Chapter 99: Blessing
Outside Bean Village, by the roadside.
Two middle-aged men, carrying dulled machetes, one squatting and one sitting, quietly hid in the bushes.
The squatting one had a full beard. While peering outwards, he looked back at the dense forest behind him, and whispered uneasily, “Brother, there won’t be any demons coming out of this forest, right? This… this is the wilderness forest outside the road sign.”
The sitting one had a face full of coarse flesh (implying a tough or mean look). He scoffed and said, “You don’t understand, do you?”
“I’ve already figured it out. There aren’t many demons left in the forest beside Bean Village.”
“Now, even those seventy or eighty-year-old folks can ride their own carriages from Bean Village to Emerald Town.”
“I’m telling you, we’re carrying knives and have some martial arts skills, what’s there to be uneasy about?”
The bearded man hurriedly agreed, but then looked somewhat puzzled: “Brother, why is this Bean Village so special… even the demons around it are gone…”
The fleshy-faced man “tsk”ed again, saying with a complicated tone, “Probably because Bean Village is too rich.”
“Like wealthy big cities like Sea Moon City, aren’t there also few demons nearby?”
“The richer the place, the fewer the demons, that’s for sure.”
Saying this, he pulled out the machete from his back and held it in his hand, feeling the blade: “Since the villagers are so rich, why not give some to us brothers?”
The bearded man quickly said, “That’s right, why should only they be rich?”
The fleshy-faced man kicked the bearded man’s leg: “Alright, alright, keep a good eye on the road. When those villagers come out later, we’ll pounce—don’t miss!”
These two men were once villagers from Kuda Village.
They used to do odd jobs in various towns to make a living.
That year, the village had a bad harvest, and the villagers fled the famine. They also came out. At the beginning of the year, the villagers who had fled with them heard that Bean Village was looking for people to farm, offering both land and seeds, so they immediately decided to move to Bean Village and honestly started farming.
But these two inquired and heard that those who went to Bean Village had to work from morning till night, and even in winter they couldn’t rest, having to constantly repair roads, dig irrigation canals, and mud pits—this life was too hard.
Having stayed in the town for a long time, they didn’t want to go back to the village to endure such hardship.
So, they simply got involved with another gang of hoodlums, specializing in “quick money” schemes.
And Bean Village was this gang’s new target.
Some time ago, the other individuals in this gang decided to get some “free brown sugar” from Bean Village’s sugar mill.
You know, this brown sugar, sold in Sea Moon City, could fetch a good few silver coins!
However, that person went in and never came out of Bean Village.
It wasn’t until a few days later that the bearded man heard the news that this person had been sent to Emerald Town and imprisoned. Moreover, when they were sent, their bones were all broken, as if they had been tossed around on the ground by some large demon and had their bones broken alive.
He also heard that the large demon looked as terrifying as a demon lord from hell, covered in steel needle-like bristles, and usually lived in the small river beside Black Wheat Village, specifically targeting those who engaged in petty theft.
The bearded man and the fleshy-faced man didn’t dare to touch the village anymore.
But not daring to touch the village didn’t mean they didn’t want this piece of meat.
Especially after they heard that “the villagers of Bean Village sometimes don’t even bring ability user guards when they go to town.”
Tsk tsk.
This was too convenient.
When the time came, they would hide by the roadside, grab anyone, slit their throat, and throw them into the forest. Who would know it was these two brothers who did it?
After plotting for a while, the two finally hid outside Bean Village with their knives.
“Brother, here they come, here they come!” the bearded man whispered.
“Why is this one so short… Heavenly God, it’s those squirrel people!” the bearded man exclaimed, suppressing his voice in shock.
They saw a group of small squirrels wagging their tails, jogging neatly in a line towards them.
The fleshy-faced man was also startled, but then couldn’t help but laugh: “Good! This is simply a gift from the heavens!”
“Who knows, these squirrel people are especially good at mining, they might be carrying a lot of gold, silver, and gems!”
