114: Chapter 114 Will Duke Ling of Qin Return?

Someone nearby chimed in, a shrewish woman.

"Exactly, we've been waiting for so long. What on earth was that beam of light? Could it be that the imperial court sent someone to rescue us?"

Someone sneered, their voice muffled.

"The imperial court? When facing an evil spirit of this caliber, the imperial court would likely hide away in a panic. Would they really come to save us?"

The cellar was in an uproar, with no one showing any respect for Clerk Liu, who stood at its center.

In the past, Clerk Liu was the second-in-command of the county yamen. Who wouldn't lower their head and respectfully call him "Lord Liu" upon seeing him?

But now, Guanhai County City was shrouded by the Evil Tree, and the town's commoners didn't even know if they could live to see tomorrow.

Even if the missing County Magistrate himself were to descend here right now, these commoners wouldn't pay him any mind at all.

If not for the fact that the message Clerk Liu had someone pass along this time was about that golden figure, these commoners wouldn't have paid him any attention, let alone made a special trip to come to this cellar.

Clerk Liu didn't speak either; he just stood there and waited.

He also knew that no one would listen to what he said nowadays.

Therefore, after waiting for the crowd to finish arguing amongst themselves, he raised his voice once more.

"That golden figure heavily injured that Evil Tree and beat it into submission—all of you saw it."

No one uttered a sound; no answer was needed, for everyone had seen it.

That golden figure continuously attacked the Evil Tree, yet the Evil Tree's attacks couldn't touch that golden figure at all.

"This official knows who that beam of light is."

As soon as Clerk Liu's voice fell, the sound of breathing in the cellar grew lighter.

Tie Lanshi's fingers, which were gripping some flatbread crumbs, froze. The crumbs leaked down through his finger gaps, but he didn't even lower his head to look.

A middle-aged man wearing a gray short jacket had his mouth open wide, and a young man in black athletic attire stared with wide, round eyes.

Someone leaned forward, someone stood up holding a child, and someone squeezed from the corner toward the center.

The sea of dark heads in the cellar all faced Clerk Liu's direction, resembling a wheat field bent over by the wind.

Clerk Liu waited for a moment, and when he felt those people were about to lose their patience, he continued,

"Qin Family Village."

He spat out those three words through clenched teeth.

"There is a temple in Qin Family Village, and enshrined within the temple is a deity named Lord Qinling."

The silence in the cellar grew heavier by several degrees.

It wasn't that no one was speaking; rather, everyone simultaneously held their breath and listened, afraid that making the slightest commotion would cause them to miss Clerk Liu's words.

Clerk Liu continued speaking,

"Zhou Ping, the village chief of Zhou Family Village, once led commoners from over a dozen villages to block the entrance of the county yamen, smashing the statue of the Yellow Immortal and demanding to change deities no matter what."

"And the deity newly enshrined by their Zhou Family Village is none other than Lord Qinling of Qin Ling Village."

He swallowed a mouthful of saliva and continued,

"Furthermore, many rumors concerning Lord Qinling have spread from within Qin Family Village. It is said that when Lord Qinling manifests his divine presence, a figure shrouded in golden light can be seen."

"His face cannot be seen clearly, but when that light falls upon one's body, one only feels a wave of warmth."

Tie Lanshi placed the flatbread crumbs in his hand onto the ground, patted the debris off his hands, stood up while supporting himself against the wall, and muttered to himself,

"Could it really be a deity?"

A deity.

In the past, he wouldn't have believed in such nonsense.

He was a martial artist; what he believed in were his fists, flesh and blood, and things carved out with a saber and spear.

Deities?

Those divine statues enshrined in temples—those made of clay, carved from wood, or painted with gold lacquer—which of them had ever been responsive?

Which of them had ever manifested their holiness?

None.

He had always maintained that there were no gods in this world.

But today, he saw with his own eyes that beam of light descend upon the sky above the county city and engage in a terrifying battle against the Evil Tree.

If that golden figure wasn't a deity, what else could it be?

Who else would take action against a Rank-5 evil spirit capable of unfurling an Evil Domain?

