Originated from mountains and seas, life never ends

Qin Xiao ran very quickly, following Qiongqi into the mountains.

Everything around gradually became dim, and as I ran, the queen bee consciously came down from my hand and flew in the sky.

He didn't stop until he reached the foot of a mountain.

Qin Xiao took a breath and looked around. He found that this mountain was not far from the back mountain of his home. Usually no one came here. He and Qiongqi were standing by a stream at the foot of the mountain. They could vaguely see the stream flowing and hear the sound of the stream hitting the rocks.

There was a buzzing sound in his ears, and he turned around to see Xiao Mi flying by his ear. Xiao Mi's eyes rolled, and his body tilted. His six claws firmly grasped Qin Xiao's hair and stopped above his head.

Qin Xiao: ...

Forget it.

Qin Xiao was too lazy to argue with it, and looked at the Qiongqi in front of him, which had already recovered its huge body. Qiongqi's wings were fully spread, with the wing tips pointing to the sky, and the smooth hair wrapped around the full muscles, with smooth and beautiful lines. Just by looking at it, one could imagine the energy contained in it.

"Yu'er." Qiongqi spoke, slightly bending his front limbs, looking ready to attack.

“I didn’t expect you to mingle with humans.” Yu’er’s voice suddenly rang out, and a beam of light flashed, appearing out of thin air in front of Qin Xiao.

Yu'er was sitting on a huge rock. Because of the light emanating from his body, the surroundings suddenly became much brighter.

"What happens to me has nothing to do with you, right?" Qiongqi slowly bent his hind legs, seemed to think about something, and curled up.

"The proud insect is here?" Yu'er noticed the queen bee on Qin Xiao's head.

"No..." Qiongqi simply explained to Yu'er.

After listening to this, Yu Er looked at Qin Xiao deeply and said, "From Mangshan?"

Qin Xiao nodded and agreed.

“Hmm… (Why did you take Mo Ze’s things? Where is he?)” Yu’er knew that Qin Xiao would say something like this, so she spoke directly in their common language.

Qin Xiao was stunned for a moment, and just as he was about to say something, Qiongqi spoke first: "What have you been doing these years? Mo Ze died thousands of years ago."

Yu Er was stunned and frowned: "What about Bai Ze?"

"Bai Ze just came to life when Mo Ze died." Qiongqi said, frowning, "I'm really impressed. The two of them can have a conflict that lasts for tens of thousands of years. Forget about that, Bai Ze didn't teach him well. He knew Mo Ze's rebellious nature, but he just let him go without any worries. You see, he brought disaster upon himself."

"Do you know the details?" Yu'er propped up his head and looked at him with raised eyebrows.

Qiongqi shook his head: "I don't know, I haven't seen him much in those years, but Zhu Yin often goes there. I saw him before. He was possessed by a human being. He ran away without saying a word."

Yu Er frowned, seeming a little annoyed: "What about Mang Ling? He's gone too?"

As he said that, he looked at Qin Xiao.

Qin Xiao: "My master is resting, so his life should not be in danger."

When Qin Xiao said this, Yu'er's eyes became strange and she stared at him with disgust.

"Why do you humans speak in such a… what's that? So flowery."

Qin Xiao: ...

"No, what have you been doing these years?" Qiongqi suddenly felt something was wrong and looked at Yu'er suspiciously, "I and Taotie knew all this in Beishan these years, how come you don't know anything."

Yu Er was silent for a moment, then said, "Actually, I remember that Mo Ze was fine before I went to bed."

Qiongqi:......

Qin Xiao: ...

So you slept for thousands of years, right?

Qiongqi: "...You should know that Taotie has only slept for a few hundred years."

Yu Er: "...Do you mean I'm not even as good as Taotie?"

Qiongqi turned his head: "I didn't say that."

Qin Xiao: ...

"What are you looking at? Sleeping for thousands of years is normal, okay?" Yu Er was not happy with their strange looks. "I didn't have anything to do. I just slept and looked for someone before."

