Strange Stories

Chapter 554: Separation in the World

In recent years, the struggle between human power and divine power has continued.

In the hearts of ordinary people, the emperor has the majesty of the court, and the gods also have Shinto beliefs. One dominates the world and controls the incense, and the other is in the sky and has boundless power.

Although both sides exercised restraint, they also had their own means.

Fortunately, Mr. Luo was tough and did not back down at all.

Nan Tianshi was also very upright. It was said that he once personally entered the Zixiao Palace, first scolded the real person in the Zixiao Palace, then rushed into the temple and pointed at the statue and scolded it. The two sides reached a temporary balance.

In foreign wars, Dazu suffered successive defeats.

The vast territory of the Western Regions had been lost for hundreds of years, but now it has returned to the control of the Central Plains dynasty.

Internally, he balanced the north and the south, promoted the imperial examination system, developed the economy, benefited the people, and encouraged childbirth.

Under the governance of this old emperor, the world was gradually entering a prosperous era. Even the prosperity of the capital city surpassed that of the late years of the previous dynasty. In just a few decades, it was almost on par with the heyday of the previous dynasty.

At the same time, commerce in Huizhou and Jiangnan also developed.

Yangzhou is located on the north bank of the Yangtze River and the Grand Canal. Relying on its prosperous commerce, it has become the second largest city after the capital.

It just so happens that this is a water town in the south of the Yangtze River with a pleasant climate, and everything seems to be gentle. In addition, it is far away from the emperor and the court center. It is prosperous but does not have so many rules and regulations and the captivating imperial aura. In terms of economy and openness, it is even better than the capital. In fact, because this is the Taoist temple of Emperor Yujian, even the number of goblins and ghosts is far greater than that of the capital, and there are countless related stories and legends.

Many officials, literati, poets and lyricists are willing to come here.

Taking advantage of the prosperous atmosphere of today's times, countless poets and lyricists have left their poems here, and Yangzhou has become a place name that appears frequently in poetry.

It is also very close to Huizhou.

The eldest brother made the elixir here.

……

At this time in Yangzhou City, a group of Taoists were sitting at a small roadside stall, eating noodles with their heads down.

They are all clear soup noodles. The soup base is so clear that you can see through it at a glance. It has a hint of sauce color, is sprinkled with a few chopped green onions, and is topped with a piece of green vegetable. You can taste a bit of the sauce, but there is no other taste. It is very light.

"Brother, have you found a place?"

"I've found one a long time ago." The eldest brother said, "The rent here is really expensive."

"You are about to become an immortal, but you are still entangled in these things." Lin Jue said with a smile, "Isn't it just returning the wealth of the human world to the human world in another way?"

"Junior brother, what you said makes sense." The eldest brother nodded and said, "Junior brother, your words should be more pleasant than the third brother."

"really."

The junior sister also nodded.

There were a few disciples around him, all concentrating on eating noodles, some ate with gusto, while others frowned because the noodles were bland.

Even if he was holding a red bean, he would still hold the noodles and eat them.

People on the roadside often looked at them.

In fact, these days, most people walking on the street are gray and black, with dust and dirt on their clothes and frost and sunburn on their faces. Even the rich and powerful often do not have fair skin. It is normal for monks to have clean and tidy clothes, but it is rare for them to have fair complexions, as if they have never been tanned.

In particular, there was a female Taoist priest who always walked at the end. She had a round face and big eyes. Her eyes were incredibly big and beautiful, like a monster.

There is also a white fox and a colorful civet cat.

This combination is really strange.

Fortunately, this is Yangzhou, where there are all kinds of strange things and all kinds of extraordinary people.

"Let's go. I asked Fellow Daoist Jiang, and through her I asked Emperor Yujian. Emperor Yujian said that you, my eldest brother, have unparalleled character and immeasurable merits. He agreed to let you make pills here, and he will also provide you with shelter." Lin Jue wiped his mouth and stood up. "Then let Fuyao exhale every once in a while to cover up the noise here."

As soon as the stall owner saw him stand up, he immediately came over, wiping his hands and staring at Lin Jue eagerly.

Lin Jue turned around and stretched out his hand, first pointing at the little junior sister, then turning half a circle and pointing at the eldest senior brother:
"He gives money."

"I give!"

Ji Yin immediately stood up and counted out the money from his arms.

Because the eldest senior brother had accepted four new disciples, someone had to teach them. In addition, although Fuqiu Temple was not a big temple, it was much larger than a small Taoist temple like Hongye Temple, so someone still had to guard it. Therefore, this time, Ji Yang, as the new generation of the eldest senior brother, stayed in Fuqiu Mountain, and Ji Yin accompanied the master to learn the method of refining the golden elixir. Next time, when the second senior brother was refining the elixir, Ji Yang would go over to learn.

"Okay! Thank you, Taoist Priest!"

"Thank you for the hospitality..."

A group of people walked along the streets in a mighty procession, looking back as they walked, looking at the prosperity of the Jiangnan city, talking and laughing.

Just after walking across a street, Lin Jue suddenly felt something and stopped to look in the other direction.

