I am a prince in Zhutian Films

Chapter 524 The Prince and the Old Servant
Qingcheng Mountain.

Deep in the mountains and dense forests.

When Zhou Chengan was about to finish his sermon, he suddenly paused.

At the same time, Hu Kui Xiaoyou, who had been lying on the ground, stood up, poked his big head out and looked down at the forest below, his heavy breathing flowing through his nostrils.

"This is your territory, you're in charge of handling it."

Zhou Chengan smiled and gently patted Hu Kui's head, then instructed Xiao Shanzha, "You go with him and keep an eye on things."

"Yes, Master."

At this moment, a young man who looked not very old was riding a Ferghana horse at full speed in the forest below.

Beside the galloping Akhal-Teke horse, there was a disheveled-looking old man whose speed was no slower than that of the horse.

The young nobleman on horseback turned his head to look behind him and shouted to the disheveled old man beside him, "Old Huang, hurry up, hurry up, those thieves are about to catch up."

Like the servant Lao Huang, whose speed was no less than that of a Ferghana horse, he remained calm and grinned, "Young master, then you'd better hurry."

The young master, seeing his servant Old Huang still laughing, angrily cursed, "Laugh at you, you old man! I'm about to pee my pants in fear, and you're still laughing!"

No sooner had he finished speaking than a loud shout came from the woods behind him.

"Hurry, hurry, don't let that kid get away."

"That kid's dressed so well, he looks like a big fat sheep. Brothers, give it your all!"

Upon hearing this, the young nobleman was so frightened that he immediately cracked his whip, spurred his horse to gallop away.

But just then, the young master, caught off guard, was swept off his horse by a tree branch that had grown out of nowhere.

The horse was still galloping when the young nobleman fell to the ground, screaming in pain.

"Damn it, that hurts like hell!"

Once the young nobleman had recovered a little, he looked up at the branch that had swept him down and couldn't help but swear.

However, before he could get up and run again, more than twenty bandits had already surrounded him.

The servant named Old Huang stepped forward to help the young master up, then shrank back behind him.

The young master looked at the fierce-looking bandits around him, but before he could speak, the bandit leader waved his hand and said, "Come on, tie them up for me."

Upon hearing this, the thieves prepared to step forward.

Just then, everyone suddenly felt the ground tremble.

Immediately, a huge black shadow rushed out from the forest above.

The band of outlaws all looked over, and were immediately terrified, their faces turning pale.

The bandit leader was slightly better, but he couldn't help but swallow hard and shouted, "It's...it's that strange beast...run, run!"

The bandits who had just been swaggering around suddenly took off running, much faster than when they were chasing the young master.

However, Hu Kui was faster than them. In a flash, he pounced on the bandits like a whirlwind.

In no time at all, the bandits had been knocked to the ground.

In an instant, the air was thick with the stench of blood.

"Good, good bite! Bite that bastard to death!"

The young nobleman watched as the enormous, terrifying beast defeated the twenty-odd bandits one by one. Instead of taking the opportunity to escape, he excitedly slapped his thigh and cheered.

The servant, Old Huang, shrank behind him, gently tugged at his sleeve, and whispered, "Young master, shouldn't we take this opportunity to slip away?"

Upon hearing this, the young master awoke as if from a dream.

"Yes, yes, let's go quickly, let's go quickly."

No sooner had they finished speaking than a dark shadow flashed past, blocking their path.

The young master swallowed hard as he looked at the enormous, terrifying figure, and said to the old servant beside him, "Old Huang, you're the bigger one, you go first!"

The servant, Old Huang, grinned and clicked his tongue, raising his arm and saying, "Young master, I seem to have less flesh than you."

"It seems so."

As the six-legged beast, its mouth agape and drooling, approached them step by step, the young master forced a smile that looked more like a grimace, and muttered curses:
"Damn it, Lao Huang, are we going to die here today?!"

"You damned Xu Xiao, you heartless old bastard, I'm going to feed you to the wild beasts!"

Just then, a voice suddenly came from above the mountains.

The sound was clear and melodious, as if it came from the clouds, or like the morning bell and evening drum, resounding in the heart.

"Xiao You, step back!"

Upon hearing Zhou Cheng'an's voice, the imposing tiger Kui obediently retreated.

Then, a young Taoist priest who looked youthful and was about five feet six inches tall rushed down from above.

The young master breathed a sigh of relief when he saw the six-legged beast retreat.

Being as clever as he was, he quickly stepped forward and bowed to Xiao Shanzha, who was rushing towards him, to express his gratitude.

"Xu Fengnian from Liangzhou thanks you, Daoist, for saving my life."

As he spoke, he glanced at Hu Kui Xiaoyou, then laughed and said, "So this big guy is raised by the Taoist priest. How majestic and domineering!"

Little Hawthorn shook his head: "Young master, Xiao You was not raised by me, but by my master."

Xu Fengnian was taken aback and asked, "May I ask your master's esteemed name?"

Little Hawthorn paused for a moment before replying, "My master's surname is Zhou. You may call him Master Zhou."

