Chapter 144 The plague and the god of agriculture? It's clearly just a…
General You Wei had his eyes closed and his head drooping to one side, it was unclear whether he was dead or alive. His hands were bound by chains and he was hanging in mid-air. His body was covered in wounds, clearly indicating that he had been tortured severely.
"General You Wei!" Yun Tianjiao called out, trying to use magic to rescue You Wei, but was repelled by the restrictions placed around You Wei.
The noise startled You Wei. He opened his eyes and was slightly taken aback when he saw everyone, but he didn't seem too surprised.
More than pain and fear, he wore an expression of exhaustion, letting out a barely audible sigh as he murmured, "Since you've come, things must be in complete chaos outside..."
Yun Tianjiao tried to break the restriction again, this time with the help of Zhiwei and Shen Qiongzhi. However, no matter how much effort they put in, the spells they cast on the restriction were completely useless, like a clay ox sinking into the sea.
"Don't waste your energy here. His restrictions aren't so easy to break. Hurry up and stop him!" You Wei seemed to suddenly remember something and urged anxiously.
Yun Tianjiao asked, "Stop what?"
You Wei's gaze fell on Gong Xin, but what she said made everyone's hearts tremble: "He wants to start a plague in the human world to smear Gong Xin, who was born a rat immortal, to overthrow him, and take over his followers."
"Who? Is it the Divine Lord Mo Bei?" Zhu Jing asked.
You Wei nodded.
"He unleashed the plague..." Yun Tianjiao was utterly incredulous. "Has he gone mad?!"
Shen Qiongzhi was utterly astonished: "This man is far too greedy. There are countless pilgrims in the world who come to Tianzun Linshen alone, and he has already taken almost all of them. Even so, he is still not satisfied and has set his sights on Gong Xin!"
Zhiwei glanced at Youwei and said, "General Youwei, it's too dangerous for you to stay here. We don't know when Mobei will return. Let's rescue you first."
You Wei shook his head with a wry smile, "It's no use. The method of setting up this restriction is extremely complicated. I'm afraid that apart from him, only Xi Yue can undo it. I'll trouble you all to convey my message to the Ghost Realm for me."
"The General's wife? She actually knows how to break the seal on the God of Ink Sorrow?" Yun Tianjiao felt that this sounded strange and turned to look at Zhiwei.
Zhiwei seemed to be deep in thought. Seeing that General Youwei was unwilling to explain further, she said, "In that case, let's do as General Youwei wishes. I have already sent a message back to Guiyu. I believe Madam Youwei will receive the message soon. Let's go find Mobei first."
Gong Xin also agreed, saying, "Once the plague breaks out, the world will likely turn into a hellish place. We should act swiftly."
The plague was a matter of Gongxin's reputation and followers, so his anxiety was understandable. The group dared not delay any longer. However, before leaving, Yun Tianjiao asked You Wei, "General You Wei, do you know where the others in the Heavenly Realm have gone? Why is this vast Heavenly Realm so empty, like a ghost town?"
You Wei closed her eyes again, and said wearily, "They've all run away... Those who didn't have time to run away, I'm afraid they were 'eaten' by him."
After Yun Tianjiao and the others left, a long time passed before You Wei reopened his eyes. He seemed to have aged considerably, and his eyes revealed an indescribable sorrow.
He muttered to himself, his voice barely audible: "You just hate me, you could have just tormented me, why... why commit such a grave sin? What was the point..."
...
When Shen Qiongzhi emerged from the Heavenly Realm, she was still shaken. "I ate... what do you think General You Wei meant by 'ate'?"
Zhiwei said calmly, "It should mean exactly what you're thinking."
"Did you notice that General You Wei never mentioned the name of God Mo Bei from beginning to end, but always referred to him as 'he'?" Yun Tianjiao asked.
Shen Qiongzhi didn't take it seriously. "What's the big deal? Who would want to mention that monster's name these days? If I had been tortured like that, I'd probably feel disgusted just thinking about his name."
Zhu Jingdao said, "I found it a bit strange. General You Wei refused to say his name, so at first I wasn't sure he was talking about Mo Bei, and I even asked him specifically."
Yun Tianjiao asked Zhiwei, "Zhiwei, do you know the background of General Youwei and his wife? Were they connected to the Heavenly Realm before?"
Zhiwei shook her head. "General Youwei and his wife have lived in the Ghost Realm for a long time, long before I came here. No one knows their identity or background. Even the judge's book of fate does not record it. I only know that General Youwei is a ghost spirit, and his wife Xiyue seems to be a fallen goddess."
"A fallen god?" Yun Tianjiao frowned. "Is she the same as Zhu Miao?"
In order to arrange a marriage, the Heavenly Realm forcibly transformed the goddess Zhu Miao into a ghost spirit and married her to Yan Lie.
Zhiwei shook her head and said, "It's different. Ghost Queen Zhumiao was demoted from a god to a mortal and became a ghost after death. As for Xiyue... she should still retain her divine body, but she cultivates the path of ghosts."
"It's unbelievable that it can be like this. The ways of cultivation in this world are truly bizarre and wonderful." Shen Qiongzhi couldn't help but sigh.
Zhu Jingdao said, "Actually, it's not surprising. Since ghosts can cultivate the divine path and produce divine essence, then conversely, gods can also cultivate the ghost path and produce ghost pills."
