Yesterday was fine, but today problems arose. Today, they just took in this one.
For Sister Rou, it didn’t matter if the child was abducted, or if his parents didn’t care for him, sending him off as a defective good at worst, but she was frustrated by one who could clearly change the water’s color, yet had no actual blood ties.
"You’re not this child’s biological father; his own parents don’t have any concerns for him, so why the hell are you worrying!"
Sister Rou kicked Xu Dong continuously inside the cage, kicking him until his nose was swollen, his face was bruised, and he vomited fresh blood.
Originally, she planned to send Xu Dong to a coal mine so that he could stay alive and keep providing the nutrients of concern, but now, she wanted him dead.
Suddenly, the old woman standing beside her began to tremble violently; she swiftly reached out her hand and grabbed Sister Rou’s arm.
"What’s wrong, something happened?"
Sister Rou was also shocked, no longer intent on executing Xu Dong who had ruined her plans, and exited the tent together with the old woman.
But as soon as they came out, a trident appeared before them, thrusting directly at the old woman.
Granny Yu, who was hunched over, instantly stood up straight. She pushed Sister Rou out of the way and then grabbed the trident with one hand. After a struggle, the trident halted just an inch away from her brow.
Ah Rou, seeing this, wanted to come forward and help, but she was deterred by a stern glance from the old woman.
She realized immediately and started running outside.
White Crane Child’s vertical pupils scanned in her direction, ready to intercept her.
But Granny Yu crouched down, dodging the trident, and flipped her hands; two lantern rods appeared in her palms and she struck White Crane Child in the chest with a swift blow.
White Crane Child’s body shuddered, and his hands loosened, letting the trident fall downward, but he quickly recovered and grabbed it again, then thrust it into Granny Yu’s back and yanked it sideways.
Her robe, along with a layer of skin and flesh, was torn off, revealing the body hidden beneath.
Her entire body’s flesh seemed to be concentrated on her face; below her neck lay a body as emaciated as a dried-up corpse, even the most withered elderly on their death beds were not as skin and bones as she.
Two bones in Granny Yu’s back shifted, trapping the trident in place.
She straightened up again, her rigid shoulders hitting White Crane Child’s arms, forcing him open and causing him to lose control of the trident.
Immediately after, Granny Yu prepared to dodge away; there was trouble at the clay idol, and she needed to go there now.
White Crane Child, weaponless, still pressed forward to block her with his fists.
Granny Yu struck at him with the rods in her hands, White Crane Child did not dodge and took the two blows head-on.
With a "crack", his arms drooped.
But his other hand shot out, grabbing hold of Granny Yu’s body, or rather, a segment of her bone, and yanked it backward.
The posture resembled someone picking up a human-shaped spider.
White Crane Child then took the person he had lifted and hurled her hard against the ground.
The ground caved into a person-shaped hole.
Granny Yu lay there, motionless.
Just as White Crane Child was about to reach for the trident to continue dismembering his prey, Granny Yu’s legs suddenly stretched out, extending beneath White Crane Child’s feet.
With a burst of force, she tugged, sending White Crane Child’s form stumbling backward, but still, he managed to steady himself.
Granny Yu took the opportunity to use his force to flip upward and stood erect; the two rods in her hands came crashing down on White Crane Child’s head.
White Crane Child, seemingly knowing he couldn’t dodge, decided not to dodge at all; he simply used the arm he could still move, clenched his fist, and smashed it towards Granny Yu’s chest.
Granny Yu was sent flying away.
White Crane Child stood still; blood flowed profusely from his head, his form swayed, and the vertical pupils in his eyes began to dissipate.
He had chosen his target well; before Li Zhiyuan broke open the real Granny Yu’s shell, this old woman before him, who resembled Granny Yu, was the strongest in the circus.
At sixteen, she was sold by her parents to a landowner, endured brutal beatings and torment, and after the landowner’s death, she was even more expected to be buried with him.
Thanks to their reluctance to provide a decent coffin for her, she was the one who dug herself out of the grave after being buried, with her bloody hands like a solitary ghost or a stray spirit, ran to the river bank, found a pottery jar, from which a gentle voice comforted her at that time.
Since then, she had become his devotee.
She didn’t care that she was becoming more and more like him; she considered it a glory and a reward.
Resurrecting him was her life’s greatest obsession.
"No one can stop grandma’s resurrection, no one can!"
She growled while rearranging the concaved and shattered ribs in her chest, removing the broken remnants, and tossing them to the ground.
This was to ensure that nothing would hinder her following actions.
At the same time, she expressed her inner doubts:
"Why is there an official here?"
White Crane Child’s body was already on the verge of collapsing.
He pulled out three incense sticks, inserted them into his crane crown, the incense ignited autonomously, leading the way to the underworld.
The blood from his forehead quickly congealed to stop the flow, and the limp arm slowly lifted.
Then, a piercing scream was heard; Li Zhiyuan had already begun destroying Granny Yu’s real body and had also imbued it with Karmic Fire.
Granny Yu’s expression showed urgency; she wanted to proceed, but as soon as she intended to move, White Crane Child also stepped sideways, blocking her path.