Incense money from flower and bird shop

When Xiao Congshuo was very young, he once went to the Mountain Temple with his grandmother.He vaguely remembered that at that time, the temple was already dilapidated.It is obviously a mountain temple that is extremely effective in the rumors, but because it is hidden in the deep mountains, there is no incense. If it is not for the unresolved desire in the heart, the villagers will definitely not climb the mountain to worship the gods.

So, what was the wish of the grandmother back then to take the young him up to the mountain to worship the mountain god?

That photo was clearly taken in front of the mountain temple, but not only did he not remember that a boy took a photo with him, but he also couldn't remember taking pictures when he went to the mountain temple.

The dim yellow light of the flashlight fell on the photo, Xiao Congshuo looked at the two identical little boys, and felt that things were confusing, and couldn't help furrowing his brows.

Ming Yan noticed that Xiao Congshuo behind him stopped, and couldn't help turning around to look at him: "What's wrong?"

"I was wondering who the boy in the photo is." Xiao Congsuo put away the photo and followed quickly, "I don't have any brothers."

Ming Yan also couldn't figure this out. If Xiao Congshuo was already able to separate/transform his body when Xiao Congshuo was young, why wait 20 years to sacrifice a living person to summon him?

Or maybe it was really Xiao Congshuo's grandmother who reached an agreement with the mountain god to trap Luo Hu, who was trying to use Xiao Congshuo to make another temporary comeback?

Ming Yan didn't dare to think too deeply, he just said: "It's too early to guess anything, let's go to the mountain temple first to find clues."

"Okay." Xiao Congshuo also understood that guessing without evidence is tantamount to adding trouble to himself.

The mountain road twists and turns, and when you get to the top, there are no artificial steps to go.Xiao Congshuo could only rely on his memory to find his way, and led Mingyan to the deeper part of the forest.

The evening wind whizzed by, making the pinna hurt. Xiao Congshuo couldn't help but turned up his collar and tied the scarf even tighter.In the middle of the night, he dragged Ming Yan into the mountains, he felt guilty: "Are you okay?"

Ming Yan took a sip of hot water, then handed the kettle to Xiao Congshuo: "You warm up too."

Holding the thermos bottle, Xiao Congshuo sighed deeply: "How can grandma, an old man, endure such a cold day?"

"Your grandma will be fine." Ming Yan patted Xiao Congshuo on the shoulder and comforted him, "When we find her, the old man will go back."

"Okay." Xiao Congshuo forced a smile, drank a few mouthfuls of hot water, and continued on his way.

"I also said that I want to take you up the mountain to see the blue lotus." He suddenly remembered what he said to Ming Yan when he returned to his hometown last time, "In the end, the cold winter months brought you up. , Nie Xiaoqian can meet a few."

"You really can't get around Nie Xiaoqian." Ming Yan joked, "Why, have you met?"

Xiao Congshuo's answer was by no means a joke: "Of course I have. I used to go up the mountain with my grandmother to collect herbs, and I met several sisters with long tails halfway up the mountain."

For this kind of thing, Ming Yan is not surprised: "It's common for ghosts to hide in the mountains, so it's not surprising."

"However, we walked all the way up today, but we didn't see one." It turned out that it was Xiao Congshuo who faintly noticed something abnormal in this mountain.

Those mountain spirits and wild monsters who mingled among mortals were not harmful at all, they just went down the mountain occasionally to play like humans.It only took Xiao Congshuo a whole year to go from being afraid to being amazed, and finally getting used to it.

In the end, when he went up to the mountain to collect medicine with his grandmother, those spirits had become acquainted with the little things that could see their own tails, and they would secretly stuff wild fruits for him to bring back.

In the words of my grandmother, this mountain is spiritual.But this time, he came in a hurry and didn't meet a ghost. Such a big mountain seemed to have fallen into dead silence, and there were no traces of nocturnal beasts.

Xiao Congshuo felt more and more that something was wrong, and imperceptible panic had come to his heart: "It's so strange that I haven't even seen a shadow of an animal."

Ming Yan finally reacted, but he felt it carefully, but he didn't notice any abnormality.

Sometimes, the calmer the sea, the more dangerous it is.In the mountains in the middle of the night, I didn't even hear the howling of wild animals, and the only thing that accompanied them along the way was the sound of the wind, which was indeed too suspicious and too weird.

"Maybe I'm overthinking." Xiao Congshuo kept walking, walking deeper into the forest, "Don't scare yourself."

Grandma's life or death is uncertain, even if he guesses that there will be accidents on the road ahead, he can't back down.

Ming Yan followed his steps without any hesitation.In addition to worrying about the safety of Xiao Congshuo's grandmother, Ming Yan was even more afraid of the sudden awakening of the person hidden in his consciousness.

Nowadays, as long as there is a slight disturbance, it can trigger Luo Hu's awakening and lead things to an even more uncontrollable situation.

Xiao Congshuo picked up the dead branches lying on the ground and threw them aside, and told Ming Yan to be careful under his feet: "The mountain road is difficult to walk, so be careful."

Ming Yan followed Xiao Congshuo's footsteps all the way to the top of the mountain.He glanced at his watch by the light of the flashlight and walked for a full two hours.

