novelapdf Chapter 296 The Red Umbrella Cult's Biggest Twist!
Chapter 296 The Red Umbrella Cult's Biggest Twist!
Seeing the cracks appear in the sky, Jiang Mu no longer hesitated, picked up Chu Lingzhu and Lan Rou'er in his arms, and rushed straight towards the sky.
Ah Yan's fish tail flapped in the air, followed closely by...
Jiang Mu caught a glimpse of this scene out of the corner of his eye and sighed inwardly, "The ancients were right; fish are indeed suited to flying in the sky."
The tiny princess is now asleep.
Two little hands clutched the fabric of his clothes on his shoulders, her little face nestled in the crook of his shoulder, a glistening drool hanging from the corner of her mouth.
He trembled in the wind as he flew.
The moment she smashed the barrier was earth-shattering, that's how carefree she was in her sleep.
As Jiang Mu broke through the barrier, he felt a ripple spread out from his body.
Immediately afterwards, a strong wave of dizziness hit my head.
The sky and sea in my field of vision were swirling into a vortex.
Jiang Mu used all her strength to keep her arms around Chu Lingzhu and Lan Rou'er tightly in her embrace, gritting her teeth.
Dizziness comes on quickly and goes away quickly.
When he regained consciousness, he was no longer standing on the beach of the abandoned island, but on a deep blue sea.
The sea surface swayed gently dozens of feet above his head.
The light pierced the deep water from above at an angle, transforming into countless shimmering beams of light.
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Glowing underwater plants floated all around.
A cluster of luminous seaweed swayed gently with the undercurrent, turning the sea into a dreamy, deep blue.
The little princess was still fast asleep on my shoulder.
But Chu Lingzhu disappeared, Lan Rou'er disappeared, and even A Yan, who was following behind, was nowhere to be found.
Jiang Mu quickly took out the Water-Repelling Pearl and put it in her mouth to create a water-repelling barrier.
He spread his divine sense, sweeping back and forth across the surrounding sea area.
No!
Apart from the swimming fish and shrimp, there was not a trace of human presence.
He gritted his teeth and expanded the search area again, his divine sense being suppressed much slower in the seawater than on land.
They squeezed outwards inch by inch, but still gained nothing.
"Damn it!"
Jiang Mu couldn't help but swear, a hint of ferocity flashing in his eyes.
Are you deliberately trying to mess with people's mentality?
Just as he was about to leap out of the sea to search, several dark figures suddenly rushed from the side and surrounded him.
By the faint glow of the fireflies, Jiang Mu could make out who it was.
It was a fish demon with a human body and a fish tail, covered in black scales, and wielding a sharp bone halberd.
Each one exuded a fourth-tier bloodthirsty aura.
When the group of fish demons first glanced warily at Jiang Mu, their gazes then fixed on the little figure curled up and fast asleep on his shoulder, and their eyes immediately burst with wild joy.
"Found her! The princess is here!"
The fish demon leader pointed his halberd directly at Jiang Mu, roaring with murderous intent:
"Boy, where did you come from? Are you a disciple of the Beitang family? You'd better know what's good for you and put the princess down!"
Jiang Mu was already annoyed because she had lost Chu Lingzhu and the others, so she had no mood to listen to the barking of these nobodies.
The seawater around him suddenly boiled.
Several dark red blood river blade energies bloomed, drawing sharp arcs in the seawater.
Before the fish demons could even thrust their halberds out, their weapons and the demons themselves were severed by the blade's energy.
Black blood churned and spread in the seawater.
The mangled fish carcass slowly sank into the darkness of the seabed.
Amidst the pervasive stench of blood, Chan Xiaoyu, who was perched on Jiang Mu's shoulder, seemed to be awakened.
She rubbed her sleepy eyes and looked around blankly. Then, with a slight sway, she transformed back into the thumb-sized golden fish.
She flicked her tail and swam quickly into the distance.
"Um?"
Jiang Mu was taken aback, wondering if this little thing had sensed A Yan's location?
Perhaps Chu Lingzhu and Lan Rou'er are with A Yan right now.
Thinking of this, Jiang Mu immediately activated his star power and followed closely behind the little goldfish.
The little princess is extremely fast; with each tail flick, she leaps far away.
