Chapter 2

Xiaohei woke up in shock from under the bed, crawled out, and ran out of the bedroom with his tail between his legs.

Soon, Xiaohei's head cautiously peeked back from the door, and he saw a white light transform into a human figure, hovering in the air before slowly merging into his young master's body.

"Mountain God, please send some rain, give our village a chance to live!"

In a daze, Jiang Xiaoye, who was still asleep, saw the old village chief burning incense and kneeling in worship at home. What he was worshipping was a mountain god statue made of white ash clay!

For some reason, Jiang Xiaoye felt a deep stirring in his heart.

He quickly realized what was happening to him.

At that moment, his face hurt, and his consciousness returned.

Jiang Xiaoye opened his eyes and saw a pair of dog paws pressing on his face, pushing hard.

"Xiaohei, you damn dog, you're dead!"

Jiang Xiaoye immediately lost his temper. Not only did this dog come onto the bed, but it also dared to scratch his face with its paws, playing around!

Xiaohei was so scared that he wet himself and ran away, feeling wronged but unable to express it. If you were fine, would I dare to do that? I thought you had passed away.

However, there was no time for explanations; saving his life was more important.

At this moment, Jiang Xiaoye noticed that it was already dawn. He scratched his head, wondering why he felt like he had just lain down and then had a few strange dreams.

"What are you shouting so early in the morning?" Li Lan, hearing her son's roar, rushed over to see what was happening.

"Nothing, nothing."

Jiang Xiaoye shook his head repeatedly. If Li Lan knew that Xiaohei had dared to run onto the bed and scratch his face with its paws, Xiaohei would either be chained up or chased out of the house to patrol the mountains at night.

"Did you have a nightmare?" Li Lan rubbed her face and said, "I dreamed that I was young again last night. You wouldn't believe it, but when I looked in the mirror this morning, my skin really did look much better."

"..." At forty, Jiang Xiaoye wisely refrained from making a sarcastic comment.

However, he thought about it and felt a bit puzzled. He seemed to have dreamed about the old village chief burning incense and worshipping the mountain god. Why would he dream about the mountain god?

...

Xiaohei had been hiding outside the door. When Jiang Xiaoye came out, he cautiously wagged his tail and tried to approach.

He observed his young master's mood and, seeing that it was good, confidently pounced over to show affection.

"Get lost!" Jiang Xiaoye kicked Xiaohei away. Climbing onto the bed was one thing, but daring to scratch his face with its paws was too much. When did this dog get so bold?

In the morning, as the sun rose, the village of Yushan became gradually hot. The sky was clear, with not a cloud in sight, and there was no sign of rain.

This year, there was a severe drought, and the villagers of Yushan were struggling. The crops had to be irrigated daily with sprinklers to prevent them from drying out.

"What's going on?"

Walking around the yard, Jiang Xiaoye felt a strange sensation.

It was as if he had a new, strange connection with the earth, and he could sense the emotions of the plants, trees, ants, and insects.

These emotions were faint but very clear!

It was a longing, a desire for water?

Why would he have such a strange thought?

Jiang Xiaoye shook his head, feeling like he was going crazy.

On the ground, a group of ants were fiercely tearing apart a worm, which was struggling desperately.

One ant returned to the nest, seemingly communicating with the others by touching antennae. More and more ants emerged from the complex ant colony, where a large queen ant was laying eggs.

Queen ant? Ant colony? Jiang Xiaoye was stunned. What was he seeing?

Not just the ants, but also the earthworms wriggling deep in the soil, the sleeping unknown insects, and the tiny bugs foraging in the earth...

He saw them, or rather, he felt them.

Clearly and distinctly.

"Holding the Mountain God's order, receiving his legacy, blessing the land, and benefiting all living things."

The words from last night's dream came to mind, and Jiang Xiaoye subconsciously reached out. A white light flashed, and the mysterious jade tablet that had disappeared after he peeled it off the old turtle yesterday reappeared in his hand.

'Mountain God's Order!'

A piece of information flashed through Jiang Xiaoye's mind.

"Mom... Mom... We're rich..."

He had received the legacy of the Mountain God? The jade tablet from the old turtle was actually the Mountain God's Order!

With a thought, the Mountain God's Order disappeared from his hand.

Soon, Jiang Xiaoye realized he had gained a new ability:

'Earth Sensing: Can perceive the conditions of the earth within a certain range!'

