Ganyang Mountain Man

"We're from the Divine Continent, not natives of this land?"

Chen Shi listened to this, looking at the petrified ship in a daze.

Were his ancestors the ones who sailed such a ship, adrift on the Sea of Darkness for seventeen years before arriving here?

They toiled to clear land, dug irrigation ditches, built towns, drove away strange beasts, established civilization, and lit the first fire on this dark continent.

But why did the Western Ox Continent lose contact with Great Ming?

When the soldiers of Great Ming arrived here, were the True Gods from beyond the heavens also present?

"There's another strange thing. My Three Lights Righteous Qi Art can absorb starlight, but not sunlight or moonlight. Only in places like the Mountain Lord Temple can I absorb sunlight and moonlight. Could it be that the sun and moon light in the Mountain Lord Temple come from our ancestral land, the Divine Continent? But why were these temples lost and buried underground?"

Chen Shi's head felt heavy, and he couldn't figure out the reason for a while.

Li Tianqing still couldn't hide his excitement. He reached out, trying to touch the great ship.

Unexpectedly, the moment his fingertips were about to touch the great ship, the ground beneath him suddenly shook violently. The sound of flowing water came, surging and turbulent. The surrounding scenery changed drastically, and a mighty river surged towards them, with colossal waves reaching the sky and crashing against the shore!

The riverbed, which had been dry and visible with fishbone fossils just moments ago, suddenly transformed into a vast and magnificent river. The backs of the giant fish in the river were like small green islands.

The Great Gu, which had turned into dry bones, seemed to have come back to life!

"Ghost and God Domain!"

Chen Shi's heart skipped a beat. Without a word, he pulled Li Tianqing and retreated rapidly.

The two stumbled, the ground shaking violently beneath their feet. The Dejiang River rippled, and the riverbank, originally covered in rubble, was now filled with reeds. The rubble beneath their feet also rapidly grew into lush green grass!

Chen Shi turned around, exerting force under his feet, and pulled Li Tianqing forward.

His reaction speed was extremely fast. The moment Li Tianqing activated the stone ship's Ghost and God Domain, he had already stepped forward. The lush green grass, rapidly extending forward, couldn't catch up to his pace!

It was only then that Li Tianqing saw how astonishing Chen Shi's true explosive power was. His legs shot out like a Hongyi Cannon igniting gunpowder to launch a projectile. A fierce wind buffeted him, pressing his clothes tightly against his body. Each stride covered over ten feet, and his feet landed with a crack, shattering the pebbles!

Li Tianqing could only hear the whistling wind in his ears, and he thought in shock, "This speed is too fast, much faster than a Jia Ma Talisman!"

This was Chen Shi carrying him while running at full speed. If he weren't carrying him, his speed would likely be even faster!

In an instant, Chen Shi had run a hundred zhang, far from the stone ship.

Li Tianqing saw them rush past a dazed, foolish-looking roe deer. The deer probably hadn't seen humans before and stood there foolishly, turning its head to look at them. But the next moment, lush green grass reached the deer's feet.

The deer rapidly petrified, turning into a stone sculpture, still maintaining its posture of looking at them.

The lush green grass moved extremely fast, but just as it was about to catch up to them, it suddenly seemed to reach its limit. The speed of the green spread slowed down, then gradually faded and disappeared.

Chen Shi put Li Tianqing down and looked back. The reeds covering the ground were also gone.

A sand gull flew towards them. Just as it was about to collide with Li Tianqing, it suddenly disappeared like wisps of smoke.

"Never be curious and approach things you don't understand in the mountains."

Chen Shi said earnestly to Li Tianqing, "Many people lose their lives precisely because they are too curious."

Li Tianqing nodded repeatedly, then suddenly smiled, "But with the discovery of this stone ship, Grandpa and I can also report back to Quanzhou."

Chen Shi inquired, "Does the Li family of Quanzhou have a way to break the Ghost and God Domain of the stone ship?"

Li Tianqing shook his head, "Not necessarily, but whether they do or not, Grandpa, Mom, and I can live very well because of this."

