Chapter 4

The atmosphere in the ancestral hall became tense for a moment, and the village chief, with a stern face, said, "What, Li Erlang, are you dissatisfied with my arrangements?"

A few ruffians had already begun to roll up their sleeves, and the leader, a bald-headed man, even picked up a chopping knife.

The other elders either closed their eyes or tried to persuade, "Erlang, don't be stubborn." "You can't fight against a stronger force." "Liu Guan has promised you work in the manor and will pay you more. How can you not have a meal?"

Li Qingshan mumbled a response, not knowing how he left the ancestral hall. As he was about to leave, he was tripped by the bald-headed man, almost falling down, and was met with a burst of laughter.

On the road, he encountered the shaman, who smiled smugly, "Trouble, trouble, if you worship the gods now, it's not too late."

Li Qingshan returned to his new home at the foot of Woniugang, lay down, and felt no joy at all.

As the sun set and the sky grew dark, the sounds of roosters and dogs gradually faded, and the village returned to its usual calm.

Qingniu strolled in from outside. Li Qingshan propped himself up, about to speak, but Qingniu said, "I saw everything, but I didn't help you."

"I didn't want your help, and I don't care about those few acres of land. I just..."

"Can't swallow this humiliation?"

"Yes."

"There are many things in the world where right and wrong are not clearly defined, and good and evil are inverted. Don't say that a mere mortal like you has to endure it. Even the great immortals and Buddhas, with their boundless powers, have their moments of humiliation. What's a little bit of anger to you?"

Li Qingshan stared with wide eyes, "But I don't want to endure it." He suddenly thought of the short knife.

Qingniu looked at him for a long time, then burst into laughter, "Good, good, good, not wanting to endure it is right. A man of integrity acts with a clear conscience, repaying kindness and avenging wrongs. I thought your will had been worn down over the years, but you still have some spirit left. Only such a person deserves to be taught by me."

Li Qingshan was puzzled, "You were testing me?"

Qingniu sniffed, "Is this a test? I was just asking which path you want to take."

"Which path?" Li Qingshan didn't understand.

"There are countless paths in the world. There is the path of enduring humiliation and preserving oneself, and the path of rising up with a sword and sacrificing oneself for righteousness. Humans have their human path, demons have their demon path, gods have their god path, and ghosts have their ghost path. Each path has its own scenery and choices..."

Li Qingshan felt dizzy from all the talk of paths. "Are you going to sing a song about paths to me?" He interrupted, "I will seek my own path!"

Qingniu first looked puzzled, then pleased, "You understood. Yes, there are countless paths, and I will seek my own path." He took out a large gourd from somewhere, and it flew into Li Qingshan's hands. "Since you won't endure it, I'll teach you a way to avoid enduring it."

Li Qingshan felt the weight in his hands, and something liquid inside was sloshing. He opened the gourd, and a strong smell of alcohol hit him.

Li Qingshan smiled bitterly. After eating meat, it's drinking alcohol? It seems quite reasonable, but who practices cultivation with these two things? If eating meat and drinking alcohol could make one an immortal, then all the rich people in the world would be immortals. Are immortals all just gluttons?

Qingniu said, "Meat strengthens the body, and alcohol emboldens the spirit."

Li Qingshan gritted his teeth, tilted his head back, and gulped down the alcohol. Although it was just village wine, after drinking the whole gourd, he felt dizzy. He stared blankly at Qingniu, wondering if he was supposed to drown his sorrows in alcohol.

"Go kill someone, and I'll teach you cultivation." Qingniu said it very casually, as if it were a trivial matter, then lay down.

Li Qingshan felt a chill rise from his back. He suddenly realized that the one in front of him was not just a hardworking old ox that had plowed the fields for over a decade, but a true ox spirit. The path it was teaching him was not the gentle and peaceful way of immortals and Buddhas, but the fierce and tyrannical way of demons.

It hadn't taught him any magical powers or techniques, just made him eat meat, drink alcohol, and now kill someone.

Should he really go and kill someone? The faces of those people floated before his eyes. He hated them and wanted to kill them, but he knew he didn't dare to do it. Qingniu had seen through this, which was why he wanted to embolden him with alcohol.

Was this a pledge of allegiance or a teacher's gift?

Thinking about the events of the day, the alcohol made him angry. Li Qingshan raised his head, took a deep breath, and lowered it, "Who should I kill?"

"That's your business. I won't help you or save you. I'm just an ordinary ox."

The moon was bright, casting a layer of white frost on the ground. Li Qingshan walked alone on the frost, feeling the round moon above him so bright that he wished a cloud would cover it.

The village was silent. Li Qingshan's steps were unsteady as he wandered aimlessly, feeling lost.

He came to a dilapidated house, from which came loud voices. Li Qingshan recognized them as the ruffians from the ancestral hall. He quickly crouched by the wall to listen.

