diskusbooks Chapter 88 The Lost City of Time 8
Chapter 88 The Lost City of Time 8
A light drizzle began to fall from the sky. Miyagi and Miyagi followed behind Nabu and Agana, the two of them holding a female corpse together, their faces wet with either tears or rain.
"How come..." Cheng Jiu was about to ask a question when Gong Cheng stopped him from behind.
He sighed, looking at the two sisters: "Junior Sister, don't ask anymore!"
The two stepped over the crowd on the ground and entered the ancestral hall. They swept away the ancestral tablets and carefully placed the female corpse on the altar.
The sound of two people crying bitterly came from inside the hall.
"What happened?" Yingyue asked her junior brother in a low voice. Because it was raining, the group moved to a side hall. As for the unconscious person, let him get soaked in the rain.
Miyagi's tone was somewhat complicated as he began to explain.
After Nabu and Gong Yu arrived, they extinguished the fire in the hall. Unexpectedly, Nabu's mother not only set herself on fire but also committed suicide. When the two arrived, she had already been stabbed in the abdomen with a sword, and there was nothing they could do.
In the fish tank nearby, they found Nabu's mother's last letter to Nabu.
I learned about those hidden secrets from the past.
Nabu's mother, Kana, and Agana's mother, Shaga, were actually close friends, and they even happened to marry into the same family, becoming sisters-in-law.
Although the clan chief and his brother were irreconcilable enemies, their wives had a very close relationship.
When the clan chief laid a hand on her brother, Kana learned of the news very late and had no time to inform her friend. She could only watch helplessly as her friend suffered a terrible loss.
The patriarch took Agana to see the god and successfully obtained the bride's place. He thought the position of city lord was a sure thing, but unexpectedly, the Berfari family shattered his plan for such a reason.
He had put in so much effort to become the city lord, even scheming to kill his younger brother. How could he be content with that? So he devised the scheme of replacing the prince with a cat.
He moved Agana to his house, making her Nabu, and then made Nabu Agana. In this way, the bride's identity remained the same, but he went from being the bride's uncle to her father.
To demonstrate his magnanimity, and because he considered Agana his daughter, he entrusted his brother's entire estate to her, thus projecting an image of a kind and benevolent uncle who treated his brother's orphan well.
A mother can tell the difference between her children. Although the chieftain did not tell Kana, she could tell on the very first day that this daughter was not her Nabu.
It was her friend's daughter, Agana, who made her realize her husband's scheme at that moment and plunged her into great pain. Agana was her friend's only daughter, and when her friend died, she was unable to save her. Could she not even protect her only daughter now?
So she secretly switched them back. The chieftain didn't only have Kana as his wife. Compared to his concubines, Kana was old and faded. Moreover, because of the cause of Shaga's death, Kana didn't treat him well at all, so he had no idea that his daughter had been switched back.
Although she protected her friend's only daughter, Kana was plunged into immense torment. Her daughter bore the brunt of the chieftain's malice towards Agana, and she watched helplessly as her lively and cheerful daughter grew increasingly silent.
He kept trying to escape, but was constantly caught and brought back. His initial resistance turned into resignation.
All of this felt like her heart was being torn apart, causing her unbearable pain. Her daughter didn't have to suffer like this! She asked herself, was what she did the right thing? Had she done right by her daughter?
But looking at Agana's face, she couldn't bring herself to tell her husband that Nabu was actually his daughter.
There is no answer; the only thing we know is that she did not regret her decision at the moment she made it.
She knew that her daughter Nabu was going to die in place of Agana to go to the gods, and she had long ago made up her mind that the day her daughter got married would be the day her life ended!
She felt guilty towards her daughter, but today she learned that Nabu had brought several people back, intending to destroy the Hattima family! She was truly happy, overjoyed that her daughter finally had the ability to fight back!
However, she was too ashamed to face her daughter. After more than a decade of guilt and torment, this poor mother chose to commit suicide after realizing that her daughter had someone to rely on in the future.
The group fell silent, their emotions a mix of feelings.
For Nabu, she was not a good mother; everything she experienced was due to her father, but she realized that she should have had a better life.
But this is merely the despicable person's relief, because compared to her, Agana should bear even less of this burden. The source of all the tragedy lies with her own father, that vile and shameless opportunist.
But no matter what, all she wants now is to be with her mother.
Nabu and Agana suffered this misfortune, and Cheng Jiu, being no devil, forcibly demanded that the two of them follow her into the city to settle scores.
He then sent Yingyue Wensi and the Gongcheng Gongyu brothers to Gu Insect Valley to deal with the Gu Lady.
Because the city lord's mansion had changed hands, the people who had expected to be plundered by the city lord's mansion spent a day in fear, only to find that no one had come. They all burst into tears, thinking that maybe they would come in the future.
