Chapter 17
Chapter 17
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 2
Chapter Title: The Evil of Huangyang Village
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Chen Shi returned home, still in a bit of a daze. Grandpa called him to eat, but he only took two bites before setting down his bowl and chopsticks. He stumbled back to his room on unsteady feet, lay flat on the bed, and stared wide-eyed at the beam overhead.
"Brat, you eating or not? If not, I'll feed it to the dog!"
Grandpa tossed the food in front of Blackie Pot.
Blackie Pot sniffed it, shook his head, and turned to leave.
"The dog we raised ourselves... wonder if it'll like the taste..."
At those words, Blackie Pot wagged his tail, came back with a fawning grin, sniffed again, opened his mouth to eat—but really couldn't swallow it. In the end, he tucked his tail and slunk away.
"The dinner today was indeed a bit off—almost all medicinal herbs, nothing fit to eat."
Grandpa frowned slightly, reflecting to himself. "Next time, tone it down a bit. At least make it something the dog can stomach. If even the dog won't eat it, Little Ten definitely won't."
By dinnertime, Chen Shi finally got up, looking rather listless.
That ruined temple in the wild mountains was the only proper place he'd found for cultivation. Now it had been smashed by a meteor, and if he had to rely solely on starlight for practice, who knew how long it would take to shed his status as a cripple.
He wanted to retake the scholar exam, then the juren exam, to escape his current life. At the very least, he needed to earn enough money to provide for Grandpa in his old age.
Grandpa was getting on in years, and Chen Shi didn't want him running around in his twilight years to care for a little cripple like him.
But now, a sudden meteor from beyond the skies had turned his dreams into illusions.
He was utterly dejected.
Life went on, though. Chen Shi soon snapped out of it, thanks to the lavish dinner Grandpa prepared.
This dinner had none of those weird-tasting herbs. The only issue was too much salt; otherwise, it was fine.
It was the first normal-tasting meal Chen Shi had in two years. After two bites, his eyes reddened, and he nearly teared up.
"Is it too salty?"
Grandpa stood with his back to him at the offering table, eyes on his shoulders watching Chen Shi. Seeing this, he asked, "I can't taste anything myself. Might be a bit salty."
He had lost all sense of taste—even candles tasted delicious to him.
Chen Shi shook his head. "Not salty. It's delicious."
Grandpa smiled. "Eat the bitterness to rise above others. Double the medicine tonight."
Chen Shi kept his head down eating. After a moment, he looked up. "Grandpa, that ruined temple where we stayed that night got destroyed. A rock from the sky smashed the mountain."
"Things like that happen all the time on Xiniu New Continent. No need to dwell on it." Grandpa slowly munched on a candle, replying indifferently.
"A lot of incidents like that?"
"Mm. Plenty."
After dinner, without Grandpa saying a word, Chen Shi took the initiative to clean up the pots, bowls, and utensils, bustling about diligently.
After his medicinal bath, Chen Shi cultivated the Three Lights Righteous Qi Art as usual. From the next room came Grandpa's voice using a Thousand-Li Sound Transmission Talisman to contact his father. Grandpa repeated his old refrain to Chen Tang: he was old, not long for this world, and wanted Chen Tang to take Chen Shi to the city.
But the other end of the Thousand-Li Sound Transmission Talisman always had excuses.
Grandpa asked if Chen Tang would come home for the New Year.
More excuses from the other side.
The talisman burned away completely. The room fell dark, filled only with a long sigh.
"A-Tang, I really don't have much time left. I'm worried about Little Ten..."
In the courtyard, Chen Shi felt downcast but kept at his cultivation. His progress was much slower now, far from the pace he'd made in the ruined temple on the wild mountain.
Late into the night, he returned to bed, staring at the dim beam until he finally fell into a deep sleep.
Blackie Pot heard a sound from Chen Shi's room and pricked up his ears.
"Grandpa, don't worry about me. I can take care of myself..."
Blackie Pot was puzzled. Grandpa had already gone out— who was Chen Shi talking to?
He stood up quickly, nudged open Chen Shi's door quietly, and peered inside.
"Grandpa, I'm not a cripple. I won't get sick again. I'll get better. I'll pass the scholar exam, become a juren."
On the bed, Chen Shi slept restlessly, murmuring in his sleep. "I'll make sure you live well... I don't like Dad. I've never even met him. Grandpa, don't send me away, please... Don't give me away, Grandpa. I'll be good to you, I'll honor you..."
Blackie Pot watched for a bit until Chen Shi rolled over and slept soundly, no more dream-talk.
