Chapter 229: Locust God
Mu Yi had lost his parents at an early age. In his youth, he lived under the care of various uncles, trying to make a living. However, none of them were well-off, and no one was willing to take on the extra burden of raising him.
Kicked around from one place to another, it wasn’t long before Mu Yi decided to regard himself as an orphan with no family ties and began fending for himself.
Their small, fixed team consisted of four people. Mu Yi was an orphan, and Chu Shi was also a lone orphan without any family.
Ban Xi came from a better background; she was a young lady of the Ban family. However, due to the consecutive deaths of her sister and mother, she severed ties with her family and refused to return.
But if one were to speak of misfortune, Du Renchuan was undoubtedly the most tragic among the four.
Du Renchuan was a year younger than Mu Yi and had lived in Du Village in Chazhou until the age of twelve.
He had a happy family, with loving parents, harmonious relatives, siblings who were close-knit, and a household that was prosperous and abundant. He had never experienced hardship or adversity.
However, when Du Renchuan turned twelve, tragedy struck—Du Village was completely annihilated in a single night. Out of over three hundred members of the village and the clan, Du Renchuan was the sole survivor.
Mu Yi, traveling with Teacher Ming Yu after becoming his disciple, passed by Du Village and happened to witness its destruction.
Teacher Ming Yu brought the gravely injured Du Renchuan along with them.
Thus began their journey of studying and cultivating at the Divine Academy in Zhuzhou, eventually forming a partnership to embark on adventures together.
For many years afterward, Du Renchuan diligently trained, hoping that one day he could personally avenge his family.
However, until the day he died, he never managed to kill his enemy.
The one who destroyed Du Village was a demon later infamous across several provinces, a terrifying creature known as the “Locust God.”
The “Locust God” fed on humans, and its appearances were always accompanied by swarms of locusts that resembled a black tempest. Wherever they passed, humans, livestock, and crops were devoured completely.
Before the destruction of Du Village, no one had heard of the Locust God. It was only after the village’s annihilation that the name of the Locust God began to spread.
Starting with Du Village, she eradicated one town and village after another, her infamy gradually spreading across the Nine Provinces.
If the demon Silk Nest was a shadowy figure, hidden in the darkness, silently manipulating events and extending its influence across the provinces without ordinary people’s awareness—
Then the demon Locust God was an uncontrollable force, an unpredictable and fearsome disaster that everyone dreaded.
Out of fear, people even referred to her as the “Locust God,” hoping to earn her mercy through worship and offerings.
But demons were not creatures capable of compassion.
…
“This rain came out of nowhere, and in just a moment, my clothes are soaked through,” Wu Jin grumbled as he shook his arms, wiping his large hands over his face and head.
Ming Yu gathered some dry firewood and dead grass from the old temple and had already started a fire in a dry corner.
He called out to Mu Yi, “Come over and dry your clothes and hair. Even though the weather’s warm, staying in wet clothes can still make you sick.”
Mu Yi had been absent-minded throughout the journey, often lost in thought.
He didn’t hear Ming Yu’s call until Wu Jin gave him a shove on the head.
“What are you staring at the rain for? Go dry yourself by the fire,” Wu Jin said.
Snapping out of his thoughts, Mu Yi sat down next to Ming Yu and obediently began drying his clothes.
As he listened to Teacher Wu Jin and Teacher Ming Yu casually chatting and bantering, Mu Yi couldn’t help but smile despite the heavy thoughts weighing on his mind.
Compared to his past life, this life’s version of Teacher Ming Yu wasn’t so silent and withdrawn.
“This rain will probably last until nightfall. Let’s stay here for the night,” Yu Guang said as he entered, drenched from the rain, after tending to the horses.
Behind him followed Yu Yin, just as soaked.
Wu Jin called out with a laugh, “Big Brother, come over and dry your clothes by the fire!”
Then, turning to Yu Yin, he teased, “Oh, little brother Yu Yin, you really can’t leave Big Brother’s side for even a moment, can you? You insisted on following him, and now look at you—completely soaked! Come over here and dry yourself!”
Mu Yi’s gaze shifted unconsciously from the fire to Yu Yin, who sat across from him.
