Chapter 665: Chapter 665

"You’ve smashed the whole mountain!"

The calico cat pressed against his chest, its four little paws kicking fiercely, almost stepping on his body and clothes as it climbed up, until it poked its head out from his shoulder and looked at the Borrowed Mountain behind him.

At this moment, Borrowed Mountain was truly in a tragic state.

"No matter..." The Daoist turned around and looked at the mountain as well.

"Ugh, can’t see it again!" The cat twisted in his arms, changing direction, continuing to gaze at the rocky mountain with curious eyes.

The Daoist blew out a breath.

That breath instantly turned into a cold wind.

The great cold spiritual energy perfectly matched the current time and space. As soon as he summoned it, heavy snowflakes started to fall on Borrowed Mountain. The once glowing red flowing lava on the mountain quickly cooled, darkening and blackening. The remaining pure yang and rigid spiritual energy were gradually dispelled by the seasonal cold air, returning the mountain to calm.

"The mountain’s still broken!" The calico cat stretched out a paw, staring at Borrowed Mountain without blinking, pointing at the cracks.

"The trees on the mountain are gone too!"

"They will grow again."

"The stone tablet on the mountain is broken too!"

"That is..." The Daoist had just shifted his gaze toward the mountain base, but upon hearing the cat’s words, he looked back up, picked a spot, and blew another breath, "Whoosh..."

A protruding rock on the mountain split open, stones and dust cascading down, leaving a new stone tablet behind, still inscribed with the same words: In the second month of the sixth year of the Mingde Era, Shu Yifan and his black horse borrowed this peak from the Mountain God of Pingzhou to suppress demons.

Only the mountain’s appearance had changed.

It was still huge and towering, especially in the treeless, hill-less grain plains where it stood out even more, majestic and imposing. However, now it was covered in cracks, the largest wider than the official road crossing the mountain, intersecting and running through the mountain body. Additionally, the recently cooled flowing lava made its appearance completely different from before. If it was strange before, it was even stranger now.

Since it was borrowed to suppress demons, its main duty couldn’t be forgotten.

The Daoist held the cat with one hand, forming a hand seal with the other.

Countless streams of light flew out from his hand. They were multicolored, varied in brightness. Some flew in all directions, some entered Borrowed Mountain, some descended to the base, intertwining into a dazzling net.

The Yin-Yang Four Seasons Formation, damaged and depleted during the battle, was replenished with spiritual power, and the affected mountain’s spiritual energy was gradually restored.

"Whoosh..." The Daoist blew another breath toward the mountain.

The faint springs trickling out from the mountain base immediately retreated entirely, not a drop remaining.

The formation activated again. Yin and Yang did not turn; the four seasons did not change, as he used the mountain to suppress the water.

"Demon cultivator, if one day I can see the daylight again, I will annihilate the entire Hidden Dragon Temple and sever your lineage..."

A faint drifting voice came from within the mountain.

The first two words were clear, but the rest gradually blurred, and by the last few words, it was almost impossible to hear clearly.

The cat in the Daoist’s arms instantly turned its head, looking toward the direction of the voice, and said in surprise, “I seem to have heard someone talking!"

"Oh! That Demon King!"

"He said, if one day he sees daylight again, he’ll annihilate the entire Hidden Dragon Temple and sever our lineage." Song You spoke very casually, as if it were an insignificant matter. After speaking, he added to the cat in his arms, "If by then you're still here, and Hidden Dragon Temple still stands, and that Demon King is still not dead but happens to see daylight again, you must remember to protect us."

His tone was like teasing a child.

"Alright!" The cat, however, answered with great solemnity.

"Then I shall thank, on behalf of the future disciples of our temple many years from now, Lady Calico whose Dao can reach the heavens."

The Daoist blew one last breath.

This time, it was toward the land itself.

In the battle just now, although the Ancient God of the Heavenly Bell had sealed this land within the Four Seasons Bell, and though he had done so without malicious intent, it had, in some sense, prevented the destruction from spreading. Yet the Four Seasons Bell had still encompassed a vast stretch of land at the foot of Borrowed Mountain. The few scattered villagers from several hamlets had already been evacuated, but their houses remained. Now, these houses, along with the farmland at the mountain’s base, had been affected.

