Starting with the flesh-based stimulant

A few sparrows, who had been drifting all day, chirped and circled the woods, unable to find their nest.

Zhou He lay in the shallow pit created by the tree spirit, Tao Chuan, his eyes following the sparrow, darting around aimlessly.

The stars shone brightly all day, twinkling and connecting in a line.

The night was deep and the dew was heavy. The dampness and moisture from the earth filled Zhou He's nasal cavity, making his nose itch and causing him to sneeze.

His eyeballs flew out of his head.

Well, it's getting dark again.

Zhou He didn't take it to heart, feeling his heart beat slowly and heavily between his newly grown ribs, silently counting the numbers in his mind.

He doesn't want to think about anything right now.

I just want to lie here.

The birdsong grew more urgent and intense, probably because a few sparrows were arguing.

Zhou He's skinless lips parted, and several muscles sagged off.

I didn't laugh out loud because my vocal cords hadn't fully healed yet.

He lay in the shallow pit, feeling somewhat joyful.

My eyeballs grew out too quickly, and since I didn't have eyelids, I couldn't close my eyes even when I wanted to sleep. But now it's just right.

Birdsong and the night breeze flowed over Zhou He, and he gradually fell asleep.

He had a dream.

In my dream, I was looking in a mirror. In the mirror, I was wearing a black school uniform and a black school cap with a curved black plastic strip around the edge of the cap.

His eyes were clear, and he had the fearless spirit of a newborn calf, showing no intention of hiding anything.

Zhou He smiled from outside the mirror and spoke:

"Would you like to come out?"

There was no response; the mirror surface rippled like water.

By the time the eyeballs grew back, it was already early the next morning.

Zhou He stretched and stood up naked.

The sparrows from last night have flown away, leaving behind a lot of broken feathers on the ground.

Having apparently lost their nest, the sparrows got into a fight and eventually had to leave for another place.

Zhou He didn't hear anything; he was sleeping soundly.

After stretching, Zhou looked himself up and down, and it seemed that there was no difference from before.

Just like when I first came into this world, I was naked and had nothing.

He just lacked the old hunchback who wanted to eat him.

Zhou He was very satisfied, his smile widening as he turned to look at the shallow pit where he had lain for the entire night.

There was an iron box lying in the pit. The foreign woman on the box had mottled marks that looked like she had vitiligo. Next to the box lay a knife, neither too long nor too short, with a blood groove on it and a gleaming blade.

Beside the box, the clothes that Old Han had made for himself were crumpled and lumped together, covered in blood, flesh scraps, and dirt, making them look even more worn and tattered.

A fisherman's hat, patched upon patched, was pinned to the side of his clothes.

Zhou He grinned and muttered to himself:

"Old Han's clothes are quite something."

He grabbed the clothes, not caring that they were dirty, and hastily put them on, pulling the hat down over his head to cover most of his face, leaving only his chin showing.

Then he bent down and squatted on the ground, picked up the tin box, opened it, casually put the knife into the box, took out a small leather box from it, opened it, casually took out the road sign inside, threw it on the ground, and put the box into the tin box.

"Qiu Shen's path? You really want me to follow that path? Well then, I'll give it a try."

Zhou He tucked the iron box into his inner chest pocket, and instead of kneeling, casually squatted on the ground, holding the guide to the God of Qiu in his hand, and began to chant:

"First, invite the household shrine to sit on the table, then place the corpse on the altar."

Holding a small oil lamp in my hand, standing on lakes, seas, streams, springs, and rivers.

"Kill with your eyes open to avoid disaster, but kill ghosts without hesitation when your eyes are closed."

"Three sticks of incense attract cranes; my god descends to earth to distinguish good from evil."

"The travel permit serves as proof."

With a laugh in his voice, he sat down on the ground after finishing the recitation, waiting for that distant, vast, and terrifying will to cast its gaze upon him.

"Buzz"

A buzzing sound filled his mind, and the gaze, which had been fierce before, became much gentler, sweeping over Zhou He before hesitating slightly.

But the next second, the scent of incense wafted into Zhou He's nostrils, and a grand, distant sound entered his brain:

"I am Grandpa Zhang Gong, and I am a disciple who burns incense in the hall. State your name."

Zhou He, holding his fisherman's hat, sat on the ground with his legs spread apart, grinning as he said:

"Zhou He".

"Zhou He, now that you have saved enough money for your journey and obtained your travel permit, you are now my disciple who burns incense. I advise you to worship the gods and be righteous. If you have any other matters to attend to, light three sticks of incense, and I will take care of them for you."

The booming voice sounded rather gentle. Zhou He nodded, pursed his lips, then put on a smile and said:

"This disciple understands."

After he finished speaking, the incense smoke dissipated, and his voice left Zhou He's mind.

Zhou He carefully sensed that the money he had gained from the piece of flesh that had been absorbed when he was killed by Grandpa Taochuan had been completely used up.

"So, Chen Donkey, this was all planned out of you? Is this how you do business?"

He didn't think too much about it; there were too many things about him that he couldn't understand.

In the past, he had been trying to sort things out, to find clues, and to solve the problem, but now Zhou He has figured it out.

He is now the young master of the Zhou family, but in reality, he is no different from the naked flesh that was lying on the offering table at the beginning.

We are still at the mercy of others; whoever needs us can take a bite.

Thinking so much won't change anything until you have the strength to do it yourself.

"It's a waste of time and energy, and it only gives me a headache."

With a light laugh, Zhou He turned and walked towards the fork in the road leading to Jincheng and the mine.

"We can't go back to the Zhou family mansion. Old Han is too clever; I can't fool him."

"Don't go to Tuozigou. The peddler might have some grand show he's prepared for me to perform."

"You absolutely cannot go to the mines; even if you do, you won't be able to escape."

"Let's go to Jincheng. We should see what treasures this young master Zhou has left me this time."

Zhou He leisurely whistled, adjusted his tattered hat, and strolled towards Jincheng.

The gates of Jincheng are towering high, and it is said that the "Jin" in Jincheng means "impregnable as a fortress".

But Zhou He expressed his doubts. Putting aside everything else, just look at Grandpa Taochuan yesterday. He was taller than Jincheng when he stood there. If he slapped him, no matter how solid your defenses were, what good would it do?

I reckon Jincheng is still relying on that "Uncle Jincheng".

Zhou He remembered the name; he had seen it in the newspaper when he first woke up.

Thinking of the newspaper, Zhou He grinned again. He had never seen such an uncultured newspaper. What was the title of the headline?

"Grandpa Jincheng won't let us eat meat anymore."

That's so tasteless. If I were writing it myself, I would definitely write, "Grandpa Jincheng clearly pointed out that the unhealthy trend of eating meat should be banned."

Hmm, that's much better.

At the city gate, two men in uniform stood on the left and right, tall and imposing, their eyes fixed straight ahead, exuding an aura of authority.

But apart from these two, there was no one else at the city gate; no one entered the city gate, and no one left.

Upon seeing Zhou He, the two men didn't stop him. They merely frowned, exchanged a glance, and then let Zhou He in.