Chapter 1 Under the Mountain

Beneath a mountain in the Mountain and Sea Realm, on the Kunlun Hill.

With a surge of dense magical power, Tu Lou suddenly appeared. The moment it materialized, it exhaled a long breath, feeling a deep fatigue welling up within. That old human man had seemed frail, yet his strength was astonishing, leaving Tu Lou's body battered and torn.

But after a moment, it shifted its limbs and, realizing it was still alive, couldn't help but burst into loud laughter.

The wild and piercing laughter drew the attention of others.

Soon, the earth cracked open, and several figures emerged, all resembling the Tu Lou. One, thinner than the rest, had a clear voice and transformed into a human shape, a girl with gentle features. Seeing the Tu Lou's injuries, she couldn't help but say,

"Brother, you're back? How can you laugh with such grievous wounds?"

The Tu Lou shifted, becoming a tall man, still unable to contain his smug laughter.

"Of course, I can laugh."

"This time, I went to the human realm and met their so-called great cultivator."

"Ah? A great human cultivator?!"

"Heh, that Daoist priest does have some tricks up his sleeve. These injuries are his doing, but it doesn't matter. Although that Daoist is powerful, he couldn't stop me from leaving."

The Tu Lou, in the form of a burly man, laughed loudly, "Now we can be sure."

"We can go to the human realm whenever we want, and leave whenever we please."

"Let me tell you, there's food everywhere in the human realm. I don't know how they grow so many people, far more than in the ancient legends. They all live in stone houses. We can eat them whenever we want, and many times they can't even find us. Even if they do, they can't do anything to us."

"And there are plenty of interesting things there."

"In short, there's food, there's fun, and it's safe enough, hahaha. If the human realm has some kind of paradise, then that's our paradise. Hahaha, we'll go again next time."

"And let me tell you, the safest ones are the old folks. Their meat is a bit tough, but they live alone, and no one will know if they die at home. And then there are the young ones who haven't grown up yet, easy to take away, no difficulty at all..."

Some of the others, transformed into beautiful girls, listened with bright eyes, while others, still in the form of children, cried out that they were hungry.

If not for the skulls and bones scattered around the cave, it would almost seem like a happy family.

The burly man laughed heartily, reaching out to pat the head of the child who hadn't fully transformed.

Suddenly,

a low tiger's roar exploded.

Hearing this sound, a sense of panic arose from the depths of the hearts of these Tu Lou.

Instinctively, they retreated, wanting to escape into the earth.

The burly man's expression changed. Suddenly, there was a soft hum as a sword was drawn from its sheath. Before the sound of the sword faded, a cold light plunged straight into the cave. The Tu Lou roared, raising its hand, but before it could react, it was pierced through the forehead by a divine aura.

The low hum of the sword echoed.

The Eight-Sided Han Sword appeared in this world for the first time, plunged into the rock wall.

The burly man saw a familiar figure walking into the cave.

His expression slowly froze.

It was him...

The faces of the other Tu Lou beasts changed drastically. Some turned to face the enemy, while others frantically tried to escape into the earth. Unhurried footsteps sounded as a young man in black robes formed a hand seal, channeling divine power instead of magical power. His voice was calm as he spoke in his heart,

The Thirty-Six Transformations of Tiangang.

Zhuge Wu Hou, Qimen Liujia.

Sealing.

In this era, no one was more familiar with this Tiangang magic than Wei Yuan.

In an instant, the entire mountain range was sealed off. Even Tu Lou, unless they surpassed Wei Yuan in his current state as a mountain god, couldn't hope to use earth-burrowing techniques. Wei Yuan stared at these man-eating beasts, raised his hand, and the Eight-Sided Han Sword flew out of the ground and into his grasp.

One of the Tu Lou roared, "Who are you? Why have you come here?!"

"Wo Hu." (Crouching Tiger)

Wei Yuan still answered.

The Tu Lou searched its memory for the names of tiger-shaped demons it knew, but found nothing. However, the divine aura mixed with baleful energy stiffened its body, and it couldn't help but ask,

"Wo Hu? What is Wo Hu?!"

Wei Yuan held the long sword diagonally in one hand and walked forward step by step, the jade pendant at his waist emitting a low hum.

Step by step.

Then, a phantom of a fierce tiger emerged behind him, stretching its body.

