It is said that a huge tree grows in the land of sweet springs. On its mighty branches, swaying, the Sun sleeps. In the morning, having gained strength, it climbs on a chariot and drives the fiery horses along the heavenly track. There was a time when ten Suns were placed on this tree, the mischievous sons of their mother Sihe1. They replaced each other on her chariot, and, since the brothers were twins, people thought that one Sun always smiles at them from the sky.

For many thousands and thousands of years, this strict order of the Sun brothers has become pretty boring. And somehow all of them together flew to the top of the tree and began to whisper so that their mother would not hear.

Why do we need this chariot? Why do we go to heaven one by one? Why do we need this track? Is there nowhere in the sky to turn around and show prowess?

Frolicking like little children, the Suns flew across the sky. In vain did the mother shout after them:

My children, come back! You can ruin the world. The sky was shining at ten suns. The world is drought

Which has never happened before. The forests, which then covered most of the land, flared up like dry reeds from a flint spark. The animals, pursued by fire and choking smoke, fled from thickets and wilds and sought salvation in the rivers. But the rivers were boiling with solar fury. The fish floated belly up. The birds, singing their wings, fell from above in charred lumps. Crowds of people, blackened by the unbearable heat, gathered on the plains. Striking stone gongs, blowing pipes, they raised a noise, hoping to frighten the heavenly bodies. But the Suns, having played, did not hear anything or, perhaps, out of their naivety, they thought that people, looking at their pranks, were happy.

Seeing the suffering of people and earthly creatures, the Great Lord Di-jun2 sent his son I. to the land. He was a skillful shooter, because his left hand was shorter than his right. Di-chun gave his son a red bow and ten white arrows with hard and sharp points.

When And appeared on earth, many people were gone, the survivors took refuge in deep caves. Hearing the noise of footsteps, they stuck out their heads and began to greet the shooter.

The shooter took off And from behind the bow, put the first arrow on it and pulled the bowstring to failure. An arrow whizzed into the sky, and people saw one of the Suns burst like a crimson bull bubble. Again and again he pulled And his bow, and arrows flew into the Suns, which, trembling, wanted to hide behind each other, but the arrows And overtook them, and they burst with a crash like balls of fire.

People rejoiced and encouraged the well-aimed shooter with shouts. Only the wise ruler Yao, the one with a gray beard to the ground and three pupils in each eye, realized that if the shooter went into a rage, he would kill all the Sun and the earth would plunge into darkness. Yao quietly approached Yi and pulled one arrow out of his quiver.

In the sky, maddened, the last Sun rushed about. His face turned white with fear. Wanted to kill his shooter And, but did not find an arrow. Fleeing from the shooter, the Sun rushed into the arms of its mother of the Night. And since then it no longer dares to deviate from its intended track and linger for a long time in the sky. The end of the drought did not end the plight of the people. During forest fires, the fields were filled with monsters. They were joined by dragons forced to leave the boiling waters. They all attacked mortals, and there was no sickness with them. And, having pacified the Sun in the sky, he decided to rid the earth of monsters and dragons.

In the center of the country, a red man-eating bull Yayui with a human face and horse legs raged, making sounds reminiscent of a crying child. The mere appearance or the sound of his voice made people run without looking back. Hit Yi Yayuya with one arrow.

In the south of the country, in the Chou-hua wasteland, there was the monster Tszuchi with an animal head, a human body and a thunderous voice. A huge fang protruded from his mouth, terrifying everyone who met him. Shooter Yi, without fear, approached Jochi to shoot an arrow. Zuochi raised his spear to strike the hero. Arrow I hit the shaft of the spear and split it. Seeing such extraordinary accuracy, the monster threw a spear and took up the shield to cover itself. But Yi struck Tszuchi with an arrow through the shield.

After that, Yi headed to the north of the Celestial Empire, to the Xiongshui River, where he annoyed people with Juying, a beast with seven heads, spewing fire and water from each mouth. Yi struck each of Jiuying's heads with seven arrows and threw them into the river.

