White Bone Demon Trail

Chapter 54 Suiqiu
The sunlight outside the cave flashed by, and the shadows of flowers among the trees shifted before him. Unbeknownst to him, Bai Wuxiang had been at Black Stone Village for over a year, and this summer had passed uneventfully.

As the cicadas' long chirping faded from the trees in front of the door, Sanwen paced anxiously back and forth outside.

He wiped the sweat from his brow and grabbed the old woman who was pouring a basin of bloody water outside. "Grandma, how is my wife? It's been almost an hour, why is there still no sign of her?"

The old woman sighed and said, "Your wife's baby is in a slightly breech position. We've all tried our best to help her straighten it. Whether she can give birth or not depends on God's blessing."

Hearing this, Sanwen felt a chill run down his spine. He stood there, completely lost, muttering, "What should I do? What should I do?"

It's harvest season now, and everyone in the village, young and old, is busy in the fields. The fact that they were able to get two elderly people to help with the production is already a sign of the village head's generosity.

However, the second-in-command didn't know much about childbirth, so he could only rely on the experienced old women in the village to help him.

He stood outside listening to his wife's feeble wails, and his unease grew.

"Who can I ask for help? Who can I ask for help?" he murmured helplessly.

Seeing him like this, Granny Liu, who was helping out, sighed and said, "Sanwen, let me give you a heads-up. Your wife is too weak; I'm afraid she can't endure this suffering. The baby is full-term, but if it continues like this, it might suffocate if it doesn't come out soon."

"Why don't you go and beg Lord Wuxiang, pray that the gods will respond? Otherwise, I'll have to ask you whether to save the mother or the child."

“Gods? My wife…” Sanwen was startled. “Is it that difficult?”
I want to protect everything, including my wife…”

Grandma Liu sighed and waved her hand, saying, "Then let's pray to the gods. We old women can't do that."

"Okay, I'll go and beg right now! I'll go and beg right now!"

Sanwen turned around and ran wildly towards the Wuxiang Temple behind the village. He didn't stop for even a moment along the way, and it only took him a little over half an hour to reach the temple gate. He was so tired that he was panting heavily and couldn't even lift his back. He could only look up, his vision blurred by sweat. The temple gate in front of him was tall and majestic, and there was no one around.

He climbed several steps and pounded on the red wooden door, crying, "High Priest! High Priest! Please open the door! I need to worship at the temple! I need to worship Lord Wuxiang!"

Hearing the knocking outside the temple, Ah Liu frowned and rushed to the door, opening it a crack. "Wuxiang Temple is closed during the day; you can only enter to offer incense after sunset."

"High Priest! Please, let me in. My wife is having a difficult childbirth. Please, let me pray to Lord Wuxiang! Please, Lord Wuxiang, grant me your grace!"

"Nonsense! Lord Wuxiang is not a fetal deity. How could such a thing offend Lord Wuxiang's eyes? Let's go back."

Ah Liu was furious and slammed the temple door shut, ignoring the man's pounding and pleading.

"High Priest! I beg you, I'll do anything for you, even be your slave! Please!" He shouted anxiously outside the temple gate, drowning out the cicadas chirping inside.

Under the temple's corridor, blind children who were composing music heard cries of pleading from outside the temple.

A melodious tune, tinged with sadness, echoed in the empty temple. A gentle breeze rustled the leaves of the locust tree. A black crow flew in from behind the mountain and landed in the corridor, only half a zhang away from the eight children.

"Ding Dong~"

A child dropped the bell he was holding, and he crouched down, reaching out to grope around on the ground to pick it up.

But the bell had rolled quite far, and he couldn't find it after groping around for a long time.

The crow hopped and skipped to the bell, stretched out a claw and kicked the bell, which landed near the child's hand.

However, because of this brief delay, the rhythm of the entire piece became disordered, and it sounded very discordant.

The blind boy in the lead frowned and said, "Stop, everyone. You're wrong again."

The blind children had to stop, put down their instruments, and wipe the sweat from their faces.

"What happened again? Who caused this mess?"

The oldest blind boy questioned.

The seven children dared not say anything and could only remain silent.

The crow, finding this uninteresting, spread its wings and flew away. It would listen to the children's daily practice, but to it, the tunes were less pleasant than its own cawing.

It flew over the temple, intending to find some insects to fill its belly, but suddenly a black light flashed in its crow eyes, and then it fell onto Ah Liu inside the temple.

Ah Liu saw the black crow and quickly reached out to catch it. Hearing the crow caw twice, he was stunned for a moment, and then the black crow flew away from his hand.

He then bowed to the statue of the formless god in the temple, saying, "I will obey the divine will!"

