This Damned Thirst for Survival

On the other hand, Ji Yaozi finally arrived back home after a three-day journey.

He stood at the entrance to the village, yet the place felt unfamiliar, without a hint of familiarity.

But that was understandable, Ji Yaozi had only lived in the village with his mother for three years, so what could a three-year-old child remember?

Ji Yaozi walks step by step into the village, his eyes wistful and bewildered.

After more than forty years of change, both he and the village are total strangers to each other. Ji Yaozi searched and searched but could not find the brick house of his childhood, or even the river that drowned his mother.

There was an old man picking up dung on the side of the road, and Ji Yaozi hastily stopped him, "Brother, do you know where Zhao Zhirong's house is?"

The older man put the stretcher down and scratched his head in bewilderment, his dialect accent thick, " Zhao Zhirong ? I've never heard of that name before."

Ji Yaozi patiently added, "She was a local, she's just been dead for over forty years... Brother, do you really not remember the name?"

" Zhao Zhirong, Zhao Zhirong ," the uncle recited, not remembering the name at all, "I really don't remember, or else you go ask Uncle Zhao at the head of the village?"

Ji Yaozi, somewhat disappointed, asked again, "Brother, where is the river in the village?"

"There are rivers to the west, and to the east, which one are you looking for?"

Ji Yaozi said, "Find the river that has drowned people."

The old man was startled and said with some anger, "You outsider, how can you talk nonsense! The river in our village has never drowned anyone, don't curse our village!"

When he finished, Ji Yaozi left in a rage, carrying his stretcher on his back.

Ji Yaozi was frozen in place.

That's not right. How can someone not have drowned?

Ji Yaozi always felt that something was wrong, that some subtle dissonance was coming to the surface. Ji Yaozi walked on a little further and stopped another villager, this time specifically an old man.

But the old man had also never heard of Zhao Zhirong and said that no one had ever drowned in his village's river.

Ji Yaozi asked seven or eight people in a row, all with the same answer, and the void inside him grew bigger and bigger. There is no drowning river, no Zhao Zhirong, not even Ji Yaozi's real name, Zhao Zhen, is known.

How is this possible? When Ji Yaozi was called Zhao Zhen, he was sent to the county with seven or eight neighbours!

What about the neighbours?

Ji Yaozi was in a daze, sweating, as reality and memory diverged. He walked to the river, lost in thought, looking at the gurgling water, but Ji Yaozi could not control the trembling in his fingers, he felt a chill coming from the soles of his feet, and it went straight to his heavenly soul.

Are his memories false? Did his mother not actually exist?

So who is he?

Is it true that he and the predestined ...... are father and son?

Ji Yaozi had his head in the warm sun and broke into a cold sweat for a moment.

*

The sun shines in the sky.

Jiang Luo doesn't want to get caught up in a state of fretfulness and waste time waiting for Chi You to return, so he does his best to find things to do and keep himself busy every day.

The next day he took his companions with him to the Jokhang Temple.

After many years, Ge Zhu, who knew the truth about Ge Wuchen's rebellion against Buddhism, could not help but see Master Cheng De again, and his eyes were red.

When Master Cheng De saw him like this, he also had a sour look in his eyes.

But in the end, he was a man of great stability, and Master Cheng De pushed down his tears between breaths, "Please come with me."

This is Jiang Luo's second visit to Jokhang Temple.

The last time I was here was in winter, with layers and layers of snow. Now it's spring, and everywhere is green and vibrant, as if it were a March baby, with all the beauty of a relaxed nature.

Master Cheng De took them to see the abbot and when they arrived at the meditation room, the abbot had tea ready and waiting for them.

The tea curls up and refreshes the soul, but the abbot has only prepared four cups of tea.

Hearing the sound of footsteps, the abbot opened his eyes and his gleaming eyes looked sideways, "Master Jiang, Master Se, please come in."

Jiang Luo hooked his lips and led the bewildered Sai Liaoer towards the meditation room. As soon as he crossed the threshold, he suddenly turned back and lowered his voice: " There are several new temples at Jokhang Temple that are not being used, so go and help me pick out the one with the best feng shui."