Are they really going to live in constant fear like this? They all went out to inquire.
Upon learning that the city lord's mansion had been replaced by an outsider fairy and immortal lord, and that the new person in charge's attitude was still unclear, the previous looting was also stopped.
The women returned to their lodgings with a mixture of anticipation and trepidation.
They prayed that the newly appointed immortal ruler and fairy were kind-hearted.
Cheng Jiu stayed in the city lord's mansion looking at the account books. He was surprised to find that they were not account books at all, but a clear record of the blood and tears of the people in the city!
Gu Niangzi and the City Lord's Mansion were indeed in cooperation. Every year, the nobles in the city would carefully select two hundred households and hand them over to Gu Niangzi, who would then capture people to use as Gu beds. In return, they would use the regulations to plunder the property of these people and split it 20/80 with Gu Niangzi.
That means at least two hundred people die every year. In addition, there are the young and strong who die in the labor of nobles holding funerals and building houses, as well as in the live burials. Besides, there are also extremely harsh punishments.
For example, regarding the issue of women wearing veils, if the veil falls off and someone sees the woman's face, and she is caught, her family will have to pay a large fine.
Unmarried women would be married to any man who saw their face, if he was a nobleman.
This woman would become a concubine of a nobleman, or if not, she would be a shared wife, and if she resisted, she would be burned at the stake.
For example, if a man spoke ill of a nobleman in the street and was reported, he would become a slave.
All men were obligated to obey the orders of the nobles and to perform the duties assigned by them. If they refused, they had to pay a large guarantee fee, and if they did not, they would be forcibly taken away.
According to records, although nobles did not die every year, one died every few years or decades. Each time, many people were conscripted, and some of them who were responsible for building the interior of the mausoleum were buried alive.
Most of these regulations suppress women's dignity and status, while most of the regulations targeting men are aimed at taking lives.
Therefore, we can see that the male-to-female mortality ratio is as high as 50:1!
After reviewing all these regulations, Cheng Jiu discovered another bizarre and unreasonable thing besides cannibalism: none of them stipulated anything about taxation.
As expected of a small desert region, their methods are ruthless and brutal. Their oppression and exploitation of the people are simple and brutal – they kill people!
Besides these, there is also their city history, which shows that these nobles did not actually worship the so-called god that much, and they had investigated his origins. Unfortunately, after learning about it, they lost all desire to resist.
According to the city's history, this 'god' is actually a descendant of a family from the upper realm.
In other words, he was also a cultivator, only with greater strength. However, the city's history did not specify his exact strength, only stating that he could turn the world upside down with a single thought and wipe Kamule City from history with a casual strike.
Moreover, according to the city's historical records, this god appeared in Kamul City only a thousand years ago.
A thousand years ago, Kamul was not ruled by three major families, but rather by a matriarchal society. It was not a city, but a tribe, ruled by a mother who was jointly elected.
The founders of these three families were the three most favored sons of the last mother.
Later, a 'god' descended, killed the mother, supported the three sons, and provided them with abundant resources.
As for why the city is now unknown, it's because most of the people living in the city are ordinary people.
Over the course of a thousand years, even cultivators have changed several times. Although the 'gods' have provided abundant resources, the highest cultivation level in this city is only at the Golden Core stage.
The patriarch of the Hatima family, whom I defeated earlier, was only at the peak of the Golden Core stage, making him one of the strongest people in the city.
There were also descriptions of the Central Plains region, which turned out to be a vast and resource-rich area with numerous cultivation sects. However, Cheng Jiu did not see any of the five major sects mentioned in the descriptions.
The cultivation world is structured with sects and families standing side by side, or even families taking a dominant position. There are even four major families: He, Shang, Jian, and Yuan. These four families are one of the largest forces in the cultivation world, but they are not dominant and cannot be compared with the status of the five major sects.
However, the four major families combined constitute the most powerful force in the cultivation world, and there are other forces below them that are no weaker than the four major families.
Because the family was dominant, the way women were raised was to be knowledgeable, reasonable, quiet, and elegant, and to embody the family's so-called upbringing.
When the top echelons do this, those below follow suit, and then it spreads layer by layer to the common people, completely changing its nature. This led to the emergence of the so-called notion that women should never leave their homes.
Cheng Jiu found the person who wrote this city history to be very interesting, even though Camille City had many restrictions on women. However, the comments above were very sharp and scathing, calling the men who made these remarks incompetent and delusional good-for-nothings.
Cheng Jiu stroked his chin and carefully compared the two. Something didn't make sense. According to the city's history, when they first entered the city, they shouldn't have been subjected to such remarks and actions.
