Rather than saying the three of them were holding flowers, it would be more accurate to say the flowers had grown inside their chests, replacing the place where their hearts were.
The flower's heart is a miniature human head and face, its lips twitching in a happy smile.
"The finest red lotus is so beautiful, so incredibly red!" the villagers exclaimed, mesmerized.
"No matter how many times I see the exquisite red lotus, I am always captivated by its beauty." Village Chief Bai sighed, then looked at the remaining four people, "Where are your lotuses?"
Li Ren took out a tiny lotus flower that was only half-open from his pocket. "This is mine."
Village Chief Bai wore a look that suggested something was amiss.
Seeing that Village Chief Bai only looked disgusted but didn't say anything, Li Ren was completely relieved.
Yaya and Su Cheng presented a red lotus that had bloomed from an ordinary lotus seed, which received a lukewarm evaluation from Village Chief Bai: "Ordinary, nothing special."
Next came Hao Ruoxue's red lotus. Village Chief Bai and the villagers stared intently at it, and all sighed with regret.
"This top-grade red lotus is just a little short of perfection; it's such a pity!"
After inspecting everything, Village Chief Bai waved and walked ahead, " The Grand Ceremony of Sacrifice to the God is ready on the riverbank. Tourists, please follow me."
Village Chief Bai and several tall, strong villagers walked at the front, while the rest of the villagers walked at the back, surrounding the seven tourists in the middle.
As for the fact that there were eight tourists at the beginning, but now there are only seven, the Village Chief Bai and the villagers do not care.
It seems this is not within their scope of concern.
They were the only pedestrians on the empty, muddy road; the houses on both sides were quiet.
The Grand Ceremony of Sacrifice to the God was extremely important to Honglian. The entire village, young and old, had already gathered on the riverbank, waiting for the ceremony to begin.
Daochenzi stood on the high platform that had been built. The wind blowing from the riverbank fluttered his wide robes, and his calm and composed demeanor made him seem like an immortal to the villagers.
He slowly looked at Village Chief Bai and the crowd behind him who were walking towards him, somewhat dissatisfied that there were only three sacrificial red lotuses.
But then his brow relaxed. Well, while offerings were more effective, live sacrifices weren't bad either.
Even if they don't become nourishment for the red lotus, coming here still means certain death.
Thinking this, Daochenzi's gaze swept over Su Cheng at the end of the line, and he felt even more relieved.
After the ceremony, her body will belong to him.
The crowd spontaneously made way for Village Chief Bai.
Village Chief Bai bowed respectfully to Daochenzi, "Master, everyone is here. The Grand Ceremony of Sacrifice to the God can begin."
Daochenzi nodded.
Village Chief Bai shouted, " The Grand Ceremony of Sacrifice to the God begins!"
"No noise is allowed during the subsequent spirit-invitation period. Anyone who makes a disturbance will bear the consequences!"
The villagers exchanged glances, then tightly shut their mouths. Adults covered the mouths of children, their eyes filled with a mixture of fear and reverence.
Daochenzi on the platform had already begun performing the ritual.
On the altar, white candles burned before the statue of the two-headed infant, and thick black blood was poured onto the statue, only to be absorbed in an instant.
Daochenzi, clutching the yellow talisman, mumbled obscure words...
Suddenly, a strong wind picked up on the river, and everyone's hearts tightened.
The river god is coming soon...
The wind grew stronger, making everyone's clothes rustle and stirring up dust that made it hard for people to open their eyes.
Suddenly, a sharp, wailing cry mingled with the sound of the wind—the cry of a baby.
"Waaaaah..."
"Waaaaah..."
The cries of babies came from the depths of the river, rising and falling, as if they were crying with all their might, their cries mournful and pitiful.
The villagers turned pale, closed their eyes tightly, and hugged those around them, silently praying for safety.
With a "splash," a human figure formed by the flowing water emerged from the river.
It was filled with wisps of resentment, and the baby's cries were coming from within it.
It stared intently at Daochenzi and Bai Yaozu, who was bowing his head beside him.
The hatred was about to materialize.
Daochenzi frowned, then calmed himself down, shook the peach wood sword with the talisman attached, and struck the two-headed infant statue.
"Offer sacrifices!"
Aunt Jin, Wei Guhua, and Yao Yue walked forward in unison, straight onto the altar.
The three knelt at the edge of the altar and forcefully pulled the red lotus from their chests.
"Pfft—" Blood splattered.
At the base of the lotus flower lies a bloody, still-beating heart.
They held the red lotus high above their heads like sacrificial offerings, requesting to be served.
Shuiying stepped forward, opened her mouth, and swallowed Hua Daixin whole. As she chewed, blood fell like raindrops into the dark river.
With their hearts ruptured, Aunt Jin and the other two collapsed to the ground, lifeless.
The water reflection spat out three bones that looked like fruit pits.
The bones, shaped like a human face, rolled and tumbled onto the altar, inside which lay a soul howling in despair...
"Thank you, River God, for bestowing lotus seeds." Daochenzi's lips curved into a smile. He turned around, "Next batch of offerings!"
Hao Ruoxue, Li Ren, Yaya, and " Su Cheng " walked stiffly out of the crowd.
