Chapter 1003: Chapter 1003
Mu Chen knew he couldn't protect these two items, so he handed them over to Ye Qing, hoping he could take them back to Xihang Shen Family Manor and give them to Shen Tianjun for safekeeping. However, he didn't know what exactly was in the wooden box that Shen Tianjun entrusted to be kept in the Miao Borderlands. Could it be that the contents were extremely important?
When Ye Qing took the wooden box, he immediately felt a sudden weight, almost making him drop it. He quickly used all his strength to lift it, only to be astonished at discovering that the box weighed at least eighty or ninety jin, truly terrifying.
"What is this? Why is it so heavy?" Ye Qing asked in surprise.
Mu Chen replied, "A spear!"
"A spear? A machine gun or a heavy machine gun?" Ye Qing was bewildered. Did Shen Tianjun keep a gun here? What was this nonsense?
Mu Chen said, "Overlord Spear!"
"Overlord Spear?" Ye Qing paused, finally realizing, "You mean a lance?"
"It's a spear!" Mu Chen said in a deep voice, "The Overlord Spear, the supreme divine weapon among Han people spears. It's thirteen feet long and weighs eighty-seven jin!"
Ye Qing's eyes widened. Such a huge thing, who could wield it? At eighty-seven jin, even Ye Qing would have difficulty swinging it.
Ye Qing strapped the wooden box tightly to his back and said, "I'll take this item. But as for this Mu Ling, I can't take it since it belongs to Zhenmu Dong!"
"You must take it!" Mu Chen said sternly, "If you don't, Ning Qianshu's people will, and there are no exceptions. If this item falls into Ning Qianshu's hands, it will only lead to more deaths!"
Ye Qing glanced at the Mu Ling in Huangfu Ziyu's hand, knowing well that Mu Chen's warning was true. So he said nothing further, and let Huangfu Ziyu put it away.
"Remember, if you're poisoned, just place the Mu Ling under your tongue, and it will detoxify instantly!" Mu Chen said, "After detoxifying, soak the Mu Ling in a jin of strong wine for two hours, and it can be used again!"
Ye Qing memorized Mu Chen's instructions, hugged the wooden box tightly, and looked at Mu Chen, "Wood Stretching Gu Master, why not come with us? The Gu Mother has now bewitched Ning Qianshu's disciple, and if you stay in the Miao Borderlands, it will be very dangerous!"
"No need!" Mu Chen shook his head decisively, looked outside, and said, "Even if I die in the Miao Borderlands, I will absolutely not leave. A Miao person's greatest wish is to die under the feet of the Gu Mother, I will not leave!"
The Miao People's respect for the Gu Mother is endless because they revere the Gu Mother as the mother of the entire Miao Borderlands. It can be said that just a word from the Gu Mother would have the Miao People willingly die for her, even if the Gu Mother was wrong or deliberately wanted them dead, they wouldn't harbor any resentment. This is the authority of the Miaojiang Witch, a power that even ancient Han Emperors did not possess!
Seeing Mu Chen's resolute demeanor, Ye Qing knew he couldn't persuade him otherwise. He only sighed and said in a low voice, "Since it's , then Senior Mu Chen, take care!"
Mu Chen nodded, leading Ye Qing and Huangfu Ziyu out the back door of the Zhenmu Palace, and said in a deep voice, "Go down this path, all the way west, without looking back. You'll exit the Miao Borderlands within a day. Today is the Ten Thousand Gu Festival in the Miao Borderlands; all Miao Gu Masters are in Zhenmu Dong, so you won't encounter any other Gu Masters along this way—it's absolutely safe. Remember, don't pause on the way, or once the Gu Mother orders the lockdown of the entire Miao Borderlands, you won't have any chance of survival!"
Ye Qing nodded heavily, looking at Mu Chen, feeling a pang of sadness in his heart. He understood that this might be the last time he'd ever see Mu Chen. Originally, he wanted Mu Chen's help to find the Fire Sang Girl, but now even Mu Chen couldn't protect himself, let alone go searching for the Fire Sang Girl. This Miao Borderlands will leave them with many regrets, yet they dare not reenter. With the Gu Mother here and a vendetta against Ye Qing, entering would surely be suicidal!
After bidding farewell to Mu Chen, Ye Qing and Huangfu Ziyu followed the path into the forest, moving quickly without stopping, heading in the direction Mu Chen had pointed.
Meanwhile, Mu Chen watched as they walked away, a trace of melancholy flashing in his eyes. After a long while, he slowly turned around, closed the back door, and walked out of the Zhenmu Palace.
Outside, the Miao people were still cheering, everyone in a state of extreme excitement. Huo Ying and Zhou Yuliang stood on that high platform, while beside the platform, Huo Lie and his family were also there, with Huo Lie's face particularly filled with excitement and thrill. After all, the Gu Mother was his daughter, and from then on, his status in the Miao Borderlands would greatly rise.
