173: Chapter 173 Awakening of the Witchcraft: The Purification Battle Between Ancient City Totems and Puppetry

Ancient City Exploration: The Guardian Shamanic Martial Force and the Call of Ancient Totems

The fourth stop of the Traditional Martial Arts Protection Bureau's Earth Vein Purification Plan was the ancient city of Djenné in Mali, Africa. This ancient city, known as the "Miracle of Mud," is recorded in the "Ancient traditional martial arts Origin Record" as the birthplace of the ancient African "Guardian Shamanic Martial Force." It houses the "Shamanic Martial Force Totem Stone," with "Totem Resonance and Qi Energy Wood Control" as its core Legacy. However, due to destruction during the colonial era and erosion from residual Spirit-Devouring Energy, the Totem Stone was buried deep beneath the "Ancestral Altar" in the center of the ancient city, and the Guardian Shamanic Martial Force had only retained fragmented skills passed down orally.

When Chen Wu's team arrived at the ancient city, they were greeted by the local Guardian Shamanic Martial Force successor, Amina. She was dressed in traditional indigo tribal martial attire, wore a headdress inlaid with seashells, and held a "Shamanic Martial Force Totem Staff" that glowed with a pale brown light, with the top of the staff carved with interwoven patterns of an African lion and an ancient tree.

"The Ancestral Altar is covered by 'Spirit-Devouring Wood Poison'," Amina said, pointing to the ancient forest in the center of the city that shimmered with a black light. "The ancient trees in the forest have been polluted by Spirit-Devouring Energy and transformed into 'Attack Puppets.' Once you get close, you will be entangled by vines and have your Qi Energy drained. We have tried using the Shamanic Martial Force's 'Totem Pacification Technique,' but it can only temporarily suppress it; we cannot completely purify it."

Xiao Juan leaned toward the edge of the ancient forest, and the spirit herb in her palm suddenly pressed against the ground. A pale green light spread along the soil. She could clearly "perceive" the Qi Energy inside the ancient trees: "There is 'painful Qi Energy' inside, as if it is trapped by something and still crying out, 'Save me'."

Granny Yao took out the "Qi Energy Detector." The moment the probe approached the ancient tree, the screen flashed a "High Concentration Spirit-Devouring Wood Poison" warning: "This poison will spread along the plant root systems. If it is not cleared in time, the entire Earth Vein of the ancient city of Djenné will be polluted."

"Follow the plan," Chen Wu said, assigning tasks. "Mu Qing will lead the Five Elements Team to use Five Elements Energy—Wood and Earth—to set up a 'Qi Energy Isolation Zone' around the perimeter of the ancient forest to prevent the spread of the wood poison. Amina and I will form the 'Totem Awakening Team' to go deep into the altar and find the Shamanic Martial Force Totem Stone. Eric and Sato will form the 'Defense Team' to use Holy Light Qi and Ninja Qi to fend off the Puppet attacks. Xiao Juan, Karim, and Mei will form the New Generation Team to use Nature Qi, Pyramid Force, and Ninja Qi to monitor the wood poison concentration and assist Granny Yao in purifying the lightly polluted ancient trees."

Amina was the first to cast the "Shamanic Martial Force Guidance Technique." She inserted her Totem Staff into the soil, and pale brown Qi Energy spread along the root systems. A path that had not been polluted slowly appeared in the ancient forest: "This is the 'Ancestral Guidance Trace.' It can only be activated by pure Shamanic Martial Force Qi Energy. If you follow it, you can avoid the main attack zones of the Puppets."

The group followed the path deep into the forest. From time to time, black vines attacked them along the way. Eric swung his Holy Light Qi sword, and a silver light severed the vines, instantly purifying the Spirit-Devouring Energy at the cut. Sato used Ninja Qi to weave a "Qi Energy Protective Net" around his body to block sporadic toxic thorn attacks.

When they arrived at the Ancestral Altar, they saw a "Shamanic Martial Force Totem Stone" half-buried in the soil. The stone was carved with reliefs of an African lion, an ancient tree, and a river, glowing with a faint, pale brown light. Black vines wrapped around the stone, constantly absorbing the Totem Stone's Origin Qi Energy.

