Free Web NovelChapter 744: Chapter 179: Oh No! We’ve Been Discovered (Third Update)
"What are they looking for?" Xi Qianxue leaned close to Mu Qingge and cautiously asked.
Mu Qingge slowly shook her head, "Wei Molili said they’re collecting the remnants of souls from the Ancient Battlefield, and some other unknown things. We’ve previously discovered a number of missing corpses, not sure if it’s related to them."
Ji Yaohua added, "The corpses here are already petrified, what can they find?"
Suddenly, a short green-skinned creature seemed to discover something and shouted excitedly.
His shout instantly made the four’s nerves tense up.
Fortunately, this time he wasn’t attacking, just gesturing and speaking to the tall green-skinned creature.
"We can’t understand what they’re saying." Ying Ze frowned.
Ji Yaohua murmured, "I also wonder what interface these creatures come from?"
"Three Thousand Worlds, Billions of Mortal Realms, there are so many things we don’t know." Mu Qingge sighed. Her former home, the Mortal World called Earth, now she doesn’t know how far it is from her, nor in which position within these Billions of Mortal Realms. And Jiang Li... after falling from the Cold Inch, where did she end up?
For the past two years, Si Mo has continuously sent people to look for her. The only certainty is that Jiang Li is no longer drifting in the void black hole. So, there’s only one possibility left; she went through unknown experiences and fell into some world. Perhaps, just like her.
"What are you thinking?" Xi Qianxue’s voice pulled Mu Qingge back from her thoughts.
She restrained her thoughts, slowly shook her head at Xi Qianxue.
"Look, what is that little creature holding?" Ji Yaohua suddenly alerted the others.
Mu Qingge narrowed her eyes, fixed her gaze. Her eyes fell on the thing in the little creature’s hands who was showing off to the tall creature, suddenly, her eyes shrank, using a very low voice, she transmitted to the other three, "It’s a heart!"
"What!" Ji Yaohua nearly cried out in surprise.
Luckily, he reacted quickly, covered his mouth, and switched to transmitting sound.
"A heart?" Ying Ze also looked at Mu Qingge with a grim expression.
Xi Qianxue’s face changed slightly, and said to Mu Qingge, "Why are they digging the hearts out of these corpses?"
Mu Qingge slowly shook her head, continuing to stare intently at those small creatures.
Ji Yaohua looked around at the piles of petrified corpses in surprise, "Unbelievable, tens of thousands of years have passed, these corpses are petrified, yet the hearts are still bloody."
Mu Qingge pressed her lips, her eyes fixed ahead.
She saw the tall creature take the heart from the little creature’s hands, and then threw it into the bag on its back. Then, he directed the little creatures to continue digging at the corpses.
A dozen little creatures surrounded the two big ones. All the little creatures kept digging into the petrified corpses.
Their claws were sharp, able to easily break through the petrified skin, then dug out the hearts.
’Collecting remnants of souls... collecting hearts... might even collect the corpses... what do these creatures intend to do?’ Mu Qingge frowned slightly, she sensed that things might not be as simple as they appeared.
And moreover, she had an indescribable feeling that these green-skinned creatures were likely the lowest existence in their interface, not here for training, but enslaved for labor. Their task was to collect these things.
"It seems like they have a hierarchy, the tall creatures seem to be the commanders, directing the little creatures to work." Xi Qianxue looked at Mu Qingge.
Mu Qingge nodded.
She had noticed this as well.
From Ji Yaohua’s previous probing, going out to scout were the little creatures, and the current situation, all proved this point.
"Then should we capture the big ones or the small ones?" Ji Yaohua rubbed his hands and asked.
This question made Mu Qingge frown.
After a moment, she said, "Keep observing."
The four quietly followed, just like what Wei Molili had done before.
The green-skinned creatures, after digging for a while, held out some hearts again, let the two big creatures put them into the bags on their backs, then continued forward.
"Those two bags seem to be like Sumeru Containers, otherwise they couldn’t have stored so much along the way without any change." Ji Yaohua said something that everyone had already seen.
