Li Tianqing looked up at the azure sky, comfortably stretched, and smiled, "I wish I could keep living , carefree. But I have to grow up quickly so I can take care of Mother and Grandfather."
Chen Shi propped his hands behind his head, casually crossing his legs, and as he rocked back and forth, he said, "I also need to grow up quickly. I need to take care of Grandfather. I feel he’s becoming weaker."
Li Tianqing turned to him and earnestly said, "Little Ten, I think your grandfather isn’t as weak as you imagine."
Chen Shi sighed and said, "You’ve just come to my house and haven’t spent much time with Grandfather. He always tries to act strong but in reality, he’s very weak. Adults are like that."
Li Tianqing nodded, "Adults are like that. My mother acts strong in front of me, but I’ve seen her secretly wiping away her tears several times."
Seeing him saddened, Chen Shi quickly changed the subject and chuckled, "Tomorrow, how about I take you fishing for Big Gun? Tomorrow, we’ll buy a thicker rope so we won’t have to worry about it being bitten through!"
Li Tianqing’s eyes sparkled with excitement, "Yes, yes! Tie the big fish hook to my back, I want to be the bait!"
Black Pot rolled its eyes at the side; these two kids probably had never been to school and didn’t know how many ways there are to write the word "death."
"It’s not you who’ll be fishing; we’ll tie the metal hook to Black Pot and use it to fish."
At the southern foot of Qianyang Mountain, Master of Xuanying Mansion, Zhao Yanlong, led Xuanying Mansion’s elite forces and temporarily stopped to rest. Zhao Yanlong looked up at the sun in the distant sky; there was still some time before sunset.
He averted his gaze and had already instructed the Zhao family’s housekeeper to order everyone to wear Peach Talismans, and to hang the same talismans on the vehicles.
A talisman master was already distributing talismans. Every Zhao family member, regardless of their closeness, received a Golden Bell Talisman, Exorcism Talisman, and Amulet. These talismans were for preserving life and would protect them when an evil spirit approached.
For the imperial guards too, each was equipped with an Exorcism Talisman.
"Divide the forces into three groups; the first group will unveil the shrine and use the divine light within to illuminate the surroundings. The second and third groups will rest. After half an hour, the second group will unveil the shrine and the first and third groups will rest. Continue to alternate like that!"
Seeing that the housekeeper had arranged everything properly, Zhao Yanlong waved his hand, "Enter the mountain!"
Forty-eight Zhao family descendants and two hundred and sixty imperial guards walked majestically into Qianyang Mountain, heading in the direction of the kiln.
This was the route his daughter Zhao Minrou had taken.
Zhao Minrou had entered the kiln for the first time chasing Chen Shi, without remembering the way.
She had left the kiln by another route, involving crossing several mountains, then passing through the southern foothills, to the provincial road, and along it to Xin Xiang Province.
For caution, Zhao Yanlong decided to enter the mountain from the southern foothills.
"By this time, second Uncle must have already killed Chen Yindou and Chen Shi, right?"
Zhao Yanlong thought, "He didn’t come home for dinner last night; was he delayed by something? If he could also come here, entering Ghost God Domain would surely be a success."
He felt a bit of regret.
However, with Xuanying Mansion’s strength, he was confident enough to make a breakthrough at the kiln domain.
He had this confidence!
Zhao Minrou passed through the mountain range of the southern foothills, it took her half a month, and she’d lost most of her companions before she barely escaped Qianyang Mountain. Yet Zhao Yanlong had already reached the outskirts of the kiln by dusk; on the way, only two imperial guards had died, both from falling off the cliff.
Zhao Yanlong ordered his men to clear the trees outside the kiln, set up camp, and hang Peach Talismans around, planning to stay overnight.
"If this place made burial ceramics for the True King, then surely inside, we can find the whereabouts of the True King’s Tomb!"
Zhao Yanlong smiled slightly, first sending a few imperial guards into the kiln, only to see them shrink dramatically upon entering the premise, turning from adults into porcelain dolls not even a foot tall in the blink of an eye!
Zhao Yanlong picked up a few of the porcelain dolls to closely examine them and even crushed one doll’s leg to check the hardness.
After pondering for a moment, he smiled lightly and said, "Father, Fourth Uncle, Fifth Uncle, the three of you have the highest cultivation. Stay outside to monitor any movements within the kiln. If we encounter any danger, please activate your spells to save us, and do not enter the kiln."
