Chapter 149 Tian Wu

Tian Wu, a water god once recorded in the Classic of Mountains and Seas. Even Wei Yuan hadn't imagined that a deity who left his name in ancient mythology would be here, in this Jiangnan water region.

What happened here?

Why would this woman, treated as a sacrifice, stir up waves in such a manner?

The river flowed quietly, and a voice finally drifted over, deep and calm:

"It's you... Gonggong."

"It's been so long. I didn't expect to see you again in the end."

The water surged and opened, transforming into a passage to a place unreachable by mortals. The handsome, tall god walked down step by step, his expression indifferent. Wei Yuan glanced at the umbrella-wielding woman, who seemed lost, sheathed his sword, and followed Gonggong.

The woman's lips trembled. Finally, she seemed to regain her senses, clutched her umbrella tightly, and hurried over before the river closed.

The opened river slowly closed, eventually appearing no different from normal.

Wei Yuan had seen Gonggong's other residence under the East Sea, which was extremely magnificent. However, he hadn't expected that Tian Wu, the water god who left his mark in the Classic of Mountains and Seas, would reside in such a dilapidated place. This was a rift invisible to humans.

The walls were covered in ancient murals. Wei Yuan recognized the style as very old, some even older than the techniques he knew. The murals depicted people in simple clothes, holding simple spears, chasing prey across the land.

And above these humans was a divine figure.

It was Tian Wu.

But now, at the end of this path to the water god's residence, Wei Yuan saw not such a powerful deity. In the water at the end, an old man with white hair sat with his eyes closed, resting quietly.

He wore blue clothes, the wide hem neatly spread out. A sense of decay emanated from him, which even the countless streams of water here could not conceal.

The aura of approaching death.

The woman who had stumbled after Wei Yuan covered her mouth, her body trembling, finally emitting a sob. The figure on the verge of decay was the former god, Tian Wu. Gonggong watched Tian Wu indifferently, seeing that his eyes were closed, unable to open, yet his expression was peaceful.

"Tian Wu."

Tian Wu nodded slightly and smiled, "It's you, Gonggong..."

Gonggong snorted coldly. This lofty god, whose residence was spotless and who insisted on using divinity to brew his wine, and who had aquatic creatures perform the Zhu You dance, flicked his sleeves and sat on the ground. His gaze fell on Tian Wu. Wei Yuan looked at the god before him, silent and faintly disbelieving.

How could the once-powerful god be so close to death?

"This is the fate of a traitor."

Gonggong's tone was indifferent, a hint of mockery in his eyes:

"It seems you've long been forgotten.

"It's hard on your believer, who has spent thousands of years trying to stir up the waters of the Yangtze River to awaken you, only to be interrupted in the end. In this era, there are still people who worship and believe in you, Tian Wu. In that light, this person isn't so bad after all."

He paused. "Betraying the gods, abandoning the mountains and seas, living with humans."

"It's too late to regret it now."

Tian Wu's voice was gentle and calm: "There's nothing to regret."

Gonggong glanced at Wei Yuan, seeing the confusion and complexity in his eyes, and said indifferently, "Curious as to why Tian Wu has become like this? This is what I mean by the fate of a traitor... Gods are born between heaven and earth, with their own authority. Yet he lived with humans."

"He used his divine power to help them, even leaving Chaoyang Valley."

"And this is the final result."

"When humans forget him, the god's power will slowly wither until he dies. Ha, how laughable. No one remembers you, the water god, anymore."

Wei Yuan was silent for a moment, then slowly raised his eyes to look at the surrounding murals, their colors faded and peeling. Accompanied by the writing on the murals and the words spoken by Gonggong, he saw the earliest story... Tian Wu's legend from a time before the Classic of Mountains and Seas was even recorded.

………………

That was the era of Xuanyuan.

Ancient gods existed in Chaoyang Valley.

Chasing the wind and howling every day, carefree and at ease.

The original Tian Wu was not a water god, but a wind god. He protected the people's hunting. The humans he protected were the Wu people. Because Tian Wu's true form was as majestic as a tiger, the people of that era combined Wu and tiger to create Yu.

Yu and Wu often reaped rewards under the protection of the god Tian Wu.

Similarly, they offered the best of their prey to the wind god Tian Wu.

Time passed slowly. By the time of Emperor Shun, the Four Fiends were expelled, and the Yanhuang tribes migrated in all directions. A branch of the Wu came to the east. Here, they faced not the raging wind, not the fierce beasts, but the ocean and the waves.

The Wu people set out, bidding farewell to the god of Chaoyang Valley.

They faced the dangerous mountains and seas of that era alone.

But when their boats were capsized in the waves, when they were helpless in the face of violent storms, the dying people called out the name of that god. This time, the wind responded to them again—

The god who belonged in Chaoyang Valley left his domain and came to the eastern water country.

But here, there was no need to hunt land beasts. Tian Wu had no authority to suppress the sea beasts, nor could he ensure that his faithful followers would return safely from the sea. So he found Gonggong and, at the cost of half his divinity, transformed into a water god.

Until five thousand years ago.

When King Yu divided the mountains and seas, Tian Wu once again chose to accompany those weak humans, and thus completely lost his original power and distanced himself from his home. He worried that these still-weak humans, without him, how would they live in this dangerous world?

With his help, humans slowly lived along the rivers, weaving nets and fishing, sailing on the waves under the protection of the god, and then returning home with abundant catches.

At this time, Tian Wu would sit quietly on the mountain rocks overlooking the human fishing village, watching the scattered lights. But alas, time slowly passed. Children would eventually say goodbye to their parents and head toward distant times alone, never looking back.

Slowly, humans built larger and larger ships, no longer fearing the waves of the rivers.