Even with constant teleportation, Jiang Mu could barely keep up.
The two, one human and one fish, chased each other on the seabed for nearly half an hour.
After following for a while, Jiang Mu suddenly realized something was wrong.
The surrounding light grew dimmer and dimmer, and the deep blue sea above had shrunk to a tiny point of light.
The deep water beneath our feet grew increasingly black, like solidified ink.
He is sinking.
It was extremely fast, and the angle was almost vertical.
Lingzhu and Rou'er are mortals. Even if Ayan used some water-repelling method to protect them, it would be impossible for them to dive to such a deep seabed. But they've already followed them all the way, so they can't just turn back now.
As they continued to sink, it became completely dark all around.
The aura of the water-repelling pearl could only illuminate a distance of less than three feet around him; beyond that was boundless nothingness.
Jiang Mu could sense that in the endless abyss of darkness around him, occasionally some terrifyingly large creatures would silently glide by from not far away.
Occasionally, a few extremely deep cries would come from the deepest darkness.
In this extreme stillness and oppression, even Jiang Mu's nerves were stretched to the limit.
at last!
After sinking for an unknown amount of time, a faint light shone through the seemingly endless darkness of the seabed below.
Jiang Mu stared intently, and couldn't help but feel a chill run down her spine.
It is a living underwater magma pool.
Countless coarse cracks crisscross the seabed, and the scalding red magma comes into direct contact with the seawater, but it is not extinguished; instead, it continues to churn with poisonous bubbles.
The dark red firelight illuminated the seabed, making it appear as terrifying as a hellish inferno.
Within the sea of lava, a dilapidated palace stood.
Jiang Mu gritted his teeth and activated the Profound Gang True Solution, enduring the pain as he followed Chan Xiaoyu through a barrier cave filled with array patterns, avoiding the outer lava, and entered the interior of the main hall.
The main hall was unusually empty.
Dozens of giant pillars carved with monster totems support the dome.
There were no lights in the depths of the main hall; the only illumination came from a luminous moss that clung to the walls.
Jiang Mu concealed his aura and his gaze fell on the throne at the top, which was made of a huge skeleton.
His heart skipped a beat at just one glance.
A woman was sitting prominently on the throne.
The woman had a bewitching and elegant face, with a noble and languid air about her.
A pale gold dress cascaded down her shoulders, the hem trailing several feet on the ground, the ends spreading out into a fishtail shape, softly draping over the steps in front of the throne.
Both her figure and her face are undeniably beautiful.
At this moment, she leaned against the armrest of the throne, one hand resting on her slightly turned cheek, her slender fingers gently touching her temple, her eyes half-closed. She seemed to be dozing in the dark red light of the lava.
But what shocked Jiang Mu was not the woman's stunning appearance.
It's her figure!
Even though she was sitting at an angle, Jiang Mu could tell that the woman was at least three meters tall.
It is neither an illusory form nor a deception.
It is a real body made of flesh and blood.
Each strand of hair carries a real weight.
But her enormous physique did not make her appear clumsy or strange; on the contrary, her perfect body proportions endowed her with an indescribable sense of holiness and allure.
Chan Xiaoyu, who was in mid-air, returned to human form and flew straight toward the stunningly beautiful woman on the throne.
The little princess reached out her tiny hand and tried to touch the other person.
When the fingertips were less than a foot away from the jade-white skin, a blood-red ripple suddenly spread through the air.
It sent Chan Xiaoyu flying.
The instant they were launched into the air, the ear-piercing clanging of chains filled the air.
Blood-red iron chains appeared out of thin air, each link as thick as a thumb, intertwining and wrapping around the woman's body.
Locking her from her neck all the way to the end of her fishtail, nailing her to the throne.
Sealing runes flowed along each chain.
Jiang Mu suddenly realized.
It is likely that this imprisoned giant beauty is the true overlord of this sea, the queen of the mermaid race.
That is, Chan Xiaoyu's aunt.
But looking at the size comparison, Jiang Mu couldn't suppress the complaints in her heart.
Since she is her aunt, Chan Xiaoyu's biological mother is probably a three-meter-tall female giant, just like this queen.
But such a big body...
How did you come up with such a tiny miniature figure of Chan Xiaoyu, the size of a thumb?
And it's said that she had a difficult birth?