Yu Yin wore a mask that concealed his expression, and he deliberately kept a low profile while sitting next to his elder brother, his presence hardly noticeable.
Yet, once one’s attention landed on him, there was an inexplicable feeling that held their focus, making it difficult to look away.
Thinking about the Locust God brought Mu Yi’s thoughts back to Silk Nest, the demon from his previous life, along with all the evil deeds and infamy associated with him.
Strangely enough, the enemy he had hated so deeply in his past life now gave him a peculiar sense of reassurance.
Because at this moment, he wasn’t an enemy. He was even a companion standing on the same side.
No matter what, this time, with Silk Nest here, the Locust God could likely be stopped.
In his previous life, the Locust God roamed freely, leaving nothing but death and desolation in her wake. Wherever she went, humans and demons alike avoided crossing her path.
There was only one exception.
Outside Zhuzhou City, the Locust God was stalled for ten days before retreating and changing her route.
Zhuzhou had been Silk Nest’s stronghold.
The Locust God devoured everything outside the city, leaving a thick layer of locust corpses behind, yet ultimately stopped short of entering Zhuzhou.
At the time, Mu Yi had refused to acknowledge it, but deep down, he knew that the only one capable of killing the Locust God back then was likely Silk Nest.
And now…
Mu Yi glanced at Yu Yin by the fire, his expression growing more conflicted with each look.
Meanwhile, Yu Guang had already stripped off Yu Yin’s soaked outer coat, wringing it dry and hanging it near the fire to dry.
He then grabbed Yu Yin’s hair and squeezed it out, each handful dripping like a soggy pickle.
Yu Yin pressed his hand against his scalp, instinctively leaning toward Yu Guang, snatching his hair back from his elder brother’s hands.
Even through the mask, his irritation was palpable. Yet, moments later, he leaned back toward Yu Guang.
His elder brother gave him a curious look and said, “Didn’t you just complain that I’m too rough? Now you want me to dry your hair again?”
Yu Yin practically sprawled across his elder brother’s lap, letting him dry his hair. The sight was oddly reminiscent of the cat lying at Yu Guang’s feet, leisurely grooming its fur.
Mu Yi couldn’t help but think: Looking at him like this, where is the sinister, terrifying demon Silk Nest from before? How can he possibly stand a chance against the Locust God now?
As Yu Yin rested against Yu Guang’s lap, he noticed the occasional odd glances Mu Yi sent his way from across the fire.
Yu Yin already knew the purpose of this journey from his elder brother and, like Mu Yi, thought of the Locust God.
To Yu Yin, the subordinate demons who submitted to him were nothing more than future meals. The Locust God, likewise, was just food.
But, like Mu Yi’s troublesome little team that always opposed him, the Locust God was one of the rare beings that truly irritated Yu Yin.
The Locust God’s mind held only a single thought: consumption. There was nothing else.
Unlike humans, who had emotions and attachments to exploit, or other demons, whose desires and obsessions could be manipulated, the Locust God was nothing more than a humanoid locust. Even her instinct for self-preservation was weak.
She had caused Yu Yin no small amount of trouble.
Had he not been intent on fattening her up for a grand feast, he would have killed her when she reached the outskirts of Zhuzhou City.
As for now… Yu Yin glanced at Yu Guang’s face, illuminated by the flickering firelight.
What will Big Brother choose to do this time?
“Le me do it,” Yu Guang said calmly.
“No, no, Big Brother, you rest! We can handle this!” Wu Jin tightly gripped the skewer holding the flatbread, refusing adamantly.
Ming Yu quickened his pace, holding four skewers of flatbread in his hands and firmly denying Yu Guang any opportunity to help.
“Big Brother must be tired. You don’t need to do anything.”
“Hahaha, I’m not tired at all!” Yu Guang chuckled.
“…”
Over the years, everyone had slowly come to realize the unfortunate truth—Big Brother’s cooking was terrible. However, out of respect and affection for him, no one had the heart to tell him directly.
Occasionally, to keep him happy, they would endure his cooking, forcing themselves to eat it and even offering insincere praise.
As a result, Yu Guang still believed his cooking skills were at least average.
Yu Yin shook off thoughts of the Locust God and grabbed Yu Guang’s hand.
