Exorcism

When there is war, there is death, and when there is death, there is sadness. When sadness becomes normal, veterans will indulge in drinking and reveling, temporarily forgetting the passing of their comrades in the noise of competing for military honors. There are no veterans in the fantasy world of Zhibangda. This is On the first day when more than 3,000 humans and monsters became warriors, the sad atmosphere after the war lingered for a long time, as thick as a lump of ink that could not be dissolved.

Hundreds of flesh and blood bodies fell in the barren mountains, and there were countless injured people. However, the enemies they defeated were just piles of wood and stones. The residents piled the wood together and set it on fire, and knocked the stones into pieces, but this was still the case. I can't dispel the sadness in my heart.

Lei Chi stood on the side of the road, feeling not only sad but also a little anxious. It was he who first called on the residents of Zhibu State to fight, and it was he who led them to the mountains to the north. Even now, he still can't tell the origin of these enemies, let alone the origins of these enemies. Not knowing if the war would end there, he felt an inescapable responsibility for the casualties.

In particular, although he and his two sons were injured, they were not fatal. They charged forward, and their bravery was obvious to all, but they were just lucky.

A group of residents came down from the mountain, including many old, weak, women and children. They wanted to take the dead and injured home. When passing by Lei Chi, some nodded to him, while others were too sad and turned a blind eye to him.

The small group of humans in the procession stopped and stepped aside. Lei Chi walked over in a few steps. He recognized the family and the injured person on the stretcher. He was Lei Jing, one of the elders of the Lei tribe.

The life span of the demon slave is nearly two hundred years old. Lei Jing has just passed middle age. His face is covered with wrinkles, but his body is still strong. However, the injury was too serious. A stone ax was slashed diagonally from his left chest, leaving a slit. The wound was more than two feet long, and no amount of bandages could stop the blood from gushing out. It was a miracle that he could still stay awake at all.

The miracle would not last forever. Lei Jing asked his family to carry him to Lei Chi, looked at him, slowly raised a hand, groped under his body for a while, and took out half of the statue, which was originally hidden in his arms. , now only the upper body remains.

"Do you still remember the dream we had?" Lei asked nervously.

Lei Chi nodded. Of course he remembered that at that time they were still a group of passionate demon slaves who were tired of endless tree planting and hated the Fire Tree King and officials on the other side. They dreamed of becoming warriors, but the Fire Tree King fell so suddenly. , so that no fighting took place.

"It's come true." Lei Jing breathed out softly. Among the demon slaves who joined the Lei tribe, he was the oldest and the most passionate. Decades later, this has not changed. "Mr. Tie said, Stability is only temporary, we have to fight for survival eventually, look, he was right."

Lei Jing coughed and a little blood flowed from his mouth. All the family members around him stretched out their arms, but he shook his head and refused anyone's help. He just looked at Lei Chi, "Mr. Tie also said that war requires leaders. The leader is Those who were elected also stood up for themselves. Today, you have stood up. Please stick to it and don’t fall.”

Lei Jing handed over half of the statue, and Lei Chi took it in his hand, held it tightly, and nodded again, unable to say anything.

Lei Jing's family members bowed to Lei Chi and then left with a stretcher. When they reached the foot of the mountain, the crying suddenly started louder.

When Lei Chi returned to the roadside, the panic in his heart disappeared. He knew what he wanted to do and what he should do. Even if someone didn't understand or even misunderstood him, he had to persevere.

The last group of residents came down the mountain. They were all soldiers, and their bodies were covered in blood. A dozen people were carrying a particularly large stretcher, walking slowly to ensure that the stretcher was stable. More soldiers were guarding the front and rear, replacing the stretcher bearers at any time. people.

The big man of the Shen family was lying on it, holding a black wood spear in his hands. He spent the first half of his life in a daze, and in the second half of his life he could only plant trees. He never had a dream of becoming a warrior, but he rushed into the battlefield at the last moment, inspiring everyone's fighting spirit. .

No one knew what the big man was thinking. Was he moved by the battle scene, or was he angry when he saw the tree he had worked so hard to plant destroyed? No one knew, he couldn't tell, he was dead.

The soldiers stopped in front of Lei Chi. Like Lei Jing, they were willing to regard the man in front of them as their leader.

Lei Chi walked to the stretcher, looked down for a while, took a few steps back, pointed to the sky, and said to everyone: "Maybe there are gods out there, maybe in the eyes of the gods we are just a group of ants, but the ants themselves know how important they are. The life of an ant is not inferior to that of the gods. If I take up arms, I will fight to the end. Some will die and some will survive, but I will never accept the arrangements of the gods."

These humans and monsters became warriors for the first time. They didn't know what to say on this occasion, so they said nothing, closed their mouths tightly, and raised their weapons. If their hands were empty, they raised their fists.

