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墨書 Inktalez
Chapter Twenty-Five Land Temple
The situation was like this: the next day, we agreed to have a barbecue by a river in the woods of Suburb, which was a large forest far from the county town. With a lively atmosphere and about ten to twenty people, several male classmates were in charge of grilling food, while the female classmates had nothing to do. At that moment, Xia Ling suddenly suggested that we all go into the woods to pick mushrooms since we were almost out of food and it would be great to roast some mushrooms, which would surely taste delicious.
Everyone thought this suggestion was quite good, and several girls clamored to go mushroom picking. However, one classmate pointed out that there were many varieties of mushrooms in the woods, and many similar-looking species were poisonous. What if they ended up picking poisonous mushrooms?
At this point, one girl claimed she grew up in the Countryside and often went mushroom picking with her grandmother when she was young. She mentioned that she recognized mushrooms like Tea Leaf Mushroom and guaranteed she wouldn’t make a mistake.
I didn’t doubt their ability to identify mushrooms; after all, there were a few girls from the Countryside. But I was worried about them getting lost or encountering something dangerous because this was deep in the mountains, where very few people ventured. If any classmate got lost and wandered deeper into the mountains, it could be really dangerous. Moreover, I noticed that this place had a heavy Yin Qi, being shaded and generally gloomy, which was likely why they chose this spot—because there was no sunlight.
So I told the girls who were excited about picking mushrooms that it would be best not to run around too much. The depths of the mountains could hold unforeseen dangers; what would happen if they encountered something unexpected?
Not only the girls but even the boys scoffed at my words, saying, “Shenbao, are you having another professional hazard? Are you talking about ghosts or something?”
Upon hearing this, everyone burst into laughter, clearly not taking my words seriously.
Seeing their disbelief, I felt helpless and decided to let them be.
They scattered into the woods alone or in pairs, heading off to find those so-called mushrooms. At that moment, Lin Xiaoqi approached me and asked if I wanted to go with them.
I sighed; if they wanted to go, then let them. Since everyone had left, it wouldn’t be useful just standing here in a daze. I might as well follow them in and see what was happening!
As we entered the woods, there weren’t actually any mushrooms at all. Most of them didn’t really want to eat mushrooms; they were just bored and looking for fun.
Just as we had walked a few hundred meters into the woods, suddenly a boy came rushing out from the left side of the Forest and excitedly shouted at us: “Quick! I heard that Xia Ling and the others found an antique! Let’s hurry over and take a look!”
After saying that, the boy did not linger and quickly ran ahead.
Suddenly hearing this, both Lin Xiaoqi and I felt very curious. How could there be antiques in such a remote area? Especially since everyone had only come into the woods to pick mushrooms. We had only heard that most antiques were buried underground, and if one was lucky, they might accidentally dig them up while turning the soil. However, we had never heard of antiques just lying on the ground.
Feeling puzzled, Lin Xiaoqi and I couldn't contain our curiosity and hurried forward.
After running a couple of hundred meters, we saw that a group of ten or twenty classmates had already gathered together, buzzing with excitement.
From a distance, I could see that those classmates were surrounding a dirt monument that was taller than a person. Upon seeing this, I had a bad feeling and wondered what that dirt monument was for.
So Lin Xiaoqi and I quickly ran up. As we got closer, I realized it wasn't a dirt monument but rather a small Land Temple.
This Land Temple was just over half a person tall and about one meter wide, made of mud bricks. The top of the Land Temple was covered with several broken tiles overgrown with moss. The entire Land Temple had been weathered by time; due to exposure to the elements in this wild area, the walls over a meter high were already covered in grass. Especially in front of the Land Temple, it was overgrown with wild grass more than half a meter tall. If one didn't pay attention, it would be hard to notice that there was even a Land Temple here.
Inside the Land Temple stood a bronze Land God Statue. In front of the statue was an azure blue incense burner about the size of a fist. Of course, at this moment, the incense burner contained only dirt; there was no incense to be found. The bronze statue itself was covered in rust and had long lost its original appearance.
Seeing everyone gathered around this Land Temple, pointing at the statue of the land god, I finally understood what they meant by antiques—it was just this land god statue in front of us!
