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Chapter 175 Qinghe God

Wang Xi cupped his hands and said, "Please speak, sir."

"Help me get something." The peddler nodded.

Retrieve something...

Wang Xi raised his eyebrows slightly.

Previously, in exchange for a martial arts manual, she fetched paper cutouts and a broom from the peddler. What is she going to fetch this time?
Then the peddler said, "This time, what I want to take will not be easy to get; it's a sack."

Wang Xi's eyes immediately sharpened.

He had a premonition that the sack the other party mentioned was most likely the strange object he had seen over Maoli Village a couple of days ago!

The peddler said leisurely:
“In the past, there was a farmer’s son in the countryside who used a bamboo pole to tie a burlap sack to make a net and spent his days in the fields catching locusts and protecting the rice. The neighbors all praised his diligence. However, when the locust plague suddenly struck, the boy was so frightened that he ran away and fell into a ditch and died.”

"Because he was worried that his mother's crops would fail and she would starve to death, his spirit remained attached to the locust-catching sack he used to wear, and gradually became a strange creature. Every time the rice seedlings sprouted and the rice ripened, he would appear to protect the fields. The villagers revered him and called him the 'Green Rice God'."

The book "Xuanjun You" says: "At night, a creature appears between the ridges of the fields. Its head and tail are indistinguishable. It leaps and bounds, making a sound as it treads the ground. Farmers call it the 'Green Rice God,' saying that it often drives away locusts and wards off evil spirits for the farmers. Once this god appears, the evil spirits disappear and no longer roam between the fields."

"However, the world collapsed, and Qinghe God witnessed too much human suffering, which eventually led to her becoming a demon due to extreme grief—the locust plague in Maoli Village was caused by her madness."

As the peddler recounted his story, Wang Xi finally understood the origin of the tattered sack.

I was also surprised.

It turned out to be a demon transformed from a folk deity!
Disaster...

That's how it happened.

Wang Xi inquired with the peddler about the so-called "Mysterious Monarch's Journey," which he had never heard of in his past or present life, guessing it was a unique text from this mysterious world.

as predicted.

The peddler explained that it was a travelogue recording many folk gods, demons, and ghosts, written by Chen Xuan, whose courtesy name was Sanyuan, who had attained enlightenment and ascended to heaven a hundred years ago.

The book he left behind, "The Journey of the Mysterious Lord," has become a classic that many cultivators, especially great cultivators, can only dream of.

"Sir, all the hundred-plus villagers of Maoli Village have turned into locust monsters. I am outnumbered and outmatched. How can I possibly obtain the object that Qinghe God possesses?"

Wang Xi sighed.

"This matter is likely to be extremely dangerous, with only a slim chance of survival!"

Of course, this is just an excuse.

With his five-star strength, even if he couldn't defeat the so-called Qinghe God, he was confident and capable of making a trip to Maoli Village and escaping safely.

"Don't worry, young man," the peddler said calmly. "I've also found you some help. Just meet me at the Zhennan Archway tomorrow at dawn."

He cautioned, "Qinghe God originally had no ability to directly harm people, but after being demonized, He can turn people into locusts. Just be careful not to get caught in its trap and you'll be fine."

"Furthermore, He only appears as a sack; the bamboo pole is His true form, which must be hidden in Maoli Village... Once we find the bamboo pole, we can force Him to return to His original position and stop Him from moving."

"I understand."

Wang Xi nodded.

At this moment, the peddler said with a smile, "If you can accomplish this and retrieve the sack, you will not only rid Qingwei Town of a great scourge, but also accumulate immense merit... If you unfortunately encounter the underworld officials in the future, based on this merit, they will have to give you some respect and dare not act rashly."

Wang Xi was slightly taken aback.

As a descendant of the Chinese nation, he actually has some knowledge of traditional culture.

The so-called "hidden virtue" refers to "doing good deeds in secret without seeking fame," which will be rewarded in the next life.

As for "Yangde," it means "to openly do good deeds and make good acts public," which is a form of karmic retribution in this life.

Regardless of whether it is yin virtue or yang virtue, both belong to doing good deeds and accumulating merit.

In my past life, I thought it was just a vague and ethereal concept, but little did I know that in this mysterious world, it actually exists—good deeds are as visible as sparks, while evil deeds are as indelible as ink stains. With every gesture, cause and effect are revealed, and retribution is clear.

