Chapter 87 Protecting You: This is What I Want to Do for the Rest of My Life

The rain fell harder and harder, blurring the boundary between the sky and the water, leaving only a faint gray-blue silhouette of the distant mountains.

Hearing voices, she curled up on the giant water lily, listening to the sound of rain hitting the lotus leaves, and closed her eyes in a daze.

When he woke up again, he had already turned back into his original form and was being carried into the rabbit hole.

The chieftain warmed himself by the fire in his den, and even took the tail that could hear human voices from his bosom and flattened it so that it could be baked more evenly.

Hearing the voices, he yawned and sat up. A large group of white rabbits had already surrounded him, encircling him in a circle.

"Did you catch a cold?" Wenren Jing asked, roasting a sweet potato. "Don't come out with me on rainy days anymore. I'll bring back the novels you want, okay?"

Hearing voices, it shook its head, lay down on the ground, and stretched out its two paws to warm itself by the fire.

"The storybooks the clan leader brings back are never good," he muttered.

Wenren Jing was too old to understand the kind of things that little kids like Wenren Sheng to watch. He chuckled and took back the roasted sweet potatoes.

Hearing voices and smelling fragrance, it quickly and obediently sat up, its front paws eagerly pawing the ground.

Although I went to the city with the clan chief and ate a lot, I felt hungry again as soon as I heard people talking and smelled the aroma of sweet potatoes.

When Wenren Jing peeled off the skin and handed him the roasted meat, he quickly transformed into human form, took the other end of the branch with both hands, and eagerly began to gnaw on it.

The slightly hot sweetness spread from the tip of my tongue. I only took a small sip after hearing someone's voice, and I was so happy that my tail was wagging wildly.

He quickly presented the sweet potato to Wenren Jing, saying, "Clan leader, you should eat too."

Wenren Jing disliked eating such scalding hot food, so he quickly dodged away, exclaiming in surprise, "My mouth is going to be burned into four pieces!"

Hearing the voices and seeing that the clan chief was unappreciative, he pouted and squatted down to eat by himself.

After eating for a while, Wenren Jing seemed to remember something and tilted his head to look at Wenren Jing: "Clan leader, after the rain stops, could you take me to the top of the mountain?"

"The mountaintop?" Wenren Jing asked in confusion. "You want to go see the mountain god temple?"

Hearing the voice, he nodded quickly, rummaged through his bundle and pulled out a crumpled storybook, spread it out on his short legs, and pointed to the image of the Azure Jade True Lord in the book.

“He’s my favorite now,” Wenrensheng said, her face warm from the sun. She looked up at Wenrenjing with a smile. “I really want to see his statue, offer him some incense, and hope that he will always protect us.”

Wenren Jing glanced at it; the Cangyu Zhenjun depicted in the storybook was not good-looking at all, looking fierce and menacing. He couldn't understand why Wenren Sheng would like it.

He looked away and continued roasting the second sweet potato.

"I just came down, and the mountain is very slippery. I'll go back in a couple of days."

"Ah—" Wen Ren's voice trailed off, her face showing some disappointment. "Alright, then I'll wait until the third day."

Children are simple-minded. Although their wishes cannot be fulfilled immediately, the thought of Wenren Jing's promise quickly cheered them up again.

He swung his toes with a smile and continued munching on the sweet potato in his hand.

The next day was indeed a beautiful day.

Upon waking up to the sound of voices, he immediately shouldered his small bundle and prepared to go to the river to catch a few small fish to eat that night.

The rabbits in the house don't eat meat, and Wenren Jing usually prepares their food separately. Wenren Sheng is very sensible and doesn't want to trouble the clan leader all the time.

It was the height of summer. Hearing voices, he wasn't wearing pants, only a very long cloth shirt that covered his knees. When he waded into the river, the water level was just above half of his calves.

It's cool and refreshing, very comfortable.

Hearing voices, it lifted its short tail to prevent it from getting wet again, and then started to catch small fish in the water.

Small fish swim much faster than big fish and are much harder to catch. It took a lot of effort to catch one after hearing human voices. I spent the whole day in the water, and I was almost soaked to the bone, before I finally caught one.

"We've got him!"

