Chapter 139: Chronicles of Slaughtering the Heavens

"Different? Big Brother Hu, I don't understand what you mean." Xinyue looked at Hu Mo in utter confusion, her face a mask of question marks.

"Xinyue, just now, as our yin and yang were about to merge and harmonize, your vitality drained away in massive amounts. This is the reason you are so weak right now. If I hadn't realized it in time, the consequences would have been unthinkable!" Hu Mo had no wish to keep anything from Zhu Xinyue, speaking the unvarnished truth.

Zhu Xinyue was brilliantly intelligent and grasped the situation instantly. She frowned and asked in a low voice, "Is it because of my Innate Yin Fire?"

Her words startled Hu Mo profoundly. He steadied his mind and hurriedly asked, "Xinyue, could it be that you know about your own physique? What on earth is the Innate Yin Fire, and why have I never heard of it?"

Seeing the desperate urgency on Hu Mo's face, Zhu Xinyue let out a soft sigh, shook her head, and said, "So it really was because of that? Heh, I never imagined—never imagined that I still couldn't escape this curse."

Murmuring to herself, Zhu Xinyue's tears fell drop by drop onto the quilt, leaving a damp patch.

A sharp pain stabbed at Hu Mo's heart. He immediately pulled her into his embrace and said with intense anxiety, "Xinyue, don't be afraid. Tell me everything, and I will find a way. Even if I can't, my master will definitely have a way. Trust me."

A powerful sense of crisis surged within Hu Mo. A curse? Could this be a curse like the Water Origin Body?

Zhu Xinyue shook her head and said softly, "It's useless. It has been this way for so many years, and it cannot be changed. The Innate Yin Fire dictates that whoever is born with it must cause the death of one of their parents. I brought about the death of my imperial mother, which fulfills the first part. The Innate Yin Fire also dictates death upon marriage—this, too, makes sense now. So this was what it meant all along. The merging of yin and yang marks the moment my life ends; truly, this can be considered a full circle."

Zhu Xinyue glanced at Hu Mo, her gaze turning tender. Hu Mo held her tightly, as though he wished to melt her into his very being.

"No, I won't allow you to think like that! Xinyue, there has to be a way. Let's stay calm for now; once my master returns, we will resolve this matter immediately. Even if I were to die, I wouldn't let you suffer the slightest harm. I swear it!" Hu Mo vowed solemnly, completely frantic at this point.

Zhu Xinyue smiled faintly, gently covering Hu Mo's mouth with her hand, and murmured softly, "Big Brother Hu, don't talk nonsense. If my fate is truly written this way, I am willing to give you everything I am, and no one in this world could ever change my mind!"

Hu Mo's soul shook. He immediately lifted his head and said with grave seriousness, "Xinyue, I am going back right now to think of a solution. I refuse to believe there is no way to break this so-called curse of yours. As long as I draw breath, I will never allow you to suffer any pain!"

With those words, Hu Mo turned and strode out. Even if Cang Ling was not currently present, he had to find a way to resolve this crisis. Zhu Xinyue watched Hu Mo's retreating figure, nodding gently as unbidden tears slipped down her face once again.

***

After bidding farewell to Zhu Xinyue, Hu Mo returned straight to the Hu estate. Instead of heading to the Pavilion of Scriptures, he went directly to the Hall of Divine Machinery.

He had already reviewed every single book in the Hu family's Pavilion of Scriptures, and there were no records concerning this type of physique. However, the Hall of Divine Machinery surpassed the Pavilion of Scriptures a thousandfold in its collection of intelligence and rare texts. He was bound to find some trace of a clue there.

The Hall of Divine Machinery was as busy as ever. With the five major sects and the Heavenly Saint Palace gathered in Flame City, every single movement within the city was kept under the surveillance of the Hall. Of course, the manpower and resources required to achieve this were staggering. Decisive victories in battle favor those who strike first, and seizing the initiative was crucial—a principle Hu Mo always practiced.

After a thorough search, Hu Mo finally found a record regarding the Innate Yin Fire. After merely glancing at it, his expression turned intensely grim.

"Innate Yin Fire, also known as the Fire Meridian of Ultimate Extinction, or the Nourishing Yang Heavenly Fire. The possessor of this physique is pregnant with primordial yin. Taking her primordial yin allows one to attain the supreme Dao; truly a peerless treasure of the heavens." Hu Mo read aloud, word by word, with a dark countenance. His face was as gloomy as water, as though someone had him by the throat. His towering rage transformed into visible flames, terrifying the nearby attendants into immediate retreat, keeping their distance and not daring to approach.

"Damn your peerless treasure of the heavens! Is Xinyue's life really destined to be harvested by someone else? I refuse to believe it!" Hu Mo roared, continuing to flip through the ancient texts. Yet, the results were all the same. There was not a single mention of a method to neutralize this physique; the only emphasis was on how this constitution was a millennium-rare panacea of immense tonic value. This gave him a deeper, harsher understanding of human greed and ruthlessness.

