Jiangnan Beyond the Pass

The Ili River Valley is also known as the Wet Island of the Western Regions"Jiangnan Beyond the Pass".

This is the most humid region in the province, stretching over 300 kilometers from east to west and over 200 kilometers at its widest point from north to south.

However, the total population is only a little over two million.

On both sides of the highway, as far as the eye can see, there are grasslands almost everywhere.

The rolling hills are all green.

Some mountains are a deep green, covered with trees, and the water flows down the mountain like sparkling crystal ribbons.

There is an airport in a higher area on the outskirts of the city.

The airport is very large. It takes about ten minutes to walk from the terminal building to the plaza in front of it.

However, the square was very monotonous, with no fountains, pools, tiled flowerbeds or anything like that; it was just a large flat area.

There are quite a few cars picking up people and taxis soliciting passengers here, but they appear sparse in this square.

Mo Xiaoyu stood next to the silver-gray sedan, one hand in her pocket, waiting to pick someone up.

She looked like she was in her early twenties, much younger than her actual age. Her black hair was styled in a bun with a transparent seashell-shaped hair clip, and she wore pearl earrings. She was dressed in a white suit.

Next to him was a short-haired boy, about 1.7 meters tall, wearing a short-sleeved shirt. He had very well-defined muscles on his arms, and you could see some old scars. He was holding up a name tag with both hands.

"Tang Nu, hold it still, don't move."

Mo Xiaoyu gave a curt nod.

Tang Nu complained, "Why am I the one holding up the sign? Besides, the person hasn't even arrived yet; there's no need to hold it up so early."

"I should have been the one to pick them up; you insisted on coming along."

Mo Xiaoyu said, "Hold up the sign early to burn off some extra energy, and save yourself from embarrassing the guests later."

Tang Nu, having heard her make her point clear, simply put down the name tag and turned it over to look at the three large characters "Chu Tianshu" on it.

"So, who exactly is this Mr. Chu?"

"Senior Lin just had an accident, and the higher-ups immediately brought him here. What does that mean? Are they just sending someone in from out of nowhere to give us orders?"

Tang Nu said indignantly, "I heard he's from the Jianghuai region. How much work experience can they possibly have there? We've been working ourselves to the bone here for so long, do we really need him to come and guide us?"

Mo Xiaoyu frowned and thought for a while.

"He's quite experienced. According to the information, he was involved in the Overflow Zone incident in the Macau, and he was also involved in the Guangling incident."

Mo Xiaoyu said, "Those who were thrown over here to gain prestige and try to seize opportunities from the crisis have either died or retreated."

"This person was supposedly personally invited by a senior official from Chang'an; he must be different."

There was actually some uncertainty in her tone.

Information about a Spirit Realm passage has appeared in the Jianghuai region, but it is highly classified.

The most notable event in Chu Tianshu's current records is his participation in the Night of Guangling.

However, due to the Night of Guangling, the Golden Saber Martial Arts School mobilized in large numbers.

Researching the information easily reveals phrases like "Feng Jianhua and Chu Tianshu acted together."

The extent of Mr. Chu's contribution is, in some people's opinion, quite debatable.

"Sister Mo, you're not really sure what kind of person he is, are you?"

"Then don't stop me," Tang Nu encouraged.

"Let me find an opportunity to consult with the advisor from above. There's nothing wrong with that, right? You can watch from the sidelines and get a feel for his abilities."

Mo Xiaoyu still refused, saying, "Let's not create any unnecessary trouble."

Tang Nu was a little discouraged and secretly clenched his fist.

Mo Xiaoyu also felt helpless.

In recent years, many unusual events have occurred in the Northwest region.

Thankfully, this place is sparsely populated; otherwise, some things would have been made public long ago, before the Night of Guangling.

The environment here makes the pressure and drive of the action team members much greater than their counterparts in the south.

Sometimes, people transferred from other regions to assist us have different working styles and may find it difficult to get along with the local members. However, since we are all of the same mind and have the same goals, we can usually manage to adjust our relationships.

However, with the frequent occurrence of special events, the resources obtained through seizure are also more abundant.

Some people have started to have ulterior motives, sending people here to "gild their resumes" and using it as an excuse to embezzle funds.

When Lin Chucheng was in charge, he accepted all these people without discrimination and treated them equally, assigning them tasks as they were entitled to them.

Therefore, those who are truly blinded by greed will not stay for long.

Even so, the members of the action team already harbored deep resentment towards these people.

"This person is a descendant of Shamanic Physician Lineage; perhaps he's just here to help the minister with his diagnosis."

Mo Xiaoyu reiterated, "In short, you mustn't act rashly, or you'll be in for a serious talking-to when the minister recovers."

Tang Nu hung his head in dejection and muttered to himself.

