The immortal is beside me

Chapter 120 He is not Zhou Tong?
Two days later, Liangzhou, Huazhong University of Science and Technology’s Extraordinary Research Institute.

Qin Jiajia hurried into the office with her bag. The room was already packed with people. The sounds of footsteps, flipping papers, and conversations were filled with a heavy atmosphere.

This kind of atmosphere is rare in the Institute of Super Research.

As a rear-line unit in charge of research and development and exploration, most of the time, the Super Research Institute does not directly deal with extraordinary cases like the Environmental Sanitation Bureau and the Tianji Institute, and the overall atmosphere is relatively relaxed.

But just a few days ago, a case called "Alien Belief Invasion" suddenly spread throughout the entire supernatural system.

In the next few days, not only did the Environmental Sanitation Bureau and the Tianji Institute enter a state of emergency, but all the research groups within the Super Research Institute also received emergency orders. People with a cultivation background in each group were pulled out and put into the temporarily formed emergency research groups.

Qin Jiajia was also included.

"Xiao Qin is here? Come over here quickly."

As soon as she saw her come in, team leader Cheng Xiaomeng poked her head out from among the piles of documents and waved her over.

"The team will be holding a meeting soon to discuss the information as a whole. You should help everyone sort these documents into categories first."

Qin Jiajia responded, casually threw the bag in her hand aside, squeezed into the crowd, and plunged into the ocean of information. When she looked up, the first thing she saw was a stack of reports on the top.

On January 1th, several suspected foreign monks infiltrated Huashan territory, attempting to awaken the Tuva tribe's extraordinary relics. The Liangzhou Environmental Sanitation Bureau engaged them, killing seven of them, including their leader, Aruhan, and capturing three others alive.

The first page was a report from the Liangzhou Environmental Sanitation Bureau. As a current "non-staff member," she had also heard about the bureau's operation near Mount Hua a few days ago. It was said that nearly a thousand elite personnel and a considerable amount of heavy weaponry were deployed, and the momentum was quite massive.

But looking at this report, all these measures are only used to deal with a dozen enemies.
Qin Jiajia sighed inwardly, then turned the page, which contained reports from other units.

On January 1, a vicious crime occurred in the Lvhe Jiayuan residential complex in Xuzhou City. The Xuzhou Environmental Sanitation Bureau went to investigate, killed two hidden monks, and discovered extraordinary relics in the green belt outside the residential building.

On January 1th, the Jizhou Tianji Academy, using clues from the cannibal case, deduced the location of the case's origin. After conducting an investigation, they discovered extraordinary relics in various locations.

Stacks of reports were filled with records of recent events, all from extraordinary units in various provinces. The words "Extraordinary Ruins" appeared on every report.

This is also the reason why the Super Research Institute got involved this time. According to the reports of various cases, those frequently appearing alien supernatural beings are almost all rushing to the supernatural ruins. It is currently inferred that their purpose is to awaken the imprint buried therein and reshape the old beliefs.

It is also for this reason that within a few days of fighting with these alien superhumans, dozens of large and small ruins were discovered all over the country. Surveying these ruins is the specialty of the Super Research Institute. Countless exploration specialists were sent to the scene to conduct exploration, and the results of the exploration are the information now in front of them.

"Currently, these newly discovered ruins include those of foreign settlements and those of the Central Plains Immortal Sect. The common point is that all of them were created between 1000 and 1100 years ago."

One thousand to one thousand one hundred years ago. Qin Jiajia pondered: "That's from the end of the Tang Dynasty to the beginning of the Song Dynasty. Is it the period of the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms? What happened in the extraordinary world at that time?"

From the beginning of the Tang Dynasty's secession in 887 to the unification of the south by the Northern Song Dynasty in 987, there was a nearly hundred years of chaos in between. In history books, this chaotic era is called the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms.

For most people, this is an extremely unpopular era, and even history textbooks have very little to say about it. But if you have a deeper understanding, you will probably understand why it is not included in textbooks.

For five thousand years, the Central Plains has been divided for a long time and then united, and united for a long time and then divided. Times of peace and chaos always follow one after another. Among the many chaotic times, the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms can be regarded as the darkest and the one with the most serious collapse of order.

This can be seen from one thing - cannibalism.

Although cannibalism did occur in other turbulent times, it was mostly due to famine or lack of military rations.

But before the establishment of the Song Dynasty, during the Five Dynasties period, cannibalism had become a social trend. Not only were cannibals not morally condemned, they were even encouraged to a certain extent.

