Time Travel: The Survival of Li Zhi

Chapter 143 Huangshi's Past

Li Zhigang paused for a moment, then put the wine bowl down again, looked at Huangshi, and said slowly: "I'm here to find a man called Stone God..."

Huang Shi frowned, pointed at himself uncertainly, and said, "You...you mean...me?"

Li Zhi stared at Huang Shi's eyes, trying to detect something from them. He said, "I'm not sure, so... I came..."

Huang Shi knew what Li Zhi meant. It was precisely because he was not sure whether Li Zhi was the person he needed to find that Li Zhi showed up when Huang Shi pointed out that the people who followed him should come out for a chat.

Huangshi scratched his hair and said uncertainly: "It shouldn't be me... It seems that no one calls me the Stone God!"

Huang Shi's eyes were clear, without any impurities or abnormalities. Then he asked, "What are the special qualities of the stone god you mentioned?"

Li Zhi was stunned for a moment. He recalled what the black-robed man, whom he had killed long ago, had said to him before.

"He is a cruel and ruthless person, his eyes... are like poisonous snakes!"

Li Zhi stared into Huang Shi's eyes and repeated word for word what the man in black robe had said to him.

"Hahaha...it seems that's not me. Although I am not a good person, I don't think I am the kind of cruel and vicious person. And look at my eyes, I have been praised as like stars since I was a child." Huang Shi laughed and said to Li Zhi.

The laughter echoed in the silent courtyard, and it seemed to even dispel the gloom in Li Zhi's heart.

He looked at Li Zhi with calmness and confidence in his eyes. Li Zhi looked at him and felt relieved for some reason as his bright and calm eyes did not seem fake.

"I don't think it's you..." Li Zhi said softly, picked up the wine bowl, tilted his head back and drank it all in one gulp.

Huang Shi nodded and poured another half bowl of wine for Li Zhi. After pouring it, he reminded Li Zhi not to drink too fast, as he only had this jar of wine.

Li Zhi couldn't help laughing and said, "You are such a weird person. You said you would treat me to a drink, but now you feel bad that I drank the wine?"

Huang Shi was not annoyed when he heard Li Zhi's teasing. Instead, he said, "Of course. If I finish this jar of wine, I won't have the money to buy more."

Upon hearing this, Li Zhi asked, "You are a charlatan in this village, are you afraid that you don't have money to buy wine?"

When Huang Shi heard what Li Zhi said, he sighed rarely, but didn't say anything. He just picked up the wine bowl and drank it in one gulp. When the wine went down his throat, a spicy and bitter taste instantly spread.

Huangshi smacked his lips, as if savoring the complex taste.

Li Zhi was somewhat curious about Huang Shi's origins, and couldn't help asking, "Who are you? I've been following you all day, and I find it even more strange."

Huang Shi glanced at Li Zhi, then looked up at the moon in the sky.

The bright moon hung high in the sky, casting a silvery light and illuminating the entire yard.

Huangshi stared at the moon quietly, as if lost in thought.

Then, he slowly said to Li Zhi...

 …

It was a seemingly ordinary afternoon. The sunlight shone into the house through the window. Huang Shi was sitting at his desk at home, concentrating on reading and reviewing.

This year, he successfully passed the examination and became the pride of his family and a role model in the village.

What was even more gratifying was that the academician in charge of the examination praised him highly, saying that he had a mind full of brilliant articles and had the talent to become a Jinshi.

Just when his family was full of expectations and looking forward to his future success, a sudden disaster shattered their fantasy.

That night, the Qu River near Huangni Village suddenly burst into flood without any warning.

The raging flood roared in like an angry beast, instantly engulfing several surrounding villages.

That night, the wind was howling, the flood was backflowing, and everyone was screaming and fleeing in fear.

Faced with this kind of natural disaster, these mortals have no ability to resist at all.

When dawn broke, the flood water gradually receded. At this time, Huangshi was shocked to find that his relatives had lost their lives in the flood last night.

Before Huangshi could recover from his grief, when night fell, the surging flood swept in again.

It was another sleepless night. All the villages suffered heavy damage and countless villagers were killed or injured.

At this time, rumors spread in the village that the river god was angry because they did not offer sacrifices.

Thus, without any organization, all the villagers began to worship the river god spontaneously, praying that the anger of the river god could be appeased.

But contrary to expectations, when night fell, the flood still came as expected.

Although the villagers were no longer as panicked as they were at the beginning after experiencing the previous two floods, they still felt helpless and unable to resist such a natural disaster.

Under the impact of floods again and again, the familiar homes of the past have been completely changed, with broken walls and ruins everywhere.

At this time, someone suggested using children as sacrifices to the river god in order to appease the river god.

Those children who lost their parents and relatives in the flood and were left without anyone to rely on became the first choice of these ignorant people.

However, Huangshi seemed to have lost his mind that day. He was no longer as friendly as before. He drove away all the people who participated in the worship of the river god like a madman, and overturned the altar and offerings they had prepared.

And protected those poor children.

Although it has been five years since the scene of that day, everyone in Huangni Village can still remember it vividly when they recall it.

That day, Huangshi stood by the river like a madman and shouted angrily: "What's the point of praying to them and worshipping them! A bunch of demons and ghosts are playing tricks here and have killed so many of us. Why should we worship them!"

As he spoke, he took a hatchet and waved it wildly in the air.

On that day, anyone who wanted to worship the river god was driven away by Huangshi, and all the poor children who were captured as sacrifices were stopped and protected by Huangshi.

When a few village bullies tried to subdue Huang Shi, Huang Shi stabbed their intestines out with a hatchet.

The arrogant ones are afraid of the stupid ones, and the stupid ones are afraid of the ones who are not afraid of death. Huangshi is the one who is not afraid of death.

Now no one dared to provoke Huangshi anymore, and Huangshi just sat quietly by the river, waiting to see who this so-called river god was.

Even though he was just an ordinary man, he was not afraid.

Maybe... it's not that he's not afraid...

But his heart is dead...

That day no one was able to offer sacrifices to the river god, and everyone was in despair. Just as everyone was anxiously waiting for the river god to get angry.

That night was unusually quiet.

flood...

Stopped!