Chapter 186
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Chapter 186: Title
Lilith surveyed the stunned expressions before her and smiled. "Were I in your position, I’d prioritize escaping this place. The disturbance has already drawn the attention of this world’s inhabitants."
"A word of counsel to Outsiders—until you comprehend the workings of this realm, avoid revealing yourselves before its natives. Such exposure invites… complications."
Having spoken, she turned to depart. The advice was unnecessary—a mere whim born of her current good humor. While she could vanish before the locals arrived, the hundred-odd souls before her faced precarious odds. Their strongest barely reached Tier One cultivation, while many remained ordinary people devoid of any spiritual attainment.
Most worlds that manifested Heavenly Dao chains belonged to cultivation-focused realms—environments notoriously perilous to the unprepared.
The young man recognized the implicit threat in her words. Seeing the expectant gazes of his companions, he steeled himself before the departing figure. "Senior, please—a moment!"
This self-possessed woman clearly followed her own rules, yet hadn’t shown herself to be unreasonable.
Lilith paused, arching an eyebrow. "What more could you require?" The thought amused her—since when had she grown so indulgent?
"We’ve no means to evade these natives. Might you assist us?" His voice held no illusion that this was empty intimidation.
"Why ever would I?" Her laughter tinkled like windchimes. "How delightfully naive—you think answering a few queries makes me trustworthy?"
The young man stiffened at her phrasing. She’d said "humans"—the terminology of non-human races. Could this being not be a human cultivator, despite her appearance?
Observing their confusion, Lilith’s smile widened. "Assistance is possible… for adequate compensation." Her voice, soft yet beguiling, resembled a demon’s whisper coaxing mortals to barter their souls.
Compensation? The youth exchanged glances with his companions. This required collective decision. The transactional tone sparked recognition—inter-species bargains… What Blue Star race…?
A murmur rippled through the crowd: "Demon."
"Not entirely incorrect," Lilith purred, "though I prefer the title ‘evil witch.’"
Westerners among them recoiled. The epithet carried weight comparable to Satan in their lore.
"Lilith," someone breathed.
"Time dwindles," she sang. "Choose: pay my price for safe passage, or await the natives’ arrival. Perhaps they’ll welcome interstellar visitors with tea and conversation?" Her mocking smile held no warmth.
The choice was illusory. No world received dimensional intruders with open arms—containment preceded any "dialogue."
"Five minutes remain."
"What are your terms?" The youth’s question hung heavy. They clung to a precipice—grasp the evil witch’s offered hand, or plunge into the abyss.
“It’s simple. Sign this contract and pledge to serve me once in the future.” Lilith snapped her fingers, summoning a hundred identical contracts and quills before the crowd.
“Attempt no deceit under a witch’s watch. This pact cares not for false names or true—sign it, and I could track you across realms.”
“What would you demand of us?” The young man’s voice tightened. “If bound to your service, must we obey every whim?”
Lilith tilted her head, crimson nails tapping her chin. After a measured pause, she amended, “Very well. Revised terms: Within Hanjiang’s borders, you’ll serve me once without risking lives. Consider yourselves disposable tools for a single use.”
The arcane symbols on the parchment shifted and rearranged before their eyes, the infernal script resolving into comprehensible terms. When the phrase “disposable tools” crystallized in their minds, several jaws clenched. The sheer contempt of being deemed single-use implements made veins throb beneath collars.
Xue Ming was first to press quill to paper, his signature flowing in bold Chinese strokes. The others followed like sheep—all but four rebels lingering at the fringe.
Gathering the signed contracts, Lilith’s gaze frosted over as she surveyed the holdouts. “Time waits for no one, especially not for contracts.” Her smile could flash-freeze magma. “Pleasant journeys.”
Her fingers began their fateful snap.
Xue Ming lunged for his friend’s wrist as reality unraveled. White voids swallowed their vision, gravity twisting like taffy. When solid ground reasserted itself, the forest had vanished. Barren plains stretched endlessly, their boots dusting a weathered Dao road.
“Where in the nine hells are we?” His friend gaped at the treeless expanse.
“Far from that cursed grove,” Xue Ming muttered, though unease prickled his neck.
Meanwhile, deep in the woods, Lilith dissolved into shadow after expending her teleportation scroll. The spell’s backlash gnawed at her reserves—in this Spiritual Energy-starved world, recovery would take weeks. No matter. The remaining trickle of power sufficed.
Let the marked lambs graze freely; their contracts glowed like beacons in her mind’s eye. As for the four fools who’d refused her terms… She chuckled darkly, phasing through the small town’s outer wall. Their corpses would fertilize this realm’s soil soon enough.
Left behind, the trio of men and lone woman exchanged panicked glances. Two Westerners in rumpled suits, two India-born locals clutching traditional robes—all four now choked on regret.
“We should’ve signed,” one croaked in English.
“Move!” barked another. “The Lady Witch’s enemies approach!”
They scattered like roaches, unaware their severed alliance doomed them thrice over.
"Let’s split up. Even as Practitioners, the woods aren’t safe," proposed a suited middle-aged man. "We should stay together. With our limited strength at Tier Two cultivation, mutual support is crucial against dangers."
The group ultimately agreed to stay united.
Though possessing only Tier Two cultivation, the four individuals were surprisingly swift once they broke into a sprint. Within minutes, their figures dissolved into the mountainous wilderness.
Meanwhile at the crash site…
Any observer would’ve been stunned to find the aircraft’s remnants utterly annihilated – no twisted metal frames remained, only molten alloys and carbonized non-metallic materials reduced to drifting ash. Strangest of all, the contained inferno refused to spread beyond its circular boundary, sparing the surrounding forest from certain destruction.
Three figures materialized beside the smoldering crater, scanning the area with piercing gazes.
"These scorch patterns… Whatever fell from heaven burned without residue," murmured the first, tracing blackened soil with his boot.
"Footprints here," called the second. "They fled westward."
"Nothing left to salvage. Pursue," commanded the third.
The trio moved through the woods like wind-blown shadows, their supernatural speed closing the gap within moments. Against such opponents, the Tier Two cultivators stood no chance – captured before they could even draw weapons.
"Observe their bizarre garments," one captor remarked, kicking a prone figure.
"Garbled tongue – can’t comprehend their speech."
"That female’s brazen attire violates all modesty," spat another, though the woman in the knee-length dress had wisely crouched during the ambush, escaping physical blows.
"Transport them for interrogation," the leader decided. "They’re clearly connected to the celestial object."
As the three hauled away their prisoners, teleportation arrays scattered the contract-bound survivors across the region. While fortunate ones materialized near settlements, others faced days of mountain trekking.
Xue Ming’s group found themselves on a dusty main road. Hearing approaching hoofbeats, he yanked Li You into roadside brush just before horsemen passed.
"Direction confirmed," Xue Ming whispered as they emerged. "Where there’s traffic, there’s civilization."
"Notice the air quality, Li You? Pristine for ancient times," Xue Ming remarked while trudging forward.
"Ancient times?" Li You groaned, eyeing the rutted path. "Those riders confirmed it. All I want now is a roof and a wineshop before sunset."
Xue Ming kicked a stone across the deserted track. "This gods-forsaken trail doesn’t even have a puddle to drink from."
