Living up to you chapter 1

Chapter 1

Big brother said that the night she was born, the wind was blowing very hard. It even blew open the roof made from grass of their house. Half of the big trees of the village fell and crushed many of those who have bullied him.  So, that night turned into evil people getting their retributions.

Therefore, when the villagers accused her of being a calamity, big brother thought that she was a rare blessing. After burying the already seriously ill mother, holding her, they left the dilapidated village overnight.

From then on, ten years have passed. He took her around the mortal realm, regarding all the four corners of the world as home.

The reason why they were roaming in the mortal realm; big brother always said in her ears that if it wasn’t because of her, he would have long gone pursue his dreams of becoming an immortal.

Every time when it was that time, she will always grab his sleeves and reveal her simple and honest to please smile. Big brother then will touch her head and his eyes will turn more crescent from smiling. He will also specifically reveal his white teeth without the slightest sincerity and say: “Don’t worry, when I raise you till fifteen, get the hairpin ceremony and marry someone, I’ll leave.”

• Ancient Chinese women get a hairpin ceremony when they turn 15 as an indication of entering womanhood.

As for regarding all the four corners of the world as home, it’s very easy to say. It was like the hero’s roaming the jianghu. In fact, there are many bitterness inside. Every time it’s mentioned, big brother will pinch her left cheek and sigh loudly that he misjudged that year. One misjudgment turned into hate of all eternity. Now he can’t even get rid of her.

• Jianghu: literary meaning is rivers and lakes. It’s used to describe the community of martial artists

Now speaking of it, it was really strange. Big brother brought her with him. No matter where they go, no more than six months, accidents would happen. If it was not natural disaster, it would be disaster caused by humans. Incredible things such as floods in a heavy winter also happened.

Over time, don’t know who had seen though the ‘mystery only known to heaven’, a rumor started many towns and villages. If you see man out of the ordinary attractive like an immortal with a silly girl, must not spare any effort and drive them out. Otherwise, lightly; will be infected with a serious disease. Heavily;  the whole village would be killed! Because that stupid girl……is a calamity!

Hearing those from big brother, she frowned. From when the sun came up from the east to when the moon came up from the east, she didn’t come up with a reason.

She just happened to settle at those places where natural disaster or human made disasters occurred. She didn’t even had time to come up with the idea to settle down when those disasters happened. She didn’t feel that she has an earth-shattering ability to attract all kind of ghosts to come make trouble……Moreover, no matter how big the natural disaster or how tragic the human disaster, big brother would always clean them up. Very few people lost their lives in the villages they passed. It’s alright if they weren’t grateful to them, but to be against them saying that ‘heavily; the whole village killed’.

After three days, she finally understood. The so-called rumors are certainly made up by big brother to tease her. Outsiders wouldn’t say he is ‘out of the ordinary attractive like an immortal’ and wouldn’t only use a simple ‘silly girl’ to describe her.

Her whole life, others looked down on her. They would surely say ‘that ugly and silly girl’, ‘that ugly and incomparable foolish living being’. In short, it would surely have ‘ugly’ and ‘silly’ in it.

One time, she really couldn’t stand it in anymore and asked big brother: “Am I ugly?”

Big brother patted her head and said: “Not ugly. It’s the people’s hearts that are ugly. That’s why their eyes are dirty. That’s why when they look at people and matters, they will see them as ugly.”

She continued to ask: “Then am I stupid?”

Big brother continued to pat her head, laughed like a pool of warm water in spring and said: “Of course not stupid.”

Her reaction had always been a bit slower than big brother’s. Only now did she thought about big brother’s previous answer. She nodded in trance: “Mm…, so in their eyes, big brother is also ugly.”

She clearly saw big brother’s mouth twitch. The smile on his face, inexplicable trembled a bit. She continued to respond to the next answer. She nodded and smiled: “Mm…… I also think I’m not stupid.”

Big brother’s mouth continued to twitch. He looked askance at her once.

“Someone stupid will never feel he is stupid……”

She never understood the answer on the question whether she is stupid. She just went per big brother’s usual argument. Her head was just only missing a ‘string’.