"Today's drink was easy to come by. We just stood in the ancestral hall, and Liu Guan rewarded us with so much."

Li Qingshan immediately recognized the voice. Liu Laoli, a notorious ruffian in the village, was known for his lazy and thieving ways. He was cruel and often carried a chopping knife, and the villagers were all afraid of him. Even if they caught him stealing, they didn't dare to do anything to him. The other ruffians looked up to him.

"It's all thanks to your might, Brother. Didn't you see that kid's face? He was scared white."

The room erupted in laughter.

Li Qingshan didn't know what his face looked like at the time, but now it was definitely red, the alcohol and anger rushing to his head.

"Too bad that coward didn't make a move. I haven't had a good fight in a long time. I was planning to use him for practice. He never takes me seriously."

Li Qingshan, having lived two lives, wasn't as afraid of him as the ordinary villagers, but he hadn't expected such hostility.

"Brother, it's easy to beat him up. That fool built his house outside the village. It's simple to beat him up and take his ox to the market to sell for some drink money."

The other ruffians agreed.

Li Qingshan exhaled a breath of alcohol and gripped the short knife in his chest.

Liu Laoli, drunk, went outside to urinate, but instead of returning to the house, he walked south along the path.

Li Qingshan was curious and followed him. He saw Liu Laoli go to the door of a well-known widow, Liu Guifu, and call for her to open the door, realizing what he was up to.

The door remained closed, and there was no light inside, showing that she was afraid. There were a few huts nearby, but no one paid attention.

Liu Laoli, emboldened by alcohol, spewed many obscene words, kicked the door hard, and cursed loudly, causing the village dogs to bark. He then turned and left.

Inside, Liu Guifu's heart calmed down. She peeked through the door and saw Liu Laoli walk away. Suddenly, she saw a figure follow him. The night was dark, and she couldn't see clearly, but she felt something was wrong.

Li Qingshan followed Liu Laoli to a desolate place, steeled his heart, and charged forward with a loud cry.

Liu Laoli was shocked and turned around, seeing a dull short knife coming at him. The alcohol woke him up halfway, and he tried to run and fight back, but his hands and feet were weak. He usually just used his knife to scare people and had been in a few brawls, but he had never experienced a real life-or-death struggle. The young man, though just a teenager, exuded a determination and killing intent like a fierce beast in the mountains.

The knife pierced through without any resistance. Li Qingshan hadn't expected the usually arrogant Liu Laoli to be so weak. Seeing Liu Laoli's terrified and pleading face, he felt even more drunk, his eyes glowing red, his mind numb, but his hands moved without stopping.

The knife and blood danced in the darkness.

When Li Qingshan calmed down, Liu Laoli was lying in a pool of blood, dead. The heavy smell of blood in the moonlit night was also somewhat cold.

Li Qingshan forced himself to calm down, turned around, and ran to the stream at the foot of Woniugang, stopping to look at himself in the water. He was shocked, "Is this still me?"

The reflection in the water was a blood-stained teenager, lips pressed together, eyes wide, still exuding a killing intent, looking very terrifying.

Li Qingshan cupped the cold stream water, washed the blood off his body, and returned to the hut, ignoring the ox lying on the side, and fell onto the bed.

At this moment, his hands began to tremble, and he broke out in a cold sweat, soaking his clothes. The alcohol had completely worn off.

Qingniu laughed and asked, "Aren't you going to run?"

Li Qingshan replied, "Killing such a person, do I need to run?" He chose Liu Laoli not just out of impulse. The man was thoroughly bad in the village, and no one would stand up for him. The villagers wouldn't report it, and as long as he didn't leave obvious evidence, the death of such a person would likely be ignored.

Qingniu's approval grew. It was easy to find a man who would kill in a fit of anger, but it was much harder to know who should be killed, who shouldn't, and how to protect oneself while killing. The calm and composed demeanor, even if feigned, showed the resolve of this young man.

Li Qingshan's trembling hands didn't escape Qingniu's eyes. In his eyes, this was not shameful. There were plenty of ruthless people who didn't care about killing, but to suppress the tension and fear until now and let it burst out was truly remarkable.

After a long time, Qingniu asked, "How do you feel?"

"Scary, but exhilarating!" This was Li Qingshan's honest feeling. After the fear, there was an indescribable sense of release, and the pent-up frustration in his chest was greatly relieved. He recalled the scenes from "Water Margin" where Lin Chong fought in the snow at the temple and Wu Song spilled blood at the Mandarin Ducks Pavilion.

Qingniu chuckled, "Sleep quickly, there's a lot to do tomorrow!"

Li Qingshan's heart stirred, and he showed a joyful expression, "You mean..."

—————————————————————

Friends, with your support, we've made it to seventh place on the new book chart in just