An old monk was seen walking over there, and there were several people wearing monk robes, Taoist robes, or ordinary cloth clothes following him, as well as two officials and several warriors. The old monk's eyebrows and eyes looked quite familiar.

At the same time, the old monk raised his eyes and saw him. He was stunned for a moment, then put his hands together and saluted him from a distance.

"It's Master Yunchan."

The voice of Junior Sister came from beside me.

"Yes." Lin Jue turned to his senior brother and said, "We have met an old friend, so please go ahead. We will chat with him and then come back to find you."

"it is good……"

The eldest senior brother also glanced at that party, then left with Ji Yin.

Lin Jue and several of his junior sister's disciples followed them.

"Amitabha……"

The old monk walked slowly towards them with a calm expression. The monks, Taoists and the two officials around him were very curious, while several warriors were very alert.

"I didn't expect to meet you here..." The old monk paused and easily caught the curiosity of the people around him, so he just smiled and said, "I met you, Taoist priest."

"We didn't expect to meet a wizard here." Lin Jue saluted him. "Why did the wizard come here?"

"Alas, it's not the official business of Juxian Mansion. In the past, Juxian Mansion was only in the capital, and official business was only in Qinzhou. If there were small demons in other places, there was no need for Juxian Mansion, and the local masters could eliminate them. If there were big demons, the ability of Juxian Mansion in the previous dynasty would be useless, and it would be a long journey in vain." The old monk said leisurely, "However, this dynasty is different. Juxian Mansion is valued, and the atmosphere and abilities are incomparable to the previous dynasty. Now that the business in Jiangnan is prosperous, Juxian Mansion will naturally come to Jiangnan, so I was sent here to be responsible for the affairs of Juxian Mansion in Jiangnan."

The monks, Taoists, officials and warriors around Master Yunchan were more and more surprised.

At first, I didn't know the identity of this group of Taoists. I just thought they were younger generations or descendants of friends of Master Yun Chan because they looked young. Unexpectedly, when the two sides met and greeted each other calmly, the other party not only showed no respect to the elderly Master Yun Chan who was the Shaoqing of Juxian Mansion, but instead acted like they were equals and met by chance to reminisce about the past.

You must know that the power of Juxian Mansion is very high and its jurisdiction is very wide. As the second in command of Juxian Mansion and a highly respected Buddhist master, Master Yunchan is enough to make all local dignitaries and clan leaders respect him wherever he goes, no matter how strong his status or virtue is.

Someone lowered his eyes and glanced at the white fox at Lin Jue's feet.

However, since the end of the previous dynasty, many Taoists have had the habit of raising white foxes. This habit reached its peak in the early years of this dynasty. Until now, many Taoists in the Juxian Mansion or in the human world like to bring a white fox with them to show their fashion sense and to show that they are masters.

This is not surprising.

Some people did think about it, but when they saw the large number of them, they felt it was not likely.

Lin Jue was listening to Master Yun Chan's story while looking at his already white beard. What came to his mind was the heavy snow in Langfeng County and the small temple of the Green Miao God. He was a young monk at that time. He brought a warrior with him and came from the capital almost alone, without any helpers or backup, to help the local people deal with the Green Miao God.

Master Yun Chan's Taoism attainment is not high. Like the Juxian Mansion and the Nine Heavens Gods, official positions are not determined solely by Taoism attainment. Master Yun Chan relies on virtue, wisdom, experience and other abilities.

He has never eaten Yuanqiu fruit and is now very old.

It looks like he won’t live many more years.

Lin Jue thought of his master’s old friend again.

The master would travel thousands of miles to meet him in his later years, and would wait for the old monk to come when he died.

At that time, the old monk left them his address, saying that they could find him there when they got there. However, Lin Jue never had the chance to visit him, and he felt there was no need to go there specially. Now he thought that he might have passed away a long time ago.

I didn’t think it was a big deal when I was young, but now when I think about it, I still feel a little regretful.

"Where is the guardian, Master?"

Lin Jue asked, but he had already forgotten the name of the warrior who followed Master Yun Chan back then.

"Mr. Pan? When he was young, he suffered many injuries in order to protect me and to exorcise monsters. Although the general gave him many elixirs in the Leopard Forest, he took two pills and recovered a little. However, he was old after all, and he overdrew too much when he was young, so he passed away two years ago."

"My condolences..."

Only then did Lin Jue remember that the warrior's surname was also Pan, Pan Jing.

"We have neither become immortals nor Buddhas. Birth, aging, sickness and death are common occurrences in the world. There is nothing to be surprised or sad about." Master Yun Chan said with a smile.

The people around him were more and more surprised the more they listened, and some even opened their eyes wide.

On the other hand, the disciples around Lin Jue were quiet and patient, silently waiting for their master to reminisce with his old friend.

The two sides chatted on the street for a long time.

There's no way, I just can't stop.

After a long time, the two sides said goodbye to each other.

"You've been waiting for a long time."

Lin Jue said to several disciples with a smile.

The disciples waited quietly only because they were sensible, but they were still young, and young people are always like this. They don’t believe in separation in the world. How could they know that this short moment might be the last time that the master and this old friend would meet in their lives?

(End of this chapter)