"Evil spirit?" To be honest, when Lu Qingjiu heard these two words, he felt an unusual aura, which was difficult to describe in words. It was as if uttering these two words from his mouth was a taboo.
"Yes." Bai Yuehu held the photo in his hand, his eyes showing strong interest. It was the first time Lu Qingjiu saw him with this expression. At first glance, it looked like he was eager to try.
"But, what's the difference between a fierce god... and an ordinary monster?" Lu Qingjiu continued to ask the question in his mind.
"Of course they're different," Bai Yuehu said. "For gods to survive, they need faith. Gods without faith are worse than monsters." He explained slowly and patiently to Lu Qingjiu, "If monsters gain faith, they can also become gods. Have you read Journey to the West, written by humans?"
"I've seen it." Lu Qingjiu nodded. Speaking of Journey to the West, he roughly understood the hidden meaning behind Bai Yuehu's words. "Are you saying that Sun Wukong was also a spirit before he became the Fighting Buddha? Spirits can become gods, so can gods... also degenerate into spirits?"
"No," White Moon Fox said. "Even though a god has fallen, he's still a god. It's just that his disposition can become twisted, and he might even become an evil god." He said, "So if you see an unfamiliar shrine on the side of the road, don't just worship it."
Lu Qingjiu smiled and said, "Of course not." He was not the kind of person who was interested in gods. Then, Lu Qingjiu turned his attention back to the photo and said, "So the one who did this was a fallen god?"
"Degradation isn't certain." White Moon Fox laughed. His smile held a certain satisfaction, like a beast that had found its prey, and even a hint of longing. "But whether or not he's fallen, this kind of god must taste delicious."
Lu Qingjiu: "... Can I eat it?"
Bai Yuehu said, "Yes."
Lu Qingjiu had a complicated mood: "Is it delicious?"
"It must be delicious." Bai Yuehu said decisively.
Hearing this, Lu Qingjiu knew that he must have eaten it before, and most likely more than one. He didn't know what to say for a moment, so he could only blink and ask tentatively: "Then this..."
Bai Yuehu said, "I'll go out and see tonight if I can eat it directly."
His words meant that he had agreed to the matter. Lu Qingjiu felt relieved. Since Bai Yuehu was so interested in the evil god, the evil god would definitely not continue to commit crimes and kill people. The pressure on Hu Shu and the others was also greatly reduced.
Lu Qingjiu said: “Okay, then what do you want to eat tonight?”
Bai Yuehu said: "Eat meat..."
His obsession with meat remained unchanged.
So that evening, Lu Qingjiu made a dish of braised pork with potatoes. The meat was local pork from the farm, cut into small pieces, stir-fried, and then put into the pot to stew with the potatoes. The fat of the meat was stir-fried, making it very elastic, with a good balance of fat and lean, and it was not greasy at all. The potatoes were filled with the aroma of the gravy, even more delicious than the meat, which made people's mouths whet. Lu Qingjiu knew that his two children had big appetites, so he made more. After Yin Xun finished eating, he used the gravy to soak up a large bowl of rice and gobbled it all up.
After finishing his meal, Bai Yuehu went to wash the dishes and then left the yard. Lu Qingjiu knew that he was going to look for the evil spirit, so he didn't ask him anything, but just reminded him to be careful and go back early.
But after he said this, Bai Yuehu gave him a strange look, which made Lu Qingjiu puzzled: "Why are you looking at me like that?"
Bai Yuehu said, "No one has ever told me to be careful."
Lu Qingjiu: "..." He was silent for three seconds, then added softly, "What I mean is, pay attention to food safety, don't... don't get an upset stomach."
Bai Yuehu nodded and left with satisfaction.
Lu Qingjiu looked at his back, thinking that it was incredible that he could satisfy him...
"Hey? Where is Bai Yuehu going?" Yin Xun appeared from the house at some point and asked, "Doesn't he usually stay still unless he has something to eat? How come he has the time to go out for a walk today?"
Lu Qingjiu said, "I went out to find something to eat..."
Yin Xun scratched his chin: "...What are you looking for?"
