Chapter 29: Respecting God

Chapter 29: Respecting God

Chapter 29: Respecting God
Granny Sha stared at the scene in a daze. The series of changes were so fast that she was overwhelmed.

Chen Shi took a long breath, took off the sheep-horn copper lamp on his back, and said with a smile: "Mother-in-law, I got the copper lamp you lost!"

Suddenly, the little old woman ran over trembling, and hugged him in her arms. Her body was shaking, her voice choked, and she hugged him tightly, tears streaming down her face like rain.

"My dear child, I will never let you take risks again!"

The little old woman cried very sadly and ignored the bronze lamp she was longing for, which made Chen Shi a little frightened.

Granny Sha held him as if he were her own relative and was reluctant to let go.

After a long time, Granny Sha let him go, wiped the tears from her face, and repeatedly checked whether Chen Shi had any injuries. She was relieved when she found that he was not injured.

"Mother-in-law, are you okay?" Chen Shi asked tentatively.

When Granny Sha heard his voice, she thought of her own children and burst into tears again.

"My son Tianyu is just as smart and cute as him. If he were still alive, he would have started a family and I would have a grandson. He would be about the same age as Xiaoshi."

The old woman was moved by the scene. Seeing Chen Shi escape from the underworld when he was doomed to die, she couldn't help but think of her son Xiang Tianyu.

Xiang Tianyu was very smart, cute, and quick-witted. He was about ten years old at that time.

Boys are always naughty, but also sensible, and Xiang Tianyu is one of them.

When she is naughty, she wants to grab her and give her a good beating, but when she is sensible, she will be particularly caring, asking her about her well-being and patting her shoulders and back.

She loved her son very much, but she also had her own ambitions at that time. She had achieved great accomplishments in the soul and wanted to go further, but for some reason, she could not make a breakthrough, so she had a bold idea.

That is to sneak into the underworld and look for a strange stone that only exists in the underworld, the Three Lives Stone.

If one could use the Three Lives Stone to refine medicine, after taking it one would be able to realize one's past life, and transform the cultivation of the past life into one's own cultivation in this life, thus allowing oneself to break through to the next realm.

However, not everyone can go to the underworld. Those who go there are either the spirits of boys or the spirits of girls.

The spirit of the boy is pure yang and can resist the invasion of the negative energy of the underworld so as to prevent his soul from being destroyed.

The spirit of a virgin is purely yin, so it won't be damaged too quickly in the underworld.

She did not trust outsiders. After all, the Three Lives Stone was extremely precious, so she planned to let her son Xiang Tianyu sneak into the underworld and steal the Three Lives Stone for her.

She made multiple preparations for Xiang Tianyu's safety, armed with all kinds of life-saving talismans, precious seals, various spells, and precious blood. Only then did she allow Xiang Tianyu's soul to leave his body and enter the underworld.

Xiang Tianyu was a particularly sensible child. He did such a dangerous thing for her without any complaints or refusal, and just entered the underworld.

However, Xiang Tianyu did not come back.

She waited for seven days, but Xiang Tianyu never came back.

Seven days is a hurdle. When a monk’s soul leaves the body, the body can still be alive within seven days. After seven days, the body will die and decay.

Her son died.

The naughty and sensible little boy died.

The soul is lost in the underworld and cannot find the way home.

The death of her son was a huge blow to her. Also because of this incident, her husband broke up with her, and the couple became strangers. Also because of this incident, she spent her whole life in self-blame and regret.

Back then, Chen Shi's grandfather Chen Yindu found her and asked for her help. She originally refused, but when she saw Chen Shi's face and thought of her son, she agreed. She was willing to risk her life and cross the Yin and Yang worlds to call back Chen Shi's soul.

It was also at that time that she offended the giants of the underworld and left many enemies. She could no longer set foot in the underworld, otherwise she would be besieged.

Grandma Sha sighed softly and touched Chen Shi’s head.

"Mother-in-law won't let you do anything dangerous again," she whispered.

Chen Shi held up the sheep-horn copper lamp and said with a smile, "Is this the lamp that Grandma is looking for?"

Granny Sha cheered up and nodded: "For this broken lamp, you almost lost your life. Do you hate Granny, Xiao Shi?"

Chen Shi shook his head: "Grandpa said that grandma did a lot for me back then, and asked me to repay her kindness."

Granny Sha felt warm in her heart and wanted to shed tears again. She said quickly, "It's getting dark soon. Let's go back first."

The two hurried back.