“More importantly,” the fleshy-faced man’s eyes were full of greedy light, “those are squirrels who don’t even reach our thighs when they stand up! If it were tall and strong patrol team members, we might not be able to beat them. But these little squirrels, wouldn’t taking care of them be as easy as crushing a bug?!”
The bearded man and the fleshy-faced man waved their knives gleefully and rushed towards the three small squirrels lined up in a row.
*
The Axe Squirrel three brothers, carrying their tools, walked quickly down the road.
They wanted to go to Emerald Town today.
For humans to go to Emerald Town on foot took six hours. Running all the way, it only took them two hours.
Less than a quarter of an hour after they set off, Axe Squirrel braked suddenly: “Ahead! Humans!”
They saw two men wearing coarse linen clothes, holding knives in their hands, with fierce looks on their faces, blocking the road.
Axe Squirrel raised his paws, tilting his head: “You, what’s the matter?”
The man with the full beard: “Something’s the matter.”
“Leave behind the money and gems you have on you—oh, and those shovels and axes you’re carrying on your backs, leave those too.”
“Then… we’ll let you go.”
Axe Squirrel: “…You, robbing us?”
The other fleshy-faced man laughed loudly: “That’s right! Robbery!”
Hoe Squirrel said very seriously: “Robbing, wrong. You, reflect.”
This time, the bearded man also started laughing loudly.
The fleshy-faced man laughed so hard that tears came out of his eyes.
He looked at the short, small fellow in front of him with a big, fluffy tail, his mouth stretched to the roots of his ears:
“Cooperate a little, and we won’t hurt your lives.”
“If you don’t cooperate…” the fleshy-faced man licked his blade, “I reckon your fur could sell for quite a bit…”
“Ahhhhh!”
Before he could finish speaking, the fleshy-faced man fell forward, landing face-first on the ground.
What made him shout out wasn’t the clumsy fall, but the sharp pain coming from his leg!
He struggled to look down—
His leg, his right leg, from the knee down, was completely severed! White bone was exposed, and blood gushed out!
And the squirrel who had been speaking slowly, word by word, the less than half-human-tall, unthreatening squirrel, was holding a bloodied axe in his hand, staring at him with a curious expression!
“Leg, broken?” Axe Squirrel said.
Another small squirrel said, “Broken, broken!”
Yet another small squirrel said, “They, can’t rob, can’t rob!”
Axe Squirrel showed a very relieved smile and then looked at the bearded man who had fallen to the side, trembling: “You, still rob?”
The bearded man couldn’t even speak, only shook his head desperately.
Axe Squirrel pointed in the direction of Bean Village: “You, find someone, arrest.”
The bearded man understood: this was asking him to “surrender” himself to Bean Village!
Only a fool would surrender!
He scrambled to his feet to run away, but suddenly felt a burning pain in his calf! The pain made him kneel down again!
On his leg, there was a big hole smashed out by a pickaxe, and blood was gushing out.
The small squirrel holding the pickaxe glared at him unhappily: “Robbing, should be arrested, can’t run!”
Axe Squirrel said to Shovel Squirrel and Pickaxe Squirrel: “You, watch them, don’t let run. I, find someone.”
Before long, Reg and the others ran over with the small squirrels and tied up the two robbers, one fainted from pain and the other crying his eyes out from the agony.
Soon, Douglas heard about this. He told Reg: “Good. When you send them to Emerald Town for imprisonment, publicize it more, and see who else dares to rob on the road.”
Reg was still somewhat surprised: “I didn’t expect that these little squirrels, who look so cute and harmless, would be so combat-effective! Their chopping was so steady, ruthless, and accurate!”
Douglas smiled and shook his head: “Don’t forget, they are actually a race that lives in the wilderness!”
“If they had nothing but cuteness, how could they survive in the wild!”
Speaking of this, Douglas sighed: “They can sense human malice and kindness, and they will take different countermeasures accordingly.”
“That’s why, if it weren’t for a pioneer like Little Jiu, if Little Jiu hadn’t generously shown them kindness, they might not have been willing to leave the wilderness, let alone live together with us humans in the same village.”
