Chapter 667: Would Those Lofty Divine Spirits Truly Care?

No one could have said how long they had been walking.

Xiao Mo watched the sun descend steadily toward the horizon, its dying light staining each mountain peak red. The red of the sunset and the white of the winter landscape blended together, making for a scene of considerable beauty but not a single person spared it any notice.

Every heart was taut with anxiety, for the darkness was drawing near.

"Quicken the pace! We cannot spend the night here! We need to push on further!"

The men called out loudly to the group, urging everyone forward.

The refugees had no choice but to drag their exhausted bodies along, forcing themselves to keep moving.

By the time the sun had sunk entirely below the horizon, the fleeing column had reached the bank of a small river. The river had frozen over, though the ice across its surface was thin, and through it could be seen a good number of fish still moving in the water beneath.

Everyone swallowed involuntarily, feeling that nearly extinguished flame of hope flicker back to life.

The villagers first used their carefully preserved dry kindling to start a fire, then gathered fallen branches and withered leaves from among the trees, shook the snow from them, and fed them into the flames, which proved enough to sustain the fire. Before long, several bonfires had been lit along the riverbank.

The villagers broke a few holes in the ice, caught some fish, boiled them into a broth, and ate it together with what remained of their dried flatbread. It warmed the body as well as filling the stomach.

"Curse it all! What have we ever done to deserve this? Every holiday and festival, every household between us has put together proper offerings. We haven't dared show the divine spirit the slightest disrespect! So why won't the divine spirit step in and help us? Why make us leave the land where our families have lived for generations?"

A man bit fiercely into a piece of flatbread, his eyes slowly reddening.

"And now, so many people already dead..."

"All right, all right. How could any of us possibly guess what a divine spirit intends?"

Another man sighed, his gaze growing heavier, as though trying his hardest to convince himself.

"Perhaps the divine spirit is testing us. Perhaps once we pass this test and reach the place the divine spirit has shown us, we will be able to live in peace from then on."

"Testing us? What do you mean, testing us? My daughter died on this road! She was calling my name when she died... I... all I wanted was my wife and daughter. I..."

Another man's voice broke as he spoke, his eyes growing wet, his fists clenching.

"Enough! Everyone stop!"

When the murmurs of doubt were growing loudest, the old Village Chief silenced them.

"What is this, blaming the divine spirit? This is just misfortune that has fallen on us. What does the divine spirit have to do with it? If it weren't for the divine spirit, we would have no hope at all, no idea where to turn!"

"And besides, there are so many people in this world. How could a divine spirit possibly attend to every one of them?"

The old Village Chief lifted his head and looked toward the horizon, his aged eyes full of earnest supplication.

"I believe the divine spirit will see our efforts, and will bless us! Look, we have fish to eat now, don't we..."

The Village Chief spoke with a smile, showing his yellowed teeth. His warmth and optimism slowly quieted the restless hearts around him. One by one, people lowered their heads in silence and drank the fish broth in their bowls, chewing at the dwindling flatbread.

How many of them truly believed the Village Chief's words, Xiao Mo could not say.

Nor could Xiao Mo say whether the divine spirit the Village Chief spoke of would truly come to save them.

He only watched as a good number of people knelt in the snow, bowing their heads toward the sky with genuine devotion, pleading for the divine spirit to look down upon them, even if only for a single moment.

"Village Chief, do divine spirits truly exist in this world?"

That night, Xiao Mo pressed close to the Village Chief by the fire, a thin blanket draped over his shoulders.

He had heard the Village Chief and the others speak of the miracle of the sheepskin map, but that was all he knew of it. He himself had witnessed no miracle, had seen no divine light.

"Of course they do. How could they not?"

The Village Chief laughed and rubbed his chilling hands together.

"Let me tell you something, lad. When I was young, about your age, I think, our villages were struck by a great flood. The water rose so high it nearly swallowed all of us whole. And then, just when all seemed lost, a divine spirit descended from the heavens, blazing with golden light, and with a single gesture of one hand, drove the waters back."

"At the time, I was absolutely stunned."

"After that, our village, and the villages of Chief Wang and the others, all came together and built a shrine to that divine spirit. We have made offerings every single day since, right up until now."

"Although... given everything that has happened to us now, with so many people gone, and that divine spirit not appearing to save us directly, I truly think it is only because the divine spirit is very busy. And besides, we cannot expect the divine spirit to take care of everything for us, can we?"

As he spoke, the Village Chief pulled his sleeves together and smiled.

"In the end, much of what happens... still depends on ourselves."

"People must ultimately rely on themselves."

Listening to the Village Chief's words, Xiao Mo did not know what to say.

He could see that the Village Chief held genuine reverence for the divine spirits but even so... a question lingered in Xiao Mo's heart.

Would those lofty divine spirits truly care about people like them?

The next morning, Xiao Mo was woken by the cold.

When he opened his eyes, the bonfire before him had nearly gone out, only a few faint, warm embers still glowing. Most of the Village Chief and the others were already awake, gathering their belongings.

Before long, Xiao Mo heard someone nearby break into loud weeping.

He looked over and saw a young mother clutching her child with desperate hands.

Some of the weakest children, and some of the oldest among the elders, had not been as fortunate as Xiao Mo.

They had not survived the night.

In the end, the villagers worked together, digging one shallow grave after another, returning to the earth those who would never wake again. They could not even carve a single marker for them.

Following the main column, Xiao Mo continued walking, his eyes fixed on what lay ahead.

"They're coming! Those things are coming!"

They had been walking for roughly half a day, and midday was approaching, when one of the men suddenly bellowed a warning.

Almost at the same instant, Xiao Mo turned to look, and saw a tide of wild beasts and monster-beasts of every shape and description surging toward them from behind.

"Run!"

"Scatter! Don't stay together!"

"Don't bunch up!"

In moments, the entire column was thrown into panic.

"Little Mo, don't stand there! Run! Do you want to die?"

The old Village Chief seized Xiao Mo's small hand and ran with him as fast as his legs would go but the Village Chief had already taken some injuries during the flight, and his legs were not in good shape. How could he possibly outrun a beast tide?

Before long, Xiao Mo could only watch as that wall of beasts closed the distance between them.