Blackie Pot went forward, pulled the kicked-off quilt over him, slipped out quietly, grabbed the door ring in his mouth, and latched the door shut.
Early the next morning, Grandpa hitched up the cart, ready to head out. Chen Shi, tense, asked, "Where are you going, Grandpa?"
"To the county city to buy medicine. We're out at home."
Chen Shi thought for a moment. "Grandpa, that dinner last night was good because we were out of medicine?"
"Mm. I'll be back this afternoon. Don't wander off."
The old man sat on the cart, compass in hand, and instructed, "If you're hungry, skip a meal. I'll bring back something good from the county city for dinner."
Chen Shi was full of anticipation.
The wooden cart rumbled out of the village.
Chen Shi went to pay respects to Godmother, cultivated a bit, and sure enough, got hungry fast. He shook down Grandma Yuzhu's house for a few duck eggs, stole some sweet potatoes and a watermelon, ate his fill, and returned home.
Huangpo Village's Godmother sat in a tree, her dark eyes wide, holding a bright red fruit, beckoning him.
"Trying to poison me while Grandpa's away?"
Chen Shi sneered, went back to his room, pulled out brush, ink, paper, and inkstone, planning to draw some talismans to sell on the sly.
"Blackie Pot, we're good bros, right?" Chen Shi kept one hand behind his back, sidling up to the big black dog with a grin.
Blackie Pot backed away warily, already guessing his intent.
Chen Shi lunged, revealing the little knife hidden behind him. "Good bros should take a knife for each other... Why not stab me? My blood isn't as fragrant as yours... I'll draw some talismans, sell 'em, and we'll split the money, yeah?"
He was wrestling with Blackie Pot, causing chaos like chickens flying and dogs jumping, when suddenly violent knocking sounded at the door. Then the gate was pushed open, and a dusty, travel-worn man burst in. He wore coarse hemp clothes and grass shoes worn flat at the soles. Seeing the boy and dog tussling, he froze.
"Is this Talisman Master Chen's home?"
The man hesitated, then said, "Something's happened in our village! Evil spirits are stirring—several kids have gone missing. Begging Talisman Master Chen to come exorcise them!"
Chen Shi released the dog, scrambled up, and told the man, "My grandpa went to the county city for medicinal herbs. Won't be back till afternoon."
The man looked disappointed and wailed, "What do we do? If we wait till afternoon, people might die!"
"Uh... for exorcising your evil, is there pay?"
Chen Shi's eyes sparkled, breath quickening. "Silver?"
The man hesitated, pulled out three or four thumb-sized pieces of broken silver—about five taels total—and mumbled, "Everyone in Huangyang Village scraped together all we had..."
Chen Shi snatched the silver, clutched it tight, and grinned. "My grandpa's Talisman Master Chen, and so am I. I accept this job! Wait a sec while I pack my gear, then we'll go!"
The man gaped as Chen Shi dashed excitedly into the house, the black dog following.
From inside came dog barks and the boy's voice, like a conversation.
"Woof! Woof woof!"
"I know I have no true qi, no spells. But I can draw talismans."
"Woof woof! Woof woof woof!"
"Don't worry, it'll be fine. Saving a life is better than building a seven-story pagoda—let alone several kids, several lives."
"Woof..."
"You mean evil stirring in broad daylight doesn't make sense, right? I think it's odd too. But I need this money. Next time I find a wild mountain with a ruined temple, I won't have to ask Grandpa for cash—I can fix it up myself."
"Woof?"
"I'm thinking, if that temple hadn't been so ruined, the sunlight inside wouldn't have been spotted by the eyes in the sky. Maybe it wouldn't have been destroyed, and I could keep cultivating."
...
A moment later, Chen Shi emerged, a book chest on his back taller than he was, stuffed full—over twenty pounds at least. Yet he carried it effortlessly, as if it weighed nothing.
"Blackie Pot, I left Grandpa a letter telling him where I went."
Chen Shi wrote the letter and handed it to the dog. "When Grandpa gets back, give it to him. If I run into danger, have him rush to Huangyang Village to save me."
Blackie Pot dashed to the hall with the letter, placed it under Grandpa's spirit tablet to weigh it down, then raced back, grabbed a little knife in his mouth, and indicated Chen Shi should put it in the chest. In danger, maybe splash the evil with dog blood to save his life.
Chen Shi knew he was worried for his safety and let him come along.
The man hurried ahead to lead the way. Boy, dog, and man headed for Huangyang Village.