Naturally, no one paid him any attention.
He innocently pursed his lips, decided to be a silent handsome man.
The four silently followed, if they needed to communicate, they simply transmitted sound. Meanwhile, the green-skinned creatures kept searching, ignoring everything else but the hearts inside petrified corpses.
Mu Qingge felt puzzled throughout the journey, generally speaking, since the corpses had petrified surfaces, the organs inside should have petrified together too.
Why had the corpses of these Gods and Demons only petrified on the surface, while the inside seemed freshly deceased?
This answer, despite her bitter contemplation, she could only conclude — the bodies of Gods and Demons aren’t comparable to normal people!
All the way following, the four hadn’t found a good opportunity to act.
Mainly because these dozens of creatures have always acted together, the little ones always surrounded the big one, with the little ones doing the work.
They hardly ate or drank, resting together when tired, then continued working after resting.
A single little creature’s scream was enough to hinder them; if a dozen little creatures attacked together with the big one, they wouldn’t have a chance to act!
"Damn it! Waiting for them to be alone is too difficult! These guys stick together all day, don’t they get tired?" Ji Yaohua couldn’t help but complain.
Their original plan was to follow the green-skinned creatures and immediately strike if a lone creature appeared, then quickly retreat.
But now...
Clearly, after days of tracking, this plan had no chance of being executed.
"Now it’s a test of patience." Mu Qingge’s voice was slightly heavy.
This endless tracking was certainly wearing. If she hadn’t had similar experiences in her past life, she might have lost her temper.
The four quietly waited; their tracking over these days wasn’t without gain.
At the very least, after continuous attempts, they now clearly knew how much distance to keep from the creatures to ensure absolute safety.
When the creatures rested, they cultivated on the spot.
When the creatures left, they left together too. This was like waiting for something to happen, a game testing both patience and determination. So, they couldn’t rush.
...
Xi Qianxue ended her cultivation, opened her eyes, and saw Mu Qingge leaning to the side, holding the Golden Palace Bell she always wore at her waist.
The Palace Bell was very beautiful and exquisite, uniquely shaped with hollow patterns.
Xi Qianxue’s gaze slowly moved from the Palace Bell in Mu Qingge’s hand to her face, seeing her gazing at the sky, somewhat lost in thought, not knowing what she was thinking.
At this moment, Mu Qingge did not notice Xi Qianxue’s attention.
She was just thinking about why the Palace Bell hadn’t rung for such a long time... ’How long has it been? Almost a year, right?’ Mu Qingge silently calculated in her heart.
During this nearly one year, even when she shook the Palace Bell, there was no response.
This is very unusual, or rather, too unusual!
In the past, let alone her shaking the bell proactively. Sometimes when she was busy, the bell would ring to remind her to take some time to think about someone.
But now?
Has Si Mo forgotten?
Mu Qingge’s gaze darkened, denying it in her heart. ’That’s impossible!’
If he hasn’t forgotten, then he has no way to shake the bell... If Si Mo can’t shake the bell, then there’s only one last possibility!
’Something happened to him!’ Mu Qingge’s eyes suddenly turned sharp, and her grip on the Palace Bell tightened.
The change in her aura was keenly perceived by Xi Qianxue.
She really wanted to ask Mu Qingge what was wrong, but seeing her suddenly cold and sharp features and the intense aura, she held back her words.
’No, it can’t be! He’s so powerful, who could harm him? If something happened to him, Gu Ya and Gu Ye should also inform her.’ Mu Qingge tried hard to control her emotions and forced herself to calm down.
’Can’t panic, can’t panic... Must not get flustered!’ Mu Qingge kept telling herself in her heart.
Gradually, the sharpness in her eyes dissipated, and her aura calmed down.
However, her clear eyes became dark and inscrutable. She reminded herself silently in her heart that after leaving here, she must use the Communication Talisman to ask about Si Mo’s situation.