"If you're here for medical treatment, why aren't you acting as a medical consultant, but instead using the title of strategic advisor?"

These two types of consultants are not even in the same league.

Mo Xiaoyu lost her patience and glared at him.

Tang Nu kept his mouth shut and held the name tag high.

Just as they raised the sign, the two noticed that a person was walking towards them from about 300 meters away.

The man didn't even have a suitcase; under his brown trench coat was a blue shirt and black trousers, and he had a sword at his waist.

It's not surprising that they were able to bring weapons since they came on a private jet.

Upon closer inspection of their faces, they realized it was indeed the person they were supposed to pick up.

Chu Tianshu walked slowly, taking casual steps. His gaze lingered briefly on Mo Xiaoyu before focusing more on Tang Nu.

Tang Nu felt a slight doubt in his heart. Could it be that this person had overheard what he had just said?

The two of them spoke softly, and the airport was spacious with a constant breeze blowing through the hillsides.

If they actually heard it clearly, that would be a good thing, it means this person really does have some skills.

"Hello, Mr. Chu."

When the distance closed to ten meters, Mo Xiaoyu took a few steps to greet her and introduced herself.

Chu Tianshu shook hands with her, smiled and greeted her in return, and also nodded to Tang Nu.

Mo Xiaoyu invited him to the back seat, while she and Tang Nu sat in the driver's and passenger's seats.

Until the car left the airport and sped along the highway.

Chu Tianshu didn't say anything more, but just looked at the scenery outside the window with a sense of novelty.

In the Northwest, once Chucheng, you quickly disappear from the crowds.

All I could see were hillsides, grasslands, forests, and wilderness.

However, there are also major highways running through it.

Some roads have no guardrails at all, and some sections have obvious cracks and piles of dust.

But whenever you see such a highway in a deserted place, you feel a strong sense of familiarity.

If you keep walking along the road, you'll eventually reach a place with lots of people.

Tang Nu hesitated for a moment, then made conversation. "I've heard that the monsters in those special events look different depending on the geographical location."

"Mr. Chu, did you encounter many monsters when you were in the South?"

Chu Tianshu casually replied, "That's not a small amount."

"Yeah?"

Tang Nu continued, "I'm the youngest in the action team. Over the years, I've been a key player in thirty-seven incidents and a supporting player in eleven. Mr. Chu, you..."

Chu Tianshu exclaimed in surprise, "You look like you're only in your early twenties, yet you've handled so many incidents. That's amazing!"

Tang Nu was interrupted, but the other person was praising him, and the tone seemed quite sincere, so he could only say, "It's alright."

"Could you tell me about the monsters you've encountered?"

Chu Tianshu smiled and said, "I'm particularly interested in this. I came here mainly for tourism, and also to broaden my horizons."

Tang Nu pondered for a moment and said, "Then I'll tell you."

Chu Tianshu smiled, remembering that Senior He had specifically given him instructions before he came.

The action team in the Northwest region is known for its straightforward approach, and they are likely to have reservations about someone like him who was parachuted in.

The crane's original words were "probably asking for a beating," so once it got off the plane, I just slapped it to show off my strength.

However, after Chu Tianshu saw the person, he felt there was no need to rush into action.

One is calm and collected, the other is straightforward and outspoken; teasing the straightforward one is quite amusing.

Tang Nu has already recounted the events he experienced.

The poaching gang used a secret technique to cover themselves in animal skins to make it easier to track prey. However, the skins became stuck to their bodies and they couldn't remove them, causing them to lose their ability to speak and their limbs to mutate. They were later killed by another group of poachers.

The vengeful spirit of the beast's head thus became entangled with the new poacher...

A stowaway who traded antiques was cursed by them; he began to imitate sheep bleating at night, became mentally unstable, and stole poultry from all over the place, living a life of raw meat and blood...

Because what Xiao Tang said was all true experience, and his words were detailed, although there was no fancy language, it was still a good story to listen to.

As Chu Tianshu listened, he suddenly became a little puzzled.

"In the events you've encountered, haven't the element of humans transforming into beasts appeared far too frequently?"

A vengeful spirit with the head of an animal and the body of a human after death, a patient who has lost his mind and imitates animals.

Baisui with rat-like teeth and tail due to excessive greed and stinginess.

"In the Northwest, unusual events involving the mixing of human and animal spirituality are indeed quite common."

Mo Xiaoyu also spoke up, "Those in charge of the research have put forward many arguments."

"Some even say that the Ili River Valley may have once belonged to the territory of the Queen Mother of the West's Kingdom."

"That was a peculiar land where the spirituality of beasts and the humanity of humans easily intertwined, giving birth to offspring, thus leaving behind such an influence."

(End of this chapter)