Chapter 86: Geese in the Sack
Chen Shi only felt that Uncle Hu and Uncle Qingyang were acting a bit strange today, but he had no time to inquire. He quickly said to Granny Sha, “Granny, did you find my grandpa down there?”
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He was utterly thrilled, gazing at Granny Sha expectantly.
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Granny Sha glanced at the five great ghost kings. The five ghost kings' hearts skipped a beat. “Did we do a good deed but get blamed for it? Still, the pup clearly earned merit, and the pup's merit is our merit. Our rice bowls should be safe, right?”
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They were filled with trepidation! >
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Fortunately, Granny Sha said nothing of the sort. She smiled and replied, “We ran into your grandpa. He's doing just fine. He even asked if you've grown taller or put on any weight!”
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Chen Shi was overjoyed. “Tonight I'll eat two extra bowls of rice. What else did Grandpa say? Did he get the paper money I burned for him? Was it enough to spend? If not, I'll burn more. I also burned him a paper house, a grand palanquin, and eight paper servants. Did he receive those? Does he lack companions? Should I burn him some paper grannies? Oh, right—I see Old Lady Wuzhu doesn't have many years left. Grandpa can wait another two years; no need to burn anything—she'll come on her own…”
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Granny Sha kept smiling as he rambled on for a good while before saying, “Everything's good. Your grandpa got it all. This time, we visited his Yuan Chen Palace. The place was luxurious and opulent, full of the things you burned for him. He steps out to an eight-carrier palanquin and returns to maids and servants waiting on him hand and foot. He's living in comfort!”
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Legend held that the Yuan Chen Palace was the dwelling of a person's soul, hidden in the underworld. After death, the soul entered the underworld and resided there.
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Chen Shi had heard the tale but never seen one.
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He had only encountered the souls of the unjustly dead—none dwelling in Yuan Chen Palaces, but all lost and wandering in the mists.
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Granny Sha's account was full of holes, but his concern for Grandpa blinded him to them.
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Chen Shi asked after Grandpa's meals and daily life. Granny Sha, a seasoned shaman, answered with ease.
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Harboring no doubts, Chen Shi relaxed and smiled. “Knowing Grandpa's well puts my mind at ease. By the way, Granny, was there something you needed from him?”
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Granny Sha glanced at Qingyang and saw the sheep still muzzled by the burly bearded man. She relaxed and smiled. “Your grandpa and we go way back. We just missed him and went to the underworld for a visit. It turned out the underworld was far too perilous—we nearly didn't make it back. Little Ten and Blackie Pot saved us. Otherwise, the three of us would've been goners. It's getting dark, Little Ten. We need to head back too.”
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She summoned the five ghosts to pack up the altar, shot a look at Qingyang and the burly bearded man, and hurried off.
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“Blackie Pot, I get the feeling Granny Sha held something back from us.”
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Chen Shi watched them go and murmured.
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Blackie Pot nodded solemnly in agreement.
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“But Blackie Pot, you saved Granny Sha and the others—that's a huge good deed. Tomorrow I'll buy you something tasty as a reward.”
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Chen Shi grinned.
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Blackie Pot grew excited and barked twice.
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From afar, Granny Sha heard the barking and breathed a sigh of relief.
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The burly bearded man released Qingyang, still shaken. He praised her, “Granny, your quick thinking saved us. Otherwise, this Qingyang would've caused a scene. If their true nature came out, Chen Shi and Blackie Pot might've turned on us right then and there, forcing us to show our forms.”
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He recalled Blackie Pot charging into the underworld, rampaging through the mists to rescue them, and shuddered.
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The evils besieging them had been countless and formidable—strong enough to injure them.
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Yet none withstood Blackie Pot's assaults.
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Even that white-clothed woman had nearly been torn apart in its jaws.
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Qingyang said, “Do you remember when Old Chen Head picked up this pup?”
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Granny Sha thought for a moment. “Three years ago, I think. I recall Old Chen Head saying he'd make one last push into the underworld to save Chen Shi. That was his ninth attempt. He failed, took heavy wounds, and lay bedridden for three months. Next time I saw him, there was a little black dog at his side.”
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Qingyang and the burly bearded man exchanged glances.
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“Could this little black dog be something he brought back from the underworld?”
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The burly bearded man asked, “I've heard ghosts and gods can take other forms. Granny, with all your experience and knowledge of the underworld, can you tell what this one's made of?”
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Granny Sha shook her head. “Can't say. It looks no different from any normal dog.”
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The three stared at one another.
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Granny Sha sighed. “Old Chen Head went off to the underworld happy as can be, dumping this mess on us. You two, rest and recover for now. Tough times lie ahead!”
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Qingyang muttered, “This hard? Might as well just become Little Ten's godmother.”
