【Wine Ci】Ksitigarbha Statue

Chapter 8

It rained heavily.

The summer rain always comes with great force, Jiu Tun leans cross-legged on the tree trunk, the raindrops hit the leaves, and then the leaves droop overwhelmed, throwing the water droplets again.Of course, they can't keep out the rain, so he can only swallow the wine all over his head and face, making his whole body wet. He wiped the water on his face, and shouted to the narrow and narrow shed under the tree: "Hey, how can you avoid that little shabby house?" It’s raining——Okay, don’t hide, I will take you to a place where you can really rest.”

The child is curled up in his only shelter.Of course, this hut made of several planks, stones, straw, and branches cannot avoid the rain, and the rainwater is flowing down the cracks.To make matters worse, the children live in low-lying areas.Water began to seep in through the cracks in the rocks.However, the child didn't say a word, he folded the quilt into a small piece, and laid his whole body on it, trying his best to keep the quilt from getting too wet.

Shuten yelled again, but he got no response.He jumped from the tree, leaned over and pushed open the crumbling door of the little monster's lair.Such a direct contrast is too obvious - before jumping off, Shuten still didn't realize how small this shelter is.When it was right in front of him, he even thought it was just a villa for ants.He leaned down to peek into the little animal's lair through the "doorway", maybe he could get in too, but Jiu Tun soon gave up this approach.He suspects that the hut will crumble if he jams himself in.

He leaned halfway at the door, reaching out his hand to try to pull out the disobedient little monster.The little monster sensed his movements.He hugged his quilt tightly, and shrunk back into it—very well, Shuten couldn't reach him anymore.

"What are you afraid of? Hey, you only have a few taels of meat, and I won't eat you."

The child does not speak.Now he is more boring than the wine gourd that Jiu Tun is carrying on his back.

Jiu Tun gasped and laughed back: "How did I teach you before? I have to answer my question, but now you are disobedient?"

With his back to him, the child looked like a small ball.God knows how he is so small, God knows how he grew from such a small lump to Ibaraki's height.He buried his head, only a fluffy head was left when viewed from behind, and after a long while the child said sullenly, "No."

"Don't what?"

"Don't go out."

"Do you like being rained?"

"...just don't."

Shuten stood up and rubbed his temples.He tried to tell himself to be patient—it was hard for him to do that.The King of Ghosts doesn't need to make himself more patient, he doesn't bother to take a look at other people, but Ibaraki Doji can always tolerate all his bad tempers.He took a deep breath, the cold damp from the rain rushing into his lungs.He restrained himself, and told this child who smelled similar to Ibaraki but had the opposite personality to Ibaraki and was not obedient at all as gently as possible: "Okay. Human children are very fragile. If you catch a cold, don't bother your life." Follow me, my lord."

"...I won't get sick. I'm much better than them."

Jiu Tun choked.

Maybe the kid is stronger than most humans, hey, he's a weird little monster after all.He can prove that the child is indeed alive and well in the end, in good health, and has even become a bully.Shuten laughed at himself being deceived by the appearance of this little monster again, maybe he didn't need to worry too much - he didn't want to admit that he was angry with a child.

So Shuten really let go of him.

He turned into a traveler who was drenched by the sudden heavy rain, and found a wine shop to drink.It was getting dark and the rain was still falling. There were very few people in the restaurant, so quiet that only the sound of the burning flame licking the oil lamp and the sound of rain that almost covered everything could be heard.

In the weak light, the rain outside the window is like an impenetrable spider silk woven with silver color.Beyond that it was complete darkness.Jiu Tun absent-mindedly swallowed half a jug of wine, the taste of the wine was bland and boring, and it was so unpalatable that it made people upset.He finally threw away the wine glass and rushed back into the pitch black rain.

Facts have proved that Shuten shouldn't have high confidence in the child's physique just because of some damn devil's body, or the impression of Ibaraki that belongs to him.

The little monster had a high fever.Jiu Tun pulled him out of the water-logged hut and held him in his arms. His whole body was scorching hot. Jiu Tun felt as if he was holding a piece of burning coal while holding him.It's still raining.The crackling was cold and dense, the child was comatose, burned to the point where his mind was not clear, his face was leaning against Jiu Tun's exposed chest, and the temperature brought by it made the ghost unbearable.

