Anping County, the wind and snow howled, the sky was dark.
About a dozen miles southwest of the county, there was a mountain called Ancestor Mountain by the locals, not tall, about four hundred zhang high.
It used to be a burial ground for the county’s people after a hundred years and a place for incense and worship, in short, a burial mountain!
Due to a change half a year ago, a Golden Mountain appeared behind the Ancestor Mountain, the entire mountain glowing, mysterious and marvelous, bringing excitement to the whole of Anping County.
Some said it was a mirage!
Some said it was the dwelling of Heavenly People!
Some said they saw the Divine Phoenix there.
Some said at a certain time, they saw the Immortal Palace from afar on that mountain.
Various rumors, endless!
Many people were eager to climb that mountain glowing with Divine Light, their spirits ablaze, hoping to find fortune.
And the way to the mountain was only through this Ancestor Mountain of Anping County, as the Divine Mountain could not be seen from any other direction.
But this Ancestor Mountain also changed, shrouded in mysterious fog.
At first, many people ventured into the Ancestor Mountain, most returned without success, either lost in the strange mist, wandering and then returning, or climbing over the Ancestor Mountain, seeing the Divine Mountain, yet walking and walking, never getting closer.
And gradually, as time passed, the strangeness of the Ancestor Mountain increased, and the matter became more serious!
Some unknown change happened in the fog of the Ancestor Mountain, more and more people disappeared there.
Until those who went in never came out again, many people found it wrong, and spoke of it with dread.
This place became a Fierce Mountain!
But still, many eyes were watching this mountain, unbelieving of evil, and continually ventured into the mountain, saying there was great fortune inside.
And on this early morning, the tranquility of Anping County was broken by a large number of soldiers, who thunderously marched through.
The Ancestor Mountain here was sealed off by the troops, and those Jianghu people lingering outside the mountain were driven away.
But these Jianghu people, who would draw swords at the slightest disagreement in worldly society, became reasonable when they saw the banners behind those troops, and did not oppose.
It was impressively the troops of the Ninth Mountain!
As for the people of Anping County, they were not surprised. The dignitaries of the Ninth Mountain had been here a few times before, guessing that more people had disappeared into the mountain, prompting the dispatch of troops to resolve it.
At this time, near the fog-shrouded Ancestor Mountain,
In the white vastness of flying snow between heaven and earth, the sound of horses came.
But this sound did not come from the ground, but from the sky.
Soon, from the northeast direction, a black dot broke through the wind and snow, hissing and descending from the sky!
A line of Green Armor opened the way, followed by eight large horses pulling a bronze carriage descending from the sky!
The Ninth Mountain Banner flapped in the wind.
The horses neighed, wind beneath their hooves.
Then the sound of hoofbeats resonated.
Man and horse landed, the bronze carriage hit the ground with a muffled thud, the gust of wind swirling the snow violently.
With the landing of the bronze chariot, from the distant snow, a whooshing sound quickly shot towards this place.
A figure clad in Red Armor landed, then quickly walked to the side of the bronze carriage, and saluted the window, "General, the Anping County Magistrate and all county officials here have been brought!"
"Let them come over and speak!" From the carriage, Chen Yuan’s calm voice came.
"Yes!" Lu Ming in Red Armor responded, quickly bringing over several people in civil officer robes.
There were three people, the one in the middle was the Anping County Magistrate in a large red Feathered Official Robe, and the two next to him, though in splendid clothes, were not officials, one was the County Government Archivist, and one was the County Government secretary, both clerks.
The three knew the identity of the person in the carriage, at this moment, with trepidation, followed Lu Ming through the Green Armor formation, and immediately knelt, kowtowing to the carriage,
"Wen Tianming, the official, greets the General!"
They knelt in the snow, heads also bowed, some shivering.
"Rise, I have some questions for you!" From the carriage, Chen Yuan’s voice slowly opened, carrying an air of authority.
Anping County Magistrate Wen Tianming and the other two stood up, then quickly responded, "This official will certainly speak without reservation!"
Saying this, the corners of his mouth twitched, his cautious appearance seeming somewhat comical.
"Do you know the origin of this mountain before you? Was there anything peculiar before?" Came the voice from the carriage.
Wen Tianming listened carefully, immediately stepped forward, raised both hands, and respectfully said:
"To report to the General, many outsiders have inquired about the origin of this mountain recently, but after reviewing the county annals, this mountain is just the burial mountain where the local people have been buried for generations. There is nothing unusual recorded, not knowing how it suddenly became strange! This official has been uneasy about it recently, more and more people are disappearing inside, now the people under this official’s administration dare not come this way anymore."
In the carriage, Chen Yuan’s voice had no fluctuation, continuing with the next question,
"This mountain has no history, so it’s possible those buried in it have some stories to tell. Has this mountain ever had any important people buried in it?"
This mountain’s change always had some mystery, Chen Yuan wondered if he could find any clues.
Wen Tianming shook his head, "This official has served here for over twenty years, has never heard of any important people buried in this mountain!"
Saying this, he looked to his left, "Sun Dian Shi, you usually manage the county annals, are there any related records in the annals?"
The archivist, hearing this, tried to recall, and said:
"Since the county was established over a thousand years ago, naturally, there have been some prominent figures, but they couldn’t be considered important people, and there are no explicit records in the annals of any impressive individuals buried here."