Lu Qingjiu shrugged and didn't answer.
Fortunately, Yin Xun wasn't particularly interested in Bai Yuehu's whereabouts, so he immediately changed the subject, rubbing his hands eagerly and saying, "Well, by the way, when will our watermelons be ripe?"
Lu Qingjiu said, "It's almost time. I'll open two and try them when Bai Yuehu comes back." The fruits in their family are usually ripe earlier than those in other families, and the quality is better. The watermelons in the field have already borne fruit. Each one is big and round. They make a crisp sound when tapped, and they must taste good.
"Okay." Yin Xun said, "I'm going back first. You stay home and be careful. I heard from my neighbor yesterday that three people died in the town. It's not peaceful lately."
Lu Qingjiu said: "Okay, I understand, you too."
Yin Xun nodded and left.
Lu Qingjiu played with Xiaohua and Xiaohei in the yard for a while, then watched the chicks return to the chicken coop before washing up and going to bed.
Bai Yuehu said that she would be back the day after tomorrow, so she shouldn't have to cook so much for the next two days. Although Yin Xun eats a lot, it's also a normal amount of food. As Lu Qingjiu was thinking about it, he fell into a deep sleep.
The next morning, Lu Qingjiu got up early and went to the fields. Without Bai Yuehu to water the fields today, he had to do everything himself. It had to be said that Lu Qingjiu had hardly ever been to the fields before, and after personally going there, he realized that farming was not an easy or pleasant task. Just carrying water was annoying enough, not to mention weeding and fertilizing. Lu Qingjiu thought to himself that he must be nicer to Bai Yuehu in the future, after all, he was responsible for the most difficult work in the family.
After finishing the farm work, Lu Qingjiu went home and had no energy to cook. Yin Xun stepped forward at this time and said that he would use his own strength to protect Lu Qingjiu - to make him a bowl of egg noodles.
Lu Qingjiu, who wanted to live a few more years, was very touched, then rejected Yin Xun and opened the instant noodles that had been sealed for a long time.
Yin Xun said aggrievedly why he couldn't be given another chance.
"Because we only have one life." Lu Qingjiu patted his shoulder.
Yin Xun: “…”
Lu Qingjiu: “Or you can eat the meal you cooked yourself?”
Yin Xun thought about it, and took out another bucket of instant noodles from Lu Qingjiu's cabinet, and started eating with Lu Qingjiu in silence. Now that the person who loves eating the most in the family is gone, the living standard can be said to have plummeted...
However, I haven't eaten instant noodles for a long time, so it feels pretty good to eat it occasionally. After Lu Qingjiu and Yin Xun were full, they went for a lunch break.
Around two o'clock in the afternoon, Lu Qingjiu, who was still asleep, was awakened by a phone call. He picked up the phone and saw Hu Shu's name on it.
"Hello, Officer Hu, is there anything wrong?" Lu Qingjiu rubbed his eyes, his tone full of fatigue.
"Is that Mr. Lu?" Hu Shu's voice was a little anxious.
"It's me, what's wrong?" Lu Qingjiu said.
"We need you to come to the police station immediately." Hu Shu said, "There's something new going on."
"What's wrong?" Lu Qingjiu felt that the situation seemed serious when he heard his tone, and he immediately sobered up and asked, "What happened?"
Hu Shu said: "There are new deaths!"
Lu Qingjiu said, "A new deceased?!" He sat up straight on the bed and confirmed, "When did it happen?"
"It was around 11 a.m.," Hu Shu said. "The body was found near the police station."
Lu Qingjiu said, "Then... how can I help?" He was just an ordinary person, and this case was obviously committed by non-humans. Even if he wanted to do something, he would probably be powerless.
"Please come to the police station. This deceased person may have some connection to you," Hu Shu said. "It's not convenient to talk about it over the phone."
