The sound of splashing water came from the river, and a child desperately struggled in the water, with only half of his head struggling above the surface.
Bubbles emerged as something grabbed the child and pulled him forcefully underwater.
On the muddy ground by the river, there was a clear drag mark, showing how the child was dragged into the water. There were also scattered footprints left by the village woman, who now had half of her body submerged in the water.
Without even taking off our clothes, Wang Baochang and I jumped into the water, reaching out to grab the village woman and prevent her from going deeper.
The village woman was extremely agitated, struggling desperately and saying she wanted to save her son, asking us to let her go.
I held onto the woman's soft waist tightly, and the water churned darkly around us, making it impossible to see the situation underwater. Without hesitation, Wang Baochang raised his peachwood sword and started slashing and hacking underwater, splashing water everywhere.
Suddenly, a black figure shot out from the water, pouncing towards Wang Baochang.
It was a little boy with a high ponytail and wearing a red bellyband. His eyes were a dead gray, like the eyes of a dead fish, covered with a layer of white film. He looked ferocious, with sharp, dense teeth in his mouth.
I was shocked, "Wang Baochang, be careful!"
Wang Baochang quickly blocked in front of himself with the peachwood sword. The little boy opened his mouth and bit down on the sword.
Instantly, the peachwood sword emitted a burst of red light. The little boy let out a scream as if struck heavily, flying backward several meters, flipping in the air multiple times, before finally plunging into the water with a 9.9 difficulty diving posture, causing a splash of water.
I quickly ran over, reaching into the water and feeling around, grabbing onto the collar of a child's clothes.
Wang Baochang put away the peachwood sword and came over to help, pulling the child out of the water and onto the riverbank.
This child looked to be around five or six years old, appearing quite well-behaved. At the moment, his face was pale, eyes tightly shut, and his whole body dripping wet as he lay on the ground.
The village woman knelt down, grabbing onto our pant legs and begging us to save her child.
It was then that I noticed the village woman was actually quite pretty, no wonder she had such a well-behaved child.
Of course, we couldn't refuse the request of a beautiful woman.
While I performed chest compressions on the child, Wang Baochang gave mouth-to-mouth resuscitation. After a while, the child suddenly opened his mouth, and a stream of dirty water spewed out like a fountain, splashing onto Wang Baochang's face. Accompanied by violent coughing, the child finally opened his eyes.
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Wang Baochang and I were exhausted, panting, and sat on the ground.
Although it was exhausting, saving a life with our own hands brought great joy to our hearts.
The village woman cried tears of joy, hugging her child tightly, kissing and thanking us. She then held onto her child, kowtowing to express her gratitude.
So many villagers didn't step forward to help her, only Wang Baochang and I did, so she was deeply moved.
But it couldn't be blamed on the other villagers. Just think about the ferocious appearance of that little water ghost earlier. If it weren't for Wang Baochang's peachwood sword, it would have been difficult to control him. Ordinary people trying to rescue him might have even lost their lives in vain.
The village woman said she wanted to thank us properly. I politely told her there was no need for thanks, as we were all from the same village, and helping each other was normal.
Wang Baochang asked the village woman why her husband wasn't with them.
Biting her lip, the village woman said, "My husband... has passed away..."
A hint of joy appeared on Wang Baochang's face, but he quickly pretended to be sorrowful and said, "I'm sorry for bringing up your sad past. It must be tough for you, a young woman raising a child alone. I'll come visit you later and see if there's anything I can help with!"
The village woman nodded repeatedly, thanking the Taoist priest and gave an address before leaving with her child.
I asked Wang Baochang if he had some ulterior motive. Blushing, he smiled, "I just enjoy helping others. Look, she's young and raising a child alone. It must be tough for her. A family without a man is not ideal!"
Squinting at Wang Baochang, I asked, "So... you want to be her man?"
Wang Baochang chuckled, "As long as she doesn't mind, I do have that thought!"
Rolling my eyes, I said sarcastically, "Come on, you're so broke that you can't even afford a meal, and you're thinking about getting married?"
Wang Baochang hummed, "Don't underestimate me. As the saying goes, fortunes change every thirty years. Don't mock the poor youth! I have confidence in myself. Poverty is only temporary, and I will definitely achieve great success!"
I said, "Let's talk about that later. Let's deal with the ghostly things in the river first!"
Rubbing his chin, Wang Baochang said that water ghosts were also known as river spirits, and the little boy wearing a red bellyband was not an ordinary river spirit, but an Yin-eyed river spirit.
I furrowed my brow, curious about what an Yin-eyed river spirit was.
Wang Baochang pointed to his own eyes and asked me, "Did you see the boy's eyes just now? There was a layer of white film on his eyeballs. That's what an Yin-eyed river spirit looks like!"
After careful consideration, I realized that the little boy indeed had a layer of white film over his eyes. Not only the little boy, but the little girl also had the same layer of white film over her eyes.
I asked Wang Baochang about the difference between an Yin-eyed river spirit and an ordinary river spirit. Wang Baochang looked serious and said that an Yin-eyed river spirit was an upgraded version of an ordinary river spirit, with stronger ghostly power and a more ferocious nature. Those who drowned and died with heavy grudges would turn into river spirits and try to drag people down with them. The more people they harmed, the stronger their grudges would become. Over time, they would evolve into Yin-eyed river spirits.
A cold wind blew across the riverbank, and I took a deep breath, cursing internally. Damn, an Yin-eyed river spirit? This situation was getting complicated!
I asked Wang Baochang how confident he was. Wang Baochang said, "Although this kid has evolved into an Yin-eyed river spirit, it's still a recent evolution, and his ghostly power isn't stable or too strong yet. We should try to capture him tonight. If we miss tonight, it'll be much harder to catch him once his ghostly power stabilizes!"
Hearing Wang Baochang's words, I knew he must have a plan, and I felt relieved. Fortunately, I had brought Wang Baochang as my helper. If I were to handle this alone, I would have had a hard time.
I asked Wang Baochang what plan he had to capture the Yin-eyed river spirit. Wang Baochang rubbed his chin, looking mysterious and said, after contemplating for a while, "Ghost fishing!"
What on earth?
Ghost fishing?!
I had heard of fishing, but ghost fishing was something I had never heard of in my life. It was quite surprising.
Wang Baochang told me to quickly find a fishing rod and also a rooster's head to use as bait.