The Great Shaman glanced at the crowd and flashed a deeply meaningful smile. "The Southern Barbarian Tribes will be destroyed."
Yu frowned, and her heart suddenly sank as she grasped the meaning behind his words. The thought that rose in her mind made her skin crawl. Lu seemed about to say something more, but her sister tugged at her arm, and she fell silent.
Yu walked back and went straight to Die, whispering, "Can't you escape?"
Of everyone present, Die was the strongest—at the Great Shaman realm. If anyone could flee this place, it would be her. But ever since being captured, Die had remained quietly here with no intention of trying to escape.
Die shook her head.
"Aren't you from the Floating Tribe? You're the best at hiding and concealing yourself."
Die replied, "But I'm only a Great Shaman. There are five Witch Kings here."
Yu was struck speechless. The enormous gap in strength left no hope of Die breaking free.
Yu said, "They're going to eat us! Someone has to get out and find Lord Witch Ox!"
Die said softly, "He'll come. And we won't be eaten."
"But—" Yu's face was taut with anxiety. What the Great Shaman had just said had made her realize something. The twenty thousand-plus members of the Witch Ox Tribe weren't locked up here simply because they had been associating with the Demon King, but because the Bone-Eating Tribe was hoarding them as food.
Over a hundred thousand Bone-Eating Tribe members had gathered here, and all of them needed to eat and drink. But in this chaotic, war-torn world, where would they find enough food? The twenty thousand people of the Witch Ox Tribe were a feast delivered right to their doorstep.
That was why the Great Shaman had said the Southern Barbarian Tribes would be destroyed.
"Isn't he here already?" Die suddenly nudged her chin forward and gave a faint smile, as if she had expected this all along.
Yu, Lu, and the others quickly turned to look. The next moment, their eyes lit up.
Upon the high platform, the figure of Lord Witch Ox had appeared at some unknown moment, standing between Bao Qi and Wu Chi. One hand had seized Wu Chi's right arm—the one gripping the blade.
His sudden appearance stunned the hundred thousand-plus Bone-Eating Tribe members for an instant. Wu Chi's expression changed dramatically as he instinctively channeled his shamanic power to resist, only to find his right hand completely bound and impossible to wrench free.
When he looked up, the face that had plagued his every waking and sleeping moment was imprinted before his eyes.
"It's you!" Wu Chi snarled through clenched teeth, his expression turning savage.
"Wu Chi, you've aged." Yang Kai regarded him with cold indifference.
Wu Chi's face twitched at these words. He barked, "What sort of shamanic spell did you use on me?!"
Today's Wu Chi was indeed far more aged than the Wu Chi of half a year ago. When Yang Kai had first encountered him, Wu Chi had looked no older than forty. But seeing him again today, he appeared to have aged ten or twenty years.
For a Witch King, this was highly unusual.
But a Witch King affected by Years Flow Like a Shuttle was the exception.
Years Flow Like a Shuttle was a divine ability of the Emperor of Time, possessing the power to manipulate the flow of time. Outside Cangnan Village, Yang Kai had activated the Years Flow Like a Shuttle Seal at the level of a low-grade Great Shaman. Wu Chi had been struck by it, and although it hadn't proven fatal, it had left its mark—these ten or twenty years of aging were the痕迹 left behind.
Wu Chi didn't know what sort of spell this was. Every time he thought of it, he was filled with dread, and the hatred in his heart only burned stronger.
"You wouldn't understand, and there's no need for you to understand!" Yang Kai replied lightly. A divine ability from an Emperor more than a hundred thousand years in the future—how could the Witch Kings of this world possibly comprehend it? He exerted a fraction of force, and Wu Chi couldn't help but stumble backward several steps.
"Bao Qi is my man!" Yang Kai fixed Wu Chi with a direct stare. "He should not have to endure this kind of torture!"
"My Lord!" Bao Qi fought to suppress the trembling of his body and called out softly. He had been certain he would die here, yet Yang Kai's appearance had given him a sliver of hope.
Despite the presence of five Witch Kings presiding over this place, he believed Lord Witch Ox could rescue him. It was pure instinct, and Bao Qi had absolute faith in it.
Yang Kai nodded. A flash of light appeared on his hand as he tapped Bao Qi's body. The shamanic bindings holding Bao Qi instantly collapsed, granting him his freedom.
"How dare you release him!" Wu Chi roared in fury. The Bone-Eating Tribe had expended tremendous effort to capture this Demon King, and this Witch Ox had simply freed him the moment he arrived—as if the Bone-Eating Tribe meant nothing at all.
"Open your mouth!" Yang Kai ignored him and gave Bao Qi an instruction.
Bao Qi obediently opened his mouth. The next moment, something flew from Yang Kai's hand and shot down his throat.
"Refine it."
Bao Qi immediately sat cross-legged on the ground and channeled his power to refine what he had swallowed. At once, a cool sensation spread throughout his body, greatly easing the pain. Especially in his arm that had been turned to bare bone—a tingling, numbing sensation radiated from deep within.