jdhmnovel Chapter 146 The more you dig, the more you find
Chapter 146 The more you dig, the more you find
The Shi Lang family lived near the seal of the snake cave. Although they were fairies who could transform into human form, they knew very few spells. Instead, they were very strong in individual combat and could kill enemies several times their size with their tiny mantis bodies.
This strange mantis family coexists with the snake pit seal. If they leave a certain range, their cultivation will be lost, and they will turn back into ordinary mantises, like natural "gravekeepers". They guard the seal, and if a poisonous snake runs out of it, Shi Lang will take out his sword and kill it.
There were two main reasons why it hadn't appeared before. First, although the seal was damaged, no venomous snakes escaped. Shi Lang only dealt with venomous snakes; ordinary people without venom could handle them. Second, it noticed someone lingering near the seal, seemingly without malice and possessing high cultivation, possibly attempting to repair it. It feared that its appearance as a demon might disrupt the other party's plans.
The latter are actually Jian Feidao and others. Through communication, they discovered that Shilang's concept of time and physical perception are very vague. He knows day and night and the four seasons, but he cannot calculate time. He has no awareness of calculating things like years, months, days, ages, or dynasties. He doesn't even know how old he is. He only knows that he is "adult" according to his own state.
So, regarding the seal, its perspective is that the seal suddenly encountered an accident, and then a very powerful group of people came to check the seal. None of this is related to Shi Lang; all it needs to do is ensure that the poisonous snake doesn't escape.
As luck would have it, Guan Songsheng had a sudden inspiration and transformed into a venomous snake, specifically a venomous snake from a snake pit. He had been bitten, and although he hadn't been poisoned, he remembered it vividly, so he chose the image of that venomous snake.
Then Shi Lang, who specializes in fighting venomous snakes, saw him and mistook him for a venomous snake that had escaped from a hole in the snake pit. He beat him mercilessly. When he saw the snake turn into a human, Shi Lang thought that the other party had a high level of cultivation, which was why he was able to escape from the snake pit.
If Guan Songsheng hadn't used the trick of transforming into a poisonous snake, he wouldn't have been able to lure Shi Lang out, nor would he have been chased around by a praying mantis. Every moment was perfectly timed. Therefore, Guan Songsheng is truly remarkable. If his biological father is a celestial being, perhaps they could try to find out which deity he is; they genuinely want to meet him.
Another point is that the human form that Shi Lang transformed into was inherited from his ancestors. It is said that he imitated a deity from long ago, the one who sealed the snake cave. Shi Lang's ancestor was also enlightened by the deity and gained sentience. From then on, he lived in symbiosis with the seal.
"...Are you sure you haven't been scammed?"
This was the first reaction of onlookers after hearing Shi Lang's story. From the moment he became intelligent and spiritual, he was bound to the seal of the snake pit, unaware of the passage of time outside, unable to leave, and could only passively guard it.
The mantis spirit claims to have received divine guidance to protect the seal, but it sounds more like it was tricked into becoming a free gatekeeper. Becoming a spirit and transforming into a human is only a matter of time. Being sealed and bound means that its human form is fixed and its cultivation is limited, which actually restricts its development.
"Based on that immortal being..."
Ren Pingsheng circled around Shi Lang, gesturing with his hand to show the other's height above his head.
"This head is about the same size as my Xiu'er's. Do immortals like to walk in the mortal world in the form of children?"
Xiu'er, also known as Danfeng Xingzhe Ren Jinxiu, is Ren Pingsheng's adopted daughter and secretary. Due to some of her own experiences, her physical growth has stagnated, and she has maintained the appearance of a little girl. In Ren Pingsheng's eyes, Shi Lang's human form is about the same size as her, that is, a teenager.
However, according to the local perspective, teenagers are no longer considered children; they might have to start thinking about marriage around thirteen or fourteen. It's really hard to say.
Shi Lang's human form is quite different from that of ordinary monsters. He has no obvious gender characteristics, and his clothes are different from the current clothing style. He looks like he came from a martial arts novel. Even his hairstyle is different from that of a normal child. If these inconsistencies all stem from that "original form", then the other party is not a god, but probably one of the transmigrators from the past.
Although the other party tricked Shi Lang's ancestor, overall they were still protecting the people, which doesn't seem like the behavior of an illegal transmigrator. Their mission in this world is to cause destruction; instead of spending a lot of time going through the seal, wouldn't it be better to just subdue the snake demon and lead it to wreak havoc?
"String Master, what's your opinion on this?"
