https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-45-The-Method-of-Suppressing-Demons/12834448/
Chapter 44: Village Rules
Chapter 44: Village Rules
The unexpected outcome brought an abrupt silence to the scene. All the villagers seemed caught off guard, unsure of how to react.
It was Harrison's companion, Xavier, who finally broke the silence. After a long, stunned pause, he burst out, "No, that’s not right. This isn’t fair!"
"It’s not fair at all!"
"..."
His outburst seemed to snap everyone out of their stupor, and they all turned to look at him with intense concern.
The chubby overseer, however, simply smiled and said to Xavier, "What’s not fair, my child?"
Xavier, having realized his outburst, tried to regain his composure but pressed on, "I have the strongest fire. I’ve practiced more than any of them. How can they all be chosen except me?"
Even the Second Master, who had been listening, hesitated to speak.
To be honest, Xavier had indeed been with them the longest and had the strongest fire among the young apprentices.
As for Harrison...
...there was no comparison. Even the Second Master couldn’t match him.
Before the Second Master could interject, the overseer chuckled, his demeanor calm and composed. "You’ve done well, indeed."
"I can see that you’ve been tending the fire the longest and have put in a lot of effort. But, if I’m not mistaken, you were recently affected by an evil spirit, weren’t you?"
"Your fire is no longer pure. Go back and take care of yourself. Maybe try again next year."
"..."
"Me..."
Xavier’s face paled as soon as the overseer mentioned this. His lips trembled, and his eyes filled with venom as he glared at Harrison.
Harrison, however, understood the situation and ignored Xavier, turning to speak with David Thompson instead.
"Ah..."
By the time Xavier’s family caught up, they too were in a frenzy. The third son, who hadn’t heard the overseer clearly, protested, "No matter what, our Xavier is better than that Harrison kid, right?"
"He’s only been with the Second Master for less than a month..."
"..."
The eldest Cummings brother (formerly Cui) glared at his younger sibling, then, noticing the crowd, forced a smile and approached the overseer, speaking in a low voice, "Sir, could we speak in private for a moment?"
"..."
The overseer’s face remained kind, but he didn’t move. He was proud and haughty, thinking, "I’m the overseer from the Scarlet Lamp Society. Why should I give you a moment?"
He looked up at the sky and addressed the gathered villagers, "I came to our Greenhaven Village to check on the children, but I also need to pay my respects at the Tai Sui Shrine and hang our Scarlet Lamp Society lanterns."
"I don’t have time to chat with the villagers now. If you have any issues, speak to the Village Elder."
"All I need is to see the five chosen children by the 28th of this month."
"..."
With that, he lifted the hem of his robe and left the village, declining the Village Elder’s invitation to stay for lunch. He mounted his donkey and rode away.
As the overseer left, the Cummings family didn’t dare to stop him. They quickly gathered around the Village Elder, arguing their case.
Meanwhile, the other three chosen children, besides Harrison and David Thompson, were still dazed. However, their parents were overjoyed, hugging their children and beaming with pride. Some immediately took their children to the old hearth to thank their ancestors, while others started inviting neighbors for celebratory dinners.
The atmosphere was as festive as if the children had been accepted into a prestigious university.
"You’re a lucky one, kid..."
The Second Master walked over and patted Harrison’s head, reflecting, "I knew you were ambitious and didn’t want to rely on the Tai Sui for a living. You were determined to learn skills, and who would have thought you’d get a chance to join the Blood Food Guild?"
The Second Master knew Harrison’s abilities, so he wasn’t surprised by his selection. He was just grateful for Harrison’s good fortune. The young boy had always asked him questions, showing his eagerness to learn, but the Second Master couldn’t teach him everything, and joining the Scarlet Lamp Society wasn’t easy. Yet, the opportunity had come.
Harrison smiled, "It’s all thanks to you, Second Master."
The Second Master beamed, unsure how to praise Harrison further, and suddenly kicked David Thompson, "You’re even luckier, having a good grandfather."
"..."
"You could just praise him without kicking me..."
David Thompson rubbed his sore bottom, thinking that he wasn’t the only lazy one in the village...
"Village Elder, this isn’t right..."
At the same time, the Cummings family had pulled the Village Elder aside, speaking urgently and in a flurry of voices.
"Our Xavier has been with the Second Master for almost three years. His fire is the best."
"Right, everyone else was chosen, but why not our child?"
"..."
The Village Elder, surrounded and feeling overwhelmed, said, "Don’t you know what happened?"
"The Second Master already mentioned it. Your Xavier was affected by an evil spirit. What can be done about it?"
"..."
