Chapter 20

Silence reigned throughout the night.

The next day, the sun shone brightly, and the sky was clear and cloudless.

As the first rays of sunlight pierced through the Cangman Mountains and illuminated Hébà City, Huaxia Jiu lay on the lawn, reading a book while basking in the sun.

Tang Guanshu and the other ten followers of the Dark God were not at all surprised that the Divine Messenger never ate, drank, or used the restroom; they found it entirely natural. The Divine Messenger was no longer an ordinary human, so why would he need the sustenance of mortals?

As for the Divine Messenger's fondness for sunbathing, although the group had some doubts—why would a great messenger of the Dark God dislike darkness and prefer sunlight?—their almost fanatical devotion to the Dark God led them to conclude that the ways of the divine were beyond the comprehension of mortals.

The books in the mansion had already been read by Huaxia Jiu five days ago. Over these five days, Xu Jianhong, upon learning of Huaxia Jiu's love for reading, had specially gathered a large number of books from his own collection and sent them over. Additionally, Huaxia Jiu had instructed Tang Guanshu and the others to spend a large amount of money to purchase various books in Hébà City. This ensured that Huaxia Jiu had a steady supply of books to read over the five days.

Through these books, Huaxia Jiu gained a deeper understanding of this world. Although the content of the books might not always align with reality, it did not hinder his ability to make inferences and calculations.

...

As night fell, the wind picked up, and dark clouds gathered, shrouding the night in deep darkness. The silver moon and stars were hidden behind thick clouds, and Hébà City, the Cangman Plain, and the entire land were swallowed by the night.

Huaxia Jiu did not hide his intention to go to the Cangman Mountains from Xu Jianhong; he reported it truthfully.

Dressed in the black short-sleeved warrior's attire commonly worn by the humans of this world, Huaxia Jiu rode a fine steed and galloped toward a certain place in the Cangman Mountains, as remembered by the Blotched Tiger Demon King.

Several hundred meters behind Huaxia Jiu, a black shadow followed him as if strolling leisurely. With each step, it silently shot forward several dozen meters, maintaining a constant distance from the lone rider.

Huaxia Jiu was completely unaware of this. Since leaving Hébà City, a map had appeared in his mind. The map was simple, showing only Hébà City, the Cangman Plain, and the Cangman Mountains, with a green line connecting Hébà City to a red dot in the Cangman Mountains. The line was straight from Hébà City to the foot of the Cangman Mountains, but it became a winding curve once it entered the mountains.

This map, formed in Huaxia Jiu's mind based on the Blotched Tiger Demon King's memories, allowed him to navigate without fear of getting lost in the pitch-black darkness, and to follow the optimal route.

Five years ago, the Cangman Plain was home to many human settlements, though not particularly prosperous. The plain, which spanned the southwestern region and connected three counties, had a population of at least several hundred thousand. Now, apart from a few humans deliberately kept by the demon races for mining and forging weapons, the rest had either fled to human-controlled areas or become food for the demons.

On his journey, Huaxia Jiu did not encounter any demons, but he did come across many wild animals such as wolves, leopards, and brown bears. Thanks to his electronic telescope and sonar radar, he detected these animals in advance and deliberately avoided them. This added some time to his journey, but it ensured his safety.

The distance from Hébà City to the Cangman Mountains was over six hundred miles. Huaxia Jiu let his horse rest for half an hour, providing it with water and fodder. By the time he reached the outskirts of the Cangman Mountains, it was well into the night.

The Cangman Mountains, the largest mountain range in the southwest, stretched for three thousand miles from north to south, with towering peaks and ancient forests. The demon races dominated the area, and fierce beasts roamed freely. The famous Demon Ape King of the cultivation world resided deep within these mountains. Legend had it that the mountains also harbored ancient and mysterious creatures that had survived since ancient times, for tens of thousands of years. However, due to the long passage of time and the lack of witnesses, this claim was largely unverified and widely disbelieved.

Another legend spoke of a powerful and ancient hidden Buddhist sect within the Cangman Mountains. This legend was passed down orally in the cultivation world. Over the years, many seekers of enlightenment had ventured into the Cangman Mountains, risking their lives to find the hidden sect, but none had succeeded. Among them were many powerful and highly advanced cultivators.

At the foot of the Cangman Mountains, Huaxia Jiu reluctantly dismounted and removed the saddle, setting the horse free.

