Chapter 196: The Drought Descends
Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations
Liu Sanniang took it and gulped it down. After drinking two glasses, she felt a little better and said, “Have another few months passed?”
Chu Yan nodded. “I think so. After we eat, we’ll go out and ask around.”
They were outsiders in this village. In an illusion, they only needed to experience the major events and their existence could barely be remembered by the villagers.
When they were talking to people, they would only remember the two of them as the couple who came over to find herbs.
Liu Sanniang nodded. The illusion was about to end. She would soon get the answer.
That fire was the real reason why the four families were wiped out.
After dinner, Liu Sanniang went out with Chu Yan.
At noon, the sun was so hot that it could burn people alive. There was almost no one outside.
As they walked through the village, they could hear the cries of children and the adults arguing, fighting, and cursing.
The sudden drought scourged the land, causing the crops to wither and die. It became very difficult for people to survive.
After walking around the village, Liu Sanniang and Chu Yan ended up outside Huang Lang’er’s house.
A corner of the courtyard was already covered in filth. Although Huang Lang’er cleaned it every day, there were still traces left behind.
Liu Sanniang knocked on the door.
Soon, Huang Lang’er opened the door. When he saw Liu Sanniang and Chu Yan, he paused for a moment and said, “Oh, it’s you two. Are you here to fetch water? Come in. There’s a drought this year, and a lot of living creatures died in the mountains. It’s not easy to find herbs, right?”
Chu Yan nodded.
Huang Lang’er looked at Liu Sanniang and Chu Yan’s empty hands and asked in confusion. “Why didn’t you bring the wooden buckets when you came to fetch water?”
Huang Lang’er seemed to have thought of something and waved his hand. “Forget it, use my bucket.”
Huang Lang’er brought Liu Sanniang and Chu Yan to the back of the house. There was a stream of water flowing below, and there was a large water storage pit, but there wasn’t much water left.
Huang Lang’er took a wooden bucket, scooped up half a bucket of water, and handed it to Chu Yan. “Doctor Chu, use it sparingly. I don’t know how long this stream can sustain us.”
Chu Yan nodded. “Yes, thank you.”
Huang Lang’er waved his hand. “No need to thank me.”
Chu Yan and Liu Sanniang returned home with water. After the sky darkened, many villagers went to Huang Lang’er’s house to get water. He only gave them half a bucket each, and soon, an argument broke out.
People said that Huang Lang’er was an ingrate and that they shouldn’t have raised him back then. Now, he didn’t even want to share enough water with them.
No matter how Huang Lang’er explained, people refused to listen to him. Instead, they said that Huang Xianxian was the one who brought the drought here.
Liu Sanniang stood on a stool in her courtyard and leaned on the wall to watch the scene. She felt a heaviness on her chest, not knowing if it was caused by indignation or what.
Chu Yan walked to her side and pulled her hand. “Time to eat.”
Liu Sanniang said sadly, “I don’t want to eat. I just want to watch.”
Chu Yan did not say anything. He stood beside Liu Sanniang silently to keep her company.
After the sky turned dark, everything changed like a dream.
Liu Sanniang saw arguments getting more and more fierce. People smashed open a hole on the wall in Huang Lang’er’s courtyard so that they could go and get water whenever they wanted.
The drought was still ongoing. Seeing that there was still no harvest in autumn, people’s anger reached its peak. They began to clamor for Huang Xianxian to be executed.
Outside, the sky gradually lit up. Liu Sanniang came back to her senses and looked at the village. “Two psychics are coming over.”
The villagers had gone to invite the psychics.
The two psychics held Bagua in their hands. As soon as they walked into the village, they pointed in the direction of Huang Lang’er’s house and said, “There’s a big demon here.”
The villagers walking beside the psychics immediately got agitated. “Masters, the monster is living there!”
The psychic in the lead snorted. “It’s hard for us not to notice the demon. It’s murderous aura is soaring. Someone must have been killed by the demon, right?”
“Master, you are exactly right. This demon has killed three people in our village. Master, the drought must have been brought about by this demon too. Please subdue it for us.”
The villagers looked in the direction of Huang Lang’er’s house with resentment and fear in their eyes.
The other psychic smiled. “Don’t worry, Xu Ran will definitely be able to help you subdue the demon in your village.”
Xu Ran smiled. “Xu Qing, tell me where the golden body is.”
The villagers were all shocked and asked, “Master, what golden body?”
Xu Qing explained. “For demons to achieve the cultivation level where they can take on human form, they have to create a golden body for themselves. This golden body is worshiped by people to collect power. Every demon has a golden body. If you want to subdue the demon, you naturally have to destroy the golden body first.”
The villagers were puzzled but at the same time, they felt that Xu Qing and Xu Ran were very powerful.
Xu Qing and Xu Ran had already arrived at Huang Lang’er’s house with the villagers. The villagers knocked on the door and shouted. “Huang Lang’er, come out with the demon.”
Huang Lang’er opened the door with a tired expression. His face was covered in stubble and his eyes were unfocused. “Everyone, my wife is really not a demon. She didn’t cause the drought. She’s actually protecting us.”
Huang Lang’er’s heart ached. Huang Xianxian had been very weak after giving birth. Now, in order to fight back the drought, her divine power was almost exhausted. Several times, he saw Huang Xianxian spit out blood.
In the eyes of the villagers, what Huang Lang’er said was just a joke.
A child threw mud at him. “Demon.”
The child’s mother immediately pulled the child into her arms. “Huang Lang’er, why did you have to marry a demon? Hurry up and hand her over to us. When Masters subdued her, the drought would naturally be gone.”
Xu Qing looked at Huang Lang’er coldly and said, “Working with a demon to cause trouble. Aren’t you ashamed of yourself? I heard that you are an orphan. If not for these people, you would have died long ago. How can you be so ungrateful?”
Huang Lang’er opened his mouth but could not say anything. He felt guilty that he did not repay the people who raised him. He was in pain. Why did he fall in love with a demon?
Huang Xianxian came out of the house. Her face was pale and she was in her beast form. Her sharp teeth, fur all over her face, and the tail on the back all indicated that she wasn’t a human.
Huang Xianxian glanced at Xu Qing and Xu Ran and reached out to pull Huang Lang’er up. She swept her gaze across the crowd coldly. Everyone who met her gaze looked away in fear.