Chapter 360: Chapter 360 - 359: Fate and Mission

After a while, the two River God Envoys placed a transparent shield over Su Muyao, and then dragged the boat downward, submerging it in the river water.

There seemed to be a force enveloping the entire boat.

They kept sinking further down.

At first, the river water was murky, making it impossible to see the surroundings, but gradually as they descended, the view below the water cleared, revealing a seemingly bottomless depth.

There were some algae, shrimp, fish, and other creatures.

They swam towards the boat to attack.

The River God Envoys used their superpower to cut through attacking algae and killed the river shrimp.

Su Muyao frowned at all this, communicating with the system, "System, have you noticed anything strange? The atmosphere under this river is cold and full of resentment. The river shrimps, river snails, and mussels are huge here, and the algae seem to attack the beastmen and boats with consciousness."

The system replied, "Host, the cold atmosphere here is likely resentment, and accumulated resentment can make them automatically attack beastmen without realizing it."

"Anyway, the things in the river can’t be eaten."

"Everything here is eerie, you must be careful, host."

Su Muyao also realized that things were getting stranger. Sitting on the boat, she remained fully alert, watching her surroundings.

No one knows how long it took, but Su Muyao saw the ruins at the river bottom.

It seemed as if fierce winds constantly blew through here.

Even the boat was wobbling slightly.

The River God Envoy said, "Here lies the altar, the final destination for a sacrifice."

"Only with a sacrifice here will the river be less likely to flood; this is your contribution too."

Su Muyao looked at the gigantic altar in the ruins deep below. Massive stone pillars surrounded it, though some were broken.

The harsh winds continued to blow.

Su Muyao asked, "Wait, have all previous sacrifices been here?"

"Of course."

"Are any of them still alive?"

The River God Envoy said, "Every hundred years, the sacrifices vanish and new sacrifices are needed."

"Over twenty years ago, when your mother left, the river flooded. Even when she returned as a sacrifice, it still couldn’t be contained. Once you go in, hopefully, you can keep it under control."

Saying that, the River God Envoy controlled the boat, guiding it into the altar.

Su Muyao said, "Wait, I want to ask, what is being suppressed here, and why must sacrifices be used?"

The River God Envoy said, "I don’t know, but it’s the words on the River God Pillar that we must follow."

"Miss Su, there’s no other way; please go inside."

Su Muyao asked, "Who made me a sacrifice?"

The River God Envoy looked at Su Muyao strangely, and said, "It was your cousin, of course."

Upon hearing this, Su Muyao showed a shocked expression, "Impossible."

She knew what her cousin was like and wouldn’t mistake it.

"Miss Su, at this point, you need to sacrifice yourself to save everyone. I have no reason to deceive you, right?"

The system said, "Host, there must be a problem here."

"Also, the river’s altar is supposedly for sacrifice, but the closer I get to it, the more intense the resentment feels."

Su Muyao also felt the chill growing stronger.

"Right, where is your River God?"

She thought sacrifices were meant for becoming the River God’s bride, but unexpectedly, they were to be sent to the altar here.

She also sensed strong restrictions around the altar, possibly preventing entry or exit.

Even so, she had to go in and investigate.

Generally, restrictions don’t stop her.

The River God Envoy shook his head, "Unclear, we haven’t seen our River God for a millennium. Even the River God Palace was destroyed a thousand years ago. We can only act based on the words on the River God Pillar."

Speaking of this, the River God Envoy couldn’t help but sigh.

The once glorious palace was reduced to ashes.

"The algae creatures in your river have grown huge and attack beastmen; what’s going on?"

The River God Envoy shook his head, "We don’t know either. Algae never attacked beastmen before. Now, riverbed algae are rampant, attacking both beastmen as well as us and the river beastmen."

"Miss Su, we’ve answered all your questions; please head inside."

Su Muyao saw the River God Envoy getting impatient, and said, "One more question, then I’ll go in."

"Go ahead, Miss Su."

"When my mother was a sacrifice here, what did she say, ask, and was anyone forcing her to sacrifice?"

The River God Envoy shook his head, "No, your mother was very calm."

"But an elder River God Envoy mentioned that each generation of sacrifices follows the arrangements."

"Otherwise, why did the river only flood in the past twenty years?"

Whatever Su Muyao asked thereafter, these River God Envoys didn’t know.

Having her thoughts sorted, Su Muyao entered the altar.

Once she entered, a force held her captive there.

The restriction powers around began to spin.

Then Su Muyao saw the statue at the altar’s center.

Su Muyao’s heart string quivered.

The statue looked exactly like the portrait her father drew of her mother in his study.

The system gasped, "Host, you bear a strong resemblance to this statue too."

"Mother, she really should be my mother."

The system gasped, "Could it be that sacrifices who enter here turn into statues?"

"Then host, is your mother dead?"

"I see cracks on the statue."

Su Muyao’s face turned pale, "No, she must not be dead."

Su Muyao reached out to touch the statue, her eyes welling up, "Mother, is it you?"

"It’s me, Muyao; can you sense me?"

"Mother, wake up; how can I save you?"

"Mother, father and I miss you so much..."

Su Muyao reached out and gently hugged the statue, saying many things, trying to awaken her mother’s consciousness.

Even knowing it might be futile, she felt she had to try.

As she was muttering many things, suddenly a force pulled her in.

Then Su Muyao found herself sitting in a room; her mother was there pouring her water.

Ji Shui looked lovingly and sympathetically at Su Muyao, saying, "Child, you’ve suffered over the years."

"Mother, it’s you; it really is you."

Ji Shui gently touched Su Muyao’s hair, her eyes full of affection, saying, "It’s me, child."

"In a blink, you’ve grown up."

Ji Shui felt both sentimental and regretful. She truly missed her daughter, but some things are destined and also a duty.

After chatting a while, Su Muyao asked the question in her heart, "Mother, what’s going on?"

"How did you become a statue?"

Ji Shui sighed, "I don’t have much time, let me speak briefly."

"A thousand years ago, the Water Suppressing Stone Tablet beside the Turquoise Pool shattered and disappeared. Beneath the Turquoise Pool and the altar at the riverbed lies the You River, which was originally suppressing resentment that had formed ten thousand years ago. But the stele shattered, divine power vanished, resentment emerged, causing floods."

"Only females with Bihua Beast lineage can utilize the altar’s power to suppress the resentment."

"Unfortunately, every century the sculpture cracks, necessitating new female sacrifices to continue the suppression."

"Actually, some resentment grows stronger with suppression. Female sacrifice power is no longer effective."

"Over twenty years ago, my brother couldn’t bear my sacrifice, so he sent me away early. However, the resentment in the You River is too intense. The previous sacrifice shattered prematurely, causing floods. Even though I returned on time for the centennial sacrifice, it still wasn’t enough to hold down the resentment below."