Chapter 1095, The Bloodstained Statue

Translator: Silavin

 

“This is…” Even Ye Wuxian, who had entered first, stood momentarily dumbstruck, her gaze fixed upon the breathtaking scene ahead.

 

For there, upon the wall before her, stood an enormous statue of incomprehensible scale.

 

The statue depicted a nine-headed giant serpent. Its body was coiled upon itself and all nine heads reared upward as it gazed down over the open ground before it.

 

The stone used to carve the statue was nothing particularly special in terms of material.

 

Using Appraisal to scan it, the group determined it was nothing more than ordinary bluestone.

 

And yet, this statue could not possibly be as simple as it appeared.

 

For the moment she stepped inside, Ye Wuxian had caught the scent of blood.

 

As she looked carefully in the lantern light, she could see exactly where that bloodied scent was coming from.

 

Across the floor before the statue, and across the nine heads of the statue itself, blood stained every surface. They were dried, congealed remnants of what had once flowed freely.

 

There was no telling how many years had passed since blood spilled here yet even now, the air was still permeated by a faint, persistent metallic sting that rose into the nose and stung one’s tastebuds.

 

It was difficult to imagine just how much blood must have been spilt to have soaked into the stone so thoroughly that even now, after all this time, the stench lingered. Despite the blood itself having faded almost into the stone itself, the smell continued to saturate the sealed chamber without pause.

 

This could only have come about through the accumulation of years upon years of blood being shed in this very place.

 

And yet these bloodstains appeared upon a statue carved from what seemed to be ordinary bluestone. How was that even possible?

 

Ye Wuxian felt certain that this statue could not, in its day, have been as simple as it now appeared.

 

She could almost see it, even from this lifeless hunk of stone, the terrifying creature it must once have been. It might have been right here in this very place, tearing and gnawing at the desperate Players, bathing the sealed chamber in blood, until they too became part of the pervasive metal smell in the air.

 

But what had happened to this statue, that it had come to look so ordinary and unremarkable?

 

As Ye Wuxian stood in contemplation, Jian Ying and the others entered the sealed chamber.

 

The moment they stepped in, everyone furrowed their brows. They were assaulted by the oppressive stench of blood.

 

“What the heck is this place? Why does it smell so bad?” Tao Zi pinched her nose and could not help but complain. “It feels like walking into a slaughterhouse. The smell is too much.”

 

Han Ke lifted her miniaturised Moon up, bathing the space in brighter light.

 

Back when she had run the Bun Shop, she had handled all the shopping and cooking herself, and places like slaughterhouses had been no strangers to her.

 

And so, when it came to the smell of blood, her tolerance was considerably higher than that of the others.

 

She looked over the situation here and frowned. “I have a feeling that too many people have died here… The power of my moonlight conflicts with things like Resentment Qi, so I am rather sensitive to it. I have never seen a place where so many people have died in one spot. The resentment here is extraordinary. And this is after an unknown number of years. The Resentment Qi has already dispersed, and is far from its peak intensity. But, if it had been at its peak, this place might well have given rise to some Ghost Type Monsters…”

 

Qin Qiu listened, astonished, and instinctively asked. “Sister Han, can you tell how many people died here?”

 

Han Ke smiled and shook her head. “How could I possibly tell? But I’m sure that it must be more than five digits. Otherwise, after all this time, the Resentment Qi wouldn’t still be this strong.”

 

“And this Resentment Qi…” Han Ke’s gaze settled on the nine-headed serpent statue. “It’s all concentrated on that statue. It seems that back in those days, it was this statue that slaughtered all those people…”

 

“How is that possible?” Tao Zi looked the statue up and down. “This statue is just an ordinary statue. There’s nothing special about it. If it were some kind of special stone, it might have had the potential to transform into a Monster. Even if something truly powerful had died here, it ought to have transformed into some kind of special crystal stone.”

 

“Even a Level 100 Monster would leave behind a carcass that would be far from this kind of ordinary stone. From what we can all see, this statue really does appear to be nothing more than a plain, ordinary statue… It’s more likely that someone killed the Players and smeared their blood across this statue, which is what created this scene. I just don’t think there’s anything special about this statue.”

 

“Killed people and smeared their blood across its entire body!?” Jian Ying, who had not said much until now, murmured in thought. “What you’re describing sounds like some kind of ritual sacrifice.”

 

Tao Xiaoman nodded. “That’s exactly what I thought. A statue like this must have been used for some kind of ritual. Beyond that, I can’t see what other purpose it could have served.”

 

At that moment, however, Han Ke offered a different perspective.

 

“I don’t see it that way. I can sense that all the Resentment Qi is all directed at this statue. If these people had been killed by someone else who then smeared their blood across the floor and the statue, the target of their Resentment Qi ought to have been that person, not this statue. I can confirm that these people were indeed slain by this statue itself. As for why the statue appears so ordinary now… I don’t know. But I should not be wrong.”

 

Ye Wuxian considered this for a moment, then said to the group. “Sister Han’s Ancient God Power leans toward Support. In terms of perception, she ought to be better than any of us. Since she says the Resentment Qi is directed at this statue, it shouldn’t be wrong. I do believe that back in the day, this statue must be a living entity. It slaughtered so many Players, leaving behind so much blood and resentment. As for why it is now nothing but ordinary stone… I think that’s precisely what makes it so terrifying.”

 

Jian Ying considered for a moment. “What you mean is, the statue was merely a vessel, that some entity used it to descend here, where the Tie Family worshipped it.”

 

“And afterwards, it departed?”

 

“And what’s more, it was able to descend using nothing but ordinary stone, and upon leaving, it left behind not a trace of energy, leaving no possibility for anyone to uncover even the smallest clue of its existence.”

 

Ye Wuxian gave a small nod. “That is precisely what I mean. In truth, any Divine Being could use a vessel to manifest at a given location. But, when such Divine Beings conclude their manifestation and depart, the vessels they used tend to be altered by the lingering influence of their power, transforming into exceptionally High Grade materials. But this statue is different. It remains ordinary, which indicates that whatever entity used it as a vessel, possessed power far surpassing those Divine Beings we know of…”