Chapter 887: The Strange Man in the Cage
"Tsk, our old rivals!"
At the source of the Surging River, a group of ghostly handsome men and beautiful women drifted about, leading tens of thousands of people from the Great Wasteland to the riverbank. At the same time, another group of men and women also arrived there with their own migrating people.
Among these ghostly handsome men and beautiful women were a few old men and women. When they saw the young people of varying heights, weights, looks, and ugliness across from them, the ghosts couldn't help but beam with joy and start teasing, laughing: "You old dead ghosts from the Human Sovereign Hall, now you're all dressed up and looking human!"
Those oddly featured young people were none other than the successive Human Sovereigns of the Human Sovereign Hall: Qi Kang, Yi Shan, the Second Patriarch, the Third Patriarch, and others. When the Imperial Heavenly Lord and the gods of the Heavenly Court descended, they had gone deep into the Great Wasteland to find its people and send them from the Surging River to Yankang.
They arrived here just as the ghosts of the successive Demon Sect Leaders were also escorting the people of the Great Wasteland to seek refuge in Yankang.
Yi Shan was short and stout. He put his hands on his hips and sneered: "We're old dead ghosts? We're alive and well right now! You Demon Sect are the real dead ghosts! You don't even have physical bodies, so what are you doing wandering around? Hand these people over to us, and you hurry back to Fengdu to save your own skins!"
Qi Kang sneered: "Without physical bodies, you might die without even knowing how!"
"Ptooey, ptooey! No childish curses, only good luck!"
The Demon Sect Leaders laughed: "You greenhorns from the Human Sovereign Hall, we dead people have broad minds and won't stoop to your level. The sour stench of you living folks is enough to make us sick."
The Human Sovereign Hall and the Demon Sect spat at each other, back and forth, one gob of phlegm after another.
They had been the tyrants of Fengdu back in the day, constantly bickering and fighting. Even when they were alive, they couldn't stand each other. Only when a Human Sovereign brought out the Human Sovereign Seal would the Demon Sect Leaders behave themselves.
But when the seal wasn't brought out, they would still fight and argue.
The Young Patriarch quickly interjected: "Everyone, we're all here for the people of the Great Wasteland. Let's argue less. The Primordial Realm is full of war everywhere, so escorting these mortals is the priority."
The Fifth Patriarch sneered: "Wen Yuan, you're all dead ghosts. What ability do you have to transport so many people?"
The ghosts of the Demon Sect Leaders laughed in unison. Each cast a spell, and they said in one voice: "We have the Five Ghosts Moving Technique, teleportation arrays, earth-walking techniques, water-escape techniques, mountain-moving techniques! With all the successive leaders working together, we can move not just tens of thousands, but hundreds of thousands, even millions of people! You people of the Human Sovereign Hall are big, dumb, and crude, and your techniques are just as big, dumb, and crude. What can you possibly do?"
The many Human Sovereigns laughed in turn. Each displayed their divine abilities. Some took out a leaf, blew on it, and it turned into a green boat hundreds of feet long. Others shook their bodies and transformed into giant dragons. Some summoned clouds beneath their feet for people to stand on. Their various divine powers and techniques dazzled the eyes.
The Demon Sect Leaders looked at each other in shock.
"These big, dumb, crude guys have lived another life, and their techniques have actually become refined."
They transported the people of the Great Wasteland down the river, still spitting at each other from both sides, "ptooey" back and forth.
The Young Patriarch was helpless and just let them be.
Along the way, they encountered gods and demons of the Heavenly Court. The Human Sovereigns and Demon Sect Leaders stopped their quarreling. If the enemy was few, they would swarm in—the Human Sovereigns would fight head-on, while the Demon Sect Leaders would use dirty tricks. If the enemy was numerous, they would use teleportation techniques to move the people away and escape.
The journey was relatively safe, but the souls of the Demon Sect Leaders grew dimmer and dimmer.
"You've been away from Fengdu for too long," said Human Sovereign Qi Kang. "Patriarch Wen Yuan, all of you should go back. If you keep this up, you'll dissipate into nothing."
