Chapter 55

Chu Banyang slashed his palm with a short knife, and blood dripped on the box, alternating red and black.

Ordinary ashes can't be that heavy.

It must have something to do with some kind of spell.

With the bleeding, the spell on the ground became brighter and the temperature dropped. Chu Banyang focused his attention, pressed his other hand lightly on the box, and whispered the sentences—they were all very weird, very fine syllables, and they did not belong to human beings. His clothes were automatic without wind, and his hair was floating in the air.

After a certain moment, the air suddenly stagnates.

When the temperature dropped below zero, Chu Banyang suddenly fell silent.

Lu Yingjiu could feel that a certain existence descended into this narrow space.

It is bound by the Chu family's contract and the surrounding spells, manic and cold.

Among the many ghosts and gods, the peacock god of the Chu family is also very powerful. Lu Yingjiu thought, this is indeed completely different from other ghosts and gods, and it deserves its reputation.

Chu Banyang slowly spit out syllables and recited an ancient incantation.

The air stagnated again for a few seconds.

Then the blood-red lines on the ground lighted up in turn, and besides, the surroundings seemed to be shrouded in a thick layer of black mist. Chu Banyang was less than one meter away from Lu Yingjiu, but Lu Yingjiu could not see him clearly.

A few seconds later, the cool breeze rose from under his feet.

With the sound of clattering, turquoise flames lit up clockwise around the body. There were nine lamps in total, surrounding the two of them in the center, burning faintly.

The base of the flame is made of pure gold, and the splendid metal is embellished with various gems, cat's eye green, crow blue, twilight gray, cyan purple... They are strung together by golden silk threads, shining dreamily in the firelight.

Lu Yingjiu's feet became soft.

It felt like the thick fur of an animal. He looked down and saw feathers intertwined with emerald green and gold under his feet.

It is the gorgeous color of the Peacock God.

Looking around, the pattern of the entire room has changed, and the peacock's gorgeous feathers don't know where to go. In the sky above the green fire, there are dots of light, they flicker brightly and dimly, and at first glance they look like stars.

In the blink of an eye, they had arrived at a unique space.

Lu Yingjiu thought again, it is indeed the most beautiful ghost.

Peacocks love beauty and can't wait to open their feathers all the time. Even this ceremony reveals an extravagant atmosphere.

Chu Banyang was accustomed to this scene, and walked forward until he went under the flames at the forefront.

There is a small altar there, with a stone tablet in the center - almost the same as the stone tablet under the 20th pavilion when Lu Yingjiu was in Yueshan Village. The Chu family, like the Zhang family, respects and reveres the way of heaven, and there are such stone tablets in many places.

I saw a small wooden bowl above the altar, which contained a liquid that was also intertwined with emerald green and gold.

Chu Banyang picked up the bowl, walked carefully beside Lu Yingjiu, and handed it over: "Drink it."

Lu Yingjiu: "..."

Lu Yingjiu said, "Although I know you've always looked down on me, you shouldn't poison me so blatantly... It looks a bit like diluted paint."

Chu Banyang assured: "It's absolutely safe, I used to drink it when I was young."

"What's the use of drinking it?" Lu Yingjiu asked.

"You can dream," Chu Banyang said, "Don't you have a lot of confusion, dreams can answer a lot of doubts."

——Lu Yingjiu had heard of this.

Every eye spot on the peacock god's tail feathers is a golden eye, which glitters with different brilliance like a kaleidoscope. If you look deeply into it, it has the power to deceive people.

In addition, it is said that the Peacock God guards a pool of divine water.

After drinking the divine water that has been inexhaustible for thousands of years, you can have precognitive dreams or delusional dreams.

Generally speaking, the Chu family would not give divine water to outsiders.

Perhaps it was because Chu You was involved in this matter that Chu Banyang brought Lu Yingjiu here.

That being the case, Lu Yingjiu no longer hesitated. After thanking Chu Banyang, he took the wooden bowl and drank it.