The fish flicked out a string of crystal-clear water droplets from its tail, and upon hearing human voices, excitedly raised its prize high, cheering and jumping for joy.

"The ability to hear human voices is amazing!"

However, the moment he lifted the fish, a shadow suddenly flashed in his peripheral vision.

Hearing the voice, she put away the little fish in confusion and looked in the direction of the shadow she had just seen. She found a man sitting on the fallen leaves, leaning against the tree, asleep.

The man was dressed in a jet-black robe. I had never seen anyone dressed like that before, so I became curious. I stepped out of the stream and cautiously approached the man.

She walked right up to the man, but he didn't wake up. Hearing voices, she mustered her courage and approached to examine him.

This person had very black hair, except for two white bangs at the front, which was the exact opposite of Wen Rensheng's hair color. He looked at the person curiously from left to right and even reached out to tug at their hair.

The man was sleeping soundly and wouldn't wake up.

"What a strange person."

Hearing a voice mutter something, she decided to ignore him and went back to the rabbit hole with the little fish she had caught.

For the next few days, the man remained asleep there. Every time someone went to check on him, he lay motionless, as if he were dead.

Hearing the voice, I realized I'd recently been reading some stories about demons and monsters. Seeing the person dressed in all black, I instinctively wondered if he was some kind of Black Impermanence from the underworld, waiting to come and collect my soul someday!

He was so scared that he couldn't sleep, and he didn't dare tell the clan leader. At night, he would hold his rabbit clan relative in his arms and silently pray that "True Lord Cangyu will protect me" until he was too tired to sleep and finally fell asleep tremblingly.

By the sixth day, Wen Rensheng could no longer bear it.

He mustered his courage, walked to where the man was sleeping, and threw a stone from a distance, which hit the man right next to his hand.

Who are you?!

He shouted in his childish voice.

Surprisingly, this time the man actually reacted.

He twitched his fingers slightly and slowly opened his eyes.

Startled by the sound of voices, he hurriedly hid behind a tree.

“Don’t come any closer!” he warned the man.

The man didn't come over. He seemed to wake up from a dream, looking around blankly, as if he didn't understand why he was there.

Finally, his gaze fell on the source of his waking up—Wenrensheng.

"…………"

The moment their eyes met, Wenrensheng clearly sensed the surprise and astonishment in his gaze, as if seeing him was something completely unexpected.

“I don’t know you,” Wen Rensheng quickly said. “I can’t sleep at night because you’re here. Please leave.”

The man seemed not to hear him, his eyes fixed on Wen Rensheng, and he even groped his way to his feet, preparing to walk towards him.

It was so frightened by the sound of human voices that its tail and ears popped out!

He was still young, and his legs went weak with fear. He had no strength to run away, so he could only turn his back and cover his face, silently praying that the person couldn't see him.

"Don't eat me! Don't eat me! Don't eat me!"

A voice, trembling with sobs, was heard.

"Don't steal my soul! I don't want to die! I don't want to leave the clan leader..."

The thought of death terrified him. The clan chief often told him that "all things in life are meaningless." Once a person dies, they have nothing left. They can no longer eat roasted sweet potatoes, catch small fish, get rained on, or even see their beloved family. They can only wander the world alone.

Hearing voices and not wanting to lose his family, he became increasingly distressed and almost burst into tears.

But no matter how much time passed, the "Black Impermanence" still hadn't taken his soul.

Hearing the soft, crisp sound of branches breaking underfoot behind him, he took his hands away from the voice, turned around nervously, and glanced at the person.

He knelt on the ground, his gaze level with Wen Rensheng's, his eyes filled with grief.

"What's wrong with you...?"

Hearing voices, she momentarily forgot her fear and couldn't help but ask with concern,

Are you unhappy?

The man didn't speak. He looked at Wenrensheng with great affection, then slowly lowered his head, hugged Wenrensheng's waist, and buried his face in his stomach.

"Please..."

His voice was low and hoarse, his words tinged with pain.

"Come back to me."

"I miss you so much……"

Hearing the voice, she froze on the spot, looking at him helplessly.

Why did you suddenly hug him?

