txolops Chapter 94 The Wilderness Swamp, the Human Emperor Spreads His Flames
Chapter 94 The Wilderness Swamp, the Human Emperor Spreads His Flames
The third cup of tea was crystal clear, without a trace of heat, and exuded a chill that seeped into one's bones.
The red-eyed old man pushed the teacup in front of the two of them. His smile faded from his bark-like face, leaving only a solemnity that resembled that of a pilgrim.
"please."
It was just a single word, yet it carried immense weight, exuding a powerful pressure that surpassed Gu Yan's known realm.
Gu Yan and Xiao Chen exchanged a glance.
At this moment, the confusion in their eyes had vanished.
Both Gu Yan, who is a being of both god and demon, and Xiao Chen, whose sword heart is clear, are prepared to face the greatest suffering in the world.
The two raised their glasses and drank them down in one gulp.
The tea soup had no taste upon tasting.
That's not a taste, it's an emotion.
It is the thread in a loving mother's hand that binds the worries of her wandering son as he wears his clothes.
It is a desolate time, ten years of separation by life and death, a time I cannot forget even if I try not to think about it.
It is the resolute determination of a hero who goes forth never to return.
The pain of separation from loved ones is more unbearable than the pain of unrequited love, and more painful than the pain of being with those one hates, because it is often accompanied by the shattering of beautiful memories.
Gu Yan intuitively felt his body melting, turning into a drop of water that fell onto the parched and cracked earth.
……
When Gu Yan opened his eyes, he found that he was neither lying on a comfortable bed nor in a gloomy underground palace.
As far as the eye could see, there was a crimson sky.
There were no clouds in the sky, only a blood-red, viscous glow that set the entire firmament ablaze.
The sun appeared enormous and menacing, relentlessly scorching the barren land.
Gu Yan tried to circulate his spiritual power to resist the intense heat. Upon introspection, he found that his cultivation as a being of both god and demon, and his crystal-clear Dao foundation, had all vanished.
He raised his arm and saw a pair of rough, cracked hands covered in scars.
He wore a fur skirt that reeked of fishy stench, and a sharpened stone knife was tucked into his waistband.
who am I?
A strange memory flooded my mind like a tide.
I am the wind.
He was a historian of the Youxiong clan, responsible for inscribing the rise and fall of the clan on tortoise shells and animal bones.
Gu Yan, or rather the wind, slowly rose from the ground.
This is a towering altar, not made of jade, but constructed from countless enormous logs and the skulls of unknown behemoths.
Beneath the altar, a dense crowd of people knelt.
They were ragged, emaciated, their skin sunburnt and peeling, their lips cracked like withered tree bark.
Tens of thousands of people knelt on the ground, silent.
Only those murky eyes, filled with the despair of impending death and the last glimmer of hope, stared intently at the figure at the very front of the altar.
That was a man.
He stood with his back to the crowd, shirtless, his bronze muscles as hard as granite, covered with crisscrossing scars.
Some of the scars looked like they were torn apart by a wild beast, while others looked like they were burned by a raging fire.
He stood there like a majestic mountain, shielding his people from the scorching sun.
The Human Emperor, a prairie fire.
The moment the name appeared in Gu Yan's mind, his heart trembled, and an overwhelming sense of awe and sorrow welled up inside him.
In this barbaric era where people ate raw meat and drank blood, and where gods and demons roamed freely, humans were not the masters of heaven and earth, but rather the lowest level of ants.
In the sky dwell divine birds that control thunder, and on the ground dwell ferocious beasts that devour all things.
Humans, lacking sharp teeth and claws, and without extraordinary magical powers, can only survive in the cracks.
Until the wildfire broke out.
He drilled wood to make fire, dispelling the fear of the night; he tasted all kinds of herbs, curing the plague among his people; he polished stone tools, giving humankind the means to fight wild beasts.
He was the Human Emperor, and the backbone of the human race.
"Chieftain."
Gu Yan heard his own hoarse voice ring out.
