Chapter 68 - Encountering Wolves on the Road
"Hey! Ouyang Zhong, wake up."
"Are we there yet?"
"No, we got lost. And we ran into a little trouble ..."
"Huh? What?"
Ouyang Zhong, still confused and dozing just a moment ago, woke up with a start and jumped down from Shan Xiaohu's back, fixing his eyes on it. To avoid the Dingling Tribe's stationed troops in the villages of the northern states and counties of Zhongming Country, the two had to meander through the mountain streams and thick forests to the north. They were in the middle of a dense forest, surrounded by various trees and plants, barely making a path and nothing else. Because of the flourishing forest, the moonlight overhead could not shine in, and the surrounding area was pitch black.
With his lynx eyes, Shan Xiaohu could see everything clearly at night. Although Ouyang Zhong couldn't do that, his sense of smell and hearing differed from ordinary people's and was on par with Shan Xiaohu and Fox Xiaxia. So he could sense something slowly approaching the two of them, and the smell was quite familiar.
Shan Xiaohu put on twelve alert points and quietly said to Ouyang Zhong, "Wolves should surround us. Hey, our cat tribe's most annoying wolf-dog, the so-called fierce tiger, does not fight with crazy dogs; we are used to fighting alone, single pick two single wolves. I have no problem at all; it is annoying them together. After a while, you think of your way to run as far away as you can, or up a tree is fine; I'm afraid I can't take care of you."
Ouyang Zhong watched a pair of green eyes leisurely approaching them, gathering more and more, roughly counting about thirty wolves. And after the group of wolves showed up, they didn't rush to pounce on them. Instead, in the depths of the grass, an even more giant black wolf gradually came. Shan Xiaohu was ready to fight at any time and squinted his eyes originally to see if Ouyang Zhong was scared silly, but in the end, he saw Ouyang Zhong's relieved expression and a big smile. Shan Xiaohu was puzzled instead.
Ouyang Zhong patted Shan Xiaohu and said, ''Don't be afraid. A man said that I was a big black dog in my past life and that I was his student. So, I've come to chat with this pack of wolves and let us off the hook."
"Huh?" Shan Xiaohu had a head full of question marks, and then, in his heart, he said: you are indeed quite a dog; I wondered why I've always been so annoyed with you. Finally, I found the reason.
Ouyang Zhong walked to the front of the Giant Wolf, clasped his hands, bowed deeply, and said, "My disciple pays his respects to master!"
The Giant Wolf opened his mouth and said, "What, after not seeing you for a few days, don't you treat me as a love rival anymore and have finally recognized me as your master?"
Ouyang Zhong had mixed feelings but could not speak, so he returned, "Army Master Xuan Mo is joking. It was all my disciple's fault before. I blamed Master wrongly and also failed Linghu Xian. It's all my fault. Please punish Master."
Shan Xiaohu came over, looked and sniffed, and asked in confusion, "Have we met somewhere before?"
Xuan Mo transformed into his human body and stood before them, saying, "Yes, we've met in a hunter's yard. At that time, I was a hunting dog, while you were still just a lynx cat in a cage. I didn't expect that a hundred years later, you would be cultivated into a human; your Master is mighty!"
Shan Xiaohu was a bit surprised. Who was this person? How did he even know who their master teacher was?
Xuan Mo introduced himself, "I am the First Class Great General under the seat of Er Lang Shen Jun, Roaring Dog Xuan Mo."
On the night when Linghu Xian was transformed into a wall of fire, Roaring Dog Xuanmo swallowed Spider Spirit Yusun and tried to save Linghu Xian but was brought back to the Heavenly Court to be questioned by his Master, Erlang Shen, who transformed back into his natural body of the Dharma weapon. Erlang Shen did not allow his most capable general, the Roaring Dog, one of the heavenly deities, to be ambiguous with a demonic beast from the lower realm. It wasn't that he didn't allow his men to be affectionate, but he couldn't accept that a god and a demon should have any relationship that went against the Heavenly Dao. This was a taboo and a sin in his eyes. After all, the fox demon, Daji, caused the six worlds a big uproar, spilling countless lives to follow the tortured and ultimately losing their lives.
In the decisive battle of that year, Yang Jian, the God of Erlang Shen, led all the heavenly soldiers and generals to fight with the demon for seven days and seven nights and suffered heavy losses before finally eradicating the demonic spirit. The demon was sealed in the fiery magma under the Zong Yu Mountain.
Back then, he followed the roaring dog Xuanmo to fight together to understand their own bottom line and insist; however, now he has even broken this taboo, which makes Erlangshen very angry but also very puzzled. He took Xuanmo back to the heavenly palace residence Qingyuan Palace, closed the door, and released Xuanmo, who was tied up with the Binding Immortal Lock, and loudly rebuked him for half a day and then scolded him tiredly. Xuanmo hurriedly went up to the True Lord and brought him tea and water so that his Master could moisturize his throat. He waited for him to continue scolding him. Generally speaking, only after scolding painfully can this matter be eased down.
