The Young Deity

Chapter 7

The Old Bachelor died inside the Immortal Lady’s temple. He had been strangled by a piece of red cloth, both ends of which were held in his own hands, making it look as though he had strangled himself.

His eyes were wide open, staring fixedly in the direction of the Immortal Lady’s statue.

He died in the morning, but the body was not discovered until evening.

The ones who found the corpse were the Village Chief and a fellow villager.

When they arrived, the temple doors swung open, and the resulting gust of wind ruffled the red cloths hanging inside, veiling the body. Consequently, they did not notice it when they first entered.

A newborn girl in the village had fallen ill, so the Village Chief had led the child and her father up the mountain late at night to seek the Immortal Lady’s protection.

They had just entered the temple and knelt on the ground to offer their prayers. The Village Chief, acting with utmost reverence, was about to stand up and hang a red cloth as an offering when he unexpectedly locked eyes with that wide-eyed stare.

Under the moonlight, the Village Chief recoiled in terror. Looking closer, he realized it was the Old Bachelor hiding beneath the red cloths, still clutching the fabric in both hands.

“What are you doing here?” the Village Chief asked, reaching out to pull the man out, only to find that the body was already stiff.

The Old Bachelor… was dead inside the Immortal Lady’s temple.

He hurried the man holding the child to return to the village. “Go, call people up here immediately!”

“The child… what about the child?” The man thrust the baby toward him.

“How can we worry about that now? Someone died in the temple! This is a major incident.” The Village Chief was exasperated, but he took the child into his arms regardless.

“You go back and find help first.”

Thus, by the time the others arrived, the Village Chief was still cradling the infant.

The Village Chief explained the situation to everyone.

By this time, the baby had woken up and her fever had broken. It was clear the Immortal Lady was protecting the child.

The Village Chief handed the girl back to her parent. “This is the Immortal Lady’s blessing. Take her back and look after her well.”

As for the Old Bachelor…

Not a single person in the village spoke. This was the Immortal Lady’s temple, and these villagers had been sternly warned since they were children brought here by their parents –

“You must not commit the slightest act of offense against the Immortal Lady.”

When they were young, even pointing at the Immortal Lady inside the temple would result in having to kneel for an hour. The adults said that if they didn’t, the Immortal Lady would come at night to cut off their ears¹.

Therefore, the focus of the Old Bachelor’s death was not the man himself, but the fact that he had defiled the Immortal Lady’s temple.

As for how he died?

Naturally, he had offended the Immortal Lady, and she had made him strangle himself.

No one believed that anyone would dare to strangle someone using the Immortal Lady’s own red cloth inside her temple. Thus, the Old Bachelor’s death took on the color of divine retribution.

The others simply didn’t say it out loud.

Sha Niu was more direct. In her words, he had offended the Immortal Lady, and she had taken his life.

Sha Niu sighed. The Old Bachelor had actually been clever for a brief moment. He likely knew he had offended the Immortal Lady and had originally tried to suck up to her, wanting her to say a few good words on his behalf. But her heart belonged entirely to the Immortal Lady and she could not be bribed, so the Old Bachelor’s flattery had naturally been useless.

So, the Old Bachelor had gone to worship the Immortal Lady himself, and he had probably said something unpleasant in front of her.

Even if the Immortal Lady had no powers while turned into a human, she surely had power within her own temple.

And so, the Old Bachelor had strangled himself.

The man was finally dead. No one in the village felt sad; instead, there was a sense of relief, though no one showed it on their faces.

When the body was carried back from the temple, Sha Niu happened to see it.

The Old Bachelor lay there, but because he had offended the Immortal Lady and been punished by her, he was not carried down in a normal fashion.

After all, the people were afraid. If they simply carried down someone the Immortal Lady had executed, would she think the rest of the village was also disrespectful?

At first, no one was willing to carry the corpse. Eventually, the Village Chief, as the most devout follower in the village, stepped forward to speak.

The Village Chief indeed had his ways. Everyone had to take a stand to let the Immortal Lady know that the rest of the village was not like the Old Bachelor.

Thus, the Old Bachelor’s corpse was bound and carried down like a slaughtered pig.

