Jiangshan Fengwuzhi

Chapter 354 Possession
The cave trembled, the rock walls cracked, and rocks fell like rain.

Amid the horrific chaos, a slender figure staggered along.

Pei Nian also fell and was injured, making it difficult for her to walk, but she was very determined.

She walked toward the steps of the stone platform, only to find that the platform was no longer tilted, and after a sway, it began to float upwards.

The stairs broke apart with a loud crash.

Pei Nian quickened her pace and rushed towards it, leaping with her injured foot to grab the last step.

The stone platform then carried her upwards.

Before Pei Nian could relax her furrowed brows from the pain in her foot, she felt a sharp soreness in her arm.

She hung at the bottom of the stone platform, her dangling feet trying to step up.

Suddenly, a mysterious and deep voice rang out, so loud it almost deafened her.

"Who offered this?!"

Pei Nian turned her head to look.

The scene before her eyes shocked her so much that her pupils dilated.

She saw a giant formed from the spiritual energy and light from the ground, its figure somewhat blurry, like a floating soul.

The giant's long hair was loose and appeared pure red even in the light and shadow, and dragon scales grew on his head, ears, arms and other parts of his body.

As the stone platform continued to float upwards, more and more of the giant's body was revealed.

His upper body was human, but his lower body was a long dragon tail.

When Pei Nian heard Shen Jichi shout out the name "Gun Gong," she quickly recalled the legend she had heard in her childhood.

Legend has it that in ancient times, Gun acted recklessly and harmed the Central Plains, so he was suppressed under a mountain.

At this moment, Gun Gong's spirit had not yet opened its eyes, but red mist kept drifting down from the stone platform above his head and landing on his red hair.

His spirit was still blurry, but much clearer than when he first appeared.

Pei Nian dared not delay any longer, and with all her might, she climbed upwards, raising herself higher, and finally reached the stone steps.

She didn't dare to delay and quickly crawled forward.

Suddenly, the floating stone platform trembled and stopped floating.

The strange beasts on the four stone pillars had reached the top of the cave, roaring angrily and ramming against the rocks above.

Gun Gong's body was not yet fully revealed beneath the stone platform. However, one could see that his dragon tail was adorned with thick black chains, which bound him to a massive underground prison made of spirit-gathering jade.

Pei Nian finally climbed onto the stone platform.

Because of the four stone pillars and the strange beast on top, there was still space above the stone platform, which was just slightly higher than her.

She ran to the center of the stone platform and saw Shen Jichi kneeling in front of the blood pool.

Wei Chan was still standing in the center of the blood pool, but her face was extremely pale.

"Pei Nian!"

Upon seeing Pei Nian arrive, Wei Chan immediately cried out, "Please save me! They're going to sacrifice me!"

"Get down here right now!" Pei Nian shouted.

Wei Chan tried to lift her foot, but her foot was firmly nailed to the stone spike and she couldn't get off at all.

She cried even harder.

"No... Waaah, no, I can't get out."

"let me help you."

Pei Nian took two steps forward, but instead of rushing over to help Wei Chan, she looked warily at Shen Jichi who was standing there.

She bent down and picked up a sharp stone from the ground.

"I'll ask you one last time, what exactly are you doing?!"

Pei Nian shouted loudly, showing signs of gradually losing patience.

She wished she could make Shen Jichi stop the furnace immediately.

Shen Jichi seemed to know what she was thinking and said, "More than ten years ago, His Majesty also started the altar, but do you know how he stopped it?"

"How do I stop?!"

“His Majesty was standing right there at the time.” Shen Jichi turned around and pointed at Wei Chan, then continued, “This stone platform has existed here for thousands of years. His Majesty thought that by standing there, he could absorb the spiritual power of the furnace. However, halfway through the process, he suddenly heard the words ‘Who is offering this?’”

Pei Chan could imagine Emperor Rui's feelings at that time.

He boasted of being a great ruler, conquering the Yue Kingdom and capturing countless strange people and beasts. He then embarked on a grand refining process, only to find himself halfway through as a sacrifice. One can only imagine the shock and astonishment he felt.

But she didn't have time to listen to Shen Jichi recount these old stories; she was in a hurry to save Gu Jingnian.

"I'm asking you how to stop!"

"It's very simple."