Slowly, the beasts gradually disappeared, and humans wove fishing nets.

They were able to catch more and more fish.

They invented tools for irrigating rice paddies, no longer needing the help of the gods.

The cities grew larger and larger.

From small fishing villages, they became towns, and from towns they became ports and cities.

Even from where Tian Wu sat, he could no longer see the entire city.

Fewer and fewer people remembered the gods.

Perhaps at first, only a few people forgot.

But slowly, more and more humans forgot to worship Tian Wu.

The god, far from the mountains and seas, came to the human world. Without the faith of the people, he slowly lost his power. He did not use his power to cause harm, but sat quietly on the mountain rocks, watching the humans he had once protected forget him, little by little.

Slowly disappearing.

Until the last people who worshiped him were gone, and the world no longer had the heavenly god Tian Wu.

What we see now is only the last trace.

………………

Wei Yuan withdrew his gaze from the stone wall and looked at the white-haired youth with his eyes closed.

The latter smiled and looked at Wei Yuan: "A human."

"I didn't expect to have a guest."

After a regretful smile, he looked at Wei Yuan and said softly, "I've always had a question I wanted to ask you, but I never had the chance to see anyone. This may be the last chance, so it may be a little presumptuous."

"Humans, do you no longer need me?"

Wei Yuan didn't know how to answer.

He smiled and asked again.

"Can you live well without me?"

Wei Yuan finally nodded gently.

We can tame floods.

We can calm the rapids of the Three Gorges. We can brave the waves and swim in the blue sea.

We can reach the depths of the Nine Oceans.

So, you don't have to worry.

The white-haired youth was stunned for a long time, finally sighed with a smile, "Is that so? That's great."

Then he looked in Gonggong's direction and said:

"Thank you, Gonggong, for coming to see me off one last time."

The handsome, tall god said indifferently:

"...I just wanted to see your end."

Tian Wu smiled and agreed, then looked at Wei Yuan: "Thank you for your answer. I am the water god, at least I used to be. A human has come here, and according to custom, I should grant you a wish. Although it's not a great power, I still have some strength."

"For example, to cure the illness in your body."

Tian Wu opened those eyes, which seemed to be unable to see anymore, but his temperament was still gentle.

"A wish?"

Wei Yuan looked at Tian Wu and said, "Then..."

"Can I have a drink with you?"

This was the last wish the water god could fulfill. Although surprised and puzzled, he still agreed. Wei Yuan took out the remaining wine and poured it gently into two wine glasses, then pushed it towards Tian Wu.

The white-haired youth picked up the wine glass.

Wei Yuan slowly exhaled, and as he picked up the wine glass, strands of Qi emanated from his body.

Gonggong raised his eyes slightly, but said nothing in the end.

Strands of faint golden light floated here.

Expel ghosts,敕魂 (chì hún, order souls).

This was the earliest divine power, the simplest, but at this moment it exerted the greatest effect. The murals on the surrounding walls slowly lit up, and then, as if the past years were reappearing, the people in the murals seemed to walk out of the murals, clear and incomparably real, like a true miracle.

They had always stayed here.

Tian Wu's eyes, which could barely see anything, widened.

Those were the people he had once seen.

The Wu people who had first fought the waves, the youths who had returned from fishing at sea, the women who sang and danced, the old men who smiled and fell asleep never to wake up again, the children who played and ran around. Time seemed to be reversing, the wind and rain never stopped, the waves never ceased, and generations of people crossed simple fishing villages, traversed vast lands, searching for their home, their beginning.

Finally, they returned to Chaoyang Valley.

They returned to that year.

A beast ran past, and an unnamed god lazily raised his head and saw those humans.

The sound they made while hunting to show their strength was somewhat interesting.

...Is it 'Wu'?

You should have forgotten...

Do you know?

Those who existed earlier than humans?

They were powerful.

The road ahead was long, and the years were endless.

They had accompanied weak humans through countless swamps, traversed three thousand miles of mountains.

They had reached out their palms to protect them from the wind and rain.

They had run alongside humans, traversing every inch of the earth.

They had cared for you like elder brothers and parents.

Finally, they watched humans surpass them and head in an even more distant direction.

Farther and farther away.

You no longer remember them.

But, turning back.

Are they still waiting for you, calling out their names...

Wei Yuan held the wine, and the people behind him seemed to have their own consciousness in this moment. They surrounded the heavenly god who was no longer what he once was. Wei Yuan held the wine glass in his left hand, his right hand gently supporting the back of the wine glass, his sleeves seeming to hang down, slowly lowering his eyes, the surrounding people also seemed to be whispering and narrating.

From the earliest hunting era, shouting 'wu' or roaring 'hou' while hunting.

To living by the water, weaving nets and fishing.

Fishing villages became small towns, and small towns became ports.

Taming the waves, using water to generate electricity, steering huge ships, gathering the strength of hundreds and thousands of people to break through the giant waves, looking far into the sky.

"The water god of Shenzhou."

"These thousands of years... thank you for walking with us."

He raised his head and drank the wine.

Tian Wu lowered his eyes, looked at the surrounding figures, and whispered in satisfaction, muttering a sentence.

When the last sound fell.

Wei Yuan raised his head and saw only the wine glass left behind.

The water god Tian Wu had passed away.

Gonggong watched quietly.

Wei Yuan put down the wine glass and didn't speak for a long time.

He had witnessed the departure of a god.

In the end, Tian Wu only looked at those illusory, dissipating figures and left a satisfied whisper.

Had he fallen to this point because of the human race, did he regret it?

"To be able to meet you..."

"Was truly wonderful."

ps: Second update today... three thousand eight hundred words.

From the beginning of the trial, it was actually the Tian Wu chapter, scratching my head.