The tiger's amber eyes were indifferent and cold. The aura that had once suppressed the monsters and demons of the Divine Land for thousands of years came to the Mountain and Sea Realm for the first time, raising its head and roaring softly. Wei Yuan strode forward, the tiger behind him mirroring his movements exactly.

One man, one tiger, one real, one illusory.

Making the place seem strangely empty.

"Those who violate my Divine Land, with strange powers and chaotic spirits."

"Shall all be captured and executed."

"That is Wo Hu."

Sword energy surged, and the tiger roared.

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As the time for one incense stick to burn neared its end.

The roars of the beasts gradually subsided.

Only the sound of the sword remained clear and sharp.

Wei Yuan slowly pulled out his long sword. All the demon beasts here had been killed, young and old alike, lying dead on the ground. A stench of mutton mixed with blood filled the air. Wei Yuan turned the blade and slowly wiped the blood from it.

He drew his sword, and a burst of sword energy left a string of sharp characters on the rock wall where the Tu Lou demon beasts had lived.

How did Wo Hu leave behind such a ferocious reputation in the human world for two thousand years?

Even after the Wo Hu lineage disappeared, its name lived on.

The Mountain and Sea Realm had begun to connect with the human world.

Demon beasts of the Tu Lou's level could now try to enter the human realm.

If they were not contained, they would definitely become more and more brazen. There were many man-eating beasts in the Mountain and Sea Realm. Wei Yuan had no interest in stopping those that were harmless or auspicious, but he could not let those that devoured humans go unpunished.

Faced with these beasts, the human realm's retaliation had to be severe, and at the moment, he was the only one who could come here, relying on his connection to the earth veins of Chaoge City.

Wei Yuan sheathed his sword and looked at the fallen corpses. A burst of sword energy erupted from the blade of the Eight-Sided Han Sword.

He raised his hand and slashed.

……………………

Hu Ming's mushroom stewed chicken was finally ready.

A layer of golden oil floated on the broth, and the aroma filled the air. The shiitake mushrooms, cut with a cross pattern, were soaked in the broth, tender to the touch. The old hen, raised specifically in the pine forests, had firm flesh.

Su Yu'er reluctantly went downstairs, but still managed to bring it over to Wei Yuan with a composed expression.

She knocked on the door.

The water ghost opened it. Su Yu'er looked around, and suddenly paused slightly. She couldn't see the ancient bronze artifacts from the Yin and Shang dynasties. Just as she was about to ask, footsteps sounded, and the door inside opened. Wei Yuan walked out, and Su Yu'er's pupils contracted slightly, feeling a chill run down her limbs for a moment.

The feeling came and went quickly.

It was as if it had been an illusion.

Wei Yuan's expression was still polite and courteous, no different from before. Su Yu'er pointed to the stewed chicken on the table and said, "You came out just in time. This is the portion Hu Ming prepared for you. It tastes good. It's freshly made, you can try it."

Her voice paused. The feeling she had sensed from Wei Yuan earlier prevented her from asking about the bronze artifacts.

But soon, she saw Wei Yuan take out the bronze artifacts, as if he had just been wiping them, so she didn't think too much about it. Wei Yuan took a spoon, drank a mouthful of the broth. The taste was light, but not like the kind of chicken meat with too much seasoning and thick sauce, which would leave your tongue dry and astringent after eating too much.

The chicken soup was rich and nourishing, and the chicken meat itself separated from the bones with a single flick of chopsticks. The shiitake mushrooms were chewy, yet had the unique aroma of mushrooms, which complemented the taste of the chicken and chicken soup very well. Wei Yuan ate with relish and praised,

"It's delicious indeed. Next time, I'll buy some lamb and make some lamb soup for Old Hu."

Su Yu'er's eyes lit up slightly.

Still with a cold expression, she nodded faintly and reservedly.

As Su Yu'er returned to the second floor of the bookstore, she heard a noise. She turned around and saw Wei Yuan leaving in the night, slightly surprised, but her personality was naturally cold and indifferent, and she had little interest in other people's affairs. She still went up to the second floor to read the novel she hadn't finished.

Although Qingqiu Country and the human world were developing in parallel, she liked these human writings very much.

………………

Wei Yuan took a deep breath of the night air.