"It requires the 'resonance of Shamanic Martial Force Qi Energy and Dual Energy' to awaken it," Amina said, pressing her Totem Staff against the stone. "Ancient books say that the Origin of the Guardian Shamanic Martial Force is 'coexisting with nature and protecting the peace of the Earth Vein,' which is connected to the 'Balanced Origin' of Dual Energy. Only by combining the two can we disperse the wood poison."

Chen Wu injected his Dual Energy into the Totem Stone. Pale gold and pale green light spread along the reliefs, interweaving with Amina's pale brown Shamanic Martial Force Qi Energy. The light of the Totem Stone instantly brightened, and the black vines wrapped around it began to wither. A "hissing" sound of Qi Energy friction came from the direction of the ancient forest; clearly, the Awakening of the Totem Stone had already affected the Puppets.

In the global live broadcast of the "Ancient City Exploration," viewers were shocked by the mystery and sanctity of the African Shamanic Martial Force. The live comments were filled with exclamations like, "The Guardian Shamanic Martial Force can actually communicate with nature!" "The way the Totem Stone awakens is so sacred!" and "Finally unlocked African traditional martial arts!" Data from the Technical Department showed that the number of downloads for the traditional martial arts APP in the African region surged by 7 million, with countless African viewers leaving messages saying, "I want to learn the Guardian Shamanic Martial Force to protect our ancient city and Earth Vein."

Crisis Erupts: The Raid of the Spirit-Devouring Totem Puppets

Just as the Totem Stone was half-awakened, a violent tremor suddenly came from the ancient forest. Ten ancient trees, deeply polluted by Spirit-Devouring Energy, slowly "stood up," transforming into five-meter-tall "Totem Puppets." The torsos of the Puppets were ancient tree trunks, their arms were tangled black vines, and their heads were wooden shields carved with twisted Spirit-Devouring runes. With every step, the vines on the ground would spread, attempting to entangle anyone who approached.

"It's the Spirit-Devourer remnants controlling the Puppets!" Amina's expression changed drastically, and the light of her Totem Staff began to flicker. "They are using 'Spirit-Devouring Runes' to forcibly bind the Puppets to the Earth Vein. The more Qi Energy the Puppets absorb, the stronger they become!" Before she finished speaking, the Puppet at the front suddenly swung its vine arm, smashing toward the altar. Eric immediately released a Holy Light Qi shield. When the silver light collided with the vines, the shield was corroded by the wood poison on the vines, creating tiny holes. Black Qi Energy seeped in through the holes, and black veins instantly appeared on Eric's arm, causing him to groan in pain.

Even more critically, an alarm sounded from the perimeter of the ancient city. Three Spirit-Devourer remnants appeared and were using "Spirit-Devouring Wood Flutes" to control the smaller Puppets on the perimeter, attempting to break through the Five Elements Isolation Zone and flank the New Generation Team. "Xiao Juan! Retreat to the back of the altar quickly!" Chen Wu shouted as he condensed his Dual Energy into a shield in front of him, blocking the attack of another Puppet. Mu Qing quickly adjusted the Five Elements Formation, combining Earth Energy and Fire Energy. The pale red Fire Energy spread along the isolation zone, burning the vines of the small Puppets that approached and temporarily stabilizing the defensive line.

The Puppets' attacks became increasingly fierce. The wooden shield of one of the Puppets suddenly cracked, revealing a "Spirit-Devouring Core" inside that glowed with a black light. Every time the core pulsed, the surrounding vines grew wildly, even absorbing the Origin Qi Energy from the air. "We must destroy the core!" Sato formed the "Wind Escape Seal," and his pale blue Ninja Qi transformed into shuriken, shooting toward the core. However, they were blocked by the vines, and the shuriken were instantly corroded into powder by the wood poison. Amina tried using the "Totem Pacification Technique," injecting pale brown Qi Energy into the Puppet, but it could only make it pause for two seconds before it was quickly controlled by the Spirit-Devouring Energy again. "The core is wrapped in Spirit-Devouring runes. Normal attacks are useless. We need to use the Shamanic Martial Force's 'Totem Resonance' to find the weak point of the runes!"

