295: Chen Yuan's Contracted Demon (asking for monthly ticket)

Time flew by, and three days later arrived.

Snow still fell incessantly from the sky, drifting like willow catkins, scattering everywhere.

Amidst the Yunding Mountain, the peaks were like white jade, snow lay on the branches, thick and heavy, bending the tree limbs; occasionally, the sound of branches breaking could be heard from the mountains, followed by snow falling like a waterfall.

Streams in the mountains wound through them, steaming with layers of mist, and on the surrounding branches and leaves, icicles formed, crystal clear and breathtakingly beautiful.

Among them, pavilions, terraces, and towers, with each mountain distinct and well-arranged, resembled a fairyland on earth.

At this moment, on Ninth Mountain, halfway up the slope, soft sobs could be heard.

Beneath a pavilion, a young woman, dressed in a light green floral jacket, carrying a bundle on her shoulder, with a delicate and lovely face, and a mole at the corner of her mouth that added to her charm, was tearfully bidding farewell to her three other sisters.

Her name was Xia He.

She was a maidservant under the Internal Affairs Department of Ninth Mountain, previously carefully selected along with several other sisters to specifically attend to the Zhonglang General's daily life.

Now, she was dismissed, and others like her were also let go.

She heard that the steward had sent his unmarried daughters and nieces to replace them, and important figures from other mountains were also sending people to Ninth Mountain.

The reason for this, they all knew, was that the This General's prestige was extraordinary now, and many important people, whom they considered untouchable, wanted to curry favor with the This General.

Therefore, they could only make way.

Under the pavilion, the other three women were Xia He's close sisters. The three of them also felt a sense of sadness for their own fate, like a hare mourning the death of a fox. Xia He was leaving, and some of the other sisters had also left. They had no background, so they probably wouldn't be able to stay either.

"Why don't we go find the This General and plead for mercy!"

"We've been on Ninth Mountain for so many years, where can we go if we leave?" One young girl looked sad, especially with the wind and snow outside, which added to the atmosphere.

The others quickly shook their heads, somewhat fearful.

"The This General is a cold person; he hardly ever allowed us sisters to serve him."

"What's more, the This General is busy with a myriad of affairs."

"These past few days, besides that one time in the backyard kitchen, we haven't seen the This General. If we accidentally offend him..."

"Forget it!"

As they spoke, they resigned themselves to their fate.

No one would care about their comings and goings; if they made any presumptuous moves, it would only cause trouble.

"Xia He, please take good care of yourself!"

The sisters hugged Xia He, comforting her.

The young woman with the mole at the corner of her mouth sobbed twice, hummed in affirmation, waved goodbye to her three sisters, and then, looking back every few steps, she carried her luggage, braved the wind and snow, and descended the mountain path that had been cleared.

Xia He only felt the biting mountain wind, as if the wind and snow in the mountains were seeing her off, and the tears in the corners of her eyes had frozen into icicles.

She hadn't walked far when she reached a gurgling stream by a covered bridge further down. This place was quite secluded, and few people came here.

She carefully stepped on the snow and came to a turn in the stream, where there was a small, clear pool, with misty white vapor rising from it, and the stones beside the stream looked like small, bulging snowdrifts.

Before the snow fell, it was summer, and this secluded pool hidden at the turn of the stream was a secret spot where she and a few sisters used to play in the water.

Thinking of this, the young maidservant felt a surge of sadness, apprehension, and confusion. Then she came back to her senses and rummaged through her bundle for a piece of pastry wrapped in oiled paper, making a chirping sound as if calling for something.

As the sound faded, a splash was heard from the surface of the pool, as if something had emerged. Then, amidst the steaming white mist, two dark figures swiftly darted onto the bank.

Clearly visible, two beavers, about a foot in size, round and wet all over, appeared before the young maidservant.

The fur of the two beavers was sleek and shiny, even shimmering with a faint golden luster, and their date-sized black eyes gleamed with a human-like joy, revealing their intelligence.

Seeing these two chubby creatures, the young maidservant's gloomy mood lifted somewhat. She lifted her skirt, squatted down, and then offered the pastry in her hand.

Seeing this, the two beavers' eyes lit up with excitement. They immediately used their black, furry paws to pick up the pastry, and their two large front teeth crunched away at it, like gnawing on wood. In two breaths, it was gone, incredibly fast.

A packet of seven or eight square pastries was quickly emptied.

Two pairs of large eyes then looked eagerly at the maidservant named Xia He.

The young maidservant felt truly sorry for these two little creatures. A hint of hesitation flashed across her face, but she still took out her last piece of pastry from her bundle and unwrapped it.