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Granny Sha and the burly bearded man went pale and shook their heads furiously. “Not his godmother, and we've still got a shot at life. Become his godmother? Zero chance.”
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The three parted ways.
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……
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With the county exam just four days away, Chen Shi dared not slack.
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Each morning, he headed to Scholar Zhu's for lessons.
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Scholar Zhu taught with utmost diligence.
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“Little Ten, no need to fret. You've mastered my true teachings—you're sure to place high.”
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Seeing his tension, Scholar Zhu reassured him. “Our talents will stun West Ox New Continent and make us literary stars.”
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Chen Shi eased up a bit. “Top scholar's too much to hope for. I'd settle for juren to honor the family.”
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“Guaranteed! Guaranteed!”
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Chen Shi visited the Mountain Lord Temple several more times. The front hall was still under repair, but the divine image in the main hall's Divine Shrine grew ever clearer.
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He studied it closely: a cow-headed figure with a human body.
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Oddly, a tiger lay at the image's feet.
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The image formed agonizingly slowly, and Chen Shi sensed no mental fluctuations from it at all—most peculiar.
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Typically, a divine image arose when a worshiped spirit gained self-awareness and envisioned its form, shaping the image accordingly.
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Take Huangyang Village's godmother: a bronze god-devil statue, long worshiped until it awoke, convinced it was a great fat glutton. Thus, its image was just that.
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Huangpo Village's godmother was an ancient tree, seeing itself as a maiden of sixteen. Its image became a poised and graceful girl.
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“The image requires consciousness, but the Mountain Lord Temple's lacks it. That means the Mountain Lord lives on…”
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Chen Shi peered deeply into the Divine Shrine and thought, “The Mountain Lord must be in the ancestral land, Huaxia Shenzhou. That's why the image forms without consciousness. But why is Qianyang Mountain's Mountain Lord back in the ancestral land instead of West Ox New Continent?”
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Sudden insight struck. “When the Three Treasures Eunuch led Ming soldiers to this unfamiliar continent, evils infested the land. Their first act wasn't forging new gods but enshrining Huaxia deities brought from their ships, allowing those gods' avatars to descend via the images. So the Qianyang Mountain Lord must be the mountain god of some great peak in Huaxia Shenzhou.”
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Puzzlement returned.
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Incense must have burned brightly here once. Why the fall into ruin, with even the image vanished?
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“Once the Mountain Lord's image fully forms, the truth will come out.”
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He left the temple and headed into the county seat, straight to Wencai Academy.
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In his exam prep these past days, Chen Shi felt confident in the literary test but anxious about the martial one.
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So he meant to consult his classmates.
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Only a handful of students lingered at the academy; most had stayed away.
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Chen Shi was surprised to see the few huddled together, whispering furtively about something.
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Hu Feifei was among them. Spotting him, she waved eagerly. “Brother Chen, over here! Quick!”
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Chen Shi joined them: three boys and two girls, all around his age. The oldest was no more than fourteen or fifteen; the youngest about ten. They wore neat clothes and small black caps.
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“No classes today?”
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Chen Shi asked.
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“No classes—the city's in an uproar. Teacher Fu sent us all home and said no academy for the next two days!”
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Hu Feifei said mysteriously, “Day before yesterday and yesterday, over a dozen students vanished in the city. Officials can't find a trace. They say an evil slipped in and ate them. That's why Teacher Fu canceled classes. But we don't buy it. If an evil's in the city, why snatch only students and leave everyone else alone?”
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The others nodded vigorously.
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One boy said, “So we're going to catch this evil ourselves.”
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Chen Shi stared in surprise at the boy's childish face. Catch an evil?
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Were city kids all this bold?
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“Have you formed a Divine Embryo?”
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Chen Shi asked.
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The boy, still boyish, shook his head.
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Chen Shi turned to the rest. “Has anyone here formed a Divine Embryo?”
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They all shook their heads—except Hu Feifei, who just grinned without nodding or shaking.
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The youngest one, about ten, spoke up. “Chen Shi, you're from the countryside. City students learn different from country ones. We've only reached Divine Shrine, no Embryo, but we can borrow shrine qi to cast spells. We're plenty strong.”
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A girl chimed in. “Right. Shen Yusheng's the best. He can always condense sword qi—something I can't manage.”
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Chen Shi eyed Shen Yusheng: another boyish face, no older than eleven or twelve.
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“None of you have formed a Golden Core?”
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Chen Shi asked.
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“Golden Core? That's for juren.”
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Shen Yusheng said gravely, “You pass xiucai first. At the grand sacrifice, a true god descends and bestows a gift, granting a Divine Embryo and entry to the Embryo Realm. Cultivate the Embryo, and with its aid, advance to the Transformation God stage to refine a Golden Core.”
