Chapter 170: Great Black Heavenly Mother, Fu Rang Sacred Cult
Thus, Chen Shun’an continued his movements without pause, and the Heart-Piercing Nail flew out once more.
It shuttled back and forth between Qu Jiu’s headless corpse and head on the ground, destroying the corpse completely, leaving only a pile of fine powder.
The Heart-Piercing Nail seemed drunk, swaying unsteadily, its tip emitting a creepy crimson glow.
Chen Shun’an waved his large hand and drew it back to him once more.
The method to repair the Heart-Piercing Nail that Owl Third Master had mentioned naturally made Chen Shun’an very envious.
But he was somewhat afraid.
Chen Shun’an had always been one to speculate on others with the worst possible malice.
What if this Owl Third Master still had some trump card hidden, or exploited Chen Shun’an’s greed to set a trap for him…
That would be far too dangerous.
Owl Third Master could only die.
“Th-thank you, Senior, for saving us!”
Seeing Chen Shun’an act with such decisive ruthlessness—chatting amiably with Owl Third Master one moment, then striking with a deadly hand the next.
Zhu the Butcher hurriedly sheathed his steel saber, bowed deeply, his voice laced with unconcealed shock.
He had wandered the Martial World for decades and now sold pork at Vegetable Market Intersection as a butcher, encountering all sorts of people.
But this was the first time he had truly, up close, encountered a master who could Slay Five Thieves.
The capable come first.
Looking at the figure before him, who was climbing toward the peak of the Martial Path, not far from Grandmaster Realm.
Amid the shock, Zhu the Butcher also felt boundless excitement.
It was the thrill of seeing the Martial Path he cultivated, the techniques he honed day and night, possess such power;
The admiration for the ancient sages who forged paths through thorns, seeking truth with unyielding fire.
Pure, Martial Path Heart!
“Why are you following Zhao Guanghui?”
Suddenly, a low, hoarse voice rang in Zhu the Butcher’s ear.
Sensing the hostility in Chen Shun’an’s words, Zhu the Butcher broke out in a cold sweat.
He vaguely felt that if he didn’t speak well, he would follow in Owl Third Master’s footsteps today.
“To forge this steel saber, I owed a lot of silver to Guanghui Money House… Helpless, I had no choice but to sell myself to repay the debt and serve under Zhao Guanghui for six years.”
Chen Shun’an nodded slightly, one hand forward and one behind his back, and said indifferently,
“Do you have any wishes?”
Wishes?
Zhu the Butcher looked suspicious, paused, and said,
“To reply to Senior, this junior is a Ti Shi of Fu Rang Sacred Cult. All wishes are dedicated to Great Black Heavenly Mother; I dare not seek personal desires.”
Hearing this, Chen Shun’an’s eyes flickered, and he said, “Great Black Heavenly Mother?”
He suddenly thought of the Black Boar that He Qiang had worshipped in his youth.
Were the two the same deity?
Zhu the Butcher slowly explained.
It turned out that this Great Black Heavenly Mother was actually the sole deity of a sect called Fu Rang Sacred Cult.
It was said that Great Black Heavenly Mother achieved Dao a thousand years ago, growing amid the black waters of Changbai Mountain.
There was no Changbai Sacred Dynasty back then.
The people were destitute, the land barren, countless countries fought endlessly.
Great Black Heavenly Mother felt the hunger and suffering of all beings, split open her body, her flesh and blood turning into fertile fields, her bristles into Five Grains, her spine rising into Changbai Mountain, and a spark of innate undying spiritual awareness transforming into a Profound Black Giant Pig that roamed the earth.
It used its snout to break open hardened soil, drawing underground spiritual springs; its hooves crushed stubborn rocks, clearing Earth Veins.
Wherever it passed, vegetation flourished, spiritual medicine grew naturally, so it was revered as the ancestor of agriculture and spirit of the earth.
Only then did the Bai Shan Ren seize the opportunity, enter the Central Plains, and claim the divine artifact.