The mountains were permeated with demonic energy, and various powerful auras lurked in the shadows. The horse, sensing the danger, refused to enter the mountains.

"This will cost me more energy. I hope I can get some sunlight in the Cangman Mountains," Huaxia Jiu muttered to himself. He then picked up his long sword and longbow and entered the dense forest of towering trees, running at a steady pace in a direction that would conserve the most energy.

With the map in his mind, Huaxia Jiu did not need to worry about finding his way. With the help of his electronic eyes and radar ears, it was difficult for ordinary fierce beasts or demons to ambush him, unless they were extremely skilled at hiding.

In the forest, the decaying leaves and dead trees emitted a stifling, putrid heat. The roots, mud holes, and rock crevices were home to countless insects, snakes, and other creatures. The dense foliage of the ancient trees seemed to be filled with small forest animals like foxes and rats, which were all cowering in fear, afraid to move.

"Zzzt!"

Suddenly, the space on the trunk of an ancient tree to Huaxia Jiu's left twisted strangely, and a greenish figure shot out, emitting a foul-smelling mucus and a putrid wind. It moved with lightning speed, and a dangerous, venomous aura enveloped him.

"Watch out! Ambush!"

Huaxia Jiu was taken aback. His electronic eyes and radar ears had completely failed to detect the creature. There was no time to draw his bow or dodge. He swung his long sword with a speed far exceeding that of an ordinary human, and at the same time, he pushed off the ground with his feet, launching himself forward with great force.

"Clang!"

The long sword and the greenish figure collided, producing a metallic sound.

Whoosh!

The greenish figure retreated after the attack.

Huaxia Jiu dashed forward five meters, still shaken, and turned to look in the direction the greenish figure had come from.

A four-legged, greenish, meter-long fierce beast clung to the trunk of the ancient tree.

The beast was covered in green scales that matched the color of the tree. Its eyes, which were set in a thin, vertical slit, moved slightly, and a hard, iron-like spike protruded from the bone rod formed by the postorbital bone and the squamosal bone. This spike, which had just attacked Huaxia Jiu, was sharp and deadly.

"Chameleon Iron Lizard! It can change its color to match the environment and enter a short-term hibernation state. No wonder I couldn't detect it," Huaxia Jiu identified the beast, his alertness increasing.

In the ten days since he arrived in this world, he had read far more books than most humans, and he could recall the content of any book he had read at any time. He had a photographic memory.

Among these books was one called "A Comprehensive Guide to the Demons and Fierce Beasts of the Cangman Mountains," which documented all the demons and fierce beasts discovered by the Great Wu Empire over the years, along with detailed descriptions of their characteristics and attack methods.

The Chameleon Iron Lizard remained motionless on the tree trunk, its eyes rapidly moving, as if assessing the strength of this "opponent."

Clearly, this human-like being, who lacked the usual aura of flesh and blood, was a formidable opponent. Despite its ambush, it had failed to injure him. Its specialty was sudden attacks, and once this tactic failed, it had few other options.

The Chameleon Iron Lizard made its decision and leaped into the dense forest. A green light emanated from its body, and its form gradually faded, blending with the surrounding green trees, intending to escape into the forest.

Having been discovered by the Chameleon Iron Lizard, Huaxia Jiu could not let this top-tier "assassin" escape. If it were to ambush him again or inform another demon, it would cause endless trouble. Huaxia Jiu knew that every beast in the Cangman Mountains was a spy for the demons.

Whoosh, whoosh—

Without warning, Huaxia Jiu had already drawn his bow and fired two arrows in quick succession, the second one following closely behind the first, aimed at the same spot.

Zzzt! Clang!

Although the Chameleon Iron Lizard was fast and had blended with the trees, it could not escape Huaxia Jiu's electronic eyes. However, its scales were so hard that the first arrow failed to penetrate. The second arrow struck the first, and only then did the first arrow break through the defense, piercing the Chameleon Iron Lizard's throat and pinning it to the tree.

Buzz—

Huaxia Jiu stared intently at the Chameleon Iron Lizard's corpse, his eyes emitting an invisible electromagnetic wave that enveloped the corpse, silently detecting something.

After a few moments, a white light emerged from the Chameleon Iron Lizard's head and followed the electromagnetic wave into Huaxia Jiu's eyes.

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