Before she gets any answers, she must not panic and must hold strong.
’He won’t be in trouble! I won’t allow him to be in trouble!’ Mu Qingge’s eyes emitted a scorching gaze, startling Xi Qianxue beside her.
She rarely saw Mu Qingge like this, with a powerful intent mixed in her aura. But what this intent was, she could not ascertain.
Mu Qingge returned to normal and quietly put down the Palace Bell, then noticed Xi Qianxue had been watching her.
Mu Qingge raised an eyebrow, "What’s wrong?"
Xi Qianxue slowly shook her head and gave her a smile.
She really wanted to ask if the Palace Bell, which Mu Qingge cared about so much and always wore, was given by someone important. But as the words reached her mouth, she found she didn’t dare ask.
She was afraid of hearing Mu Qingge’s answer, afraid that Mu Qingge already had someone in her heart.
She preferred to know nothing, quietly spending these three months by Mu Qingge’s side.
’No, there’s only a little more than a month left.’ Xi Qianxue reminded herself silently, her eyes somewhat dim.
Although during this time, Mu Qingge had never expressed anything. But being able to see him every day made her feel happy.
"What do you need me to do?"
"Nothing is needed; just act as usual."
This was their dialogue, and Mu Qingge was fulfilling it as promised. Xi Qianxue smiled faintly, hugging her legs, tilting her head slightly, and leaning lightly on Mu Qingge’s shoulder.
Mu Qingge’s eyes flashed, recalling what she had promised, and did not move.
’Perhaps... it is time to return to wearing women’s clothing.’ Mu Qingge sighed inwardly. Previously, she always appeared as a man to avoid trouble, believing that traveling as a man was much more convenient.
But now it seems, wearing these men’s clothes has also proven quite inconvenient. The debts of affection she owed were beyond her ability to repay.
’Wearing women’s clothing might save me from these troubles.’ Mu Qingge slightly frowned, questioning herself inwardly.
...
The green-skinned creatures set off again.
Mu Qingge and the other three followed closely. On this day, they had reached the edge of this battlefield. But none of them knew how many more such battlefield remnants lay within this Ancient Battlefield.
Suddenly, Mu Qingge’s eyes narrowed, staring intently at the horizon ahead.
"It’s the soul remnants!" Xi Qianxue also saw the black silhouettes rapidly floating towards them like dark clouds, her voice trembling slightly.
She had suffered losses at the hands of the soul remnants more than once!
The main issue was that her methods of attack were ineffective against the soul remnants.
Ying Ze was equally tense, with the memory of having his flesh bitten off by the soul remnants still vivid.
Ji Yaohua’s eyes, however, were filled with a fierce intent. He had also been seriously injured before, but with the Holy Artifact in his hand that could harm the soul remnants, his desire for revenge was stronger than his dread of them.
When the four saw the soul remnants approaching, they all became more vigilant.
And those creatures, upon seeing the soul remnants, started calling out excitedly.
"If these creatures engage the soul remnants, they might not notice us, but those soul remnants might reveal our location." Xi Qianxue quickly said.
Her words caused the expression on Ji Yaohua’s face to freeze.
"Withdraw first?" Ying Ze suggested.
But as soon as he finished speaking, Mu Qingge replied solemnly, "No time."
This wave of soul remnants came extremely fast, and in greater numbers than they had faced before, numbering in the tens of thousands.
As they approached, it was like a giant dark cloud suddenly appeared in the sky, making the atmosphere even darker and the entire space more oppressive.
"Kekekeke——!"
The laughter of the soul remnants echoed around them.
The green-skinned creatures, however, were not afraid of the soul remnants at all, jumping around and capturing them.
Mu Qingge noticed that their claws could grasp the soul bodies.
Almost instantly, some soul remnants noticed them and made a ’kekeke’ sound towards the direction of the four!
’Damn!’
Hearing this sound, the four’s faces turned simultaneously.
They looked at the green-skinned creatures, and just at that moment, two small creatures turned their eyes toward them.
