d, but now, I think you're more like a bowl of gruel..."What, what is thisThis is saying he squeezed me flat and round, rightHe chuckled softly, arching his back, his nose touching my brow.A cold and...On both sides of the river bank under the cover of night, lanterns are lit densely and cable cars connect to each other, faintly revealing a ghostly city ingeniously crafted by nature.

How is it possible that such a place isn't marked on the map

Haven't people discovered these places by following the current

I stared in disbelief at the towering Shaman before me. Was this truly a city Or had he conjured it, a mirage from thin air

He still carried me, like bringing back spoils of war. Along the way, many residents dressed in black greeted him and the young and strong soldiers behind him.

This is a native settlement, a mountain city. I suspect he can't read, and it's not my fault! This place is truly eerie.

Given the sheer number of people living here, judging by the lights and houses I see, I estimate there are at least tens of thousands. And if you include the nearby villages and hamlets, it's even more. With so many people, shouldn't the government be taking care of them

Even if we ignore it, someone will surely barge in anyway This is such a wide river, couldn't even a single boat have passed through in all these years

"Isn't that strange" He sneered, his lithe figure striding towards the highest cliff, where a magnificent stone palace was carved into the mountainside.

“With so many of you, how is it that you manage to live in seclusion” I asked tactfully.

He let out a few cold laughs: “Seclusion Over the past two thousand years, our living space has shrunk considerably. The emperor is terrified of us and keeps relocating people and families associated with sorcery to barren lands, far from the Central Plains. He also constantly sends various mages to build mountain barriers, confining our territory tightly within this area.”

"...So, the government is completely unaware of our existence. This place isn't human anymore, even though it's so close. ...Even gods couldn't see this place, could they A place forgotten by the world for a thousand years has long since become an alien land."

He paused for a moment, then laughed. "You're one of the few who has come in and actually survived."

"Thank you for sparing my life. Everything happens for a reason, every action has a consequence. You let me go today, and who knows, maybe tomorrow I'll be able to return the favor" I quickly conveyed my good intentions to him.

He grinned wickedly: “Tomorrow You can repay me tonight. Do you like making love at dawn”

"...Talk about suicide again," I said, eyeing the twin blades strapped to his back.

"Don't touch it!" he warned fiercely, "Once you get poisoned, you won't have a choice!"

I…Goodness me, this Grand Shaman’s spiritual awareness is truly remarkable. His perception is as if he has eyes on the back of his head, almost comparable to Jiang Qiyun's ability to perceive objects without using his eyes.

I thought only gods had that kind of ability, but I didn't expect this Great Shaman…

The Great Shaman... In all the legends I've heard, a shaman is probably the being closest to a god among humans.

And he's still refining the Gu King. If he succeeds... he would be both a Witch King and a Gu King. In the Yin-Yang circles, no one would dare to provoke him.

His palace was carved into the cliff, with dwellings built along the mountainside below. It wasn't very large, with about twenty or thirty rooms.

Not far from the palace was a small pond. A small waterfall flowed down from the mountain, passing through the residential area before finally falling into the river.

He put me on the stone bed and asked me, "Do you want to take a bath"

"No washing, no washing! The dirtier I am, the better!" I shook my head quickly.

Isn't this nonsense If he has bad intentions, what can we do even if we wash it clean!

Although he seems to have some morals and principles, I absolutely cannot take him lightly.

His tall frame stiffened, probably as he reacted to the meaning of my words. He clasped his hands and asked, “Do you want me to roll you around in the mud a few times”

"...No, no need..." I curled up on the stone bed.

He snorted coldly, jumped out of the window directly, and took a cold shower by the small pond.

When he came in with his upper body bare and clean pants, I said to him, “The feng shui here is not good. It’s exposed with no protection. At least close the windows Otherwise, your wife is prone to getting sick later on. Strong winds pierce through the heart, and there are water currents both in front and behind which are bad for women.”

"No need, they'll be dead after a night anyway." he replied coldly.

"Why would you die after just one night" I asked cautiously, "You are the Shaman King, surely you can't do anything about it"

"No." He sat on the edge of the bed with his back to me, a faint heat radiating from him.

He was taking an open-air shower with spring water. The spring water was so cold, why did he still have hot air coming off of him It's still quite chilly out today.

"That... you at night... won't get too *excited*, will you" I carefully created some distance.

He glared at me fiercely: "How did your husband train you! This is such an attack on a man's self-esteem Do you want me to show you"

"No, no! I'm sorry!" I surrendered, clutching my head.

He was silent for a moment, then suddenly asked: "You two, yin and yang, can combine. Why can't I find a wife to host the female gu"

"There will be..." I didn't know how to comfort him.

He let out a cold laugh: “Your spiteful husband can wait for many years, right I don't have that much time. Although I live longer than ordinary people, in this vast sea of people, how many years will it take to find him I don't want to see any more women dying around me, it's disgusting...and cruel.”

I listened, my heart pounding: “That female gu… is it very poisonous”

"Extremely poisonous, it's a female gu that doesn't recognize a host. If the female gu recognizes one, it won't harm its host."

I whispered, "How about this I'll try to find where your destiny lies in love. You let me go, what do you say That way you have a goal to seek and won't have to commit more bloodshed."

He stared at me with a disbelief that was almost painful: “Can you see”

I nodded, thinking to myself that I should ask Jiang Qiyun to summon the judge. Then I could probably see his life story.

Checking the Book of Life and Death wouldn't add to my karma, would it I could just take a quick peek, it's on me.

It's been a whole day since Jiang Qiyun left, and I have no idea how he is doing. My brother was called away by Uncle just before this happened, he wasn't gone for more than three minutes. My brother must be feeling very guilty.

The Shaman King laughed wickedly. “Alright, I believe you this once, but tonight you still have to sleep with me. It’s dangerous for you to leave. Who knows, some bug might bite you… and then you’d just be stuck here as someone’s wife.”

I'm on the verge of tears, spending the entire night hugging my knees and huddled at the foot of the stone bed. Thankfully, he sleeps very soundly, or I would have gone insane.

》》》

"This is the most recent path," he pointed to a stone archway at the edge of the cliff.

"...Are you crazy! This is a cliff, there's water below! You want me to jump off and commit suicide" I was furious, this guy lied to me!

He crossed his arms and sneered, "Go if you want."

That's a cliff hundreds of meters high! Just looking at it makes me dizzy, I wouldn't dare get close!

"Tsk." He tugged me towards the archway, and I clung to his arm for dear life.

"Just reach in and you'll see!" He impatiently pinched my arm and shoved it inside.

The palm disappeared! It's so magical...

The guard at the gate looked down his nose at me and scoffed, "What in tarnation are you doing here, hick"

I…

That's great! If I could really travel through time, I could see Jiang Qiyun very soon.

The thought had just popped into my head when a cold gust of wind suddenly blew in from the door. The Shaman King's eyes narrowed, and the two soldiers instinctively tightened their grips on their weapons!

My face turned pale, and my wrist was tightly grasped by the figure in front of me!

"Mu—" A hint of fear flashed in the eyes under the mask of the Witch King.

I didn't even have time to scream for help before I was violently pulled into the interdimensional portal on the edge of the cliff—d up the stairs: "I'll go upstairs and get a few clothes and then leave...""Alright, alright." The drunkard waved his hand dismissively, not caring at all about the bloodstain on Chen Ruo's front.He d...