Chapter 1703: The Changed Calabash Well

“No, the Calabash Well didn’t dry. It’s just... changed.”

The old man spoke slowly as if he hadn’t spoken in a very long time. “In the past, the water of the Calabash Well was sweet and delicious. It was sweeter than fine wine and purer than morning dew. It could even strengthen one’s body and immunize them from all diseases, making us as strong as the hawks soaring through the sky. It was the best gift the heavenly god has given to us.”

“But... half a month ago, that all changed. The water of the well was neither sweet, pure, nor strengthening anymore. Instead, it became bitter and smelly.”

“Not only that, the plants in the city began to wither, the livestocks began to die, and everyone who drank from the well started to fall ill...”

Fear and despair contorted the old man’s face as he burst into an uncontrollable sob. “The heavenly god has abandoned us... the heavenly god has retrieved the Calabash Well and is now enacting divine judgment upon us... Uuuu...”

“It will be fine. We will check out the well. Perhaps we can solve its problem and return things to the way it was before!” Ye Qing comforted him.

“It’s useless, useless...”

The old man shook his head in despair. “Many powerful figures have tried to treat the well before. Even a venerable one from the Mara Sect has tried to treat it. Nothing worked.”

“The heavenly god has abandoned us... abandoned the Calabash City...”

“The Mara Sect, you say?”

Ye Qing raised an eyebrow. Now that was a familiar name. Their Devi was his Heavenly Demon Dependent.

“Sleep, elder. Perhaps everything will be back to normal once you awake from your slumber!”

Ye Qing curled his finger for a tap, and the old man slowly shut his eyes and fell asleep.

The old man was ill beyond saving, and his body was withered like autumn grass. Although he had injected a wisp of vitality into his body, all it could do was keep his life force from extinguishing forever. If his emotions ran too rampant, he could still fall dead at any moment.

That was why Ye Qing put him to sleep. He did not want the old man to die from excessive sorrow or passion.

“Let’s go check out the Calabash Well.”

After the old man fell asleep, Ye Qing and Feng Qingyou walked toward the Calabash Well.

The Calabash Well was easy to find not just because it was situated at the center of the Calabash City, and it was covered by a golden kiosk called the Calabash Kiosk. It was also because it was currently surrounded by countless kneeling people.

The people were all citizens of Calabash City. They were all kowtowing mechanically, chanting the heavenly god’s name and begging for his forgiveness.

Just like everyone they had encountered earlier, they looked thin, haggard, and severely ill. They all did not have much time left.

𝙛𝒓𝓮𝒆𝔀𝒆𝙗𝓷𝒐𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝓶

In fact, they had encountered a lot of corpses on their way here.

If the problem with the Calabash Well wasn’t resolved soon, it wouldn't be long before the entire Calabash City was dead.

The citizens did not react to Ye Qing and Feng Qingyou’s arrival even though they were clearly outsiders. They just kept kowtowing without a care for the world.

The Calabash Well was shaped like a calabash. Its opening was so small that it was barely big enough to fit a wooden bucket, but it was deep and wide on the inside.

When they got close to the Calabash Well, they were immediately struck by a thick and terrible stench.

In fact, the entire city was covered in this stench. It just wasn’t as bad as the Calabash Well itself.

When they stood at the entrance and looked inside, they could tell that the well was dark and pitch black. Its clear water had become filthy and yellowish.

Ye Qing scooped up a handful of water and took a sniff. He declared, “The water has been contaminated.”

Feng Qingyou nodded in agreement. “There’s something inside the well.”

A pair of yin yang fishes appeared in Ye Qing’s eyes. He was using the Yin Yang Spell Eyes to pierce the darkness and reveal the truth.

A short while later, Ye Qing smirked. “It’s a strange fish.”

Ye Qing made a grabbing motion. The next moment, the profound light in his palm turned into a fishing rod. When he narrowed his fingers a little, yellow sand came together to form a thin fishing thread.

“Today, I shall emulate the Chief Libationist who once sat in the mountains and fished up a troublesome dragon,” Ye Qing declared smilingly while lowering his fishing rod into the well.

A long time ago, when the Chief Libationist was exploring the world, he encountered a sudden and unbelievably powerful storm. It quickly caused the river to overflow and form a terrible flood. The flood would have engulfed all the towns, fine fields, and countless people living downstream.

To resolve this, the Chief Libationist made a makeshift fishing rod out of a blade of grass, and a fishing thread out of earth. He then fished a dragon out of the river.

As it turned out, a flood dragon was behind the sudden storm and flood. It was attempting to “run the waters” and become a dragon.

The evil flood dragon’s roars could be heard from dozens of kilometers away after it was fished. The next moment, the clouds disappeared, the rain stopped, the wind ceased, and the flood receded. The river returned to normal in just the blink of an eye.

“A dragon’s roar stuns heaven and earth, may the four seas be forever calm!”

After fishing the flood dragon, the Chief Libationist sang a verse and cut off the flood dragon’s head with his fingers. He then turned its head into a stone monument at the peak of a mountain and sank its body into the river to form a dam.

Since then, the river had never encountered another flood or any kind of aquatic threat whatsoever. The people living next to the river all enjoyed healthy, peaceful, and prosperous lives.

To thank the Chief Libationist for his aid, the people renamed the river to “Dragon Roar River” and made a monument that expounded and praised his merits.

“The Chief Libationist’s act was impressive and delightful.”

It was at this moment Feng Qingyou said with a soft smile on her face, “But did you know that there was a hidden story behind this?”

Ye Qing asked curiously, “What do you mean?”

“In reality, the flood dragon was a pet raised by an evil champion. He was going to use the flood dragon’s evolution to complete his Great Way. However, he did not anticipate the Chief Libationist’s arrival and so lost all of his investment and preparation at the last moment.”

Feng Qingyou giggled. “At the time, the Chief Libationist was as young as he was arrogant. Not only did he sing a verse, he even left behind his name after slaying the flood dragon.”

“Naturally, he entered the sights of the evil champion. It is a terrible thing to have your way severed by another. It is a grudge that can only be resolved by the offender’s death. So, the evil champion chased after the Chief Libationist and hunted him for over half a year. The Chief Libationist wasn’t strong enough to defeat his opponent at the time, so he had to run and hide everywhere like a frightened rabbit.”

Ye Qing grew even more curious. “How have I never heard of this?” He had no idea that the Chief Libationist had such an embarrassing history.

Feng Qingyou smirked. “Even the Chief Libationist cares for his face after all. Why would he purposely publicize an embarrassing piece of his history?”

“Besides, the Chief Libationist paid the evil champion a visit and killed him after he became accomplished. He even warned some of those who knew about this matter to not reveal it to anyone.”

“Naturally, even fewer people knew about this.”

Ye Qing raised his eyebrows. This was very Chief Libationist alright.

Ye Qing joked, “In that case, I will only perform the good deed but not leave my name behind. I wouldn’t want to repeat the Chief Libationist’s mistake.”

“Who are you people? What are you doing?”

The duo were still chatting when suddenly, a dozen or so high-strung, cold-looking warriors dressed in black outfits strode up to them. One of them rebuked them harshly and said, “Get away from this place, now!”

“I’m fishing!” Ye Qing shushed him. “So be quiet. Don’t alarm my fish.”

“Fishing?” One brawny man frowned and said with a displeased look, “There are no fishes here. Remove yourselves, or else...”