Chapter 52: Snakes Fear Pigs
Our Discord Server: https://discord.gg/PazjBDkTmW
You can buy coins here to unlock advanced chapters: https://gravitytales.com/coins-purchase-page/
Roads are made by people walking them – this was something Xu Yan often heard from the old Taoist’s mouth.
There indeed was no road ahead, only patches of endless white snow. But as long as they walked through it, wouldn’t a path appear behind them?
Simple logic – perhaps pigs would understand it, but many people wouldn’t.
Gritting his teeth, Xu Yan decided to try crossing the snowy mountains. Even if they truly couldn’t make it through, he could still turn back. He certainly couldn’t just wait for Mei Sanniang to die from poison.
This lady of Yuan Mountain Stronghold had taken great care of Xu Yan over these three months. Since she was Xu Yan’s friend, he absolutely wouldn’t abandon her.
Just as he was about to carry Mei Sanniang on his back, Xu Yan suddenly realized that his judgment and decision – whether to go forward or backward – actually didn’t matter anymore, because whether forward or backward, both were dead ends!
Under the tree where they had rested, a massive tree root protruding from the ground had somehow begun twisting, silently rising high, then splitting open a bloody maw that could swallow a calf whole.
It was a giant python resting under the tree, its color identical to the tree roots. As long as it didn’t move, no one could tell it apart.
The python, thick as a water barrel, opened its bloody maw right above Xu Yan and Mei Sanniang’s heads. If it were an ordinary python, Xu Yan might still have a chance to escape. But when he saw a ring of blood-red light floating in the python’s crimson eyes, Xu Yan’s heart completely sank to the bottom.
That wasn’t a python – it was a demon snake!
Heavy fishy stench emanated from the snake demon’s mouth. Its forked tongue flicked in and out, as if choosing which prey to devour first. The soft hissing sound awakened the sleeping Mei Sanniang. When she saw the giant python above her head, she nearly fainted from fright, covering her mouth tightly, not daring to make the slightest sound for fear of startling it into immediate attack.
Struggling to shift her body, Mei Sanniang blocked Xu Yan’s figure. At this moment she was no longer very afraid. Releasing the hand covering her mouth, she suddenly turned her face around.
“Live well for Third Sister!”
With strength from who knows where, Mei Sanniang pushed Xu Yan away. At the same time, the demon snake startled by its prey also pounced over, opening its maw to swallow Mei Sanniang whole.
Xu Yan’s pushed figure staggered backward. He wanted to pick up stones but couldn’t even lift his arms. His handsome small face became fierce again, and a long-suppressed roar burst out with his falling figure.
“No!!!”
Before the Heavenly Way, all living beings were powerless. Before natural enemies, wild rabbits were powerless. Facing powerful demons, mortals were even more powerless to change anything.
Xu Yan only felt his chest tighten and his throat turn sweet. A mouthful of fresh blood sprayed directly out, scattering on the white snow in a shocking sight.
Mei Sanniang closed her eyes. She heard Xu Yan’s angry roar. To have someone so unwilling at the moment of death wasn’t dying in vain. She could finally accompany Little Cheng in staying together in this boundless desolate mountain range.
Xu Yan’s roar, heard in Mei Sanniang’s ears, was a friend’s unwillingness and reluctance. However, heard in pig ears, it was the familiar call for mealtime.
With a rustling of flying grass and leaves, from a patch of vines not far away, a black streak shot out like lightning, as fast as Xu Yan’s Flying Locust, charging straight at the giant demon snake.
Perhaps rushing too urgently, with a muffled thud, that black streak actually knocked the demon snake’s massive body flying.
Before it could swallow its food, the demon snake was already pressed flat against the large tree, then slowly slid down.
Amid hissing angry roars, the massive demon snake reared up again. Two furious snake eyes fixed on the unwelcome guest who had disturbed its feeding. Thus a pair of snake eyes and a pair of pig eyes became locked together.
“Little Black!”