As soon as Chu Jiu was mentioned, Reg’s expression changed.
He also sighed, looking at the fields outside the window:
“A’Jiu has been gone for three months now… longer than anyone else.”
“I wonder if he found that ‘Nine Heavens Jiaolong’…”
*
Nether Jungle.
Inside the Dragon Clan’s tribe.
As soon as the Flowery Dragon returned to his room, he bolted the door shut with a fish bone, preventing anyone from entering.
The two red dragons knocked for a long time, but there was no way to get in.
Finally, Glup-Glup tapped on the window with his tentacle: “Glup-Glup?”
The Flowery Dragon couldn’t possibly keep the flying little tree out of his room.
So, after a while, everyone heard the Flowery Dragon’s crying, saying while sobbing:
“Why won’t the Nether Flowers grow… why didn’t Mommy and Daddy tell me all along…”
“Our divine tree, will it never be able to revive again…”
The only comfort he could find was the soft “Glup-Glup, Glup-Glup…” of the little sapling.
Seeing their cub finally willing to cry, the two red dragons felt a little relieved amidst their disappointment and worry.
They drooped their wings and told Chu Jiu everything they hadn’t said before—
They really hadn’t intended to deceive their cub, nor had they wanted to hide anything from Chu Jiu.
After all, the Nether Flowers only bloomed once every two hundred years, who could be sure if they would bloom at all?
But before this, they had gone to the riverbank countless times to observe if any other plants could grow there.
However, for so many years…
The riverbank, full of mud and constantly covered by seawater, didn’t have even a speck of green.
Seeing this scene, they also understood somewhat in their hearts: as long as the Nether Flower was still a plant, it couldn’t possibly sprout and bloom in such an environment.
They had also thought about whether to tell Kui’zai about this earlier.
But every time they saw Kui’zai’s bright little eyes and the joyful, expectant look on his face whenever the “revival of the Nine Heavens Tree” was mentioned, the two red dragons couldn’t bring themselves to say it no matter what.
Moreover, they still had a sliver of hope: perhaps the Nether Flower itself wasn’t ordinary. Maybe it didn’t need soil or water, and would just grow when the time came?
Until this morning.
Seeing the dark, mud-smelling riverbank, they completely gave up this fantasy.
They knew: no flowers could ever grow on such a riverbank again.
Hearing this, Chu Jiu was silent for a moment and then said, “I heard Kui’zai say that in the past, under the ‘protection of the Nine Heavens Tree,’ the river water was clear and the seawater wouldn’t rush in. May I ask what kind of protection this was?”
The red dragons shook their heads: “The ‘protection’ had already disappeared by the time our generation was born.”
“But we vaguely remember that initially, there were still some elders in the tribe who tried to use their own power to restore this ‘protection,’ but unfortunately, not only did they fail, but they also lost their lives in the seawater.”
“After that, the tribe gave up on ‘actively restoring the protection’ and moved from the riverbank to the mountains, focusing on waiting for the ‘Nine Heavens Tree’ to revive.”
Chu Jiu pondered for a while and then said, “If it’s convenient, could I take a look at the current ‘Nine Heavens Tree’?”
The two red dragons didn’t respond immediately.
Chu Jiu added:
“I understand that this ‘divine tree of the tribe’ is usually not easily shown to outsiders.”
“But I am actually a very experienced pioneer—and my partner is very, very good at farming.”
“I would like him to take a look at this tree, perhaps there is another solution.”
The mother dragon said, “Thank you… but… it’s not that we are unwilling to show the divine tree to outsiders…”
The father dragon lowered his voice: “It’s just that we really don’t want to give that child hope again, only for him to be disappointed again…”
“You know, a divine tree that has been withered for two hundred years, no matter how skilled a farmer is, I’m afraid there’s nothing they can do…”
Chu Jiu wanted to continue persuading the two red dragons, but then he heard a “bang” behind him, like a door being heavily knocked open.