Yu Er pouted, looking confused: "So those top few people back then were either dead or lost?"

Qiongqi stretched and said, "It seems so. This world has been peaceful for so long, those monsters and demons should not stop."

"If that's what you say, then I haven't seen Fenghuang and the others wandering around." Yu'er said.

Qiongqi sneered: "How long have you been awake? What can you know? If you really want to know, go find it yourself."

Yu Er glared at him and said, "Then I'm leaving."

Having said that, he stood up, turned around and left without any reluctance, disappearing into the night in the blink of an eye.

Qin Xiao: ...

Looking at Qiongqi who was waving his hands lazily, Qin Xiao hesitated: "Are you just leaving like that?"

Qiongqi glanced at him and said, "He is just like that. He comes and goes as he pleases. I just wanted to ask him where Bai Ze is. Since he doesn't know anything, why not let him go away? What's wrong with that?"

Qin Xiao: ...

"That being said..."

Qin Xiao looked at the direction where Yu'er disappeared, wondering what he was thinking.

When Qin Xiao returned home, Qin Jinyi and the others had already washed up and were ready for bed.

Qin Xiao thought Qin Jinyi would ask something, but Qin Jinyi just patted his shoulder and didn't ask anything, just asked him to go to bed early.

It was late at night, and the pale moonlight shone into the room, casting a large shadow on the man's face.

The priest who was on the altar was now leaning over the bed. On the bed lay a skinny old man with only a few wisps of hair left, sticking to his head.

In an era when there was qi-guided lighting, oil lamps were still lit in the house.

The lights flickered, performing a frightening dance.

"Master, today..." The priest lay in front of the bed, a little hesitant, "The person you mentioned has been found."

The old man raised his dry eyelids slightly and looked at him with his cloudy eyes.

"There is a child who said that we have been wrong all along." The priest bowed his head and said softly, "I found out that the child's name is Qin Xiao."

"And... the god is here today, too." The man's eyes lit up when he mentioned this, but then dimmed. "He also said that our sacrifice was wrong, and asked us to change the statue... He said he wanted to change it to a pig."

Speaking of this, the priest was somewhat embarrassed to speak, but the old man suddenly opened his mouth and laughed like a leak.

"...Master?" The priest was puzzled.

The old man stretched out his skinny arm and pointed to the cabinet in front of the bed. The priest recalled that he opened the cabinet and saw several books inside.

“Three…” the old man began, his voice like an old organ.

"The third one?" The priest counted and took out the third book. The old yellow paper book was still a little damaged, as if the book would break if the slightest force was applied.

"Page 37..." the old man said slowly, his thin chest rising and falling, "From now on... use this."

The priest turned to page 37 as instructed and saw some writing and drawing on the yellowed pages. If Qin Xiao were here, he would be able to recognize that this was Yu'er's portrait and the correct sacrificial procedure.

After the old man finished his explanation, he stopped talking, closed his eyes and returned to his previous silence.

……

"What competition?" Qin Xiao asked at the dinner table.

"The Moonlight Demon Tamer Competition is held every four years!" Qin Jichen held up four fingers and looked at him with shining eyes. "How is it? Are you looking forward to it?"

Qin Xiao: ...not really.

The Demon Tamer Moonlight Competition is abbreviated as Magic Moon. The two words "Moonlight" at the end don't have any actual meaning. It's just to make the name sound better.

After the meal, Qin Jinyi and the others introduced the competition to Qin Xiao in detail.

As the name suggests, a demon tamer is a Qi cultivator who is responsible for taming demon beasts. Some Qi cultivators can only survive by doing this because of their special attributes. Every Demon Moon Competition will have a betting market, and many demon tamers make money by doing this. The competition will last for one month, and there will be generous prizes. The first place winner will receive tens of millions of gold coins and other rare treasures.

For most of the independent demon tamers, this competition means they can stay out of business for four years and make a living for four years after they open it.

There is no age limit for demon tamers, as long as they can fight with monsters, even a newborn baby can go on the field. Before going on the field, they will sign a life and death contract and are not allowed to seek revenge afterwards.

