Chương 42: The Cry of the Forsaken Goddess
In an unknown region of the immortal realm, there was a small pocket of space carefully hidden among the ever-changing structure of the void. Within the pocket of space was a hill surrounded with endlessly stretching plains with a swift, gurgling river to the east, and a peaceful forest emitting a powerful vitality to the west.
On the top of the hill existed a small wooden cottage, no more than a hundred cubic meters in volume. The walls were made of reinforced agarwood, and the flooring was paneled sandalwood. The ceiling composed of freshly cut bamboo, effusing the entire cottage with a light scent of spring.
The aura of divine essence was nonexistent in this region, making the comfortable abode appear to be no more than a peace-loving mortal. The door opened silently, and a young man stepped out, stretching his arms and waist before giving a satisfied sigh. Surveying the hilltop and the plains, the young man's eyes lit up as he swiftly walked towards the river.
Resting by the river was a celestial young woman, her appearance beyond description in beauty. A withdrawn personality evident from her facial expressions and body language, the girl refused to look at the approaching young man, dipping her feet into the cool river.
Focusing her gaze onto the river current gently washing her feet and watching the fish swim around and bump into her toes, the girl stiffened as a powerful pair of arms wrapped around her body, pulling her into a powerful embrace.
Being forced to peer at that handsome appearance of charming eyes, sword-like eyebrows, and jade skin, the girl huffed before slanting her eyes to the side. The male chuckled lightly before gently fondling her soft and fair cheeks, his voice indulgent and affectionate.
"Alright, don't be so angry. Husband was in the wrong this time."
He apologized, his voice causing the girl to raise her head and stare at his eyes seeking for sincerity. The young man's eyes slightly narrowed, a hint of evil subdued within, as he leaned forward to whisper into her ear.
"Husband will be more careful next time. To be honest, I didn't think that the Nine Current Lightning was that effective."
The girl fiercely struggled upon hearing her whisper, but the warm embrace tightened within an instant, confining her to the man with ease. Lightly pounding on his powerful arms, the girl revealed an expression of being sorely wronged, causing the youth to chuckle and release her.
Petting her long and soft hair, it took copious amounts of gently coaxing to get the girl to face him once more. About to complain about his roguish behavior, the girl parted her delicate lips before her expression changed to that of surprise.
The youth raised an eyebrow, before both turned to face the river. The usually placid river was now frothing with an intense ferocity, water splashing onto the banks. All living organisms within the river had fled, with the unlucky ones perishing under the powerful and crushing water current.
"Someone's calling for my spear."
The girl finally spoke, her soft voice itching at the youth's heartstrings. Wrapping her into another embrace, he rested his chin on her head before lazily speaking.
"Well? It's been quite a while for someone to call for it. Are you going to lend it to them?"
Holding her dainty and slender hand, he toyed with her thin and fragile fingers while waiting for her response. Gently kneading and pinching her skin, his massage caused the girl to tremble before falling limp into his arms.
"Not giving."
She perfunctorily spoke, allowing herself to be carried by the handsome youth. Before they could depart for the cottage, the water within the river suddenly burst towards the air, swirling to form an indistinct figure.
Containing the rough outline of a human slumped with an outstretched hand, the figure of river water directed its hand towards the celestial girl, broken words softly whispering in the previously peaceful hills.
"…Devouring requests…connection…functional-"
the figure of water spoke before slipping back into the river, restoring the frenzied water current to a tranquil akin to its usual state. The girl lightly frowned, before tapping the youth's arm to release her. The moment her toes touched the ground, she dashed forwards to kneel at the riverbank, gently stroking the water's surface with her fingertips.
Staring at her reflection in the water for a while, she finally sighed before touching the corner of her eye, allowing a tear to drop into the river.
"Don't feel so bad. The fluctuations resembled your faithful servant, she hasn't died yet, it seems."
Gently grasping her hand, the young man carefully lifted her into a comfortable carrying position, before heading towards the cottage. The river quietly gurgled, the trees lightly rustling their leaves as a gentle breeze passed through the forest, the airs of spring present in both inside the cottage and the secluded pocket of space.
-
Back in the Immortal's Ghost Feast, all was silent. The blood-colored lizard could not help but freeze, the invisible spectator hesitant on the actions to partake. Everyone stared at Li Xiang's outstretched hand, hoping that there would be no reaction. Unbeknownst to Li Xiang, the name of the Forsaken Goddess was a taboo in the immortal realm.
The Forsaken Goddess was known to be an immortal being with the strongest destructive potential within the immortal realm. With a single wave of her hand, even Pavilions of the Divine Palace would be obliterated, their souls forced into a recuperative slumber stretching across eons.
Over time, she was rumored to be carefree in selecting her targets, engaging in periodic acts of wanton destruction. Countless immortals both strong and weak suffered from the hands of the Forsaken Goddess, causing them to hate the name with a burning passion.
Even the Divine Palace was unable to counteract against the Forsaken Goddess and could only take loss after loss. However, she mysteriously disappeared after a major war among the Pavilion of Swords and the Pavilion of Life, being silent for thousands of eons. Anyone who had obtained some sort of the Forsaken Goddess' legacy was to reported or escorted to the Divine Palace immediately, making them prime targets for hunting.
