Chapter 791: Chapter 593: Little Immortal
"These were all told to you by the ’Little Immortal’?" Yang Xiao frowned.
"Not just me, many people, many people come to listen to the Little Immortal. The Little Immortal also taught us to sing the ’Immortal Poem,’ saying that once we master it, we can avert disasters and turn bad luck into good fortune." As he mentioned the Little Immortal, the old beggar’s face unconsciously revealed a hint of reverence.
"What exactly do you mean by ’evil place’?" Yang Xiao suddenly asked.
"Ah, haven’t I already told you? These past few years, quite a few people have disappeared around here, alive without a trace, dead without a body," the old beggar said anxiously.
"If that’s the case, why would you come here?" Yang Xiao caught the loophole in the old beggar’s words and argued back.
The old beggar stretched his mouth, revealing a row of teeth missing several incisors, "Where else could I go? The people from Earl Mansion don’t come here because of the evil presence nearby."
"Besides, I’m different from you all. The Little Immortal has foretold my future; I’ve got a worthless life, riddled with bad luck. It’s hard even to die if I wanted to. All of my fellow begging brothers were killed by the people from Earl Mansion, only I survived, crawling out from a pile of corpses in the middle of the night. Now, isn’t what the Little Immortal predicted divine?"
Jiang Qingluan smiled, "Old sir, you might not know, but those with true skills rarely tell fortunes for others. The more you divine, the thinner one’s fate becomes. This applies both to the diviner and the one whose fate is being read. I can’t understand why the Little Immortal would tell your fortune for you?"
Hearing this, the old beggar became anxious, "What kind of nonsense are you spouting? Could I possibly deceive you at my age? I didn’t ask for a free fortune; I gave half a meat bun in return, and he even gave me something, saying it could protect me!"
At these words, Chang Chuchu’s eyes lit up, "What thing?"
The old beggar pursed his lips, quite smugly fetching a small cloth bundle from his chest, about the size of a fist, then opened it bit by bit with his claw-like right hand. Yang Xiao and the other two subconsciously gathered around and saw a black stone inside.
The stone was oddly shaped and had a jade-like texture, with strange patterns on its surface, resembling armor. It was only upon closer inspection that Yang Xiao realized it wasn’t a stone but a turtle shell fragment, incomplete, and only about one-third of the whole.
"This can protect you?" Chang Chuchu raised an eyebrow.
"Yes," the old beggar said, his mouth stretching into a smile, "I managed to crawl out of a pile of corpses, all thanks to it!"
"Let me see it." Chang Chuchu didn’t wait for the old man to agree and reached out to grab the turtle shell, but the old beggar mysteriously dodged the attempt.
This action sounded an alarm for the others. Yang Xiao had already suspected the old beggar’s identity; he might not be a ghost, but he was almost certainly not blind. In this wilderness, a blind beggar wouldn’t just stumble upon this place, nor would he coincidentally save Fang Zhou, who was supposed to die. Such coincidences didn’t just happen.
Even more coincidental was his knowledge of the secrets of Zhongyi Temple and Earl Mansion. If not for the mismatch between his face, age, and the description on the wanted poster, Yang Xiao would have suspected that this man was the Demon People Chaos Party member being hunted.
The object was related to the Demon People Chaos Party. Yang Xiao couldn’t identify the origin of the black turtle shell, but he knew it was not ordinary. No matter what, he had to keep this fragment; if they couldn’t recognize it, they could take it back for Xiang Fengchen to examine.
Seeing that she couldn’t get it from him, Chang Chuchu’s eyes flashed with ruthlessness, and she looked ready to resort to force, but Jiang Qingluan, after exchanging glances with Yang Xiao, dissuaded her with one look and spoke first. She knelt down in front of the old beggar, "Old sir, you seem to be severely injured; I have basic medical knowledge and can take a look at your wounds for you."
"I’ve got a worthless life; I can’t die anyway, and... and besides, I’ve already eaten your food, I already owe you a favor," the old beggar shook his head, refusing treatment.
His refusal deepened everyone’s suspicion. Yang Xiao guessed the old beggar was probably not blind and that his injuries might well be feigned. Although this man wasn’t among those demons, he must be connected to them, and he might know where the wanted demon was hiding, or perhaps... that very demon was somewhere nearby!
The more the old beggar resisted, the more persistent Yang Xiao and his companions became. Finally, Yang Xiao exchanged a glance with Chang Chuchu, who quietly circled to the old beggar’s back and, without a sound, reached out and yanked off the cloth tied around the back of the old beggar’s head.
The next second, the dirty cloth that had been covering his eyes fell away, revealing the old beggar’s left eye socket to be a bloody hole filled with pus and rotten flesh. The right eye was slightly better, but it had become turbid and was oozing blood and pus, clearly also blinded.
Burn scars surrounded the right eye socket, making Yang Xiao gasp in horror. He could imagine the old beggar must have endured inhuman torture: the Earl Mansion’s henchmen not only blinded his left eye but also seared the right eye, leaving him blind. They were truly animals.
