The Eternal Way-Chapter 163: Half a Year

Swallowing Heaven Demon Nest.

This was a lawless land within a ten-thousand-mile radius, where demons and monsters gathered, occupying an area as vast as a country.

Though not as large as the great nations, it was even more terrifying than some smaller countries.

The Swallowing Heaven Demon Sovereign, whose identity and origins remained unknown to this day, was known for possessing a unique ability called Swallowing Heaven. When used, it could swallow the sky and blot out the sun, making the world as dark as a deep abyss.

It sounded very impressive, but as a signature move of a Fifth Rank Great Power, it undoubtedly had its unique qualities.

As the lord of the demon nest, the entire place was named after him. Under his command were the Six Polluted Demons, six toad spirits whose origins were well understood. They cultivated through the foul energy born from the principles of heavenly debauchery, achieving Sixth Rank power, each with their own formidable presence, surrounding the Swallowing Heaven Demon Sovereign, exuding fierce intimidation.

Under the might and reputation of these seven major demons, countless lesser demons pledged allegiance, fighting independently but nominally following the orders of the Six Polluted Demons. In reality, they mostly formed their own factions, seizing control over territories and ruling independently.

The Hundred Thousand Great Mountains of Baiyue were largely peaceful and orderly, with conflicts and frictions between various kingdoms rarely escalating into significant confrontations. Thus, the existence of the Swallowing Heaven Demon Nest stood out prominently.

However, these were not merely demons; they were demon fiends.

Simple demons were just another race without any particular distinction, but being referred to as demon fiends indicated that they were extremely vicious and malevolent beings.

Moreover, it wasn't just demon fiends; many practitioners of demonic arts and wanted criminals also took refuge in the Swallowing Heaven Demon Nest, turning it into a hub for malicious forces in Baiyue.

These demon fiends stationed in the Swallowing Heaven Demon Nest spread like black clouds, plundering everywhere, causing widespread suffering among the people.

Yes, there were indeed "people" in the Swallowing Heaven Demon Nest.

The demons frequently raided, competing to eat humans because... humans contained the three innate treasures.

As a naturally intelligent race, humans possessed these three innate treasures, making them more nutritious than wild beasts, which is why most demons preferred eating humans.

Not only did man-eating demons exist, but many human-demons also particularly enjoyed using humans as materials, such as when refining a hundred-soul banner, which required hundreds of living souls.

The three innate treasures were truly precious, useful in many applications.

Fortunately, under the constraints of the Righteous Sword Palace and three other countries, the Swallowing Heaven Demon Nest couldn't expand further.

There were three neighboring countries bordering the Swallowing Heaven Demon Nest, frequently engaging in battles. The demon nest often raided these countries for population, so the three sides continuously strengthened their defenses along the borders to prevent demon invasions.

This was Li Qi's first encounter with "war readiness" in this world, and despite the Swallowing Heaven Demon Nest facing off against four opponents, it managed to hold its ground, only constrained by its expansion.

However, on his journey, Li Qi noticed that the strategies of these three countries mainly involved holding their positions firmly, refusing to venture outside, defending against demon raids but never daring to step foot into the Swallowing Heaven Demon Nest.

Only the Righteous Sword Palace dared to charge in and slay demons and eliminate evil.

Most of what Li Qi learned came from idle chatter he heard along the way.

In fact, half a year had passed since Li Qi left Clear Mist City, constantly traveling towards the Swallowing Heaven Demon Nest, gathering information about the Righteous Sword Palace and the Swallowing Heaven Demon Nest.

After all, regardless of what one does, understanding must come before action.

—————————

Time flew by, and Li Qi, having left Clear Mist City, was now nearing the Swallowing Heaven Demon Nest.

At present, he was at the border of Hundred Forests (Bailin) Country. Crossing the border and passing through the frontier town would lead directly to the direction of the Swallowing Heaven Demon Nest.

Currently, Li Qi was surrounded by villagers, conducting a ritual ceremony.

Li Qi wore his usual clothes, without any special attire, but held a sacred wooden branch, standing before an altar, chanting loudly towards the sky:

"The people rely on food, food relies on grain, and grain relies on water. Without grain, people cannot survive, and without water, grain cannot grow. Since spring, the Heavenly Deity has been stingy with rain, causing drought in the mortal realm. Major rivers have shrunk, minor streams have dried up, fields are cracked, and crops are withered. This region is especially affected. Early rice planting has been reduced due to lack of water, mid-season rice seedlings have been damaged, and during this peak transplanting season, the area remains dry and short of rain. Without water for cultivation, survival is at stake."