Shuten wrapped him tightly and started to run - he hadn't used such a fast speed for a long time.For a moment, he wanted to find a random dwelling, a dwelling with soft bedding that humans would like and firewood for burning. There are many targets to choose from in this village; but at the same time, it means that Shuten wants to kill people.Killing people is not a complicated job, but the eyes of the child standing on the hillside looking at the human village suddenly flashed in Shuten's head.

The ghost king couldn't understand this look.However, he still took a detour, turned into the deep mountain, found a cave everywhere, and then slaughtered the brown bear resting inside, cut off the bear skin, which was barely enough to keep him warm; he found some dry firewood and lit it. A bonfire—and after that, he could only look at the sickly crimson child in a daze.

Alcohol does not take care of people.He felt that he could do so much that he was already in the sky.The little monster was reprimanded as a "ghost", but it was not a real ghost; after all, he was still a human child, and his body might be stronger than the average human child—a real human child would have lost his life long ago because of such a predicament of lack of food and clothing.But he was thin and weak after all, and he still couldn't withstand such a sudden downpour.

Jiu Tun stared at the child, thinking about how to get reward from Ibaraki Doji for such painstaking care and care after returning home.But the child curled up on that side; Jiu Tun had been paying attention to him all the time, and hurriedly approached, the child was tightly pulling the fur on the bear's fur, trembling, Jiu Tun heard him whisper "cold."

But he was really hot all over.

Jiu Tun grabbed the child's struggling hand, and rummaged through the meager information of the ghosts who were all about killing and fighting.He struggled to find two of them, but he couldn't verify whether they were correct or not. When and where did he know that——Jiu Tun rudely stripped off the child's wet clothes, wrung out the water, and dipped them in the wine gourd. After drinking the divine wine, he wiped the child's body according to the basic knowledge in his memory.

He really doesn't have much meat.No matter how picky the ogre is, it will sigh with emotion when it sees him, and if it can't eat much, it will have to struggle to spit out its bones.This is not just, there are still some wounds all over the child's skinny body, most of which have scabbed over, but the newborn skin is often covered with some new ones.

Shuten thought of Ibaraki.

He was always quick to think back to his Ibaraki-douji.Many details that have never been taken care of in the past have resurfaced from the bottom of the water.For example, now, he remembered that Ibaraki really didn't care much about pain and wounds.He had broken one arm, but his expression remained normal, and he even accepted the fact of having one arm faster than anyone else.Shuten usually doesn't think that this characteristic of Ibaraki is so amazing, he is used to every part that makes up Ibaraki, no matter how sensational they seem.After all, they are ghosts—but looking at it now, I am afraid that Ibaraki has become accustomed to trauma at this time, as if all kinds of wounds are inherently part of him.

Preoccupied, the ghost king spread the cloth soaked in the divine wine on the little monster's astonishingly warm forehead.

In the morning the child's fever subsided.He got up as if he had never been sick, and searched for clothes naked for a long time.Jiu Tun smashed another new, clean one in his face.The child touched his clothes and raised his head, staring at Shuten with round black eyes.Swallowed by the wine, he ordered him: "Put it on."

This time the kid was really good, and he put it on honestly.

He looked fine, his eyes were dribbling towards the corner where the bear carcass was piled up last night, probably smelling blood, his eyes were hooked.Jiu Tun guessed what he was going to do and didn't stop him. Seeing that Jiu Tun had gone out, he tiptoed over to drink his blood.The movements are cautious and extremely gentle, for fear of staining the clothes.Shuten pretended to come back after he had drunk enough—this little monster was afraid of being annoying, and had developed a habit of suppressing his instincts as long as he was around.What a joke, Jiu Tun-douji is an evil spirit in the first place, do you mind the bloodthirsty nature of the little monster?He wished that the child would turn into a ghost as soon as possible, in case he was too weak to survive.

But Jiu Tun thought again, maybe the little monster wouldn't be able to die without him.Leaving aside how Ibaraki Doji came here, just because of the child's ability to recover alive and kicking after a night, it is not so easy to lose his life.

