Chapter 1421: Mulberry Forest

Chapter 1421: Mulberry Forest

“Mulberry Forest? Fengxi Boar?” Zu An thought to himself, this Mulberry Forest better not be as much of a scam as the Weak Water.

The Yayu explained, “The reason why it is called the Mulberry Forest is that there is a very large mulberry tree at the very center. The entire forest is formed from its branches.”

Everyone who heard this was shocked. “This entire forest is actually just a single tree?”

Just how big does this tree have to be?!

When he received a definitive answer, Zu An asked, “Does that tree have its own consciousness? Don’t tell me that it’s some tree demon or something?”

“I don’t think it’s that type of tree demon you’re thinking about. However, that mulberry tree is quite special, so it’s not entirely impossible for it to have produced a bit of a hazy consciousness,” Yayu said as an analogy, “It is just like the Weak Water. Outsiders might view it as just a dead substance, but I know that it actually has a will. That is why I was able to become close to it.”

Zu An thought to himself, if that Weak Water ends up developing sentience, then that would be ridiculous!

“That Fengxi Boar was originally a wild pig. Its fur is sharp like steel needles and possesses tremendous strength. You all must be careful,” Yayu warned.

“A wild pig?” Zu An became a bit absentminded. He suddenly felt the folk tales and legends of different civilizations all shared some similarities.

The east and west both had legends about a great flood. Meanwhile, the eastern legends had a Fengxi Boar, while in Greek mythology, there was a Hercules. Out of the twelve impossible missions that he had to complete, one of them was to slay a wild boar as well. Was this really a coincidence, or was it something else?

“Then does that Fengxi Boar have any weaknesses?” Yun Jianyue asked in a probing manner.

They really suffered badly because of the Yayu. In the end, they were only able to solve the situation because of a coincidence. She really didn’t want to go through something similar again.

“Our domains do not intersect, nor have we had any conflicts. I do not know its weaknesses. I fear that I am unable to help all of you in this area.” Yayu said apologetically.

“I see…”

Their group was feeling disappointed when Yayu suddenly said, “Right, it seems to be quite perverted. I wonder if this can be considered a weakness.”

Their group thought, what kind of weakness is that? Isn’t Zu An quite perverted too?

Furthermore, where would they even go to find a female pig at this point?

“Also, I heard that it was often lost in its thoughts and stared blankly at the moon in the evening. There are rumors that it is absorbing the moon’s essence to cultivate, but I do not think so. But I don’t know what it is doing either,” Yayu said. “I don’t know if this can help you or not.”

“It is quite useful. Thank you.” Everyone quickly expressed their thanks. It was definitely better than knowing absolutely nothing about that monster.

Zu An’s expression was strange. A perverted wild pig enters a daze under the moon. It’s not Zhu Bajie[1], right?

…

There were no terrifying waves that appeared under Yayu’s lead. Furthermore, the Weak Water’s width also returned to normal. They quickly crossed the Weak Water.

They expressed their thanks to Yayu again, but Yayu said, “No, it should be me who thanks everyone. It is because of you all that I was able to be completely set free.” As he said this, Yayu’s figure began to grow indistinct. He gradually returned to his original appearance.

But when he saw the other party’s body turn transparent, as if becoming half real, half illusory, Zu An was startled. “Could it be that you…”

Yayu smiled and said, “Indeed. Your purification ability before was formidable. I was only able to resist it because there was an unrelenting resentment inside of me. Now that it has disappeared, of course I am going to disappear.”

Zu An felt a bit dejected. “I’m sorry for harming you…”

Yayu interrupted him. “There is nothing to apologize for. This is a release, a form of transcendence, something happy for me. I’ve already had enough of living as a monster. Thank you…”

His voice grew weaker and weaker. His body also turned into specks of light, eventually fading into nothing.

Everyone became silent when they saw this. This was clearly an enemy that they were trying to kill a moment ago, yet now, they instead felt a strange sense of grief.

…

Only after some time passed, did they collect themselves and continue on their journey.

Soon afterward, a verdant and lush forest appeared in front of them. At the very center stood a tree that seemed to reach into the heavens. Its branches were full of leaves that hung above everything like a canopy.

“This is probably the Mulberry Forest Yayu spoke of.” Yu Yanluo said with a sigh, “That tree at the center really is big.”

