Chapter 00113: The Divination Sticks of the Water Spirit
# The Divination Sticks of the Water Spirit
Chapter 113
Novel: After the Immortals Disappeared
Chapter 113: The Divination Sticks of the Water Spirit
Mao Tao raised his hand eagerly, "I want to give it a try too!"
And try he did.
He ended up drawing a lower-middle stick, with the cryptic message:
"With a heart full of sincerity, the earthen jar will inevitably break by the wellside."
Mao Tao's face fell, looking crestfallen.
He Yue chuckled, "Well, at least it's better than what my brother got."
Mao Tao muttered to himself, "Does this mean I need to eat more pig trotter noodles to ward off bad luck?"
Next, it was Zhu Shi's turn.
She took the divination bucket and shook it a few times.
She also drew a middle-upper stick.
"The first year I was sold here, I came to draw sticks twice. Both times, months apart, I got middle-upper sticks, telling me that my future would be bright."
She bit her lip, "If it weren't for that hope, I would have thrown myself into the lake long ago."
Madam Ying, seeing and hearing all this, could no longer contain her curiosity.
Her curiosity finally overcame her fear.
When her stick fell to the ground, everyone gasped:
"It's the best of the best!"
The stick read: "A bouquet of flowers, seeing purple qi in the morning and resting on clouds at night."
Mao Tao was envious, "Madam, your stick is full of flowers, purple qi, and auspicious clouds—all good things!"
Who doesn't like auspicious words? Madam Ying couldn't stop smiling, "This... oh, this stick can't be taken seriously."
He Lingchuan silently took the divination bucket and shook it a few times.
As expected, the red lower-lower stick was his constant companion.
Seeing his brother's increasingly grim expression, He Yue couldn't help but cough, "There must be someone here to interpret the sticks, right?"
The Water Spirit Shrine used to be bustling with visitors and offerings, so it was impossible that there wasn't a resident interpreter.
"Old Liu, the caretaker, is in charge of interpreting the sticks," Zhu Shi said, "But he's currently in the west village. The bandits didn't kill him, probably because he's a good cook."
"Then let's get him over here," He Lingchuan said, putting away his stick and heading straight for the west village.
"Chuan, are you going to deal with those thugs?" Madam Ying was worried, "This isn't the time to stir up trouble."
He Lingchuan didn't respond, his steps growing more resolute.
Others might think he was overreacting, but only he knew how deeply the words "the cuckoo occupying the magpie's nest" had pierced his heart, striking at the very core of his hidden fears.
He had to get to the bottom of this!
The Immortal Spirit Village wasn't large, and He Lingchuan quickly reached the boundary agreed upon by the officials and the bandits.
On this side stood two soldiers, and on the other, two bandits.
He Lingchuan addressed the two bandits, "I want to buy someone: Old Liu, the caretaker of the Water Spirit Shrine."
The bandits sneered, "What do you want him for?"
"Just to interpret some sticks for me," He Lingchuan said, pulling out a large silver ingot and waving it in front of them, "You have no use for an old man, might as well trade him for silver."
The ingot was a full ten taels, of excellent quality.
An old man was indeed useless, except for his cooking skills.
The two bandits huddled together, discussing for a moment before turning back, "You'll have to add more."
He Lingchuan sneered and turned to leave.
Did they really think such a cheap trick would work on him?
These two small fry followed their leader on raids, but did they even earn enough for a night of drinking? He highly doubted it.
Sure enough, seeing him about to leave, they panicked, "Come back, come back, deal!"
They didn't consult anyone else.
Bringing in another person would mean splitting the money further.
Soon, the two bandits brought over a half-gray-haired old man and pushed him across the boundary, "Here, pay up."
He Lingchuan tossed the silver ingot over without hesitation.
However, this act caught the attention of the surrounding villagers.
Several villagers and women rushed forward, shouting, "Buy us too! Please, kind sir and madam, buy us as well!"
Everyone knew the east village was safe, while the west village was a living hell.
Seeing Old Liu successfully cross over, the other villagers were desperate.
Mao Tao grabbed Old Liu and followed behind He Lingchuan.
Madam Ying tried to calm them, "Everyone, please stay calm..." but He Yue grabbed her arm and pulled her back without a word.
It wasn't the time to save everyone yet.
Soon, the bandit leader was alerted and came over to question his men.
The two underlings stammered, earning themselves two slaps before they explained the situation.
"You just give him whatever he wants?" the leader slapped them again, "What if he wanted your lives? Would you give those too?" Are these two idiots?
The two men grimaced, saying they wouldn't dare.
The leader angrily held out his hand, "Where's the money?"
...
Meanwhile, Old Liu had crossed into the east village and was bowing profusely, almost kneeling to kowtow.
The bandits were terrifying, and like the other villagers, he had thought he wouldn't live to see the dawn.
These living saints had saved him from his misery.
"Better to show your gratitude with actions," He Lingchuan said, pulling out the two lower-lower sticks from his pocket, "Interpret these for me."
"Huh?" Old Liu took the red sticks and was stunned, "Who drew these?"
"Me."
Old Liu looked at him, then at the sticks, "And the other one?"
He Lingchuan grew more annoyed, "Also me."
"How is that possible?" Old Liu's mouth nearly formed an 'O', "You drew two lower-lower sticks in a row?"
"I drew them over a dozen times, always these two," He Lingchuan pointed at the others, "They got middle-upper and best of the best sticks."
This was something Old Liu had never heard of.
He was dumbfounded for a while before he could focus.
Old eyes are dim, and the writing on the sticks was small.
Mao Tao brought a torch close, almost burning the sticks, before Old Liu could read the contents of both sticks.
"Oh, these two."
Mao Tao played the perfect straight man, "What about these two?"
"These two are newly made, only put in ten days ago."
No wonder the red paint looked so fresh.
"Here, whenever a lower-lower stick is drawn, it's taken out and set aside, not returned to the bucket, because each person's great calamity is unique. The Water Spirit hasn't allowed mortals to draw sticks for a long time, and the sticks in the bucket haven't been replaced in two years," Old Liu said, thinking as he spoke, "But just ten days ago, the Water Spirit appeared to me in a dream, saying I was about to face a great disaster. I was terrified and begged for a solution. The Water Spirit then said that as long as I made two new sticks like these and put them in the bucket, I would be able to turn misfortune into fortune."
Everyone exchanged glances.
It seemed to be true—because He Lingchuan wanted his sticks interpreted, Old Liu was saved.
"So these two sticks were specifically prepared for me?" He Lingchuan's eyes were full of suspicion.
Was this some kind of trap? "Then interpret them for me."
"I can't interpret them."
"What?" He Lingchuan was greatly displeased, "Did I waste my money? Aren't you the interpreter?"
"These two are 'sealed sticks,' meaning they can only be read, not interpreted," Old Liu said with a bitter smile, "I have a secret, and now I can tell you, my saviors. In the past, I could interpret the sticks because the Water Spirit granted me a sliver of immortal power; but now..."
(End of Chapter)