World Disasters

Zhi Huan's fingertips were still condensed with the cold mist that suppressed Yan Xiu. The bluish-white mist wrapped around Yan Xiu's neck, like an invisible chain, binding him tightly in a daze.

His other hand was clasping Yunxiu's wrist bone, and the force of his fingertips was several points stronger than when he entered the mountain. Yunxiu could clearly feel the protruding joints on his palm. The bones were as cold as if they had been dipped in ice pond water, and the coldness flowed through the blood vessels in the wrist to her limbs and bones, making her shiver.

"Yan Xiu, he..." Yun Xiu couldn't help but look back, his eyes passed over Zhi Huan's shoulder and fell on Yan Xiu, who was being held by Zhi Huan's collar.

The boy's head was tilted on his chest, his black hair covering half of his face, leaving only his jawline exposed, which was very tight. His lips were a sickly pale color, and even his breathing was so light that it was almost inaudible.

Just now in the forest, Zhi Huan raised his hand and pressed Yan Xiu's neck, and she fell straight down. His technique was so fast that she didn't even have a chance to stop him.

Zhihuan didn't look back and kept walking towards the cave in the dense forest.

The entrance to the cave was hidden behind a bunch of old vines. The vines' leaves were so dark green that they looked like black, and they were wrapped around a tree trunk as thick as a bowl. If he hadn't used his divine power to shake off the vines when he waved his hand, Yunxiu would never have been able to tell that there was an entrance hidden here.

A damp breath hit her in the face, mixed with the fishy smell of soil and a very faint smell of rust. When it entered her nostrils, it made her heart skip a beat.

The divine power in the body seemed to be hooked by something, the fingertips began to feel numb, and even the blood vessels became hot.

"Don't worry, you won't die." Zhi Huan's voice came from the front, low and muffled, as if wrapped by the air flow in the cave.

He didn't look at Yunxiu when he spoke, but a little white light condensed from his fingertips and spread in front of his eyes.

The light hung in the air like a small moon, barely illuminating the road three feet in front of it.

Yunxiu wanted to say something else, but Zhihuan gripped his wrist even tighter, making his bones feel like they were about to be crushed.

She was forced to follow him deeper into the cave. The road beneath their feet became steeper and steeper, the rock walls so rough that they scraped her trouser legs, and drops of water fell from the top of the cave from time to time.

The sound of "tick, tick" echoed in the empty cave, making the surroundings even quieter.

The bright white light reflected on the rock wall, and you could see a thin layer of moss covering the wall, which was dark green. Occasionally, a fluorescent light shone through the moss, so faint that it seemed like it would go out at any time.

After walking for about an incense stick of time, the light ahead suddenly grew brighter. It wasn't the white light from Zhihuan's fingertips, but the pale green fluorescence of the rock wall itself, winding along the lines of the rock wall like a glowing river.

Yunxiu's heart beat faster, and the divine power in his body became extremely restless, as if it wanted to break through the barrier and get out.

She subconsciously slowed down her pace, her eyes attracted by the fluorescent light - it was a huge rock wall, covered with densely packed murals. Although the paint had peeled off a little, the outlines could still be seen. The red of cinnabar, the blue of malachite, and the brown of ochre were all pigments made from ground natural minerals. They had been buried in the dark cave for who knows how many years, yet they still exuded a fresh energy.

"Take a look at this first."

Zhi Huan suddenly stopped and released his grip on Yun Xiu's wrist. The white light from his fingertips drifted to the rock wall, illuminating the mural even more brightly.

Yunxiu rubbed his red wrist and his eyes fell on the top of the mural.

It was a painting that occupied the entire top of the rock wall. In the painting, there was a burly giant whose face could not be seen clearly. All that could be seen was that he was wearing a loose robe, the hem of the robe was like flowing clouds, and his arms were outstretched towards the bottom.

Under the feet of the giant lies a human catastrophe.

On the left is an erupting volcano. Red lava flows down the mountain, burning the green grass to black ash. The debris sprayed from the crater hits the ground like a rainstorm.

On the right was a surging tsunami, with deep blue waves taller than the city walls, carrying broken masts and rushing towards the village on the shore.

The ground beneath the giant's feet was cracking into a huge crack, and black mist was coming out of the crack, as if it was going to swallow up the whole world.

But the moment the giant opened his arms, everything changed - the magma solidified into black rock in front of him, the tsunami was pushed back into the deep sea by his power, the cracked ground slowly closed, those creatures crying in the disaster knelt on the ground, worshiping in the direction of the giant, and even the broken trees sprouted again.

The burning sensation in his heart suddenly intensified, and Yunxiu couldn't help but put his hand on his chest.

She seemed to see some fragments in a trance: boiling magma overflowed her ankles, her skin was burned and painful, her ears were filled with the loud sound of waves breaking rocks, and the ground under her feet suddenly cracked. She almost fell in, but was pulled by someone - the figure was very tall, like a mountain, blocking all the heat and wind and waves for her.

These fragments came and went quickly, and when she tried to grab them again, all that was left was a bitter taste like volcanic ash lingering in her heart.

"Three disasters have arrived simultaneously."

