In order to become a Heroic Spirit, I had no choice but to cause trouble in history.

"Who is it?" he stood up and shouted, watching the red light warily.

There was no response, but the red light actually moved closer.

There was no moonlight tonight, and Liu Ji could only see a red glow, but... that didn't stop him from drawing his sword.

Drawing his longsword, Liu Ji casually tossed the scabbard aside, his eyes sharp as he stared in the direction of the red light.

"No matter who they are, I will kill them with a single sword!" Liu Ji snorted and cautiously approached.

He was a chivalrous knight-errant, a middle-aged chivalrous knight-errant.

However, even a chivalrous knight-errant has to perform corvée labor. He had previously gone to Xianyang to perform corvée labor, and now that he had finished, he was on his way back home, carrying the letter of appointment from the head of the Sishui Pavilion.

What happened next was that we passed through Pangshan along the way.

While Liu Ji was outwitting and outmaneuvering the eerie red light, the Xiang brothers' battle also reached a stalemate.

Xiang An's body spun several times in the air.

"Drink-"

boom--

The hoe struck fiercely at the mountain tiger, but the tiger nimbly dodged it, and Xiang An's hoe smashed a large crater in the ground.

The mountain tiger turned and pounced, slapping down with its claw. Xiang An raised his hand to block, but the handle of the hoe was torn to shreds by the mountain tiger, and Xiang An's chest was also scratched and bled.

"Xiang An!" Xiang Yu's pupils contracted slightly, and he was momentarily stunned.

The mountain lord instantly realized this was an opportunity and controlled the extremely destructive black wind to attack Xiang Yu. After the black wind came sharp claws and teeth.

Xiang Yu gritted his teeth, first using his bronze sword to cut down the black wind, then crouching down, trying to roll away.

But the mountain king could not advance.

It is Xiang An.

With a fierce rage, Xiang An grabbed the tiger's tail, preventing it from attacking Xiang Yu.

"How could this be—uh—let you move forward ahh ...

"Roar—?" The mountain king was dumbfounded.

Xiang An swung the mountain lord's massive body up and slammed it hard to the ground, gritting his teeth.

The mountain lord let out a miserable scream, feeling as if his whole body was about to fall apart. Before he could even turn over, he saw Xiang Yu jump up with the bronze sword in his hand.

The tiger claw retracted and blocked in front of its chest. Xiang Yu's bronze sword pierced directly through the tiger claw, but did not harm the tiger's heart in the slightest.

With another swipe of its paw, Xiang Yu raised his arm to block, but was still sent flying, rolling on the ground once, though the impact was minimal.

Xiang Anzheng stood beside him, holding two axes.

Xiang Yu blinked: "Where...did you get these two wood-chopping axes?"

"I just grabbed the hoe when I picked it up, thinking it might come in handy. Now that the hoe is ruined, it's finally come in handy!" Xiang An had a subtle, knowing smile on his face.

The mountain lord staggered to his feet, let out a loud roar, and unleashed a wild, swirling black aura as he continued his frenzied attack on the Xiang brothers.

"Tch! Keep hitting it! Kill it right here today!" Xiang An dodged a black blade, gritted his teeth, and threw a wood-chopping axe at the mountain lord.

“Even if this alien consciousness is unfamiliar with the Mountain Lord’s power, its brute force alone is already powerful enough!” Xiang Yu pressed forward, dodging the claws, and his bronze sword slashed upwards, striking the Mountain Lord’s chin. The Mountain Lord’s head landed precisely where Xiang An’s axe was about to strike, and the woodcutter’s axe smashed through the Mountain Lord’s fur and became lodged in the Mountain Lord’s skull.

The mountain king, however, was finding it somewhat difficult to exert his strength.

"You... are neither human nor non-human beings..." The alien will spoke with unparalleled hatred, "So what if you kill me here?"

"The alien race will never die, never die!" It seemed to be filled with power again, suddenly bursting out with tremendous force, suppressing Xiang Yu. The tiger's face, stained with blood, was extremely ferocious. "You have no cracks to survive! You who live in this world neither as humans nor as aliens will never be recognized or tolerated!"

"Stop talking nonsense!" Xiang An jumped over and chopped Xiang Yu's bronze sword with his axe, helping Xiang Yu regain control of the mountain lord.

“We will continue to survive, continue to survive! And you, with your filthy will, will forever remain a maggot, never able to look up at the Central Plains that belong to humanity!” Xiang Yu gritted his teeth.

The two brothers finally completely subdued the mountain king, forcing it to leave two deep furrows in the mountain with its two hind legs supporting it on the ground.