Yun Tianjiao recalled something. Back then, she asked General Youwei to build a temple for Zhiwei. General Youwei also asked her to ask Mo Bei God Venerable for a personal blessing letter for Xiyue. "General Youwei's wife... seems to be a pilgrim of Mo Bei God Venerable. Even the embroidery on her clothes is a pattern of purple irises."
"They actually embroidered the token of the God of Mo Bei on their clothes!" Zhu Jing was very surprised. "That means this general's wife is a very devout follower of the God of Mo Bei."
"That's strange. She's a fallen god, a follower of the God of Mo Bei, and can break the restrictions set by Mo Bei... Could Madam You Wei be having an affair with Mo Bei?" Shen Qiongzhi began to speculate irresponsibly. She had just said it casually, but the more she thought about it, the more reliable the reasoning seemed.
"General You Wei and his wife's past seems to have some connection with Divine Lord Mo Bei, but the matter has not yet been investigated, so it's best not to spread such rumors." Yun Tianjiao looked at Shen Qiongzhi, his expression slightly stern. "Qiongzhi, you must not wantonly tarnish a woman's reputation. Public opinion is a fearsome thing. Have you forgotten Xiao An?"
Shen Qiongzhi stuck out her tongue. "Sister Tianjiao, I was wrong. I was reckless."
...
The group returned to the mortal realm, only to find that the plague was spreading in several villages and towns, with nine out of ten households hanging white banners and the sound of weeping heard everywhere.
Yun Tianjiao and his group of five disguised themselves as medicine merchants, traveling around to treat and save lives, but it was all just a drop in the ocean.
Even if they cure everyone in this village, what then? There are countless villages and towns in the world. If Mo Bei intentionally started this plague, the speed at which they try to save people one by one will not even keep up with the rate at which new infected people die.
"Hey? What are those people up there doing? They look so aggressive." Just as she came out of a farmer's house, Shen Qiongzhi saw a group of more than a dozen villagers carrying farm tools such as hammers and axes, marching in a grand procession toward the village entrance.
“If I remember correctly, when we came here, we saw a temple dedicated to the God of Agriculture at the entrance of the village,” Yun Tianjiao said.
Zhu Jing glanced at Gong Xin, the God of Gods, and saw that Gong Xin looked solemn, and the knuckles of his hands holding the pottery jar were white.
"They went to smash the temple." Gong Xin's voice was relatively calm, as if he were talking about something that had nothing to do with him.
"The news that Gong Xin, the Divine Lord, was born from a rat immortal has probably already been spread by Mo Bei," Yun Tianjiao said.
Shen Qiongzhi found it very incomprehensible, "Why is it that just because Gong Xin is a rat spirit, these people blame him for the plague?"
Gong Xin said, "Yesterday I heard them say that the plague broke out because of my indulgence."
Zhu Jing said with concern, "I heard it too. Some people say that the plague was caused by Gong Xin, the God of Gods, who wanted to compete with Mo Bei for the position of Heavenly Venerable. He wanted to get more believers to worship him."
Shen Qiongzhi was so angry she couldn't speak. "These people are really... they believe any rumor! Gongxin is the god of agriculture, not the god of medicine. How can he be so sure that people will worship him and not others just because he caused the plague? If he wanted followers, he could have caused a drought instead of the plague!"
The group had already followed the villagers to the village entrance. Shen Qiongzhi repeated what she had just said to the villagers, but they ignored her completely.
“Young lady, you are a benefactor to our village by practicing medicine and healing the sick, but you should not interfere in the affairs of our village.” The villager leading the group was the second son of the village chief. He was dressed in mourning clothes. His father, mother and elder brother had all died of the plague not long ago.
“It’s not that I want to interfere with you, but you have to use your brains! What’s the point of smashing the Temple of the God of Agriculture if you want to stop the plague? What if you offend the God of Agriculture and next year’s harvest is affected? Wouldn’t that be adding insult to injury?”
"Heh, next year? We're not even sure if we'll survive this year!" another villager said, his eyes red, as he swung his hoe hard and slammed it against the threshold of the Temple of Agriculture.
"The god of agriculture? He's clearly just a rat spirit. We were blind to make him the god of agriculture!"
"Exactly! Let whoever wants to worship this kind of agricultural god, I won't offer him a single stick of incense again!"
Shen Qiongzhi tried to stop him, but was stopped by the God of Gongxin.
Gong Xinyuan was not as agitated as Shen Qiongzhi. He stepped forward calmly and said to the villagers, "The Heavenly Realm has not yet chosen a new God of Agriculture. Although you are not satisfied with this God of Agriculture who was born from a rat fairy, he will still manage the crops well for the sake of the incense offerings, so that you will not have a complete crop failure. However, if this temple is demolished, the God of Agriculture's power will not be able to cover this land. I hope you will think twice before acting."
Seeing his composed demeanor and calm attitude, the villagers' tone softened as well.
“Sir, look at our village. Everyone is dying. Every household has their deceased relatives buried in the fields. This hometown has become a place of sorrow. Who would want to stay here?”
Yun Tianjiao understood the implication in their words. "What, do you all want to leave your homes and go elsewhere?"
"Yes, we want to go to the main city of the prefecture!" A rare glint appeared in the speaker's eyes, as if he were looking forward to something wonderful. "I heard that the largest Mo Bei Temple has been built in our Jiangzhou main city. The Mo Bei God is about to reveal his true form and protect us from the plague. We'll smash this new temple and then move our whole family to the main city!"
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