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

Chapter 256: They've Realized It (3k views)

The golden-armored deity was three zhang tall and had a booming voice. He was fine when he was being careful, but now he got angry.

As soon as he opened his mouth, an unstoppable wave of sound surged forth, making the three of them dizzy and nearly faint.

Fortunately, at this crucial moment, the wooden plaque clutched in the woodcutter's hand suddenly emitted a warm white light on the four characters "Protect the Mountains and Wilderness." Though not dazzling, it was like a gentle sound that struck the golden-armored deity's ears.

His pupils contracted slightly, then he abruptly stopped speaking, raised his hand to rub his temples, and a look of annoyance appeared on his face:

"Oh dear, what a blunder! I haven't spoken to mortals in years, and I forgot to hold back my strength. Can you still hold on?"

The three dared not utter a single word of "no," and hurriedly helped each other to their feet, their arms still trembling slightly as they clasped their hands in greeting, repeatedly replying:
"It's nothing, it's nothing, thank you for your concern!"

The golden-armored deity chuckled softly, then deliberately lowered his voice and said:
“What you have in your hands is not some ordinary wooden plaque with inscriptions. It is a real ‘decree’! Someone has directly petitioned the heavens and obtained their approval!”

He paused, his gaze drifting into the distance, and said:

"The last time I saw something similar was that Taoist priest in the southwest, who, relying on his high position, managed to beg the heavens for a 'life-saving pill' formula."

"To be honest, the decree you have is a treasure similar to the 'Life-Saving Pill.' Both are regulations that are established only after reaching the ears of the emperor."

Over the years, he had never seen the Empress grant permission to anyone.

I've actually seen it now!
The golden-armored deity was marveling at the extraordinary nature of the decree when, before he could finish speaking, he noticed the three of them looking at each other with bewildered expressions.

Clearly, he didn't even know who the "Southwest Taoist Master" was or what the "Beggar's Elixir" was. He suddenly slapped his forehead and burst out laughing:

"Oh dear, I forgot! These things are a bit far removed from our lives, and it's really not something you mortals could know right now. Never mind, you don't need to know so much. Just remember that this is a treasure that can save lives, and that's enough."

As he spoke, he held up the wooden plaque he had picked up and lightly touched its surface with his fingertip:
"Moreover, if we take out this item, I dare not say anything else, but our mountain god lineage will sense it no matter which mountain they are on duty on. As long as they don't have anything urgent to do, they will come to protect us."

"So, after this is all over, you must leave this wooden plaque behind. It is our proof of reporting back to our superiors."

At this point, the golden-armored deity's tone held a hint of barely perceptible satisfaction.

In the past, the mountain god lineage always envied the Cloud and Rain Dispatch Office.

Although the two sides have always been at odds, the other side has a well-established reward and punishment system. Who has made contributions and who should be promoted is clearly stated in the rules and regulations, and the path to promotion is obvious.

However, on their side, the mountain god's wife, who governs the mountain god lineage, is of a refined and quiet nature and doesn't like to worry about these mundane affairs, so there isn't even a clear rule for evaluating merits and demerits.

Now that we have this "law" as a basis, we can finally take a small step towards establishing regulations for the mountain god lineage!
And the most ingenious part is that it implicitly suggests that they were the ones who won the final battle over the landscape back then!

While the golden-armored deity was inwardly marveling, the three on the other side remained completely bewildered.

Although he understood that "the wooden plaque is a treasure" and "it must be left to report back," the words "heavenly hearing," "honorable position," and "lineage of the mountain god" were like a tangled mess in his mind, causing even more confusion.

But they were high and mighty gods, and even the woodcutter who had spoken earlier, now that he had a change of heart, dared not say another word.

The three could only nod blankly in agreement, with the last one instinctively clenching the wooden plaque in his hand.

As soon as the golden-armored deity finished speaking, he raised his hand and beckoned to the bear's corpse. The corpse was instantly pulled away by an invisible force and vanished without a trace.

He added, "Although this bear carcass is not a rare treasure, it is a contribution I made, so I took this wooden plaque with me."

The three nodded eagerly in agreement: "Of course it should be yours!"

Upon hearing this, the golden-armored deity shook his head and smiled, then gestured for the two woodcutters to extend their hands. As soon as he finished speaking, two enormous, snow-white fangs landed in their palms.

"We have some kind of fate between us. I can't give you the bear's carcass and demon core, but these one or two fangs are nothing. Keep them safe; you can exchange them for some money to make a living when you get back."

The two woodcutters were overjoyed—these tusks would probably make them quite wealthy instantly!

Then, the golden-armored deity turned to the young man who had nothing beside him and said:

"I also found your guards. It's a pity that only three of them survived. The other three have already died and there was no way to save them."

After saying that, he raised his hand and waved it again, and the warriors who had been left behind to cover the rear appeared in front of the young master unharmed.

The three warriors who had miraculously survived were clearly still confused as to why things had suddenly changed; while the other three who had fallen off the cliff earlier had their clothes straightened and were properly settled beside them.

Upon seeing this, Wang Chengye hurriedly knelt down and respectfully bowed, saying:
"Thank you so much for your help, Great God! May I ask your name and rank, and where your temple is located? After today's matter is settled, I, Wang Chengye, will certainly bring generous gifts to your door to express my deepest gratitude!"

The golden-armored deity smiled and waved his hand, his tone casual:

"I'm not worthy of the title 'Great God.' As for a divine position... well, let's not even mention it. Right now, it's not our time to show ourselves."

Having said that, the golden-armored deity vanished just as abruptly as he had arrived.