Unexpectedly, Shenshui has a beautiful luster, but the entrance has a very ordinary taste of sweet spring. After a few sips, the throat is full of sweetness.

Then Lu Yingjiu's eyes flickered.

The flames, the feathers under his feet, Chu Banyang... they all disappeared, leaving only a pale paleness in the whole world.

His entire body was erratic, and his spirit was in a trance, as if his soul was out of his body.

It took Lu Yingjiu several seconds to realize that the paleness in front of him was actually snow.

An overwhelming blizzard that can almost bury the whole world.

He felt that "himself" was walking in the snow, and the snow under his feet blocked his steps. There was no light in the sky and the earth, and the only light source was a lantern in his hand.

The shape of the lantern was a bit odd, with a hexagonal shape, and the tip was as sharp as a blade. A bright yellow, fist-sized light source was slowly burning inside, bringing a little warmth.

"He" continued to face the wind and snow, his thin clothes rattled in the gust of wind-his clothes were in the shape of the ancient times, with wide cuffs, and the front of the shirt was neatly closed. , so white that it blends in with the wind and snow.

Suddenly, "he" turned around.

Only then did Lu Yingjiu notice that he was still holding a person with his left hand.

It was a pale-faced boy in black, with a new wound on his face, and the red blood was flowing, becoming the most gorgeous color in this world.

Lu Yingjiu couldn't see his face clearly.

The blood was almost dripping down the boy's chin, but he didn't mean to wipe it away, he just held on to "his" hand tightly, not daring to let go for half a second.

It was as if the whole world would be lost as long as you let go of it for a moment.

They walked side by side in the snow.

There is no way forward, no goal, and there is no telling whether the wind will end or the snow will melt.

But they kept going.

... where am I?

Lu Yingjiu thought in a trance.

Consciousness still drifted away, thinking became slow, and all the pictures seemed to have a layer of filter, which made him unable to see clearly after a long time.

In the haze, there is a feeling of drowning or drunkenness.

Flashing again.

The underfoot returned to a soft texture, and the peacock feathers reappeared.

Lu Yingjiu was still holding the wooden bowl in his hand.

It all seemed like an illusion.

When his consciousness became clear, Lu Yingjiu calmed down and asked Chu Banyang, "How long has it been just now?"

"It's not even a second." Chu Banyang said, "No matter how long you have gone through in your dream, in reality, it's like you've lost your mind."

He then asked, "So, have your doubts been answered?"

"...No." Lu Yingjiu handed him the bowl and rubbed his brow bones, "I don't even understand what I saw. I seem to have seen...ancient people? modern."

"Ah." Chu Banyang said.

"What's wrong?" Lu Yingjiu saw that his expression was a little strange.

Chu Banyang paused for a while before saying, "Then you may have seen it in your previous life."

Lu Yingjiu: "What about the dream of solving puzzles? Why are you giving away other services?"

Chu Banyang said, "Understanding dreams is just a possibility. Some people's dreams can be solved, some people's dreams can be predicted, and a very small number of people will dream about past lives." He hesitated for a while. , "But, according to experience, people who dream of previous lives..."

"What about people who dreamed of previous lives?" Lu Yingjiu asked.

Chu Banyang hesitated for a long time, and finally said, "I died quite miserably in my last life."

Lu Yingjiu: "..."

Lu Yingjiu took a deep breath: "Forget it, I don't care much about my previous life. Anyway, I don't remember it now, and it doesn't matter to me no matter how miserable it is. Give me another drink of divine water, maybe this time it will clear up my confusion."

"Neither," Chu Banyang said. "Shen Shui has side effects. You can only drink it once every three years. Otherwise, you will die miserably in your life."

Lu Yingjiu: "..."

Lu Yingjiu said, "Your family's divine water doesn't sound like a god."

"Indeed." Chu Banyang rarely agreed.

There are simply too many people in the Chu family who want to benefit from Shenshui.

