Chapter 60 Night Rain Wild Temple (22)
In a previous commission, Yan Shixun once met a client who wanted him to help exorcise evil spirits, saying that someone in his family had died for no reason. However, when asked for details, the client was hesitant and refused to elaborate. It was not until Yan Shixun used plum blossom divination based on the client's facial features and the circumstances at the time that he found out the whole story.
The client's family had an old man who passed away, and because of family tradition, they secretly buried him in the mountains. They only asked a Feng Shui master to calculate the burial location, but when they started digging, the client's brothers were careless and dug the wrong location, one meter off, so they had to dig a new one at the originally calculated location.
The Feng Shui master who went to see the two graves on the ground changed his face drastically and asked the client's family to quickly fill up the wrong pit.
However, the client's brother did not care about the matter in order to be lazy. Instead, he ridiculed the Feng Shui master and made him angry and left.
"Your family only needs to bury one, so why did you open two graves? If you don't fill them up immediately, one day your family will also need this grave." After leaving these words, the Feng Shui master turned around and left.
After the client's old man was buried, according to the local rules, a shed was set up next to the grave to guard it for three days. Unexpectedly, on the first night, the client's brother was drunk and couldn't see the road clearly, so he fell into the wrong grave and died.
A new grave was built next to the new grave.
What the Feng Shui master said came true. Since he was unwilling to fill the grave, both graves could be used.
But by then, it will not be soil that will be used, but bones.
The client was so scared that he came to Yan Shixun, wanting to know whether this matter would continue to involve other people in the family, and wanted Yan Shixun to help drive away the troublemaker.
But at that time, Yan Shixun already understood everything very clearly after he figured out the whole story.
This matter is over.
Since there are two graves, the messenger will take two people away. The cause has been formed, and the result must respond.
At this moment, when Yan Shixun saw the mountain temple records thrown in the utility room and left to rot, which could be described as "the village digs trees and the people eat the mountain", he couldn't help but think of the commission he did not accept that year, and the bare Wild Wolf Peak without a single tree that he saw from the car when he came here.
China has always had the habit of writing in the Spring and Autumn style and of recording important events in a brief manner. It can be summarized to the extent of "the village dug a tree", which definitely does not mean that a villager dug up a tree and left.
Rather, it means that all the villagers have taken action, dug up all the trees in Wild Wolf Peak, and turned all the usable resources in the mountains into money and food for themselves.
The holes left by the dug up trees are left all over the Wild Wolf Peak, like the graves dug by the villagers who dug trees without restraint and sold them.
Not only did it completely destroy the Feng Shui of Wild Wolf Peak, it also made it impossible for Wild Wolf Peak to feed the power of plants and trees back to the mountain god.
The fortune and feng shui were broken, and Wild Wolf Peak became a winnowing basket full of holes, unable to retain any spiritual energy. Instead, because of the loss of the barrier, evil spirits took the opportunity to enter and invaded this originally peaceful and prosperous land more and more unscrupulously.
On the other hand, the loss of trees has also made the soil layer and original ecosystem of Wild Wolf Peak extremely fragile. Even without extreme weather, a few consecutive heavy rains may cause landslides and mudslides, which is a disaster for the villages near the foot of the mountain.
Originally, the power of the mountain god came from all the living things on the land under his jurisdiction. Not only would people's faith and incense enhance the power of the mountain god, but the forests with lush trees and plants and diverse animals would also bring powerful strength to the mountain god, allowing him to protect his people, deter evil spirits, and ensure a rich and peaceful life for all his people.
While the nearby villagers have a good harvest, they will also be more grateful for the protection of the mountain god and offer incense and sacrifices to him. Their faith will feed back to the mountain god, forming a virtuous circle.
However, if during this period, the villagers were bewitched by the evil spirit and lost their minds, and were no longer satisfied with the rich life as in the past, but instead started to have evil ideas, the chain of the virtuous cycle would be broken.