Returning to the topic; no matter if those rumors were real or fake, she just needed to follow big brother. When big brother say that they must leave, she would follow him. If big brother say that they could stay, she would clean up the house as usual. It was just that the two’s ‘fame’ spread far and wide. At many places, they couldn’t even enter the gates. The moment they enter, they would be driven out.

Until a year ago, when they arrived at a small village near the Cangjia Mountain at the Eastern Sea, maybe because it was too desolate, the two successfully stayed there. They stayed for a year without any problems. Just as she was happily pulling big brother’s sleeves asking him if they could stay here in the future, the situation worsened.

The direct result of this worsened situation was that big brother fell asleep for three days and nights. In an overnight, the villagers with whom they lived in harmony for a year, turned against them. They surrounded their house while holding knives and carrying shovels and forced them to leave.

“Witch! Demoness! Get out of the village!”

The little ‘demoness’ didn’t change expression and pulled at big brother’s sleeves. She called: “Big brother…”

Lying in bed for three days, he didn’t even feel back pain… teasing her for a bit is alright, but now people are holding knives to kill them and he still refused to get up.

“Big brother…….”

She continued to pull at big brother’s sleeves. The person lying in bed continued to have his eyes closed with a pale face.

“You, this demoness! If you don’t leave, don’t blame us!”

The head of the villagers stomped the hoe twice with a vicious expression.

She looked at them blankly and blinked.

“Demoness?”

Three days ago, she was an unlucky star. Yesterday, she was a calamity. Today she became a demoness?

“Sun family’s baby girl died yesterday. Liu family’s wife didn’t come back after going out yesterday! Not even a feather is left of the chickens and ducks in the village! Blame me for being blind to allow you this demoness to stay in the village and attracted so many demons!”

“Get out! Get out!”

“Kill her to sacrifice to the heavens!”

“Get out!”

Before the head of the village finish speaking, the villagers couldn’t hold it anymore and began shouting.

The head of the village saw that the child sitting beside the bed didn’t have the slightest reaction, he stroked his beard. He gestured for everyone to be quiet. Cold sharp eyes stared at her and said: “Old Zhao never killed living beings. Not even animals, not to mention humans! But it you continue to play a fool and don’t leave, for the village, I don’t have a choice!”

The little ‘demoness’ continued to frown.

“I’m not a demoness.”

“He knows sorcery. If you are not a demoness, then what are you?”

Head villager Zhao pointed the hoe at big brother who was lying in bed.

The little ‘demoness’ blinked once again. After half a day, did she slowly say: “I didn’t play a fool.”

In fact, her reaction as not only slower than big brother’s, but also slower than a normal people.

The moment head villager Zhao heard her donkey lips do not match a horse’s mouth answer, immediately got furious. He waved the hoe and shouted: “Burn! If they don’t leave the village, then don’t leave any of them alive!”

• Donkey lips do not match a horse mouth: beside the point

“Big brother doesn’t know sorcery!”

Obviously, little ‘demoness’ only responded to the head villager third sentence when the people were beginning to lit fire. She jumped from the corner of the bed. Her small face became red because of anger.

“When did you see big brother use sorcery? It’s obviously martial arts! Because of saving you, he became sick. You repay kindness with hatred. It’s you who are demons!”

After head villager Zhao heard that, he got even more furious: “Burn!”

The house is made of dry grass and wood. Just a little flame, the fire was easy to ignite.

“Big brother…,” the little demoness anxiously shook big brother’s arm. The fire burned her body’s point to a boiling point, but big brother lying in the bed still didn’t respond.

She always thought that big brother was invincible. He brought her with him away from their hometown carrying their infamy. No matter if it was natural disaster or human disaster, he could always find a way to solve the problem. In the end, he would knock her head and lament: “One misjudgment turned into hate of all eternity.” He would then drag her by her little hand to change town and make a living.

So, that was why that day when she saw big brother faint on the bed, she thought that he was teasing her again. The past three day, she was sure that big brother was playing a game with her. Even just now, when the fire was ignited, she still thought that now big brother couldn’t continue to play this joke anymore and would get up to take her away.

But nothing happened.

Her hand gradually turned cold, but big brother’s hand was burning hot.

He was still lying there motionless. No longer as before did he pinch her cheek when he saw her panic and laughed at her: “Your face will distort.”

The fire was getting bigger and bigger.  The cold wind coming through the wall made her whole body cold. She fiercely grabbed big brother’s hot wrists to try to pull him up.

