Strange Stories

Chapter 558: A Sixty Years

"Why did it seem like there was thunder in the second half of last night?"

"Is it thunder? I thought someone was setting off fireworks in the middle of the night! The noise is so loud. If I weren't so sleepy, I would really like to get up and watch it!"

"It's just fireworks, right? Where does thunder come from in the middle of winter?"

A group of Taoists walked out of the alley, and there were a few women discussing something nearby.

Walking down the street, several vendors gathered together to discuss:

"It is said that the gods in heaven are cleaning out the filth on New Year's Eve. Recently, we have more dirt than in previous years! It will be much cleaner next year!"

"It happened to me last night, too. I heard thunder and thought they were fireworks. I was about to get up to see what was going on when I heard someone shouting for mercy from the Empress Yuanjun. I knew something was wrong and lay back down right away!"

"Empress Yuanjun? Which Empress Yuanjun?"

"Which other Yuanjun Niangniang is there? Look at the Dingfeng Temple in the city. How many Yuanjun Niangniangs are there?"

"Did you see it?"

“I just didn’t see it!”

"Why don't you go and see? What are you afraid of with the gods around? You might even be blessed!"

"How can a mortal see a god casually? Haven't you heard the story of someone in the north who saw a real dragon? One look would have blinded him! If I saw the real body of Lady Yuanjun, my frail body wouldn't be able to handle it. Even if I didn't go blind, I'd probably lose a few years of my life!"

A group of Taoists walked past them.

The Taoist priest looked at them with amusement, and they also looked at him strangely and watched them leave.

Lin Jue withdrew his gaze and looked at Empress Yuanjun beside him.

Empress Yuanjun looked straight ahead and responded indifferently.

Even as the pedestrians walked to the roadside ahead, the tea drinkers in the teahouse were still talking about these things.

After all, thunder in winter is not common. It is even more strange that it was sunny yesterday and today. Such a loud thunder has never happened in Yangzhou before.

The younger disciples were all listening with great interest, with smiles on their faces, and they couldn't wait to lean over to listen.

Who doesn't like to hear people brag about themselves?
Although what happened last night was not done by them personally, they witnessed it personally, and what their master and uncle did was also related to them. Plus, if they did some odd jobs, it would not be an exaggeration to say that they were the ones responsible.

Lin Jue has heard too much.

"Second Senior Brother has refined a golden elixir. It's time to put his mind at ease, right?" He said to his second senior brother as they walked.

"Not really. This golden elixir has fallen into the mortal world." The second brother became more calm, like an old Taoist, "Besides, everything about this golden elixir was provided by my junior brother. My real wish is not here, but to find a great path to refine my own golden elixir."

"Brother, your ambition is even higher than many of the serious Danding Sect Taoist friends who live deep in the mountains."

"It's just a thought, it's probably impossible to complete. It should be set higher to make it interesting."

"Brother, did you gain any insights after refining the Four Directions Five Elements Golden Pill this time?"

"Just a little bit. Compared with the great way of the Golden Elixir and the sages who created the Golden Elixir in ancient times, it is almost insignificant." The second senior brother sighed.

"That's fine. Since you have achieved enlightenment, you will have plenty of time to study in the future." Lin Jue paused, "By the way, how is the Shenhua Rejuvenating Golden Pill that I gave you before going?"

"One of the ingredients in that golden elixir has become extinct. I asked my eldest and sixth junior brothers to ask several mediums in Yishan, and they all said it was gone." The second senior brother shook his head and said, "I have been studying how to use other materials or cultivate new materials to replace it, but it is probably difficult to reproduce it."

"I see……"

Lin Jue nodded, a little disappointed.

After so many years, he still remembers his promise to Master Fan Tianshi.

The group of people slowly walked out of the city.

"Fellow Daoist, please send me here. Thank you very much for your care over the past few years, fellow Daoist and Emperor Yujian."

There was no one in front or behind on the mountain road. The two sides said goodbye briefly. Jiang Zhaoren just nodded and his figure disappeared. The many Taoists split into two groups. A dark cloud flashing with lightning and a auspicious cloud with colorful light carried them up to the sky.

Go back to Yishan first, then back to Fengshan.

The Yuanqiu Immortal Tree on the top of the mountain has grown to a height of one person, but without the care of immortals and the nourishment of immortal energy, even though Wan Gong and others have taken good care of it, it shows no signs of blooming and bearing fruit.

The original elixir fruit on the mountain also stagnated.

It was not until the immortals returned and the immortal spirit revived that the Danguo trees and Yuanqiu trees on the mountain began to show a different vitality.

At this time, the emperor of the world had been on the throne for many years, and the princes and princesses had gradually grown from teenagers to adults and became middle-aged people.

However, those who had followed him to conquer the world, who had given birth to his children, who had dared to argue with the emperor in the court or even secretly engage in a battle of wits, were all very old and were beginning to die off.

This emperor was extremely confident and felt that no one could shake his position. In addition, he had eaten the immortal fruit, which prolonged his lifespan. Therefore, the founding heroes of this dynasty, whether they were counselors or generals, became the rare founding heroes in history who collectively had a good end.

