Chapter 1

In 1990, for the Wild Man Gorge, it was destined to be a year of disaster.

That year, a "construction expert" used 1,200 kilograms of explosives to destroy a thousand-year-old ancient bridge, taking the opportunity to steal the dragon-suppressing sword hanging under the bridge and fleeing.

That year, a once-in-a-century earthquake struck, leaving everything in ruins.

That year, heavy rains and floods followed one after another, turning the area into a vast expanse of water, causing widespread flooding.

The upper reaches of the Bi River in Wild Man Gorge had already formed numerous landslide lakes due to mountain collapses, and if not handled properly, the consequences would be unimaginable.

The higher authorities' solution was to use explosives to blow up a small section of the river embankment to divert the floodwaters.

No one expected that as soon as the notice went out, the local villagers refused to comply.

A skinny man led over a hundred villagers to block the road, refusing to let anyone proceed, insisting that explosives were inauspicious and would anger the river god, bringing disaster to the people on both banks.

The official in charge of the matter paid no heed and ordered the police to subdue the troublemakers. Then, with a wave of his hand, he led the people to the river embankment!

Who knew that 860 kilograms of explosives would cause a deafening explosion, sending a wave of blood and water soaring over ten meters high!

Accompanied by a strong smell of blood, a dark shadow darted out from the water!

This creature was enormous, and anyone who saw it was terrified to the core!

Even the workers responsible for the explosives were so frightened that they foamed at the mouth, almost dying on the spot!

In the days that followed, rumors spread, and the strong winds and heavy rains did not let up.

The turbulent blood turned the entire river red.

In less than a day, countless fish and shrimp in the river died, and the nearby mountain villagers began to suffer from a rare and strange illness, causing them great pain!

Three days later, an old man herding cattle found a strange-looking giant snake downstream.

This was a large python, as thick as a person's embrace, covered in blood, lying in the mud on the riverbank, barely alive!

The snake's head was shaped like an iron shovel, with a thin neck and a thick belly, and two rows of spines on its head, coiling back from between its eyebrows!

The longest two spines were like horns, slightly raised!

It even had gills!

The gills were like fish fins, looking like ears, but it was unclear if they were ears!

But it was definitely a snake, not a fish!

None of the nearby elders had ever seen anything like it!

At a loss, an old traditional Chinese medicine practitioner named Old Wang stepped forward.

He told everyone that ancient books recorded that there was a highly venomous snake in the world. If it could live for three hundred years, it would shed its original skin and transform into this extremely poisonous creature.

Its name was "Hui," the precursor to a dragon. It had been affected by the explosives and had released its poison, causing the fish, turtles, and shrimp in the river to suffer.

When the people heard this, they asked how to deal with it. Old Wang told them that although the "Hui" was extremely venomous, it had a type of oil under its skin that could be used to make medicine to counteract snake venom. He then ordered people to use steel cables to lift the snake and peel off its skin to extract the oil!

Unexpectedly, as the snake's skin was removed, a baby fell out of its belly!

This baby had sharp teeth and claws, with golden eyes, and was still alive!

Everyone was horrified!

They all thought the child was a snake's offspring, very evil, and wanted to beat him to death on the spot.

But Old Wang, being kind-hearted, saw that the child had a good connection and said that a fortune-teller had told him that although he had no children, he was destined to have a grandson. So, he took the child away.

Old Wang was a highly skilled doctor with great prestige in the surrounding area. Knowing the situation of the old couple, the villagers, who relied on him for medical treatment, agreed to let him take the child.

Indeed, Old Wang used the snake oil to cook two pots of medicinal soup and distributed it to the villagers. That night, the dozen or so villagers who had been on the brink of death were able to get out of bed!

That night, Old Wang and his wife set up a feast in the courtyard to celebrate their new grandson!

Hearing the news, the nearby mountain villagers all came, expressing their gratitude to Old Wang and genuinely rejoicing for him. The gathering was lively and festive.

However, when Wang Xiaoliu was brought out, many of the onlookers were taken aback. This little creature, though only about two years old, had a rather large... appendage, making the young women in the village blush!

Later, when it was discovered that Wang Xiaoliu had not been named, some mischievous uncles and grandfathers started joking, saying that since the child was born with a six-centimeter... appendage, they shouldn't let it grow any more!

They suggested calling him Wang Xiaoliu!

Old Wang, being a laid-back person, thought the name was simple and catchy, and it gradually stuck.

