Yuan River

"Hey, Li Xin, it's almost over." Li Bin was a little impatient.

"Do you think I'm pretending to cry? Ah Che's whereabouts are unknown, and his life and death are uncertain. I'm really worried about him." Li Xin curled her lips and responded dissatisfied.

"No matter how worried you are, it's useless. The most important thing we should do now is to calm down and analyze his whereabouts."

"He may go upstream or downstream. The only thing that is certain is that he is not here."

"I think he's back to the source."

"why?"

"intuition."

……

The two had their own concerns and were silent for a while, letting the gusts of wind fill their ears.

"By the way, we have to do a full set of dramas. When a wizard dies, there should be a soul sending ceremony as usual." Li Xin added as if suddenly remembering something.

"That's right, who will host it?" Li Bin slapped his head.

"me."

"However, in this way, you will naturally become the next wizard."

"Any questions?"

"I don't know, but it's better to ask father about this matter first."

Li Xin nodded slightly, ignoring Li Bin, and trotted alone to the majestic chief account in the center of the tribe.

She pushed the door and entered the main account. A large complete tiger skin was laid out in the center as a couch, surrounded by tortoise shells and animal bones full of engraved symbols, and thick ropes with knots of various sizes were piled up in the corners.

The patriarch lay comfortably on the tiger skin with his eyes closed, completely oblivious to Li Xin's visit.

"Father, I want to send Ah Che's soul." Li Xin said neither humble nor overbearing.

"Okay. You can arrange it yourself." The patriarch didn't even lift his eyelids.

"So, have I since become a wizard?"

"It's not necessarily true, it's just that there is no better candidate to send his soul, so you should prepare first and arrange the ceremony."

"Okay, father."

the next day.Li Xin woke up from his dream, pushed open the felt door, and couldn't help being startled.

A thin layer of crystal-clear snow flakes spread over thick camps, shallow river beaches, and lush forests.Under the warm rising sun, the snow flakes gradually melted into snow water, which poured into the gurgling Yuan River.

Apparently, it snowed last night.This is the first snow of this year, bringing the snow-covered winter.

Li Xin put on her badger fur clothes, tidied them carefully, and went to Ah Che's witch tent to fetch eagle feathers and cinnabar.

She came to the river beach, taking the calm Yuan River as a mirror, and carefully applied cinnabar to her face layer by layer.Finally, she looked directly at the reflection in the water, and solemnly put the eagle feathers on her head.

"Ache." The familiar image reflected in the water made her a little dazed, and she couldn't help chanting the boy's name softly.

There was a harsh crackling sound behind him, followed by a wave of heat.Only then did Li Xin come back to her senses, and turned around to look back.

I saw that Li Bin had already built a fire by the river, and was stuffing all the dead branches into the fire.Seeing Li Xin looking over, he nodded to her, indicating that the fire was ready.

Li Xin tacitly came to Li Bin's side, and yelled at the crowd unquestionably: "Come here! Everyone come here! Listen, Ah Che encountered an accident while fishing, and today we call for Ah Che's soul!"

Everyone came to the fire in twos and threes, with sad and dignified expressions.Ah Che was the only wizard in the tribe, and he was the spiritual pillar of everyone, but unexpectedly died young, which is really embarrassing.What's more, he has just been allowed to participate in hunting and fulfilled his life's wish, but he didn't expect that in the blink of an eye...

In front of everyone, Li Xin opened her arms resolutely, her sleeves in the wind:

"Winter and spring change quickly, cold and heat flow suddenly.

"The son returns to the poor spring, and the heavy soil is separated forever.

"When you look at the house, you think about the person, when you enter the house, you think about what you have experienced.

"It's like a Hanlin bird, which only perches once.

"Like a fish swimming in Sichuan, compare your eyes and analyze the road.

"The soul is back! Dongfang can't be trusted.

"The soul is back! The south can't stop.

"The soul is back! The harm of the West is like quicksand.

"The soul is back! The north is not allowed."

The words were quiet and deep, and all the listeners felt sad, covered their faces with their hands, and almost cried.

The patriarch remained silent from beginning to end, no sadness or joy could be seen on his gloomy face.

"Ache!" An old man suddenly pointed, breaking the mourning atmosphere, "He's back!"

Everyone immediately looked in the direction he was pointing in unison——

The source of the Yuan River, the silent shadow sinks into the jade.The gilded sun rises here and breaks through the sky.A thin and small boy was walking step by step in the blazing red sun, dressed in colorful clouds.

"Resurrected from the dead! Turned into a god!" The old man continued to shout loudly, and then knelt down decisively on the spot with a reverent expression.

Seeing this, the rest of the old people knelt down towards Xu Sun and Ah Che one after another.The young people who followed him didn't know why, and hurriedly knelt down together.

The patriarch, Li Bin and Li Xin did not kneel down.The patriarch looked at this scene coldly, while Li Bin and Li Xin looked at each other in blank dismay.

……

We are approaching the tribe, and the people in the tribe seem to have started a fire.Ah Che was thinking, while stepping on the colorful clouds, he walked forward calmly.

