Day and night tour

Chapter 429: I am a Taoist priest?
Zhou Xuan asked for the list of "Ren Dan Factory", but Yu Pusa first corrected Zhou Xuan's verbal statement.

“Master Xuan, we never call the place where we refine pills a factory, but a cave.”

Fish Bodhisattva pointed to Maha Temple and said, "Take our place for example, it's called—Cloud Deer Cave. Of course, we are the orthodox lineage of alchemists, and naming it a cave reflects our adherence to the ancient ways and the spirit and sentiments of Buddhism."

But for some unorthodox alchemists, their dwellings can no longer be called "caves"; we call them—fire pits.

Zhou Xuan almost burst out laughing when he heard this. These "human pill dealers" are all doing ruthless business, and they've been handling human lives. Why would they distinguish between genuine and illegitimate products?
"And what is a hearth?"

Zhou Xuan asked.

Fish Bodhisattva pointed towards the top of the tower and said, "Master, have you ever heard of the Zoroastrianism?"

"That's for sure, we've killed quite a few."

During the period of the Heaven and Earth Chess Game in Mingjiang Prefecture, the Zoroastrian sect also sent people to attack Mingjiang. However, apart from the Zoroastrian token, the Zoroastrian disciples who came were insignificant and were just small fry.

Another major force in the Zoroastrian conquest was "Zhexing" after he was recruited into the Zoroastrian sect, who was also killed by Zhou Xuan and Mu Hua after they joined forces.

"The Zoroastrians are vicious and ruthless. They monopolize the largest share of human pills. Their pill refining is not as gentle as ours."

A drug dealer who uses human lives to make pills claims to be gentle. Just how cruel are those Zoroastrians?
“They use living people to make elixirs,” said Fish Bodhisattva.

"You've used plenty of living people to make pills, haven't you?"

Zhou Xuan said.

"That's different."

The Fish Bodhisattva said, "When I use living people to refine pills, I simply treat them as medicinal materials. I lure them over, throw them into the furnace, and that's it. There aren't many complicated steps involved."

But that group of people, once they've captured someone, they'll torture them first. There are many ways to torture them, like pulling out tendons and bones, severing limbs and cutting out flesh..."

“That’s pretty brutal,” Zhou Xuan said.

"These are their gentlest methods."

"..." Zhou Xuan squinted into a line as if his eyes had been scalded by hot steam.

Even with this method, it's still the gentlest?
"What's the big scar on someone's head if they lose it? But as long as you're human, you have family and loved ones..."

Zhou Xuan raised his hand, signaling to the fish bodhisattva that he didn't need to continue. He understood that torturing someone's family in front of them was worse than killing them.

Those Zoroastrian beasts know how to torture.

Zhou Xuan no longer cared about the specific methods of torture; he only wanted to know why refining a human pill required such torture.

Do they take pleasure in tormenting people, or do they have some other use in alchemy?
Fish Bodhisattva said, "Torturing people is certainly a pleasure for them. Those people don't have normal human emotions; they're crazy and perverted."
Of course, most importantly, they didn't rely on human blood, flesh, spirit, or bones to refine elixirs.

"If not these, then what?" Zhou Xuan asked.

Fish Bodhisattva said in a serious tone, "They use people's seven emotions and six desires to refine them into pills. Although these pills are extremely harmful to people after consumption, they have a very powerful effect on the short-term increase in combat power and the improvement of the incense level."

"Using the seven emotions and six desires to refine elixirs?"

The more Zhou Xuan listened, the more he felt that this method of alchemy was practically made for him.

In the Kingdom of Well, there are nine laws—the most difficult of which to comprehend is the "Law of Destiny."

The first level of this law allows Zhou Xuan to transform human emotions and desires into physical form.

Since the King of Xishan lacked yang energy, Zhou Xuan also gifted him a "Joyful Doll," which was made from the laughter and joy of the people of Mingjiang Prefecture.

"Where is the Zoroastrian fire pit?" Zhou Xuan immediately promised, "As long as I know its location, I will rush there and smash their fire pit after I finish dealing with the matters in Mingjiang Prefecture."

"Logically speaking, there should be Zoroastrian fire pits in all nine prefectures of Jing Kingdom. However, I am not sure about places that are too far away. I only know that there was a small fire pit in Mingjiang Prefecture, which was extinguished after the ancient tree and golden bell in Mingjiang Prefecture were restored."

Zhou Xuan was also a witness to this event.
After he restored the ancient Golden Bell in Mingjiang Prefecture, the Golden Bell released three bell slaves, all of whom were remnants of the souls of Jiuzhuxiang.

A single Zhong Nu wiped out a small group of foxes who were trying to comprehend the "True Scripture of the Valley".