The Young Patriarch shook his head, but before he could speak, Demon Sect Leaders like Zu Yang, Yu Lian, and Si Yuan Wei started scolding him all at once, making Qi Kang's head spin.
Suddenly, the river surface was littered with the corpses of divine dragons and gods and demons. The Dragon Palace at the bottom of the river had been shattered. Clearly, an army of the Heavenly Court had attacked the Dragon Palace of the Surging River. Those gods and demons were likely Heavenly Soldiers and Generals who had died in battle.
Divine fire still burned on the river, and even the river water couldn't extinguish it.
On the shore were broken warships. The Heavenly Court's army must have encountered powerful dragon clan experts here and suffered heavy casualties.
The Demon Sect Leaders dove into the corpses of those Heavenly Soldiers and Generals, dancing and contorting in bizarre shapes. Then, they gathered around a huge Heavenly Court warship and started doing carpentry work, clanging and banging.
These Demon Sect Leaders were quick and nimble. They soon repaired the Heavenly Court warship, leaving the Human Sovereigns staring wide-eyed.
The Demon Sect Leaders stood on the bow of the ship, casting spells to move the people aboard.
"You're in luck!" they said with beaming smiles. "We are the army of the Heavenly Court, and you are our prisoners. We're escorting you on the road!"
The warship took flight, and the banners of the Heavenly Court army were unfurled. They headed east. Along the way, they saw more and more Heavenly Court warships emerging from the void amid bursts of blood-red light from bloody sacrifices, and their hearts grew heavier.
They encountered another migrating group, escorted by cultivators from the Heavenly Sage Academy.
The scholars of the Heavenly Sage Academy told them: "A ghost named Ling Jing helped us. That's how we made it this far alive."
"And where is Daoist Ling Jing?"
The scholars said nothing.
They carried these refugees onward. They then met a young Daoist priest leading people from the Great Wasteland on a difficult journey. The young Daoist was Lin Xuan, the Dao Lord.
"Stinky Daoist, ox-nose priest, even more disgusting than those big, dumb, crude Human Sovereigns!" The Demon Sect Leaders scoffed at the Dao Lord, but they still let Lin Xuan and the refugees board the ship.
"You can escort these people to the Peach Forest of our Dao Sect Academy," said Lin Xuan Dao Lord, taking off his Daoist crown. The crown was full of blood. "The Peach Forest is home to the Moon Venerable. Though she doesn't interfere in worldly affairs, the forest can protect them. You can also send them to Qingyun Heaven, a branch of the Heavenly Court's Dao Sect. It's relatively safe there. I've already ordered the Dao Sect disciples to go to Qingyun Heaven and send the people near the Surging River there to avoid the war. Qingyun Heaven has twenty-four Divine Kingdoms, which can ensure their safety."
"The ox-nose priest isn't all bad," said Si Yuan Wei, the Demon Sect Leader, who admired him. She smiled: "As a Dao Lord, risking your life to come out shows you have a good conscience. Did you come alone?"
"Two of us," said Lin Xuan Dao Lord. "There was also the Zha Daoist."
"And where is he?"
Lin Xuan Dao Lord pressed his lips together: "He stayed behind to hold the line. He said he would catch up once we were far away. If he didn't show up within an hour, we shouldn't wait for him."
"When was that?"
"Six days ago."
Lin Xuan Dao Lord put his crown back on, his expression wooden: "He probably took another path and missed me. I didn't wait for him. Maybe he's already at the Peach Forest. He runs fast."
No one asked further.
They continued on. The Heavenly Court warship grew more and more crowded, nearly full. Despite the ship's size, it couldn't hold all the refugees.
Suddenly, the warship slowed down. Human Sovereign Qi Kang walked to the bow: "What's wrong?"
Demon Sect Leader Yan Ji's hands trembled slightly as he pointed ahead. There, over a dozen warships, each tens of miles long, were suspended in the air. Thousands of Heavenly Court gods were resting on board.
