Even without cheats, we must survive the apocalypse

When I first arrived, this place was bustling and noisy. The boats in the city gathered merchants and travelers coming and going from the north and south. There was a military aura above the city that condensed into a great fortune to protect the city. After all, this was King Nanling's money bag, how could he not protect it well?

What now……

Panic and silence.

There was an indescribable feeling of desolation on the streets. There were few pedestrians. All of them were anxious and sad, with pale and sallow faces. They walked hurriedly, as if they would be eaten by demons if they stayed outside for too long. They just dragged their tired and numb bodies like walking corpses.

After passing several completely deserted markets, the faces of several people became solemn.

In fact, Huang Yanyao has always coveted this place. At least after she fell out with King Nanling, Zhaotian City was an important city that she must capture. The reason was that the boats in this city made a lot of money every day, which was very profitable.

But now she has no idea about this place.

"Old woman, what happened to this city? Why is it so desolate and withered?"

Murong Xue grabbed an old woman who was walking by in a hurry.

"Girl, you are from another place, right? Oh, you scared me to death..."

The old woman was grabbed by someone and immediately exuded fear. If Murong Xue hadn't held her, she would have collapsed to the ground. When she saw Murong Xue's fur clearly, she looked frightened and her speech was a little unclear.

"I don't know either... This is the apple of Prince Hong's eye. It was a prosperous place. Now, alas... alas!"

"It's all that idiot's fault. He killed six members of my family. I have no children or grandchildren..."

Her words became more and more confused, and finally she just started to cry, causing more passers-by to stop and look at her, with an expression of sighing and regret, and as if they were all moved by the scene, as if everyone had already suffered such a tragedy and had no time to care about others.

The old woman was half crazy, and in the end she had lost all her reason and became in a state of madness, cursing all the time.

Murong Xuesong opened the corner of her clothes. She couldn't bear to watch it anymore, and a little pink appeared in her eyes, which made the old woman regain her sanity and gradually calm down, but that was all.

She was so traumatized that she couldn't be saved.

Murong Xue sighed slightly, took out a few spirit stones and placed them in her withered hands, "Old woman, please take these."

The old woman looked at the spirit stone in her hand, was stunned for a moment, then immediately smiled and nodded hurriedly, "Enough, enough, too much... too much!"

After saying that, he ran away.

"Are there still normal people in this city..."

Gu Yunxi looked around. These people all had pale faces, were listless, and had dull eyes. They looked no different from skeletons... She immediately thought of the group of children who had been chased and beaten by local bullies in front of the restaurant but refused to surrender.

There is no doubt that something big has happened in Zhaotian City. Although the old woman just now was dressed in rags, she still looks wealthy. She is probably the grandmother of a wealthy family.

If even she is like this, what about those ordinary people who are poor and have no backbone in their families?

"Heh, it looks like someone has taken over the magpie's nest."

Lu Mu didn't say a word before, just stood there, his eyes filled with chaotic light, as if he had entered into a mysterious spiritual state. Now he spoke because he saw something.

"What do you mean?"

Huang Yanyao rolled up her sleeves. The unattended streets were full of dead leaves and yellow sand, which stained her beautiful skirt.

But what is even dirtier is this city.

"I just checked the Zhaotian City Palace, and there were only seven or eight living people inside, and they were all evil cultivators. As for the garrison and the officers, there were only a dozen or so corpses piled in the yard. As for the governor and the commander-in-chief..."

Lu Mu didn't finish his words, but the Tongshi Palace had already become a den of evil cultivators. The two most powerful and most skilled people in Zhaotian City were probably dead.

In fact, those two guys have always been despised by Lu Mu and Gu Yunxi, but they can understand them to some extent. They forced ordinary women to become "tribute" for the evil cultivators to enjoy. After all, that was the order of King Nanling, and they, as subordinates, could not disobey... But if the evil cultivators really dared to turn Zhaotian City into a disorderly killing field, they would not sit idly by.

If we don't care, we can only say that they are no longer alive to care.

"How did you...I know."

Gu Yunxi's words came to an abrupt halt. She then remembered that Lu Mu actually had the ability to communicate with plants and trees, but he hadn't shown it for so long that she had almost forgotten it.

"Even the boat trip has been abandoned. I'm afraid the merchants traveling north and south have long stopped coming here."

"King Nanling has stopped caring about things. The Xiexin Sect has already treated the cities, towns and villages in his territory as hunting grounds for wanton slaughter."

Lu Mu's voice was very light, with a hint of icy coldness.

The evil cultivators certainly didn't know how to govern the affairs of a city, and they had no plans to do so. However, in less than a month, Zhaotian City had transformed from a prosperous commercial center into a bloody and dirty prison.

It is visibly crumbling.

