Chapter 45: The Dark Surge of the River of Scale
As the sun set, the reeds along the banks of the Zhanghe River rustled in the breeze.
After Fatty, Old Hu, and I brought our equipment to the river, we threw our waterproof backpacks onto the ground.
"A dog said, this kind of weather bathing, from the head to the feet, cool through the heart, the body times great." Fatty laughed and finished, somewhat impatiently opened the backpack, changed into the frogman suit, and began to do some simple warm-up exercises.
I opened my backpack and took out a piece of cloth from it and placed it flat on the ground, pressed it with a few stones, then took out an incense burner, two joss sticks, a dish of glutinous rice, and an empty bowl.
"Half Immortal, what are you doing?" Fatty asked as he looked back at me.
I was too lazy to pay attention to him, coming with them to rob the tomb was detrimental to Yin Virtue. There was only something to do now to remedy the situation. The incense burner was placed in the center of the north side of the piece of cloth, then two incense candles were placed flat on both sides, and the glutinous rice dish and empty bowl were located after the incense candles on the left and right.
After removing the wooden sword behind my back, I chanted, "Yin and Yang, Five Elements, Heaven and Earth, Taoism is abundant, the underworld is self-concordant, lend the Tao a hand!"
As soon as the words fell, I quickly inserted the wooden sword in my hand into the glutinous rice dish, "Open!"
After shouting, the tip of the wooden sword was lifted lightly, a few grains of glutinous rice were picked up, I shook the wooden sword, three or two grains of glutinous rice fell back into the dish, until the tip of the sword above the residue of a grain of glutinous rice. Holding the sword in my right hand, my left hand raised the middle finger of my index finger and lightly pointed at the sword body, my right hand slightly pulled back, while my left hand slowly explored forward until the middle finger of my index finger stopped at the tip of the sword to hold the glutinous rice grains before slowly bending over and pointing the tip of the sword at the joss stick.
"Light the fire!" I said to Fatty.
Fatty was full of doubts, but still pulled out a lighter from his backpack and lit the two joss sticks that were placed flat on top of the cloth block before inserting them into the ground along with the cloth block.
I used both hands to stabilize the glutinous rice grains on the tip of the sword, on the flame of the incense candles quickly left three circles right three circles rotated six times, the glutinous rice grains into an empty bowl, and then bit through the tip of the index finger of the left hand, dripping a little virgin blood to the glutinous rice.
After doing this, I put down the wooden sword in my hand, drew out three incense, both hands index finger and thumb pressed the three incense inverted grip to the incense candle lit, and then the thumb slightly force, both hands changed the shape of the hand, the three incense quickly hold the right.
"Xiao Dao is the one hundred and ninth generation master of Maoshan, I have come to your place to beg for a few days of forgiveness, I hope that you will all be magnanimous and do not block the road."
After saying that, I kneeled down on both knees and inserted three joss sticks into the incense burner after three buckles of my head right in front of the piece of cloth. Then I took out some medals and burned them on the side before picking up the bowl with glutinous rice and saying to Fatty and Old Hu, whose eyes were glowing, "Come here."
Old Hu and Fatty looked at me with eyes that looked like the pomp and circumstance of a believer worshipping the true God, incomparably worshipful and holy. I took out the blood-stained glutinous rice in their forehead a little bit of rice-like red dots explained: "The tomb is very heavy yin gas, with this life-preserving hemorrhoid, you can let you free from yin gas ruffled body."
Old Hu and Fatty nodded their heads as if they didn't understand, I didn't expect them to really understand. After I finished helping them, I ordered one for myself, and thankfully, the diving goggles were just enough to block this life-preserving hemorrhoid.
"Half Immortal, so we can go into the water now, right?" Fatty asked weakly.
I looked at the Zhanghe River in front of me, the river was very turbulent, wave after wave, looking at me a little mental panic, a thin mosquito voice back, "It is possible, just ......"
"Just what?" Old Hu hurriedly concentrated and asked.
I was a little difficult, growing up in the mountains, bathing is to use mountain water or well water, the only 'big river' in the village is actually a small stream, the deepest place is only about one meter. But looking at their adoring eyes, I was too embarrassed to tell them that I didn't know how to swim.
"Half Immortal?" Fatty waited for half a day, saw that I didn't respond and reminded.
I said awkwardly, "This river is so turbulent, aren't you guys afraid?"
"Afraid of nothing! We've all swum in the ocean!" Fatty proudly patted his chest, "Not that I'm bragging, not to mention wearing this outfit, even if there is no, this kind of small river, I flopped a few times back and forth without any problem."
What kind of clothes? I looked at the fat man's frogman's suit, and the oxygen tank behind him, my heart is still a little bottomless.
"Half Immortal, you don't know how to swim, right?" Old Hu on one side asked cautiously.
"Just kidding, how could I not know how to swim, Maoshan Magician, what not!" I increased the volume of my voice as a way to bolster my courage, and after changing my line, fearing that they would be skeptical, I jumped into the water ahead of them.
"Eh, Half Immortal, wait ha!" Fatty hurriedly shouted.
"What, are you scared?" I said contemptuously, but sighed in my heart: it's good to be afraid!
"Afraid of a hammer!" Fatty said with a laugh, while Old Hu also shook his head and said with a smile, "Half Immortal, although Zhanghe River isn't scary, but in order to avoid us getting lost in the water, I think it's better for us to be a bit safer."
