Chapter 35: Preferring to Save Dogs Over Them!

Chapter 35: Preferring to Save Dogs Over Them!

Under the crimson night sky.

A sudden cacophony of footsteps echoed through the quiet street.

A long procession emerged from within the city, marching toward the city gate.

This procession was vast, numbering at least a thousand, all dressed in identical crimson robes and broad hats, their faces completely obscured, blending seamlessly with the blood-red night.

As they marched, they chanted obscure sacrificial incantations.

Due to the distance, Zhao Zheng couldn't hear the exact words, but he could make out phrases like "Great Moon Goddess," "Crimson Sovereign," "Flesh Mother Grove," and "Nurture Ten Thousand Souls."

In the middle of the procession, three large iron cages were mounted on wooden carts, pushed by the aberrant beings toward the city gate.

Inside these iron cages were humans!

Each cage held four people, totaling twelve.

They were the new extraordinary beings who had come to the Spirit Realm for adventure.

However, they were all lying limp in the cages, motionless, whether unconscious or already dead, it was hard to tell.

At this moment.

Zhao Zheng and Song Haitang were observing everything through a crack in the door.

Seeing the extraordinary beings in the cages, Zhao Zheng was taken aback.

One of the cages held Jiang Hebin, Chen Kai, and others.

"Song Haitang, it's your classmates!" Zhao Zheng whispered.

These unfortunate souls were likely the ones who had sought shelter at the Marquis Manor.

Song Haitang, whose Spirit attribute was only about twenty points lower than Zhao Zheng's, naturally saw her classmates in the cages.

The girl frowned slightly.

She didn't have strong feelings for these classmates, but they were still classmates, and if she could help, she definitely wouldn't leave them to die.

Of course, that was on the condition that it didn't endanger her or Zhao Zheng.

Risking her life to save them was out of the question.

"Let's see if they're alive or dead first."

Song Haitang said calmly.

Zhao Zheng smiled, then remembered something and quickly added, "Song Haitang, I remember seeing similar crimson robes and hats in the storage room behind the bar when we paid downstairs. There were more than one set."

Song Haitang was sharp and immediately understood Zhao Zheng's idea.

"You mean..." Her eyes lit up, "We disguise ourselves and blend in?"

"Exactly!"

This suggestion was met with Song Haitang's approval.

Blending in with the aberrant beings might allow them to gather some information.

Thus.

The two of them quietly descended the stairs and went to the bar on the first floor of the tavern. Sure enough, in the storage room behind the bar, they found three sets of crimson robes and hoods.

These must have belonged to the tavern's madam and her two helpers.

Zhao Zheng carefully chose the smallest set for Song Haitang and put on the medium-sized one himself.

Even the medium was a bit tight on him, but he didn't want to wear the large one.

The largest of the trio had been the lecherous man...

The smallest set, naturally, belonged to the madam.

Even the smallest set was much larger than Song Haitang, making the robe hang loosely on her.

They didn't take off their own clothes, just put the crimson robes over them and pulled the hoods down low to cover their faces before stepping out of the tavern.

Outside, the procession was just passing by.

Many of the aberrant beings turned to look at them upon hearing the noise, but seeing they were dressed the same, they paid no further attention and continued their prayers.

Zhao Zheng and Song Haitang breathed a sigh of relief.

Then, they joined the procession, mimicking the other aberrant beings, heads bowed, hands clasped in front of them, chanting devoutly as they walked.

Though their performance wasn't perfect, the surrounding aberrant beings were so devout that they paid no attention to the newcomers.

...

A short while later.

The group finally arrived near the city gates. At the entrance, a vast expanse of empty land greeted them. Zhao Zheng initially thought it was a flaw in the town's architectural planning, but now he realized that this area was designated for the aberrations to perform their rituals.

All the aberrations formed a semicircle at the city gates. Zhao Zheng and Song Haitang blended in among them, at a distance that allowed them to clearly see the dense fog outside the gates.

Within the fog, numerous shadows loomed, accompanied by low, urgent growls. It was as if the creatures outside anticipated what was about to happen and couldn't contain their eagerness.

Despite their impatience, they dared not venture beyond the fog and into the city.

Witnessing this scene, Zhao Zheng and Song Haitang both breathed a sigh of relief.

Previously, they had speculated that the monsters within the fog couldn't enter the city.

But it was just a guess, unsubstantiated, and it still felt somewhat unsettling.

Now, they could finally confirm this, and the two of them felt a sense of reassurance.

Zhao Zheng's lips curled into a confident smile.

As long as the monsters outside couldn't enter, he was invincible here!

He could even tear down this entire city...

...

The sacrifice began!

Three iron cages, pushed out by the robust aberrations, were lined up at the city gates.

Then, aberrations carrying buckets approached and began dousing the novices inside the cages with liquid.

No!

It wasn't water that they were pouring, but red blood, emitting a strong stench of gore.

The pungent smell made Song Haitang feel nauseous, while the monsters in the fog grew even more frenzied.

Several monsters had already started testing the waters.

Disgusting tentacles emerged from the fog, followed by sharp claws slashing through the air...

But that was the extent of it.

The monsters were clearly restrained and couldn't enter.

At that moment, the novices in the cages seemed to snap out of their daze.

They weren't dead; they had just fainted.

Realizing they were trapped in the cages, with an unknown liquid dripping on them, several individuals with weaker mental fortitude broke down, screaming and crying for mercy or desperately struggling.

The aberrations were accustomed to this reaction from the annual sacrifices.

Once the sacrifices regained consciousness, this was always the case!

Since the sacrifices had awakened, it was time for the offering.

The aberrations began pushing the iron cages, one by one, into the thick fog.

At this sight, a cruel term suddenly came to Zhao Zheng's mind:

"Live sacrifice!!"

"Zhao Zheng, shall we take action?" Song Haitang asked in a hushed tone.

It seemed that Song Haitang still had a kind heart, unwilling to witness these people being fed to the monsters as sacrifices, even though the first cage didn't contain her classmates.

Zhao Zheng was about to nod in agreement when he suddenly heard a young man cursing from one of the cages about to be pushed into the fog.

This youth was of the yellow race, with relatively short legs, and his words were unintelligible, clearly not a native of Xia Kingdom.

Zhao Zheng couldn't understand the youth's curses.

However, there were a few words he did catch.

Like the phrase "Baga yalu"!

As soon as Zhao Zheng heard this familiar bird-like language, his expression darkened.

The thought of rescuing them vanished in an instant.

He wouldn't even save a dog, let alone these things!

Not even in a parallel universe!

"Wait!"

Zhao Zheng stopped Song Haitang, who was about to take action. "Let's observe first."

A puzzled look appeared on Song Haitang's face.

She could tell that Zhao Zheng had initially been ready to agree, but then suddenly changed his mind.

Trusting Zhao Zheng, she didn't question him further...

There will be a bonus chapter tonight after 12:00 (Monday midnight)! Two chapters will be released back-to-back, so make sure to be there!

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end