Chapter 108 Zodiac
The sedan chair containing the big rat, which looked so strange and ominous, was scared away by the kitten that appeared with a loud bang. Qing Bai felt sincerely relieved, but the next moment he couldn't help but worry about the kitten. After all, judging from the family's eagerness to become believers of the big rat, they really didn't seem like the kind people who would love animals.
However, Qing Bai miscalculated.
Not only did they not pick up weapons and chase after the cat that interrupted their family's "praying for a child" ceremony and offended the old ritual officer as Qing Bai had imagined, they didn't even drive the cat off the incense table... No one cared about the old man who was "mysteriously" pushed. Everyone stood blankly in their positions, their dark eyes occasionally moving extremely slowly, as if they couldn't see the sudden black mass.
It was not until a loud and high-pitched cry of "Here comes the Bull God" was heard not far away that the family woke up from their dream. They hurriedly removed the beef offering from the incense table, and hurriedly filled the empty space on the incense table with green and tender vegetables such as peanuts, sweet potatoes, corn, and rice seedlings. Although they were not valuable and did not require much effort, the herbivores were ecstatic to see the fresh tribute.
Finally, a jar of boiled water mixed with sugar was brought out.
So kind and attentive, it is obvious that this Bull God is the god that this family truly believes in and worships.
...I just wonder what this 'Bull God' would think if he knew that his believers were willing to pay money to invite the Rat God to 'come in'?
While Qing Bai was lost in thought, he quietly retreated to the side of the road, intending to use the terrain to first figure out the species and appearance of the gods behind him before making other plans.
Since this place is called "Giant Locust Tree", there is naturally no shortage of locust trees. There happened to be a big locust tree next to the gate of this family's house, and the shadow of its crown was enough to provide shade for passers-by. At this time, the sky was dim and Qing Bai was thin, so he didn't need to hide deliberately. He could hide perfectly behind the tree just by slightly turning sideways.
Qing Bai had just found himself a front-row seat when the Bull God's sedan arrived at the door of this family's house.
Although the place was not very bright, Qing Bai only needed to glance over to see the situation in the sedan chair. It was indeed a cow, but not completely a cow... It was not because of his good eyesight, but mainly because of the cow itself - its limbs were muscular, its horns were huge, and its short, brown and almost reddish fur was shiny... If the rat god in front was a ball of rotten meat, then it was a ball of powerful muscles with bulging blue veins. Although it was far from the original appearance of its species, at least the visual effect was much friendlier than the former.
Of course, this was only what Qing Bai saw. In the eyes of others, the person sitting in the sedan chair was clearly a clay and painted bull-headed statue. The statue had a bull's head and a human body, with legs crossed, a steel fork in one hand and a seal in the other, looking very solemn and dignified.
Qing Bai was not wrong in his guess. The Bull God was indeed the god that this family worshipped. Compared to their previous enthusiastic anticipation for the Rat God, when the Bull God arrived, the expressions of the family, regardless of gender, age or status, were obviously filled with more awe and fervent faith.
After the official in charge of the sedan chair finished his customary auspicious words, the old woman, who had just been pushed and scolded, hurriedly handed over a red envelope. Although Qing Bai was at a distance from them, his keen eyes could tell that this red envelope was much thicker than the previous two. Not only that, in addition to the "incense money" as a token of their gratitude, as believers in the Bull God, the young and middle-aged men of this family also respectfully presented a large basket of tributes, beautifully wrapped in red silk.
The ceremonial officer took the red envelope and twisted it gently. His eyes were almost smiling, and the beautiful auspicious words on his lips became more sincere. After finishing the auspicious words in one breath, he turned around, took out a piece of yellow talisman paper from the sedan chair and handed it to the old woman who was already waiting with her hands stretched out respectfully.
At first glance, there was nothing special about the yellow talisman paper. Like all the common talisman paper props that appear in feudal superstitious activities, the yellow straw paper was thin and fragile, and it was covered with unknown characters drawn crookedly and tangledly in bright red cinnabar. Only the two large characters on the top could be barely made out, which seemed to be the words "Zhen Zhai". The symbol in the middle was quite special, like a pair of curved bull horns.