Then he saw a small pink figure “swoosh” in, flapping its wings and hovering in the air, with big teardrops hanging from its eyes, shouting loudly:
“I’m not afraid of disappointment!”
“Mommy, Daddy, I’m willing to take Chu Jiu to see the Nine Heavens Tree!”
“He can travel across the ocean from the human world to see us, and he can be partners with a flying little tree and a cat that can grow big, what if he has a way!”
The mother dragon also flew up, looking at her cub:
“…Kui’zai, you have to understand, even the most powerful humans probably can’t revive the divine tree…”
“When the time comes…”
The Flowery Dragon raised his claws and wiped away his tears: “I understand!”
“Mommy, Daddy, I heard what you said just now!”
“You were afraid I would be sad, so you kept not telling me.”
“But even if I will be sad, this is something I should bear!”
“Because I am the future high priest!”
“Since we can’t find the Nether Flowers, I should think of other ways—that is my responsibility!”
Hearing the Flowery Dragon’s “declaration,” Chu Jiu “wow”ed in his heart, thinking that although this little guy’s flames couldn’t even cook a meat skewer, he was indeed worthy of being the “inheritor of dragons” in his bones.
Even Little Can, who had previously been too lazy to pay attention to the Flowery Dragon, raised his head and looked intently at the small pink figure with tears in his eyes.
The mother dragon and the father dragon hovered in the air, silent for a long while.
Finally, the two red dragons flew towards their cub, extended their arms, hugged him gently, and whispered, “Our Kui’zai has grown up.”
*
“There, behind that small hill, is the Nine Heavens Tree!”
It turned out that the location of the Nine Heavens Tree wasn’t far from where Chu Jiu’s small boat had landed.
From here, standing on the hill, one could easily see the coastline, and even the long-voyage ship where A Li was.
Chu Jiu went around to the back of the hill.
He had originally thought that he would see withered trees like poplars or giant trees like redwoods.
But he didn’t expect that what appeared before him was a… rather large stone mountain?
A craggy stone mountain with moss and vines climbing on its surface.
Looking up, this stone mountain was quite high, and one couldn’t see the top at all.
Only when he got closer and carefully examined the texture of the rocks did he realize: this stone mountain was actually the petrified bark of a tree that had lived for countless years.
The Flowery Dragon flew to the side of the Nine Heavens Tree and sighed, “This tree has been like this since I was little.”
“I’ve thought in my head many, many times how beautiful a tree it would be if it came back to life…”
Chu Jiu raised his hand and touched the dark brown bark, which felt no different from stone, and also thought to himself: Yes, what a magnificent sight this tree would be if it came back to life?
How exactly did this tree protect the dragons back then?
Chu Jiu put Rawr Rawr Rabbit on the ground, letting the little guy start analyzing the surrounding soil.
He looked at the dejected Flowery Dragon and said to Glup-Glup, “Glup-Glup, accompany the little sunflower and take a look at this tree together.”
After all, Glup-Glup was also a plant, maybe Glup-Glup could see something different?
Chu Jiu himself opened the background map and frowned as he studied the terrain here.
*
One afternoon.
Rawr Rawr Rabbit hopped over: “Roar roar roar the soil near the Nine Heavens Tree has no major problems!”
“The soil is fertile and loose, completely suitable for continuing to plant trees roar roar roar”
“The soil on both sides of the Nether River has been salinized due to saltwater soaking; the surface must be treated again, otherwise nothing can be planted!”
Chu Jiu patted Rawr Rawr Rabbit’s head: “Understood, thank you Rawr Rawr Rabbit.”
It was about what he had expected.
The root cause was indeed the tides. Although the soil could be treated, if the tides weren’t resolved, then this “treatment” was meaningless.
At this time, Glup-Glup also returned: “Glup-Glup… this tree, Glup-Glup can feel…”
“Its roots were once very deep, very deep, and extended far away…”
Chu Jiu’s heart stirred: “Glup-Glup, are the roots of this tree as hard as stone, just like its trunk?”
