Hell Emperor.

Chapter 572 Xia Wei - Rabbit Feet
"Where exactly are you taking me?"

Xia Wei frowned as Yao Bai led the two further and further away from the Moon Palace.

Looking around, all that could be seen was a desolate desert, barren land. It was impossible to know where the old moon rabbit that Yao Bai was searching for was.

"We'll be there soon, don't be impatient."

No matter how many times she asked, Yao Bai's answer was always the same. Xia Wei was getting a little impatient and was about to urge him when she suddenly heard Yao Bai say, "Do you see the cave ahead? She's right there."

The two quickened their pace and walked to the outside of the burrow. It looked like a rabbit hole, but much larger than a normal rabbit hole. The entrance alone was several meters wide.

Yao Bai was very familiar with this place, so he skipped and hopped inside. Xia Wei was not afraid at all and stepped into it with firm steps, only to find that the inside was a completely different world.

Ahead lay a wide, empty valley, where dark shadows could be faintly seen moving about. Upon closer inspection, they were clearly rabbits, but they looked quite different from the rabbits Xia Wei remembered. Their bodies were twisted and strange, some missing a leg, others with three eyes.

Xia Wei frowned: "They look... somewhat..."

"Ugly? Or disgusting?" Yao Bai added, uttering what she hadn't finished saying.

"No...it's just a little strange." Xia Wei shook her head. "Could it be that the moon rabbits of the Taiyin Land are different from the rabbits of the human world?"

Yao Bai also saw the moon rabbits and sighed, "No, when they were born, they were no different from rabbits in the human world."

"Then why did they become like this? Could it be that someone used the Moon Rabbit to cultivate evil magic, which turned them into this state?" Xia Wei pressed.

Yao Bai simply said, "It's the result of the pills... The alchemists in the palace are always developing new pill formulas. Those pills are unprecedented in the human world. The palace also forbids using alchemy boys to test pills, so we have to use the moon rabbit to try them out."

As he spoke, Yao Bai looked at a moon rabbit in front of him. Its once exquisite body now had two heads, and he lowered his lips, saying:
"Their luck was both good and bad. On the one hand, they survived the trial of the elixir and did not die on the spot. On the other hand, their bodies underwent permanent changes and could never return to their original state."

Xia Wei pursed her lips tightly: "How could this be... I knew it, those people there are a bunch of evil immortals, they even use the lifespan of living people to refine pills, what else are they not capable of!"

As the two arrived, the strange moon rabbits in the cave were startled and scattered, disappearing into the interconnected passageways on the back wall.

"The older Moon Rabbit we're looking for is inside one of the passages. I'm telling you beforehand, don't be scared by her appearance," Yao Bai warned.

On the way, after witnessing the miserable state of many moon rabbits, Xia Wei's anger burned even brighter, almost setting the entire sky ablaze.

Do you hate those alchemists?

Yao Bai scoffed: "Hate? If you have to hate someone, it's because I was born as a rabbit instead of a human."

Xia Wei looked at her and said, "Even if you are reincarnated as a human, the situation of these moon rabbits will not change."

Yao Bai lowered his head: "It's just that they were unlucky. Not all the moon rabbits that tested the pills turned into this. Some moon rabbits ate the elixir and ascended to heaven in broad daylight, transforming into palace maids."

Xia Wei continued, "Now that you have mastered the Thunder Control Treasure Mirror and grasped the true essence of thunder, with your strength, you are capable of standing up for your fellow clansmen. The oppression and injustice they have suffered must be avenged by you!"

Yao Bai, however, disagreed: "You're a strange person. You're clearly human, yet instead of helping those immortals, you're thinking of the Moon Rabbit. What are your intentions? What benefit do you get from doing this?"

A familiar face also surfaced in Xia Wei's mind: "My master taught me to fight to eliminate injustice, and that's what I did."

Yao Bai curled his lip and said, "Let's not even talk about this place. There are so many injustices in the world. Can you possibly manage them all?"

Xia Wei didn't answer. People had asked her the same question before.

Yao Bai blinked, his attention quickly diverted: "Speaking of which... your master is the one connected to me on the marriage register, right? When will I be able to meet him and travel to the mortal world together? I really hope that day comes soon... One day, I will leave this place completely and never come back."

Thinking of her master, Xia Wei felt a pang in her heart, wondering if he was doing well in the mortal world.

Soon, the tearing and scraping sound coming from ahead caught their attention. The sound was so piercing, like fingernails scraping against a wall.

"We've arrived. The Mother of Rabbits is right here."

As they crossed the passage, the terrifying thing ahead came into view.