Thus, the doctrine of Fu Rang Sacred Cult was to absorb the turbid qi of the world, swallow the suffering of humanity; all who curse me, slander me, insult me are part of cultivation.
And the followers of Fu Rang Sacred Cult called themselves Ti Shi, mostly cultivating various Hardening Techniques for the body.
And Chen Shun’an’s guess was not wrong: the Black Boar He Qiang worshipped was Fu Rang Sacred Cult’s “Black Venerable,” said to be the Profound Black Giant Pig formed from Great Black Heavenly Mother’s undying spiritual awareness, one of tens of thousands of incarnations.
Every Ti Shi, before joining the cult, would be guided by a similar Black Boar.
After hearing Zhu the Butcher’s description, Chen Shun’an’s expression turned somewhat strange.
This Great Black Heavenly Mother’s claims were truly grand, as if the entire Heaven and Earth were born from her.
Even the founding of Changbai Sacred Dynasty could not escape her aid.
So, without exception.
Fu Rang Sacred Cult became a heretical cult, harshly suppressed by Changbai Sacred Dynasty and regarded as rebel gangsters.
In the south, there was Guo Lu Society, disbelieving immortals and gods, believing only in themselves, developing Brothers to rebel.
In the north, Fu Rang Sacred Cult believed in Great Black Heavenly Mother, absorbing people from all walks of life and the lower classes, teaching Hardening Techniques, also seeking to shake the foundation of Changbai Sacred Dynasty.
And overseas countries, Qianning Country eyeing covetously, intent on destabilizing the Sacred Dynasty’s rule.
“What a lively scene…”
Chen Shun’an shook his head.
He felt it necessary to absorb and summarize the experience of a sect like Fu Rang Sacred Cult, which could survive and persist under Changbai Sacred Dynasty’s suppression and retaliation.
A stone from another mountain can polish jade.
He too needed to compile a doctrine so divine that others would revere it upon hearing.
“Fine, then clean up. Then leave Wuqing County for this half-month, do not show yourself or act, otherwise, Owl Third Master’s fate will be yours.”
Chen Shun’an was always broad-minded; even though Zhu the Butcher worked for Zhao Guanghui, he would not casually take his life.
Of course, Zhu the Butcher belonging to Fu Rang Sacred Cult and worshipping Great Black Heavenly Mother also played a negligible role.
In the next instant, Chen Shun’an’s figure vanished from the spot.
Moving like a Flying Immortal, he quickly appeared in many corners of Fish Manor.
Though Fish Manor was rife with vice, these Huo living for the moment, as their base, Chen Shun’an still found seven or eight hundred taels of silver and some valuables.
Besides that, there was a considerable amount, estimated at four or five loads, of Fragrant Heart Clearing Paste.
But Chen Shun’an hesitated, did not take the silver, only confirmed there were no other treasures, then took a few Precious Fish and slipped into the darkness.
Night fell, the fishy smell near the incense hall gradually spreading.
Vaguely sensing Chen Shun’an’s departure, Zhu the Butcher’s tense shoulders finally relaxed slightly, exhaling a long breath of turbid qi, as if relieved of a thousand-jin burden.
Without hesitation, he entered the incense hall, dragged over the still-shaken father and son, and asked,
“In Fish Manor, who were the abducted ones? Where are they hiding?”
Lu Shaozi snapped awake and hurriedly led the way ahead.
The young man silently followed behind them, but when passing Owl Third Master’s ashes, he suddenly stepped forward, knelt on the ground, grabbed handfuls of ashes and scattered them.
Truly crushing bones and scattering ashes.
They exited the courtyard.
Several Huo leaned or sat, smoking dry tobacco and inhaling Heart Clearing Paste; seeing the unfamiliar face of Zhu the Butcher, they all froze.
When did Third Master develop such heavy tastes?
This fellow looked like a wild boar spirit turned demon, with bristly ears, thick body and big belly—how could anyone go for that?
