Simultaneous Transmigration: From Japanese Anime to American Comics

Huang Rong: "???"

Mu Nianci: "???"

Chu Yang shrugged. "I don't know how to drive."

Mu Nianci quickly reacted and volunteered, "Brother Chu, I've learned how to drive a carriage. Let me do it."

Chu Yang nodded, feeling no embarrassment about letting her handle it. Although he could learn to drive—it wasn't a difficult skill—he much preferred lying inside the carriage and taking a nap.

Huang Rong dashed into the carriage ahead of him.

The next second—

"Ah?!"

A disbelieving scream came from inside.

Mu Nianci, worried, followed her inside.

As expected—

Another scream echoed.

"Ah?!"

The two were completely stunned by the sight before them. The space inside the carriage was shockingly large—almost the size of a small courtyard.

"My heavens..." Huang Rong was dumbfounded.

Even though she had seen Chu Yang perform his "immortal techniques" back in Yanjing City, witnessing such a miracle was still a massive shock to her.

Mu Nianci was even more overwhelmed, looking as though she'd been completely bewitched.

Chu Yang pulled back the curtain and peeked inside, amused by their expressions. "Stop making such a big deal out of this. You'll see things like this more often in the future. Now, wipe that drool off your faces!"

"Xiao Chu, are you really an immortal?" Huang Rong finally asked. Since their return from Yanjing, she had been reluctant to broach this topic, fearing that if Chu Yang confirmed it, the distance between them would become insurmountable—like light-years apart.

During her time away from home, she had heard countless tales from storytellers about the doomed romances between mortals and immortals. Most of them ended tragically. Although those stories often depicted mortal men falling for immortal women, wasn't the reverse just as plausible?

Thinking of this, Huang Rong nervously fidgeted with her clothes, her face growing pale.

Mu Nianci had similar thoughts and remained silent, her head lowered, eyes dim.

Chu Yang didn't notice their unease. He leaned back lazily in the corner on a cushion, yawning. "Thanks for thinking so highly of me, but I wish I were an immortal. It's just some simple tricks—nothing as amazing as you imagine."

Huang Rong immediately perked up, her eyes sparkling.

Mu Nianci let out a long breath of relief.

Huang Rong curiously asked, "Xiao Chu, where did you learn these techniques?"

Chu Yang saw right through her intentions and laughed. "Don't even think about it—you can't learn this stuff. It depends on your constitution. Aside from me, there's probably no one else in the world who can master it."

"That's so unfair!" Huang Rong stomped her foot in frustration and clung to Chu Yang's sleeve, pouting.

It wasn't that Chu Yang was being stingy; it was simply a matter of the world's rules. Chu Yang's exception to these limitations was due to his Soul Palace.

After letting Huang Rong fuss for a while, Chu Yang reminded Mu Nianci to get moving. Seeing that Chu Yang wasn't giving in, Huang Rong resigned herself to sulking.

The geography of this world was quite peculiar, with the Southern Song, Northern Song, Jin, and Liao kingdoms bordering each other. Mongolia and the Ming dynasty lay farther out, locked in a standoff.

Dali, Western Xia, and Tubo were nestled in between.

This time, Chu Yang planned to go to Mongolia's Esoteric Buddhism sect to retrieve the Dragon Elephant Wisdom Technique, which meant crossing through several nations.

Since the journey would be long, Chu Yang aimed to maximize the benefits. Going after just the Dragon Elephant Wisdom Technique seemed like a waste of time. Thus, his first destination was Zhongnan Mountain, located at the border of the Southern and Northern Song.

If his memory served him right, Wang Chongyang had inscribed parts of the Nine Yin Manual within the Tomb of the Living Dead before his death.

As for the upper and lower volumes carried by Mei Chaofeng and Zhou Botong, they were too far out of the way, so Chu Yang chose to skip them.

The Song dynasty was divided into the Southern and Northern Song. The Southern Song had a territory half the size of the Northern Song and was locked in a standoff with the Jin.

The Northern Song, with its vast lands, stood opposite the equally massive Liao kingdom.

The four forces maintained a tenuous balance, with frequent skirmishes in recent years. While the Southern and Northern Song maintained relatively amicable relations—being like brothers born of the same root—conflicts were limited to verbal sparring among scholars or martial contests among Jianghu experts. They never escalated into outright wars, and in times of crisis, the two countries even cooperated against external threats.