During his wanderings And across the countries of the North, before his eyes, Mount Silushan collapsed with a terrible roar. A keen eye of the shooter discovered a surprisingly hard jade ring among the wreckage. And tried it on my thumb right hand, and, since he entered, as if poured in, I realized that the ring was given to him from heaven, so that it would be more convenient to pull the string.

Soon the ring came in handy. At Lake Green Hill, a hurricane hit the shooter, so much so that he could barely stay on his feet. The shooter saw a huge bird Dafeng3 with a variegated plumage, like a peacock, rising above the thickets. The wind came from the flapping of her wings. The bird flew so fast that the arrow could not catch up with it, and if it did, it would get entangled in thick feathers. Therefore, And he weaved a strong thread of green silk and tied it to an arrow. When the bird flew over his head, And he shot an arrow and hit it right in the chest.

It is said that a huge tree grows in the land of sweet springs. On its mighty branches, swaying, the Sun sleeps. In the morning, having gained strength, it climbs on a chariot and drives the fiery horses along the heavenly track. There was a time when ten Suns were placed on this tree, the mischievous sons of their mother Sihe1. They replaced each other on her chariot, and, since the brothers were twins, people thought that one Sun always smiles at them from the sky.

For many thousands and thousands of years, this strict order of the Sun brothers has become pretty boring. And somehow all of them together flew to the top of the tree and began to whisper so that their mother would not hear.

Why do we need this chariot? Why do we go to heaven one by one? Why do we need this track? Is there nowhere in the sky to turn around and show prowess?

Frolicking like little children, the Suns flew across the sky. In vain did the mother shout after them:

My children, come back! You can ruin the world. The sky was shining at ten suns. The world is drought

which has never happened before. The forests, which then covered most of the land, flared up like dry reeds from a flint spark. The animals, pursued by fire and choking smoke, fled from thickets and wilds and sought salvation in the rivers. But the rivers were boiling with solar fury. The fish floated belly up. The birds, singing their wings, fell from above in charred lumps. Crowds of people, blackened by the unbearable heat, gathered on the plains. Striking stone gongs, blowing pipes, they raised a noise, hoping to frighten the heavenly bodies. But the Suns, having played, did not hear anything or, perhaps, out of their naivety, they thought that people, looking at their pranks, were happy.

Seeing the suffering of people and earthly creatures, the Great Lord Di-jun2 sent his son I. to the land. He was a skillful shooter, because his left hand was shorter than his right. Di-chun gave his son a red bow and ten white arrows with hard and sharp points.

When And appeared on earth, many people were gone, the survivors took refuge in deep caves. Hearing the noise of footsteps, they stuck out their heads and began to greet the shooter.

The shooter took off And from behind the bow, put the first arrow on it and pulled the bowstring to failure. An arrow whizzed into the sky, and people saw one of the Suns burst like a crimson bull bubble. Again and again he pulled And his bow, and arrows flew into the Suns, which, trembling, wanted to hide behind each other, but the arrows And overtook them, and they burst with a crash like balls of fire.

People rejoiced and encouraged the well-aimed shooter with shouts. Only the wise ruler Yao, the one with a gray beard to the ground and three pupils in each eye, realized that if the shooter went into a rage, he would kill all the Sun and the earth would plunge into darkness. Yao quietly approached Yi and pulled one arrow out of his quiver.

In the sky, maddened, the last Sun rushed about. His face turned white with fear. Wanted to kill his shooter And, but did not find an arrow. Fleeing from the shooter, the Sun rushed into the arms of its mother of the Night. And since then it no longer dares to deviate from its intended track and linger for a long time in the sky. The end of the drought did not end the plight of the people. During forest fires, the fields were filled with monsters. They were joined by dragons forced to leave the boiling waters. They all attacked mortals, and there was no sickness with them. And, having pacified the Sun in the sky, he decided to rid the earth of monsters and dragons.

In the center of the country, a red man-eating bull Yayui with a human face and horse legs raged, making sounds reminiscent of a crying child. The mere appearance or the sound of his voice made people run without looking back. Hit Yi Yayuya with one arrow.

