We All Want to Live Forever

Even though Yu Xing endurance, after walking such a long distance, his wounds should have reopened long ago, but they didn't. They stopped bleeding and didn't reopen, so the Witch Doctor, realizing this, looked up at him.

He could see it clearly; a faint smile appeared on the Witch Doctor's lips.

What are you laughing at? She seems quite satisfied.

The application of medicine ended in Yu Xing's active mind; by then, it was completely dark.

The Witch Doctor walked outside and said, "Change your clothes, then come out. I'll take you to find a place to stay temporarily."

"Okay." Yu Xing obediently agreed on the surface, but actually carefully checked the clothes.

This is a cotton long gown. The top is pure black with a front opening and fabric buttons, and the bottom is white trousers. However, the style is not old-fashioned. Many small modifications have been made to make the clothes look very stylish.

This seems to be... is... Yu Xing felt that he could recognize the era in which it was applicable, but his mind was completely blank. This feeling was too uncomfortable, like having something that was clearly possessed but was completely covered by a thick cloth.

Never mind.

Yu Xing felt that he couldn't recall anything by forcing himself to remember, but he subconsciously knew that this was a piece of clothing made by a family with good economic conditions. The Witch Doctor had said that it belonged to her husband... so she must have come from a town.

He put on the clothes one by one, not daring to waste time looking at the contents of the plate on which the stone statue was enshrined, and then left the room.

The Witch Doctor's gaze swept over immediately. She seemed to nod in satisfaction, then said, "Come with me."

The Witch Doctor led Yu Xing to a house in the center of the village.

Yu Xing discovered that this village was much larger than the small village where Old Zhang lived; it stretched as far as the eye could see and looked like it had at least several hundred people living there.

Their standard of living seems to have improved considerably; at least the house in front of him now has a small yard.

The Witch Doctor knocked on the door. There was silence inside for a while, then the sound of wood hitting the ground could be heard. A dozen seconds later, a hunched figure came out.

The elderly woman, barely over 1.4 meters tall, leaning on a wooden cane, was excited when she saw the Witch Doctor: "Witch Doctor, what brings you here?"

"This is our new companion. They'll be staying at your house for now. Is that alright?" The Witch Doctor spoke to the old woman with a detached and condescending air, a stark contrast to her attitude towards Yu Xing.

"No problem, no problem!" The old woman's words were slurred, and she seemed to only now notice that there was another person at the door. She turned her gaze over and was clearly taken aback when she saw the clothes on Yu Xing's body.

"What's your name, sir/madam?"

Yu Xing was about to say that he had no name, the Witch Doctor coughed lightly, looked at him, and said, "Since you don't have a name anyway, we still need a way to address you. How about we call you Shi Wei?"

Yu Xing thought for a moment, "Is there any meaning behind this name?"

"It sounds pleasant," the Witch Doctor said succinctly.

The old woman, though knowing nothing, agreed, "What a good name! The Witch Doctor must have thought of it; it must contain divine power. Shiwei, Shiwei is good!"

Yu Xing: "..."You've really brainwashed me completely.

The Witch Doctor smiled and said, "You can stay here. If you want anything to eat, Granny Li to make it. Granny Li has a big house. Years ago, her grandson abandoned her and ran away. There's a room that's been empty ever since, so it's perfect for you."

She then revealed Granny Li's painful story, and Granny Li didn't utter a single rebuttal; the matter was settled just like that.

After the Witch Doctor left, Yu Xing followed Granny Li into the house. He saw that Granny Li was walking unsteadily, her figure was thin and frail, and her clothes were very loose on her body, making her look as if she might collapse at any moment.

It's strange, this village has better conditions, so why are all the villagers so thin and weak?

The men and women I saw at the beginning were like this too, not as strong as Old Zhang and his wife.

"Granny Li," Yu Xing called out.

Perhaps sensing the different attitude the Witch Doctor had towards Yu Xing, and the fact that she had given him such respectable clothes, Granny Li treated Yu Xing with the same deference, even with a hint of awe and eagerness. When she heard Yu Xing call her, she quickly replied, "Tell me, tell me."

Yu Xing: "I'm hungry, I want to eat something."

"No problem, there's a lot of leftover dinner. I'll heat it up for you right away, and I'll make you something fresh tomorrow!" Granny Li happily turned and went to the kitchen, leaving Yu Xing alone in the main hall.

Through the lit kerosene lamp, he saw in the center of the main hall a stone statue exactly like the one in his aunt's house.

Upon closer inspection, the statue is not actually a full-body sculpture, but rather a half-body of a man. The man's face is indistinct, his hair is long, and he wears a wide-sleeved robe with smooth, fitted lines. However, there is no sculpture below the buttocks, only a slightly wide, circular base.

It looks as if the man crawled out of the base.

There was also a plate in front of the stone statue, but this plate was empty and very clean, so it was impossible to tell what had ever been placed on it.

Yu Xing remained silent, quietly stepped back, and sat down at the dining table to wait for her dinner.

Granny Li quickly brought out the food; the aroma of white rice mixed with stir-fried vegetables and meat made it very appetizing.

Yu Xing was extremely hungry. Although he wanted to take the opportunity to ask some questions, he decided to focus on eating first.

One bowl isn't enough.

He served himself another bowl of rice.

Granny Li sat smiling as she watched him eat, looking quite relaxed. I wonder what this old woman usually does all by herself.

Only after Yu Xing had eaten almost all of his food and his hunger had subsided did he ask, "Granny Li... you all call her Witch Doctor, where does this title come from? I heard her say that this village is protected by God Official?"

"The Witch Doctor didn't tell you? Maybe she was a bit busy today and didn't have time to say it." Granny Li covered her heart with her thin, bony hands and said with a devout expression, "The people in our village have all escaped the clutches of the Black and White Impermanence and are recorded in the Book of Life and Death."

"Huh?" Yu Xing pressed, "What do you mean?"

Granny Li sighed, "You're still young, you probably haven't thought about what will happen when you're old and about to die, Black and White Impermanence will come with chains to put over your head. Everything you have in this world will then belong to someone else. I'm already so old, but I don't want to die. I want to live forever. Everyone in our village wants to live forever."

"The Witch Doctor is the representative of the gods who helped us deceive the soul-reaping messenger and allowed us to live forever among the mortals. She guides us to please the gods and tells us what to do. She is the most revered person in the whole village!"

Yu Xing: "... Oh."

This isn't just brainwashing, it's practically a cult.

He glanced at Granny Li and asked, "Granny Li, how old are you this year?"

Granny Li looked to be in her seventies, said, "I'm already a hundred years old this year, all thanks to the blessings of the Immortal Lord!"

Yu Xing raised an eyebrow in surprise.

Is he a hundred years old? I really didn't expect him to be so quick-witted at a hundred.

Do Witch Doctor really have such abilities?