County Magistrate Yan Jingsi’s face still wore a look of astonishnt, and his eyes seed to harbor so unwillingness.
At this mont, however, his physical body had already died; even with his unwillingness, he couldn’t tear open the ewe’s stomach.
The ewe’s belly was a natural place for reincarnation, and with his current strength, having just fallen into reincarnation, he still had the opportunity for Nascent Soul Ergence and the chance to tear open the mother sheep’s belly to escape.
But to escape would also an death; he had already entered the lamb’s womb, and even if he tore open the mother sheep’s belly, he would find himself still a sheep once outside.
Moreover, his physical body had already died at Chen Shi’s hands.
Chen Shi pulled out a stack of talismans from his sleeve, searching for a Fertility Talisman.
So won in labor, when their ti ca but couldn’t give birth, would need to use a Fertility Talisman.
His grandfather once said that being reborn had a ti limit; one couldn’t delay for too long. If delayed too much and the ti to transmigrate passed, the soul that failed to be reborn would have to return, resulting in a stillbirth. So, when the ti to give birth ca, if it didn’t happen, one had to induce the birth to avoid the fetus dying in the womb.
However, this explanation had never been verified, and Chen Shi didn’t know whether it was true or false.
When his grandfather told him this, it was like hearing fantastical stories of spirits and quirks.
Chen Shi affixed the Fertility Talisman onto the ewe’s belly, when suddenly a human voice ca from within, saying, "Chen Shi, why?"
Chen Shi asked, puzzled, "What do you an, why?"
That voice was none other than Yan Jingsi’s, who replied, "Why kill ? We have no grudges between us, and I was only following the orders of the Yan family to watch over you and your grandfather, never lifting a finger against you. You ca to my Xuanwu Pavilion the day before yesterday with murderous intent, yet I did not fight back. I have treated you with nothing but kindness and righteousness. Today you plotted in all sorts of ways, praying for rain, summoning thunder, and buying so many livestock about to give birth, all to take my life. May I know the reason?"
Chen Shi responded, "Your family’s Jiao Long, Shangshan, killed people for cultivation. It killed too many, and I couldn’t stand by, so after killing it, I ca for you. With you alive, more would die."
Yan Jingsi fell silent for a mont, then suddenly said, "Just for this reason? You killed for this reason?"
Chen Shi nodded, realizing Yan Jingsi couldn’t see, and said, "Yes, just for this reason. You can’t accept it?"
"I can’t accept it!"
Yan Jingsi, angry, continued, "I have been extrely talented since I was young, and I could understand and excel in any Taoist Skill the Yan Family collected at a glance. But I was feared by others in the family, and they sent off to a wild place like Xinxiang to supervise you and your grandfather, wasting my potential! Yet I remained detached in my Daoist heart, diligently practicing in seclusion for ten years straight! I knew I wasn’t valued by the family, so I devoted myself to teaching my disciples! Those mbers of the Yan family who were not valued excelled under my tutelage and received the best inheritance and guidance! I gave them the best resources! I have been true to my ancestors above and have done right by the Yan family descendants below. You kill for the evil deeds committed by Shangshan?"
"How does that concern ? I’m not a Judge."
Confused, Chen Shi waited for the Fertility Talisman to take effect, and said, "Your family’s Jiao Long killed too many people, so I ca to kill you. I couldn’t defeat you, so I used various sches and machinations to do you in. That’s what I have to consider."
Yan Jingsi was extrely irate and shouted, "Killing is unjust! The common people are like livestock, like crops; you kill a scholar-official like for the sake of livestock and crops, how can there be such reason in this world?"
Chen Shi replied, "Confucius says, when a person is about to die, their words are kind. You’ve been killed by , yet you still don’t speak pleasantly! Born as humans, which law makes anyone lesser than you?"
Yan Jingsi argued, "I was born into a noble family, with ancestors of kings and nobles, with a superior lineage—how could we be compared to commoners?"
Chen Shi scoffed, saying, "Among the commoners, isn’t there soone whose ancestors were the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors? The sa blood flows in our veins, so where does this talk of nobility co from?"
The little lamb’s voice grew louder as it said, "Do you wish to argue about the Dao with ? Today, I would indeed like to have a thorough discussion with you. If there were no distinctions of wealth and status, how would there be rulers and ministers? Otherwise, how would there be Emperors and nobles? Is the blood of an Emperor and that of the common folk not different?"
A group of rchants passing by heard the human voice coming from the belly of the sheep and suddenly beca panicked, shouting, "Evil Spirit! This sheep has beco an Evil Spirit!"
Yan Jingsi scoffed, "Such fools, they deserve death. As an official, my teaching is like farming crops; a good harvest brings in more wealth, and a bad harvest less. The weather is unpredictable, I’ve just harvested a little less this ti..."
The rchants were about to advance, intent on killing the ewe.
Chen Shi hurriedly stopped them, saying, "It’s the Evil Spirit in the sheep’s belly causing trouble, not the mother sheep’s fault. Why not wait until after she has given birth?"
The mother sheep’s gates had opened, and Chen Shi helped deliver the baby, resulting in the birth of a little lamb.
The little lamb broke free of the birth sac, landed squarely on its feet, and began to speak, "I am the County Magistrate Yan Jingsi of Lei County, your parent official..."
It hadn’t finished speaking when a stone struck it, knocking it to the ground.
The little lamb, both shocked and angry, cried out, "I was born in the Yan family..."
Stones rained down like hail, quickly beating it to death.
Fearful that it might co back to life, the people set it ablaze.
As it burned, the fragrance of roasted lamb filled the air.
As the people saw Chen Shi leading the mother sheep away, they exchanged glances...
...
Chen Shi, leading the mother sheep, went to look for Black Pot, who was balancing on its hind legs, busily attending to the birthing of these livestock. On the ground, there were many newborn animals, with little pigs being the most lively, scampering around not long after birth.
Chen Shi worriedly looked at these animals.
Man and dog reached the river bank to clean the bloodstains from their bodies. Black Pot jumped into the river water, vigorously rubbing the blood from its chest and back with its front paws, then suddenly paused and looked back at Chen Shi.
User Comments
0 comments from readers