A god flew toward them, shouting from afar: "Whose troops are you?"
Everyone on the ship was stunned, at a loss.
The god flew closer and demanded: "Who is your commanding general?"
"What do we do?" Human Sovereign Yi Shan's voice was hoarse. "Should we just fight to the death?"
Just then, loud horns sounded from the Heavenly Court warships. A golden-armored Heavenly God shouted: "We've found traces of the Netherworld Divine Son! The White Emperor is summoning us to subdue him! Follow me!"
The god approaching them hesitated for a moment, then immediately turned and flew back, boarding a ship. One by one, the massive warships tore through the void and departed.
Everyone on board broke out in a cold sweat.
"Who is this Netherworld Divine Son? To have such a grand display, summoning the Heavenly Court's army under the White Emperor to encircle him?" murmured the Second Patriarch.
"It's the Qin Sect Leader," said Lin Xuan Dao Lord. "When I was in the Grand Heavenly Realm, I heard someone call him the Netherworld Divine Son."
The many Demon Sect Leaders laughed: "As expected of the current leader of our Holy Sect! What a reputation!"
The successive Human Sovereigns also laughed: "What does that have to do with your Demon Sect? He's clearly the current Human Sovereign of our Human Sovereign Hall!"
They started arguing again. Lin Xuan Dao Lord urged them: "The Peach Forest is just ahead. Let's hurry over."
He muttered to himself: "Maybe the Zha Daoist is already at the Peach Forest, waiting for me."
Everyone was a bit puzzled. This Dao Lord's state of mind seemed off.
The Young Patriarch stepped forward, reached out, and removed Lin Xuan's Daoist crown. There, stuck in Lin Xuan's hair bun, was a broken sword, driven deep into his brain.
Blood dripped from the crown again.
The Young Patriarch stopped the other Demon Sect Leaders and put the crown back on Lin Xuan's head. "Don't pull it out. If you do, he'll die. If you leave it in, and find a skilled healer, he might still be saved."
The warship sailed toward the Peach Forest. The vast expanse of peach trees was very conspicuous. They arrived at the now-empty Dao Sect Academy. Lin Xuan went to look for the Zha Daoist but didn't find him.
Everyone let the people of the Great Wasteland disembark and enter the Peach Forest.
The sky was now dark and dim. Suddenly, lights appeared from within the Peach Forest. The refugees followed the lights and disappeared into the depths of the forest.
"The Jade-Faced Poison King of Yankang is skilled in medicine. I'll take him to find the Jade-Faced Poison King!" said Human Sovereign Qi Kang, hoisting Lin Xuan onto his back. "Everyone, take care!"
Everyone bowed: "Take care!"
Qi Kang sped off like the wind, running wildly. After six or seven days, he finally reached the Surging River. He walked on the waves downstream. In the sky, massive warships flew past. Suddenly, a few of them stopped.
Qi Kang quickly hid in the shadows. He saw chains lowering from the warships, and then a giant cage was suspended between them. The chains creaked and groaned.
"My name is Wei Suifeng! My name is Wei Suifeng!"
Inside the cage, a majestic god was bound. Chains pierced his body, his soul, and even his various divine treasuries and heavenly palaces!
"Shut up!"
A heavy imperial might emanated from the warships above. A voice full of authority said coldly: "Wei Suifeng, you once had contact with Ling Heavenly Venerable, even possessing her hairpin. You've been in contact with that hairpin for so long, studying Ling Heavenly Venerable's techniques. Your body and soul must have changed too, right? Using you to trade for the Ghost Ship—this deal isn't a loss, is it?"
Human Sovereign Qi Kang hid in the shadows. He saw the figure in the cage shout fiercely: "My name is Wei Suifeng!"
Qi Kang was stunned: "This man named Wei Suifeng seems to be shouting his name at me. What's the meaning of this?"
Just then, he saw beneath the surface of the Surging River, a huge warship slowly sailing past right under his feet.
"My name is Wei Suifeng—" the madman in the cage shouted at him fiercely.