ATEG Chapter 62

Within the Li Manor.

The jet-black tiles had been washed to a crystalline loveliness, and clean, transparent puddles accumulated on the bluestone slabs.

The animals that had taken shelter from the rain shook out their fur that had stuck together from the dampness, breathing alertly and watching, before burrowing back into the forest one by one.

This spur of the Daqing Mountain range, because it was protected by a spirit vein, aside from the risen water levels and a few places that had been washed away by the heavy rain, was almost unchanged from before the rain. Amidst the vast, broken expanse of withered yellow, this patch of verdant green that summer should bring became particularly striking.

Ding Qin gazed at the water drops falling from the eaves, her heart full of anxiety and unease.

“Ding Qin.”

“High God.” Ding Qin turned her head.

Ever since High God Li Chi had returned, she had been sitting continuously under the corridor, unmoving and silent, her gaze distant, looking toward who knows where.

Li Chi’s gaze had at some point returned, now resting on her, penetrating to the heart. “Are you worried about Ding Family Village?”

Ding Qin nodded.

She was worried about Ding Family Village, and also worried about the Crane God Bai Hong.

Previously, when she was insignificant and powerless, Ding Family Village had the Crane God’s protection. The Crane God was a true demon god, so there was no need to worry about him. But after this heavy rain, what would become of Ding Family Village? Would the Crane God Bai Hong be in difficult straits?

“Then go back and see.” Li Chi said.

“High God…”

“Come.” Li Chi beckoned to her.

Ding Qin walked over, and the divine seal on her forehead gradually manifested.

Li Chi pressed a finger to the divine seal. Ding Qin only felt the seal grow hot, and suddenly the vision before her eyes became blurred and distorted. No matter how she looked, she couldn’t see clearly, and she involuntarily closed her eyes.

“The spiritual essence between heaven and earth has become chaotic.” The deity’s voice sounded in her ear.

Warm divine power flowed into the divine seal, seeming to trace some pattern, and also like opening a lock.

“In the great calamity, the use of all techniques will require twice the effort for half the result, may even fail completely, or produce other unexpected changes.”

Though her eyes were clearly closed, she suddenly saw light. Under the illumination of that radiance, the previously blurred and distorted vision suddenly became mostly clear. It was her original spirit-eye vision—the spiritual essence of the entire heaven and earth!

“Do not cast techniques with spiritual essence you cannot clearly see, but everything within the range that the divine seal can discern, you can wield without worry. That is…”

Ding Qin felt the brilliance before her eyes fade. She opened her eyes in confusion, and Li Chi had already withdrawn the finger that rested on her forehead.

“…my authority.”

Her gaze became clear and bright again, and the vision returned to the familiar world she knew. She could see the spiritual essence between heaven and earth, but that spiritual essence was not as clear and distinct as before. Instead, it gave her a feeling similar to when her vision had been blurred while bearing the Crane God’s seal—only by concentrating more could she see this spiritual essence clearly.

And this spiritual essence was gradually becoming increasingly blurred. The process was very slow, but very distinct.

“High God…” Ding Qin was full of doubts.

“Stop by Liquan Village on your way, tell them the water source will naturally be resolved, and not to come up the mountain to disturb me. Go now.” Li Chi said.

Ding Qin had wanted to open her mouth to inquire, but Li Chi had already closed his eyes, so she could only bow in farewell and withdraw.

……

At the foot of the mountain, the excessively abundant stream water converged into the pond. The pond water rose high, continuously overflowing the pond’s edge, spreading across the grassland, soaking the earth until it was wet, soft, and heavy. With each step, one sank in, and only by exerting more effort could one pull up feet that were firmly sucked down.

Two villagers from Liquan Village walked heavily toward the pond. When they saw the large carp floating belly-up on the water’s surface, their expressions grew even uglier.

“The water here… can’t be used either.” Zheng Qian said wearily.

