Transmigrating to another world, starting as a mountain god

"Mountain God, is the universe truly boundless beyond the sky?"

"Are there other things that can emit light without fire?"

"Also, Lord Mountain God, you said that as civilization develops, mortals will eventually be able to fly into the sky?"

"Are the stories you told us true?"

The once naive Tiger Cub has now become the strong Zhang Xiaohu.

He was in his late twenties, with bright eyes and a magnetic voice.

Li Yuan leaned against the old tree atop Anshan Mountain, stunned for a few seconds.

If this question were asked in his original world, he would definitely answer yes instantly.

But it could be placed in this other world...

When the child asked about what lay beyond the sky, he was unable to answer.

Because he himself has never flown out of the sky, and he can't even get to the second level of heaven.

"Does it matter whether it is or not?" Li Yuan could only give a vague answer.

Zhang Xiaohu said in a low voice, "It's really not important. I'll spend my whole life in this wasteland. Asking these questions is useless."

"I just hope that Niu Mei is doing well out there."

Li Yuan sighed softly.

Anshan regained some vitality, and his body became solid, no longer illusory.

Niu Mei once curiously pinched Li Yuan's arm to see if it was really made of flesh and blood.

The conclusion reached was that, although it resembled flesh and blood, its essence was actually a mass of celestial energy radiating golden light.

When Niu Mei was mentioned, Zhang Xiaohu became excited again.

"Niu Mei married into a good family and left this desolate place. I, Zhang Xiaohu, don't ask for anything else, I just hope that Niu Mei will be happy in the future!"

"Happiness...hehe, you taught me that word, Mountain God!"

Zhang Xiaohu's mother passed away last year due to overwork, and Zhang Xiaoniu got married, which can be considered as leaving this desolate desert.

Li Yuan recalled Zhang Xiaoniu's bright, curious eyes and smiled:

"Niu Mei is very smart and learns things quickly. She will definitely do well outside."

"Yes, her husband dotes on her, and her whole family treats her very well, so we're relieved." A scruffy young man sat to the side.

The young man was once a child running all over the mountains, but now he stays in the small village as a teacher.

Li Yuan once mandated that the villagers wash themselves frequently, and over time, this practice indeed benefited the villagers greatly.

The used water can be kept and used to water the trees.

They got sick much less often, and the girls no longer looked drab.

Clean and pretty girls can marry outside the area and no longer have to live a hard life in this barren land with scarce resources.

In the past, due to severe water shortages, they dared not use water for washing, and their personal hygiene was often neglected.

This led to a host of troubling diseases, and the villagers were too poor to afford medical treatment.

This vicious cycle has led to a shrinking village population.

Now, twenty years later, the villagers still follow Li Yuan's instructions and use water whenever they need it, which has reduced the chances of many diseases occurring.

Because Li Yuan was believed to have manifested as a mountain god, villagers from other impoverished villages in the surrounding area moved here after hearing about it.

This led to a gradual stabilization and even an increase in the population at the foot of Ansan Mountain.

Therefore, after venturing out into the world, young people choose to return and stay in the village to teach.

The children here need a teacher.

"Mountain God, the outside world is truly wonderful."

The young man sat next to Li Yuan, gazing at him with the same childlike affection he had felt in his eyes.

For them, Li Yuan was someone who changed their impoverished lives and a mentor who taught them knowledge.

"Yes, I'll go check it out when I have the chance."

Li Yuan is also very interested in the outside world, but he also has responsibilities to bear.

The area covering a thousand miles around Anshan is under Li Yuan's jurisdiction.

Even though Lian'an Mountain has not yet recovered its prosperity, if the mountain god abandons his post, he will probably be captured and executed in the Heavenly Court.

Besides, that debt has never been repaid.

The thought of this gave Li Yuan a headache.

Twenty years have passed in the blink of an eye, and even though the villagers are very frugal, the water in the cave has run dry again!

Within a radius of a thousand miles, Anshan only has about ten acres of windbreak forest and a few acres of orchards on the main mountain.

I shook my head, temporarily putting aside this difficult problem.

Li Yuan turned his head and looked at the few silent young men beside him.

