Last Bus of Route 13

I was skeptical of the old man’s words. Even though he mentioned the mole on my backside, Old Liu’s life was at stake, and I couldn’t afford to be careless.

As I was worrying, a terrifying roar came from the water station, and my heart tightened instantly.

Old Liu was in danger!!

Without a second thought, I shook off the old man and dashed straight toward the water station.

Just as I reached the entrance, the large iron door of the water station creaked open.

Old Liu emerged, leaning on his stick with his left hand and holding the rooster in his right, trembling slightly. Seeing him unharmed, I was naturally relieved and hurried over to ask, “Old Liu, are you hurt?”

Old Liu weighed the rooster in his hand and replied coldly, “I’m fine. It can’t harm me.”

As we were talking, Old Liu suddenly noticed the blind old man behind me and asked quietly, “Who is this old man?”

I lowered my voice and replied, “He’s the old man I told you about last time, the one who asked me to find his chicken. He just claimed he’s Semi-Immortal Xu!”

Old Liu squinted at the old man for a moment, then noticed the chick at his feet and asked in a low voice, “Is this chick with the red feathers under its comb really yours?”

The old man chuckled and said, “Yes, I’ve raised it for over ten years now.”

Over ten years?!

I was shocked. Even under natural circumstances, a chicken’s lifespan is at most six or seven years. Yet the old man claimed this tiny chick was over ten years old!

Old Liu didn’t seem surprised. He looked at the unassuming chick and said slowly, “There are probably fewer than five people in the world who can raise a red-combed, spiritual chicken. Just for that, I believe you must be Semi-Immortal Xu!”

After saying this, Old Liu actually smiled at the blind old man.

Old Liu, usually as silent as a log except with me, was now smiling at this old man.

As the two elders were talking, a commotion arose behind us. Turning around, we saw a group of villagers brandishing knives, hoes, and hammers, charging toward us with murderous intent.

I was stunned, and suddenly a loud whistle sounded from somewhere. As soon as the whistle blew, the rooster in Old Liu’s hand flapped its wings frantically as if startled.

Old Liu loosened his grip, allowing the rooster to break free. It leaped three feet into the air and darted off toward the direction of the whistle.

The rooster escaped, and sensing trouble, I was about to chase after it when the blind old man grabbed me again.

“Don’t chase it. Let it go.”

I looked at him in confusion. The blind old man, hands clasped behind his back, hunched over, said in a deep voice, “I just did a divination. The rooster is heading east of the village. We can just wait for it at the village’s east entrance.”

“You did a divination?”

I frowned, incredulous. “You’ve been standing here with us. When did you do that?”

The old man’s sunken eyes shifted slightly, and he smiled, “Yes, I did it while standing here.”

I was about to call him out for nonsense when Old Liu waved his hand and said, “No need to be surprised. Semi-Immortal Xu uses Heart Divination.”

Heart Divination!!

Old Liu finished speaking, noticing my still incredulous expression, and continued, “There are many ways to perform divination. You’re just used to those street fortune-tellers counting on their fingers.”

I had heard of mental arithmetic in mathematics, but divining in one’s mind was something entirely new to me.

Following the old man’s advice, we didn’t chase after the rooster. Instead, we took a shortcut to the east of the village and hid behind a pile of firewood at the crossroads as instructed by the old man.

We crouched there quietly for a few minutes without seeing any sign of the rooster. Just as I was about to speak, I suddenly saw a rooster running towards us from the east.

Yes, it was indeed the soul-transferred rooster!

The shock to my mind was intense. Da Lao Wang was so skilled, yet he needed two walnuts for divination. But this old man, with his hands behind his back, needed nothing at all to perform a Heart Divination. Was it really this mystical?

The rooster ran like a person, turning its head left and right, alertly scanning its surroundings.

As the rooster approached the firewood pile where we were hiding, I held my breath and lunged forward.

My sudden movement startled the rooster, causing it to flap its wings frantically and scatter feathers everywhere.

I missed my grab and was about to get up to chase it when the rooster turned and ran north.

The rooster had appeared right on this path. Although I didn’t catch it, I began to admire this blind old man.

He was indeed more impressive than Da Lao Wang. Even Old Liu called him Semi-Immortal Xu, so it seemed there was no mistake.

Semi-Immortal Xu, seeing me emerge from the firewood pile empty-handed, chuckled and said, “No worries, the rooster has gone to Da Lao Wang’s house. Let’s go there and take a look.”

With that, he started walking towards Da Lao Wang’s house. I glanced at Old Liu and asked in amazement, “Old Liu, is this Semi-Immortal Xu really blind? How does he walk so confidently without needing guidance?”

Old Liu didn’t reply, just gave a cold chuckle and followed him.

On the way to Da Lao Wang’s house, I kept an eye on Semi-Immortal Xu. It was truly strange. The rural dirt roads were in terrible condition and hard to navigate.

Yet, without anyone leading him, Semi-Immortal Xu managed to gracefully avoid the stones and puddles on the road.

I took a deep breath, thoroughly impressed. There really were such extraordinary people in this world.

The soul transfer of the rooster was orchestrated by Da Lao Wang. Now that the rooster had turned violent, it was definitely connected to him!

When we arrived at Da Lao Wang’s house, the courtyard gate was open as usual.

As we stepped into the yard, Da Lao Wang pushed open the door with a creak and came out.

I had consulted Da Lao Wang for a second divination in the morning and felt somewhat grateful to him. But now, seeing him again, my feelings had become complicated.

