Chapter 73: A Change Unseen in Tens of Millions of Years

The yellow ox carved some characters, indicating its resolute refusal to leave.

The big black ox wanted to give it a good beating, annoyed that it was still dawdling. It squinted thoughtfully at the yellow ox, sensing something strange about its persistent refusal to depart.

"Chu Feng saved my life, and I want to repay him. Before I leave, I must pass on all my skills to him!" the yellow ox declared, blatantly lying. It desperately wanted to stay, unwilling to leave before the seeds sprouted and bloomed.

"No need, you have nothing left to teach. Just go!" Chu Feng retorted, exposing its pretense.

The yellow ox burst into tears, adamantly refusing to leave and putting on a sorrowful act. In truth, it was furious with Chu Feng. However, it couldn't lose its temper in front of the big black ox. It continued its pretense, clinging to Chu Feng, wiping away tears, and feigning reluctance to part.

"How nauseating! I can't stand you!" the big black ox exclaimed in exasperation, turning and leaving.

As soon as the yellow ox saw the big black ox disappear, it immediately pounced on Chu Feng, ready to fight. Its "warm tears" hadn't even dried before it furiously engaged in battle.

Chu Feng fled in disarray, knowing that a wise man avoids immediate disadvantage. The yellow ox, having evolved again, was too powerful, far beyond his ability to contend with. In fact, the yellow ox really wanted to just take the large wooden barrel and wait for it to sprout on the road, but it was afraid the big black ox would discover the truth and try to seize it. Relatively speaking, it trusted Chu Feng more, mainly because Chu Feng couldn't defeat it.

As for going to Kunlun, Chu Feng had no such plans at the moment. His parents were extremely anxious, calling him several times a day to ask about his whereabouts. He had already told them he was close to Shuntian City. If he didn't return soon, he feared his elderly parents would become too anxious and fall ill.

Chu Feng went to the cold weapon workshop to see Grandpa Zhao. If it hadn't been for the Great Thunderous Bow during his trip to Mount Taihang, he would have most likely died there.

"Grandpa Zhao, how do you feel?" Chu Feng asked. He had previously peeled one pine nut for Grandpa Zhao to eat, not daring to give more, fearing any adverse effects.

"I'm full of energy, like I have boundless strength! It feels like I've become twenty years younger—no, I'm even stronger than I was in my prime!" Grandpa Zhao exclaimed, highly agitated. He had already closed the main door, fearing passersby might overhear. All business was temporarily suspended. Grandpa Zhao's inch-long white hair had significantly darkened. His physique had become much sturdier, and his strength was several times greater than in his youth.

"Have a few more!" Chu Feng whispered, peeling open four pine nuts. They were all glistening purple, emitting a faint fragrance, and as translucent as amethyst diamonds.

Grandpa Zhao opened his mouth as if to speak, but Chu Feng stopped him, gesturing for him to remain silent and eat them immediately. Chu Feng had discussed it with the yellow ox, estimating that ordinary people would undergo a mutation after consuming five pine nuts. After all, even the incredibly strong yellow ox stopped showing noticeable effects and further changes after consuming its tenth purple-gold pine nut. Let alone an ordinary person who had not undergone any prior transformations.

As expected, that day Grandpa Zhao underwent a mutation. His strength surged, and a layer of purple scales appeared on his body, making him impervious to blades and spears. The appearance and disappearance of these scales could be controlled at will.

Zhou Quan burst into tears upon learning this. Why could other awakened individuals freely control their abnormal features, while his ox horns remained permanently fixed on his head? The yellow ox conveyed that this was the power of "permanence," indicating a more thorough transformation.

"To hell with permanence! I want to be able to transform freely!" Zhou Quan wailed.

Chu Feng was generous and gave Zhou Quan a few more pine nuts, thinking that consuming only two last time hadn't yielded optimal results. Zhou Quan felt both joy and fear, but ultimately consumed them. Indeed, he could still evolve. However, the very next day he was crying, and came looking for Chu Feng and the yellow ox.