In the south of the country, in the Chou-hua wasteland, there was the monster Tszuchi with an animal head, a human body and a thunderous voice. A huge fang protruded from his mouth, terrifying everyone who met him. Shooter Yi, without fear, approached Jochi to shoot an arrow. Zuochi raised his spear to strike the hero. Arrow I hit the shaft of the spear and split it. Seeing such extraordinary accuracy, the monster threw a spear and took up the shield to cover itself. But Yi struck Tszuchi with an arrow through the shield.

After that, Yi headed to the north of the Celestial Empire, to the Xiongshui River, where he annoyed people with Juying, a beast with seven heads, spewing fire and water from each mouth. Yi struck each of Jiuying's heads with seven arrows and threw them into the river.

During his wanderings And across the countries of the North, before his eyes, Mount Silushan collapsed with a terrible roar. A keen eye of the shooter discovered a surprisingly hard jade ring among the wreckage. And he tried it on the thumb of his right hand, and, since he entered as if poured in, I realized that the ring was given to him from heaven, so that it would be more convenient to pull the string.

Soon the ring came in handy. At Lake Green Hill, a hurricane hit the shooter, so much so that he could barely stay on his feet. The shooter saw a huge bird Dafeng3 with motley plumage, like a peacock, rising above the thickets. The wind came from the flapping of her wings. The bird flew so fast that the arrow could not catch up with it, and if it did, it would get entangled in thick feathers. Therefore, And he weaved a strong thread of green silk and tied it to an arrow. When the bird flew over his head, And he shot an arrow and hit it right in the chest. The thread prevented the bird from flying away. The shooter pulled her down and cut her open with his sword. The people were very grateful to Yi, because the hurricane from the wings of the bird destroyed their huts and sometimes carried away the children.

Upon learning of Yi's feat, he was summoned by fishermen from Lake Dongting, suffering from the cannibal boa Bashe. Rising from the bottom, the monster overturned boats and swallowed those who were in them. And they gave a boat, and he went in search of the serpent. Finally, he saw a green head protruding from the water. It approached, causing huge waves. And released several arrows one after another, and although they hit the target, the boa continued to swim as if nothing had happened. I had to jump into the water and join the battle with Bash, striking blows with a sword. Finally, the green head sank, and a stinking liquid gushed out of the boa constrictor's belly. The fishermen who watched the battle from the shore happily greeted the winner.

The last of the monsters that harm people was the giant boar Fancy, who lived in the Mulberry Forest. The monster was the size of a bull, and in ferocity surpassed a tiger. And I found a wild boar by the huge notches left by its fangs in the trees. The arrows hit the beast in the thigh, making it impossible to escape. After that, And he loaded the boar on his shoulder and carried it still alive throughout the whole area. When the people were convinced that they had been delivered from the beast that spoiled crops and attacked livestock, they killed it, chopped it into small pieces and sacrificed it to the Lord of Heaven.

But the heavenly father did not even want to see I. Burning with anger at him, he expelled the shooter and his wife Chang-e from the host of gods. And if the shooter resigned himself to this and was ready to forever remain on the land, which he had freed from seven troubles, then the proud and obstinate woman, considering her husband the culprit of all misfortunes, constantly annoyed him with tears and reproaches. I had to go to Mount Kunlun, where the ruler of the West, Si-wanmu, lived. She, who sent sickness and death to people, also possessed the potion of immortality. The path to Si-wang was difficult. Her mountain was surrounded by the abyss of death, which absorbed everything that touched her. Having overcome the abyss, he fell into a ring of fire-breathing mountains, throwing out boiling lava. Having overcome these obstacles, And he found himself at the gate, guarded by a monstrous dragon named Closing the Dawn. And I did not have to fight the guard of the gate, for Si-wanmu, seeing the stranger, about whose deeds she had heard, ordered him to be admitted. And I told the goddess about her troubles, and she gave a sign to her servant, a three-legged sacred bird, to bring a turtle-throated pumpkin filled with a potion of immortality. Passing it to And, the goddess explained that the contents of the vessel may be enough for two - then they will become immortal on earth, but if they drink one, they will be transferred to heaven and become a god.