In that era, many military commanders marched without rations, instead capturing civilians for food upon reaching cities. The common saying, "Like cures like," was prevalent, with heart nourishing the heart and liver nourishing the liver. Some warriors even believed that eating the livers and gallbladders of a hundred people would grant them fearless courage, leading to the deaths of hundreds of men.

This trend persisted in the Central Plains for nearly a hundred years, only gradually fading in the early Song Dynasty. In secular history books, this was attributed to the separatist rule of the Jiedushi, which led to excessive military power and destroyed the ruling system based on Confucianism.

But from an extraordinary perspective, all of this has different answers.

"Records of the chaotic times are mostly fragmentary and difficult to study. This is true even for the mortal world, and even more so for the atomized world of cultivation."

Cheng Xiaomeng said as she flipped through the documents, "At the moment, all we know is a rough outline."

"Just like the chaotic times at the end of the Han Dynasty caused by the conflict between the Blue Heaven and the Yellow Heaven, after the collapse of the Jiuli Immortal Alliance, the major supernatural forces in the Central Plains began to compete again, supporting their own proxies to split the mortal world while fighting each other."

"At the same time, primitive beliefs from foreign tribes poured in from all directions. Just like the Jie tribe back then, while occupying the Central Plains, they also brought with them many sorcerous methods that used human sacrifices to increase power."

"In peacetime, this kind of method would not be accepted by the public. But in such a chaotic time, even if you don't accept it, there are still many who do."

"Supernatural forces that employ the method of human sacrifice can often significantly increase their strength in a short period of time, swallowing up those unwilling to accept them, thus creating a snowball effect where the strong become even stronger."

"When this trend spread from the world of cultivation to the mortal world, it led to the cannibalistic effect of the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms. All moral ethics completely collapsed, and violence became the only belief. Therefore, during the Five Dynasties period, the most famous saying was—"

"Your Excellency, it is done by those who have strong armies and strong horses."

As the words entered her ears, Qin Jiajia felt her heart beat faster with every additional sentence she heard.

This series of words reminded her of the scene when she first arrived at Chaofangang and heard about the Jie people's cannibalism at the observation station for the first time. She could still remember the fear and panic she felt at that time vividly.

According to Cheng Xiaomeng, during the period known as the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms, such primitive and bloody means became the mainstream of society.

She looked at the information page in her hand and instantly understood why this incident had attracted the attention of three major units at the same time. No one wanted to see the reappearance of the cannibalistic era. Even if it was just in its infancy, it had to be nipped in the bud.

To master the war, they needed to know both themselves and their enemies. To ensure they could suppress this calamity from a thousand years ago, they needed to understand the true nature of that chaotic world. Beyond the mundane history books, they also needed to understand how the monks of that time ended this chaotic world.

Qin Jiajia flipped through the pages of information in front of her one by one. Most of this information came from the spiritual imprints contained in the ancient artifacts within the ruins, as well as the results of soul searches of the invading monks.

Among the mountain of documents, a special stack of documents stood out. The stack of documents was not bound, but just piled messily in a document basket, and the name corresponding to the document was pasted on the basket.

"Zhou Tong?" She read out the name on the information basket and looked up at the stack of information in front of her. It seemed that it was selected and integrated from different materials. A related content was highlighted on each page.

"We need to carefully review the relevant information about this person named Zhou Tong. This is our team's key task this time."

Cheng Xiaomeng said, "A few days ago, news came from Yingzhou that Zhou Tong had a close connection with a strategic-level powerhouse. Furthermore, records related to him have appeared in the spiritual imprints of multiple ruins. The higher-ups have specifically requested a thorough investigation of these records, and the three major units are now focusing their attention."

Qin Jiajia pondered for a moment, raised her hand and turned to the first page of the information, and the words written on it caught her eye.

The spiritual imprint of the Tuva Tribe ruins in Liangzhou indicates that the site was destroyed by a Central Plains cultivator named Zhou Tong, who unleashed a large-scale fire spell, killing thousands of the tribe's cultivators and destroying their encampment.

A Central Plains cultivator? Fire magic? And he's even receiving special attention from the higher-ups?

Qin Jiajia's expression suddenly turned strange. She had never heard of Zhou Tong, but the combination of these elements in the information naturally reminded her of a certain person.

".Isn't this him again?"

These words earned a glance from Cheng Xiaomeng, and there was something meaningful in her eyes.

"We suspected it was that powerful person who did it before."

Cheng Xiaomeng's voice lowered: "But you should read the following information first."

Qin Jiajia looked at her with some confusion, and turned over the remaining pages of detailed information again. When she saw the handwriting on the paper clearly, her pupils suddenly contracted.

