In the southern wilderness, standing atop a high place and gazing out, one would see only undulating mountains, towering peaks, rising miasma, and thick, noxious fog. Though majestic in appearance, it resembled hell, brewing all sorts of atrocities that stripped away humanity.
Inside a secluded valley where a tribe resided, a clear stream flowed noisily, nourishing the soil and irrigating the plants. It was a precious source of life, vastly different from the nearby rivers often tainted with poison and disease.
Inside one of the earthen huts, a young boy knelt, eyes red, filled with terror, fear, and grief, staring at the corpse before him—its skin stripped away, all protrusions carved off, the body still bearing traces of torment and resentment.
An hour earlier, this corpse had been his older sister, cheerful, lively, and full of warmth. She had a beloved in her heart, filled with dreams for the future, but unfortunately, she had been noticed by a disciple of the Blood-Robe Cult who had come to collect tribute. After satisfying his lust, he refused to stop there, committing this unspeakable act.
Xi Da clenched his fists tightly, kneeling beside the corpse like a wounded beast, his throat emitting hoarse, pained sounds, overwhelmed by sorrow and hatred.
Suddenly, he raised his head and looked at his father, puffing on a water pipe, his face etched with worry, and spoke in a hoarse but resolute voice: “I want revenge! I want revenge!”
His father inhaled deeply from the water pipe and sighed: “How can you take revenge? A single finger from one of the Blood-Robe Cult’s Venerables could kill you. How can you seek revenge?”
“Even if we summon the tribal guardian, the King of Poisonous Insects, and gather everyone’s strength, we still wouldn’t stand a chance against the Blood-Robe Cult!”
Yes, that was the reality. Xi Da had once seen the Blood-Robe Cult’s power firsthand. Many savage beasts that his tribe couldn’t possibly handle were as fragile as lambs before the Cult’s masters—no, before those demons.
“Alas, we must accept our fate. This is our destiny.”
Hearing his father’s lamentations and seeing his sorrowful expression, Xi Da felt a deep sense of despair rise within him. It was as if all the colors of the world had vanished, leaving only endless darkness.
He lowered his head and left the hut, unable to bear looking into his sister’s wide, unblinking eyes. Step by step, he walked out of the valley, reaching an isolated mountaintop, curling himself into a crevice between the rocks, hiding from the entire world. Though the sunlight was bright, it could only illuminate his eyes, not the darkness in his heart.
Suddenly, the light before him dimmed, as if the sun had been blocked.
Dazed, he lifted his head and saw a figure in a green robe standing before him. The figure was as deep and unfathomable as a lake on a distant mountain, as steady as the mountain beneath his feet. His youthful, handsome face bore the unmistakable maturity of age, his temples slightly gray, exuding the same solemnity as the tribal elders.
But what struck Xi Da most were the man’s deep-set eyes, which seemed to contain suns, moons, stars, and rivers, mountains and valleys, love and hate, everything!
“Do you want revenge?” a deep, magnetic voice reached Xi Da’s ears.
Revenge? Revenge! At first dazed, Xi Da suddenly jumped up, bumping his head without caring about the pain, his eyes wide like a young tiger staring at the green-robed man:
“You… you can help me take revenge?”
“Can you defeat the Blood-Robe Cult?”
Filled with both excitement and doubt, yet for some reason, he felt an overwhelming trust in this man in green.
Meng Qi stood still and calmly replied: “I came to the southern wilderness precisely to destroy the Blood-Robe Cult.”
Hearing reports of the Cult’s presence nearby, it now seemed true indeed.
“To destroy the Blood-Robe Cult…” Xi Da repeated the words, feeling the darkness in his heart dissipate, colors returning to his vision.
The devils who took pleasure in slaughter, torture, and cruelty were about to be destroyed!
The bastards who had spilled rivers of blood in the southern wilderness were about to be killed!
Sister, Grandfather, and countless others in the tribe, you have finally waited for this day!
Though the green-robed man displayed no extraordinary abilities, Xi Da still felt an instinctive trust in him, as if the Blood-Robe Cult’s demons would be as fragile before him as he himself had been before them.
“What can I do?” Xi Da eagerly volunteered.
Meng Qi said: “Contact the Blood-Robe Cult and tell them that a mine rich in rare treasures has been discovered nearby.”
“Alright!” Xi Da understood this was a trap for the Blood-Robe Cult, similar to the hunting strategies he had used before.
He ran quickly, rushing back to the tribe, bursting into his family’s hut. The matter of contacting the Blood-Robe Cult required his father to consult the Great Elder!
“Father, we can finally take revenge! We can finally take revenge!” he shouted excitedly.
His father’s expression changed instantly, raising his water pipe and striking him: “Are you trying to get us all killed? Do you want the entire family to be targeted by the Blood-Robe Cult?”
Xi Da waved his arms and explained: “It’s true! A great expert wants to destroy the Blood-Robe Cult and has asked us to help set a trap!”
“Where did this expert come from?” his father frowned.