The fallen Xu Yan had already gotten up. He was now surprised to discover that his little black pig was confronting that giant snake. Mei Sanniang, who had thought herself doomed, also looked over with incredulous eyes.
The standoff between pig and snake didn’t last long. The final outcome was quite unexpected.
The simple honesty in the pig’s eyes actually defeated the venom in the snake’s eyes. The water barrel-thick giant snake twisted its body and silently slithered away, seeming quite fearful as it left.
Snakes fear pigs?
Xu Yan wiped the corner of his mouth, feeling inexplicably amazed by this discovery that overturned his perceptions.
Xu Yan had already seen when the little black pig charged over. The tremendous force generated when the black pig collided with the giant snake shook that large tree so much it was still swaying. Looking at the simple and honest little black pig, Xu Yan was truly baffled.
Fortunately the snake demon had retreated. He and Mei Sanniang finally didn’t have to become snake food.
“Is this your Little Black?”
Mei Sanniang gradually recovered from her fright. When eating the roasted lamb, she had actually thought she would die. Now facing this narrow escape from death, she wasn’t too afraid. Struggling to half-sit up, she asked curiously.
“Yes, my Little Black.”
Looking at the little black pig that couldn’t grab onto his clothes and fell to the ground, still trying its best to burrow into his arms, Xu Yan smiled bitterly: “My hands are broken. I can’t hold you anymore.”
Snort! Snort!
As if it could understand human speech, the little black pig circled around its master, supporting its long snout and snorting loudly, looking very angry, as if asking where the bad guys were so it could go avenge the little Taoist.
Patting Little Black’s back with his powerless arms, Xu Yan tilted his head and thought for a while, then his eyes lit up as he said to Mei Sanniang: “Third Sister, there’s a way!”
Little Black’s strength was great – Xu Yan had known this for a long time.
At Riding Cloud Temple, when Little Black ran wild in the mountains, it had once knocked down a tree as thick as a bowl. The tree broke, but it was completely unharmed.
Little Black wasn’t a domestic pig after all. Wild boars’ strength exceeded that of bears and tigers. Since Little Black had found him, crossing the snowy mountains now had a glimmer of hope.
Collecting some sturdy vines in the forest, Xu Yan spent half the day working with the weak Mei Sanniang to finally weave a simple sled. Though crude, it was enough for two people to lie on.
The vine-woven harness was firmly tied around the little black pig’s neck, making the piglet snort loudly.
After helping Mei Sanniang onto the sled and lying down securely himself, Xu Yan shouted for the little black pig to set off. As long as they could cross the snowy mountains and reach Qi Nation, the remaining journey would be relatively much easier.
Using the method of fighting poison with poison had temporarily delayed the deadly poison in Mei Sanniang’s body. This time period absolutely couldn’t exceed half a month. Perhaps in ten days or so, Mei Sanniang’s poisoning would become even more severe, because once the two deadly poisons stopped fighting each other and merged together, it would be almost instantly fatal.
Time wasn’t abundant, so Xu Yan was very anxious.
The little Taoist was anxious, but the little black pig wasn’t. Rolling its pig eyes and refusing to work, after twisting left and right and finding it couldn’t break free from the harness, it simply lay down on the ground and started snoring.
“Little Black, let’s go!”
“Little Black, please!”
“Little Black, do you want to become roast pig?”
“I’ll never feed you again!”
The last sentence had some effect. Hearing about not getting food, the little black pig hurriedly stood up, but still snorted and refused to pull the cart. This conversation between person and pig made even Mei Sanniang smile bitterly.
The furious Xu Yan really had no choice but to use his final trump card. He shouted loudly: “Cross the snowy mountains and we’ll eat!”
Snort snort!!!
Crossing mountains meant mealtime – this finally became the little black pig’s greatest motivation. Thus a black streak charged into the vast snowy mountains like lightning, its speed fast as a galloping horse raising snow all over the sky. Before long, two people and one pig disappeared into the white snow at the mountain’s end.