Did she not have a natural birth, but rather was expelled by a sneeze?
The little princess got up from the ground and rinsed herself several more times.
I was bounced away every time.
After falling several times, she stopped crashing headlong into the ground and instead flew over to grab Jiang Mu's index finger, pulling it towards the throne with all her might, letting out anxious whimpers, clearly seeing Jiang Mu as her lifeline.
Jiang Mu looked down at the little thing swinging on her finger, then at the giantess bound like a dumpling in chains on the throne, and sighed helplessly.
"My dear aunt, you think too highly of me."
This is a restriction capable of trapping even a thirteenth-level powerhouse. How could I, a mere seventh-level cultivator, possibly help you save him?
The little princess's eyes were filled with tears. She didn't say anything, just held his fingers tightly, her little mouth pouting.
"Okay, okay, I'll give it a try."
Jiang Mu had no choice but to compromise.
He slowed his pace and carefully ascended the steps.
When he was about two feet away from the blood-red iron chain, he sensed a repulsive and binding force.
Jiang Mu reached out her hand.
A wisp of demonic energy slowly seeped from his palm, tentatively wrapping around one of the blood-red iron chains.
The moment they made contact, a layer of black mist rose from the originally scarlet chain.
It looked like someone had splashed a bottle of ink on a red silk cloth.
The flowing runes began to flash, and the chains made a clattering sound.
On the throne, the woman who had been fast asleep began to tremble slightly, her thick, long eyelashes as thick as raven feathers.
Have a show?
Jiang Mu was surprised, thinking to himself that the "hacker" assimilation attribute of this magic slot was indeed unreasonable and domineering.
It can even break through the restrictions of the thirteenth realm.
Seeing this, Chan Xiaoyu was so happy that she flew around Jiang Mu's head.
However, she was too happy too soon.
"boom!"
The array's core deep within the chains seemed to sense the intrusion, suddenly erupting with blinding crimson light. The black mist that had just adhered to them was instantly evaporated, and the chains returned to their scarlet hue.
A powerful backlash surged up Jiang Mu's arm.
Jiang Mu felt as if he had been struck in the chest by a heavy hammer, and flew backward, his back slamming heavily against a stone pillar in the main hall.
A sweet taste rose in his throat, and he spat out a mouthful of blood mist.
My head is spinning terribly, it feels like there's a ring of stars flying above my head.
"Eeya..."
The little princess flew to him and anxiously patted his cheeks.
Seeing that Jiang Mu didn't react, she pinched his nose with her little hands, then tugged at his ears, and like a busy woodpecker, tapped his forehead "thump thump thump"...
After a long while, Jiang Mu's unfocused gaze finally refocused.
He removed the little princess from his face and placed her beside him, trying to calm his surging blood and qi, and sat up against the stone pillar.
"No, these chains are too strong, I can't break them."
Jiang Mu wiped the blood from the corner of her mouth and looked at the woman chained to the throne with lingering fear.
The little princess lowered her head in disappointment.
Just then.
The woman on the throne slowly opened her eyes.
The deep blue pupils revealed a flowing dark gold color the instant they opened.
Noble and alluring.
"aunt!"
Overjoyed, Chan Xiaoyu flew over immediately.
With a "bang," it was once again mercilessly bounced away by the barrier, its small body rolling until it stopped beside Jiang Mu.
He lay sprawled out on his back.
The mermaid queen gazed quietly at the little one, her beautiful eyes filled with tenderness and pity.
Then her gaze fell on Jiang Mu. A complex expression appeared on her face, and she murmured a soft word:
I thought you were dead.
Jiang Mu had just regulated the spiritual energy in her meridians and didn't hear what the other person said.
He coughed, stood up, and said:
"Your Majesty, I rescued your little princess by chance on the road. It was nothing, just a small favor; consider it making friends with a merman. How are you feeling now? Can you find a way to escape on your own?"
A captivating smile bloomed on the mermaid queen's stunning face.
She parted her red lips slightly:
"I wish to bear you a child. Would you?"
? ? ?
Jiang Mu's mind went blank for a moment, completely stunned.
He stared blankly at the woman on the throne, wondering if he had misheard from the sudden noise.
What kind of outrageous language is this?!
Big sister, is this our first time meeting?