He was extremely happy. This way, he wouldn't have to betray Chen Shi and could still survive and gain a foothold in the Li family, protecting the relatives he cared about.

Chen Shi was also happy for him.

Outside the Provincial City of Xinxiang, on the post road.

The post road here was a provincial road, wide and flat, paved with bluestone slabs in the center with grooves for wheels to travel in. The sides were paved with bluestone bricks. Pedestrians and vehicles moved in an orderly fashion.

On both sides of the post road were river channels, also lined with stone embankments. The river water connected to the sea. During high tide, the river level would rise. The soldiers guarding the sluice gates would lower the iron gates to close the river mouth, preventing seawater from overflowing the embankment.

At this moment, a Xinxiang rat was foraging in the weeds on the left river embankment.

This type of rat was unique to the Western Ox Continent and could grow to one to two hundred jin. They were extremely gluttonous. During the corn harvest season, these rats could be seen in groups entering cornfields. When they emerged, their cheeks would be bulging.

If one was killed, over twenty jin of corn kernels could be retrieved from its mouth.

Xinxiang rats were notorious pests, but in years of famine, these strange beasts were extremely precious. Killing one could provide food for many days.

The Xinxiang rat in the grass was not yet an adult and was digging for plant roots. Suddenly, it heard rustling sounds in the grass and saw three small children, less than a foot tall, emerge from the grass.

The Xinxiang rat's eyes lit up, and it pounced towards the little children.

The children were exhausted, covered in scratches, and some parts were damaged, revealing cracks.

Seeing the rat pounce, they immediately shot various miniature weapons at it without hesitation. One of them even sacrificed their Golden Core, but as soon as it was sacrificed, the Xinxiang rat ate it in one bite.

The Xinxiang rat grabbed one child and began to gnaw. With a crunch, it bit through the child's head, but almost broke its own teeth. Only then did it notice that the child was made of porcelain, not flesh and blood.

However, the porcelain doll, with its head bitten open, was killed.

The porcelain doll whose Golden Core was eaten also perished on the spot.

Only one porcelain doll managed to escape.

This porcelain doll fled to the post road. Braving the risk of being trampled to death or run over by a carriage, it finally reached the center of the post road with great difficulty. It caught sight of a carriage speeding towards it, leaped up, and grabbed the carriage's axle. Amidst the violent jolting, the carriage drove towards the Provincial City.

Upon arriving at the Provincial City, the porcelain doll released its grip and fell to the ground before the carriage had stopped. It heard a crisp "ding" sound from beneath its feet. Its face changed drastically, and it quickly lifted its foot to look. It saw a crack on the sole of its left foot.

The porcelain doll limped into the shadows of an alleyway.

After a long while, it climbed to a shop window, holding up a wooden sign.

There were words on the wooden sign.

"I am the Second Miss of the Zhao Family's Xuan Ying Mansion. Notify my father, Zhao Yanlong, and there will be a great reward!"

Soon, someone discovered this scene, and the crowd of onlookers grew larger.

Tears welled up in the porcelain doll's eyes. It was precisely the Second Miss Zhao, who had been tricked into the kiln factory by Chen Shi.

These past few days had felt like years in the kiln factory. While hiding from the kiln workers' pursuit, she longed for the Zhao family to send someone to rescue her, but no help ever came. Her companions were dwindling; some were captured by the kiln workers and thrown into the kilns to be cremated, while others were taken away by fierce beasts and birds when they ventured out.

The Second Miss Zhao was decisive. Feeling she couldn't just wait for death, she persuaded the other porcelain dolls to follow her to the Provincial City to actively seek out the Zhao family.

The other porcelain dolls were moved by her words and left the kiln factory together.

This journey would be epic and magnificent.

They crossed high mountains and vast rivers, battled fierce beasts, and evaded giants. The companions by their side gradually perished, dying on the road to the Provincial City.

The Second Miss Zhao was fortunate to survive until now and finally arrived at the Provincial City.