A servant named Zhong Nu taught Zhou Xuan the art of "shifting forms and changing shadows".

There was also a slave named Zhong Nu who, single-handedly, destroyed a Zoroastrian stronghold.

Looking back now, that fire pit was exactly the fire pit that Fish Bodhisattva mentioned.

"Jin Zhong, that spendthrift son, doesn't think about collecting good things, he just destroys them all."

If Jin Zhong had kept the Zoroastrian alchemy method from him that time, he would be able to start refining "human pills" now that he has returned to Mingjiang Prefecture.

The fish bodhisattva then said, "Besides Mingjiang Prefecture, there is also one in Jingchuan Prefecture, in the southwest of the prefectural city, called 'Rebirth Fire Pond'."
Huangyuan Prefecture also had a hearth—but even I didn't know its exact location, though it was the largest of the three prefectures.

"Huangyuan Prefecture, there are places you don't know about?"

Zhou Xuan was somewhat surprised. It was said that Yu Pusa had been entrenched in Huangyuan Prefecture for many years and had thoroughly investigated the people and power within the prefecture, but he didn't even know the exact location of the hearth in the prefecture.

“Master Xuan, here’s what happened, let me tell you.”

Fish Bodhisattva pointed to the floor tiles of Maha Temple and said, "This temple is connected to Cloud Deer Mountain. I have turned Cloud Deer Mountain into an alchemy furnace. Whether it is refining human pills or qi pills, it needs a feng shui treasure land."
Once the alchemy furnace is ignited, the spiritual energy of the auspicious land is needed to regulate the heat. However, the spiritual energy in these auspicious lands is finite and, once depleted, is difficult to replenish.
According to my estimation, the original spiritual energy of Yunlu Mountain could last for two thousand years, but now, after only nine hundred years, less than one-tenth of the mountain's spiritual energy remains.

"The Zoroastrians stole your spiritual energy?"

Zhou Xuan said knowingly.

"Yes! Although I don't know who stole my spiritual energy, my spiritual energy only started to be consumed rapidly three hundred years ago."

The Fish Bodhisattva said, "Master Xuan, in just three hundred years, those people have stolen nearly a thousand years' worth of spiritual energy from Cloud Deer Mountain. This is enough to show how large the scale of their alchemy is."
Such a massive scale is beyond the comprehension of anyone other than the Zoroastrian cultists.

"Alright, Huangyuan Prefecture and Jingchuan Prefecture have Zoroastrian hearths. Do you know of any other prefectures or cities with hearths?"

Zhou Xuan asked.

"I don't know. After Master Xuan destroys these two fire pits, he can follow the trail and find the rest of the fire pits. As long as all the fire pits of the Zoroastrian sect are destroyed, once the battle of the Buddha Well breaks out, we can raise our voices and the high-ranking officials of the Well Kingdom will be in charge."

"You want to be a high-ranking official in the Jing Kingdom?" Zhou Xuan's expression changed slightly.

"Isn't this exactly our plan?"

"Our plan is to become the eternal rulers of the starry sky, can't you be a little more ambitious?"

Zhou Xuan was very professional. Even though he was about to close the net and kill Yu Pusa, he still earnestly promised him a bright future.

As Yu Pusa spent more and more time in the colorful play, her vigilance gradually decreased, and her trust in Zhou Xuan continued to increase.

Therefore, he absorbed every word Zhou Xuan spoke without hesitation.

He believed even the empty promises Zhou Xuan made.

Then, Fish Bodhisattva slapped his forehead and said, "Yes, yes, to become the master of the starry sky, Master Xuan, I have only just begun my studies with you, and my spirit and temperament have not yet caught up."

"We'll learn and observe more in the future, but for now, we need to focus on our important business."

Zhou Xuan had already extracted no valuable clues from the fish, and keeping the fish bodhisattva around was pointless. It was better to hurry up, use a series of deceptions, and get it over with as soon as possible.

"The important matter is still the top priority, but Master Xuan, what important matter do you need to attend to?"

"First, kill the White Deer Alchemist. Then, the two of us will draw up a contract, clearly stating that the 40% of the profits that will be given to the Witch God will be written down."

Zhou Xuan meticulously planned out the scheme for Fish Bodhisattva, treating it as a real deception.

Fish Bodhisattva was somewhat troubled and said, "Master Xuan, giving you 30% of the profits, distributed every two hundred years, is naturally no problem, but giving the Witch God 40%... You are a capable person, could you help me...?"

"Would you like me to put in a good word for you and ask the Witch God to reduce your share of the profits?" Zhou Xuan asked with a forced smile.

"That's what I mean."

