Wandering Gods of Day and Night-Chapter 342 - 208: The Altar Shattered

Zhou Xuan returned to the shop, collapsed on the bed and fell asleep immediately, having used the Wash Away Injustice Talisman all night, leaving his spirit utterly drained.

He slept until three in the afternoon when a burst of commotion woke him up. From the sounds of it, a sizable group of people had gathered on the ground floor of the shop.

He dressed, tidied up, and headed downstairs, only to find seven or eight strangers in the shop, some carrying painting boards, all chatting pleasantly with Yun Ziliang.

Upon noticing Zhou Xuan, before he could even ask a question, the group bowed in unison and said, "Good day, Young Master."

"And who might you all be?"

"Oh, we’re all teachers from Hui Feng Medical College."

Hui Feng Medical College was under the auspices of the Bone Elder Association. Being a teacher at the college was essentially synonymous with being part of the Bone Elder Association.

"Why have you come to my shop?"

"We’ve come to visit the Suffering Scholar, as colleagues, just to show a little goodwill."

"..." Zhou Xuan.

Waving dismissively, Zhou Xuan said, "The Great Scholar is over at the Old Painting Pavilion. Why stir up trouble here?"

"Visiting the Great Scholar is one reason, but the other is to bring Young Master some small tokens of appreciation."

Only then did Zhou Xuan notice that the countertop was filled with boxes of various sizes.

"I’ll accept the gesture, but if you wish to see the Great Scholar, go to the Old Painting Pavilion. By the way, why are you carrying painting boards?"

One of the Bone Elders carrying a painting board solemnly replied, "Just a personal hobby of mine."

"You plan to paint a couple of pictures of the Great Scholar for the record, don’t you?" Zhou Xuan asked.

"I’m not painting the Great Scholar. I want to paint that donkey. That donkey has an extraordinary masculine beauty."

Zhou Xuan: "..."

A donkey enthusiast?

Managing to send the group of Bone Elders off, Zhou Xuan poured himself a cup of tea, took a sip, sat back in his bamboo chair, checked the time on his pocket watch, and pondered how these Bone Elder Association members didn’t seem particularly eager to visit the Suffering Scholar.

The news of the Suffering Scholar’s "joyful encounter" with the black donkey had already spread last night. Li Chengfeng and Gu Ling had caught wind of it, and by morning, the Bone Elder Association should’ve been abuzz.

Why were they only showing up now?

"It’s already three in the afternoon, and the Bone Elders are only arriving now..."

"What do you mean ’only now’? There’ve been several batches already," Yun Ziliang said. "You must’ve slept like a log and missed all the excitement. The batch that came this morning even set off a couple of firecrackers on their way into the street."

Zhou Xuan: "..."

"Some Bone Elders even bought flowers for the black donkey, and some bought black clothes," Yun Ziliang quickly filled Zhou Xuan in on the excitement he’d missed while sleeping.

Zhou Xuan was somewhat puzzled and asked, "Buying flowers I understand—joyful events warrant some decoration—but what’s the deal with the black clothes?"

"Put the donkey in black clothes to ward off evil. Everyone’s saying the Suffering Scholar is just too unlucky, and they’re afraid it might rub off on the black donkey."

"..." Zhou Xuan’s brows knitted tightly together.

Good grief—painting donkeys, setting off firecrackers, buying flowers and black clothes. The Bone Elder Association... truly a group of extraordinary talents!

After finishing his tea in one gulp, Zhou Xuan asked, "Where’s Fifth Senior Brother?"

"Over there with Old Dao Bazi. You should go and take a look—there’s a whole scene with the lingchi..."

"Incredibly gruesome?"

"Beautiful beyond words," Yun Ziliang remarked fervently, as if savoring the memory.

Zhou Xuan was speechless; how had even Old Yun turned so morbid?

"I’ll go find Fifth Senior Brother."

Zhou Xuan left and headed first to Sister Cui’s food stall, grabbed a bowl of pork belly noodles to eat, then made his way to the Old Painting Pavilion.

At the entrance of the Old Painting Pavilion, it looked like a grand opening, with petals and red paper strewn everywhere.

The scene was lively and crowded with people packed together.

In the pavilion’s main hall stood another large group of folks.

"The Suffering Scholar’s popularity is a motherfucking tragedy—so many people ready to kick him while he’s down?"

Zhou Xuan pushed through the crowd, calling out, "Make way, make way."

"The Young Master’s here, make way, make way!"

Someone shouted, and the crowd automatically parted to form a path for Zhou Xuan to ascend the stairs.

Upon reaching the second floor, the corridor was still packed with people, some even egging each other on loudly.

"Wow, the Great Scholar is really pale!"

"Suffering Master, could you smile a bit? Makes it easier to get a good picture."

"Hey, someone move the Suffering Master to the side a bit; he’s blocking my view of the donkey I’m painting."

Zhou Xuan: "..."

"Suffering Scholar, with your character, you truly deserve all this enthusiastic attention."

Standing in the corridor, Zhou Xuan gave a thumbs-up toward the sea of people crammed into the Suffering Scholar’s cell.

With so many people in the room, Zhou Xuan decided not to bother with the commotion and headed straight for the second cell, where Old Dao Bazi was undergoing lingchi.

Pushing open the door, Zhou Xuan took in the scene and immediately understood why Yun Ziliang had described it as "beautiful beyond words."

Senior Brother Lv was always meticulous in his craft; dissecting corpses didn’t involve complaints from the deceased, but he held himself to an exceptionally high standard.

Even the simplest incision had to be perfectly straight—any deviation was unacceptable. Complex, multi-incision arrangements were required to exhibit a composition-like aesthetic.

Old Dao Bazi’s lingchi execution displayed Lv Mingkun’s craftsmanship at its zenith: the slices of skin and flesh were neatly laid out on pristine white trays, devoid of excessive blood, and identical in overall shape and size.

The scene exuded a certain cleanliness and beauty... as long as one didn’t focus on Old Dao Bazi’s body.

Old Dao Bazi, stripped of several layers of skin and flesh, now looked "slimmed down" a great deal.

The thin, sinewy red flesh, crisscrossed with lines, served as the final layer concealing his skeletal structure.

And because the flesh was so thin, the rhythmic pulsing of his internal organs could be seen crystal clear.

"Fifth Senior Brother, has the lingchi exceeded four thousand cuts yet?"

Four thousand cuts had been Lv Mingkun’s predetermined goal before the lingchi commenced.

At this moment, Lv Mingkun sat beneath the window, the sunlight streaming into the room casting an indistinct glow over his face.

His right hand stretched out into the patch of light, forming a "five."

"Five thousand cuts, just one left. I’ve saved it for you." As Lv Mingkun finished speaking, he stood, a Bamboo Leaf Blade slipping out from his sleeve, and thrust it toward Old Dao Bazi’s heart.

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