Zheng He remained calm, for this world, the sea had become a forbidden area. All of a sudden, something called "Scourge" would appear from the sea and then set foot on land. Once on land, Scourge would feed on humans and cause countless deaths. Those who could move inland had moved there to live. The coastal areas were nearly sealed off and empty of people.
If it were only like that, it wouldn't be much of a problem. The worst case would be to avoid the seaside and not to attract the Scourge. However, in this world, everyone is born from trees, and each family has its own ancestral tree. People can move about, but trees cannot be moved.
Families who want to reproduce must protect their family ancestral tree, and they cannot leave it easily.
Moreover, there are always some people who are driven to the coast and forced to live there, exposing themselves to the risk of Scourge coming ashore.
Fortunately, in this era, immortals have established sects on the coastal regions, set up alarms, hunted the Scourge, and protected the common folk.
Moreover, some cultivation sects have built grand arrays on the seashore. When the sects at the sea notice the presence of Scourge, they activate the arrays to protect all living beings.
All the seas have been designated as prohibited seas.
The court has even implemented a policy of closure and isolation, strictly prohibiting sea fishing and navigation.
Although it is prohibited, the sea is rich in resources. Many cultivators claim to be powerful and establish sea palaces, while others risk venturing out to sea to trade goods.
Jiao Mu Jiu was a smuggling ship speeding through the prohibited sea.
People gathered around Zheng He, coming to the side of the flame attachment person.
The immortal said that the Scourge was a great horror and could not be looked upon by mortals.
The Scourge harms people, and you only need to look at it once, or even not at all, as long as you hear the Scourge's voice, you will fall into inexplicable madness.
It is said that the whispers are evil and vulgar, with each word containing an unspoken hatred and resentment.
Even experienced cultivators who are caught off guard and hear these whispers will be contaminated by the evil and filth in them, affecting their pure cultivation intentions. For those with weaker cultivation, they will immediately awaken and become the flame attachment person.
The immortals say that these soft, low whispers of filth come from the Scourge. They are invisible and unavoidable.
Even if you plug your ears or deafen yourself at the first moment, the sound can directly penetrate through your skin and bones into your soul, triggering all kinds of emotions and desires in your heart, including love, hatred, anger, envy, jealousy, desire and attachment. It will directly drive you into madness and ignite a fire from inside out until it turns you into ashes.
Once the raving fire starts, it cannot be extinguished whether it is a human, an immortal, or a deity; the conflict will continue until death.
Some flame-attached individuals were still mortals before the raving fire was ignited. However, once the fire starts, fueled by the emotions and life of the flame-attached person, it can unleash a far greater potential than before.
Using one life, igniting a fire once.
If it were only like that, it wouldn't be much of a problem. However, the raving fire not only burns the flame-attached individual but also spreads.
Even if it were just like that, it wouldn't be much of a problem. However, the raving fire not only burns the flame-attached individual but also spreads. If you just hear that someone else has awoken to the raving fire, you may be infected in an instant and turn into ashes.
The raging fire is indeed a great threat. Immortals warn the common people to remain calm, chant the Scriptures of Tranquility every day, eat and drink lightly, avoid drinking or taking medicine, and the government even directly issues a prohibition on drinking. Selling wine illegally is a heinous crime punishable by death.
Speeding through the prohibited seas and selling contraband wine, Jiao Mu Jiao was engaging in a business of wiping out families and slaying their lineages.
This was the first time Zheng He had seen a flame-attached individual.
The flame-attached individual was a familiar face - Guang Xia.
He had a small curl of hair that was soaked in oil sweat, and his whole body was spread out, kneeling on the deck with arms wide open. His eyes were lifeless and staring at the sky, and his mouth was wide open, from which red flames shot out from the interior of his body, distorting the surrounding air due to the high temperatures.
The crew dare not approach him, but instead use an iron rod to push his mouth and tongue, sliding a yellow talisman down the rod into his mouth.
The yellow talisman spontaneously ignited upon contact with Guang Xia's skin, rolling into his interior like a fireball, and in an instant Guang Xia too turned into a fireball. The crimson flames and aura of death burst out from all seven orifices, instantly obliterating his hair and clothes.
The temperature on the deck slowly rose, and everyone was sweating profusely.
Guang Xia was swallowed whole by the flames, but he neither made any screams nor roars throughout the whole process, as if he were a statue kneeling on the deck, as if he had already died.
Yet he was still burning.
"Big sister, is this guy really hopeless?"