Which of Chu Banyang's cousins ​​is still in junior high school. Before the exam, he wants to drink divine water and predict the final question.

As a result, he didn't predict the title and dreamed of a previous life.

sadism

She was so in love that she couldn't cry anymore, she didn't take the exam, she was going to run away from home with a schoolbag on her back, and said she wanted to find a lover from a previous life to continue the relationship.

Later, he was beaten by his father and packed up and sent to school. This problem will be cured naturally.

And which of his cousins ​​drank a bowl of divine water before buying a lottery ticket, hoping to win a big prize.

The grand prize was not predicted, but the dream solved her doubts.

She felt that her eyes were suddenly bright, as if the sun was breaking out of the clouds, and a road she had never seen before appeared in front of her.

But she clearly woke up too thoroughly.

Because that night she became a nun.

In short, the number of times that Shenshui can play its role accurately is rare.

If you want to rely on its power to change your life, the possibility is basically zero.

Chu Banyang added, "If Shenshui is so effective, why would the Chu family still be in business? They could make a fortune by just reselling some Shenshui in the early years."

Lu Yingjiu thought about it for a while and felt that it was very reasonable and impeccable.

He said: "Since there is no way out, I'll find a way to check it myself."

"That's the only way." Chu Banyang nodded, "I didn't hold out much hope, but it's better to try than not to try."

He went back to the urn again, pasted new talismans on it, and prepared to go back.

Taking advantage of this time, Lu Yingjiu looked around.

Wherever you can see, gems are gorgeously decorated and rich, and the star-like light sources above your head are getting brighter and brighter.

Bright enough to ignore.

He looked intently and saw countless pictures in the light source.

There are peasants under the scorching sun, buses in the cold rain, students jumping around in the school, and huge windmills towering in the fog...

Everywhere is realistic.

Lu Yingjiu asked Chu Banyang, "What are those in the air?"

"Oh." Chu Banyang answered him while sticking a talisman in his hand, "Those are all dreams of the Peacock God."

"What dream does it have?" Lu Yingjiu raised her head again and looked at it carefully.

"Yes," Chu Banyang said. "Outsiders don't know much about it. In fact, the Peacock God has been sleeping all the time. Our Chu family just borrowed its power, but we couldn't talk to it."

He pasted the last talisman paper and said: "It was born from the divine water, and there are no doubts waiting to be answered, so it will always linger in the past life and precognition, and will not wake up. It is rumored that every time it falls asleep, there will be a 59 dreams."

"Every star in the sky is its dream."

Lu Yingjiu was stunned for a moment.

59.

This number is all too familiar.

Where is he looking?

Recalling his memory, the time flipped over and over again, and he returned to the Ten Thousand Mountains.

On the way to VISIT The Mountain, he entered the wooden house where the Visit the Mountain has resting, and found his childhood photo in Zhang Nianyun's room.

He brought all those photos out.

The back of one of them is written in black pen: 【1/59】

Could it be a coincidence, or is it...

Lu Yingjiu stepped forward quickly and asked Chu Banyang, "Why 59? Is there anything special about this number?"

Seeing that he was suddenly serious, Chu Banyang answered in a puzzled manner: "There is no reason, it should just be just right."

Lu Yingjiu asked him word by word, "Apart from here, where else has the number '59' appeared?"

"I don't know." Chu Banyang thought back, "I don't know about the other families, this one should be the only one here. Similar rumors."

Lu Yingjiu said, "Can you still remember the details?"

So Chu Banyang sat on the soft feathers, touched the urn, and thought about it carefully.

Even in retrospect, there was still a little smugness on his face.

Probably because this was the first time he could answer Lu Yingjiu's doubts in so many years.

After a long time, Chu Banyang said, "It's something that happened when I was very young. At that time, the Zhang family was still in decline, and the Chu family once planned a large-scale sacrifice with them."

He continued: "Before, our two families worshiped the Tao of Heaven separately. It is the first and last time to worship together like this. Of course, the decline behind the Zhang family is a digression."