However, this time, Erlang Shen did not continue to curse endlessly; he drank a cup of tea to eliminate half of the anger and looked at Xuan Mo silently. XuanMo then realized that the big thing was not good! Master, this time is not standard; the situation is horrible. But think about the lower world suffering Linghu Xian; Xuan Mo would rather be heavily punished but also go to save her. So he fell to his knees and kowtowed to his Master a few times before saying very solemnly, "Your Highness, my subordinate has not transgressed with any demon, and this woman is not a demon. She is human, and her transformation into fox is due to being poisoned by a treacherous person. She is a good girl who sacrificed her life for the sake of hundreds of thousands of innocent soldiers and civilians in the whole city. Furthermore, someone once said something that my subordinate thought deeply about. He said: if, as a Heavenly God, we cannot punish the evil and save the weak, but only due to the Heavenly Rules and Regulations, then do we still deserve to be the God that humans look up to and admire?"
Er Lang Zhen Jun's expression was tight-lipped, and his three eyes stared down at Xuan Mo, kneeling below without saying a word. Xuan Mo was a bit sullen; he thought to himself that one day in the heavenly realm and one year underground, if he continued to waste time, he was afraid that Fox Xiaoxian's next life would be over. Xuan Mo hurriedly knelt again and said to his Master, ''Your Holiness! You, as heaven and earth, four seas, eight deserts, six realms in command of subduing demons and eliminating devils of the division of the God of war, my subordinate requests that you let me go back to assist that Fox Xiaoxian to complete the earthly calendar after the subordinate must come to receive the punishment by himself, no matter what kind of punishment, my subordinate is willing to be happy with the punishment! Your Holiness! Fox Xiaoxian, she can't afford to wait."
Erlang Shen spoke quietly, "I didn't expect that one of my magic weapons, even after ten thousand years of cultivation, had given birth to a strand of love ah! It's truly wonderful! Good!" Erlang Shen laughed a little, his expression much more pleasant. Getting up, he walked over to Xuan Mo's side and helped him with his hands, saying, "You! From the day you were formed into a human, you haven't had any expressions, and I thought this iron lump of mine just didn't have any! It turns out that you can also cry and laugh, huh? As gods, we can't have the emotions of humans, but we're not just stones with no emotions. That Sun Monkey is still a stone. See how ris emotions are? I saw that before that spider spirit was swallowed into your stomach and refined, it even turned on the heaven-defying demonic method of summoning the Demon Sovereign. This is not a small matter; I'm sending you down to patrol the world; if any traces of a demonic father appear in the world, report back quickly!"
Xuan Mo did not expect his Master to be able to do so. He was thrilled, hurriedly clasped his hands, and responded quickly, "My subordinate accepts the order!"
Ouyang Zhong lowered his head and couldn't speak for a long time. Xuan Mo quietly patted him, saying, "I know all about Linghu Xian. There is also the fact that you are going to the Populus Euphratica Forest. Let my wolves give you a ride. I'm afraid this trip is fraudulent, so I'll accompany you."
Shan Xiaohu said happily, "That's great; my master sealed my magic power, and I was worried about what to do if in case there were any demons I couldn't beat ~ with Lord Xuanmo around, I'm not afraid of anything anymore." Then he glanced at Ouyang Zhong and said disgustingly, "You let the wolf run on your back! I'm just in time to take a break."
Xuan Mo said, "Your Master sealed your spells because you're not yet proficient in the Dao, and he's afraid that you won't be able to hold it and cause trouble. Ouyang Zhong was hit by Yu Sun's demonic poison last time; in fact, his spiritual sense and magic power were awakened a little, but after all, he is still a mortal body, so I am not in a position to intervene too much. However, this leg and footwork can help you out a bit." Xuan Mo silently recited the mantra and made a point about Ouyang Zhong's body. Ouyang Zhong felt that his body's blood flowed rapidly, his Ren and Dui veins opened up, and his body was soothed with seemingly inexhaustible power.
"Alright, the road behind you runs by itself. Don't try to be lazy and let others carry you." Xuan Mo smiled faintly. Ouyang Zhong looked at this Heavenly God Master in amazement. Surprisingly, there can also be a time when he doesn't slate a dead face; it is simply more excited than when he can take a step of ten miles.
Like this, these three people and the wolves moved north quickly under the protection of the night. At dawn, they came to the piece of watery swamp thirty miles outside of Beiwang City.
Coming to this place, it was confirmed that the Populus Euphratica Forest could not be seen from the surface. Ouyang Zhong and the others had discussed this before in Zongcheng City. Could the enemy be playing a trick to sound out the east and strike the west, that is, to use this confusing tactic to transfer Ouyang Zhong away and then attack Zongcheng City? Therefore, they have made several preparations, one of which is to leave Fox Xiaxia behind, and a team of people previously transferred from Xi Cheng City has also been put in place, temporarily dealing with one or two or no problems.
Shan Xiaohu sunk his qi into his dantian and silently recited his mantra, helping the crowd find the entrance to the Populus Euphratica Forest Immortal Tent. Just as he was about to use his spells, he suddenly stopped. He heard some strange sounds not far away. The wolves also began to bare their teeth as a warning, ready to meet the battle.