Zhao Cunping, Zhao Cunsi, and Zhao Cunxiang each nodded their heads, and took up positions on one side of the kiln, activating their Primordial Spirits in a triangular formation.
Zhao Yanlong then called upon his brothers and sisters, totaling eight people, and said, "Everyone, let us enter the kiln and explore, see what ghostly divine power this kiln holds!"
The crowd laughed and said, "It’s just a domain for porcelain making, how powerful can the ghostly divine power be? The Master is being too cautious."
As they entered the kiln one by one, even with their Nascent Souls activated, they couldn’t resist the power of the Ghost God Domain and were transformed into porcelain dolls.
"What we are looking for this time is the source of this Ghost God Domain, a porcelain statue with four heads and eight arms, many times larger than a normal statue."
Zhao Yanlong also turned into a porcelain doll, and although his speech sounded like bird chirps and the others couldn’t understand, the eight who entered with him could comprehend. ƒreewebɳovel.com
"As long as we find this statue, we can control this Ghost God Domain, take over this place, and the kiln will be under our control! Searching for the True King’s Tomb will then not be difficult."
The people chatted and laughed as they delved deeper into the kiln.
Chen Shi, Li Tianqing, and Black Pot were still on the ox cart, which moved slowly, swaying, but it was certain to get home before dark, so the two were not in a hurry.
At that moment, the ox cart stopped, and the two looked outside in surprise.
They saw not far away a convoy, likely traders, with seven or eight carts of goods, including mountain goods and grain, crossing through the mountains, apparently planning to leave Qianyang Mountain before dark and find a place to stay nearby. However, unfortunately, another group approached from the opposite direction, probably also traders, mostly dealing in furs, and they were also on this mountain road.
Two carts collided while trying to pass each other, resulting in chaos, with goods scattered and blocking the mountain road, preventing people from both sides from passing.
Instead of thinking about moving the carts, the people of both convoys argued fiercely about whose fault it was, turning red in the face and thick in the neck.
Dozens of people from both groups blocked the mountain road completely.
"If we don’t pass soon it will be dark, and you all will end up feeding evil spirits!" yelled the coachman of the ox cart.
Chen Shi startled, and Li Tianqing whispered, "Are all country folk as brave as you?"
"The brave ones, many of them got killed."
Seeing that the quarrel continued, the two jumped off the ox cart, planning to bypass it by the mountain stream.
"There are red fish in the stream!"
Li Tianqing said excitedly, then became puzzled, "These fish, why are they suddenly sinking to the bottom?"
Chen Shi approached and saw indeed some fish swimming around in the stream, while others sank to the bottom.
Suddenly, more fish appeared unable to swim, plummeting straight to the bottom.
Chen Shi scooped up a red fish, which felt heavy; it was a porcelain fish!
He stared blankly, then quickly looked up towards the kiln.
In the forest, an immensely violent aura soared into the sky, turning into a beam of red light that shot straight into the clouds and then fell like a curtain, covering an area of several miles as if a giant transparent pot had been placed over it. The red curtain extended in all directions, transforming insects and fish it passed into porcelain!
In the fields, a gentle breeze came, lightly swaying the ears of corn, nearing harvest season.
However, as the wind blew, rows of corn turned to porcelain. A Xinxiang rat, clasping an ear of corn, was about to shove it into its mouth and bit down hard, breaking several teeth.
The ear of corn in its paws had also turned into porcelain.
And at the place where the red light rose, the porcelain statue of Doumu Bodhisattva with four heads and eight arms grew larger and taller, quickly towering over the forest, sitting in the kiln like a small mountain, swinging the porcelain treasures in her hands, smashing Zhao Yanlong’s siblings to pieces with a single strike!
Zhao Yanlong frantically ran out of the kiln, screeching, "Retreat—"
In Huangpo Village, Li Jindou also sensed the anomaly, his face abruptly changing, "Who the hell angered the Eight-Armed Doumu Bodhisattva statue? Tired of living, huh... Wait a minute!"
His face ashen: "Demon! A demon was sealed within the Eight-Armed Doumu Bodhisattva statue! Its demon domain is spreading!"
—Today, Chapter 2. Chapter 3 update at 11 noon. Subscribe!