Free Web NovelThe slaughter of the Shaman King's remains continued, with the sound of flesh tearing and breaking echoing incessantly.
A strange pleasure diluted Lu Yibei's perception of her surroundings, causing her to overlook the subtle changes quietly occurring.
The dark red streams of light drifting in this eerie space had, at some unknown point, turned a vibrant crimson, like the luscious, water-kissed lips of a beautiful woman, wet and alluring.
Then, the crimson streams of light condensed into a fine rain, falling from an unseen height and gently pattering onto Lu Yibei's body.
Cheeks, forearms, fingertips...
They merged into her body, silently and without a trace.
Consequently, her originally fair skin was tinged with a faint blush, as enticing as a thin layer of strawberry frosting sprinkled over milk pudding.
In a trance, the Shaman King's voice echoed in her ears.
“Yes, it’s just as I thought, we are indeed of the same kind.”
“How laughable, truly too laughable! It seems you might not yet realize what kind of existences we truly are...”
The Shaman King had completely given up struggling; the final assimilation was complete, and his remaining conscious mind was about to fall into slumber. His current words were merely pity for a lost kin.
In fact, when he was drawn by the imminent success and fully invaded the operational core of the Divine Kingdom Jade Gate, failing to notice Hong Bian's presence and only seeing Lu Yibei, who had inherited Hong Bian's authority and control over the God Kingdom, and sensing the unrestrainable power of Goddess Bei within the authority he had already devoured, he had already foreseen his defeat.
Divine Kingdom Jade Gate, miracle flower, Goddess Bei's authority... with these triple suppressions, it was actually very difficult for him to truly harm Lu Yibei.
And this final assimilation, in his view, should actually be considered a guidance.
A guidance to let his kin see reality and destiny!
Evidently, he succeeded.
The opportunity for success arose when Lu Yibei saw the anomaly triggered by his authority, which ignited the desire for destruction hidden deep within her consciousness, prompting her to attack him first...
Just as he had said when he was sealed, as long as the flames of war did not extinguish, he would not truly perish.
And the struggle between two Calamity-level beings was, of course, war, even far more terrifying than ordinary wars.
“It's useless, no matter how much we do, it's useless... those insects won't thank us. In the end, they will only fear us, viewing our power and extraordinary talent as a Calamity, and trying every possible way to eliminate us. Brief kindness is merely for exploitation.”
As he spoke, touching upon past memories, the Shaman King's tone inexplicably grew a few shades more agitated.
In his youth, he had enjoyed gazes of reverence; in his adolescence, he had experienced the suspicion and treachery brought by that reverence. It wasn't until adulthood that he finally saw the true colors of those people.
In public, those people revered him as a god, but in the shadows, they regarded him as a demon. If he hadn't still possessed sufficient utility, they would have eliminated him immediately.
Unwilling to be a tool used and restricted by them, he could only follow the guidance of destiny: to destroy, to conquer, to enslave, to become a truly cold and tyrannical god, one who stood above all, whom no one dared to defy, or even entertain the thought of confronting.
“Don't you believe it? Would you rather sit idly by, clinging to a beautiful dream, than face the truth? Heh, you will see; you will see that everything I say is correct.”
“The future has unfolded before my eyes. A millennium from now, you, used as a tool, will eventually perish, while I, who followed destiny’s guidance, will awaken from slumber, and the flames of war will once again engulf the land.”
Not all urban legend can exist for a long time. An existence like Ju Meng, which has persisted for over five thousand years and only recently found its authority unable to maintain its original form, requiring a change in authority to survive, is absolutely a rare exception in the world.
Countless examples can prove that a thousand years is enough to corrupt and distort any authority.
The Shaman King firmly believed that if Lu Yibei did not follow destiny's guidance, she would surely perish after a millennium, and his current assimilation of Lu Yibei would then become the seed for him to seize Lu Yibei's remaining authority.
If Lu Yibei, with his “help,” followed destiny's guidance, she would inevitably replace him in spreading destruction across the land, and then he would be even less likely to perish, or rather... perishing would not matter.
Not long ago, Lu Yibei presented the Shaman King with a choice where any option was wrong, and now, the Shaman King returned the favor, offering an equally difficult choice.
So, farewell, kin!
...
The Shaman King said a lot, his voice very soft, drowned out by the muffled thuds of tearing flesh. Lu Yibei was immersed in the pleasure of slaughter and initially paid no attention, only furrowing her brow slightly when she heard the last sentence.
“A thousand years from now? Don’t worry! I’ll be waiting for you there...”
Having said that, she resumed her slaughter.
————
When Lu Yibei came to her senses, the dim light around her had been completely swallowed by darkness. It seemed a long time had passed, and the sky had slipped from a twilight filled with crimson clouds to the silent, pitch-black deep night.
As the Shaman King fell into slumber, the surging excitement and pleasure in her soul vanished without a trace, replaced by exhaustion, numbness, and bewilderment. Even her body felt empty, like a light, hollow shell.
It was as if a grand banquet had raged until deep into the night, finally coming to an end. The host and guests had all departed, the joyful songs ◈ Nоvеlіgһт ◈ (Continue reading) had faded, the laughter had died away, leaving only a dark, deserted venue, utterly chaotic, and she was left there, all alone. freewēbnoveℓ.com
She was truly left behind.
She could even see “herself,” lonely, desolate, and pitifully helpless, curled up in a dark corner.
Wait! Is this logical? I’m not Shen Baiwei, why would I see “myself”? A thought flashed through Lu Yibei's mind, but she quickly lost interest in delving deeper.
Some power was eroding her will, deeply rooted in her consciousness. It felt similar to, yet not entirely the same as, when she was previously guided and almost embraced the figure shrouded in flames.
There was no tyrannical compulsion, only a gentle, almost whispered “Come, I’ll show you,” and then everything was revealed.
In a daze, Lu Yibei heard a clear, somewhat sorrowful female voice.
It was the outline of “herself” nearby, softly chanting. fгee𝑤ebɳoveɭ.cøm
It sounded somewhat like an epic, and also like a ballad from a foreign land.
“Lilim once lived in the flower-filled place outside the paradise
A wreath woven from cornflowers and lilies was her only crown
The wind ruffled her long hair and carried away her wreath
She met a young man from afar, the object of her affection
She lost herself, lost her longing, just as she lost her wreath
She reluctantly sent the young man away, to a place she could not reach
She offered the young man sweet spring water flowing from paradise, ripe honey fruits, and opened her heart
But the young man slowly forgot her
Life was so painful, waiting was so long
The young man returned to Lilim’s side
He said he longed for fertile land and herds of cattle and sheep
...”
The song in her ears had only reached halfway when a blurry figure of a young girl appeared before her eyes. Lu Yibei suddenly snapped back to reality, realizing what was happening.
It seemed that, just as Goddess Ba's past was revealed when that flame appeared, Lilim's past was about to emerge with the song.
But...
Is this the Shaman King's final act? What should she do? Does she have to condense another Witch Seed spiritual imprint? Lu Yibei wondered.