You haven't even finished introducing yourself, and you're already jumping straight to the topic of reproduction? Are all merfolk this unrestrained?
and………
Jiang Mu's gaze unconsciously swept over the woman's towering, voluptuous, and imposing figure, which stood three meters tall.
Look at your own physique!
If I were to actually accept this size and proportion, would it be called a "bridal chamber" or a "cave adventure"?
Who could withstand this?
Seeing Jiang Mu's constipated expression, the Mermaid Queen's eyes flashed with amusement, and she leisurely added:
"If I can't have children, then let Xiaoyu have them for you."
Jiang Mu fell silent.
Some are as big as mountains, others as small as peanuts.
None of them are normal.
Unless he transforms into the Great Sage and possesses his own weapon.
Just then, Jiang Mu's gaze inadvertently passed over the woman's shoulder and landed on the wall behind her.
The man's pupils involuntarily contracted.
On that wall, a pattern was clearly carved.
A red umbrella!
The umbrella is open, with tassels hanging from its edges.
The shape, proportions, and even the trajectory of the runes were exactly the same as the Red Umbrella Cult markings he had seen before.
Jiang Mu's gaze suddenly sharpened: "Are you a member of the Red Umbrella Cult?"
No wonder that despicable teleportation array of the Red Umbrella Cult sent him to this island.
So it turns out this is also Red Umbrella Cult territory!
The Mermaid Queen looked at him with pity, remained silent for a long while, and then sighed and said:
"This place was once one of Jiang Chaoxi's cultivation caves."
The Great Demon?
Is the legendary strongest villain also connected to this island?
Jiang Mu looked at the red umbrella pattern again, her expression turning strange, and a bold and absurd conjecture took shape in her mind.
The Mermaid Queen saw through his thoughts and smiled slightly:
"You guessed right. Jiang Chaoxi is the true mastermind behind the Red Umbrella Sect."
"He founded the Red Umbrella Cult."
Even though she already had a premonition, Jiang Mu was still shocked and felt her scalp tingle when she heard this solid evidence.
But on second thought, it seems to make sense.
Who else but a top-tier demon like Jiang Chaoxi could create such a massive cult that operates so strangely and thrives on chaos? But he still couldn't understand:
"But why have I never heard anyone else mention this?"
"Not surprising."
The Mermaid Queen's voice was calm.
"Apart from the core members of the Red Umbrella Cult back then, very few people in the world know this secret. Moreover, even if those high-ranking members knew, they would never publicize it, and would even be eager to sever ties with Jiang Chaoxi."
Why?
"Because the Red Umbrella Cult of today is not the same as the Red Umbrella Cult that Jiang Chaoxi founded back then."
The mermaid queen spoke leisurely.
Jiang Mu frowned: "What do you mean?"
The Queen said:
"Jiang Chaoxi's original intention in establishing the Red Umbrella Sect was to create a new world. No matter if you are human, demon or beast, bloodline, origin, or star position will not matter."
He wanted to abolish the cruel "Star Position Mutual Killing" cultivation law and sever the shackles that the Heavenly Dao had placed around the necks of cultivators.
The red umbrella, like a canopy, shelters all under heaven. All spirits share the same roof; the Great Way is not lonely.
"Abolish star-level cultivation?"
Jiang Mu was stunned.
Ling Ye had mentioned this to him before.
He recalled how many opponents he had killed to prove his star status, and how many times he had nearly lost his life to protect his star position.
The entire order of the cultivation world today, from the imperial court to the sects, from the Demon Slayer Bureau to the Imperial Guard, is all built upon the star system.
Abolishing the star positions is even more outrageous than overthrowing the emperor.
And to even think about building a utopian world is just too naive.
Of course, he said he also had other purposes,
The Mermaid Queen continued,
"It is said that he needs to gather enough power to fight a certain enemy. He has never said who that enemy is."
Perhaps it was the imperial court, perhaps it was the ethereal and elusive Heavenly Dao, or perhaps something else entirely.
Jiang Mu processed this information and pressed for an answer: "How did the Red Umbrella Sect become what it is now?"
The Mermaid Queen said:
"After Jiang Chaoxi died as a divine punishment, the Red Umbrella Sect was leaderless and fell into chaos, eventually changing hands."
