Killing a Chicken for Divination
We returned to the wooden building of the Khritos. Zhu 'er was smoking and looked uneasy. When she saw us, her face lit up and she said,"Did you win? They couldn't take it, could they? I thought,'What's there to be afraid of some stupid country bumpkins? If my butt is fine, I'll make sure they're all the more beautiful!'”
No one responded to him. Cleto gave his wife some instructions, and she left the wooden building. After a while, she came back with a rooster in her hand.
"To enter the pond, we must have the permission of Mu Yiji and the Snake God. Moba had to see the chicken hexagram to know if he could enter. Otherwise, he would be punished if he went in.”
We looked at Moba curiously. He took out many bamboo sticks from his waist and placed them on the floor of the bamboo building. He took the longest one and chanted. After chanting for a while, he suddenly stabbed the bamboo stick into the chicken's chest. Chicken blood sprayed all over the ground. The chicken struggled for a while and died. He threw the chicken into the boiled pot, plucked the feathers, and cut off two drumsticks. He boiled the chicken drumstick for a while more. It was half-cooked, so he couldn't wait any longer. He took it out and peeled off two leg bones. He used the thin grass to tie the two leg bones together, forming a 'V'. Then, he stabbed a few toothpick-sized bamboo sticks into the pores of the chicken bones and observed them carefully for a while. Then, he spoke Wa language to the headman and Ke Li Tuo.
"Mo Ba said that Mu Yiji and the Snake God agreed to go into the pond.”But one of us will be sacrificed as an offering to the serpent god.”
"Who will sacrifice themselves? Who was this person? How could humans be offerings? They were not pigs, chickens, geese, ducks, peaches, pears, or fruits. Can you talk nonsense just because you look at a chicken bone? I don't believe he's up to this!”Zhu 'er asked.
"Manager Zhu, the people from the Goldwater Stronghold will definitely break into the stronghold when it gets dark," said Zhao Yijing. They don't want Cletus 'head, they want ours. We have to go now, go through the swamp to that side, there's a cave at the foot of the mountain…"
After listening to Zhao Yijing's explanation, Zhu 'er said,""Can I walk with my legs? If I could walk, I would have left long ago!"
"Why don't you hide? They might not find you. Wait for us to come back from Mengxiu to pick you up.”Zhao Yijing said.
"What kind of method is this? Humph! Such a big village can't even hide a mouse, so how could they not find me? Alright, I'll go with you! But who was the one who was going to die? I have to ask clearly, or I won't leave.”
Krito spoke to Moba for a while, then said,"Moba said that from the position and shape of the chicken bones, our life gate is in the north, and there's a cave at the foot of the mountain in the north. This Mu Yiji has given us a way out, so we can succeed. However, one person would die. As for who this person was, he could not tell yet.”
Zhu 'er heard this and stared at Moba with her goldfish eyes. She then looked at everyone and asked Ke Li Tuo,"This divination spirit? I think he's very smart. Could it be that he's talking nonsense? Sigh, you're really unlucky this time. You actually have such a ruthless enemy. Why didn't you say so earlier?……”
He couldn't stop complaining.
"We can't delay any longer. Let's leave quickly.”I said.
Everyone quickly packed up their things. Krito and I still carried our rifles and left the wooden building together to the swamp behind the building.
The swamp lay quietly under the afternoon sun. We looked out at the marsh we were about to enter. There were many small islands with reeds in the swamp, and at the northern foot of the mountain was a greyish-white plant belt. It was impossible to see what kind of plant it was.
Morba said something to Ke Li Tuo. Ke Li Tuo said to us,"Other than Mo Ba, very few people in our stockade dare to enter this pond. This is a rule passed down by our ancestors." Firstly, the pond was the Snake God's territory, and secondly, people would sink into the mud if they went in. If one didn't follow the rules and entered, they would be eaten by the Naga God as a sacrifice even if they didn't sink into the mud. It was said that few people who went in came out alive, and even if they came out, they would go crazy. Only when Mo Ba was offering sacrifices to the Snake God and delivering the offerings to the pond could he enter. We have no choice this time, and we've already asked Mu Yiji to let us in, but we must be careful and follow Moba closely…"
"Are we going in like this? How can we do that? Don't tell me there's no boat?”Zhu 'er called out,"I thought they rowed the boat over."”
"Manager Zhu, why is there a boat here? Even if there is a boat, how can we drive it? Didn't you see the pond full of water grass, reeds, and water hyacinths?”Zhao Yijing said.
Zhu 'er didn't say anything. She thought for a while and asked,"That cave is strange. How many times has Moba gone through it?"
"The cave leads to the ditch behind the mountain. Moba's father once drilled through it." Zhao Yijing said.
"In that case, even Moba hasn't gone through it, right?”
"Yes." said Clito." He only heard about it from his father. He hasn't even seen it.”
"Aiyaya, I knew it. This puddle is surrounded by tall mountains and cliffs. Why is that cave so magical? It's waiting for us there. Even if there was a hole, the foot of the mountain was at least five to six kilometers away from here. Along the way, the snake god ate people and made mud pits for people. How could people walk through? Even if we happen to run into the Naga God dozing off and get there alive, it's hard to say if the cave is there. Even if there really was, it was hard to say if he could find it. Who knew if Moba's father was telling a story to coax the doll? If you ask me, we're simply courting death!”
He said it irritably, but he could not say that it was unreasonable. The geographical location of this Yishui Stronghold was really strange. It was easy to defend and difficult to attack, but it was also a dead land. It was easy to be caught like a turtle in a jar.
Zhu 'er was still complaining endlessly. Zhao Yijing couldn't help but ask angrily,"Then what do you think we should do, Manager Zhu? Why don't we attack from the stronghold gate?”
"Can, can we get out?" Zhu 'er said," This is suicide, right?”
"Don't say anymore. If you're willing, then leave.”I said," Big brother Ke, please ask big dad Moba to lead the way.”
Moba used a stick to probe into the swamp. We rolled up our pants and followed behind. Zhao Yijing was behind Moba, followed by Zhu 'er and me. Kelite brought up the rear.
I nodded at my enemy. Khritor bade farewell to the headman and his wife. His wife sobbed, and the headman's eyes were filled with tears.
The water in the swamp was not deep, only reaching his knees, but it was very cold.
The indigenous people in the mountains were isolated and mysterious. They had been worshiping and believing in the gods of nature for generations. But I don't really believe what Moba said, and that chicken bone divinatory symbols might not be true. If it was really as Moba said, the result was not bad. But I think this trip will be disastrous. This swamp was formed by the isolated environment of the Wilderness. It had probably never been disturbed by the outside world since it was formed. It was a place where the strong preyed on the weak. Who knew what kind of unknown bloodthirsty creatures were hidden there?
This trip is extremely dangerous. If we don't do well, we might die in this swamp and become ghosts in a foreign land. I felt dejected and regretful about this trip. I also somewhat blamed Zhao Yijing and Ke Li Tuo. Why didn't they tell me that Ke Li Tuo had such a grudge?
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