"You, you," Zhou Xuan said, mimicking a teacher scolding a student, "I've emphasized this time and again: vision." He continued, "In the future, we aim to expand the market for human pills to a hundred times its current size. Don't think that just because you only have 30% of the profits left..."
Even if you only have 10%, multiply that by 100, and your net worth is ten times what it is now. Isn't that enough?

If you insist on caring about your small plot of land and anger the witch god and me, neither of us will play with you anymore. You can just go and mourn with your pitiful possessions.

The fish bodhisattva's brain is now half water and half flour, it can't move, or it will turn into mush.

Even for the simplest addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division, he still has to count on his fingers for most of the day.

Seeing how easily he had been fooled, Zhou Xuan felt even more at ease and prepared to add more "magic tricks" at any time.

Finally, after the fish bodhisattva counted back and forth on his fingers time and time again, he revealed a warm and innocent smile.
“Master Xuan was right. I just calculated it, and it is indeed as you said. As long as we expand our business, whether I give more or less of my share of the profits to the God of War, it won’t make a difference.”

Zhou Xuan sneered inwardly, but said warmly, "Old Yu, let's not delay, let's go draw up the contract." "Wait a minute, Master Xuan, shouldn't we kill the White Deer Alchemist first?"

“He’s already been killed,” Zhou Xuan said.

"When did this happen?" Fish Bodhisattva asked.

Zhou Xuan pointed to a wall and said, "Look at the bloodstains on that wall, seeping out and spreading all over the ground. The White Deer Taoist's intestines and internal organs are scattered everywhere..."

This is the third level of technique used by the magician – creating illusions and fabricating scenes.

As for the second layer of "bluffing," it involves playing a convincing false identity.

While Zhou Xuan was disguised as a business partner of the Fish Bodhisattva, he had already launched the operation quietly.

Fish Bodhisattva quickly turned his head to look, and sure enough, just as Zhou Xuan had said, the wall was stained with blood, and the internal organs that had fallen to the ground were still freshly pumping, like live fish, jumping up and down from time to time.

However, something seems off.

Fish Bodhisattva tried hard to recall, thinking to herself, "It seems that the White Deer Alchemist has merged into the south wall, but the Master pointed out the north wall to me..."

South... North...

South…North…

Are countries divided into North and South? Do Taoist and Buddhist teachings also have North and South divisions?

He had been subjected to the magic of magic, and his thoughts were practically a stream of consciousness. Before he could even form a suspicion about a question, he would interrupt himself.

"Who cares about north or south, it makes no difference."

Fish Bodhisattva suddenly became confident, stroking the blood on the wall, and said, "White Alchemist, your Qi Pill is outdated. You might as well go out and enjoy yourself for a few more years, so you won't end up with your head separated from your body..."

His act of "crying at the grave" made the White Deer Taoist priest, who was embedded in the south wall, lose his confidence.

Am I dead, or alive?

Although the White Deer Taoist priest did not possess any magic tricks to win the lottery, he was no different from a victim of deception.

He couldn't even tell if he was alive or dead.

To be honest, he didn't feel like he suffered any pain after dying.

If it is said to be alive, then why is the fish bodhisattva crying at the grave?
As he pondered, the White Deer Taoist suddenly realized—it must have been Zhou Xuan's exceptional skill that caused his sudden and unexpected death.

“But my soul hasn’t dissipated. I can think and reason… and there’s absolutely no trace of my soul dissipating. I understand.”

"It is the Cantong Qi that I practice on a daily basis, and it has been successful."

"Though I die, I will live on with heaven and earth; as long as heaven and earth exist, I will also exist!"

"Master Dao... I've succeeded!"

The White Deer Alchemist was overjoyed and couldn't help but shout it out.

For a moment, the scene was very awkward.

The Taoist priest from the south, Bai Lu, excitedly shouted, "I've succeeded!"
The fish bodhisattva in the north even rushed to mourn at the grave of the white deer sorcerer.

Zhou Xuan was speechless, cursing inwardly, "You son of a bitch... After watching this show for so long, haven't you realized I was trying to fool the Fish Bodhisattva? You let me down at this crucial moment?"

Upon hearing the White Deer Taoist's cries, the Fish Bodhisattva immediately turned around and asked Zhou Xuan, "Master Xuan, it seems that the White Deer Taoist is still making ghostly noises."

"Didn't he already shout that his Cantong Qi has been perfected and that he is as old as heaven and earth? Don't think about those things. He's just a remnant soul now and poses no threat to us."

"Pah, just a remnant soul, and you think you've become something? Anyone who didn't know better would think you'd become some kind of Great Immortal."

