Page 56
In Kibitsu, the shrine holds a festival to worship the cow god every year to pray for the soul of the cow. This is a familiar business of the shrine.
Although the TAC team does not believe in gods or ghosts, since the beasts cursed by the nose ring have appeared, they might as well try the "professionals". Regardless of whether it works or not, there is no harm in giving it a try.
"Everything was fine in previous years, how come this happened this year?" The speaker was the chief of Kibitsu Police Station, who wiped the sweat off his face vigorously with a towel.
Although the police in Kibitsu are under the management of the Okayama Prefecture Police Headquarters, in fact, a lot of funds are required from the town, and some village police are hired from the town's accounts. The super beast threatened the Olive Garden, which greatly angered the town leaders, and the TAC team did not take any action. He, the director, was caught in the middle and could not please both sides.
"Has anything special happened here recently?" asked Captain Long.
"Anything special? It doesn't seem like anything special. Oh, there was an earthquake here more than a month ago. Is that something special?"
"There's nothing special about an earthquake." Konno curled his lips and didn't take it seriously. In this country, there are always earthquakes.
Beidou did not ignore this clue. He asked, "Please tell me in detail, did the earthquake cause any damage?"
"There was no major damage in the town, but many of the ancient tombs underground were opened."
"Tomb?"
"Yes, Kibi-tsu is surrounded by mountains. In the past, it was the Bizen, Bitchu, and Bingo provinces. Before the seventh century, it was actually a unified "Kibi Province". The funeral culture of Kibi Province was very prominent. To this day, many ancient tombs from that time are still preserved underground here, most of which are from the fifth century AD."
"Due to the earthquake last month, some ancient tombs collapsed and some tomb passages were cracked. An archaeological team from Okayama came to carry out rescue excavations and found that many ancient tombs were connected underneath."
The ancient tomb was shaken open. Does this have anything to do with the so-called "Bull God"? Beidou is not sure, and Captain Long is also undecided.
Forcibly linking the ancient tomb with the Bull God and the like is feudal superstition. Could it be that there are really ghosts in the world? This is not something that their TAC team should consider.
The reason why they agreed to hold the festival was because of the strong demands of the locals. Even the TAC team could not resist the petition of the people.
That is the thousand-year-old tradition of the Kibitsu people.
So all they can do is to provide safety protection.
The shrine began to prepare for the festival, but at the same time, the TAC team would not really do nothing.
"Are the tranquilizer bullets ready?"
"Okay, that dose is enough to paralyze fifty elephants. I designed the neurotoxin based on the super beast sample created by the Yabo people. Even super beasts will not be able to resist it."
The anesthetic bullets were prepared by Dr. Kizuki, who specially drove the Airo to deliver them.
"That's good, Konno, I'll give you the tranquilizer bullets. Once the super beast wakes up after dawn, use the tranquilizer bullets to control it immediately. This will prevent the super beast from harming the villagers holding the festival."
"Okay, no problem, leave it to me."
It is said to be a tranquilizer bullet, but in fact it is a "tranquilizer cannon" and requires Konno's individual rocket launcher to use.
It will take some time to prepare for the festival, which is expected to start tomorrow morning.
Nothing special happened that night. The TAC team members took turns to rest for a few hours, and soon the sky turned pale and the sun rose.
On the other hand, Ling did not stay up late. She went home for a walk at around 8 o'clock yesterday and turned off the lights on time at 9 o'clock. As an elementary school student, even if she is Ultraman, it does not mean that she can continue to stay up after 9 o'clock.
So Ling woke up early not long after the sky brightened.
Today is Sunday.
"Miss, Miss Nadeshiko is awake."
Ling was stunned for two seconds before she remembered who Nadeshiko was. It was not her fault. The incident with the Bull Demon Super Beast yesterday had made her mind a mess, so she put the Yabo Messenger who had completed his mission behind her.
Was the Bull Demon done by the Yabo people? Lingye's inner judgment was that it was not the case. It was not because the communication of the "messenger" made her believe the Yabo people, but this time it was not like the Yabo people's method and style.
I still remember the last words that Yawa used Nadeshiko to talk to her:
[We will continue to let you see the unbearable true face of human beings and see their hypocritical and cowardly nature. ]
Human hypocrisy refers to this Bull Demon?
It seems to be true, but a large number of Japanese cattle are slaughtered for meat sales and consumption, and then they are specially used for sacrifice with nose rings. It is indeed hypocritical.
