Of Mountains and Rivers

"Wait!"

As soon as Chu Huan moved his footsteps, Yuan Ping screamed. He intended to grab Chu Huan, but Chu Huan was wearing a "pygmy robe" and had nowhere to start, so he opened his voice and yelled.

Yuan Ping said: "The place where we met that child last time was flat land, right? At that time, he was chased like a dog. This place is a valley, and the energy of 'it' is still increasing. If we continue like this, can we still come up?" ?”

Luge held the head, and was unmoved by these words. He raised his eyebrows expressionlessly, as if implying that the old man can come and go on his own, and he doesn't care if the soldiers come and cover them up.

As expected of a man who has been worshiped as a mountain god for thousands of generations, there is a faint arrogance flashing on his body that makes ordinary people worship him.

Nanshan's arrogance was much milder. He thought about Yuan Ping's words for a while, and then said apologetically: "Yes, you are right, but we have already agreed to this wizard."

In the end, the famous crispy dog ​​Chu Huan gave a more reliable answer.

"Come here, from this angle." Chu Huan pressed Yuan Ping's head, "See? There is a river in the valley. On the other side of it, if something goes wrong, just retreat along that."

Only then did Yuan Ping realize that Chu Huan had already figured out a way out, and it wasn't the gentleman who was too sick to rashly agree to come back to be the Holy Mother. He immediately let go of his ten hearts: "Then why wait? Hurry up."

After finishing speaking, he has already gone down from the edge of the valley in a hurry.

Luge hurriedly followed, frowning dissatisfied with his cheap "son": "Unsteady."

A strong sense of suffocation was waiting for each other in the valley. After going deep into the hinterland, several people shut their mouths at the same time, and approached the crowd in the valley as quickly as possible.

Luge held the head in one hand and the scepter in the other, his teeth clenched.

He and Nanshan, one seemed indifferent, and the other seemed confident, but in fact they were both very nervous.

Are the devoured people really alive, and can they be released again?

Chu Huan was dazed by the cries that only he could hear. He endured it calmly, while ignoring the anxious and urgent gazes of Ruge and Nanshan with a firm heart, and quickly walked in the crowd. What are you searching for.

He was looking for an altar. If a family had a wizard, there must be an altar.

It's not hard to find the altar, just look where the men, women and children in the valley are facing.

When he found the altar, the breath in Chu Huan's lungs was almost exhausted. He quickly gestured to his companions, took a big step, and rushed to the altar that rose suddenly in the middle of the crowd, condescending.

Chu Huan nodded, Ruge immediately raised his hand, and raised the wizard's head high, as if holding up a solemn and sacred sacrifice, then put the head on the flame on the scepter, and lit it. up.

The fire burned extremely fast. The flame on the wizard's body was scorching hot, but the temperature was warm. The flame on the scepter looked cold, but the temperature was brutal.

Luge raised the burning head high with the tip of the knife. The burning head was brighter than the fire on the scepter. Chu Huan almost had the illusion that it illuminated all the people facing this place.

At this time, the breath in his chest was exhausted, and Chu Huan couldn't hold on even if he gritted his teeth to bleed, but he didn't say anything, because at the same time, Chu Huan realized that the crying in his ears was still there, But it's not terrible anymore.

In the dizzy and dizzy state of hypoxia, he restrainedly spit out a little turbid air in a long stream, and tried to breathe again.

The surrounding air is still sticky and chest tight, but the swamp-like feeling of suffocation has indeed disappeared.

The fresh oxygen stimulated Chu Huan's heart. He lifted his elbow and poked Yuan Ping, whose face had become a tomato: "Don't hold back, you can breathe."

Yuan Ping coughed violently after being bumped by his rough elbow, pointing at Chu Huan bitterly, speechless, Chu Huan: "Hush..."

The mournful howling finally slowly turned into a choked sob, and Chu Huan heard people calling for their wizard.

Chu Huan couldn't help smiling, as if he was touched, but his hand clenched the longbow hanging on his body, as if he was ready to fight again at any time.

The shadow lurking in these people's bodies is like a bomb, which may blow them up beyond recognition at any time.

Suddenly, the gloom on the first person slowly faded away, and then the whole valley was like dominoes, which were passed on one after another, and the wizard's nearly burnt head lit up his old family.And those silent, cold, stern, false...all were expelled, and the last bit of suffocating stickiness in the air was gone.

Chu Huan felt as if he had never smelled fresher air in his whole life.

The expelled shadows retreated from people's bodies in small strands, and the slender halos began to flow down from these aborigines' bodies, falling to the ground, and slowly spreading and growing like immature seedlings.

Violent tremors came from all around the valley, and Nanshan's voice sank: "Here we come."

As soon as he finished speaking, the shadows receding from people's bodies gradually gathered together, like a filthy dragon, like a whip, lashing towards the altar head and face.

But Chu Huan seemed to be waiting for this moment. He pulled out two feathered arrows and clasped his fingers up and down. The tip of the arrow swept across Luge's head and pierced directly into the flame on the scepter. Connected into a line, and his bowstring has already been prepared, and at this moment, the bow is shot like flowing clouds and flowing water——

The arrow sank to land like a meteor.

