Taoist temple in the mountains

Chapter 190, The Taste of Freedom
At this time, a white crane was flying on a certain unnamed mountain peak. What was different was that a hemp rope was tied to the foot of the white crane.

"Good boy, take that medicine and go quickly."

Clap—the whip fell.

Another whip fell on Song Dalin who was in the form of a white crane, and the white feathers flew across. Although he came back again and had experience as a herb picker, the white crane Song Dalin could always pick up the designated herbs very accurately, but he would still be caught by [Song Dalin] Dalin] whipping.

"It hurts. Can't you whip two less whips? If you whip less, you will die!" Song Dalin complained, making a rattling sound, but it was just a complaint.

He understands very well that this is his way of taming. No matter what he does is good or not, the whip is absolutely indispensable. The purpose is to let Baihe remember the pain and his majesty as the master. Only when you are afraid will you be obedient.

But now, the one who eats the whip is himself who has become Bai He. The pain that was inflicted on Bai He back then, now he has to experience it again, and the feeling is extremely uncomfortable.

Now Song Dalin feels that even if he turns back into a human and spends his whole life in prison, it will be better than what he is doing now.
However, complaints are complaints, Baihe Song Dalin can only be obedient and continue to bring the herbs. He also knows that if he does well, he will get two lashes, but if he does not do well, he will not get two lashes. Rise Up, Dual Wield Mixed Strike
"When will I end this nightmare bird life, turning me into a bird but not being able to fly freely? Is this the punishment given to me by God? Oh no, it is the punishment given to me by the priest. Gouzi's bird life." Song Dalin muttered to himself.

Hunger and pain stimulated Song Dalin, even flying was a little difficult, and the long knot on his foot bound him.
"quack--"

A row of migrating white cranes fly across the sky. In winter, the white cranes will migrate to the south, which is where they are now.

Seeing the flocks of white cranes migrating in the sky, Song Dalin's eyes were only full of envy, how pleasant it is to be able to fly freely in the sky, at least as a white crane, this is indeed the greatest happiness.

"Very good, you did a good job today. If you are very smart, you will understand. It would be great if you could be so capable in the future." [Song Dalin] looked at the medicine basket in front of him with a satisfied face. A fish was taken out from the bag, it wasn't too big, and it was a little smelly, but for the current Baihe Song Dalin, it was the supreme delicacy.

Seeing this stinky fish, Song Dalin's eyes turned red, as if he had eaten barbecued pork rice for the first time before.
"Come on, this is your reward."

The stinky fish was thrown to the ground. No matter what the smell was, Baihe Song Dalin directly took the fish in his mouth, raised his head and swallowed the fish. This smell also made Song Dalin feel like he was in heaven.

I'm not so hungry anymore, at least I don't have the feeling of experiencing hell like before, and that little bit of minced meat to replenish my physical strength is simply a drop in the bucket.

"Eat enough, work hard and study hard when you're full, if I get rich in the future, you'll have the benefits, haha!" [Song Dalin] patted Bai He's little head in satisfaction.

Song Dalin said with a wry smile, of course he knew what [his] so-called indispensable benefits were, at most it was a little more minced meat, this kind of stinky fish was very rare, and he would only pick it up for people in the vegetable market when they didn’t want it White cranes eat.

More [benefits] than this are endless whips, but Baihe Song Dalin didn't dare to struggle and escape, he knew that once he tried to struggle, he would only be greeted with more whips.

"My life. Oh no, my bird life."

Baihe Song Dalin slowly closed his eyes.

Clap, the whip fell again.

He opened his eyes and flew towards the herb in front of him.

Day after day, year after year, I don’t know how long it has passed, Baihe Song Dalin repeated mechanical actions every day, digging up various herbs from the mountains, was beaten every day, and ate a little bit of minced meat, which stinks from time to time Fish can be eaten.

Of course, the most eaten thing is the leather whip. After eating the leather whip for N times, Song Dalin has gotten used to the pain and hunger, and Song Dalin even felt that even if he turned back into a human, he would still retain such characteristics.

Song Dalin, the white crane who was a bird, also saw a lot during this period. For example, he saw local villagers who came to the mountains to grab medicine, but saw the herbs whose roots had been dug up.

There are also some herb collectors who came here to dig for a day, but they returned without success. Unlike [Song Dalin] who had a meal of barbecued pork rice, they could only silently take out the steamed buns in their pockets and eat, leaving the mountain they depended on for survival. , or go to other mountains to dig medicine.

He had seen these scenes with his own eyes when he was a human before, but he didn't take it to heart. As a real white crane, Gouzi didn't know what root-cutting grass was, what kind of grass could dig roots, and what kind of grass only needed the upper part. However, the current Baihe Song Dalin knows
"Ugh"

Song Dalin was full of complexity, he couldn't do anything, he could only try not to dig up the roots, it would be more convenient to just dig up the top half and take it away.

After these years, Song Dalin wondered more than once whether his own way of survival was wrong and based his happiness on the pain of others.

For creatures with wings, they should belong to the blue sky and white clouds, instead of being in a cold iron cage every day, and they don't have to face the rare and cold rotten meat every day, which is too cruel for them.

At this time, Song Dalin suddenly remembered a sentence.

"Everything has animism. The Taoist priest told me about it."

Originally, Song Dalin thought it was just a metaphysical joke, but during these years as Baihe, he completely forgot the taste of freedom, but the desire for freedom has not been extinguished.

Longing for freedom, but no freedom, but the wings are trapped in a cage, freedom or something, just think about it.

The things I experience every day are the things I have imposed on Bai He.

Looking at [Song Dalin] who was eating big fish and meat, and would rather throw away the leftovers than feed him, he already understood something.

Don't do to others what you don't want yourself to do to yourself, what you did to Bai He was not ordinary
"Coach. I was wrong. Big mistake."

White Cranes Chirping——

At this moment, a golden light flashed.
The surrounding space began to distort and shatter.
Just like when I first came in, the boundary between fantasy and reality began to twist.

(End of this chapter)