Chapter 1657: The Village Paralytic
The girl who had been running around the tree also stopped, curiously gazing at Qin Mu.
The young man who had been butchering the pig wiped the blood from his face, glaring fiercely with obvious hostility.
The old woman and the woman also turned to look. The woman wiped the sweat from her forehead with the back of her hand and said with a simple, honest smile, “It’s been a long time since we’ve had visitors here. Since you’ve traveled so far to find this place, young master, why not stay for a meal before continuing on your way?”
The old woman grinned, revealing a few teeth, and said shakily, “Eat before you go on...”
Qin Mu stopped, turned around, and said solemnly, “To decline would be impolite. Since you’re all so insistent, I’ll shamelessly impose on your hospitality.” With that, he walked toward the village.
As he passed the pig-butchering youth, the young man gripped his butcher knife, muscles and veins bulging on his arm. He shrugged his shoulders and let out a threatening growl from his throat.
Qin Mu smiled faintly. “Fine blade.”
The pig-butchering youth stuck out his tongue, licked the blood off the knife, and grinned. “Naturally, it’s a fine blade!”
Qin Mu walked past him. The youth held the knife, staring at his back, but Qin Mu seemed oblivious, continuing forward until he reached the stone block.
The youth never found an opening to strike. He praised, “Excellent divine ability! Young master, you’re tougher to deal with than any pig I’ve ever butchered!”
Qin Mu looked back and smiled brightly. “You’re not bad either.”
The old man was too aged to rise easily. Qin Mu quickly bowed and helped him to his feet.
The old man’s withered fingers seized Qin Mu’s right wrist, feeling his pulse, and he looked up at him with a grin. Qin Mu naturally placed his left hand on the old man’s lower back, near the kidney area, and gazed at him with concern.
They both laughed heartily. The old man released his wrist and waved his hand. “Though I’m old, I’m stubbornly strong! I can walk! Young master is a good man, one who respects the elderly!”
Qin Mu withdrew his left hand without a sound and said admiringly, “Your vigor in old age is truly admirable, elder.”
“Young master!”
The girl with the horn-shaped braids ran up to Qin Mu, her eyes sparkling as she held a fruit in her hand. She raised her arm straight up. “Young master, eat this fruit!”
Qin Mu’s gaze fell on the fruit in her hand. It seemed freshly picked from the tree, the stem still fresh.
Qin Mu smiled. “I won’t eat it. You eat it, little one.”
The girl with the horn-shaped braids stretched her arm, pushing the fruit to his lips, and said crisply, “Young master, eat!”
But just as the fruit reached his lips, Qin Mu’s hand was already blocking it. A single finger pressed against the fruit in her hand, gently pushing it back. He smiled. “You eat it, little one.”
The girl struggled, watching as Qin Mu slowly pushed the fruit back to her own lips, beads of sweat forming on her forehead.
Suddenly, she withdrew the fruit and hopped away. “If the young master won’t eat, then I’ll eat it myself!”
The old man laughed. “The young master has considerable strength.”
Qin Mu humbly replied, “My strength is only a little greater than the little girl’s, and I’m a few years older. It’s nothing remarkable.”
He walked into the village with the old man. The pig-butchering youth carried half a pig and the pig innards into the yard.
The woman had already finished washing the clothes. She wiped her hands on her clothes and hurried to greet Qin Mu. “Young master is a distinguished guest! In all the time we’ve been here, I’ve never seen anyone as noble and refined as you!”
She circled around Qin Mu, examining him up and down, and praised, “Truly handsome!”
Qin Mu smiled, blocking her hand as it reached for his face, and said gently, “Men and women should not touch without propriety.”
The woman’s fingers trembled, but Qin Mu always blocked her at just the right moment. She laughed. “Your hands are also quite handsome!” She withdrew her hand.
The old woman under the eaves snorted and muttered, “Pig’s trotters...”
The woman glanced at the old woman, anger flaring. “You have the nerve to say that! This whole family—eating, drinking, sleeping—who takes care of you all? If it weren’t for me, you’d all be eating the wind! I’m not after the young master’s looks; I’m scouting a husband for the little girl! In this godforsaken place, finding a man is hard enough!”
She cursed for a while, and the old woman rolled her eyes in anger.
The woman stormed back into the room and slammed the door.
The old woman calmed down, looked up at Qin Mu with cloudy, aged eyes, and said kindly, “Young master, what do you think of the little girl? Would you like to stay and form a marriage?”
The girl with the horn-shaped braids, embarrassed, hid in a corner and peeked at him, a blush rising on her face, too shy to come out.
Qin Mu shook his head. “I am already married. My wife is gentle and virtuous.”
The old woman sighed. “What a pity. My old body is not well. Young master, could you pick a fruit from that tree for me?”
She pointed, and Qin Mu followed her finger to a large tree bearing four fruits and one blooming flower.
Qin Mu withdrew his gaze and smiled. “The tree is too tall; I’m afraid I can’t climb it. But I have a sword, extremely sharp, that could cut the tree down. I’ve cut down similar trees before.”
The old man quickly said, “Don’t cut it down! Don’t cut it down! If you do, how will we eat the fruit?”
The old woman laughed. “Typical city-born young master—can’t tell his hands from his feet, talking about cutting down trees. Though I’m old, I still love beauty. There’s no mirror in the village. Would you trouble the young master to go outside and cut a piece of mirror?”
She emphasized the word “city.”
Qin Mu smiled. “The stone tablet outside is too hard; I’m afraid I can’t cut it.”
Inside the room, the woman was preparing a feast from the pig innards and other parts. Qin Mu chatted idly with the old man and old woman outside.