After the heavy rain, water levels everywhere had surged violently, but all this water had been polluted by the bitter rain and was completely unusable. While floods raged everywhere, there was also a severe shortage of usable water.

In the polluted water sources, fish and shrimp had nearly all died. Who knew how long it would take for the water veins to cleanse themselves and return to normal.

But right now was when water was most desperately needed. The people of Liquan Village had immediately begun checking the surrounding water sources after the rain stopped. Although they had many springs and ponds here, most of the water sources had already been polluted. Only a few remaining sources were still usable, but these were nowhere near enough for irrigating the fields.

Zheng Shu said nothing. He stopped to catch his breath, then pulled his feet one step at a time to the pond’s edge, crouched down, and cupped water to taste with his lips.

He had already tasted water from too many places. This time, the flavor on his tongue was still salty and bitter, but Zheng Shu’s eyes couldn’t help but brighten.

“This water tastes much lighter!”

If the salty-bitter taste had lightened, it meant other normal water had diluted it!

“Let me taste!” Zheng Qian also hurried over to bend down and cup water. After tasting it, his spirits lifted, and he said, “Let’s go check the water source!”

This pond had only one inlet—a small stream flowing down from the mountain.

The clear stream water struck against stones, forming snow-white waves. The two men found a place where the current was relatively gentle, cupped water and tasted it. What entered their mouths was sweet and refreshing spring water.

Zheng Qian’s eyes lit up. “This water is usable!”

Zheng Shu had already stood up, following the stream’s cascading source to look toward the verdant mountain forest.

The water came from the mountain, and on this mountain… there was the immortal!

Zheng Qian grinned broadly. “Excellent! Excellent! We’re not short of water anymore!”

Zheng Shu also smiled. “Let’s go back right now!”

Zheng Qian thought for a moment, then shook his head. “One person is enough to report the news. I’ll make the trip, you check if there are any other water sources nearby!”

Zheng Shu agreed. After Zheng Qian left, he walked to several other nearby water sources. The further he walked, the lighter his mood became.

One source was clean, two sources were clean, three sources… No! As long as the water flowed down from the mountain, it was all clean!

They were still as clear and sweet as before, flowing from the mountain down to the base. Given enough time, they would eventually cleanse the polluted ponds and rivers!

……

On another front, Zheng Qian had already reached the entrance to Liquan Village’s ancestral hall.

Inside the ancestral hall, people were arguing noisily. During the three days of heavy rain, although the Great King Yishan had protected some of the fields in Liquan Village, he certainly wouldn’t bother to distribute his protection evenly according to which fields belonged to which families.

After the heavy rain ended, some families had most of their fields within the Great King Yishan’s protection range and suffered almost no losses, but other families no longer had even half a mu of good field left. If they still divided things according to the previous field allocations, how could they survive?

The fields now had to be redistributed, and this was what they were arguing about in the ancestral hall.

Seeing this scene, Zheng Qian couldn’t help but freeze at the entrance. The village elder, who had been silent all along, spotted him first.

The village elder tapped his cane, and the ancestral hall gradually quieted down.

He asked Zheng Qian, “What is it?”

The joy on Zheng Qian’s face had already faded. He reported finding good water.

The people in the ancestral hall couldn’t help but stir with excitement, but before they could rejoice for long, someone said, “But the mountain base is too far from the fields. How can we use the water?”

The three days of heavy rain had already seeped deep into the soil. When the clean water from the mountain flowed down, it wouldn’t be long before it became salty and bitter again. If they wanted to use the water, they could only rely on people or carts to carry it back. It would be enough for household use, but what about irrigating the fields? They couldn’t possibly transport it trip after trip.

Moreover, the question of how to divide the fields still hadn’t been resolved. Just as another argument was about to break out, the village elder struck his cane heavily, producing an angry thud on the ground!

The ancestral hall fell silent in an instant. The village elder was responsible for presiding over rituals, a position held by the most experienced and wise elder in a village, and also the person with the most authority in the village.

