strokinit Chapter 22 Doubtful Trust!
Chapter 22 Doubtful Trust!
early morning.
The sun has just risen in the east.
Villagers from Shixi Village gathered at the village entrance and exclaimed in surprise.
"Everyone, come look! Come look at the riverbank!"
Tiger Head Father Li Tie pointed to the riverbank, his voice trembling with excitement.
People rushed over upon hearing the sound, and were all stunned.
Yesterday, the riverbank was muddy and stained with filth. Overnight, as if touched by a divine hand, large patches of lush, green wild water celery with plump, tender stems and leaves sprouted.
Clumps and clusters of them grow extremely lushly, with glistening morning dew still clinging to their leaves.
It shimmered with a jewel-like luster under the rising sun, exuding a refreshing and invigorating aura.
"A miracle! Another miracle!"
Sun Ming knelt down and gently stroked the thick leaves of a water celery stalk, tears glistening in his eyes.
"It was bestowed upon us by the Great Dragon God!"
"The smell alone is invigorating! It's so much fresher than the vegetables grown in our own garden!"
Song Hong exclaimed excitedly, carefully picking a tender leaf and gently sniffing it.
"Definitely!"
"Look, the riverbank on our side is covered in growth, while the other side, on the opposite bank, is still barren! What else could this be but divine grace? The Great Dragon God only protects those of us who sincerely believe in Him!"
Tang An pointed confidently to the riverbank.
"That's right, that's right!"
Everyone echoed their agreement, their faces beaming with pride and gratitude.
The children crawled around the adults' legs, curiously trying to reach out and touch the tempting water celery, but were gently swatted away by their own parents.
"Don't touch it! This is a gift from the gods; it must first be offered to the divine ruler, or the clan chief should make arrangements!"
Tiger-headed Mother Song Ying gently scolded the child, her eyes filled with longing.
This water celery is growing so well; it's undoubtedly a precious vegetable during this lean season.
"Do you think that eating this water celery will have the same effect as drinking the holy water of the toad pearl, making one stronger and healthier?"
Zhong Lei rubbed his hands together, asking expectantly.
"Of course! How could something bestowed by the Flood Dragon God be an ordinary item?"
"We just had an exorcism last night, and this morning this treasure imbued with spiritual energy has grown. It's clear that the Dragon God saw how frightened we were and how we regained the water source, and specially bestowed this upon us to soothe us and nourish our bodies!"
Xu Yang nodded affirmatively.
"Yes! It's a blessing! It's an auspicious sign!"
"This water celery is a gift of purification and blessing bestowed upon our Shixi Village by the Great Dragon God after exorcising evil! Everyone must remember the divine grace and be grateful when picking it, and must not be greedy and wasteful! Each family should take an appropriate amount according to the number of people in their household."
Sun Ming stood up, looked around at the excited villagers, and spoke in a loud voice.
Upon hearing this, the villagers were overjoyed and spontaneously lined up, carefully picking the plump water celery that seemed to contain divine grace with utmost piety and joy.
The air was suddenly filled with the unique fragrance of water celery.
Temple of the Dragon God.
A quiet room in a side hall.
Lin Shi smiled, his senses swirling around him, allowing him to hear and see everything that was happening at the village entrance clearly.
This is my own work.
As an expert in folklore, I am very clear that it is not enough to just have power; one must exert influence while displaying power.
Yesterday, the public slaying of the giant toad demon that had transformed into human form demonstrated the divine power of the True Lord in vanquishing evil spirits—this is authority. The water celery that grew last night, on the other hand, is grace.
The Jiao God not only defeats powerful enemies and vanquishes evil with its supreme power, but also bestows auspicious omens symbolizing new life, purification, and grace. Only in this way can the turmoil in the hearts of believers be completely calmed and a deep imprint of awe and gratitude be left in their minds.