"This lamp is a treasure that only the ghost king among the underworld can possess. It is called the Sheep Horn Heavenly Spirit Lamp. It can illuminate the Yin and Yang worlds and see through the netherworld. It has incredible power."

Granny Sha talked about the origin of the Goat Horn Heavenly Spirit Lamp, saying, "Back then, I teamed up with a few old guys to resist the power of the Goat Horn Heavenly Spirit Lamp and severely injured the Horse-Faced Ghost King. The Horse-Faced Ghost King fell into the Forgotten River with the lamp. I knew he would die, but I didn't expect that he could survive by relying on the special features of the Forgotten River and live to this day."

She couldn't help but feel a little scared.

If the Horse-Faced Ghost King still had a little strength left, a wisp of his true energy would be enough to smash Chen Shi to pieces.

"I'll keep this lamp for you first. You can take it away anytime in the future," said Grandma Sha.

When the two returned to Gangzi Village, it was getting dark and they saw a big black dog waiting at the entrance of the village.

Chen Shi hurried forward: "Hei Guo, grandpa asked you to come over and told me to go home for dinner?"

Black Pot wagged his tail.

Granny Sha said, "Xiao Shi, go home with Gou Zi first. Come over tomorrow and I'll take you to find the ancient temple."

Chen Shi hurriedly expressed his gratitude.

Granny Sha watched the man and the dog go away, feeling filled with emotion.

"Just like Tianyu when he was a child. He was also so smart, so clever, and so stubborn. He would definitely do what he promised to others."

She returned to her residence and placed the sheep-horn sky lamp on the table, which creaked under the weight.

This copper lamp didn't seem heavy when Chen Shi was holding it, but it weighed more than 300 kilograms.

Granny Sha took out a silver hairpin and lengthened the wick.

The wick was inserted into the crown of the bronze man on the sheep's back, and the bronze man's body was filled with lamp oil. Even though many years had passed, the lamp oil was still sufficient.

When the wick was pulled out a little, the bronze man's face became strange, and he opened his mouth and let out a shrill scream, which was very piercing in the room. When the flame of the lamp stabilized, it seemed to be accustomed to the pain and stopped screaming. Instead, a smile appeared on its face.

Granny Sha activated the sheep-horn sky-spiritual lamp, and suddenly the flame of the lamp grew brighter. The next moment, her house, streets, Gangzi Village, and even Qianyang Mountain seemed to have all disappeared!
The piercing light illuminated houses, streets, villages, mountains and rivers, and reached the dark underworld!
Granny Sha used her eyes to the utmost, using the light of the lamp to look into the endless darkness, through the fog and wasteland, death and loneliness, and past countless ghosts, searching for that tiny figure.

"Tianyu, where are you? Are you lost? Mother is here to look for you..."

When Chen Shi returned home, his grandfather had already prepared dinner for him. Chen Shi quickly washed his hands and face before sitting down.

"You went to see Grandma Sha. She didn't ask you to do anything dangerous, did she?" Grandpa asked casually.

Chen Shi shook his head and smiled, "No. Grandpa, Granny Sha is a very good person and treats me very kindly."

"That's good."

Grandpa turned his back to him, slowly eating the candle, and said, "Although Granny Sha is a good person, she is also very obsessed and is prone to do some outrageous things. If she asks you to go to the underworld, don't agree to her."

Chen Shi was stern and thought to himself, "It's too late. I've already been there."

He didn't tell his grandfather about this, for fear that his grandfather would stop him from going to see Grandma Sha.

Nothing happened all night.

Early in the morning, after Chen Shi finished his meal, he greeted his godmother, said goodbye to his grandfather, then went out excitedly and headed straight for Gangzi Village.

"Wang!"

At the entrance of the village, Hei Guo was sitting under a tree and shouted at Chen Shi's receding back.

"I know he lied."

Grandpa stood behind Hei Guo, his face gloomy, "When he came back yesterday, he was soaked and had a negative energy. Apparently Granny Sha sent him to the underworld. He also protected the old woman."

Hei Guo turned his head to look at his grandfather: "Woof woof!"

Grandpa's face was dark. "You are right. The brat needs to be taught a lesson. He has learned to lie. And Granny Sha needs to be taught a lesson, lest she put my grandson in danger! What's even more infuriating is that she actually wanted to snatch my grandson away!"

Hei Guo raised his head suspiciously, this was not what it meant.

If grandpa wanted to beat Chen Shi, he could have done it himself. Why bother saying that it was it that said it?
But I have to take the blame for this.