The imposing figure slowly turned around.
That face wasn't handsome; it was even somewhat rugged.
Beneath his thick eyebrows were a pair of eyes as clear as the night sky. In those pupils, there was no arrogance of a king, only a compassion that had seen through life and death yet still loved this land.
"Wind, you're awake."
The sound of the wildfire was like two pieces of sand rubbing together.
He walked up to Gu Yan and patted Gu Yan's shoulder with his calloused hands, the force was heavy, as if he wanted to convey some kind of belief to him.
"Has today's ritual been recorded?"
Gu Yan paused for a moment, then subconsciously reached for his waist, where several pieces of polished tortoise shell and a carving knife were hanging.
"not yet."
"Then carve it."
Liaoyuan raised his head and looked up at the crimson sky, his eyes burning with two golden flames.
"Write this down: today is the last day for humanity to bow to the heavens."
"It is also the day that I, Liaoyuan, bid farewell to this land and my people."
Gu Yan was startled.
He followed Liaoyuan's gaze.
Deep within those crimson clouds, a massive, suffocating shadow was slowly moving.
The shadow covered half the sky, and even the occasional glimpse of it was larger than the altar itself.
That was a dragon.
An ancient dragon, entirely crimson, with two wings, radiating boundless divine power.
Zhulong.
Legend has it that when it opens its eyes it is daytime, when it closes its eyes it is nighttime, when it exhales it is summer, and when it inhales it is winter.
It is the ruler of this vast wilderness, a god high above.
He was also the mastermind behind plunging humanity into dire straits.
Three years ago, the Candle Dragon dwelled here, and its breath turned into a continuous drought.
Rivers dried up, vegetation withered, and wild animals fled.
Humanity has reached the point where people are resorting to cannibalism.
"It demands that we sacrifice three thousand boys and girls before it will send down its rain."
Liaoyuan said calmly, his tone revealing neither joy nor anger.
But Gu Yan could see his clenched fists, his nails digging deep into his palms, and blood dripping from between his fingers.
"Three thousand children... that would sever the very foundation of our human race."
Below the altar, a tall warrior walked up.
He carried a huge bronze sword on his back, its blade rough, clearly a newly forged prototype.
That's Xiao Chen.
In this world, he is the tribe's first warrior, named "Rui".
"Chief, the chains are ready."
Xiao Chen, or rather Rui, knelt on one knee, his voice like the clash of iron and stone.
"We dismantled all the bronze vessels, melted down the last bit of iron ore from the entire tribe, and added the runes that the great shaman had forged with his life, to create a total of eighty-one God-Locking Chains."
"They were buried around the altar."
Rui raised his head, his eyes no longer cold and indifferent, but filled with a fanatical fervor as if he were facing death.
"If it dares to come down, we'll lock it here, drain its blood, use its flesh to feed our people, and use its blood to nourish the earth!"
Kill gods.
These two words exploded in Gu Yan's mind.
He finally understood the meaning of the third mural.
That was not the fall of a god, but a rebellion of mankind.
In order to survive, these tiny ants will drag the dragon down from the sky, chop it up, and eat it!
but……
Looking at Liaoyuan's calm face, Gu Yan felt a surge of unease.
The Candle Dragon is a divine creature born of heaven and earth, possessing boundless power. Not to mention Gu Yan at his peak, who possessed the Foundation Establishment cultivation, even Gu Yan in the second mural, as a divine weapon, would find it difficult to withstand.
Could these simple bronze chains really hold it in place?
Unless... someone is acting as bait.
A lure powerful and delicious enough to make the mighty dragon lower its guard and descend in its true form.
"Wind, sharp."
Liaoyuan suddenly spoke, his gaze sweeping over the clansmen below the altar, a deep longing appearing in his eyes.
"If I die, burn my bones to ashes and scatter them in the fields. I want to see next year's crops grow."
"If I die, do not erect a monument, do not build a temple. Humanity does not need gods, it only needs fire."
