Young Master Bai — Chapter 41
Chapter 41: The Secret of Elderly Village (Part 2)
Nowadays, cultivators collectively call all descendants of the primordial beasts ‘yao’, and the world instinctively views them as one. Yet before the appearance of the Yao King Bai Wei, a fox was a fox, a wolf was a wolf — each beast had its own tribe. Even when their forms were alike, different families of the same race fought among themselves for territory. The earliest yao never regarded other beasts without blood ties as their own kind.
The yao race was not like the human race. They had no written language, no unified culture, and no sense of belonging to one another. That Bai Wei could unify such a fragmented people into an army and crown himself king was only because of his ruthless creed: the obedient live, the defiant die. In that era, any yao tribe discovered by the Yao King either submitted to him, or, like the Nine-colored Deer, was slaughtered to the last. Not even reclusion was an option.
According to the Unknown Truth Sect, the races exterminated by the Yao King a thousand years ago for refusing submission may have been even more numerous than those later destroyed by humanity’s counterattacks.
Mountain God Luo was one such conscripted being. The Yao King threatened him with the lives of all creatures on the mountain, forcing him to join the army — what he truly wanted was the Mountain God Wood.
At the time, the Yao King rose from the far north. Humanity’s last bulwark was Jiushan Pass, a fortress built with the combined resources of the great sects to resist the Demon Venerable. Unexpectedly, it became the final barrier determining the survival of mankind. The Yao King besieged Jiushan Pass for years without success, and in the end turned to the taciturn Mountain God Luo.
Even now, when Mountain God Luo recalls those battlefields, his heart trembles. To avoid annihilation, humanity had become a nation of soldiers — from eighty-year-old elders to children barely able to walk, all went to war. On the yao side, not a single soldier dared retreat. They clashed daily, and every span of land was soaked in blood.
Mountain God Luo was a spirit born of the great mountain, and his spiritual domain nurtured the grasses, trees, birds, and beasts. He sheltered humans from wind and rain, giving without thought of return. From the moment he gained sentience, all he considered was how to let the beings of his mountain live better. He had never once desired to kill. But this unsullied, bloodless heart of nature was ultimately destroyed by the Yao King.
“The Yao King promised me that if I helped him take Jiushan Pass, he would spare the people within. Naive as I was, thinking to save even one life was worth it, I handed him the Mountain God Wood. On the day of the assault, he swapped all the charcoal I had prepared for raw Mountain God Wood. Everyone in the fortress lost their minds, becoming puppets like grass and trees. Even when the yao humiliated them, they showed no reaction. They had nothing left but bare life.”
To a god who abhorred killing, such an outcome was worse than death. Bai Chen, moved, asked, “Why would he do that?”
“Because he could not tolerate any yao showing sympathy for humanity. If such compassion appeared, he would crush it beneath his heel until nothing remained.”
Even now, Mountain God Luo’s face was full of sorrow as he spoke these words. He would never understand such cruelty. He closed his eyes, avoiding the sight of the Nine-tailed White Fox that reminded him of those memories, and continued:
“In that moment, I thought of escape. But how could I hide such thoughts from the Yao King? Before the gathered yao soldiers, he had me cut apart by a thousand blades, then set fire to everything I had painstakingly nurtured. From that day, this mountain was stripped of bird and tree, reduced to barren desolation — what became Yonggu Mountain.”
“But what he never imagined was that I was not a ten-thousand-year cypress spirit, but a spirit born of Yonggu Mountain’s spiritual vein itself. As long as the mountain endured, no matter how often its trees were burned, I could be reborn. From the ashes, I raised the cypress anew. Over a thousand years, I restored this mountain to its present state.”
As Mountain God Luo spoke, he stroked the trees in his courtyard with a father’s tenderness. Bai Chen never imagined he had already died once in the Yao King’s hands. He also could not believe such a being could exist without hatred in his heart, and so asked skeptically, “You spent a thousand years just planting trees and repairing the mountain? Nothing else?”
But Mountain God Luo’s gaunt face only curved into a faint smile. “Yonggu Mountain took three hundred thousand years to form. It took me tens of thousands more to gain sentience. In terms of patience, humans and yao combined cannot match us spirits.”
The life of a mountain was long indeed. Even if humans and yao both vanished, Mountain God Luo might still exist. Bai Chen could not fathom the thoughts of such an almost immortal spirit. Curious, he asked, “Since neither man nor yao can kill you, why compromise with me?”
Bai Chen had assumed Mountain God Luo surrendered under pressure. But the old man only cast a fearful look at Li Wuming, who was squatting in the back playing with crickets, a blade of grass in his mouth, waving casually when their eyes met.
In such a harmless guise, he seemed no threat at all. Bai Chen was puzzled. “You fear him?”
Though Li Wuming had drawn only a branch as his sword before, using not even half his strength, Mountain God Luo had still felt his scalp prickle. Trembling, he whispered, “The Sword Immortal’s blade severs all things. Even a mountain’s spiritual vein can be cut.”
Only then did Bai Chen realize both he and the Yao King’s descendants had underestimated Mountain God Luo. This was a spirit born of a mountain that took three hundred thousand years to form. He could outlast any enemy. Only a Sword Immortal, whose power even Heaven’s Way could not restrain, could truly frighten him.