Going back like this is very dangerous, after all, the patriarch wants to get rid of him quickly.However, he could not stand by and watch the flood.If he can save the tribe from danger this time by calling the police in time, will the patriarch be lenient and let him survive?

Huh?Why do people kneel before the fire?Is there any ceremony going on in the tribe?Is today any special day?Oh, by the way, it's snowing today.Although the snow melted after sunrise, the first snow of this year is worth remembering after all.

Returning home on a special day, and being able to meet old friends again, the joy overwhelmed the worries, and Ah Che couldn't help returning home.As long as the patriarch stops persecuting him, the life of fighting with Li Bin and Li Xin is still worth looking forward to.

Several elderly people walked on their knees and elbows, tremblingly came to Ah Che, their old voices were trembling with excitement: "It has been 20 years, today and then, a fish leaps over the dragon's gate."

Ah Che was taken aback, confused for a moment, so he quickly knelt down facing each other: "Senior, what does this mean? Get up and talk quickly, I can't bear this."

Several old people stood still and held Ah Che's hand tightly, "20 years ago, your mother also walked out of the source of the sun like this."

Ache was stunned for a moment.

"He's not a god! He's a ghost!" A shout came from behind everyone.

Everyone looked back one after another.The patriarch clenched his fists tightly, his veins bulged, and shouted again in a cold voice like ice: "Trust my judgment, Ah Che is a ghost! Don't get close to him!"

Everyone was silent, looking at each other in blank dismay, momentarily at a loss.

"Whether he is a god, a ghost, or a human being, he is my brother." Li Bin's firm and peaceful words broke the silence. His voice was not loud, but it was enough for everyone present to hear clearly.

"Dead but not stiff is a ghost, he will endanger the whole tribe. Bin'er, kill him." There was no hint of compromise in the aggressive words of the patriarch.

"Father, is that right? What about Xiang Shi?"

Ah Che was secretly taken aback.This was the first time he heard people from this tribe mention Xiang.From this point of view, the Xiang family has not always been without trace in the Li family.

"Oh, she is a god." The patriarch's tone slowed down, and there was a touch of helplessness in his words unconsciously.

"Since father is so sure that Ah Che is a ghost, why not ask Yuanshen to verify Ah Che's identity. What do you think?" Li Bin quickly snatched the patriarch's right to speak.

"You...you don't know that the Yuanshen is far away from the source now."

"Let Li Xin ask God. You see, she is fully armed today, looking like a wizard." Li Bin shrugged, and deliberately glanced at Li Xin.

Li Xin understood, straightened the black eagle feathers on her head, walked slowly towards the fire, and took a deep breath amidst the billowing smoke.After a while, under the watchful eyes of everyone, she fell to the ground with her eyes closed.

"Li Xin, are you okay?" Li Bin was extremely anxious, his fingertips trembling.After all, the success or failure of safety depends on it.

"I am Yuanshen," Li Xin opened his eyes again, and said in an extremely strange voice, "You invited me, what's the matter?"

"We want to understand: how is Ah Che doing now?" Li Bin asked respectfully.

"He's fine, better than he's ever been."

"Is he a god, or a ghost?"

"Is there a difference between the two? In short, he no longer exists as a human being."

"Then... what will he bring to the tribe? A blessing or a disaster?"

"This depends on your brother's temperament."

After saying that, Li Xin gently closed her eyes, as if she had fallen asleep, with a quiet and serene expression, dreaming for thousands of years.

Several old people burst into tears and clapped their hands in praise.

"Let me just say, Ah Che is a protector of the tribe."

"I seem to have returned to 20 years ago."

"We must keep Ah Che this time."

……

The crowd was boiling with ecstasy, completely leaving the patriarch aside.The patriarch had no choice but to watch the out-of-control scene.Unwillingly, he came to Li Xin's side and called her softly: "Xin'er."

Li Xin fell asleep peacefully and did not respond.

"Li Xin, wake up!" The patriarch shook his daughter's arm in a panic.

Still no response.

"She can't wake up?" Mi Shi who had been quietly hiding in the corner suddenly approached, "Is she unable to wake up?"

"No way?" The patriarch shook Li Xin vigorously.

"What should I do? Is she going to die if she can't wake up?"

"Don't talk nonsense, she is still breathing, so she should be in a severe coma."

"What kind of gods and ghosts are not good things! Hooked her soul away! What should I do now? What should I do now? Woohoo..."

The patriarch frowned, and gently put his arms around his wife's shoulders, allowing her to lean against his chest as a sign of comfort.

Mi Shi pushed the patriarch away without hesitation, squatted down on the ground and kept shaking the unconscious Li Xin.It's a pity that Li Xin didn't respond.

"The smoke is poisonous. She was poisoned." A Che made a judgment.

"Then...then what should I do?" Mrs. Mi asked anxiously.

"Put her out in the open."

Mi Shi picked up Li Xin without saying a word, ran tens of meters, and carefully placed her on the fan-shaped river beach.

During this period, Li Xin's eyes were closed tightly, as soft as a lifeless doll.