Da Lao Wang glanced at me, then at the gate, and asked in a low voice, “Why are you all here looking so fierce?”

Before I could answer, a large group of villagers, seeing us, also rushed over. In no time, Da Lao Wang’s house was surrounded just like before.

Han Dong, whose father had been pecked to death by the rooster, whispered to me, “Brother, why did you chase the rooster here? Is it at his house?”

Da Lao Wang quickly waved his hand and said, “Oh no, don’t say that. It’s really not at my house.”

The whereabouts of the rooster were all determined by Semi-Immortal Xu using Heart Divination. With his crafty reasoning, I truly had no evidence to refute him.

Han Dong, overwhelmed with emotion, pointed at Da Lao Wang and shouted angrily, “If it weren’t for your soul transfer nonsense with the rooster, my father wouldn’t have died! Hand over that beast right now!”

Da Lao Wang responded in a deep voice, “I’ve heard about your old man’s situation. This animal is indeed ruthless and deserves to be killed, but it’s not here with me.”

Just as he finished speaking, members of Zhang’s family arrived. A man from the Zhang Family, seeing the crowd blocking the entrance, pushed his way in with his eyes wide open. Upon hearing Han Dong demand the rooster from Da Lao Wang, he flared up instantly.

“Hand over my son? I dare anyone to try and touch him!”

The two men were on the verge of a physical fight, glaring at each other with hostility.

Da Lao Wang raised his hand and said, “Alright, tell me-who saw the rooster come to my house?”

This question hit the nail on the head. The claim that the rooster was at Da Lao Wang’s house came from Semi-Immortal Xu’s divination, but no one had actually seen it with their own eyes.

The villagers had all followed us here. As soon as Da Lao Wang asked this, everyone turned their gaze toward me.

Feeling awkward and unsure of how to respond, I pointed at the blind old man and said truthfully, “It was Semi-Immortal Xu who divined it. He said the rooster is at your house. He wouldn’t be wrong.”

Da Lao Wang chuckled several times and replied, “Young man, just a few days ago, you were calling me Semi-Immortal Xu. Now, in such a short time, you’ve started calling this blind old man a Semi-Immortal?”

Da Lao Wang’s reputation for divination had long been established in the village. On the other hand, the blind old man had always relied on the villagers’ charity to get by. Hearing me call him Semi-Immortal Xu, the villagers exchanged incredulous glances.

Before I could say anything, Semi-Immortal Xu stepped forward and said slowly, “You’ve got some small skills, I’ll give you that. But why don’t you use them for good? If you hadn’t fed that boy’s soul to the rooster, I wouldn’t have bothered to step in. That rooster is squatting on the kang in your west room. Hand it over.”

As soon as Semi-Immortal Xu finished speaking, I noticed Da Lao Wang’s eyebrows furrow slightly.

After a moment, Da Lao Wang sneered and said, “Oh, so you’re saying whether the rooster is in my house or not is all based on your divination, blind old man? This old man claims to be skilled in divination-do you all believe him?”

With that, the villagers erupted into chatter, whispering among themselves.

Han Dong, still agitated, tried to force his way into the house but was stopped by the man from Zhang’s family.

This stalemate wasn’t going anywhere. An idea struck me, and I said, “Why don’t you two have a contest to see who’s better at divination?”

Da Lao Wang squinted his eyes, clearly not taking Semi-Immortal Xu seriously, and said, “Alright, alright. If I lose, you can go into the house and search all you want.”

Semi-Immortal Xu, with his eyeless sockets, revealed no discernible expression but simply nodded.

The villagers behind us started chattering and throwing out suggestions. Somehow, someone proposed that the two of them should divine how many moles were on Zhang Mazi’s famously mole-covered face!

I couldn’t help but chuckle at the suggestion. Divination is meant for predicting life fortunes, warding off evil, and avoiding disasters. How could it be used to count moles on a face?

Yet, to my surprise, both of the old diviners agreed to it.

I was quite intrigued by this “divination duel” between the two masters. Could the number of moles on Zhang Mazi’s face really be determined through divination?

Zhang Mazi was right there in the crowd. He didn’t feel embarrassed at all; instead, he stepped forward willingly for everyone to see.

His face was covered with so many moles that it triggered my trypophobia.

After Zhang Mazi reported his Eight Characters, Da Lao Wang began his preparations. He took out two walnuts, clasped them in his palms, muttering as he shook them, then scattered them on the ground in the courtyard.

Da Lao Wang squatted down, furrowing his brows, staring at the walnuts for a long time before suddenly looking up with a smile and saying, “Alright, I’m done. Your turn.”

Semi-Immortal Xu chuckled and replied, “I finished my divination the moment you took out the walnuts.”

His words caused a stir among the villagers behind him.

I actually believed him. Old Liu said Semi-Immortal Xu used Heart Divination, which naturally didn’t require any props.

Since both diviners had finished, it was time to announce the numbers.

An interesting scene unfolded!

Da Lao Wang claimed Zhang Mazi had 184 moles on his face, while Semi-Immortal Xu said there were 185!

I naturally supported Semi-Immortal Xu, not only because I had witnessed his skills, but also because I remembered how movies often portrayed such extraordinary talents. Those unassuming masters, who seemed ordinary, would always win once they made their move.

Then came the counting of moles. Three people surrounded Zhang Mazi’s face, taking a full ten minutes to count all the moles.

When the count was announced, I was utterly shocked.

All three counters reported the same number:

184 moles! Exactly as Da Lao Wang had predicted!

Semi-Immortal Xu had actually gotten it wrong!