When Chen Shi arrived at Gangzi Village, Grandma Sha had already prepared dinner, but she had not eaten yet and was waiting for him.

"Not even dogs would eat the food cooked by Chen Yindu! It's hard to believe that you've been eating it for so many years."

Granny Sha took a few bites of food, put down her bowl and chopsticks, and watched Chen Shi wolfing down the food with a smile.

There's no way, the medicinal food grandpa makes is really too unpalatable.

"Eat slowly, eat slowly, don't choke."

Granny Sha smiled and said, "There's still some in the pot. I'll serve you some more."

Chen Shi's belly was full. It was the first time in two years that he had eaten so full. He quickly got up and helped Grandma Sha wash the pots and dishes.

Granny Sha said quickly, "Leave it there, I'll clean it up myself! This child..."

Chen Shi cleaned up everything and helped her clean the yard, then looked at Grandma Sha eagerly.

Granny Sha was dressed neatly, carrying a small basket covered with a piece of floral cloth. She smiled and said, "I know you are anxious, let's set off now."

An old man and a young man went out into the mountains.

The road leading into the mountain from Gangzi Village is different from that leading into the mountain from Huangpo Village. The road leading into the mountain from Huangpo Village is relatively flat, while the road here is relatively steep.

The mountain road was carved out on the steep cliffs. It was a narrow road that could barely accommodate a big man. If someone was walking towards you, it would be very dangerous and you might fall off the cliff if you were not careful.

Although Granny Sha looked old, her steps were very steady and she was not afraid of the steep cliffs at all. However, Chen Shi was a little frightened.

"Sister-in-law, Xiao Shi and I are passing by and would like to borrow the road from you." Grandma Sha stopped and smiled at a big tree with twisted roots.

She came under the tree, took out some incense sticks from the basket, lit them, and stuck them under the tree.

Chen Shi looked at it curiously, and saw that the ancient tree had lived for thousands of years, with its roots intertwined and covering the entire cliff. The roots exposed outside alone covered an area of ​​one or two acres!
However, the trunk of this big tree must have been struck by lightning, and there were traces of lightning and fire burning on the stump. The tree trunk they saw now was the new trunk that had grown next to the main trunk.

Although it is newly grown, it looks like it is thousands of years old.

The spirit of this ancient tree is an old woman who lives in a tree hole. She is very short, even shorter than Chen Shi, with gray hair tied up in a bun. She is leaning on a cane, with kind eyes, and she looks at Chen Shi and Grandma Sha with a smile.

Her mouth was sunken and she had few teeth. When she smiled, you could barely see two or three teeth.

"Xiao Shi, come and meet Grandma Zhuang!" Grandma Sha stuffed a few incense sticks into Chen Shi's hand.

Chen Shi hurried forward, burned incense, and bowed, saying, "Chen Shi greets Granny Zhuang!"

"Good boy, good boy." Grandma Zhuang looked at him with a smile.

The two of them passed through the tree hole.

"The mountains are awe-inspiring. We should respect the mountains as we respect the gods. There are many spirits in Qianyang Mountain. The plants and trees have spirits, the rocks have spirits, the reptiles and animals have spirits, and even the mountain streams and creeks have spirits living in them."

Granny Sha taught Chen Shi as they walked, "If you are respectful, all roads lead to success. If you are disrespectful, a road to life may turn into a road to death."

They came to a steeper place, where the mountain road ahead suddenly cut off and was filled with black rocks.

Granny Sha stepped forward, offered incense, and said, "Brother Daoist, Xiao Shi and I are just passing by. Please give us a favor."

Chen Shi's eyes widened as he saw that the black stones were moving in a regular pattern, climbing up the steep cliff and gradually moving away.

Only when the black stones went far away did Chen Shi get a glimpse of the true appearance of the black stones. They turned out to be the scales of an extremely huge black snake. However, they were so huge that they looked like a pile of black rocks!

Chen Shi followed Grandma Sha and continued along the mountain road. After walking four or five miles, they finally saw the big black snake.

The black snake coiled on the mountain where they were, with its head raised up in loneliness. Its exhalation became clouds, and its inhalation became wind. With each breath, the wind and clouds in the valley changed dramatically, creating a wonderful scene.

The big black snake is a spirit animal in the mountains. It has long passed the days of eating blood to fill its stomach. It eats wind and drinks dew, sleeps in the clouds, and is like a hermit in the mountains, living in harmony with the world.

(End of this chapter)