“Mulberry Forest? Fengxi Boar?” Zu An thought to himself, This Mulberry Forest had better not be as much of a cheat as the Weak Water.
Yayu explained, “The reason why it is called the Mulberry Forest is that there is a very large mulberry tree at the very center. The entire forest is formed from its branches.”
The others were shocked, exclaiming, “This entire forest is actually just a single tree?”
Just how big does this tree have to be?!
After receiving such a definitive answer, Zu An asked, “Does that tree have its own consciousness? Don’t tell me it’s some tree demon or something?”
“I do not think it is the kind of tree demon you are thinking about. However, that mulberry tree is quite special, so it is not entirely impossible for it to have produced some kind of consciousness,” Yayu said. It then offered an analogy, saying, “It is just like the Weak Water. Outsiders might view it as just a dead substance, but I know it actually has a will. That is why I was able to become close to it.”
Zu An thought to himself, If that Weak Water ended up developing sentience, that would be ridiculous!
“The Fengxi Boar was originally a wild pig. Its fur is sharp like steel needles, and it has tremendous strength. You must be careful,” Yayu warned them.
“A wild pig?” Zu An repeated, feeling a bit absentminded. He suddenly felt that the folktales and legends of different civilizations all shared some similarities.
The east and west both had legends about a great flood. Apart from that, eastern legends had a Fengxi Boar, while in Greek mythology, there was a Heracles. Out of the twelve impossible tasks he had to complete, one of them had been to slay a wild boar as well. Was that really a coincidence, or was it something else?
“Then does that Fengxi Boar have any weaknesses?” Yun Jianyue asked probingly.
They had really suffered badly because of the Yayu. In the end, they had only been able to resolve the situation by coincidence. She really didn’t want to go through something similar again.
“Our domains do not intersect, nor have we had any conflicts. I do not know its weaknesses. I fear that I am unable to help you in this area,” Yayu said apologetically.
“I see…” Yun Jianyue said.
The group felt disappointed, but Yayu suddenly said, “Right, it seems to be quite perverted. I wonder if that can be considered a weakness.”
The group thought, What kind of weakness is that? Isn’t Zu An quite perverted too? Furthermore, where would they even go to find a female pig in this world?
“Additionally, I have heard that it is often lost in thought and stares blankly at the moon in the evening. There are rumors that it is absorbing the moon’s essence to cultivate, but I do not think so. However, I do not know what it is doing either,” Yayu said. “I do not know whether this can help you or not.”
“It’s quite useful. Thank you,” the group quickly said. It was definitely better than knowing absolutely nothing about that monster.
Zu An’s expression was strange. A perverted wild pig enters a daze under the moon? It’s not Zhu Bajie[1]
“What?” The three women looked at him in confusion.
Zu An’s face heated up. He explained, “It’s most likely because the laws of this world are deficient, so that’s why it couldn't achieve such enlightenment.”
“That indeed seems to be the case,” the women said in agreement.
When they entered the Mulberry Forest, they all maintained the utmost vigilance. The branches really were everywhere, making it hard to see anything in the distance. Walking through them felt like going through a maze. Who knew where that Fengxi Boar was hiding? If it ambushed them, they would be in trouble.
However, their one saving grace was that because the mulberry tree at the center was so large, it served as a landmark that prevented them from losing their way.
“How do you think we should go about looking for the Fengxi Boar? Should we set up a trap in the forest? What do wild pigs like to eat?” Yan Xuehen proposed.
Yun Jianyue shook her head and replied, “The Fengxi Boar is a monster not inferior to the Yayu. It definitely has intellect on par with humans. Do you really think it’s some ordinary pig?”
Yan Xuehen’s cheeks heated up. She didn’t argue this time. Suddenly, Zu An’s expression became grave and he said, “We might not have to find it, because it’ll come to us.”
When they followed his line of sight, the three women noticed that the trees in the distance had begun to shake violently. They could hear branches breaking.
Then, a huge monster suddenly charged forth, letting out a roar similar to a dragon’s cry. The surrounding leaves all began to rustle.
Zu An thought back to how in his previous world’s movies, the Eighteen Subduing Dragon Palms’[2] sound effects had been made from none other than pigs. He hadn’t expected that after a wild boar’s strength increased to such a degree, its roar would really be similar to a dragon’s.