“Can we survive on just the remaining fields?” The village elder’s voice was not loud, but it weighed heavily on everyone’s hearts.

After this heavy rain, more than half the fields had been destroyed. Even with the most careful tending, they were destined to harvest very little grain.

The village elder looked at Zheng Qian. “You say the mountain is still green?”

“Just like before the rain.” Zheng Qian nodded, then paused and asked, “Are you thinking of going into the mountain?”

Their familiar land was destroyed, and the water was destroyed too. Without water and soil, people couldn’t survive. They could only go find water and soil that hadn’t been destroyed. But near Liquan Village, only the remnant fields and that mountain forest were still normal.

The fields were protected by the Great King Yishan, but who protected the mountain forest?

“If we want to seek a way to live, we must enter the mountain.” Whether gathering or hunting, a mountain with normal water and soil had food that could keep people alive.

The village elder spoke of new hope, yet his brow furrowed with deep creases.

There was a deity on the mountain. Seeking water required praying to the deity, much less if they also wanted to go up the mountain to hunt. Liquan Village was not known for hunting; it would be best if they could obtain the deity’s protection.

Zheng Qian was silent for a moment, then said, “Should we petition the immortal on the mountain?”

This was not easily said.

Remote mountain villages like theirs, beyond the care of other proper gods, had always relied on the protection of cultivators like the Great King Yishan to survive. Similarly, their incense offerings and sacrificial goods were offered only to the Great King Yishan who protected them.

Occasionally, for other reasons, privately making offerings to other deities was not a problem—like how the Zheng Liang family had always made offerings to the deity on the mountain after Tongdou was bewitched by a demon. But if they openly conducted large-scale rituals to other deities, that would be problematic.

Extremely devout believers with pure and vast faith were rare in this world. Most people were just ordinary folk who, beyond living their own lives, held respect for deities. The incense offerings and faith they could provide were limited. 

Incense offerings were very important to deities. When mortals had matters beyond their own ability, they prayed and worshipped deities, but that was not about making transactions with deities using incense offerings and faith.

Not to mention that those with the mindset of bribing deities with sacrifices had no sincere hearts and produced only faint, impure incense. Even if they could provide deities with abundant faith, deities were not merchants, much less would they bestow blessings or bring disasters with one hand while receiving incense offerings with the other.

Deities who cultivated the divine path had their own judgments in their hearts.

But when mortals made devout incense offerings while seeking something, it was not only a reward to the deity, but also helped themselves.

Divine power had varying levels of strength. When their power was weak, incense offerings were the best support. Just like during these three days of heavy rain, the village elder had continued the ritual until the rain stopped. That was not only to seek the Great King Yishan’s protection, but also to provide some support for him while he strove to protect them.

But now the rain had stopped, and the situation after the rain was insufficient for them to survive. The people of Liquan Village had worshipped the Great King Yishan for generations; they long understood the Great King Yishan’s capabilities. In the coming days, the Great King Yishan could not help them.

If they wanted to live, they had no choice but to seek help from other deities. But should they cast aside the Great King Yishan who had just helped them?

The ancestral hall fell silent for a moment.

The village elder took a deep breath. “We…”

“Deity, deity…” Zheng Shu suddenly burst in, his breathing still uneven.

Someone asked urgently, “What about the deity?!”

The village elder said, “Slow down, catch your breath, and speak clearly.”

Zheng Shu caught his breath and said, “When I went up the mountain looking for water, I ran into Miss Ding Qin. She told me that the deity said the water source will naturally be resolved, and not to go up the mountain to disturb him.”

The village elder pondered the words and asked, “Did the divine messenger say when the water source would be resolved? How it would be resolved?”

Zheng Shu shook his head.

“Did she say anything else?”

Zheng Shu shook his head again.

“Where is Miss Ding Qin?” the village elder asked again.

Zheng Shu was stumped. “She already left.”

