Mutated Tao

Dong, dong, dong! The sound of war drums accompanied by howling wind kept resounding. With the drumbeats, the massive formation of soldiers advanced step by step.

As the drumbeats quickened, their speed also increased. Everyone exhaled and inhaled in unison as if tens of thousands of soldiers moved as one body.

Hundreds of followers of the Dharma Sect stood opposite them. They pulled gigantic statues of Buddha and waved towering soul banners as they surged toward them like wild beasts.

When the two sides clashed, the battlefield’s center became a grinding stone of flesh and blood, continuously devouring everything and spitting out fragments and remains. Most importantly, these remains were still alive.

When battles no longer resulted in death, everything inevitably became more extreme.

The Dharma Sect followers with stone statues inserted in their heads chanted as they charged at rows of White Lotus followers.

Their bodies were already broken, but they stood up again and endured the pain through stitches and the purple talismans on their foreheads.

Their hands were gone, replaced by rusted blades tied to their bones. They had completely transformed into beasts and livestock.

The Grand Witch said that the enemy caused all their pain. As long as they killed them, Sir Arrogant Stone would mercifully grant everyone peace.

They didn’t have much power, but their sheer numbers were overwhelming. They would keep getting back up unless they were torn into pieces.

Amidst the blood and gore, the two sides fought for days and nights until they were completely drained of strength.

At that point, each person was filled with despair and numbness, moving purely on instinct.

Everyone dragged their exhausted bodies and slowly left the decaying battlefield. They forced themselves to make it back to their lines before finally succumbing to exhaustion, collapsing into a heap.

Bai Lingmiao, covered in blood and grime, staggered through the battlefield. They wouldn’t die, and once they regained their strength, they would stand up again.

Bai Lingmiao had already exhausted all her tears two days ago. She was extremely tired and could only let the White Lotus followers, who still had a little strength, return to the halls to sleep.

Her mind was buzzing as if it was no longer her own. Everything felt too tragic.

She looked at the distant, pulsating ground of flesh. Her heart was devoid of any fluctuations now. She had experienced far too much during this time.

Just then, a group of people in black robes quietly walked through the crowd. They moved as silently as possible to avoid waking anyone. They crouched by each person and left a trace of red behind.

Soon, they reached Bai Lingmiao and placed the same red traces beside her and the people behind her. The teachings of Ao Jing shall endure, and pain shall persist.

Bai Lingmiao picked it in her hands and realized that the trace of red was the Profound Records.

The followers of Ao Jing Sect were attempting to distribute the Profound Records to everyone, in preparation for an even more ruthless battlefield.

Bai Lingmiao’s lips trembled slightly. She wanted to say something but ultimately kept quiet.

If the pain-inducing Profound Records could bring an end to everything sooner, she had no right to stop what was happening.

A disheveled young man rushed from among the corpses to Bai Lingmiao, then knelt and continuously bowed to her. “Saintess, please help my grandfather! I’m begging you!”

Bai Lingmiao gently lifted him up and followed him to the nearby tents.

Many people lay in disorder inside the tents. They wore no armor and weren’t soldiers. These were laborers who fell to the ground like logs.

Since they wouldn’t die of sickness or cold now, they could sleep anywhere they wanted.

After walking a while, the young man suddenly turned and rushed toward a black humanoid mass by the gutter.

As the black mass buzzed and dispersed, Bai Lingmiao realized it was a living person who was previously covered by a thick layer of flies.

It was an old man covered in age spots. His head was sunken, his belly was leaking, and a hole in his temple had white maggots crawling within.

In ordinary times, he would’ve died long ago. Now, he remained alive and coughed with all his strength. The itch in his throat did not ease no matter how much he coughed.

The young man wiped his tears. “Saintess, please help my grandfather! He’s so tired, but he can’t sleep. He’s so hungry, but he can’t eat. Whatever he eats leaks out.”

Bai Lingmiao looked at the intestines that had slipped into the gutter.

Bai Lingmiao realized she couldn’t do anything now that death was gone, even if she wanted to. The old man was old, and he should have died of old age long ago.

This was his fate, and no divine power she wielded could reverse it.

Bai Lingmiao sat by the old man and watched his pain with compassion. She silently recited the White Lotus Sutra in her heart.

She knew it was useless, but it was the only thing she could do at this moment.

As Bai Lingmiao’s heart filled with compassion, the suffering old man gradually stopped moving under everyone’s shocked gazes.

Soon, black flies swarmed and crawled into the old man’s mouth.

“Dead? Really dead? The Saintess can kill! The Heavenly Mater has manifested!”

“Really dead! Finally! I can die too!”

Hope gradually appeared in everyone’s eyes and seemed to spread outwards.

The crowd began to gather around Bai Lingmiao, their eyes filled with anticipation and reverence as they kowtowed towards her.

“I...” Bai Lingmiao looked at her hands in shock. “Has the Heavenly Dao of Death returned?”

When she looked at the kneeling half-body before her, Bai Lingmiao quickly realized that the Heavenly Dao of Death had not returned. She had merely gained the power to grant death.

Bai Lingmiao understood what it meant. There was death on their side but not on the enemy’s side, providing a massive boost in morale! Pain was no longer eternal—they could die whenever they wanted.

As the news of the White Lotus followers spread, everyone's spirits lifted despite their extreme exhaustion.

More people witnessed Bai Lingmiao granting the release of death to those who should have passed away long ago.

The once lifeless camp buzzed with vitality.

Without death, there was no life. Only death could bring life.