This family treasured the yellow talisman very much. After the old woman took it with both hands, she did not put it away, but passed it down one by one. After it passed through the hands of all the family members, the young man who just got married this year carefully pasted it above the door.
After pasting it, the family bowed devoutly several times in front of the yellow talisman on the door. Only then could the talisman bestowed by the Bull God to protect the house be safely settled in their home.
With the protection of the gods they believe in, the family seemed to be in a different spirit after this ceremony. Everyone was smiling and overjoyed, happily seeing off the Bull God. However, Qing Bai, who had been keeping his eyes open behind the tree, frowned - just now, when the family turned their backs to worship, the 'Bull God' sitting in the sedan chair also moved.
First, the huge ox horns that looked like burnt bronze slowly poked out of the sedan door. After the whole head was stretched out, the big ox eyes that protruded like black glass beads blinked gently a few times. In this situation, if you only look at the eyes, you can even use the words "innocent" and "gentle" to describe it. But its next action can't be called "innocent" or "gentle" at all... I saw it looking at the family who were praying with their backs turned, with its nostrils flaring and its mouth wide open, taking a deep breath. After swallowing it with a gulp, it narrowed its eyes slightly and retreated into the sedan with satisfaction.
As the ceremonial officer deliberately drew out his voice and said "lift the sedan chair", the Ox God's sedan chair swayed and toured the next house under the fanatical and reverent gazes of this family. Only Qing Bai, who was behind the tree, heard a subtle and strange chewing sound when the sedan chair passed by him. Unlike the big rat that kept making squeaky sounds in its mouth before, this chewing sound was not crisp and piercing, but warm and soft, as if... as if it was ruminating and savoring something that had just been swallowed and returned to its mouth.
Although I don't know what that "thing" is exactly, it can't be the various green things that are still on the incense table.
But... the 'Bull God' is also a cow after all, so there doesn't seem to be anything wrong with him ruminating?
With a head full of mysteries, Qing Bai saw one after another the Tiger God who always opened his bloody mouth to attack people, as if he would devour them at any time, the Rabbit God with bloodshot eyes and a mouth full of fangs, the Dragon God and the Snake God who were so slimy and slippery that it was hard to tell them apart...
After Qing Bai patiently watched the last sedan chair of greasy fat pork in this huge procession disappear at the end of the road, he finally confirmed that the twelve gods here were actually—
"So you were hiding here, it was so easy for me to find you!"
Qing Bai's shoulders suddenly felt cold, and he subconsciously turned around to see a flawless white face... It was truly "flawless", so flawless that it didn't even have the most basic eyebrows, eyes, nose and mouth that should have on a face. There was only a horrifying blankness. If Qing Bai hadn't seen the world and gained more experience during this period, he would have been scared to death by this encounter.
Qing Bai stared at the 'white-faced plate' that suddenly appeared behind him for a long while, then slowly lowered his gaze and stared at the familiar black robe for a long time before he hesitantly speaking, "Miss Xiao Wu?"
Seeing Qing Bai recognized her, Bai Lian Panzi immediately nodded excitedly: "It's me, it's me!"
"Alas, the imperial patrol in this remote mountain area is quite rigorous. Who could have imagined that my role as a road-breaker would be so important! Those people even remembered my appearance! I slipped away several times and was caught by the team. Fortunately, I was smart and saw the opportunity! I acted decisively! I ran away! Without that face holding me back, I could come back to find you."
Qing Bai: "..." There's no need to rush like that. Besides, if you lose face, they probably won't dare to stop you even if they find out you've run away.
"But my trip wasn't in vain." Xiao Wu shook his head, his tone rather proud. "I've been busy all the way. I've been keeping an eye on everything and have a pretty good idea of what's going on here."
Qing Bai immediately gave his respect and acted as if he was listening attentively.