Looking at Huo Lie and his people's excitement, Mu Chen sighed again. If the Gu Mother had been someone else, he might have been happy, but since the Gu Mother was part of the Huo Family, and connected with Ning Qianshu's apprentice, he truly couldn't be happy. Nevertheless, despite his unhappiness, he still had to kneel and worship at the feet of the Gu Mother.
At the same time, in the deepest part of the Gu Storage Cave, in a cavern nearly a hundred meters from the surface, below was also a spacious cavern. Beside this cavern, there was a trickling stream flowing by, and the environment was quite decent.
Inside the cavern, there was a skeleton that no one knew how long it had been there, weathered for a long time. And lying before the skeleton was something enveloped in a bright yellow glow. Upon closer inspection, it wasn't a thing but a person. However, this person was covered all over with tiny golden insects, and the yellow glow was precisely emitted by these golden insects.
At the skeleton's feet, there were also many such golden insects. However, these insects were clearly much larger than the ones crawling on the person's body. However, these large insects seemed to have died long ago, their bodies slowly turning to ash. And these ashes were gradually sucked in by the living small insects, making those alive appear even more radiant. The carcasses of these large insects seemed to serve as nutrients for the small insects, helping them grow larger slowly.
No one knew how long this situation had persisted; in this cave, there was no distinction between day and night. Until the carcasses of those large insects were completely absorbed by the small insects, the small insects finally flew up from the person's body, hovering not far from this person, as if protecting their mother.
With the small insects gone, it was finally possible to see the state of the person below. It was a naked woman, her skin as white as cream, smooth as a baby, seemingly delicate enough to break with a touch. A head of jet-black hair, as if intentionally or unintentionally, covered the most crucial parts of her body. High breasts, a slender waist, long jade legs, each a pinnacle of earthly perfection.
The most astounding part was the woman's face. Seeing her face, one couldn't help but marvel at the creator's magic, how one could craft such an exquisite work of art. Her beauty was on par with that of Huangfu Ziyu and Shen Qingyi, lacking Huangfu Ziyu's charm and Shen Qingyi's ethereal untouchable quality, yet possessing a grandeur of having the world in her grasp. It seemed she was the Queen of the world, the one and only Queen. Even in slumber, she exuded an inviolable majesty!
After a long time, the woman slowly awoke. She opened her beautiful eyes, looked around, stood up, bowed three times to the skeleton, then walked to the cave entrance.
The entrance of this cave was over a hundred meters high from the ground, with no place to climb; going upwards seemed impossible. For what purpose the woman had come here was a mystery. After all, earlier Ye Qing and Huangfu Ziyu had found it difficult even to come down.
The woman stood at the cave entrance, glanced upwards, then gently waved at the golden insects beside her, seemingly calling her children. The insects immediately flew joyfully to her, fluttering around her gently.
The woman smiled slightly, and let out a soft call. The small insects seemed to understand her meaning, flying beside each other, weaving into a golden net with a meter-wide span, appearing incredibly beautiful.
The woman gracefully stepped onto this golden web, actually standing on it. If someone saw this, they'd be shocked beyond belief: these insects, no bigger than a pinky finger, had such strength to support a person's weight!?
As the woman stepped on it, the insects immediately flapped their wings and flew, carrying the woman over a hundred meters up, directly out of the cave. If someone saw this, they'd be shocked again; it was beyond the limits of human imagination. The Miaojiang Gu Insects were indeed bewilderingly strange!
At the cave entrance, the woman stepped off the golden net, and the small insects immediately dispersed, playfully surrounding the woman like children cuddling up to their mother.
The woman chuckled, reaching out to dance lightly with the insects, slowly walking towards the exit. Nearing the opening, she suddenly bent down to pick up a cloak with a veil from the ground.
Gazing at the cloak, the woman seemed to remember something, smiling gently, and placing the cloak over her head.
The woman, with the cloak on, covered her face, then looked at the small golden insects beside her and softly said, "From today onwards, only one man can see my face. Do you agree?"
The small insects fluttered randomly, their meaning unclear. The woman only smiled softly, walked to the entrance, stripped the Gu God's clothing, and wore it, then took the small insects out of the Gu Storage Cave.
Meanwhile, in the Gu Mother's Walk Palace behind the Zhenmu Palace, Huo Ying was sitting in the highest position, Zhou Yuliang sitting beside her. Huo Ying was now recognized as the Miaojiang Gu Mother, and Zhou Yuliang as the Sacred King of Miaojiang, making their statuses the highest.
Huo Lie sat in the third position, extremely thrilled, having reached a height he had never before attained.