"What... what are you doing?" The old beggar, having lost his eye covering, became panic-stricken. He fumbled on the ground for the cloth, trembling as he tried to put it back on. Fang Zhou couldn’t stand by and wanted to help, but Yang Xiao pushed him away.
"Don’t be afraid, old sir. We’re just going to check your injuries," Yang Xiao said, not waiting for the old beggar’s consent. The three moved forward and peeled off the old beggar’s filthy clothes.
Indeed, the old beggar was covered in wounds, and his left arm, in particular, was nearly chopped off at the root. The injury was bound tight with cloth and had rotted, spawning maggots. The wriggling white maggots within the decayed flesh made onlookers’ scalps tingle. Chang Chuchu, who was closest, was hit by a wave of foul odor and couldn’t help but step back and retch.
Without any medicinal supplies, Yang Xiao and the others could only use a Fire Starter they carried to light a candle and burn the wound, driving out the maggots from inside.
"Old man, just bear with it for a bit," Fang Zhou firmly held the old beggar’s leg while the air filled with a complex odor of rotting flesh and scorched meat, almost enough to make one vomit.
While tending to the wound, Jiang Qingluan casually pulled out her hairpin and abruptly stabbed towards the old beggar’s still-intact right eye. However, even as the pin stopped less than a centimeter from the eyeball, the old beggar didn’t blink, and the cloudy eye didn’t move.
Jiang Qingluan, without changing her expression, put her hairpin back and subtly nodded to Yang Xiao next to her. She couldn’t be sure of the man’s identity, but she was certain he was truly blind.
After a simple treatment of the injuries, the group contemplated leaving. After consulting the others, Fang Zhou decided to give some of their leftover food to the old beggar. He then took out half of his silver and stuffed it all into the old beggar’s hands, "Old man, you should no longer return to Fushou Manor. Take this silver and leave this place to find a good doctor."
Clutching the silver, the old beggar’s lips trembled with emotion, "Young man, you are a good person, but a doctor... what doctor?"
"A doctor, he wants you to use the silver to find a good doctor to look at your injuries," Yang Xiao added, his mind preoccupied with how to get his hands on the turtle shell the old beggar had.
This was a problem since they didn’t want to use force, not knowing the old beggar’s origins. If he indeed had a connection with the fleeing Demon, their use of force could prompt the Demon to attack.
After all, their current guise was as emissaries from the Earl Mansion, invited to celebrate the Ancestor’s longevity, which effectively put them at odds with the Demon People Chaos Party. They could even be considered enemies.
Seeing the old beggar attempt to stand, Fang Zhou hurriedly helped him up, but to everyone’s surprise, the old beggar gripped Fang Zhou’s hand and wouldn’t let go. "Young man, wait. I can’t just accept your kindness without giving something in return," said the old beggar as he pulled a wrapped bundle from his chest and shakily handed it over, "Take this item."
"For me?" Fang Zhou was also stunned. He knew from the attitude of Chang Chuchu and the others that the turtle shell was no ordinary object.
"Keep it," said the old beggar. "I’ve left the manor; the Earl Mansion’s dogs won’t be able to find me anymore. You need it more than I do."
"But..." Fang Zhou, whose Yang energy had been drained by a Ghost, was not thinking clearly and was now even more perplexed. He could only look to Yang Xiao for guidance.
Unexpectedly, Yang Xiao stepped forward and before Fang could react, accepted on his behalf, "Don’t worry, old man, I’ll make sure to keep it safe for him."
He reached for the bundle containing the turtle shell, but to his surprise, the old beggar held on tightly and didn’t let go. Meanwhile, he turned his head and stared with his blind eyes at Yang Xiao, "Not you, I’m giving it to Fang."
Yang Xiao, feeling snubbed, gave Fang a look, and the latter immediately accepted the bundle with grave politeness, thanking the old beggar profusely.
After all was done, the old beggar, leaning on his cane, felt his way and began to leave with a limp.
"Old man, are you going too?" Fang Zhou asked.
"Hmm, this place is full of troubles I can’t afford; it’s better to hide away," the old beggar said, stepping out of the temple with Fang Zhou’s help.
The fog outside was still thick, a blanket of white that didn’t seem safe. As Yang Xiao and the others debated how to extract themselves, the old beggar volunteered to leave first—an unexpected blessing, as it meant someone was paving the way for them.
As they watched the old beggar disappear into the fog with a limp, Fang Zhou couldn’t help but worry. "Don’t worry, wasn’t he doing fine before he met you?" Yang Xiao watched the old beggar walk away until his figure was swallowed by the fog.
Whether it was psychological or not, the fog seemed to thin out after the old beggar vanished, and visibility improved.
The time was about right. The three of them quickly tidied up their things, grabbed the incense candles and paper money, figured out the direction, and also left the dilapidated temple.
This time they didn’t use Fang Zhou as the lead. Jiang Qingluan headed the group, and soon they entered the mist. As the group became obscured by fog, a vague figure appeared not far behind them, revealing the old beggar, now standing upright, facing in the direction they had departed. His murky right eye slowly turned, and the pupil contracted, slitting like a snake’s.