So, compared to reality, it's more like... a fragment created by the creator of this secret realm based on their own perspective.
Putting all that aside, the above record about 'God' was very advantageous to them.
Ultimately, regardless of the outcome, this 'god' must be killed before they can leave. From the moment they entered the secret realm, this big boss was blatantly right in front of them. The master of the secret realm certainly wouldn't let them go.
"Senior brother, what are your thoughts on the Upper Realm?" Cheng Jiu knew about the Upper Realm, which was the previous "Chosen One" incident and her other master, Cang Jiyue, but she only knew a little about it and had only a vague impression.
"Is the Upper Realm the place where people go after they ascend to heaven?" This was the first time Liu Shaoyuan had heard this term.
"I only know that people in the Upper Realm are born at the Nascent Soul stage." Nan Yanzhe knew a little, but very little.
"Anyway, we'll inevitably have to deal with this 'god' when we leave, so let's analyze what level of cultivation this 'god' possesses so we can prepare accordingly." Cheng Jiu pointed to the description of the god: "From the description above, this god seems to be quite young."
"From the descriptions above, the last 'mother' who came down from the upper realm must have been at the Golden Core stage, capable of killing with a single blow, and then a thousand years passed." Liu Shaoyuan tried to analyze, but gave up.
What's the point of describing someone as young? If you're strong enough, you can maintain a youthful appearance indefinitely. "You must be very strong."
"Nonsense!" Cheng Jiu thought for a moment, "We can't just sit here and wait to die. I remember Master said that in the Xuan Tian Continent, apart from the Ghost Emperor, no one's strength can exceed the Great Ascension stage. So I'll bet that his strength hasn't reached the Immortal level!"
"So?" Liu Shaoyuan nodded as he listened to her analysis.
"Of course, it's best to strike first. Set up an array and poison where he lands. After all, even if he's at the Great Ascension stage, it's not something we can defeat. Sometimes, necessary auxiliary measures are very important." Cheng Jiu nodded in agreement as he spoke.
“I still have quite a lot of medicinal powder made by my great-aunt. This powder can even poison someone at the Mahayana stage.” Liu Shaoyuan also thought this was a good method.
As for not being aboveboard? Come on, compared to a Mahayana cultivator, their schemes by a few noobs are aboveboard enough.
While the group was reviewing the documents, on the other side, Gong Yu returned with the rescued people.
The men who had been used as Gu beds lay on the ground, barely alive. Although the others arrived in time, the procedures for making Gu beds were extremely complicated, and the men were still beyond saving.
"Junior sister, what should we do with them?" Gongcheng pointed to the man who had been rescued and placed in the middle of the square.
"Send two people to go door-to-door to inform them that they can take the animals voluntarily." Cheng Jiu looked at the group and carefully examined them; Mary's uncle and cousin were not there.
Gong Yu noticed Cheng Jiu's gaze and pointed at the leading flower-picking girl: "When we got there, her uncle and cousin had already become poisonous creatures and couldn't be saved."
When Mary saw Gong Yu pointing at her, she knelt down. However, she did not beg for mercy, but waited for the new city lord to punish her. She knew in her heart that in some people's eyes, she was an unforgivable sinner.
Cheng Jiu said nonchalantly, "You and this Gu woman should have some skills, right?"
"?" Mary looked up and saw the little adult in front of her opening and closing her mouth. However, she was able to occupy a place next to Gu Niangzi, which meant she had her own abilities. Carefully discerning Cheng Jiu's lip movements, she knelt down respectfully: "I have learned some self-defense skills from my sisters."
Cheng Jiu looked at her with bright eyes. No wonder Gu Niangzi liked her; she liked her too. She was resourceful, ambitious, and considerate.
"It just so happens that my City Lord's Mansion has just been established, so you will all become my City Lord's Mansion guards! But don't bring the habits you had with Gu Niangzi here! I can forgive and forget what happened in the past, but if you ever abuse the power of my City Lord's Mansion to bully others, don't blame me for being impolite!"
"Yes, Lord City Lord!" Mary knelt down and kowtowed. "We will remember your orders and dare not overstep the bounds. If we do so, may we be struck by lightning and die a horrible death!"
The other maids had all served Gu Niangzi before. They must have some skills to survive under such a cunning person. Hearing Mary say this, they all kowtowed to express their loyalty.
These were all girls from the city, and with them around, there was no need to wait for Agana and Nabu to recover.
Upon hearing what Cheng Jiu said, Mary immediately knelt down: "Please, City Lord, allow me to go with you!"
His tone was extremely excited.
Cheng Jiu naturally agreed, after all, it was rare to find someone who could read lips and was also sensible.
Mary was even more excited than Cheng Jiu, and their first stop was the Burfary family.