The fire wrapped around the body of the arrow disappeared into the shadows in a blink of an eye, and suddenly there was a sudden explosion sound from the silent sinking ground. The bright firework exploded in the middle of the shadows, and the majestic big black snake was blown into pieces. Gu Tou didn't care about the torn rag on his buttocks.

Emotionally, Chu Huan really wanted to stand still and appreciate the effect of the counterattack, but his strong reason and self-control were still there, so when there was a pull on the rope on his wrist, he decisively followed his companion Sa Yazi and ran up.

Since the "fallen world" has become some kind of "savage carnivore", Chu Huan also has a new view on those shadows that are chasing after him-the shadows that were originally invisible and intangible, and seem to have nowhere to go, have become Things like the flower vines that became dead flowers, Mutai's wind arrows, and the sound beast's big tail.

If the fire on the scepter is really its nemesis, then such an attack should definitely be effective.

It's a pity that the life of the fire after leaving the scepter is very short, otherwise they can try to set fire to the mountain.

This was their first successful counterattack since they entered the fallen ground. Chu Huan's arrows were more invigorating than giving a dying man a booster shot. In the end, Chu Huan saw that they were in danger of being playful, and quickly stopped them: "Be careful, the arrows you bring out are countless!"

Yuan Ping told him happily: "It doesn't matter. There are so many private houses on the roadside, and every family has hunters. If you run out of arrows, just go in and get them."

Chu Huan was taken aback for a moment, thinking to himself: "Damn it, that's right!"

Nanshan smiled shyly, as if he felt a little ashamed of taking things for himself without asking questions, but in this critical period, he had no choice but to be informal.

Several people drove fire nails into the shadows while running, and followed the established retreat path to the mountain stream called by the caller.

Nanshan who opened the way went straight into the water: "Jump down!"

Yuan Ping was taken aback: "Wait, what about Huo? Huo is afraid..."

He didn't finish being afraid, Chu Huan kicked his ass, kicking Yuan Ping into the water.

Yuan Ping: "Ah——"

Afterwards, he found himself enveloped in an invisible airflow. Nanshan turned his head and smiled at him, his palm moved slightly, and the airflow curled into a bubble, firmly protecting several people in it.Luge, who was the last to enter the water, was not surprised, and held the scepter in his hand steadily, and the flame on the scepter remained motionless under the isolation of the air bubbles.

The mountain stream looked limp at first glance, but unexpectedly the water flow was quite turbulent.

A few people took a "fun boat" and went straight down the river.

The mountain stream passes through the cave and merges into a river. When the river reaches the downstream, the pattern suddenly widens, and the whitish water splashes for thousands of miles. Chu Huan's evil heart is finally used in the right place this time. This is really the best way. The road - much faster than they ran with their own two legs, and it didn't take long to get rid of the shadow that was chasing after them.

Chu Huan asked Nanshan loudly: "Patriarch, is the direction downstream right?"

Nanshan roughly estimated in his heart: "Yes."

Chu Huan showed a weird smile: "Then I can rest assured."

Seeing his expression, Yuan Ping immediately knew that something was wrong. He immediately felt vigilant and looked around with sweat all over his body. Suddenly, he realized: "Wait, there seems to be a mountain drop here..."

Ruge sighed, and educated Yuan Ping with reference to Chu Huan, a "child from someone else's family", and said, "Don't make such a fuss all the time."

Yuan Ping wailed: "No, no, no, patriarch, he can't be trusted with a dead peacock. There are..."

The rope around his wrist was pulled suddenly, Yuan Ping got stuck in his throat, and Lian Nanshan was almost unable to stabilize--I saw the flood came to an end, and there was no buffer below, it was a big waterfall that went straight up and down, pouring Straight up and down like a galaxy.

Amidst Yuan Ping's screams, several people followed the waterfall and fell three thousand feet straight down.

Yuan Ping: "I don't want to sit on a flush toilet at all—patriarch, don't ask me what a flush toilet is..."

Miraculously, the "bubble" boat that four people were riding on did not disintegrate in front of the Great Falls. The fire of the scepter was always wrapped in it, solid as a rock. The few people rolled into the Great Falls like a radiant spherical crystal down the deep pool.

The water flowed down from a height, containing huge energy, and the four of them drifted involuntarily in the water for a long time, until they approached a flat terrain, the water flow gradually slowed down, and they found a chance to climb ashore.

As soon as Nanshan's feet touched the ground, his knees softened. It was not an easy task for him to maintain that "bubble". He lay down on the ground and refused to move, Ruger had no choice but to agree to rest where he was.

Nan Shan rested on Chu Huan's knee with his eyes closed, Yuan Ping remained motionless, Lu Ge stood aside and silently calculated the distance, Chu Huan had nothing to do, so he had to sit silently and think.

He casually grabbed a handful of small stones on the ground, and remembered that a certain problem was already known, so he put a small stone on the left, half understanding, and he put a small stone in the middle, completely unaware of why is placed on the far right.