However, Jin and Liao shared no such camaraderie. Were it not for the Southern and Northern Song watching them closely, the two old enemies would have long gone to war, and any semblance of cooperation was unthinkable. At best, they refrained from kicking each other when down.

In terms of actual combat power, a Jin-Liao alliance would likely surpass the Southern and Northern Song.

Among the four nations, conflicts between the Northern Song and Liao were the most intense, with minor skirmishes occurring every three days and major battles every five. The Northern Song often found itself at a disadvantage, suffering heavy losses.

Fortunately, the Northern Song boasted many Jianghu experts, particularly Qiao Feng, the Beggar Sect leader, who led the martial heroes to fend off enemies outside the battlefield. This deterred the Liao kingdom from advancing aggressively.

Chu Yang had heard from a storyteller about a duel between Qiao Feng and Hong Qigong that had been interrupted by an invasion from Liao forces, forcing them to defend a city together.

While staying in a small county far from the chaos of war, one might remain unaware of the hardship in the world. But once out of the city, especially closer to the borders, Chu Yang began witnessing unspeakable suffering. While not at the level of mass starvation or cannibalism, gruesome sights like headless corpses floating downstream were not uncommon.

Huang Rong was terrified, losing sleep for several days and plagued by nightmares.

During this time, Mu Nianci displayed extraordinary maternal instincts. Not only did she not hold a grudge against Huang Rong for her earlier rudeness, but she also comforted her to sleep every night, quickly deepening their bond.

After witnessing corpses in the rivers, no one dared to drink from open streams unless it was spring water from the mountains. Chu Yang enchanted a large water tank with an undetectable extension spell, filling it with clean water using his techniques. However, this made the already cramped storage space even more congested.

Realizing the need for better arrangements, Chu Yang decided to improve the carriage's interior. More importantly, sleeping had become inconvenient for him. He preferred to sleep stark naked but had to remain clothed because of the two girls' presence.

A month and a half later, the carriage arrived at a small town at the foot of Zhongnan Mountain.

The trio rested at an inn in town. Chu Yang tinkered with the carriage in the backyard, expanding its interior space further. Using Wood Release, he partitioned it into several rooms and added furniture, effectively turning the carriage into a "mobile home."

After a night's rest, they replenished their supplies in town and set off again, entering Zhongnan Mountain around noon.

The dense forest blocked most of the sunlight, leaving only mottled shadows that added to the mountain's eerie atmosphere.

Ordinarily, carriages couldn't traverse mountain paths. But with Chu Yang's floating spell, the carriage glided smoothly as if on flat ground. Mu Nianci's striking red outfit amid the mysterious mountain setting gave the scene an almost mythical feel, reminiscent of ghost stories.

Before they could locate the Tomb of the Living Dead, Chu Yang's group had already frightened six or seven herbal-picking Taoist disciples from the Quanzhen Sect into unconsciousness.

"Why don't we find a place to stop the carriage and continue on foot?" Mu Nianci cautiously suggested, worried that they might scare someone again. She was careful not to upset Chu Yang.

Chu Yang nodded in agreement. After all, they'd eventually need to disembark to reach the destination—the Tomb of the Living Dead wasn't accessible by carriage.

The three of them stepped out of the carriage and walked a short distance when they noticed the atmosphere around them growing eerily sinister.

Sunlight barely penetrated the dense forest, and a thick mist shrouded the surroundings.

"Xiao Chu, this so-called 'Tomb of the Living Dead' you're looking for—how dangerous is it? If any monsters or ghosts pop out, you have to protect me!" Huang Rong nervously clutched Chu Yang's sleeve, her eyes darting about as if a terrifying entity might leap out from the woods at any moment.

Even Mu Nianci, a seasoned wanderer of the martial world, couldn't help but look alarmed as she followed closely behind Chu Yang. Her front foot was no more than a finger's width from stepping on the back of his heel.

If a traffic officer were present, he'd probably remind her to maintain a safe distance.

"Can you two relax? Your tension is rubbing off on me!" Chu Yang reached out and pressed his hands against their foreheads, pushing them aside with mock annoyance. "This kind of reaction is no different from setting a flag in a horror movie. Usually, in situations like this, it's the prime moment for some ghost or monster to make its dramatic entrance."

The words had barely left his mouth.

A white figure streaked across the sky!

Immediately after, a white silk sash brushed across Huang Rong's face!

Huang Rong froze on the spot. Her cherry-like lips trembled.

"G-g-ghost!! AHHHH!!!"