Dreaming for 10,000 years

Chapter 400 Regret
"Impossible." The mountain spirit's cracked lips trembled, spitting out a glob of foul-smelling black blood. His single leg carved a deep furrow in the mud, but it could not support his broken body.

Its cloudy eyes were filled with confusion. As a mountain spirit, its ability to hide should have been flawless.

In this mountain forest where it has lived for three hundred years, not even the trajectory of a falling leaf can escape its perception. But how exactly did this young man before it come to be?
Yu Tian slowly retracted his right leg, the lingering air currents between his clothes still swirling, turning the surrounding fallen leaves into tiny vortexes.

He had long sensed that besides the three thick, demonic auras, there was a fourth, almost imperceptible aura, lurking like a venomous snake beneath the decaying leaves. The feigned weakness just now was merely a trap set for this cunning prey.

As for the mountain spirit's confusion?
It's very simple, because Yu Tian is stronger than it, and stronger than the crabs and turtles.

Just as an eagle soaring through the heavens cannot comprehend the vision of an earthworm, Yu Tian, ​​having completed his metamorphosis, already stands on a completely different level of life. While these spirits are still kneeling before the so-called mountain lord and river god, he has already become his own god.

"Walk!"

The old turtle spirit squeezed out a trembling syllable from between its teeth. The inner cores of the three demons were still throbbing faintly.

That violent strike that broke through their formation was like someone smashing their dantian with a thousand-pound hammer. Beneath the seemingly intact surface, their meridians were already in complete disarray.

The mountain spirit, our last hope, has also vanished.
A cold glint flashed in Yu Tian's eyes. Just as he was about to give chase, he saw the three demons huddled together in a panic. Suddenly, the old turtle demon spat out a piece of silk that shimmered with water. The fabric expanded in the wind and wrapped the three demons, transforming into a murky beam of light that "whooshed" into the ground.

As he turned, the mountain spirit's mangled body twisted and deformed, turning into wisps of black mist that seeped into the cracks in the rock. "Boy," a venomous wail echoed from the depths, like a thousand poisonous insects rubbing against their carapaces, "the Mountain Lord will make you wish you were dead."

In the blink of an eye, only a mess remained in the forest.

"Tian! You're amazing!" Little Bell couldn't help but praise Yu Tian when she saw his divine power, defeating the crabs and turtles in an instant. But when she saw the boy's pale face, her cheerful voice stopped abruptly.

Yu Tian knelt on one knee, cold sweat dripping from his chin onto the withered leaves. The backlash from overusing his true energy was more severe than expected, as if his internal organs were being gripped and twisted by an invisible hand.

"It's nothing." He gritted his teeth and stood up, a metallic, metallic taste rising in his throat. This battle was like a cruel mirror, reflecting his current limits.

I must be more composed next time.

We need to leave quickly.

Yu Tian looked up into the depths of the mountains, where the clouds and mist were churning strangely, like a lurking beast breathing heavily.

His expression grew increasingly grave, and his voice was low and urgent: "I have injured the Mountain Spirit, and Lord Chushan will never let this go."

As he spoke, he suppressed the surging blood and qi within him, and with Xiao Lingdang's help, returned to the dilapidated temple. He quickly packed the salt jar and a few simple belongings, and then hurried towards the river.

“Now, Lord Chu Shan must be furious, and the mountains are no longer safe!” Yu Tian said quickly as he walked, his mind racing.

"The River God wants to catch us, but he's too far away, otherwise there wouldn't be only three turtles and crabs. So, it will be quite a hassle for him to catch us. We might as well go downstream and buy some time!"

This is Chu Shanjun's territory. Even if Hebo wanted to reach out, he would have to go through a lot of trouble. It would be better to just go down the river directly.

This is his plan.

His internal energy had recovered somewhat, so he squatted down, carried the small bell on his back, and secretly circulated his internal energy, adjusting his breathing as he traveled. The girl's body was as light as a feather, but at this moment it seemed to bear a heavy weight.

“Ah Tian…” Little Bell, who was lying on his back, suddenly spoke, her voice soft, as if afraid of disturbing the silence of the forest.

"Ok?"

"Do you regret it?"

"What do you regret?"

"Regret...saving me?" Her voice was even softer, almost as if she were talking to herself.

Yu Tian didn't stop walking, and asked in return, "Last winter, you shared half of your steamed bun with me. Do you regret it?"

Little Bell paused, then shook her head: "I... this is different!"

“Same.” Yu Tian’s voice was calm, but it carried a strange sense of reminiscence: “Same. That winter was very hard to get through. Food was scarce, and there were very few people willing to share their food. At that time… I hadn’t eaten for two days.”

Little Bell didn't speak again, but silently lay on his back, her cheek pressed against his warm nape. The mountain breeze was cool, dispersing the moisture from the corners of her eyes, but tears still rolled down uncontrollably, silently seeping into his clothes.

Her unintentional act of kindness in the past saved her life.

They ran all the way to the riverbank, the rushing water crashing against the rocks on the shore with a dull roar. Yu Tian didn't dare to delay, kicking several old trees beside him in quick succession. The thick trunks snapped with a "crack" and fell down with a thud, shaking the ground slightly.

He quickly tore off a few tough vines, intending to tie the tree trunk together to make a simple raft, but just then...

"Whizzing--"

A sharp whooshing sound came from afar, like countless tiny arrows slicing through the sky. Yu Tian suddenly looked up, his pupils shrinking sharply.

The sky was dark and gloomy, filled with countless birds, poisonous bees, and even a few eerie black shadows, all rushing toward them!

"Too late!" He grabbed the small bell, leaped onto the nearest piece of driftwood, and slammed his palm into the water, shouting, "Rise!"

In an instant, the riverbed surged with undercurrents, and an invisible force propelled the driftwood forward like an arrow shot from a bow. The rushing water cleaved through the driftwood, creating white spray on either side, and a chilling river wind rushed in, causing Xiaolingdang to clutch Yu Tian's clothes tightly.

"How dare you! Where do you think you're going, you little thief!" A sharp shout suddenly rang out, and a crimson figure rushed out from the dense forest on the bank.

It was a stunningly beautiful mountain spirit, draped in ivy and entwined with ferns, riding a crimson leopard whose hooves moved with the wind, traversing the boulders as if they were flat ground. The vines in her hands lashed out like nimble snakes, instantly extending several meters, aiming straight for Yu Tian's throat!

"Whoosh!" The tip of the vine grazed Yu Tian's neck, leaving a bloody mark. In the nick of time, Yu Tian suddenly manipulated the water flow, and the driftwood abruptly shifted half a foot to the side, narrowly avoiding this fatal blow.

"Hold on tight!" he roared as the driftwood was tossed wildly in the rapids.

The scenery on both banks rushed past, but the danger remained undiminished. On the riverbanks, it seemed the entire mountain was their enemy, with countless mountain spirits and monsters lurking menacingly.
A wolf demon with a blue face and fangs crouched low, its claws digging at the ground. A giant owl with a human face circled in the treetops, emitting a piercing shriek. Countless venomous snakes darted out from the crevices of the rocks, their tongues hissing…

But they could never reach the heart of the river and could only watch helplessly as their prey drifted away. As for the spirits in the river, they were nothing more than small fish and shrimp that had become spirits, which Yu Tian easily repelled with a few bursts of energy.

(End of this chapter)