Knife splashing

Chapter 788 The Silkworm Tribulation
"joke!"

Shalifei laughed, slowly squatted down, and used the tip of his knife to lift Zhou Xiaowei's chin. "You scoundrel, you really know how to turn the tables. You collude with evil spirits to harm people, and you even call us your lackeys. Have you forgotten who you are?"

"The people from the Commandery even called us their lackeys..."

He was very unhappy.

Being called a lackey of the imperial court is an insult to people in the martial arts world.

Li Yan stepped forward and asked in a deep voice, "Speak! How did Commander Tian die? And when did your village begin to follow the Cocoon Robe Cult?"

"Humph!"

Zhou Dayong gave a cold snort and closed his eyes.

Li Yan was too lazy to bother with this kind of person. He turned his head and glanced at Long Yan'er. The Gu woman immediately waved her sleeves and sent out several tiny sesame Gu.

This little thing won't kill you, but it can burrow into your nerves and cause pain and itching to the extreme.

"what--!"

Zhou Dayong immediately let out a shrill scream and slammed his head against the ground.

Although he was not a master of internal strength, he was still a top-level expert in external strength.

That's enough to smash a brain.

But before it landed, Shalifei stepped forward and deftly deflected it.

Even so, Zhou Dayong still refused to confess, only staring intently ahead.

Li Yan frowned slightly and followed his gaze.

But Zhou Dayong's wife was standing at a distance, holding her two children's hands. Strangely, all three of them remained indifferent as they watched their husbands and fathers suffer.

"Stop it first!"

Li Yan told Long Yan'er to stop, then squatted down and whispered, "Are you afraid that if word gets out, your wife and children will lose their lives?"

"Don't worry, we have a solution..."

"Hahaha~"

Before he could finish speaking, Zhou Dayong interrupted him with a bitter laugh, his face full of despair: "Solve? They were already seriously ill, and only survived because of the Empress's secret method... You guys do it, anyway, I've had enough of this world!"

Li Yan seemed to be deep in thought, a question forming in his mind.

Just then, Kuai Da and two others also turned back.

"Go faster!"

They grabbed the lame old man and were yelling at him to move forward.

The old man had white hair and, despite his advanced age, showed no kindness whatsoever. His eyes were filled with cunning and panic. He walked unsteadily, glancing around furtively from time to time.

Like Zhou Dayong, he was not cursed either.

"Fellow heroes!"

Approaching the crowd, he knelt down with a thud, kowtowing repeatedly, wiping his snot and tears, and said, "I'm innocent! I'm just a peasant, I know nothing. Please, heroes, spare my life!"

"What are you pretending for?!"

Shalifei kicked him to the ground and said coldly, "We all saw what you did just now. Tell me! What's going on in this village?"

The lame old man initially tried to argue, but after Long Yan'er released a sesame seed worm, he cried out in pain, gasping for breath, and began to recount what had happened:

"After the seas opened, the government increased the silk tax, causing widespread resentment among the people. Just then, a plague broke out, and everyone was unable to afford medical treatment and medicine..."

"The elderly, the weak, women, and children were the first to succumb; more than a dozen people died. Just then, someone told this old man a method: to worship the Silkworm Goddess. Someone else brought talismans; burning them to ashes and turning them into talismanic water could cure illnesses, and it really cured many people..."

"From then on, everyone began to make offerings in secret..."

"The government was cracking down hard, so we wouldn't let people from other villages come. Eventually, a few immortals came and taught us how to raise divine silkworms. The silk cocoons spun by these divine silkworms could sell for ten taels of silver per pound, so everyone started raising them..."

"All the silkworm farmers got sick, but the immortals said it was the protection of the Silkworm Goddess. Sure enough, they later became free from all diseases, and some even stopped coughing up blood from tuberculosis..."

As they listened to his story, everyone frowned.

Long Yan'er shook her head slightly and said coldly, "Once you are afflicted by this 'Silkworm Curse,' your internal organs will be infected. It's not that you won't get sick, but that you won't be able to feel anything."

Li Yan narrowed his eyes: "Why are you alright?"