“Besides that…” the peddler looked at the young man. “As payment, I will give you a chance.”

"Opportunity?"

Wang Xi's heart skipped a beat.

The peddler nodded, but remained mysterious: "We'll talk about it after it's done. Please keep it a secret for now."

Could it be that you haven't thought it through yet...?

Wang Xi secretly grumbled to himself.

...

...

The next day, at dawn, around 5 a.m.

As the sun rises in the east, rabbits emerge from their burrows to forage for food. The ancients used the rabbit as a metaphor for the moon, hence the saying "卯兔" (Mao Tu).

This is also one of the origins of the Chinese zodiac.

Wang Xi, still wearing a long black robe, arrived empty-handed at the archway south of Qingwei Town.

Wait a moment.

He then saw a group of people approaching from the town.

His expression grew increasingly surprised.

The peddler found him a helper, which turned out to be the opera troupe!
When the troupe leader, Mei Yanxi, led his men closer, he was quite surprised to see the young man in a long black robe standing beside the stone pillars of the archway.

He immediately smiled and clasped his hands in greeting: "Young Master Wang!"

The four men following behind Wang Xi—the martial arts actor Luo Qu, the female lead Jiang Xiaolan, the clown Zhao Hama, and the musician Uncle Ya—all bowed and greeted him.

"Master Mei," Wang Xi returned the greeting. "Everyone."

"Was it entrusted to you by the peddler?"

“Indeed.” Mei Yanxi nodded. “I originally planned to pay a visit to you, young master, to have tea and learn from you, but unexpectedly, something strange happened in the neighboring village, and that mysterious peddler found me…”

He gave a brief explanation.

Wang Xi nodded.

He noticed that after Mei Yanxi removed his makeup, he was a fair-skinned, gentle man wearing a blue jacket and carrying two pieces of red-tasseled spears that could be spliced ​​together on his back.

As for the other four, they were also carrying weapons—not the unsharpened props on the stage, but real weapons.

"Let's not delay, let's set off now."

Wang Xi finished the pleasantries and said...

Everyone nodded, and Master Mei stepped forward to walk with Wang Xi, followed closely by the rest of the troupe members.

The group were all martial arts masters, and they moved very quickly, covering the distance in just a few breaths.

On the way, Mei Yanxi noticed that Wang Xi's hands were empty and couldn't help but ask in surprise, "Young Master, you didn't bring any weapons?"

"I'm better at hand-to-hand combat," Wang Xi offered as an excuse.

He couldn't possibly say he could conjure any weapon he wanted from ice with a flick of his wrist. That would be too astonishing, more like the work of a deity.

It's hard to explain.

Mei Yanxi nodded, praising him as remarkable, and didn't ask any further questions. After all, it involved the sect's inheritance, and asking any more questions would be somewhat offensive.

"Does the young master know anything about the matter of Maoli Village?"

Mei Yanxi changed the subject, her expression turning serious as she asked.

Wang Xi continued walking steadily, recounting the information he knew in detail.

When they heard the words "humans turn into locust monsters, dark clouds cover the sun," the members of the opera troupe looked at each other, their faces filled with undisguised shock.

"That tattered sack billowing in the wind, is it actually the demonized Qinghe God?"

Mei Yanxi frowned and said in a deep voice, "This journey is likely to be extremely dangerous..."

Upon hearing this, Luo Qu, Jiang Xiaolan, and the others couldn't help but grip their weapons tighter.

Although they were skilled martial artists, they couldn't help but feel apprehensive. No matter how high their martial arts skills were, they were still only made of flesh and blood. How could they possibly contend with such an irrational and evil being?
Wang Xi noticed their emotions and comforted them:

"The locust monster that the villagers transformed into is fierce, but not invincible. As long as you find the vital point, you can kill it with one blow."

"Beware of their sharp mouthparts and arm blades, and especially their ability to fly... These monsters are used to moving in groups, and you can easily get surrounded if you're not careful."

"With the skills of the members of the Jinghong Class, dealing with a few locust monsters individually is no problem. If they work together, they can even handle a dozen or twenty of them."

"However, our primary objective on this trip is not to wipe out the locust monsters, but to find the true form of the Azure Dragon God hidden in Mao Li Village—that bamboo pole. Therefore, we should avoid unnecessary battles and make a quick decision."

