The group of white-clothed people had no heads on their necks. They were wearing prisoner uniforms, and each of them was holding a head, as if they were a group of prisoners who had been beheaded. They walked slowly towards the cart, the heads in their arms still twittering.
Xie Lian reminded the other two in a low voice, "When they come near, don't make a sound."
San Lang tilted his head and asked, "This older brother, you're actually an extraordinary person."
His tone was filled with interest. Xie Lian replied, "I can't say I'm an eccentric, but I know a little. They can't see us now, but it's hard to say when they get closer. "
The old man who was driving the cart was already dumbfounded when he saw the white silk flying, and then when he saw the headless people, he was so scared that his eyes rolled back. He shook his head in shock and said, "No, no! I'm afraid I can't hold it in! What about the Taoist?! "
"… …" Xie Lian said, "Then, there's still a way. Sorry for the offense. " After he finished speaking, he quickly tapped the old man's back. The old man immediately fell onto the cart and fainted. Xie Lian gently caught him and placed him on the cart. He sat in the driver's seat and suddenly felt a movement behind him. He turned around and saw that the young man was also sitting behind him. He asked, "Are you alright?"
San Lang propped up his chin with one hand and said, "There's something. I'm scared. "
Although he didn't hear any fear in his voice, Xie Lian still comforted him, "Don't be afraid. Stay behind me, nothing can hurt you. "
The young man smiled and did not speak. Xie Lian suddenly realized that he was staring at him. After a moment, he finally reacted. The young man was staring at the curse chain on his neck.
This curse was like a black collar around a person's neck. It couldn't be hidden at all. Moreover, it was easy for people to have some bad associations. Xie Lian lightly pulled on his collar. Although it couldn't hide anything.
The sky was already dark, and the young man's expression could not be seen clearly. Xie Lian picked up the rope and softly coaxed the cow. The group of prisoners came over and wanted to go over, but they felt that there was something blocking the middle of the road. They all said in a rough voice, "This is really strange! Why can't I? "
"Really! He couldn't cross it! What the hell! "
"Damn it, aren't we ghosts ourselves? What ghosts can we see?"
Xie Lian managed to coax the cow with great difficulty. He brushed past the group of headless prisoners and listened to them hugging their heads and making a racket. He found it very funny. The group of ghosts continued to complain, "Well, are you sure you're not mistaken? Why do I feel like the one hugging your head is my body? "
"It's your body that's in the wrong place!"
"Hurry up and switch over, you guys …"
"Why is the incision on your head so uneven?"
"Sigh, that executioner is a newbie. He only managed to cut me down after five or six slashes. I'm starting to wonder if he did it on purpose."
"Your family didn't send him any money, did they? Next time, remember to prepare in advance and give me a quick and clean cut. "
"There's no next time!"
…
The Hungry Ghost Festival on the 15th day of the seventh month was the biggest festival in the World of Ghosts and Souls. On this day, the Gates of Hell opened wide, and all the demons and ghosts that usually lurked in the darkness rushed out to celebrate. Living people had to avoid them. Especially on this night, it was the best choice to stay in the house. As soon as he went out, the chances of bumping into something were much higher than usual. Xie Lian had always been stuffy even when drinking cold water, and he even saw a ghost in a Taoist robe. At this moment, he bumped into something. Green will-o '-the-wisps floated in all directions, and many ghosts chased after the will-o' -the-wisps. There were also some expressionless ghosts in shrouds who were mumbling to themselves squatting in front of a circle, reaching out to receive the offerings such as paper money and ingots that were burned for them by their descendants.
This scene could be described as a dance of demons. Xie Lian walked through it, thinking that he must look at the almanac when he went out in the future. Suddenly, a voice screamed like a chicken being slaughtered, "Oh no! Oh no! Killing ghosts! "
This scream made the ghosts panic, "Where? Where? Where are we killing ghosts?! "
The screaming ghost said, "That scared me to death! I found a lot of broken ghost fires over there, and they were all smashed. That's so cruel! "
"They were all smashed? That's cutting them into pieces! That's too cruel! "
"Who did it? Could it be … a mage, a monk, or a Taoist priest sneaked in?! "
The group of headless people cried out one after another, "Ah! Speaking of which, we were also blocked by something on the road just now. Don't tell me he's … "
"Where, where?"
"Over there!"
