Chapter 100 Yin Peach Blossom (30) The most unlikely person gave birth to...
"This is an illusion," Xie Tan thought.
Xie Tan felt something was strange when Xiao Liu disappeared without warning.
Although Su He always had a sour face, she was the most responsible when it came to supervision.
Even though he is young, he will not be threatened or subservient to others. In Xie Tan's opinion, it was his own idea to come.
He didn't come today, and his attendants were called away halfway. This must be a big deal, so Xie Tan was on high alert. His heart was divided in two, one half on the road and the other half on Xiao Liu. He couldn't let Xiao Liu run away because of a mistake, and Xiao Liu wouldn't do something that would make him worry for no reason.
During their tense escape, they worked together to save lives. Xiao Liu would occasionally glance at him, but her gaze was much lowered, as if she were only glancing at him briefly.
When outsiders are present, they avoid communication unless absolutely necessary to prevent exposure.
But now only they were left. Xiao Liu looked up at him, her gaze still much lower, as if he were only one or two heads taller than her.
She wasn't looking at him.
He recalled that in the emergency, he put her into the water tank. In the eyes of Su Shao and Su Zhi, it was as if she had taken off into the air for a short while, but they were not very surprised, which was obviously not right.
What's more, the scene has now changed completely, and the person who just died is now holding his hand again.
So he fell for it again. It was the fog of the smoke mirror that triggered the deepest weaknesses in people's hearts, creating an illusion.
The reason he couldn't touch Xiao Liu at the crucial moment was because the scene was changing; it was all fake to begin with.
Thinking this, he fled with Xiao Liu again in his hallucination. This time, the Painted Skin Ghost, disguised as Xia Wujin, launched a sneak attack. The ribbons of his clothes pierced through Xiao Liu's body like arrows, and Xie Tan missed again.
His hand passed through the little girl's body, but her blood suddenly splattered onto his cheek. He closed his eyes, and the warm liquid slowly, slowly flowed over his skin, feeling more real than the touch of mist.
His hand grasped in vain, not daring to look at her corpse this time.
Hallucination... This is a hallucination.
Is that really the case?
Is it just a hallucination?
The fog thickened again, and the scene seemed to change, but it was still the same dark corridor, and he couldn't tell the difference.
His left hand was once again held by a soft little hand, while his other hand was in his pocket, his five fingers tucked into the tuft of hair, slightly clenched... The number of talismans in his hair had decreased.
Whether it's Yun Song or Xi Rui, their hallucinations are all based on their own experiences.
But he doesn't know Su Shao or Su Zhi at all, how could he think of something like this? He made it up based on the existence of Granny Yao.
Xiao Liu told him about the bear demon and the cat demon, and he also knew about the existence of [Xia Wujin]. He then used the young lady as a model to conceive his idea.
Everything seems to be a fearful fantasy he created with "Xiao Liu" at its core, filled in with other elements; it is the embodiment of his deep-seated anxiety.
But something's not right. In Xi Rui's fears, Chang Ming'ai would suddenly appear in the tomb illogically, but after so long, in his hallucinations... it seems like someone is missing.
Xiao Liu wasn't looking at him. Could this be someone else's memory of fear, someone who ran away with Xiao Liu? And he "picked it up"?
"Let's go." They continued on their way.
He wanted to see what else was in store.
Xie Tan traveled to the past and witnessed Xiao Liu's life.
She stayed in that empty room.
When he came, he could tell her stories and chat with her. On days without him, she could only sleep and stare blankly at the glowing wall.
Occasionally, she would be taken to the smoky mirror, where she could have a chance to talk to other people, but apart from the stubborn but soft-hearted Su He, no one paid any attention to her.
She could only use the mirror, which was filled with terrifying power, as a confessional, drowning her delusions of freedom.
Then I would take the snippets of information I had gathered during my short trip back to my room, chew on them little by little, and try to construct a fragmented picture of the outside world in my mind.
There was no abuse or torture, but a slow, drawn-out form of death, like a dull knife, that Xie Tan was more familiar with.
Quietly letting one's mind and spirit dwindle away, and life slip away.
So, he originally didn't want to tell those stories, fearing that his arrival would only be a fleeting glimpse into her prison. In the end, he would leave cleanly, but what would happen to the bird that was locked in the cage but had already heard how vast the sky was?
