Bizarre Cultivation: Starting from Being Beaten Up by Reality

Chapter 2 1 String of Money

"To be resurrected through a corpse is against the laws of nature. Since it was not your own will, there are extenuating circumstances."

“The departed souls sighed, their hearts filled with resentment. To fulfill their three wishes, their good deeds will atone for their sins.”

Lin Fan's mind was foggy, and he couldn't understand what the voice in his head was saying at all.

"To be resurrected through possession is against the natural order. You..."

It wasn't until he repeated it for the third time that Lin Fan barely understood that it was wrong for him to possess another body. He needed to fulfill the original owner's three long-cherished wishes.

But the voice in my head didn't say what the three wishes were at all.

Moreover, more than that, Lin Fan was concerned about who the owner of the voice was!

The other person is very likely the reason he traveled through time, so perhaps they are also the clue to his travel back!

Unfortunately, Lin Fan could only listen to him repeat himself over and over again, unable to respond in any way. Naturally, he couldn't ask any questions.

As Lin Fan regained consciousness, he realized that the gag in his mouth was preventing him from speaking.

Lin Fan strained his senses and suddenly opened his eyes.

The incessant chanting in my ears was replaced by the cacophony of ten-part gongs and drums.

Lin Fan was placed in a bamboo pig cage, his hands were tied and he was suspended from the top of the cage, which was then hung from the roof beam of the ancestral hall.

Almost all the men in the village came to the ancestral hall, some banging gongs, some beating drums, some scattering paper money, and some holding incense and candles.

They all surrounded themselves and the cow-nose man dressed in dark green dog skin.

The dog-skinned Taoist priest, wielding his copper coin sword and stepping on the Void Step, declared: "Borrowing a corpse to return to life is against the laws of nature. You are an evil ghost, unacceptable to the mortal realm. Leave immediately, or else I'll have your soul scattered and sent flying!"

Lin Fan looked down at the scene with a sense of helplessness. He knew perfectly well that this ritual would have no effect on him, this 'evil spirit'.

Even this damn Taoist priest can't remember all the incantations. He starts making things up halfway through, and the words he says are different every time.

Lin Fan had previously doubted whether the Taoist priest had actually discovered something, but now he was certain that he had just stumbled upon something by chance and was talking nonsense. He never expected to find something true.

Besides, how can the matter of time travelers be called "reincarnation"? That's too ignorant.

However, I am in a bad situation now. If I wait until the Taoist priest finishes his ritual and I don't look like I've returned to normal, I will definitely be thrown into the river with this pig cage.

Lin Fan writhed in the pig cage, whether in pain or fear. If he didn't move, he would definitely be suspected.

After most of the day's ordeal, Lin Fan was finally released.

The gag in his mouth was torn off, but his hands were still tied.

When the old scholar saw Lin Fan's miserable appearance, he quickly ran over and asked, "Little Fan, how are you? Is there anything else that's bothering you?"

Before Lin Fan could answer, the dog-skinned Taoist priest pulled the old scholar behind him and used his copper coin sword to shield himself.

“Old sir, this evil spirit is cunning and may not have really left. My copper coin sword can only hurt ghosts, not people. Let me try it again.”

The Taoist priest, with his dog-skin skin, took out his copper coin sword and began whipping Lin Fan. He struck Lin Fan's back repeatedly.

This copper coin sword is made by stringing copper coins together with a red rope, and when swung, it's like a soft whip.

Although it's not life-threatening, the pain is real.

Lin Fan initially tried to endure it, but after red marks appeared on his body, he couldn't help but show his pained expression.

Seeing the villagers' expressions gradually turn serious, Lin Fan wanted to curse them out. What kind of damned Taoist priest was this? They were trying to kill him.

No, I have to think of a way quickly. Right now, I must make others believe that I am the same Lin Fan I used to be.

Otherwise, I would be exploring the ocean depths with Pig Cage today.

Lin Fan quickly recalled the original owner's speaking style.

"Master, it hurts, it hurts so much! Can you please stop hitting me? What's going on? Mom, Mom, where's my mom? Where's my mom?"

Upon hearing this, the panting Taoist priest stopped what he was doing.

The old scholar grew anxious: "Taoist priest, why did he say he was in pain?"

Lin Fan frowned and said painfully:

"Third Uncle, this sword is made of copper coins, and I am made of flesh. I don't feel pain. Why should it feel pain? Why don't you take a couple of hits yourself and see if it hurts?"