From a young age, Wang Xiaoliu was a source of amusement for the villagers, as the legend of his "donkey-sized" appendage made the young women in the village tease him.

However, as he grew older, this little rascal turned out to be quite talented, with a handsome and distinguished appearance.

Gradually, the women who used to gossip about him in public stopped doing so.

However, over the years, the gossip never ceased.

People are the same; when they have nothing better to do, they start spreading rumors.

One day, they would say that Old Wang's grandson had been seen with a young woman in the cornfield.

The next day, they would say that he had been seen riding a young woman by the river.

Old Wang and his wife didn't pay much attention to these rumors. After all, he was just a child, and even if he had some extraordinary abilities, what trouble could he really cause? He would need the ability to do so!

What truly worried Old Wang was that this little rascal was very mischievous from a young age. He didn't like wearing clothes and loved to "walk the dog" at night. He also seemed to have a somewhat worrying "evil" quality.

From a young age, Wang Xiaoliu displayed astonishing talents, with vision, hearing, and reaction speed far exceeding those of ordinary people. He was also extremely brave and curious! In just a few years, he encountered countless strange events. Although he didn't cause any major disasters, it was quite a feat that he grew up safely.

Of course, this was also due to Old Wang's influence.

Old Wang, though he didn't have a prominent forehead, was definitely one of the most unusual people in the village.

On the surface, he was a doctor with exceptional medical skills, but there was a legend in the village.

People said that Old Wang wasn't a regular doctor; he was actually a "treasure hunter."

Treasure hunting is a unique skill, similar to tomb raiding but fundamentally different.

It is said that those who can treasure hunt have two characteristics: they are well-informed and knowledgeable, and they possess mysterious and secret skills.

No one knew who taught Old Wang this skill.

He wasn't from the area, and no one knew where he came from or what his background was.

All that was known was that Old Wang was quite skilled and had apparently killed people in his younger days, making him a well-known figure in the江湖 (jianghu, a term often used to describe the world of martial arts and outlaws).

Whether he was a notorious bandit or not, he was definitely not a good person, especially in his earlier years, when many people had witnessed his abilities.

That was the hardest time, with both natural disasters and human calamities. People were starving, eating grass roots and tree bark. When those ran out, they ate观音土 (Guanyin soil, a type of clay). When even that couldn't sustain them, they resorted to cannibalism.

People would exchange their children to eat.

While there were no reports of people in Wild Man Gorge actually exchanging children to eat, many people did starve to death. The dead were often left unburied, wrapped in straw mats and thrown into the mountains.

This provided a feast for wild animals.

At that time, even the wild animals were struggling. People had eaten all the grass roots and tree bark, and the animals were also hungry.

Desperate, they started eating people.

Unable to catch live people, they ate the dead.

At first, it was out of necessity, but later, it became a different story.

Elders said that these wild animals, once they tasted human flesh, would never want to eat anything else.

That's why, in novels, monsters and demons always prefer human flesh over other meats.

The problem was that at first, these creatures could eat the dead, but as the dead ran out, they started targeting the living, craving fresh meat.

Among the most feared by the villagers were two.

One was the old weasel.

The weasel, also known as the yellow weasel, was incredibly agile, able to climb walls and run along rooftops. During the day, you could see them emerging from the bellies of the dead, their heads poking out, not afraid of people, especially the larger ones, which would boldly enter people's homes to steal chickens and dogs. If they encountered young women or children, they might even chase them with a strange, eerie cry.

There were even reports of weasels entering homes to steal children.

Babies under three months old, left with their parents, would sometimes disappear overnight.

At the time, there were rumors of child kidnappings, and even the authorities were alarmed. To protect themselves, the villagers organized to ambush these creatures and gathered the children together for safety.

However, Wang Xiaoliu was very mischievous and often sneaked out.

At the time, he was just a toddler, barely able to run, but he was much more clever than other children and had night vision, loving to play outside at night.

One night, he was wandering the streets in a tiger hat when he suddenly saw something dart past.

Curious, he picked up a small stick and ran over to investigate.

To his surprise, the shadow also noticed him.

In the moonlight, he saw a scruffy yellow-furred creature, its body long and slender, with a black face, arched back, short legs, and a round head!

Its eyes were small and yellow, like beans, but they glowed with a yellow light.

It looked very sinister!

Wang Xiaoliu stopped in his tracks.

The old weasel also paused, standing still.

They stared at each other, both eyes wide, sizing each other up.

Clearly, both felt that something was off.