Jiu Tun glanced at the little monster, cut some meat and skewered it, and roasted it on the fire, trying to prepare some food for him.The child stood far away, smelled the smell of meat and came closer; Shuten was very satisfied, and calmly rubbed the child's hair.

The little monster lowered its head, hesitated for a moment, and then took the initiative to talk to Jiu Tun.

"I..." he asked in a low voice, "I, can I go back?"

Jiu Tun said, "What are you going back for?"

"The rain has stopped." The child told Jiu Tun intermittently, "The quilt is wet. Go home and have a look."

Alcohol found it ridiculous.He called that little shack—or the village that had insulted him—“home”? !

The wine tuna kebab dangled in front of the child: "Want to eat?"

The child stared at Meat, then looked up at Shuten.

Jiu Tun turned over and continued to roast, his voice was a little cold: "If you want to eat, follow me. Go back and do what. I won't go back."

The child's eyes widened.After a while, he hesitated and said, "But... I won't follow you forever."

Jiu Tun paused for a moment.

Clever - know not to rely on anyone, the beast is naturally clever.

Of course, it was impossible for the child to follow him all the time, even if he really wanted to keep him—this little monster was not in the way anyway, but it was impossible.They are not in the same timeline, Shuten must go back to meet his Ibaraki, he and Ibaraki still have the agreement to drink with the moon.Jiu Tun will leave sooner or later.

He thought about it briefly, made a decision, and at the same time told the child casually: "You can just transform into a ghost before I leave. You are a ghost yourself, and you will become a complete ghost sooner or later. Transforming into a ghost is very important to you." It's easier than maintaining a human identity. As long as you become a ghost, you will naturally become stronger."

The child stood there, motionless.Shuten wasn't asking for his opinion, so he ignored him, and after roasting the meat, he waved the meat that smelled delicious and should be delicious to the child.The child still lowered his head, he raised his eyes when he smelled the smell of meat, and looked at Jiu Tun in a daze.

Shuten motioned for him to continue, but the child didn't move.

"I don't want to be a ghost," he said suddenly.

The bonfire licked the firewood, sparks overflowed, and the silent burst disappeared with a crisp and subtle crackling sound.

Shuten realized that the little monster had told him what he had said before answering him.

"I didn't give you a choice." Jiu Tun said in a rare voice.The child refused to pick up the barbecue, and Shuten didn't bother to hold it anymore. With a wave of his hand, the flames completely engulfed the barbecue, and there was a burning smell in the air.The ghost crossed his arms and leaned against the stone wall, looking down at the child coldly, "Want to be a human being honestly? God didn't let you choose. They call you a ghost, not wronging you."

"I don't want it," said the child.The stubborn and stubborn traits in him appeared again.Seeing that Jiu Tun couldn't reply, he boldly added, "I don't want to be a ghost. They call me a ghost... Everyone thinks I should be a ghost, but I don't. I've lived until now, so why can't I do it?" one person?"

Shuten and the child looked at each other.He saw his eyes, the pupils were pitch-black, amazingly bright; the warm orange firelight reflected in them, actually showed a bit of bright gold.Ibaraki had the same expression back then, even the arc of his frown was exactly the same, he stared at Shuten with the same glorious golden eyes, staring at Shuten wholeheartedly, the ghost said: "Let me follow you! - I Can become stronger! Strong enough to scare all monsters! I can assist you to lead the ghost clan to the top!"

Jiu Tun sneered, and replied to the child now with the same attitude he used to reply to Ibaraki back then: "Whatever you want." He said—but this time he left without picking up the wine gourd, and walked a few steps in the direction of the child , His aura was so severe that the child thought he was going to be beaten, so he hurriedly put his arms in front of his head.Jiu Tun gave a low laugh, squatted down, and held the child's wrist, the child looked at him cautiously through the gap.

"You follow me." Jiu Tun said without doubt, "I'll let you see how comfortable it is to be a ghost, and see if you will insist on being a human. Ghosts can't be so good, but people—" He nodded the child Forehead, "You've seen how bad people can be."