Chapter 901 — Strangers in the Cell

"Ha, old rivals!

" At the source of the Yong River, a host of ghosts—handsome men and beautiful women—drifted along, leading tens of thousands of Wasteland folk to the riverbank, just as another group of men and women arrived with their own migrating people. Among these handsome and beautiful ghosts were a few old men and women. Catching sight of the youths across the way—tall and short, fat and thin, fair and ugly—the ghosts could not help but beam with delight, and they all began to tease: "You dead old ghosts of the Hall of Human Sovereigns, look at you now, strutting out in human form!

" Those strangely featured youths were none other than the successive Human Sovereigns of the Hall of Human Sovereigns—Qikang, Yishan, the Second Ancestor, the Third Ancestor, and the rest. When "Heavenly Venerable Yu" and the gods of the Heavenly Court descended, they had gone deep into the Wasteland to find its people and send them from the Yong River to Jingping. They had come here and happened upon the ghosts of the Dark Demon Cult Masters of past generations, who were likewise escorting Wasteland folk to Jingping for refuge. Yishan, short and stout, planted his hands on his hips and sneered: "We're dead old ghosts?

We're alive and well right now—it's you Dark Demon Cult people who are the dead old ghosts! Not one of you even has a physical body. What are you doing out here wandering about? Hand these people over to us and hurry back to Fengdu to save your skins!

" Qikang sneered: "No physical bodies—careful you don't die without even knowing how you died! " "Bah, bah!

Children's words carry no ill omen—great fortune, great prosperity! " The Dark Demon Cult Masters laughed: "You hotheaded greenhorns of the Hall of Human Sovereigns, we dead folk are magnanimous and won't stoop to your level. The sour stench of you living people makes us want to vomit. " The Hall of Human Sovereigns and the Dark Demon Cult spat at each other in mutual contempt, one gob of phlegm after another, spraying back and forth.

They had been the overlords of Fengdu to begin with, forever fighting one another, and in life they had likewise found each other unbearable.

Only when a Human Sovereign produced the Human Sovereign Seal would the Dark Demon Cult Masters settle down.

And when the Human Sovereign Seal was not produced, they would still brawl and bicker. The young Ancestor Master said hastily: "We're all doing this for the Wasteland folk. Quarrel a little less.

The Yuan Realm is full of war right now—escorting these mortals is what matters.

" The Fifth Ancestor sneered: "Wen Yuan, you're all dead ghosts. What ability do you have to transport so many people? " The ghosts of the Dark Demon Cult Masters laughed in unison and each performed a technique, saying with one voice: "We have the Five Ghosts Transportation Art, teleportation formations, and the Earth Travel Art, the Water Escape Art, the Mountain Moving Art.

With the Cult Masters of past generations joining hands, never mind tens of thousands—we could move hundreds of thousands, even millions!

You people of the Hall of Human Sovereigns are dumb, big, crude, and dark, and the Hall's cultivation methods are just as dumb, big, crude, and dark. What skill could you possibly have?

" The many Human Sovereigns all laughed and each displayed their divine powers. Some took out a leaf, breathed on it, and transformed it into a green boat hundreds of zhang long; some shook their bodies and turned into long dragons; some conjured clouds beneath their feet and had the people stand upon them.

The various divine powers and Daoist arts dazzled the eye. The Dark Demon Cult Masters looked at one another. "These dumb, big, crude, dark fellows have lived another life, and their divine powers have actually become refined. " They transported the Wasteland folk downriver, and the two sides still spat saliva at each other, bah-ing back and forth. The young Ancestor Master was helpless and could only let them be. Along the way, they encountered gods and demons of the Heavenly Court.

The Human Sovereigns and Dark Demon Cult Masters stopped quarreling. If the enemy was few, they would surge forward all at once—the Human Sovereigns fighting head-on while the Dark Demon Cult Masters used underhanded tricks. If the enemy was many, they would use teleportation divine powers to move the people and flee. The journey had been fairly safe, except that the primordial spirits of the Dark Demon Cult Masters grew dimmer and dimmer.

"You've been away from Fengdu too long.

" Human Sovereign Qikang said: "Ancestor Master Wen Yuan, you should all go back.

If you keep wearing yourselves down, your souls will scatter and your spirits disperse.

" The young Ancestor Master shook his head.

Before he could speak, Dark Demon Cult Masters Zuyang, Yulian, Si Yuanwei, and the others began scolding him all at once, arguing until Human Sovereign Qikang's head spun. Suddenly, the corpses of divine dragons and gods and demons floated on the river's surface. The Dragon Palace at the river's bottom had been smashed—clearly a great army of the Heavenly Court had attacked the Dragon Palace of the Yong River, and those gods and demons must have been Heavenly soldiers and generals who died in battle. Divine fire still burned on the river's surface, and the river water could not put it out.

On the bank lay damaged tower ships.

The Heavenly Court's soldiers and generals must have encountered powerful members of the Dragon Clan here, and their casualties had been heavy as well.

The Dark Demon Cult Masters burrowed into the corpses of those Heavenly soldiers and generals, dancing and capering in bizarre forms, then gathered around a massive Heavenly Court tower ship, hammering and clanking as they did carpentry. These Dark Demon Cult Masters were deft and quick, and to the Human Sovereigns' astonishment they soon repaired the Heavenly Court tower ship.

The Dark Demon Cult Masters stood at the bow performing their arts, transporting the people onto the ship. "You're in luck!

" They said with beaming faces: "We are the great army of the Heavenly Court, and you are our prisoners. We're escorting you on your way! " The tower ship rose into the air, and the banners of the Heavenly Court's army were unfurled.

They headed east, and along the way they saw more and more Heavenly Court warships emerging from the void amid the bursting bloody light of one flesh-and-blood sacrifice after another.

Their hearts grew heavier. They encountered a migrating group, and those escorting these mortals were divine power users from the Heavenly Sage Academy.

The scholars of the Heavenly Sage Academy told them: "A ghost named Lingjing helped us. Only because of that were we able to make it here alive. " "And Daoist Lingjing?

" The scholars said nothing. They carried these refugees onward, and again they encountered a young Daoist leading people who had come out of the Wasteland, struggling along.

That young Daoist was Dao Master Lin Xuan.

"Stinking Daoist, ox-nose, even more disgusting than the dumb, big, crude, dark Human Sovereigns!

" The Dark Demon Cult Masters scoffed at the Daoist sect's Dao Master, but still let Daoist Lin Xuan bring those refugees aboard. "You can escort these people to the Peach Grove of my Daoist Academy.

" Dao Master Lin Xuan took off his Daoist crown. It was full of blood. He said: "In the Peach Grove is Heavenly Venerable Moon.

Though she does not interfere in worldly affairs, the Peach Grove can protect them. You can also send them to Qingyun Heaven.

Qingyun Heaven is a branch of the Heavenly Court's Daoist sect, and it is relatively stable there. I have already ordered the Daoist sect's disciples to go to Qingyun Heaven and have them send the people near the Yong River to Qingyun Heaven to escape the war.

Qingyun Heaven has twenty-four divine kingdoms that can keep them safe.

" "The ox-nose isn't too bad after all.