The sudden sound of firecrackers and drums outside made me think there was a celebration in the village.
But at this moment, Grandma told me.
It was to send our village's Sixth Uncle, the simpleton, into the mountains for a marital arrangement, to appease the old immortal.
I was completely stunned.
Our village backs onto the mountains.
The older generation relied on the mountains for their livelihood.
They held deep reverence for everything in the mountains.
I still remember when I was a child, we would offer sacrifices to the mountain god under the leadership of the village chief.
Every year, we would place some of our harvest, even live chickens and ducks, into the mountains as offerings.
But these were always animals and some fruits and vegetables for rituals.
However, sending a living person for a "marital arrangement" or to "appease the old immortal" had never happened before.
They called it a "marital arrangement," to "appease the old immortal."
How could a living person go in to be appeased? How could they be married into the family?
In reality, it meant sending someone to die.
In ancient times, it was called "live sacrifice."
A so-called sacrifice to the mountain god.
Although Sixth Uncle was simple-minded, he was still a living person, wasn't he?
If they sent him into the mountains to appease the old immortal, would he ever come out alive?
I was astonished; the village hadn't appeased the mountain god for years.
What possessed them this year to have a living person "appease the old immortal"?
I was very confused, so I spoke to Grandma:
"Grandma, what's going on?
Why are they sending Sixth Uncle into the mountains for a marital arrangement, to appease the old immortal?"
Seeing my incessant questioning, Grandma could only continue:
"Alas!
You work outside and don't know about the strange things happening in the village recently.
You came back today, haven't you noticed there are no dogs in the village?
It's because all the village dogs and poultry were killed by the old immortal in the mountains.
If we don't appease the old immortal, the village will not have peace..."
Upon hearing Grandma say this, I truly remembered.
When I returned to the village earlier, and even now, I hadn't heard a single bark.
That's why it felt so desolate when I returned.
So, all the village poultry and dogs were gone.
"Old immortal?
Grandma, what kind of old immortal is it?
I think it's a monster!"
I raised my eyebrows and spoke frankly.
Now that I'm in this line of work,
I've read some books and heard my master talk about his experiences.
I have some understanding of matters concerning old immortals in the mountains.
Indeed, some beasts in the mountains can become powerful.
In many places, these beasts are called "immortals."
Especially in the Northeast, there is the saying of "Fox, Yellow, White, Willow, Grey."
There are even old immortals who descend the mountain to open halls.
Possessing people, healing and saving lives, and dispelling evil spirits.
Accumulating merit, receiving offerings...
In our inland regions, while wild immortals descending the mountain to open halls are not as prevalent, they do exist.
More often, they are solitary.
Most of them behave themselves, do not commit wicked deeds, and even guide those lost in the mountains.
Therefore, they are also revered as "immortals."
When I was a child, the village offerings in the mountains were for these wild mountain immortals.
There are good ones and bad ones.
Those that harm people and eat livestock are not immortals, but are referred to as "monsters."
That's why I said that the "immortal" Grandma mentioned was a monster.
As a result, Grandma was so frightened that she grabbed her chopsticks to hit my mouth:
"You child, don't talk nonsense.
This old immortal is very fierce!
Your Uncle Ma, Uncle Chen San, and others.
They disrespected the immortal and met with misfortune.
The night before last, the village chief even saw her.
He said it was a Great Yellow Immortal, one that could speak human language.
And it said that to ensure our village's peace,
we had to send someone into the mountains to marry her child.
With only a few people in the village, after much deliberation, Sixth Uncle was chosen as the groom.
To go into the mountains for a marital arrangement and appease the old immortal.
Each household contributed some incense money to Sixth Uncle's family..."
Grandma spoke earnestly, and the more she spoke, the more shocking it became.
I never imagined.
That such a thing had happened in our village.
I gasped, feeling very unsettled.
At the same time, I felt I couldn't stand by and do nothing.
My master once said that once one enters the Dao and possesses skills,
they must bear the responsibility and be worthy of their Taoist arts.
Now that I've encountered this, I naturally cannot let these mountain spirits and wild monsters, under the guise of "old immortals," wreak havoc in our village.
Moreover, Sixth Uncle, a living person, shouldn't be harmed by these fiends.
Especially since when we were children and disturbed a hornet's nest,
though Sixth Uncle had low intelligence, he shielded me with his clothes.
I was stung the least, but he was covered in bumps.
I've always remembered that.
Thinking of this, I directly told Grandma:
"Grandma, I have to deal with this.
We can't send Sixth Uncle in to die."
After saying this, I took a couple of bites of food.
Grandma was stunned.
Finally, she reprimanded:
"Zewa, don't be reckless!
You don't understand anything, and if you mess around, you'll bring disaster upon yourself."
Grandma was very concerned about me, her eyes filled with worry.
I, however, smiled:
"Grandma, don't worry.
Didn't I tell you before that I changed jobs?
Now I've apprenticed myself to a Taoist priest.
I now eat a life of both Yin and Yang.
Your grandson, I, now have genuine abilities."
Grandma didn't believe me at all.
She immediately scolded me a few times and said that I was the only remaining descendant of our family.
If anything were to happen to me, she wouldn't want to live.
As she spoke, Grandma started to cry, very sadly.
I knew Grandma was worried about me.
But I couldn't truly ignore Sixth Uncle's situation.
So, I pretended to agree with Grandma not to interfere.
I planned to first appease Grandma, give her some spiritual tea,
and after she fell asleep later, I would go out to investigate.
What kind of Great Yellow Immortal dared to cause trouble and demand a bride in our village...