"Chieftain!"
He suddenly raised his head, his tiger-like eyes filled with tears.
"No need for further explanation."
Liaoyuan waved his hand, interrupting him.
He straightened the tattered animal skin he was wearing, which his wife had sewn by hand before she died.
Then, he strode toward the center of the altar.
There, a huge stone cauldron was placed.
There were no cattle or sheep, no grains, in the cauldron, only a small flame burning weakly.
That is the torch of humanity.
Liaoyuan reached out and dipped his hand into the fire.
There was no smell of burning. The flames seemed to have come to life, spreading along his arm and instantly enveloping his entire body.
He turned into a fire person.
But instead of screaming, he let out a long, earth-shaking roar.
"Candle Dragon!!!"
This long howl was no longer the cry of an ordinary person, but a roar that embodied the destiny of the entire human race.
"I, the Human Emperor Liaoyuan, offer myself as a sacrifice to the heavens!"
"Didn't you want to eat?"
"My flesh and blood embody the accumulated fortune of humanity over ten thousand years, making me far more nourishing than those three thousand boys and girls!"
"Do you dare come and get it?!"
"Boom!!!"
A thunderous roar echoed through the sky.
The clouds churned, and the enormous shadow finally stopped moving.
Two enormous eyes, as red as the sun, pierced through the clouds and locked onto the burning figure on the altar.
Greed, contempt, and a hint of resentment at being provoked by ants.
For the high and mighty gods, the flesh and blood of the human emperor was indeed an irresistible delicacy.
"call!"
A sudden gust of wind arose, sending sand and stones flying.
The clouds parted, and a dragon's head, as huge as a mountain, emerged.
It's so big, just one of its scales is the size of a house.
The long dragon whiskers fluttered in the air, each movement bringing with it a gust of foul wind.
It opened its mouth and let out a deafening dragon roar, swooping down towards the altar with boundless pressure.
"They're here!"
Rui drew his bronze sword from his back and roared, "Everyone, prepare!"
Around the altar, hundreds of strong men who had been lying in ambush clung tightly to one end of the chains buried in the ground.
Their arms were bulging with veins, and their jaws were clenched, like a swarm of ants preparing to hunt an elephant.
And in the center of the altar.
Gu Yan looked at the figure bathed in flames.
He saw Liaoyuan turning back.
That was the last time I saw it.
It's not about watching the warriors who are about to kill the gods, nor is it about watching that terrifying dragon.
Instead, he looked towards the corner beneath the altar.
There was a gaunt woman holding a baby, staring at the sky in terror.
The baby was still suckling at its mother's shriveled breast, emitting weak cries.
Liaoyuan smiled.
That smile contained so much.
It was reluctance, guilt, and the final tenderness a father, husband, and leader showed to the world at the end of his life.
This is the pain of separation in love.
So that the baby could have a sip of milk, so that the woman could survive the winter.
He must die.
He had to leave the land he loved so dearly, and the people he had protected with his life.
They used the most horrific death to ensure the continuation of their people.
"Wind, remember this!"
The sound of the wildfire became grand and sacred amidst the raging flames.
"Humanity cannot be insulted!"
"If Heaven wants to destroy me, I'll tear a hole in it!"
Before the words were finished, Zhulong had already arrived.
The enormous dragon's mouth was like an abyss, with a terrifying suction force that devoured everything, as it bit down on Liaoyuan.
At this critical moment.
"rise!!!"
Instead of retreating, Liaoyuan advanced, transforming into a golden meteor as he charged into the dragon's mouth.
Immediately afterwards, the earth cracked open.
Eighty-one thick bronze chains, like eighty-one venomous snakes emerging from their holes, burst forth from the earth, carrying with them the anger and defiance that humanity had accumulated over countless years!
The top of each chain is forged with barbs.
"Pfft! Pfft! Pfft!"
That was the sound of a sharp blade piercing flesh.
