Plague Beast Qizhong, Witch Rune Displays Might

Chapter 22: Plague Beast Qizhong, Witch Runes Show Their Might

Inside the Ancestral Temple.

Shen Can tidied up his Plague Dispelling Runes, preparing to hand them over to the front-line tribesmen.

Whether something was good or not, actual combat was the most direct way to tell.

According to reconnaissance, the parasitic plague worm was less than half a day's distance from the tribal territory.

"A-Can, you stay and guard the Ancestral Temple. Give me the runes you drew."

Huo Xian, carrying a bamboo basket, prepared to leave the Ancestral Temple. He felt that since Shen Can had drawn runes, he shouldn't dampen Shen Can's confidence. He'd take them to the tribesmen.

The medicinal scent emanating from the runes was also useful. At least wearing them was much more convenient than his medicine balls.

It was just that the output was a bit low.

"Okay."

Shen Can nodded, raised his hand, and threw a rope noose.

With another raise of his hand, he stuffed a piece of cloth into Huo Xian's mouth.

"Master, you're getting old. You should rest in the Ancestral Temple. I'll go."

"Mmph mmph!"

Huo Xian fumed, his eyes wide with indignation, as Shen Can tied him up inside the cave.

"Don't worry, Master. I'll record everything and bring it back."

There was ink and brush in the bamboo basket. Huo Xian's intention was clear: he wanted to get a good look at the parasitic plague worm's situation and record it for future generations.

Shen Can picked up the basket and followed the small path along Tribe Mountain eastward. From a distance, he could see the large ditches at the foot of the mountain.

There were three in total, blocking the northeastern part of the tribal territory.

The ditches were ten zhang apart, with wooden planks serving as bridges across them.

Both inside the ditches and on the flat ground, piles of firewood were stacked. Prepared witch medicine was placed on top, waiting to be ignited when the parasitic plague worm attacked.

Within the ditches, many high frames were erected, holding jars of beast oil.

If the plague worms became too numerous, the jars could be smashed, allowing the beast oil to pour into the large ditches.

Warriors had strong resistance, provided they weren't bitten by other plague worms.

Therefore, the tribesmen guarding here were all warriors. They were fully protected, their bodies exuding the scent of medicinal soup. Beside them were bowls of boiled medicinal soup, into which they could jump to wash themselves at any time.

As for weapons, they mostly consisted of javelins, crossbows, fire arrows, and beast oil.

The three wide ditches were dug to create sufficient distance from the parasitic plague worms, allowing for long-range fire attacks.

"Uncle Jiang, Uncle Mu..."

As Shen Can descended the mountain, he greeted the people.

"A-Can, give us the things, and you go back to look after the elders and children in the tribe."

"We'll hold them off. We definitely won't let the plague worms pass."

Shen Can greeted them and took out the medicine balls from the bamboo basket, handing them to the tribesmen present.

"Eat them as medicine, or crush them and rub them on your bodies. They're effective."

"A-Can, you're back. Don't go any further."

Seeing Shen Can heading towards the outermost perimeter, someone quickly shouted.

Those guarding the outermost perimeter were warriors like Huo Shan, who were in the Mountain Opening Realm. They also called out.

"A-Can, don't come over here."

"Uncle Shan, take these witch runes."

Shen Can crossed two ditches and arrived on the flat ground behind the third ditch. He pulled out three witch runes and handed them to Huo Shan.

"Witch runes?"

Huo Shan was taken aback, looking at the runes cut to a similar size, emitting a medicinal fragrance and a bloody aura.

"When did our tribe get witch runes?"

At this moment, several other warriors in the front line, also in the Mountain Opening Realm, gathered around.

"Go, go, go. Don't get so close to A-Can."

Huo Shan immediately glared, dispersing the onlookers, and snatched the witch runes, stuffing them into his embrace.

"I understand. Hurry back now."

Shen Can distributed the remaining witch runes and taught them how to use them.

"When you use them, pull them apart forcefully and throw them."

"Alright, alright, we know. Hurry back. The plague worms are almost here, and your body is frail. You can't withstand the plague worm's contamination."

Whoosh!

A rocket streaked across the sky from afar.

The possessed Plague Worms have arrived.

Huo Hou leaped over from a distance.

"They're here, they're here, get ready!"

"A-Can, you need to go."

Seeing this, Huo Shan quickly pushed Shen Can back.

Shen Can didn't linger either and walked towards the rear.

Inside and outside the Tribe Mountain, bonfires were lit, and thick witch medicine smoke billowed up.

The scent of medicine surged through the mountains and wilderness.

Returning behind the ravine, Shen Can turned and looked into the distance.

A group of figures, moving like zombies, appeared scattered among the mountain gaps.

There were about three hundred of them.

These people, possessed by Plague Worms, could still perform rolls, climbs, and jumps despite their stiff bodies, and some even held weapons.

They had managed to reach the Blazing Flame Tribe from the vast mountain range.

He had a feeling that these Plague Worms, controlling humans, were targeting the Blazing Flame Tribe.

This surprised Shen Can. Could it be that the Plague Worms possessed high intelligence and had accessed the memories of the Fu Shan tribesmen?

"Buzz!"

When they were less than a hundred zhang from the first defensive line, the possessed humans in front collapsed as if they were torn open sacks. Plague Worms, the size of beans, crawled out and scurried towards Huo Shan and the others.

At thirty zhang, they entered the aromatic zone of the burning witch medicine. The charging Plague Worms suddenly began to mill about in place.