The power of the mountain god is rapidly lost, while the evil god's power will increase rapidly due to the villagers' worship and faith. As the power decreases and increases, the mountain god is likely to become the disadvantaged party.
Yan Shixun lowered his eyes and looked at the ink on the soft rice paper, slightly stunned.
Will it be this time?
More than a decade ago, perhaps out of their own greed or because they were bewitched by the evil god, the villagers cut down all the trees on Wild Wolf Peak. They pushed the mountain god who had protected them off his throne with their own hands, and instead worshipped the evil god as the mountain god.
Therefore, the power of the mountain god was completely lost, leaving only an empty throne for the righteous god, which was openly occupied by the evil god. In the end, the mountain god, who had been nurturing and protecting the land without reservation, ended up with his temple taken away and he was driven into a corner, barely relying on the power of his former believers to survive.
...Really, letting the wolf into the house.
Yan Shixun thought of many possibilities, such as natural disasters or the breakdown of heaven's way, but he never expected that the person being protected would destroy his own foundation.
He remembered the murals he had seen in the main hall before.
The souls of the villagers were used as markers and hung on the wall. They were just used as objects of show by the evil gods, but they did not receive any nourishment or protection. Moreover, the souls of the villagers were incomplete, and they did not even have the possibility of going to the underworld to be reincarnated.
It's not even just the murals. The ghosts that appear in the atrium and the scarecrows that break into the main hall... may all be the villagers of that year.
——Is this what they want?
For the sake of immediate benefits, he drove away the mountain god and worshipped the evil god who promised to give him wealth as his own god, but he only ended up like this.
A feeling of sadness spread from Yan Shixun's heart.
He wanted to meet the mountain god face to face and ask him: Did he hate the villagers who had abandoned the mountain god?
"There are many ways you could have avoided this situation."
Yan Shixun lowered his brows, and with his slender fingers he reorganized the rice papers that were originally scattered together and stacked them up. His tone was as calm as if he was sitting and chatting with the mountain god.
"The villagers once offered you incense and offered you the power you possessed. If you had not unreservedly fed all of this power back to the villagers, then at least you would still have retained the power to deal with the crisis, instead of losing the power to fight those evil creatures because of the interruption of the cycle. I saw the records in the mountain temple, which recorded the production of the nearby villages and the money each household earned that year. If you had not done your best to coordinate the wind and rain, told the animals in the mountains and forests not to destroy the farmland, and made the land fertile and suitable for crop growth, the fields nearby would not have had such a high production that year, and even if those villagers did not dig up trees and destroy the mountains, they could still be considered wealthy."
"Or, if you can stop the loss in time and severely warn and punish the villagers when the villagers are bewitched by the evil spirit and do something wrong, maybe they will not continue to act like this fearlessly, but will stop out of fear. In that case, although you will suffer some damage, everything will still be in time."
"But you didn't do anything." Yan Shixun asked the quiet air: "Why?"
The dilapidated and dim house was silent, without any echo except for the sound of heavy rain hitting the eaves and roof.
After a long time, a faint sigh was heard from the air, so faint that it seemed like Yan Shixun's auditory hallucination.
——Because, although they made mistakes, they should not be punished... They are no longer children running around the sacred tree, they have their own judgment and responsibility, and should bear the consequences of their choices. No one else can interfere with the cause of their choice, whether good or bad, not even me.
However, they themselves need to bear the consequences of their evil deeds. That's all.
It's like a mother's lowered eyebrows, full of kindness and tenderness.
Even the house, which was cold and soaked with rain, seemed to be surrounded by warmth.
Yan Shixun's hand, which was originally arranging the rice paper, paused for a while. After a while, he continued to straighten out the rice paper and fold it as if nothing had happened. He placed it in a relatively dry place in the house to prevent the rice paper, which had already been severely corroded, from being damaged again.
"But even though you said you wouldn't interfere, you were still soft-hearted and didn't leave. Instead, you continued to stay in the mountain temple and watch over the villagers who had all died."