Lu Qingjiu said, "Is it related to me?!" In an instant, many possibilities flashed through his mind. His first reaction was that the corpse belonged to the White Moon Fox, which was killed by the evil spirit during the hunt. Then, an even more terrifying speculation arose in his mind - according to Hu Shu's previous statement, the deceased's family did not notice anything unusual about him after his death. In other words, even if the person was his relative or friend, the evil spirit would transform into a relative or friend after killing them to continue to hide his identity. Shuifu Village is so small, and Lu Qingjiu only has one human friend... Could it be that the person who met with the accident was Yin Xun?!
Thinking about eating instant noodles with Yin Xun at noon today, Lu Qingjiu got goose bumps on his arms, but the biggest emotion he felt was worry. What if Yin Xun really got into trouble...
"Okay, I'll be there right away." Lu Qingjiu didn't waste any more time, got up, changed clothes and went out.
He didn't dare to go find Yin Xun to confirm the matter first. If it was really Yin Xun who was in trouble, then going there would definitely alert the enemy and might even get himself implicated.
In fact, the person Lu Qingjiu wanted to contact the most now was Bai Yuehu, but Bai Yuehu didn't use a mobile phone, so he could only wait for him to come back.
Lu Qingjiu drove the pickup truck towards the town.
"Good boy, hurry up this time, we have something urgent to do." Lu Qingjiu touched the steering wheel and discussed with his own small truck, "Okay?"
The pickup truck honked twice, as if telling Lu Qingjiu that it understood.
Lu Qingjiu happily stroked it twice more. This time, the truck really did its job, gritting its teeth and plunging forward. The usual two-hour journey was abruptly shortened to just one. Speeding on mountain roads is inherently dangerous, but this time, the truck didn't require Lu Qingjiu to control the steering wheel, so there was no need to worry about any traffic accidents.
During this time, Lu Qingjiu called Yin Xun and asked him what he was doing.
"Me? I took a nap and am now working in the fields." Yin Xun said, "Preparing to plant some cabbage seeds... What's wrong?"
Lu Qingjiu thought for a moment and said, “By the way, do you still remember when we went to the mountains to play when we were little?”
"When we were little, we went to play in the mountains?" Yin Xun asked, "What happened?"
"Don't you like eating prickly ash the most?" Lu Qingjiu said, "Why don't we wait until summer and go to the mountain to pick some?" The scientific name of prickly ash is rubus idaeus. It tastes sweet and sour and is a wild fruit that many children like. It turns purple when ripe. Lu Qingjiu and his friends did pick it and eat it often when they were young.
"No!" Yin Xun said, "You want to trick me?!" But Yin Xun flatly denied Lu Qingjiu's statement, "It's delicious, but it has so many thorns, and I'm allergic to them. Have you forgotten that time I almost went to the hospital?"
Lu Qingjiu said: "Oh, I remember now."
Yin Xun said, "What's wrong with you? You look weird."
"It's okay." Lu Qingjiu said, "You can plant the cabbages first. I'll tell you in the evening."
"Okay." Yin Xun seemed busy too, so he hung up the phone without further ado.
Those words just now were indeed Lu Qingjiu's way of testing Yin Xun. Yin Xun had a special physique and was easily allergic to many things, and the thorns of that wild fruit were one of them. If Yin Xun had frankly agreed to Lu Qingjiu's invitation, Lu Qingjiu would probably have known what was going on, but now Lu Qingjiu didn't find anything unusual about Yin Xun.
Lu Qingjiu felt that the matter was becoming more and more confusing.
After more than ten minutes, the pickup truck arrived at the police station. Lu Qingjiu called Hu Shu and saw him walk out.
"Let's talk somewhere else." Hu Shu said with a serious expression after getting in the car.
"Where are we going to talk?" Lu Qingjiu asked.
"Let's go to the nearby teahouse. I'll show you the way and you just drive ahead." Hu Shu said.
Lu Qingjiu felt a little strange and asked, "Why don't we talk in the police station?"
Hu Shu said, "The police station is in chaos right now. I came to you privately. It would be bad if our leaders found out."
It seemed to make some sense, so Lu Qingjiu started the car.
Hu Shu pointed the way for Lu Qingjiu, and asked him to go out from the other side of the town. The town was quite remote, and it would take more than half an hour to get to the city. The road was quite desolate, with only a few residents. As soon as Lu Qingjiu drove out of the town, he vaguely felt that something was wrong. He glanced at Hu Shu and tentatively asked, "Officer Hu, where are we going?"