The fish Bodhisattva spat on the ground.
Bai Lu, the sorcerer, seemed to have received confirmation and went even more mad: "Sure enough, Zhou Xuan and Yu Pusa both said that I am a soul, my Cantong Qi is complete, I am immortal and indestructible!"

To hell with will, to hell with gods! I am the heaven, I am the earth!

No one helped me reach the top of the mountain, I walked through the snow on my own."

He spoke so arrogantly and recklessly that Zhou Xuan felt like he was digging his toes into a sea-view house.

"The White Deer Taoist priest seems to be someone who has taken too much ginseng pills; his mental state is very unstable."

For a moment, Zhou Xuan felt that it would be difficult to end this situation. After dealing with the Fish Bodhisattva, how should he explain it to the White Deer Taoist?
"You are nothing but an immortal remnant soul in this world. Perfect, you can also be a witness and witness me and Master Xuan becoming the masters of the boundless starry sky."

Fish Bodhisattva was also talking nonsense. In a short time, he and Bai Lu went from fighting each other to exchanging crazy words.

Zhou Xuan is a meme associated with "old people, subway, and mobile phones." He never expected that his unexpected performance would drive two people crazy.

"Old Fish, why get angry with a mad, remnant soul? Come on, let's go to the real-world Maha Temple and draw up a written contract."

After Zhou Xuan finished speaking, he immediately severed the link to the "spiritual realm" and returned to reality—to that unbearably hot room in the Maha Temple.

……

During the time Zhou Xuan entered the spiritual realm, Yun Ziliang and Li Changxun stayed by his side.

Both of them were extremely anxious, especially Yun Ziliang, who paced back and forth in the room.

"Changxun, think of something. Xuanzi said he went to deceive the tower spirit, but it's been so long and there's no sign of it moving. Could something have gone wrong?"

"Don't overthink it. Xuanzi is incredibly shrewd. What could possibly happen to him?"

Li Changxun greatly admired Zhou Xuan. He was more easygoing and lay on the bed, leisurely fanning himself. However, although he appeared relaxed, he was actually anxious inside.

Just then, Zhou Xuan opened his eyes. Li Changxun was the first to see him and immediately jumped up, saying, "Old Yun, the Great Master is awake."

"woke up?"

Yun Ziliang quickly turned around and asked Zhou Xuan with concern, "Xuanzi, what have you been doing for an hour or two?"

Zhou Xuan immediately reached out and stopped Yun and Li from speaking, saying, "Both of you be quiet, let me speak first."

I don't know how to explain this to you, but a madman is going to come out later—you all need to find a way to kill him when you see an opportunity, or even if you can't kill him, surround him and don't let him escape. I'll hurry and get reinforcements."

To put it simply, Yun Ziliang and Li Changxun, though unaware of the details, nodded vaguely.

Less than half a minute later, a monk dressed in a Taoist robe walked out of the void.

"Mr. Yun, Mr. Li, this humble monk Yu greets you."

Yun Ziliang stared at the fish monk, somewhat puzzled—aside from wearing a Taoist robe and looking rather odd, what was wrong with this monk?

"Not only is he not crazy, he's also quite polite."

Li Changxun whispered in Yun Ziliang's ear.

Although the two had their doubts, they dared not disobey Zhou Xuan's prior instructions.

Zhou Xuan instructed that the monk should be killed if possible, and if not, he should be trapped.

Therefore, their strategy was: killing was secondary, encirclement was primary.

Yun Ziliang strode forward with a dragon-like, tiger-like gait, searching for the monk's shadow to step on, while simultaneously sensing the feng shui of the mountain, and then using that sensing to change the situation.
This mountain has been transformed into an invisible prison.

Li Changxun, meanwhile, secretly conjured a whirlwind formation.

The Dragon Seekers' School excels at encirclement when facing enemies.

Zhou Xuan's senses were sharp; he had already sensed that two layers of prisons with terrifying auras had been completed—it would be extremely difficult for this Fish Bodhisattva to return to the "Spirit Realm" and hide again.

Fish Bodhisattva was still immersed in his beautiful dream. He was so deceived that he had no sense of vigilance and would not have paid attention to the prison layout around him.

With a radiant smile, he said to Yun and Li, "We are now all Xuan Masters. From now on, our goal is the stars and the sea, to become the only free will in the starry sky."

"From now on, you two should also learn more skills. Our future is bright, our goals are far-reaching, and we need to acquire a high level of expertise. Learn more and observe more."

Yun Ziliang was puzzled.
Li Changxun then asked, "Grandmaster, what is that monk muttering about?"

"He's a madman, and you expect me to understand? Are you crazy too, you son of a bitch?"

After reprimanding Li Changxun, Yun Ziliang shouted, "Changxun, come with me, set up the formation, and lock down this mad monk."

(End of this chapter)