"Roar......"

Even though they were at a complete disadvantage, the mountain lord continued to resist, attempting to devour the Xiang brothers and seize control of the Central Plains.

but......

There seemed to be something behind the Xiang brothers.

Those were two beams of light emanating from the Xiang brothers, intertwining behind them to form their presence.

The two beams of light slowly merged and transformed, eventually becoming the appearance of an old man with white hair and beard, exuding an air of otherworldly grace.

The old man made no move, simply standing there, quietly watching Xiang Yu, Xiang An, and the Mountain Lord fight. His eyes revealed understanding, disappointment, and joy.

Understanding is about cause and effect, feeling lost is about the mountain king, and feeling joy is naturally about the Xiang brothers.

A century... has it been...?

So that's how it is...

"Mountain Lord, why don't you wake up quickly?" the old man said, but no sound came out.

However, the mountain lord heard the old man's words and immediately stopped resisting.

------------

Chapter 808 The Past of Pangshan

When did that happen?

Pangshan is a node of the largest spiritual vein in the lower reaches of the Huai River. The spirits and creatures born here are all born with spirituality.

When was I born?

I can't remember anymore, I only remember it was a very long time ago.

As a young tiger cub, I am not something born strong. I need a long time to grow into a fierce tiger that commands respect. Before that, I need to live under my mother's protection.

This is the law of survival, a law established since the birth of a species. As the price for future strength, young tigers are very weak. God is always fair. Even if there is some bias when it comes to individuals, it is fair to the whole.

But my mother died. I don't know how she died. I only know that my mother died, leaving me, who was only a few months old, behind.

All I remember is that it didn't rain that day, it was just cloudy and I couldn't see the sun. I tried to wake my mother by snuggling in her arms, but I failed. I fell asleep, and other spirits and monsters surrounded my and my mother's corpses.

However, I did not die. Just as I was about to be eaten by something else, someone saved me.

That person... I can't quite remember what he looked like anymore, but I do remember his name, Ziye.

He didn't care that I was a non-human tiger, and took me with him and raised me.

I can't quite put my finger on what role he played in my life. Maybe he was a friend? Or perhaps he was more like a father figure?

Actually, a single name from now on would suffice.

"Close friend".

He stayed with me for several years, settling down at the foot of the mountain where I lived, just him and his wife, but his wife was very afraid of me.

After careful consideration, in order for him to find his own happiness, I decided to leave the small thatched hut at the foot of Pangshan Mountain and move into the mountains to live.

Pangshan is vast, with abundant spiritual veins and countless powerful spirits and demons. Life in Pangshan is difficult, but as an adult, I can manage to protect the thatched hut at the foot of the mountain.

No, I... must do it.

And so, they lived like this for several years.

One day, Ziye found me.

He stood in front of me, his face showing some sadness and regret.

“My dearest friend, I’m going to war.” He stroked my fur, his hand tightening slightly. “There are constant wars between the states. As a able-bodied man, I can’t refuse to join the army. The order from Chu has been issued, and I must go.”

I sat there, quietly watching him, waiting for him to say something.

He hugged me and pressed his forehead against mine.

“My dearest friend, I don’t know when I will return. I only ask one last thing of you.”

He suddenly knelt down in front of me, his tiger-like eyes filled with tears.

"I beg you, protect my wife and children."

After saying that, he left.

As I watched his retreating figure, I felt only sorrow.

They sought refuge in this world of spirits and monsters to escape the chaos of the human world, but even so, they could not find peace.

My dearest friend, you are wise, but people...

Conquest only leads to internal strife, but the act of negating everything and punishing both sides equally is not the right thing to do either.

In a complex human society, ordinary people like my dear friend have no opportunity or means to understand what is called "right and wrong," yet they are still drawn into war.

In fact, even before discussing right and wrong, the act of war itself is already foolish enough.

He left, and I bore his expectations, protecting his wife and children.

However, the Pangshan Mountains are fraught with danger, and even a tiger like me, who is intelligent and already an adult, must live cautiously.

I lived cautiously while protecting his family, and time slowly passed by.

He didn't come back for a year.

He didn't come back for two years.

Three years have passed, and he still hasn't returned.

But I got hurt.

Actually, I get injured quite often. In an environment like Pangshan, it's impossible not to get injured.

But this time, I was badly hurt, very badly hurt.

It was so serious it was almost fatal.

But... I can't die. If I die, what will happen to my dearest friend's wife and children...?

Therefore, I cannot die.

However, sometimes, ideas and reality are not the same.