Chapter 723: Malevolent Spirits Seeking Revenge
Chapter 723: Malevolent Spirits Seeking Revenge
The Half-Sacrifice to Heaven, Summoning the Gods to the Altar.
These two matters had already made the Four Surnames' Elders unable to sit still, and in their mix of shock and anger, they were quickly contemplating what measures to take to prevent the young master of the Hu family from continuing his madness. But at this moment, they once again felt an ominous sensation.
The situation was spiraling out of control, one wave after another, with an invisible roar that caused their faces to change color abruptly.
"Malevolent spirits on the bridge?"
"No, it's bridge seizure!"
"..."
A situation that had never occurred since the bridge's existence, for a moment, the urgency of the situation even shocked them, leaving them feeling unprepared.
The bridge was a path to avoid calamity and a hope for transcendence.
Ascending the steps was a technique, entering the manor was the law, and crossing the bridge was already considered a path.
Over two hundred years ago, the Year of the Earth Dragon, allowed the world's extraordinary individuals to discover the bridge-crossing method. The Ten Surnames were among the first to come into contact with it, and they were also the first to have someone cross the bridge.
Because they were the first to cross the bridge and held greater power over time, the Ten Surnames gradually considered the bridge their own. All who came after had to bow and pay respects to the Ten Surnames when crossing, willingly submitting to their authority.
Especially in the last twenty years, with the disappearance of reincarnated malevolent spirits, the Ten Surnames' influence on the bridge grew even stronger. The bridge became exclusively theirs, a fact that all in the world's sects had to acknowledge.
The Ten Surnames' transcendence was evident in this.
If the Ten Surnames could still be considered noble clans in this world, with a chance to reshuffle the deck, then the bridge set them apart from everyone else. It created an unbridgeable gap, leaving no chance for newcomers to escape their grasp.
But now, it had suddenly been disrupted by someone.
"It's impossible for so many people to cross the bridge, and it's also impossible for everything to be so coincidentally timed, unless..."
"Malevolent spirits!"
When the Chen family's head shouted this, his voice trembled as if considering another possibility: "Those malevolent spirits who once fought us for the bridge have returned!"
"Twenty years ago, they were scattered across different bridges. Although they fought us many times, they ultimately failed to seize the bridge."
"This time, they actually... actually changed their strategy!"
"This time, they directly targeted the Meng family's bridge, not even giving us time to react!"
"..."
"The most crucial thing is the Hu family..."
Someone spoke halfway but then paused.
These malevolent spirits must have been planning for a long time, but how could it be that they chose this precise moment when the Hu family and Meng family were fighting to the point of bloodshed, attracting everyone's attention, to seize the Meng family's bridge?
"Since it's come to this, should we help the Meng family protect the bridge?"
Amidst the chaos, someone finally spoke up, immediately drawing countless gazes from those nearby.
"How do we protect it?"
Someone nearby angrily asked, "This isn't some village or territory where we can just declare war and attack. Once those malevolent spirits reach the bridge, we'll have nowhere to exert our strength. We must find them in the mortal world first..."
"But where do we even start searching in this chaotic world?"
"..."
"Let's watch over the Meng family for now. Currently, no one from the Meng family is on the bridge. With this path taken, the Meng family has lost their last bit of protection. This trouble is big..."
These were the heads of various families, known for their decisiveness. Even in their usual discussions, they remained calm and elegant, quickly devising strategies. But this was the first time they felt flustered and chaotic.
Although their faces showed anger, and their hearts held frustration, they were now aware of the most critical matter.
They had just left the Meng family and hadn't gone far. Turning back, they saw the dark clouds hanging low over the Salt Province. This was a sign that something had been watching the Meng family since the summoning of calamity, and now it was about to make its move.
The dark clouds, which had been hanging low in the horizon, were now rapidly descending into the Meng family's compound.
Even the Meng family's threshold seemed to be blown by the wind, silently and slowly falling into the estate.
This was the Meng family's last pillar collapsing, as the Eleven Tribulations entered the estate without any obstruction.
"First, we must protect the Meng family's bloodline!"
Seeing this, the head of the Immortal Wang family couldn't help but feel indignant. He took out a porcelain bottle from his sleeve and removed the stopper, revealing a plump, thumb-sized white doll.
This was a medicinal pill from the Wang family's alchemy, already possessing sentience and behaving like a living creature. He quickly pointed it towards the Meng family's ancestral home, sending the pill-doll to rescue the people inside. Then, he turned to the other three: "Find the Sun family and quickly dispel the calamity!"
"After that, we should invite someone from the Ten Surnames who still holds some influence to come and talk."
"..."
Looking at the Meng family's estate engulfed in black clouds, the others knew there was no other way.
Now, it was almost certain that the Eleven Tribulations had no chance of entering the Old Yin Mountain.
This was how summoning and sending calamities worked. Once summoned, the price had to be paid, and even on the journey to send them away, a price was required.