The lame old man quickly replied, "I often have to go out, firstly to buy grain with silver, and secondly to contact those immortals. I don't have time to raise silkworms. As for this Zhou Dalang, he is always on duty in Jinling, which is why he has nothing to do."

"The second son has difficulty walking. He originally wanted to be blessed by the Goddess of Silkworms, but he felt that something was wrong with these people, so he gave up the idea."

Li Yan continued, "Where are those 'immortals'?"

"this…"

The lame old man, covered in cold sweat, hurriedly replied, "This old man doesn't know either. When the immortals want to see me, they send magpies to deliver the message. They all cover their faces, so this old man doesn't know what they look like."

Li Yan and the others naturally didn't believe it, but after repeated questioning, they discovered that the lame old man was a greedy, lazy rogue who only thought about making money and dared not ask any questions.

"Were those immortals the ones who killed Commander Tian?"

Li Yan then turned to Zhou Dayong and said coldly, "These ignorant villagers don't understand, but you come from the Commandery, you should know the methods of these evil people, how could you help them? It's a shame that Commander Tian trusted and promoted you!"

"A sorcerer? Hahaha~"

Zhou Dayong's face was full of grief and indignation. "I risked my life for the court outside, but my wife and children at home were forced to live without a way out, and my parents even died of illness."

"Those lords and gentry are insatiably greedy; compared to the sorcerers, they are the real demons!"

"This dynasty, this empire, may they perish!"

Rumble!
A clap of thunder sounded in the gloomy sky, and the autumn rain poured down even harder.

Li Yan and the others looked at each other, unsure of what to say.

May you enjoy boundless longevity and happiness!

Wang Daoxuan flicked his whisk, performed a Daoist salute, and said solemnly, "You are mistaken, layman. The powerful and wealthy are insatiable, and demons harm living beings; both are great evils, so how can one be ranked? Moreover..."

As she spoke, she turned to look at the woman holding the two children and said with a heavy heart, "They just can't talk about it, but that doesn't mean they aren't in pain. Everything in this world has a price. Any evil magic that prolongs life is a form of suffering in this mortal world."

"I ask you, do they sleep soundly at night?"

"how do you know?!"

Zhou Dayong's eyes turned red as he questioned him sternly.

His wife and two children survived the plague due to the "silkworm curse," but they were usually indifferent like the dead, and at night they screamed incessantly, as if they were insane.

As time goes on, these symptoms become more intense.

Zhou Dayong knew that his wife and children would one day become puppets controlled by silkworms, just like those people from before, but he could only pretend to be confused and try to escape.

Now that Wang Daoxuan has exposed his lies, he is even more furious.

Suddenly, his body stiffened, and he stopped struggling.

But then, Long Yan'er appeared beside the mother and child, sighed, and released several leech worms from her sleeve.

As the leech worm twisted its body, many white threads were sucked out.

pat!

The leech worm swelled up until it became transparent, then fell to the ground and remained motionless.

The mother and son were deeply cursed, and even leech poison could not cure them.

But as the silkworm quilt was pulled out, the mother and son's complexions improved considerably. Their expressions were no longer blank; instead, they looked at Zhou Dayong with tears streaming down their faces.

"My lord, please let us go, we're too tired..."

"Father, it hurts, it hurts every night..."

They tried to speak, but their voices grew weaker and weaker.

"what--!"

Zhou Dayong's face was streaked with tears as he let out a shrill, desperate roar.

He took a few deep breaths, struggled to his feet, stumbled over to his wife and children, hugged them tightly, and sobbed, his body convulsing.

Then, he turned blankly to Long Yan'er and asked, "Is there any way to make their departure more comfortable?"

Long Yan'er's expression darkened slightly as she took out a porcelain bottle from her bosom:
"Heavenly Fragrance Powder can make people forget their pain and leave peacefully."

Zhou Dayong blankly took the bottle, then embraced his wife and children and returned to the room.

Wang Daoxuan sighed, took out a bell, and shook it while chanting a spell:
"By the Supreme Lord's decree, may your lonely souls, all ghosts and demons, and all living beings be blessed. Those with heads will be liberated, those without heads will ascend... Wealth and poverty are determined by your own actions. By decree, all beings, hasten your rebirth! By decree, all beings, hasten your rebirth!"