The faint light fell into Yan Shixun's narrow eyes, like illuminating a sparkle in the sea, clear and lucid.
"Otherwise, you wouldn't have insisted on staying in the main hall among the old statues, nor would you have relied on the little power gathered by the mountain temple to barely support yourself and live in this dilapidated and leaky house."
The mountain god did not refute what Yan Shixun said, but remained silent.
This made Yan Shixun, who had been asking tentatively by mixing true and false information, confirm his guess.
——Those villagers had indeed all died that year.
If that is the case, then the entire area, including the Wild Wolf Peak, has probably fallen into the hands of the evil god. There is no living person left in the nearby villages. The villagers' bodies have been turned into charred corpses and scarecrows by the evil god, guarding the fields for the evil god, or obtaining the yang energy of living people as a supply of power.
The souls of the villagers turned into ghosts standing in a daze in the courtyard.
Because the evil god took away part of the villagers' souls and painted them on the walls of the main hall as a means of control and a symbol of show-off, the ghosts with incomplete souls had no reaction to the outside world. Even if Yan Shixun was standing in front of the ghosts, they still kept looking up at the evil god in the main hall.
I don't know whether he is still as fanatically worshipping the evil god as he was when he was alive, or whether he is feeling regret and wants to take back the missing part of his soul from the evil god.
But these things have never been known to the outside world. Even in the circle of people who have been engaged in exorcism and evil spirits for many years, no news has been leaked. No one knows that there is a place where the evil god has taken away the throne of the mountain god, causing day and night to be reversed, and all the villagers have died.
I'm afraid it was done by the mountain god.
The gentle mountain god did not want the villagers who had turned into evil spirits to hurt others, nor did he want the exorcists to know the truth about Wild Wolf Peak. He handed over the villagers' incomplete souls to the underworld. The mountain god knew very well that the villagers could not be reincarnated without complete souls. Their souls would be scattered on the spot and turned into ashes. No matter they were good or evil, they would not have the chance to be reincarnated again.
So the mountain god used her remaining power to protect her people one last time. She trapped all the villages near Wild Wolf Peak, including the mountain god temple, in the rainstorm. She used the mountain god's original power to regulate wind and rain to turn the rain curtain into a barrier.
Perhaps, the mountain god is waiting for a moment when he can send the souls of those villagers who are still kind and have done nothing wrong to have a chance to be reborn.
With the mountain god's consent, the last piece of thought was put together.
In a flash, Yan Shixun figured everything out. The order of all the stories was straightened out and the logic formed a closed loop.
He finally understood the cause and effect of Wild Wolf Peak. He also understood why divination and divination could not be performed here, and why all the orthodox methods that required ghosts and gods to respond and borrow power were ineffective.
God dies and the Tao disappears.
A righteous god who had never done anything wrong died here. As far as the heaven and earth are concerned, the way here has collapsed, the villagers have fallen from human to ghosts, and the land has lost all its vitality.
It is an abandoned place.
In the eyes of heaven and earth, this land was already filled with sin and had been taken over by the already dead mountain god, so there was no need for a response.
That's why Yan Shixun felt like he was standing in a closed metal box, unable to get any response from heaven and earth.
As for the villagers...
Yan Shixun didn't believe that the authorities would turn a blind eye to the disappearance or death of an entire village. He guessed that the authorities had learned about this matter more than a decade ago and had sent people to try to solve the problem here, but they repeatedly failed and had no choice but to block the news and prevent the incident near Wild Wolf Peak from spreading.
This place has become a deserted land left by heaven, earth and the government. Over the past decade, the mountain god has never given up fighting for power from the evil god in order to continue protecting her people. The souls of those villagers who have died have been trapped here for too long and have become dazed and confused.
Only the mountain god.
Only the dead mountain god still has not given up wanting to protect her people.
From beginning to end.
Yan Shixun, who had figured everything out, couldn't help but be moved. A gentle emotion unconsciously revealed in the corners of his sharp eyes and eyebrows, with respect and admiration for the mountain god.
