Chapter 5: The Great Achievement of the Demon of Hatred

  As for that Zhuo Yuanwai, seeing the monster in his own home, it actually understood how to listen to the wind and distinguish colors. Seeing the superior person of the Upper Clear Palace here, he imitated a turtle withdrawing its head, not making a sound, pretending to be stupid. The monster's move made Zhuo Yuanwai feel angry, anxious, and fearful at the same time.

  It's infuriating, I don't know if it's because I often had a few shortcomings in the past, which provoked this kind of monster in my house; It's urgent, having one monster is already unlucky enough, but what's even more unlucky is that this monster not only has great power, but also has a cunning nature, and can actually observe people's words and expressions; What I'm most afraid of is that after finally inviting a Taoist priest with high moral character who can subdue this evil spirit, unexpectedly because the monster was clever, Qinghe Daozhang saw the peaceful scene in my house and wanted to leave, even suspecting that I was deceiving him - it's obvious that once this great man from the Upper Clear Palace leaves, the monster that understands human nature will inevitably blame me for inviting such a powerful Taoist priest and will surely take revenge on my house!

  At this thought, the shopkeeper couldn't help but shudder, and he could no longer maintain his usual humble demeanor. His eyes gleamed with a cold light as he spoke in a low, somber tone:

  "It's come to this... no choice left... have to use that trick now!"

  The words spoken by Zhu Yuanwai were low and melancholic, seemingly hinting at a sense of desperation and willingness to die. The two people in front of him, who had been thinking only of escaping, suddenly felt as though the bright hall had darkened. Zhu's wife, who was standing nearby, heard her husband's sudden words and couldn't help but cry out in shock, her voice trembling with tears: "Old master! Don't say that!~~~~"

  The sound of the mournful voice echoed throughout the flower hall, yet it gave people a sense of unspeakable silence - just as everyone was being suffocated by the heavy and eerie atmosphere, they suddenly heard Zhu Yuanwai loudly scolding his son beside him:

  "You're such an unworthy son! Your brain is as dull as a block of wood!"

  As soon as this was said, the entire Zhu family was in an uproar; especially young master Zhu Wencai, who heard his father's rebuke and became even more flustered. In the entire flower hall, only Lao Dao and Xing Yan remained calm, seeing how Zhu Yuanwai glanced around and changed the subject, not mentioning the monster at all, but instead began to educate his children, they couldn't help but feel a bit bewildered; after a while, when they saw that Zhu Yuanwai had nothing more to say, Lao Dao finally couldn't resist asking:

  "What's that move you were talking about? Why don't you hurry up and use it already?"

  "Immortal Senior, I've already made my move!"

  "Huh? Is that the lesson from just now, 'hating iron for not becoming steel'?!" The old man became even more displeased. "You, Wei Yuan! Do you think I'm someone outside your circle who can be toyed with at will?"

  "Way... way... long, you... don't think... there's something unusual in this flower hall, right?... Get... get... get..."

  It's strange that when faced with Lao Dao's questioning, Zhuo Yuan Wai stuttered and failed to answer the question, his whole body started trembling, and his teeth chattered uncontrollably!

  Suddenly understanding the meaning of the words outside the window, Lao Dao and Xing Yan couldn't help but feel a chill run down their spines, and they quickly looked around cautiously.

  The eyes of the two had already scanned the flower hall several times, but they couldn't see anything unusual; Qinghe Lao and Shao Nian Xing Yan exchanged a glance, both seeing doubt in each other's eyes.

  When the two turned their gaze back to the soulless Zhu Yuan, they found that his teeth were chattering even more violently, and for a moment he couldn't speak, pointing only at the eastern wall.

  The old man and Xingyan calmed down, made mental preparations to see all sorts of terrifying scenes, and then dared to turn his eyes to glance in the direction pointed by Yuanwai - but saw that on the east wall of the flower hall, on the pink wall, a sea buckthorn tree with bright flowers was painted; On one branch of the sea buckthorn tree, there was a parrot standing on it, with red wings and green feathers, its expression lifelike.

  Just as the two were watching intently, suddenly, unexpectedly, the parrot in the painting spread its feathers and cried out in a strange voice:

  "Monster! Monster!"

  This shout startled both the old Taoist and the young man so much that they broke out in a cold sweat!

  Just then, after a moment of shock, the old Taoist smiled and picked up the peach wood sword that had been placed aside, turning his head to say to Zhu Yuanwai:

  "It's just a bird demon that has become a spirit! What's there to be afraid of? Let me go catch it, and we can roast it to drink with wine!"

  However, it was the old man of Qinghe who saw that the body of the bird in the painting was small and seemed to be not enough for his own peach wood sword, so he regained his courage and jumped up, eager to try.

