51

Capítulo 34

This is cause and effect. Without my "cause" of blowing up her city walls, I wouldn't have ended up cleaning up the mess.

"When will you come?" I asked, wiping my face.

"...The disturbance starts after dark, and it gets especially, especially intense after midnight..."

She was afraid of losing face and didn't dare tell anyone. But instinctively, she turned to me for help. I stood up.

"Go back," she said, calming down a bit. "Maybe it's nothing serious, just unnecessary worry. You...you don't need to get involved."

If she clung to my leg and cried, I might have been able to just leave. "Can you walk?" I asked, supporting her, wanting to leave the house first.

But the gate looked as if it had been welded shut.

She let go of me, sat down on the stairs, and said, "You can go now. You should be able to walk by yourself."

Indeed, the door opened easily as soon as she left. I stood at the door for a moment, then closed it. The instant it closed, a sharp scream came from my deaf left ear.

The desolate creature flew behind me, and who was screaming in my left ear?

“Sorry,” I muttered, “I’m out of touch with reality.”

"...Aren't you leaving?" Yu Zheng stared at me blankly.

Gently, I shook my head. "Are you hungry?" I asked. "If you can move, go upstairs and lie down. I'm starving... let's cook something and eat together."

She stood there in a daze for a while before struggling to climb the stairs.

"What appetite do you have now?!" Huang E exclaimed, both frightened and angry. "This isn't just about hanging yourself in red anymore!"

"I'm scared, don't tell me." I stepped into the messy kitchen and opened the refrigerator. Luckily, it contained normal food; there wasn't anything to hide from. "Being scared won't help. I'll just have a good meal first. I heard that death row inmates get a nice, satisfying meal before they die."

"...There's a saying that goes, there's no cure for brain damage."

He took out a few eggs and looked at Huang E helplessly. "I only realized today that you are quite wise, Huang E."

My cooking skills aren't great, but the best seasoning is called "hunger." I was starving for a day, and Yu Zheng was supposedly locked up for three or four days; everyone was starving. She complained about gaining weight while burying her head in her food.

It's like girls these days are going crazy from dieting.

"You seem to be a girl too," Huang E said irritably.

"Yeah... but I often forget myself." I have to admit. Just living is tiring enough, why invite suffering? Life is so wonderful and smooth that people think of all sorts of unnecessary hardships to make themselves miserable.

Once a person has eaten their fill, they become more energetic. Although she was still weak and frail, she looked much better, and the gloomy, deathly aura no longer gathered around her.

"Want more?" I pointed to the rice cooker.

She shook her head. "I haven't eaten this much in a long time."

I scratched my head and collected the dishes, piling them in the sink. I had more important things to do; I didn't have time for this virtuous wife and mother act.

Since we haven't learned how to abstain from grains, we should just eat and drink our fill honestly, but not overeat. When you're well-fed, you have plenty of energy, your spirit is whole, your body is healthy, and evil spirits are less likely to bother you. It's a very simple principle, but nine and a half out of ten girls don't listen. It's really frustrating for someone like me who barely eats two meals a day and suffers from chronic stomach pain and weakness.

"You're becoming more and more like an old woman," Huang'e scolded me. "You should be leaving, but you're not; you should be afraid, but you still care about whether she's on a diet or not? Who knows if she'll even see the sun tomorrow..."

"If it's cloudy tomorrow, we won't be able to see the sun."

"Who told you this?!" She shoved me hard. I ignored her, found my uncle's letter and the black thread Shuo had given me, found a clothesline pole, and slowly tied a knot upwards.

"You want to... clear your name and avenge your sins?" She laughed. Such a beautiful person, her smile was truly captivating... but unfortunately, it was tinged with bitterness.

"While there's still sunshine, do as much as you can." I think she influenced her uncle through her surroundings and he also knew a little about it. This is a Taoist ritual, and the letter her uncle wrote not only had a complete illustration but also noted 108 lines of scripture for resolving grievances.

Shuo did indeed make an exception and interfere... She handed me the black thread, essentially suggesting how to break the deadlock. Someone as strictly bound by chaos as her was truly going against her own principles.

"Your uncle will take you as his disciple?" She was somewhat incredulous.

“…It doesn’t count as receiving it.” I felt there was no point in hiding it, and pointed at Huang’e. Huang’e glared at her and muttered to himself. “Because of her… Uncle is afraid someone will make things difficult for me.”

She sat there blankly watching me tie the knot, then suddenly blurted out, "No wonder Xiao Chen likes you."