At the Zhao Family's Xuan Ying Mansion, Zhao Yanlong and his wife sat on a Grand Tutor's chair. The wife raised her handkerchief, wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes, and cried to Zhao Er Guniang, "My darling, you've suffered so much! My lord, you must seek justice for Minrou!"

"Second Miss Zhao" was a title given by outsiders; her name was Zhao Minrou.

Zhao Yanlong's expression was calm. Ever since he had brought this daughter back, he had invited the mansion's experts to try and reverse Zhao Minrou's petrification into porcelain, but unfortunately, her condition was too advanced, and she couldn't be changed back.

Although Zhao Yanlong doted on his daughter, he could only accept the situation.

"Minrou, you're saying that little Chen Shi led you into the mountain kiln factory, and that's how you became like this?"

Zhao Yanlong's eyes flickered. "Describe that kiln factory in detail."

Zhao Minrou took a slender brush and drew on a piece of paper. A moment later, Zhao Yanlong took the paper and read it carefully, a smile gradually appearing on his face.

"Madam, Minrou has made a great contribution."

He held Zhao Minrou in his palm and smiled, "This kiln factory that Minrou spoke of must be a place where burial porcelain for the True King's Tomb is fired. As long as we find it, we can find clues to the True King's Tomb! Minrou, did you see an eight-armed, four-headed porcelain statue in this kiln factory? Those kiln workers melted you all to repair the body of this porcelain statue?"

Zhao Minrou nodded.

Zhao Yanlong laughed heartily, "This four-headed, eight-armed porcelain statue should be the origin of the Ghost and God Domain. Judging by the repairs to the porcelain statue, the origin has been damaged. This is a heaven-sent opportunity for my Zhao family! The True King's Tomb is already within my grasp! Minrou, don't worry, Father will definitely avenge you!"

Shortly after, a servant brought a document, saying, "My lord, here is all the information on the people of Huangpo Village."

Zhao Yanlong briefly scanned it and then led Zhao Minrou to the backyard. There, a white-haired old man was diligently writing in a pavilion. Under the eaves of the pavilion hung various talismans and inscriptions.

Talismans from the countryside often had simple designs, but the talismans drawn by this old man were extremely complex.

A "fu" (符) referred to pictograms of magic spells, mostly in the form of patterns with few words.

A "lu" (箓) referred to the names of powerful beings like gods and demons, mostly in mysterious script with few patterns.

A "zhuan" (篆) referred to the language of recorded gods and demons, often possessing immense and incredible power.

Mastering even one of these three would bring great fame among Talisman Masters. Some people might study their entire lives and still not master even one.

The content written by this white-haired old man included "fu," "lu," and "zhuan," all of which were exquisitely crafted and contained immense power!

"Second Uncle, I wish to ask you to go to the countryside and kill a pair of grandfather and grandson."

The white-haired old man looked up, his aura suddenly becoming terrifying, "Who is it?"

"Huangpo Village, Chen Shi, Chen Yindu!"

"I'll be back before you know it. Leave dinner for me tonight."

Zhao Yanlong watched the white-haired old man leave. He knew that this Second Uncle was the person with the highest realm and strongest power in the Xuan Ying Mansion. If he weren't so attached to his family, the position of Mansion Lord of Xuan Ying Mansion wouldn't have fallen to his father, and he wouldn't have inherited it.

"Second Uncle will surely succeed with ease, and it will count as avenging Minrou! I should also prepare myself to search for the True King's Tomb." His heart was filled with eagerness.

The white-haired old man's surname was Zhao, and his name was Cunyi. He moved with great speed, arriving at Huangpo Village by evening. Despite the journey, he remained composed and leisurely. Along the way, he politely inquired from villagers about Chen Shi's whereabouts. Although he was white-haired, his body was strong, and his steps were steady. Even after traveling over three hundred li from the Provincial City to the countryside, he showed no signs of fatigue.

Upon reaching the Chen family's home, he saw that the gate was not closed. Zhao Cunyi walked into the courtyard and praised, "The landscape and fields, the leisurely elegance, it's quite pleasant."

He was alone in the courtyard, with no one answering.

