Chapter 522: Chapter 521: Sacrifice
Lu Zixun had said nothing, but from his reaction, He Tianming had confirmed some things.
At least, Lu Zixun knew about the High-level Farm.
“Previously, you fooled me with tales of knowing little.”
He Tianming teased as he lowered his sleeve.
For that comment from He Tianming, Lu Zixun truly had a grievance he couldn’t voice; he honestly knew very little!
Even regarding the Elder Council’s shady maneuvers, he had only learnt about them from Yang Yang’s diary.
He Tianming was only jesting, though. He continued, “If we go by the current situation in the High-level Farm, I’d be ‘shipped out’ before I could even think of escaping, but the High-level Farm wasn’t always what it is now—it used to be a prison.”
“People who disobeyed the arrangements of the Elder Council had their eyes covered and were taken to the prison, where they underwent endless studying and physical training every day, with only three hours of sleep. During that process, many couldn’t withstand it and died.”
His tone was light, but the content was utterly horrifying.
Lu Zixun shuddered uncontrollably as he imagined such a life.
If he were forced to learn that way, he would surely go mad.
“Yet, in the prison, those watching over us weren’t outsiders, but members of the Elder Council. We ‘criminals’…”
He Tianming emphasized the word “criminals” with disdain in his voice, “were all sacrifices.”
“Gomora, he isn’t human at all, but a being that has never appeared on our world before—an Ancient God.”
If the previous statement was something Lu Zixun could have expected,
the latter half had left him somewhat bewildered.
If Gomora was an Ancient God, then his purpose in requiring the Insect Clan to provide sacrifices…
Was it to sacrifice himself?
Only Gomora would stoop so low among Ancient Gods.
However, if Gomora was an Ancient God, then that clarified the origin of the Polluted Blood he traded with the Insect Clan.
Accepting the Insect Clan’s sacrifices and then offering them his Polluted Blood in return to spawn heretics who would worship him was a shrewd transaction indeed.
After a short silence, Lu Zixun asked, “Are all the members of the Elder Council Ancient Gods?”
“No.”
Shaking his head, He Tianming explained, “Aside from Gomora, the other six are his cultists. In the eyes of the heretics, whatever Gomora does is absolutely right…”
In He Tianming’s description, heretics were akin to brainwashed simpletons.
The method by which the Ancient God controlled the heretics was brutally straightforward.
It was precisely this simplicity and brutality that left no means to break the control.
Once, after Gomora had left, the people in the prison tried to communicate with the heretics.
They were all human; there was no need to slaughter each other for the sake of an Ancient God.
But the heretics, brainwashed by the Ancient God, wouldn’t listen to such words. The person who had tried to persuade them was sacrificed that same night.
“Who else within the Crimson Land knows that Gomora of the Elder Council is an Ancient God?”
Lingering on the subject of Gomora, Lu Zixun asked another critical question.
These people might not be entirely trustworthy, but at least they could pose a threat to Gomora.
“I’m not sure about that, as when I escaped, many people from the prison hadn’t been sacrificed yet.”
He Tianming shook his head and said calmly, “However, if the Elder Council plans to use Sha Fei to integrate the Human Gathering Places, those who haven’t received the order to commit their forces to integration might be the ones in the know.”
While He Tianming’s statement seemed to say nothing, it gave Lu Zixun a clear direction for investigation.
He just needed to get Ge Changming to look into it, and they could probably narrow down the candidates.
After leaving the He Family, Lu Zixun was weighed down by heavy thoughts.
He hadn’t expected that there would be an Ancient God in the Crimson Land. It seems he needed to find an opportunity to see just who this Gomora was.
Decades ago, he had been J-level in strength. Decades later, he must have surpassed that level, perhaps even reaching Yi Level by now.
With this thought, Lu Zixun silently sighed.
He had originally thought that his J-level strength would allow him to walk unhindered in the Crimson Land.
But now, it seemed he was still far from it.
When he returned to the apartment, Lin Siyin was practicing talismanic technique.
Lu Zixun didn’t want to interrupt her, so he quietly went to the balcony and lit a cigarette.
As he smoked, he thought of Xiong Kang; if it weren’t for him, he wouldn’t have started smoking.
Thinking of this, a gleam sparked in Lu Zixun’s eyes—he had forgotten about Xiong Kang.
After all, as the commanding officer of Zone 9, Xiong Kang should definitely be privy to some things and, if not Xiong Kang, then Long Jiuri would certainly know.
Looks like he had to make time to visit Zone 9 tomorrow. The existence of an Ancient God was far too dangerous.
That was just as well since Li Dazhu’s wedding was not until the day after tomorrow, so there was no scheduling conflict.
Having figured out these things, Lu Zixun extinguished his cigarette and was ready to head back to the living room when he turned and saw Lin Siyin leaning against the doorway with arms folded and a smile on her face. The sight nearly scared Lu Zixun out of his wits.
“Alright, tell me, just what was that thing you were holding in your hand earlier?”
…
A new day began, with a dispirited Lu Zixun following behind Lin Siyin without uttering a word.
Life had gotten too tough for him.
Upon entering the training ground, when Lin Siyin learned what Lu Zixun was planning to do today and was preparing to send him home as Lu Yanzu to rest, Chi Yuan, who had not come for training in a while, suddenly appeared at the training ground.
Seeing this, Lin Siyin slightly furrowed her brows. Chi Yuan had made an extremely poor impression in her mind.
Chi Yuan, who had sensed Lu Zixun’s arrival, turned to greet Lin Siyin before his eyes settled on Lu Zixun: “I want to challenge you to a Spiritual Duel.”
Lu Zixun: “???”
Though unsure where Chi Yuan’s audacity had come from, once Lu Zixun realized that Chi Yuan possessed J-level strength, he suddenly understood.
Strength brought more than just power; it might also bring a touch of arrogance.
Yet for Chi Yuan to have broken through from S-level to J-level in such a short period was rather interesting.
As Lu Zixun pondered this, Lin Siyin stated mercilessly, “Are you crazy? A J-level challenging an S-level?”
“Captain, I have considered this carefully,” Chi Yuan said, a shadow passing through his eyes as he took a deep breath, “and it’s just a Spiritual Duel. If Lu Yanzu is afraid, he can simply refuse, right, Captain?”
“You!”
Lin Siyin couldn’t think of what to say for a moment.
Chi Yuan’s actions that day showed he had come prepared.
As she was about to signal Lu Zixun to refuse, he stepped in front of Lin Siyin and grinned at Chi Yuan.
“That’s fine, but what will you give in return, Chi Yuan?”