  "……No, it's not a painting, that parrot is not the one! The parrot is actually real, not painted. It's just that someone carved a small hole in the hawthorn branch and inserted a parrot stand from behind the wall, letting the bird jump and flutter on top of it. From afar, it looks like the painting has come to life! Hehe... this was made possible by spending a lot of money!"

  When he reached the most enjoyable part, his teeth seemed to stop fighting each other, and his speech became more fluent. He looked quite pleased with himself.

  "Oh? So that's how it is! It's really interesting!" Zhen Yan heard Zhu Yuan's words and felt that they were indeed very meaningful.

  "Not bad! Indeed, it's a unique and exquisite design, worthy of... uh! ~~ Congratulations to the master! What do you mean by this?! Is it that you invited me here today just to show off your home decor?! You've been teasing me repeatedly, what's your true intention?!"

  It turned out that Qinghe Lao Dao mistakenly took the live bird as a real monster, feeling embarrassed in front of people, and couldn't help but feel angry and humiliated.

  "Immortal elder, please don't be annoyed! It's all because Xiaoke didn't explain clearly just now - actually, it's not that the mural has a problem; but rather the spring bench in front of the painting that was originally not placed there! It's precisely this thing that has been causing trouble many times in my humble abode! Immortal elder, please be compassionate and save my whole family!"

  As they looked away, Lao Dao and Xing Yan only then noticed that in front of the painted tree peony, a four-legged spring stool was slanting to one side. The spring stool was about two feet long, with a wide seat surface. The edges of the stool were quite smooth, showing that it had been around for many years; what was surprising was that the color of the stool was still fairly white, apparently its owner was diligent in wiping and maintaining it.

  It seems that the spring couch was not here just now, but when he called out, it appeared in front of the east wall painting. However, neither Lao Dao nor Xing Yan had noticed it before, and they didn't know if what Zhu Yuanwai said was true or not.

  "You're saying it's this elm stool that's playing tricks?" The old Taoist asked with some doubt.

  "It's indeed! The immortal is truly a sharp-eyed one; but this is where the problem lies - it's on top of a wooden stool made of Chinese cedar!"

  "Oh? Is the elm stool particularly special? Hmm... The stool made of elm wood is sturdy and durable, long-lasting and not easily damaged by insects. It's indeed a top-notch material for making stools... Eh! ~~ How can this ordinary elm stool be related to monsters?! You're not going to show off your family's furniture again, are you?"

  It seems that in Lao Dao's mind, Zhu Yuan has been categorized as someone who loves to show off and likes to speak alarmingly.

  The staff member outside heard the old way of doubt, did not argue, but again thought of that curse just now:

  "You're as stupid as a block of wood!!!"

  Lao Dao listened to him reciting that inexplicable headache spell again, and couldn't help but laugh inwardly. He was about to speak up and mock him a few times - but unexpectedly, just as Zhuo Yuan Wai's voice had fallen, a sudden change occurred!

  Just as Qinghe Lao was about to speak and mock Zhuo Yuanwai's foolish behavior, he suddenly heard a "yah" from the side and was told to look at the eastern wall!

  The old man looked in the direction of the sound, but saw that the long, large wooden bench that had just been regarded as a monster was now undergoing strange changes: on its originally white body, there seemed to be a crimson mist rising, as if the bench had been humiliated by the sarcastic remarks of the person outside. This proud and self-respecting elm wood bench was now flushed with anger, its four legs jumping up and down like the limbs of a wild beast, as if it were about to rush over here. The two wooden knots on the head of the bench, which had originally been a deep brown color, now seemed like two human eyes, staring angrily in this direction - this originally unremarkable elm wood bench was now suddenly furious, like a vicious dog that bites people!

  "My goodness! It's really a monster!" The old Taoist was secretly cursing his luck.

  Although the strange scene experienced on Poyang Lake last time was much more intense, with strong winds and thunderstorms, the current fear is not one bit less - the slow and silent changes are even more penetrating, and I only feel a chill rising from my back, this young man who was calm and composed on the turbulent Poyang Lake now has goosebumps all over his body!

  He was so frightened that he saw the old Taoist's body next to Zhu Da, who looked at the stool and wanted to move, and was scared to pee and fart. In the gaze of the young man's eyes wide with wonder, "whoosh" jumped behind the old Taoist - it was unexpected that his fat body could still be so agile!

  Except for Zhu Yuan who hid in a safe area, the others were urging anxiously: "Xian Chang, cast your spell quickly! This demon is extremely ferocious when enraged!"

  Upon hearing this, Lao Dao became even more flustered, hastily grasping the peach wood sword while putting his index finger in his mouth, his face turning extremely solemn.