Cang was also deep in thought. The appearance of Shi Lang, the mantis spirit, was an accident, but this little accident was intricately connected to the snake cave and the seal. It was as if the ethereal theory of cause and effect was beginning to take effect, and each accident brought out a bit of the story from the past.
"I have already informed Jianzi about this matter. The seal here is complex. If we cannot find a way to repair it, it may collapse further in the future."
If things really go wrong, all the snakes inside will come out, and then we'll have to resort to force. The power level of the giant snake inside is hard to determine, but Cang isn't afraid to fight it. The real danger is the swarm of venomous snakes; there are just too many of them. If they all escape together, there will always be some that slip through our fingers.
Shi Lang said that his family was here, but currently only he could transform into human form. His other brothers and sisters were not as strong as him, and even if they worked together to eliminate the poisonous snakes, they probably wouldn't be able to handle it.
"What else do you know? For example, the specific reason why you were enlightened by the gods and are now guarding this place?"
“The older generation should know, but I’ve never met my father and know nothing about him.”
"Didn't see... Oh, right."
I almost forgot, this is a mantis spirit, so it's true that it can't see its father. If it weren't for the seal binding it, according to the habits of mantises, it probably wouldn't have the concept of "family".
The appearance of Shi Lang made Liu Qingyuan sigh again, what a world full of disasters and calamities it is, it has been riddled with holes!
"Did the Heavenly Dao here really only ask the main system for help once?"
Liu Qingyuan crossed his arms and looked at Gu Chen standing in front of him. He was actually looking at the system, but no one else could see it, and there was no one else here at the moment.
It can be confirmed that there is no such thing.
In other words, Liu Qingyuan was the only transmigrator who came through the proper channels; there were no exceptions.
"But that snake pit, it looks like it was built to protect the local people, right? Can something illegal really do good deeds?"
They've all come here to cause trouble, so they probably don't intend to act like righteous people, right? It's a pity that the old monk in the capital is nowhere to be found, otherwise I could go and ask him again. He has Zhou Nian's memories, so he should be able to say something about the situation in Changqing County.
So where did you go, Master? What's the point of disappearing at a time like this? You can't just reveal the story of the murals and then retire, can you?
How would I know? I'm not part of that system.
"But aren't you essentially the same thing? Enemies and allies share the same origin; shouldn't people of the same species have some understanding of each other? For example, what if a villain suddenly has a change of heart, redeems themselves, and helps the invaded world?"
What a classic and common process! It exists elsewhere, and it might even be present in these systems as well.
Regarding this point, I think I can answer your question with one sentence.
"what?"
Have you ever witnessed the full diversity of humankind?
"...Okay, I understand."
Human diversity is so vast that it's almost abstract. Similarly, systems like Xiao Wu also have differences, let alone two opposing sides with opposing ideologies. Liu Qingyuan didn't expect it to give any useful answers; she was just skeptical that this world had only now sought outside help.
The fact that so many things related to time travelers could be unearthed, and that they were all decades or even centuries old, made him think that this world itself was quite amazing. It's like a patient who doesn't like going to the hospital, only going for a checkup when they can't take it anymore, and then finding out that they have all sorts of problems.
Outsiders are not bound by the karma of this world, so even gods who can see the fate of heaven and calculate the secrets of heaven cannot accurately predict these "despicable outsiders." But Liu Qingyuan did not expect that the real situation was so serious, and they were riddled with holes.
"There are just too many uncertainties. I'll ask Qingyangzi to give them a push and get those guys to get the formation working first."
The more they dug, the more they found. Liu Qingyuan felt that if the sockpuppet accounts kept digging like this, they would eventually be able to write a book for the natives titled "On the Impact and History of Illegal Transmigrators on This World".
Why don't we speed things up and catch those guys first? We've gathered enough intelligence, so things shouldn't go wrong... right?
At the foot of the mountain lived a scholar.
While Liu Qingyuan was troubled, System Xiao Wu suddenly said that ever since the idea that "there are immortals in the mountains" became a consensus in the town, and after it was discovered that the immortals had very high combat power, very few people dared to venture into the mountains recklessly.
According to Xiao Wu, the other party had been lingering at the foot of the mountain, hesitating whether to go up or not, and it seemed like they were looking for something.
"I haven't heard of any villages around here. Could it be in the mountains? That's impossible..."
The scholar hesitated before the path leading into the mountains, sometimes pausing to think, sometimes sighing in distress, looking extremely troubled. People who came here before were either in a panic seeking help or eager to explore. This was the first time Liu Qingyuan had ever seen someone so troubled.
He felt that the scholar looked familiar, but he couldn't remember his name. He had been to the city many times, so he might have met him once before.
