One day a year ago, there was a spring rain in the human world. Countless people saw the huge ship sailing towards the golden line in the Divine Light. She stood at the bow of the ship. Her indigo clothes were blown by the spring breeze, and the flowers gradually bloomed.
Everyone thought that she had left the human world and returned to the Divine Kingdom. Who would have thought that she did not go back at all? She hid alone in the coldest northern land.
She did not return to the Divine Kingdom.
When she opened her eyes and saw the lush mountains, she knew that she could not go back because there was nothing but light in the Divine Kingdom.
That was Min Mountain.
She did not understand why. She used the Buddha's chessboard to live with Ning Que for a thousand years. She experienced the joys and sorrows of the human world and cultivated Buddhism for countless years. She finally washed away the three poisons in her body and got rid of the power of the human world. Why could she not go back?
She stood in Min Mountain and thought silently for many days and nights. Finally, she figured out the reason. She was the choice of human beings, so her destination was the human world. This reason was not necessarily complete, but she did not know it yet.
After figuring it out, she did not return to the West-Hill Divine Palace. Instead, she chose to walk along the familiar hunting trails in Min Mountain and headed north.
She kept walking. She passed by countless hunting villages, Helan City, Tianqi Mountains, and the Ice Field. Finally, she came to the cold northern land and the mountain.
Her indigo clothes became thinner as she walked. The flowers on her clothes gradually faded. She knew that it was the power of time, and also because she was becoming weaker.
Instead of returning to the West-Hill Divine Palace, she went to the Cold Region of the Far North, where no one had ever been. It was because she vaguely sensed some danger and wanted to go to a safe place. More importantly, she did not want anyone to see her like this.
Her waist was now very thick and very bloated. She was different from her previous tall and fat appearance. She now looked very much like a pregnant woman. She was pregnant, so she did not want to be seen by humans.
She was pregnant, and the child in her belly was naturally Ning Que's.
Perhaps because she was pregnant, she was gradually becoming weaker. She was going to become one of those weak ordinary humans that she used to look down on.
God descended to the human world and gradually became a real human … She had experienced this process before. The Headmaster had injected the power of the human world into her body and brought her to travel around the world to appreciate the beauty of the human world. Then, she was brought by Ning Que to travel around the world and experience the world of mortals. During those days, she was gradually becoming a human.
In the chessboard, she used Buddha's plan and Ning Que's intention to cultivate again and purify her divine body. Finally, she succeeded in expelling the power of the human world in her body. She thought that she would win the battle against the Headmaster, so she returned to indifference and was about to return to the Divine Kingdom. Unexpectedly, she was still left behind … She did not return to the Divine Kingdom. She thought that it was Ning Que's trick. That trick was in her womb, a fetus.
Sangsang caressed her lower abdomen. There was no motherly radiance on her face, not even any emotion. She was just calm and a little unaccustomed.
She looked at the Snow-capped Peak in the distance outside the window and woke up from her memories. She looked at the Hot Sea covered by snow not far away and thought of another memory.
It was here, in the cold world covered by ice and snow, that the Headmaster ate peony fish with her and him and immersed themselves in happiness in the hot spring. Then, the Headmaster presided over her and Ning Que's wedding and let them consummate their marriage. The Headmaster rode the Big Black Horse to the Snow Sea naked for hundreds of miles.
The Headmaster was so happy because he knew that she might be pregnant with Ning Que's child and that it would be difficult for her to return to the Divine Kingdom.
At that time, the Headmaster said that Ning Que and her consummate their marriage was so rare that it would definitely be recorded in the history books in the future. Yes, now she understood why.
Sangsang withdrew her gaze and lowered her head in silence. She was forced to stay in the human world twice by the trick of the Master and his disciple. Even she did not know what to say.
The methods of this pair of master and disciple were always so unexpected. They were despicable and despicable, like a spring breeze and rain. They were silent, but … they were world-shaking.
The wind and snow suddenly stopped. The clouds were blown away by the wind from the Black Sea on the Snow-capped Peak. Stars gradually appeared, and then a bright moon appeared in the sky.
Sangsang raised her head to look at the moon. Her right hand left her round belly and reached out to the night sky outside the window. She put her thumb and index finger together and exerted a little force.
She wanted to crush the bright moon. She was not willing to do so.
