"Lord Black Cat, could you please go and help over there quickly?"
For some reason, Niannian felt that her body was a bit heavy.
She clearly felt that her speed was decreasing, as if she was about to fall at any moment.
But the Black Cat didn't notice anything amiss with her. It just tilted its head, thought for a moment, then nodded gently and rushed towards the back mountain at full speed.
"Huff, huff~"
Not long after the Black Cat left, Xiaotuanzi (Niannian) squatted down and gasped for breath.
What on earth was going on?
Why did she feel so tired?
So tired that she could hardly move.
Niannian felt that her eyelids suddenly became extremely heavy. Little by little, colorful mist began to pervade the surroundings without her noticing.
With each breath she took, the mist seeped into her body.
Her mind went blank for a moment. At this moment, her consciousness gradually became blurred. When she opened her eyes again.
Niannian found that she was no longer in the previous jungle.
The surroundings were filled with black mist. The space was terrifyingly cold and quiet.
There was a well in front of her. A faint light was emanating from the well, which was the only source of light she could see.
"Jump in."
A voice suddenly came from behind her.
Niannian whirled around abruptly, but found nothing behind her.
Jump in?
Why?
Into this well?
Niannian thought that the voice that had suddenly appeared must be a big bad guy.
It was bullying her because she was just a child and didn't know any better.
Jumping into a well would kill someone.
Even though she was a child, she wouldn't do something so dangerous.
Niannian turned around and wanted to leave. At least she wanted to get farther away from this well.
But just as she turned around, a huge pulling force suddenly came from behind her and dragged her into the well.
Before she could even cry out for help, everything started spinning.
"Where is this now?!"
Niannian squatted on the ground listlessly.
Since regaining consciousness, she had been standing under a tree and couldn't move a single step away.
Every day she just stared blankly at the sky. During the day, she counted the number of passing birds, and at night, she counted the number of stars in the sky. Niannian thought that if this went on, mushrooms would start growing on her head.
Spring, summer, autumn, and winter. Niannian counted her way through an entire year.
Maybe it wasn't even a whole year. Maybe everything now was just an illusion.
Niannian couldn't tell. She only knew that she was imprisoned here.
No matter what, she couldn't move.
Suddenly, there was a rustling sound coming from the big tree behind her.
A man in green clothes walked out from the center of the tree trunk.
The man was extremely good-looking. He was tall but a bit thin. His eyes were as bright as stars. His lips were red and his teeth were white. There was an air of purity and innocence about him that seemed to be untouched by the mortal world.
Ah?!
Finally, there was a person in this desolate place!
Niannian was so touched that she almost cried.
She was really fed up with this kind of life where she counted the days and didn't even see a single soul!
As soon as the man in green clothes appeared, Niannian couldn't help but want to get closer.
She followed him like a little tail. Before she knew it, she had walked out of the area she couldn't leave before.
When she came to her senses, Niannian was overjoyed. She thought she could move around freely, so she turned around and wanted to run away. But unexpectedly, she was imprisoned in place again.
When the man lifted his leg and walked forward, Niannian's consciousness was dragged along with him.
By this time, how could she not understand? This wasn't breaking free from the shackles at all. It was just that the thing that was binding her had changed from an inanimate object to a living one!
Niannian was extremely depressed.
But somehow, just by looking at this man, Niannian felt an inexplicable sense of calm and peace. After floating along with him for a while, she didn't really care about these details anymore.
The man walked forward step by step. His speed was slow and his steps were a bit unsteady. No matter what action he took, he was as clumsy and innocent as a child. He would stop and stare at something for a long time whenever he saw it.
Ah, the aura on this man wasn't that of a living person.
It seemed to be that of a demon, but not quite.
But judging from his appearance, he was indeed a spirit transformed from plants and trees.
Hmm... he was very pure. It was hard to tell.
The man patrolled around the mountain. Niannian also got to enjoy the scenery of the entire forest.
She had to admit that there were only four words to describe it, and that was "breathtakingly beautiful"!
After wandering around the forest, the man returned to the big tree. Then he sat cross-legged on the ground without moving. His eyes were tightly closed as if he was practicing.
The forest was full of the vitality of spring. It was always misty, as if a thin veil was covering the scenery in front of them. Sometimes, when the gentle breeze blew, the leaves rustled, and there were the sounds of cicadas and birds singing. It was a peaceful and serene scene.
Niannian sat under the tree with the man like this. Day after day, she didn't know how much time had passed and she had forgotten about time.
At noon, when the sun was shining brightly in the sky, it was extremely cool and comfortable under the tree. Suddenly, apart from the usual sounds in the forest, there were a few more soft footsteps approaching from afar, which startled the man under the tree. He trembled and disappeared in a puff of green smoke.
Niannian was also startled. She was used to watching the man meditate motionlessly every day. Suddenly, he opened his eyes and did this. Anyone would be shocked.
Niannian scratched her head in confusion. After it got quiet, she also heard the strange footsteps. She looked in the direction of the footsteps. Vaguely, a figure was walking towards her, getting closer and closer.
Finally, she could clearly see the appearance of the person coming. It was a monk wearing a cassock and holding a Buddhist alms bowl. The monk was very handsome and had a somewhat feminine appearance. Xu Ci (Niannian) thought it was a pity. Such a good-looking man would surely captivate many young girls in the secular world, but he had chosen to become a monk.
The monk leaned on his Zen staff and slowly walked under the tree to sit and rest. Niannian floated to the side and hung herself on the tree trunk, swinging back and forth, silently waiting for this person to leave.
After about the time it takes to burn an incense stick, the monk got up. It seemed that he was about to leave. He stroked the tree trunk that had provided him with shade and murmured to himself, "Has it already developed spiritual intelligence?"
No one answered the monk's question. The surroundings were still silent. The monk put his hands together and bowed, saying piously and respectfully, "Amitabha. This poor monk happened to come here to rest. Thank you for protecting me for a while."
The man who had just disappeared into the tree trunk walked out again. He looked curiously and puzzledly and asked, "Why do you say that?"
"This poor monk rested for a while. Thanks to your protection, I was spared the pain of the sun's rays. Naturally, I need to sincerely express my gratitude." The monk still said seriously. He didn't show any strange or surprised emotions at the sudden appearance of the man.
Listening to the monk speaking in a flowery and pretentious way, Niannian felt a toothache. Sure enough, Buddhist practitioners were all old-fashioned and strange people.
"What should I call you?" the man asked naively.
"This poor monk's Dharma name is Wuchen." the monk said with a smile.
"What's a Dharma name?" the man didn't understand.
"It's just a title." the monk explained.
"How did you get your title?" the man continued to ask.
"This poor monk's Dharma name was given by the abbot of the temple." When Wuchen continued to explain, he was extremely patient.
"Could you please give me a name? You're the first person I've seen since I transformed."
The man looked at Wuchen with expectant eyes, and there was a hint of eagerness and excitement in his tone.
"If the benefactor needs a name, this poor monk can fulfill your request. Since you're a spirit transformed from wood and your aura is clean and clear, how about the single character 'Zhan'? You can choose your surname yourself."
"Zhan, Zhan. Thank you, Wuchen. It's really a good character."