Returning home, I put the vessel on the table and, having explained to his wife that they would drink the potion of immortality during the next holiday, lay down to rest. When And he woke up, he saw the vessel empty. Chang-e drank the contents and flew off to the moon. On the moon, the traitor turned into a huge toad (she can be seen during the full moon), but And no longer differed from people. Mortal like everyone else, he became irritable. More than once, servants who did not commit any offense suffered from his anger.

However, he treated one of the servants, Fengman, as if he were his son. He decided to leave him everything that he possessed, and he only possessed the art of archery. Starting to teach Fengman, And announced to him:

You must first learn not to blink. You will learn, come back to me.

Going home, Fengman lay at his wife's loom all day. The pedals were spinning, and he looked at them, trying not to blink. He soon learned this and asked his wife to suddenly bring a sharp needle or awl to her face. When his eyes got used to this too, he ran to the master and asked for a bow with arrows.

It is too early! - said And smiling. - A good shooter should see a very small thing, as large, and not at all distinguishable by the eye, as noticeable. When you know how, come!

Fengman plucked the finest hair from the bull's tail and somehow tied the caught flea to it. After that, he attached his hair to the ceiling and, lying on the bed, gazed at him. He spent many days without food or drink. His wife, deciding that he was crazy, went for the medicine man.

The first one to enter here, I will kill! Fengman shouted without turning his head.

The wife, stopping, burst into tears: after all, the husband was looking into emptiness.

A day later, he shouted joyfully:

Look, now it has become like a button!

And can I get you some drink and food? - asked the wife.

It is too early! Fengman replied. “I'll tell you myself when I can distinguish between eyes and mouth.

And the wife cried again. For what mouth and eyes can a button have?

Three more days passed, and Fengman shouted:

Now she's like a wheel, and her mouth is bigger than mine. Give me my food and drink.

Fengman got drunk and ate and immediately ran to the master to inform him of his progress.

Now I will teach you how to shoot! - I.

They went to the field where Yi taught Fengman until all over the Celestial Empire they began to talk about the master and his servant as the best shooters, putting their names next to each other.

Fengman would have been happy and thanked the teacher, but he was envious by nature and considered himself the first, since Yi was old and he was young. And envy began to flare up in Fengman's soul, like a flame in dried bushes. He began to think about how to destroy the teacher.

Fengman got himself a quiver larger than that of Yi and filled it with arrows. Returning home with Yi, Fengman suddenly shot an arrow into the empty sky. Grabbing a bow, And sent an arrow in pursuit. There was a crackling sound. The arrows collided in the air. The same happened with the second, third, fourth arrows ...

But soon Yi's arrows ran out, and Fengman had more than a dozen of them left. Before Yi could move, Fengman ran to the side and drew his bow. An arrow with a whistle flew off the bowstring and hit And right in the mouth. Shooter I staggered and fell.

Believing that Yi was dead, Fengman approached him to verify this. But as soon as he was near, And he got up as if nothing had happened.

Sweat beaded on the traitor's forehead. His hands shook and he dropped the bow to the ground.

You decided to kill me early! - said And, spitting out the arrowhead. “I didn’t have time to teach you how to mouth and bite arrows.

Falling to his knees, Fengman grabbed the master's legs.

I'm sorry! he babbled. - I was possessed by an evil spirit of envy ...

But he pushed Yi Fengman aside, raised his bow and, breaking it, said:

A traitor will never be a good marksman! Meanwhile, Yi continued to be rude to his

servants. Fengman, who remained in his house, decided to take advantage of this. He persuaded the servants And to raise a rebellion against the master. They brought a large peach-tree club from the forest, trapped And while hunting, struck him with a club and immediately threw his body into a boiling cauldron prepared for game.

This is how the hero died, who saved the Celestial Empire from many troubles. After his death, he was revered as a deity Zunbu.