But now she could only think about it. That was what she was doing in the Divine Kingdom. And now she was even afraid of being discovered by the other her in the Divine Kingdom.
Thinking of the faint uneasiness coming from the deepest part of her spiritual world, Sangsang's face turned a little pale and she felt a little cold.
She walked to the bed and picked up an animal skin to put on, especially covering her belly tightly. Then she flicked her fingers to light the firewood in the fireplace.
She wanted to warm herself, which had nothing to do with the fetus in her belly.
In fact, although she was getting weaker, she still did not need warmth. No matter how low the temperature was, it did not affect her. But she did it. She no longer thought and behaved according to the cold rules like before. It had nothing to do with the Dark World. It was more like she was acting according to some kind of instinct. In short, she was becoming more and more like a human.
Just like the oil lamp by the window, she did not need the lamp or the light. Lighting a lamp in such a dark world was meaningless except for exposing herself to danger. But she still did it because the light was really warm.
Maybe it was also because the oil lamp used fish oil. There was no smoke, so it would not stain the eyes. Instead, there was a faint smell of oil.
Sangsang suddenly felt a little hungry. She looked out of the window and asked indifferently, "Why did you come back so late?"
After the Desolate Men moved south, there was no one in the Snow Region. Who was she talking to?
Outside the house came the sound of panting. An indigo-haired dog ran over with a frozen peony fish in its mouth.
Because the Hot Sea was frozen, the peony fish had become extremely rare. The remaining ones were hidden in the depths of the sea. It was hard to imagine that an indigo-haired dog could go there to catch fish.
Of course, if people knew that the indigo-haired dog was the famous indigo lion in the Buddha's chessboard world, it would be easy to accept.
Sangsang took the peony fish and ignored the indigo-haired dog, who stuck out its tongue and begged for food. She walked to the chopping board and cut the fish with her palm. Then she mixed the dipping sauce and began to eat. Her face was expressionless until she finished the fish. She frowned slightly because she felt that the fish was not as good as before.
It had nothing to do with the fish itself or the dipping sauce. Although she used her palm, the fish she cut was definitely better than Eldest Brother's and Ning Que's. Then why was it not as good as before? Or was it because of the lack of smoke?
After eating the fish, she was still not satisfied and even felt hungrier. She said to the indigo-haired dog, "I want to eat meat."
The indigo-haired dog widened its eyes and looked particularly innocent and pitiful.
Sangsang narrowed her eyes and looked particularly cold and ruthless.
The indigo-haired dog lowered its head and walked to the vast Snow Sea with its tail between its legs.
Sangsang really wanted to eat meat. Although she did not need to eat, she was no longer as averse to human food as before. Most importantly, the little fellow in her belly was hungry.
When she first found out that there was a fetus in her belly, she was shocked and confused, then angry and disgusted. It was not until now that she gradually learned to get used to this existence.
She did not think that she had any affection for the fetus, because that was Ning Que's trick. She was just hungry and wanted to eat meat to warm herself up.
Yes, that must be it.
She said to herself.
After a long time, the indigo-haired dog came back dragging a freshly dead snow fox. Sangsang was very satisfied and rewarded it with a hind leg after roasting the meat.
She began to eat the roasted meat. Although it was much worse than the mutton on the grassland that the Headmaster took her to eat, she still felt that it tasted good.
Although she could not travel a thousand miles in a single step to the Song Kingdom to have a water feast and then come back with the peony fish for supper, she was becoming more and more like an ordinary person.
But it seemed good.
…
…
Apart from her hiding by the Snow Sea, the most important thing to the human world was naturally the war between the Tang Empire and the Golden Tribe Royal Court.
The Golden Tribe invaded the south and looked like they were going to war. However, due to the pressure from Taoism, the Tang Empire could only use the Northern Battlefront Army to resist.
The grassland cavalry of the Golden Tribe Royal Court was best at attacking like a raging fire. The Tang Army was good at both attacking and defending, especially the Northern Battlefront General, Xu Chi, who was known for his defense. He had been operating in the north of the Tang Empire for decades and had already built the border as strong as an iron bucket. If it were in the past, he would not have worried at all.
But that was many years ago. Since a few years ago, the Golden Tribe Royal Court suddenly invaded the south and took over seven villages, including the City of Wei and Kaiping, the Tang Empire's defense line in the north became much weaker. Especially in recent years, the Tang Empire spent a lot of money and labor to build dozens of barracks in the northwest and northwest of the Xiangwan Plain. The Golden Tribe Royal Court showed rare patience and used tens of thousands of slaves to dismantle the barracks one by one.