Indeed, some books recorded instances where people, blinded by greed for the supreme tonic effects of this physique, used sweet words to marry these women and then harvest them on their wedding night. Seeing this, Hu Mo's anger flared anew. Yet, after venting his fury, his heart unexpectedly calmed down. Letting out a soft sigh, he muttered to himself, "Perhaps in the eyes of many, the choice between power and love is so simple."

"But if it were up to me to choose, I want both love and power. Power is something one fights tooth and nail to achieve; power gained by sacrificing the woman one loves is not worth a single damn!" Hu Mo said coldly, tossing aside the sheepskin scroll in his hand. Sweeping his gaze across the shelf, he spotted a bundle of primitive, weathered sheepskin scrolls tied with blue silk threads, exuding an extremely ancient aura.

"The Chronicle of Slaughtering the Heavens, Slaughtering the Heavens? Such a familiar name." Hu Mo glanced at the neighboring bookshelf and knew immediately how precious the books it held were.

The sheepskin scrolls on this shelf were all unique, solitary editions of strange tales from the Continent of War, and this very Chronicle of Slaughtering the Heavens was the personal diary written by the War God of Slaughtering the Heavens back in the day!

The diary of the War God of Slaughtering the Heavens was actually here in the Hu family—if this news leaked out, a catastrophe would surely befall them. Fortunately, security here was rigorous and strictly confidential, so the secret of the Chronicle of Slaughtering the Heavens had not spread at all.

In truth, many people across the Continent of War knew of the contents within the Chronicle of Slaughtering the Heavens, but this original manuscript was personally penned by the War God himself, rumored to carry a lingering intent of battle, and was thus perpetually revered by the world.

Having rested in the Hu estate for so many years, the Chronicle of Slaughtering the Heavens had been perused only by Hu Yihu and Hu Meng, yet neither of them had comprehended anything from it. In their eyes, it was merely a diary and bore none of the miraculous properties of legend. Consequently, they had simply placed it here, and as time passed, they had practically forgotten about it.

Hu Mo's sword-like brows furrowed slightly as he picked up the scroll. Before he even opened it, he felt an intensely desolate aura emanate from it. Merely touching it caused a succession of scenes to flash through his mind: families torn apart, homes destroyed, betrayal by brothers, framing by friends... These images struck Hu Mo's chest like heavy hammers, and a trace of fresh blood trickled down the corner of his mouth. It was a sensation of profound, heartbreaking anguish.

***

"What is the meaning of this sorrow? Could this be the sorrow left by the War God of Slaughtering the Heavens?" Hu Mo muttered to himself. Although he had coughed up blood and injured his foundational vitality slightly, this only fueled his curiosity further. Pulled along by this sorrow, a sense of melancholy filled his heart, especially given his current predicament, which only deepened his grief.

If Hu Yihu and the others had known that Hu Mo could feel such a reaction, they would have been struck speechless. Back when they read the Chronicle of Slaughtering the Heavens, they had felt absolutely nothing. This lingering sorrow was most likely the manifestation of the War God's battle intent.

Hu Mo slowly unrolled the scroll, his heart trembling in sync with his hands. As the sheepskin unfurled, Hu Mo beheld a vast expanse of crimson blood-script. Those blood-red characters exuded desolation and grief, as though written with heart's blood. There were many words, and the records were rather chaotic; almost trivial matters were documented upon it, causing Hu Mo to wonder in puzzlement why a supreme powerhouse would use his own blood to write down so many mundane trifles. Was there truly any necessity for it?

However, Hu Mo's expression soon shifted dramatically. As his emotions fluctuated, the characters began to slowly change. Before long, a large portion of the text vanished, and even the sheepskin scroll of the Chronicle of Slaughtering the Heavens itself began to shrink, contracting until it became a half-square-meter piece of parchment glowing with a brilliant golden light, composed of residual golden characters.

Hu Mo's gaze swept across those characters, and he could not help reciting them softly:

"I, Slaughtering the Heavens, traversed the Continent of War for over a thousand years, knowing my destiny was near and the shattering of space was but moments away. Pondering how a millennium of time flows like water never to return, sorrow took root in my heart. Therefore, I have listed a few of life's joys and regrets, leaving them for those destined to judge."

Reading this, Hu Mo felt rather bewildered. This War God of Slaughtering the Heavens was truly bizarre; matters of personal joy and regret should be kept in one's heart, so why make such a grandiose display of publishing them? And having published them, he actually expected others to pass judgment—it made no sense whatsoever.

Pondering silently for a moment, he continued to read:

"If I am to speak of joy, none surpasses meeting Xi'er. To take her as my wife was a blessing cultivated by Slaughtering the Heavens over ten thousand lifetimes. Yet great joy and great sorrow lie but a single thought apart. When I later discovered that Xi'er possessed the physique of the Innate Yin Fire, my heart was shaken to its core..."

Hu Mo's complexion drained of color instantly, and even the hand holding the parchment shook.

"Could it be... could it be that the War God of Slaughtering the Heavens attained his level of cultivation by consuming his wife?" Hu Mo furrowed his brows deeply, secretly steadying his mind as he continued to look down at the scroll.