"This is a scam! I don't want to live anymore... Why is my evolution different from everyone else's?!" Zhou Quan cried, tears streaming down his face, because a fourth horn had grown! This one grew on the back of his head, pointing backward, and like the one on top of his head, it was a straight horn!

Chu Feng was also astonished. The abilities Zhou Quan gained from his transformation were completely different from Grandpa Zhao's; their features were distinctly dissimilar. Zhou Quan's horns could breathe fire, while Grandpa Zhao developed purple scales and immense strength.

"The direction of evolution depends on the mysterious factors hidden within one's own body," the yellow ox carved, informing them.

"What are you trying to say? That my ancestors evolved from cattle?!" Zhou Quan fumed.

The yellow ox nodded seriously, deeming it highly probable.

"I'll fight you!" Zhou Quan angrily charged forward, but was instantly pinned to the ground by a large black ox hoof, unable to move.

"Ox King!" Zhou Quan's neck instinctively recoiled in fear. The big black ox had appeared mysteriously, completely silently. In fact, the big black ox had been secretly observing the yellow ox for the past two days, believing there was something strange about its persistent refusal to leave. However, it hadn't found anything unusual. The yellow ox was cunning and knew that the old trickster was not easily fooled. For the past two days, it had suppressed its urge and avoided lingering near the wooden barrel. Of course, it could still discern whether the seeds had sprouted.

"Not bad, a good prospect!" The big black ox released Zhou Quan, sizing him up with immense satisfaction. "Four-horn bloodline, very good. From now on, you'll follow me, and I'll instruct you well." The big black ox regarded Zhou Quan with new respect, highly pleased.

Zhou Quan was terrified. He felt little pressure being with the yellow ox, as it was just a calf, and even if mischievous, couldn't be too bad. This old ox was different; heaven knew how long it had lived. Zhou Quan had already learned its background from Chu Feng: it was a monster from Kunlun Mountain, already possessing sentience before the world changed. In fact, Chu Feng even suspected that this big black ox was one of the "fierce beasts" of Kunlun Mountain mentioned by the Tibetans. In the Tibetan region, there were legends that Kunlun Mountain harbored some auspicious beasts, but also some fierce beasts! The big black ox as an auspicious beast? Chu Feng had never considered that possibility! If it had any significant background, it was definitely a fierce beast. This was his firm and unshakeable judgment. Of course, he wouldn't let the big black ox know he thought so.

"Excellent, from now on you shall be called 'Sacred Child'." The big black ox greatly valued Zhou Quan, even giving him a title.

"What?!" Zhou Quan jumped high, his hair standing on end in fright. "Sacred Child" (Sheng Ying)—wasn't that Red Boy from *Journey to the West*? He wouldn't take that name even if it killed him; it portended a bad end.

"Do you have an objection?" The big black ox glared.

"I..." Zhou Quan opened his mouth but dared not object. He was truly intimidated by this big black ox, which had dared to offend the White Snake and emerged completely unscathed.

"Don't you have an elder brother in a city out west? Come with me. Later, I'll take your whole family to reunite with him. I'll pass through that area when I return to Mount Flaming," the big black ox said. This was a classic case of carrot and stick: first intimidating Zhou Quan, then offering a tempting incentive. Zhou Quan's parents had always missed their elder son. Now, an opportunity had arisen for the big black ox to take their family to that western city. It was hard to gauge how strong this ox truly was, but it was at least a Beast King, capable of roaming the world freely. Taking his family on the journey would pose no danger.

"Alright, I'll go with you!" Zhou Quan made up his mind.

"That's right," the big black ox said, extending a hoof to pat his shoulder and grinning broadly.

"But... can I not be called Sacred Child?" Zhou Quan asked.

"No!" The big black ox glared. "Do you know what's most important in this world? Fortune! This concerns whether I, this old ox, can become a saint in the future. You will be Sacred Child, implying the offspring or disciple of a saint."

