After the Calamity

Li Qi and the others were not idle either. They worked together without saying much and simply cleaned up the battlefield.

Most of them were grateful to have survived the ordeal, though some brothers had died or been injured. But life and death are unpredictable on the battlefield, and these soldiers naturally accepted it.

At first, it was a collective effort to clean up the demons.

Only after there were no more living demons left present did they begin to clean up the corpses.

The corpses were sorted and arranged. The Human Race were buried together, while the demons' corpses were sorted, the useful parts were removed, and the rest were burned.

Some soldiers went to comfort the people, and despite the fierce fighting, hundreds of people still died.

Most of them were so frightened that they ran around in all directions and were trampled to death.

A few were frightened to death by eighth-rank demons.

A very small number of them were executed by officers because they led others to run around recklessly, disrupting the formation.

Only a handful of people were actually killed by the aftershocks.

Almost all the aftershocks were blocked by the army.

The army, which originally numbered over ten thousand, had lost almost a third of its strength. The remaining soldiers were almost all wounded, with sorrowful eyes, but they did not stop their work. Some even went out of their way to comfort the families of the dead.

Even though their own brother had just died, and they had no one to comfort them, they still had to bear this burden.

The battlefield wasn't cleaned up until nightfall.

However, cleaning up isn't the end of the story; there are many other things to do.

There have been too many casualties here; we can't just leave like this, otherwise this place will become an ancient battlefield in the future.

Various ghosts roam freely, Yin Qi gathers, which may even build a ghost city and harm all directions. If some Ghost King or the like are born, it will bring countless troubles to future generations.

Therefore, the army decided to camp here for one night to eliminate the Sha Qi and deathly aura, and to deliver the souls of the dead into the cycle of reincarnation.

The military Shaman who was originally tasked with this task had already died in battle, so Li Qi volunteered to take on the responsibility.

At this moment, Li Qi stood on the altar.

Below the altar were thousands of soldiers participating in the ceremony.

Zhang Lan, who was not familiar with sacrificial rites, stood aside, acting as the Sea God of this ritual. Under Li Qi's arrangement, he used his righteous energy to suppress the evil spirits.

Li Qi stood on the altar, holding an incense burner and chanting incantations. Below, the Soldier's Qi to cheer him on.

This is a method of offering sacrifices to the spirits of those who died in battle.

The ghosts on the battlefield, who were not ordinary beings, were filled with a strong killing intent and Sha Qi before their deaths. Nowadays, most of them are demonic spirits, and most of them are extremely violent. Therefore, it is necessary to first call out the souls of our own fallen soldiers and perform a ritual to help them pass on to the afterlife.

When only tens of thousands of demons and ghosts remain in the original place, they will be suppressed. Those who obey will be sent to reincarnation, while those who do not obey will be scattered on the spot to prevent them from harming the human world.

Li Qi struck the golden gong on the altar.

The soldiers below then began their martial arts practice.

But then one could see the horses' hooves and soldiers' footsteps, a vast and continuous flow, the formations changing, the banners fluttering and the drums beating, swirling left and right, as swift as wind and rain, demonstrating the system of drumming.

The cavalrymen were spirited, the spearmen were disciplined, and Blood Qi.

As soon as the formation was activated, the Soldier's Qi gathered, and thousands of the dead, inspired by the military formations they had formed in life, joined in and practiced martial arts together, just as they had in life.

Some soldiers, upon seeing their dead comrades, were so moved that tears streamed down their faces, but dared not utter a sound. They could only suppress their emotions and train even harder.

However, Li Qi could not allow those spirits to contribute their strength. Although they had lost their minds after death, they still needed to gather the Soldier's Qi. Spirits were like water without roots; once they were exhausted, they would be gone.

So Li Qi immediately summoned Duqiao, and as the daylight fell, a ghost messenger was summoned by Li Qi.

The ghost messenger appeared, accompanied by gusts of cold wind and a terrifying aura, even more powerful than Shen Shuibi and Zhang Lan combined.

But the ghost messenger did nothing more than step forward, bowed respectfully to Li Qi, and then marked the souls, leaving the darkness and sending these fallen heroes into reincarnation.

The first round of sacrificial rites is complete.

In the second round, Li Qi stopped banging the gong and started beating the drum.

The drums thundered, their sound echoing for thirty miles.

Then, he picked up the prepared axe and halberd, and smashed it down onto the battlefield.

The soldiers, who had already received their orders, immediately Sha Qi and unleashed their murderous aura. Wings flew majestically, scorpions emerged from afar, capturing demons and monsters, and flames roared. Even the Soldier's Qi was stained with a layer of blood red, as if they were bleeding.

Under Li Qi's command, the army, exuding a murderous aura and Sha Qi, strode forward, spears in hand and swords in hand, heads held high and chests out, toward the battlefield.

