Chapter 333 The True Chaotic Situation (Second Update)

"What?"

Hu Ma's calm words stunned the Blood Curse Altar Emissary. He blankly raised his head, blinked, and didn't know what to say.

To an ordinary observer, the Blood Curse Altar Emissary appeared unbound, with only a grass rope loosely circling his neck, seemingly easily broken.

Yet, he remained motionless, as if shackled by a massive, heavy yoke. For over a day, he had struggled countless times, employing numerous techniques, but without the slightest hope of escape.

He had believed the grass rope to be some powerful magic treasure. Now, hearing the words "Yoke Curse," he froze. The following phrase, "Town Guardian Codex," crashed in his ears like thunder, nearly shattering his mind.

He seemed to have heard the name Yoke Curse somewhere before, perhaps mentioned occasionally by Lord Five Curses...

And the Town Guardian Codex...

...As he pondered, his eyes slowly widened.

They widened further, as if the fear and shock within were about to spill out. An invisible tremor coursed through his body. He slowly opened his mouth, unsure of what to ask, his voice trembling: "You..."

Hu Ma smiled but didn't answer, only stared at him, silently chanting the Yoke Curse.

The man had countless questions he wanted to ask, but he suddenly cried out miserably and fell to the ground, his backside raised high, his head touching the earth.

It was as if an invisible yoke around his neck was growing heavier and heavier. The immense weight pressed his body downwards, almost burying him in the mud.

"Lo...Lord...Lord..."

The man couldn't endure for long before his voice trembled, a muffled, fearful cry.

Since returning from Anzhou, Hu Ma had diligently practiced for over half a year, learning many of the Night Watcher's skills and seriously studying the abilities within the Town Guardian Codex. Now, he sought to test the Yoke Curse's power, but he hadn't expected the other man to last so briefly, leaving him somewhat disappointed.

But he had no choice but to stop. After all, he worried that the Yoke Curse was too harsh and might kill the man. He still had uses for him...

With a soft sigh, he ceased chanting, only to find the Blood Curse Altar Emissary still trembling, maintaining his kneeling posture, unable to rise.

He paused, realizing that the man's kneeling was not solely due to the Yoke Curse, but also because he didn't dare to stand.

If others knelt before him, he would likely tell them to rise, or even sit. But since this man was under the Five Vicious Gods, he paid him no mind, simply smiled and said, "Are you willing to answer now?"

The Blood Curse Altar Emissary remained with his forehead touching the ground, trembling, not daring to look Hu Ma in the eye. He only said, "Yo...You...You really are..."

Hu Ma smiled and said, "I'm asking you, not the other way around."

"Yes, yes..."

The Blood Curse Altar Emissary answered in a trembling voice, "What you say is absolutely right. Lord Five Curses... no, the Five Vicious Ghosts, those vicious ghosts wouldn't care about the lives of those under them..."

"We call it burning incense, but it's just doing errands for him. He can find seven or eight people to replace us anytime. In reality, we're also forced into it..."

"..."

"Hold it."

Hu Ma didn't allow him to say anything unnecessary, only said calmly, "He originally intended for you to set up the altars, but now that all five curse altars have been destroyed, he doesn't seem to care. How does he plan to descend upon Ming Prefecture?"

*So the other curse altars were also destroyed?*

The Blood Curse Altar Emissary was unaware of the events in other locations. Hearing this suddenly, he became even more certain of his guess, and his heart was filled with despair. Facing Hu Ma's words, he had no intention of resisting, and said with a bitter smile, "The destruction of the Five Curse Altars is certainly a major matter."

"But... but didn't you realize that even though the altars are destroyed, the cursed energy remains?"

"..."

"Hmm?"

Hearing his trembling words, Hu Ma frowned slightly and quickly reviewed everything in his mind, suddenly understanding the crux of the problem.

The Five Curse Altar Emissaries were almost entirely out of luck.

However, even though their altars hadn't been successfully established, the cursed energy they created had still spread throughout Ming Prefecture.

Or rather, these weren't altars at all, but five large festering sores planted in Ming Prefecture.

Moreover, the spread of these sores was exceptionally rapid.

Looking at these five locations where they had hoarded treasures to create curses, they had already begun nightmarish transformations. The key wasn't the curse altars, but the fact that these places were becoming chaotic.

Heaven and earth possessed spiritual treasures. Wherever these treasures resided, the weather was favorable, the people lived in prosperity and peace, and their spirits were high. But when the spiritual treasures were stolen, the land would suffer a backlash of fortune, the feng shui would deteriorate, and it would affect people's luck.

Now, they were not only hoarding treasures, but also using them to create curses. This immediately turned these places into cursed lands, affecting the entire Ming Prefecture.

In the land where the "ox treasure" was taken, crops withered, and waterways stank within just two days. Hundreds of miles of fertile fields turned barren. Even the grain stored in the granaries inexplicably became moldy and rotten, with pools of black water seeping out.