For the Tang Army, the most critical problem was the lack of warhorses. The Northern Battlefront Army, which used to dominate the north of the continent, could hardly move in formation now. The main force on the battlefield had become a mixed force of infantry and cavalry. It was hard for them to fight against the grassland cavalry. Especially more than ten days ago, when the Chengu Pass was lost, the most elite cavalry of the Golden Tribe Royal Court could even directly threaten the North Military Camp.
At the beginning of the war, the weakness of the Tang Army was beyond many people's expectation. Apart from these objective factors, it was also a strategic choice.
In the early spring, the Tang Army took the initiative to retreat and lengthen the supply line of the Golden Tribe Royal Court. It was strategically correct. But the Tang Army did not expect the Golden Tribe Royal Court to be so crazy. They kept marching to the south, as if they did not care about the possibility of running out of food. According to the rules, the grassland cavalry carried enough food and dried meat. If they could not break the Northern Battlefront Army's defense line, they would never be able to return to the grassland. Such a desperate attitude was definitely not a wise military command. But now it seemed to be very effective. The grassland cavalry were like hungry wolves in a desperate situation. Their crazy momentum even overwhelmed the Tang Army.
Although the war was not going well, the atmosphere in the Northern Military Camp was still normal. After all, the Northern Battlefront Army had been dealing with the Golden Tribe Royal Court for a long time. They were used to the savagery of the grassland barbarians. Of course they would not be scared.
Xu Chi stood on Xiangliang Mountain on the side of the camp. He looked at the grassland covered by the wind and snow in silence. Snow fell on his lips. His beard that he had just cut in the morning was dyed white, which made him look funny.
Several officers followed around him, but they didn't smile. Looking at the Great General's slightly trembling back, it was as if they could feel the weight on his shoulders.
"We can't retreat anymore."
Xu Chi was silent for a long time and said this. These words came out from his frozen lips without any emotion. It even gave people a feeling that he didn't expect to say these words.
The officers were shocked. They didn't understand why the Northern Battlefront Army would suddenly change their strategy. Although the vanguard was fighting hard and the morale was low, they believed that the well-trained Northern Battlefront Army could definitely hold on for a longer time.
Xu Chi turned around and reached out to wipe off the snow in his beard. His hunched back straightened again and he gradually regained his power. Only now did he look like a top martial arts master of the Tang Empire.
Looking at the disapproving looks on the officers' faces, he did not explain further. He looked at Hua Ying who was on standby and said, "I want you to guard Guhe."
Hua Ying had just risked his life to come back from the frontline last night. His clothes were dirty and old, and he looked embarrassed. But his eyes were still calm.
The military order was simple. There was no precondition or backup plan. The general only gave him one choice, which was to guard Guhe.
Hua Ying did not stay silent like the other officers. He was the one guarding Guhe, and it would be his hundreds of soldiers who would die in the bloody battle.
"Because of the safety of the North Military Camp?" Hua Ying asked.
He was not challenging Xu Chi's authority, nor was he doubting the validity of the military order. He just hoped that the general could give him a good reason to convince his subordinates, and more importantly, himself.
Xu Chi said indifferently, "After you leave, I will move the General's Mansion out of the North Military Camp and close to you. If you can't guard Guhe, it will be my turn."
"Why?" At this moment, even the staff officers who had been suppressing their doubts couldn't help but express their objections.
"Why? Because if we can't guard Guhe, Chanyu's men can pass through Chuanling, bypass my central camp, and enter Hebei County along the southwest side of Min Mountain. And south of Hebei County … "
Xu Chi looked at Hua Ying and the officers and said calmly, "… Eight hundred miles of plain will be the favorite battlefield of the grassland cavalry. Who can bear the responsibility if the cavalry goes straight to the center? The Tang Empire has a vast territory, but the Northern Battlefront Army has nowhere to retreat. Because Chang 'an is right behind us. "
…
…
(I like the description of the Headmaster of Academy, Ning Que's methods. Xu Chi's last sentence was a little early and harsh, but based on aesthetic interests … that sentence is so cool. If you want to write about war, you can't beat yourself if you don't say it at least once.)
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