Chapter 16

15, Wen Yongsheng Distillery

After Yang Rui had offered incense to the so-called Ancestral Spirit and the Lord of Ten Thousand Heavens, Zhou Chang distinctly felt that the sense of estrangement and unfamiliarity Zhou Sanji held toward him vanished at once.

He did not believe that Yang Rui had communicated with the so-called Ancestral Spirit or the Lord of Ten Thousand Heavens while offering incense; no abnormal phenomena had appeared within the room.

The greater possibility lay in the fact that Yang Rui's act of offering incense was, in truth, a test directed at him.

—Just now, had he not sealed his mouth and nose with thought-threads, the blue smoke drifting from the swaying incense tip would inevitably have been inhaled by this body. If Zhou Chang's body had inhaled that incense smoke, the attitudes of Zhou Sanji and Yang Rui toward him now might have been entirely different.

What did it mean that Zhou Chang's body could inhale incense smoke?

If this body were to receive incense offerings for a long time, what would happen?

Zhou Chang could not foresee the consequences within, but he could roughly guess—that Zhou Chang's body inhaling incense smoke was, for his current self, absolutely not a good thing.

Clearly, at the fifth watch this morning, when Zhou Sanji offered incense to Zhou Chang's spirit tablet, Zhou Chang's corpse still lacked the ability to actively inhale incense smoke; yet, after merely one daytime, it had acquired such ability...

It was constantly growing, and its speed of growth was beyond comprehension!

Zhou Chang suddenly felt a chilling sensation of "negotiating a deal with a tiger for its skin"!

The "Ghost Secret Treasure" guarded by Li Xiamei—Zhou Chang's corpse—was by no means that simple; this matter might involve an even greater secret.

Zhou Chang raised his eyes to look at Yang Rui; at that very moment, Yang Rui happened to cast his gaze toward him, smiling and nodding slightly in greeting.

Zhou Sanji moved several stools over, inviting Yang Rui and "Stone Egg" to sit, then propped up a small table, took out a coarse earthenware teapot that had not been used in the family for a long time, pinched a few crumbs of tea brick into it, boiled hot water to make tea, and served a bowl to each of the guests and hosts present.

At this time, Yang Rui had already begun conversing with Zhou Chang: "Your grandfather just told me your general situation. Can only your hands move now? Is there absolutely no reaction anywhere else?"

Zhou Chang's brow twitched slightly, and the thought-threads covering his hands withdrew one by one.

Looking at Yang Rui, he shook his head and said, "Previously, my hands could move a little, but now they cannot move again."

Relying on thought-threads to control this body was, after all, only an extreme measure. If Zhou Chang wished to fully master this shell, he could not factor the thought-threads into consideration; therefore, since he was now seeking a solution from Yang Rui, he naturally had to withdraw the thought-threads and exclude this influencing factor.

"Oh?"

Yang Rui raised an eyebrow, pulled the stool beneath him forward, and sat close to the bed's edge.

He extended his hand, naturally placing his fingertips on Zhou Chang's pulse, signaled with his eyes for Zhou Chang to hold his breath and calm his spirit, and took Zhou Chang's pulse.

After a long while, Yang Rui finally released his hand, furrowing his brows in deep thought.

Zhou Sanji, watching from the side, looked deeply worried and dared not speak to disturb him.

"The pulse is extremely slow and short, only dropping a bit after a long interval... This is a 'Roof-Leak Pulse'..." Yang Rui spoke with a hoarse voice, lifting his eyes to meet Zhou Chang's pitch-black eyes, "The Roof-Leak Pulse is a death pulse, appearing mostly on those about to die..."

I guess you cannot move because your physical body is half-dead, but your soul is still vivid and alive.

The physical body is dead and stiff, the blood is congested, the heart pulse is weak, and the five organs are stagnant—only because the soul is still exerting force can there be a half-day interval between each drop of a Roof-Leak Pulse, rather than a complete absence of pulse..."