Yan Xuehen also looked surprised. “It seems like this tree is the result of the coalescing of the essence of the world. According to what Yayu said, this Mulberry Forest has already existed for a long time. After all this time, it should have already developed its own sentience…”

“Non-human things aren’t allowed to develop a sentience post-civilization.” Zu An suddenly recalled an online saying.[2]

“What?” The three girls looked at him in confusion.

Zu An’s face heated up. He explained, “It is most likely because the laws of this world are deficient, so that is why it couldn't achieve such enlightenment.”

“That indeed seems to be the case.” The girls agreed with this judgment.

When they entered the Mulberry Forest, everyone maintained 120% vigilance. The branches really were everywhere, making it hard to see anything far away. Walking inside felt like they were going through a maze. Who knew where that Fengxi Boar was hiding? If it ambushed them, then they would be in trouble.

But the saving grace was that because the mulberry tree at the center was so large, it served as a landmark that prevented them from losing their way.

“How do you think we should go about looking for that Fengxi Boar? Should we set up a trap in the forest? Or what do wild pigs like to eat?” Yan Xuehen proposed.

Yun Jianyue shook her head. “The Fengxi Boar is a monster not inferior to the Yayu. It definitely has intellect on par with humans. Do you really think it’s some ordinary pig?”

Yan Xuehen’s cheeks heated up. She didn’t argue against her this time. Suddenly, Zu An’s expression became grave. “We might not have to find it. It will come to us.”

When they followed his line of sight, the three girls noticed that the trees in the distance began to shake violently. There were sounds of branches breaking.

Then, a huge monster suddenly charged out, releasing a roar similar to a dragon’s cry. The surrounding leaves all began to rustle.

Zu An thought back to how in his past world’s movies, the Eighteen Subduing Dragon Palms’ sound effects were made precisely from pigs. He didn’t expect that after this wild boar’s strength increased, its roar would actually really be similar to a dragon’s.

The huge monster in front of his eyes was like a small mountain. It was entirely dark brown and shining. Its two fangs were like two curved blades, shining viciously. Its four trotters were stone pestles, poking deep holes in the ground as it moved. The fur over its body was solid like needles. There was no need for any introductions, they knew that they already found their objective: the Fengxi Boar.

That Fengxi Boar’s nature was clearly irritable. When it sensed that they entered its territory, it was furious, steam coming out from its mouth from anger. Its trotters continued to dig into the ground as if it was going to attack at any time.

However, when it saw the beautiful appearance of the three ladies, it was suddenly stunned. As it stared at the three women, a huge smile appeared on its face. Then, viscous saliva trickled out of its mouth.

In the past, Zu An didn’t really understand the insult ‘pig brother’, but now that he saw this himself, he could only feel admiration for the creator of this phrase.

However, the three girls could no longer take it anymore. They felt incredibly uncomfortable and grossed out.

Yun Jianyue snorted, immediately taking out her Crescent Ring. It flew in a beautiful arc, slicing at that Fengxi Boar.

She was from the Devil Sect, her nature fierce to begin with. Now that she felt this much disgust, she didn’t hold back at all. She intended to remove that pig’s head right now.

When she was at her strongest, the Crescent Ring could flatten even a small mountain’s peak, let alone some flesh.

That curved crescent was about to hit the Fengxi Boar’s head when that monster moved its head fiercely. Its tusks smashed into her Crescent Ring.

A loud noise sounded. Then, the Crescent Ring was smashed flying. There wasn’t even a single mark left on that thick tusk.

The huge force coming from the Crescent Ring was something even Yun Jianyue almost couldn't control. She quickly warned, “Be careful!”

The Fengxi Boar was furious about being attacked. It charged over.

Both the Chinese and Japanese languages had the phrase ‘boar rush’. It described a powerful assault from the army.

This phrase was talking about normal wild boars. Right now, they were facing a monster that was more like a small mountain. When it ran at them, it shook the earth itself. They even found it a bit hard to stand still!

1. Zhu Bajie is one of the three helpers of Tang Sanzang and a major character of the 16th century novel Journey to the West. Zhu means "swine" and Bajie means "eight precepts. Zhu Bajie is a complex and developed character in the novel. He looks like a terrible humanoid-pig monster, part human and part pig, who often gets himself and his companions into trouble through his laziness, gluttony, and propensity for lusting after pretty women. He is jealous of Sun Wukong and always tries to bring him down. ☜

2. The original slang was used to describe animals who were so cute and smart that they ended up resembling humans a bit. Later on, it was used to describe other things too. ☜