The genuine smiles and reverence on the faces of the villagers as they orderly harvested water celery proved that this act of establishing authority not only demonstrated power but also provided tangible benefits to believers on a material level, thus strengthening the bond of faith.
"May evil be vanquished and righteousness revealed! May grace and favor endure!"
Lin Shi stood up, walked out of the quiet room, stood at the door, and looked in the direction of the village entrance.
They can discern evil spirits and their words can calm the mind and enlighten the heart.
The dragon, enraged, revealed its divine power, suppressing the evil spirits with its supreme dragon might, forcing them to reveal their filthy true forms, and undermining the morale and righteousness of Shanghe Village. Afterwards, it bestowed auspicious omens to appease the believers.
Lin Shi was very satisfied with his handling of the situation.
No one dared to question the sacred status of Shixi Village, and the villagers' cohesion was unprecedented, providing a continuous stream of faith. Taking advantage of this opportunity, the reputation of the Stone Toad Dragon God for vanquishing evil and revealing righteousness, combining kindness and power, would surely spread, transforming into an invisible talisman and deterrent, radiating to the surrounding villages.
Lin Shi glanced back at the Flood Dragon God statue. Because of the manifestation of the evil-slaying deity, the villagers' faith was even more refined and surging. The cold light flowed in the icy vertical pupils of the Flood Dragon's clone at the bottom of the pool, and the chains on its body trembled slightly under the increasingly refined faith.
"It's getting closer!"
Lin Shi turned around and returned to the quiet room in the side hall. He sat down cross-legged. With each miracle he performed, the faith he gained became stronger, and the chains at the bottom of the pool were one step closer to collapsing.
Once that day comes.
The dragon clone broke free from its shackles, regained its freedom, and its strength greatly increased.
Yourself?
Perhaps this is the beginning of an extraordinary path!
Days passed by.
Shixi Village.
The lingering influence of the water-fighting miracle did not dissipate with the dispersal of the Shanghe Village people; instead, like fine aged wine, it fermented and became more mellow in every corner of Shixi Village.
The villagers walked along the ridges of the fields, their backs ramrod straight. When their eyes met, no words were needed; a tacit understanding of certainty and pride was palpable. This was not merely a joy at having regained their water source, but also a sense of belonging to the gods who protected them, a feeling akin to blood ties.
The incense offerings at the ancestral temple were at an unprecedented peak.
He regularly visited his parents at dawn and dusk.
The sounds of prayer converged into an invisible torrent.
Endless faith flowed into the stone toad statue, eventually pouring into the dragon in the deep, green pool.
late at night.
The sky was pitch black.
Countless stars crowded together to form a silver river.
Lin Shi did not go home. Instead, he sat cross-legged in a quiet room in the side hall, his mind calm and his consciousness slowly synchronizing with the image of the dragon god and the dragon's clone at the bottom of the pool.
The statue of the dragon god is like a warm and bright core, absorbing the devout beliefs of Shixi Village and converging into a gurgling warm current that continuously flows into the dragon at the bottom of the pool.
Lin Shi was a little smug.
After the water dispute, the power of faith became even purer and more surging.
Huh?
What's going on?
Lin Shi carefully savored the increased power of his clone dragon during this time. Just as he was about to withdraw his attention, a faint, yet distinctly different, new aura of faith from the villagers of Shixi Village caught his attention, like a streak of unusual color mixed into a clear stream. At first, he wondered if he was seeing things, but upon closer inspection, he realized that this aura carried obvious fear and lingering apprehension, as well as a hidden, almost unspoken awe and plea. He felt that tracing the aura's origin, it did not come from any familiar location in Shixi Village.
Lin Shi's brows twitched slightly. He withdrew his scattered senses and focused them together. Following the strange power of the signal, he traced it back, crossed the Qinghe River, passed through the riverbank that had been hostile during the day a few days ago, and pointed directly at Shanghe Village, locking onto a courtyard near the river—the power of the signal was coming from there.