Huangyang Village lay on the northern slopes of Qianyang Mountain—not far in a straight line, but the mountain paths were rugged and treacherous, flanked by wild forests where beasts lurked.
Along the way, Chen Shi got the gist of events.
Huangyang Village had an abandoned house, once home to the Tian family—eight people total. One day, the whole family, men, women, old, and young, all dropped dead suddenly. Even the livestock—chickens, ducks, cats, dogs—died clean.
The authorities didn't investigate. Such things happened too often in the countryside for them to handle, so it became an unsolved case.
Later rumors said the Tian house was haunted. Over time, it became derelict, shunned by all.
"One of our village kids, being naughty, climbed the wall in. Got possessed—crying and laughing, babbling that whoever wet the bed, it'd eat them. Whoever wet the bed, it'd eat them."
The man said, "Peach Talismans didn't work. The kid's mom offered to Godmother—still no use. That very night, trouble started."
Chen Shi listened raptly. "What trouble?"
"A kid in the village wet the bed and got snatched."
The man's face twisted oddly. "The kid's dad, half-asleep at night, dimly saw a huge shadow on the wall, mouth gaping wide, a long tongue stretching out—slurp, and the child was gone."
Chen Shi's heart skipped. An evil that specialized in bedwetters?
Too bizarre.
"Yesterday, two more kids vanished. Folks are scared stiff—no letting kids drink much, lest they wet the bed and get eaten. Some wake their kids at night to pee, but still, accidents happened. Today, in broad daylight, Old Liu's boy Fugui was peeing when a long tongue dropped from the sky, slurped him up, gone."
"Broad daylight?"
Chen Shi frowned. Evil abroad in the day?
"Then what?"
"Probably eaten."
"Your village's Godmother didn't intervene? Lets evil into the village?"
The man shook his head. "Not all Godmothers protect villagers. Some get nasty if offerings are skimpy. Folks say the Tian family's eight deaths were our village Godmother's doing. That night, she didn't drive off the evil—instead let it in, to slaughter the Tians. Apparently, Tian's daughter-in-law insulted Godmother, so she held a grudge and wiped them out. After the Tians died, Godmother came in dreams, demanding more incense and offerings, or we'd end up like them."
Chen Shi frowned. Weren't Godmothers all benevolent?
How could they do evil?
They arrived at Huangyang Village—ramshackle, dilapidated houses mostly thatch huts. Villagers in ragged clothes, like refugees. Kids and adults alike sallow-faced and gaunt.
A few kids in the village: timid ones hid behind parents, bold ones clamored for water—they must not have drunk in ages.
"Evil that eats bedwetters? Must be drawn by boys' urine. In other words, the kids weren't taken for wetting beds, but for being boys with that urine. I'm still a boy... Hold on, before my Divine Embryo was cut, had I lost my purity? I was only nine—shouldn't have..."
Chen Shi had just thought this when someone bumped him. A half-grown boy about his age ran past.
The boy stopped, turned, and apologized to Chen Shi—a scrawny lad, shy, with half a booger dangling from his nose, sniffling.
"No harm, no harm."
Chen Shi waved magnanimously, smiling. "You not scared of me?"
Back in Huangpo Village, a kid bumping him would've knelt, kowtowing for Big Brother Chen's mercy.
The scrawny boy blinked curiously. "Why should I be scared of you?"
Chen Shi recalled village kids kneeling and begging him. Kindly, he smiled. "Our village kids all fear me. Won't play with me."
The scrawny boy scratched his head. "So you got no friends?"
"I've got Godmother. Blackie Pot. Scholar. All friends." Chen Shi grinned.
The scrawny boy smiled too. "Want one more friend?"
Chen Shi's eyes lit up. His first human friend since waking!
And alive, at that!
The village elders clustered around the man who'd led Chen Shi. An old woman, trembling, said, "Sanwang, you went for Talisman Master Chen—where is he?"
"Talisman Master Chen wasn't home. Just his grandson, but young as he is, he's a talisman master too."
Sanwang glanced at Chen Shi, whispering, "Our village can't afford much. Doubt any other master would come for this. Five taels—who'd bite?"
Everyone looked at Chen Shi, who was chatting and laughing with thin air. They exchanged uneasy glances.
Sanwang ventured boldly, "Talisman Master Chen, who you talking to?"
"My new friend!"
Chen Shi beamed. "Right, I'm Chen Shi, Little Ten for short. What's your name?"
"I'm Liu, name Fugui." The scrawny boy said.