[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-nothing-is-taboo":3,"chapter-nothing-is-taboo-nothing-is-taboo-chapter-360":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","Nothing Is Taboo",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2310745,4514,"Chapter 360: Acupuncture","nothing-is-taboo-chapter-360",360,"\u003Cp>That group of cows charged to the outside of the tea stall with heavy thuds.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But they hesitated, unwilling to enter.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The lead cow, unusually massive, swayed its long, curved horns, peering into the tea stall again and again, then cautiously asked: “Sister Black, has something happened?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The woman glanced down at the ten counting rods embedded in her body and thought: Don’t you see that already?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>My brothers are truly stupid!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But the cows genuinely couldn’t tell.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Because though the counting rods pierced the woman’s body, no blood flowed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The woman herself didn’t understand: why, after my transformation, do injuries no longer bleed?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After their transformations, the cows gained spiritual awareness and could speak human language, thus learning some things about the human world.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The big black cow said: “Sister Black, you look just like a human practicing acupuncture…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The woman nearly cursed it, but held back. Not only did she hold back—she pinched her nose and admitted: “You’re right, I am doing acupuncture. Nothing’s wrong here, go away quickly…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Yuan moved his fingers, and the remaining counting rods flew up, hovering above the heads of each cow!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The woman screamed: “Don’t!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The cows were baffled: Are you telling us to go or not?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In the woman’s round, wide eyes, a plea flickered.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Yuan controlled the counting rods and said: “Answer my questions truthfully, and I’ll spare their lives.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The big black cow finally understood, bellowing: “So you’re threatening Sister Black!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It blasted two red plumes of hot air from its nostrils, dug its hind hooves furiously into the ground, then lowered its head and charged straight at Xu Yuan.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thud!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Master Xu pinned it to the ground with one hand.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The big black cow bellowed in fury, eyes bloodshot, muscles bulging like rocks.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was the largest in the village, and without doubt the strongest.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even a century-old tree, if fully strained, would be uprooted by its force.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yet Master Xu held its horns with one hand, rendering it utterly immobile.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After cultivating the Dragon Transformation Scripture, his physique became extraordinarily robust.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The power disparity between a cow and a dragon was obvious.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The woman’s eyes widened further.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She had always believed that her eldest brother, “Hei Yi,” would never lose in strength.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But how could this evil man be so strong?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He didn’t even seem human.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Yuan held down the big black cow; the counting rod hovering above its head slowly drifted back, pressing directly against its forehead.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“No! Please don’t!” Sister Black begged frantically: “I’ll tell you, I’ll tell you everything!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Yuan lifted the counting rod, then flicked his wrist—the big black cow rolled over with a thunderous crash.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was indeed thick-skinned and tough, unharmed; it rolled over and scrambled up at once.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Clearly furious, yet it dared not charge again.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sister Black told the cows: “Stay still!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then she told Xu Yuan about her transformation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A few days ago, after the final plowing before the New Year, Sister Black returned home with her master.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She was truly exhausted.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So she walked slowly, curling her tongue around wild grasses and flowers by the roadside to eat, just to fill her stomach.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The village’s fields had irrigation ditches along the field ridges.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Her master walked ahead, unaware—but Sister Black suddenly saw a string of green beans emerge from the ditch like a water snake.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She was so hungry she curled her tongue around it, swallowing the entire plant—stalk, roots, and all.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But after eating it, she felt her body grow heavier and heavier.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She walked slower and slower.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even when she heard her master’s shouts and the crack of his whip, she felt dazed, as if everything were unreal.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In the end, her master forcibly dragged her back to the cowshed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The mistress had already prepared the fodder.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It contained some roasted soybeans.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In the past, the smell would have made her salivate.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But this time, she had no appetite at all.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She entered the cowshed, collapsed, and fell asleep.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When she woke again, it was midnight—she had become a monster.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Yuan’s mind stirred; the beast sinew rope extended, ready to pierce through her nostrils.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sister Black resisted fiercely: “I don’t want to be led by the nose again.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Yuan smirked: “Fine. But you must behave honestly—no thoughts of escape.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Alright, I agree—as long as you don’t pierce my nose, anything’s fine.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Yuan retracted the counting rods from her body.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This monster was large, but only ninth-rank.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The black cows outside weren’t even ranked.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Master Xu wasn’t worried they’d cause trouble.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Take me to where that green bean sprouted from the water.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Alright.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sister Black faithfully led Xu Yuan there.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She had no intention of hiding anything or fleeing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Her cow-brain held no concepts of scheming, betrayal, or deceit.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When they arrived, it was just a regular field ridge and a common ditch.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But Xu Yuan looked out—and across the ridge, a vast patch of seedlings had all withered.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As if some force had drained all their vitality.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Yuan pointed upstream along the ditch and told Sister Black: “Block the water.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Oh.” She obediently went, heaving a large stone with effort, thudding it into place to seal the ditch.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She scooped up handfuls of yellow mud, mixed in dry grass, and sealed every crack.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When finished, she admired her work, proud of herself as a truly skilled laborer!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The water in the ditch quickly drained dry; Xu Yuan carefully observed and soon spotted something odd.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The beast sinew rope extended downward, burrowed into the muck, then pulled upward—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It lifted a patch of dark red, dried, web-like filaments.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Like a dried network of blood vessels!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Though utterly dead, the thing still emitted a faint taint.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The direction of the vessel network matched precisely the patch of dead crops.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Yuan commanded Sister Black again: “Dig open this entire field along these things—be careful not to break them. I need to see exactly how they spread underground.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Oh.” She answered again, needing no urging, whipping, praise, or encouragement, and began digging.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For a full hour, Sister Black meticulously and carefully excavated the entire field.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Yuan finally found the true origin of these vessel-like evils.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A seed shaped like a human heart.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Its interior was hollow, leaving only a thin outer shell.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Its surface was covered in gray-white fuzz—resembling the white hair of ancient zombies!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Yuan frowned: This thing first grew a network of vessels, then drained the vitality of the crops, then sprouted a green bean—which Sister Black ate?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Turning her into a monster.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Why go through such elaborate trouble?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sister Black was merely a ninth-rank monster, and not even mad.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She hadn’t killed a single person yet.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Yuan didn’t understand this kind of evil; he thought a moment, then sealed the object in his stench pouch and took it back for Zhou Leizi to advise on.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Where are the villagers? Take me to see them.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sister Black continued dutifully, leading Xu Yuan to the village’s largest cowshed, where over a dozen people were locked inside, each with a nose ring and a hood over their head, tied down.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“There are six more sheds,” Sister Black confessed honestly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Yuan glanced around, his heart sank, and he immediately asked: “Where are the children?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The cowshed held only adults—not a single child!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>(End of Chapter)\u003C\u002Fp>",1228,"2026-06-20T12:07:24.624Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","3fd2cf91b31ef6ae36980518ce7679e6f99b3fa69438072f2ebb339f76f374a7","nothing-is-taboo-chapter-361","nothing-is-taboo-chapter-359",413,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fnothing-is-taboo-cover.jpg"]