The Yabo people must know something, but they didn't elaborate. It seemed like they were just watching a good show.
It's no use asking Fuzi these questions.
Ling has also checked that after completing her "mission", Nadeshiko no longer has any other characteristics of the Yawa people. She is just an ordinary earthling (or an ordinary clone?).
"Nadeko--where is my sister now?" Oh no, I almost called the wrong name in front of Maria again.
"Miss, you don't have to do this deliberately. She is Miss Sakura's mother, and it is natural for you to call her aunt. I can tell the difference, and we can talk about our own things." Maria said with "great understanding". She knew the identity of Nadeshiko. Of course, she only knew that she was Sakura's mother.
It is a little hard to understand why a girl of 10 or years old has a -year-old daughter. Maria hesitated whether she should call the police to report the university professor named Kinomoto Fujitaka, but since the eldest lady and the butler Mino didn't say anything, she naturally wouldn't say much.
"As for Miss Nadeshiko, she is in the vegetable garden right now."
"Vegetable garden? Is that your vegetable garden, Maria?"
"Yes, Ms. Nadeshiko seems to be interested in growing vegetables as well. She went to water the vegetable garden early in the morning."
This is good news for Lingye.
She was hesitating about how to arrange for Nadeshiko, she was a real "illegal household", unable to restore her status and "destroyed in the light". She could only stay at the manor on weekdays, and if she liked to grow vegetables, it would be nice to let her follow Maria to take care of the vegetable garden.
Just as Maria said, at this moment in the vegetable garden, Nadeshiko was watering the tomatoes.
Tomatoes are originally grown in pots and then transplanted into ridges after growing branches so that their roots have enough soil space.
Tomatoes grow section by section, and each section will go through the stages of germination, flowering, and fruiting. When the next section bears fruit, small flowers will bloom on it. From early summer to autumn, there will be about ten sections, and the fruit will continue to grow during this period.
It is a very interesting plant. On the same fruit tree at the same time, you can see the various scenes of birth, growth, flowering and fruiting.
Now the fruits on the fourth section are ripe, the flowers on the fifth section are in full bloom, and new buds are sprouting higher up.
It is really a pleasant thing to water these elves under the sun, especially in the early morning when they are covered with morning dew and look so fresh and juicy, making people feel the vitality of life.
Nadeshiko found a branch with particularly lovely fruits, which were as crystal clear as gems. She did not pick them, but found a ribbon and tied it to the branch next to the fruit as a mark. This was for seed preservation. If the best fruits were kept as seeds, better varieties would surely grow next year.
The memory of standing freely in this vibrant nature is before marriage. In the last few years, there was only the smell of white sheets and disinfectant.
She loves the fields, the mountains, and the sea. Nadeshiko never thought that she would have the opportunity to stand in the sun again, to feel the fragrance of the earth again with this healthy body free of disease.
The sun rises very quickly in the summer and it can easily be high in the sky.
Lingye's lunch was still the steak prepared by Mr. Caiba. Because of yesterday's suggestion, the steak tasted a little lighter this time.
I don’t know how Chef Cai Bo cooked it. Although it was a big piece of meat, it didn’t feel greasy. It was very refreshing, but still retained the full and satisfying taste of the meat.
"How do you feel this time?"
"Very good, impeccable!" Ling also gave a thumbs up, but when she said this, she remembered another thing and didn't know whether it was appropriate to ask Chef Caibo.
"Why, are there any flaws?"
"That's not it...it's just, um, Chef Caibo, if we eat beef every day, will that bring the wrath of the Bull God?"
"The wrath of the Bull God?" Cai Bo was stunned for a moment, then burst into laughter. "Are you talking about something from a storybook, Miss?"
Ah, I was laughed at. Ling thought gloomily, yes, for a professional chef, even a chef who can stand at the top of the chef world, how could he care about the anger of the so-called ingredients?
However, Reiya's expression caused Saiba to misunderstand.
"I'm sorry, I'm not making fun of you, young lady. I just don't think there is such a thing as the 'wrath of the bull god'. If there really is a bull god, it should be thanking humans."
"grateful?"
Ling couldn't understand it either. She felt that Chef Saibo was going to say something twisted. After all, he was the man called "Shura". Even if the Bull God Super Beast really stood in front of him, he would be intimidated by his aura, right?
