Chapter 159: Divine Weapons and Sacred Artifacts

After struggling with my own consciousness for a short while until I completely shook off that inexplicable feeling, I stepped out of the tent. By that time, everyone was already preparing to enter the hundreds of rocky caves.

Bark quickly packed up the things I had used, hoisted the two duffel bags, and followed closely behind me, joining the main group's expedition into the cave.

The old village chief chose the largest cave entrance to enter first, then waved to everyone and shouted, "It's safe in here, come on in!"

Following that, the crowd stepped into the rock cave in the footsteps of the old village chief. Every step everyone took was filled with caution, fearing they might encounter some unknown danger!

Bark and I walked at the very back of the procession. Along the way, I used a flashlight to observe the walls. Since ancient times lacked paper, ancient people used stone walls to record the past, and even the Demon Race was no exception.

"Mr. Xu Fu, there is a green light ahead. What do you make of it?" the old village chief asked the young dandy up front!

However, when I heard the old village chief call him Xu Fu, I was extremely shocked. Could that dandy really be Xu Fu from the Qin Dynasty, the very Corpse Demon King who had once fought against Malkaula?

No matter how I thought about it, however, it seemed impossible. If he were truly the Corpse Demon King, why hadn't I sensed even a trace of his ghostly corpse aura?

"Keep walking. That might be what I'm looking for!" Xu Fu's hoarse voice echoed back and forth in the silent cave, sounding just like the Grim Reaper summoning someone's soul.

It might be what he was looking for, but what on earth was it? What was his purpose in coming here, and what would happen next? I knew none of this. Bark and I could only follow them toward that light, getting closer and closer, nearer and nearer!

The green light gradually became clear. It seemed this was already the end of the tunnel, and that green light emanated from a long sword glowing with a verdant radiance.

As for how long this sword had been here, I had no idea, nor did anyone care about its history here.

What mattered to everyone was that this sword looked as good as new. Since the blade itself could emit light, it was at the very least a legendary weapon.

In any case, it could not be an ordinary weapon. Combined with the demonic runes on the outer stone walls, I felt that this sword was most likely left behind by some deity who had fallen here.

"Sigh, what a pity. This is not what I am looking for. You all can handle this sacred artifact yourselves. Be careful of the sword spirit inside; if you get swallowed by it, don't say I didn't warn you!" After saying this, Xu Fu turned around gracefully and walked out of the cave!

Good grief, this was a sacred artifact! Legend had it that such treasures were possessed only by gods. Now that it had reappeared in the mortal world, Xu Fu couldn't care less about it. What on earth was he looking for then? It was simply unbelievable!

Inside the cave, everyone eyed each other warily. It looked as though whoever made the first move would become the target of a collective attack.

This was a sacred artifact, a treasure the mortal world had never seen before. A single sacred artifact like this, if unleashed upon the world, could easily spark a race war!

Goodness, Bark and I were completely dumbfounded. We had never even considered trying to seize the sacred artifact, but the current situation no longer allowed for much thought.

Looking at the old village chief, he wore a speechless expression. If a real fight broke out, he would have no choice but to intervene, because he was at the very front. At the slightest misstep, he would bear the brunt of the group's attack, and even if he survived, he would be stripped of a layer of skin!

"Everyone, what do you say we do this? Let's not make any moves, let's not be rash. Everything is negotiable. Let's try it one by one. Whoever can make this sword acknowledge them as its master gets to keep it. How about that?" The old village chief looked around at the crowd and suggested.

In this situation, this was probably the only viable plan. To avoid bloody conflict, the old village chief chose to swallow his pride; otherwise, if a real fight broke out, none of them would make it out alive.

"Right, I agree with the chief!"

"I agree with the chief too!"

Bark and I responded to the chief one after the other. With Bark and me taking the lead, the others also nodded in agreement. At that moment, a rough mountain brute stepped forward toward the holy sword first, spat heavily into his palm, rubbed his hands together, and reached out to grab the sacred artifact!

Seeing this scene, I desperately wanted to say, "Big brother, please, spare us your grossness! How are we supposed to touch the hilt after you do that?!"

"Hum—"

Just as the burly man was about to approach the sacred artifact, the blade suddenly emitted a ringing sound. The sword, which had been lying on the ground, instantly levitated and stood vertically in mid-air, as if refusing to let those filthy hands contaminate its blade!

Such a spiritual sword! When I saw this, I truly wanted to claim this sword as my own. If one really possessed such a sacred artifact, how could anyone fail to protect themselves under the heavens?

"Damn it, how dare you refuse to let me touch you? Today, I'm going to grab you whether you like it or not!" The burly man was now furious out of embarrassment. How could he not be angry when he was being played around with by a sword?

Why were these demons just like humans? Whenever they got angry, they became as stubborn as mules, and such stubbornness usually brought more losses than gains.

With every step the burly man moved forward, the holy sword retreated a step. No matter what the burly man did, the holy sword always maintained a distance of two meters from him, leaving him completely unable to touch its gleaming blade.

"Ugh, damn broken sword! You asked for this. Let's see how I make you submit!"

As soon as the demon warrior finished speaking, he bit his finger open and fiercely flicked his flowing blood essence toward the agile sacred artifact!

"Hum, hum, hum!"

No matter how agile the sacred artifact was, under the demon warrior's flurry of attacks, it was ultimately stained with a droplet of scorching hot blood essence. Immediately afterward, the sword began to shake, and even the radiance on the blade flickered dim and bright!

Blood essence was equivalent to a person's vital life force. Ordinarily, people would not use it casually, because once blood essence was used, it meant the person was paying with their life to accomplish something, usually resulting in a shortened lifespan!

In more severe cases, their very lives might vanish forever. However, when encountering a beloved, spiritual divine artifact, some people would still use their blood essence to bind the artifact through a blood oath, establishing a sort of pact with these spiritual divine weapons and sacred artifacts!

Roughly speaking, it meant: "Man and sword cherish one another; the sword serves as the vessel, if man perishes the sword falls, and it obeys no master save by destiny!"

If one had no destined affinity with the sword and forced it to acknowledge a master, the backlash of the sword spirit awaited them, and even if they ultimately obtained the sword, they might be reduced to ashes.

Unless the person's own strength far surpassed that of the sword spirit, or the sword spirit happened to share an affinity with them.

Otherwise, all efforts would only result in a useless sword devoid of any spirit, and the sword spirit within would seal itself away, remaining locked until the day its master died, upon which the seal would automatically lift!