"Why bother with swordsmanship? Thousands point fingers at you, tens of thousands seal your name. You're the pinnacle of martial arts. Three feet of autumn water, untainted by dust, unrivaled in the world."
It's not good to keep people lingering at the foot of the mountain, so let's just show up and ask what happened.
"This young master has been lingering here for a long time; has he encountered any difficulties?"
"You are... Immortal Sword Master?"
The scholar carefully examined the visitor and recognized him as the "immortal" from the mountains, and was overjoyed.
"Great! I'm looking for someone here. Have you seen a girl around here?"
"……girl?"
In an instant, many figures flashed through Liu Qingyuan's mind, but as a young girl, there were quite a few people in these mountains who were not human.
"I'm here to help my cousin find someone, the young master of the Wang family in the city, Wang Zifu."
Then, the scholar relayed what Wang Zifu had told him to Liu Qingyuan. It was roughly like this: Wang Zifu ran out of the city to play on the Lantern Festival and met a beautiful girl nearby. She was holding a plum blossom branch, accompanied by a maid, and had a charming smile. She immediately attracted Wang Zifu's attention.
After returning home, Wang Zifu was like a lost soul, missing his love day and night. Eventually, his longing turned into illness, and when his cousin went to visit him, he was already bedridden.
Not wanting Wang Zifu to remain depressed, his cousin, after hearing the whole story, took on the task of finding him and followed his description to search for him.
But once they got close, his cousin was stumped. From the description, the girl seemed to be a young lady from a wealthy family, but there didn't seem to be any houses nearby. Could she live in the mountains? Everyone said that the Southwest Mountains area was not a simple place. Did ordinary families really live in this area?
It was at this moment that Liu Qingyuan appeared. The people in the town were already very familiar with Jianzi Xianji's image of white clothes and white hair, carrying a bronze longsword. Upon seeing him, his cousin quickly asked him, "He lives in the mountains. He should have seen the girl with the plum blossom branch."
After hearing the description, Liu Qingyuan was speechless for a moment. If he hadn't heard it from the other party today, he wouldn't have even realized that the people down the mountain had already celebrated the Spring Festival. No wonder he hadn't seen Xiao Cui for a while. She was probably spending the New Year with Ying Ning.
After all, he no longer needs to eat or sleep, his sense of time has changed, and he rarely goes up and down the mountain, so Liu Qingyuan has never learned about the local festival customs.
However, in Wang Zifu's case, it's clear that he met Yingning on the Lantern Festival. It's unexpected that the two would meet again after all the twists and turns.
"There are indeed villages further away, and there is a family there whose daughter is very cheerful. As for whether she is the person that Young Master Wang is looking for, I do not know."
Liu Qingyuan did not directly reveal Ying Ning's existence. It is currently known that Prince Fu fell in love with Ying Ning at first sight, but Ying Ning's own wishes are still uncertain, so he cannot easily agree to her request.
However, since Prince Fu has already sent his cousin to look for him, he will soon come looking for him himself. Why not ask Ying Ning's adoptive mother and hear what she thinks?
By mortal standards, Yingning is of marriageable age, but her situation is too special. She is the child of a fox spirit and a human, but she inherited almost only her mother's beauty. She has very little magic power from the fox spirit, very few spells she can use, and almost no killing power.
From a broader perspective, Yingning is a "person" with the same lifespan as ordinary people and no difference in physical condition from mortals. Her adoptive mother is a ghost, and she cannot live her whole life in a house full of ghosts.
At least that's how Yingning's adoptive mother saw it. She was just a wandering ghost, and since she had been entrusted with such a daughter, she had to give her a good home and could not let Yingning become a wandering ghost like herself.
To be realistic, Xiao Cui can play with Ying Ning like ordinary sisters now, but once Xiao Cui finishes repaying her debt of gratitude and goes home to cultivate, they may be separated for decades. Xiao Cui is a fox spirit, so decades is nothing to her, but Ying Ning, whose lifespan is the same as that of a mortal, will probably be very old by then.
"A village, people living there?"
Although Liu Qingyuan's answer was vague, or even nonexistent, and given that Wang Zifu's own account was ambiguous, Liu Qingyuan's response at least proved that there were still people living around, unlike Zhao who seemed aimless before.
"It's good that someone's here, it's good that someone's here."
My cousin took on this job mainly because Wang Zifu had been bedridden for a long time, and he couldn't stay in bed like that forever. He didn't have much hope of finding him, since they had only met once.
"That young master..."
"I will return now. Thank you for your information, Immortal Master."