As the number of Plague Worms increased, some broke through the milling and continued to crawl forward, quickly entering the dug-out gullies.

Inside the gully, the piled-up witch medicine was lit, and tribesmen prepared to smash the oil jars above.

"The witch medicine is very effective now, don't sprinkle the oil yet. Wait until there are more Plague Worms."

The Plague Worms that entered the ravine were spun around by the burning witch medicine within, unable to climb out.

After inspecting, Huo Shan immediately stopped the tribesmen who were about to pour beast oil.

"Splash them!"

Huo Shan pointed at the possessed humans charging up.

Using ladles with long wooden handles, they scooped beast oil across the gullies and splashed it onto the approaching possessed humans.

The rockets from behind followed.

For the possessed humans who moved too quickly, they were directly impaled on the spot with ignited wooden spears.

Then, a ladle of beast oil mixture was sprinkled over them.

With the added effect of fire, the possessed humans were set ablaze before they could even get close to the ravine.

The Plague Worms that crawled out, like ants on a hot pan, spun around, losing their ability to charge.

Clusters of flames ignited outside the gully, with sounds like firecrackers going off continuously.

When the possessed humans were set on fire, dense swarms of Plague Worms crawled out and quickly headed towards Huo Shan.

Upon entering the ravine, like the Plague Worms that came before, they were disoriented by the burning witch medicine.

Let alone biting people up close.

Without the harassment of the Plague Worms, the battle from the start was one-sided.

Even when the possessed humans leaped, they were impaled by wooden spears in mid-air.

The tribesmen throwing spears were as skilled as if they were hunting, hitting their mark with every throw.

This scene was so effective that not only the three defensive lines, but even the first defensive line couldn't be breached.

Seeing this, Shen Can breathed a sigh of relief. They were not living people after all, and even if they looked agile, they didn't have the brains of the living.

It seemed the possessed Plague Worms weren't that formidable after all.

The tribal records had been a bit too frightening.

"Chirp!"

At this moment, one of the figures behind the possessed humans opened its mouth and let out a piercing cry.

The listeners' eardrums bulged, and everyone covered their ears with their hands, crouching down in pain.

"Chirp!"

Shen Can's head reeled, feeling as if he had been hit by a mental attack.

"Not good!"

Huo Tang, who had been managing the overall situation, quickly rushed to the forefront.

"Huo Shan, retreat quickly to the second trench."

The possessed humans outside the trench spread their arms like great birds with outstretched wings and leaped up.

Huo Shan was the first to react, grabbing the wooden spear in his hand and flinging it towards the wooden frame in the trench, shouting, "Quick, pour the oil!"

"Light the fire arrows!"

He hadn't ordered the flames in the trench to be lit before because the bugs couldn't get through.

At that time, it didn't make much difference whether they were lit or not, as the Plague Worms were already being repelled by the smoke.

But now, the people from the Fu Shan Tribe were also human. How could they fly after being possessed by Plague Worms?

This was very un-witch-like.

Huo Tang, who had charged to the front, continuously knocked away the possessed humans who leaped over.

But there were too many of them. In the blink of an eye, dozens of possessed humans had crossed the first trench and exploded.

"Crack crackle."

The Plague Worms rained down like hailstones, splattering everywhere and hitting the tribesmen.

A large portion of them leaped towards Huo Tang.

At the same time, the possessed humans, who were making bird-like sounds, had their backs split open, and strange birds flew out.

These birds had heads like owls, a single leg, and a pig's tail at the end of their tails.

They swung their tails and flew towards Huo Tang, their pale eyes flickering with a ghastly light.

The Plague Worms scattering in the sky caused chaos among the tribesmen, who instinctively began swatting the worms off themselves.

On the mountaintop, seeing the situation suddenly descend into chaos, with Huo Tang surrounded by bugs and the strange birds preparing for a sneak attack, Shen Can shouted.

"Quick, throw witch runes at that bird!"

Huo Shan reacted first among the tribesmen. He also wanted to help Huo Tang, but upon hearing the shout from the mountaintop, he instinctively reached into his bosom and pulled out a medicine ball and witch runes.

"Tear them open and throw them, tear them open and throw them!"

Huo Shan, who was about to throw, immediately pulled back. He tore open three pieces of beast hide with a 'ripping' sound and threw them towards Huo Tang's direction.

"Buzz!"

Instantly, as the three witch runes were torn open, a stream of bloody water swirled up.

In mid-air, overlapping, winding runes formed and violently charged towards the single-legged strange bird.

"Chirp!"

The moment the witch runes activated, the strange bird's pale eyes flashed with terror.

The blood runes swept across its wings, which sizzled and emitted white smoke.

The strange bird let out a pained cry.

"True witch runes!"

Huo Shan, who continued to charge forward after throwing the witch runes, froze, his eyes widening. He instinctively slammed on the brakes.

However, his legs didn't receive the command, and he tumbled forward with a 'thud'.

"A-Can, those are true witch runes!"

Huo Shan, who had face-planted into the dirt, scrambled up and roared.

"Quick, quick, tear open the witch runes and throw them at that stinky bird!"

"A-Can is the real deal!"

Shouting wasn't enough. He rushed to the nearby tribesmen, snatched a witch rune from someone else, and hurled it at the strange bird.

"Ha... witch runes, this is exhilarating."

ps: Image from the internet, infringement will be deleted.

Qizhong: Resembles an owl, has one claw, and a pig's tail. Its appearance signifies an epidemic.

I wonder if this pig's tail tastes good.