ninety thousand miles

Chapter 468 Past Events

"What do you mean?" Li Chuan asked.

Yang Shan said, "He said that when the general attacked the Four Disease Cave, it was not going well. He fought for three months but still failed to take it down. The great Liuyu demon was very powerful and had a magic weapon in his hand, which was a pair of bells. When the bells rang, the wind and sand would rise, making it difficult for the soldiers to move forward, let alone fight."

"After a period of stalemate, the Great Demon Liuyu took the initiative to ask for peace with the general and promised to restrain his subordinates and never oppose the Great Jiang Dynasty."

"The general didn't want to fight at first. But that morning, after he got up, he heard some commotion outside the camp. He went over to see that it was an old man from a nearby village. He brought the villagers and sent their remaining food and property over. They asked the general to kill the Liuyu demon and avenge the villagers."

"The old man said that the great jade monster would capture villagers every year to dig mud from the underground river under the Four Diseases Cave. Those who were captured never came back. In a few years, only the old, weak, sick and young people like them who couldn't farm or hold a knife were left in the village."

"He said they were not afraid of death. Their ancestors had lived here for generations and knew a path leading to the Four Disease Caves. They were willing to lead the way and serve the general like slaves for generations to come."

After a pause, Yang Shan continued to relay what he had heard.

He said: "So the general took a group of people and followed them. A few days later, there were constant rumbling sounds coming from the Four Diseases Cave, and then the wind and sand dispersed, and many small demons escaped. They said that the general and the Liuyu demon died together. After that, the general's body was carried out by a woman. The woman did not admit that the general was dead, and took him to seek medical treatment everywhere. Later, they met a master, and the general came back to life."

"The old soldier of the Yunzhong Army said that the general lost his life in killing the Great Demon Liuyu, but only thirty years have passed and the people of Yashan County now only know Prince Su but not the general. If this is not ungrateful, then what is ungrateful?"

After Yang Shan finished retelling the story, he said, "I didn't believe what he said at the time. I asked people around me about his identity. They said that he had indeed served in the army, but he was addicted to gambling and drinking. He lost his family's fortune and then lived on doing odd jobs. Whenever he had money, he would go gambling again. Now he is old and no one wants him to work. Fortunately, he still has a daughter who married a rich man as his second wife and helps him from time to time."

"They said he always liked to say some weird things and boast about his past experiences regardless of the occasion to make him look different from others. They told me not to believe him."

Yang Shan said, "But I couldn't help thinking about what he said. I was born and raised in Qingtan County. I knew from childhood that there was a Liuyu King in Sibingdong, who was wiped out by the imperial court. So after selling leather at the market for a while and saving enough money for the trip, I returned to Yashan County and visited Sibingdong and several nearby villages."

At this point, he glanced at Zou Jingping and asked, "Mr. Zou, you should know all this?"

Zou Jingping said: "I only let him take action when your life is in danger. Normally, he will follow you from a distance. If you stay in a safe place for a long time and he judges that there is no danger, he may take a look at you every day and then go to rest."

"So after you disappeared in the nunnery, I only knew where you went. I don't know who you met or what you talked about." Zou Jingping explained and said, "Go on, tell me more in detail." Yang Shan nodded and said, "There is a monster in the Four Diseases Cave."

"What monster?" Li Chuan asked.

Yang Shan said, "I don't know. When I was taking a nap on the tree that day, I heard someone talking below. They seemed to mention Lord Su. I woke up immediately and listened carefully to what they said, but after that they all said they wanted to go to the city to have fun and eat anything. I glanced down secretly and didn't see anyone, but a ferret and a centipede. Then I realized they were monsters."

"I didn't dare to move. I waited for them to stop talking. After waiting for a long time, I stood up and prepared to leave. Unexpectedly, as soon as I stood up, I saw the snow ferret lying on another branch looking at me. Then it turned into a woman in front of me."

"I was so scared, and then she spoke and asked me what I was doing here. I said I was a hunter from nearby and came here to hunt. She asked me some questions, but I fooled her. Then she let me go."

"I also hurried to the inhabited areas. After walking for a day and a night, I finally reached Qingtian Village. After entering the village, I traded dried wild boar meat for some noodle soup. I asked the villagers if there were any monsters over at the Four Diseases Cave. One of the children said that he got lost once and was sent back by a monster. As they chatted, they naturally talked about the Great Monster Liuyu. An old man in the village talked about the Great General. What he said matched what the old soldier said. The only difference was that he said the Great General forced the villagers to lead him to the Four Diseases Cave through the small path."

"I stayed in Qingtian Village for three days and then left. Then I walked around the nearby villages, traded skins and dried meat for some things, talked to people, and then went to the next place. I walked through about five or six counties, and then I heard that people from the Monster Hunting Department entered Qingtan County. After that, I heard that there was a fight between monster hunters and monsters in Qingtan County. I decided to take advantage of the chaos to return to Qingtan County to see if I could find some clues."

"My sister's memorial day is coming soon."

Yang Shan paused and said, "After returning to Qingtan County, I continued to sell leather and mountain products. Then I met the female monster again, the one who turned into a snow ferret. She recognized me and asked me where the palace of King Gunlong was. I showed her the way. At that time, I thought that she must not be a subordinate of Prince Su. If she was a subordinate of Prince Su, how could she not recognize the palace of King Gunlong."

"When I went to bed at night, she came to see me again. When she saw that I was scared, she said that she was a good demon and had never harmed anyone. She also said that the court said that demons killed Prince Su, which was slandering the demons. I knew that Prince Su was indeed colluding with demons."

"I was afraid she was here to kill me, so I left after she fell asleep and never saw her again. I don't think she knows anything about me and my sister."

"Soon, it was my sister's anniversary, so I went to the nunnery to burn some paper money for her. While burning the paper, it suddenly occurred to me that I had seen that group of people twice before, once when they were robbing people on the road, and the other time was when I discovered the secret passage. The fastest way to find them is for me to enter the secret passage again."

"So I made some preparations and asked a demon catcher to meet me outside, and then I entered the secret passage again. Who knew that this time... the vine demon took me to another place."

(End of this chapter)