Amidst the autumn rain, the Rebirth Mantra echoed with the sound of bells. Li Yan, his face solemn, gazed at the gloomy sky.

Their group, known as the Wandering Immortals, appears to be pursuing power and wealth, but their true purpose is to gain experience and cultivate their skills.

He kept thinking, what is the purpose of spiritual practice?
In pursuit of immortality and ascension to heaven?

The Great Luo Dharma Realm is not as wonderful as legend has it…

For power?

Power is important, but like wealth, it is endless.

There is always another mountain higher than the one in the world. There are too many people in the world who will do anything to pursue power. No one can reach the other shore. Only the Asuras who die on the way.

At that moment, he suddenly thought of Cheng Jianxin, the sword immortal of Shu.

Protecting the region, one can be called a celestial being in the mortal world.

Perhaps, spiritual practice is about transcending worldly suffering and escaping human misery.

Helping others transcend suffering is, in a way, helping yourself...

……

After a long while, Zhou Dayong finally came out of the room.

His face was expressionless as he addressed the crowd:

"Come with me."

Speak, then lead the way towards the ancestral hall.

"Dalang, what are you doing?!"

The lame old man panicked when he saw this, shouting, "Are you out of your mind? You'll get us all killed!"

"Old man, you have too much to say!"

Shalifei slapped the old man, sending him flying to the ground.

Soon, the group arrived at the village ancestral hall.

Inside was an ancient stone statue, of unknown age, which somehow managed to partially isolate the air, and together with the subtle stench emanating from the decaying ancestral hall, it went unnoticed by the crowd.

"This was also delivered by them..."

Zhou Dayong explained the situation, then stepped forward and used his strength to move the statue away with a rumble.

The rough entrance to the tunnel is visible below.

Zhou Dayong lit a torch and led the way. Li Yan gave him a look, signaling the large Wu Ba and the firearms expert Sha Lifeng to stay outside and provide backup before leading the others inside.

As soon as you enter the cave, the damp, murky air is filled with a strong, pungent, and nauseating stench.

Zhou Dayong silently held up the torch, bent over, and led the way. The flickering torchlight barely illuminated the huge natural cave extending from the ancestral hall.

Soon, the group arrived at their destination.

Even Li Yan and the others, who were used to seeing demons and monsters, felt a chill run down their spines at the sight before them.

The cave was pitch black. After Zhou Dayong lit the braziers, a mountain of "silkworm cocoons" came into view in the center of the cave.

These cocoons are not the soft white of silk, but rather have a sickly, translucent, sticky feel, with the outline of a human figure curled up inside.

They were encased in cocoons, like insects caught in a spider web, their eyes closed, their faces ashen, their bodies trembling slightly with a certain rhythm—as if their life force was being slowly sucked away by invisible mouthparts.

Around the cave and in the crevices of the rock walls, crawling and wriggling are the "divine silkworms" that Zhou Dayong mentioned.

They are as large as wild boars, with an unsettling, glossy grayish-white body. Their mouths open and close, constantly spitting out thick, tough white threads.

These giant maggot-like monsters were slow and clumsy, but their constant swallowing, spitting, wrapping, and enveloping movements, along with the mucus dripping from their mouthparts, made one feel nauseous.

Inside the cave, the rustling sound of them gnawing on mulberry leaves and the hissing sound of them spinning silk echoed.

"Those were among the earliest villagers..."

Zhou Dayong's face was blank. "If you are under the 'Silkworm Curse' for a long time, you will become a puppet. Those that can move will guard the ancestral hall, and those that cannot move at all will spin cocoons here."

"The cocoon will be consumed by the divine silkworm. Once it's empty, hot water will be used to reel in the silk, which is what is known as divine silkworm silk..."

"Absolutely... utterly inhumane?!" Kong Shangzhao's voice trembled.

Following Li Yan and the others, he saw many things, from the "peaches of immortality" grown by children in the capital to the divine silkworms fed with human lives here, all of which completely overturned his worldview.

