The Eldest Young Lady of the trading house was feeling a bit dazed.
Before they had set out, she never could have imagined an outcome like this.
“Is it really it?” Yin Luan said. “I just find it a bit unbelievable…”
Boom!
As soon as the words left her mouth, dark clouds gathered above the Ancestral Hall. Lightning flashed and thunder roared as a powerful surge of qi locked onto the Little Snake Demon, forcing her to retreat step by step until she stumbled out of the building.
The next moment, the sky returned to normal.
“What breed of fish is this? Can a fish really be this powerful?” “Hush! If Senior Fish hears you, we’re doomed!”
Once they were out of the Ancestral Hall, Xiao Luo and Lily in Yin Luan’s hands regained their ability to speak.
The elder hadn’t deceived them. Every strange occurrence in this village was connected to that Golden Carp Spirit.
After the worship ceremony, the Village Chief and Ren Tan emerged from the Ancestral Hall. The villagers brought tea and pastries, and only then did the group finally settle in properly.
“I suspect there’s a story that’s been hidden for many years behind all this,” Ren Tan said, her expression complicated as she spoke softly. “Would you be willing to tell us about it?”
“Mm. This story goes back to thirty years ago…”
~~~
Thirty years ago, this village still made its living from fishing.
There was a tributary here back then, and villagers could row small boats smoothly all the way into the Long River Main Stem.
Every day, they plied the waters of the little river, rising with the sun and resting at sunset. Life wasn’t prosperous, but it wasn’t destitute either.
That all changed one day when they discovered an injured woman by the riverbank.
She was extraordinarily beautiful, clad in golden feathered robes, lying unconscious on the shore with clear wounds on her hands and feet.
The mountains were no safe haven, and an injured woman like her could easily attract wild beasts. The villagers carried her back to the village, tending to her with tea and water, caring for her with utmost diligence.
When the woman awoke, she showed no unease or fear toward her surroundings. Instead, she brimmed with curiosity.
She seemed utterly ignorant of rural life—how to till the fields, weave baskets, build boats, or cast nets for fish…
At first, the villagers were a bit reserved around her, but they soon discovered her friendly nature and taught her eagerly.
~~~
“‘Picked up a demon by the roadside’ series? This sort of thing feels like it happens all the time… Uh, I won’t interrupt. Please continue…”
~~~
With the villagers’ enthusiastic help, the beautiful woman quickly blended into village life.
She labored alongside them, fished with them, celebrated with them—laughing and complaining just the same.
The villagers noticed something else too. Ever since her arrival, injuries grew rarer, illnesses faded, and harvests swelled. Every trip to the Long River Main Stem brought their boats home brimming.
Fishing depended heavily on the weather, and whenever she was with them, the skies stayed clear and calm. She was like one of the immortals from legend, blessing them with bountiful seasons and good health.
Those peaceful days lasted more than a year.
And then, one day…
“I remember it clearly,” the Village Chief said slowly, letting out a breath. “That night was chilly. From sunset on, she was different from her usual self—restless and anxious, as if something weighed on her mind. We didn’t understand why until the moon rose…”
The moon was red.
A vivid crimson, like freshly spilled blood.
It bathed the earth in a bloody glow—terrifying, oppressive, suffocating.
The beasts in the mountains went berserk, charging wildly everywhere as the forest echoed with roars none had ever heard before.
Even the village’s eldest elder had never lived through a night so horrifying.
“It’s starting… It’s really starting…”
Her anxiety peaked.
Everyone huddled together, clutching loved ones, trembling in fear.
Beneath that crimson light, footsteps approached. The flap of wings. Eerie, chilling laughter. And sounds beyond description from things unknown—they all drew nearer.
Death felt poised to strike at any moment.
That was when she stepped forward.
“You saved me,” she said. “Now it’s my turn to save you.”
Amid the villagers’ stunned gazes, she rose slowly into the sky, radiating golden light that clashed against the bloody moonlight.
A faint golden barrier enveloped the entire village, instantly sealing away the unease and strangeness from outside.
“I’m so happy to have spent time with you… You shouldn’t get dragged into this… Stay inside… I’ll protect you… The world outside… is very dangerous… Don’t go out…”
The golden light endured through the entire night.
When the morning sun rose, she finally descended from the sky and gave everyone a gentle smile and a nod.
A soft breeze swept past, and her body dissolved into powder, scattering away.
By the time the villagers hurried forward, all that remained on the ground was a little carp, its aura faint and feeble, on the verge of withering away to nothing…
~~~
“This is her story,” the Village Chief said slowly. “She protected us from thirty years ago right up until now.”
“The Demon Evils Calamity,” Ren Tan said. “During that heavenly disaster thirty years ago, was it she who shielded you from the demons’ assaults?”
She was the savior of every person in the village—and all their descendants.
“Uh, but the Demon Evils Calamity is long over,” Yin Luan said. “Ever since the Demon Subduing Division was founded, the world has been at peace. You could go out now.”
“Why leave?” the Village Chief asked in return. “The outside world is dangerous—that’s what she always told us. What’s wrong with staying here, raising families and living on in safety? That’s how we’ve always done it.”
“Mm…”
The Little Snake Demon faltered.
“B-but people should go out into the world, see new things…”
“We have no skills, no strength,” the Elder said, shaking his head. “We’d lose our lives in an instant. It’s not the same for you.”
Only within the village were they truly safe.
So why ever leave?
“Still,” Ren Tan said with a frown, “her power couldn’t have been endless, could it? The village flickers in and out of sight, never fully sealed—that must be why.”
“That’s right…”
The Village Chief’s face grew stiff.
She would protect the people of the village.
Until her strength ran dry, her life extinguished.
For years, the village had heeded her warnings to the letter, never venturing into the outside world, content to remain in this sanctuary.
But even the safest haven could one day turn perilous.
“By the way, what about that young maiden?” Yin Luan asked, breaking the heavy silence as neither side spoke. “What’s her connection to the carp?”
“Before she transformed into the carp, she formed a special bond with a woman from the village,” the Village Chief explained. “That way, if the barrier ever failed, her power could be channeled through her to fend off any enemies.”
“Uh, but she looks about Ren Tan’s age—not like some thirty- or forty-year-old… Does it come with eternal youth as a bonus?”
“No, she’s the descendant of that woman. She inherited the Divine Woman’s connection. Barring any surprises, we’ll pass this tradition down generation after generation…”