These few Huo couldn’t help laughing and cursing: “You dog, where did you come from…”
A flash of cold light.
The words cut off abruptly.
Several fine heads flew into the air.
Zhu the Butcher killed like slaughtering pigs and dogs, leaving corpses everywhere he passed.
His Saber Technique had no flourishes, only the purest power and speed, like splitting wood and chopping bones—precise and efficient.
Pleas for mercy, screams of agony, and sounds of weapons breaking rose one after another, then quickly fell silent.
In less than half a cup of tea’s time, not a single standing Huo remained in Fish Manor.
Even those trying to flee were caught up by his swift steps and finished with one saber!
Killing all these Huo might include the innocent, but taking them one by one would surely miss some.
Zhu the Butcher’s criterion was simple.
All taller than the cartwheel deserved death.
The cartwheel was still lying on the ground.
Crack!
In the dungeon, with a swing of the steel saber, cold light flashed, and the arm-thick iron chain snapped.
Dozens of abducted men and women huddled in the straw piles; seeing Zhu the Butcher’s face fiercer than any villain, they trembled in fear, whimpers rising one after another.
“Those who can move, walk on your own. Those with relatives, go to them; those without… fend for yourselves.”
Zhu the Butcher’s voice was hoarse, thick with accent.
The captives paused, then woke as from a dream, supporting each other, stumbling out of the dungeon.
Zhu the Butcher divided Fish Manor’s possessions, scattered the small valuables, and dismissed all the cooks, kitchen maids, and helpers.
As for the Fragrant Heart Clearing Paste, he and Lu Shaozi together sprinkled it all with quicklime and buried it underground.
Finally, Zhu the Butcher entered the kitchen and carried out a bucket of foul-smelling lard.
Zhu the Butcher poured the entire bucket of oil over the wooden structures, flagpoles, and corpses.
He then took out a fire starter, shook it in the wind, and an orange-red flame danced in his rough palm.
Without looking, he tossed it casually.
“Boom—”
The flame ignited the oil instantly, turning into soaring inferno, greedily devouring everything in the stronghold.
The blazing firelight illuminated half his face—stubbled beard, straight nose, wide mouth, fierce and ugly features.
But a beastly face with a human heart.
With a ‘thud’, the kiln boy behind him suddenly knelt, kowtowing like pounding garlic, pleading,
“Senior, I want to take you as my master. Please accept me as your disciple!”
Take a master?
Zhu the Butcher suddenly recalled that man from earlier.
He couldn’t help laughing and cursing: “Even I want to take a master!”
The kiln boy lowered his head, dejected.
Lu Shaozi sighed a few times but didn’t dare advise.
Zhu the Butcher suddenly noticed the kiln boy’s thick brows, big eyes, and handsome features, feeling a twinge of intimacy, finding him more pleasing.
“How about this: come kill pigs with me. I’ll teach you to kill pigs.”
Suddenly, Zhu the Butcher grinned.
The kiln boy froze, mouth agape, uncomprehending.
Then his father Lu Shaozi pressed his head down, banging it on the ground several times, then looked at Zhu the Butcher, fawningly saying,
“Master, this boy is foolish, but he definitely agrees… Kiln boy, speak up!”
“Hahaha!!!”
Zhu the Butcher laughed heartily, but seemed to think of something, touched the steel saber in his bosom, leaving only dry chuckles,
“But first, come with me to the countryside to collect pigs. Can’t stay in Wuqing County for now.”
Joking aside, that Slay Five Thieves senior seemed to despise Zhao Guanghui greatly, his words implying Zhao Guanghui wouldn’t last these few days.
Wind’s tight, pull out, cut ties, head to the countryside!
……
Dawn’s faint light broke, golden flecks danced on the river surface.
A fast boat cleaved through the misty water vapor, speeding toward Banye Ferry Crossing like an arrow from a bow.
Lu Jing stood at the bow, face somewhat pale, his body emanating a thick fishy smell.