The other villagers cleared the path, cursing the Old Bachelor as they went.

It was truly a rare sight to behold.

Sha Niu and the other village children all wanted to go watch the commotion.

A hand reached out from the side and grabbed her.

Sha Niu turned around to find her mother’s somber face right in front of her.

“Go home.”

As she was pulled away by her mother, Sha Niu whispered, “Mama, he looks just like the pigs we slaughter for New Year, being carried down like that.”

“Don’t talk nonsense.”

Sha Niu pouted and followed behind her mother.

After walking just a few steps, voices rose again from the crowd behind them. Sha Niu kept looking back.

Someone in the group had tripped, and since the path down the mountain was steep, the Old Bachelor’s corpse went thud-thud-thudding as it rolled down the slope while the others chased after it.

For no reason at all, the silly girl remembered that night when they had carried the girl named Chunhua back in the same way.

The Immortal Lady had been so angry she made it thunder, yet they had ignored her.

Sha Niu thought, see, she knew it. Anyone who offended the Immortal Lady would die. Now he was dead.

When Sha Niu returned home, her mother sat down, took a sip of coarse tea, and began to stare blankly into space.

“Mama, do you believe it now? Do you believe that she’s the Immortal Lady?”

Sha Niu’s mother remained silent, as if she had retreated into her own world.

Sha Niu was a bit unhappy. she leaned into her mother’s ear, determined to make her listen.

“When I saw the Immortal Lady, I brought her honey. I even told on him, telling her how bad the Old Bachelor was.”

Her daughter’s voice was as annoying as a buzzing bee. Sha Niu’s mother was dragged out of her private world, seeing her daughter chirping away, happy that the Old Bachelor was dead.

It was just as the sun was rising. Their earthen house faced east, and while the outside was already bathed in orange light, the interior remained dim and heavy. In the gloom of the dawn, it was impossible to tell what Sha Niu’s mother was thinking.

“Mama, are you even listening to me? The Immortal Lady is truly amazing, she killed the Old Bachelor.”

“He even tried to suck up to me, asking me to speak up for him, but I wasn’t fooled.”

Sha Niu felt a sense of satisfaction whenever she spoke of this matter. Her environment was so oppressive that words like death and killing carried a cathartic release.

But Sha Niu’s mother only gave the silly girl a deep look. She didn’t argue anymore, and she didn’t hit Sha Niu again.

The anger and pain that had accumulated within her over the years had already been vented through a certain outlet. Now, her body felt empty, devoid of any emotion.

Sha Niu was a bit unaccustomed to this, and she rubbed her own arm. “Mama, aren’t you going to pinch me?” Her mother used to be full of resentment, but now she suddenly wasn’t angry anymore.

“Mama, do you have another daughter outside?”

Was she going to pinch that daughter to vent her temper, which was why she wasn’t pinching her anymore?

Hearing this, her mother snapped back to reality. She gave Sha Niu a pinch, but there was no force behind it. “You’re unhappy because I’m not hitting you?”

Sha Niu thought about it and said, “I’m not unhappy. I’m happy.”

As she spoke, she acted like a three or four-year-old child, unable to resist leaning in close to her mother.

“Mama, the Immortal Lady likes me best. In a little while, we can go back to heaven with the Immortal Lady.” She said this hoping to make her mother happy.

Such words could not comfort Sha Niu’s mother at this moment; instead, they made her increasingly uneasy.

“My mind is troubled. Go find Li Qingqing to play with, or you can go find Ming Wen.” Sha Niu’s mother wouldn’t let her get close.

“Who is Ming Wen?” Sha Niu looked at her mother.

Sha Niu’s mother said, “Ming Wen is your young Immortal Lady. Everyone calls her Ming Wen. You can call her Immortal Lady in private, but in front of others, you must call her Big Sister Ming Wen. Otherwise, people will laugh at you again.”

Sha Niu gave an “oh.” Mama said she was her young Immortal Lady. Hehe, hers.

Just saying those words made her happy.

Sha Niu couldn’t help but repeat it several times in her heart.

Hehe, right now the Immortal Lady belonged to her alone because no one else had noticed. She began to feel a sense of crisis; she had to be even better to the Immortal Lady!

Translator’s Notes