Besides a deity, who else would want to save the commoners of Guanhai County trapped by evil spirits?

No one else would; only the deities of legend who shelter the commoners would do so.

Tie Lanshi closed his eyes, his back leaning against the wall.

He heard his own heartbeat, sounding like a drum on the verge of splitting apart.

The corners of his mouth twitched, and a voice squeezed out from his throat,

"A deity... Is there really a god in this world...?"

A young lad scratched his head, his face smeared with mud, yet his eyes lit up.

"I've heard of Lord Qinling's name! My aunt is from Qin Family Village, and she said that Lord Qinling in that temple is extremely responsive!"

"She said that when the fishing boats of Qin Family Village go out to sea, they are all sheltered by Lord Qinling, which is why they return with a full cargo every single time!"

A scholar wearing a long gown chimed in,

"Weren't those stories said to be fabricated by foolish men and women to deceive people? How come..."

He couldn't go on, because that beam of light had just hacked that Evil Tree right above their heads until it howled in agony.

Deceiving people?

Could deception create this kind of commotion?

An old man squatted at the base of the wall, leaning on a wooden stick in his hand while poking back and forth on the ground with the other end of the stick.

He raised his head, his turbid eyes looking at Clerk Liu.

"Clerk Liu, is that Qin Family Village you mentioned the one with an Old Locust Tree at the entrance of the village?"

Clerk Liu nodded.

The old man's lips trembled slightly as a few words squeezed out from his throat,

"I've been to that village, and I've been to that temple."

The cellar fell silent for a fleeting moment, and everyone looked at him.

The old man lowered his head, staring at the wooden stick in his hand as if recalling something,

"That temple looked very ordinary, and the divine statue was also made of wood, carved quite crudely without even a single layer of gold lacquer applied to it."

Someone clicked their tongue, and the old man raised his head, something flashing within his turbid eyes.

"Yet the incense in that temple was extremely thriving, and the offering table was covered with offerings: dried fish, coarse grain, wild flowers, and a bowl of rice wine."

"I didn't offer incense; I was just passing by and went inside to take a look. That divine statue lowered its brows and cast its eyes down, looking inconspicuous, but when you stood before it, you simply felt at ease."

The wooden ladder at the entrance of the cellar creaked loudly as someone stepped on it.

Someone climbed up, and someone else climbed down.

A young woman holding a child descended from the wooden ladder and said,

"Although Lord Qinling heavily injured the Evil Tree this time, he still left. Will Lord Qinling not come back anymore?"

The cellar fell silent for a moment, like a stone dropped into a deep pool, sending ripples spreading outward circle by circle, shaking out all the fear and insecurity hidden in the corners.

Someone said in a low voice,

"The Evil Tree was hurt so badly, with such a deep gash cleaved into it and screaming so miserably... Lord Qinling shouldn't fail to come back, right?"

Someone chimed in, their voice even softer.

"If Lord Qinling doesn't come back, won't we still be left with only death?"

The old man squatting in the corner poked his wooden stick against the ground with a muffled thud.

"What if Lord Qinling comes back? If he comes back, that Evil Tree can forget about staying alive!"

The people in the cellar began to whisper among themselves once more.

"That's right, a deity won't abandon the commoners and leave them to fend for themselves. Lord Qinling will definitely come back."

"But who can guarantee that?"

"Before Lord Qinling's divine descent, hadn't we long been in despair waiting to die? At least now there is still some hope, isn't there?"

"Well said, there is still hope!"

"If I can survive this, I will also worship Lord Qinling!"

"Does one still need to set conditions for worshiping a deity? I will start worshiping Lord Qinling right from this moment!"

Clerk Liu stood in the center of the granary, the broken brick under his feet having been pressed deep into the mud by his stance.

He swept his gaze across the faces staring at him—dirty, thin, ashen-faced, and with sunken eye sockets.

At this moment, there was a light within the eyes of all these faces.

He took a deep breath and said to the commoners in the cellar,

"If Lord Qinling is truly a deity who shelters the commoners, then he will surely descend upon Guanhai County with his divine presence once again!"