "The sea has been polluted. All of this was done by the Children of the Sea! And the Xi Zhe people are trying to purify the ocean. Is that why they migrated to the islands?"
Mi Qing walked to the corner, examined the mineral powder, and analyzed, "The colors and symbols correspond. Blue corresponds to water flow, purifying black pollution; red corresponds to flames, dealing with purple; yellow corresponds to plant growth, absorbing green." She took out the three usable powders from the pottery jar and poured them into three stone dishes respectively.
The four stood beside the shallow pit. Feng Xi said in a deep voice, "This is their last attempt, so let us complete it for them." Except for Mi Qing, the three of them each held a dish of powder, exchanged glances, and simultaneously poured the powder into the pit, covering the pottery shard.
The moment the powder touched the pottery shard, the three-colored powder briefly glowed, and the sea serpent totem on the shard seemed to distort and fade slightly. However, this light, like a candle flickering in the wind, lasted only a moment! The powder covering the shard, as if corrupted, instantly turned black, then purple, and then green at a visible speed. Then, with a soft "poof," all the powder turned into a cloud of dust. At the bottom of the pit, the pottery shard remained embedded there, its murky luster even more obscure and stubborn due to the "sacrifice" of the powder. At the same time, the last remaining half of the mural on the stone wall, depicting the pure ocean, rapidly peeled off, faded, and turned to ashes. The last memory of the pure ocean was also completely erased.
Mi Qing subconsciously reached out to grab it, but all she caught was a wisp of dust.
Yan Chao sighed inwardly, and also came to understand some things: those twisted human skins embedded in the ground were the sacrifices of all the wise men of Xi, who offered themselves to restore the ocean's clarity, replacing those who had truly done evil. Was this karma?
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
