Chapter 61: The Human-Faced Dog
Ren Qing arrived at the entrance of the Rope Knot Cave to find Lin Cheng on the verge of death.
Lin Cheng’s skin was covered in large, charred burns. His right arm was missing, and Sun Yishan had severed the tendons in both his legs.
Even though he was less than a hundred meters from the Forbidden Soldier Hall, he lay paralyzed in the acidic water, closing his eyes in despair.
Physical exhaustion was one factor, but the main cause was excessive blood loss.
Although he had relied on his powerful Life Force to barely stop the bleeding, his injuries were simply too severe. The hundred-meter distance seemed like an insurmountable gulf.
Meanwhile, the Prison Guards he had killed not long ago were already in the process of reviving.
It was a clear sign that his Vitality was about to be extinguished.
As he lay dying, countless memories flashed through Lin Cheng’s mind like a revolving lantern. His final thought was of Ren Qing, whom he had met earlier, and he wondered if he had run into Sun Yishan.
"You’re not dead, are you?"
Lin Cheng was stunned for a few breaths before he managed to open his eyes, noticing Ren Qing squatting beside him.
"Looks like you’re still alive. Good."
Ren Qing grabbed Lin Cheng’s right foot and dragged him straight toward the Forbidden Soldier Hall, managing to leave the Rope Knot Cave just before the Prison Guards arrived.
As if experiencing a final burst of energy, Lin Cheng used all his strength to warn him, "Be careful. There’s a Cultivator who has mastered Wild Ox Strength. He kills and eats people."
"Don’t worry, he’s already dead."
Ren Qing wiped his Great Miao Blade dry with a cloth to prevent it from being damaged by corrosion.
Lin Cheng’s mouth fell open, speechless. He then noticed the bloodstains on Ren Qing’s clothes, which proved he had indeed been in a vicious fight.
Ren Qing spat out a mouthful of bloody saliva and couldn’t help but ask, "Can you hold on until we get out of the Forbidden Soldier Hall?"
Lin Cheng closed his eyes weakly. His internal organs were failing to varying degrees; the loss of his right arm, by contrast, was not life-threatening.
He said with a dim look in his eyes, "My injuries are too severe. My flesh and blood are still melting away. I probably won’t make it out."
Seeing this, Ren Qing asked, "What if you had food to replenish yourself?"
"That might work."
Lin Cheng suddenly seemed to realize something, and his expression turned extremely stiff.
’What food could there be inside the Forbidden Soldier Hall? That Sun Yishan forced his way through the Rope Knot Cave by eating human flesh.’
’Could it be...’
Ren Qing lifted Lin Cheng up. A mouth split open in the palm of his right hand, and he forcibly shoved a large number of pig eyes into the other man’s mouth.
Lin Cheng felt the foul, fishy stench of the pig eyes rush straight to his skull, and a wave of nausea washed over him. But to stay alive, he forced it down.
After replenishing himself with the food, his body began to produce new blood, and his injuries stopped worsening.
Lin Cheng managed to regain some of his energy, but he knew his internal organs were still failing. If this continued, he would still die.
"But your arm..."
"I practice the Snake Shedding Technique. Each time I break through to a new Realm, I undergo a Snake Shedding. Even if I’m left with only half my body, I can grow it back."
After Lin Cheng finished speaking, he suddenly noticed a strange look in Ren Qing’s eyes, like a butcher looking at meat on a chopping block.
However, the strange look vanished in an instant.
Ren Qing wanted to leave the Forbidden Soldier Hall as soon as possible, so he asked, "Lin Cheng, the exit to the Forbidden Soldier Hall should be at the ribs, right?"
"Yes. Before I left, my uncle told me to remember to collect a fragment of a rib, but I don’t know what it’s for."
"I see."
Ren Qing hoisted Lin Cheng up. The latter didn’t struggle, hanging limply over Ren Qing’s shoulder.
He had no intention of acquiring more Magic Techniques inside the Forbidden Soldier Hall. If it delayed his advancement to the Ghost Envoy Realm, the gain would not be worth the loss.
"By the way, you were in the Rope Knot Cave for so long. How did you not get corroded to death?"