Zhou Quan was speechless. He cursed inwardly but dared not defy it verbally.

Chu Feng and the yellow ox exchanged glances, confirming that the big black ox, that trickster, was indeed spying on them. Otherwise, how would it know about Zhou Quan's family? The man and the ox became even more cautious.

"There's talk of slaying the dragon! The West has opened its armory, preparing to use forbidden thermal weapons!""Something big is really about to happen!"

That evening, explosive news spread across the world. Over the past two days, Western forces had massively mobilized troops and deployed missiles, but had failed to eliminate the Black Dragon King. It indeed couldn't hide in underground rivers hundreds or thousands of meters deep like the White Snake, but it could still evade attacks. Just as in China, where many inexplicable primordial mountains had appeared deep within the Taihang Mountains, the same was happening in the West. Among the famous mountains and great rivers of the West, numerous similar massive mountain bodies had appeared. Some even believed these were the legendary divine mountains of ancient Western myths, reappearing.

The Black Dragon King had fled into a mysterious mountain range in Northern Europe. The area was shrouded in mist, teeming with primordial energy. Satellites were surprisingly unable to detect or lock onto it. Western soldiers, naturally defiant, drove various armored vehicles and missile units directly into the area, vowing to slay the dragon! Many awakened individuals in the West were now shouting, challenging to see who could bathe in the Black Dragon King's blood and become a dragon slayer, recreating the feats of ancient mythology.

However, tanks and armored vehicles suffered heavy losses after entering, encountering a massive defeat. Airplanes that entered immediately lost their way!

"Monsters, it's all monsters!" The awakened military corps fled, having suffered a crushing defeat. In those mist-shrouded mountains, there were too many monsters, with fierce birds and beasts everywhere. Under the Black Dragon King's command, they furiously attacked the invaders. Although it was already known that those mysterious mountains harbored various powerful creatures, the military personnel initially didn't believe they couldn't handle them. Reality was cruel. Venomous insects crawled everywhere, ferocious birds soared overhead, and strange beasts roamed. After breaking in, it was like entering a completely new and alien world, and they suffered heavy casualties. Most terrifying of all, these monsters obeyed the Black Dragon King's command!

"Bombard them from a distance! Deploy the most powerful thermal weapons and level that entire area!" a high-ranking official in a Western military department issued the final order. The armory was opened. They decided to use weapons of mass destruction to flatten the mountains in a single strike! They were willing to pay any price, even if it meant waste, to completely raze the area. They simply refused to believe the Black Dragon King couldn't be killed.

"Monsters, fierce beasts—they can all go to hell!"

The Western world was in an uproar.

Chu Feng was also reading these reports and believed the Black Dragon King was probably doomed.

The yellow ox shook its head, disagreeing.

The big black ox also arrived. It now possessed a communicator, which it had forced Chu Feng to buy for it. Ever since seeing the yellow ox constantly fiddling with its own, it too had been influenced and wanted to keep up with the times! Two oxen having communicators was truly not a good thing.

"Wishful thinking. Do they really believe this will kill the Black Dragon King? No chance," the big black ox sneered.

"Why?" Chu Feng asked.

"Do you think their forbidden thermal weapons can flatten that place? You're being too naive. Do you know what lies behind these mountains, and how vast it is?" the big black ox said, a look of disdain on its face after reading the reports.

"Connected to where?"

"Folded space, infinite," the big black ox informed him.

What did that mean? Wasn't it just a mountain range, just dozens or hundreds of mountains that had suddenly appeared? How could it be boundless? Chu Feng was puzzled.

"Take Mount Taihang for example. Do you think only hundreds or thousands of primordial mountains appeared there? You and the yellow ox have been inside; have you ever reached the end?" the big black ox asked.

"No," Chu Feng shook his head.

"Let it tell you," the big black ox said, pointing at the yellow ox.

The yellow ox was reluctant but still carved out the information. Everywhere in the world, behind every newly appeared primordial mountain, lay mysterious regions—either boundless lands or vast oceans. It was impossible to reach their end in a short time.