Isn't that even more painful?
But he couldn't bear it... She was too vibrant, too energetic, not someone who could be trapped.
She wasn't waiting for her inevitable withering, but for the wind that would carry her to flight.
She just hasn't met the sky yet, so why doesn't he dare to say it?
Now he realized he was right at all; in fact, Xiao Liu had been unusually "well-behaved" around him these past few days.
It wasn't him coaxing her, but her coaxing him.
After that, he encountered countless other sacrifices like her, plotting with her to escape from this place, only to fail time and time again—killed by monsters, captured by black goats, forever lost in these intricate paths, unable to find an exit—the ways of dying were countless, their blood staining every inch of the walls.
That little hand slipped from his grasp, then he clenched it again, over and over, as he felt her life slipping away.
But each time, her gaze was quiet and resolute.
She knew what she was doing and what dangers she was facing.
So Xie Tan said nothing, besides, it wouldn't make a difference if he did.
But for some reason, perhaps because she was too young, or perhaps because she was his benefactor in this world, he couldn't get used to this cycle of death.
He quickly becomes numb to repetitive and helpless situations; death is something he cares about least.
But he still instinctively grabbed her, again and again, his actions always faster than reason. He was repeatedly stunned by her blood and her falling, and in the end, he fell into a gloomy mood... as if he had really become paranoid.
He watched as she finally found the southernmost point, pushed open the door—an arrow pierced her brow, and behind the door was another door.
There was no exit to the south; it was bait to hunt escapees, a casual mockery from the family.
He bent down, put his hand on her shoulder, remained silent for a long time, then suddenly stood up, no longer waiting for her to reappear.
He picked up the oil lamp again and went toward the light.
He headed straight for the northernmost point.
On the way, he experienced another round of hallucinations, but this time with new content.
Time seemed to stretch back to when he saw the previous batches of offerings, back when the black goat was still unsure whether there were gods in the smoke mirror.
The places they lived in and the treatment they received were worlds apart from the last batch of perfunctory offerings.
For a whole year, they lived in the most magnificent palace in the entire complex, wearing jeweled gold robes and gold and turquoise ornaments. Each of them had eight attendants and were treated like gods.
They learned to play the flute, were taught elegant manners, smelled flowers, and enjoyed music and food.
They were called "teixiptla," meaning "image of God" or "performer of God," and during this time, they were regarded as the perfect incarnation of Tescatlipoca walking among humans.
Therefore, they are carefully selected, requiring outstanding appearance, flawless looks, intelligence, agility, and robust physique.
Xie Tan knew this; it was a ritual to offer sacrifices to Tescatlipok, the god of darkness and the invisible mirror of smoke.
In the last 20 days leading up to the sacrificial ceremony, their treatment changed. They were changed back into prisoner-of-war clothes, their food became worse, and they were gradually alienated.
A few days before the sacrifice, there is a grand feast. On the day of the sacrifice, they will smash the flutes they played in their glorious years, along with other treasures, and throw them into the water.
They detached themselves from their divine status, returned to being sacrifices, and embraced their destiny.
Pleasure and worldly pleasures vanish in an instant, just like the ever-changing and fickle god.
The Aztecs believed that the world and humankind were created by the gods with their own lives and blood, and therefore, humankind should repay the gods with their own lives and strength to nourish them and repay their contributions.
Human sacrifice is the highest form of sacrifice; it is not torture, but the highest honor.
So they climbed the long staircase alone to the top of the altar, where the priests were waiting for them.
They willingly had their throats slit and chests opened by obsidian blades, their beating hearts removed, to enjoy the glory that came with their sacrifice.
Through repeated human sacrifices, the Black Goat gradually confirmed that the Smoke Mirror possessed only power, not consciousness.
If there is a god, they will worship him; if there is no god... wouldn't that be better? They no longer need to sacrifice their capable and promising members, and they have a nuclear power plant.
The last batch of family wastes were just putting on a show of laying everything bare. Occasionally, when the smoke mirror rioted, one or two could be added in, just to appease the anger of the god of darkness.
But similarly, that power was too uncontrollable.
After all, it's a smoke mirror that can't be fully described by any long string of eerie words; opening it is like opening a dark encyclopedia.
