Dreaming for 10,000 years

Chapter 206 Why

Cthugha, the living flame of the universe, symbolizes the ultimate forces of entropy and destruction.

His body is a huge plasma fireball with an internal temperature comparable to the core of a star. With just a thought, he can turn a blue planet into ashes.

He is Nyarlathotep's mortal enemy, and the struggle between the two spans the rise and fall of countless galaxies.

However, at this moment, Cthugha is sealed deep within the land of Shandong, like a giant elephant stuffed into a grain of dust.

This kind of seal is simply unbelievable.

When the old woman heard Shi Fei's words, the corners of her mouth slightly raised. She did not answer immediately, but the smile seemed to acquiesce in Shi Fei's guess.

Shi Fei continued, "There is a record in the Classic of Mountains and Seas that 'there is a person wearing green clothes, named Huangdi Nüba'. Therefore, the image of Nüba is a woman wearing green clothes."

What is even more incredible is that Cthugha's existence has been compressed, distorted, and even rewritten into another form.

A graceful woman dressed in green, the legendary Nüba of the Yellow Emperor.

The old woman still smiled slightly, and seemed very satisfied with Shi Fei's judgment.

Shi Fei couldn't help but ask: "What exactly happened?"

Why was the Old One, Cthugha the Living Flame, twisted into a slim woman in green?
What exactly happened in this?
Why could the ancients distort the Great Old Ones?
What secrets are there in this world?
The old woman's smile gradually faded, and her eyes became deep and distant, as if she was recalling a long-forgotten past. She slowly spoke in a low and hoarse voice:
"You asked a good question... but some truths may be more terrifying than you can imagine."

"How scary can it be?" Shi Fei said jokingly, "It can't be scarier than the nonsense that 'everything is Azathoth's dream', right?"

Hearing Shi Fei's words, the old woman's face changed, her back suddenly straightened, and her clothes fluttered without wind, as if she had touched upon some taboo.

"You..." The old woman hesitated, and finally shook her head, turned around and said, "Follow me!"

After saying that, she led the way in front. The group passed through a half-mile long dead locust tree forest. The withered yellow leaves made a crackling sound under their feet, and the air was filled with a decayed smell.

Soon, a dilapidated temple suddenly appeared in front of everyone. The plaque on the temple door still had the word "fire" in gold lacquer, and the broken mortise and tenon joints were covered with locust egg sacs.

Hastur suffered mental damage. Although the locust plague was temporarily quelled, there were still countless insect eggs on the land.

The carved lattice doors of the two side halls were hanging crookedly, with a half-broken peach wood sword inserted diagonally in the door gap. The hilt of the sword was wrapped with a faded five-colored rope, and a few rusty copper coins hung on the knot of the rope.

Most of the east side hall collapsed, and a few yellowed talisman papers were stuck on the ruins. Cinnabar runes were oozing asphalt-like black liquid, slowly dripping onto the ground.

Inside the main hall, the seven-foot-high altar was empty, and swarms of termites emerged from the cracked lotus patterns on the base, gnawing at the rotten wood. A suffocating sense of oppression permeated the air.

To Shi Fei's surprise, there was another person in the ruined temple.

Shi Fei had also seen that person, Yu Changsheng.

Yu Changsheng's Taoist bun was disheveled and his green shirt was stained with stains. He was kneeling beside a dying disaster victim.

He held a green talisman in his hand, with the four characters "太乙救苦" written in seal script on the talisman paper glowing faintly. He pressed the talisman paper against the victim's chest, and as soon as the talisman paper touched the skin, black and red flames rose up, and the seal characters twisted into strange flame symbols in the flames.

Yu Changsheng frowned, muttering something, and seven copper coins flew out of his sleeves and were nailed into the seven orifices of the victims. However, as soon as the coins entered the body, they melted into reddish-yellow copper liquid and flowed down the victims' cheeks. "Cough cough..." The victims suddenly coughed violently, spitting out a mouthful of black blood with insect eggs, and the buzzing sound of locusts flapping wings came from their chests.

Yu Changsheng staggered back, and the yellow talisman in his sleeve ignited without wind. The flames burned his Taoist robe, leaving scorch marks in the shape of the twenty-eight constellations, and a burnt smell filled the air.

"How could it be?" Yu Changsheng frowned and looked at the victims. He heard footsteps and looked up to see the old woman, Shi Fei and others.

"Chen Miaozhu! Immortal Shi!" A hint of surprise flashed across his eyes, and then turned into ecstasy: "Is Immortal Shi also here for this natural disaster?"

Hearing Yu Changsheng calling Shi Fei Mr., the old woman called Chen Miao Zhu glanced at Shi Fei.

"I'm not an immortal, but I did come here because of this natural disaster!" Shi Fei nodded.

He originally thought that the drought in Shandong was nothing more than the displacement of people and the struggle of the people, and that he might be able to organize production and rebuild his homeland. But the scorched earth before him showed no displacement, no struggle, only dead silence.

"What's wrong with him?" Shi Fei squatted down and gently pressed his palm on the victim's chest.

The pure Qi rushed like a river, but the moment it touched the victims' bodies, it caused strange changes. The victims' bodies turned into green flames in the Qi, and countless locusts swarmed out from their seven orifices, with a harsh sound of flapping wings.

"..." Shi Fei sighed and withdrew his hand, leaving burn marks on his palm.

"He was extremely hungry and ate locusts to fill his stomach. Then he encountered a fire demon." Yu Changsheng said hoarsely, "I want to give it a try. Maybe there is still hope."

He knew that the victim's internal organs had already been eaten away by the locusts and his vitality had been taken away by the fire demon, leaving only a layer of human skin.

But he still wanted to try.

Otherwise, what's the point of him coming to this scorched earth?
"Is there anyone alive on this scorched earth?" Shi Fei looked around. The dead locust tree forest made rustling sounds in the wind.

The old woman sat on a rickety armchair, the carvings on the legs of which had long been eaten away by insects.

Her skinny fingers stroked the red flame pattern on the armrest of the chair, and her voice was hoarse: "There is nothing here, but there are still living people on Qin Island. There is a Dragon King Temple there. It has been raining all the time, and some people are opening their warehouses to release grain."

"Now, you should tell me why." Shi Fei said to the old woman.

He did not forget the purpose of coming here.

Why on earth was Cthugya twisted into a cross-dresser?

Why could the ancients of this land use such means against the Old Ones?
In the vast universe, human beings are as small as dust.

The madness and indescribable nature of the Old Ones have always been the source of pollution to others. Has there ever been a precedent of them being distorted by mortals?
Why did the ancestors of this land distort the Old Ones?
"Have you ever had a dream?" Chen Miaozhu suddenly asked, with a gleam of nostalgia flashing in his turbid eyes.

"Of course." Shi Fei nodded and said, "I have had many dreams, and some very long dreams."

"In the dream..." Chen Miaozhu slowly stood up: "Does the insects you dreamed of, whether strong or weak, make any difference to you?"

(End of this chapter)