That Stupid, Pretentious Young Master Deserves To Be Punished - Chapter 11

Shen Si Xuan noticed Jia Yu’s pale complexion and gently took his hand. “Wife, do not be afraid.”

Jia Yu raised an eyebrow. “What is this? Do you really dare to burn me?”

Shen Si Xuan chuckled, his grip tightening. “You are the Mother to all of them; who would dare commit blasphemy?”

At that moment, insects flew in from the horizon, dense and swarming like a black mist, hovering above the fire to form a circular ring.

Jia Yu only recognized the butterflies and moths; the other colorful insects were impossible to identify. Once the flames died down, all the insects flew toward the giant statue in unison, and the black statue instantly became vibrant with color.

Then, two old women wearing black ghost masks appeared. They were hunched over, each carrying a black basin containing an unknown dark red liquid.

One approached from each side.

Looking closely at the ghost masks, Jia Yu felt a shiver of horror. He gasped and instinctively moved back, bumping into Shen Si Xuan, which helped him relax slightly.

One by one, women wearing red ghost masks appeared, each cradling an infant wrapped in black cloth.

What was strange was that among the dozens of infants present, not a single one cried, which Jia Yu found even more chilling.

The women lined up, knelt before the two, and held the infants high. The two old women stepped forward, handing the black basins to them.

Shen Si Xuan reached out, touched the basin, and drew a stroke on the infant’s forehead while chanting in a strange cadence. Then, the woman held the infant up to Jia Yu. The woman kept her head bowed extremely low, but Jia Yu did not move. He did not understand what kind of wicked custom this was; was this a primitive tribe?

Seeing that Jia Yu did not move, no one urged him; they just knelt there quietly. Among the thousands of people present, there was not even the sound of an insect. There was no sun either; this overcast day, paired with the eerie silence, made the scene even more bizarre.

At this moment, Shen Si Xuan moved. He reached out and took Jia Yu’s hand, dipping his fingers into the basin, and guided Jia Yu’s finger to draw a stroke on the child’s forehead, leaving a dark, black bloodstain.

Only then did the two old women to the side speak, chanting a spell, and the woman took the child and retreated.

Then came the next one. Jia Yu glanced at him, displeased, and placed his hand into the basin. He only felt the liquid on his fingers, which was somewhat sticky and carried a fishy odor.

After all the infants had been blessed, the two old women stepped back, and the chanting and bizarre dancing resumed.

“What is in those black basins?” Jia Yu asked.

Shen Si Xuan curled his lips and smiled. “It is blood.”

Why smear such ominous stuff on infants?

Shen Si Xuan added: “It is the blood of the entire village and the juice of all the petals.”

Jia Yu was speechless. What kind of strange custom was this? He found it utterly impossible to accept.

Next, Jia Yu was to be sent to the divine hall to serve the god, while Shen Si Xuan went to preside over the ancestral sacrifices.

When they parted, Shen Si Xuan patted the back of Jia Yu’s hand soothingly. “Wife, do not be afraid. You can sit or lie down inside; it is very safe. Your husband will come to pick you up in a while.”

Jia Yu nodded. Shen Si Xuan’s heart softened; he dropped a light kiss on the corner of Jia Yu’s mouth, gently stroked his hair, and watched as Jia Yu was led away by the divine attendants.

He followed the old woman to a shrine. A stone statue about three meters tall was enshrined in the center, draped in floral robes, with flickering candlelight casting shifting shadows around it.

Sitting on a mat, Jia Yu looked at the blurry face of the statue, momentarily thinking he had returned to the Shen family ancestral hall. After waiting for ten minutes and hearing no movement, he circled the shrine and secretly listened for any activity outside the door.

Noticing that the old woman outside had left, he pushed the door open gently and crept out.

He could barely see anyone along the way; everyone was at the ancestral hall for the sacrifices. It must be said that this situation made Jia Yu feel slightly relieved. He only secretly regretted not having taken care of Shen Si Xuan.

He followed the route he had memorized by heart and escaped, terrified every step of the way, fearing he would be caught by those terrifying black robed villagers and dragged back to chant sutras.

Jia Yu was the only outsider in the village; discovering him would be easy. Fortunately, the sky was dark today, and visibility was poor; even the heavens were helping him.

Jia Yu ran to a fork in the road, pulled the prepared gear from a hollow tree, wrapped himself in a black windbreaker, and ran according to the map without stopping.

After running for over ten minutes and seeing nothing unusual, Jia Yu steadied his heart, slowed his pace, and breathed, panting. At that moment, Jia Yu felt every cell in his body breathing freely.

The further he went, the thicker the white miasma became. In the blur, there seemed to be a figure in the substantial fog.

Someone was there!

Jia Yu softened his footsteps, wondering whether to go around. Just then, the fog suddenly parted to the sides, revealing the figure in the middle. It was a person dressed in red, and it was a man!

The person turned slowly, and Jia Yu finally saw him clearly.

His garment was spectacularly beautiful, with gold silk phoenix patterns embroidered along the edges, and the hem of the skirt had faint burn marks. A red veil draped over his head, hanging with strings of yellow and black copper coins that also looked scorched, obscuring most of his face. Only his red lips stood out against his pale skin.

In this silent, dense forest, the sudden appearance of a man in red made Jia Yu’s hair stand on end. Have I actually run into a ghost?