Each person is limited to three monsters, and each single-player match consists of three rounds, with two wins out of three. Of course, there are also monster tamers who rely on one monster to fight from start to finish. As long as it is strong enough, it is okay to use the same monster every time.

The Demon Moon Tournament has a wide scope and people from all over the continent can participate. It is held in the four major empires in turn, and this year it is Yuhua's turn.

"I wonder which city it will be held this year." Qin Jichen seemed to be looking forward to it.

Seeing this, Qin Xiao looked at Qin Jinyi questioningly.

"He is the one who gambles." Qin Jinyi said in a low voice.

Qin Xiao understood, nodded and looked away.

"The venue is already found." Qin Xiuyun took out a cylindrical metal object and pressed down the two ends of the cylinder. A crack appeared on the object. With a little force, he pulled it to both sides, and a translucent glass-like object appeared in the middle.

"This is the spirit screen. You can see a lot of information on it." Qin's father explained to Qin Xiao and spread it out for him to see.

Qin Yun'an also came over and looked at the thing curiously.

"What's written on it?" Qin Xiao and Qin Yun'an looked at it for a long time but still had no idea, so they looked up at Qin Xiuyun.

Qin Xiuyun: ...

They forgot that they had been living in the mountains all the time and could hardly read.

"It says that this competition will be held in Luoyun." Qin Xiuyun said, and explained, "Luoyun is the imperial capital. It seems that the second prince of Lei Ting will also come here."

"The Second Prince of Thunder?" Qin Jichen was surprised. "Is he the prince who has never shown his face in public in the past few years?"

Qin Xiao looked at Qin Jichen. Qin Jichen understood what he meant and explained to him: "The Thunder Royal Family has two princes and a princess. The second prince has never shown his face in public and is very mysterious. The eldest prince often appears in public with the Thunder Emperor... but the main reason is that the eldest prince is not born to the queen."

"Ah?" Qin Xiao raised his eyebrows.

"...It's hard to say about this kind of thing. After all, it's a royal secret book." Qin Jichen scratched his head and laughed, "But it's not from our country. Yuhua and Lei Ting have never had a good relationship. There's nothing wrong with talking about it."

Qin Xiao, who originally thought he would shut up:...

Qin Xiuyun looked at Qin Jichen helplessly, but did not stop him.

Seeing this, Qin Jichen spoke to Qin Xiao with confidence.

"The prince should be about your age." Qin Jichen looked at Qin Xiao and said, "His mother is the queen of Lei Ting, but the queen does not seem to be favored, and her son is also not favored. The eldest prince Lei Ting and the princess are from the same mother, that is, twins, a boy and a girl. They were born nearly a year earlier than the second prince..."

"Who is the biological mother of the eldest prince?" Qin Xiao asked.

"I don't know." Qin Jichen touched his chin and shook his head. "They are registered under the queen's name. Although the queen is not favored, it is still a status. The emperor registered them under the queen's name, which means that they are just like the second prince born by the queen, and they are qualified to fight for the throne."

"Then isn't the Second Prince feeling very aggrieved?" Qin Yun'an raised his eyebrows. "It's fine if my father doesn't like him, but he's not even from the same family as me, and he wants to compete with me for resources..."

Qin Yun'an couldn't help but click his tongue as he spoke.

"It's miserable."

"...Actually, there is a rumor." Qin Jinyi looked at Qin Xiao and said softly, "It is said that the Second Prince has been weak since childhood because the Queen had a miscarriage when she was pregnant with him, so her health has always been poor. And because of the Emperor, the Queen has always been not very kind to her son... It seems that she is dissatisfied with the Second Prince's incompetence..."

Qin Jinyi's voice became smaller and smaller as he spoke, and he finally stopped and pursed his lips: "But why did you let him come this time? The second prince is still a child in terms of age. Is it to clarify the rumors?"

"It's not just the Second Prince." Qin Xiuyun said calmly, "His eldest sister will also come. I didn't mention it just now because we see her so often."