"How many of you are there?"

"What's wrong? You've grown up, but you've become less talkative?"

Li Yuan smiled brightly, showing no airs of a mountain god.

He watched these children grow up.

The young men smiled sheepishly.

"Mountain God, will you grow old?"

The silent youths finally raised this question.

Li Yuan casually picked a fruit from a nearby tree and smiled.

"What, do you want to see me with a full head of white hair?"

"Hmph, this mountain god has an eternal lifespan, you probably won't have the chance to see it!"

The young men chuckled and scratched their heads.

"That's good! Then the Mountain God can live forever and watch our bloodline be passed down from generation to generation!"

"With your continued protection, they will surely be happier than they are now!"

The young people's eyes were full of gratitude, yet tinged with a hint of sadness.

Humans have limited lifespans, and they will never see the barren lands transformed into lush forests.

Li Yuan affectionately patted the heads of these young people.

"A bunch of silly kids."

He tossed a few fruits to the young men: "Try some, these are the fruits from this year's harvest!"

Zhang Xiaohu and the other young people caught the unripe fruit and took a bite.

"Woo!!"

"Twenty years have passed, and this fruit is still sour!"

Zhang Xiaohu abandoned his maturity and composure, his features scrunched up, and he jumped up in a sour expression.

The other young men also looked strangely sour from the fruit, gesturing wildly.

Li Yuan burst into laughter.

The soil in Anshan is barren, and the fruit trees planted there suffer from malnutrition, resulting in unripe and sour fruit.

The same thing happened when the first batch was planted twenty years ago, and it's still the same twenty years later.

But every time Li Yuan threw fruit to the children, they would take a bite without hesitation.

Night slowly descended.

At the foot of Anshan Mountain, a candlelight flickered.

Most of the villagers gathered together, watching the young man in the middle perform a shadow puppet show.

Li Yuan also taught him how to play shadow puppetry; however, Li Yuan only provided the ideas and general form.

In reality, it was something that the children and villagers themselves came up with.

The villagers named this shadow puppet show "The Birth of the Mountain God, and the Clever Gift of Water from the Mountain God Temple".

Not wanting to break the atmosphere and fearing that the villagers would rise and kowtow to him, Li Yuan quietly sat behind them, hidden in the night.

The young people waved the little figures in their hands, sat behind a white cloth, and performed vividly.

Before long, another scene unfolded: "The mountain god prays to heaven for salvation for mortals in distress."

After watching for a while, the villagers' eyes reddened, and they all cheered.

Those days of planting trees and creating forests may have been just a fleeting moment in Li Yuan's long life, but for these villagers, they were twenty years filled with sweat and toil!

Many of them were participants in the experience.

Many people's parents and elders also dedicate the rest of their lives to this cause.

For now, they don't lack water, and they can also sell dried fruit made from sour fruits to earn some extra money.

Although the dried fruit is astringent and only worth ten copper coins for several pounds, it is still a stable income!

If they weren't in a hurry to use the money, they could even use traditional methods to preserve these sour fruits and exchange them for clean water in the border town.

The border town is only about a month's round trip from Anshan area.

Many unripe fruits spoil along the way, but some are ripened a little by using traditional methods.

The people of the border town were initially unwilling to have their river water taken from them.

Seeing the villagers' sincere attitude and the many fruits they offered, the town mayor agreed.

Anyway, it's just river water.

However, water is worthless outside, but it is worth a fortune in wasteland!

Experiencing days that are much more fulfilling and happier than before, how could the villagers not be grateful to the mountain god?

They are all simple and honest people; they remember everyone's kindness and good deeds!

That old mountain god temple has long since been rebuilt and expanded.

The mountain god statue, which was once made of clay, was re-sculpted by the villagers using sturdy bluestone.

The blue stone statue is over two zhang tall and is dressed in various colored linen clothes.

The villagers all voluntarily contributed money, willing to offer incense to the Anshan Mountain God for life, and Li Yuan couldn't stop them.

He does indeed need some offerings to solidify his merits and radiance.

Today, the temple is constantly lit with candles and incense.

This time, the mountain god statue has a face, which is exactly like Li Yuan's appearance.