"No way!" Chu Feng was stunned.

"Do you know where the White Snake is now? It has also entered the primordial mountains and become a regional overlord. The outside world can't track it at all now," the big black ox said. Recently, it had been on guard, fearing the White Snake might come after it. However, the big black ox had discovered that the White Snake had entered the primordial mountains.

"This..." Chu Feng was stunned. This world had become larger, but it was far larger than he had imagined—practically boundless!

"Actually, this world was originally very large. It's just that humans haven't discovered it throughout the long years of the past," the big black ox said.

"What exactly is going on?" Chu Feng earnestly inquired.

The big black ox took a white sheet of paper from his desk and folded it repeatedly, making it smaller and smaller. Finally, it crumpled it vigorously into a tiny ball.

"Do you see? The original world was folded, then crumpled, and instantly became small. This is the world you normally see," the big black ox said calmly. "Now, if you pull it slightly, the paper ball unfolds, and the hidden area of the world appears." As it spoke, it stretched the paper.

"However, this is just a crude analogy; it's not entirely accurate and has significant flaws." The big black ox discarded the crumpled paper. It pointed to the sky and said, "From a human perspective high in the sky, this world hasn't changed much; it's still roughly the same as before."

"Hasn't it become much larger?" Chu Feng asked, confused.

"You think it's larger because you're including the folded spaces. In reality, they've always been there; you just couldn't see them before, but now some parts are becoming perceptible. It's a very complex issue, difficult to explain clearly right now." The big black ox didn't want to elaborate.

A few more days passed, and no one in the West was shouting anymore. No one was calling for dragon slaying anymore. They had suffered an unprecedented defeat, wasting a large number of missiles and even forbidden weapons, firing them into the mist-shrouded mountains. It was like a clay ox entering the sea—it made no waves. They realized that beyond those mountains lay an incredibly vast and mysterious space. The only consolation was that apart from the Black Dragon King, a native beast king, other fierce birds and monstrous beasts seemed to be locked within that space. Any that dared to force their way out would be incinerated or die. This brought people a small measure of relief.

Both the White Snake and the Black Dragon were creatures of this world, but they had evolved into kings among their kind, immensely terrifying. Even in the depths of the primordial mountains, they could become overlords in a given region. It was hard to imagine the scale of the mutation's impact, allowing creatures to become so powerful so quickly. The White Snake's transformation was somewhat understandable, as it was already mythological and had lived for countless years. As for the Black Dragon, it was merely an old lizard before, completely incomparable to its current state.

Chu Feng pondered that the mutation had changed the world, but it was too rapid. The appearance of awakened individuals and the rise of various strange creatures had all occurred in the shortest possible time.

"Yellow ox, tell me, what exactly is going on?!" He desperately wanted to know the truth.

The yellow ox was very cautious, hesitating for a long time before finally deciding to tell him. It carved a line of characters: "A change unseen in ten million years!"

"Be more specific!"

"I barely survived countless perils to come here. Why? To become a saint and an ancestor!" The yellow ox spoke frankly. Then, it buried its head and continued carving line after line of characters. "This sealed land will undergo earth-shattering changes!" The yellow ox continued carving. It told Chu Feng that the reason he achieved so much in such a short time was precisely because he had caught the wave of this unprecedented change in ten million years. The same applied to other awakened individuals. Otherwise, how could it be possible? As for Chiba, the Buddhist disciple, the White Snake, the Black Dragon King, and others, their immense power, and their ability to even become rulers in the primordial mountains, were all due to the world's mutation, which allowed them to rise in the shortest possible time.

"What kind of place is this, exactly?" Chu Feng's heart was uneasy; there was definitely a great secret here! Countless fierce birds and beasts in the primordial mountains wanted to force their way here, all hoping to undergo transformation. So far, only the yellow ox had succeeded.

"This world is..." The yellow ox continued to carve.