Then, stroking the beaver's smooth fur with one hand, she said with some sadness, "From now on, older sister won't be able to feed you anymore. Older sister is leaving this place. You two little ones must take good care of yourselves."

As she spoke, tears flowed again.

She had discovered these two beavers a few days before the snow fell, while playing in the water here with a few sisters. The two little creatures were very cute and very intelligent. At that time, they were building a nest with wood upstream in this clear pool.

Later, these past few days, with heavy snow falling and temperatures plummeting, she was afraid these two little creatures would freeze to death, so she ran over, wanting to carry them up the mountain, but the two beavers refused. So, afterwards, she came to feed them once every day, and also played with the two little creatures in the vast snowy landscape of this place, which made her very happy.

It's just that now she had to leave and couldn't feed them anymore.

At this moment, the two beavers seemed to understand. Their furry paws, which had been eating the pastry, stopped. Their two large eyes rolled around, and then they looked at each other.

Then, one of the beavers crunched down the pastry in its paw, then turned around and, like a black shadow, darted into the clear pool.

The young maidservant saw this and didn't know what was happening.

But in a moment, with a "whoosh," that beaver darted back, carrying a piece of golden-yellow meat the size of an adult's palm in its mouth.

The meat shimmered with a faint golden luster, and a strange aroma wafted over.

The beaver dropped the meat from its mouth in front of the young maidservant; it looked very heavy.

The young maidservant was at a loss when she saw the meat. She had never seen this kind of meat before, but it smelled so fragrant, and she felt as if she had seen something similar somewhere before, deeming it extraordinary.

She had never eaten pork, but she had seen pigs run. She blinked, "This meat seems to be a treasure. Are you giving it to me?"

The two beavers nodded, then pointed with their paws.

Seeing this, the young maidservant suddenly couldn't stop herself from crying out of grievance.

She had been carefree with her little sisters on Ninth Mountain, but suddenly being driven out, she was very scared. She had no family, having been recruited since she was young, and now she really didn't know what to do.

As a result, hearing that she was leaving, the two little creatures even dug out their treasures and gave them to her.

Human hearts are not as good as animals'. The sudden concern made this maidservant named Xia He cry out her grievances to the two speechless animals.

"I don't want to leave, but the steward is forcing me out. They want to send their relatives in to curry favor with the This General."

"I don't know what to do."

The two beavers, seeing the young girl cry, squeaked loudly.

Then, their paws tugged at the young maidservant's trousers, pointed upwards, and then, the two little creatures, with a whoosh, darted towards the mountain, disappearing from sight.

The young maidservant cried, her face streaked with tears, not knowing where the two beavers had gone. She chirped a few times but received no response.

Meanwhile, the two beavers were darting through the snowy mountain forests at incredible speed.

They passed a mountain cave where snoring sounds echoed, shaking the surrounding mountain forests and causing snow to fall.

Inside, a Black Bear was hibernating, and the mist billowing from the cave entrance carried a rich, hazy glow, like a shimmering aura being exhaled.

However, after they passed, at a certain distance, all that movement vanished, as if it had been concealed.

Next, the two beavers saw a young deer dashing through the uninhabited mountain forest, like a silly roe deer, happily frolicking at high speed, glowing all over, having already reached the Body Profound Cultivation.

And as the two beavers darted towards the mountaintop, Restrictions occasionally lit up in the mountains, but they were offset by the golden light on the two little creatures' fur, allowing them to pass through smoothly.

Before long, the two little creatures reached the mountaintop, where a heavily guarded Zhonglang Hall was situated.

At this moment, in the backyard of the Zhonglang Hall on Ninth Mountain, under a pavilion, a small brazier with burning charcoal was on the table, topped with a duck-billed pot from which intoxicating wine aroma emanated.

Outside the pavilion, the wind and snow swirled; inside, turbid wine was being brewed, creating a rare sense of leisure, like a watercolor painting.

Under the pavilion, Chen Yuan, dressed in casual clothes, held a cup, his ears twitching slightly.

To the side, two Recorders were reporting on the anomalous celestial phenomena investigated in the past few days.

"In West City, Guijiu Workshop, Liuzi Alley, a withered tree that had been dead for many years suddenly blossomed overnight yesterday, but no other information was found."

"Seven hundred li outside the south of the city, in Baping County, there has been a recent stir. It is rumored that a mountain behind their Zu Mountain glows every night, but that mountain was not recorded before and disappears during the day. Currently, this humble This General has dispatched troops to verify."

"Also, two hundred li north of the city, in a place called General Mountain, fire mist suddenly erupted from underground, raging for twenty li around, with lava everywhere, and it is still erupting, spewing out this kind of stone. Please examine it, This General."

