Chapter Thirty-Six: The Demon with the Bull's Head

The man turned and walked out the door. Outside, men and women moved about wearily, busy with their chores—making tools to sell to neighboring villages, hoping to exchange them for a bit of grain. Their own land had suffered years without rain; farming was no longer possible.

"Dashun, I heard your wife has no milk lately, and is short on water. Don’t let her do heavy work, all right?" A neighbor greeted Dashun warmly as he passed.

"When have I ever made her do hard labor? As long as she looks after the two kids, that’s enough," Dashun replied, making his way to the village entrance. He intended to gather up his tools, which he’d left at a neighbor’s, and perhaps trade them for even half a flatbread.

Suddenly, a pounding noise erupted from the heart of the village.

"What’s going on now? There’s no rain, and now the ground’s about to explode?"

Curious villagers gathered, only to see, in the next moment, a monstrous minotaur burst from beneath the earth.

The beast bellowed, wielding a giant axe, and swung wildly at the villagers without a word.

"Good heavens! No rain, and now monsters appear!"

"A demon! Run for your lives!"

"Dashun, grab your wife and run!"

Shouts rang out as people scattered in all directions.

"Damn it, my wife and children!" Dashun tried to push his way back to the center of the village from the entrance, but the panicked crowd made it impossible to advance.

Inside their home, Dashun’s wife, clutching their two children, ran to the door—and found herself face-to-face with the monstrous creature.

"Husband, where are you?" In terror, she lost control and collapsed to the ground.

Yet the minotaur seemed intent only on smashing buildings, carefully avoiding the fleeing villagers.

Following Zhang Zhiheng’s instructions, the minotaur’s only task was to scare the villagers, nothing more. So, with deliberate caution, it slammed its axe down on the earth, making as much noise as possible, but ensuring not to strike a living soul.

But the woman, panic-stricken and clutching her children, suddenly caught sight of Dashun running toward them from afar.

"Wife!" Dashun saw the monster swinging its axe at his own doorstep. Fear gripped his heart, but with his wife and children inside, he steeled himself and moved forward.

Having seen her husband, the woman gathered her courage. Holding her two children tightly, she rushed toward him, desperate to get past the minotaur and reach his side.

At that moment, the minotaur’s heavy axe was already falling. It saw the woman and children running beneath it and tried to halt its swing, but the weight—thousands of pounds—made it impossible. This creature had followed Zhang Zhiheng in hopes of attaining legitimacy in its cultivation, for traveling with the Taoist of Mount Mao meant protection from other exorcists.

But now, the axe came crashing down like a block of iron.

With a single, heartrending scream, the woman and both children were lost beneath the blade—three lives snuffed out in an instant.

"Wife!" Dashun fell to his knees, staring at the lifeless bodies of his wife and children, grief overwhelming him. Tears streamed down his face as he cried to the heavens, "Heavens above, open your eyes! Save your faithful children!"

The minotaur stood dumbfounded; killing had never been its intention, but three innocent lives had perished by its hand.

"I’ll fight you to the death! My wife and children are gone—I don’t want to live, either!" Dashun seized a wooden stick and charged the minotaur, striking its tough hide to no effect.

The minotaur stood motionless, unfazed by the blows.

"Give my wife and children back! Give them back!" Dashun beat at the monster in a frenzy, but it didn’t move.

"Who dares to commit evil here?" Suddenly, Zhang Zhiheng appeared, flying through the air, a talisman in hand. "Let thunder ring and peace return to the land!" he cried, casting the talisman.

Lightning struck the minotaur, who, recognizing Zhang Zhiheng and recalling his orders, quickly pretended to be gravely wounded.

"Foul priest! Stay out of this, or you’ll join the dead beneath my axe!" the minotaur bellowed, swinging its weapon at Zhang Zhiheng.

"Insolent beast! How dare you speak so? You deserve to die!" Zhang Zhiheng unleashed a barrage of talismans, fire and lightning assailing the monster, but its tough hide rendered it immune.

"Die, priest!" The minotaur brought its axe down.

"Not good!" Zhang Zhiheng feigned surprise and dodged.

Just then, a wave of immortal energy swept through the sky, and a massive celestial fire struck the minotaur from above.

In the heavens appeared a goddess, wreathed in divine aura, gazing down at the scene below. "Well, well… What a brazen creature, daring to commit such evil—face my judgment!" She raised her right hand, and as it fell, a thousand bolts of lightning crashed down upon the minotaur.

In an instant, the beast was blasted away, landing heavily upon the earth.

"Capture bag!" Zhang Zhiheng produced a sack, recited an incantation, and drew the minotaur into it.

Seeing the monster vanquished, the villagers who had fled returned, gazing up in awe at the celestial woman. One by one, they knelt.

"A deity has finally appeared!"

"Thank you, divine one, for saving us!"

"O great goddess, look upon us! Our lands are parched, the rains have failed, and now monsters threaten us—we cannot survive like this!"

The goddess surveyed the land. Indeed, the earth was dry, the sun merciless, and there was no telling when rain might come again.

She took a breath, gathered her divine power, and waved her right hand. Instantly, clouds gathered and rain poured down from the sky.

"It’s raining!"

"Truly, it’s raining!"

"She really is a goddess!"

As the long-dry earth soaked in the much-needed rain, the villagers rejoiced, their faces alight with hope.

"Don’t celebrate just yet," the goddess continued from above. "I am a deity of the heavens—yes, Mogan the Divine. I have come to rescue you from your plight. If you are willing to help me build a grand Temple of Mogan here, I will grant you eternal good weather, abundant harvests, and unending prosperity. As for you, Taoist priest—since fate has brought us together, would you accept the role of High Priest of the Temple of Mogan?"

The villagers, overjoyed at the goddess’s blessings, agreed at once to build a magnificent temple and to worship her for generations to come.

Senior brother Zhang Zhiheng, ever the picture of solemn piety, led the villagers in kneeling. "I am willing to serve as High Priest, to honor the divine, and to do good in the world!"