Chapter 106: Inverted Worship of God

The rough gravel scratched his cheeks. Ji Taimei stumbled on the ground, running and crawling through the small road between the fields. Cypress trees were left behind. In the clear night sky, only pieces of green rice were blown by the wind, rustling, and there was the sound of gurgling water in the irrigation ditch. Under the night sky, it was peaceful and quiet.

Ji Taimei walked a distance forward and fished out the stationery his mother left him from his pocket:

【1. After walking on that small road, you can only walk forward, absolutely do not look back】

【2. When you are walking on the small road, you should be able to hear two sets of footsteps at the same time, one is your own, one is its. Don't be afraid, it will protect you】

【3. If you hear only one set of footsteps on the road, stand still and don't move until its footsteps return to your back before you can continue walking forward】

【4. On the way into the village, you will encounter a Tudimiao. Remember to offer three sticks of incense to the Land God. The incense can be found in the red plastic bag under the brick next to the small temple. Remember, it is a red plastic bag. If you see any other color plastic bag, give up offering incense and leave immediately】

【5....】

"Meaning hearing two sets of footsteps means I can safely enter the village..." Ji Taimei put the stationery back into his pocket and walked forward a few steps. His sneakers stepped on the gravel road, making a crisp creaking sound.

At the same time, another set of footsteps came from behind without any foreshadowing, the same frequency, the same rhythm, as if an invisible person was quietly following behind you. You take a step, it also takes a step, only its sound is much smaller.

Ji Taimei took a deep breath, adjusted his breathing, and stepped forward.

Creak, creak, creak—

Creak, creak, creak—

The two sounds overlapped without distinction, moving forward slowly with the light of the flashlight.

'That thing' has caught up.

Ji Taimei walked forward step by step, and the bright light gradually rose in the pitch-black night sky above his head. It seemed the moon had quietly risen, sprinkling the bright moonlight onto the green fields.

The cold moon, the silent fields, the footsteps following behind him, click-clack, click-clack. The strange scene in the surroundings was very similar to the supernatural ghost stories circulating in the streets and alleys, making people unable to help but get a tight goosebump all over.

Ji Taimei walked forward against his scalp, and the gravel on the small road bathed in moonlight looked exceptionally pale.

Not far away, a low, small building like a small house loomed. That seemed to be the Tudimiao mentioned in the letter. The Land God of Sheep Prison Village was enshrined inside.

"Offer incense, right, have to go offer incense to the Land God..." Ji Taimei's spirit was slightly lifted. He gripped the flashlight tightly and quickened his pace to walk forward.

Creak, creak, creak—

After walking a few steps, he had to stop with a pale face, because this time, he heard only one set of footsteps behind him.

Where did 'it' go?

"Mom said in the letter that I don't have to be afraid of it, it will protect me... So now it disappeared, because I encountered danger? What danger?" Ji Taimei stopped and stood in place, his pounding heart almost jumping out of his chest.

He didn't dare to continue walking forward, let alone look back to check the situation behind him. The green rice fields rustled on both sides of the road in the night wind. The strange atmosphere made Ji Taimei's heart uneasy.

1 minute passed, 2 minutes passed. The silent time passed silently. There was no movement in the darkness behind him. The footsteps that had been following him just disappeared into thin air, as if it had never existed, as if the sound he heard before was an illusion. The long wait had no progress bar, and the emotions of fear and doubt gnawed at the teenager's soul like maggots born in rotten meat. A question began to appear involuntarily, making Ji Taimei sit on pins and needles.

—Will 'it' really come back?

If it never appears, does he have to stand here until dawn?

For a moment, Ji Taimei couldn't help but want to run forward in fear, but the little remaining reason urged him to barely calm down and continue to wait in agony in place.

The wait without a specific time, even if it was five minutes, was longer than a half-hour with expectations, so long that every second was as hard to endure as a year.

I don't know how long it took, a set of footsteps sounded from behind again.

Click, click, click—

"It's back?" Ji Taimei's shoulders shook, and he woke up immediately. The sound of footsteps coming from behind gradually approached and stopped at a position about one step behind him.

Ji Taimei didn't dare to look back and continued to walk forward.

Click, click, click—

It was still the same frequency, still the same rhythm, but the footsteps that reappeared seemed to be a little different from before. The sound now was crisper, sharper. If there was a specific description, it was probably the difference between soft-soled sneakers and hard-soled leather shoes. Apart from that, there was no other strangeness.

Ji Taimei walked forward with trepidation, and the crisp and loud footsteps followed closely behind, giving him an inexplicable sense of confidence in his heart.

=9+Shu_Ba

Ahead on the road, the small Tudimiao was not far away.

Suddenly, a cold night wind blew toward his face, making a whistling sound. Along with the wind, a human voice drifted from far to near, like weeping and complaining:

【Filthy fire, turbid water, mirror covered in dust】

【Heaven is light, earth is cheap, people are expensive】

【Sun rests...】

The syllables of each Chinese character were lengthened and spliced together in a strange way, sewn into a melodious silk drifting in the wind, as if someone was complaining in the night, or as if someone was singing and dancing ahead.

Ji Taimei's back felt cold. He walked up carefully, only to see a thin person in light clothes kneeling on both knees, bowing deeply toward the direction of the Tudimiao, his forehead hitting the ground heavily, leaving a smear of bright red blood.

After one bow, the person stood up, and another string of unintelligible words came out of his mouth:

【Deer cry yo-yo, Zhao Yun yi-yi...】

Ji Taimei didn't dare to approach rashly, just watching from afar, only to see that person retreat one step after reciting a passage, and then bow down deeply toward the Tudimiao again, kowtowing, leaving a bright red bloodstain. After kowtowing, he stood up again, and another strange sacrificial speech came out of his mouth, forming a cycle.

Every time this person kowtowed toward the direction of the Tudimiao, he would straighten his body, say a sacrificial speech, and retreat one step at the same time. After the sacrificial speech was finished, he would kowtow again, repeating the cycle.

One step, one bow, one bow, one retreat. The long and strange sacrificial speeches rippled back and forth between the fields and the road, getting farther and farther, getting fainter and fainter.

By the time Ji Taimei woke up from his daze, the person on the road had disappeared at some point.

Only a small Tudimiao stood by the road, and drops of blood extended from the temple entrance into the rice fields.

(End of Chapter) ===== CHAPTER 107 =====

(End of Chapter)