Hearing these words, Zhou Chang's eyes glowed slightly.

This "Elder Yang" indeed possessed some genuine skill, having almost accurately described his entire current situation.

He was indeed alive.

Zhou Chang's soul and physical body, however, were already dead.

Thus, this matched the situation of "soul alive, body dead" that Yang Rui had described!

"Oh ho—there's still a bit of pulse! His body is as cold as an ice block; I thought his body had been dead for ages already." Zhou Sanji spoke from the side, appearing relieved but actually extremely nervous, "Is there still any hope for saving him?"

"Hehe..." Yang Rui then glanced sideways at Zhou Sanji and grinned.

He only smiled, saying nothing else.

Zhou Sanji grew anxious: "Just say it then—"

Then he immediately lowered his posture: "Senior Brother~!"

Yang Rui, in high spirits, slapped his knee and said to Zhou Sanji, "The 'Wen Yongsheng Distillery' in Qingyi Town often produces excellent wine; it is famous throughout Sichuan alongside the Tiansheng Distillery, Chishui Distillery, Tianchengsheng Distillery, and Dongsheng Distillery located dozens of li away in Lu Town..."

"The wine there is very expensive; if you want to drink, I'll go buy wine from Ergou Village for you to drink..." Zhou Sanji spoke two lines with a pained expression, then suddenly bit his teeth and cut himself off, "Drinking Wen Yongsheng wine is fine too!

In a moment, I'll go fetch some; tonight, I'll make sure Senior Brother you drink happily!"

"Forget it; one copper coin can buy one jin of rough rice, but one jin of Wen Yongsheng wine costs more than thirty copper coins..." Yang Rui teased Zhou Sanji while shaking his head, finally stopping his words, turned serious, looked at Zhou Chang, and said, "Tonight, having your grandfather fetch some wine from Ergou Village to drink would be good.

My mentioning the Wen Yongsheng Distillery is not because I want to drink the wine there; of course, if your grandfather is willing, filling a gourd for me would be nice too.

What I mean is—would you like to go work as an apprentice inside the Wen Yongsheng Distillery?"

While speaking, Old Gao slowly pulled a small box from his shoulder bag, opened the box, took out two slips of paper, spread them open, and handed one of them to Zhou Sanji: "I once did some tasks for the master of the Wen Yongsheng Distillery; he gave me two tickets, allowing me to send two people to work as apprentices in their distillery."

By the faint light from the paper-pasted window, Zhou Chang saw that on the palm-sized slip of paper in Zhou Sanji's hand, intricate and beautiful patterns surrounded the four characters "Wen Yongsheng Distillery"; on both sides of the four characters were several columns of slogans: "A hundred years of Wen Yongsheng wine, one mouthful relieves worries, one cup severs delusions, three jars bring joy to heaven and earth."

On the blank space of the paper was a stamp as fresh and vivid as a new one.

"Being able to work as an apprentice in such a large distillery is not bad after all." Zhou Sanji, as if afraid Yang Rui might change his mind, tucked the ticket into his pocket, then looked at Zhou Chang with a beaming smile, "Little grandson, you are saved!"

Zhou Chang looked at Yang Rui, not understanding the reason.

He was completely immobile now; which distillery would accept him as an apprentice?

Even if they accepted him, what could he possibly do in the distillery? Lie down and make wine yeast?

What relation did this have to his current predicament?

"I told your grandfather your birth chart long ago; it is similar to a 'Kui Gang paired with Killing Star,' a fate accompanied by calamity and disaster." Yang Rui finally explained to Zhou Chang, "Such a fate is born to 'pass trials'; pass one trial, and you gain a great fortune; fail to pass, and you die.

The one point where you differ from those with a 'Kui Gang paired with Killing Star' fate accompanied by calamity is that when you die, depending on the time of your death, your birth chart will undergo new changes; this is called 'Ghost Death Birth Chart,' or 'Jian Corpse Fate.'

What is Jian?