"..."

Gao Yu and General Fan Chou reported a total of five or six abnormal incidents from various places around Jinguancheng over these three days.

As Gao Yu spoke, he presented a palm-sized, fiery red stone with both hands.

Chen Yuan, with a single gesture, took the stone, which was like a hot iron, into his hand. Meanwhile, the snowflakes swirling outside the pavilion landed on the stone and immediately evaporated, and the surrounding air also became warmer.

Clearly, the surface of the stone was as hot as its color suggested.

Chen Yuan carefully sensed it; the inside of this small stone was like a furnace.

He squeezed it slightly with his five fingers, but only five finger marks were left on the stone, which surprised him somewhat.

Then, he applied more force, and the stone instantly burst open, spewing out a ball of fire, but in an instant, it was absorbed by Chen Yuan. His eyes lit up slightly; it contained impressive fire essence, but there were too many Impurities, and it was violent!

Chen Yuan raised his eyelids, turned slightly to the side, and softly said, "This This General is not very familiar with this type of thing. Do you recognize this object?"

"Commander, this is scarlet fire crystal, usually found in volcanoes rich in fire essence, and it needs to be mined deep within the volcano. It is not common in Sichuan. This type of crystal can be used for Artifact Refining, forging Dao soldiers, and even assisting the Cultivation of fire-attribute Cultivation Technique Divine Abilities. However, this crystal is considered a defective product, with too many Impurities." General Fan Chou spoke, explaining the origin of the object, then raised his thick, unkempt eyebrows.

"However, for such a treasure from deep within a volcano to erupt indicates that there must be something else underneath."

Chen Yuan listened and nodded, a gleam in his eyes.

"As you've seen, the changes in the Heaven and Earth Qi will inevitably cause a series of transformations. Only a few days have passed, and there are already significant signs!"

At this point, he did not forget to remind the two, "This kind of thing will be noticed by more and more people; it cannot be concealed, so you must be careful when dispatching people to act."

"This humble This General understands."

At this moment, Chen Yuan's eyebrows twitched, as if he remembered something. He took out two cups from the tea tray and poured two cups of warm wine. He gently brushed his sleeve to the side, "The weather is getting colder. Drink a cup of warm wine. In the past, there was an old man who would always have a cup of warm wine ready for me every time I returned from a mission."

As Chen Yuan spoke, his expression softened considerably.

The two Councilors were surprised to see Chen Yuan in such a state, wondering who the old man the This General remembered could be.

This was the This General's kindness, and they did not stand on ceremony. They took the cups and drank the wine within.

"Good wine, with all due respect, I'd like another cup."

General Fan Chou, with his burly appearance, was clearly a lover of wine. After drinking it, he couldn't help but smack his lips, not having had enough, and spoke.

Chen Yuan smiled, flicked his finger, and clear spring water surged from the wine pot, flowing into the two cups held by the two, refilling them. Then he brought up another matter, as if chatting idly.

"Have the forces from each family arrived at Chuanzhong Pass?"

He was asking about the matter three days ago, when he summoned over a hundred Heavenly Gates to the Hall, requesting each family to send people to support the front line.

Fortunately, these people did not dare to cause any more trouble. The next day, each family sent ten people, led by a Heavenly Gate, to depart.

"Last night, this subordinate's swift horse brought back news that the Heavenly Gates from each family have arrived at Xiongan City, a thousand li outside Chuanzhong Pass. Now, they must have already entered Chuanzhong Pass and rendezvoused with Commander Pei. This humble This General has already sent a message to Commander Pei in advance according to the This General's instructions, so there should be no problems."

"Commander will be very happy, I imagine." Gao Yu was less reserved and smiled.

It should be said that the dispatch of forces from various families in Jinguancheng to support the front line greatly relieved the Fushi and also allowed them to catch their breath.

After he finished speaking, his expression suddenly changed.

"There's Demonic Qi!"

"What kind of beast is it?"

"How dare you come here, seeking death?"

Saying that, he suddenly grabbed towards a wall several tens of meters to the side.

There, two snowballs, about a foot high, were wriggling along the wall.

The air shrieked, and a green claw print, about ten feet in size, suddenly grabbed towards the two snowballs.

The next second, the snowballs exploded.

The two chubby creatures shook their bodies, shedding the snow, and revealed their figures, looking adorably clumsy.

"Wait!"

"Benbo'erba, Babo'erben, why are you two sneaking up here instead of Cultivating in the mountains?"

Just then, a voice rang out.

It was Chen Yuan!