"Di Zhong Xue Tai, what is this?"
Even though he was knowledgeable and had seen many methods of the underworld, the scene before him left Ji Xiang speechless for a moment. Maintaining his Shadow God form, he attached himself to the darkness within the mountains and forests, staring intently at this bizarre spectacle.
The color of the vegetable leaves was also wrong. The roots of the leaves were a vibrant blood red, which was why such things were beneath them. Whether people were cultivated into vegetables or some spiritual herb was transformed into flesh, this method was inconceivable and had reached a point of completely disregarding life and death, and despising the yin and yang.
The King of Joseon's eyes widened, his tired expression vanishing, replaced by one of ecstatic joy.
"He didn't lie to me, it's true!"
"This reincarnated blood fetus already has a soul!"
"What that Celestial Venerable told me is indeed real. They have indeed planted countless such seeds here during this long battle...! The Japanese pirates killed our people and abducted hundreds of thousands of them eastward, seizing our national destiny, our subjects, and even the spirits of the dead to turn them into ghosts and gods in their hands!"
"Thank you, Celestial Venerable, for telling me this. But there's no need to fear now. These blood fetuses will grow strong and become our new subjects."
The King of Joseon's expression turned completely mad. He cut his finger, and a drop of blood fell to the ground. The blood fetus moved forward, licking away the soil stained with the blood. Immediately, the face of this blood child began to change, gradually resembling the King of Joseon.
"With you, you will be absolutely loyal to me. I will find an opportunity to kill all those ministers in the court, hehe.... Then, you can drink their blood and take their forms."
"I remember the Celestial Venerable said that this thing will resemble whoever's blood it drinks. The more it drinks, the more similar it becomes. Drinking the blood of scholars will make it able to read, drinking the blood of artisans will make it skilled in craftsmanship, drinking the blood of soldiers will make it adept at wielding weapons, drinking the blood of men will make it male, and drinking the blood of women will make it female."
"The underworld has sent me a large number of reincarnated blood fetuses. They are absolutely loyal to me and will become my... new subjects. They will not betray, they have no ulterior motives. Thus, ruler and minister, ruler and people, can achieve perfect harmony, all souls as one."
The King of Joseon dug out more blood fetuses. After these fetuses crawled out of the ground, they all stared at the King of Joseon, seemingly asking for blood. The previous blood fetus that drank the King of Joseon's blood had already begun to grow and lengthen, transforming from an infant's appearance to that of a seven or eight-year-old child.
This blood child uttered an unintelligible sound from its mouth, like the howl of a beast, yet also like the piercing shriek of a ghost. The other blood fetuses, hearing the blood child's cry, began to clap their hands, bow their heads to this child, and then kowtow to the King of Joseon, expressing their loyalty.
"Good, good, good, all of you may rise..... You will be needed soon."
"I need to replace a few important court officials first....."
The King of Joseon's ambition swelled, and he began to chuckle madly again. Ji Xiang narrowed his eyes and, in his Shadow God form, approached these blood fetuses.
*Crack!*
In an instant, the blood child suddenly turned its head and waved its hand towards Ji Xiang's location. Although it didn't hit Ji Xiang, it made Ji Xiang's gaze sharpen.
Young children can see wandering spirits and even divine manifestations in the sky that adults cannot. Therefore, children are the most spiritually attuned because they have not been in the world for long, and the innate vital energy within them has not been tainted by the mortal world, allowing them to resonate with heaven and earth. This is why all cultivation must begin from childhood, and those with extraordinary talent.
Unexpectedly, this kind of blood child could also have some sense of him, who had transformed into a Shadow God.
Ji Xiang couldn't help but look up at the dim sky.
Muttering thunder began to sound. The blood children seemed to fear the sound of thunder and began to retreat into the pits from which they were dug. Only the grown blood child did not go back, but it also moved closer to the King of Joseon, like an innocent and ignorant young child tugging at their parents' clothes, appearing weak and pitiful.
"What does heaven and earth mean?"
"This kind of thing is a species born from reversing the natural laws of yin and yang, and also from abandoning the heavenly dao. However, the sky only thunders without lightning, indicating that the evil nature of this thing is not enough to provoke the wrath of heaven."
"And as a product of this reversal of yin and yang, can such monstrous children faintly sense me, who has transformed into a Shadow God? Do these children have innate vital energy within their bodies, or do they possess some ability from their reincarnation in the underworld?"
Ji Xiang's killing intent gradually arose!
The thunder in the sky was a warning, but the absence of lightning meant there was no intent to kill. It implied that as long as these things did not commit evil, heaven and earth would tolerate their existence. However, their very appearance was an artificial product created by the underworld, and they were born into this world with their own purposes.
Such beings, having already set their sights on killing others and replacing them, how could they possibly not commit evil!
Moreover, the heaven and earth of Joseon were not the heaven and earth of the Great Ming, and he had no restraints here!
The moment Ji Xiang's killing intent arose, the blood child shivered violently. It could sense Ji Xiang's "existence." It understood that there was a greater "existence" around him looking at him!
And wanting to kill him!
The blood child's face instantly turned fearful, appearing cowardly.
Ghosts and monsters are unfathomable to humans, and so are gods and demons to ghosts and monsters!
Humans cannot see ghosts and monsters, and ghosts cannot see gods and demons. Gods and demons are to ghosts and monsters as ghosts and monsters are to humans, all being unfathomable and elusive existences.
"Die...."
Just as Ji Xiang was about to act, the blood child slowly knelt down in Ji Xiang's direction and performed a ritual of three kowtows and nine bows.
This made Ji Xiang pause his raised hand.
Then, he shifted his target.
A thunderous roar suddenly shook heaven and earth!
The King of Joseon's mind was struck as if by a heavy blow. He fell to the ground, stunned by the sound of thunder. The blood fetuses also poked their heads out of their respective pits, with vegetable leaves on their heads, curiously watching the unfolding scene.
Before the blood child's eyes.
A tall shadow rose from the ground, manifesting in its eyes.
"From today onwards, your master is not him, but me. If you are willing, then kowtow once more."
Ji Xiang said this to the blood child, and the latter, without hesitation, performed another ritual of three kowtows and nine bows.
"Heaven gives birth to all things....."
"You possess intelligence, know good and evil, and understand right and wrong. Although I am a celestial demon, I am not one who kills indiscriminately. Since you beg for mercy, I will not act. However, the underworld sending you to reincarnate must have its own purposes. Therefore, I will not let you go. You must follow by my side."