Chapter 54: The Mountain God's Power? The Shocked Villagers

Why, having clearly escaped a calamity, am I still unable to escape the fate of death?

Liu Siming never understood it, even to his death.

The most painful thing in the world is that the hope of life is within reach, yet it is ruthlessly missed.

At his final moment, Liu Siming experienced life's great ups and downs, which was far more cruel and painful than simply taking his life.

He was only a little short, and he could have lived.

Ye Qin found it somewhat amusing.

Why?

What wrong have the abducted people done? They too want to ask why they have suffered such a fate.

Although he is not a saint, for such wicked people, if he can easily dispose of them, he naturally does not mind taking action.

Moreover, Ye Qin had just mastered the Illusion Divine Ability, and it was a perfect opportunity to test it on these people.

Two benefits at once.

At that moment, watching the snake crawling toward him, and the human-like mockery in its pupils,

In that instant, Liu Siming thought of many things—how could an ordinary snake have such strength, even piercing his chest?

Even that skeleton seemed to obey its commands.

Blood stained the serpent's scales, giving them an eerie look—half jade-green, half ink-black—yet under the moonlight they also appeared holy.

These two opposing qualities were combined.

Buddhism also has the Wrathful Vajra.

For some reason, Liu Siming suddenly recalled the "Mountain God Grandfather" mentioned by that little girl.

They had seen this snake before; it seemed that only after this did so many supernatural and terrifying events occur.

Could he be the so-called Mountain God?

Does this world have gods?

Perhaps there are?

Heaven sees all that people do, and will settle the accounts sooner or later.

It's not that it won't be repaid; the time has not yet come.

At his final moment, Liu Siming finally awakened: his earlier pleas were merely to save his life.

Now he finally understands, but it is all too late.

Liu Siming staggered a few steps, accidentally stepped into empty air, and with a hoarse scream fell into the abyss, his figure ultimately swallowed by darkness.

Ye Qin watched all this expressionlessly, then disappeared into the mountains.

The moonlight shone like water, silently bathing the mountains; no one knows what happened here, except for the unchanging moonlight.

Even if blood and death permeated the air, the silver radiance remained pure, never altered by outside forces.

……

Meanwhile, the villagers also discovered that Hu Xiaocao was missing.

Some villagers saw Hu Xiaocao running toward the mountain base; when they went to look, near the small shrine there were some chaotic, unfamiliar footprints, and even a chicken egg had fallen to the ground.

Hu Xiaocao last appeared here, after which there was no further news.

"Xiaocao, maybe something happened to her."

Worried about Hu Xiaocao's safety, the village head quickly organized people to search the mountain.

"Xiaocao, where are you?"

"Xiaocao!"

On the mountain, the villagers' anxious calls drifted about, yet even after the moon rose they still found no trace of Hu Xiaocao.

The moonlight illuminated the villagers' worried faces: "Where on earth did this girl go? Could she have been snatched by some wild beast?"

"Pah! Zhuzhi, you're talking nonsense—pure jinx. This girl Xiaocao is blessed with good fortune; surely nothing will happen to her."

"Last time Xiaocao went up the mountain to gather herbs and was found, wasn't she? This time too, a fortunate person will have heavenly favor."

Everyone had watched Hu Xiaocao grow up; if something really happened, they would feel terrible inside.

"Let's split up to search; the mountains at night are unsafe, so everyone must be extra careful—we must find Xiaocao."

Several villagers familiar with the mountain paths each led a team, continuing onward into the deep mountains.

The bright moonlight widened their field of view.

Someone with sharp eyes saw something lying in the not‑distant thicket and shouted, "Village head, look what that is!"

Everyone followed his pointing direction and could faintly see a human shape.

"Could it be Xiaocao?"

Everyone's hearts sank to the bottom of the valley; they hurried over, and as they got closer the view became clearer.

The village head shook his head, unconsciously sighing with relief: "It's not Xiaocao."

Look at this build—it couldn't be Hu Xiaocao; it must be an adult.

When the villagers drew near and looked, the person's complexion was deathly pale, having been dead for a while; his body and face were covered in scratches from branches and stones, and even his clothes were in tatters.

"A corpse?!"

"Oh my!"

The villagers were instantly startled, but since there were many of them they gathered courage—no one was frightened, merely quite surprised.

The village head glanced at the nearby steep slope, where some branches showed signs of being broken under weight, and analyzed: "He probably fell from above."

"Who is this?"

"I don't know him; he looks like a stranger—could he be someone from outside?"

"It feels that way, but lately we haven't seen any outsiders in our village—it's really strange; where did he come from?"

Suddenly discovering the corpse of an adult man, the villagers talked excitedly; after communicating, they found that no one knew his identity.

All the villagers know each other by sight; even those from the neighboring village have met before, and any visiting relative can be recognized, so such unfamiliarity means he must be an outsider.

No one knows what happened; he showed up deep in the mountains in the middle of the night and ended up like this.

At this moment, the villagers had not yet connected the male corpse before them with Hu Xiaocao's disappearance.

Could it be that he was walking at night and accidentally slipped and fell?

Or perhaps something unexpected happened?

The village chief only felt a headache; Hu Xiaocao was still missing, and instead they found a stranger's corpse.

Now, you few report the police and stay here; Zhuzi, you go down the mountain to send word; the rest of you stay with me and continue searching for Xiaocao.

What's the commotion?

The villagers split up to search, and just as they continued, the bushes not far away began to tremble, and a dirty little face came into view.

It was the missing Hu Xiaocao!

Seeing them, Hu Xiaocao's eyes lit up; crystal-clear tears like broken pearls streamed down, and she hurried over, throwing herself into the village chief's arms.

Wonderful, Uncle Village Chief; I thought I'd never see you again.

The village chief was also overjoyed, and he enfolded Hu Xiaocao in a big hug.

Xiaocao, where have you been? You've scared us to death; your mother is about to cry herself blind.

Everyone examined Hu Xiaocao; aside from a little dirt on her body and face, she had no other injuries.

Hu Xiaocao choked out her words, which shocked everyone: 'I was abducted by traffickers, and it was the Mountain God Grandfather who saved me!'

What! Traffickers?!

Everyone's faces changed as they recalled the stranger's corpse discovered not long ago.

Could that corpse be the trafficker?

Hu Xiaocao nodded repeatedly, 'Yes, yes, that's him!'

Just what happened? How did he suddenly die?

Everyone's gaze fell on Hu Xiaocao, filled with indescribable puzzlement.

Having just survived, Hu Xiaocao obviously felt uneasy under so many staring eyes and slipped behind the village chief.

The village chief couldn't help scolding the others, 'Why are you rushing? Be careful not to frighten the child.'

He showed a kind smile, patted Hu Xiaocao's head, and soothed, 'Xiaocao, tell the village chief grandfather in detail what happened.'

(End of chapter)