The more you believe me, the more real it becomes.

Chapter 141 Mountain Lord
The two elderly people were struck dumb.

"What...what do you mean by that?" one of the old men asked in a trembling voice, pointing incredulously in the direction of Tiger Lair Mountain. "Could it be that the man-eating worm was brought here by the nobles of the Liu family? But...what's the point of all this?!"

What good will it do to harm these poor souls?

They initially thought it was just a natural disaster, and even suspected that it was due to their sins in a past life that brought about this calamity.

Now, listening to the Taoist priest's words, it seems it was all man-made disaster?!

Du Yuan didn't answer directly, but just smiled helplessly:
"The treacherous nature of the human heart has always been greater than that of demons."

The two elderly people stood there, speechless.

Finally, Du Yuan gently advised, "You two are both advanced in years, and the fear and anxiety of these past few days must have taken a toll on your health. You should rest early and recuperate."

The two old men then looked in the direction of the fortified village, let out a long sigh, and slowly went back to their house to sleep.

The next day at dawn.

The two elderly people hurriedly got up, wanting to prepare some food for Du Yuan.

As soon as he stepped out of the room, he saw Du Yuan already standing in the courtyard.

The old woman hurriedly asked, "What is this, Taoist priest?"

Du Yuan pointed to Hulao Mountain: "This humble Taoist is going to the mountain to subdue that demon."

The two elders' hearts tightened: "Daoist priest, are you really sure you can manage all by yourself?"

Du Yuan smiled calmly: "This mere insect is nothing to me."

After saying that, he headed towards Hulao Mountain.

As they passed the fortified village, Du Yuan paused slightly, her gaze sweeping over the towering ramparts.

He then set off directly towards Hulao Mountain without lingering.

—Take care of the big ones first, then deal with the small ones.

On the fortified village, several soldiers on duty caught a glimpse of Du Yuan's figure in the distance.

"That person doesn't look like he's from the village."

"They were probably just passing through. This place is a bit remote, but it's not like nobody goes here."

"Should we report this to our superiors?"

This remark drew sneers from those around him:
"What are you reporting? Just a passerby, what can he possibly do? The nobles are busy with important sacrificial rites!"

The mention of sacrificial rites ignited a fervent light in their eyes:
"I heard that after it's done, not only will the nobles receive rewards from the Tiger God, but we will also benefit and reap many advantages!"

"Exactly! I just wonder what good fortune we'll get!"

Ultimately, their conversation returned to Du Yuan, and several soldiers looked in the direction Du Yuan had left and said:

"The nobles said that the Tiger God would not let anyone leave before the sacrifice was completed. This guy, since he has barged in, will probably end up in the Tiger God's mouth."

"Yes, it's good that we're lucky enough to be with these noble people. Not only will we not be taken by Grandpa Tiger for a treat, but we can even share in the profits!"

"That's why they say it's good to have a big tree to lean on! As for that guy, hehe, that's what happens when you have no one to back you up!"
-
Once inside the mountains, Du Yuan realized that while Hulao Mountain wasn't particularly large, it was incredibly precipitous.

It's nothing more than cutting with a knife and chiseling with an axe.

No wonder people say that even if a tiger comes, you can't get out.

Unfortunately, Du Yuan touched her own little mark.

With the support of his friends, even treacherous mountains and wilderness were like flat ground to him!
Thinking of this, Du Yuan couldn't help but smile and say:
"Hey, it feels just like being at home!"

As soon as he finished speaking, a mountain breeze arose, blowing gently as if it were a soft laugh.

Du Yuan looked around, trying to find traces of the tiger, but found nothing.

The tiger that drives the evil spirits to cause trouble cannot be an ordinary tiger.

So how come you couldn't find any trace of him?

Could it be that this time, the person hiding behind the other side is extremely capable?

Thinking of this, Du Yuan was not afraid at all; on the contrary, she became even more eager to try!
No one knows when the spiritual energy will fully recover, so he must acquire the ability to protect himself before those old fogies can freely cause trouble. Now he can indeed be considered a reclusive master, and thus he acts like a big shot everywhere.

But if those old fogies who can actually burn mountains and boil seas come out, he will be completely exposed.

Therefore, the more dangerous a place is now, the more of an opportunity it presents to him! And he's eager to go there!

Furthermore, Du Yuan also wanted to try. If two or three thousand people could be exchanged for a magic touch, what could a clearly extraordinary tiger demon be exchanged for?

Hmm, I should learn a new skill for combat.

It's not good to keep using the method of controlling objects.

Flying swords and throwing knives are good, but wouldn't it be better to have more?

So what should we do?
Du Yuan found that she couldn't think of a solution for the time being.

Or perhaps you want too much and can't think of anything better right now.

I want water, lightning strikes, wind, and all sorts of things!

'Never mind, never mind, right now we need to figure out how to find that tiger.'

Du Yuan shook her head, forcibly suppressing the turmoil in her heart.

Then he looked intently at Tiger Lair Mountain. But after looking at it several times, he still found nothing.

After hesitating for a moment, Du Yuan took off the small seal and smiled:
"Could you please help me?"

In a daze, Du Yuan seemed to hear that voice again:
'OK'

The next moment, the mountain road opened up on its own, and the shady path appeared like a shadow!

Upon seeing this, Du Yuan was overjoyed and bowed respectfully towards Qingzhou.

"Thank you!"

After getting up, Du Yuan strode along the tree-lined path.
-
Deep within the Tiger Lair Mountains, before a natural cave, atop a pile of bones, a giant black tiger suddenly opened its eyes.

The dense forest in front of it suddenly parted automatically, revealing a shady path.

Seeing this, the giant tiger raised an eyebrow slightly.

At the same time, it finally noticed that the henchmen it had sent out seemed to have died.

After a long while, it opened its blood-red maw and spoke in human language:
"Who is this person?"

As soon as she finished speaking, Du Yuan slowly walked out from the bottom of the hillside.

Seeing this, the tiger, who had stared at the other for a long time and couldn't remember ever seeing this face before, couldn't help but sneer:

"Whose son are you reincarnated from?"

These words piqued Du Yuan's interest:

"Oh? Why did you say that?"

Upon realizing that it wasn't some "old thing" who had arrived, the black giant tiger lowered its initial guard.

It slowly lay down again, licking its paws, and said:

"I've been timid since I was a tiger cub. So after I became a cultivator, the thing I did most was to remember who I could mess with and who I couldn't."

"After all these years of ups and downs, I haven't climbed very high in rank, and my golden statue is in terrible condition, but at least I've lived long enough."

Having said that, it glanced disdainfully at Du Yuan:
"And you? Your Tiger Grandpa doesn't remember any powerful figure who looks like you!"

Du Yuan did not respond immediately, but instead watched the other person with great interest.

Previously, they had searched everywhere without finding a trace, not even a trace of demonic aura. Now that they saw it, they realized with a start that this was no ordinary tiger demon that had reached its full power!

Because Du Yuan clearly saw that there were several dazzling golden fragments embedded on the skull on its head!

As the fragments swirled with light, Du Yuan seemed to glimpse a majestic temple, as large as a mountain, worshipped by all. The fragments belonged to a tiger-headed deity statue that served as both a companion and a gatekeeper in front of that temple.

(End of this chapter)