Xiao Wu didn't keep anyone in suspense and blurted out the information he'd painstakingly gathered while disguised as the Black Impermanence. He also offered some of his own speculations: "This place is indeed called Juhuai, an unknown town in the southern mountains. I don't know exactly how far it is from Shangjing, but it's probably about 108,000 miles. It's definitely not a distance we can cover in the underworld by carelessly taking a few extra steps. I can vouch for this with my countless experience of crossing the Yin and Yang realms over the past few years, handling cases and enforcing the law. I'm 200% sure we've been tricked. It's hard to say how, but it's probably either a formation or an illusion. Tsk, they're actually playing tricks at the gate of the Shangjing Underworld. They're really like going to the toilet with a lantern, looking for..."
"Ahem!" Xiao Wu braked his words. "I've strayed off topic. The point is, there really is something wrong with this grand imperial carriage touring the country! Luckily, we managed to stay calm and didn't actually stop it to protest. Otherwise, we would have just escaped the tiger's mouth and walked right into the wolf's den!"
Qing Bai was very considerate and sensible and continued the conversation: "What do you mean?"
"In other places, even if the gods carried out during the imperial tours aren't famous gods or Buddhas, they're still local ancestors or city gods. At the very least, there are local gods. What kind of gods do you think are parading around here?"
Qing Bai already had a guess in his mind: "The twelve zodiac animals."
Xiao Wu clapped his hands together. "That's hilarious! Why would a serious imperial tour specifically visit the twelve zodiac animals?"
After she had finished speaking, Xiao Wu realized that her words were extremely ambiguous and offensive to the gods. She quickly clasped her hands together in worship, made two "Pah" noises, and changed her words: "Children's words should be kept in check! The twelve zodiac animals are great! The twelve zodiac animals are very respectable! I respect the twelve zodiac animals from the bottom of my heart! What I mean is that the twelve zodiac animals here are not proper! Not only are they not proper, they are not authentic either! Each one is blood-red and full of murderous aura, more ferocious than some beasts! The most important thing is!"
Xiao Wu lowered his voice and said, "They eat people!"
"And the division of labor is so clearly defined, right down to the specific areas! Some crack bones, some suck marrow, some eat flesh, some eat souls... These twelve zodiac animals are clearly 'false gods' and evil gods nurtured by the people of this place with their flesh, blood, and souls!"
"False God, evil God, cannibal..." Qing Bai repeated in a low voice.
Xiao Wu sighed, "Anyway, the situation here is beyond my ability to handle at this level. Besides, there's you. If I kill you here..."
Thinking of Qing Bai's importance to the underworld, Xiao Wu couldn't help but shudder. He wished he could carry Qing Bai and run away overnight. "If the sky falls, there are tall people to hold it up. A gentleman doesn't stand under a dangerous wall. Of the thirty-six strategies, running away is the best strategy... Anyway, while they are being carried to the Zhenwei Ancestral Hall, let's escape!"
As Xiao Wu spoke, he grabbed Qing Bai's arm and tried to pull him in the direction they came from... but failed.
Qing Bai stood there, his body mostly hidden by the shade of the tree. Xiao Wu couldn't see the expression on his face, but he could only see him slowly shaking his head: "I'm not leaving."
Xiao Wu didn't expect that Qing Bai, who had always been easy to talk to and cooperate with, would be so stubborn at such a life-and-death moment. He was so anxious that his flawless face turned into a distorted bitter face.
Just as Xiao Wu was about to appeal to his feelings and reason, he heard Qing Bai say word by word, "I was going to come here in the first place."
Xiao Wu: "Huh?"
Qing Bai's lips curled slightly, and he smiled softly, saying slowly, "The letter from nine years ago told me to go find him at Juhuai."
"Isn't the giant locust tree here?"
Xiao Wu: “???”
At this moment, Xiao Wu had the same suspicion as her boss—Are you sure that letter was really written by Master Jiunian?!
Quickly open your eyes and look at the evil spirit rising into the sky in the distance and the dark clouds rolling overhead. This is not looking for him, it is really like going to the toilet with a lantern, looking for... that thing!!!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