The emperor began to feel lonely.

The prince began to get anxious. Compared to the illusion, the emperor was more patient. He not only let him supervise the country, but also told him:

"Don't worry. When the time comes, Master Lin will come to pick me up on a cloud. I will be free and easy and will not delay your becoming emperor."

This matter spread throughout the court.

The news spread from the court to half of the capital.

The emperor guessed that it was the prince's doing, but he just smiled. When his ageless old friend came to visit him, he told him the story as a joke.

"Why can't the fathers and sons in this world ever be like they were when they were little?"

This is a common lament made by emperors.

When the emperor came to Fengshan next time, the Danguo trees and Yuanqiu trees on the top of the mountain were in bloom.

The flowers of the Danguo tree are bright yellow, while those of the Yuanqiu tree are light pink, almost white, hanging from the branches. It happens to be the time when the spring breeze is blowing across the earth, and the flowers mixed with the various flowers on the mountain are quite pleasing to the eye.

The famous Lin Zhenren at this time looked like an ordinary old farmer, and also very much like his senior brother. The only unusual thing was that he was holding a water bottle with water that seemed to never run out. While taking care of the trees he planted, he advised him that there should be a limit to gardening and the world also needed to relax and recuperate.

It was almost at this time——

In Heng Village, Huizhou, a young man had just finished listening to an old man telling a story about gods and magic at the entrance of the village. He felt it was marvelous and intoxicated, and suddenly remembered the stories about his ancestors and gods told by his elders. After searching the whole house, he actually found a piece of talisman paper in an exquisite wooden box hidden under the wardrobe.

The boy placed it on the candle and lit it.

I looked at the talisman paper carefully, but nothing happened.

"Nothing..."

The boy muttered quietly, thinking it was a lie, but then a voice came from behind him:
"My name is Chen Niu!"

The boy was startled and turned around to look.

He saw a little brown-clothed ghost floating in the air. He looked about four or five years old, fair and tender, wearing a brown little coat and a brown round-top hat with a small brown ball on it. There was a little blush on both sides of his face, but he was staring at him with a serious face.

The boy was excited and scared:
"Can you...can you lead me to find the immortal? The legendary Master Lin!"

The little ghost stared at him, was silent for a moment, and suddenly pointed at the door:

"Go this way!"

It’s a long journey.

There were countless wind, frost, rain, snow, bandits, thieves, goblins, ghosts, thrills and interesting stories on the road. When he arrived at Fengshan, it was already a year later. When he looked up, the layers of mountains that formed shadows seemed like an endless barrier that no one could cross. If it were him a year ago, he would definitely be in awe, but now he was very determined.

Unknowingly, the small trees that Xu Yi planted in the mountains have grown into big trees. The flowers no longer bloom around them, but above his head. For some species, they can already be considered old trees.

It was only when the young man from the Wang family walked deep into the mountains that he discovered that there was such a paradise in the mountains.

There are all kinds of mountain flowers, some pink, some red, some yellow, some white, some lavender, and some light blue. Most of them bloom without leaves. They decorate the entire mountain forest in a lush and scattered manner, which is spectacular and shocking.

The boy couldn't help but be a little dazed.

"Go this way!"

The kid pointed in a direction.

There were bushes and thorns in the deep mountains and thick mountain fog.

Whoosh! Suddenly, the wind blew and the mountain fog was blown away. The bushes and thorns that were vaguely visible just now disappeared, revealing a path.

It was an ancient road covered with moss and flower petals, with few people. Both sides of the road were lined with various fruit trees and wild flowers, which were almost completely covered by fallen petals. On both sides, tall or short, pink or red trees and wild flowers stood in the wind, and petals were still falling like rain. A little ghost floated over there and pointed to the depths of the ancient road towards him.

This scene was very similar to the fairy tales he had heard.

There are many kinds of stories about gods and fairies that we have heard. Some of them are about real encounters with gods, while others are just tricks of monsters to tease or harm people.

The boy hesitated for a moment, picked up a stick, and stepped onto the ancient road, muttering as he walked forward:
“I don’t know who built this road…

“Who planted this tree…”

The ancient Shanhua Road, which had been deserted for a long time, finally welcomed a young man who came from his hometown and the descendants of old friends and was seeking immortals, as well as a little ghost who led the way.

This scene is quite magical.

"Go this way!"

The young man looked back frequently. The man and the ghost were walking farther and farther away, and deeper and deeper into the water. Suddenly, a gust of wind blew, and mountain fog filled the air. The ancient road covered in blooming mountain flowers disappeared again.

At this time, it has been exactly sixty years since the founding of this dynasty.

Just like in the illusion, after the eldest and second brothers achieved enlightenment through alchemy, for a long time, several brothers in Fuqiu Temple did not achieve enlightenment.

If there hadn't been the Great Yin-Yang Method and Lin Jue's Yuanqiu Fruit, some of the senior brothers would have been exhausted by now.

(End of this chapter)