"In the dream last night, the figure that appeared first should have been the Mountain God, from ancient times. But the one that appeared later was our village's old village chief..."

Jiang Xiaoye pinched his chin in thought and then ran to the old village chief's house to confirm something.

Seeing Jiang Xiaoye go out to play, Xiaohei hesitated, looking back a few times. He hadn't eaten yet. At least let me have something to eat.

But soon, Xiaohei wagged his tail and happily followed.

Yushan Village, with its poetic name derived from "After the rain on the empty mountain," was named by someone with cultural refinement.

However, despite its poetic name, Yushan Village was a poor mountain village with less than a thousand people. In its heyday, it had nearly two thousand residents, but due to its backwardness, the young and strong had moved to developed cities for work and settlement, leaving the village in decline, mostly inhabited by the elderly, women, and children.

The old village chief was in his seventies and had been the village chief for over thirty years. He had retired a few years ago, but the new village chief had quit because the position offered no benefits and was full of trouble. So, he continued to serve.

Inside the dilapidated mud wall, the old village chief was watering a small vegetable patch in the yard.

"Grandpa Er, are you busy?" Jiang Xiaoye pushed the door open and kicked Xiaohei, who was baring his teeth at a few ducklings in the yard.

The old village chief's yard was a mix of everything: free-range rabbits, a few chickens, a group of ducklings, and a tongue-lolling local dog. There were several vegetable plots, fenced off with bamboo to prevent the livestock from causing damage.

"Xiaoye."

The old village chief, a contemporary of Jiang Xiaoye's grandfather, had silver hair and a frail appearance. He had no children and had devoted his life to the village.

"You came at the right time. I have some pickled vegetables that I can't finish. Wait a moment, and you can take some back."

The old village chief had a large jar in his house, where he pickled radish strips, pickled vegetables, and sauerkraut, all of which were delicious.

"Woof woof woof!" Hearing the word "eat," Xiaohei immediately perked up, wagging his tail and enthusiastically approaching.

Jiang Xiaoye ignored Xiaohei and glanced into the house, casually asking, "Grandpa Er, do you know about the Mountain God?"

"Mountain God..." The old village chief gave Jiang Xiaoye a strange look. "Xiaoye, why are you suddenly asking about this?"

Even in the mountain village, the term "Mountain God" was rarely mentioned. People usually referred to the Earth God and his wife. The old village chief was known for his faith in deities and had been criticized for it when he was young.

"Grandpa Er, don't laugh at me. Last night, I dreamed of an old man with a sword, wearing a white robe, and a gourd on his head..."

Before he could finish, the old village chief dropped the half-gourd in his hand.

"Then what?" The old village chief asked urgently. "What else?"

"Then he asked for rain, and it rained. Many people shouted 'Mountain God.' It was strange, so I came to check."

"Impossible! You've never even heard of the Mountain God. How could you dream about him? Could it be that what Grandpa said was true?"

The old village chief muttered to himself.

"Xiaoye, come with me." The old village chief stepped out of the vegetable patch, his legs unsteady as he walked into the house.

The old mud house was low and dim, with only a few bamboo chairs and a blackened table visible.

In front, Jiang Xiaoye indeed saw the white ash clay statue of the Mountain God from his dream, now faded and worn, with unburned incense still smoldering beside it.

The old village chief went into the inner room, rummaged through some boxes, and came out wearing reading glasses, holding a yellowed scroll.

"Grandpa gave this to me when he died. He said it was painted by a craftsman from the Republic of China era, based on the description from his great-grandfather. Take a look."

The old village chief's great-grandfather? That was quite a few generations back!

Jiang Xiaoye was amazed. He took the scroll and slowly opened it. The first thing he saw were two large running script characters: Mountain God!

When he fully unfurled the scroll, Jiang Xiaoye's scalp tingled.

An extremely old man, with white hair and beard, wearing a gourd pendant, leaning on a sword, and dressed in an ancient robe—wasn't this exactly the Mountain God from his dream?

"What I dreamed of was indeed the Mountain God!" Jiang Xiaoye blurted out.

"The Mountain God is just a legend, how could it be real!" The old village chief shook his head. "If there were a Mountain God, why would he let us mountain villagers suffer?"

Perhaps the Mountain God had already passed away, Jiang Xiaoye thought.

The old village chief's mood was very strange. He didn't even see Jiang Xiaoye off when he left. Xiaohei looked back several times, as if to say:

What about the pickled vegetables?

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