Zhu Xian: Learn from the Great Ying Immortal and rebuild the Trinity School

Chapter 35 Follow Me and Kill the Mountain God
"In theory, this matter has nothing to do with me."

He pointed at the Lu mother and daughter.

"The reason I got involved in this matter was simply to save people. Now that the people have been saved, I think, huh, it's time to stop here, right?"

After saying this, he took the mother and daughter and turned around to leave in a pretentious manner.

When he was about to leave, the villagers didn't react at first.

Until someone came to his senses and stopped immediately.

"You can't go!"

Many villagers shouted and blocked his way, filled with righteous indignation.

"If you leave, won't the mountain god blame us in the future? You are trying to kill us!"

Xu Zhiqiu raised his eyebrows:
"Why, you want to force me to stay?"

The villagers were attracted by his sharp eyes and dared not to stop him.

Until the leader's knees went weak, the people behind him all knelt down one after another.

"Young man, please have mercy on us mortals!"

"You have great powers, and you can handle any big thing, but we can't!"

Someone pushed from the side:
"Mrs. Lu, for the sake of how we all take care of you and your son, please at least say a few words!"

"I……"

But Lu's position has long been closely tied to Xu's, so how could he turn against them at this time?
I could only purse my lips and remain silent.

Xu Zhiqiu was so angry that he laughed.
I thought to myself, as expected, this group of people are the best at kowtow and begging for mercy.

He didn't really want to leave, but he had to perform the show.

"At this point, you still call it a mountain god?"

"..."

All the villagers were silent, and all looked at one person. From beginning to end, the old village chief was in a trance. Until this moment, he was pushed to the front by the villagers as the backbone.

"Young man, you are capable. We cannot stop you if you want to leave. But I want to ask you, why do you act this way?"

"We can understand that you want to save the Lu family's daughter-in-law."

"But after you made such a fuss, you deliberately captured and released me, leaving this trouble to us, even though you clearly had a way to solve the problem once and for all. What's your intention?"

Xu Zhiqiu narrowed his eyes, a sly smile appearing at the corner of his mouth.

"Oh, what's a permanent solution? Tell me about it."

"You!" Lao Lizheng was speechless. If he said that, it would be disrespectful to the mountain god.

Xu Zhiqiu nodded and told him: "Indeed, if I had killed it just now, it would have been a piece of cake. But if I had done that, wouldn't it have been too easy for you guys?"

"This is your own debt, you have to repay it yourself, I can't do it for you."

"To put it bluntly, as long as you still recognize this mountain god, I can't help you." After saying this, he glanced at the villagers, but all he saw was a bunch of timid people.

"Mr. Lizheng..."

The villagers looked at the old man eagerly, waiting for his response.

At this moment, he is the only spiritual pillar of the villagers.

The old man lowered his head, and after a moment of silence, he told a story from the past:
"When I was six years old, I had a serious illness. My father sought help from all the nearby doctors, but seeing that I could not be saved, he had no choice but to carry me on his back and ask the mountain god for help."

"The mountain god gave me some herbs. After I ate them, I was able to walk on the ground within three days."

"My father was so happy that he lifted me above his head and yelled, 'Boy! Your life was given by the mountain god, and your father also benefited from it!'"

"My father also told me that no matter how difficult the world is, as long as we have the protection of the mountain god, our village will continue to prosper."

"Later, when my father was sixty, it was time for a sacrifice that year, and he and a group of old men volunteered to dedicate their lives to the mountain god."

"At that time, I cried and asked him, 'Dad, have you had enough of your good life? How can you rush to die?'"

"My father said: You little bastards, I am doing this for you. We have to die sooner or later, so we can live two years less in exchange for a few years of good weather and good harvests. This way, you young people can have more children and save more money and food, so that our village can prosper and our ancestors in the netherworld will be happy."

At this point, the wrinkles on Lao Lizheng's face smoothed out and he forced out a longing smile.

"As a result, the next year, the fields had a bumper harvest, and every household's granary was almost full..."

"In fact, it's not just my father, my grandfather, my great-grandfather, and even those old people who sacrificed in the past, who didn't have this in mind before they died? For the prosperity of their children and grandchildren, they were all willing to sacrifice their lives."

He walked up to Xu Zhiqiu and tried to straighten his hunched back.

"Young man, you call us stupid, but do you know? Generations of us in the mountain village have believed this way."