“Hmm?” Yu Guang looked down in confusion.
Yu Yin reached for the lazy, gray-eyed cat grooming itself half-heartedly by his feet and shoved it into Yu Guang’s arms.
Seeing the cat struggling to lick its wet fur, Yu Guang sighed and grabbed a cloth to help dry it off.
With Big Brother distracted, Wu Jin quietly shot Yu Yin a look of approval.
The flatbread was almost warm, and Yu Guang had finished drying the cat.
After setting the cloth aside, he washed his hands and returned, picking up Yu Yin’s flatbread. He broke it into small pieces, added water, and cooked it into a pot of porridge-like mush, serving it separately to Yu Yin.
Yu Yin: “…”
This type of flatbread, designed to serve as dry provisions for traveling, was especially hard once it cooled, requiring considerable effort to bite through.
Yu Guang had gone out of his way to break and cook it into mush for Yu Yin, a gesture of special care and consideration.
But the resulting dish was… far from appetizing.
Pressing a hand to his forehead, Yu Yin silently picked at the mush. Just as he did, he caught the sound of Wu Jin stifling a laugh across the fire.
Without hesitation, Yu Yin grabbed the damp cloth Yu Guang had used to dry the cat and flung it at Wu Jin.
Wu Jin instinctively tilted his head to dodge, and the cloth landed with a loud “smack” right on Mu Yi’s face, who had been sitting there in a daze.
Mu Yi: “…” The cloth left him with a mouthful of cat fur.
Yu Guang frowned. “What are you all doing?”
Ming Yu suddenly chimed in, “Wu Jin said he also wants to try Big Brother’s flatbread porridge.”
“Are you kidding me?!” Wu Jin started to retort, but quickly swallowed his words.
Yu Yin acted fast, pouring out more than half of his mushy flatbread into a bowl and pointing directly at Wu Jin.
“Are you not hungry? Why give so much to Wu Jin?” Yu Guang asked, not having any problems with it. He simply nodded in approval and gestured for Wu Jin to take the bowl.
Wu Jin reluctantly approached and accepted it.
Watching them hurt each other, Mu Yi said: “…”
This lifetime feels so different. Enemies, friends, even teachers… everyone is livelier now.
You all feel so unfamiliar to me.
Still, the playful chaos loosened the tension in Mu Yi’s chest. The heaviness that had followed him since they set out seemed to ease, leaving him more relaxed.
…
The group soon passed through the checkpoint between Zhuzhou and Chazhou, entering Chazhou’s territory.
Over the past few years, Zhuzhou had changed dramatically. Though the group barely noticed the shifts day by day, stepping into Chazhou made the contrast immediately clear.
Here, with no one to handle the evil spirits, they encountered three within a single day of travel.
“It’s been a long time since we’ve seen evil spirits,” Wu Jin remarked, stepping forward with Ming Yu to deal with them before Yu Guang could even speak.
The process of handling the spirits cost them several extra days, but Mu Yi wasn’t worried. In his previous life, the tragedy in Du Village hadn’t occurred until August. With two months still left, they had time to spare.
As they journeyed toward Du Village, the closer they got, the fewer signs of evil spirits they encountered.
“Du Village is unique,” Ming Yu explained. “Many of its residents have strong spiritual sensitivity and the ability to ward off evil spirits.”
By evening, they reached a serene village. Smoke curled gently from chimneys, and the houses stood neatly in rows, exuding an air of peace and harmony.
Children’s laughter mixed with the clucking of chickens and the barking of dogs, creating an idyllic pastoral scene starkly different from the other villages they had passed through.
At the entrance to Du Village stood a tall, ancient archway. On it, four large characters were inscribed: “碧血丹心” (Steadfast Loyalty and Pure Heart).
“The founding ancestor, the Chihuo Celestial Lord of the East, was originally known as Du Binyang. The ‘Du’ in Du Village comes from his name,” Ming Yu explained. “It’s said that his descendants live here, hidden from the world.”
Ming Yu, who followed the teachings of the Chihuo Celestial Lord, knew more about this than the others. He had long heard of Du Village and had always wanted to see it for himself. Normally reserved, his eyes lit up as he gazed at the ancient archway of the village.