In the global live broadcast of the "Crisis Erupts," viewers watched with bated breath. The live comments were filled with worries: "The Puppets are too fierce! The wood poison can even corrode Qi Energy!" "Eric is injured! He must be okay!" and "Quick, think of a way to crack the runes!" Data from the Technical Department showed that the number of participants in the global "Remote Qi Energy Support" had exceeded 300 million. Pale golden light filtered through the screens and converged on the altar. The light of the Totem Stone grew brighter and brighter, and the African lion relief on the stone actually began to "move" slowly, as if it were guiding the way to break the deadlock.

Multi-Stream Breakthrough: The Fusion of Shamanic Martial Force and Cross-Civilization Energy Techniques

Watching the defensive line being besieged by the Puppets, Chen Wu suddenly noticed the relief on the Totem Stone—the eyes of the African lion were facing the direction of the Puppet's core, and the pale brown light formed a subtle "opposing frequency" with the black light of the core. "Amina! Use Shamanic Martial Force Totem Resonance to find the 'Resonance Point' of the runes!" Chen Wu shouted. "I will use Dual Energy to restrain the Puppets, Eric will use Holy Light Qi to mark the Resonance Point, Sato will use Ninja Qi to open a gap, and Mu Qing will use Five Elements Energy to reinforce the defensive line!"

Amina immediately closed her eyes and held her Totem Staff high above her head. The pale brown Qi Energy resonated with the Totem Stone, and the relief on the stone shot out a beam of pale brown light, which landed precisely on the core of the Puppet at the front. Three tiny "Resonance Points" appeared within the light pattern; these were the weak points of the Spirit-Devouring runes. "Found them! The Resonance Point is at the upper left of the core!" Amina shouted.

Chen Wu seized the opportunity. His Dual Energy transformed into two beams of light ropes, entangling the Puppet's vine arms and forcibly exposing the core. Eric, enduring the pain in his arm, shot silver light particles from his Holy Light Qi sword, precisely marking the Resonance Point. Sato formed the "Water Escape Seal," and his pale blue Ninja Qi transformed into a "Water Blade," slashing in the direction of the light particles. With a "click," the runes outside the core cracked, creating a gap. Mu Qing took the opportunity to inject Five Elements Fire Energy into the gap, and the pale red Fire Energy spread along the gap, burning the Spirit-Devouring Energy inside.

"Now! Dual Energy - Shamanic Martial Force Purifying Bomb!" Chen Wu combined his Dual Energy with Amina's Shamanic Martial Force. Pale gold, pale green, and pale brown Qi Energy condensed into a bomb in his palm and shot toward the gap—when the Qi Energy bomb struck the core, the three-colored light exploded, the black Spirit-Devouring Energy was purified like a receding tide, the Puppet's vines withered instantly, and the ancient wooden torso returned to its normal brown color, slowly collapsing to the ground and turning into nutrients to nourish the soil.

Following this tactic, the group worked together, breaking the remaining Puppets one by one: Amina found the resonance points, Chen Wu provided suppression, Eric marked them, Sato breached the gaps, and Mu Qing performed the purification—when the core of the last Puppet was destroyed, the ancient city's ley lines suddenly vibrated, and the unpolluted ancient trees in the forest all "bowed," as if paying tribute; in the soil beneath the altar, a yellowed "Shamanic Martial Force Guardian Scroll" was revealed, with the following written in ancient African script: "Shamanic Martial Force is not evil; protecting the land is its heart. The lion is the soul, the wood is the pulse, coexisting with the heavens, bringing peace to the world."

"This is the true meaning of the Shamanic Martial Force!" Amina held the scroll, her eyes reddening. "In the past, the tribe only passed down that Shamanic Martial Force could 'control wood to harm others,' forgetting its original intent of 'protecting the land and coexisting.' Now that we have the scroll, we can finally return Shamanic Martial Force to the Righteous Path!" Granny Yao used Ling Fragrant Grass and the sap of ancient trees to concoct a "Wood Poison Antidote Paste," treating the black markings on Eric's arm—after the pale green ointment was applied, the black markings quickly faded. Eric moved his arm and said with a smile, "I didn't expect Shamanic Martial Force herbs to be able to detoxify. Cross-civilizational traditional martial arts really hide big surprises!"