"If the Mountain God blesses the common folk, then they will revere the Mountain God. If the Mountain God ignores the common folk, then they will lose faith. Heaven and earth are interconnected, deities and people depend on each other."

"I beseech the Mountain God to discern clearly and not withhold the mountain's essence!"

Li Qi recited the prayer in plain language, avoiding overly formal speech to ensure it was understandable.

He addressed the Mountain God because rainfall was primarily the responsibility of the Mountain God.

Clouds were the breath of mountains and rivers, leading to rain.

Cloud vapor arose from the steam rising from mountain waters, not true 'sky weather.'

Thus, among the six elements of heaven, cloud vapor was not included.

Therefore, during droughts, either powerful cultivators could transport water or draw endless water from the sea like true dragons, otherwise, it was best to ask the Mountain God politely.

Mountains and water were interdependent, and the Mountain God's domain surely contained water sources; otherwise, it wouldn't be considered a mountain worthy of a deity.

Under the hopeful gazes of the villagers, Li Qi waited at the altar for a while.

But the rain still didn't come.

Li Qi felt embarrassed, and the villagers began to lament and even express resentment.

However, Li Qi turned around and said, "Fellow villagers, please remain calm. I'll be back shortly."

With that, he whistled.

A robust dragon horse descended from the sky, covered in black scales like armor, stepping on auspicious clouds, standing eight and a half feet tall, majestic and imposing, adorned with hanging fur, its mane carrying faint electrical currents, roaring with thunder-like sounds as it landed amidst gusts of wind and clouds, incredibly awe-inspiring.

Upon seeing the dragon horse descend, the villagers knelt down, trembling with fear.

Then, Li Qi mounted the dragon horse, gave it a gentle pat on the leg, and charged into the mountain where the ceremony was taking place.

The villagers exchanged puzzled glances.

Within minutes, they saw wild beasts fleeing in fear, strong winds stirring up, clouds forming, and dust swirling around, accompanied by rumbling sounds.

Shortly after, clear energy rose from the mountain base, shining brightly and coalescing without dispersing.

An eerie wind descended slowly, swirling within the mountain, sometimes rising, sometimes falling, twisting continuously, followed by flashes of lightning, persistently chasing after it.

Then, thunder roared as if mountains were collapsing, the strange wind dispersing, vanishing into waves without a trace.

Lightning flashed again, pursuing relentlessly.

About fifteen minutes later, dark clouds appeared, swirling above, bringing raindrops.

Initially small droplets fell like pearls rolling on a plate, then torrents poured down like opening the heavens, akin to thousands of horses galloping wildly, nourishing rain showering the earth.

Li Qi emerged from the mountain entrance, his face unchanged, his clothes clean as new, calmly returning to the altar.

The villagers were still stunned.

"Now that the nourishing rain has fallen, I will take away a strand of your village's vitality as agreed. The Mountain God has promised that for the next three years, he will not withhold moisture, ensuring adequate rainfall, though perhaps not perfect weather conditions."

Upon hearing this, the villagers finally reacted.

They trembled, kneeling down, all previous grievances vanished, repeatedly bowing and chanting, "Great Witch protects us!"

"No need for such formality," Li Qi waved his hand. "If the Mountain God lacks benevolence, I, as a mediator, should address the needs of the people. But remember, if deities lack compassion, they can be petitioned, yet you must also conduct rituals respectfully. As I said, heaven and earth are interconnected, deities and people depend on each other, and all things are equal."

With that, according to the prior agreement, he extended his hand, extracting a strand of vitality from the gathered crowd.

Then, he turned and returned to the mountain.

Leaving behind villagers uncertain whether they truly understood, still shouting praises to the Great Witch and bowing repeatedly.

Passing through here for a brief rest, upon hearing about the Mountain God withholding rain, Li Qi took on the task, agreeing to take a strand of vitality as payment after helping them.

Since it was collected post-assistance, there was no karmic entanglement.

The collected vitality served as part of Li Qi's cultivation process, enhancing his abilities further.

