Early the next morning, Pan Long and the others continued on the road, all the way to the south.

The next part of the road can be regarded as calm. After walking for three days, he didn't see a single robber, which made Han Feng feel a little itchy.

"Lao Li, why don't you say you can't meet robbers now?" he said to Li Qiang boredly, "Could it be that the weather is cold, and the robbers in Yongzhou are hibernating like bears?"

Li Qiang, who was catching the car, couldn't help laughing: "The bear hibernates, relying on the oil accumulated in the autumn. The robbers hibernate, and they will starve to death. ”

"Then why didn't they come out and rob?"

"I just didn't meet it. Li Qiang said, "There are indeed a lot of bandits on the ground in Yongzhou, but in fact, they will not be encountered every once in a while." If there are really bandits everywhere, where do we dare to go out?"

Han Feng thought about it, it seemed to be the truth, sighed, returned to the carriage, and lay on the carpet with a bored face.

It's like a dog that is bored at home and can't go out for a walk.

Pan Long shook his head, did not persuade him, and asked Li Qiang: "Are there really a lot of bandits in Yongzhou?"

"It's a lot, alas!" Li Qiang sighed and explained, "Yongzhou is located in the northwest, and the original products are not rich. And the imperial court also levies a large amount of 'Jincheng tax' every year to prepare materials and support the Jincheng defense line. The people have been miserable for a long time!"

Pan Long nodded lightly and sighed as well.

"If it's just a tax, in fact, you can still stand it, after all, there is really no money, and the tax collectors of the court can't do anything about you, it's a big deal to go to the ground, let them take what they like, anyway, it's all worthless heavy things, they don't take it away." What was really terrifying was the transshipment of conscription - transporting supplies from all over Yongzhou to the Jincheng defense line required a lot of manpower. These people are naturally our Yongzhou natives. Moreover, the Jincheng defense line not only needs soldiers, but also a lot of coolies, and naturally we are all young and strong ...... Yongzhou."

"What kind of place is that in the Jincheng Defense Line? It is the front line of fighting with demon beasts and desolate people, and it is a battlefield where blood flows like rivers! Even the soldiers often bleed into rivers and corpses all over the field, not to mention the people! It is a great joy that seven or eight of the ten people can come back; not a single one of them can come back, and it is not nothing. So in some places, once someone is conscripted, the family will even handle the aftermath for him in advance. If you can come back, you will be considered to have lived another life, and if you can't come back, it will be forgotten......"

Li Qiang sighed deeply, his face full of bitterness: "Actually, we envy you Northland people very much. Although the place is cold and barren, and there are all kinds of monsters infested, you don't have to pay extra taxes, and you don't have to serve those conscripts that can never be served...... Do you know, we Yongzhou people have a joke: there are five things that people must do in the world. Eating, drinking, panting, sleeping, and servitude. ”

Pan Long looked at his bitter smile and was silent.

He also knows what Li Qiang said. Every year, a convoy from Yongzhou to the Jincheng defense line passes through Dingfeng Town, and more than once. Accompanying the convoy were a large number of people, their expressions of trepidation, and their tall stature could not hide their worries.

As for the people who returned to the south with the convoy, they were all tired and happy, and the number of people was significantly smaller than the number that went.

"Lao Li, you can't say that!" Han Feng was unhappy and argued loudly, "Although we people from the Northland do not accept conscription, we are often conscripted! Moreover, we are full of demons and monsters, and we have to dispatch a large number of people to fight against those demon beasts that come out of nowhere...... We're in the service of conscription all the time, okay?"

Li Qiang was amused by his statement: "Young Master Han, your statement is also reasonable. Since ancient times, there has been a saying of 'blood tax', which refers to those who do not have to pay taxes, but have to fight as soldiers. You Northland people are actually paying this kind of tax, and it is not necessarily much better than us. ”

"Yes, it's not easy for everyone!" Han Feng said happily after getting a satisfactory answer.

Looking at his relaxed appearance, Pan Long couldn't help but sigh secretly in his heart.

This kid is just a child after all!

One day they were lucky, and when the sun was about to set in the afternoon, they arrived at a county town named Lubei. This Lubei County is located at the northern foot of a "Lu Mountain", the mountain is not too high, lush, and the scenery looks good.

"There is nothing special in Lubei County, and the only one worth mentioning is probably Lushan in the south. As a knowledgeable old horse, Li Qiang introduced to them, "Lushan, before the establishment of Great Xia, had the same name as a famous mountain in the south. After the establishment of Great Xia, Emperor Jiazi sorted out the names of the mountains and rivers in the world, and revised a large number of duplicate names. This 'Lushan' was taken off its hat and became 'Lushan'. ”

"Folklore, the mountain has been covered with clouds all year round. But since Emperor Jiazi issued this order, the mountain gods of Lushan did not dare to wear hats, and from then on, no clouds and mist would stop on this mountain at any time. Even if it rains and snows heavily, once the rain and snow stop, the mountains will clear up immediately. ”

"Oh?" Han Feng asked curiously, "Is that really the case?"