This breath of the Daoist’s carried the insight he had gained from the spiritual resonance of the Five Directions, allowing this land to regain its former vitality. Though he could not fully restore it, and old field boundaries and ridges could not be brought back, at least it could be farmed again.

The damaged houses could not be repaired either.

However, the Daoist could leave a bit more spiritual resonance in the fields. The land at the mountain’s foot surely belonged to those same hamlets, and when the villagers returned to rebuild their homes and farm again, come next year, this would serve as a form of recompense.

Only after all this was done could the matter be considered settled.

The final, subtle gaze from above withdrew.

"Let’s go," the Daoist said calmly. "I must ask you to take us away."

"Where to this time?"

Lady Calico naturally knew of Mount Tianzhu.

She had already been there twice before. From here, she could even vaguely sense the direction.

The black clouds across the sky transformed into an immortal crane, descending onto the snowy ground.

The wind blew, snow danced, and the world became a blur of white and black. Even the Daoist’s robe, the swallow, and the crane’s body did not disturb this two-toned scene. The only differences were the calico cat and the crimson crown on the crane’s head.

The crane flapped its wings, sending up a flurry of snow, took a few running steps, and then rose leisurely into the clouds.

The swallow was a tiny speck and smaller even than the crane’s eye. It flapped with effort to keep pace at the crane’s side, soaring freely through the snowy clouds.

The calico cat, however, hated the cold. She curled up tightly in the Daoist’s arms, tilting her head back to ask if he was cold.

Naturally, the Daoist was not.

"You beat that Ancient God?" the cat continued, still looking up at him, her amber-like eyes full of curiosity, like a child eager for a story.

"Swallow says he’s really powerful!"

"Then how did you beat him?"

"I followed the will of Heaven and the hearts of the people, thus the task was half the effort, twice the result."

"And what about that Ancient God?"

"His body perished, and his Dao was extinguished."

The Daoist spoke with perfect calm.

The Ancient God of the Heavenly Bell was remarkable indeed. It was hard to say who would prevail if he were to cross spells with the Fiery Sun True Lord. But in terms of threat to Song You, the Ancient God of the Heavenly Bell clearly surpassed the Fiery Sun True Lord.

Both were great powers from ancient times, neither of whom had attained godhood through virtue and deeds. Yet there were at least two differences between the Fiery Sun True Lord and the Ancient God of the Heavenly Bell.

First, after becoming a god, the Fiery Sun True Lord more or less stood as a patron behind the Fire Division of the Heavenly Palace, and he was an immensely renowned fire god among mortals.

Daoists in the human realm who cultivated fire techniques all worshipped him, borrowing fire from him to subdue demons. It was a contribution, however indirect, to the human world. The Ancient God of the Heavenly Bell, however, almost never manifested himself and had virtually no benefit for common folk.

Second, when the Fiery Sun True Lord descended to the mortal realm, his intent to kill Daoists was not heavy, almost the complete opposite of the attitude of the Ancient God of the Heavenly Bell this time.

Naturally, the Daoist’s attitude toward the two was different as well.

Upon hearing this, Lady Calico became visibly worried. Her upper eyelids drooped slightly, her once-round eyes no longer so round, and even her feline face showed the faint expression of a furrowed brow as she looked at the Daoist.

"If you had lost, would you have been killed too?"

The Daoist spoke with the same calm as before, but after he finished, he reached out to gently stroke the fur along her back. "But Lady Calico, you need not worry, this one has his own means."

"By the way…" Sitting cross-legged on the crane’s back, the Daoist asked them, "What day is it today?"

"Swallow says it’s already the ninth year of Da’an."

"Sir! Today is the very start of the ninth year of Da’an!" The swallow, hearing his voice, flew a bit closer to the Daoist, almost skimming the crane’s back. "Today is exactly the first day of the first month of the ninth year of Da’an!"

"The first day of the first month, is it…"

The Daoist couldn’t help but glance downward. Through the clouds and mist, he could see the fields of the He Plains below.

For a moment, they looked just as they had in the past, blanketed in snow, yet between the snow lay scattered villages, and here and there, wisps of cooking smoke rose into the air.