The huge monster before his eyes was like a small mountain. It was entirely dark brown, and its coat shone. Its two fangs were like curved blades, shining viciously. Its four trotters resembled stone pestles, poking deep holes in the ground as it moved. The fur over its body was solid like steel needles. There was no need for any introductions; the group knew that they already found their objective, the Fengxi Boar.
The Fengxi Boar was clearly irritable. When it sensed that they had entered its territory, it was furious, steam emerging from its mouth in anger. Its trotters dug into the ground, as if it would attack at any time.
However, when it saw the beautiful appearance of the three ladies, it was suddenly stunned. As it stared at the three women, a huge smile appeared on its face. Then, viscous saliva trickled out of its mouth.
In the past, Zu An hadn’t really understood the insult ‘pig brother’, but upon seeing such a sight for himself, he could only feel admiration for the creator of the phrase.
However, the three women could no longer take it anymore. They felt incredibly uncomfortable and disgusted.
Yun Jianyue snorted, immediately taking out her Crescent Ring. It flew in a beautiful arc, slicing toward the Fengxi Boar.
She was from the Devil Sect, and her nature was fierce to begin with. After she felt that much disgust, she didn’t hold back at all. She intended to remove the pig’s head on the spot. When she was at her strongest, the Crescent Ring could cut through even a small mountain’s peak, let alone sever mere flesh.
Just as the crescent was about to hit the Fengxi Boar’s head, but the monster smashed its tusks fiercely into the weapon. With a loud noise, the Crescent Ring was sent flying. There wasn’t even a single mark left on the boar’s thick tusk.
The powerful force that had struck the Crescent Ring was something even Yun Jianyue almost couldn't control. She quickly warned the others, “Be careful!”
The Fengxi Boar was furious about being attacked and charged forth over.
Both the Chinese and Japanese languages had the phrase ‘boar rush’. It described a powerful assault from the army.
That phrase, however, referred to normal wild boars. At the moment, they were facing a monster that was more like a small mountain. When it ran at them, it shook the earth itself. They even found it a bit hard to stand still!
1. Zhu Bajie is one of the three helpers of Tang Sanzang, and a major character of the 16th century novel, Journey to the West. Zhu means "swine" and Bajie means "eight precepts”. Zhu Bajie is a complex and developed character in the novel. He looks like a terrible humanoid-pig monster, part human and part pig, who often gets himself and his companions into trouble through his laziness, gluttony, and propensity for lusting after pretty women. He is jealous of Sun Wukong and always tries to bring him down.[/ref], is it?
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No terrifying waves appeared in Yayu’s path. Furthermore, the Weak Water’s width also returned to normal. Thus, they quickly crossed the Weak Water.
The group expressed their thanks to Yayu again, but Yayu said, “No, I should be the one thanking you. It is because of you that I was able to be completely freed.” As he spoke, Yayu’s figure began to grow indistinct. It gradually returned to its original appearance.
When he saw Yayu’s body fading, as if it were turning into an illusion, Zu An was startled. He began, “Could it be that you…”
Yayu smiled and said, “Indeed. Your purification ability was formidable. I was only able to resist it because there was unrelenting resentment inside of me. Now that it has disappeared, of course I am going to disappear.”
Zu An felt a bit dejected, saying, “I’m sorry for harming you…”
Yayu interrupted him, saying, “There is nothing to apologize for. This is a release, a form of transcendence, something happy for me. I have already had enough of living as a monster. Thank you…”
Its voice grew weaker and weaker, and its body turned into specks of light, eventually fading into nothing.
The others fell silent when they saw that. This was clearly an enemy they had been trying to kill just a short while back, and yet now, they felt a strange sense of grief.
…
Only after some time passed did they collect themselves and continue on their journey.
Soon afterward, a verdant and lush forest appeared in front of them. At the very center stood a tree that seemed to reach into the heavens. Its branches were full of leaves that formed a dense canopy.
“This is probably the Mulberry Forest Yayu spoke of.” Yu Yanluo said with a sigh. “That tree at the center really is big.”
Yan Xuehen also looked surprised, saying, “It seems that this tree is the result of the coalescence of the essence of the world. According to what Yayu said, this Mulberry Forest has already existed for a long time. After all this time, it should have already developed its own sentience…”
“Non-human things aren’t allowed to develop sentience post-civilization,” Zu An said, suddenly recalling an online saying.[ref]The original slang was used to describe animals who were so cute and smart that they ended up resembling humans a bit. Later, it was used to describe other things too. ☜
2. A wuxia technique that appears in several Jin Yong novels and their adaptations. ☜