After saying that, Old Hu took out a hiking rope from inside his bag, and after tying one end of the rope around his waist, he handed it to Fatty, who looked at me and handed the rope over to me. Why do I feel that there is a hint of suspicion in the eyes of the fat man? Did they see that I couldn't swim?
Nope!
I dismissed this idea, this is not the time to scare myself.
After tying the rope around my waist, I handed the head of the rope to Fatty.
After the three people tied the rope around their waists, Fatty led the way into the water, I was in the middle, Old Hu was at the back, and the length of the rope between the three people was only about five meters.
The backpacks were all waterproof bags purchased with very good sealing performance! At the beginning of the water, I was a little scared, deep feet and shallow feet behind the fat man, for fear of accidentally washed away by the river, but after walking for a while, the courage to enlarge.
The river water at the edge was not too violent, by the time the river water filled up to my chest, I felt some chest tightness, but fearing that the two of them would belittle me, I braced myself and cautiously continued to move forward.
Waiting to enter the deep water, I realized, in fact, there is nothing to be afraid of. Frogman suit in, swim up is not laborious, and there are oxygen cylinders to provide oxygen, and the only difference between land and I'm afraid is the resistance of the current.
Fatty's water is very high, although the swim route is not a straight line, but did not deviate too much, I swim up behind some of the effort, and finally simply landed at the bottom of the river, the body affixed to the bottom of the river with both hands slowly crawling forward.
This time also not show off, can not drag behind it!
Fatty and old Hu very will be me, also followed the dive to the bottom of the water, five meters long rope, was taut two or three meters, they obviously do not care to climb the river.
With a step deeper, I obviously feel some strain, the body is uncontrollably driven by the current drifting, the most difficult or the pressure underwater, pressure me a little slow to breathe.
Fatty and Old Hu may also notice my abnormality, shorten the distance with me, for fear that I will be washed away by the current.
With the diving goggles in, the underwater vision was not much hindered, but I entered the water for this period of time, but I did not even see a small fish or shrimp, thinking, could it be that the transit of the Yin soldiers scared away the fish here?
After a while, Fatty and Old Hu were still swimming in an orderly manner, and there didn't seem to be anything unusual. I, however, couldn't stand it any longer, and had the urge to surface, but was afraid of being washed away by the water.
Suddenly, I saw a large stone directly in front of me, the boulder because of years of being washed by the water, exposed the bottom of the river part of the shape is not regular, the first time I saw it is not much, but I think it is like a life-saving straw, it is a good shelter for me.
Originally, the rocks at the bottom of the river are not few, and such boulders are also common, but I really don't want to climb now, I want to take a good rest, so I deliberately looked at this boulder not far away.
Look at a long time, feel some wrong, this boulder good law out of a mysterious atmosphere, as if there is something inside the boulder calling me.
For a time, I was a little trance, the body can not help but swim to the boulder, in a step close to, after a stunned discovery in the boulder and the bottom of the river in contact with the place, there is a strand of black hair with the current ripples, if not look carefully, thought it was the water plants!
Could it be that a woman was crushed under the boulder?
I don't think I'm a qualified magician, and I've done a lot of things that are detrimental to the virtue of the Yin, but if there really is a woman who lost her footing and was pressed under a boulder, then she will surely be transformed into a ghost after her death. The corpse was oppressed, and it was impossible to get peace after transforming into a ghost.
I looked above at Fatty and Old Hu who were pulled by me to lean this way, they were full of doubts and penciled gestures at me. Probably meaning to ask if they had found something.
I waved to them and swam to the edge of the boulder after. Holding the boulder with both hands and exerting slight force, I tried to move the boulder to release the female corpse that could possibly exist inside. In the Taoist rules of Maoshan, although the lone souls and ghosts were pitiful, the truly pitiful ones were these undead who could not get a burial for their bodies before they died and were still being abused all year round.
Fatty and Old Hu probably guessed that I wanted to move the boulder, thinking that I had found something, also rushed over to help, and with the efforts of the three people, they finally moved the boulder a few times. It was hard to exert force in the water, the two of them and I looked at each other for a moment, both stopped for a moment, then I gestured at them, put up three fingers, and then slowly bent them one by one.
When the third finger was bent, the three of us held the boulder at the same time, and then pulled the boulder with all our strength at the same time.
Under the efforts of the three of us, the boulder was finally shaken substantially.
However, at this moment, I suddenly felt that my feet were tripped by something, and hurriedly stomped Fatty viciously, who was full of doubts. I then looked at Old Hu, who looked at me uncertainly.
Still pretending with me?
I once again put up three fingers and gestured at them, after counting down to zero, the three of us once again hugged the boulder and lifted it upwards, the loosened boulder was substantially lifted, but we still couldn't pull it out in one breath.
It was at this time that I felt as if my feet were grabbed by something, and my whole body was pulled downward and slid violently, and my body hit the bottom of the river uncontrollably.
Now I was completely enraged, they knew that I couldn't swim and still toyed with me like this!
After I stabilized my body and floated back up to sound, I glared viciously at the two of them, if I wasn't under the water, I really wanted to say to them, "Nima pit ah!"
Only, their expressions looked strange, both of them stared at my back with round eyes, full of horror. And I also felt a cool air at my back, as if there was something behind me, before I had time to ask them what they saw, they were like mice that had seen a cat, suddenly turning their heads and fleeing in fear.