Hu Shu looked ahead and said calmly, "Keep going forward."
Hearing this, Lu Qingjiu stepped on the brakes and said, "Officer Hu?"
Hu Shu turned his head to look at Lu Qingjiu and asked, "Why did you stop the car?"
Lu Qingjiu took a deep breath and said, "I don't want to go any further. If you have anything to say, please tell me now. What does the dead person have to do with me?"
Hu Shu said, "Would you like a cigarette?"
Lu Qingjiu shook his head.
Hu Shu didn't mind. He took out a cigarette from his pocket, lit it, and took a long drag. He said, "Actually, I'm a coward as a police officer."
Lu Qingjiu frowned. He listened to Hu Shu talking, but his body began to move towards the door, ready to jump out of the car at any time.
Hu Shu asked, "Are you so afraid of me? Or have you noticed something?"
From the moment he met Hu Shu, Lu Qingjiu had felt that something was amiss with him, especially his request to go somewhere else to discuss things in detail, which seemed out of place. Now that he refused to reveal what was going on, it almost confirmed Lu Qingjiu's suspicions.
"Your name is Lu Qingjiu, right?" Hu Shu laughed. His smile was filled with a very unpleasant evil aura, and the look he gave Lu Qingjiu was filled with creepy desire. He said, "My name is Hu Shu, nice to meet you."
After he said this, he rushed towards Lu Qingjiu.
Lu Qingjiu was startled at the sight and quickly dodged. The van was also very considerate and opened the door directly. Lu Qingjiu jumped out of the car, avoiding Hu Shu's direct attack. However, Hu Shu looked at Lu Qingjiu outside the car and smiled coldly. He was not panicked, as if he was sure that Lu Qingjiu had no escape. He slowly opened the other door, got out from the other side and walked towards Lu Qingjiu.
Lu Qingjiu watched his movements and an idea popped up in his mind.
However, before he could move, Hu Shu smiled and said, "I advise you not to do this."
Lu Qingjiu said: "What?!"
Hu Shu didn't say anything. He held a cigarette in his mouth and looked at Lu Qingjiu with a smile. One of his hands reached into his pocket and took out something. Lu Qingjiu stood in front of him and saw the appearance of the thing clearly - it was a black pistol.
Hu Shu grabbed the gun, clicked the safety, and said, "See, I didn't lie to you."
Lu Qingjiu asked: "Are you that evil god?"
Hu Shu raised his eyebrows when he heard this, his eyes looking a little strange: "How do you know? You are not human?"
When he said this, he indirectly acknowledged his identity. Lu Qingjiu didn't expect that Hu Shu, whom he had just met the day before, would encounter such a thing the next day. Perhaps what he told her before about finding a body in the ditch near the police station was not a rumor - that body should be the real Hu Shu's.
"Do you have any last words?" Hu Shu walked towards Lu Qingjiu with a gun in hand. "Hurry up and say it now."
The current situation is really critical. Lu Qingjiu and Hu Shu are less than three meters apart. Hu Shu can hit him through the body with just a raise of his hand. Lu Qingjiu's only chance is to rush to the small truck. If he can get into the cab, there may be a glimmer of hope.
But Hu Shu had obviously guessed his thoughts. He said, "Don't go into the cab. Stay where you are. Maybe there is still a chance of survival."
Lu Qingjiu took a step back.
Hu Shu had already walked in front of him and said, "Yes, that's right, very obedient..." He slowly walked in front of Lu Qingjiu, but did not shoot. Instead, he put the gun to Lu Qingjiu's chin and said, "Do you know why I kill people?"
Lu Qingjiu said: "How should I know."
"Because humans are so interesting." Hu Shu tilted his head and slid the gun down Lu Qingjiu's chin, across his neck, and against Lu Qingjiu's chest. He said, "Humans have everything: good and bad, things I like and things I don't like. I only need to pull the trigger and you'll be dead... Are you afraid?"
