Below the Mountain

Somewhere beneath Mount Hua stood an unnamed little hill.

White Snake lay coiled atop the hill, utterly motionless. Unable to flee, she could only resign herself to fate. With the heavenly tribulation bearing down and nowhere to hide, she had no choice but to fight for her life. If she overcame it, the seas would be broad and the skies vast; if she failed, she would die, with no chance even of returning to the novice village camp.

Dark clouds churned overhead as though they could come crashing down at any moment.

Xu Ling looked up at the sky with some fear. Even a low-level spirit creature's tribulation was not something to be taken lightly. The heavy might of heaven seemed to warn every cultivator who defied the heavens.

Ants and rats frantically moved house, fleeing the heart of the storm, while the birds and beasts had long since vanished without a trace.

Several tents had appeared near the hill. Xu Ling and the other female disciples stayed in them, eating sweets and roasting meat as if they were on a spring outing. Yang Mu sat alone in a tree, meditating, while the other male disciples either found places to cultivate or wandered about. The foothills were actually quite lively, especially since there was a town beside the road leading to Mount Hua, no different from the mortal world, with food, drink, entertainment, and every pleasure one could want.

The strange change in the sky drew many eyes...

A group of five or six cultivators used lightness skills to reach the vicinity of the hill. They saw the motionless White Snake atop it, as well as the Chunyang Palace disciples.

They specialized in capturing or hunting demon beasts in exchange for cultivation resources. What they did most often was seek out demon beasts undergoing tribulation, then wait for a chance to pick up the scraps.

"Senior Brother, that White Snake is very rare. If we catch her after she passes the tribulation, we can definitely sell her for a high price."

One cultivator was delighted. The more she sold for, the greater their cut would be. Demon beasts undergoing tribulation were common enough, but White Snakes were difficult to come by, especially one whose white scales were as fine and lustrous as jade.

"Strange. A demon beast actually dared undergo tribulation beneath Mount Hua. If we hadn't happened to pass by, we never would have seen it. And what are those Chunyang Palace disciples doing?"

"Could they be trying to seize the demon beast too?"

"Doesn't look like it."

One young cultivator who looked to be in his twenties raised a hand to stop the discussion. Greed appeared on his face as he looked at White Snake, then he turned toward the Chunyang Palace disciples in confusion. After considering it, he walked alone toward Xu Ling and the others.

Yang Mu opened his eyes and glanced over without expression, then drifted lightly down from the tree to stand before Xu Ling.

Xu Ling and the female cultivators merely glanced at those cultivators and ignored them afterward. Yang Mu was enough to handle the negotiations. As for anyone daring to cause trouble here, that was even less likely. Though they were below the mountain, this was still Chunyang Palace territory. There was no need to explain Chunyang Palace's standing in the cultivation world.

"Fellow Daoists of Chunyang, I am Zheng Yong. I have come here specifically to subjugate demons and eliminate devils. Greetings, everyone."

Zheng Yong was mild and courteous, leaving nothing to criticize. Unfortunately, the one standing opposite him was Yang Mu, whose face was like an ancient glacier. Yang Mu merely gave Zheng Yong a disdainful look.

The meaning of that expression was obvious: Did Chunyang Palace really need outsiders to subjugate demons and eliminate devils beneath its own mountain?

"The snake belongs to Chunyang Palace."

After saying that, Yang Mu closed his eyes.

"Ah? Is that so? Might you perhaps transfer her to us? A fine snakeskin is worth..." Before he could finish—

"Get lost."

Yang Mu calmly spat out those two words, arrogant to the extreme.

Zheng Yong froze, then dark anger surged in his heart. Since when had Chunyang Palace begun raising demon beasts? Was this brat trying to fool him? A little punk like him dared look down on me! A vicious thought quietly rose within him. After spending years in the cultivation world, who had not killed before? A man who was not ruthless could not stand firm.

Perhaps his killing intent was too obvious. Yang Mu opened his eyes and stared coldly at Zheng Yong, while the treasured sword on his back gave a faint metallic hum.

Zheng Yong's whole body tightened, and he hurriedly reined in his thoughts.

"Then I shall not disturb you any longer. Farewell."

