Chapter 27 The moon rises in the night, the goddess of the lotus platform
As rosy clouds gradually gathered in the sky, the sun began to set, casting a crimson glow over the eerily quiet town; evening was approaching.
Little Stone said that all the children were gathered together for protection, and that someone would come to watch them as soon as they arrived in town in the evening. He had run away today.
Qingyu watched as the little boy urged them to leave. She gently ruffled Xiaoshitou's hair and asked softly, "Xiaoshitou, tell your sister, how old are you now?"
Little Stone dared not delay any longer; he needed to get back as soon as possible. Finally, he turned to look at Qingyu, the child's voice soft and gentle.
"I'll be five years old in three days."
After saying that, he jogged away.
Qingyu stood up, looking silently at the quiet street and the child's back. In the distance, in the center of the village, there was a large circular platform.
This Lotus Seed Town is indeed strange.
Qin Tianshu, who was standing to the side, spoke up, "What do we do now? Leave immediately?"
Zhang Xuan was curious, "Why don't we stay and see what's going on with the curse on this town?"
Lin Fanxiang shook her head. "Such a remote place, and the deaths of an entire town, with so many causes and effects, there must be a reason for it."
She was a healer who had witnessed countless life-and-death situations. So-called curses could not befall people without a reason.
She paused for a moment, then added, "But I'm easygoing, it's up to you what you think."
Amidst the chatter of the crowd, Wen Chuan glanced at Qing Yu, who had remained silent, and she suddenly snapped out of her reverie.
The girl lowered her eyes, then raised her head and smiled at the crowd, "I just think this town is quite interesting..."
She took a light breath, then her tone instantly hardened.
"I really want to know what exactly happened here."
She has her reasons.
As Qingyu spoke, a smile instantly appeared on her face, as if to say that she would find out soon and they could go first, but Wen Chuan looked at her and spoke instead.
"It'll only be a day or two, we'll go with you."
Qin Tianshu opened his folding fan and said slowly, "Zhang Xuan is curious, Doctor Lin is at ease, and you two have said you want to stay, so I'll stay a day or two longer to see what this so-called curse is all about."
The scholar gently waved his fan, a deep smile playing in his phoenix-shaped eyes.
A gust of wind blew by, and Qingyu looked at him. "You're right."
"So it's autumn now, aren't you cold?"
"Pfft—" Zhang Xuan couldn't help but laugh out loud; he also wanted to ask.
Qin Tianshu quickly withdrew his smile and threw out a handsome scholar with an icy demeanor and an aura of power.
Can't you just assume I like to show off?!
ah! ! !
...
As night fell, the people of Lianzi Town finally awoke from their beds. Merchants opened their shops, peddlers brought their carts, and candles began to be lit in the houses.
Amidst the murmurs of voices, Zhang Xuan and Lin Fanxiang naturally walked into a restaurant, and the entire restaurant fell silent for a moment.
Zhang Xuan was dressed in a magnificent yellow robe with a knife at his waist, exuding wealth and brilliance. Lin Fanxiang, on the other hand, wore a moon-white dress with a gradient of light clouds, looking elegant and untouched by worldly affairs.
The two men were extraordinary in every way – their faces, clothes, and demeanor. From the moment they stepped into the restaurant, everyone in the restaurant looked at them – men, women, and teenagers alike – truly everyone was staring at them.
Although it was somewhat strange, Zhang Xuan made no attempt to hide it. He sat down with an air of nonchalance, casually tossing out a purse full of silver coins. The purse made a "thud" sound on the table, accompanied by Zhang Xuan's boastful shout.
"Waiter, bring a pot of wine, and all the best dishes and rice."
Lin Fanxiang suppressed a laugh, the fairy-like girl sitting quietly opposite Zhang Xuan.
The waiter quickly stepped forward, stood next to Lin Fanxiang, bent down, and spoke with a fawning smile.
In an instant, a strange, foul smell of mud wafted over, and Lin Fanxiang frowned immediately. Zhang Xuan was the one who ordered the food, yet this man was standing so close to her.
Seeing Lin Fanxiang's expression, Zhang Xuan's eyes turned cold in an instant. He suppressed his emotions, raised his chin, and said, "Go down and serve the dishes!"
The waiter wasn't angry at being scolded. He just smiled and ran behind the counter to get the wine. It seemed like everyone in the restaurant had suddenly forgotten about Zhang Xuan and Lin Fanxiang. The men were making a lot of noise, and a few women were keeping them company in a humble manner. The boy, who looked no more than eleven or twelve years old, moved around the front and back of the tables, smiling as he served dishes and wine.
Zhang Xuan, sitting upright, endured it, but his hand was already on the hilt of the Blood Moon Blade at his waist. Lin Fanxiang, who was opposite the boy, calmed down. The girl looked at Zhang Xuan, and a cold glint flashed in her eyes.
"Move quickly and quietly later."
...
Lianzi Town Ancestral Hall.
The candlelight flickered as the frail old woman knelt shakily before the statue of the goddess. Behind her were a dozen or so sleeping children, with a few who couldn't sleep keeping their eyes open as they watched the town mayor pray to the Lotus Goddess.
The deity on the lotus throne is compassionate and merciful, while mortals below bow down and become mud.
Suddenly a gust of wind blew by, the main gate of the shrine suddenly opened, and the incense and candles in front of the statue went out in an instant.
Everything was eerily quiet.
The old woman, who was crawling on the ground, suddenly felt something. She raised her head and saw the shadows of the two men growing longer and longer in the candlelight.