Xiao Congshuo illuminated the front with a flashlight, motioning Ming Yan to look over: "The Temple of the Mountain God has arrived."

Ming Yan feels the breath of decay and decay, probably this is also a god that has been forgotten by mankind. The glory of the past has been washed away by the years, and he can only linger in the mountains.

This empathy made Ming Yan suddenly feel sad and sad, following the last breath of the mountain god, he walked over step by step.

Withered vines wrapped around the cobweb-covered walls and spread into the dark and dilapidated temple. The tiled roof had a huge gap due to disrepair.Thick vines spread out from the gap, winding around the temple.

Ming Yan pushed aside the spider web and walked in first, wanting to see how weak this mountain god really is.Sometimes, seeing the fate of others is tantamount to ringing an alarm bell for yourself.

Xiao Congshuo illuminated the way forward for Ming Yan, and said: "The mountain temple has been in disrepair for a long time, be careful of collapse.".

The flashlight emits a dim yellow light, illuminating the deeper darkness.

Xiao Congshuo was astonished to find that in this dilapidated temple, there was a towering tree, and he didn't know how many years it had grown until the trunk was thick enough for three people to hug each other.The vines are twisted, spreading and growing along the walls and windows, and extending to the roof and walls outside the temple.

"I came here when I was a child, but I didn't see such a big tree in the temple." Xiao Congshuo looked at the towering ancient tree, secretly dumbfounded, you know, such a big tree, it is impossible to grow in less than a hundred years become.

Ming Yan's expression was hidden in the darkness. If Xiao Congshuo looked carefully, he would find that it was obvious compassion: "This is the mountain god you once worshiped."

This is the final destination of the declining mountain god, who has transformed into his original form, quietly waiting for the day when his spiritual consciousness will completely disappear.

"But, how could it become a tree?" Xiao Congshuo was puzzled, because in his memory, all the gods and monsters in the mountains could be transformed into humans.

"Gods who lose their worship will be completely forgotten." Ming Yan stroked the tree trunk, trying to wake up the sleeping mountain god, "Look, his branches and leaves are already withered and yellow."

It's a pity that Ming Yan didn't get any response. I'm afraid this mountain god is on the verge of disappearing.This can also explain why they didn't see the "Nie Xiaoqian" Xiao Congshuo was talking about along the way.

Xiao Congshuo suddenly had an idea. He dug out a box of incense sticks from his backpack, took three sticks, lit them with a lighter, and bowed three times to the towering tree.

Ming Yan asked in surprise: "You're still taking this with you when you're out?"

"Aren't I afraid that something will happen to you?" Xiao Congshuo became more careful and thoughtful, "If there is another major accident, I can still give you supplies."

The sad emotions were diluted by Xiao Congshuo's words, and there was a lingering smile in Ming Yan's eyes.

Xiao Congshuo's method was really effective, and when Ming Yan's palm was pressed against the tree trunk again, he vaguely felt throbbing—the sleeping mountain god was finally awakened.

"who are you?"

The ethereal voice reverberated in the silent temple, dyeing this piece of ruined walls with a magical color.

Only now did Xiao Congshuo see that there was a phantom figure sitting among the vines, with fluttering clothes, like an ancient man.He finally remembered that he had seen this person before when he was young.

This is an extremely vague memory, which seems to be erased by people, and only the remaining image overlaps with the scene in front of me.

The person sitting high on the vine also turned his gaze to Xiao Congshuo, and said in surprise, "I've seen you."

Xiao Congshuo found a broken incense burner to put incense sticks on, and then said, "I've seen you too."

"You have grown so big." The mountain god was immersed in the memory, and his ethereal voice echoed among the ruined walls, "You have lived up to your grandma's wish."

"But, my grandma is missing." Speaking of grandma, Xiao Congshuo was extremely worried, "So, please tell me what happened back then."

While speaking, Xiao Congshuo took out the yellowed photo in his pocket and held it above his head: "Please tell me what happened that day? Is my grandma's disappearance related to this incident?"

The photo was blown away by an inexplicable wind, drifted around for a while, and fell into the translucent hands of the mountain god.He pondered for a long time before recalling his distant memories: "If I tell you, it will be like letting down your grandma's painstaking efforts."

Xiao Congshuo heard the implication. He was almost sure that his grandmother's disappearance had something to do with him.However, the mountain god insists on keeping his mouth shut, so how can he pry the mouth of the only person who knows?

"What if we offer you incense?" Ming Yan, who had been silent for a long time, finally spoke. He knew exactly what the mountain god needed. "As long as you tell us, we will do our best to offer you."

"I dare not accept your offering." When the man talked to Ming Yan, there was obvious awe.

"Or, you tell me the matter." While speaking, Ming Yan signaled Xiao Congshuo to go out first, and he wanted to talk to the mountain god alone.

Xiao Congshuo didn't want to leave at first, but couldn't find out why, so he just nodded with Mingyan, turned and left.

It wasn't until Xiao Congshuo's figure completely disappeared from sight that Ming Yan asked the truth again: "He's gone, tell me."