The invisible spectator could only palpitate fiercely as it stared directly at the center of Li Xiang's palm, burning every movement into his eyes. Discovering a fragment of the Forsaken Goddess' legacy was a fate nobody within the Divine Realm wished to uphold, for they would also be subject to the Imperial Court's punishment regardless of their actions. Only if Li Xiang didn't manifest anything could the Ghost Feast survive!
Unfortunately, Li Xiang could only disappoint as the violet-gold irises narrowed, an imperceptible light flashing within. Immediately afterwards, her outstretched hand curled its fingers into a loose fist, a dark light seeping through.
Above her head formed a massive inscription of the Divine Script, easily reaching the maximum height permissible by the Ghost Feast's boundaries. The inscription depicted suffering creatures, expressions of pure torment, with a large mottled pair of eyes in the center radiating an intense sinister aura.
A boundless pressure emanated from the inscription, mercilessly disintegrating the blood-colored lizard without mercy. Thin streams of divine essence visible as light could be seen surging towards the inscription behind Li Xiang, and the Ghost Feast began to break down.
As more divine essence poured into the inscription, it slowly began to change color, the golden engravings and symbols transfiguring into a dark purple. The invisible spectator could only hope to send a distress signal to the Ghost King, but did not dare to.
The moment he attempted to communicate, the fluctuations within the divine essence suffusing the air would immediately give his position away, an open and easy target.
As the massive disk underneath Li Xiang began to split from the edges, the inscription had now adopted a violet-gold hue, radiating an indomitable splendor that suppressed the restrictions imposed by the Ghost Feast. With a faint look of dissatisfaction, Li Xiang relaxed her hand and raised it towards the inscription, with multiple streams of divine essence coiling around her arm.
As if receiving a signal from Li Xiang, the inscription rapidly shrank; within seconds, a thin grey spear floated before Li Xiang's slumped figure.
The invisible spectator's eyes bulged, intense panic chilling his soul. The Cry of the Forsaken Goddess had manifested, and even the mightiest weapon of that legacy, Caladbolg! He was sure to fall into a slumber today!
Everyone of the Ghost King's domain would receive the same fate if that spear was launched! The invisible spectator could only descend to the ground, his knees buckling from the intense fear pervading his heart and even his immortal construct.
With the extensive accumulation of knowledge from the Divine Palace's ceaseless investigation, they had managed to scrounge up some unconfirmed information of the Forsaken Goddess and her legacy. Having been divided into numerous legacies, the Cry of the Forsaken Goddess was considered the strongest and most comprehensive legacy of the Forsaken Goddess' strength, followed only by the seven emotions and compassions.
The only technique to be recorded or witnessed, Caladbolg was the strongest offensive technique within the portion of the legacy, not only capable of inflicting permanent damage and ruin onto an immortal's construct, but distributing the same fate to all others who had interacted and was significant to the immortal by an extent. Of the three times Caladbolg had been recorded to be used, it had crippled immortals from either side of the immortal realm each cast.
The spear was five centimeters thick, and two meters long. Made of an unknown grey material, the spear emitted a weak aura of sovereignty and loneliness, accompanied by pangs of sorrow. Written alongside of the spear shaft was the word 'KILL' in the Divine Script. Anyone hit by the attack was destined to fall into a slumber for at least an epoch's duration.
With a casual wave of her hand, the grey spear shot forth at immense speed, transforming into a blur of light. Midway on its flight, the spear trembled and exploded into countless streams of light traveling in every direction.
Watching a stream of light arc towards his figure, the spectator bowed his head and rested his hands on his knees, giving up any form of resistance. Such an attack, it was better to quietly suffer than loudly protest; one beam would place him into a slumber, two or more would erase his construct if he wasn't a Heavenly General or stronger.
As the stream of light swallowed his figure, the spectator rubbed his hands, silently praying as he disintegrated into sparks of light under the baptism of Caladbolg.
My Lord Ghost King, please allow this subordinate to depart first.
A stream of light impacted the center of the disk, causing it to shatter into numerous fragments. Sent hurtling into the void, the violet-gold glow receded from Li Xiang's irises, returning to their azure coloration. Without a sound, the girl returned to dreamland, falling limp like a broken marionette.
When Li Xiang awoke, she found herself lying on an uncomfortable bed. There was no mattress nor blanket of any kind, the only creature comfort being a slightly soft pillow resting her head. As she struggled to rise into a sitting position, a constant, searing heat rushed through her leg, causing her to look at her body.
Except for her burn wound which had received basic treatment, the rest were untouched. Perhaps the one who brought her here respected social convention, Li Xiang thought. Accumulating divine essence in her palm, she pressed it against her wounds, allowing the divine essence to ameliorate the pain into a dull itch.
As she finally got herself into a sitting position, she found that the room was quite simple. A soft rugged grey carpet, a cheerful fireplace crackling away in the center of the room, a few potted plants here and there of varying colors, the room was quite spacious and dignified. At the other side of the room sat an elderly man, playing Go with himself.
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