boyutpedia Chapter 86: It's time to show the real skills.
Chapter 86: It's time to show the real skills.
Hesitation leads to defeat, while decisiveness leads to failure. Although Shen Qing decided to go straight for A, he still made some simple strategic arrangements.
On the altar, the town mayor and the village chiefs from the surrounding villages had already begun discussing how to distribute the donations. Wang Yuanwai set an example by donating ten gold coins on the spot. The village chiefs all looked distressed, worried about having to collect money from the already poor villagers, but the ritual could not be skipped.
The village chief of Zhoujia Village was a seasoned veteran, his face etched with wrinkles that spoke of hardship. He hesitated to act after hearing the town mayor's assignment.
"Old Zhou, what are you still standing there for?" Mayor Zhu noticed Village Chief Zhou's hesitation. "Have you forgotten the devastation of the locust plague ten years ago?"
Village Chief Zhou was an old farmer who had experienced many disasters. Ten years ago, he witnessed the desolation left by locusts, where not a blade of grass was left. Every household ran out of food, and half a bag of wheat could buy a young woman. Most of the villagers fled to escape the famine, leaving nine out of ten houses empty. The remaining people survived by chewing grass roots, eating tree bark, and receiving meager relief from the government. Some of them survived, but the rest starved to death.
Recalling the past, Village Chief Zhou exhaled a heavy breath and sighed, "Last year there was a drought, and the harvest from the fields was already poor. Which household in the village had any surplus grain?"
There's something else Village Chief Zhou didn't say: if we survive this time, what about next time? In this kind of year, even if we get rid of the locust god, how much grain can we harvest?
However, this statement is too negative and pessimistic. Saying it will only cause people to feel uneasy. People always need hope.
His heart was heavy with worries, which made Village Chief Zhou's back even more hunched.
“We’ve reached a critical juncture of life and death, so let’s stop holding back and bring out all the coins we have hidden away. If all else fails…” Mayor Zhu whispered to Old Zhou, “The Taoist priest said that having young boys and girls serve the gods is also considered piety.”
"This……"
You can't just pick any two oddballs to go and serve the gods. If they're not born well, they're not qualified to serve the gods. But once they go, they probably won't come back. Which family would be willing to give away the child they've raised with so much hardship for nothing?
Just as Village Chief Zhou was hesitating, a gust of wind rose, leaves fell, and a loud voice reached the ears of everyone present.
"You evil Taoist! Where do you think you're going!"
The onlookers turned to look at the sound and saw a dashing young man standing atop a branch of a large banyan tree, about three zhang tall, at the entrance of the village. They were all dumbfounded. How did he do that?!
The young man flew down from the branch as if he had wings, and landed steadily on the altar. With the hilt of his knife, he knocked the equally shocked Zhang Tianshi to the ground, and then kicked him, pressing him firmly to the floor as he tried to get up.
"Insolence!" The young Taoist priest, realizing what was happening, quickly retorted, "Aren't you afraid of divine retribution for disrespecting the Celestial Master!"
Shen Qing snorted coldly, his voice booming like a bell amplified by his inner strength, "I am a disciple personally taught by the Celestial Master of Longhu Mountain. I came here on behalf of Heaven to rid the people of this evil Taoist priest who is swindling and cheating!"
"What makes you think Zhang Tianshi is a fraud!"
The shills mingling in the crowd naturally chimed in, but few around them echoed their sentiments. The young man on the altar who was stomping on the so-called celestial master as if he were an insect, however, seemed righteous and spoke with conviction, and he didn't appear to be lying. Moreover, the way he made his entrance was more like that of a master than the one lying on the ground.
Shen Qing was secretly pleased with himself. People are indeed more inclined to believe negative news. Of course, the speaker's pretentiousness is also very important. It was worth it for him to hide in the tree canopy and shake the branches while the onlookers' attention was on the altar, just waiting for a gust of east wind. When he went out, he provided the special effects himself.
"To catch an adulterer in the act, you need to catch a thief red-handed. What evidence do you have? You can't just say Zhang Tianshi is a fraud without any proof."
As someone who had once received help from Zhang Tianshi, Master Wang naturally had to stand up and speak for him. If he were truly a fraudster, wouldn't it seem foolish of him to have given so much reward?
Knowing someone would say that, Shen Qing wasn't caught off guard. She retorted, "So this guy can claim to be a Celestial Master just because he says so? Where's the proof?"
Master Wang said confidently, "When my house was haunted, it was Master Zhang who fought the evil spirits at night and restored peace to my home."
Shen Qing gave him a meaningful look. "Master Wang, right? Have you ever thought about why your house is the only one haunted out of so many houses in the town? Could it be that you've done too many bad things?"
"You're making baseless accusations!" Master Wang retorted angrily. "My Wang family has always been known for its philanthropy, building bridges and paving roads—everyone in the surrounding villages has witnessed it!"
"My apologies," Shen Qing cupped his hands in greeting. "Then there's only one reason left: your family is wealthy and can afford a generous reward. Poor families don't have any opportunities to make a profit."
Although this explanation wasn't pleasant either, it was much better than the first one. For some reason, Master Wang felt a little better. No, he had been tricked!
"Stop arguing nonsense! Zhang Tianshi is indeed a person with great supernatural powers!"
"Great supernatural power?" Shen Qing pressed down with his foot, grinding it.
Zhang Tianshi grunted, his face turning red. "If I hadn't exhausted my energy praying for the people, would you, a mere brat, be able to act so arrogantly here?"
Shen Qing ignored him and looked at the somewhat hesitant onlookers, saying, "I can teach you this supernatural power to exorcise evil spirits for free."
Such a good thing! The guilt that had just arisen vanished instantly. Everyone pricked up their ears to listen.
Zhang Tianshi and his companions' expressions changed. Could it be that this kid had seen through their scheme?
Sure enough, Shen Qing said, "If you smear cow blood on the door panel, it will attract bats to crash into the door at night. It's dark, and the bats are also dark, so they won't be easily discovered. The so-called ghost-catching is just secretly wiping the blood off the door panel when people aren't paying attention."
It was said to teach supernatural powers, but in reality, it taught a trick. This simple trick was easy to understand. Everyone immediately realized that blood would attract wild beasts.
"Even if this method works, you still have no evidence to prove that the Celestial Master used this method!"
His accomplices, mingling with the crowd, tried to salvage the situation, saying that the cow's blood had indeed been wiped off, and that the guilty party should be presumed innocent.
“That’s right,” another accomplice chimed in, “The Celestial Master was a prophet who foresaw the locust plague.”
Shen Qing curled her lip in disdain, "Locust plagues are common after severe droughts, and these old farmers should have experienced that."
Village Chief Zhou recalled the locust plague ten years ago, which was indeed preceded by a severe drought.
"Besides that, the Celestial Master also tells fortunes for the townspeople, and his predictions are always accurate!"
Shen Qing glanced down at Zhang Tianshi, a smile playing on her lips. "In that case, how about we have a magical duel?"
"It's obvious we can't win," Zhang Tianshi coughed immediately. The young Taoist boy understood and said indignantly, "The Celestial Master is enduring the backlash of evil for the sake of the people, and you are taking advantage of his vulnerability!"
Shen Qing stopped and looked at Zhang Tianshi, who was hurriedly getting up and tidying his clothes, and said, "Then let's have a literary contest."
How to engage in a war of words?
"You think you can predict the future? Well, I'll show you what true divine calculation really is!"