Chapter 41: The Yanwang Ravine Operation I

There was no rush to act. Zhang Kai first left Qianmen Mountain and returned to the village. The funeral preparations were nearly complete; everywhere, people with white cloth wrapped around their arms came to pay their respects. The elders busied themselves with arrangements, and many took the opportunity to gather, hand out cigarettes, exchange small talk, and ask after each other’s lives.

Scenes like this were standard for weddings and funerals in the countryside—not as solemn as in the city, but filled with the flavor of ordinary life. As a junior, Zhang Kai had no say and simply followed his father’s and the elders’ instructions, running errands and helping wherever needed.

The day passed peacefully, and friends and relatives each went home. That night, Zhang Kai’s father and several elders kept watch over the spirit, while Zhang Kai was told to return to the old house to rest.

Pretending to sleep, Zhang Kai quietly slipped out of the old house and headed straight for the depths of the Bearded Mountain. His goal: the King Yama Ravine.

His great-uncle’s dying wish was to eradicate the vengeful spirits of a family of weasels. In the village, weasels were even more despised than rats. At least rats only stole grain to survive, but when weasels grew vicious, they could kill all the poultry in a household without even eating them—what could be more malicious?

He moved swiftly, crossing mountain after mountain as if gliding over flat ground. In just over ten minutes, the King Yama Ravine appeared before him.

This ravine was one of the most dangerous places in the Bearded Mountain. High peaks rose and fell on either side, cliffs steep and forbidding, stretching two or three kilometers long and of unknown depth, with only a five- or six-meter width between the jagged walls, as if a giant blade had cleaved the earth in two.

At the bottom of the gorge, it was perpetually dark. Every year after the winter solstice, mist and smoke would rise, carrying a poisonous miasma that shrouded the area—so potent even birds dared not approach, for contact meant certain death. Thus, this area was a forbidden zone for the locals; not even the most experienced hunters would dare to hunt here. Over the years, King Yama Ravine had grown as dark and foreboding as a primeval forest, and many eerie stories had sprung up around it.

Since his great-uncle said there was a nest of vengeful weasel spirits within, Zhang Kai believed it. At present, the resurgence of spiritual energy was still faint, but once it grew stronger, the spirits here would become a nightmare for all the villages around Bearded Mountain—the consequences would be unimaginable.

As a human, Zhang Kai naturally sided with his own kind. If he had the ability to deal with such a hidden threat and didn’t do it for the sake of the villagers, was he just saving it for the New Year?

Standing atop the peak overlooking King Yama Ravine, he gazed down. In the darkness, the ravine, hundreds of meters deep, seemed bottomless and exuded a chilling aura. Occasionally, a mournful wind would wail through, heightening the sense of dread. Yet Zhang Kai could see the heavy evil energy swirling below—there was certainly more down there than just weasel spirits.

Simply charging in would be reckless. Having experienced one forbidden ground already, Zhang Kai was wary of the bizarre remnants of history. Anything that survived the waning of spiritual energy was bound to have some tricks up its sleeve—a moment’s carelessness and disaster could strike.

The best strategy was to stand somewhere safe and use a long-range, large-scale weapon. For most, that would be an impossible task. But for Zhang Kai, it was nothing at all—anything he needed, he could draw from movies and television. This operation could also help him gain valuable experience in dealing with supernatural beings.

With this in mind, Zhang Kai took out his phone. Though deep in the mountains, the reception atop the peak was strong—no issue for what he needed to do.

He scrolled through his options. With growing understanding, Zhang Kai had developed a sense of what could and could not be used on Earth. Previously, it had been a world without magic; after his apotheosis, a low-magic world. According to the rules, any power exceeding those bounds—whether from xianxia tales, high fantasy, or ultra-destructive sci-fi weapons—was strictly off-limits.

Though he held the initiative, Zhang Kai no longer felt an urgent need to ascend to godhood. Otherwise, if monsters and spirits grew stronger faster than he did, how could he hope to survive?

So, he preferred to proceed steadily—master each stage, gain enough experience, and only then enter the next. That way, he’d be prepared for anything and never caught off guard.

This was such a test. Facing a sinister place of unknown length and unknown dangers, with no targeted solution, how to resolve it? And whatever he used had to abide by the infuriating rules of Earth.

He flipped through movies and shows, mulling over strategies. Gradually, an idea took shape. His gaze settled on a particular film: Ghost Rider.

The protagonist of this movie, after transforming, became the Ghost Rider—still within the parameters of low magic, but possessing remarkable abilities, especially the flaming chain that swept all before it. It was, in a word, spectacular.

Zhang Kai’s plan was to use Ghost Rider to probe the ravine, to see if anything truly terrifying lay hidden within. If not, all the better: Ghost Rider was more than enough to annihilate most evil spirits. Dealing with the weasel ghosts would be a mere trifle. Afterwards, he could try to recall Ghost Rider—perfect.

With this in mind, Zhang Kai decisively selected Ghost Rider 2. In this installment, Nicolas Cage’s character had matured, fully embraced his identity, and displayed impressive combat prowess.

He fast-forwarded to the scene where the protagonist transformed and was about to pursue the villains, paused, and extracted Ghost Rider, flinging him straight into the depths of King Yama Ravine. As for the motorcycle—he left that behind. With it, Ghost Rider was just too overpowered, able to ride up walls; Zhang Kai would hardly be able to catch him.

Once released, Ghost Rider plummeted toward the ravine, regaining his original size midair. He seemed bewildered, froze for a moment, then curled up and landed heavily at the bottom.

Watching Ghost Rider descend, Zhang Kai grinned, then opened another film he’d downloaded the previous night: Guardians: The Super Soldiers. It was a gunfight film, and the scene of a bear wielding a Gatling gun, firing wildly, was simply exhilarating.

Having watched it, Zhang Kai was struck by inspiration—it would be just the thing now. He fast-forwarded to the scene with the bear and the Gatling, paused, and extracted the entire weapon set. Once manifested, it appeared at its original size—massive indeed; without a strong physique, one couldn’t even lift it, let alone use it to kill.

But that didn’t bother Zhang Kai. With nearly two centuries of internal energy, even a thousand pounds was nothing to him. A mere weapon posed no challenge.

With the weapon ready, Zhang Kai opened a few short videos. Each was just a few minutes long, featuring clips about black dog’s blood and rooster’s blood—he’d downloaded them specifically for easy access.

From these clips, he took the black dog’s blood and doused the bullets in the ammo belt, wanting to see if it would work.

Once finished, Zhang Kai slung on the ammo belt, picked up the Gatling gun, stood at the edge of the peak, and gazed down into King Yama Ravine, grinning.

The six-barrel Gatling was now aimed straight at the ravine floor.