Chapter 166: Flying Creatures and Beasts, Quickly Return to Your Positions

He Lingchuan was startled, as if his hand had slipped, and the small remaining piece of green onion root dropped to the ground. "What does that have to do with us?"

"The monsters stirring up trouble domestically are one thing. The biggest hidden danger is to the north."

At these words, Moze Niansheng and Wu Shaoyi's expressions tightened, and they almost spoke in unison: "The Demon Kingdom!"

Bordering Da Yuan to the north was the Demon Kingdom.

He Lingchuan's original self enjoyed listening to stories, and while he might not have known much about domestic affairs, he had heard many strange tales, many of which mentioned the Northern Demon Kingdom.

Human nations were called Human Kingdoms, so naturally, a nation established and governed by demons was a Demon Kingdom.

Humans and demons had been intertwined since ancient times, with humans destroying demons and demons preying on humans in an endless cycle. When humans established nations, they could gather strength from all directions to resist demons. Especially after learning to use primal energy, individual demons were no match for humans.

Therefore, demon clans also gathered, learning from humans to establish their own nations.

There were many Demon Kingdoms in this world. One, almost the strongest in the world, was located north of Da Yuan, named "Beijia." However, the Yuan people simply referred to it as the Northern Demon Kingdom.

Greater demons generally had long lifespans, so Demon Kingdoms often lasted much longer than Human Kingdoms.

The Northern Demon Kingdom had existed for six hundred years and stood strong to this day, while the land He Lingchuan stood on had changed hands numerous times.

But there were exceptions to everything, especially the appearance of the Emperor's Dew, which often broke the norm.

"Every time the Emperor's Dew appears, the Demon Kingdom experiences severe upheaval, inevitably affecting its surroundings," He Chunhua frowned. "The crocodile demon from Xianling Lake only entered Yuan territory and caused trouble in our country because the Demon Kingdom changed hands. The Demon Kingdom's situation changed not long ago, and now it has suddenly encountered the Emperor's Dew again, which will likely cause even more chaos internally."

As they spoke, someone came to report from outside: "My Lord, Kuzhu County has sent an invitation."

He Chunhua took the letter and glanced at it. "Go reply and tell them we will certainly assist from the side tomorrow morning."

After the messenger left, He Yue asked, "Assist from the side? Are we performing a ritual or a ceremony?"

"With the Emperor's Dew appearing and demons stirring, Kuzhu County will issue a demon-pacifying proclamation tomorrow morning," He Chunhua said solemnly. "As a royal court official, I should assist."

Madam Ying walked over and said, "I just heard that a village fifteen li away was attacked this morning, and bird demons entered homes and stole children."

He Lingchuan interjected, "In the afternoon, people in Shuanghe Town were also attacked by mongooses and lost two toes."

"This is still in the densely populated area near Woling Pass; remote areas are even worse," Moze Jingxuan sighed. "The arrival of the Emperor's Dew doesn't always have good consequences."

"That's why Kuzhu County needs to draft benevolent decrees to expel evil demons, first explaining the situation and warning new demons not to run rampant. If they don't listen, the next step is force," He Chunhua stood up. "Everyone, go to bed early tonight. We leave before cockcrow."

The next morning, the assisting army arrived at Fengling Ferry on time.

The common people were already waiting there, ready to watch. The Kuzhu County Magistrate led the local gentry forward to greet He Chunhua, engaging in polite exchanges.

Then, it was precisely Chen Shi San Ke (8:45 AM).

The Kuzhu County Magistrate ordered five fat pigs, fifteen roosters, and nine baskets of live fish to be placed by the water. He then stood on a large rock at the ferry crossing, unfurled a document, and began to read it aloud.

His personal voice wasn't loud, and it was a bit hoarse. But from the moment he began speaking, the Sheji Token at his waist emitted a bright light.

It was a beautiful, cloudless day with the sun high in the sky. He Lingchuan saw a faint, almost imperceptible mass of green energy gathering above Fengling Ferry.

On closer inspection, this green energy was emanating from the common people and local militia of Kuzhu County below, as well as from the assisting army led by He Chunhua.

The Yang energy was potent.

The Kuzhu County Magistrate suddenly let out a sharp cry, "Duo!", and sound waves exploded in all directions, causing the trees in the forest to tremble ceaselessly. The surface of Hongchuan River also surged with waves, as if there were large and small whirlpools and rapids beneath.

He Lingchuan didn't pay close attention to what was being recited, only noting that it was flowery, ornate prose with perfect parallelism and clear rhythm. The only question was whether the birds and beasts, now demons, could actually understand it.

It seemed to require a high level of cultural understanding.

Not to mention the demons, even he didn't fully understand some of the phrases.

In any case, He Lingchuan's personal translation was that Kuzhu County was warning the newly matured demons in the vicinity not to run wild on the villagers' land, especially forbidding them from eating humans, so that demons and humans could coexist peacefully. Furthermore, all mountain spirits and water spirits were to further ensure their responsibility in restraining birds and beasts; whoever was responsible for a territory would manage it, and whoever shirked their duty would lose their position, offerings, and primal energy.

The more he recited, the denser the green energy above Fengling Ferry became.

When the Kuzhu County Magistrate finished the last few resounding words, he lit the document and tossed it onto the river surface in front of him.

The green energy in the sky suddenly descended, swooping past the document with a whoosh.

The document instantly turned into a myriad of sparks.

When the two met, the green energy ignited, dyeing half the sky red.