Lei Chi replaced the next stretcher bearer and went down the mountain with everyone. They had to take the big man home.

The flames on the battlefield were still burning, and thick smoke covered half of the sky. Father Shen was sitting in his yard, holding a crutch in one hand and holding grains in the other. A few chickens came over to peck at him from time to time.

His dim eyes could no longer see anything, but his ears could hear the cries coming closer and farther away. Sometimes he could even tell who the cries came from, and guess whose husband or son it was. Died in battle.

He listened quietly, but his thoughts did not stop at the various sounds passing by the door. Yelin Town was like a hitching post. No matter how his thoughts ran and jumped, he would always return here in the end.

He missed his big house, the endless stream of guests and servants coming in and out, the neighbors who came up to say hello, the worn bluestone pavement under his feet, and the river outside the town. Even a rich man was just like a farmer. Drink the water here every day.

He still remembered that one year he went to Xiao'erbao Government Office, drank the well water there and then vomited and had diarrhea. It was not until he returned home and drank water from Yelin Town again that he regained his life.

A smile appeared on the old face, and then it froze. The grains in his hands were gone, the chickens were still pecking around, and Father Shen remained motionless.

The funerals of the Shen family and his son were held at the same time.

According to the tradition of the demon slaves, the corpses were burned in public. Most of the residents who were still able to move around came and temporarily left their wounded and dead behind to see off the first hero of Zhibu State. There were countless casualties in this battle, but Everyone recognized that Big Shen was the only hero - he did not join the battle when the odds were evenly matched, but rushed into the battlefield when morale collapsed, so he was braver than other soldiers.

Lei Chi also looked at the sky, and until the flames of the incinerated corpses gradually disappeared, he said loudly: "Pick up your weapons, the battle in Zhibu State is not over yet."

"It's useless." A desolate and disdainful voice sounded from the crowd. Lei Chi looked and recognized that it was one of the Fu Lu teachers.

There were originally four talisman teachers in Zhibu State, and they aged faster than ordinary humans and monsters. Three of them have passed away, leaving only one, who is also very old, but his voice is still loud.

"I know what's going on." Teacher Fu Lu raised his voice. He was disgusted with this old body, and even more disgusted with Zhibu State and its residents. "I have said long ago that the entire Zhibu State is an illusion, and now the illusion is about to be shattered. Everyone will die. So, go home, say goodbye to your family, kneel down and cry bitterly, waiting for death. If you want to blame, just blame you for being born weak and unable to protect yourself. If you want to blame, just blame someone named Mu Xingqiu. Taoist priest, he is the one who left you in the illusion, and the destruction of the illusion must be related to him."

Teacher Fu Lu's words had the desired effect. The residents fell into panic and cried to each other. He was satisfied and squeezed out of the crowd with a cane. He wanted to find a secluded place to wait for death, instead of staying with a group of ignorant people. Together.

Not all residents gave up hope. Some soldiers still held weapons in their hands, as well as their wives and children. At this time, they all looked at Lei Chi, hoping to hear a rebuttal from his mouth.

The name Mu Xingqiu made Lei Chi tremble in his heart. It happened every time. He couldn't remember that he had an older brother, but these three words always made him feel lost.

Teacher Fu Lu had already walked away, and more and more eyes came to look at her. Lei Chi spoke, without being impassioned or angry, "As long as I can still stand, I will not kneel down and cry bitterly. As long as I can still fight, I will I won’t blame anyone, Zhibu Bang may be just a fantasy, but it is all reality to me.”

Such words hardly boost morale, but they dispel the despair in residents' hearts.

The earth was shaking at this moment, harsh sounds came from the sky, huge cracks could be seen with the naked eye, the air became hotter and hotter, and from time to time, strange lights or smoke passed over the heads of the residents.

This is an incomparably powerful destructive force. The residents of Zhibo State cannot even see where the enemy is. Whether they are humans or monsters, whether they are demon slaves or ordinary people, they all feel a tremor from the deepest part of their hearts. Only when faced with the flood or the People's hearts will be so trembled only when they are extremely frightened by landslides and earthquakes.

Lei Chi was no exception. He even felt his legs were weak, but he kept his vows and did not kneel down or cry. He held the black wood spear tightly with both hands and bent his knees slightly, as if he was going to fight against God.

Countless black wooden weapons pointed to the sky, the old man raised his crutches, the women took off their hairpins, and the children grabbed stones... They were frightened but not panicked, they were scared but not cowardly, and they were looking forward to a battle with the "gods".

There was a loud bang, and a hole appeared in the sky. A large amount of lightning, flames, smoke, and bright light swarmed in. After a while, the hole closed. In the midst of a strange scene, two people were entangled and fighting each other, and their fists were like thunder. The feet were like an earthquake, and the blood splashed across the sky like a rainbow...

As a result, the residents of Zhibo State understood that they were not alone.