Twilight Boundary-Chapter 729 - 720: Fourth Generation Main Sacrificial

Chapter 729: Chapter 720: Fourth Generation Main Sacrificial

The State Preceptor departed with the candlelight, leaving only darkness in the surrounding cellar, as if even all sounds had been swallowed up.

Hu Ma, however, continued standing in the darkness, endless emotions surging within him.

Surprisingly, at this moment, what occupied his mind were not the words of the State Preceptor, but rather the bewilderment he had been unable to dispel ever since he appeared in this world, the series of questions buried deep in his heart.

No one had ever told him anything, so everything had to be probed cautiously. Even when forced to make decisions, he had to act with the utmost care.

In truth, he had long been puzzled: why, after transmigrating, was his Lifebound Spirit Temple so broken? Why could he so effortlessly master Lao Junmei’s magic? Why did it always feel like many things were arranged for him, the sensation of being watched...?

The most important thing was, why could he never be as carefree as other Reincarnators, maintaining a detachment from this world?

Only now, with a wry smile, did he realize that he had been living in an illusion all along.

The mountain lord said his heart was in disarray, and it had always been so.

From the moment he awoke, his heart had never been at peace!

If he was a Reincarnator, then his identity as a member of the Hu Family felt like it was stolen. If he was a Reincarnator, yet his Lifebound Spirit Temple was broken, always different from others, then no matter who he was, he never felt quite grounded?

"But..."

While pondering these thoughts, a sudden surge of ruthlessness welled up within him. He pounded his chest twice fiercely, forcibly suppressing the formless panic that churned within his heart.

"Even after years on the Jianghu Road, could these words alone cause my heart to lose its calm?"

"What I see is what I know; what I think is where I exist."

He muttered to himself, reciting these words.

He had experienced a dazed state, taking seven days to awaken fully, and had gone through the process of transforming himself from a complete corpse into a living person, bit by bit.

That feeling of transformation had now become his only clear perception in this chaos: "No matter what that old man said, I am still myself, so what is there to worry about? When faced with something, I’ll just figure it out!"

Even the State Preceptor thought that upon suddenly learning this news, Hu Ma would be bewildered and confused. So, he was not eager to say much more to him, wanting instead for Hu Ma to adapt first, then accept it.

But he did not know that Hu Ma’s identity was from the Walking Ghost Sect.

But at his core, he was a Shousui.

A Shousui man inherently believed only in his own abilities; with those skills, he feared nothing.

Moreover, since awakening in this world, learning these skills over the years, and experiencing so many jianghu battles, it was not all for nothing.

Even Hu Ma himself found it challenging to describe thoroughly. Upon hearing these things now, his heart naturally felt somewhat suppressed.

But correspondingly, the previous formless confusion and difficulty had vanished, leaving a sense of unprecedented clarity.

There’s no time to waste by delaying here!

He listened silently to his heartbeat transition from chaotic and rapid to firm and slow. A faint glint of determination appeared in his eyes. Since he rambled on about so many baseless things, I’ll just go and find out the truth.

The truth and falsehood, right and wrong, can always be clarified. If it’s said that I don’t understand or don’t know, well, Second Master understands even less, knows even less, yet he could live so transparently? I am his first disciple; can’t I even learn this?

Amid this darkness, he stood for about the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, undergoing a range of emotional changes.

After about a cup of tea’s time, he slowly walked out. Exiting the ancestral hall, under the moonlight, his expression had once again turned silent and firm.

He turned his head to look at this desolate Fox Coffin Village, only feeling as though it had been forgotten by Heaven and Earth. Just now, Old Yin Mountain had experienced a sacrificial ceremony, and incense smoke was everywhere. But here, it felt isolated and cold, as if even the mountain lord’s gaze couldn’t reach it.

With a low sigh, he approached the skeleton before him, looking at the biological father of this former self.

Perhaps, even the term "former self" might be unnecessary.

But because his memories of him were sparse, Hu Ma’s current feelings were more complex than sorrowful.

He even thought of the State Preceptor’s words, and a hidden resentment seemed to rise within him: "If it’s said that the Meng family once sacrificed their ancestors for a kowtowing opportunity, didn’t the Hu Family essentially sacrifice their only bloodline descendant for this chance?"

Sighing inwardly, he nevertheless untied his outer robe, gathered up the skeleton, and prepared to take it back to Dayang Village for burial.

"You..."

Just as he finished wrapping the skeleton in his outer robe, he heard the sound of hesitant footsteps nearby, and someone spoke hesitantly.

Hu Ma turned coldly to see Calculation carefully approaching.

Upon meeting Hu Ma’s gaze, Calculation immediately stopped, closed his eyes, slightly raised his face, and trembled.

Hu Ma took a deep breath and said, "What are you doing?"

"I..."

Calculation’s voice trembled, "I don’t know if your next step is to twist my head off..."