"Anyway, I followed them up the mountain, and I met Zhang's peers on the way. One of them told me a story about listening."

The ghosts and gods who made a contract with the Zhang family are listening.

But the Zhang family is a very mysterious family, and they rarely communicate with outsiders, and Lu Yingjiu knows very little about them.

Chu Banyang said: "The child told me that the contract with them listens to the truth and likes to collect gems. It only needs to put 59 gems in the nest to be satisfied. But gems are easy to get dusty and yin in the ghost world. Gas corrodes, and finally vanishes into nothingness."

"Every time a gem shatters, Listening will re-collect new gems until there are 59 in the lair."

"At that time, the Zhang family brought 59 gems."

"If you really want to pursue the root of '59', maybe it's on the Zhang family's side. They are the most ardent worshipers of the Heavenly Dao, and they are far better than the Chu family."

Lu Yingjiu was silent for a while before speaking, "That is to say, the Zhang family believes that the number '59' is special to ghosts, gods, or heaven."

"Yes." Chu Banyang said.

Lu Yingjiu looked at the sky again, dazzling like stars, and asked, "So, is there any way to see this dream? Or, what is special about them?"

"Each dream corresponds to a location in reality." Chu Banyang said, "If you want to say something special, it's nothing special."

"However," he looked up at a corner of the starry sky, "Speaking of this, the dream of the Peacock God has always collapsed in two places. The Chu family has never been clear about the reason."

He pointed to the corner.

Sure enough, there were two groups of extremely dim light.

Compared with other dreams, they are so inconspicuous, as if they will go out in the next second.

Lu Yingjiu asked, "Which two locations do they correspond to in reality?"

Chu Banyang said the location.

One is a village near the sea, and the other is a school.

Lu Yingjiu wrote down two place names and thought, whether it had anything to do with him or not, he was going to find clues after all.

Chu Banyang asked, "So, the number '59' has something to do with you?"

"Yes." Lu Yingjiu said, "but I haven't figured it out yet."

Chu Banyang's face was suddenly full of curiosity, and "Want to know" was written all over his face.

But he just didn't open his mouth and held back.

To change it to normal, Lu Yingjiu teased him a few words.

But today he really wasn't in that mood, so he said, "I'm sorry, I don't have any plans to speak out for the time being. I don't intuitively feel uncomfortable until things get to the bottom of things and involve too many people."

"Oh." Chu Banyang said, "It doesn't matter, I'm not interested at all."

Lu Yingjiu: "..."

Chu Banyang was still terminally ill, and it seemed that Shenshui could not cure Aojiao.

Continue to stay here, there will be no new progress.

Chu Banyang squeezed a tactic, and the wind lifted the jackets of the two again.

Lu Yingjiu's eyes were dark and bright again.

They returned to the basement of the Chu family.

The blood-red lines on the floor flickered a few times, then dimmed. Chu Banyang bent down and lifted the urn with considerable effort, preparing to carry it back.

When Lu Yingjiu saw his struggling appearance, he was faintly worried again.

In case he threw the whole family bucket, he directly threw the ancestors of the entire Chu family. The old man's osteoporosis is prone to fractures, which is very disrespectful.

When he went up the stairs, he saw that Chu Banyang was getting more and more struggling, so he said: "You let me lift it aside, in case I fall too much for my grandfather and grandma..."

As soon as the voice fell, a "Bang!" sound was heard.

Chu Banyang released his hand, and the box fell straight off!

It was so heavy that it knocked off a corner of the stairs.

Lu Yingjiu: "...how bad it is."

Chu Banyang was very calm, his face did not change his face, he bent down and lifted it up: "It's okay, I often threw it to play with when I was young. There are many urns in our family, which are not expensive, and every junior has one. "

Lu Yingjiu said, "Why are there so many ashes in your family? You can still have one for each person."

