He strenuously supported himself with his arms. After he sat properly, he grabbed some tissue papers to wipe the blood on the corners of his mouth.

However, the more he wiped, the more his blood oozed out. He couldn’t stop it.

I furrowed my brows and said, “Why don’t you go to the hospital to get a check-up first?”

The more I looked at Zhao Dafa, the more I felt that he wasn’t a bad man.

Zhao Dafa was a little surprised. I guessed he hadn’t expected me to care about his well-being.

He smiled at me and said, “Young man, do you want to know why I did those things to Old Chef?”

I nodded immediately.

Zhao Dafa sighed. “It was not I who wanted to harm him but the drum.”

Then, Zhao Dafa handed me his drum.

I was surprised to receive the drum.

The Northeastern shamans had a rule that said they couldn’t show others their Literary King Drum and Military King Whip. Otherwise, it would bring them a fatal consequence or a lifetime of bad luck.

I didn’t expect that Zhao Dafa would show me his tool. Although I was surprised, I couldn’t hold my curiosity and carefully observed the otherworldly item.

It was a snakeskin drum with a flat surface. Although it now had a hole in it, it was still extraordinarily tough.

The drum body was made of bones connected to each other. I didn’t know what kind of bone they were, but I knew that they weren’t dense inside because they seemed light. I guessed they were hollow, which allowed them to resonate easier. More importantly, the bones would be preserved well this way and wouldn’t rot.

The surface of the drum had turned a little yellow, and it was really tough. I guessed it had been soaked in corpse oil.

I then studied the snakeskin that covered the drum. It was really hard. It had to be old.

I looked at Zhao Dafa and asked, “This snakeskin drum is a very valuable antique, right? I guess its first owner was a powerful person.”

Zhao Dafa looked pleased. He smiled and said, “After many years, I’ve finally found a man with keen eyes. You’re right. This snakeskin drum has several hundred years of history. Legend says that its first owner was the founder of the Five Immortals in the Northeastern area, the Golden Flower Goddess!”

He continued, “Back then, the Golden Flower Goddess used this snakeskin drum to defeat the Old Monster of the Black Mountain. However, the drum was damaged during the battle, so the Golden Flower Goddess had to find a flood dragon, skin it, and take its bone to fix the drum. After that, this snakeskin drum was handed over to the future generations. Legends also say that this snakeskin drum has a wisp of the Goddess’s soul in it, which sometimes gives the drum its own consciousness. It wasn’t my idea to harm Old Chef but the snakeskin drum’s,” said Zhao Dafa helplessly.

“What?” I was dumbstruck.

It was the snakeskin drum’s idea? How did Old Chef offend the drum and make it hate him so much it wanted him to die?

Zhao Dafa patiently explained to me, “Do you know what Old Chef does?”

“He’s a chef, isn’t he?” I said.

Zhao Dafa nodded, “That’s right. He’s a chef, and a very good one at that. In his hotel, he made amazing stuff and was well respected. However, he’s also a very cruel person. He has taken a lot of lives, not even letting off the descendants of the Northeastern Five Immortals.”

Zhao Dafa continued, “His cooking skills are excellent, and anything he touches turns into a top-notch dish. Soft snake soup, steamed rat, baked hedgehog...”

Since he’d taken so many lives, the Golden Flower Goddess was enraged. She told me to kill Old Chef and take revenge for those little animals. However, I knew that Old Chef was also helpless and didn’t kill those animals out of malice. I told the Golden Flower Goddess to calm down and wait for me to convince Old Chef.”

Since animals were good by nature, the Golden Flower Goddess agreed with Zhao Dafa’s plan.

However, Old Chef ignored Zhao Dafa’s warning. He had even worsened the situation as he deemed that Zhao Dafa was spreading feudal superstitions. Eventually, the dispute between them escalated, and Old Chef broke Zhao Dafa’s drum.

This drum was Zhao Dafa’s most treasured item, and he could no longer keep his calm. He was prepared to teach Old Chef a lesson and take revenge for the House Protecting Immortals.

Zhao Dafa’s retaliation plan was to invite the Immortals and have them take turns to control Old Chef’s body. He also sent some immature descendants of the Immortals to absorb the Yang energy in Old Chef’s house, which almost killed him.

However, I had intervened at the critical moment, ruining the plans of the spirit living in the drum, which had backfired on Zhao Dafa. Since Zhao Dafa had offended the Golden Flower Goddess, he wouldn’t be able to perform the ‘Riding immortals’ ritual anymore. If he did, the Immortals he invited would kill him on behalf of the Golden Flower Goddess.

After listening to his story, I was speechless. The Golden Flower Goddess was a banded krait that had practiced until becoming a deity. Although her origin was animal, just a wisp of her soul was strong enough to take a man’s life. I didn’t dare to look down on those small animals anymore.

While I talked with Zhao Dafa, Fengshen Nana arrived with her aunt. Both of them were hurt, but that didn’t affect her aunt’s anger. She jumped forward and scratched Zhao Dafa’s face. “You evil bastard, you almost killed my husband! I’m going to strangle you…”

I stopped her and glanced at Fengshen Nana. The policewoman angrily threw a pair of handcuffs to Zhao Dafa. “Put them on!”

Zhao Dafa snorted. “Why am I under arrest? You have no evidence.”

Fengshen Nana rolled her eyes at Zhao Dafa and said, “You bastard, you almost killed my uncle! We have eyewitnesses and evidence here. Don’t even think about denying it!”

Zhao Dafa forced a smile. “What eyewitness? What evidence? I didn’t even step into Old Chef’s house. Moreover, even if I have to be judged, that’s not up to you.”

Then, Zhao Dafa jolted up, and before we could react, he fiercely banged his head against the closet.

The closet broke and Zhao Dafa fell to the ground. He twitched a few times then lay still. He was dead.

Fengshen Nana and her aunt dropped their jaws in shock. They didn’t understand why Zhao Dafa had killed himself.

However, I knew why he had to commit suicide. Zhao Dafa had performed the ‘Riding Immortals’ ritual for almost his whole life. And now, he had offended the very people he worshipped, which would trouble him for the rest of his life. Since he knew he wouldn’t have a decent death later, it was better for him to end his life this way, which could help him earn the Golden Flower Goddess’s forgiveness.

Zhao Dafa’s death was ruled as suicide. Since Fengshen Nana had used her phone to record the event, we were released immediately.

I took the snakeskin drum, and as Zhao Dafa didn’t have kids or relatives, there was no one to hold his funeral. I prepared his funeral and bought a slot in the public graveyard for him. It could be considered the payment for taking his snakeskin drum!

Later in my career, I encountered many cases in which animals took revenge on humans.

All lives were equal, and even those of small animals mattered.

I once read a news article about a senior student from Tsinghua University who boiled ten kittens to death. Eventually, his entire family was diagnosed with cancer and died horrible deaths.

I’d even witnessed a similar case with my own eyes. A chef bought a pangolin with his own money before the poor animal was cooked. He then released it back into the wild so that it could take care of its offspring. One year later, his son’s school bus fell off a bridge, which caused fifty deaths. His son was the only survivor!

Animals remembered gratitude and grudges. All lives were worth receiving respect, and may all the animals in this world, big or small, be well!

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