Hu Ma looked at him coldly, not answering.

Calculation panicked, his voice tinged with tears, "I didn’t want to come! But I still have to call him Master. Besides, in our sect, there are plenty of those with little backbone. If I hadn’t come, many others would have!"

Seeing his pitiful appearance, tears and snot on the verge of streaming down his face, Hu Ma slowly exhaled and said calmly, "Why would I want to twist your head off?"

"Your Master simply came to tell me some things. Indeed, it made my heart a little troubled and hard to fully believe, so I will go verify it. If what he said is false, then I will indeed twist his head off."

"Ah..."

Hearing a tone far calmer than he expected, Calculation cautiously opened his eyes and asked, "Then, what if what he said is true?"

Hu Ma replied calmly, "If it’s true, we can always sort out right from wrong. Why would my heart be in disarray?"

Hearing this, Calculation was genuinely surprised. He scrutinized Hu Ma up and down, as if trying to see if he was pretending. After a long moment, he whispered, "You seem... very calm."

"Actually, like this, you seem even scarier..."

"You... you’d be better off crying and wailing, drinking yourself into a stupor to drown your sorrows!"

"..."

Saying this, he took out a wine flask from his waist, shook it, and said, "Look, I even brought you wine."

Hu Ma took it and had a sip, but didn’t drink much before handing the flask back. "Remember to return the flask to the village. There are only a few, and they’re only used for guests."

"Your Master already stole one. If you steal another, the Old Clan Chief will certainly be cursing up a storm tomorrow..."

As Calculation reached out for it, Hu Ma suddenly seized his wrist, his gaze fixed on him. "Besides, compared to this State Preceptor, I’m more curious about you now, Calculation."

"I’ve long known there were issues with your identity—all those conjuring tricks, claiming to be from the Eleven Surnames. It’s only because you didn’t seem malicious that everyone let it slide. But now I want to know, were you ordered to watch me from the very beginning?"

"..."

"No..."

Calculation was so startled he cried out, "How would I know who you are?"

"At first, I thought I knew who you were several times, but it seemed I was wrong every time."

"Besides, we in this sect just wander the jianghu. I never know who I’ll meet. Weren’t you the one who initially sought me out? Later, at that blood food mine, wasn’t it Old Xu who asked me to look after you, a junior?"

"Of course, of course..."

Saying this, his lips trembled for a moment before he spoke honestly, "But to tell you the truth, within our sect, those of us with lighter fates do tend to be drawn to those with heavier fates."

"But initially, I never expected your fate to be this heavy..."

"Think about it! Ever since I started following you, I’ve nearly lost my life four or five times, with no benefits to speak of. Even my wages are still drawn from the Red Lantern Society..."

"...Do you think I don’t want to leave?"

"..."

"Heh."

Seeing his troubled old face, Hu Ma slowly released his hand and said flatly, "Since your identity is already exposed and you wanted to leave, what are you still doing here, following me?"

Calculation’s face turned even more wretched. "I wanted to leave before, but the ancestral master wouldn’t let me."

"This time, however, my Master ordered me to stay by your side and serve you..."

"Hmm?"

Hu Ma glanced at him. "He told you to stay by my side? Heh, did he want you to watch me?"

"No way..."

Calculation shrank back, whispering, "You’re different now. You’re the fourth-generation Main Sacrificial of our Daluo Dharma Sect!"

"Within our sect, we all have to treat you like an ancestor!"

"Main Sacrificial?"

Hu Ma had just heard the State Preceptor mention this, but at that time, his mind was in turmoil, and he hadn’t been in the mood to ask about it.

"This is incredible; I never expected it to be you..."

Calculation looked at Hu Ma with a hint of grievance, as if somewhat dissatisfied with this development himself, but still explained softly, "The Main Sacrificial is the one chosen by the Daluo Dharma Sect to perform the sacrificial ceremonies. In the past, only the Sect Hierarch was qualified to hold this position."

"A hundred and seventy years ago, our ancestral master conducted the grand sacrificial ceremony in Shangjing. He received an imperial order and led miracle men and skilled individuals from across the land, commanding the ancestral altar and the yin souls of the various Hall Gods. That was the first-generation Main Sacrificial."

"For the next thirty years, it was our Daluo Dharma Sect’s second-generation Main Sacrificial who refined the Zhensui Mansion and established the Twelve Ghost Altars to stabilize the fortune of the world."

"Then, twenty years ago, our Master became the third-generation Main Sacrificial."

"He engaged in a duel of magic with those reincarnated evil spirits, involved the Ten Surnames in the situation, and even used the Ten Surnames Ancestral Hall to replace the Twelve Ghost Altars..."

"It’s just..."

At this point, he stole another glance at Hu Ma and said, "I just never imagined he would choose you as the fourth-generation Main Sacrificial, and... and pick me to guide you into the sect."