LWGP - Chapter 208
Chapter 208: A Sacrifice?
Lin Yong, resurrected from the dead, ambushed Wang Jiu from behind. He succeeded. Already under the effects of the potion, Wang Jiu couldn't dodge and was immediately put into a critically injured state, her HP slashed by more than half.
Lin Yong couldn't continue his attack to empty her HP. For one, Cai Wujun and Song Yin had made their move. For another, killing Wang Jiu was never their true objective.
Yes, their objective.
After Cai Wujun and Song Yin acted, Lin Yong retreated, showing no signs of his previous fatal injuries. On the contrary, he was in excellent condition.
On the other side, the four Demon Kings didn't attack. They simply surrounded them again—or rather, surrounded Wang Jiu again.
This included Yan Hui, the very Demon King who had just claimed to be Wang Jiu's household traitor.
An disobedient dog, or a dog pretending to be obedient?
Cai Wujun and Song Yin exchanged a look.
One scheme interlocking with another. This Black Witch Organization wasn't the cicada, but the oriole waiting behind.
"This potion… you switched it." Wang Jiu pressed a hand to her heart. As her body suffered grievous harm and her witch power surged in reverse, her eyes were cold and sharp, having found the root of the problem.
The root was Lin Yong.
A hint of helplessness appeared on Lin Yong's honest, simple face. "Why not suspect that those old geezers up top want you dead? The truth is, you're not very likable, Wang Jiu."
"After all, not everyone can be as virtuous and dignified as my aunt. People… are always despicable."
He spoke slowly and methodically, but not without reason.
Wang Jiu took a shallow breath, suppressing a pained sound. Her voice was like a thin blade. "Because it isn't fatal. It's just… catalyzing my witch power."
If those old geezers had made a move, they would have undoubtedly eradicated the problem root and stem, leaving no loose ends. That was the government's way—either don't act at all, or strike with shocking force.
But the Black Witch Organization was determined to keep her alive, because a living Wang Jiu held immense value, even tying into the core beliefs of their organization.
Lin Yong didn't deny it, just smiled. "Then you can call on the Demon King you raised to protect you—if he still listens to you, that is."
Yan Hui didn't move. Guang Jing's voice was hoarse yet inexplicably sinister. "Humans are despicable, but as believers of the Witch, we will be forever loyal. Wang Jiu, you overestimated your hypnotic abilities."
Kulou chuckled lowly. "She probably never asked if Lin Yong was jealous of the husband of that healer in her team. Being so high and mighty isn't always a good thing. Sometimes, even a demon has to pay attention to the suffering of the common folk."
He equated Wang Jiu with his own kind, because it was the truth.
As a great Demon King, Kulou was a pervert who loved to wear human skin, mingle in crowds, and then select happy people to torture and kill.
Back then, the Old Lady had also been one of his targets.
Hearing this, Lin Yong smiled without a word, as if tacitly admitting that the death of Lin Guiwan's husband years ago was related to him.
Wang Jiu looked at Yan Hui. He touched the human-skin prop on his face and gave her a slight, mocking smirk.
Oh, it seemed she had been utterly defeated.
Wang Jiu retracted her gaze, showing no sorrow, despair, or anger. If she had, the four Demon Kings would have become suspicious.
She was, after all, not a person swayed by emotion.
"No wonder you didn't give me all the spirit veins right away. I'm afraid you divided them among yourselves from the start."
Guang Jing laughed, wasting no time. The four Demon Kings' positioning wasn't for striking a pose, but for devouring the spirit veins, and then…
The four Demon Kings held the powerful spirit veins, absorbing their energy. This energy entered their bodies, spread to the human-skin masks on their faces, and formed a kind of ritual.
That's right, they were performing a sacrifice.
Dark clouds roiled in the sky, as if thunder would strike again. Under the influence of the spirit veins, the ground cracked, forming a network of fissures. If these fissures were brushstrokes, a form of construction, then all of Phoenix Mountain was becoming an altar.
The four Demon Kings were the altar's emissaries, and Wang Jiu was the offering about to be forcibly sacrificed.
From the very beginning, every single part of the scheme was designed to make her fall back into the fate she was supposed to obey—that of a sacrificial offering.
