The fatty's expression turned somewhat peculiar.
"There's such a thing? It sounds like a story for pure-hearted youths, completely out of sync with our current style."
Ye Tiancheng shot him a speechless glance. "In this situation, why bother with all that? If they're willing to write a diary, it's actually a good thing, benefiting us. Don't look a gift horse in the mouth; let's focus on the task at hand."
The fatty also knew they were somewhat pressed for time, so he stopped his banter and redirected his attention to the village records that had been distributed to him.
Upon receiving the village records, the little fox didn't join Ye Tiancheng and the fatty in their discussion about the diary. Instead, she became fully engrossed in the content of the records.
Although Ye Tiancheng held the village chief's diary, there were many volumes. It was possible that the village chief had stopped writing diaries in recent years, or that the diaries from those years were not kept here, but he had written them before that.
These diary volumes were numerous and thick, each comparable to a brick, capable of being used to smash someone.
The covers of the diary volumes allowed for a relatively smooth chronological arrangement, which was convenient for Ye Tiancheng's review, saving him the effort of sorting them.
Ye Tiancheng discovered that the village chief had started keeping a diary very early on, dating back to when the chief was a child. While the diary wasn't diligently written every single day, otherwise, the volume of work for Ye Tiancheng to review would have been considerable.
Through the content of the diaries, Ye Tiancheng gradually learned that the village chief actually knew the origin of the "Mountain God."
It could be said that not all rumors are without basis.
The reason some villagers believed there was something wrong with the current "Mountain God" was well-founded. After reading the village chief's diary, Ye Tiancheng learned that the current "Mountain God" indeed had no connection to the Dragon God originally worshipped in this village.
If one had to say, it was a case of impersonation.
When the village chief was very young, he rescued a small black snake. The black snake had horns. It might have been cooling off and sleeping in a water jar for some time, and had not emerged. The water jar had also been unused for a long time, so no one had discovered the black snake's presence.
Later, winter arrived. The climate here became very cold in winter, even experiencing heavy snowfall. When the snow was heavy, the accumulated snow depth could reach more than half a person's height, and the rivers and streams would undoubtedly freeze over, let alone the water in a water jar.
The black snake was unfortunately frozen inside the water jar, with the water completely turned into a block of ice. If no one had discovered it, or if they had discovered it but not provided aid, someone the following year would have found a black dead snake inside the water jar.
Logically speaking, ordinary snakes, when frozen like this during hibernation, would be as good as dead and could not survive for so long.
But this black snake was different. Judging by its ability to impersonate the "Mountain God," it was not an ordinary snake. However, no matter how powerful it was, being frozen for an entire winter would still be fatal.
If it had died from the cold then, none of this would be happening now.
However, things clearly did not develop that way.
The current village chief, as a child back then, wanted to play in the snow. He looked for a jar to scoop snow into and happened to discover the black snake.
Children who grew up in the deep mountains were not as afraid of snakes as some children were, as they were quite common in the deep mountains.
The village chief happened to be among those who were not afraid of snakes.
When the village chief discovered the black snake in his childhood, he didn't pay much attention to it at first. However, when he noticed that the black snake had unusual features, with small horns on its head and its body differing slightly from ordinary snakes, he became curious. He carried the water jar to the side of the charcoal pit to warm it, causing the ice block inside to melt.
After being trapped in the water jar, the black snake did not die in its hibernation. Realizing it was trapped, it was initially in despair. Who knew that fate would take a turn? It was found by a child who thawed it out, and it happened to still have vital signs, thus coming back to life.
Of course, regarding the black snake's own inner thoughts and feelings, the diary's narrative was largely based on the black snake's own later accounts. As for what the black snake was originally thinking, only it knew for sure.
After thawing the water jar, the village chief in his childhood discovered that the black snake had moved. He was not afraid and directly reached out to grab the snake. They had played with snakes since they were young and were well aware of snakes' weaknesses, so they were not scared at all. They directly grabbed the black snake's head and its vital seven inches.
Later, he discovered that this black snake did not attack him and even coiled around his wrist and arm voluntarily, allowing him to play with it. He felt he had found an extraordinary new toy and immediately forgot about everything else. For a considerable period, he focused his energy on the black snake, raising it for a long time.
Later, in the summer of the following year, the black snake quietly slithered away. The village chief in his childhood was sad for a while and then gradually forgot about the matter.
It wasn't until the village chief was nearing adulthood that his family's poverty became so severe that, despite the young village chief's strong desire to attend school, they could no longer afford it. He could only be said to have dropped out of school and returned home to farm.