They remembered when Xavier had encountered the White-Faced Mountain Spirit, and the Second Master had sent him back to the village to recuperate. They felt unwilling to accept it and said, "If he was affected, we’ll go to the old woman... Oh, she’s gone now. We’ll take him to the old man in Ridgewood Village for treatment, but we can’t miss this opportunity."
“
Has it been years since the Lady’s Festival was held? Can you bear to let your great-nephew miss this opportunity?”
“...”
The clan leader, feeling a headache coming on, replied, “What can we do? The steward has already made his selection. How can we dare to interfere?”
“What if we offend the steward, and he refuses all the children from our village? How would we handle that?”
“...”
The Cui family grew even more anxious at these words. The eldest Cui brother tried to calm his brothers, “We should read between the lines. Didn’t the steward say he would listen to you? We want to send the best to the Red Lantern Festival. If we send our Scorpion, we can replace the less suitable one.”
The clan leader’s face darkened, “My Datong is not the least suitable.”
The Cui family members were immediately flustered, quickly adding, “We didn’t mean Datong. Datong is a hardworking and good boy.”
As the clan leader, such an opportunity was one he wouldn’t pass up for his own grandson, even the Cui family wouldn’t dare to object.
However, the families that had been selected were not easy to deal with.
He lowered his voice, “That Hu family boy has only been on the mountain for less than a month, right?”
“How could he have been chosen? I suspect Second Master might have spoken to the steward on his behalf.”
“...”
The clan leader frowned at this.
He too felt that it might have been Second Master who had whispered to the steward.
Firstly, Hu Ma had joined the mountain quite late, and he had always been a mischievous child, not someone who seemed destined for greatness.
Additionally, when the steward tested his readiness, he had barely touched Hu Ma, clearly not taking it seriously.
Seeing the clan leader’s hesitation, the eldest Cui brother quickly said, “I think we should send our Scorpion. He’s older and more responsible. At the Lady’s Festival, he can take care of Datong and the other children from our village.”
“Otherwise, sending five children who are all inexperienced might lead to trouble, and they might even be sent back.”
Hearing this, the old clan leader became even more uncertain.
If it came to causing trouble, the first in the village would be his own grandson, followed by that Hu family boy, right?
The second Cui brother, noticing the old clan leader’s hesitation, leaned in and whispered a few more words, mentioning terms like “half-cylinder Taishi” and “Golden Ear,” which visibly surprised the old clan leader, making him seem more inclined.
Then, under the eager gazes of the Cui family, he unexpectedly said, “You’ve been hiding such good things?”
The second Cui brother smiled without a word, asking earnestly, “What do you think?”
“Very good, very good...”
The old clan leader smiled, then suddenly said, “With so many good things, why go to the city to work? Save them for Cuiwaizi to get married.”
“As for the Lady’s Festival, let’s leave it to young Hu Ma.”
“...”
The Cui family was momentarily stunned, struggling to react.
“What are they talking about?”
Hu Ma, seeing the Cui family surrounding the clan leader and chattering, asked curiously.
Second Master snorted, “It’s probably nothing good. I’ve never liked their domineering attitude.”
“But there’s nothing we can do. In our village, the family with the most sons has the most power. Old Lady Cui is formidable, having given birth to five sons, though one died in childhood. Now, they are one of the prominent families in the village.”
“Remember what your grandmother said. When you go to the Red Lantern Festival, learn your skills quickly, get married, and have children. The more, the better. She’s waiting for you in the pond!”
“...”
Hu Ma hadn’t expected to be pressured into marriage at sixteen in this world.
He smiled, then asked, catching a key point, “If I learn the skills at the Lady’s Festival, I don’t have to remain a virgin, right?”
“Of course not.”
Second Master glared at him, “Do you think any of the stewards or managers at the Lady’s Festival have only one wife?”
“They are very powerful!”
“They select you as a virgin because you are a blank slate, easy to teach. There’s no rule that you must remain a virgin.”
“Once you enter the Lady’s Festival, if you perform well and become a steward or even a manager, you will have special blood offerings. With ample blood offerings, you can learn any skill.”
“Even if you just work as an apprentice for a few years and then return to the village, the clan leader will look at you differently...”
“...”
Listening to this, Hu Ma felt a bit more motivated. He paused, then asked, “What about the skills of the New Year’s Guardian?”
“Eh?”
When Second Master heard these three words, he was slightly taken aback, then realized that the grandmother must have mentioned them to Hu Ma.
Sighing, he waved his hand, “You’re ambitious, but the skills of the New Year’s Guardian are indeed part of the Lady’s Festival. Once you learn them, you won’t need to maintain the fire pit. But it’s not that easy. Your Second Master has waited a lifetime for it...”
Hu Ma vaguely sensed that Second Master seemed somewhat unhappy whenever he mentioned these skills.
(End of Chapter)
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