This time, he used the Wind Riding technique to head towards Mount Kunlun.

Even though he had enough Daoist cultivation and was extremely skilled at riding the wind, the distance was still too far. It took him a whole night to reach Mount Kunlun. He bought something at a breakfast shop that had just opened at the foot of the mountain, and then climbed the mountain alone. The wind was extremely strong, the cold wind biting, and white snow flew past him.

Wei Yuan climbed the mountain and entered the Kunlun Ruins.

The morning sunlight that fell on Mount Kunlun was cold and distant from the human world.

Wei Yuan put down what he was carrying.

He flicked his sleeves, and using the Heaven and Earth Pouch from the Seventy-Two Earthly Fiends techniques, a series of items flew out: heads, all of them sheep's heads, with four horns like halberds, young and old alike, all of whom he had killed and decapitated. He gently placed the breakfast he had bought, the tofu pudding and fried dough sticks he had brought up, whether it was a mix of things he sensed on the bones or someone's fond memory.

When he saw the pile of white bones, he didn't have any lofty aspirations, nor did any thoughts of maintaining human order and the well-being of all living beings immediately surface. That was the state of mind of a saint, not his.

It was just that there was a sense of injustice in his heart.

So he spent a night beheading and returning.

In the end, it was just repaying a grudge, repaying a grievance, and when there was injustice in his heart, he would draw his sword and cut it down.

Wei Yuan bent down and touched the ground with his palm.

The traces of divine thoughts left on the bones rose up.

Seeming to sense that someone had avenged them, the wisps of lingering thoughts finally returned to peace.

Wei Yuan slightly closed the fingers of his palm.

On this snowy Mount Kunlun, a delicate flower suddenly bloomed.

The youth in black robes still had blood on his sword.

……………………

Qinyuan, in the form of a youth, staggered to the foot of Mount Kunlun.

He was a fierce beast, but not the kind that would actively devour humans. He belonged to the type that would not attack unless provoked, but he was also surprised and curious about the development of the human world. This time, he had wandered around and really had a good time, so he planned to go back and then, when the time came again, bring his friend across the barriers to visit.

However, that friend had a somewhat violent temper and was a fierce beast.

But, whatever.

It had nothing to do with him anyway.

Qinyuan, half-drunk and half-awake, carried a bottle of honey wine produced in the human world and flew to Kunlun Ruins.

He was just returning from Kunlun.

The wind and snow were as before, but carried a bloody scent. Qinyuan was startled awake and shivered. He looked down and his pupils suddenly contracted. On Kunlun Ruins, there was an obviously excavated grave. The breakfast placed there earlier was nothing.

But next to this grave, stood a Jingguan (a mound or pyramid made of human heads) stacked with the heads of the man-eating beast Tu Lou, extremely terrifying. The heads of the Tu Lou were wide-eyed with anger, their terror almost materialized, making Qinyuan feel a chill running down his back. He flew down to check the situation.

Next to this Jingguan, stood a stone tablet with a line of Lishu calligraphy written on the front.

The tone was calm and matter-of-fact.

"Those who violate my Divine Land shall be captured and killed, their heads cut off, and suppressed here."

But next to it were the heads of more than ten Tu Lou.

The impact was enormous.

Qinyuan's scalp tingled.

The wine bottle in his hand fell to the ground, and he staggered back a few steps, falling to the ground. A chill rose in his heart, and he no longer had the idea of bringing that friend along.

How did Wo Hu maintain the stability of the human world among the demons and monsters back then?

How did he make those demons, even after thousands of years, still remember the name of Wo Hu?

By setting rules, by setting the rules of the human world.

With words, with steel.

Qinyuan stared blankly at the stone tablet, and it took him a long time to recover. Then he noticed the inscription on the side and murmured:

"Wo Hu..."

This was an era of change, and as the world began to change, when the exotic beasts of the Classic of Mountains and Seas entered the human world, Wo Hu, who had disappeared into history, reappeared in his original way.

…………………………

Wei Yuan walked down Kunlun. This time he did not return to Quanzhou.

He stood on the mountainside of Kunlun, looking in the direction of the Shu region.

The Wu Hou Shrine was there.

ps: Today's second update...three thousand eight hundred words. Thanks to Dongfang He for the ten thousand reward...