From the start of the ceremony, they were locked in place. The powerful Pressure from the Water Shadow chilled them to the bone, and they could only watch helplessly as Aunt Jin and the others died.
It also witnessed the birth of a special lotus variety.
It turns out the Vengeful Ghost hidden in the lotus seed was the previous person who was sacrificed!
Before they could even be shocked, they heard Daochenzi's words, and then their feet moved forward uncontrollably.
It was thought that only those controlled by the Supreme Red Lotus would be in danger, but it's clear that this isn't the case now.
Will the Mizukage rip out their hearts and eat them?
Judging from Daochenzi's expression, the answer was yes.
Perhaps the reason why Village Chief Bai never resorted to radical measures from beginning to end was that the sacrificial offerings didn't necessarily have to be top-quality lotus flowers; a living person's heart could be a secondary option...
Sensing their fear, Daochenzi smiled, but his smile froze on his face the next second, because he noticed that the woman who had been keeping her head down was acting strangely.
The woman looked up at him under his intense gaze and smiled.
Daochenzi's breath hitched. She wasn't Su Cheng; she was the Vengeful Ghost who had led him away from the ancestral hall yesterday!
Su Cheng actually managed to break free and even switched places with a ghost right under his nose!!
She's not here, where could she have gone?
Daochenzi looked in the direction of the ancestral hall, and whether it was his imagination or not, he heard the "river god" behind him let out a short, playful laugh.
His heart skipped a beat, and he unconsciously gripped the peach wood sword in his hand, as if something was trying to escape his control...
After Village Chief Bai shouted " The Grand Ceremony of Sacrifice to the God begins," Su Cheng felt a powerful binding force that froze her in place.
Not only her, but Hao Ruoxue and the others around her also froze instantly.
This was not a good sign, but at the same time she realized it was an opportunity— Daochenzi and Bai Yaozu would temporarily relax their control and devote themselves fully to the ceremony.
After breaking free from her restraints using the White Qi and jade pendant Su Cheng immediately ran towards the ancestral hall.
The villagers, with their eyes closed in tension, were completely unaware of this sudden turn of events.
In addition, she had Mu Ling take the blame in order to maintain the number of tourists and prolong the time it took for Daochenzi to find out.
After using the Omnipotent Key to open the wooden door of the ancestral hall, Su Cheng went to the backyard again.
But this time, what awaited her was not just a dry well, but three zombies!
As soon as she appeared, the three zombies seemed to be activated by some kind of command, leaping to her front and launching a swift attack with their hard and sharp arms.
Su Cheng dodged quickly, swinging her boning knife to block.
The blade only left a mark on the zombie's arm. And the Fire-Attracting Art was extinguished by the poisonous mist spewed from their mouths.
Three zombies attacked together. Su Cheng dodged the spiked armor and then used her boning knife to parry and create distance.
The zombie's fingernails contained corpse poison, so Su Cheng was extra careful not to get pricked easily.
Once infected with the corpse virus, even with Self-Healing abilities, her attack capabilities will be affected to some extent.
These three zombies, carefully selected and refined by Daochenzi, were incredibly powerful. Even with the double blessing of the boning knife and the jade pendant, Su Cheng couldn't defeat them in a short time.
A bead of sweat appeared on Su Cheng's nose.
She calmed herself and focused all her energy on severing a zombie's arm.
As the blue ghostly flames successfully spread and burned, he quickly channeled White Qi into his Third Aunt's body.
She wanted to awaken her Third Aunt's Remnant Soul.
The Third Aunt is the most agile and difficult to deal with among the three zombies. Her moves are ruthless and deadly, and she nearly slashed Su Cheng's eyes several times during sneak attacks.
Layers of White Qi enveloped and isolated the Remnant Soul of the Third Aunt from the corpse's aura.
Third Aunt's attacks became hesitant, and without her restraint, Su Cheng dealt with the remaining zombies.
" Third Aunt? Third Aunt, wake up!" Su Cheng shouted, speeding up the transmission of White Qi.
Making the most of these past two days to store up White Qi was definitely the right choice.
The Remnant Soul of the Third Aunt solidified slightly and overflowed from the corpse, floating faintly in the air.
She looked completely bewildered, her gaze towards Su Cheng unfamiliar.
Su Cheng sighed, understanding that Remnant Soul could never compare to a complete soul immediately after death.
Remnant Soul will forget many things, even how it died.
Third Aunt should have been like the other two zombies, her soul scattered upon being refined, but her years of cultivation allowed her to retain a last Remnant Soul.
" Third Aunt, I am Su Cheng, your nominal disciple. You and Senior Sister Qingya taught me the Fire-Attracting Art." Su Cheng pointed to the ashes left after the zombie was burned on the ground and continued, "This is Red Lotus Village. After you died, you were turned into a zombie by Daochenzi. Is Senior Sister Qingya still alive? Where is she?"
Third Aunt was lost in memories. Her confused eyes cleared a little. She looked at Su Cheng deeply, but didn't say anything. Suddenly, she turned into a white light and entered Su Cheng's brow.
Su Cheng did not dodge; she detected no malice from the white light.
A cool sensation ran through her brow; she saw her Third Aunt's past life and the reason she had come here.