His scarlet lips parted, emitting a mournful, shrill sound:

“Brother Jia Yu, I found you…”

His mind roared. Jia Yu’s voice trembled. “Ye… Ye Jin?!”

How could he be seeing a hallucination of Ye Jin again?

“Brother Jia Yu, I miss you so much. I am in so much pain. I died so miserably, all because of you, all because of you…”

Even though they were dozens of meters apart, the next moment, Ye Jin appeared right above Jia Yu and lunged at him, his nails, coated in red polish, digging fiercely into Jia Yu’s throat.

“Brother Jia Yu, why do you not die too? Come down and keep me company. It is so dark here, and I am so lonely…” Ye Jin became more and more frantic, his voice nearly shrill. “I want you to die! I want you to die…”

His neck was being constricted, and the coldness was bone chilling. Jia Yu felt his breathing obstructed. As he struggled, several black runes appeared on his body.

Upon touching these black characters, Ye Jin pulled his hands away as if electrocuted. At the same time, countless chains emerged from beneath him, binding him tightly and dragging him into the earth.

“Ah—I am not reconciled—”

Ye Jin’s mournful scream dissipated into the air, and Jia Yu closed his eyes to the sound.

Dense black characters emerged from his skin. Within seconds, Jia Yu woke up again, eyes opening to find himself lying on the ground, the mist around him having dissipated.

He touched his neck; there was no discomfort. Standing up, his body felt as light as usual. He knocked on his head and cursed: “Damn it, I have not taken my medicine for too long; I am seeing those damn hallucinations again.”

He shook his head and continued walking for two hours before finally seeing people. Jia Yu breathed a sigh of relief and took out his phone impatiently.

This phone had been at Shen Si Xuan’s for nearly a month, and Jia Yu had finally managed to swipe it back.

He checked the signal; it still showed “No Signal,” which made him so angry he felt like vomiting blood. He took out his baseball cap, put on his sunglasses and a mask, and strode outward.

His feet were aching by the time he reached the main road at the edge of the town. People and traffic began to increase, and from time to time, people cast looks at Jia Yu.

Although Jia Yu was wrapped up tight, his broad shoulders and narrow waist were hard to hide, not to mention his height.

Jia Yu kept his head down, looking at his phone. Seeing it finally had a weak bar of signal, he was so excited he could have jumped, hurriedly punching in a string of digits.

The call connected quickly.

“Shen Jia Yu? Is that you? Where are you?”

A low, sharp male voice came over the phone.

“Shen Youlin, send some people to pick me up.” He had not heard Shen Youlin’s voice for a long time and found he missed it.

“Where have you been all these days? You did not even send a message. Do you know how long I have been looking for you? You are being ridiculous! Give me your address.”

The voice was so loud and piercing that Shen Jia Yu had to hold the phone far away.

He opened the internet and found that both 5G and 4G networks were just circling. Jia Yu grew impatient. “There is no signal in this godforsaken place.” He kicked a tree beside him in anger.

“Is there anyone around? Ask them where you are!”

“Location… location!” Jia Yu’s brain suddenly had a flash of inspiration. “Oh, I am in Nanxi Town!”

The voice came from the other side. “Zhang Yi, go search Nanxi Town! Shen Jia Yu, it is the ‘Nan’ as in north-south and the ‘Xi’ as in stream, right?”

“Right, that is the name! Please, hurry…” He felt for the pack of cigarettes in his pocket, took one, and put it in his mouth, only to discover he had no lighter. “The transportation here is inconvenient, the language is unintelligible, there is no internet, and no entertainment; I am going crazy. Great, now I do not even have a lighter.”

“Shen Jia Yu, stop talking nonsense and listen to me.” Shen Youlin interrupted Jia Yu. “There are 31 Nanxi Towns in the country. Do you know which province or city it is in? What are the features around you?”

Jia Yu was stunned. “I really do not know. But there is a Huajiang Village; I am cultivating to become an immortal in this village. All around are deep mountains and forests. Wait, I will go ask someone nearby.”

He scanned his surroundings and saw a man in a T-shirt and jeans buying apples at an intersection. He walked over with the cigarette in his mouth.

“Brother, could I borrow a lighter?”

Wang Sihai, who was buying apples, saw a strange man walking over. Even though it was a hot day, he was wearing a trench coat and wrapped up tight; his voice sounded young. He swept the man before him with a scrutinizing gaze and fished a lighter from his pocket, handing it over.

He lit the cigarette and took a comfortable puff before asking: “Thanks, Brother. By the way, do you know where this is?”

Looking at that exquisite chin, superior physique, and expensive clothes, it was clear he was no ordinary person. “This is Nanxi Town, young man.”

Great. After waiting for so long, it was still a waste of time. Jia Yu exhaled a puff of smoke. “I know this is Nanxi Town. I want to know which province and city this is in.”

Wang Sihai vaguely felt something was wrong. Could this be a minor running away from home? He does not look ordinary either. He asked: “Little Brother, is this your first time in Nanxi Town? What are you here for? Visiting relatives, tourism, or looking for someone? Are there no adults or friends with you?”

Jia Yu was amused. What is this situation? He smoothly spun a lie. “Brother, I came for tourism, but I accidentally got lost. There is no signal here, and I cannot find my friends. Just tell me where the police station is.” It would be best to sit there with air conditioning and wait for someone to pick him up. Since Shen Youlin was coming, he could tie Si Xuan up along the way.