Xi Da seemed so confident, and the expert had actively requested contact with the Blood-Robe Cult, clearly well-prepared!
Thinking for a moment, Xi Da replied: “He must be a great expert from the Central Plains! Haven’t the Blood-Robe Cult been hiding and fleeing in recent years because of the experts from the Central Plains hunting them down?”
That made sense… Xi Da’s father’s expression shifted. Holding the water pipe in his left hand, he paced back and forth.
Suddenly, he extended his right hand and struck several vital points on Xi Da’s body.
“Father, what… what are you doing?” Xi Da looked utterly incredulous.
His father coldly replied: “You traitor, how dare you conspire with outsiders against the Blood-Robe Cult? I must inform the Great Elder and have him notify the Blood-Robe Cult to send people to deal with this Central Plains barbarian!”
Ah… The sudden shift in his father’s stance left Xi Da confused. Why was opposing the Blood-Robe Cult considered betrayal?
Stammering, he said: “Father, what about your sister, and Grandfather’s revenge? We couldn’t do anything before, but now someone is helping us. Why are you siding with the Blood-Robe Cult? Have you gone mad?”
His words grew stronger as he spoke.
Xi Da’s father’s face twisted, almost appearing sinister, yet a single tear rolled down from the corner of his eye: “No matter how evil the Blood-Robe Cult is, they protect us, preventing our tribe from being wiped out by the strongest wild beasts of the wilderness, ensuring our survival. No matter how good the people from the Central Plains are, they won’t stay here. Do you want to watch our entire tribe be destroyed because of our hatred?”
“Don’t you think I don’t grieve for your sister and Grandfather? But there are 3,756 other people in the tribe!”
“Do you even understand what is more important?”
He roared in a low voice, tears rolling down his eyes as he turned and stormed out of the hut, heading straight for the Great Elder’s dwelling.
Xi Da sat on the ground, stunned, his mind in chaos, as if his heart had been battered by a storm.
What was right? What was wrong?
…
Half an hour later, Meng Qi, standing atop the peak, saw a crimson cloud speeding toward him from the horizon. Gradually, it turned the sky blood-red, blotting out the sun.
The crimson cloud was formed from countless droplets of blood, each drop seeming to contain a wailing soul. On top of it bloomed countless red lotuses, each bearing a disciple of the Blood-Robe Cult, standing or sitting, forming a grand formation.
At the heart of the formation, seated atop a lotus, was the Ten Thousand Insect Venerable, his white hair like wriggling snakes. With the aid of the “Sea of Blood Formation,” unless he encountered Lu Da, Su Wuming, or the Mad Emperor, he could escape from any other orthodox Law Body cultivator. He wanted to see who had the audacity to confront the Blood-Robe Cult directly. Once he engaged the enemy, he could summon the King of Poisonous Insects.
This Sea of Blood Formation was formed from an ancient formation chart combined with the blood and vengeful souls collected by the Blood-Robe Cult over the years. It defiled weapons and was resistant to conventional methods, truly terrifying.
From afar, the Ten Thousand Insect Venerable saw Meng Qi standing atop the peak, now a layman again, holding a long saber. He couldn’t help but sneer: “Su Meng, you’ve got guts coming to the southern wilderness!”
“I might fear you elsewhere, but not here in the southern wilderness. A mighty dragon can’t overpower a local snake!”
As soon as he finished speaking, Meng Qi slightly drew the Saber of Overlord’s Absolute with his left hand, then quickly sheathed it, producing a dull sound.
Boom!
The sound was like thunder, pure, righteous, mighty, and overwhelming. It caused the disciples within the Sea of Blood Formation to bleed from their mouths and noses, falling into the crimson clouds, their bodies dissolving into essence.
Boom!
Under the assault of the righteous thunder, the blood sea rapidly evaporated, the vengeful souls becoming fainter, gradually vanishing into nothingness.
Boom!
The Ten Thousand Insect Venerable sat motionless upon his lotus, dazed and devoid of spirit, as countless gu worms crawled forth from his body—losing control and turning to devour him.
Aaahhh! Screaming in agony, the Ten Thousand Insect Venerable was devoured down to the bones, which then merged into the swarm of gu worms.
Meng Qi’s expression remained unchanged, speaking casually: “King of Poisonous Insects, come out.”
Buzzzzz! A strange sound vibrated in the air, coming from nowhere and everywhere:
“‘Furious Saber’ Su Meng, you claim to be the paragon of chivalry, yet why do you come to disrupt our southern wilderness?”
“Though there is killing, cruelty, and bloodshed here, this is the rule of the southern wilderness, an accepted truth. To receive protection, one must pay a price. You imposing your own morality upon us—that is the act of a devil!”
“All the tribes and all living beings here reject you!”
As the voice spoke, countless miasmas surged around, forming images of different tribes, all shouting in unison: “Devil, get out of the southern wilderness!”
“We are different from the border tribes. Without protection, our tribe will eventually be wiped out. This is our choice, not your concern!”
“We do not need salvation!”
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