"Miss, do you know what is the most important thing for a biological species?"
"Hmm? Water, food, air, these?"
"Of course all of these are true, so the most important thing is survival."
This is nonsense, but Lingye became somewhat interested in his "distorted logic".
"But humans slaughtered them. Isn't that depriving them of their right to survive?"
"Really? So cows are now endangered animals?"
Of course not.
"Life has appeared on this planet for billions of years, from the earliest prokaryotes to the modern era. The most instinctive thing for any life form is the continuation of the species. Except for humans. Because humans have been at the top of the food chain for too long, they have forgotten this instinct. The life of a moth is so short, as if it is born only for the final mating. However, the male moth dies immediately, and the female moth will die soon after laying eggs. What is the meaning of their lives? There are also many insects and animals that spend their entire lives just to reproduce offspring."
"The same is true for their offspring. They have no emotions, no anger, no sorrow, and no pleasure. Those are too luxurious. As long as their genes can be passed on, everything is for this purpose. Organisms are constantly evolving for this reason."
Evolved claws for attack, evolved solid muscular thighs for running, evolved toxins, evolved camouflage.
The purpose is just to get enough nutrition to give birth to the next generation and not be eaten before giving birth to the next generation. After completing this mission, the body can be discarded at will.
"However, the emergence of humans in the past tens of thousands of years is equivalent to a bug. In the past billions of years, the Earth has certainly had overlords at the top of the food chain, the closest to us being the dinosaurs, but they still haven't dominated the food chain as thoroughly as humans have. They can take whatever they want from any creature other than humans. They even learned to raise livestock and plant crops. Because they can already regard everything as their own private property, they create resources in order to obtain them."
"To be honest, humans have been at the top of the food chain for too short a time. Dinosaurs ruled the Earth for 500 million years, but what about humans? We have only been around for a few hundred thousand years, and if we count the years that we have truly been able to maintain this status, it has only been in the last thousand years."
Thousands of years is a negligible time span for biological evolution. It takes tens of millions of years for a species to evolve from its initial birth to completion. What can you do in a thousand years? Take a nap?
"So the creatures on Earth have not yet adapted to humans. Otherwise, all animals and plants would evolve in a direction just to satisfy human taste buds in order to survive."
That's right, as long as they satisfy human taste buds and are considered "valuable", they will be cultivated and widely raised. Before reproduction, they will be protected by the ruler of the earth, and their own race will continue to expand. As for the sacrifice of their flesh and blood afterwards, they don't have to worry about it at all.
What need of claws, what need of solid muscles?
Very cruel? But that is based on human values. If you put yourself in their shoes, you will find it unacceptable. It is just because they have lived too well for tens of thousands of years and have no natural enemies.
But what about cattle? Because of human needs, a large number of pastures are used to breed them, and there are now hundreds of millions of cattle in the world. Otherwise, if they were left in nature without any human intervention, it would be questionable whether this creature's ability to resist disasters could continue to this day.
"The cow has not become extinct because humans want to eat it. Fortunately, it has pleased humans with its meat," said Chef Cai Bo.
"Staying alive and continuing the species are the most basic instincts. As for other things: Are you living well? Will you be eaten? These are all minor details. So, if there really is a bull god, why would it resent humans? It's too late to thank them."
This is the Shura of the kitchen.
According to this logic, should the ingredients thank humans for eating them?
Chapter 72: Demon Exorcism
Chef Cai Bo's argument is perverse. How could any living creature be born to be eaten and enjoy doing so?
Ling couldn't agree with it anyway.
But the so-called "wrath of the bull god" is also strange. Humans eating cows is not just a recent thing, nor is it just in Kibitsu. If humans were really angry, they would have been angry thousands of years ago.
Moreover, compared to the island countries where agricultural civilization is still accustomed to using cattle as working oxen, the Western countries across the ocean are the real big beef eaters. The United States alone consumes tens of millions of tons of beef each year.
This means that tens of millions of cows are slaughtered every year in that country! If there is a bull god, shouldn't that continent be flattened?
Therefore, even if there really is a Bull God, he probably appeared for other reasons.
Ling also remembered the monk. It was dark at the time, so Ling didn't see his face clearly, only a rough outline. The only thing she remembered was the deep eye shadow (eye bags?) and the pale face that looked like it was covered with powder. Now recalling it, it didn't look like the face of a living person. If I had to describe it, it was more like the face of a deceased person.