In the global broadcast of the "Breakthrough Moment," the audience was fired up. The chat was filled with cheers: "The three-colored purifying bomb is so cool! The Puppets have finally been dealt with!" "The scroll unlocked the truth; Shamanic Martial Force is actually a guardian-type traditional martial arts!" "The coordination between multiple schools is so seamless; this is the power of global traditional martial arts!" Technical Department data showed that the residual concentration of Spirit-Devourer in the ley lines of the ancient city of Djenné had dropped to "zero." The global ley line protection formation fully covered the African continent for the first time, marking a milestone in the traditional martial arts ley line purification plan.

Highlight of the New Generation: Totem Awakening of the Cross-Civilizational Young Guardians

After the crisis was resolved, the new generation team of Xiao Juan, Karim, and Mei, led by Amina's younger sister—eight-year-old Laila—explored the ancient city's "Totem Seedling Area"—this was the place where ancient Shamanic Martial Force practitioners cultivated "Guardian Ancient Trees." Although it was now overgrown with weeds, it still contained faint traces of Shamanic Martial Force Qi Energy, hiding the secret to Awakening the "Seedling Totem."

Laila held a small African lion doll and pointed at the seedling on the ground: "Big sister says the Seedling Totem needs 'pure Nature Qi' to awaken. It can protect the ancient city's seedlings from being harmed by pests." Xiao Juan crouched down and brought the Ling Fragrant Grass close to the seedling, slowly injecting pale green Nature Qi—the seedling suddenly "broke through the soil," growing two tender leaves. A miniature African lion totem appeared on the leaf surface. "It's awake!" Xiao Juan shouted in surprise. The tender leaf gently "touched" her finger, as if interacting with her.

Karim looked at the Seedling Totem and suddenly thought of the Pyramid's "Ley Line Reinforcement Technique": "Let me use Pyramid Force to help reinforce its roots!" The pale gold Qi Energy seeped through the soil into the seedling's roots. The seedling's stem instantly became sturdy, and the totem on the leaves became clearer. Mei used Ninja Qi to weave a "Qi Energy Anti-Pest Net" around the seedling. The pale blue light net could automatically drive away approaching pests. Laila clapped and cheered: "From now on, the seedlings won't be afraid of bugs anymore!"

The three children also discovered "Shamanic Martial Force Toys" deep in the Seedling Area—small totem wands carved from ancient wood, with patterns of an African lion, a giraffe, and an elephant on the tops of the wands. They tried injecting their respective Qi Energy into the toy wands: Xiao Juan's Nature Qi made the lion pattern light up, Karim's Pyramid Force made the giraffe pattern light up, and Mei's Ninja Qi made the elephant pattern light up—the three rays of light intertwined, forming a small "Cross-Civilizational Totem Formation" on the ground, purifying the last traces of wood poison in the Seedling Area.

Amina watched this scene and said to Chen Wu with a smile: "I used to worry that the Shamanic Martial Force would die out in our generation. Now that I see these children, I am relieved—they don't understand 'civilizational barriers'; they only know how to use traditional martial arts to protect life. This is the most authentic form of traditional martial arts." Chen Wu nodded, took out the "Origin Qi Energy Orb" derived from the fusion jade, and gave it to the three children: "This is a gift for you. From now on, you are the 'African traditional martial arts New Generation Envoys.' You must carry the power of the Seedling Totem and let more people know the meaning of guardianship."

In the global broadcast of the "New Generation Highlight," the audience was moved by the interaction between the children and the seedlings. The chat was full of messages: "Xiao Juan's Nature Qi is so healing! The seedlings can even interact!" "Laila is so cute; the little lion doll and the totem match so well!" "Cross-civilizational young guardians, the future is promising!" The Traditional Martial Arts Protection Bureau subsequently announced that it would establish the "African traditional martial arts New Generation Base" in the ancient city of Djenné, with Amina as the head of the base. It would regularly organize global new-generation traditional martial arts practitioners to learn skills such as "Totem Seedling Cultivation" and "Shamanic Martial Force Herbs," promoting the deep integration of African traditional martial arts with global traditional martial arts.