Xu Fengnian understood, bowed to the mountain, and shouted, "Xu Fengnian of Liangzhou thanks Master Zhou for saving my life."

Then, a sound came from above again.

"Greetings, but things are not peaceful on this mountain. You two should head down as soon as possible. Little Hawthorn, that's all for now."

Upon hearing this, Little Hawthorn bowed to Xu Fengnian and turned to leave.

"Wait, Daoist Master, please wait."

Hearing Xu Fengnian's call, Xiao Shanzha paused in her steps: "Young Master, is there anything else?"

"Xu Fengnian was saved by your master, how could I leave without repaying your kindness?" Xu Fengnian said, taking out a large handful of silver notes and handing them over: "I have some silver here, please pass it on to Master Zhou, as a small token of my appreciation."

"No need for silver. There are bandits rampant in Qingcheng Mountain. It was my fault for not being aware of it. This journey is three thousand miles long, and you, the prince of Beiliang, will face many hardships. You should keep some silver for yourself."

Zhou Cheng'an's voice came from the mountain again.

"The world is a dangerous place, and wealth should not be flaunted. Your Highness, you should leave as soon as possible."

Xu Fengnian was slightly taken aback when he heard the other party reveal his identity in one sentence.

He wanted to say something more, but then he heard Little Hawthorn say, "Young Master, it's not safe up on the mountain. You two should go down the mountain as soon as possible. Master has already left, and I'm going back too. Xiao You, let's go!"

"Roar!"

Tiger Kui roared, shaking the mountains and forests, startling Xu Fengnian.

Watching Xiao Shanzha and Hu Kui's departing figures completely disappear into the mountains and forests, Xu Fengnian finally withdrew his gaze and said excitedly, "Old Huang, this must be the legendary 'transmission of sound over a thousand miles' that they talk about in the stories! We've run into a master!"

He is indeed a master. But... when did Qingcheng Mountain acquire such a master?
A hint of curiosity flashed in Old Huang's cloudy eyes, and then he said cautiously, "Young Master, this is not a place to stay for long. We should leave as soon as possible."

Xu Fengnian shook his head.

"I'm not leaving. This is the first time I've encountered such an interesting Taoist priest. I absolutely have to meet him. Besides, aren't you envious of that strange beast?"

Old Huang looked weak and shook his head like a rattle drum.

"Sir, your life is more important!"

Xu Fengnian nodded, but his refusal to go down the mountain remained firm.

"Of course I know my life is more important, but that bastard Xu Xiao made me tour Qingcheng Mountain. I've only gone halfway, and I haven't even been to Qingyang Palace yet. Speaking of which, could that expert I just saw be a Taoist priest from Qingyang Palace?"

"Old Huang, let's go take a look at Qingyang Palace."

After saying that, Xu Fengnian started walking up the mountain.

Old Huang stood still, tightened the long bag on his back, thought for a moment, and then followed without saying anything more.

……

Qingyang Palace, Shenxiao Pavilion.

This is a newly built pavilion, which Wu Lingsu specially built for Zhou Chengan, who moved out of Lingzhi Garden, after Wu Lingsu returned to the mountain from Yangjing City.

After returning from the mountains, Zhou Cheng'an first went to Qiu Jian Pavilion before returning to Shenxiao Pavilion.

After he had Little Hawthorn and Little Sparrow do their homework for the day, he summoned Wu Lingsu and ordered her to lead a group to clear out the bandits of Qingcheng Mountain.

In fact, he had previously ordered the clearing out of a group of bandits, but this was limited to the bandits on a few mountains around Qingyang Peak.

Firstly, he had promised Zhao Yutai that as long as it did not affect the development of Qingyang Palace, he would not interfere with the matter of Beiliang hiding soldiers and armor in Qingcheng Mountain.

Heaven knows whether the bandits in Qingcheng Mountain were arranged by Zhao Yutai.

Furthermore, and most importantly, at that time, we had only recently taken over Qingyang Palace and did not have enough manpower and resources to clear out the bandits covering the mountains.

Later, when he had money and connections, he stopped taking the matter to heart.

Now that a band of outlaws dares to come to Qingyang Peak to rob fat sheep, it's time to clean up the bandits of Qingcheng Mountain.

Over here, Zhou Cheng'an had just instructed Wu Lingsu to lead men to wipe out the bandits in Qingcheng Mountain.

Over there, an old man and a young man, Xu Fengnian and his servant Lao Huang, had arrived in front of Qingyang Palace.

Looking at the magnificent and imposing Qingyang Palace complex, Xu Fengnian was not surprised at all. After all, as the heir of Beiliang, he had seen all kinds of tall and magnificent buildings.

Qingyang Palace is still a tiny bit inferior to the Northern Liang Royal Palace.

Watching the Taoist priests and nuns coming and going, Xu Fengnian whispered to Lao Huang, "Lao Huang, do you think that expert just now was from Qingyang Palace?"

Old Huang pointed to the Taoist robes worn by the disciples of the Shenxiao lineage: "Although there are slight differences in the style of these Taoist robes, they should all be from the same family."

In Zhou Cheng'an's plan, the Nine Pecks of Rice Sect will be divided into nine lineages, each corresponding to one of the nine heavens.