The village elder asked several more questions. Zheng Shu couldn’t answer them, and sweat nearly broke out on his forehead. When he had been checking other water sources at the forest’s edge, he had encountered Ding Qin coming down the mountain. After receiving the message, he hadn’t asked many questions and had rushed straight back.

The village elder helplessly shook his head. He had long known Zheng Shu was a taciturn man of few words, so he didn’t make things difficult for him.

“Take me to see the water.”

……

At the mountain base, stream water rushed down from the forest. Before even getting close, one could hear the sound of the surging current.

A group of people came to the pond’s edge. The withered yellow, soft and rotten grass was still wet and sticky, weighing down their steps. The water in the pond was still salty and bitter.

But that mountain—its verdant green was a joy just to behold.

The village elder looked up at the mountain, with people supporting him on the side. The roads were difficult after the rain, and this place was quite far from the village. Others had originally wanted to persuade him not to come, but he had to come.

If he didn’t come to see with his own eyes, how could he feel at ease?

Zheng Shu brought a bowl of water from the mountain forest. The village elder tasted it, and his expression relaxed somewhat. This water was good, but such good water would only be useful if it could be delivered to the village and the fields.

The deity on the mountain said the water source would be resolved, but did “resolved” mean the mountain water could be used freely, or that he would help deliver the water to the village and fields?

The deity said not to go up the mountain to disturb him—did that mean he didn’t want to accept their incense offerings, or that they weren’t permitted to go up the mountain?

The village elder stood in a daze, lost in thought, when he suddenly heard someone cry out in surprise.

“What is that?”

“In the water, in the water! Something is flashing!”

In the stream water rushing down from the mountain, something silvery and bright was hidden in the waves, flowing down with them. That radiance almost merged with the glittering ripples, and only when water splashed up occasionally could one tell it was something different from the waves.

The glittering thing drifted closer and closer. As it neared the pond, a large silver fish suddenly leaped from the waves, bringing with it a spray of water droplets like scattered jade and pearls. It arced through the air over several zhang, landing directly into the pond, yet seeming to melt into it without splashing even the smallest droplet.

Everyone stared in wonder at where the large fish had entered the water, when suddenly someone cried out, “The ground! The water on the ground!”

Everyone looked down. The water on the grass was somehow all flowing toward the pond. The water level in the pond was dropping, continuing to drop until it was below the bank before stopping.

“Great Fish Immortal!” the village elder called out in a long voice.

Ripples spread at the water’s edge, and the silver fish poked its head out at the pond’s edge, raising it to look at the village elder.

The village elder slowly bent down to crouch, asking, “Great Fish Immortal, have you come to help us resolve this bitter water?”

The silver fish nodded. High God Li Chi had given it instruction, allowing it to travel through the water veins, dredging and cleansing the water veins below the mountain.

Spring water nurtures carp, the ocean nurtures whales. If it was content to be merely a fish shadow in the pond of the Li Manor’s courtyard, it would never achieve any results in its cultivation.

This descent of the mountain after the heavy rain to sort out and cleanse the water veins was a rare opportunity for meritorious karma.

The other villagers, seeing the great fish indeed nod in response, couldn’t help but let out low exclamations.

The village elder’s heartbeat quickened involuntarily. He steadied himself and continued to ask, “Great Fish Immortal, can we still enter the mountain?”

The silver fish nodded again.

The village elder breathed a sigh of relief. It seemed “do not go up the mountain to disturb” referred to not going to that abandoned residence to cause disturbance.

The village elder asked again, “Do we need to set up offerings and perform rituals?”

The silver fish shook its head and swayed its tail.

High God Li Chi did not need incense offerings, and it did not cultivate the divine path either, so it had no use for mortal worship.

The village elder took a deep breath, his throat somewhat choked up.

The water problem was resolved, and they could also enter the mountain. Even if they wouldn’t have this deity’s protection while moving about in the mountains, as long as they could enter the mountains, that was enough. No need to set up offerings and perform rituals meant no need to wrong the Great King Yishan.

“The deity is merciful.” He murmured.