The little fox once again borrowed the tiger’s might, and, relying on his Dao companion’s prestige, said calmly “So long as you confess the truth, I promise he will not act.”
Strong as he was, Sword Immortal Bai cared nothing for worldly affairs. In those years, even the Yao King tried every stratagem yet failed to win Sword Immortal Bai to his cause. That this Nine-tailed White Fox had such sway over the man seemed a marvel of charm. To Mountain God Luo, the sight was enough to deepen his fear, and he continued his tale.
During the centuries he spent restoring the mountain, Mountain God Luo kept apart from the world. But six hundred years ago, when war wracked the land, a group of humans fled into the mountains to avoid forced conscription. Seeing the cruelty of their pursuers, remembering his own plight under the Yao King, his heart softened. He concealed their presence and sheltered them in the forest. To guide them in survival, he even took human form once again and lived among them.
This act of compassion tied his fate to theirs. Together they built a village, worshipping the cypress as divine. Mountain God Luo, under the name elder Luo, remained there, and the once-silent woods grew lively.
The story of Elderly Village was not false — only that it happened five hundred years ago. When the war ended, the young left the village one by one, building a town at the foot of the mountain and bringing their aged parents down. Mountain God Luo watched as the village of survivors dwindled into emptiness. All he could do was light a lamp by his door each night, open his worn books, and wait for the neighbors’ return.
But living by the mountain meant taking from the mountain. The area had no special resources, so for the town’s development, the people cut down cypress to make charcoal. Its soporific effect made it popular among humans.
Yet this mountain had taken a thousand years to recover. How could it withstand repeated logging? Within thirty years, half the forest was bare. Without trees, Mountain God Luo lost control over the mountain. One year, after three days of unceasing rain, Yonggu Mountain collapsed in landslides. The entire town was buried in mud and stone.
Mountain God Luo had warned them through tremors in the earth, and saw many flee together. Yet twelve perished — all solitary elders. Some were childless, others long estranged from their grown children. When disaster came, they were abandoned. Some sat in their homes, awaiting death. Some staggered outside, but still could not escape, and were entombed in the streets.
These elders had been born in the mountain village. To the young who abandoned them, they were burdens of no use. But to Mountain God Luo, they were children he had watched grow. He preserved their souls, merging them with his cypress to become tree spirits. Thereafter, he forbade humans from entering, and lived in Elderly Village with his spirits in peace.
The Mountain God was ever kind. A thousand years ago, he suffered under the Yao King for trying to protect his mountain’s creatures. Refusing to kill, he was killed instead. Later, he endured humanity’s endless taking with the patience of a loving grandfather, allowing them to fell his trees. But such pure-hearted spirits never fared well. Even hiding in the mountains, he met with calamity born of mankind and yao alike.
“I am a traitor the Yao King cast away. They are the discarded refuse of humanity. A-Cai [endearing name for Sun Decai] too was a child abandoned by his parents. This village is made of outcasts, seeking only a little warmth and companionship in these deep woods. Such a simple wish — why is it so hard to achieve?”
Mountain God Luo’s sigh was full of sorrow. Bai Chen too felt its weight. In an age of strife, without absolute power, who could live in true peace? Even the Great Snow Mountain survived only by clinging to its ancient reputation.
Understanding Mountain God Luo’s plight, Bai Chen pondered, then offered terms:
“If you submit, I will not force you to fight any race. I will ensure the tree spirits of this village may live freely within yao lands. But if any power attacks us, you must defend the Great Snow Mountain with me.”
The Mountain God Wood was the best siege weapon. Mountain God Luo had not expected leniency from the Nine-tailed White Fox. Yet Bai Chen’s terms were so reasonable, even friendly, that he could scarcely believe they came from the descendant of the Yao King. Still, with Li Wuming before him, he had no other choice. Resolute, he bowed deeply. “If your promise is true, I shall be your most loyal servant.”
“As for Yonggu Mountain’s ownership, I will negotiate with the Heaven’s Way Alliance. You need only await the result.”
That descendant of the Yao King was very cautious, never once revealing his identity before Mountain God Luo. With his questions answered, Bai Chen left the courtyard, considering how to bargain with the Heaven’s Way Alliance for the mountain.
Though Li Wuming seemed indifferent, he had listened closely. Outside the door, he sighed. “A good old man driven to this end… no wonder you wish to intervene.”
“It isn’t only out of kindness. Mountain God Luo’s nature is gentle, but his powers strong. Even if he cannot be fully used by me, I cannot allow him to fall into enemy hands.”
Such pure-hearted spirits were rare. Bai Chen knew they must be protected. But as a true leader, he also knew benevolence alone could not guide action. He explained the advantages of his decision.
Of course, his disguise could not deceive Li Wuming, who only smiled faintly. “Seizing a mountain from the Heaven’s Way Alliance won’t be easy. Are you prepared?”
In today’s world, every scrap of land was precious. For the Great Snow Mountain, an outside power, to claim Yonggu Mountain was fraught with difficulty. Yet Bai Chen’s eyes held only confidence. He even smiled. “I already have a plan. Just wait and see.”
~ Chapter End ~
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