However, he kept his inner divine essence suppressed, waiting for the opportunity mentioned by the Lord of Green Mountain to refine his primordial spirit, which would benefit future cultivation.

Li Qi left the crowd and entered the mountain,

As soon as he entered, Old Horse approached, neighing softly, carrying a yellow weasel on its back.

The yellow weasel's expression was strikingly human-like. Upon seeing Li Qi enter, it spoke immediately: "Witch, life requires reason and emotion. How hateful those unreasonable mortals are! I treated them kindly, yet they repaid me with malice. Every time outsiders visited, they complained about mistreatment, forgetting how I once protected them. Merely withholding moisture for a year to teach them a lesson, and you attacked me—what justice is this!"

It turned out this yellow weasel was the local Mountain God.

Looking at the weasel, Li Qi calmly replied, "No matter how wronged you feel, withholding rain for a year is unjustifiable. A year without rain affects not only humans but also forests, wildlife, and aquatic creatures. As a guardian of the mountain, shouldn't you fulfill your duties instead of enjoying offerings?"

"For personal desires to cut off a mountain's moisture is unacceptable. Punishing you serves as a reminder that deities exist because of people. Receiving offerings means you must act accordingly." (Note: The inscription for deity is '示申,' where 示 means ancient altar, and 申 means ancient variant of 'electricity,' extending to natural forces like thunder.)

The yellow weasel, initially confident, deflated slightly upon hearing this, murmuring, "Rivers drying up, forests withering, animals weakening... Naturally, it's my fault, but that village was too much!"

The yellow weasel became indignant: "I used to protect them, ensuring good weather. Then the Swallowing Heaven Demon Nest arrived, and I sacrificed sixty years of cultivation to maintain safety, though my strength was limited, and demons broke through my illusions, abducting several hundred villagers. Afterwards, they smashed my statue and destroyed my shrine, nearly severing my path. How could I tolerate that?!"

"How many people were in that village?" Li Qi asked.

The yellow weasel paused, recalling, "Around a thousand."

"A thousand-person village losing three to four hundred members, blaming them for ceasing worship?" Li Qi pressed.

"It's not my fault; I expended sixty years of cultivation to create those illusions—it's all I could do!" The yellow weasel protested, no longer fearing Li Qi.

"Why not discuss it? Cutting off the water supply without explanation, how could they continue worshipping you?" Li Qi waved his hand, saying, "You have difficulties, and they have hardships. People and gods depend on each other—how can temporary anger sever ties? Without them, how will your divine path proceed? Do you think you're a great deity worshipped across ten-thousand miles, unaffected by a few villages' disbelief?"

"The foundation of the divine path lies in power and integrity. Think about it, the Yellow Weasel clan struggles to achieve enlightenment. You've been diligent and kind. Protecting them for three years, see how things progress." Li Qi finished, grabbing the yellow weasel and tossing it up the mountain, leaving without hesitation, mounting Old Horse, and riding towards the main road.

Nothing worth lingering over; scenes like this were not uncommon in Li Qi's travels.

Throughout his journey, he handled numerous similar situations.

Coordinating between humans and deities, humans and ghosts, ghosts and deities, resolving misunderstandings and disputes, making fair judgments, and collecting corresponding energies.

This was one method of cultivation for mediators.

Of course, if one found it exhausting, they could retreat to the mountains and slowly cultivate, gradually shaping their microcosm, eventually advancing.

But compared to Li Qi's approach, it would be slower.

Each time Li Qi absorbed external energies, he enriched his microcosm. For instance, acquiring a village's vitality added a similar settlement within his microcosm.

According to texts, if one's microcosm could contain all types of 'energy' from the world, it would reach perfection.

Th𝗲 most uptodate novels are published on ƒгeewёbnovel.com.

However, directly harvesting energy leads to karmic entanglements.

For example, directly taking the village's vitality without balancing beforehand would bind Li Qi to the village's karma, hindering future development.

Some rural witches, unaware of the consequences, rapidly advanced initially but later paid dearly to settle their debts.

The path of witchcraft values righteousness, requiring constant vigilance.

Otherwise, failing to repay debts might lead to switching paths, such as joining demonic practices, absorbing karma as nourishment, focusing on plundering.

Li Qi rode Old Horse back to the roadside.

There, Shen Shuibei stood, dozing off.

Indeed, she was standing.