Only in the dawn sky was the sky becoming white, the morning sun was showing, and the sun was about to rise. But in the southeast direction, a dark cloud flew in. When they were carefully distinguished, a large flock of crows whistled towards them. When they flew into the sky, these crows suddenly enlarged in size, as big as vultures, and then swooped over from the air, launching a fierce attack towards Ouyang Zhong and his group.
Ouyang Zhong and Shan Xiaohu naturally did not dare take the enemy lightly and hurriedly took out their weapons to block and kill. The wolves had no problem dealing with the land creatures, but against the flying and swimming ones, it was a bit of a struggle. Xuan Mo flew into the air to fight with the giant crows, but the number was too great; they could only fight each other and not give these crows a fatal blow.
During the fight, Shan Xiaohu proposed to enter the Immortal Tent and escape into the Populus Euphratica Forest before making plans. Xuan Mo said, ''You guys go in first. The wolves and I will stand guard outside. Remember, keep your heart in mind, and don't fall into anyone's way."
Shan Xiaohu and Ouyang Zhong were both injured to varying degrees. Shan Xiaohu silently recited the mantra and shouted, "Open!" The Populus Euphratica Forest, which stretched for several miles, appeared right before their eyes.
This protective cover was well made, so why would the letter still say to meet them at the Populus Euphratica Forest? Unless it was to lure them to open the protective cover and find this Populus Euphratica Forest. For the real identity of the Populus Euphratica Forest, in addition to Shan Xiaohu and Fox Xiaxia before, this is the first time anyone else knows. Of course, another person may vaguely peep out one or two; this person is Tuoba Xian, who Shan Xiaohu and the others had rescued.
This was something that they had discussed along the way, along with multiple solutions that only worked once they met Xuan Mo. Shan Xiaohu opened the protective shield and then dragged Ouyang Zhong to run towards the protective shield. The giant crows around them were still relentless in their fight with them; what's more, taking advantage of the opening slot, there were a few crows that still wanted to break into the protective shield, but Ouyang Zhong and Shan Xiaohu also blocked them. The goal of these crows was to enter the protective cover and rush into the Populus Euphratica Forest, so when Ouyang Zhong entered the protective cover, Shan Xiaohu shouted, "Xuan Mo!"
Xuan Mo quickly used his mana to push the Samadhi Flame to burn the surrounding crows to the ground. Shan Xiaohu and Ouyang Zhong finally escaped into the Populus Euphratica Forest unharmed. But because Shan Xiaohu's magic power is weak but also injured, Populus Euphratica Forest is in jeopardy around the protection of the immortal shield. Xuan Mo sat in place to protect the shield re-enforcement; he was also not lightly injured while holding his breath to self-healing while for the Populus Euphratica Forest protection guards.
Xuan Mo looked at the dead and wounded wolves burned to the ashes of the giant crows. He could confidently identify that they were facing an opponent whose strength would be incomparably muscular, far more than previously encountered. Chu Tianming and Yu Sun can be compared to each other; the more can not be taken lightly. In the Populus Euphratica Forest, which contained Fox Xiaoxian's Yuan Shen, spiritual consciousness almost gathered.
"Cang Cang, come back soon. I will stay by your side this time. I can't let you get hurt again." Xuan Mo muttered. At this moment, a red sun slowly rose in the east, warm and ardent, illuminating this water and Xuan Mo's heart.
Ouyang Zhong had suffered heavy flesh wounds, though several significant cuts on his back and arms were constantly bleeding. Near the scars, a few pieces of giant crow feathers emanated a demonic blackish purple color. He crawled while trying to climb up but failed several times, and Shan Xiaohu lying beside him wasn't much better. Shan Xiaohu gasped and grunted, looking exhausted and significantly depleted.
Shan Xiaohu turned to look at Ouyang Zhong, who was covered in blood and forced himself to use his last bit of mana to stop Ouyang Zhong's bleeding. Subsequently, Ouyang Zhong's blood finally stopped. Shan Xiaohu fainted due to excessive mana depletion, while Ouyang Zhong also gradually fell into a coma due to exhaustion and excessive blood loss.
Ouyang Zhong's blood seeped into the Populus Euphratica Forest's land. It was absorbed by the poplar tree's roots here as if a patient had waited many years for the medicine to match all the antidote finally. The Populus Euphratica Forest immediately emitted a light, at first but very weak, in the sun's illumination can not be detected. Not long after, the light became more and more prevalent, bright, and eye-piercing. Ouyang Zhong's blood was like nutrients transmitted from the roots to the trunk branches and leaves, along with the light each other. All the light began converging towards a large tree in the center. This huge poplar tree bloomed with red and gold flowers like fox ears, and there was also a halo of fiery red in the golden light.
The unconscious Ouyang Zhong heard a voice calling him softly, one after another, far and near. The voice seemed to wake him as if it was soothing and hypnotizing his soul. Then Ouyang Zhong finally, in a dream-like state of disorientation, his spiritual consciousness floated out of his body, and he saw the golden leaves lying on the ground of the two people; he did not stop, but with the call of the voice towards the depths of the Populus Euphratica Forest drifted.