Only a few people remained, looking at each other but completely clueless about the situation.
-
At the bottom of the deep Sweetwater River, a man dressed in black stood with his hands behind his back, his brows furrowed as he looked at the huge catfish carcass in front of him.

The surrounding water pressure and darkness posed no obstacle to him. It was as if he were standing on ordinary flat ground, not at the bottom of a deep river.

After staring at the big fish for a moment, he raised his hand and tried to remove the wooden plaque that was pressing down on the catfish's head—it was still firmly embedded in the fish's head, without the slightest loosening.

But as soon as he got his hands on it, his expression changed drastically.

Because he couldn't peel it off! He had clearly used every ounce of his skill!
If it's high, then we'll have to use our trump card, but putting aside the fact that it might still not work, more importantly, this thing seems to be everywhere.

This left him utterly astonished:
'No way! Even if this thing could reach the ears of Heaven, it shouldn't be this difficult for me to remove it. My power to move mountains and overturn seas—it wasn't acquired for nothing!'

But as he thought about it, his face turned pale and he broke out in a cold sweat.

The clothes that were impermeable by the entire river were completely soaked at this moment.

'We're doomed! Since it can't be the sign itself, then something else must have been left on it. This place is probably being watched by more than just our group!'

Thinking of this, he couldn't help but sigh, his tone full of regret:
"I knew it! Several important swords were left here, but why are they nowhere to be found at the Confucian Temple? There's definitely something wrong here!"

Just as the man in black was filled with frustration, he suddenly heard a message from his ally summoning him to come.

After hesitating for a moment, the man in black took a step forward and landed beside the person who had called him.

Before them lay a dried-up riverbed, and not far ahead was a stone bridge covered in moss and overgrown with vines, clearly long abandoned.

Among the many green plants, a long sword covered in vines hung conspicuously beneath the stone bridge.

Looking at the long sword, the alluring woman who had summoned the man in black couldn't help but laugh:

"I'm sure the others are still eyeing those most conspicuous swords. It's just that those fools have been hiding for so long that they've lost their way."

She sat cross-legged by the river, and nothing seemed amiss.

But the man in black knew—she couldn't move!
"That weapon in the Lan River involves a great deal of power; it's not something anyone else can take."

"That weapon under the Dark River is too ferocious; even the evil sects are unwilling to get involved with such an evil thing. Unless they are complete madmen."

"And the one that's been suppressed, hehe, that's even more impossible. I think they've already found its owner. Tell me, what kind of person could snatch someone's natal flying sword from a pure swordsman?"

Having said that, she laughed with utter sarcasm, her gaze slowly slowing until it finally settled on the sword:
"This is the only one, not too high, not too low, not too dangerous, just right!"

At this point, Wu Yike remained silent, because he had thought the same thing before.

Seeing that he remained silent, the glamorous woman turned around curiously, but didn't ask any further questions. She simply frowned and said:
"So how are the little demons I picked out and released into the river doing?"

The man in black finally spoke:

"One died."

"Oh? Do you know who did it?"

The man in black said quite frankly:

"I don't know yet. But don't worry, I've looked around and it's fine overall. I'll tell those little demons to keep a low profile later, so they don't show themselves and get dealt with again."

“But they’re no match for us. If they don’t devour a few more people, I’m afraid they won’t be able to be of any use.” The woman frowned slightly. This sword was very important; she had invested a lot in it, yet she was stretched thin.

As a result, they had no choice but to send their key demons to improve their cultivation through such an unreliable method as cannibalism.

The man in black seized the opportunity to take over the conversation, his tone carrying a hint of control:
"I'm willing to expend some of my own life essence to feed these things. But since I'm wasting so much of my life force, you should at least give me something in return, right?"

The alluring woman raised an eyebrow, her eyes filled with undisguised disdain:

"What do you want? Is it the pagoda fragment I've been keeping hidden away, or the Ruyi hairpin I wear close to my body?"

She paused, her gaze suddenly locking onto the man in black, her voice trailing off softly and with an alluring quality: "Or perhaps, you want my body?"

"Your seductive skills are mediocre at best, so don't try to show them off in front of me." The man in black mercilessly exposed his weakness, his tone full of contempt.

The woman's lips curled into an even deeper sneer, her disdain deepening, yet she still patiently pressed on with her question:

"Then what do you want?"

The man in black then dropped his previous dismissive expression and asked seriously:
"Although your bewitching arts are incomplete, which is why you've ended up in this mediocre state, I've heard that you learned them from Qingqiu?"

"The foxes of Qingqiu don't play these games. Those guys are twisted; they're born fox spirits, yet they insist on trying to correct themselves." The woman scoffed, her tone full of disdain. "The place I'm really going to is Tushan!"

"Oh?" A knowing glint flashed in the black-clad man's eyes. "Tushan is a dangerous place, much more difficult to traverse than Qingqiu. You can come and go freely, so you must have something to rely on—that's exactly the method I need for you to enter and leave Tushan! Don't worry, apart from the essence blood, I will not skimp on any of the benefits that should be given to you."

As he spoke, he reached into his robes and pulled out a golden pill. The pill was translucent and radiant with a faint warm golden light, clearly a rare treasure.

Upon seeing the golden elixir, the alluring woman's eyes narrowed sharply, her breath caught in her throat, and her fingertips unconsciously curled, clearly indicating that she was tempted.

But she quickly suppressed her excitement, her tone returning to calm, and asked with only a hint of doubt:
Why are you so fixated on this method of escaping?

These words struck a chord with the man in black. Yes, if I hadn't been deceived by you and succumbed to greed, I would have ended up in this wretched place.

Why should I be so fixated on ways to escape?

(End of this chapter)