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The others nodded along.
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Chen Shi reflected: he truly differed, having formed a Golden Core sans Embryo.
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But passing the county exam would bring true god descent and an Embryo, filling the gap. He'd match other xiucai then.
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“I suspect this 'evil' in disguise is our private tutor, Teacher Fu.”
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Hu Feifei whispered. “County exam's near, and he's been acting shifty. I bet he's picked his marks from us. Come the grand sacrifice, he'll rip out their Embryos and sell them for a fortune.”
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“How dare you suspect the teacher?”
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“Teacher Fu's not like that.”
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The students refuted her. Hu Feifei sneered. “Don't believe me? We just watch Teacher Fu and find proof.”
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Shen Yusheng turned to Chen Shi. “Chen Shi, you in?”
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Chen Shi hesitated. The others urged, “With Shen Yusheng here, what've you got to fear?”
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Worried for these new friends' lives, Chen Shi agreed. “What's your plan to track this evil?”
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“Use me as bait.”
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The youngest stepped forward righteously.
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Chen Shi asked, “What's your name?”
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“Gu Qingmeng. Why?”
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“Nothing!”
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Chen Shi thought, “Now I know what to carve on the tombstone!”
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Hu Feifei said, “Teacher Fu went to East Market today. We head there. Qingmeng talks to him; we watch from hiding. If he makes a move on Qingmeng, we rush in, save her, grab the old crook, and haul him to the county yamen.”
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All agreed and filed out of the academy.
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Chen Shi fetched Blackie Pot, puzzled. “Feifei wouldn't spout nonsense. Is it really Teacher Fu? What does he want with all these students?”
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East Market lay in the woods east of the city walls—no fixed shops. Vendors set up stalls by day with daily goods or peddlers hawking kids' trinkets.
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Students often browsed after classes.
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With moons rising by day and tales of evils beyond the walls, East Market had grown deserted.
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They arrived to find scant vendors in the woods.
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Gu Qingmeng said, “Day before yesterday, heads rolled over there. County lord got the chop—hack, hack. Lots died. Could be his restless ghost turned evil?”
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“My dad checked. County lord's corpse got burned—can't make an evil. Dad brought back red steamed buns for my brother. I didn't get any.”
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The other girl sounded wistful.
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Hu Feifei said excitedly, “Teacher Fu's up ahead. Qingmeng, you're up.”
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They looked: sure enough, Teacher Fu squatted at a stall, chatting with the vendor.
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It was a goose stall, a dozen big white geese crammed in cages.
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The vendor was a white-bearded, white-haired elder.
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The old man wore faded cloth garb, his face kindly and approachable.
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They hid behind trees. Gu Qingmeng boldly approached, bowed to Teacher Fu, and spoke softly.
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Teacher Fu rose, seeming irate, and shooed Gu Qingmeng back to the city.
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Gu Qingmeng burst into tears.
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Teacher Fu looked helpless, apologized to the vendor, took the boy's hand, and headed cityward. “Dangerous out here. Running off alone? You might vanish too.”
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They waited till Teacher Fu led Gu Qingmeng out of sight, then emerged. Shen Yusheng's eyes gleamed. “Teacher Fu's hooked. We follow.”
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They stepped from cover—only to see the goose-seller elder rise and stretch lazily.
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Chen Shi regarded the old goose man. The elder exhaled a breath of impossible length, drawing it out forever.
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“How are his organs so mighty?”
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Chen Shi marveled. “Nigh on par with mine. His strength's just a hair off.”
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No sooner thought than the goose elder leaped like a flea, too swift for the eye.
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Thud—he landed beside them and unfurled a sack into the wind.
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Whoosh—Hu Feifei vanished into the sack.
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He bounded repeatedly, blindingly fast.
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In moments, Shen Yusheng and the other three followed.
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Chen Shi paused, reining in the impulse to strike.
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Thud…
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The flea-like elder dropped from above before Chen Shi and Blackie Pot, grinning as he moved to bag them.
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Chen Shi and Blackie Pot tumbled into the sack. Darkness engulfed the vast interior—no one inside.
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Just five big white geese, trembling.
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“It's this old codger behind it all.”
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Chen Shi spoke—only a goose honk emerged.
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He looked down: snow-white feathers. He'd become a big white goose.
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He glanced at Blackie Pot.
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The dog remained a dog, sitting with tongue lolling.
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“Geese for sale! Geese for sale!”
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The goose seller's voice boomed from outside. “Country-fresh big white geese! Boy geese! Iron-pot stew, succulent flavor, long life! County lord want geese? Prime boy big white geese!”
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A voice of mild authority replied, “Fresh geese. My wife loves iron-pot goose stew. Deliver to the county yamen.”
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“Right away!”
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End of chapter.