People often say, 'When a person dies, they become a ghost; when a ghost dies, they become Jian.'

This is actually not accurate; after a person dies, a living soul does indeed leave the body, but generally it scatters with the wind within seven days; where is the possibility of becoming Jian?

The ghosts that can truly become 'Jian' are actually the kind of 'Guai' that can transform into a Demon.

Old Jian is a very terrifying category among Demons.

When a Jian corpse undergoes embryonic transformation, the Old Jian emerges!"

Yang Rui spoke a string of words in one breath, then adjusted his breathing, looked at Zhou Chang, and asked, "Do you understand what I mean?"

Zhou Chang nodded:

"So, once I die, I will become extremely terrifying?"

"Exactly!" Yang Rui said. "You have now initially formed the fate pattern of 'Ghost Death Eight Characters' and can already be regarded as a 'Jian Corpse'.

A Jian Corpse initially feeds on 'Xiang Qi' and 'Delusional Thoughts'.

The thoughts of all things attach to the incense smoke; that wisp of green smoke drifting away as the incense burns can be called 'Xiang Qi', which is also 'Xiang Qi'. Xiang Qi is the food of gods and Thought Demons.

Delusional Thoughts are various thoughts exceeding the ordinary; this is the foundation from which Thought Demons are born.

The Jian Corpse consumes these two things precisely to hasten its own transformation into that extremely terrifying Thought Demon—the Old Jian!"

A faint light rippled in Zhou Chang's eyes.

This body of Zhou Chang had previously possessed the ability to autonomously absorb Xiang Qi, but he had sealed its mouth and nose with Thought Threads, forcibly interrupting its process of absorbing Xiang Qi.

Thus, it seems the Thought Threads can now effectively suppress this Jian Corpse. However, Zhou Chang's flesh grows at an extremely rapid rate; whether the Thought Threads can continue to suppress it remains unknown.

"So the wine produced by the Yongsheng Winery can eliminate the Xiang Qi and Delusional Thoughts on me?" Zhou Chang, hearing Yang Rui's words, formed a judgment in his heart and then asked Yang Rui aloud.

Yang Rui grinned, turned his head, and said to Zhou Sanji, "Your grandson is truly clever!"

"His mind has been sharp since childhood!" Every wrinkle on Zhou Sanji's face was filled with smiles.

"Your guess is already quite close to the truth." Yang Rui turned back to look at Zhou Chang and said with a smile, "Wine is the Lord of Forgetting Woes; it can calm sorrow and fear, and stop delusional thoughts. No matter how many troubling matters, no matter how many delusional fears, three cups down the throat and they are all resolved.

And the wine produced by the Yongsheng Winery in Qingyi Town is even more effective in this regard!

The main reason lies in the fact that the Yongsheng Winery uses a type of wine starter that is never shared outside, called 'Gan Chun Qu'.

When Gan Chun Qu ferments within the grains, it causes the winery workers present to feel content and at ease, dissolving sorrow, fear, and delusional thoughts; even the Xiang Qi clinging to a person will be extracted during the fermentation process of the wine starter.

The more Delusional Thoughts and Xiang Qi the fermenting grains absorb, the more fragrant and mellow the brewed wine will be!

Therefore, the Yongsheng Winery will specifically issue tickets to sell to those who are constantly overthinking and feel they are about to become Thought Demons, allowing them to work in the winery so as to absorb the delusional thoughts from their minds.

Your current situation is precisely suitable for working inside the winery.

Furthermore, if you work in the winery, you will always have the opportunity to drink half a cup or a cup of Yongsheng Wine every day. Using wine as medicine can move and circulate the vital energy and blood, promoting blood circulation; this is of great benefit to your body. Once your vital energy and blood become active, you will be able to move and walk."

"I see now." Zhou Chang understood Elder Yang's intentions; he nodded and said, "I am willing to work in the winery.

It's just that I cannot move right now; is the Yongsheng Winery willing to accept a worker like me who cannot do any work?"