Lu Qingjiu looked at Hu Shu coldly and said, "Is there anyone who is not afraid of death?" He said this, but there was no fear in his eyes that Hu Shu wanted to see. Hu Shu tutted and said, "You are the calmest person I have ever met. Very interesting."
Lu Qingjiu said: "What else do you want to do?"
Hu Shu said, "How do you know what I want to do?"
"If you didn't want to do anything, you should have shot me long ago," Lu Qingjiu said.
"Smart." Hu Shu laughed. "I like dealing with smart people." He slowly moved the gun away and said, "Actually, I'm a little tired of this boring massacre. How about playing a game with me?"
Lu Qingjiu asked: "Game?"
Hu Shu said, "See this gun? There's only one bullet in it. One person shoots the other until they die."
Lu Qingjiu looked at Hu Shu without saying anything.
"Want to play?" Hu Shu seemed a little impatient with Lu Qingjiu's silence.
"Okay." In this situation, not agreeing to him would mean death. Hu Shu laughed heartily after hearing Lu Qingjiu's answer, and seemed to be in a good mood. He said, "You go first, or me?"
"Let me go first." Lu Qingjiu said. He wanted to see if Hu Shu would give him the gun.
What he didn't expect was that after hearing what he said, Hu Shu actually handed the pistol to him very calmly and said very gentlemanly: "Please."
Lu Qingjiu licked his lips and took the gun in his hand. The gun was cold, but the sweat in his palm was hot. Lu Qingjiu gripped the gun tightly, his voice a little hoarse, perhaps because of nervousness, he said: "Aren't you afraid that I will just shoot you a few times?"
Hu Shu said: "You can try."
Normally, facing such a non-human being, everyone would be terrified, and it wouldn't be out of the question to just grab a gun and start shooting at Hu Shu. Lu Qingjiu's thoughts raced, and he felt a strange incongruity in Hu Shu's behavior. He could have just killed him, so why did he choose such a time-wasting method? Was he really just doing it for fun, as he claimed? But Hu Shu had loaded the gun himself, and with his non-human status, cheating would have been easy. So, what had he missed, Lu Qingjiu wondered.
"Shoot." Hu Shu said.
Lu Qingjiu pulled the trigger for the first time, and there was a slight click, but no bullet was fired. Lu Qingjiu felt a sense of relief but also a sense of fear, but he forced himself to restrain the urge to shoot Hu Shu a second time, and instead returned the gun to Hu Shu's hand.
"You actually gave it back to me." Unexpectedly, after Hu Shu took the gun, he said, "I thought you would continue shooting."
"I do want to," Lu Qingjiu said, "but you should have a way to prevent me from opening it."
Hu Shu said: "Maybe I was just lying to you?"
Lu Qingjiu looked at him.
Hu Shu said: "Maybe I'm just a madman who wants to play a game of gambling with you..."
Lu Qingjiu sneered: “If you were just a madman who didn’t think about anything, there wouldn’t be those four corpses.”
Hu Shu nodded in appreciation and said, "You are very smart." He pulled the trigger.
"Crack." Hearing the slight sound, Lu Qingjiu broke out in a cold sweat on his back, but fortunately, apart from the slight sound, there was no fatal flame sprayed out - this was another blank shot.
"You are lucky." Hu Shu smiled.
Lu Qingjiu exhaled and stretched out his hand towards Hu Shu. He wanted to see if Hu Shu would give him the gun again. But Hu Shu did not hesitate at all and put the gun in Lu Qingjiu's palm. He said, "Go ahead."
Lu Qingjiu held the gun, but noticed that there was something more in Hu Shu's eyes than before. It was neither fear nor worry, but excitement, uncontrollable excitement.
The gun was clearly in his hand, so why was Hu Shu the one so excited? Lu Qingjiu felt like he had grasped something. He looked at the gun in his hand, then glanced at the fierce god across from him. An incredible thought popped up in his mind. This thought was so absurd that he even wondered if he was overthinking it.
"Shoot." However, the next moment, Hu Shu's words made Lu Qingjiu confirm his thoughts.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
