The tremor came suddenly. At first it was not strong. People only felt the ground beginning to sway, and that very motion confirmed the reality of the earthquake.
A sense of urgency pressed down on everyone. Those carrying heavy belongings no longer cared about chickens or ducks at home and ran desperately toward Chicken Crown Mountain.
Not far away, Zhang Cui’er tripped after only a few steps and twisted her ankle. Her face covering fell off, revealing a disfigured face covered in scars. People nearby glanced at her with obvious disgust and immediately looked away, focusing only on saving themselves.
Zhang Cui’er’s mother noticed her daughter had not followed and tried to turn back, but the crowd behind kept pushing her forward.
“Cui’er! Cui’er, come quickly!”
She shouted, but received no response and nearly cried from anxiety.
“Mom!”
Tears welled up in her eyes when she heard her daughter’s voice. Looking back, she saw Wang Ping carrying Zhang Cui’er over.
“Come quickly! Get to higher ground!” the mother shouted.
“I know! You be careful too!”
Zhang Cui’er lay on Wang Ping’s back, her emotions tangled and chaotic. Earlier, Young Master Wang had passed by her. She reached out for help, but he rejected her immediately.
“Don’t touch me. I don’t want Wang Ping to misunderstand and affect our brotherhood.”
After saying that, he ran off without hesitation.
Then Wang Ping arrived. He saw her face, showed no disgust, and carried her up the mountain.
Wang Ping said, “I don’t care what you think. You accepted my pouch—you’re my woman.”
The shaking grew stronger. The village had already mostly evacuated and gathered on Chicken Crown Mountain. Those who ran fast were halfway up; those slower were still at the foot.
At the Immortal-Falling Pool.
Zhuo Jinwen remained suspended in midair—not by choice, but restrained.
“Mountain God… do you dislike your bride that much? Hanging me like this is really heartbreaking.”
On the altar, the man who had been shouting “earthquake” for days stood quietly. The moment Zhuo Jinwen addressed him as “Mountain God,” a flash of white light passed over him.
His appearance changed completely.
Silver hair like frost fell all the way to his ankles, unbound and unadorned, pure and untouched by mortal dust.
He wore a cold-toned cyan robe, simple and precise in cut, the fabric calm and restrained, emphasizing his solitary and detached aura.
His face was pale and flawless. His brows and eyes were faint and emotionless, perpetually calm—neither joy nor sorrow.
He was the coldest and most indifferent man Zhuo Jinwen had ever seen.
No—that was wrong. Not “indifferent.” Indifferent only toward her.
The mountain range collapse was unavoidable, yet he had appeared three days in advance to warn the people. Even now, he was still deliberately controlling the tremors so the villagers could reach Chicken Crown Mountain safely.
A guardian deity of the land—barely qualified, but still.
“Mountain God, you protect these people with such compassion. But what about the innocent girls who were sacrificed?”
“Did you not hear their screams before they were thrown into the Immortal-Falling Pool? Did you not see their resentment?”
“They are in the pool—you can justify it as saving all living beings, sacrificing a few to suppress the spirit and maintain the seal.”
“Such righteousness is laughable.”
“You call yourself a god, yet you are just an executioner. Once you’ve killed one, killing many makes no difference. Why pretend otherwise?”
The Mountain God’s control shattered.
In an instant, the earthquake erupted violently. The earth shook, dust filled the air, and surrounding peaks moved like living things, crashing toward Chicken Crown Mountain as it rose from the ground.
In a blink, the blooming lotus-like terrain collapsed inward, becoming a closed bud.
Aftershocks continued.
“Ah!”
“It’s really an earthquake!”
“Amei’s prophecy came true!”
Outside the Lotus Mountain range, chaos spread. Cracks split the ground. Fortunately, the rescue force of hundreds had already been reduced by half a day earlier. Only Amei, the village head, and Yin Ciying—who refused to leave until she saw Ling Xiao—remained.
They survived the quake, staring in shock at the vanished mountain range.
The mountains were gone—entire ranges disappeared as if they had grown legs and walked away. In their place, a massive towering peak rose from the center.
“Our village… our village!” the village head cried, slapping his thigh. “What happened to our village!”
A young rescuer muttered, “With this level of quake, it’s probably compressed underground like a biscuit.”
The village head nearly broke down.
Old Zhou hit the rescuer’s head. “If you have time to joke, get moving. Check the epicenter!”
He immediately ordered rescue vehicles forward, though he knew survival chances were extremely low.
Yin Ciying followed in silence, unable to accept reality. She had waited three days for Ling Xiao and instead received a catastrophic earthquake.
“It’s too slow. You’re too slow.”
Amei sat in the vehicle, dissatisfied. She bit her finger and drew a talisman in blood.
The vehicle instantly shot forward at extreme speed.
“OH MY GOD—THIS IS ASCENDING TO THE HEAVENS!” someone screamed.
At the epicenter.
Old Nest Village no longer existed.
The Immortal-Falling Pool had been buried beneath the ground.
Chicken Crown Mountain had transformed from a modest peak into a towering giant piercing the sky. The lower half was shrouded in thick fog.
Zhuo Jinwen, now free during the Mountain God’s loss of control, headed toward Ling Xiao’s location—the direction of the grandmother’s grave.
Ling Xiao was pinned tightly to the ground by Xiao Kui, struggling in vain.
A disobedient man.
She had told him to retreat to Chicken Crown Mountain, yet he ignored her.
“Run to Chicken Crown Mountain!”
“Grandma’s grave is up there!”
Did he really think she wouldn’t recognize his voice?