The chains wove together in the air into a net that seemed to stretch to the heavens and earth, carrying the supreme fortune of humanity. They pierced the body of the Candle Dragon, gripping its scales, penetrating its flesh, and locking its bones.
"Aww!!!"
A heart-wrenching scream echoed through the sky.
The once high and mighty dragon was driven to thrash wildly by the sudden, intense pain.
Its massive body crashed into the ground, instantly destroying half of the altar.
"Grab them! Grab them all!"
Rui was covered in blood, clinging tightly to the thickest main chain. His hands were split open and his shoulder was dislocated, but he still refused to let go even a little.
"I'd rather die than let you go!"
Hundreds of warriors were thrown off balance by the dragon's tumbling power, their bodies shattered; others were drenched in the dragon's blood and instantly turned to ashes.
But as long as they had a breath left, they clung to the chains, using their teeth and the weight of their bodies to drag the dragon to the ground!
What a horrific scene this is.
A struggle between mortals and gods.
A battle between ants and elephants.
Gu Yan stood on the edge of the crumbling altar, his carving knife dancing rapidly across the tortoise shell, carving out bloody characters one by one.
His eyes were red-rimmed and his vision was blurred.
He saw it.
He saw it in the endless darkness and stench within the dragon's mouth.
A golden flame was still burning.
That was a wildfire.
Inside the dragon's belly, he frantically destroyed the dragon's internal organs with his fists, his teeth, and his bones.
He is keeping his promise.
They used their bodies as bait and their lives as swords.
"boom!"
The dragon finally gave way, its massive body crashing heavily to the ground, creating a huge crater.
Blood gushed out like lava, instantly staining the dried-up riverbed red.
The blood was scalding hot, but as it flowed across the cracked earth, a miraculous scene unfolded.
The withered grass and trees began to sprout, and the dried-up rivers began to flow again.
That is the blood of God, and also the nourishment that sustains all things.
Just then, a large bulge suddenly appeared on the dragon's belly.
Then, a golden light burst forth from its abdomen.
That is……
Gu Yan's pupils suddenly contracted.
That wasn't a wildfire.
It was a heart that was still beating.
A human heart burning with raging flames, radiating endless imperial power.
Behind that heart was a skeleton that had lost its human form, leaving only stark white bones.
He remained in a fist-pumping posture until his death.
"Chieftain..."
Rui knelt on the ground and let out a heart-wrenching wail.
People grieve together.
The cries shook the land that had just been nourished by blood.
Gu Yan put down the carving knife in his hand. The last stroke on the tortoise shell seemed to be made with extra force, as if it had severed time itself.
He looked at the skeleton, feeling no fear, only a profound peace after enlightenment.
Is this what it means to be separated from loved ones?
It is not about the separation of young lovers, nor the lamentations of scholars and poets.
It is the composure of leaving with a smile, even knowing that one will never return.
It was because of a deep love for this land that they were willing to sacrifice themselves as soil.
This kind of love transcends life and death, and transcends time.
Gu Yan slowly closed her eyes, a tear sliding down her cheek.
This tear is not shed to start a prairie fire, but to ignite the eternal flame of humanity.
Just as that tear fell.
The world around us began to freeze.
The rolling dragon, the weeping people, the burning heart—all were frozen in time.
Then, like a sand painting blown by the wind, it gradually dissipated.
Finally, the sand painting did not vanish into nothingness, but hovered in the air, rearranged, and flowed rapidly.
When the image freezes again, it's as if the scene before your eyes has been fast-forwarded, and time is flying by.
Spring goes and autumn comes, the world changes.
The tribe that survived by killing the gods gradually multiplied and grew stronger.
The tribe that survived by killing the gods gradually multiplied and grew stronger.
They left the mountains, built cities, learned etiquette, and eventually established a vast empire called: Da Yuan.
Gu Yan saw that on the site of the altar that was once stained with the blood of the gods, a magnificent temple had sprung up.
The incense is burning brightly, and auspicious omens abound.
That was the most magnificent temple he had ever seen, even more imposing than the council hall of the Liuyun Sect.