They were complete strangers. Although they had observed the man for several days based on his voice, they had always regarded him as a terrifying, deadly figure and resisted approaching him.

It was their first time making eye contact, their first time meeting. Shouldn't they be as wary of each other as natural enemies?

You can hear voices and clearly feel the emotion in this embrace.

It contains endless sorrow and longing, like a widow crossing mountains, rivers, lakes, and seas, from one shore to the other, just for a fleeting reunion.

Do they know each other? Or have I simply forgotten that I ever knew him?

Hearing the voice, he was stunned for a long time. For some reason, his emotions seemed to be affected by this person. His throat felt dry, and his eyes were watery. He wanted to cry.

"Don't be sad," Wen Rensheng said softly, holding back her tears. "If you want to be friends with me, we can meet here every day."

“I live nearby. It’s very safe here, and the mountain god protects us. If you don’t mind, you can live with me, but you’re a bit tall, so we’ll need to build a new house…”

Halfway through her speech, Wen Rensheng felt an overwhelming sadness that she could no longer suppress. Tears welled up in her eyes and almost spilled over.

He didn't even know what he was sad about, or what he was sad about for this person; he just felt the person's pain and instinctively wanted to cry.

He raised his hand, wanting to touch the man's hair.

But as soon as my hand touched the ground, I suddenly heard the sound of butterfly wings flapping in my ears.

The man before them suddenly transformed into thousands of blue butterflies, disappearing without a trace as soon as they heard someone's voice, like a dream that left no trace.

It's gone.

"..."

Hearing voices, she stood still, her small, frail body standing alone between heaven and earth, watching the blue butterfly turn into wisps of smoke and fly towards the distant mountains.

"What a strange person," Wenrensheng muttered, wiping his eyes. "They have to exchange names to become friends."

Next time you see him, be sure to ask his name.

Thinking this, he turned around, and the tears that he hadn't wiped away from the corners of his eyes flowed down his cheeks.

...

Snap.

A drop of blood fell onto the branches and leaves.

He Mu slowly adjusted his breathing, wiped the wound on the side of his face with the back of his hand, and glanced down at his palm.

Because of excessive force, the handguard on the hilt had rubbed his palms raw and bloody, and the slippery blood made it difficult for him to hold the sword steady.

"Stop fighting! Someone will die if you keep going!" Yi Fang shouted from a short distance away, holding a round shield made of snake scales. "Mountain God, save your strength! Don't provoke her any further!"

There's nothing worth keeping.

Mu switched the sword to his left hand and looked up again at the giant tree that seemed to pierce the sky.

This is the source of all of Si Ming's magical power. She has been in charge of the Path of Ruthlessness and the Si Ming Palace for many years. This "intertwined branch" is tied with the red thread of fate for all living beings in the world, and now it keeps sprouting new buds, supplying magical power to Si Ming.

To squander other people's fates as magical power is utterly despicable.

He mustered his strength and asked the question that concerned him most: "Is Wen Rensheng still not awake?"

It's been six days already.

Once the seven-day mourning period is over, his soul will never have another chance to return to life.

While dealing with the Night Wanderer, Ye Lan shouted, "We've already given Shan Yue the antidote, but she still hasn't woken up!"

Shan Yue, who was standing to the side, supported Yi Jinxiang and said softly, "The antidote is fine. The evil spirit in your body has dissipated, but for some reason... you haven't woken up yet."

Hearing this, Mu sighed silently.

Sword moves were chaotic, breathing was chaotic, and the mind was chaotic. This battle lasted for five days and five nights. He Mu's spirit gradually succumbed to fatigue, and his body was also nearing its limit.

For the past five days, his sword has never stopped. All his thoughts have been focused on dealing with Si Ming and worrying about Wen Rensheng. He didn't even have time to deal with the Night Wanderers who flooded into Cangzhou City.

Fortunately, Yi Jinxiang and Ye Lan and others came to their aid in time, and the monsters in the city woke up one after another, joining forces to resist the night wandering gods, so they did not fall into a one-sided situation.

Si Ming sat atop the towering, intertwined branches, lazily waving his hand. The giant tree quickly sprouted two thorny branches, which lashed out at He Mu.