Lin Cheng said with some guilt, "My uncle gave me an Elixir Pill. After taking it, I could stay in the Rope Knot Cave for several days."
"..."
Ren Qing’s mouth twitched. ’Song Zongwu is so unreliable. I came to the Forbidden Soldier Hall knowing absolutely nothing.’
’Anyone else would have died long ago.’
The two of them headed toward the ribs.
Ren Qing took advantage of the free moment to check the Mutated Tree for his Armor-Wearing Technique.
[Bone Armor User: Inner Bone Grows Outward]
[Spine User: Foreign Object Gestates Within]
[Bone Maker: Body’s Bones as Weapons]
He would have to ask Song Zongwu for the specific details before he could decide on the Mutated path for the Magic Technique.
The two passed through one Prison Cell after another. Inside were pieces of dust-covered furniture, suggesting that Forbidden Guards had once lived here long-term.
Lin Cheng explained in a low voice, "When a Forbidden Guard’s life is drawing to a close, they will choose a Prison Cell here and stay until they die."
Ren Qing, however, felt a chill run down his spine.
’Who the hell knows how many Mysterious Objects have been devoured by this Abi Hell.’
Just as Ren Qing was about to speak again, he suddenly stopped. Lin Cheng, who was draped over his shoulder, broke out in a cold sweat from the sudden jolt of pain.
"Wh-what’s wrong?"
Ren Qing adjusted Lin Cheng’s position. He could see a massive shadow on the corner wall not far away.
The shadow twisted with the flickering candlelight.
Ren Qing chose to take a detour, but the shadow also seemed to move, keeping parallel with them.
Lin Cheng sucked in a sharp breath and said, "There are indeed strange rules inside the Forbidden Soldier Hall."
"If you encounter a dog with a human face near the Prison..."
Lin Cheng continued, fear in his eyes, "You must not pay any attention to it, and don’t believe a word it says. Just ignore it and walk past."
Ren Qing nodded and walked on, his hand gripping the hilt of his blade.
The two quickly reached the corner. Just as they rounded it, a seven- or eight-meter-tall monster with a human face and a dog’s body appeared before them.
The human-faced dog’s head looked like that of a man in his seventies or eighties. Its skin was covered in deep wrinkles, and its eyes were filled with wisdom.
It truly had no intention of harming them; it even lowered its head fearfully.
Ren Qing’s muscles tensed, but the creature just stood there quietly.
Just as Ren Qing was about to brush past the human-faced dog, a low murmur flooded into his ears.
"Take the internal organs of a living person and have him consume them. If he loses his five viscera but does not die, boil him with medicinal herbs for thirty-six days, and it will cure the common cold..."
Ren Qing was a little surprised. The human-faced dog was spouting complete nonsense. Why would one use such a cruel method to cure a common cold?
When the voice faded, they looked back and found no trace of the human-faced dog, leaving them with an inexplicable feeling.
Ren Qing couldn’t help but ask, "What in the world was that?"
"It might be something similar to a Prison Guard. They only say things to lead people astray, but they don’t actually harm anyone."
After observing with his Double Pupils, Ren Qing saw that the human-faced dog’s form was rather ethereal. It had made no sound from its appearance to its disappearance.
He shook his head and said no more.
There were far too many secrets in the Forbidden Soldier Hall; even Song Zongwu probably didn’t know them all.
The two fell into silence. As they went deeper into the Prison, the ground began to slope upward. The ribs were not far off.
Lin Cheng’s face was pale from the internal bleeding. Even though Ren Qing had given him more pig eyes a few times, it was still not enough.
Seeing this, Ren Qing quickened his pace. It took them two or three hours to pass through the Prison Area.
During this time, he noticed Cultivators moving around the entrance to the Rope Knot Cave in the distance. They must have all taken Elixir Pills provided by the Forbidden Guards.
It seemed that when the Forbidden Soldier Hall selected its reserve members, the reason they had the gangs provide Cultivators was perhaps just to recycle Mysterious Objects.
The real candidates for the reserves were all relatives or acquaintances of the Forbidden Guards, like Lin Cheng.