Book 2: Chapter 1

Book 2: Chapter 1

Zhang Qishans relationship with the eighty-two villages originated from Er Yuehongs relationship with the chief tusi. (1)

That year, Er Yuehong hid in the Miao villages to avoid being chased and killed. Due to accidental reasons, Er Yuehong and Qi Tiezui were forced to be in the funeral procession of the chief tusis youngest son.

At that time, the villages guardian had prepared to have the accompanying warriors kill the Chinese porters, gouge out the chief tusis eyes, and dismember her body before dumping it in the depths of Death Valley. They were going to lie and say that the youngest son had turned into a zombie and started killing people.

At that time, the chief tusi had already lost all hope, but no one had expected that there were two masters from Changshas Mystic Nine hidden among the porters.

When they reached the river surrounded by reeds, Er Yuehong killed all of those in the entourage who had betrayed the chief tusi. Afterwards, he brought her back to the village safely.

At that time, the chief tusi had developed romantic feelings for him, but Er Ye had just lost his wife, so it was difficult for him to have feelings for someone else. The emotions of these two people were delayed, and as a result, it was impossible for them to get together once they the opportunity was missed.

Later, Yin Xinyue took Er Yuehongs advice and brought Zhang Da Fo Ye to the Miao villages to hide. From then on, Fo Yes relationship with the eighty-two villages began.

This was what happened before the birth of this story.

Many years passed and a lot of those in the Mystic Nine died in the war. Most of them died during the Battle of Changsha, where the Xiang River was dyed red with blood.

The Japanese forced Old Dog Wu to use his own dogs to sweep for land mines, so he decided to lure them into stepping on the land mines themselves. He was just about to sacrifice himself when, under the guidance of his lead dog, the group of dogs he had raised unexpectedly jumped onto him to protect him as a series of land mines exploded.

During one battle, Zhang Qishan escaped into the mountains, where he continued to fight the Japanese army with the help of the eighty-two villages.

At that time, Hunan was the core area where they fought against the Japanese. The front line was very long, so the historical environment and geographical location in which this story takes place are very special.

The color of the soil wasnt something that came from the nearby villages, because it was a strange blue-gray color.

The Miao people had a legend about soil girls. It was said they were naked women who only lived in the soil. They appeared as naked corpses and seduced any merchants who passed by, dragging them into the soil and eating their flesh and blood.

There were records in western Hunan of rotten female corpses rushing out during mudslides, their abdomens full of human nails. These village girls were generally considered to have encountered misfortunes, but some people said that soil girls were actually those who had been smothered by rocks when the mountain collapsed.

As a result, rumors spread through the village that a soil girl was captured and put in the leaders room. But a month later, the leader came out of the room and the mound disappeared. Zhang Qishan also became a guest of honor after that.

What exactly did Zhang Qishan do for the leader? What was in the mountain? What was the origin of that soil mound?

I gained some inspiration from something in the local county records and learned the whole truth.

<Introduction> <Table of Contents><Chapter 2>

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TN Notes:

(1) Tusi, often translated as headmen or chieftains, were hereditary tribal leaders recognized as imperial officials by the Yuan, Ming, and Qing dynasties of China. Wiki link here

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Merebear note: The start of this chapter is a loose description of the Baiqiao Village arc in the "Mystic Nine" drama. It starts on episode 29 around the 17 minute mark