Murong Xue frowned, "How could this happen?"

"For Hong Zhan, completing the formation is more important. I'm afraid that the Nanling Royal City has already sealed off the city and opened the formation. The Royal City's government orders are not issued, the imperial court's laws are not enforced, and the treacherous and evil enemies act recklessly... This place is not so bad. At least the evil cultivators haven't slaughtered all the people in this city. I'm afraid that if we go deeper, there will be even more blood everywhere."

The lives of ordinary people are probably no longer something Hong Zhan needs to care about.

His only son is dead, and now the only thing left for him to do is to take revenge with all he has, even if it means sacrificing countless civilians within his own territory.

"...I want to go see them."

There was deep thought in Gu Yunxi's eyes, and then she went in another direction.

They came to a desolate side street. In the dilapidated alleys, dozens of rotting corpses were lying in a mess. The stench was everywhere. It looked like they had been dead for no more than six or seven days, but the flesh and blood seemed to have been peeled off forcibly.

This is the work of an evil cultivator.

Deep in this alley is the home of those children.

A dilapidated home.

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PS: If you don’t remember the plot here, please jump to Chapter 11 of this volume

Chapter 104: The Rebellion of the Evil Cultivators

Lu Mu looked at the rotten corpses, then turned to look at Gu Yunxi's worried eyes and pursed his lips slightly.

If those children were still living here, it would be impossible for them to escape the clutches of the evil cultivators. Looking at the corpses in this alley, they were probably blocked here and slaughtered at will, with no way to escape.

They had no chance to escape, and even in front of the lowest Mortal Body Realm cultivators, the common people had no hope.

Going deeper and deeper, the four people finally saw the dilapidated courtyard.

The gate of the courtyard had collapsed and the wall was broken. It was much more dilapidated and desolate than anything they had seen before. Gu Yunxi narrowed her eyes and strode in. As soon as she placed her hand on the rotten door, the door panel fell down with a loud bang, turning into pieces on the ground. The stale smell in the house rushed out, choking and unpleasant.

The furnishings in the house were still as simple and crude as before, without even a table or chair. There was only an empty space with a few wooden stools scattered around.

The doors to the inner rooms were half-open, leaving gaps, and occasionally shadows could be seen cast out, making the scene look particularly eerie.

Gu Yunxi remembered that there was an incense hall in this house, where the spirit tablets of the parents of this family's children were enshrined, but they were gone. Those children... Her mood suddenly became much worse. She kicked down the two doors and searched everywhere in this shabby house, but they seemed to have disappeared. Thirteen children, no trace was found.

"How could this be?"

Gu Yunxi murmured softly.

"Maybe they have already left. After all, their sister is dead. Staying in Zhaotian City will only increase the possibility of being bullied by others. This is a good thing..."

Lu Mu walked up to her and patted her shoulder, but after thinking about it carefully, he realized that the oldest boy among the children was only twelve or thirteen years old. Although he had given him a volume of exercises and three bottles of elixir for strengthening the body, it had only been less than a month and his cultivation could only reach the peak of the mortal body realm at best, not even the innate realm. He had to drag his twelve brothers and sisters away from Zhaotian City to go to the mountains and deep forests to compete with the ferocious spirit beasts for territory...

Is it really a good thing?

But there are definitely worse possibilities. The flesh and blood of children are relatively tender, making them good material and food for evil cultivators... After all, with the character of evil cultivators, what can't they do?

"Alas... Is this family destined to be so miserable?"

Gu Yunxi drooped her shoulders and sighed softly, but there was no distress on her face, only deeper anger.

For her, as long as there is a culprit, there is reason to seek revenge, and the matter will not end there.

"Uh-huh, there are a group of children in this room, right?"

Murong Xue spoke up. She glanced at the dilapidated house and said, "I sensed a slight presence, very faint... They were here four or five days ago."

Gu Yunxi was stunned for a moment, then suddenly raised her head with a look of surprise in her eyes.

"Where are they now?"

Murong Xue closed her eyes, and deep red energy diffused from her body, wandering around the house. After a while, she opened her eyes and took out a talisman from her spirit ring. The talisman was black in color, emitting an enchanting luster.

She threw the talisman into the air, and the black talisman exploded instantly, turning into a thick fog that enveloped the entire house.

Then, a visible silk thread appeared in the thick fog, extending all the way along the gate of the courtyard, and it was impossible to see where it was pointing.

This is a spiritual array drawn on special materials. It is just an ordinary tracking array. It is not even a treasure because it is not easy to use. Once the breath of the person you want to find cannot be captured, it will be useless. The distance is not far. If the person you want to find is not within two miles, the breath thread will become thinner and thinner until it cannot be seen.

Gu Yunxi couldn't detect any remaining aura in the house, but Murong Xue's perception was more acute.