The old woman's body trembled uncontrollably. She slowly got up, then turned around in horror—
Two young men, one in white and one in black, arrived under the moonlight. One had a faint smile on his lips, while the other was cold and aloof.
A chilling aura seemed to arrive on the wind.
"ah--"
The old woman was terrified by the pair of black and white impermanence. Her aged, cloudy eyes were filled with fear. She collapsed to the ground, her eyes rolled back, and she fainted.
"this……"
Dressed in white, Qin Tianshu looked at the children and elderly people scattered on the ground and said in a low voice, "They're either asleep or unconscious. What are we going to do?"
Ignoring the chaos, Wen Chuan looked at the goddess statue with downcast eyes on the lotus seat on the high platform of the shrine and said, "It is called a shrine, but there are no shrines or even a shrine."
Qin Tianshu: "That's not surprising, after all, the whole town is strange."
The scholar in white looked around and saw that Little Stone and one or two other children had woken up from their sleep that afternoon and were looking at them with panicked eyes.
Qin Tianshu pursed his lips, "When will Qingyu arrive?"
He's not afraid of children, but he's afraid of children's dens.
As evening fell and the lights of Lianzi Town came on, Qingyu disappeared, saying he would reunite with them soon. Lin Fanxiang wanted to see if the people here were poisoned or something, so Zhang Xuan accompanied her to a small restaurant in the village.
The two of them, however, managed to wander into the deepest part of the village's spiritual energy.
Upon hearing this, Wen Chuan remained calm. He gently raised his hand, and a soft blue mist appeared from nowhere, gradually drifting around the children. In an instant, the children's eyes closed, and the entire ancestral hall fell into complete silence.
The fog dissipated with the wind, and the young men leisurely stepped into the ancestral hall.
Just now, under the cover of darkness, Wen Chuan appeared to be dressed in black. But now that he has stepped into the light, it is clear that his clothes are more of a bluish-black, like the color of a jade city. Coupled with the gentle and detached look in his eyes, he appears handsome and refined, yet also carries a hint of coldness.
The "White Impermanence" Qin Tianshu in the old woman's eyes was not dressed in pure white, but rather in a light shade of dark blue. Under the moonlight and candlelight, the boy's face was strangely beautiful, with his phoenix eyes slightly upturned. For a moment, the boy smiled, like a fox-like scholar.
Wen Chuan: "Kids are hard to soothe, but they'll be fine once they fall asleep."
Qin Tianshu shook his head and smiled as he listened to Wen Chuan's words. He and Wen Chuan leisurely observed the interior of the ancestral hall together.
"Simple and straightforward, that's good."
Wen Chuan glanced at the ancestral hall. There were four men guarding the outside, and inside were all the children in the town, about twenty in total, most of whom were under five years old. The old woman who had fainted on the prayer mat should be the town mayor's grandmother that Xiao Shitou had mentioned, who would come every night to pray to the Lotus Goddess to bless the whole town.
"Lotus Goddess?"
Qin Tianshu gazed at the statue. The goddess lowered her eyes, her gaze filled with compassion. She sat serenely on a lotus throne, her face gentle and loving towards all people.
"Oh,"
Qin Tianshu suddenly laughed, "There are no gods in this world anymore. Besides, if they were truly gods, why would they send down curses?"
Wen Chuan was carefully examining the lotus platform with a tinderbox when he heard this. He curled the corners of his mouth and said casually, "How can divine will compare to human will? This lotus platform is broken in several places, and no one has bothered to repair it."
"Yeah?"
Qin Tianshu also approached to observe, and indeed, this statue, which at first glance appeared noble and magnificent, was not quite perfect upon closer inspection. Several corners of the lotus platform were missing, and there was even some dust behind the goddess. This was not the appearance of a statue that had been sincerely worshipped for many years.
Suddenly, a faint, whistling sound came from afar. Wen Chuan straightened up and frowned as he looked at Qin Tianshu. "There seems to be a sound outside."
Qin Tianshu didn't seem to care. "Perhaps Qingyu and the others have come."
After saying that, he continued, "I'm getting more and more curious now. The curse in this town is strange, the place is strange, and the people are strange too."
"Oh, even God is strange."
As Wen Chuan listened to Qin Tianshu's rambling, he gently stroked the edge of the shrine with his fingertips. If his perception was correct, the lotus platform beneath the statue was the source of all the chaos in the town.
A chilly evening breeze blew by, causing the many candles in the ancestral hall to flicker. Dozens of children lay quietly with their eyes closed, while an old, frail woman lay on a prayer mat.
Two extraordinary-looking young men were carefully observing the shrine in the center of the ancestral hall with tinderboxes in hand; everything was quiet yet eerie.
Unbeknownst to anyone, the goddess who had always sat serenely on the high lotus throne, surrounded by an invisible wind, unknowingly blossomed like a lotus emerging from the mud, standing hidden in the world.
A new meaning seemed to be contained in her eyes.
In an instant, a new breeze stirred the robes of the young man outside the ancestral hall.
"We're here!"
Zhang Xuan and Lin Fanxiang crossed the threshold. Zhang Xuan called out loudly, looking somewhat anxious. Lin Fanxiang, standing beside him, was even panting, as if the two of them had rushed over from outside.
Qin Tianshu turned around, frowning and looking at the somewhat flustered Zhang Xuan and Lin Fanxiang with a puzzled expression.
"What's wrong? Why are you in such a panic?"
Zhang Xuan opened his mouth as if to speak, his hands gesturing wildly, the words stuck in his throat. Lin Fanxiang glanced at him speechlessly before stepping forward. She exchanged a look with Qin Tianshu and Wen Chuan.
"Qingyu, you've tied up everyone in the town..."
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