So the black goat slowly developed a new idea... There is no consciousness here, but what if they create one?
In that way, they would have a "god" who controlled the smoke mirror, and the "god" would be under their control.
The best thing would be... to use your own people.
This last batch of offerings finally found their true purpose.
They were repeatedly brought in front of the smoke mirror to test their compatibility with it, and then they were locked in a sealed room to become one with the smoke mirror.
The closer one gets to the north, the clearer the black smoke becomes, and the more frequently the smoke mirror appears in the hallucination.
Xie Tan had a strange feeling that those illusions of mist were all fake, or memories, but... every smoke mirror was real, the same one, the one in the secret room at this moment.
And the mirror was guiding him through these illusions.
In the final stretch, the smoke mirror at the front remained fixed, and only the person kneeling in front of the mirror changed.
Those were the last batch of sacrifices.
Some of them were successfully brainwashed, worshipping and wanting to merge with the mirror to become the true "incarnation of God"; some resented it, believing that all misfortunes were related to the mirror and wanted to smash it and perish with it; some, like Xiao Liu, used the mirror as a tree hole to confide their secrets.
However, despite their different attitudes, they did the same thing.
That is to make a wish upon it.
Helpless, they made wishes to a god they knew didn't exist, clinging to their delusions that would never be seen in this family.
Xie Tan heard the timid and cowardly Su Zhi wish that "she wants her sister to live well," heard the dependent Su Shao wish that "the family will never be separated," heard Xia Wujin say that "he wants to be recognized, wants to have a truly noble status, wants to have power," and heard the wishes of other men, women, and children.
However, the scene changed again, and it was the same as what he had seen before: the various deaths of those who failed to escape.
The black goats, arranged according to their abilities from strongest to weakest and their suitability from highest to lowest, sent them one by one to the smoke mirror to "awaken" the consciousness of God.
They all failed.
By the third to last, Black Goat had completely lost hope. The head of the family and other core members left in disappointment. All that was left was to go through the motions and, incidentally, to get rid of these "junk."
Finally, the illusions created by the black smoke drifted away, and Xie Tan arrived at the real secret chamber, gazing at the huge obsidian mirror in the distance.
Xiao Liu knelt before the smoke mirror, curled up, hands clasped together, head bowed, and said sincerely, "Respected God, I want to leave here, I want to go to the outside world."
The smoke mirror didn't react; it didn't even bother with a few more swirling wisps of black smoke, let alone a riot.
She was the least capable and the least suitable.
Other offerings may have some dark side, but her existence is the complete opposite of the Smoke Mirror. Even though she has never seen the light of day, she remains cheerful, sincere, enthusiastic, romantic, unafraid to expect, and full of hope.
Even in the moments before she died.
How could such a person, with such a soul, possibly "awaken" the Smoke Mirror?
Xie Tan once again uncontrollably wondered, were those really hallucinations?
He already had a vague answer in his heart.
Was it worth it for her to die so many times?
He stood about ten meters behind her, and said softly, not knowing if she was telling the truth or if she could hear him, "The outside world might not be as good as you think..."
However, Xiao Liu spoke up, not to answer him, but still talking to himself, yet he replied: "Maybe there's nothing good out there, but even a frog at the bottom of a well can jump up and see the storm of the apocalypse, and that would be enough to make this life worthwhile, right?"
She leaned close to the mirror, getting close to her own reflection, and flashed a bright smile that seemed out of place in the mirror's darkness.
The next second, her eyes widened.
She "saw" it again.
Suddenly, a black dot appeared in the empty, smoky mirror, rapidly expanding and instantly engulfing the entire mirror, etching an even darker layer onto the pitch-black surface.
The entire area where the black goat herd was located instantly fell silent.
Xie Tan and Xiao Liu simultaneously heard a voice coming from the smoke mirror.
It contained Xie Tan's indifference, Xiao Liu's slightly raised tone, and seemed to include the voices and speaking characteristics of many other people.
"Okay, I heard you."
The chilling voice, more elusive than black smoke, said casually, "It's all been achieved."
With a teasing smile.
Ironically, it was the most unlikely person who gave birth to the god in the smoke mirror.
He is impermanent.
She is a black goat.
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