He Mu reattached his fractured arm, gritted his teeth, took a few steps back, and unleashed two bursts of sword energy.

He couldn't cut the thorns. He had tried many times. The color-killing technique didn't work, nor did the golden crow technique. Even if he cut them off, they would grow back wildly, one becoming two, two becoming three, three becoming a hundred, repeatedly entangled with those countless red threads.

This kind of grueling fighting style is the least suitable for Mu. Although his sword is crisp and powerful, the drawback is that he will be exhausted once he gets into a fierce battle.

He used to be the number one martial artist in the world, the champion of martial arts. No one could withstand ten moves from him, so he never considered making up for this weakness.

It is difficult enough for a mortal to kill a god, let alone now that the God of Destiny has become so powerful that he can rival the Heavenly Dao. He must find a way to kill him in one blow.

“Divinity…” he murmured, “It still requires divinity, it requires merit, it requires killing…”

wrong……

He rubbed his throbbing forehead.

He no longer cultivates the path of ruthlessness; killing is useless for him. He wants to ascend to immortality through his current Dao heart.

Dao Heart...

I hear a voice... How is it?

Six days have passed, and He Mu's mind is on edge. He often feels dazed, his mind replaying the last time he saw Wen Rensheng.

He thought about the cold body temperature of the human voice and kept reflecting on himself.

Did he make a mistake when he sealed his heart meridian?

Did you accidentally seal an extra meridian in your heart?

Is the voice he heard troubled by the underworld? Will he die? Is he already dead?

What if he doesn't want to come back? Does his wound still hurt? Is he lonely? Is he feeling bad? Is he in pain? Where is he? Where did he go? I want to see him so badly, I want to know if he's safe, I'm going crazy!

As the problems piled up, for a moment, He Mu felt as if he had returned to the time when he couldn't find Wenrensheng.

The pain then was almost no different; he would always uncontrollably think of the scene of Wen Rensheng dying, of his hair, his eyes, his beauty mark under his eye, and every word he had said to him intimately.

After abandoning the ruthless path, these emotions that had been suppressed for many years surged up all at once, finally making He Mu realize how ridiculous his so-called "ruthlessness" and "freedom" were.

Why would a truly heartless person need to carve a monument or make a vow?

She should have been like Yi Jinxiang, born free and unrestrained, with no kinship ties in her destiny chart.

Thinking of this, a glimmer of light suddenly appeared in Mu's gloomy eyes.

If his ruthless path is "fake," then what about the God of Fate?

As the thought flashed through her mind, Lianlizhi unleashed a third vine, which, taking advantage of He Mu's momentary lapse in attention, suddenly pierced his right shoulder.

"Well……"

He groaned and barely managed to steady himself.

Si Ming leaned lazily against the tree trunk and said leisurely, "You and Wen Rensheng are planning to get married, aren't you?"

"..." He Mu was too lazy to talk to her.

The God of Fate said to himself, "Alas, if you were ordinary mortals, I would say you were a match made in heaven. But you two are both jinxes. Look at all these corpses lying around. If it weren't for you, there wouldn't be such a tragedy."

"Are you out of your mind?!" Yi Fang, who was standing nearby, couldn't stand it anymore and shouted, "Even if they don't come to Cangzhou City, you will still kill all the monsters and force the God of Literature to show up, okay? I even know about this!"

"Tsk." Si Ming glanced at him impatiently. "Are you planning to betray us?"

The barbarian hurriedly shrank behind a collapsed wall, timidly shouting, "So what? A wise bird chooses a good tree to perch on. Now that the situation has changed, I certainly can't choose the wrong side!"

Although this distance was partly due to his proximity to Mu Tai, he was afraid that if he said he hadn't betrayed them, Mu Yijian would stab him to death.

The God of Fate above was very displeased upon hearing this.

She scoffed and irritably ran her fingers through her hair: "One after another, they all want to curry favor with the God of Literature... What's so great about this God of Literature anyway? Everyone likes her, swarming around her like flies?"

He Mu listened in silence for a long time. He had just lost too much blood and his head was starting to spin. In a daze, he felt as if he had returned to Fangze Mountain and even saw Wenren Sheng from his childhood.

