Chapter 933: The Eight-Eyed Crows |
Liu Xing and Dogo Aige bypassed the village and went straight to the big tree.
As a mythical creature, the mission of communicating with the Eight-Eyed Crows naturally fell to Dogo Aige.
"So, how do crows communicate?"
Dogo Aige scratched his head and said helplessly, "Although I and the Eight-Eyed Crows are both mythical creatures, the mythical creatures in this world are not all related. How would I know how this group of Eight-Eyed Crows communicate?"
Despite saying this, Dogo Aige still tried to make some crow-like sounds towards the Eight-Eyed Crows, which sounded more like a goose honking.
The Eight-Eyed Crows in the tree ignored Dogo Aige, which made him so angry that he kicked the tree a few times, scaring the crows and causing them to fly away.
However, the crows all flew in the same direction.
Seeing this, Liu Xing immediately thought of a possibility—the crows were "going home"!
Liu Xing patted Dogo Aige's shoulder and said with a smile, "Let's follow these crows and find their leader."
However, this was the Ancient Mountain Forest, so moving around in this undeveloped wilderness was very inconvenient, and their field of vision was also greatly restricted. As a result, Liu Xing and Dogo Aige soon lost track of the crows and got a little lost in the forest.
The forest was filled with tall trees and dense undergrowth, and there was no difference in sight no matter where they looked.
Liu Xing looked at Dogo Aige with a headache and pointed to the big tree in front of them, saying, "Dogo Aige, you should be able to climb trees, right? So, climb up and see where we are. If possible, also try to locate the group of Eight-Eyed Crows."
Dogo Aige nodded and immediately transformed into his Deep One form, using his sharp claws to quickly climb to the top of the tree.
After staying at the top of the tree for a while, Dogo Aige jumped down and said, "We are currently at the halfway point of this mountain, and the group of Eight-Eyed Crows is circling around the top of the mountain. If nothing unexpected happens, that should be their nest. But Liu Xing, do we really want to go to their nest? What if they don't want to talk to us?"
"No big deal," Liu Xing shook his head and said, "For us, the only thing we can do now is to talk to the leader of the Eight-Eyed Crows and discuss the situation here. See if they know how to leave this place, because our understanding of this world of poetry and literature is still too limited, and it's too difficult to try to find our way out on our own."
As Liu Xing spoke, he began walking towards the top of the mountain.
Seeing this, Dogo Aige didn't say much and continued to maintain his Deep One form to prepare for any potential combat.
Climbing the mountain was indeed exhausting.
By the time Liu Xing saw the group of Eight-Eyed Crows again, his legs were sore and he was out of breath.
Before approaching the crows' nest, Liu Xing asked Dogo Aige to sit down and rest, and also gave him some final instructions.
"Dogo Aige, when we enter the nest of the Eight-Eyed Crows, if we encounter their leader and they are willing to talk to us, you must keep quiet and not say a word. Most importantly, don't touch anything, or they might turn against us!"
Seeing Liu Xing's serious expression, Dogo Aige quickly nodded and patted his chest, saying, "Don't worry, Liu Xing. Since you've said so, I'll definitely be your bodyguard and behave myself. But what if they start a fight? Should we fight or run?"
"Of course, we should run. This is their home turf," Liu Xing said, giving Dogo Aige a sidelong glance. "A wise man doesn't court disaster. If we fight here, aren't we just asking for trouble? So, if things look bad, we should use the thirty-six strategies and retreat. Don't even think about confronting them head-on, because we'll definitely be the ones at a disadvantage in the end."
After repeatedly instructing Dogo Aige, Liu Xing, feeling rested, continued on with Dogo Aige and arrived at the place where the Eight-Eyed Crows were circling—outside a huge cave.
Liu Xing examined the cave and realized that it was man-made. He wondered if the cave would revert to its original state at a specific time.
At that moment, a young man in a black robe with a handsome Asian appearance walked out of the cave.
He looked like an Asian.
Obviously, he was not an NPC in the world of poetry and literature, because Liu Xing couldn't think of any poems or literature related to caves, except for "Peach Blossom Spring."
Speaking of "Peach Blossom Spring," Liu Xing suddenly thought of a possibility. Perhaps the "Peach Blossom Spring" in the story was actually a page of poetry and literature that fell into the cave. However, the conditions for entering and leaving this page were relatively simple, so the villagers and fishermen could easily enter it. After the fisherman left, the villagers might have thought that the fisherman would reveal their location, so they sent someone with the page to another place. That's why the fisherman and the local prefect could no longer find the "Peach Blossom Spring."
Yes, it made sense and was quite convincing.
At this time, the young man nodded to Liu Xing and Dogo Aige and asked, "Where are you two from?"
Liu Xing frowned, not expecting the young man to ask such a difficult question right away.
This was one of the three philosophical questions!
Liu Xing thought for a moment and said, "We are from the 21st century."
Now it was the young man's turn to look confused, as he clearly didn't know what the 21st century meant.
Seeing this, Liu Xing realized that the young man had been in the world of poetry and literature for many years, as Asians had only recently started using the term "century" in the last few hundred years.
Thinking of this, Liu Xing couldn't help but ask, "When did you enter this world?"
The young man thought for a moment and replied, "If I remember correctly, I entered this world in Yuan Gui Year 1."
Yuan Gui Year 1?
Liu Xing remembered that this was a year during the Warring States period in the Island Nation, when the shogun was Ashikaga Yoshiaki. Liu Xing remembered this because he had recently played the game "Nobunaga's Ambition" in the real world, and the current year was displayed during the cutscenes. So, when playing the early scenarios, he often saw the year as Yuan Gui xx.