"Why are so many houses empty?" The calico cat was also looking down and voiced her doubt.

"And how do you know they’re empty?"

"Because there’s no smoke. If people were home, they’d be cooking right now. Cooking makes smoke."

The Daoist hadn’t yet answered her question when she found the answer herself.

For they saw, on the ground below, through the snow and wind, several long black lines like lines of ants moving house stretched across the snow from one place to another, trudging onward against the wind and snow.

Ahead, there was another such line.

But this one was no longer a solid black stripe, it was more like a dotted line, each “dot” spaced farther and farther apart… and each dot was larger than a man. These were none other than the snow temples once scattered along the edge of the snowfields, whose main deities were righteous gods of the Thunder Division. They were masters of spellcraft, demon-slaying, and willing protectors of the people.

Today was the first day of the New Year, the day of offering sacrifices to the gods.

The people had formed long processions, walking through the snow, braving the wind. Some carried baskets on their backs, others balanced shoulder poles, all filled with incense sticks, heading from temple to temple to make offerings. Some snow temples, especially those near several others close together, already had long queues at their gates, with people waiting their turn to burn incense.

Every snow temple was sending up curling columns of bluish smoke that pierced the clouds.

Even as the Daoist and his companions passed overhead on the crane, they could smell the fragrance of incense.

This was the grand scene he had only heard about in years past, but never seen for himself. Now, he was seeing it. Not only seeing it, but seeing it from an even rarer, more complete vantage point, so that the view was clearer than ever.

The demons of the snowfields had already been eradicated, yet the locals still followed tradition, coming to worship the gods who had once protected them.

It had been fourteen years already. ɴᴇᴡ ɴᴏᴠᴇʟ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs ᴀʀᴇ ᴘᴜʙʟɪsʜᴇᴅ ᴏɴ novęlfire.net

And perhaps there would be many more spans of fourteen years to come.

The Daoist couldn’t help but show a faint smile.

At least for now, it seemed that none of the gods within this ring of snow temples had ever betrayed the trust and incense of the common folk.

The crane beat its wings, flying away from the snowfields. Their course now slanted northeast, heading straight toward Yuezhou.

Only at this point did the Daoist finally exhale.

Weariness at last showed on his face, along with a trace of weakness.

“Daoist priest, you’ve caught a cold!” The calico cat stared straight at him.

“There’s a furry coat in the bag, put it on first!”

“All right…” The Daoist obeyed her instructions.

Only the swallow quietly flew closer, folding its wings and alighting on the crane’s back beside him.

It was only then that the swallow understood that the Ancient God of the Heavenly Bell had not been so easy to deal with, and the gentleman’s victory had not been as effortless as it appeared. After winning, he had still maintained an air of ease, as if he had not grown tired and spent little of his strength, simply to guard against any possible follow-up from the Heavenly Palace, such as divine officers, celestial generals, or even stronger gods.

As for who those might be, the swallow didn’t know.

A few days ago, his venerable ancestor had appeared to him in a dream and spoken at length, saying that the Four Saints of the Four Directions were currently in seclusion and unlikely to emerge any time soon. The remaining one, the Emperor of the Void, might or might not descend to the mortal realm.

And there was also a certain Duke of Thunder Zhou, not an ordinary figure either.

Even with his power greatly depleted, the gentleman had still restored the Yin-Yang Four Seasons formation of the He Plains, returning the vast farmlands to their former state and leaving spiritual energy behind as recompense. This was, in truth, risky. Someone without boldness would never have made such a choice.

But with his temperament, had he not done so, it would have been all too easy for the Heavenly Palace to sense that something was amiss.

“What a pity we’re on a crane’s back…” Lady Calico was curled in his arms, using her own body to keep him warm, and muttered softly, “Otherwise, I could make a little fire here to warm you up!”

The crane seemed to understand and let out a long cry.

Hearing this, the cat naturally began coaxing and placating it with quick little mews.

Amid the jumbled sounds and the wind’s roar, the Daoist looked down at her with a faint smile. Below, on the edge of the He Plains, the people offering incense glanced upward at the crane, which was slowly vanishing into the clouds, and the situation no longer seemed quite so urgent.