Lin Yong's existence, his feigned death, it was all to trick the suspicious Wang Jiu into drinking the potion, causing her body, which she kept in balance, to become uncontrollably immersed in its witch nature.
Demon King Yan Hui's feigned submission was also to lure her willingly into the trap.
The occupied spirit veins, and finally Phoenix Mountain, were all part of the designed altar.
Everything was for the purpose of offering her, the sacrifice, and then… welcoming whose return?
Guang Jing was the leader of the four Demon Kings. He crossed his hands, his tall, burly body like that of the most devout believer, praying to the heavens. Cai Wujun and the others couldn't understand the language; they could only sense the four Demon Kings' near-frenzied piety and perversion.
It was like a fated summons.
If they could have understood, they would have known the meaning of the first few sentences: O Witch, my Lord, the offering has arrived. We beseech you to return from the fracture of spacetime and reign over the mortal world.
The mountain howled, and the wind swirled the boundless dark clouds.
One could see lightning flash across thousands of miles of rivers and mountains, but one could also see that the treacherous hearts of men made every step a struggle.
Because sacrifice was, in essence, the most tragic atrocity in the mortal world.
Cai Wujun and Song Yin wanted to stop it, but their attacks were completely blocked by that boundless power.
"Wang Jiu! Wang Jiu, wake up!"
"Wang Ah Jiu!!"
"Fatty Wang!! Tell your big butterfly to spread its powder more accurately! What the hell is this, pollination? The more the merrier?!"
As Chi Mantou and his subordinates fought on the battlefield, a dark shadow flew across the sky, followed by a shower of poisonous powder. Although it wouldn't poison or affect those on the same side, such a large, dense cloud drifting down was enough to trigger trypophobia.
The bald man, already tormented by the dense hordes of the Undead Race, found it unbearable.
Wang Shu used to be no match for these elites, but now he could thrash them. People like him, you can't let them make a comeback. The moment they do, they become insufferably arrogant. He shouted from high in the air: "I was wondering where all my big butterfly's powder went! So it all landed on your bald head! No way, you better scrape it off for me. Can't let it go to waste!"
What the fuck!!
Chi Mantou was furious, but he couldn't fly up, so he could only vent his anger on the nearby undead.
Right now, the powerful ranged attackers stationed in the great Bashu Territory had all left its confines. There was no other choice. The top-tier barrier's HP bar had already dropped to a dangerous 30%. To stop it from losing more HP, they had to leave the territory.
It would be fine if they could stay put, fine if they could resurrect. What they feared was having their HP completely wiped out.
So they had to watch each other's backs. They let the top players fight the Purple Gold bosses whose incredible Bloodthirst skills could one-shot their HP, while the second and third-in-commands took on the Bloodthirsty Gold bosses. The remaining opponents were left for the core members with attributes below 3000 to fight in dense combat.
But the difference in numbers was still too great.
Over a million against just over a hundred thousand. Even with the help of the territory's ranged magic towers, they were steadily losing ground. People were constantly falling… and of course, there were those who were touched by a Bloodthirsty boss, fell, and never got up again.
This wasn't a game. This was life and death. This was survival!
"Brothers, fight for Sichuan!!"
"Fight for Gun Gun!!"
"To hell with Gun Gun! I came here half a month early and haven't even seen its butt!"
"Ah! Just let me see Gun Gun once, and I'll die happy! I've already secretly dug up several sacks of bamboo! My daughter and wife are waiting at home for me to send them a video. I promised them!"
"Big brother, you're that ugly and you still have a wife and daughter?"
"Fuck off!"
Amidst the immense pressure of the slaughter, many people laughed and joked as if they regarded life and death as nothing. But in their hearts, they all understood: if there was still anything left for them in the mortal world, who would willingly fall to the undead and to hell?
It was just war. There was no turning back. Once you were out, you couldn't go back.
"Kill!" A half-grown youth, wearing a helmet and holding a longsword and shield, followed the commanders' orders, repeatedly blocking outwards, trying to keep the endless, ferocious undead beyond the safety line.
But now… they still couldn't see a way forward.
There were too many. Truly, too many.
The Sichuan of today, the Sichuan of now, was the domain of the Undead Race.