It was a twisted mass of flesh, the flesh and blood like unrestrained liquid, writhing and squeezing repeatedly, and finally recombinating. It was changing with every breath, with various organs exposed. Strange limbs grew and disappeared in the flesh and blood, sometimes an eye, sometimes a section of spine.

Xia Wei took a deep breath: "Is she the oldest Moon Rabbit?"

A barely perceptible hint of resistance flashed in Yao Bai's eyes:
“Long ago, the alchemists in the palace concocted an elixir of immortality. Legend has it that as long as one consumes it, one can transcend life and death, undergo physical rebirth, and find one’s eternal true self. However, no one dared to verify the authenticity of the elixir’s effects, so they had to let the Moon Rabbit test it. As you have seen, the Mother Rabbit was the result of a failed rebirth. Her soul was forever imprisoned within her body, which was constantly on the verge of collapse, yet it was kept alive by the powerful effects of the elixir.”

Xia Wei was stunned. Such a tragic end could only be described as eternal torment. She wondered how much pain this lump of flesh had endured all this time. Just then, she heard a soft whisper in her ear:
"Xiaobai...you're back. We all missed you so much."

The voice was gentle and soothing, with a hint of care in it. Looking closely, it was clear that the one who spoke these words was the lump of minced meat in front of them.

Yao Bai lowered his head and said, "We are blocked by the Water Moon Illusion Array outside the Moon Palace and are looking for a way to break through."

The flesh was clearly minced, and from the writhing flesh grew a beautiful rabbit foot, which landed beside the two people with a heart-wrenching scream.

"Take this with you; it will help you pass through the illusion array..."

Rou Ni's voice trembled, as if she were enduring immense pain.

Yao Bai picked up the rabbit's foot, and Xia Wei, noticing something, asked, "Do you know each other?"

"How could I not recognize my own child?"

The meat paste's answer surprised Xia Wei slightly, as she had never heard Yao Bai mention such a thing before.

Yao Bai pursed his lips tightly, a hint of dissatisfaction flashing in his eyes, before speaking: "Perhaps I have found a way to free you."

Meatball's tone brightened with joy: "Really? That's wonderful! I don't know how long I've waited for that moment. Ever since I took the Immortal Elixir, I've endured immense pain every single moment. Please, let me be freed from this endless suffering..." Yao Bai nodded, raised her hand, and instantly, lightning crackled, the surging arcs almost completely shattering the entire rabbit hole. She then let out a delicate shout: "Five Thunderbolts!"

As soon as the words fell, a blazing electric current struck the fleshy pulp, cracking the surrounding walls as well. Before the rubble could fall, it was reduced to dust by the pure lightning. Anything struck by the Five Thunderbolts would turn to ashes in an instant.

Even Xia Wei was slightly surprised when she sensed the immortal technique used by Yao Bai. According to the records in the Thunder Control Treasure Mirror, the Five Thunder Orthodox Technique was already a top-level thunder-type technique. Even Xia Wei herself had not fully mastered it, but she did not expect that Yao Bai would use it.

The deafening roar sent countless moon rabbits scrambling out of their burrows. When the lightning subsided, the scene before him caused Yao Bai's eyes to tremble slightly: "How is this possible…"

Despite the great force of Yao Bai's attack, it was ineffective. Apart from a slight blackening on the surface, the flesh in front of him was completely intact and showed no signs of being freed.

"Even the Five Thunderbolts Orthodox Method couldn't free her..."

Yao Bai sighed in disappointment. He thought his strength was already quite formidable, but he still failed. This Immortal Pill, at least in this respect, was incredibly tenacious.

"Xiaobai, you don't need to be sad. I'm already very happy that you have this thought in your heart..."

Rou Ni's voice was hoarse, filled with unbearable pain. The Five Thunderbolts could not kill her, but the pain she was in was no less intense.

"Let me do it."

Xia Wei suddenly spoke, breaking the silence in the room.

Can you do it?

Yao Bai was surprised and then asked.

"Maybe... but I need to ask her first."

After saying that, Xia Wei's gaze fell on the minced meat in front of her: "Is this really what you want? Master always said that it's better to live a miserable life than to die a good death. Do you really want to be free? It's possible that even your soul will be scattered!"

Xia Wei's words did not dissuade Rou Ni from his plan; Rou Ni pleaded:

"But I have to be alive first. Look at me now, how can I be considered alive at all? I was already dead the moment I took the elixir of immortality. I've just been bound by the power of the elixir and have been suffering tormented ever since. I beg you to grant me release!"