Murong Xue raised the corner of her mouth slightly and said with a smile: "It's in the west, not far away."

Gu Yunxi looked at the thick fog, and a heavy fighting spirit floated in her eyes, "Where is it?"

"The most prominent place in Zhaotian City must be the Tongshi Palace."

Murong Xue was the caster of the formation. She could sense where the silk thread pointed to. She didn't know where that place was, but the building was far more luxurious and majestic than all the surrounding houses. She thought it was the residence of a high-ranking official.

The Tongshi Palace has become a den of evil practitioners.

Gu Yunxi and Huang Yanyao exchanged glances and made a decision.

……

No outsiders are allowed to enter the Tongshi Palace in Zhaotian City.

At this time, no one wanted to go in. Everyone's life had completely changed in just three or two days. Death and killing suddenly became the only scenery to be seen in Zhaotian City. Every day, there were cries and screams on the streets.

Only the Tongshi Palace was as quiet and secluded as a dead end.

Inside the main hall of the Palace of General Affairs, sitting on the throne was an evil cultivator with a cold face. There were eight evil cultivators in the hall, and he sat in the main seat, relying on his fifth-level cultivation of the Palace of Pi. The remaining seven were not as good as him.

On the platform in the center of the hall, there was a small copper basin. Wisps of black smoke were rising up and lingering in the basin. No one knew what was being cooked in that evil way, but it was definitely not a good thing.

The evil cultivators watched this scene, swallowing their saliva continuously and gasping with excitement.

Some people licked the tip of their scarlet tongues with great interest, eager to taste that unique "delicious" flavor.

Xie Luo leaned against the official chair, staring at the copper basin indifferently. Then he raised his hand and the copper basin fell to the ground. Inside was some kind of paste. Along with the green smoke, the thick resentment drifted away. He pointed his hand at the evil spirit, took out a piece from the basin, put it into his mouth and ate it.

It tasted good... to him.

That was the true essence of the leader of Zhaotian City. After being refined with the aid of a formation, one could even hear the whimpering of unwilling resentful souls... After eating it, Scorpion Luo felt his flesh and blood wriggling.

Scorpio closed his eyes, slowly absorbed and enjoyed it. After a moment, he opened his eyes with a greedy gleam in his eyes.

There are very few opportunities to enjoy such wonderful soul essence.

The officials of the imperial dynasty are blessed with good fortune, and the feeling they have is incomparable to that of ordinary cultivators.

"Everyone, enjoy yourselves. We don't have much time left here. After a few days, when Elder Hunxin's business is done, it's time for us to leave."

Scorpio said lightly.

Only after he gave the order did the others dare to eat heartily. The black paste in the copper basin was divided up in just ten breaths.

This scene was naturally horrifying, but others could not see it. In fact, Xie Luo and other evil cultivators came here because they were ordered to do so. The Evil Heart Sect never did business at a loss. Their cooperation with King Nan Ling was called cooperation, but just as King Nan Ling expected, they would not stay still...

Zhaotian City is the last of the twelve cities under King Nanling's command where the ruler and the commander were killed by the Xiexin Sect.

There is only one thing they have to do, which is to spread chaos everywhere, let the common people bleed and die, and let the golden rules and strict laws of the empire be covered with traces of evil.

By the way, you can also improve your own strength... After all, this is a big city with a lot of people and many children.

Chapter 105: Exploded

This is a rare opportunity for the Xiexin Sect.

The original King of Nanling was quite resistant to the evil cultivators causing chaos in his territory. As for the so-called cooperation, there were many spies watching. In order not to cause trouble, they did not take any action and stayed quiet for the time being.

But things are different now. King Nanling has gathered all his elite troops to Nanling Royal City, and then activated the Royal City formation in preparation for the final main formation. He has gone crazy, not for anything else but the final revenge.

Therefore, there is chaos everywhere in Hong Zhan’s territory.

The Xiexin Sect was not even the first one who wanted to cause trouble. Instead, it was the bandits and traitors who were suppressed by King Nanling's army and fled everywhere, or the vassals of the noble families who had long been dissatisfied with King Nanling, or the independent cultivators who wanted to fish in troubled waters and take advantage of others... In short, each and every one of them wanted to turn the Hong Zhan world upside down.

However, Hong Zhan didn't want to care about it at all, nor did he have the energy to care. The formation that was going to seize the destiny of the Immortal Phoenix Empire was already very close to success, and this was the only thing he cared about.

If that’s the case, how could the Xiexin Sect let go of such a good opportunity?

The flesh and blood, gold and silver of the people can now be plundered at will, and no one will care. Even if the defenders of these cities want to resist, it is just a futile struggle.

The Evil Heart Sect simply kills anyone who stands in their way.