  "Huh? Old Daoist, what are you doing?! Waking up to see the old Daoist at this critical moment, not thinking about how to defend against or subdue the demon, but instead learning from that young child's babbling and sucking on his fingers, couldn't help but feel strange."

  "Fool! You've never seen my true Taoist magic - the really powerful spells require biting one's tongue or cutting one's finger, spitting a mouthful of fresh blood onto the magical tool, and only then will the power of the spell increase tenfold! This demon is looking particularly vicious today, it seems I'll have to shed some blood!"

  However, it's easier said than done to bite one's finger or tongue - the skin on one's hands is tough, and teeth aren't as sharp as knives, making it hard to pierce; moreover, with the saying "ten fingers connected to the heart", biting one's own fingers feels painful, unless you're an extremely cruel person, how could you bear to do so? Don't listen to those storytellers in tea houses and taverns, who with a smack of their lips say "bite your tongue, spit a mouthful of fresh blood on the peach wood sword", making it sound effortless; but if you ask them to try it themselves -

  So, after all this effort, the old Taoist had only managed to leave a few tooth marks on his finger skin - with a gap in between, clearly showing that the old Taoist's teeth were starting to fall out; however, there wasn't even a single drop of blood on the tip of his finger!

  But without mentioning the commotion on this side, it's said that the wooden bench monster, after observing for a while, seemed to crouch down like an evil dog, building up momentum; then all of a sudden, with a "whoosh" sound, the wooden bench monster shot over like thunder.

  That was hiding behind the old way, taking this high-ranking official as a shield, felt that he was still safe, who would have thought that he was the first to bear the brunt! The fierce demon came fiercely, but also extremely agile, "whoosh" sound, the demon's body twisted like a water snake, curved and rushed straight at Zhu Yuanwai!

  "Bang!" In the blink of an eye, that fatty, who weighed nearly two hundred catties, was knocked flying like a straw man, and fell far away. He rolled over several times, from the center of the flower hall to the west wall, knocking over two wooden frames with flower racks, shattering three blue porcelain vases, and finally landing on a chair, crushing it flat.

  Before everyone could react, the powerful and swift stool spirit burst into the flower hall like a tiger entering a flock of sheep, charging left and right, sending everyone tumbling to the ground!

  After a chaotic stampede, the majority of people in the flower hall were knocked to the ground, their mouths constantly cursing - even the old Taoist Qinghe was now lying under the Eight Immortals table.

  "Good heavens! Is this guy a wooden bench or a mad dog?!"

  Look at that peach wood sword again, now it's covered in fresh blood - that was the old Dao being splattered out; only unfortunately, the old Dao who had just been hit hard, now didn't even have the strength to move his fingers.

  At this moment, the originally rich and majestic, carefully arranged and tidy Zhuzhai Flower Hall is now in a state of disarray: the shelves are tilted, chairs overturned, tables slanted, vases shattered, flowers broken, wine and dishes scattered all over the floor, water flowing everywhere. Moreover, with wounds and scars all around, it's as if it were a battlefield that had just been fiercely fought over, the previous atmosphere of luxury and prosperity is now completely gone - even the parrot that Zhu Yuanwai was so proud of, which was said to be as vivid and lifelike as a wall painting, had its leg broken free from the small rope tied around it, and frantically flew out the window, circling the house three times, crying out "Ga Ga" like an old crow, adding to the desolate and sorrowful atmosphere.

  When everyone else was knocked to the ground, that young man who still stood there without a scratch seemed particularly eye-catching.

  It turned out that although the stool monster was rushing forward and backward, invading like a fire, it surprisingly all bypassed Xingyan, which really made people puzzled.

  That intact young man was also inexplicably puzzled in his heart, and he couldn't help but think wildly: "Could this demon be so spiritual? Does it know that I have great strength and is afraid of colliding with me, so it doesn't dare to provoke me? Or did it recognize me as an old acquaintance and spared me out of courtesy?"

  Just as he was muttering to himself and indulging in wishful thinking, the monster suddenly turned around, staring at him with its two scarred "eyes", seemingly hesitating whether to come over and attack.

  "Ah, no! Can't escape after all! Looks like it's not familiar with me... Don't come over! Don't come over! Whatever you do, don't come over......" The young man could only pray fervently now; because he knew that even if he had more strength or agility, it would be useless, as the monster was too fast and the wooden club was exceptionally hard. In such a lightning-fast collision, he wouldn't be able to withstand it at all.

  Just as he was in the midst of swearing and making vows to the Three Pure Ones, ?ākyamuni Buddha, Confucius, and other deities of various teachings, he suddenly saw with terror that the monster had made up its mind, took a step back, and then heard a "whooshing" sound. It was as if a bolt of lightning had flashed across the sky, shooting towards him with the force of thunder and lightning.

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