Someone noticed Ou He's pale face and quickly made up:
"No problem, big sister. It's probably that this guy was burned too deeply. We just need to throw him into the sea, and everything will be fine. Please don't be angry, big sister!"
"Yes, big sister! You are so powerful, you must be tired of dealing with such small demons. We will just throw him into the sea right now!"
As the conversation went on, someone picked up a wooden stick and lifted Guang Xia from the ground.
Zheng He lowered his eyes, looking down on the person engulfed in flames. At this point, he was no longer a person; he was merely a vessel containing the raging fire. One could hear the blood sizzling in the high temperature and feel the flesh gradually withering and drying up.
'Save me······'
'I don't want to die······'
How pitiful.
"Let him go."
Zheng He stopped them, "I can raise the talisman."
If Zheng Dangwu were there, he would probably scold her again for being a pushover.
Although I don't know what a Scourge is or how the original owner was able to raise talismans to drive evil spirits, it's worth a try.
For now, let's treat him as someone who has been possessed. Before the leap, Zheng He had seen countless types of masked dances while investigating them in the countryside.
The monkey approached Zheng He, bending down deferentially, "Big sister, what do we need to prepare?"
He grinned and said, "I used to play drums when I was a child. My family taught me."
Zheng He looked at him for a moment and said, "Nothing is needed."
She remembered the dance steps.
As she spoke, she put on the talisman mask, raised her hand and clapped once.
Bam——
With each clap of her hand, her shoulders and back swayed accordingly.
Is that it?
The nüzi (masked dancer) made a noisy sound, and it should have been accompanied by drum music. There should have been a ritual dance to invite the gods, but she had no music, not even a cleared space.
Numerous wooden poles were pressed onto Guang Xia's body, trying to lift him off the ground and throw him into the sea. Some crew members were whispering among themselves, and Lao Wen watched all of this with pale face.
In this chaotic scene, Zheng He started to raise the talisman.
She used exaggerated movements to stamp her feet, strike her palms together, and the talisman mask spun rapidly in front of everyone.
Without drum music to accompany it, without singing voices, only the clear clapping sounds and the 'thud' sound of footsteps on the deck.
As she raised the talisman, all the noise and low murmurs gradually faded, and everyone's gaze fell on her, their expressions stunned.
"Uncle Wen, what kind of dance is big sister doing?"
The monkey approached Uncle Wen, curiously watching Zheng He's dance and asked, "Have you ever seen this kind of masked dance?"
Uncle Wen looked grim, "Of course not. Where could there be such a masked dance in this world?"
Her movements were simple body sways, nothing like the dance forms they were familiar with.
'People have difficulties, then comes Nüan (masked dance), and Nüan opera brings prosperity to all diseases.'
'Every household is auspicious, and every household is at peace.'
Those who study will achieve success in their careers, their achievements will be recognized, and they will excel in the imperial examinations. Those who farm will plant a seed and reap a harvest of ten thousand; those who seek wealth will have a flow of fortune greater than any year, and all their endeavors will go smoothly.
Zheng He held the talisman mask in one hand and spread her arms to move her body, quickly rotating around Guang Xia.
Zheng Dangwu casually withdrew his robe, spreading out its hem like petals of a lotus blossom.
The sound of footsteps on the deck was like the thunderous sound of drums, each step landing on the tip of one's heart.
She raised her foot and stepped down.
Guang Xia's body would tremble a little.
Lift the foot, then step down.
Guang Xia's whole body was shivering.
Whether it was an illusion or not, the temperature around seemed to have dropped.
Uncle Wen's breathing was rapid, and his hand, which had lost a layer of skin, involuntarily tightened. He felt as if the wind was roaring and thundering, with countless winds carrying countless waves crashing against his body. The sky was overcast with dark clouds swirling, as if the sea were raising a black curtain to block the gaze of gods above from looking down.
Beneath the talisman mask, Zheng He smelled an extremely fragrant smell. She swallowed and felt her patience was being tested. She reached out a finger and passed through the raging fire, pointing it at Guang Xia's forehead.
Bang——
All the raging fire scattered suddenly.
The crowd subconsciously closed their eyes, and when they opened them again, the raging fire had already been extinguished, only Guang Xia was still kneeling in the same place.
Burp——
Zheng He turned around and quietly made a satisfied burp.
When everyone closed their eyes, only she knew that the raging fire hadn't been extinguished; instead, it had been swallowed into her stomach.
She burped softly, so softly that she should ... not have been noticed by anyone, right?
【Abandoned Value—3】
【Current Abandoned Value: 67%】
