Records of Mysterious Things in the Southern Dynasties

Chapter 319: Divination Goddess
The girl, like Chen Lingzhi, had long, smooth hair that fell on her shoulders like black silk, swaying gently with her steps.

Every step she took seemed to be in step with the rhythm of their heartbeats, making them flustered and at a loss.

Neither of them said a word or took any action until the girl came and stood in front of them.

"I'm sorry to bother you with my presence." The girl bowed to the two men. Her every move exuded an elegance and composure refined by long years, as if the hustle and bustle of the world could not disturb her inner peace.

"Are you the great wizard Wuyang?" Fu Duyan's throat trembled as he returned the greeting with difficulty.

"I'm not Wu Yang." The girl smiled and said, "She won't waste words with you two."

"I know." Xiao Baoyin suddenly said in a deep voice: "You are the divination god witch!"

"You guessed it right." The girl nodded with a bright smile: "It's hard for someone to recognize an old thing like me who has lived for eight thousand years."

"..." Fu Duyan's three pupils shrank suddenly. He didn't expect to see a figure from ancient legend.

The Classic of Mountains and Seas, Hai Nei Xi Jing, says: "In the middle of the wilderness... there is a sacred mountain. Ten witches, Wu Xian, Wu Ji, Wu Pan, Wu Peng, Wu Gu, Wu Zhen, Wu Li, Wu Di, Wu Xie and Wu Luo, rise and fall from here, and all kinds of medicines are there."

This means that there is a sacred mountain in the wilderness, which is a passage connecting the heaven and the human world. The Ten Witches go to heaven and earth here, communicating between the human world and the heaven.

These ten great witches were very famous in ancient times. They were the guides of the human mythological era. They were responsible for communicating with the gods for the human race, announcing the gods' will, conveying the people's sentiments, predicting good and bad luck, and treating diseases... They left a glorious mark in ancient history.

For example, Wu Xian, the leader of the Ten Wizards, was said to have served as a wizard to four ancient emperors, namely Fuxi, Shennong, Xuanyuan Huangdi and Emperor Yao. He was also a famous minister during the reign of Emperor Zhongzong of Shang, assisting in the government.

The witch in front of us is said to be the goddess of Wuxi salt water. She helped Dayu control floods, led the people to make salt, collect herbs, and refine elixirs. She worked hard for the people all her life and was buried on the south side of Wushan Mountain after her death...

~~
Seeing Fu Duyan's frightened expression, Wu Gu smiled and comforted him, "Don't worry, although we old monsters have secret methods to keep our souls immortal and reincarnate from generation to generation, but every time we reincarnate, we have to start from scratch, so our strength is just so-so."

"You're joking. In this life, you've at least become a god." Xiao Baoyin also said carefully. Because of the attitude of the witch, he felt that he would escape the disaster...

“What’s that?” Wu Gu shook her head and laughed, “Wu Yang has already cultivated to the level of an ancient god, and I’m just an ordinary god.”

As she spoke, she looked at the two of them and said, "Why are you two still here watching the fun after escaping from Jiankang City instead of returning to the Northern Dynasty?"

"Yes, yes, I will leave now and never come back." Fu Duyan quickly expressed his opinion.

"We are already very satisfied to be able to admire the beautiful face of the senior, and we will leave immediately." Xiao Baoyin also said with admiration.

"Oh my, kids nowadays are really good at talking." The witch was so amused that she chuckled and said, "I was planning to kill both of you, but now I have to let one of you go."

"..." The two demigods looked at each other and begged in unison: "Senior, spare our lives."

"Oh, I'm so sorry, I can't let both of you go." Wu Gu said apologetically: "The Southern Dynasty suffered too much loss this time. If both of you were alive, the Northern Expedition would be completely hopeless."

"They're still marching north..." Xiao Baoyin whispered, "Xiao Yan can hardly protect himself now, so he won't have any more ambitions. We also promise that we will never invade the south as long as we live!"

"Yes, if you break this oath, you will be condemned by both humans and gods!" Fu Duyan also nodded in agreement.

"What you said makes sense, but I calculated," and then I heard the witch whispered softly: "Xiao Yan still has a chance to be emperor, and the Northern Expedition will definitely be carried out."

"Well..." Xiao Baoyin was still trying to make some sweet talk, but the witch said with a straight face:

"Why, do you think I, a fortune teller, am just here to eat?"

"No, no, you are the god in charge of divination, so if you say so, then it must be so." The two hurriedly shook their heads. "So, you must leave one behind," the witch said in a cold voice, "Don't blame me, you two dared to come to Jiankang to stir up trouble, so you should have expected this result."

She raised a finger and said, "I'll give you ten counts, and then I'll kill whoever I catch."

"Senior, let's leave the front line, go back to Luoyang and Guanzhong, and never come back..." The two wanted to try again.

"Nonsense also counts." The witch began to count: "Three... four... five..."

The two demigods dared not waste any more time now. They disappeared at the same time.

For a half-human, half-god like them, five numbers were enough to escape five hundred miles. And Jiankang was only five hundred miles away from Shouyang.

Before, the two of them only ran two hundred miles before stopping, purely because the effective range of the Fengyue Treasure Mirror was only two hundred miles at most.

Alas, curiosity not only kills the cat, it can also kill demigods.

~~
But Fu Shuyan escaped five hundred miles in one breath and saw Shouyang City in sight.

He was just about to make a final effort and escape another thousand miles, but suddenly his eyes blurred and he saw the witch blocking his way with an apologetic look on her face.

"It seems that from the beginning, the senior wanted to kill me." Fu Shuyan said suddenly. He was proficient in magic and his ability to escape was far better than Xiao Baoyin.

"That's right, Xiao Baoyin is still useful." Wu Gu sighed, "And I can also use your divine fire."

"Come and take it!" Fu Shu's three pupils burst into golden light and he attacked suddenly. How could a veteran like him, who had fought all his life, just wait for death?
However, before the golden light could burst out, the witch stretched out her white and tender fingers and pressed it back into his pupils.

Then the witch dug out his only remaining eyeball with her hand and crushed it in her hand.

A ball of colorful divine fire slowly danced in the witch's hands.

Blind Fu, who had completely lost his eyes, screamed while covering his eye sockets. His divine power also disappeared and he fell from a great height.

After all, the witch was kind-hearted. She waved her hand, created a gust of wind, and sent Blind Fu to the top of Shouyang City.

"Who is it?!" The defenders on the city wall were dozing off, when suddenly a person fell from the sky, and they were all startled.

"It's the commander-in-chief who's back!" When they saw the man's face clearly, the Wei army soldiers were stunned and hurriedly helped him up.

"Marshal, what happened to your eyes?"

~~
On the other hand, Xiao Baoyin escaped safely back to the Northern Dynasty. He breathed a sigh of relief knowing that the witch would not chase him.

Suddenly he heard the sound of sea waves in his heart, and he took out the sound-transmitting conch.

This thing was taken from the Penglai Island in the East China Sea. It comes in pairs, a male and a female. When made into a magic weapon, they can communicate even if they are thousands of miles apart.

Xiao Zong's voice came from the snail: "Uncle, are you okay?"

"I'm safe now, don't worry." Xiao Baoyin said to the screw mouth: "Did you get the things?"

"I got it." Xiao Zong replied excitedly.

(End of this chapter)