At that moment, Xia Ling said to everyone that although the bronze statue was rusty, she could assure us that it was quite old and definitely an antique. Everyone believed her because she had studied archaeology in college.
Then someone asked Xia Ling, "Xia Ling, since you study archaeology, what era do you think this bronze statue is from? Is it valuable? If it's valuable, we could make a fortune today! We can sell this thing tomorrow and find a nice place to enjoy ourselves."
Upon hearing this, everyone went wild—some clapped their hands while others cheered in agreement. In short, this event seemed like hitting the jackpot for them.
Xia Ling said she wanted to take a look at the bronze statue inside the Land Temple. Seeing this made my heart race; I hurriedly pushed through the classmates in front of me and grabbed Xia Ling to stop her from touching anything. I told her not to mess with these things because this is a Land Temple, and that statue is the land god; it's not something we can touch.
Seeing me stop her, Xia Ling pouted and pointed at the bronze statue inside the Land Temple saying, "This is an ancient craft; why can't we touch it? It's a crystallization of wisdom from our ancestors—what a waste to leave it here like this!"
I replied, "Whether it's a waste or not is none of my business, but this is a Land Temple. The things inside cannot be moved; otherwise, it could bring trouble."
Indeed, I did not deceive her. You must understand how could there be a Land Temple in such a desolate place; it surely wasn't built for people to pray at, so it is not simple. It should serve as an office for reporting the souls of the deceased.
Perhaps everyone finds it strange that a Land Temple is related to souls. Yes, every place has a Land Temple. There are two types of Land Temples: one is used by the living for prayers, and the other manages the local death and life registrations. Of course, some of the latter are invisible to our mortal eyes, but they truly exist.
The Land Temple that manages local death and life registrations has a local Household Registration Book in the hands of the Earth God, which records the local mountains, rivers, population, livestock, and so on. As the saying goes, "A place's land nurtures its people," and "A piece of land protects its people." The birth and death of a soul must go through the local Land Temple. Although the land has a low divine status, it is a well-known deity that everyone dares not offend. It is also an important messenger that communicates with various halls and the divine realm, from transmitting official documents to burning offerings for wealth; all rely on the help of the Earth God. When someone's lifespan is over, the underworld soldiers will take a Soul-Calling Tablet and a ticket to escort the Wandering Soul to pass through the Land Temple. The Earth God will open the Household Registration Book for verification; if this deceased person belongs to the locality and has indeed passed away without any religious beliefs, he will stamp the ticket with the local land seal for passage into the underworld. The Land Temple provides direct access to the dark road leading to the Underworld, where the entrance is pitch black and specifically used for underworld soldiers escorting souls as they transform into dark winds on their way to this road.
As for this Land Temple before us, although we can see it with our eyes, it is not meant for prayers; thus, it is highly likely used for passage to the Underworld.
However, my classmates would not believe my words; they all wore mocking expressions.
Xia Ling said angrily, "Do you know what my major is? Archaeology! Do you understand archaeology? What ancient tombs haven't I seen? I can even move bones from coffins that are hundreds of years old. Do you think someone like me would be scared by your superstitions?"
Hearing this made my heart suddenly ache. Yes, she truly looked down on me and even regarded my concern as Dog Shit.
Despite this, I still wanted to advise her—not for any other reason but because of our past; simply because I am someone who cherishes old feelings. But just as I was about to speak again, she suddenly got angry and impatiently shouted, "Are you annoying? I don't need you to care about me anymore! I don't need your concern! Although we were together before, we have grown up now. Stop bothering me; I could never like you again!"
Her voice was loud enough for everyone to hear. Looking back now, I can't recall how embarrassed I felt or how red my face was; if there had been a hole in the ground, I might have wished to dive right in.
For some reason, my heart felt extremely sad, as if it were being cut by a knife. Yes, perhaps I really was meddling too much; maybe in her eyes, I was just someone trying to catch a swan while being a frog. Things have truly changed; time has altered everything.
While I was lost in thought, Xia Ling had already reached out and taken out the bronze statue from that Land Temple...
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