Outside the temple gate, Sanwen was still pounding on the gate unwillingly when suddenly there was a creak, and A-Liu walked out of the temple.

Sanwen hurriedly knelt down and cried, "High Priest! High Priest! Please save my wife and child! Please..."

"Alright, no need for further words." Ah Liu stopped him, his expression quite solemn, and said, "Lord Wuxiang specifically ordered me to go, so your family will be safe and sound."

But Lord Wuxiang says your child has a destiny, and must be offered to the gods. When he turns six, he will be sent to the temple to serve under Lord Wuxiang. Are you willing?

“I’m willing! I’m willing!” Sanwen nodded repeatedly. “It’s my child’s good fortune to serve under Lord Wuxiang! As long as my wife and child are safe and sound, I will agree to anything.”

“Alright, since that’s the case, then come with me.” Ah Liu said expressionlessly.

"Yes! Yes! High Priest!" Sanwen hurriedly got up from the ground, stood up, and followed him into the village.

As Ah Liu walked along the road, he looked at Sanwen's respectful manner and couldn't help but sigh. He realized that the feeling of being able to decide the fate and life or death of others was truly extraordinary. No wonder so many people in the world coveted power.

At the same time, he was also wondering, what does Lord Wuxiang want with such a child? Could it be that this child is truly destined for greatness?
By the time he and Sanwen returned to Black Stone Village, it was past noon. Farmers who had been busy in the fields also came back to help Sanwen's family. When everyone saw Ah Liu arrive, they all became more respectful and called him High Priest.

Ah Liu arrived at the gatehouse and said to everyone, "Let everyone inside come out."

Sanwen nodded repeatedly and ran into the house to call out to the old women.

Everyone looked at the high priest with curiosity, wondering what method he could use to save the pregnant woman who was having a difficult childbirth.

Once everyone had come out of the house, Ah Liu strode to the door. Inside, Sanwen's wife had fainted from the pain. The surroundings were quiet, and the villagers watching dared not utter a sound.

Even after noon, the sun was still scorching. Ah Liu raised the divine jade staff in his hand and silently chanted an incantation. As he waved the staff, a dark cloud gradually drifted across the sky and blocked out the blazing sun. The sky within a hundred feet radius darkened at a visible speed.

The villagers all stared at the sky, occasionally watching the high priest perform his spells, and their hearts were filled with more awe for him.

A chilling wind rose from all sides. Although it was still a sweltering early autumn afternoon, the villagers felt a chill run through them. A dark, black mist slowly descended from the sky and entered the houses.

Before the bed, on a bright red sheet, lay a pale-faced woman who had fallen unconscious. Inside her was a clearly swollen fetus, which could be faintly seen wriggling.

Black energy swept past the bedside, and Bai Wuxiang appeared in the same spot.

He stared at the fetus still in the mother's womb on the bed, a strange black aura flashing in his pupils. Even before the child was born, Bai Wuxiang could sense a mysterious aura about him, and his innate talent was extraordinary.

If one can cultivate Taoist arts under the Xuanmen (mysterious sect), one must be extraordinary. This is probably what Taoists call "spiritual root and wondrous bones," a genius of cultivation.

Children born with extraordinary potential are often ostracized by the will of heaven and earth, suffering many misfortunes, and many geniuses perish in their early years.

This baby had drained most of its mother's vital energy while it was still in the womb; if medical technology had been available in ancient times, both mother and child would have surely died.

Bai Wuxiang slowly extended his slender index finger, and a wisp of black energy entered the pregnant woman's belly. Immediately, the pregnant woman's belly swelled rapidly, and the sound of bones twisting could be faintly heard.

Although he didn't know any medical skills, he had worn human skin day and night and was a white bone demon, so he still had a good understanding of the human body's bones and flesh.

Bai Wuxiang directly activated the woman's bones, causing her skin and flesh to temporarily separate. He then used his bones to send the baby out of her body remotely.

Then he took out the Xuanxue Needle. The needle seemed to resist the smell of blood, but Bai Wuxiang still guided it through the flesh and blood, stitching the woman's bones and saving her life.

Looking at the tiny baby covered in blood, Bai Wuxiang chuckled. Such a person with extraordinary spiritual roots is far more useful alive than a skeleton that is dead.

However, the woman on the bed was depleted of vital energy. Even if Bai Wuxiang intervened, he was not a god and had no miraculous medicines. He was afraid that she could only live for three to five years at most.

After doing all this, Bai Wuxiang turned around and disappeared.

The dark clouds in the sky then dispersed, the autumn sun shone brightly, wild geese flew overhead, and an auspicious scene appeared above the houses.