Xie Lian cried out in his heart. In the next moment, a large group of demons and ghosts surrounded the oxcart. Each one of them revealed a fierce expression and said with malicious intent, "I smell the hot scent of Yang …"
It couldn't be hidden anymore!
Originally, there was no reason for a living person to bump into a group of ghosts during the Hungry Ghost Festival. Xie Lian didn't want to fight with such a large group of things, so he drove the cart and shouted, "Go!"
The oxcart was extremely frightened. It had been anxiously digging its hooves in place for a long time. When it heard Xie Lian's shout, it impatiently pulled the cart and ran away. Xie Lian didn't forget to pull the youth behind him. "Sit tight!"
Ruoxie withdrew his hand and opened up a path of escape. Suddenly, an oxcart was exposed in a circle of ghost fires. Rushing out of the encirclement, a group of green-faced, ferocious-looking ghosts with missing limbs screamed from behind, "There really are Taoist priests!!! Damn Taoist priests are tired of living!!! "
"Living people actually dared to disturb our Hungry Ghost Festival. You can't blame us for this!"
"After them!"
Xie Lian grabbed the reins with one hand and took out a bunch of talismans with the other. Throwing them on the ground, he shouted, "Trip them!"
These were the "Trip Talismans" used for escaping. With a series of small bangs, every time they rang out, they would create an obstacle for the group of ghosts, delaying them for a short period of time. However, it was only for a short period of time. With so many talismans used, they would catch up in less than half an incense stick's worth of time. Xie Lian drove the oxcart as if his butt was on fire. Suddenly, he shouted, "Stop!"
It turned out that the old ox had pulled the oxcart to a fork in the road. When Xie Lian saw that there were two pitch-black mountain roads in front of him, he immediately pulled on the rope.
He had to be extremely careful here!
On the day of the Hungry Ghost Festival, sometimes people would discover that a road that normally didn't exist had appeared in front of them. Living people couldn't walk this kind of road. If they went the wrong way and ended up in the territory of the Ghost Realm, it would be difficult to return!
Xie Lian was new to this place, so he couldn't tell which of the two mountain roads he should take. He remembered that other than buying a large bag of junk in town, he had also bought some miscellaneous items. Among them was a fortune stick cylinder. He thought to himself, I'll use it to read my fortune. Thus, he took out the fortune stick cylinder and shook it in his hand. As he shook it, he said, "When the Heavenly Official bestows blessings, there are no taboos! I'll walk the main road towards the heavens! The first one is left, the second one is right! I'll walk whichever path is better! "As soon as he finished speaking," Ka ka! " Two sticks fell out of the cylinder. He picked them up and looked at them. Then, he fell silent.
The worst of the lot, great misfortune!
Both were the worst of the lot, and both paths led to great misfortune. Didn't that mean that either path would lead to death?
Xie Lian was helpless. Holding the cylinder with both hands, he shook it wildly again. "Oh, cylinder! Today is the first time we've met. Why must you be so heartless! I'll do it again! Give me some face! "As soon as he finished speaking," Ka ka! " Another two sticks fell. He picked them up and looked at them. They were both the worst of the lot, great misfortune!
At this time, San Lang suddenly said, "Let me try?"
In any case, his luck wouldn't be worse than his, so Xie Lian handed the cylinder to him. San Lang received it with one hand and casually shook it. Two sticks fell out, and he picked them up. Without even looking at them, he handed them over to Xie Lian. Xie Lian took them and looked at them. Unexpectedly, both sticks were good. He couldn't help but be amazed. That was because, with his bad luck to this extent, it seemed that even other people's luck was often affected by him. Xie Lian didn't know whether this was true or not. In any case, he was often complained about like this. However, this youngster wasn't affected by him in the slightest and directly drew two good lots!
Both were good lots, so Xie Lian randomly chose one. As he drove, he sincerely praised, "Friend, your luck is pretty good."
San Lang casually threw the cylinder behind him and laughed. "Is that so? I also feel that my luck is pretty good. It's always been like this. "
Hearing him say 'it's always been like this', Xie Lian thought to himself that the gap between people was indeed like a moat. After running for a while, he suddenly heard ghostly wails and wolf-like howls coming from all directions. "I caught him! He's here! "
"Everyone come over! The damned Daoist priest is here!!! "
One by one, ghost heads popped out. Xie Lian said, "Ah, I actually still chose the wrong one."
The effect of the tripping talisman had already worn off, but they were still surrounded!