"If it were me, I would definitely be willing to send them to experience the punishment of the underworld. That way, they would realize what they did wrong."
The man who had been standing quietly by the door suddenly spoke. His deep, magnetic voice carried a majestic aura, as if the words coming out of his mouth were the final verdict.
The man's pale, bloodless lips slightly twitched, revealing a momentary sneer: "They should be thankful that they met a god as soft-hearted as you. It's rare to find a mountain god who sacrifices himself to feed the mountains and rivers, and even does not hesitate to break himself into pieces."
A bitter laugh seemed to be heard in the air.
She was agreeing with the man's words, but also laughing at the situation she was in. However, there was still no regret in that laughter, but she was as gentle as ever, and even if she was wrong, she would only blame herself.
——The mountain god is not a god, but the earth and mountains, lakes and fields. It doesn't matter whether I exist or not. My power should return to where it came from. The power that the plants and creatures lend me should be used to protect them.
I just couldn't let go of those good children. They shouldn't be trapped in Wild Wolf Peak because of their families. I wanted to see them leave and move on to the next stage of their lives. That's why I stayed in the mountain temple, using my remaining strength to give them the last protection, waiting for time for a miracle to happen. And now, I have finally waited for that moment.
The great way has forty-nine, but the hexagrams only count sixty-three.
The world will never allow things to reach true perfection, but will always reach perfection while leaving a glimmer of hope for people to explore and resist.
And now, that one day, the mountain god has finally waited for.
Because the heavy rain washed away the route that the program team had originally planned to go to Wild Wolf Peak, director Zhang Wubing had to change the route. However, because he was clearing the way in front, he accidentally broke into the barrier set by the mountain god due to physical problems and entered the Wild Wolf Peak in the heavy rain. This also allowed Yan Shixun to enter the mountain god temple, where he saw the mountain god and evil spirits that had been trapped here for more than ten years.
The last question that was not completed, the last hexagram that was not calculated, was finally completed at this moment.
In the void, the mountain god's gaze fell gently on Yan Shixun, and he was amazed by this completely different human exorcist.
He is trapped in a place where heaven and earth have no response, but he is not panicked. He is at the boundary between ghosts, gods and humans, but he does not rely on the power of ghosts and gods. Instead, he is proud of his own identity. As a mortal, he can smash the evil god and is worthy of killing gods.
This kind of human exorcist who does not stick to the rules of heaven and earth but has his own judgment and clear understanding of good and evil is the miracle she has been waiting for for more than ten years...
Yan Shixun felt the gaze falling on him, it was as if warm sunshine was shining on him, making him feel warm, comfortable and relaxed, gentle and leisurely, which was out of tune with the cold and dim surroundings.
Is it the old mountain god?
Yan Shixun's mind moved, and he did not have time to study the doubts brought by the man's sudden words just now. Instead, he solemnly said: "Since the villagers of Wild Wolf Peak are dead, there is a natural boundary between the dead and the living. They should not stay in the human world. Even being trapped here is not a safe approach."
"The dead have somewhere they should go... and you have tried your best to accompany them on their journey. It is time to say goodbye."
Yan Shixun slowly raised his slender palm forward and stretched it into the empty air. His palm slowly spread out upward, as if waiting for someone to hold his hand.
"Mountain God..."
His expression was serious. “It’s time to let go. Untie the restrictions of the rainstorm and let those confused souls go to where they should go. I promise you that all causes and consequences will be settled. No one who does evil will and should not receive a bad result.”
"And those who have done evil things and even caused the death of gods." Yan Shixun's eyes flashed with a sharp light, and his light red lips spit out cruel words mercilessly: "They should go to the underworld and face their own judgment. In the pain of hell, they will repeatedly recall the evil they have done in this life."
Ripples suddenly appeared in the originally empty air, and even the surrounding scenery became blurry.
And a translucent figure slowly emerged from the air.