After going through his train of thought from the beginning, Chu Huan wrestled with the row of stones in the middle alone. According to his experience, it doesn’t matter what he fully understands or what he doesn’t understand at all. The most dangerous things always come from those who don’t understand at all.

Yuan Ping knew his habit, and when he saw this movement, he quickly got up and sat cross-legged opposite him, pretending to be foolish and saying: "If there is anything you don't understand, tell me and I will explain it to you."

Chu Huan lazily raised his eyelids, glanced at him with a half-smile, threw the pebble in his hand twice and then caught it: "Okay, come here and I'll tell you."

Xiaolu "hissed" and spat out the snake letter.

Yuan Ping found that it would be better for him to break up with this person.

Immediately, Chu Huan restrained his smile, grabbed a handful of stones and twirled them in his hands: "The first question, is 'it' a whole or a group?"

Yuan Ping was taken aback, and even Nan Shan, who was lying in Chu Huan's arms, opened his eyes.

Yuan Ping: "What's the difference?"

"I can't say it yet, but I always feel that this question is very important." Chu Huan shook his head, put down a stone, and then rolled up the second one, "The next question, from the wizard to their own valley, only half a day I think he and his own people should be devoured at about the same time. Why is he dead when others don’t look good? No, I’m not talking about him being beheaded by us, but beheading Before, he was already weak to death."

Yuan Ping sat up straight from the distorted state, bowed his head and remained silent for a moment: "Your question is too complicated, it needs to be split."

Chu Huan: "Okay, you take it apart."

In the backcountry, in the wilderness, the two sat facing each other, and in a trance, they returned to the days when they were reluctant partners.

Both Chu Huan and Yuan Ping knew that the other was a scam, but they had to admit that the other could be reliable once in a while.

Nanshan came to his senses completely, and even Luge condescended to come over, holding his unfathomable water ghost... No, the mountain god put on airs and listened very carefully.

Yuan Ping: "First of all, does 'it' really eat people? Suppose 'it' eats people and animals, but the number of people and animals in this world is always limited. What will happen if we eat up 'it' one day?"

Chu Huan put a stone on his left hand side: "I believed it at first, but now I doubt it - we have traveled such a long way and found that people here don't need to eat. After such a long time, they rely on What is alive?"

Yuan Ping: "So?"

Chu Huan: "So 'it' is not eating people, on the contrary, I suspect that 'it' is raising these people."

When Chu Huan spoke, his chest and abdomen vibrated slightly. His voice was not high, just like a whisper, and a little low, shaking Nan Shan a little distracted. Nan Shan knew what they were talking about was very important, so he quickly left Chu Huan's arms with a dry cough, and sat up. With a serious expression: "Go on, and then?"

Yuan Ping: "Following the above question, 'it' raises these people, with what and why?"

Just as Chu Huan was about to answer, he seemed to think of something again. He stopped talking for a moment, and his eyes wandered slightly by the dark river.

Nanshan stared at him without blinking: "What did you think of?"

"The sequence of those monsters," Chu Huan murmured, "Look... the flat-panel is similar to a human, a mammal, and there is a wing-like membrane on the back of Mutai, which seems to be between mammals and birds Among them, the sound beast is a reptile, an oculophagus is an insect, it is an invertebrate, a little white flower and a phantom monkey...they are not animals at all."

This time, without waiting to ask, Chu Huan's speech speed suddenly accelerated: "Have you noticed? As their combat power increases, their form is equivalent to degenerating. I suspect this implies that the body of 'it' is also a comparison. Lower organisms—plants and even some fungi—can use solar energy.”

"You answered 'what to feed', but didn't answer why." Yuan Ping said, "Moreover, why does 'it' imprison people's consciousness? The wizard's consciousness has always been sober, but he still has nothing to do. Even those who are 'awakened' by us, the body is still immobile, 'it' has paralyzed people's bodies in some way, why do they release hallucinations on a large scale to imprison their consciousness? This is not taking off pants fart?"

Ruger listened intently, and nodded involuntarily, then realized what he had done, and the embarrassment flashed across his face.

Chu Huan didn't say a word, he frowned and thought about it. Nanshan stared at his side face and held his breath involuntarily.

Yuan Ping didn't wait for him, and then asked the last question: "Going back to your previous question - why is the wizard dead, but his clansmen are still alive? In my opinion, the only difference between them is that the wizard's Consciousness is awake."

"I... have a guess." After a long time, Chu Huan broke the silence and said softly, "Those whose consciousness is trapped in it have already become a part of 'it'. Is it even possible that the huge shadow that spread so fast is... ...who were swallowed into it?"

Yuan Ping continued: "The wizard's body is imprisoned, but his consciousness is clear, so 'it' cannot fully assimilate him. Correspondingly, the energy supply the wizard receives is very limited."

The two looked at each other, realized a problem at the same time, and felt horrified... If their deduction is correct, then those so-called "awakened" people will follow in the footsteps of their wizards after a while?

Do you want to live forever in sinking, or die quickly in resistance?