Chapter 212: Chapter 212: Is This Melon Guaranteed to Be Ripe?
 

A lonely shed stood forlorn beside the road leading to Datong County.

The road, long neglected, was pitted and gullied, the deep tracks left by the passing of cartwheels crisscrossed its surface.

In the midst of the day, no travelers were to be seen on the road, and Old Zhang, standing in front of the shed, looked around with an expression of disappointment creasing his weathered face.

It looked like there would be no business today.

He gently patted the head of his grandson, who was dozing off beside him, and sighed softly.

At that moment, a gust of wind blew into the shed.

The wind carried with it the clear sound of bells.

Old Zhang’s spirits immediately lifted, and he eagerly peered in the direction of the sound.

He saw in the distance a large green donkey approaching, with a young Daoist sitting on its back.

The donkey’s hooves clip-clopped rhythmically, and it swiftly arrived in front of the shed.

Old Zhang greeted him with a bow and a nod, “Esteemed Daoist, it’s so hot today, would you care for some cool tea to rest your feet?”

The seasons in Nan Shao were indistinct, and although it was deep autumn, the temperature remained quite high.

“Ah erm~”

Before the Daoist could respond, the large green donkey nodded its head in agreement—as if to say it was exhausted!

“You lazy donkey!”

The plain-looking young Daoist, his eyes twinkling, laughed as he patted the green donkey’s head.

He dismounted with a leap, “Then I’ll rest and have some tea, and give some fodder to my donkey as well.”

“Right away!”

Old Zhang enthusiastically took the reins and tethered the green donkey beside the shaded shed.

He called out loudly, “Xiao Liu, go get a bundle of fodder for the donkey!”

The half-grown boy woke from his slumber with a start, hastily wiped the drool from the corner of his mouth, and ran to fetch a bundle of fodder from behind the shed.

Old Zhang attentively wiped down the table with a rag and poured a full bowl of tea for the Daoist who had just taken a seat.

“Esteemed Daoist, this is the cool tea I brewed myself, it clears heat and detoxifies, reduces fire and dispels dampness, would you like to try?”

The plain-looking young Daoist, also known as Wang Chen, lifted the coarse pottery bowl to his lips and took a big gulp.

He nodded, “Not bad.”

“Please drink more.”

Old Zhang, with a smile that narrowed his eyes to slits, “We’ve just picked some sweet melons this morning, would you care for one?”

He gestured towards the pile of melons and fruits beside him.

Wang Chen asked with interest, “Old man, are you sure these melons are ripe?”

Old Zhang was taken aback, “What are you talking about? I’m a melon seller; how could I sell you unripe melons?”

“That remains to be seen.”

Wang Chen said with a deeper meaning, “Looking at you, not quite human, these melons might not necessarily be ripe.”

No sooner had the words left his mouth, Old Zhang’s face suddenly changed, veins bulging on his forehead, his previously ingratiating smile twisted, and his eyes gleamed with a bloodthirsty savagery.

“Esteemed Daoist, one must not drink tea or speak carelessly!”

He trembled all over, his hands turning into eagle claws, his fingernails silently elongating and sharpening!

“Ha!”

Wang Chen burst into loud laughter.

A jet of water shot from his throat, hitting Old Zhang squarely in the face.

It was the very tea he had just drunk!

“Ah!”

Old Zhang let out a piercing scream as his face split open to reveal bare bones amidst a gushing of blood.

He staggered back a few steps before suddenly leaping up high to pounce on Wang Chen.

His movements were as quick as a monkey’s!

However, a large net appeared out of nowhere, completely enveloping Old Zhang.

He fell to the ground with a crash, rolling and howling in pain as tendrils of smoke rose from his body.

At this very moment, Old Zhang’s grandson appeared behind Wang Chen like a ghost, clutching a dagger and viciously stabbing toward the critical spot on Wang Chen’s back.

But Wang Chen, as if he had eyes on the back of his head, twisted his body and swung his sleeve, hitting the attacker hard.

The half-grown child immediately flew backward like a kite with a broken string, his bones broken in many places.

“Ah~”

He crashed to the ground, emitting unhuman-like screams as sharp white bones protruded from his body, his originally rather delicate face now shrouded in dark aura, his eyes turned a bloody red hue!

Wang Chen shook his head, retracting the Demon-Slaying Net that had “digested” Old Zhang.

His right hand contracted and then extended, casting the Demon-Slaying Net once again,

Reuniting the grandfather and grandchild.

Actually, to call them “people” wasn’t quite accurate, as they had long been possessed by Evil Wraiths, with very little humanity left.

When all humanity is extinguished, they become true Evil Wraiths!

Wang Chen retracted the Demon-Slaying Net and sat down again by the small table.

The herbal tea was undrinkable as it clearly had something akin to knockout drops mixed into it.

Because herbal tea itself is brewed from herbs, it was very easy for ordinary people to be fooled, unable to detect the difference.

After some thought, Wang Chen levitated a melon from the ground to himself.

With a finger as sharp as a blade, he cut open the fruit to taste it.

The melon was ripe, and the flavor was very sweet; even Wang Chen, who had long ceased partaking in the food of the mortal world, found it agreeable.

What a pity!

Being able to grow such melons must have meant the old man was skilled at farming.

Yet both the grandfather and his grandson had fallen victim to the Evil Wraith.

As he thought this, the melon in his mouth didn’t taste as sweet anymore.

“Ah eh! Ah eh~”

The braying of the big green donkey brought Wang Chen back to his senses.

He let out a wry smile and tossed the rest of the big melon down at the feet of the donkey,

Who immediately feasted on it with gusto.

This donkey was one that Wang Chen had purchased at the mule and donkey market half a month ago; after being fed a Spirit Peach, it surprisingly developed a bit of spiritual awareness, accompanying him throughout Ted in Nan Shao, Three Rivers, and Zeyang counties.

In half a month, Wang Chen had eradicated many Evil Wraiths in the territory of Nan Shao, based on the intelligence gathered by the Exorcism Hall.

All these Evil Wraiths had turned into Spiritual Power for the Heaven-Ensnaring Punisher Net!

Evil Wraiths were undoubtedly terrifying entities for ordinary people, but in Wang Chen’s eyes, they were merely cultivation resources to be harvested with ease.

His next stop was Datong County, the last place he had yet to visit.

Just as the big green donkey was filling its belly and Wang Chen was preparing to set off again, he suddenly felt a twitch in his heart.

He reached out for the bundle of straw lying on the ground and sniffed at it.

Wang Chen caught a very faint whiff of the scent of death.

He quickly made his way to the back of the straw shed and soon discovered a clue.

Beneath the overgrown grass were dozens of buried bodies, mostly dressed as farmers, with a few strong-boned Martial Artists, all drained of their blood, having met with extremely tragic deaths.

Obviously, they were the victims of the Evil Wraith.

Wang Chen sighed and dug them all out, placing them inside the straw shed.

If these bodies were left buried here, they would sooner or later give rise to new Evil Wraiths, wandering spirits, or walking corpses.

A huge Fire Crow descended into the straw shed, and a blazing inferno erupted towards the sky.

“Dust to dust, earth to earth, may the restless souls return to the earth…”

Wang Chen silently recited the Rebirth Mantra in his heart, praying for the salvation of these victims.

All life is suffering, may they find peace in the next life.

He mounted the big green donkey and followed the official road towards Datong County.

In the world of mortals, a vast fog looms; seeking the path, seeking my own path, thousands of miles I journey to inquire who fares well, the path in the wind is the future…

——–

The first update is here.