What was this?

It was human life!

If the crops were ruined and the grain was moldy, there would be shortages the following year, and countless people would starve to death.

How could the villagers not be afraid?

What's more, it had only been two days, and the withering of the crops had already spread from one place to seven or eight surrounding villages and counties.

The villagers had long been panicking, and had invited countless spirit mediums and capable individuals to investigate the matter.

Then there was the Mule Caravan. Guarding the golden and silver dolls was the blessing of many generations, but now, the golden and silver dolls had been seized and refined into cursed objects. Things that were originally meant to attract wealth had suddenly become evil objects.

That was an extremely rare treasure even within the trade. Gold and silver were most likely to cloud people's minds. As long as he held the golden and silver dolls and blew on them, anyone would be immediately dazed.

Their eyes would only be fixed on money, forgetting all rules and bottom lines. Good, honest families would suddenly become vicious and ruthless, capable of arson, murder, looting, and everything else.

Earlier, the Red Lantern Society had gathered martial artists to deal with them. After several encounters, the wealth curse emissary was no match and had slipped away.

However, the Mule Caravan had been affected by the cursed energy of the golden and silver dolls, becoming obsessed with wealth. Now, they had become bandits, and in just two days, they had robbed several villages, towns, and three or four banks and trading companies, becoming a significant menace.

Under the influence of such cursed energy, there was no cure. It was difficult to treat, and after all, they were just ordinary people. The Red Lantern Society didn't take them seriously, leaving them aside.

The Red Lantern Society's goal was still the arrest warrant for the wealth curse altar emissary, but in order to escape, he used the golden and silver dolls to stimulate cursed energy wherever he went, affecting countless villagers, causing arson, murder, looting, and turning them into such bandits.

As for Longevity Village, it was even more terrifying.

They had forcibly seized the lifespans of people who shouldn't have died, how could the resentment in their hearts not be overwhelming?

The vengeful spirits of the dead hated the living. "You steal my lifespan, I'll take your life!" Chaos reigned. If viewed in the long term, this village would eventually become an evil place where no one lived long.

But now, under the manipulation of someone with ulterior motives, this village had become an evil place overflowing with cursed energy, affecting even more places. Even though the Grass Heart Hall had involved the Life Controller Sect, the evil place had already formed, how could it be reversed so quickly?

When one's lifespan was shortened, they would face tribulations, either sudden illness or certain unfortunate events, which would further fuel the cursed energy in other places.

As for the other two places, there was no need to mention them.

The fate curse place that he had dealt with was destroying merit. This place of deep merit was equivalent to a stabilizer, influencing the surrounding villages, keeping them peaceful and law-abiding, and resolving some evil forces.

But although he had captured the fate curse emissary, most of the people in this village had already died. The cursed energy had already formed, they were barely able to take care of themselves, how could they care about others?

The other person, carrying a child and stealing treasures everywhere, was even more formidable. She was essentially destroying the sources of blessing in various places in the southwest corner of Ming Prefecture, which was equivalent to creating fertile soil for this cursed energy, making it grow even stronger.

Everyone had joined forces and reduced the Five Curse Altar Emissaries to a state of disgrace and desperation.

But no matter what happened to them, it was just a matter within the martial world, not involving the people who were affected by the cursed energy.

The truly important thing was the chaos that had erupted from the five villages and towns in Ming Prefecture after they hoarded treasures to create curses. Now, people were panicking, and it had clearly become a disaster, beginning to affect the entire situation in Ming Prefecture.

It was like someone setting a fire. Catching the arsonist was easy, but what could be done once the fire had started?

"This is the Five Vicious Gods' skill..."

Even Hu Ma, thinking silently, couldn't help but sigh, finally understanding Brother Erguotou's earlier statement.

The strength of those in the hall wasn't about two sides hugging each other, tearing and biting.

Their strength lay in manipulating fate.

If a place had bad feng shui and damaged merit, it would easily lead to natural disasters and human calamities, leaving the people in misery. Over time, people who couldn't survive would fight and snatch, abandon farming and become bandits, causing chaos in the area.

If played on a larger scale, even a vast dynasty could be overthrown.

But one year for disaster, two years for banditry, three years for calamity, this originally required a certain amount of time to brew.

However, the Five Vicious Gods had the ability to achieve the bitter fruits and disasters that originally took several years to brew in just a few days.

"Heh, a high-level game..."

Having understood these things, even Hu Ma felt a slight sense of oppression. He looked solemnly at the fate curse emissary kneeling on the ground and said in a low voice, "Then, what benefit does your master, after spending so much effort to stir up chaos in Ming Prefecture, get from it up in his hall?"

The fate curse emissary kept his head buried, his voice muffled, as if he were about to cry, "Why do you have to mock me? Don't you know that the selection of the new emperor has already begun?"

(End of Chapter)