Chapter 50
Liu Danchen and I looked at each other and knew that this was definitely not the work of a mountain ghost.
After the patriarch and the others left, the two of us stayed behind.
I felt sorry for Erma crying so hard, so I patted her shoulder gently. She cried for a while, then saw Liu Danchen and I standing beside her. She wiped her tears and bowed to us.
"Sister, I know you are capable people. Please save my brother." Erma sobbed and was about to kneel down.
I quickly dragged her and made her sit on the stool.
"We haven't figured out what's going on with your brother yet, so you tell us first," I said.
Erma suddenly burst into tears again, sniffling as she said, "A few days ago, one of our tribesmen went into the mountains to dig for herbs and was injured by a mountain ghost. Later, many more of our tribesmen went into the mountains, trying to catch the ghost, but they were all injured by it. The lighter ones were like my brother, who is still breathing, but will bleed to death within seven days. The more serious ones died immediately. But we all make a living here by collecting herbs and herding livestock, and this has cut off half of our livelihood, so we want to get rid of that mountain ghost. My brother went out to set a trap this morning, but when he came back, he was like this."
Hearing Erma say this, I knew that the mountain ghost she was talking about wasn't the kind of mountain ghost we think of, but a wild beast, simply called a mountain ghost. After clarifying this, I said to her, "How can we save your brother?"
"The mountain ghost has been here for hundreds of years. It comes out every twenty to thirty years and prevents us from going into the mountains to collect herbs. Some people have been hurt by it before. I heard from the tribesmen that all you have to do is catch the mountain ghost and drink its blood, but no one has ever caught it. I know that my sister is a capable person, so I ask you to save my brother." Erma said.
"Why are you so sure we can save your brother?" Liu Danchen said.
"Because I feel a kind of strength from my elder sister."
I was also surprised to hear her say that, and asked her, "What power?"
"A pure, sharp power," she said.
This really shocked me, because what she said should be the power of the Yuhao Stone combined with my practice of the Yin Fu Lu, but if I don't use this power, even Master Zhang won't be able to feel it.
I can only sigh that there are indeed many extraordinary people in the world, and I don’t know if she has any hope of entering the Xuanmen at her current age.
Liu Danchen was also surprised by her ability and said, "I wonder if the young lady is interested in Xuanmen?"
Erma obviously didn't know what Xuanmen was, and now was not the time to talk about it.
I interrupted Liu Danchen and said, "Let's wait until this matter is over before we talk about other things."
I then asked Erma, "Do you know the Fountain of Youth?"
"The Fountain of Youth?" Erma said excitedly, "The mountain ghost that hurt my brother lived so long because he drank from the Fountain of Youth."
"What?" I was totally surprised by what Erma said.
Erma continued, "Legend has it that the mountain ghost was once a monkey, but after drinking the fountain of youth, he became what we now call a mountain ghost."
This is such a pleasant surprise.
We asked Erma to tell us in detail about the legend of the Fountain of Youth. The first part of the story was the same as the tribe leader's, except for the part about the mountain ghost. The monkey, after drinking from the fountain, underwent a drastic change in its behavior within a few days. Not only did it bite the rejuvenated couple to death, but it also ventured into the mountains to maim passersby. Every once in a while, it would come out to harm people, and Erma's tribe could no longer tolerate it, leading to so many injuries and deaths.
After listening to what Erma said, we promised her that we would go into the mountains to catch the mountain ghost tomorrow, and her mood improved a little.
The next day, the village chief heard we were heading into the mountains and called two brave tribesmen to lead the way. They were both friends of Erzhuo, Erma's older brother. One was named Sangmu, the other Yanglang. Both of them hated mountain ghosts. Armed with sharp hunting knives, they led us into the mountains.
From what they had heard, the mountain was called Baijian Mountain. According to their tribe's legend, it was the landing place of the sacred eagle. Baijian Mountain's terrain was complex, and the paths were difficult to navigate. The terrain was rugged, and at the top, there was visible snow. The most difficult part was the numerous deep canyons and crevices within the mountain. If one accidentally fell into them, their bodies would never be found.
I followed them carefully and asked them about the legend of the Fountain of Youth along the way. What they said was roughly the same as Erma's description.
We walked until noon. The mountain road was already blurry, but black bloodstains could still be seen on the road. These should have been shed by their tribesmen.
Sangmu and Yanglang were obviously a little nervous. We looked around but didn't find any so-called mountain ghosts.
"Zha!" A strange cry came from the woods.
The voice was loud and clear, with a hint of danger in it.
When Sangmu and Yanglang heard the cry, they immediately looked at the tall trees around them in panic. It seemed that this was made by the mountain ghost.
Liu Danchen and I also paid close attention to our surroundings.
"Zha!" The sound was closer than before, and a black shadow rushed over from a tree in the distance.
When it landed on a branch about ten meters from us, I finally got a clear look at what this so-called mountain ghost was. It had a human face, wrinkled like a melon, a monkey-like body with only one leg, and arms much thicker than a human's. It was clinging to a branch, which was shaking from side to side under its force.
"Mandrill!" Liu Danchen recognized it at a glance.
With a powerful leap, it covered a distance of more than ten meters and landed in front of us. Standing upright, it must have been three meters tall. Now it was crawling back and forth in front of us, its sinister eyes never leaving ours.
Liu Danchen immediately drew the sword from his back and blocked it in front of him. I also made hand gestures, ready to attack at any time.
"Coo, coo." It stretched its neck and called twice towards the sky.
Then it suddenly jumped onto the tree on our left, jumped a few times, and disappeared, leaving only the dangling branches.
Sangmu and Yanglang let out a breath, and I noticed that they were already sweating profusely.
"Is it gone?" I asked.
Liu Danchen nodded.
It was also my first time seeing a mandrill, and it felt even more oppressive than the mandrills described in records.
Although Sangmu and Yanglang were brave, they were also very scared when they saw the mandrill.
"What should we do now?" Yang Lang looked at Liu Danchen.
"We definitely can't catch up, so why don't we find a place here to wait for the opportunity?" said Liu Danchen.
I had the same idea as him. Looking at the speed of the mandrill, unless Liu Danchen could ride the wind as the legend said, he would definitely not be able to catch up with it.
So, the four of us found a vacant lot and built a temporary shelter to rest in. The two of them took out some beef jerky from their pockets, which was much better than the dry food we brought.
The beef jerky is a bit hard when you put it in your mouth, but it gives off a rich aroma as you chew it.
I couldn't help but say, "Brother Danchen, when things here are over, let's take some beef jerky with us for the journey."
Liu Danchen said, "Eat your head! When have you ever seen me eat beef?"
Only then did I realize that he was eating the dry food we brought with us.
Seeing this scene, I ate even more happily.
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