“Your village doesn’t have many people, but it has quite a few trees.”
Qin Mu glanced around. “Six people, eight trees.”
The old man laughed. “Where are six people? Young master, can’t you count? It’s clearly our family of five.”
Qin Mu glanced at the half-pig hanging under the tree at the village entrance, smiled faintly, and said nothing more. “Elder, when did you move to this secluded place?”
“I don’t remember exactly.”
The old man thought for a moment. “I only recall that the world was in chaos, people were suffering, and we were driven here by bad people. Young master, is it still chaotic out there?”
Qin Mu clapped his hands in admiration. “You’re truly fortunate! It’s even more chaotic now—constant fighting and bloodshed. This place is much better, peaceful and prosperous, without a care. Elder, it’s best if your family stays here and doesn’t go out.”
The old woman smiled kindly. “Staying here too long gets boring. We’d still like to go out and move around.”
Qin Mu shook his head with a smile. “It’s better not to go out. It’s too chaotic out there. I worry about your health, elders. If something happens and you die out there, it wouldn’t be worth it.”
The old woman and old man’s expressions changed slightly. The old woman reached for the hairpin in her bun. The old man raised his hand to stop her, shaking his head silently, and she lowered her hand.
Qin Mu pretended not to notice. “Eight trees, but two extra. May I ask where the other two people are?”
The old man sighed. “As expected, we couldn’t hide it from you, young master. The other person is a paralytic. He’s been bedridden for nearly ten years.”
Qin Mu was moved and sighed. “To be honest, I’ve studied medicine and am quite skilled in healing. I’ve always had a compassionate heart for saving lives. Where is this paralytic? Allow me to go and treat him—perhaps I can cure him.”
The old man stood up shakily. The woman came out of the room, setting up the table and preparing to serve the dishes. Seeing them rise, she said angrily, “We’re about to eat! Where are you going now?”
“The young master knows medicine. We’re going to see the paralytic.”
The old man seemed afraid of her and quickly apologized. “He’s been lying there for so long, always needing your care. Maybe the young master can cure him.”
The woman said suspiciously, “That paralytic—I have to clean up his piss and shit. Can he really be cured? Do you think this young master is reliable?”
“We might as well try, even if it’s hopeless.”
Qin Mu followed the two elders into the room, where a young man lay sprawled on a sickbed, completely lifeless—already dead.
Qin Mu looked at the young man for a long time before slowly saying, “Lord of Heavenly Capital, I finally meet you.”
The old man and old woman’s faces changed drastically, and they nearly couldn’t restrain themselves from attacking!
The old woman forced a smile. “Do you recognize this paralytic, young master?”
“There are few people worthy of dying at the hands of the Lord of the Miluo Palace. The Lord of Heavenly Capital is one of them.”
Qin Mu carefully examined the wounds on the paralytic’s body. They were injuries from Hongmeng divine abilities, far more complex and mysterious than the red rope knots Qin Mu had seen in the Return to Nothingness!
Only the Lord of the Miluo Palace possessed such power!
Though the Great Young Master had inherited everything from the Lord of the Miluo Palace, Qin Mu had seen his seals. Though exquisite, they hadn’t surpassed Qin Mu’s insight.
But the wounds on this young man had already exceeded Qin Mu’s understanding. Only the Lord of the Miluo Palace could have left such injuries.
Qin Mu had once viewed the Heavenly Capital’s Dao Achievers’ joint creation of the universe from the Lord of Heavenly Capital’s perspective and had also seen the Lord of the Miluo Palace kill the Lord of Heavenly Capital from that same perspective. That was why he could make this judgment.
The old man and old woman’s reactions confirmed his guess!
“The Lord of Heavenly Capital, who opened the Seventh Epoch of the universe, never expected his physical body to be suppressed here after death.”
Qin Mu straightened up and shook his head. “His injuries—I cannot heal them. But there is one person who can. He is the purpose of my journey. His name is Taiyi. Do any of you know him?”
The old woman and old man exchanged glances and shook their heads.
Just then, the woman’s voice came from inside. “The food is ready! You two old immortals, hurry up and invite the young master to eat!”
At the dinner table, Qin Mu sat down. The old man and old woman accompanied him, while the pig-butchering youth sat across from him. The woman continued cooking, and the girl with the horn-shaped braids crouched under a tree, slurping her food, not at the table.
“In this remote place, we have no fine wine to entertain a city-born young master. Please forgive us.”
The old woman was very attentive. “Young master, please eat!”
Qin Mu didn’t touch his chopsticks. He looked around and said, “Eight trees, but only seven have arrived. Where is the remaining one?”
The old man pretended to be deaf and mute. The woman brought a pot of pig innards stew, set it down, wiped her hands on her apron, and said with a simple smile, “What remaining one? Counting the paralytic, there are only six people here. With you, young master, that makes seven, right? A city-born young master must not be good at arithmetic!”
Qin Mu smiled. “If everyone isn’t here, how can we start eating?”
The old man opened his mouth to speak, but suddenly the pig-butchering youth across from Qin Mu flew into a rage. He pulled out his butcher knife and slammed it into the center of the table with a thud, murderous intent filling the air. He roared, “Enough with all this nonsense! I can’t take it anymore! Let’s just kill this bastard with the knife!”
The dishes flew up into the air, pieces of pork and pig innards combining into half a pig, its eyes wide and round.
The other half of the pig hanging at the village entrance ran over on two legs, and the two halves merged together, shouting, “Exactly right! When have we ever been afraid? Forget about the Lord of the Miluo Palace’s Seventh Young Master—let’s just chop him down!”