Other exploits of the shooter I
The end of the drought did not end the plight of the people. During the unprecedented heat, various monsters crawled out of the burning forests, from the boiling waters. They all attacked mortals. Divine shooter And, having pacified the sun, he decided to rid the earth and from monsters. In the center of the country, a red man-eating bull Yayu with a human face and horse legs raged, making shrill sounds similar to a crying of a child. His mere appearance or the sound of his voice aroused awe in those around him and made people run without looking back. According to legend, Yayuy was once a heavenly deity. For some unknown reason, the heavenly spirit hostile to him, Erfu, with his entourage named Wei tried to kill Yayuy, but a certain Koldun saved his life: by rushing into the Zhoshui River, Yayuy turned into a monstrous bull. And he struck Yayuya with one arrow.

In the south of the country, in the Chou-hua wasteland, there was a monster named Tszuchi with an animal head and a human body and a thunderous voice. A huge fang protruded from its mouth, similar to a drill, terrifying everyone it met. None of the people dared to approach Zuchi, who did much harm. Shooter And took the bow given to him by the Heavenly ruler, and fearlessly entered into the fight with the monster. He approached Jouchi within an arrow's flight distance. Zuchi raised his spear to hit the arrow, but the arrow fired by the hero hit the spear shaft and split it. Seeing such extraordinary accuracy, the monster, in confusion, threw a spear and raised a shield to protect itself from the arrows. However, the new arrow hit Jouchi even through the shield. After that, Yi headed to the north of the Celestial Empire, to the Xiongshui River, where he annoyed people with Juying, a beast with nine heads, belching fire and water from each mouth. Yi struck each of Jiuying's heads with nine arrows and threw the defeated beast into the river. During his wanderings And across the countries of the North, before his eyes, unexpectedly, with a terrible roar, Mount Silushan collapsed. A keen eye of the shooter noticed a ring made from a whole piece of beautiful unworked jade among the debris. The shooter put the ring on thumb right hand to make it easier to pull the string. He used to have an ivory ring for this. The ring was just right, and the shooter realized that it was a gift from heaven. On the way back, when Yi passed by Qingqiu Lake - Green Hill Lake - he was hit by such a hurricane that he could hardly stay on his feet. The shooter saw a huge Dafeng bird with motley plumage, like a peacock, rising above the thickets. The very name of the bird Dafeng literally means "big wind". During the flight of the bird, the wind generated by the flapping of its wings devastated the surroundings. The raised hurricane destroyed the huts and even carried away the children. Shooter Yi knew that the monstrous bird flies very quickly, and was afraid that if he could not immediately kill her to death and Da-feng flew away with an arrow stuck in her body, then it would be impossible to catch up with her. The bird will heal the wound, and the shooter will have to fight it again. Therefore, And he weaved a strong thread of green silk and tied it to an arrow. Dafeng flew over his head, And shot an arrow and hit it right in the chest of the bird. The thread did not let her fly away. The shooter pulled the bird to the ground and cut it into several pieces with his sword. So people were delivered from this evil.

Then Yi again went south, to Lake Dongting, where a huge boa, Bashe, was hiding, causing endless suffering to the people who lived by the lake. Raising huge waves on the lake, he overturned boats and swallowed fishermen. No one knew how many people were swallowed by the boa constrictor. People gave And a boat, and he went in search of the serpent. Finally he saw a green head protruding from the water. She approached, billowing huge waves. And released several arrows one after another, and, although they hit the target, the boa continued to swim as if nothing had happened. I had to jump into the water and join the battle with Bash, striking blows with a sword. Finally the green head sank, and a fetid liquid gushed out of the boa's belly. The fishermen who watched the battle from the shore happily greeted the winner. They pulled the remains of a huge snake out of the water. According to legend, a large hill was formed from his bones.

The last of the monsters to harm people was the giant boar Fancy, who lived in the Mulberry Forest. The monster was the size of a bull, and in ferocity surpassed a tiger. The boar spoiled crops, devoured people and domestic animals. And I found a wild boar by the huge notches that he left with his fangs in the trees. The arrows hit the beast in the thigh, making it impossible for him to escape. After that And he put the boar on his shoulder and, still alive, carried it all over the area. Then He killed the boar, cut it into small pieces and sacrificed it to the Heavenly Lord.