Zhao Cunyi paid it no mind and looked around. He saw that the courtyard of this household wasn't large, but it had about an acre of land, divided into a front hall, an east wing, a west wing, and a main hall.

The main hall consisted of three rooms; two were for living, and one was for receiving guests.

Strangely, the main hall was currently set up as a mourning hall, with a spirit tablet and lit candles.

There was also a tall old man wearing burial clothes, standing with his back to him in front of the mourning hall, exuding a heavy aura of Yin energy.

Zhao Cunyi smiled slightly and said leisurely, "I began cultivating at the age of eight, passed the county examination at twelve, becoming a scholar and ranking third in the entire county. At sixteen, I participated in the provincial examination and became a recommended scholar, ranking within the top ten, though not first. At nineteen, I thoroughly studied the twelve volumes of the Compendium of Talismans written by the Talisman Master Gan Yangzi. All the talismans recorded in the book are deeply ingrained in my memory. My attainments in talismans, while I wouldn't dare claim to be the best in Xinxiang Province, I believe no one else can match me."

The tall old man, with his back to him, his shoulders twitched as if he were swallowing something.

"Chen Yindu, your grandson has offended the Mansion Lord, and the Mansion Lord has sent me to deal with you and your grandson personally."

Zhao Cunyi raised his hands and looked at his fair palms, smiling, "Turn around. I don't like killing people from behind. Both you and I are Talisman Masters. I eagerly await a peak duel between us Talisman Masters."

At this moment, the tall elder who had been swallowing stopped, raised his head, and seemed to be lost in thought.

"The Compendium of Talismans? The court is still using it as a textbook?"

The tall elder turned around, asking doubtfully, "When I compiled this set of books, I was still in my forties. The things in it should have been outdated long ago."

Zhao Cunyi's heart trembled violently, and he showed disbelief.

"You're from Ganyang Mountain? You're still alive?"

He widened his eyes and suddenly realized, "You can't have a grandson this young! Old man, you're using the name of the Ganyang Mountain person to scare me!"

Without thinking, talismans slid out of his sleeve one after another!

The next moment, dozens of talismans floated in the air, divine light flowing, brilliant and dazzling!

The talismans he used were all top-grade ones recorded in the Compendium of Talismans, the most powerful among them being the North Star Spirit Dispatching Inscription, the North Star Five Thunders Talisman, and the South Star Life and Death Talisman!

These talismans contained mysterious powers. The Spirit Dispatching Inscription could summon spirits, the Five Thunders Talisman could summon heavenly lightning, and the Life and Death Talisman could borrow the power of the netherworld. None of these could be resisted by ordinary cultivators!

The combat power unleashed by a powerful Talisman Master could completely surpass experts who had cultivated to the Nascent Soul stage and reach the level of a Primordial Spirit!

"If you haven't achieved 'one thought to form a talisman,' how dare you call yourself the best?"

As a thought moved in the tall elder's mind, talisman patterns suddenly appeared around Zhao Cunyi.

The talisman was not complicated; it was the simplest Fire Talisman, one of the most basic talismans.

However, this Fire Talisman was drawn without anyone drawing it, without using black dog blood, and without using cinnabar. It was drawn directly with a thought!

Zhao Cunyi was horrified. Flames began to burn from within his body, instantly engulfing him.

"You are the Ganyang Mountain person!"

A piercing scream came from within the flames. Then, his entire body turned to ashes in the fire. Soon, the flames dissipated, leaving only ashes to drift and fall to the ground.

"The Ganyang Mountain person isn't a title, but a place of origin. I didn't leave my real name. Idiot."

Grandpa shook his head, took out a dustpan, and swept the ashes on the ground into it.

"In our line of work, leaving your real name will only lead to a quick death."

In the west wing, Li Jindou, who was struggling against petrification, was dumbfounded.

"He's the Ganyang Mountain person? The one who compiled the Compendium of Talismans for the court and created the Heavenly Heart Righteous Qi Art?"

-- First chapter today. The second chapter has been updated! Please subscribe and vote with monthly tickets!