However, the being enshrined in that temple was not the Human Emperor Liaoyuan.
In the center of the main hall, a giant dragon statue, entirely gilded, sits majestically and sacredly, enjoying the worship and offerings of all people.
At the feet of that dragon, in the darkest corner of the temple, knelt a human statue cast in cast iron.
The figure had a hideous and grotesque face, with a broken bronze sword stuck in its back, and its hands were chained behind its back, in a posture of eternal atonement.
That was a wildfire.
A well-dressed mother and son entered the temple.
The mother placed her still-nursing child on a prayer mat, and devoutly kowtowed to the giant dragon statue, chanting prayers for the dragon god to bless the weather with good harvests and to bless her child with a long and healthy life.
After doing all this, she pulled the child up, pointed at the kneeling iron man in the corner, and showed disgust and fear on her face.
"Son, remember this, you must never imitate this person again."
The woman's sharp voice pierced the solemn chanting within the temple.
"Mother, who is he? Why is he kneeling here?"
The child asked innocently, still clutching a piece of pastry stolen from the offering table.
"Shh! Keep your voice down, don't offend the Dragon God!"
The woman nervously covered the child's mouth, lowering her voice as if uttering a terrifying taboo: "This man is called Liaoyuan, a rebellious madman, a sinner for all eternity!"
"Long, long ago, it was because he disrespected heaven and earth and attempted to kill the gods that he angered the Dragon God, who sent down a three-year drought and heavenly fire, almost wiping out our entire human race!"
"Fortunately, the Dragon God was merciful and only ate the culprit, thus calming his anger and sending rain down on us again."
"So, he's a jinx, a scourge. Our current good fortune is all bestowed by the Dragon God, and has absolutely nothing to do with this sinner, understand?"
"knew……"
The child nodded as if he understood, then spat hard at the iron man named Liaoyuan.
"Pah! You bad guy!"
The saliva clung to the rusty face of the Iron Man, flowing down his already blurred eyes like a line of murky tears.
Gu Yan stood aside, watching this scene. A chill ran from the soles of his feet to the top of his head, making him feel cold all over.
He wanted to shout, to tell the mother and son the truth, to tell them that the land they stood on was bought with the blood and flesh of that iron man.
But he couldn't make a sound.
He could only watch as the rising incense smoke obscured the truth and distorted history.
The hero's body is barely cold, yet he has already become a sinner for all time.
The evil dragon sits high on the altar, yet enjoys the incense offerings for eternity.
This is the true meaning of love and separation.
It's not the distance between life and death, but the fact that I gave you everything, yet you treat me like an enemy.
I deeply love all living beings, but they have long forgotten me in the dust of time, leaving me to be trampled and scorned by future generations.
Gu Yan's heart clenched violently, and an indescribable sense of sorrow and anger grew wildly in his heart like weeds.
"So, this is what humanity is all about..."
A faint sigh echoed through the empty hall.
In a corner of the temple, a pile of tortoise shells was thrown into a brazier as scrap.
That was the history book that Gu Yan carved himself back then.
Flames flickered and crackled as they burned the tortoise shell.
The truth recorded on it, "The Emperor sacrificed himself to Heaven for the sake of all living beings," gradually twisted and turned to ashes in the raging fire.
Only one civil official remained, burning tortoise shells. He picked up his brush and wrote a line of cold, ink-like characters on the new bamboo slips:
"Imperial power is divinely ordained, and divine authority is inviolable. Demons and monsters spread like wildfire, defying the will of Heaven, and will be infamous for eternity."
The truth was buried under the flames, while lies were enshrined in temples.
This separation is not only a separation of life and death, but also a separation of heroes and the truth.
For the sake of stable rule and the supremacy of divine authority, later rulers did not need a human emperor who dared to raise his fist against the gods.
All they need is a flock of docile lambs.
Therefore, heroes must die, and they must die in disgrace.
The image shattered, turning into endless darkness.