And just then, the Old Yin Mountain had the Water Spirit's birth, blocking the calamity. So, the price had to be paid entirely by the Meng family.
As for the Hu Family, they were indeed the target of the Meng Family's disaster-sending scheme. However, when faced with the disaster, whether it was to hide or block it, as long as they kept the calamity at bay, the matter would have almost no connection to the Hu Family.
On the surface, this incident made the Meng Family appear to be the biggest joke in the world.
Whether it was inviting or sending, such a grand clan's fortune and lineage had been squandered, yet in the end, the Hu Family hadn't even caught a glimpse of the disaster's shadow.
And at this moment, as outsiders, they couldn't help but pinch their noses and come to clean up the mess for the Meng Family.
Soon, news arrived. Outside Old Yin Mountain, the eleven disaster-senders all had a dazed expression, their eyes vacant as they halted in their tracks. The malevolent spirits they carried suddenly raised their heads and cried out simultaneously, their voices causing the heavens and earth to tremble.
The malevolent spirits were tired and wanted to return!
Not only had they not enjoyed the offerings, but they had also endured countless whippings, and their resentment had multiplied manifold.
And all this had to be repaid by the Meng Family.
As the disaster-senders stumbled and turned back towards the cave, the rolling dark clouds in the Meng Family's ancestral mansion slowly drifted out towards the exterior.
Clearly, these were dark clouds, yet one could see within them faint silhouettes of figures wearing golden robes and silver ornaments, brocade robes, and jade crowns, each looking dignified. But now, they were pitifully chained, crying and wailing as they were dragged away.
The Meng Family's mansion was now empty, with only a few servants who had recently joined the Meng Family wandering about in a daze, passing through the house and courtyard. When they met, they could only stare blankly at each other and say:
"Another... another one died..."
"..."
"The thing in the cave has come to collect its debt from the Meng Family..."
Even from a distance, the Four Surnames Elders didn't dare approach. Although they had walked far on the bridge, able to avoid birth, old age, sickness, and death, they still didn't have the ability to escape the three calamities. At this moment, they naturally didn't dare to get involved.
With their abilities, they had originally thought that no matter how much the Hu and Meng Families fought, they could always intervene and stop it, at most paying some price.
But now, besides sending a pill into the Meng Family's residence, they didn't even dare to enter and check if the Meng Family's young master was still alive.
In the Northern Capital, within the Ancestral Temple, the temple guardian watched as the Meng Family's ancestral hall, once filled with lights, gradually went dark one by one. Faintly, one could hear the hall filled with crying, as if reluctant to leave.
His lips moved slightly as he looked at the Hu Family's ancestral hall, where only one lamp remained lit. He spoke softly, "Elder Sister Bai, could you have foreseen this?"
In the Hu Family's ancestral hall, the matriarch's voice rang out after a long while, filled with sorrow, "The current situation of the Meng Family is no different from that of the Hu Family twenty years ago, isn't it?"
"The Meng Family only wanted to harm others and never considered that there are capable people in our Hu Family who would avenge this grudge."
"..."
The temple guardian was at a loss for words, "But after all, it was for the Stone Pavilion..."
"When you discussed the matter of the Stone Pavilion, you should have considered preventing the Meng Family from bullying our Hu Family too much."
Inside the Hu Family's ancestral hall, the matriarch's voice was firmer than ever, "When I returned, I told my grandson to stay alive, learn skills, and take revenge, but..."
"I only forgot to tell him about the so-called Stone Pavilion!"
"..."
"..."
"Let's go, we're entering Old Yin Mountain too!"
Witnessing the Yin Tribulation entering the residence, even the Four Surnames Elders, with their vast abilities, felt their hearts plunge into icy well water. With anger in their voices, they were determined to head to Old Yin Mountain. This time, they were going to find someone from the Hu Family and get a clear explanation.
But just as they were about to leave, they suddenly heard laughter nearby, "Noble Lords, you're in such a hurry, ignoring the pond full of lotus flowers. What's the rush?"
The Four Surnames Elders turned in surprise and saw a man carrying a divination flag on the roadside.
He looked disheveled, with a dirty cloth robe, like a wandering fortune teller.
Yet, this street fortune teller, upon seeing the awe-inspiring Four Surnames Elders, merely laughed and seemed completely uninhibited.
It was the Four Surnames Elders who, upon seeing him, first frowned slightly and then fixed their gaze on the wooden frame he carried on his back, which was covered with a piece of red cloth.
From the bulging shape beneath the red cloth, it seemed there was a divine statue inside, and when the wind blew up a corner of the cloth, a wooden statue was faintly visible.
The Four Surnames Elders' faces changed instantly, and their anxious expressions were quickly suppressed. They slowly raised their hands and bowed to the man, or rather, to the wooden statue on his back.
"Could it be that the matter is so grave that even the State Preceptor has finally come out of hiding?" they asked in a low voice.
The fortune teller laughed, his face showing no surprise, "It's just a matter of willing participants, what's so big about it?"
(End of Chapter)
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