I almost tied the knot wrong; it took me ages to untie it. "Tang Chen likes many people... but he loves you the most."

She chuckled softly, then began to cry again.

Seeing the Queen cry was truly shocking; she might as well have thrown a tantrum at me. But seeing her cry like an ordinary girl, so full of grievance, I didn't know what to do.

"...I really loved Xiaochen before. We were practically born together, and we've grown up together... He was my first love, and for everything, my first time was with him..." She wiped away her tears, "How could I not love him? It's wrong... But this 'wrong' feeling has become more and more real as we've been apart..."

Perhaps I've shattered her talents and defenses, but in some ways, we're very similar—both are unconscious or involuntary "witches." Being so close, and with her completely unguarded, the emotional connection was far faster and more accurate than words.

Arriving in this vibrant world, free from the constraints of parents and relatives, she gradually learned the taste of deep affection, understanding what she truly loved and what she wanted. Yet, she was also burdened by guilt, feeling remorseful towards Tang Chen, as if the shoes she wore as a child, no matter how cute and pretty, were no longer suitable for her.

Cherishing the pure and innocent first love of her youth, she fiercely defended everything about herself, even knowing full well that things would drift apart. On one hand, she was annoyed that Tang Chen had her as a close female friend, but on the other hand, she secretly breathed a sigh of relief, knowing that she didn't need to say anything, and the blame wouldn't fall on her.

She was constantly bothered, annoyed, angry, and frustrated. She couldn't help but test, criticize, and berate Tang Chen, hoping to rekindle her passion, but all her efforts ultimately came to naught. She was just an ordinary girl, barely in her early twenties; how could she possibly handle such a situation properly? And how could she be blamed for shifting blame?

It's just a form of escapism.

"I love him, how could I not love him?" She cried and cried. "But what happened? It's just... it's all wrong now, I don't love him anymore! I... I... I'm so bad, I'm a bad woman... But I don't want this... I don't want this..."

“You only have a smart face,” I said sullenly, “but you’re actually quite clumsy at heart.”

"Why are you here to scold me?!" Before her tears had even dried, she glared at him and started yelling.

That's much better.

"Shuo... I mean, the owner of the coffee shop where we live said there's a best remedy for this kind of problem." I continued tying my knots.

She looked at me suspiciously. Beautiful woman, with tears in her eyes, I almost forgave all her previous rudeness.

"Time." I finally finished tying all 108 knots and laid them aside. "Time can heal these emotional entanglements."

I don't know if she's figured it out, but she has stopped crying.

After this heart-to-heart talk, Yu Zheng wasn't so fierce towards me anymore. She said she could hold out for a few more days because the room had been blessed by her father.

I vaguely remember my uncle mentioning that her father, Xia Tao, while not as talented as she was, was still quite remarkable. My uncle wasn't very willing to teach Yu Zheng, so he might have taught her father instead.

I quickly searched around the room and sure enough, above the front door, there was a strangely shaped talisman, though it was already broken. I quickly found some yellow paper and copied it exactly.

"That's not how it's done...you've got it wrong!" Huang E roared on my shoulder, "Are you brain-dead and hand-dead too? Why are you shaking like that? Ugh...you can't even tell the difference between a hook and a stroke, can you? Your Chinese teacher will be so angry she'll kill herself!"

Seeing me scribble like that for ages, Huang E couldn't stand it anymore. He snatched my brush away, leaving my palm covered in ink. "Get lost! What sins did I commit to possess you? If I were to possess anyone, it should be that troublemaker next to you..." He started drawing again and again.

But her words made Yu Zheng shudder.

"As expected of the Goddess Zigu, she's incredibly powerful." I quickly put a tall hat on her. She was practically wagging her tail.

After reinforcing the old talismans, and having been busy for half a day, it was already past four o'clock, and the atmosphere began to become sluggish.

My palms were sweating as I dialed his cell phone several more times, but he still didn't answer. Suddenly, a loud noise at the door startled Yu Zheng and me. I rushed over and dialed the phone on her bedside table…

This time, Uncle Shi answered. "...Hengzhi?"

"Uncle!" I shouted, "Something happened to Yuzheng here!" I was afraid that the connection would be lost at any time, so I told him everything that had happened.

"Where's the talisman? Where's the talisman her father drew?" Uncle Shi's tone was very serious.

"I've reinforced... well, I should say I've fixed the Wasteland. But I don't know if it'll work, the previous ones are all ruined..."