Shen Jichi remained calm and said slowly, "Sometimes, extraordinary people are not necessarily stronger than ordinary people. It depends on whether the situation is suitable for survival. For example, here, ordinary people are far stronger than extraordinary people."

"Tell me how to stop!" Pei Nian stepped forward, grabbed Shen Jichi, and swung a sharp stone at his face, striking him until his face was covered in blood.

Shen Jichi did not resist and said, "It's very simple. Your Majesty sent soldiers into the furnace to kill all the strange people and beasts inside. The furnace can only absorb the essence of living things. As long as they are all turned into dead things, the furnace will naturally stop."

Upon hearing this, Pei Nian immediately decided to turn around and kill all the strange people and beasts in the furnace.

“But you can’t use this method to save Gu Jingnian,” Shen Jichi added. “Even if you kill everyone, Gu Jingnian will still be refined.”

Pei Nianfang realized that he had been blinded by concern, and that Shen Jichi's method could not save Gu Jingnian or the people he wanted to save.

"What other options are there?!"

"Gone."

Pei Nian asked, "How can we make Gu Jingnian lose all his superpowers?"

This was the only solution she could think of in her desperation.

She hadn't mentioned it before, because she knew that Gu Jingnian was determined to save Gu Caiwei, and would never want to lose his superpowers if there was even a glimmer of hope.

Shen Jichi, however, revealed a mocking smile.

“I can live even without my powers, but Gu Jingnian cannot. He was so badly injured; if it weren’t for Healer, he would have died long ago.”

Enraged, Pei Nian knew he wouldn't get any more information from Shen Jichi, so he raised his hand to smash Shen Jichi to death.

The next moment, Shen Jichi flashed his dagger and plunged it into his own heart.

He remained calm, his eyes filled with a serene smile, and spoke again in a clear voice.

He wasn't saying it to Pei Nian, but to Gun Gong.

"I am willing to offer myself; please descend upon me!"

With those words, he leaned back and fell into the pool of blood.

"Pfft."

Shen Jichi fell into the blood pool, his body sank for a while, and then floated up, lying on his back like a corpse.

Pei Nian stood there, stunned.

In the most critical moment, she didn't stay by Gu Jingnian's side, but ran after Shen Jichi. Before she could even ask how to save him, this was the ending she got.

"Save me!"

Wei Chan was still crying and shouting, tears streaming down her face, "I'm going to bleed to death, please save me."

Pei Nian shook her head, turned around and left. She had no time left; she had to go find Gu Jingnian.

Just then, Shen Jichi opened his eyes.

His eyes were very different from before; they were sharper and more authoritative without being angry.

He rose from the pool of blood and floated there.

The original white robe was dyed red, and Shen Jichi's hair also turned crimson.

Standing in mid-air, he spread his arms and felt the long-lost sense of freedom.

After a long while, he looked at Pei Nian with a disdainful gaze that seemed to look down on an ant.

"mortal."

His voice was deep and mysterious.

Pei Nian instantly realized that Shen Jichi had been possessed by Gun Gong, just like she had been possessed by Li Shuangyun several times.

She knew what Shen Jichi wanted.

She wanted even greater power, or even immortality, as if Li Shuangyun would take over her body if she were in danger.

Pei Nian hated that feeling.

But what she hated was exactly what Shen Jichi wanted.

"you……"

Before she could finish speaking, Pei Nian felt a sharp pain in her neck and couldn't breathe, as if her throat was being choked.

Shen Jichi was clearly some distance away from her, but with a wave of his hand, he grabbed her from a distance and lifted her up.

"You actually dared to try to stop me," Shen Jichi said calmly.

Then, as if talking to himself, he said something else.

"No need to waste words with her."

After saying that, Pei Nian was thrown out.

At this point, the stone platform had already floated very high; falling off would certainly mean certain death.

Pei Nian fell like a withered leaf in the wind, and saw that Gun Gong's soul was still there below the stone platform.

She was somewhat surprised, thinking that Gun Gong had already possessed Shen Ji Chi. Then she quickly realized that Shen Ji Chi was just a mortal, how could he possibly bear all of Gun Gong's essence?

These thoughts flashed through his mind in a split second, and the next moment, Pei Nian plummeted towards the hard rock below...

(End of this chapter)