There were at least a hundred of these demons and ghosts. They surrounded them in three layers, and their numbers were still increasing. He really didn't know why there were so many non-human beings gathered here, but he didn't have the time to find it strange. Xie Lian warmly said, "Offending everyone wasn't my original intention. I hope everyone can be magnanimous."
A headless ghost said, "Hey! Smelly Daoist Priest, why didn't you be magnanimous first? The ones who scattered the ghost fire over there were you guys, right?! "
Xie Lian innocently said, "It wasn't us. To tell you the truth, I'm actually just a trash collector."
"Don't quibble! How could there be a trash collector like you? You're clearly a Daoist Priest! Aside from you, is there another Daoist Priest here who would do such a cruel thing?! "
Xie Lian said, "Scattering the ghost fire doesn't necessarily mean you're a Daoist Priest."
"Then what else could it be? A ghost? "
Xie Lian quietly put his hands into his sleeves and said, "It's not impossible."
"Hahahahaha, damned Daoist Priest! You … … you … … you … … "
The group of ghosts that had been laughing at him suddenly froze. Xie Lian said, "What about me?"
The moment he asked, the group of ghosts didn't even freeze. They stared at Xie Lian as if they had seen something extremely terrifying. They either opened their mouths wide or tightly shut them. Several headless death row prisoners were so scared that the heads they were holding in their hands fell to the ground.
Xie Lian probed, "Everyone? You guys … … "
Who knew that before he could finish asking, the group of ghosts would scatter like birds and beasts? Xie Lian was stunned. "It can't be???"
He still hadn't taken out the talismans he had in his sleeves, yet they had already discovered him? Were they that sharp? Moreover, it wasn't like those talismans were that powerful. Xie Lian felt extremely strange. Were they really looking at him?
Or was it something behind him?
Thinking of this, he turned his head and looked behind him.
Behind him, there was only the fainted owner of the ox cart and the youth in red who was still leisurely resting his chin on his hand.
Seeing him look back, San Lang faintly smiled and put down his hands. "Daoist priest, you are so valiant and heroic. Those demons and ghosts have all been scared away by you."
"… …"
Xie Lian also faintly smiled. "Is that so? I also didn't expect that I would be so amazing."
At that moment, he pulled on the rope a few times and the ox cart slowly began to roll again. The rest of the journey was smooth. In less than half an hour, the ox cart slowly climbed out of the forest and arrived at the flat mountain road. Pu Qi Village was already at the bottom of the hill. Clusters of warm and bright lights.
It really was a road of 'good luck'. It was more daunting than dangerous.
As the night wind blew, Xie Lian once again turned his head. San Lang seemed to be in a good mood as he laid down and used his hands as a pillow to look at the bright moon. Under the faint moonlight, that youth's eyes didn't seem like a real person.
After muttering to himself for a moment, Xie Lian revealed a smile and said, "Friend."
San Lang asked, "What?"
Xie Lian asked, "Have you ever done fortune-telling?"
San Lang turned his head and said, "I haven't."
Xie Lian asked, "Then, do you want me to help you read your fortune?"
San Lang looked at him and smiled. "You want to help me read my fortune?"
Xie Lian replied, "I kind of want to."
San Lang slightly nodded his head and said, "Alright."
He sat up and leaned his body slightly towards Xie Lian. "How do you want to read my fortune?"
Xie Lian said, "Read my palm. How about it?"
Hearing this, the corner of San Lang's mouth slightly curved. It was hard to tell what that smile meant. Xie Lian only heard him say, "Alright."
As he said this, he extended his left hand towards him.
The fingers on this left hand were long and slender with distinct knuckles. It was extremely pleasing to the eye. Furthermore, it definitely wasn't the kind of weak and pleasing to the eye. Instead, it was filled with hidden strength. No one would want to have their throat clutched by this kind of hand. Xie Lian remembered the slight change in San Lang's expression when he touched him just now. He especially took care to avoid physical contact and not directly touch San Lang's hand. Instead, he lowered his head and carefully examined it.
The moonlight was pure and white. If one were to say it was dark, it wouldn't be dark. If one were to say it was bright, it wouldn't be bright either. Xie Lian looked at it for a while. The ox cart was still slowly crawling on the mountain road. The wheels and wooden axles creaked. San Lang said, "How is it?"
After a short while, Xie Lian slowly said, "Your fate is very good."