In 902 AD, Liangzhou was a small city 50 miles away from Chang'an.

Two figures, one in red and one in blue, were walking on the stone road of the small town, slowly moving forward. They were Zhou Tong and Yuan Tiangang.

"Brother Zhou, after passing this city, the area behind Mount Hua is where the Tuva tribe is located."

Yuan Tiangang looked up at the sky and spoke in a low voice.

Zhou Tong, who was beside him, responded and looked up in the direction he pointed, but did not move immediately. He just glanced around, and his pupils reflected the desolation all around.

Around them, the walls covered with arrow marks and burn marks looked desolate. Although it was daytime, the doors of the houses on both sides were tightly closed, as if afraid of something breaking in.

During the heyday of the Tang Dynasty, this city was famous for its Yingzhou Spring Wine, and they often came here to taste the fine wine. But now, a hundred years later, most of the wine shops they used to visit have disappeared, and the few that still exist are covered in dust, no longer recognizable as they once were.

Times have changed. The collapsed Tang Dynasty and the Immortal Alliance no longer control the various mortal cities. Now, the power that controls this city is the tribe called Tuwa. This small city in the Central Plains has been branded with the traces of the wild gods of the grasslands.

When he reached the end of the road, Zhou Tong paused slightly and looked at a shop at the end of the road.

This is one of the few shops in the city that still seems popular. A flag with the word "meat" on it is fluttering slowly at the door.

Several soldiers and generals dressed as warriors gathered at the door of the shop and were talking with the butcher.

"How much do you sell this meat?"

"Soldier, dog meat is five hundred coins a pound, human meat is one hundred coins a pound, and women and children's meat is fifty coins more. What do you want, sir?"

"One hundred wen?" The leading warrior raised an eyebrow, a stern look on his face. "The shop outside the city only sells it for eighty wen. Why is yours so much more expensive? We're about to send troops to Xuzhou and are in dire need of food. You must be ungrateful."

"Hey, Mr. Soldier, calm down. The meat we sell here is all freshly slaughtered and good quality. It's not the dead meat cut from corpses out there. Naturally, it's more expensive."

The shop owner said, glancing at the distant green mountains. "Besides, it's almost time to offer sacrifices to the gods, so we have to set aside a special portion for them. Rare things are valuable, isn't that expensive?"

Hearing the word "immortal," the warrior's face twitched slightly, and the fierce look on his face also faded. He then coughed lightly and said, "Alright, then I'll start with ten pounds. If there's a female, that would be even better."

"Okay, this is for you, Mr. Bing."

The words were melted in the heat, and a red-gold flame flashed past them. The warrior who spoke and the butcher turned into ashes in the blink of an eye. Several passers-by who witnessed this screamed in fear and ran away in a hurry as if they had seen a ghost.

Under the shadow of the eaves, Yuan Tiangang slowly turned his head and looked at Zhou Tong beside him.

"Brother Zhou, do you really want to do this?"

"If I don't kill them, they will eat people." Zhou Tong replied in a cold voice.

"Nowadays, the four corners of the country are divided and morality is broken. People all say, 'The most respected one, the one with the strongest soldiers and horses, will succeed.' Things like this are countless. Are you going to kill them all, Brother Zhou?"

"I'll kill everything I see," Zhou Tong said, looking back at the green hills in front of him. "First, I'll get rid of the insects on the surface, and then I'll pull out this one."

The prosperity was a thing of the past, and everything he saw now disgusted him. He had only one way to deal with what he hated.

Under Yuan Tiangang's gaze, he took a step and his body turned into a meteor wrapped in flames, flying straight towards the distant Huashan Mountain.

A moment later, flames rose from one side of Huashan Mountain, spread across half of the mountain, burning all the gods, and took several days to extinguish.

"The venerable one is the one with the strongest army and the most powerful horses, so you should respect me as the venerable one."

P.S. "Zizhi Tongjian·Tang Ji 79": That winter, there was heavy snow. Countless people died of starvation and cold. Some lay still alive, but their flesh had already been cut up. In the market, human flesh sold for 100 yuan per catty, while dog meat was worth 500 yuan.

"Zizhi Tongjian: Later Han Chronicles Volume 3" records: Zhao Siwan enjoyed eating human livers, sometimes cutting the face open and slicing them. Even after the flesh was chopped up, the person was still alive. He also enjoyed swallowing human gallbladders with wine, saying, "Drink a thousand of these and your gallbladder will be invincible." When the food in Chang'an City ran out, he took women and children as military rations, counting them daily and distributing them. Whenever he rewarded his troops, he would slaughter hundreds of them, like sheep and pigs.

(End of this chapter)