The mountain god's eyes were lowered in compassion. Even though she had experienced betrayal and harm from the people she protected, and even lost her position as a deity because of it, and was on the verge of broken death, there was no trace of resentment or anger on her gentle face. She was still as gentle as before.
The children who used to chase and play around the sacred tree in the village have grown up long ago. They have started families and have children of their own, but are no longer satisfied with the rice in the fields. What they see in their eyes is no longer the beautiful scenery of the mountains and forests and the stable and happy life in the village, but money, money, endless money.
Greed made those children break free from her protection and throw themselves into the arms of the evil god. They listened to the evil god's whispers in their ears and destroyed the entire Wild Wolf Peak for their own temporary wealth.
But, everything you get will have to be returned one day...
The evil god did not use its power to protect the children, but instead kept tempting them to overdraw the spiritual energy of Wild Wolf Peak, telling them that it would be okay to do so. As a result, the creatures of Wild Wolf Peak lost everything they relied on for survival, and the peak became a place of death.
And those children who were blinded by greed have also come to the time when they have to pay back their debts.
The evil god was demanding the debt owed to them for the extra wealth.
Unable to pay the debt, they used their bodies and souls to pay it back. Those children became slaves of the evil god, guarding the fields for the evil god to get the harvest, and trying to hurt other innocent people for the evil god just to give the evil god power...
The sacred tree had long been cut down, and the colorful ribbons that the old men and children had draped on the tree with smiles on their faces had long faded in the wind and rain.
No one has remembered the existence of the mountain god for a long time.
However, the mountain god, who had lost her position as the main god and was on the verge of disappearing, suddenly heard someone crying and begging her.
——"Mountain God, please save me. I don't want to be trapped here and look at the faces of my relatives and neighbors who have done wrong every day."
The young woman was crying in the mural. She was clearly controlled by the evil god, but her good intentions and strong faith of never doing evil still made her voice reach the ears of the mountain god.
The mountain god recognized her. When the child was young, she tied a red rope she had woven to a branch of the sacred tree, and said with a blushing face that it was a gift to the mountain god.
This is a good kid and he shouldn't be trapped here.
——"Mountain God, I know I was wrong. I am willing to offer sacrifices to you every day from now on. Please save me and my family."
——"Mountain God! I once offered you rice as an offering in return for a good harvest next year. But now I am standing in the rice field, unable to move, guarding the field, being used as a scarecrow to drive away birds, and my soul cannot rest in peace day and night in order to pay off the debt to the mouse. Why! Why are you so unmerciful!"
——"Grandma Mountain God, I want to see my mother, can you help me? She never came back after she went to the mountain temple. My brother took my eyes away, and my father said that my mother was taken away by the gods. I can't find my mother, Grandma Mountain God, can you give my mother back to me?"
——"Mountain God... I have worked in the fields all my life and have never withheld the offerings I have made to you. I am grateful that you have allowed us to feed our children, fill our stomachs, and have surplus food to enrich our family over the past few decades. But why do I have to suffer this kind of pain when I am so old? Please save me and let me die for real."
——"Mountain God..."
…
Various sounds mixed together, ringing in the ears of the mountain god all the time.
She looked at the handsome young man in front of her tenderly, stretched out her hand tied with a faded red rope, and slowly placed her soft, round palm into the palm extended by Yan Shixun.
"good."
"Please send those good children to the next stage of life they should have gone to."
A golden light suddenly appeared in Yan Shixun's hands.
At this moment, the words spoken by the mountain god became an oath that could not be changed, and he formed a yin-yang contract with Yan Shixun.
God is entrusting people to do what God has not been able to accomplish.
Yan Shixun looked back at the gentle eyes of the mountain god, and those sharp eyes could not help but ripple like broken light, revealing a rare tenderness.
"good."
"Please rest assured, I will accomplish your request."
"Cause and effect are a natural law. Evil deeds will bring evil consequences, while good deeds will bring new life."
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