Rebirth of the Ancient City: Ancient and Modern Legacy of the Shamanic Martial Force

The purification and Awakening of the ancient city of Djenné brought new life to African traditional martial arts—Amina led the successors of the Shamanic Martial Force to carry out an "Ancient and Modern Fusion Upgrade" of the Shamanic Martial Force based on the scroll: combining the "Totem Soothing Technique" with modern traditional martial arts "Qi Energy Monitoring" to develop the "Ley Line Totem Early Warning Technique," which can predict ley line anomalies 72 hours in advance; combining "Shamanic Martial Force Herbs" with the Origin Qi Energy of the fusion jade to create the "Origin Antidote," which can quickly purify various types of Spirit-Devourer toxins, increasing efficiency by 3 times compared to traditional herbs.

The ancient city's ancestral altar was transformed into the "Global Shamanic Martial Force Exchange Center." The fusion jade derivative core was placed next to the totem stone, where pale gold, pale brown, pale green, and pale blue light intertwined, becoming the "Guardian Core" of the ancient city. Every day, tribal traditional martial arts practitioners from all over Africa came to the altar to learn the integrated ancient and modern Shamanic Martial Force; the Pyramid traditional martial arts team from Egypt, the Knight traditional martial arts Association from Europe, and Ninja martial arts successors from Asia also sent exchange groups to learn Shamanic Martial Force's "Totem Resonance" and "Nature Coexistence" techniques. The Shamanic Martial Force's "Land Protection Philosophy" was integrated into the global traditional martial arts ley line protection system, becoming an important force in combating ley line pollution.

Before leaving the ancient city, Chen Wu's team and Shamanic Martial Force successors like Amina and Laila worked together to paint a "traditional martial arts Symbiosis Map" on the mud walls of the ancient city—in the map, the African lion totem, pyramid, knight's sword, ninja shuriken, and Taiji symbol surrounded the earth, symbolizing the Fusion and symbiosis of global traditional martial arts; below, "Guardianship with One Heart" was written in both ancient African script and Chinese. Pale gold Qi Energy was injected into the mural, making the pattern glow permanently, becoming a "witness" to the Fusion of African traditional martial arts and global traditional martial arts.

The final scene of the global broadcast lingered on the dusk of the ancient city of Djenné—the setting sun shone on the mud walls, and the light of the "traditional martial arts Symbiosis Map" intertwined with the sunset glow; Laila, Xiao Juan, Karim, and Mei were in the Seedling Area, watching the Seedling Totem grow new leaves; in the distant ancient forest, Amina and tribal traditional martial arts practitioners performed the "Shamanic Martial Force Forest Protection Technique," and pale brown Qi Energy fell like spring rain, causing the branches and leaves of the ancient trees to sway in the wind, as if singing.

In the chat, 380 billion viewers simultaneously sent: "The ancient city is reborn, Shamanic Martial Force returns to its heart!" "Global traditional martial arts fuse, protecting the global village!" forming an "African River of Light" that covered the globe, intertwining with the light of the ancient city, illuminating the new journey of "cross-civilizational Fusion and land protection coexistence" for traditional martial arts. Chen Wu looked at the totem stone in the distance, and the Dual Energy in his Dantian resonated with the global ley line protection formation—he knew that the story of the ancient city of Djenné was just the beginning of the Awakening of African traditional martial arts. In the future, there were still sites like the Mayan traditional martial arts in the Americas and the Aboriginal traditional martial arts in Australia waiting to be unlocked. But as long as global traditional martial arts practitioners held onto the original intention of "guardianship," and as long as the new generation continued to grow, traditional martial arts would surely become the bond that protects the earth's ley lines and connects human civilization, allowing the belief in peace and coexistence to take root and sprout in every corner.

(At the end of this chapter, Chen Wu's tactical tablet suddenly popped up an emergency notification from the Technical Department: "A weak resonance anomaly has appeared in the global ley line protection formation. It is suspected that there is an unawakened ancient traditional martial arts imprint beneath the Antarctic ice sheet—it is recommended to prioritize investigation in the future." This laid the groundwork for the next chapter's plot.)