My uncle didn't speak for a while, and I was so nervous that my hand slipped and I could barely hold the microphone.

“Hengzhi, this is something you can't handle.” He took a deep breath. “You can still leave now, go quickly! I'll be there right away…”

"...What about Yu Zheng?" I asked, stunned.

"I can't let you lose your life, get out of here!" My uncle sternly urged me on, "Leave that house immediately!"

I initially felt wronged, but after thinking about it, I understood. Yu Zheng was the daughter of his closest friend, a child he had doted on since childhood. I had originally thought I was just someone he had met by chance and who he had only extended his affection to because of her.

Normally, when other people encounter this kind of thing, regardless of whether I can handle it or not, they would still ask me to step in first, right? I am "Lin Moniang, the Supernatural Girl".

But my uncle... my uncle prioritized my life above all else. I feel... I guess I have no regrets.

"Hengzhi? Did you hear me? If you stay there any longer... I'll kick you out of the gate!" Uncle's voice was even more anxious.

"...Uncle, please come quickly." I wiped away the tears from the corners of my eyes and said with a smile, "I will hold on until you come, please come quickly!" I hung up the phone.

“…For a few kind words, you’re willing to sell your life,” Huang E murmured.

"A beautiful woman is given to a close friend, and a precious sword is presented to a martyr."

"You're still in the mood to drop your backpack with me now?!"

Not wanting to talk to her, I turned to Yuzheng and said, "Uncle is on his way."

She stared at me blankly, "...How did you get through?"

Following her gaze, I saw that the phone line had long been unplugged. I scratched my cheek. "...Where there's a will, there's a way?"

"Oh, right?" But she immediately moved three feet away from me.

All I could do was chuckle awkwardly.

By the time it was completely dark, the living room downstairs was in complete chaos.

Even a spirited girl like Yu Zheng could only tremble in my arms. Huang E flew around the room, muttering incessantly. I already understood what she was saying, and knowing it wouldn't make things any better.

Demons and monsters all have certain rules and mutual restraint. But the evil spirits transformed from human souls do not follow these rules. The reason why the evil spirit is a monster with a beautiful female face and a full breast is so that it will not cause its "food" fear and resentment when it eats, and will die happily, so that it will not become an evil spirit to cause trouble for it after it dies.

Demons and monsters who use their sexual energy to their advantage usually ensure that their "food" dies a comfortable and pleasant death. Only humans and evil spirits would attempt to torture and kill their food and enemies.

This explanation should help everyone understand just how fierce Li is. Especially the Li transformed from the mother, who is absolutely explosively fierce.

To reinforce the doorway, I even hung the peach wood sword and compass my uncle gave me. And then? Then all I could do was bow my head and pray... there was no "and then"...

It was only a little past seven when the commotion reached the second floor. But I imagine the mother outside had been waiting impatiently for a while, coming to break down the door early in the morning. That wretched door opened with a bang, even the hinges flying off.

The talisman written by Huang E was indeed of little use; it lasted only a few seconds before vanishing into nothingness.

There stood a middle-aged woman with a pale face, not the disheveled, flowing white-clad figure of legend. She was dressed in ordinary home clothes, with a Doraemon apron in a rather amusing way, but she held a kitchen knife in her hand, exuding a menacing aura that made me instinctively protect my neck.

She wanted to come in, but after glancing up at the suspended compass and peach wood sword, she hesitated and went out. She had just breathed a sigh of relief when, to her surprise, the other woman returned. "I'm not afraid of my soul being scattered or self-destruction, why would I be afraid of these inanimate objects?!"

Her hand stretched out, like sharp claws embedded in a withered branch, and she snatched the compass and peach wood sword, crumpling them into a ball. The air was filled with the acrid smell of roasting meat. Her face contorted in pain, she charged forward…

I pushed the knotted clothesline pole at her, and she started to struggle with me. My legs were shaking.

This is the last line of defense, according to Shuo's warning.

"First knot!" I shouted at her sternly, "All suffering arises from jealousy, sweep away vanity and joy will abound!" Then, in front of her, I untied the first slipknot.

This is a ritual to resolve grievances and alleviate suffering. It uses the identity of a deity to resolve conflicts and resentments between different races. It is truly inappropriate for someone like me, incapable of cultivation and lacking the talent, to perform it.

But I can throw away my health and vitality.

Untie the first knot, and the screams that had echoed in my ears that afternoon grew louder and more piercing.