"After all, it's a big family." Chu Banyang continued to walk forward, "Everyone gets a shovel after they die, it's enough to add up."

Lu Yingjiu helped his forehead.

"When a person dies, he dies." Chu Banyang said, "The Chu family takes life and death very lightly. It would be good to erect a monument to commemorate the ancestors. Everything else is empty, and there is no need to pay too much attention to it."

When they went up to the first floor and said goodbye to Chu Banyang, Chu Banyang asked him again, "Are you planning to go to the places where the two dreams were damaged?"

"Yes." Lu Yingjiu nodded.

Chu Banyang hesitated for a long time, as if he wanted to say something.

But he didn't speak in the end.

It was getting late, and Lu Yingjiu got into the car, only to realize that it was almost six o'clock.

In the distance, a glowing red sunset was sinking, gilding the mountains and stratus clouds with gold.

Jingxian texted him and asked when he would be back.

Lu Yingjiu raised the corners of his mouth and replied: [Within 40 minutes]

After he finished speaking, he started the Land Rover and drove onto the road, joining thousands of cars returning home, like a flock of tired birds homing home.

He used to go home alone and was very peaceful, because he knew that there would be no one else in the house except the greedy cow and cat.

But this time is different.

The journey home was filled with anticipation and joy.

After going back to park the car, Lu Yingjiu went upstairs, and just took out the key at the door, the door opened directly.

——The sound insulation here is not good, probably Jingxian heard the sound of the key.

Then Lu Yingjiu was empty at his feet and was carried into the house by Jingxian.

Lu Yingjiu: ?

For a while, Lu Yingjiu only felt a warm embrace.

Jing Xian whispered in his ear, "You came back too late!"

"It took a while on the way." Lu Yingjiu patted him on the back and reassured him, "Isn't this coming back before dinner time? It's still on time... Hey, put me down."

Only then did Jingxian put him down, with a rather complicated expression, as if he wanted to continue hugging him.

Lu Yingjiu said, "What have you been doing today?"

He felt a little guilty, if Jingxian really stayed in the house all day, it would be really boring.

As far as his observation is concerned, although Jingxian can use electronic devices and use them well, he doesn't play games at all, and only occasionally watches movies.

Jing Xian said, "I watched a movie."

"Yeah." Lu Yingjiu thought to himself, sure enough.

Jingxian added: "Then before you came back, I went out for a walk and killed a dozen ghosts by the way."

Lu Yingjiu: "...?"

"Also fed a dozen beasts."

Lu Yingjiu: "..."

It sounds like Jingxian has had a very fulfilling day, so he doesn't need to worry about it.

But Lu Yingjiu unconsciously stretched his brows.

The peace of mind of returning home will always make people feel warm all over and unconsciously bend their eyes.

After all, Jingxian has been waiting for him.

Lu Yingjiu looked around the house again.

I saw hair balls lying lazily on the corner, constantly full.

He was in a bad mood: "What did you feed it again?"

"Nothing." Jing Xian didn't blink.

It looks like a lie.

Lu Yingjiu changed his shoes, walked over and sat down on the spot, rubbed his chubby belly, and then touched the cow and cat that came over.

Two clumps of furry little animals rubbed against him.

After a few seconds, Jing Xian also sat next to him, leaning towards him, keeping his usual dishonesty in his hands, and wrapping his arms around his waist.

Lu Yingjiu was helpless, and reached out to pick up his hand that started to lift his clothes without stopping him, and said with a smile, "Jingxian, you..."

He froze suddenly.

When he touched the powerful hand, his eyes were pale again.

The blizzard and snow, the dim lanterns, the white clothes, the road without end.

The black-clothed youth behind him held his hand tightly, his cheeks were wounded, and there was a bright blood red.

Lu Yingjiu still couldn't see the boy's face, but he heard his voice.

The boy opened his mouth and asked cautiously, "...Are you going to die?"

The "he" in the dream did not answer.

So the answer to the boy was only the wind screaming hysterically.