Only then did He Lingchuan realize that it was a gigantic phantom of a green kite, twenty zhang long and with a thirty zhang wingspan. After being tempered by fire, it transformed into a fiery kite, burning completely as it let out a soul-stirring long cry, sweeping over the mountains, forests, and river.

Everything in its path ignited—forests, earth, rocks, and water, none were spared.

The place where everyone stood, originally a scene of verdant mountains and clear waters, instantly became a world of blazing fire.

Immediately, countless beasts fled from the mountains, birds soared into the sky, and fish leaped from the water, all terrified.

However, after circling once, the fiery kite flew into the clouds and disappeared. The great fire at Fengling Ferry immediately extinguished, without even a wisp of smoke rising.

He Lingchuan looked closely and saw that the small tree two zhang away, which had been on fire, was completely intact from branch to leaf.

The Kuzhu County Magistrate shouted, "Birds and beasts, return to your places immediately!"

He repeated this several times, his voice reverberating throughout the land with the blessing of the Sheji Token.

Amazingly, the animals seemed to understand; they turned around and slowly returned to their original spots.

Only two large bears ambled out, opening their gaping mouths to roar at their surroundings.

Seeing this, the nearby commoners quickly retreated two steps.

These creatures were too terrifying.

But the two giant bears did not attack anyone; they merely nodded to the magistrate and each carried away a fat pig in their mouths.

Standing almost two zhang tall, their bodies were sleek and shiny, beyond what "burly" could describe. Even a nearly four-hundred-jin fat pig was easily grasped by them.

He Yue whispered, "Generally, the first to come out and take the offerings are the local mountain and water spirits. This indicates they have accepted the Kuzhu County Magistrate's proclamation." They would then properly fulfill their duties.

With the mountain and water spirits setting an example, the demons from the forest stepped forward to take items. A pack of wolves collectively dragged away a pig, a few weasels snatched chickens, and what puzzled He Lingchuan the most was a large herd of goats that ambled out of the forest and, in front of everyone, ate over a dozen fish and two chickens...

"Wait, do goats eat meat, or do goat demons eat everything?"

Wu Shaoyi whispered, "It's not strange. People from the Western Regions told me that in their customs, goats are often illusions created by evil spirits."

Birds from the sky also descended, taking fish from the baskets. It was a large, flapping group, their wings stirring the air.

Ordinary birds would never dare to come so close to humans.

Only the water remained still.

He Chunhua stepped forward and asked, "Have the water spirits not come?"

"The water spirit for this section of Hongchuan River might have perished in the recent battle at Woling Pass," the Kuzhu County Magistrate sighed. "The water spirit's tablet is broken, and its divine position is vacant. We need a new water spirit."

Having said that, he instructed the soldiers to move all the remaining live offerings to Wuxin Pool, not far away.

That was also a lagoon, away from the main shipping lane.

He Lingchuan followed and saw the soldiers walk onto the pier, pushing all the live offerings into the water, except for one fat pig.

The once calm pool suddenly began to boil.

Occasionally, large fins and mouths surfaced, but before anyone could clearly see their bodies, they submerged again.

Large and small whirlpools appeared in the pool.

Now He Lingchuan understood that water monsters were fighting below.

Sometimes what surfaced were bubbles, and other times, it was blood!

Dark red or dark green blood.

He asked He Yue, "Could it be that the original water spirit here was bitten to death by our old acquaintance?"

He Yue gave a wry smile. "Most likely." The giant crocodile, Ying Hong, had participated in the battle at Woling Pass at their previous invitation. Although it was an amphibious demon, its home ground was definitely in the water.

The original water spirit of Hongchuan River, officially enfeoffed, had opposed the rebel army, so the crocodile demon certainly wouldn't tolerate it.

This creature was truly formidable; it had eliminated at least two water spirits.

Yet, it itself had been driven out by the Northern Demon Kingdom. Thinking of this, He Lingchuan felt a sense of longing, wondering if the incredible, world-shaking great demons he'd heard about in stories truly existed in the Northern Demon Kingdom.

He Chunhua also turned his head and quietly joined their discussion: "Kuzhu County's original mountain spirit wasn't that pair of black bears."

"The original mountain spirit was also killed?" He Lingchuan gasped. "Being a mountain or water spirit here is truly a high-risk profession."

"No, it didn't die. It was a striped tiger."

He Yue asked in surprise, "Then it didn't come out today? That seems inappropriate, especially on such an important day."

Mountain and water spirits were supposed to help local officials maintain stability and display their dominance over their territory, which would deter new demons and prevent them from becoming a menace.

The Kuzhu County Magistrate's previous grand display of the fiery kite, powered by the Sheji Token and a significant amount of primal energy, was also intended to humble the arrogant new demons, to show them humanity's power and deter them from preying on humans.

This was not only for the authorities and for humanity but also for the smooth continuation of their own rule. Therefore, mountain and water spirits generally cooperated actively.

"It's said to have resigned and left for the Northern Demon Kingdom."

He Lingchuan asked curiously, "Why?"

"You'd have to ask it yourself," He Chunhua smiled. "But if I were to say, a hidden dragon doesn't stay in the abyss forever."

As they spoke, the turmoil in Wuxin Pool gradually subsided. Many ripples appeared on the water's surface, sometimes with high fins, indicating that many aquatic creatures had left.

At this moment, a large black fish swam close to the shore, its basket-sized head facing the magistrate, unmoving.

He Lingchuan noticed many scars on its body.

The Kuzhu County Magistrate asked it, "Have the other aquatic creatures submitted?"

The large black fish nodded up and down.

"Are you willing to take over the position of water spirit and ensure safe passage for boats at Fengling Ferry?"

The large black fish nodded again.