"I don't know. But folklore, most of them have a reason. Li Qiang said, "If Young Master Han is interested, you can ask the locals to make sure." ”

So at dinner, Han Feng grabbed the guy in the tavern and asked about the story of Lu Shan.

The man seemed a little impatient at first, but after Pan Long gave him a few large coins, he immediately smiled, declared that he knew everything, and even simply pulled up a stool and sat next to them.

Anyway, now the store is only a table of customers.

"Lu Shan, there is indeed a legend that 'the mountain god does not wear a hat'. He thought for a moment and said, "But this legend is not a good way to come!"

"Oh?" Han Feng asked curiously, "What do you mean by that?"

The man sighed and said, "According to legend, the god of Lushan Mountain was refuted by Emperor Jiazi and lost his hat, and he has held a grudge since then. Emperor Jiazi is the Holy Monarch of the Ages, he does not dare to bargain with Emperor Jiazi, but he holds a grudge against the people around Lushan. So from then on, when he was forced to take off his hat, he would be very unhappy, and even haunt in the mountains. ”

"What's the trouble?" Han Feng's eyes widened, and his eyes almost lit up with curiosity, "What's the trick?"

"Someone has heard a woman crying, someone has seen a blood-red light rise from the mountain, and someone has seen a skeleton-like figure looming on the top of the mountain......" The guy shuddered, showing a look of fear, "Anyway, it's terrible!"

"The woman's cry, it was a fox, and the blood-red light and the skeletal figure might have been misunderstood. Just these words don't seem to be some kind of 'trouble', right?" Han Feng was not afraid when he heard him say this.

If this level can be regarded as "trouble", then isn't there a demon and monster outside Dingfeng Town every day?

Even, not to mention this kind of thing that catches the wind and shadows, even if it is a real demon beast, Dingfeng Town has to kill it better every year. Some of those demon beasts can also turn into a black wind, some can spit poisonous fire, breathe smoke, and some can even change into human form...... It's not that everyone's white knives go in and red knives come out, and they have become goods that exchange food with the caravan!

Seeing Han Feng's disappreciative face, the guy was anxious, looked left and right, lowered his voice and said, "That mountain god...... A lot of people have seen it!"

"I've seen it, and it's not terrible to see it. Han Feng said nonchalantly, "If it has no entity and can hurt people invisibly, it is indeed terrifying." But since everyone has seen it, it means that it is also flesh and blood. As long as it's flesh and blood, it's just a round of arrows to shoot it, and then a group of people pierce it with spears, won't it be solved?"

He said it lightly, but the man was dumbfounded, and looked at him with his mouth wide open, speechless.

In the face of the mountain god, is this the reaction?

That's not right! That's the god of the mountain! Why is this kid who is at most fourteen or fifteen years old trying to kill it with one mouth?

Seeing that the guy was stunned by Han Feng's words, Pan Long smiled and said, "That mountain god...... What is it about him that scares you so much?"

Only then did the man react, and said cautiously: "The mountain god is an eight-foot giant, covered in pitch black, with a pair of horns like oxen. Its eyes were red as blood, its fangs looked like knives, and it seemed to have a thick shell on its body, and the ground shook when it walked, which was terrifying!"

Han Feng frowned, thought for a while, and looked at Pan Long in wonder: "Brother Long, when I heard him say this, why doesn't it seem to be a mountain god, but like a mandrill?"

Pan Long also nodded slightly, feeling that he had a point.

The so-called mandrill is a kind of giant monster that bears some resemblance to a human. They are huge, powerful, and hard-skinned, and they are beyond the reach of ordinary people. However, these trolls like darkness and hate light, and generally rarely invade human-inhabited towns, mostly living in valleys and dense forests.

It has two important features, one is that the body is dark and massive, and some have long hair, and the other is that the structure of the legs is opposite to that of a person, and the knees are bent in reverse, and the appearance of walking is very strange.

This kind of troll is not low in intelligence, and often gathers a group of ghosts and ghosts to form a terrifying demon group. Therefore, once the people of the northern land discover it, they must quickly eliminate it, so as not to raise a tiger and let it gather henchmen, and become the climate.

According to the guy, the "mountain god" on this Lu Mountain seems to be a mandrill. Mandrills are indeed terrifying to ordinary people - this big man eats everything, including people. Moreover, once they have eaten humans, they will be very keen to prey on humans. Probably in their opinion, humans are animals that do not run fast, have little strength, and have no sharp teeth, so they are really suitable targets for hunting.

If there is a mandrill on this mountain, then we must really find a way to destroy it......