The army strode across the ground with great force, as if an earthquake had struck, directly impacting the ground where countless demon corpses lay buried.

Suddenly, there were howls and wailing from underground. Something seemed to be churning down there, and blood, flesh, and broken bones began to break through the ground, trying to crawl out.

However, Li Qi struck the drum again, and the Heaven and Earth Qi within the human body Xianghe, spewing out lightning that shook the surroundings.

A rumbling sound arose, like a series of drumbeats.

The soldiers shouted battle cries, and the intense Yang Energy mixed with the Sha Qi, scaring away the ghosts and spirits emerging from the ground.

Li Qi raised his hands again, his left hand guiding the drum and his right hand holding the hammer, as if striking it. The two hands clasped together and produced a sound, which was used to ward off evil spirits.

Li Qi struck the drum again, making it thunderous, and the soldiers below shouted battle cries in Xianghe with the thunderous drumming.

Repeat this three times.

After three repetitions, the demons Yin Ghost underground dared not cause any more trouble and were obediently suppressed in the ground.

After the suppression was over, Li Qi overturned the altar, abandoned the axe that represented slaughter, and also threw down the drumsticks. He loudly proclaimed to the demons and spirits that they should return to the cycle of reincarnation and not linger.

Countless demons and spirits dared not disobey, and gathered together to leave. However, they were met with a gust of yin wind that howled away, obediently leaving this place and heading to the underworld.

However, what awaited them was not reincarnation, but punishment.

If one has accumulated too much karma in this life, good deeds will be rewarded in the underworld, but bad deeds will require one to repay one's sins before one can re-enter the cycle of reincarnation. This is the rule of the underworld.

When each person is reincarnated, they are completely alone, without any trace of karma. Therefore, good deeds should be rewarded and bad deeds should be punished. Both must be cleansed before entering the cycle of reincarnation.

This is the true principle of the land.

Of course, all of this is predicated on you going through reincarnation.

If you don't go, the underworld officials will come to arrest you.

If you are so powerful that even the underworld officials can't do anything to you, then reincarnation is nothing special to you.

But if someone were to punish you at that time, then that person would definitely not be someone who had merely gone through reincarnation.

After doing all this, Li Qi let out a long sigh of relief and collapsed to the ground.

To be honest.

This was the first time he had presided over such a large-scale ceremony.

A series of arrangements, including the actions of the soldiers, what he needed to do, what materials he needed to prepare, and what etiquette to use, all required him to carefully consider and arrange, which was not something an ordinary person could do.

However, it can be considered a satisfactory ending.

As soon as Li Qi collapsed, Zhang Lan and Shen Shuibi rushed forward.

Zhang Lan stopped when she saw Shen Shuibi arrive.

Let someone from their own side help them up.

After watching Shen Shuibi help Li Qi up, he stepped forward, bowed first, and then said to Li Qi, "Sir, you are amazing. Although your cultivation is shallow, you are brave and resourceful. You not only saved the lives of 100,000 people here, but you can also preside over a sacrifice for 10,000 people. Some of the eighth-rank Shaman I know cannot do this, but you can. It is truly astonishing!"

Li Qi quickly waved his hand, gesturing for the other party to stand up. "It's good that I can be of help. Senior, there's no need for such respect. My cultivation is still shallow; it's not worth it—"

"Of course it's worth it. Not to mention the life-saving grace, you also helped thousands of your comrades pass on, which made Zhang Lan extremely grateful. You even suppressed tens of thousands of demonic spirits, preventing the birth of a ghost city ahead of time. You have saved countless future generations. With such achievements, what does cultivation level matter? Zhang Lan is in awe of your achievements and virtues!" The eighth-rank cultivator bowed and said respectfully.

Li Qi managed to stand up, only to see that all the soldiers around him bowed their heads in salute, treating him with utmost respect.

Seeing this, Li Qi raised his voice and said loudly, "There are still many things to do. The people have not yet been settled, and the future itinerary has not been determined. You brave warriors do not need to crowd around me. Go and do your own things!"

At this moment, an officer was pushed forward by the crowd in the army. He walked to a group of soldiers, knelt on one knee, clasped his hands in a fist and bowed to Li Qi, and said respectfully, "Bai Lin Border Guard, White Rhinoceros Army, thanks you for your kindness in saving my comrades, protecting my people, and even helping the souls of my brothers and sisters to be released from suffering. May I ask your name, sir? White Rhinoceros Army will remember it forever!"

Then, he immediately added, "The army cannot move without the Tiger Tally, so we dare not promise to serve you in the name of the White Rhinoceros Army. But after we lay down our armor and hide our weapons, we are all willing to help you! Please accept our token. We dare not say that we will come immediately when summoned, but if you are within a thousand miles, we will arrive within three days."