Glup-Glup: “Glup-Glup, yes… indeed like stone.”
This tree, whether its trunk or roots, was harder than ironwood.
Chu Jiu raised his hand and pointed towards the coast: “Glup-Glup, you said you can feel its roots extending far away, could it be towards the coast?”
Glup-Glup shook his tentacles: “Glup-Glup, this needs to be explored further by extending the tentacles into the soil…”
Not long after, Glup-Glup returned:
“Glup-Glup, Chu Jiu was right. Its roots all extend towards the coast…”
“Back then, there must have been many, many intertwined roots, all extending to the edge of the coast…”
Chu Jiu raised his foot and ran towards the coast, shouting as he ran, “I think I know what the ‘protection of the Nine Heavens Tree’ really is!”
Behind him, the Flowery Dragon’s eyes brightened, and he flapped his wings vigorously, saying, “What is it, what is it! Chu Jiu, wait for me!”
*
By the coast.
It was low tide, and large stretches of yellow-brown beach were exposed, dotted with various shells, and crabs crawled all over them.
A nice beach scene.
However, Chu Jiu, who had long been thinking about “having fun on the beach with Little Can,” had no mood to pick up shells or chase crabs at this moment.
Chu Jiu took off his short boots and ran barefoot on the sand and seawater, finally finding what he was looking for: a section of deep black “stone” buried in the sand, like ruins.
Chu Jiu stopped and said to Glup-Glup, “Glup-Glup! Take a look at that piece of stone, see if it’s a root of the Nine Heavens Tree!”
Glup-Glup flew over in response, with the Flowery Dragon close behind.
Soon, Glup-Glup raised his tentacles:
“Glup-Glup! That’s right! It is indeed a root of the Nine Heavens Tree!”
“It’s just that it broke a long time ago!”
Chu Jiu nodded: That’s right. All the clues lined up.
After Chu Jiu translated Glup-Glup’s words, the Flowery Dragon’s eyes widened: “Eeeh? Why would the roots of the divine tree extend so far to the seaside? And be exposed outside?”
Roots… shouldn’t they all be buried in the ground?
Chu Jiu: “That’s because the Nine Heavens Tree used its own roots to build a ‘natural sea dike’ on the coast for you—that is, a dam to block tides and waves, keeping the seawater out.”
Flowery Dragon: “…Ah?”
He heard, but didn’t quite understand!
Chu Jiu casually picked up a slender conch shell and drew on the sand:
“This area is the Nether Jungle.”
“This part is the sea.”
“Here is the Nether River—this triangular area is where the Nether River flows into the sea.”
“Do you see, doesn’t this estuary look a bit like a trumpet?”
“With this kind of terrain, the tide easily comes in but has difficulty receding.”
“Once the tide rises, the seawater that can’t recede will pour into the river channel, flooding the riverbanks and making it impossible for the vegetation on both sides to survive.”
“So, whether it’s the Nether Flower or any other flowers and plants, they have all disappeared without a trace.”
“But if there is a sea dike to block the seawater, this backflow can be fundamentally prevented!”
“Without the backflow, the vegetation on both banks will be lush, the soil on the banks will not be easily washed away by water, and the sediment from the sea will also be blocked out, so the river water can naturally remain clear.”
“Clear river water, abundant vegetation, many fish in the water, and many small animals—relying on gathering and fishing is enough for a small tribe to thrive.”
“This, for hundreds of years, was the protection of the Nine Heavens Tree for the Dragon Clan!”
Its own trunk blocked the roaring seawater, creating a peaceful and happy land for them.
The Flowery Dragon listened in a daze: “I-is that how it was?”
Chu Jiu nodded: “Yes, that’s how it was.”
Flowery Dragon: “Then… what do we do now…?”
Chu Jiu smiled.
The setting sun made his smile even brighter than the light reflecting off the sea.
He said with absolute clarity:
“Now, of course, we have to rebuild a ‘sea dike’ to keep the seawater out.”
“After that, we will work together—to revive the ‘Nine Heavens Tree’!”