Many of the surrounding villagers were already in tears.

Someone echoed:

"Yes, my second uncle left in the same way."

"My mother also offered sacrifices to the mountain god that year, but she didn't even have a grandson..."

"If the mountain god is fake, then those dead people...what are they?"

The old man was very excited, and he shook his crutches and continued:
"Now, you have to tell us, to prove to us... that the faith and sacrifice of several generations of this village is just a complete joke in the end? Is it a farce?"

Hearing this, Xu Zhiqiu's eyes were complicated and he couldn't speak for a long time. Now he finally understood that since ancient times, people's hearts have been like mirrors, but many people knew that they were in a dream, but they deliberately didn't want to wake up.

He looked at the old village head with a desolate face, and couldn't help but reveal a bit of pity in his eyes.

"So, it's not that you don't understand, but you just don't want to open your eyes, even though you know it's fake?"

"Even if it's just a dream! What's wrong with letting us continue doing it!?"

Tears flowed from the old man's eyes and blood flowed from his mouth.

"Let's just keep believing this from generation to generation. What's wrong with just living in this muddleheaded way?"

"Mr. Lizheng!"

The villagers gathered around him, everyone crying loudly.

Xu Zhiqiu looked at them silently.

He knew clearly that to change these people's ideas would be like digging up their roots.

Even though it is painful for them, it is also the pain they have to go through.

"Do you still remember Mr. Lu?"

The person he suddenly mentioned surprised Lu's mother and daughter, while the villagers looked at each other in confusion.

"Why do you mention him?" asked Lao Lizheng.

"He was a wise man and knew that the mountain god was no good, so he went outside to seek help from a master. In the end, he lost his life outside and died in a foreign land."

Some villagers shouted:
“This has nothing to do with us!”

"He was just messing around and got himself into trouble!"

"Yeah, isn't it time to spare?"

Xu Zhiqiu was happy, staring at the silent headman.

"Let alone the long, mountainous road and the famine everywhere... Just the fact that this is a thankless job and I will be criticized by you in the end, I would never do it if it were me."

Turning the conversation,
"But he still did it. Do you know why?"

Everyone was puzzled, except Lu who bit her lip.

"For you."

Lao Li's face shuddered and he froze.

Xu Zhiqiu stroked Lu Yatou's hair, and the latter lowered her head with tears in the corners of her eyes.

"You may hate him or disagree with him, but in my opinion, he really wants to save you."

"When a person is born into this world, no matter how foolish or weak he is, he should have a chance... at least one chance, to be saved from the mire."

"Just like your ancestors who sacrificed themselves voluntarily, but in a different way."

"Perhaps in your opinion, he is hypocritical and self-indulgent."

"But no matter what, this man who 'carried firewood for the people' eventually froze to death in the snow. Not only was he not understood, but he was blamed instead."

On the side, Mrs. Lu was already in tears.

The old man was speechless, and the villagers behind him were also confused.

Xu Zhiqiu pointed behind him.
"Look at this mountain, it is so green and full of life. In this year of famine, the way to salvation lies in it."

Upon hearing this, everyone looked up blankly and looked towards the fog-shrouded Daling Mountain.

Yes, what a nice mountain.

"But you dare not take a single step forward due to the false divine power. It is you who have trapped yourselves in a cage."

“He who thinks of sincerity does not deceive himself.”

"Now, the answer is clearly in your heart, why do you continue to lie to yourself?"

Xu Zhiqiu closed his eyes and sighed deeply.

"Whether you continue to be an ignorant pig or become an upright person is entirely up to you to choose."

"Now, I am willing to give you another chance to choose."

"Choose what?"

"Or, you will continue to be as ignorant as before and become the mountain god's playthings." He pointed at the Lu mother and daughter, "If that's the case, I will take the mother and daughter and leave."

"Or..." He picked up a hatchet from the ground, tested the blade with his thumb, and looked at everyone with a sharp gaze.

"You can also choose to pick up your weapons and follow me up the mountain. I will lead you to kill the mountain god."

This sentence was said calmly, but it was like thunder in the ears of everyone.

Not sure how much anger was aroused, and all the villagers looked at each other in bewilderment.

They stared into each other's eyes.
They saw that in each other's confused eyes, the dust gradually faded away and a glimmer of light appeared.

It was as if something that was once indestructible had collapsed.

The hot blood gathered in the chest.

(End of this chapter)