The Mountain God Has Appeared

On the other side, as Hu Xiaocao ventured deeper, she occasionally felt fear but glancing at the bright moon overhead seemed to alleviate it.

The little figure walked, and the moon seemed to follow her.

The silver radiance felt like a mother's large hand, caressing her face and dispelling the surrounding darkness.

After an unknown amount of time, Hu Xiaocao felt as if her surroundings had become a bit brighter. The light seemed to be coming from not too far ahead. She pushed aside the bushes that were taller than half her height.

"Ah!"

The scene that greeted her eyes greatly surprised her.

She saw a bright moon in the sky, and beneath it, a long snake was lying down.

The moonlight shone on the snake's body, as if gilding it with a layer of silver radiance.

The entire snake was clearly greenish-black, but in the moonlight, it appeared translucent like jade. Each snake scale seemed to shimmer with white light, making it incredibly sacred, compelling one to bow in reverence.

Moon Essence flowed, as if it were inhaling and exhaling moonlight.

Because of their appearance, and the existence of some venomous snakes, people mostly felt fear or dread when they saw snakes.

However, the snake before Hu Xiaocao had nothing to do with ugliness. She inexplicably felt it was exceptionally divine.

Hu Xiaocao couldn't help but cover her mouth, then looked up at the sky. The moon hung in the sky, impossibly large.

She rubbed her eyes, then as if remembering something, her eyes suddenly became brilliant, like falling stars.

"Could it be Grandpa Mountain God?"

"It must be Grandpa Mountain God, otherwise, how could such a wondrous phenomenon appear!"

But how could Grandpa Mountain God be a snake?

But… there wasn't any rule stating that a mountain god couldn't be a snake.

After realizing this, Hu Xiaocao felt a sense of solemn reverence.

Just based on this wondrous phenomenon, coupled with what the adults had said before, Hu Xiaocao was certain.

The snake before her was the Mountain God!

No wonder the Mountain God's snake scales looked so different!

She quickly knelt down, took out the wild fruits she had picked on the way, wiped them on her sleeve, and respectfully placed them in front of it.

"Grandpa Mountain God, please bless my mother's illness to get better soon, and help me find the plant that blooms at night. Xiaocao will definitely work hard to pick more fruits to offer you."

Hu Xiaocao mumbled, continuously kowtowing, her demeanor extremely devout.

Just as she was about to get up, she didn't pay attention to the path under her feet and stumbled, flailing her hands wildly, trying to grab something to steady herself.

However, there was nothing to support her nearby, only a few fragile plants, which she pulled up casually. Then she rolled down the slope.

The last image before she lost consciousness vaguely showed a slender shadow crawling towards her, and the moon in the sky seemed to have gotten closer.

The silver radiance shone on Hu Xiaocao's face, as if it could dispel all pain.

Was this an illusion?

Hu Xiaocao had never felt the moon so close, as if it were within reach. She slowly smiled, then fainted.

Ye Qin looked at the little girl who had fallen in front of him. Fortunately, the slope wasn't steep, and apart from some minor scrapes, Hu Xiaocao was unharmed.

"Grandpa Mountain God?"

Several question marks slowly formed in his mind. His hearing was good, and even from a distance, he had clearly heard Hu Xiaocao's mumbled words.

Where did this little girl get the impression that he was that old?

Even adding his age from his previous life, he hadn't reached thirty, yet he had suddenly become a figure of the grandfather generation.

Ye Qin's forked tongue flickered. He suddenly straightened his body, his snake pupils faintly narrowing into vertical slits.

"Hu Xiaocao."

A few words drifted through the cool night breeze, followed by the sound of footsteps, which Ye Qin quickly detected.

It was estimated that these people would find them soon.

Hearing the commotion not far away, Ye Qin tapped the tip of his tail again and concealed himself in the jungle.

Soon, villagers arrived, holding flashlights.

"Found her! Xiaocao is here."

Seeing Hu Xiaocao lying on the ground with her eyes closed, her life or death unknown, everyone's heart grew tense.

Wu Yuan took a look. Although Hu Xiaocao's face was disheveled, there were no fatal wounds on her body. Apart from a bruise on her forehead, he checked her breathing.

"Great, she just fainted. She's fine."

Hearing this, the hearts that had been hanging in their throats could finally relax.

Catching a glimpse of the plant clutched in Hu Xiaocao's hand out of the corner of his eye, his pupils flashed with a hint of shock. "This is! Moonpetal Grass!"

He hadn't expected that Hu Xiaocao would actually find the Moonpetal Grass.

However, even if Moonpetal Grass were found, it wouldn't cure Hu Xiaocao's mother's illness, only help with her recovery.

Wu Yuan brought Hu Xiaocao back. "She's fine, she'll wake up in a bit."

The woman almost knelt down to Wu Yuan, but he quickly stopped her. "My dear sister, you mustn't do that."

"Thank you, Uncle Wu, and thank you, everyone."

The woman's eyes were red as she bowed deeply to everyone. The villagers, being simple folk, waved their hands, indicating it was nothing.

Hu Xiaocao faintly heard someone calling her name and suddenly opened her eyes. The first thing she saw was her mother's worried face, with several familiar uncles around.

"Mom, why am I here? Huh? Wasn't I on the mountain?"

Her mother's expression was tense. "Xiaocao, do you feel unwell anywhere?"

Hu Xiaocao shook her head. "Don't worry, Mom, I'm made of iron, I'm strong."

Seeing the frail Hu Xiaocao, her mother knew she was saying that to avoid worrying her. She even patted her chest, her eyes turning red.

The people around were also quite moved.

This mother and daughter were known to be pitiful in the village.

A tight rope breaks where it is thinnest; misfortune always finds the unfortunate.

Hu Xiaocao recalled the last image before she lost consciousness. She thought she saw the mountain god crawling towards her!

She wasn't sure if it was an illusion, but one thing Hu Xiaocao was certain of: the mountain god was definitely real.

Hu Xiaocao was overjoyed. "Mom, I just saw the mountain god! Do you know, the mountain god is actually a snake, and there was a moon so big, bigger than our stove. I almost touched the moon!"

Hu Xiaocao excitedly gestured with her hands in front of everyone.

However, no one took her seriously, dismissing it as Hu Xiaocao's imagination. They thought she was saying this because of the recent rumors she'd heard about Wang Dazhu and Zhou Niu.

"Alright, Xiaocao."

Her mother gently stroked Hu Xiaocao's head, her eyes slightly red. She looked at the small scratches on her exposed skin, all from branches and leaves.

While they weren't fatal, seeing them on a young girl was still heartbreaking.

"You must be tired after a long day. Be good from now on, and don't run up the mountain by yourself, especially at night. It's too dangerous, do you understand? Mom was really worried about you."

Her mother hugged Hu Xiaocao, her voice gradually becoming choked with emotion.

Hu Xiaocao felt a drop of hot tear fall on her shoulder, and only then did she feel a bit regretful, realizing she had been too impulsive and made her mother worry.

"I'm sorry, Mom, I won't do it again."