After speaking, he concentrated his Soldier's Qi onto an arrow. The arrow was engraved with inscriptions, and it was thought that once activated, the arrow would soar into the sky and send a message to the holder of the Soldier's Qi.

"I accept the letter. I appreciate your kindness, but you all have duties to fulfill. There's no need for this. The people are more important. Please go and uphold your responsibilities." Li Qi stepped forward, limping, and took the arrow.

It wouldn't be good to refuse, but he didn't expect anything in return from these people, so he figured he might as well accept it to put their minds at Anxin, and then he wouldn't need to use it again.

As for limping...

There was nothing he could do; he was too weak to preside over such a grand sacrificial ceremony.

Sacrifices also involve energy expenditure, and such a ceremony can be quite tiring.

The officer presented the token, bowed again, and then turned to Zhang Lan, saying something similar.

Zhang Lan declined directly, resolutely refusing to accept it.

The officer had no choice but to thank him again, and then he and the other soldiers left to carry out their respective duties.

By this time, the moon had risen high in the trees, and Li Qi finally sat down to rest for a while.

However, during the break, he didn't idle around. Instead, he looked at Zhang Lan and said, "Senior Zhang, from what they said to you, it seems that you have nothing to do with this army. You're not their commander?"

Only then did Li Qi have time to carefully examine this eighth-rank official.

This man was rather ugly, not even mediocre. He had a flat nose, a bulging forehead, and some pockmarks. He was unremarkable in appearance, wearing an ordinary yellow robe, and carrying a sword box on his back. However, it seemed to be empty, because he never took anything out of it in the end. It was probably empty.

But Li Qi would naturally not judge a book by its cover.

Upon hearing about Li Qi's cultural background, Zhang Lan shook her head. "Of course not, just like you, I'm just passing by."

"Senior, you are truly righteous. Seeing injustice on the road, you were willing to fight to the death." Li Qi was filled with respect and immediately cupped his hands in praise.

"Why put on such an act? Aren't you the same?" Zhang Lan said with a smile, somewhat curious about Li Qi's reaction.

"There's a big difference. I never do anything I'm not sure I can do. If I were a senior, seeing such a scene, I would definitely silently memorize the appearance of that demon, then retreat and report back later," Li Qi said frankly.

He's always been like this; as long as it doesn't harm himself, there's nothing wrong with doing good deeds.

But if it's about risking his life, then he has to think it over carefully and see if it's worth it.

If fighting to the death is futile and it's a 100% certain death situation, Li Qi would definitely run away without hesitation.

As long as the green hills remain, there will always be firewood to burn. Li Qi will not easily bury himself in such a place. He must do good deeds within his means. He still has a bright future ahead of him and cannot die in such a place.

Li Qi firmly believed that if he lived, he could make up for any losses he suffered.

When he first came into this world, he was illiterate, could not speak, and his body had never practiced Cultivation Method. He was extremely weak, but he still managed to survive. Apart from luck, he relied on this belief.

"Haha, Master also said that I was indeed a bit reckless, but things have come to this point, where is there time to think about it? If I had stopped to observe and consider things, I'm afraid even more people would have died," Zhang Lan replied.

"That's why your conduct is admirable. Compared to my hesitant and fearful approach, your straightforwardness and integrity are far superior. You are a true hero," Li Qi said.

Zhang Lan shook his head and waved his hands repeatedly. "It's just a reckless act. All I can do is fight and kill. How can I compare to your wisdom, sir? You resolved the crisis with a single move and handled all the troubles afterwards perfectly. These are things I could never do."

Li Qi repeatedly declined, saying, "After much deliberation, it's nothing more than a lack of courage and an indecisive act."

Zhang Lan was about to speak again.

But at this moment, Shen Shuibi spoke up, interrupting their conversation.

The rabbit looked puzzled. She tilted her head and asked in a questioning tone, "Um... you guys, belittling yourselves and praising each other, do you think it's fun? Or is it part of the Sacrificial Ritual?"

It was clear that she was genuinely confused.

Upon hearing this, the two men who were still pretending to be serious were immediately speechless, their faces embarrassed and their expressions subtle.

"Ha ha ha ha--"

"Hahaha..."

Then, the two of them burst into awkward laughter at the same time.

Halfway through my awkward laugh, I realized the other person was making the same reaction, so I had no choice but to stop awkwardly.

Shen Shuibi, standing to the side, frowned, her watery eyes filled with confusion.

What are these two people doing?

Seeing Shen Shuibi's expression, the two men were genuinely amused and burst into laughter.

"Alright, you don't need to call me senior. Since we hit it off immediately, let's address each other as equals!" Zhang Lan said decisively after laughing.