"Good son."

"got it."

Everyone agreed.

A few days ago, when accompanying his junior sister and her master to Maoli Village, he had to stop and walk frequently, which took up the whole morning because he was concerned about the two frail women's stamina. But this time, Wang Xi and the others used their movement techniques to travel quickly and arrived at the village entrance in less than half an hour.

From afar, we could hear the crackling of gunfire.

Wang Xi and Mei Yanxi exchanged a glance.

"They are the Black Eel Army sent to suppress evil deeds."

Master Mei said in a deep voice.

"Let's not rush to show ourselves, let's see how things go first."

Wang Xi had this intention.

So the group hid in the bushes and observed from the shadows.

Along the edge of the field, soldiers in black uniforms with white stripes stood in a loose formation, firing their pistols and rifles haphazardly.

The bullets left holes in the grasshopper monsters' bluish-gray bodies, from which a disgusting yellowish-green liquid oozed out, but they were not fatal—the monsters only staggered a few steps after being hit before flapping their wings and swooping down again.

"Shoot them in the head! Shoot them in the head!"

An officer roared, but his hand trembled so badly that he missed all three of his shots.

Mei Yanxi shook her head at Wang Xi.

With such military discipline and audacity, they have no chance of winning.

The swarm of locusts loomed overhead like a dark cloud, their sharp forelimbs slicing through the air, and soldiers collapsed, clutching their bleeding necks. A young soldier was pinned to the ground by three locust monsters, the crunching sound of their mandibles gnawing at him sending chills down one's spine.

Suddenly, Luo Qu, a martial arts performer in the opera troupe, exclaimed in a low voice, "Everyone, look! What's that?!"

Following the direction he pointed—

The crowd saw a tattered burlap sack hanging from the old locust tree at the village entrance, bulging like a greedy stomach. It had caught on the upper body of a soldier, who was kicking and struggling, but to no avail.

The sack came loose, and the man fell to the ground with a thud.

Soon, it wobbled to its feet, its head and face split open, and a hideous locust head emerged from it.

It was transformed...

“Young Master Wang.” Mei Yanxi glanced at Wang Xi and gestured to the path across the field.

Wang Xi nodded in understanding.

The unspoken understanding between the grandmasters was self-evident—they let the army continue to draw fire while they went straight for the enemy's heart.

The group sprang into action, their movements swift and agile.

At first, things went smoothly and did not attract the attention of either side. However, when they were halfway along the ridge, three lone locust monsters suddenly emerged from the cornfield.

Wow!
creak!creak!
Mei Yanxi reacted extremely quickly.

He drew the two sections of the gun from his back, twisted and joined them together to form a long spear. With a flick of his wrist, three cold glints flashed, and blood simultaneously bloomed between the monsters' brows as they collapsed dead.

Just as Jiang Xiaolan was about to deliver the final blow, she saw the troupe leader standing guard with his spear: "Save your energy, he's already dead."

"This monster isn't very strong!"

The short Zhao Hama brandished his twin swords and said cheerfully.

"Don't let your guard down," Luo Qu warned.

After this minor incident, the group continued on their way.

They finally scaled the fence and mud wall and successfully sneaked into the village. Inside, it was deathly silent; not a soul was in sight.

"This village may not be big, but finding a bamboo pole isn't easy. Shall we split up?"

"I am a martial artist," asked Luo Qu.

“Okay.” Wang Xi thought for a moment. “But don’t stray too far from each other, always keep fifty paces apart, so we can provide timely support if we encounter any danger.”

A quarter of an hour later.

Gunfire continued outside the village, though at a slower pace. Wang Xi and his team searched most of the village but found nothing.

at this time.

"Found it!" Jiang Xiaolan ran out of a stone and wood bungalow, clutching a bamboo pole in her hand, her face beaming with excitement. "Is this it?"

Upon hearing the sound, everyone gathered around, all delighted.

Only Wang Xi sighed inwardly.

That was not the true form of the Azure Lotus God.

It's just an ordinary bamboo pole.

Wow!
Suddenly, everyone heard a strange noise above them. When they looked up, their expressions changed slightly.

The tattered sack was hanging in mid-air, billowing and swaying without any wind, its several dark holes seeming to stare at them with malice.

(End of this chapter)