Mythology Returns! Starting with Folklore and Strange Tales

Let's go back to Zhang Wei's side.

After saying goodbye to Blind Wang and his companions, the two began to jog towards the village.

On the way, Zhang Wei also took a moment to check the subtitles that had just popped up.

[Eliminating Evil: The Mountain Boar Monster Receives a Reward: Strong Skin and Bones]

Strengthening Skin and Bones: Based on Qi and Earth element, it can strengthen muscles and bones, solidify the skin, enhance physical strength, and slightly improve the condition of the bones and muscles.

It's not magic, much less supernatural power.

But since it was a spell with no usage restrictions and could operate for a long time, Zhang Wei didn't mind and immediately gave it a try.

As the energy was activated, the already weak Qi that had been inhaled into the lungs through the Qi Refining Technique was diverted by more than half, disappearing into the surrounding flesh and blood in the blink of an eye. In its place, a heavy Qi from the ground beneath their feet climbed up their feet—whoosh!

After running for a while, not only was the stamina that had been depleted immediately replenished, but the accumulation speed of the True Yang Arrow also increased by a barely perceptible amount.

Hey, they've created a synergy!

【Strengthening Skin and Bones】, while not as flashy as the Ya Zi Fa, and even a bit too basic, is effective enough. Imagine that when a future enemy finally breaks through the Ya Zi Fa's suppression, arriving before Zhang Wei riddled with holes, all their attacks will only tear their clothes but not harm their flesh.

That sense of despair...tsk tsk!

Of course, given the current efficiency, it will be a long time before the imagined future comes to fruition.

However, on the other hand, who would complain about having too many passive abilities accumulated in the late game?

As Zhang Wei familiarized himself with his newfound abilities and explored the balance between Qi cultivation and strengthening his bones, he found great enjoyment in the process. However, his cousin was soon panting heavily, his unsteady gait suggesting he might fall at any moment. This forced Zhang Wei to take care of him and stop to walk slowly.

The cousin was somewhat ashamed that he hadn't outrun a single child, but then he thought that his own Gou Dan wasn't just any ordinary doll.

That was personally certified by Blind Wang, who said he was a golden boy with the destiny of a celestial child. It's not surprising that he was more powerful than a peasant like him.

Upon realizing this, the cousin quickly abandoned his feelings of shame. Considering his previous disheveled appearance and Zhang Wei's care for him, he took the initiative to walk a little faster, but he refused to run again.

Although they had picked up speed and were on the right road, they were still some distance from getting back to the village.

The road is flanked by dark, mountainous ridges or buildings built along the mountainside, with cornfields marked out with stones after harvesting. Combined with the gloomy environment, it looks particularly eerie.

Humans, when panicked and afraid, always want to make some noise to relieve their inner tension: "I see you're very curious about these supernatural things, Dog Egg. Is it an instruction from the Kitchen God?"

Is slaying demons and monsters your mission in the mortal world, just like in the folk tales? Once you've completed your task and overcome your tribulation, you'll return to heaven to become a deity.

Zhang Wei had no answer to that question.

He also thought that if this was the truth, he could go back after completing the mission.

Firstly, he wasn't born with a special destiny; secondly, although he carried the blessings of two deities, it was merely a blessing and nothing more. Furthermore, while Zhang Wei entered the Three Realms with a specific purpose, the very first beginner dungeon was already this difficult.

Although so far things have turned out alright, he can't say for sure what the future holds.

People always hope that everything will turn out well, but reality is often far from perfect.

Seeing that Zhang Wei remained silent, the cousin was unsure whether he had guessed the truth or said something wrong.

Although characters like this in stories are generally quite good-tempered, there are exceptions.

After a slight hesitation, he changed the subject: "If you're curious about these supernatural things, there are some things Blind Wang wouldn't dare to talk about, or he might be able to ignore them, but we're different. We still have a long way to go back, so if you'd like to hear about them, how about I tell you?"

"Then I'll have to trouble you, Uncle!"

Although Zhang Wei still doesn't fully recognize all his relatives in the village, just like the relatives who appeared at Old Zhang's seventh-day memorial service, he mostly recognizes their faces but doesn't know who is who. However, he still has the memory to remember when people introduce him and follow the titles.

The cousin didn't put on airs like he would when telling stories to his children. After a moment's thought, he said, "Three years ago, I heard that when Old Zhao's wife from the next village died, the coffin was so heavy that eight people couldn't lift it during the seventh day after her death. People said that her children and grandchildren were unfilial, so the old man deliberately stretched it out and didn't want to be buried. You know, it's almost time for the coffin to leave the house. How could people not be anxious...?"

"So, in the end, was it an evil spirit rising from the dead? A living coffin resurrecting a corpse? Or the work of a demon?"

"It wasn't that serious. They just had a lot of pent-up anger. The geomancer gave them some advice, and then the elders of the maternal uncle's family beat them up badly. Once they vented their anger, they left. But that family had a lot of bad luck afterward. I heard that two of their grandchildren even died young. But these days, children's lives are fragile, and it's normal for one or two to die. It's only because of what happened to their family that people started gossiping. Otherwise, they would just feel sorry for them and no one would take it seriously."

"..."

Zhang Wei sighed, "It's just everyday family stuff, nothing like those vicious demons and monsters. Uncle, you'd better not talk about it!"

This silhouette is almost halfway through, and Zhang Wei has gained a clearer understanding of the identity of the Traveler.

Fight (slay demons and monsters)!

Of course, he's capable of doing detailed work, but without a necessary requirement or incentive, who would forgo the easy difficulty level and insist on playing some puzzle-solving or judgment-based hard mode?

【The Three Realms】is a game, but it is also life.

Without an endless supply of save files and without expert guides, who would be so foolish as to deliberately set up debuffs to torture themselves?

Realizing he had said the wrong thing again, the cousin remained silent for an even longer time this time.

"If it's particularly big, you could hear these things everywhere back in the old days when things weren't peaceful. But more than ten years have passed, and those who were restless have long been dealt with, just like the mines in Zhuqianlin. A large number of experts gathered there, and no matter how capable you were, you had to obey."

"However, it's not entirely true that there isn't. Remember when your parents went to Xiakou Village to visit your uncle a few days ago?"

"According to Seventh Brother and the others, something must have happened to the village. Almost everyone in Xiakou Village is healthy, and most of the village is sick. The weaker and younger the people are, the more serious it is. Even the old woman in the village who knows about these things is helpless."

"But firstly, it's just an illness, not life-threatening yet; secondly, the villagers are very taboo about this matter and don't talk about it much. Seventh Brother and the others were busy collecting your parents' remains and reporting back, so they didn't ask in detail. If you want, you can go and take a look? But I feel this matter is quite serious. Why don't we wait until dawn and ask Blind Wang, or simply wait until things are finished at Pig Forest and then ask a few master craftsmen to go and take a look with you among them."

"Besides, big guys like the Wild Boar King aren't easy to come by, but there are plenty of strange little creatures in the mountains outside the village. It's a pity Jianshe is gone. If he were still here, he would be a hunter, traversing mountains and forests. He would know more about these things than I do..."