Zhihuan's voice sounded behind her:

"Volcanoes erupted from the depths of the earth, tsunamis swept from the deep sea, and earthquakes cracked the ground beneath our feet, nearly wiping out all life on earth. It was the ancient gods who used their own flesh to block the crater, their souls to form a dam to block the tsunami, and their bones to prop up the cracked earth."

He took two steps forward and lightly touched the solidified magma of the giant on the mural with his fingers.

"The Yaoxi Mountain you're standing on now was formed from his shoulder blade. The East China Sea at the foot of the mountain is the water mark left when he blocked the tsunami. Even those black rocks you saw in the mountain before were solidified magma from that time."

Yunxiu didn't respond, but moved his eyes down to the second mural.

The color tone of this painting is obviously much softer. Yaoxi Mountain rises high into the clouds, and there is a glowing sphere on the top of the mountain, like a huge star, surrounded by many small figures - birds with spread wings, sturdy trees, round stones, and some creatures that have turned into human forms.

In the village at the foot of the mountain, the villagers held incense sticks and knelt down in the direction of Yaoxi Mountain. The incense sticks turned into golden threads and floated along the wind towards the ball of light on the top of the mountain. There were also faint golden threads floating down from the ball of light, falling on those creatures, and even the cracks on the rock wall were shining.

She was suddenly stunned - among those creatures that turned into human forms, there was a figure wearing a stone-colored robe, with an upright figure, and the contours between his eyebrows and eyes were 70% similar to her master.

“It was so good back then.”

Zhi Huan sighed, "The incense is so strong that it dyes the mist of Yaoxi Mountain golden. The souls of the ancient gods are nourished by the incense, and even the creatures in the mountain can cultivate with divine power. Look at those little birds and trees. With just a little bit of divine power, they can transform into human form. Unlike now..."

He paused, his tone suddenly cold. "Right now, Yaoxi Mountain can't even withstand a small earthquake. Apart from you, no other living being can transform."

Yunxiu's heart suddenly sank. She turned to look at Zhihuan, only to see him staring at her with a frighteningly bright look in his eyes.

She subconsciously took a step back.

Zhi Huan smiled, but there was no warmth in that smile:

"Xiao You, you must be grateful. The gray sparrows of Yaoxi Mountain hatch thousands of chicks every year, so how did you become an immortal? If you didn't possess much of the ancient god's power within you, how do you think you would have gotten to where you are today?"

He pointed to the third mural and said, "Look here."

Yunxiu looked in the direction he pointed. The third mural had become noticeably darker. The village at the foot of the mountain still existed, but the kneeling villagers were mostly gone, and the incense had grown fainter, like a candle flickering in the wind.

The ball of light on the top of the mountain had dimmed a lot, and its surface was cracked with fine lines, which looked very much like the cracks on the ground after an earthquake. Some tiny fragments floated down from the ball of light and landed in a black vortex below - the vortex seemed like a reincarnation path, and the fragments disappeared after entering it.

Some of the creatures in Yaoxi Mountain were still worshipping the ball of light, while others turned to face the villagers at the foot of the mountain. On the tablets offered by the villagers, the word "immortal" was written, and there was no trace of the "ancient god" anymore.

What frightened Yunxiu even more was that there was a small disaster painted in the corner of the mural: the crater began to smoke again, the waves beat against the breakwater on the shore, and the ground cracked into tiny cracks, but it was not as turbulent as in the first painting.

"The incense is out." There seemed to be a calm hatred in Zhi Huan's voice.

"People believe that immortals are protecting them—that Yingtang can prevent earthquakes, that Qingwu can calm tsunamis, and that your master can quell volcanoes. But they forget who gave them these powers... The souls of the ancient gods, deprived of nourishment, are beginning to shatter like a mountain after an earthquake."

His fingers were clenched until they turned white, but his eyes were fixed on Yunxiu, as if he were looking at a perfect vessel.

"Go die. Only when you die can he come back to life. Only when he comes back to life can he block the volcano again, stop the tsunami, and support the cracked earth."

Yunxiu's fingertips became even more numb.

She could feel the force resonating with the disaster pattern on the mural, causing the rock wall to vibrate slightly, and the rubble above her head began to fall again.

She took two steps back and bumped into a black stone with volcanic marks behind her.

"Based on my original intention, I will never agree to it."

"If He truly is God, He wouldn't need a small person like me to offer sacrifices. As for those favors you mentioned..."

Zhi Huan seemed to have heard a joke. He took a step forward, and his aura suddenly became fierce.

The air in the cave seemed to freeze, even the sound of dripping water stopped.

"Yunxiu, don't be so naive. Without the Ancient God, this world won't last long. His body still supports the mountains and rivers. Once he completely dissipates, the underground volcanoes will erupt again, the tsunami in the East China Sea will spread across half the continent, and the ground will crack into countless pieces. By then, not only will humans, but even the creatures of Yaoxi Mountain will die."

"That can't be solved by reviving the ancient gods. And... you're not just going to sacrifice me, right? To revive the ancient gods, I guess you'll need everyone's lives... you puppet..."

Zhihuan suddenly grabbed Yunxiu's shoulders:

"I'm not a puppet! I'm part of the Ancient God! I'm completing what he left unfinished! You're the one who's been deceived by those immortals. You've forgotten who you are and your origins! As for those mortals..."

Zhi Huan smiled and said, "It is their honor to be able to do something for my God."