Before things could turn ugly, Zheng Yong quickly left. Whether he truly intended to act or had merely been putting on a show, he could not be too conspicuous here. This was within Mount Hua's domain. If he truly provoked one of Chunyang Palace's great powers, forget whether the patron behind him could protect him—his patron might even be uprooted along with him.

After returning to his companions, Zheng Yong felt deeply dissatisfied. His envy and jealousy toward cultivators of Great Sects turned into thick hatred. Reason told him not to stir up trouble, but his heart was torn with conflict.

"Boss, are those ox-nosed Taoists interfering?"

"Stop asking questions. Let's go!"

In the distance, Yang Mu watched coldly as the cultivators vanished. He did not know whether to call them bold or foolish. They actually dared set their sights on the demon snake raised by one of the Chunyang Five. It seemed Chunyang Palace had gone too long without displaying its might to the world.

Elsewhere, Zheng Yong led several companions to the town beneath Mount Hua. They entered an inn and pushed open a room door, where they found a handsome young man around twenty years old.

"Senior Brother Lin, the one undergoing tribulation over there is a White Snake demon, but... those Chunyang ox-nosed Taoists are guarding her and won't let us act. They even said she's a demon beast they raised. They're just a bunch of little brats. Senior Brother Lin, why don't we..." Zheng Yong made a throat-slitting gesture.

Upon hearing this, the young man smiled, his face full of mockery.

"Are you not afraid of dying?"

"I... I... I won't mention it again." Cold sweat broke out across Zheng Yong's forehead.

"Not daring anymore? Tch. Why not act? If even you dared harbor killing intent, they must be young disciples with low cultivation. You want to kill them to vent your anger, while I want the Cultivation Manuals on them even more. Everyone knows the Chunyang Cultivation Method is the finest under heaven. They toss out a few fake manuals in the open to fool people like us, but there must be other mysteries hidden beneath the surface. As the saying goes, how can one catch a tiger cub without entering the tiger's den? If you want to become rich overnight, you must take risks. Not only must we act, our targets must be those inner sect true disciples!"

The young cultivator looked crazed. Zheng Yong stood stunned. He had not expected Senior Brother Lin to be even crazier than himself...

After plotting in secret, the group of cultivators headed straight for the unnamed hill.

It was true that wealth was sought amid danger, and true as well that heaven and earth would destroy those who did not act for themselves. These people had already gone mad for cultivation. For magical treasures, pills, and cultivation methods, they would stop at nothing. As for heavenly reason, strength itself was heavenly reason. Only the living could possess everything; once dead, one had nothing. Those who embarked upon the path of cultivation cherished their lives all the more—or rather, few of them had normal heads.

Cultivation itself meant defying the heavens and fighting for that sliver of life. This young cultivator surnamed Lin was now fighting for that thread of fortune. Whether he succeeded or failed, he would not regret it in the future.

But plotting against core disciples outside Chunyang Palace's mountain gate was indeed somewhat inconceivable. Perhaps they were relying on Hiding in plain sight.

At the mountain gate, senior disciples of Chunyang Palace sat motionless in meditation. Birds even landed on their heads to preen their feathers. One of them suddenly opened his eyes and looked down the mountain, then his figure flickered and vanished from where he sat, leaving only the startled birds to flap away.

A streak of sword light tore across the sky, riding a sword through the air.

The hill.

White Snake had remained motionless for three days. The black clouds above her had turned as black as ink, pressing down so heavily that people could barely breathe. After sleeping for a long time, White Snake awoke and understood that the heavenly tribulation was about to descend.

Because of their unique bodily structure, snakes kept their eyes open even while sleeping. Xu Ling and the others had always thought White Snake was diligently cultivating to raise her cultivation, but the truth was that she had been asleep. Snake eyes had a transparent corneal layer that protected the eyeball. That layer shed along with their skin and then grew anew. Snakes had absolutely no need to blink.

She raised her head and looked toward the sky.

Though her eyes could not see far, White Snake could feel that overwhelming might. Faced with life and death, the savage, bloodthirsty nature of a beast deep within her soul was instead stirred awake. Since she could not evade it, she would charge forward without hesitation. Even if she died, she would make the heavens know that on this earth was a tiny, humble snake who was not afraid of death!

Xu Ling and Yang Mu looked toward White Snake. For that brief instant, White Snake no longer seemed like that greedy snake who secretly learned from others, but a true Fierce Beast...