The Rise of the Divine Oracle

Chapter 79 - The Unlucky Woman

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Manic people kept passing by every few minutes while Wangji and his freezing soul-bond were still hiding behind the fence of a random house near the city. Wuxian's breath was starting to labor because of how cold he felt. Each breath felt like daggers, stabbing his insides with pain. He slowly wiggled closer to the frantic Wangji and leaned his cheek to rest on his chest. Wangji pulls the smaller man close and peers over the fence once more to check if the coast is clear. He can see light moving around as people desperately tried to find the fleeing Oracle.

He hears someone behind him say: "You're killing my plants."

Wangji turns around and raises Bichen to block the person from coming closer. Before him was a woman standing at the door of the house they barged into, holding a lantern and staring at them. She places the lantern on the ground and raises her hands in clear sign of peace. Wangji relaxes enough to take a better look at her. She was deformed; random growths around her face and neck as well as different limb lengths made the woman look monstrous. Wangji and Wuxian are seasoned cultivators. They have seen many evil beings throughout their journey. They didn't react to her appearance or cringe in fear.

She narrows her eyes, looking at Wuxian who's barely awake: "Mister cultivator, is your wife injured?"

Wangji puts down Bichen for now. This woman saw Wuxian's hair and eyes and didn't recognize him as the Divine Oracle. She even thought he was a woman. He can trust her for now.

She steps to the side motioning to her door: "Come in. It's warm inside and I have medicine and bandages you can use."

Wangji didn't have time to question her motives and scoops Wuxian into his arms and hastily made his way in. She ushers them to a blanket set out in front of a fire she's using to make tea. He sets down Wuxian and helps him get close to warmth. She moves around them, handing them a thick blanket, ointments and bandages and even preparing food and tea to serve them. Wuxian was leaning on his soul-bond, relishing the warmth of the fire and the body behind him while watching the women hustle around them.

The house was very small, but clean and well kept. Everything around looks like it was hand-made or constructed by someone barley skilled. Half of the space around them was filled with books on top of books. Whoever this woman was, she clearly loves to read.

After a while, Wuxian recovered enough to sit at the table and eat the warm porridge she served them. Wuxian was touched by her kindness and didn't want to cause her trouble. He whispers timidly: "The townspeople are looking for us."

She chuckles: "They won't find you here. They consider my home and garden an unlucky place. No one has crossed the fence in many years."

Wangji was confused: "Unlucky?"

She points to herself and says: "Everyone in my family looks.. different. We were born this way but were shunned for many years and mistreated. They considered our deformity a curse that will bring bad luck to our community. To save us from their prejudice, my father made a deal with the city occupants many years ago. They were afraid that our continued existence would corrupt the blessings of the well so he promised them that if we stayed at the border of the city and never use or consume the well water that they will leave us in peace."

Wuxian felt sadness toward her: "That's not fair."

The woman smiles at him: "It's fine. We made our own garden to grow our food. We get our water from the lake a mile into the forest out back. I go to the edge of the city once a month and buy a book from a script writer who was a good friend of my father. It's a peaceful existence."