Zhou Dayong's eyes dimmed. "The villagers have been driven to the brink of despair. They can't pay their taxes, and the imperial court will come to collect them. The secret here will inevitably be exposed. Moreover, they are under the curse of silkworm paralysis. They can only live longer by performing sacrifices and feeding the divine silkworms on time."

"what…"

Lin, the fat man next to him, sensed something was wrong. He suppressed the churning in his stomach, subconsciously made a hand seal, and his eyes flashed with a golden light. When he glanced at the put-away silkworm silk, his pupils suddenly contracted.

"Brother Yan!"

His voice trembled slightly with disbelief, "These silks... these threads are wrong! They... they have a precious light!"

Fatty Lin's special ability is to see the aura of treasure.

Hearing this, everyone became curious.

Li Yan stepped forward, picked up a handful, and after several tests, nodded and said, "It is indeed a treasure. It is impervious to water and fire and is exceptionally tough. It is not good enough for making magical artifacts, but it is excellent material for making armor for mortals."

"I see!"

Kong Shangzhao nodded and said, "The Cocoon Clothes Cult probably originated from this. They secretly drag these people into their schemes, not only to plot and control them, but also to collect silkworm silk, killing two birds with one stone."

"should be."

Li Yan nodded and looked at a stone statue at the deepest part of the cave.

It was the image of a female immortal wearing a gorgeous brocade robe and a phoenix crown. Her face was indistinct, one hand was twisting silk as if spinning silk, and the other hand held a silkworm cocoon.

Li Yan narrowed his eyes slightly. "This is Leiyin?"

Zhou Dayong stared at the statue with a complex expression, a mixture of deep-seated hatred and a hint of fear. His voice was hoarse as he said, "That's right, it's her. We call her the Silkworm Goddess. The village elders say that people worshipped her back then, but she was a true deity, which is why the people believed her so easily."

Li Yan said in a deep voice, "The Silkworm Goddess is someone else, the Horse-Headed Goddess. This Leiyin is just using the name of a true god to deceive the world."

Wang Daoxuan nodded and said, "I think the plague in your village was also strange. It was more like the trick of a scoundrel sorcerer who first spread the disease and then came to treat people and make money."

"I see…"

Zhou Dayong, who didn't understand these things, continued, "Besides our village being the worst victim... several nearby villages, like Zhangjiawa and Liushutun, also have people secretly raising these things, though not in such large quantities, and not so openly..."

"They thought they got a bargain, but little did they know they were digging their own grave!"

He took a deep breath, turned to Li Yan, and a trace of pain flashed in his eyes. "As for Brother Tian... I was also deceived and was not the mastermind."

"All I know is that the man who did it was called 'Old Man in the Forest,' and he was so thin he was almost inhuman. He was wearing a green robe. He gave me a small bell and told me to go to the big locust tree in the northeast corner of the camp at 7:45 PM and ring it."

"He assured me that the bell would only put Commander Tian to sleep, and that since Brother Tian was from the capital, his assistance would prevent those people from the silk weaving bureau from causing trouble..."

"I was also bewitched, and I was afraid that my wife and children would be killed."

As he spoke, he took a deep breath, “That ‘Old Man in the Forest’ is the head of Lady Leiyin in Jinling, and he’s involved with a group of ghost opera troupes.”

"I suspect that once the Taihu demon army arrives, all the villages inside and outside Jinling City that have believed in the Cocoon Robe Sect will become their inside agents!"

"That's all I know. Farewell."

After that, he turned around and left.

Li Yan frowned. "Where are you going?"

Zhou Dayong stopped, his voice as cold as ice, "Murder!"

Having said that, he left the cave without looking back.

Seeing this, no one stopped them.

They knew that this man was only sustained by hatred, and whether he would kill a few officials and gentry was none of their business.

"Let's go!"

Li Yan looked around, his eyes filled with anger. "The real culprit has been found. We'll go back to Jinling City, rescue the rest of the Lin family, and show them what they've done!"

At this moment, he didn't care about any prestigious family or lineage.

As Zhou Dayong said, Leiyin is a demon.

Aren't these people the same...?

(End of this chapter)