Chapter 20: What Is That?
South of the Central Plains, countless miles beyond, lies the region of the Ten Thousand Great Mountains. Within these mountains dwell hundreds of small nations, practicing the arts of sorcery and witchcraft, and worshipping a myriad of deities. This land is known as Baiyue.
In Baiyue, the number of gods is innumerable and wild, heterodox worship runs rampant. Every mountain has its spirits, every river its monsters, many of these beings are manifestations transformed from local practitioners of magic, ghosts, demons, and various spirits. Over time, nourished by the local people's incense offerings, they came to be revered as mountain gods or river gods.
This stands in stark contrast to the Central Plains, where every temple and deity is sanctioned by imperial decree, their worship regulated by the state, not born of grassroots ritual.
“Escaping from the Central Plains to here… Does the imperial court truly think it can command Baiyue?” The delicate, beautiful woman stood within the shrine, her face flickering with conflicting emotions. She murmured quietly to herself.
But after deep contemplation, her expression shifted several times, and she finally chose to rise. She muttered under her breath, “These shamans are no longer the shamans of old Baiyue…”
“The Tang imperial court governs by the Way of Humanity, spreading its influence far and wide. Even the nations of Baiyue have begun to adopt its system, establishing counties and prefectures, appointing officials. The once-dominant temples, shamans, grand diviners, omen-readers, and tribal priests are no longer the absolute rulers they once were. If Tang gave the order, it’s only natural that Great Lu here would have those who respond.”
“Still… Bull Strength Art is a grand shaman’s spell. Even the great shamans of Baiyue have become lapdogs of Tang? Or… I’d better see for myself before jumping to conclusions,” she paced within the shrine, still uneasy. Eventually, she could no longer sit still and decided to go see for herself.
In this world, there exist countless cultivation methods, but most trace their origins to distinct sects and traditions. While boundaries between them may blur, each bears unmistakable traits. For a cultivator of sufficient level, just a glance was enough to identify the sect and lineage from which a technique originated.
Trace any cultivation art to its roots, and it would inevitably lead back to one of the great Dao lineages.
The Bull Strength Art was such a spell. It was born of the shamanic path of the Baiyue Grand Shamans, originally created through ritual invocation for divine strength, bestowing the user with supernatural might. It was one of the most fundamental entry-level techniques for practitioners of the shamanic path.
Precisely because it was foundational, it also saw widespread use, capable of offense, defense, and physical fortification, it was extremely practical.
The grand shamans of Baiyue were especially renowned for their "Power of Ten Thousand Beasts". Originating from the Bull Strength Art, it later expanded to include Tiger Strength, Elephant Strength, Eagle Strength, Serpent Strength, and hundreds more.
Baiyue, being a polytheistic land, had gods mostly formed from spirits and monsters who received incense and worship. In the early days, the grand shamans traversed the Ten Thousand Mountains, seeking out hundreds of powerful deities. Through various means, they gathered the divine powers of these beings and wove their blessings together, thereby creating the entire series of “Ten Thousand Beast Arts.”
By performing these techniques, one could draw divine might from a specific deity and transform their body in miraculous ways.
Such was the foundation of the Ten Thousand Beasts path.
Because of this origin, it was nearly impossible to stumble upon these arts by accident. Without receiving the divine will inheritance of a specific shamanic master, any attempt to perform the Ten Thousand Beast Arts would be in vain, the deities simply wouldn’t respond.
These gods had once made pacts with the Grand Shamans, agreeing to lend their power under strict conditions. If just anyone tries to invoke them, even with every step executed perfectly, not only will they fail to draw any power, they might even suffer a backlash..
The woman silently slipped into the black mist. Yet rather than repelling her, the mist enveloped her gently and tightly.
She carefully observed the battle unfolding between Li Qi and the others.
Li Qi and the burly man had already worn down the black mist by nearly a third of its original mass. But the mist could do nothing to stop them.
They fought with reckless abandon, and the moment they exposed a weakness, the merchant group and A’Du would immediately step in, forcing the mist back and resetting the battle.
Li Qi and his companion could afford to make mistakes without consequence, knowing full well that if they faltered, their allies would immediately pick up the slack. It was a position of near-invincibility.
Barely five or six minutes had passed since the fighting began, and already the black mist showed signs of wanting to retreat.
The woman hidden within the mist observed the scene carefully.
After a few minutes, she let out a quiet sigh of relief.
“It shouldn’t be… If it were truly a grand shaman, they wouldn’t send a pawn like this to probe me,” she thought.
A grand shaman, one who commands the Six Misfortunes, invokes the Six Prayers, composes the Six Laments, discerns the Six Omens, governs the Nine Sacrifices, interprets the Nine Bows, and wields fire and water to commune with spirits and gods. Such figures were masters of divination and sacrifice, often accompanied by spirits, and wielded power far beyond mortals. If such a figure had located her, they would descend upon her personally.
Besides… a grand shaman wouldn’t bother coming here for her. She was but a minor pawn. If they were truly investigating, they’d go after the Lady herself.
She let out another breath, relaxing. She prepared to leave the black mist.
But at that moment, she suddenly sensed danger!
What’s going on? That little shaman who just used the Bull Strength Art, wasn’t he fighting that little beast? Why is he suddenly heading straight for her?!”
...
Back on Li Qi’s side.
He had been carefully observing the surroundings all along.
Mainly, he was watching the black mist, alert for ambushes or sudden moves.
But partway through, he suddenly noticed a new progress bar appear before him, one that read: “Observation: 1%.”
He immediately understood, the real instigator had arrived.
It was probably the caster or controller of this black mist.
Perhaps the black mist was a manifestation of their spell.
Either way, this newcomer had quietly slipped in and hidden within the mist, without making a sound. That alone proved they were up to no good.
So, while pretending to continue battling the mist, Li Qi suddenly pivoted and shouted, “Over here!”
The burly man, hearing this, knew something was up. Without hesitation, he shouted behind him, “Follow us!”
The two charged forward like stampeding bulls, while behind them came over a dozen brawny men singing loudly and clashing machetes in rhythm. Chaos erupted.
Even the black mist didn’t have time to react, it was suddenly overrun by a crowd!
Li Qi’s eyes were sharp and his hands quick, he reached out and grabbed hold of something human-shaped. The texture told him it was either a woman or a child, the skin soft and smooth, lacking the coarseness of a man’s.
Of course, some men also have smooth skin, but Li Qi preferred to believe he had caught a woman.
“I’ve got it!” he shouted.
Though the figure in his grasp struggled, Li Qi’s strength of 6,800 jin was like an iron vise. No ordinary person could hope to break free.
“Good!” the burly man shouted, slashing his machete toward the surrounding mist, scattering the black fog that surged in to retaliate.
The mist tried to counterattack, but the ringing clash of weapons resumed immediately, driving it back again.
Powerless to resist, Li Qi yanked hard and pulled a human-shaped figure straight out of the black mist!
(Chapter End)