Ah Liu was also shocked by what he saw; it seemed that this child was indeed extraordinary.

Everyone witnessed this scene, and the baby's loud cries came from inside the house. Sanwen asked in surprise, "High Priest, is it successful?"

“That’s right, with Lord Wuxiang appearing, there’s naturally nothing to worry about.” Ah Liu nodded with a smile.

"Thank you, Lord Wuxiang! Thank you, High Priest!" Sanwen hurriedly bowed down excitedly.

"I beg the High Priest to grant me a child, so that my child may live a safe and prosperous life."

Ah Liu smiled as he looked at the tiled house bathed in golden sunlight and said, "You are blessed. Lord Wuxiang has granted you a life. This child was born on an autumn day and is named Suiqiu."

"Suiqiu! Suiqiu!" Sanwen said happily, "Thank you for bestowing this name upon me, Lord Wuxiang!"
"But I am an orphan and have no surname. I wonder what surname this child will take?"

After hearing this, Ah Liu thought for a moment and said, "Then let's take the surname Bai."

"If my surname is Bai, then I'll be called Bai Suiqiu!" Sanwen said in a low voice. "Then I can finally have a surname. From now on, I should be called Bai Sanwen!"

In the early autumn of that year, a child named Bai Suiqiu was born in Black Stone Village. From then on, there would be a family with the surname Bai in Black Stone Village.

Inside the cave, Bai Wuxiang returned to the stone platform. The child was weak and frail at birth, and he, a White Bone Demon, was not qualified to take care of a child. Even the most energetic child would not survive long if kept in his eerie Skull Mountain for too long.

Outside the cave, the black crow ate a few golden hook centipedes in the ravine and then flew back satisfied.

Bai Wuxiang smiled and said to it, "From now on, you will have to help me look after that child. Once he grows up, he can be of help to me."

Since there are demon-catching families and demon-hunting masters in the world, why can't there be demon-protecting families and demon-protecting masters?

He had no interest in guarding against demon hunters day and night; he preferred to let people fight each other.

In this world, the ones who kill the most and fight the fiercest are not humans or demons, but rather humans themselves.

He also wants to learn from human wisdom to help himself cultivate the Tao and attain enlightenment.

Thinking of this, Bai Wuxiang slipped his sleeve, and a pale blue jade pendant appeared.

This is the very treasure that the Wang family disciples obtained when they killed the Taoist priest by the water's edge that day.

Not only did it contain residual spiritual energy, but it also seemed to hold a legacy. Bai Wuxiang saw this and seized the item, which could be seen as revenge for the descendants of the jade pendant.

He originally wanted to see the cultivation methods passed down by human cultivators and then verify them.

However, he did not expect that his demonic power could not break the seal on this object. If he tried to break it by force, he was afraid that he would destroy the jade pendant.

Bai Wuxiang had no choice but to give up. He figured that once Bai Suiqiu grew up, the spiritual power of the clan's cultivators would be able to break the seal on this object, and then he would be able to see the inheritance within.

Skull Mountain and Black Stone Village are his foundation, and Bai Wuxiang will make sure that he has a firm foothold here no matter what.

He could observe all kinds of qi, and although he didn't quite understand the mysteries of qi, Bai Wuxiang could still ponder and ponder them.

The direction of Tiger King Village is full of vigorous energy, and the energy of Blackwater Village is also profound and enduring. This is mostly due to the cultivation of the demons and monsters within, as well as the accumulated fortune they have gathered over hundreds of years of cultivation in one place.

Legend has it that immortals and Buddhas often have fixed temples and monasteries, which are likely related to their cultivation and destiny.

As the sun set and the world transitioned from darkness to light, Bai Wuxiang stopped pondering and calmed down to continue his cultivation.

……

More than a month later, on a dark, moonless night, Bai Wuxiang, who was cultivating in seclusion in the cave, heard a faint sound.

He frowned, stopped breathing exercises, calmed his mind, and listened carefully again.

"Formless! Formless!"

I offer this sacrifice to vent my grievances, I give my life, and I beg for a swift response!
"Formless, formless! I offer my sacrifice, I repent my grievances, I give my life, I beg for a manifest response!"

A hundred miles away, in a gloomy mass grave, a gaunt man knelt before a small, formless statue carved from a piece of white bone, silently chanting devoutly, with three lit incense sticks stuck in front of him.

He chanted and responded repeatedly, bowing to the small, faceless statue before him, his soft murmurs echoing in the darkness. Suddenly, a chilling wind arose around him, blowing withered leaves onto the grave.

(End of this chapter)