The old scholar thought about it and realized that it was indeed true; he must have felt pain from being whipped like that.

He could only look at the dog-skinned Taoist priest, whose face was covered in sweat, and ask him with his eyes.

"Cough, it's normal for flesh to hurt. If it's a healthy person, then it will only hurt their flesh. But my sword has magical power. If it's an evil spirit, not only its body will be in pain, but its soul will also feel like it's being fried in oil. Each strike can make it suffer for three hours. My sword..."

Seeing the Taoist priest release him, Lin Fan quickly interjected, "Master, I only feel pain in my skin. It stopped hurting as soon as you stopped. Please let me go, my hands are numb. Where's my mom? You're doing this to me, isn't she going to do anything about it?"

While the villagers were still completely bewildered, the old scholar basically understood that Lin Fan must have been rescued by the Taoist priest. Regardless of other factors, Lin Fan's habit of calling for his mother after an accident remained unchanged.

"Xiao Fan, this is our Lin family ancestral hall. Women and people from other families are not allowed to enter."

"Oh, then what's this dog... Daoist Master? He's not surnamed Lin."

The villagers all turned their attention to the Taoist priest. They hadn't thought much of it at first; the priest said he was going to the ancestral hall, so they brought him along.

Now that I think about it carefully, this goes against our ancestral teachings!

The Taoist priest's lips moved, but he couldn't think of an explanation. No one had told him that people of different surnames couldn't enter the ancestral hall. He was exhausted from the shamanistic rituals and the beatings, and his mind was too slow to process anything. He couldn't come up with an explanation right away.

The old scholar was quick-witted: "Xiao Fan, don't talk nonsense. Master Yunxiangzi is a highly accomplished Taoist master who is not bound by formalities. Even if he wanted to go to the palace, he could."

Everyone understood immediately upon hearing this.

The dog-skinned Taoist priest was overjoyed upon hearing this, and stroking his mustache, he began to boast: "I do not pay homage to the emperor above, nor do I visit high officials below..."

The crowd couldn't understand the Taoist priest's words; they only found them profound and unfathomable.

Lin Fan sighed, thinking that he had finally gotten through this crisis.

He was now completely certain that the Taoist priest was just a charlatan and hadn't actually figured out that he had time-traveled.

Lin Fan was carried back to his home while lying on the door panel. His mother quickly came up to him, asking about his well-being and then putting a bowl of hot porridge in his hands.

The ingredients for rice bran porridge are very simple: coarse rice bran mixed with some old rice, and no seasonings.

Although the porridge was hot, it felt like a knife stabbing my throat as I swallowed it.

Having eaten it for several days, Lin Fan no longer felt as upset and wanted to cry after just one sip as he did when he first arrived.

And because he had been hungry for most of the day, he swallowed for a long time.

Every time Lin Fan ate this porridge in the past, he would vow to work hard to change his life.

But after what happened today, he began to feel that being able to drink a bowl of porridge like this was actually a kind of happiness.

Lin Fan picked up his chopsticks and lightly dipped them into the small earthenware jar containing coarse salt.

Then put the chopstick tip completely into your mouth and suck it in.

A slightly astringent, salty taste spread in his mouth, and Lin Fan breathed a sigh of relief.

With the added saltiness, Lin Fan's appetite improved, and he began to drink the porridge in large gulps.

That damned Taoist priest, that shameless charlatan. Don't let me catch him again, Lin Fan swears.

Having regained some energy, Lin Fan's spirits also improved considerably.

Wait a minute, Lin Fan suddenly remembered something and put down the empty bowl in his hand.

"Mom, did that guy in the dog skin not take our money?"

Lin Shuixiu paused for a moment, then wiped her hand on her apron. "Master Yunxiangzi has gone to great lengths for you. He didn't want our money, but we can't be ungrateful."

Lin Fan gripped the chopsticks tightly, his knuckles turning slightly white.

"How much did you give him?"

"One string of cash."

Lin Fan breathed a sigh of relief. "Thank goodness, we still have one string of cash left. When Old Man Lin comes to collect the rent in a couple of days, we won't be unable to pay."

The mother gripped the hem of her apron tightly with both hands. "It's all gone. All the people in the village came to help, and we even gave them a string of cash to share."

what? !