Big brother always laughed at her that her body was small, her head was small, but her strength was bigger than his.

Her strength was still useful. In the past, it was big brother who saved her. This time, it was her turn to save big brother.

The little ‘demoness’ struggled to move big brother onto her just ten-year-old back. On her face still barely hung a proud smile: “Big brother, this time I’ll take you away.”

Scorching heat wave mixed with the chill of the winter went with the night wind. Suddenly in the quiet village, a scream could be heard. Following that scream more screams could be heard. The little demoness’s whole mind was on carrying big brother to avoid the flames. She didn’t hear the screams. When she went out, she was scared by the scene in front of her that she almost paralyzed and fell on the ground.

About half a month ago, big brother didn’t allow her to go out. She always listened to big brother. From that day on, she didn’t step a foot outside. She only faintly heard that demons had appeared in the village. At the beginning, small things like poultry disappeared and died. Later, slowly it became the villagers.

Three days ago, big brother said he will go out to do something. When he came back, he lay on the bed and never stood up again.

Since it was not big brother who was joking with her, then the thing that let all-powerful big brother fell down was……

Demon.

It was really demons!

The village at the Eastern Sea saw a big snow that they haven’t seen for hundred years ago. The snow cut the thick black night into various shapes. It transformed into sharp claws and fangs. It laughed at the running villagers and swallowed them up.

The white snowflakes dyed with dark red blood. The original quiet village was now like a hell on earth. All kinds of tragic sounds come and go.

The little demoness was completely frightened. The small body in the cold wind took a long while to respond. Only with the eyes wide open, she looked at the bloody scene. Her small head turned for a long time before, she thought of a question.

What should she do?

It was always been big brother who protected her. Now big brother fell down; would they be eaten by those demons?

Don’t want……don’t want to be eaten, but what else can she do?

The little ‘demoness’ felt headache. The words big brother once said suddenly popped up in her mind.

Cangjia Mountain is a place where immortals live.

“Go towards the west! Go to Cangjia Mountain,” she shouted at the villagers who are fleeing.

Since in this world there are demons, then maybe there are also immortals. To have the ability to get rid of the demons, of course only the immortals on Cangjia Mountain could do that…….

See, she is not stupid. She is more intelligent than those villagers who are jumping in the bloody mouth of the demons.

However, the villager suddenly quiet down. After her shout, even the wind blowing the snowflakes disappeared.

The little ‘demoness’ still hasn’t react. She was still moving big brother in the direction of the west; until in her ear sounded half surprised half excited sound of laughter.

“She can see me…”

“She actually can see us…”

“How come this mortal can see us?”

Old, young, men, women, all kind of sounds saying the same sentence…She stared with her eyes wide open and looked horrified at shadows of claws coming towards her. The smell of blood almost made her unable to breath.

“She can see us!”

“She is not a mortal!”

“Eat her!”

“Eat her and swallow her spiritual energy!”

“Eat her, eat her, eat her…….”

—

The little ‘demoness’ was forced to take a few steps back because of the stench. It seemed …they wanted to eat her?

“Not right, it’s the man next to her!”

“It’s him. He is the person who tried to attack us three days ago!”

“Quickly! The spiritual energy hasn’t left the body yet! Eat him!”

“Eat him, eat him, eat him…”

Countless of shadows opened their bloody mouth. Claws began to gather. Grinning, they slowly approached.

Eat……big brother?

When she finally reacted, a group of shadows like preying an eagle rushed over with a sharp cry. The air filled with hostility. Unspeakable pressure went from her back to the cold air she inhaled, pressing her down.

“Go away!”

She hasn’t figured out yet what happened, when she shouted. Instinctively, she fiercely hugged big brother and protected his head on her chest.

Her big brother, no one can touch him!

Snow fell on the fingertips of the night wind. It’s a bit cold. For a long time, she didn’t hear any sound. Slowly, she opened her eyes. She saw that big brother was still in her arms. She let out a breath of relief. Then she carefully looked up.

The shadows who just gathered together, actually turned into large clouds. The sharp claws and the bloody mouths disappeared. Only a pair of quiet eyes revealing a slight touch of blue without any temperature was  there.

‘It’ looked at her.

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