Journey to the West: Treasure Vase of the Great Dao

However, this mountain wasn't randomly chosen. According to the Underworld's plan, in order to tightly integrate the City God's Path with the Human Path, it was necessary for the master of the Human Path to worship the land and sign the divine-human pact.

This divine-human pact was naturally extraordinary, and the mountain selected would benefit, thus becoming a unique fengshan site within the Great Chen territory, and could not be chosen carelessly.

Yet, Lu Yu had traveled across many famous mountains in Great Chen but still hadn't found his ideal one until he heard the rumors of the Mountain God's Silenced Beasts a few days ago, which piqued his interest to visit the mountain.

The Mountain God's Silenced Beasts was a magical legend from Izumo Mountain in recent years. It began with a hunter encountering a fierce beast attack while hunting in the mountains, but to his surprise, the fierce beast could not bring himself to bite the hunter.

Likewise, when fierce beasts broke into the villages at the base of the mountain, they also could not bring themselves to harm anyone at the last moment.

Some elders claimed that the Mountain God of Izumo Mountain had silenced the beasts' mouths to prevent them from harming humans, which made the incense offerings at the Mountain God Temple of Izumo Mountain much more abundant than before, even inspiring some literati and scholars who visited to write stories about it and spread them widely.

However, from the start, Lu Yu used his Dharma Eye and discovered that this supposed Mountain God of Izumo Mountain had fallen at some point, leaving only a Gold Seal that symbolized the Mountain God's position within his Law Domain.

Seeing the Ghost General holding back the tiger's mouth from harming him, he realized that this Ghost General was the one worshiped as the Mountain God of Izumo Mountain by the people.

The Ghost General looked into the distance and said, "It's not about hardship, just peace of mind."

Lu Yu clapped and laughed, "What a phrase, 'just seeking peace of mind.' Are you interested in sharing your story? I'm quite a good listener."

Lu Yu smiled at the Ghost General. Honestly, he was very curious about him, wondering what kind of experiences led him to speak such words.

The Ghost General lifted his head to glance at the sky, his expression seemingly returning to the past. He paused for a long time before sadly saying, "My name is Shi Qingfeng, originally a Military General of Great Chen. To serve as a soldier and fight on the battlefield was my entire life."

"I took pride in serving in the martial ranks, always charging ahead in every battle. Although I sometimes got injured, I enjoyed that life. Until one day, I followed my General to exterminate bandits."

"It was a very calm night. We stormed into the bandit's stronghold, but what I saw weren't detestable robbers, just a group of common people who couldn't afford the heavy taxes. At that moment, I hesitated."

"I've encountered the fiercest enemies and crawled out of piles of corpses, but no moment had ever frightened me as much as that night. Among that group were young children, looking at me with innocent eyes as if questioning why I was killing them. My hands trembled terribly, yet the General still ordered us to eliminate all of them, needing this deed to pave his way for promotion."

"After that, I couldn't face myself. Every night I would dream of those children, their eyes staring at me in silence; every time I would wake up startled. Eventually, I made a decision."

"I became a deserter, a disgraceful deserter, the kind I had once despised the most. I fled from the army, travelling northward until I got here, only to die under an unexpected landslide. It's ironic; having clawed my way out of death numerous times, my comrades in the army said I was tough, but an abrupt landslide took my life.

Perhaps it was karma, retribution for having killed those innocent people."

Lu Yu quietly listened to the Ghost General's tale, never imagining that such a mighty and robust man could possess such a compassionate heart. To maintain one's true nature amidst slaughter and temptation is truly no easy feat.n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

"And then what happened, what made you think of doing such things?"

"When I woke up, I found myself turned into a ghost. For some reason, the supposed Soul-Reaping Messenger never came for me, and I became a lone, wandering spirit in Izumo Mountain."

"One day, I saw a hunter entering the forest. He was already quite old, but his youngest daughter was about to be married, and the family was too poor to afford a decent dowry. Thus the hunter, who had long since given up hunting, had no choice but to take up his old trade again, hoping to catch a fine pelt to add to his daughter's dowry, just so she could have a better life at her husband's."

"The love of parents knows no bounds. I followed him, watching as he crawled in the cold snow for half a day, shivering to the bone yet daring not to make a sound, for fear of scaring away the prey he had waited so long for. In the end, he finally captured a fine snow fox, but when that hungry wolf appeared before him, he despaired.

The look in his eyes reminded me of the women and children who died by my hands, and I couldn't help intervening to assist him."

"After the first time comes the second. People always find endless reasons to convince themselves to do what they want, and I was no exception. Even though I could feel my power fading every time, my heart felt remarkably at peace—perhaps that's why the Soul-Reaping Messenger didn't come for me; to let me atone in this way."

Shi Qingfeng slowly shared his past, without a hint of the chill that should emanate from a Shadow Soul. The light from within him was enough to warm any heart.

"Only the guilty need to atone, Shi Qingfeng, what sins do you need to redeem? In the end, it's just the unease of a man too kind!"

"Perhaps you're right, who would have thought that I, a man with hands stained in blood, could be called a good man!" Shi Qingfeng said with a wry smile as he looked at his ghostly hand, which had become somewhat fierce-looking.

But Lu Yu smiled and replied, "It's hard to be a good person, even harder to be a perpetual good man. That's why every good man should be respected. How long do you plan to shoulder this destiny?"

"I haven't thought about it, as long as I live another day in this world, I'll persist for one more day!"

His words were plain, but they deeply moved Lu Yu. Not everyone had such awareness. So, he handed over the Gold Seal he had acquired from the Mountain God's Domain to Shi Qingfeng.

"I think if you want to help more people, this item should suit you!"

"What is this?" Shi Qingfeng took the Gold Seal and felt a very familiar aura from it. Although he had not been granted the Divine Position of Izumo Mountain, the villagers had long worshipped him as the Mountain God, and he'd already established a faint connection with the Gold Seal. If he persisted for another decade or so, he might naturally become the Mountain God of Izumo Mountain.

"This is the Gold Seal of the Mountain God of Izumo Mountain. If you refine it, you will become the Mountain God of the vast Izumo, and you will be able to help even more people. This path is not easy to walk, have you made your decision?"