Revelation of the Way of Heaven

Changsheng Village has a very long history.

According to the records in the book, the origin of Changsheng Village can be traced back to the Zhou Dynasty or even the Shang Dynasty. In short, the history of Changsheng Village is so long that people have forgotten how Changsheng Village came to be.

The sacred lake is not far from Changsheng Village, separated only by a mountain peak. However, this mountain peak is exceptionally steep, and it would take an ordinary person at least half a day to climb it.

Although they could fly over the mountains on a rhinoceros beetle, they decided to take a small boat along the River of Tears to reach the sacred lake in order to understand the surrounding environment.

Since they set off at noon, the morning chill had mostly dissipated. The group sat in the small boat, the warm sunshine bathing them. The wide, shimmering surface of the Tears River sparkled, and the surrounding decaying forests possessed a unique charm. They enjoyed the boundless beauty and breathed in the fresh air of nature, feeling utterly content. Of course, it would have been even more perfect if the wind on the river had been gentler.

They rowed upstream along the River of Tears for nearly an hour before reaching a fork in the river. One side of the fork led to the main stream of the River of Tears to the northeast, while the other side led to a tributary of the River of Tears to the northwest. The small boat needed to pass through this tributary to reach the sacred lake.

According to the myth, this tributary did not exist before the Qin and Han dynasties. Later, Liuwa's tears caused the sacred lake to overflow. Once the sacred lake overflowed, the first to suffer would be Changsheng Village. In order to protect the village, the villagers of Changsheng Village, led by Yang Yun and Liuwa, diverted the water from the sacred lake into the River of Tears, thus forming this tributary.

Of course, initially, the flow of this tributary was not this large. It was only through the continuous digging by generations of villagers in Changsheng Village, as well as some local water management measures, that this tributary became what it is today, with the river now reaching a width of ten meters.

The boatman who guided the five people was a middle-aged man of medium build. When they first asked him to be their boatman and guide, they asked him to call him Old Liu. Because he had been rowing all the time, Old Liu was only wearing a sweater and had taken off his cotton hat. Under his messy hair was a dark and weathered face.

Old Liu was very enthusiastic, telling them all sorts of strange and wonderful stories along the way, mostly myths and legends. But when Guo Shiyi asked about the Land of Witches, he just shook his head and said that it was where the goddess Nuwa lived, and that ordinary people could not enter it. He advised everyone not to try to go there, otherwise they would anger the goddess Nuwa and be imprisoned by her, and then no one would be able to take them out.

The group just laughed off his half-joking advice.

"Of course, even if you wanted to, it would be a waste of your time." Seeing that no one believed him, Old Liu changed his tone. "Unless you get permission from the Goddess Nuwa, no one can go to that sacred place. Don't even mention you. Xu Fu of the Qin Dynasty, Dongfang Shuo of the Han Dynasty, and Li Bai of the Tang Dynasty were all very famous, but after they came here, they just walked around the sacred lake and went back."

"You mean Xu Fu, Dongfang Shuo, and Li Bai also came to this place?" Qin Xiaochuan asked in surprise. He didn't expect that there were so many stories in this small village of immortality.

"Of course," Old Liu said with a proud look. "Not only did he come here, but Li Bai also wrote a poem here. Don't underestimate our small village; it has quite a history."

Qin Xiaochuan could only remain speechless in response to the other party's words.

At this point, the excited Old Liu became even more talkative. He continued, "And there's that Dongfang Shuo, didn't he have a famous saying about water or something, you guys know it?"

"If the water is too clear, there will be no fish; if a person is too discerning, he will have no followers," Guo Shiyi replied.

"Yes, yes, yes, yes." At this moment, Old Liu was beaming with pride. "You guys are so knowledgeable. Let me tell you, this sentence is about our sacred lake."

Qin Xiaochuan was utterly speechless this time, thinking that this statement was far too unreliable. Of course, seeing Lao Liu's proud expression, they were too embarrassed to point it out.

"Look, that mountain peak is Goddess Peak." After the small boat had traveled a distance, Old Liu suddenly pointed ahead and said to everyone.

Qin Xiaochuan looked in the direction Lao Liu pointed and sure enough, there was a mountain peak that looked like a bamboo shoot standing in front of them. The tributary of the Tears River flowed out next to the Goddess Peak.

"Do you see that big rock on Goddess Peak? That's our Weeping Husband Rock. Back then, Liuwa stood there waiting for Yang Yun to come back."

Under the winter sun, there was indeed a standing stone on the Goddess Peak, nestled among a patch of wild grass. From a distance, it really did look like a person standing on the mountaintop, gazing at the surroundings.

The current in this tributary is very gentle, and the small boat easily reached the foot of the Goddess Peak. After crossing the mountain wall, the sacred lake appeared before their eyes.

Upon seeing the sacred lake for the first time, everyone knew the origin of its name. At the same time, they realized how dull and powerless human language was, unable to describe the scene they saw, for it was truly a beautiful and sacred lake.

The surface of the sacred lake is about the size of several football fields. Surrounding the lake are continuous mountain peaks, forming a basin shape. The sacred lake is like a bright pearl set in a giant basin. When the mountain wind blows, ripples form on the surface of the sacred lake and roll towards them from afar. This always reminds Qin Xiaochuan of the endless, magnificent and beautiful clouds that are sometimes stirred up by the wind blowing from the west sky at sunset.

"This is our sacred lake," Old Liu said proudly. Then he pointed to two stone statues on a mountain peak next to the lake and said, "Those two stone statues are Liu Wa and Yang Yun. After they helped our ancestors control the floods, they were chosen by the Goddess Nuwa to be the mountain gods here. If you want to find the source of the witchcraft, you'd better go and pray to them first to see if they will agree. If they do, that's fine. If they don't, you'd better leave here quickly, otherwise you'll be in trouble if you offend the Goddess Nuwa."

Upon hearing this, Qin Xiaochuan couldn't help but ask him, "Then how do we know if they'll agree or not?"

"It's very simple. Just bow three times to the statues of the gods and then shake the bells in their hands. If they respond, there will be no phenomenon. If they don't respond, tears will flow from Liuwa's eyes. At that time, you must leave here immediately without stopping for even a moment," Old Liu said earnestly.

"That's amazing!" Qin Xiaochuan exclaimed in surprise, already eager to verify it.

"Of course! Didn't I tell you? The Goddess Nuwa lives nearby." Old Liu said with a pious expression.

Hearing his words, everyone couldn't help but turn their attention to the two stone statues.

"There's one more thing I need to remind you all," Old Liu said solemnly.

"What?"

"See that ravine?" Old Liu pointed to the intersection of two mountain peaks in front of us. "If you're looking for the source of the witchcraft, just search around the sacred lake. But whatever you do, don't go into that ravine."

"Why?" Guo Shiyi asked, puzzled.

"You don't know, that's forbidden territory in our area. Not to mention you, even the locals don't dare to go in, because it's very dangerous there. Once someone goes in, they never come out."

"Oh, I see. We understand now," she replied, thinking to herself, "It would have been better if you hadn't said so. Now that you've brought it up, we have to go in no matter what."