San Lang said, "Oh? How is it good? "
Xie Lian raised his head and warmly said, "You have a persevering temperament and are extremely persistent. Although you have met with ups and downs, you will always stick to your original heart. Often, you will turn misfortune into fortune and misfortune into fortune. Friend, your future will inevitably blossom like a blooming flower, perfect and bright. "
The above few sentences were all made up on the spot. They were all nonsense. Xie Lian simply didn't know how to read people's palms. In the past, when he was demoted, there was a period of time when he often regretted not learning palm reading and physiognomy from the State Preceptors of Huang Ji Temple. If he had learned it, he wouldn't have to always play the drums, play the drums, and perform on the streets. The reason why he wanted to read wasn't to see how this youngster's fate would be. Rather, he wanted to see whether or not this youngster had palm prints and fingerprints.
Ordinary demons and ghosts could transform into a fake body and pretend to be a living person. However, the minute details of this body, such as palm prints, fingerprints, and the ends of hair, generally couldn't be so detailed. Not only did this youngster's body not have any fluctuations of magic power, he couldn't detect any clues, and his palm prints were also very clear. If he really was a demon or ghost in disguise, then only those who were "fierce" and above would be able to achieve such a flawless and perfect disguise. However, for a Ghost King of that level, why would he follow him to a small mountain village and sit on an ox cart all the way to pass time? Just like how the Heavenly Officials of the Heavenly Realm all had to attend to a myriad of affairs every day, they were also very busy!
Xie Lian pretended to be very confident and braced himself to make up a few sentences. In the end, he couldn't make up anymore. San Lang stared at him without blinking. While listening to his nonsense, he let out a low laugh that was very thought-provoking. He said, "Anything else? Hmm? "
Xie Lian couldn't be thinking that he still had to make up stories, right? He said, "What else do you want to read?"
San Lang said, "Since it's fortune-telling, don't tell me that you don't also need to calculate marriage fate?"
Xie Lian coughed lightly and solemnly said, "My skills aren't good enough, so I don't really know how to calculate marriage fate. However, thinking about it, you probably don't need to worry about this. "
San Lang raised an eyebrow and said, "Why do you think I don't need to worry about this?"
Xie Lian smiled and said, "There will definitely be a lot of girls who like you."
San Lang said, "Then why do you think there will definitely be a lot of girls who like me?"
Xie Lian was about to open his mouth and answer along with him when he suddenly reacted. This little friend was actually thinking of a way to lure him into directly opening his mouth to praise him. Helpless and amused, Xie Lian didn't know what to say. Rubbing the space between his eyebrows, he said, "San Lang ah."
This was the first time Xie Lian had called him "San Lang". When the youngster heard this, he laughed out loud and finally let him go. At this moment, the ox cart had already climbed into the village while panting. Xie Lian turned around and slightly held his forehead before hurriedly getting off the cart. San Lang also jumped off the cart. Unexpectedly, when Xie Lian raised his head, he discovered that just now, he had been lazily lying on the ox cart. Now that the two of them were standing together, this youngster was actually taller than him. The two of them were actually unable to look at each other at eye level. San Lang stood in front of the cart and stretched his body. Xie Lian said, "San Lang, where are you going?"
San Lang sighed and said, "I don't know. I'll sleep on the streets, or find a cave to make do with. "
Xie Lian said, "That won't do, right?"
San Lang spread out his hands and said, "There's no other way, I don't have anywhere to go." He cast a sidelong glance at Xie Lian and laughed twice before saying, "Thank you very much for telling my fortune. Thanks for your auspicious words, we'll meet again someday. "
Hearing him mention fortune-telling, Xie Lian blushed with shame. Seeing that he really did turn around, Xie Lian hurriedly said, "Wait, if you don't mind, do you want to come to my monastery?"
San Lang's footsteps paused. Turning around halfway, he said, "Can I?"
Xie Lian said, "That house originally wasn't mine. I heard that in the past, many people would often spend the night there. It's just that it's a lot more simple and crude than you think. I'm afraid you won't be able to live there. "
If this youngster really was a young master who ran away from home, then he couldn't just let him run all over the place like this. Xie Lian very much suspected that the youngster had only eaten that half a steamed bun for the entire day. If this youngster relied on his body to act willfully and recklessly like this, sooner or later, he would really faint on the streets. Hearing him say this, San Lang finally turned around. He didn't reply, but instead walked in front of Xie Lian and leaned his upper body forward. Xie Lian still hadn't figured out what he wanted to do. He only felt that the distance between the two of them had suddenly become extremely close, and he found it a little hard to resist.