It was even earlier than when he first met Wenrensheng. That little wolf demon was probably only five years old, and even when he knelt down, he was still a bit taller than him.

His voice was crisp and clear, and he always spoke as if he were being affectionate. When she hugged him and cried, he would gently invite her to be his friend.

He has been a pure and kind-hearted monster since he was a child.

I really want to...

I really want to see him...

He Mu's gaze slowly refocused.

He glanced down at the weapon in his hand, and suddenly felt a surge of strength return to his body.

I remember now.

His sword, his Daoist heart, what he wants to protect...

He tied the red thread between himself and Wenrensheng; he risked his life and spared no expense to be with Wenrensheng.

Isn't this what he's going to do for the rest of his life?

Thinking of this, He Mu, with strength he didn't know he had, suddenly gripped the rattan on his shoulder, gritted his teeth, and pulled it out with all his might.

With a "splatter," blood splattered everywhere!

The fact that the Heart-Substituting Incantation hasn't been triggered means that the soul that heard the voice hasn't entered the underworld yet, and there's still time.

He heard someone still waiting for him.

In that instant, a bolt of lightning struck down!

The lightning bolt descended from the heavens, piercing through the clouds and striking directly at He Mu.

Instead of scorching people black, Mu's wounds began to heal at a visible speed.

"This is..." Shan Yue's expression showed slight surprise, and she murmured, "The tribulation of ascension?"

"He can still ascend at this time?" Yi Fang was stunned. "Is he even human?! And doesn't ascension require enlightenment of the Dao Heart? Could it be that his Dao Heart is something he gets beaten up for?"

"Can't you even understand this?"

Yi Jinxiang replied with a slightly disdainful tone.

Yi scratched his face, puzzled, and asked, "What did you understand?"

Ye Lan stepped aside to Yi Fang's side and kindly explained, "Lord Cang Yu used to cultivate the Path of Ruthlessness, but because his Dao heart was unstable, he was stripped of his divine status and demoted to a mortal."

“If a mortal stripped of his divine status wants to cultivate and ascend to immortality again, he must choose a path that is completely opposite to his previous one,” Yi Jinxiang said. “I never expected that his new Dao heart would reach the state of perfection in just over two years of cultivation.”

Completely opposite to the ruthless path...

Yi Fang raised his head blankly and looked up at the sky where dark clouds rolled in.

Two of the intertwined branches were broken by lightning. Si Ming finally lost her smile and clenched her fists, her fingertips almost digging into her flesh.

"Fine..." she gritted her teeth and glared at Murong He. "Fine! Murong He, why don't you take a good look at yourself in the mirror? Do you still remember the look on your face when you carved your name in front of the Heartless Monument?!"

He Mu slowly opened his eyes. After several years, the dim runes between his brows lit up again, and the color-killing weapon in his hand flashed with cold light due to the arrival of the god.

He moved his arm and exhaled a breath of cold air between his teeth.

"For sentient beings, it is of utmost importance to know their mistakes and correct them."

Upon hearing this, Si Ming's anger flared up instantly.

"What do you know about sentient beings?" She jumped off the intertwined branches, tearing at her hair and screaming, "Are you sick? Are you all insane?!"

"I should have killed you all long ago, you bunch of idiots, you vile monsters, you vile humans, you vile gods, all of you die!!"

He held his sword horizontally, staring coldly at her.

Connecting one's Dao heart with another person sounds crazy, but that's exactly what Mu wants to do.

All those who aspire to the Tao are engaged in lifelong cultivation.

If Mu had to find one thing in the world that he could dedicate himself to, remain steadfast in his commitment, and never fail or give up on in this life or the next, he could only name one.

That is to protect the voices of those who have heard of the world.

Every breath he takes now, every heartbeat, is for the sake of hearing human voices; it is his love for hearing human voices that allows him to continue.

If he loses this love, he has no right to live.

-----------------------

Author's Note: The mountain god attained enlightenment and ascended to heaven because of his love for his wife. [Please!]

The next chapter is about resurrection! Meow! I couldn't stop myself and wrote another 6,000 words, and now my eyes are about to go blind!! (Eyes wide open, eye drops in...)