"Forget it, let's not talk about this." Father Qin shook his head and looked at Qin Xiao, "It just so happens that this competition is here, you can go and watch it too."

Qin Xiao paused, said nothing, and nodded.

"Then... Dad, are you going this time?"

Qin Jichen was a little nervous. He knew Qin Xiuyun was very busy, but he really wanted Qin's father to accompany him. From childhood to adulthood, Qin's father had never accompanied him from beginning to end, and every time there were various accidents.

When Qin Jichen was young, he looked forward to being able to go out with his father like other children. When he saw fathers carrying their children on their shoulders on the street, Qin Jichen was envious. Although his father would accompany him and his mother to watch the lanterns and play, he would often leave before halfway because of various reasons. Before leaving, he would smile at him apologetically, touch his head, and then turn around and leave without hesitation.

When Qin Jichen was watching performances, there were always some children who were lifted high onto the shoulders of their fathers because of their height, and he could only squeeze forward with all his might and try hard to jump higher.

As he grew up, Qin Jichen would no longer have these ridiculous thoughts. With his body size, he could easily squeeze to the front row without anyone helping him to be taller. Although he felt empty at times, everyone had things to do, didn't they?

Qin Xiuyun paused and said, "There's nothing important going on at home this year, so I can take you there."

Qin Jichen was stunned, turned his head suddenly, his eyes shining: "Really?"

Father Qin: "...what else?"

Qin Jichen laughed immediately and looked at Qin Yun'an: "Are you going too?"

Qin Yun'an was stunned, thinking, and glanced at the silent Qin Xiao with his peripheral vision, and immediately smiled and said: "If it's convenient, I would also like to go for a walk, hehe..."

Qin Yun'an's eyes narrowed into slits as he smiled: "After all, I'm not familiar with these things yet, so it's good to go out for a walk."

In addition to Qin Xiuyun and his group, there were also many people in the clan who wanted to go there to watch the excitement, but these had nothing to do with Qin Xiao. After waiting for Qin Yunan and his group to leave, Qin Xiuyun asked him a few more questions, and Qin Xiao answered them one by one.

After talking with Qin's father, Qin Xiao went to the creek in the back mountain.

Qiongqi was lazily lying by a rock by the stream, with one claw hanging in the water. It swayed back and forth with the clear current. Suddenly, it stretched out its claw, grabbed a fish, and threw it into its mouth.

It's quite leisurely.

Qin Xiao walked up to him and sat down.

When Qiongqi heard the footsteps, his ears twitched and he said without turning his head: "There are quite a lot of fish here."

Qin Xiao nodded, and heard a sound not far away. He turned his head and saw Xiao Mi flying towards him with a swarm of bees. Perhaps it noticed the strange look on Qin Xiao's face, so it paused in the air for a moment, dispersed the swarm of bees, flew over and landed on Qin Xiao's shoulder.

"What a loud noise." Qiongqi raised his eyelids and glanced at Xiao Mi with disdain.

Qin Xiao agreed, but seeing the queen bee's drooping head, he chose to touch it soothingly, but ended up with a hand full of pollen.

Qin Xiao told Qiongqi about the Demon Tamer Competition: "Are you going?"

"...Isn't this just a buffet for Taotie?" Qiongqi hesitated.

Qin Xiao: ...

"Do you think he will drag that human to participate after hearing about this?" Qiongqi asked.

"...Maybe." Qin Xiao closed his eyes.

"Can I go?" Qiongqi suddenly looked at Qin Xiao, "I am also a monster to you, right?"

Qin Xiao: "...The registration period has ended."

"Ah?" Qiongqi showed a disappointed look, "Okay then."

Qiongqi lay by the water, looking at the clear stream, as if thinking about something.

"...I'll go with you and take a look."

Qiongqi stood up, stretched, and turned into a child.

Qiongqi raised his head, his dark golden pupils emitting a faint fluorescent light, and he curled his lips into a smile, revealing his pointed fangs. Although his smile was bright and sunny, it inexplicably gave off a chilling feeling.