The elderly members of the church were either killed or dispersed.
The usurper leader betrayed Jiang Chaoxi's original intentions, turning the Red Umbrella Cult into a cult solely focused on conquering the world.
"Was the unrest caused by outsiders?" Jiang Mu asked.
The Mermaid Queen's lips curled into a mocking smile:
"It's hard to guard against a thief within the family. The root of the turmoil is related to a disciple that Jiang Chaoxi took in back then."
This person is inherently rebellious and ambitious.
Even more ridiculous, he secretly fell in love with one of Jiang Chaoxi's confidantes. In order to prove that he was stronger than Jiang Chaoxi, he usurped the position of sect leader.
The woman who was his confidante was later suppressed, and this person played a significant role in instigating the situation.
Jiang Mu's eyes twitched as she listened.
What kind of ridiculously melodramatic drama is this?
and many more!
A sudden inspiration struck Jiang Mu.
That's not right.
I remember back in Yancheng, the leader of the Red Umbrella Sect, who set up the formation and fought against Mo Huaisu, the head of the Dao Sect, from afar to absorb the city's fortune, clearly had the voice and figure of a woman.
If the Mermaid Queen wasn't lying, then where did the male apprentice who usurped the throne go?
Could the cult leader who appeared in Yancheng be just a puppet?
Or perhaps, in order to cultivate some evil art, the male disciple even changed his gender?
Jiang Mu couldn't understand it.
It seems we can only delve deeper into this later when there's an opportunity.
But no matter what, he really had absolutely no good feelings towards this big devil Jiang Chaoxi.
They've created such a mess, causing chaos throughout the world.
He's been tricked and is now stranded on a deserted island. That bastard deserves to be struck by lightning!
Anyway, Jiang Mu and the Red Umbrella Sect are already locked in a life-or-death struggle, and sooner or later he will uproot this lousy sect.
Jiang Mu gathered her thoughts and looked at the Mermaid Queen:
"So, Your Majesty, are you truly unable to escape now?"
"This formation is based on the celestial veins and is set up using the power of heaven and earth."
The Mermaid Queen said calmly, "No one in the world can help me get out of here unless Jiang Chaoxi comes back from the dead and comes to solve the problem herself. But you don't need to worry that I will die here."
She paused, then looked tenderly at Chan Xiaoyu, who was gazing at her expectantly, and said softly:
"I'll trouble you to keep Xiaoyu with you for now and take care of her."
üの」
Jiang Mu's face immediately darkened. "Why am I the one taking care of her? Doesn't she have a maid?"
Who would want to have a mentally challenged glutton by their side?
Even with a large family fortune, one can still have enough to eat and wear.
The Mermaid Queen smiled and said softly, "Take her with you. She will help you find some things... that were originally yours."
Here we go again with this riddle-solving trick?
Just as Jiang Mu was about to ask further questions, he saw the Mermaid Queen slightly part her red lips and gently blow a breath in his direction.
"call"
A gentle wave of water suddenly appeared and enveloped Jiang Mu and Chan Xiaoyu.
Jiang Mu suddenly felt dizzy.
Then, like a cannonball fired from a gun, it flew backwards out of the hall.
In the brief moment of disorientation as I was propelled upwards by the water column.
Jiang Mu glanced down at the dark, endless abyss at the bottom of the sea without realizing it.
The next instant, every hair on his body stood on end.
Below, at the bottom of the abyss, a pair of enormous, scarlet eyes slowly opened.
Like two blood-red suns sunk to the bottom of the sea.
There was no murderous intent, no emotion, just a fixed gaze fixed on him, exuding a chilling pressure.
"Good heavens, the Ancient Gods have resurrected?"
Jiang Mu felt a chill run down her spine.
After Jiang Mu disappeared into the sea.
The vast underwater palace fell silent once more.
On the throne, the mermaid queen's originally gentle and loving expression gradually faded, revealing a somewhat gloomy look.
"So he's not dead after all..."
The mermaid queen tapped her temples with her slender fingers and murmured, "Or did she deliberately set up this scheme?"
She turned her head to look at the inky black sea beyond the dome, her voice ethereal:
"Jiang Chaoxi, Jiang Chaoxi, I'd like to see what other tricks you can pull on this chessboard..."