These are Shenxiao, Qingxiao, Bixiao, Danxiao, Jingxiao, Yuxiao, Zhenxiao, Zixiao, and Taixiao.

Now, four years later, Qingyang Palace no longer only has the Shenxiao lineage, but has also developed the Qingxiao and Danxiao lineages.

Although the Qingxiao and Danxiao lineages are still much weaker than the Shenxiao lineage, they at least have their own lineages.

Wu Lingsu is currently in charge of the Danxiao lineage and will become its ancestor in the future. The Danxiao lineage is also the largest lineage in terms of population, second only to the Shenxiao lineage.

As for the one who leads the Qingxiao lineage, it is naturally Zhao Yutai.

Because they all belong to the Nine Pecks of Rice sect, the styles of the robes of each lineage are almost identical, and only by looking closely can one discover the subtle differences.

Xu Fengnian slapped his forehead and praised, "Old Huang, you're so thoughtful."

"Let's go in and take a look."

As they spoke, the old man and the young man entered the palace.

Qingyang Palace rarely has worshippers, so Xu Fengnian and Lao Huang's combination stood out somewhat when they entered the palace.

Soon, a tall, thin Shenxiao disciple noticed the two of them and stepped forward to greet them.

Xu Fengnian pretended to be a pilgrim who came to offer incense, while chatting with the Shenxiao disciple and subtly inquiring whether there was a Taoist priest in the palace who kept a six-legged beast and whose surname was Zhou.

If it were someone else, they might not even know.

After all, there are quite a few Taoist priests with the surname Zhou in Qingyang Palace, and very few people know that Hu Kui exists.

Unfortunately, the person who greeted Xu Fengnian was Liu Luweiganzi.

Upon hearing Xu Fengnian's words, Liu Luwei thought to himself, "Isn't the Taoist priest surnamed Zhou who raises a six-legged beast the sect leader himself?"
Seeing that the other party was inquiring about Zhou Cheng'an, Lao Liu carefully looked Xu Fengnian and Lao Huang over and asked, "What business do you have with that Taoist priest?"

Upon hearing this, Xu Fengnian's face lit up with joy. This matter seemed plausible; it appeared that the expert was indeed from the Qingyang Palace.

"There is indeed a matter at hand. That Taoist priest is our savior. Without his help, my master and I would have perished at the hands of a band of bandits today. That's why we came up the mountain specifically to express our gratitude in person."

Upon hearing that they had come to express their gratitude, Liu Luwei sized up Xu Fengnian and his servant Lao Huang, and replied, "The sect leader usually doesn't receive outsiders, but since you two have come to express your thanks, please follow me."

"Thank you, Brother Dao."

Xu Fengnian bowed and then said, "Brother Dao, I just heard you say that Master Zhou is the sect leader, but I heard that the sect leader of Qingyang Palace is the Qingcheng King?"

“Master Zhou is also a sect leader, but he is the sect leader of the Danxiao lineage. Our Qingyang Palace currently has three sect leaders, and Master Zhou is the sect leader of our Danxiao lineage.”

Xu Fengnian was taken aback at first, then nodded knowingly.

Generally speaking, a Taoist sect has only one leader, but Qingyang Palace has three.

In other words, there should be someone above the Sect Master who leads the entire Qingyang Palace.

Thinking of this, Xu Fengnian continued to ask, "Brother Dao, Qingyang Palace has three sect leaders, so what is the title of the one who leads them? As far as I know, sect leader is the highest title in a Daoist lineage."

Liu Luwei smiled upon hearing this: "Young master, you also said that it is a lineage, and the master of the lineage is naturally the Dao Master. However, at present, Qingyang Palace only has three branches: Shenxiao, Yuxiao, and Danxiao. The other six branches have not yet developed, so a Dao Master has not been selected for the time being."

"Daozu?"

Xu Fengnian was taken aback and couldn't help but exclaim, "Is this an attempt to make all the Taoist traditions in the world recognize Qingyang Palace as the birthplace of Taoism and to make it their ancestor?! What a grand ambition!"

Upon hearing this, Liu Luwei knew that Xu Fengnian had misunderstood.

"Young master, you misunderstand. It's not the 'ancestor' as in 'ancestor,' but the 'master' as in 'in charge.'"

"Oh I got it."

Xu Fengnian suddenly realized, and smiled awkwardly: "I thought Qingyang Palace was going to claim the title of ancestor."

To say that he is the supreme ancestor is not entirely wrong, after all, the sect leader once said that there are nine heavens, and the Divine Heaven is the highest, and all the sects under heaven should respect the Divine Heaven.

However, Liu Lugan did not say this.

Firstly, he felt that these words were too arrogant and would likely get him beaten up.

Next, we arrived at Shenxiao Pavilion.

Liu Luwei stopped and bowed: "Please wait a moment, I will go and inform the Sect Leader. As for whether the Sect Leader will see you, that is not up to me."

Upon hearing this, Xu Fengnian quickly smiled and said, "Then thank you very much, fellow Daoist."

(End of this chapter)