The sky was occupied by dense flocks of bone-winged undead birds, as if they had devoured the very sunlight.
And in the midst of such despair, Wang Shu let out another howl.
"Master!!"
"Why aren't you back yet?! If I'd known, I would've had you knock out that Fat Gun Gun and drag it home! You can't die! We can't catch Gun Gun on our own! Aaaah!"
Wang Shu's voice sounded like he was mourning at a funeral. Qiao Xuejing and the others were speechless, but they all took a moment amidst the bloodbath to look toward Phoenix Mountain.
Over there, it didn't look like their side had the upper hand. It looked more like the villains were one step ahead.
However…
"It seems like the captain is the villain," Qiao Xuejing muttered to herself.
Lao Wang had never been a hero anyway.
So?
In Phoenix Mountain, Song Yin called out sharply. Imprisoned by whistling, black-and-red chains of witch power, Wang Jiu covered half her face. Her head was bowed, her hair falling to conceal her features. She seemed to be panting, struggling. Finally, the sacrifice was complete.
Boom!
Boundless energy, infinite dark light. The faint sound of wind, thunder, and drums could be heard. She could be seen lifting her head. Beneath her slightly disheveled black hair, her face was pale, her lips a vivid red. It was unclear who she was looking at with her upturned eyes as she gently raised an eyebrow.
It was like a smile, yet not a smile.
But her mouth moved slightly. No sound came out, but if one could read lips, the meaning was—Thank you.
In that instant, Guang Jing was struck by an extremely ominous premonition. Outside the ritual, Lin Yong's expression changed drastically. "Something's wrong! Be careful!"
He attacked abruptly. Cai Wujun and Song Yin sensed it and instinctively counterattacked. In that moment, sacrifice and slaughter proceeded side by side.
And then… Boom!!
The completed ritual trembled, twisted, and finally began to shatter.
Kulou, one of the four Demon Kings, stared in disbelief at Yan Hui and… Lin Yong, who had joined forces to critically wound him.
The traitor who had just shouted "be careful" had turned around and stabbed him.
Could betrayal become a habit?
Their attacks came from two fixed points, front and back, forming a straight line. Both were concentrated on the spot in his abdomen where his Witch Dao energy was stored.
"You…"
The supposedly dead Lin Yong glanced at him and said sullenly, "I really don't like you joking about me and my deskmate. What are you, to think you're worthy?"
Cai Wujun raised an eyebrow. Oh, the vegetable person pulled a double negative. Two betrayals, and he finally returned to the right path.
I'm afraid the potion was never switched at all. The one given to Wang Jiu was the correct gene evolution potion. The witch power catalyst that Guang Jing wanted Lin Yong to switch it with was never used—perhaps it was even given to the government for research.
This step had been part of Wang Jiu and Lin Yong's cooperation from early on. The only question was how much Liu Wuren knew about it.
Her acting had always been good. Faking the potion's effects and falling into a state of witch-power chaos wasn't difficult for her, and she had successfully deceived the three Demon Kings, Guang Jing included.
And them.
The moment Cai Wujun understood, he immediately joined forces with the equally quick-to-react Song Yin, swiftly engaging another Demon King, Qing Tong. As for the third Demon King, the leader Guang Jing, he was left to face Wang Jiu directly.
She didn't move, only raised her right hand.
"What I want, no one has ever been able to take away."
Her five fingers spread open. The spirit veins that the four Demon Kings had been enjoying were all extracted through the human-skin masks on their faces.
"No… this is impossible…" Guang Jing was furious, unwilling to accept it. He wanted to stop the power he had obtained from being taken away, but he was powerless to do so, because the mask on his face obeyed her unconditionally.
The mask… right, the mask!!
In agony, their bones creaking, all four Demon Kings knelt. Only Yan Hui did so willingly; the other three were forced.
Four thick, vast torrents of energy flowed into the palm of Wang Jiu's hand.
That scene looked more like a true sacrifice.
She bathed in the radiance, immersed in the wellspring of power, yet she was as ruthless and merciless as a true deity.
Gods are born merciless, high and above all.
As are demons.
In truth, gods and demons are two sides of the same coin.
So, who would dare say that at this moment, she was not a god?
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