Zhuo Zhongqiu A few people looked at each other, what was the point of picking a temple?

But Jiang Luo had said it all, so they nodded dryly.

The door of the room is slowly closed by Master Cheng De.

Inch by inch, the sun was driven out through the door, and with a final creak, only four people remained in the room.

The abbot looked at Jiang Luo and Sai Liaoer with a smiling face and a twinkle in his eye. Sai Liaoer was a little frightened by the look and could not help but squeeze closer to Jiang Luo.

Jiang Luo, who is well mannered, sits calmly, picks up his tea and slowly savours the taste of the leaves, boasting, "Jokhang Temple's tea always smells so good, slightly bitter in the mouth and sweet in the aftertaste, you want to taste it again after one sip."

"These are all small wild teas of no name, we grow them ourselves on the mountain and pick them on the mountain," said the abbot kindly, "If you like them, take some home and brew them, this tea clears the eyes and clears the lungs and is good for the body."

Jiang Luo was not too polite and thanked him generously.

Sai Liaoer followed in a whisper of thanks, taking a sip of his tea as Jiang Luo had done, and was immediately wrinkled with bitterness.

Jiang Luo asked, "Why did the two masters invite me and Sai Liaoer to tea?"

"Because you two are most different, of course," said the abbot's pale voice slowly, "but the old monk's eyes are too clumsy to see where you come from yet."

Jiang Luo also guesses that this is the reason.

He is now the living dead, of the less evil lineage of evil spirits, and will never become a god. But he has the power of consecration within his body, a power that is almost at the level of a pseudo-god, and Sai Liaoer is more of a Bai Wuchang on the board, and these two masters cannot see through them, but can see the difference between them.

Jiang Luo smiled and continued unconcernedly, "So, is there anything the two masters would like to say to us?"

He knew exactly what the two abbots were trying to say, but just pretended not to know. Master Cheng De smiled and shook his head, saying frankly, "It is precisely what we want to say to you about dealing with the Abbot."

Jiang Luo feigned surprise, " Jokhang Temple also has an axe to grind with the Fates?"

The abbot twirled the Buddhist beads in his hand and said indifferently, "If the Fatekeeper had not changed the prophecy to deceive people, we would not have had to lose three elders and three juniors, Ge Wuchen would not have had to take the blame and flee, and he would not have had to burn down the entire Tibetan Buddhist Temple. Jokhang Temple is definitely one of the best."

Jiang Luo said, "Ge Wuchen said that everyone who knew the truth about his rebellion against Buddha was dead, how do you two know what happened back then?"

Master Cheng De laughed coldly, "Back then Master Cheng Wen was buried in the fire the night the three divined the prophecy, Ge Wuchen killed someone to escape from the Buddhist sect, all these things were so sudden that we could have guessed it ourselves without him telling us."

Jiang Luo sighs sympathetically and sips his tea in silence, not saying anything half-heartedly about the collaboration.

This was not what was expected and Master Cheng De, knowing that Jiang Luo did not believe them yet, could not help but say, "Master Jiang, what will it take for you to believe us?"

"I will believe you as long as you will let me write a few words on you."

Master Cheng De hesitated, he had not heard of this method, "Writing?"

Instead, it was the Abbot Master who made a snap decision and said, "Write."

Jiang Luo wrote the words "Be faithful to me" on the backs of their hands with his finger, and after the last stroke, the expressions of the two masters changed slightly, becoming more honest and trusting.

Master Cheng De smilingly asked, "Master Jiang, do you have any plans to deal with the predestined people?"

Jiang Luo was one of us, so he said, "Yes."

"What's the solution?"

"I intend to 'descend' to Jokhang Temple as a real god to lure the Fate into appearing. The Predestined are so paranoid about becoming gods that they will come to see a rumour, no matter how wild it is, even if they know it to be false."

A cold light flashed in Jiang Luo's eyes, "If I were to fight alone, I would definitely not lose to the Fatalist, but even if I defeated him like this, I don't think it's tough enough."