The village chief in his youth was unwilling to accept this. Having read books, his mind had been broadened. Regardless of whether he could truly leave the deep mountains, he at least was unwilling to spend his life as a farmer toiling in the fields, yearning to change his destiny. For the village chief at that time, the only opportunity to change his destiny was through education.
To pursue his education, the young village chief made many efforts, even braving great danger and spending a very long time traveling to and from school.
At that time, to attend school, they had to leave the mountains and go to the town. That town has now completely transformed into a villa area for a tourist resort, but at that time, it was the more prosperous place in their region. In short, the school and some wealthy families were all gathered there.
The mountain paths back then were not as easy to navigate as they are now. Although the current mountain paths don't look much better, they are worlds apart from the past. The mountain paths were even treacherous, and unfortunately, some people lost their lives.
Moreover, for the young village chief, their home was too far away. Even now, on the easy mountain paths, it takes over an hour to drive between these two areas. Not to mention that people in the mountains back then could only travel on foot, or by bicycle if they had better conditions. However, bicycles were not safe, and the risks were much greater than walking.
If one braved such risks to study, how could anyone be content upon learning that their future was cut off?
The young village chief argued with his family, but his family truly had no money left. Just as he was about to succumb to fate, the black snake reappeared in the young village chief's life.
This black snake told the young village chief about what happened when he was a child, stating that the young village chief had saved its life and that it had returned to repay his kindness. If the young village chief had any wishes, it could help him.
The young village chief, having read books, should not have believed such things. However, he had grown up in a mountain village with faith, and the black snake had appeared before him, even speaking to him and recounting how he had saved the black snake's life when he was a child. It was now communicating with him very smoothly.
The young village chief, who was in despair at the time, no matter what this black snake was, saw a glimmer of hope and how could he not try to grasp it?
After all, he had no better options. If he didn't try, the young village chief would have no hope at all.
The ultimate outcome was undoubtedly that the young village chief achieved his wish. His family inexplicably received a windfall. In short, the young village chief fortunately did not have to give up his studies. He could continue to study, even getting into a good university, and finally left the deep mountains.
Discovering that the black snake was indeed powerful and could fulfill his wishes, the young village chief, whose life was just beginning, how could he only encounter one setback?
When he encountered another unsolvable problem, he couldn't help but think of the black snake again.
Thus, the relationship between the village chief and the black snake gradually became closer.
The village chief made more and more wishes to the black snake, and each of his wishes, regardless of the means by which they were fulfilled, was ultimately realized. The young man that Ye Tiancheng and the others had heard about, who left the deep mountains and later returned to the village, transforming the entire village into a tourist resort, was precisely the current village chief.
It was also because of this matter, which brought such significant changes and benefits to the village, that he was able to become the current village chief.
And the reason for establishing the tourist resort was partly to attract followers for the black snake, in short, to seek benefits for the black snake.
When the black snake appeared before the young village chief and offered to fulfill his wishes, it claimed to be the Dragon God worshipped in the village. After the village chief received many benefits from the black snake, he brought this excuse to the forefront and used it directly.
Initially, the village chief worried that doing so might offend the Dragon God originally worshipped in the village and cause some negative consequences. However, he later discovered that the Dragon God had truly disappeared long ago, or at least he had not witnessed any divine miracles from the Dragon God for a long time.
In fact, the village chief knew that the black snake was not the true Dragon God, and knew that the black snake was impersonating it. Perhaps even the black snake itself did not know that the village chief understood what the Dragon God worshipped in their village was like.
Ye Tiancheng became very interested upon reading this.
The village chief knew about the Dragon God and was also aware of the "Mountain God." He understood what the Dragon God looked like, so he was not deceived by the black snake and did not believe the black snake was the Dragon God. However, he did not question whether the Dragon God was truly a dragon.
This was very interesting.
Could it be that the Dragon God worshipped in this village was indeed a dragon?
Unfortunately, Ye Tiancheng continued reading but did not find the answer, as the village chief did not describe the Dragon God originally worshipped in the village in detail in his diary.
He only said that he knew, but did not provide a description.
It seemed he could only rely on the village records.
The village chief understood the current "Mountain God" far better than anyone else. He was acutely aware that his actions were akin to consorting with a demon, and that if he was not careful, he would be consumed by it. Therefore, he was even more aware of the "Mountain God's" weaknesses and was extremely wary of it.
He utilized the "Mountain God's" abilities while also not wishing to be backfired by evil forces and suffer misfortune.
The village chief had actually deceived the "Mountain God."
In the relationship between the worshipper and the worshipped, the worshipped held all the advantages from the shadows. Such a situation was truly rare.