Chapter 528: Chapter 520: Five Lives for Five Lives
White mist arose, illusions sprang forth, yet Qin Liuxi entered the illusions with a wholly composed countenance, acting as an observer to everything before his eyes.
The village of Taoyuan in Zhou County was dominated by the surname Zhang, and Bai Renting was the only outsider, having fled there with his widowed mother, taken root and thrived. Handsome and literate, humble and courteous, many wives and young girls in the village fancied looking at him. From the age of fifteen, numerous matchmakers had knocked on their door, but Mrs. Bai refused them all, single-mindedly using her exquisite embroidery skills to fund Bai Renting’s schooling.
When Bai Renting turned twenty, Mrs. Bai arranged a marriage for him with the orphaned daughter of a Scholar from a neighboring village, Jiang by surname. Their household of two became three; husband and wife were loving, mother-in-law and daughter-in-law harmonious. The family communicated and cooperated, leading an increasingly prosperous life, a breath of fresh air compared to the constantly squabbling households of the village, an oasis of peace and beauty.
But malice in people springs forth without warning. Everyone is struggling in the mire, so why should you watch their struggle from above, clean and untouched?
It’s better to struggle in the mire together.
No one knows who started it, but the villagers began to ostracize the Bai Family, treating them as outsiders, unanimously excluding them, and nasty words spread.
To avoid gossip, the young daughter-in-law and the mother-in-law seldom left the house unless necessary. If they did, they always went together, never giving others the chance to start even more unsavory rumors.
Mrs. Bai’s embroidery was exceptionally fine. Thinking that they could no longer live in the village, she planned to move to the town. To afford a decent house, she took on a large job, embroidering an image of the Bodhisattva Guanyin, which the Embroidery Workshop intended as a birthday gift for an Old Lady of a certain official’s family.
Mrs. Bai worked day and night on the Guanyin statue, its divine image almost lifelike, holding a jade bottle, with a gentle smile. By chance, the village chief’s wife saw it when she came to collect the rent.
Greed, like a demon, took root.
And it just so happened that the son of the village chief, Zhang Laixin, had offended a noble in the city and owed a hefty sum of Silver.
The Zhang Family had some farmland and were wealthier than the rest, but a sum of hundreds of silver taels wasn’t something they could produce just like that. When Zhang Laixin heard from his mother about the lifelike Guanyin statue at Bai’s home, he saw red.
There’s no limit to human malevolence.
One night, Zhang Laixin and the village chief came to the Bai home with lanterns, trying to make them hand over the Guanyin statue. The condition was that they would give the Bai Family the house and the ground it stood on, even allowing them into the family ancestral hall.
The Bai Family naturally refused.
They were Bai by surname; entering the Zhang Family’s ancestral hall brought them no benefits, especially since they already planned to move into the town.
Bai Renting even had plans of his own; his learning was solid and obtaining the title of Scholar was within reach. He politely declined and mentioned the family’s intention to move into the town.
Wouldn’t that be like a duck ready to be eaten flying away?
Evil surged in Zhang Laixin’s heart, and on impulse, he grabbed a mallet from the courtyard and smashed Bai Renting’s skull. Mrs. Bai witnessed the scene, and his evil hand extended towards her as well.
Mother and son, Bai Renting and Mrs. Bai, were both killed that way, their skulls crushed under Zhang Laixin’s blows.
As for Jiang, upon hearing the commotion, she came out, heavily pregnant, and screamed.
With nothing more to lose, the village chief, fearful that she might attract attention, wrapped one hand around her front and strangled her, covering her mouth with his other hand until she was dead.
In one night, under the power of malicious intent, the entire family perished, none spared.
After committing murder, the father and son quickly located the Guanyin statue and all the money before bringing the bodies back to the room, planning to start a fire to cover up the crime.
However, the wicked are without a bottom line. Jiang’s graceful nature and lovely appearance stirred evil desires in Zhang Laixin when he carried her to the bed and he relieved himself on her. That wasn’t enough; he even invited his old father to have his way with her while she was still warm.
Qin Liuxi’s eyes became as sharp as ice blades, and her fists clenched with a crackling sound.
She then looked at ‘Bai Renting,’ played by Xuan Qingzi. He was actually still barely alive, but that breath kept him hanging on long enough to witness his wife being humiliated by the two beasts after her death, filling him with a rage that tore at his heartstrings.
The situation was even worse for Yao Feifei, who played Jiang. She screamed internally, terrified and angry, but it was all in vain.
Who knows if they will ever think that sneaky harm to others should be exterminated?
Bai Renting died with his eyes wide open in indignation, his accumulated resentful energy surged to the skies with an unwilling roar. Such extreme hatred allowed his soul to linger in the small courtyard set ablaze.
The great fire concealed all traces of the murder, burning their bodies and souls alike. Yet, because their residence was a bit isolated, by the time the villagers arrived, the flames were already towering. No one dared to approach the inferno, only able to sigh in regret and for their bad karma.
Xuan Qingzi and Yao Feifei rolled painfully on the ground.
On the seventh day after the Bai family’s death, the greatly resentful Bai Renting stormed out of the courtyard, seeking vengeance at the village chief’s home, a life for a life, five lives for five lives.
Xuan Qingzi and Yao Feifei had fully immersed themselves in their roles, and as they seemed to stab their enemies with their swords, they actually turned the blades towards their own stomachs, about to drive them in.
Ignoring this, they would truly die.
Qin Liuxi stepped forward, grabbing their hands: “Enough.”
“Do you also wish to stop me?” A clear yet immensely resentful voice echoed through the fog.
Qin Liuxi: “A life for a life, your great vengeance has been avenged, yet they did no harm to your family.”
Bai Renting let out a sharp laugh, replying, “They may not have harmed us, but they wanted to stop my revenge, aiding the tyrant. You Heavenly Masters, self-proclaimed followers of the Righteous Path, don’t distinguish right from wrong, black from white, assuming every ghost is inherently evil? But they taught me a lesson: it’s better to be wicked than a good man who gains no reward.”
“If you choose to do evil, then all Heavenly Masters must exorcise you, for your karma with the Zhang Family ended completely when their souls perished,” said Qin Liuxi with an icy voice. “Other living beings and dead souls have no grievances with you and should not become innocent victims of your wrath.”
Bai Renting fell silent for a moment, his voice suddenly rising, “What if I don’t wish to?”
Qin Liuxi also paused before replying, “Then you’d be hindering my return home, and I would be displeased. If I am displeased, no one will have peace!”
Bai Renting: “…”
Qin Liuxi produced a talisman and flicked it; the talisman ignited as she formed a Sealing with her hands and chanted a spell: “Break!”
The fog dispersed, and the illusion was shattered, revealing the true scene.
They were all inside Yizhuang, and Xuan Qingzi came out of the illusion, looking around, particularly at the reversed grip on the sword. His complexion changed, and taking into thought the illusion, he staggered back several steps.
Yao Feifei, on the other hand, kept screaming, shouting for no one to touch her, to get away.
“Shut up!” Qin Liuxi slapped a talisman over.