"When he comes to Jokhang Temple, I will convince him that I am the real 'God'. After he believes that I am the true God, if he wants to become a god, he will have to go to great lengths to ask me, the 'true God', for guidance, and he will have to do whatever I say," Jiang Luo said, "and I will make him lose his name and tear off his skin as a false god. "

Master Cheng De couldn't help but slap the table and shouted, "Good!"

The abbot's hand holding the Buddhist beads also trembled with vague excitement, his eyes were clear as never before but he quickly calmed down from his excitement, "The host has lived for over two hundred years, he is the only false god, how does Master Jiang intend to convince him that you are the true god come?"

Jiang Luo smiles faintly and places the teacup gently on the table.

The tea bowl fell onto the table with a crisp sound.

Jiang Luo closes his eyes.

Just as Master Cheng De and the abbot were wondering, a vast force suddenly burst forth from Jiang Luo's body, and the majestic power of faith poured out like a flood, instantly overwhelming everything in the meditation room.

The two old men stared in disbelief.

The young head of the Scientific Research Bureau reopened his eyes, his eyes full of laughter, his whole being like a god carrying an intimate and submissive power.

"Is that okay?"

Master Cheng De and the Abbot looked at him in amazement, their faces suddenly becoming astonished and delighted, even a little overwhelmed!

"This, this, this," the Cheng De master was ecstatic, "you actually, you actually? The Fates may indeed be unable to detect your scheme!"

The presiding master silently recited the Meditation Sutra several times before he could steady his violently beating heart, "We can't reach your realm, and we don't know if the host can detect that you are not a true god, Master Jiang, are you really sure you can hide it from him?"

Jiang Luo curled his lips, "I'm sure that even if he doesn't believe that I'm a true god, he won't deny that I'm a fake. He's so obsessed with becoming a god that he won't let go of any hope he has. The predestined man has never seen the true God, and certainly does not know what the true God is like. I won't come face to face with him either, as long as I absorb enough of the power of the offering and mobilise all of it to disguise myself when he comes, he will definitely be confused."

"Once he is confused for one point and believes for one point, it is easy after that."

Jiang Luo looked at Sai Liaoer, "Besides, Sai Liaoer is a real god. If I 'descend' to one of your temples in Jokhang Temple, Sai Liaoer will stay with me at all times. In this way, even if the predestined person uses divination to find out if there is a god in the temple, the answer will only be yes."

Who made Sai Liaoer Bai Wuchang?

Jiang Luo intends to borrow Sai Liaoer's Bai Wuchang identity to create an absolutely realistic setting for himself as the true god, thus fooling the predestined.

Sai Liaoer looked at Jiang Luo admiringly, "Jiang, I'll go wherever you go!"

Master Cheng De and the abbot slowly understood, their eyes growing brighter and their bodies trembling with excitement. Jiang Luo said languidly, "I couldn't have done it without your two help."

Master Cheng De was beaming, "What kind of help? You name it!"

"Like I said before, give me a temple to use as the true God has come, and use the name Jokhang Temple to help me make a big deal out of it," Jiang Luo said with a big smile, "You are representatives of the Buddhist sect, and everyone knows that monks don't lie. So as long as you say that a true god has descended from the Buddhist sect, everyone will believe it. As long as the word gets wider and wider, the predestined people will definitely come over to find out what's going on."

"When that time comes, there will also be many people coming over to pay their respects to me, and these are the power of offerings sent up for nothing, so there will still have to be idols and incense burners inside the temple. Two masters, whether or not you can get the predestined people to fall for it after that will depend mainly on the power of your propaganda."

The two old men laughed bitterly, "You're asking us to lie."

Jiang Luo looked straight at them, "For revenge, then, are you willing to talk?"

Master Cheng De and the Abbot were silent for a moment before making a quick decision.

This is almost a no-brainer.

"Just do as you say," Master Cheng De stood up and made to go out in high spirits, "Lie if you like, as long as I can get the predestined person punished, even if I have to die I will be willing. Wait, I'm going to pick out a suitable temple for you."

Jiang Luo said breezily, "No, Master, I've already asked someone to pick it out."

Maestro Cheng De: "......"

He looked oddly at Jiang Luo who looked back innocently.

Master Cheng De finally thought to himself, "Jiang Luo, how can he be so thick-skinned?