Xia Wei remained silent, but her bright eyes flashed with a determined light: "You will not have died in vain. Xia Wei will seek justice for you!"

Having said that, a blazing silver light surged from the depths of Xia Wei's eyes, and brilliant arcs of electricity enveloped her entire body, then gathered at her fingertips, transforming into a breathtaking stream of light: "Soul-Destroying Lightning Tribulation!"

"What……"

Yao Bai's heart trembled slightly. This Soul-Destroying Lightning Tribulation was an unparalleled immortal technique recorded in the Thunder Control Treasure Mirror. Compared to the Soul-Destroying Lightning Tribulation, the Five Thunder Orthodox Method was like a toy in a child's hand, and could not be compared at all.

In a flash of light, the world seemed to lose its sound, and all that echoed in Yao Bai's ears was an extreme, silent tinnitus.

Under the bombardment of the light, the flesh shattered instantly, disintegrating without offering the slightest resistance, and vanished in the blink of an eye. Her last words before disappearing still lingered in everyone's ears.

"Thanks……"

Once the strange phenomenon subsided, Xia Wei's eyes were like iron, her back slightly hunched, her whole demeanor like a volcano that had been suppressed to its limit:
"Let's go, let's break the Water Moon Illusion Array."

…………

The Cave of Ten Thousand Snakes.

Once upon a time, Snake Valley provided the Snake Immortals with a geographical advantage, blocking attacks from enemy immortal sects. Now, however, it has been blasted open by a colossal creature.

"Serpent Envoy! Where are you? Show yourself at once!"

Xuanwu's angry eyes swept down, and the snake immortal who was preparing for the ceremony didn't even dare to breathe loudly.

"So what if it's a divine beast? Don't worry about it. When the snake god descends, you'll understand that the so-called divine beast is nothing but a paper tiger."

Seeing that the snake spirit inside the gate dared not move, in front of the altar in the center of the snake valley, the snake-shaped figure used its strength to lean on its staff, causing the fragments and withered bones hanging on the staff to vibrate continuously, emitting a disturbing noise.

All the snake immortals who heard the noise, whose gazes were originally sharp or fearful, now uniformly turned into a dazed look. Their immortal bodies seemed to move uncontrollably, completely ignoring Xuanwu and continuing with their work.

Xuanwu fixed his gaze on the snake staff in the hand of the snake-shaped envoy, which was emitting a demonic sound: "I have long heard that the snake-shaped envoys of the Beast Form Hall are most skilled at seducing others and forcing them to make wrong decisions under the influence of impure thoughts. Seeing it today, it is indeed true."

The kind-hearted Xuanwu was unwilling to kill the snake immortal who was being manipulated and had no control over his own life. Instead, he turned his resentful gaze to the mastermind behind it all, the snake-shaped envoy.

"Enough with the nonsense, I want to see just how powerful this so-called divine beast really is!"

The serpentine envoy leaped into the air, awaiting him a colossal pillar crashing down from the sky. With the power of the Xuanwu, even without using any techniques, his massive body alone was enough to crush his enemies into dust.

The serpentine envoy remained calm and unhurried, lightly tapping his serpent staff, and a grayish-white light began to spread continuously from the Xuanwu's feet.

It is unknown what the snake-like envoy did, but Xuanwu lost life in one leg and began to uncontrollably turn towards the stone, even the force of its fall was frozen in mid-air.

The serpentine envoy grinned maliciously, and the petrification trend was far from limited to just one foot. Once Xuanwu could not resist, the petrification would spread all the way until he was completely turned into stone and his name would be erased from the world.

"You dare to use such sorcery to embarrass yourself?"

Xuanwu narrowed his eyes slightly, and he could see the clues. The source of the petrification was the snake staff. The tip of the staff was directly facing the descending giant foot, and it was constantly pouring out demonic magic. He didn't know what the snake staff was made of.

This discovery caused Xuanwu to immediately change its form, no longer using its giant feet to trample the snake, but instead using its thick tortoise shell to counter it.

When the power of the serpent staff struck the tortoise shell behind Xuanwu, an unexpected scene unfolded for the serpent master. Instead of petrifying the tortoise shell, the serpent staff was deflected by the shell, and the petrification effect was transferred to him!

His robes lost their color, and his feet seemed rooted to the ground. The serpent wielder had trapped himself in his own cocoon, and he was in a very bad state. He immediately turned his serpent staff around to restore himself. However, the attack of the Black Tortoise did not stop. The top of the serpent wielder's head turned black, and a huge serpent mouth tore down from the sky. Even if there was a small mountain in front of him, it would be swallowed whole by the serpent mouth!
(End of this chapter)