This meant that the young man had been in the world of poetry and literature for five or six hundred years.
However, from his appearance, Liu Xing couldn't tell if he was a mythical creature, as the young man had no distinctive features.
Of course, judging from the fact that he showed no pressure when facing Dogo Aige in his Deep One form, the young man's strength must be quite impressive, and he was confident in dealing with a Deep One and a "mythical creature whose identity was not yet exposed."
So, Liu Xing knew that he couldn't threaten him.
"Then we entered this world five or six hundred years after you," Liu Xing said seriously.
The young man was taken aback, then shook his head and said, "Indeed, time flies in the mountains. I didn't expect that five or six hundred years have passed so quickly... Is the Island Nation still ruled by the shogun?"
Liu Xing thought for a moment and shook his head, "No, the shogunate was overthrown over a hundred years ago. Now, the Island Nation is governed by the prime minister and the cabinet."
"I see, so the shogunate is gone, and the Emperor wouldn't be able to govern again," the young man sighed and smiled, "It seems that leaving the royal family was the right choice I made back then."
Liu Xing raised his eyebrows, surprised that the young man before him was related to the Island Nation's royal family.
Seeing the confused looks on Liu Xing and Dogo Aige, the young man smiled and said, "I almost forgot to introduce myself. I am Yatagarasu."
Yatagarasu?!
Liu Xing looked at the young man in front of him with surprise, not expecting him to have such a significant background.
In the myths of the Island Nation, Yatagarasu was one of the representatives of Amaterasu, similar to Hermes in Greek mythology, serving as a bridge of communication between the gods and humans. He once led the way for Emperor Jimmu under Amaterasu's orders.
Yatagarasu was depicted as a giant crow with three legs, obviously inspired by the three-legged golden crow in Chinese mythology.
However, the Island Nation was a country that highly valued "localization," so foreign cultures were often modified when introduced to the Island Nation. As a result, Yatagarasu and the three-legged golden crow shared similar appearances, but other aspects of their stories were quite different.
Nevertheless, Yatagarasu was still considered a servant of the Old God, a higher rank than other mythical creatures.
"Hehe, don't overestimate me. Although I was said to have served the Old God in legends, in reality, I am not a servant of the Old God," Yatagarasu sighed and said, "I believe you should know that the Emperor of the Island Nation claimed to be a descendant of Amaterasu, one of the Old Gods of the Island Nation, in order to glorify himself. He rearranged the famous Old Gods within the Island Nation and created the so-called Island Nation myth, and even described me as a servant of Amaterasu."
"Originally, I was just an ordinary Crow Spirit, and I had a friendship with the first Emperor of the Island Nation. Since I once helped him deal with a snake demon, when he was glorifying himself, he didn't forget to change me from a crow to a raven. It's quite laughable when you think about it. However, it must be said that he was really lucky. Not only did those Old Gods not get angry at his arbitrary arrangement, but he also successfully fooled ordinary people into believing that he was a descendant of the Old God. From then on, he received constant worship, and I, a Crow Spirit, truly became Yatagarasu."
As mentioned earlier, the Island Nation liked to modify foreign cultures. In the Island Nation, the concepts of "crow" and "raven" were different. "Raven" had a more positive connotation because crows were scavengers, and they often appeared around dying or dead people, staring intently at their "food." However, the ancient people of the Island Nation believed that crows were protecting the dead and performing rituals for them, so "raven" became a popular element in the emblems of many Island Nation shrines.
But "crow" was different. Since "crow" was the vengeful spirit of a dead crow, it was simply a type of monster. So, "crow" and "raven" had different fates, one being worshipped and the other being despised.
Therefore, Liu Xing could understand why Yatagarasu had a self-deprecating expression. He was originally an ordinary little monster, but now he was inexplicably "washed" into a messenger of the gods, which was indeed a strange thing.
At this moment, Dogo Aige, who had been standing by, couldn't hold back anymore. "So, Yatagarasu, you've been living with the Island Nation's royal family all this time. Why did you leave the royal family in Yuan Gui Year 1 and enter this world of poetry and literature?"
After a moment of silence, Yatagarasu smiled bitterly and said, "At first, when I found out that I had been arranged by that guy to be a divine messenger, I was both nervous and scared, fearing that the Old Gods would punish him and that I would be affected. So, during that time, I was constantly worried. However, after a while, I realized that not only did the Old Gods not cause me any trouble, but I also became stronger due to the worship of ordinary humans. After all, as a spirit, the easiest and fastest way for me to become stronger was to gain the power of faith."
"At that time, that guy also came to me to discuss, saying that he wanted me to cooperate with his performance. So, I became the guardian deity of the Island Nation's royal family, occasionally accompanying him on tour performances to ensure his status in the hearts of the people. However, I also gained tremendous power, which made me start to become arrogant, truly believing that I was a messenger of the Old God... No, I should say that at that time, I thought I was the Old God myself."
"Since I and that guy were originally just superficial friends who used each other, later on, as the royal family of the Island Nation became weaker, I only ensured their survival under the shogunate. But after the Battle of Okehazama, I suddenly noticed that mythical creatures, and even Great Old Ones, were supporting the daimyo of the Island Nation. I realized that the situation was not good, especially when I confirmed that my strength was not even comparable to those powerful mythical creatures. I had no choice but to run away because I was afraid that I would be buried with the royal family of the Island Nation."
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