One Qi Chaoyang

Chapter 123 122: The Beauty in the Box

The sound of the piano in the wind, the rustling of bamboo in the forest, and the gurgling of spring water nearby.

The clear light of the half moon was shining, and a lantern was hung in the corner of the house not far away.

There was no light in the pavilion, but it was not dark at all, because the moon reflected in the stream beside it was exceptionally clear, as if there was a moon in the water, shining into the pavilion from the water.

The light from the lantern in the distant corner was already extremely weak when it entered the pavilion, but all the reflective objects in the pavilion seemed to have received that light and turned into clusters of light.

When the faint light shines on it, it seems as if there are lights gathered inside, making the pavilion very bright.

The moon reflected in the water and the moonlight shining in came from Xie Anlan's magic.

The flames formed on those reflective objects came from Zhu Ke's magic.

As a guest, Zhao Fuyun naturally did not move and did not display any magic.

"It's embarrassing to say that as a cultivator, we should focus on cultivation. No matter what happens, we should just keep moving forward and not get bogged down by worldly affairs. However, I, Xie Anlan, pride myself on having a good state of mind, but when facing a large sect like Tiandu Mountain where Taoist Fuyun is, I still feel worried."

"It's not just me, the whole Guangyuan Prefecture is like this. I know that Tiandu Mountain is the orthodox sect of Xuanmen and will not do anything radical, but one move will affect the whole body. There is the Zhennan Palace on this side and the court on the other side. They are all huge monsters, like giant beasts fighting. People like me from small families are in the middle of it. When I look up, I see a sky full of dust, and when I look down, I can only see a small space. I really don't know how to deal with it. I hope Taoist Fuyun can teach me."

What he said was very skillful and interesting. He did not ask direct questions, but talked about the status of his small families, making people feel the difficulties of small families, and then asked what to do.

Instead of asking what Zhao Fuyun wanted to do with Tiandu Mountain, he did not ask the extent of Tiandu Mountain's cooperation with the royal family, nor did he ask what Tiandu Mountain wanted to do with the Zhennan Palace.

Not only Xie Anlan was looking at him, Zhu Ke next to him also raised his head and looked at Zhao Fuyun steadily.

The piano music that had been lingering in the wind had stopped at some point; the wind that had been lingering on the branches of the bamboo forest and refused to go away was now just shaking the bamboo leaves without making any sound.

No sound is allowed in this pavilion, so no sound can reach outside.

Zhao Fuyun could be said to have no answer in his mind, or he could be said to have an answer, but that was only from his perspective. He already had an answer that was favorable to Tiandu Mountain, but he still pondered for a moment, picked up the cup of scented tea in front of him, took a sip, and then spoke.

"We are both practitioners and members of a family or sect. No matter what we do, we should choose a method that is beneficial to ourselves, our family or sect. If it is only beneficial to ourselves but not to our family or sect, then even if it has a thousand benefits, it is not advisable. Don't you think so?"

Zhao Fuyun asked back, obviously to make sure whether their ideas were consistent. Of course, this was also to explain to the two in advance that what everyone said here could not represent just themselves, and what they did needed to be considered the sects and families behind them.

Whether it is Zhao Fuyun or Xie Anlan, it is impossible for them to say something like "this is just my personal opinion" at this time. Here, other people will regard your personal opinions as the opinions of your sect or family.

"Master Fuyun is right. People like us come from families and sects. Our every move is seen by others as the will of our family and sect. If one day our family falls and our sect is destroyed, but we gain great benefits from it, we will inevitably be accused of betraying our family and fellow sect members." Xie Anlan replied.

"My cultivation is shallow, and there is no soul lamp in the ancestral hall. I can only say what I know and think. We in Tiandu Mountain have never thought of occupying or seizing any place."

"We are just helping the royal family of the Great Zhou Dynasty to open the Daozi Academy here." Zhao Fuyun did not lie. At least all he knew was that Tiandu Mountain was cooperating with the royal family of the Great Zhou Dynasty to implement the new Daozi policy.

Of course, for the Zhou Dynasty court, all the scattered cultivators in the world are a powerful force. If they can be gathered together, it will be a great consolidation of the court's power. From the perspective of the entire governance of the country, this is an excellent national policy.

"And your families have taken root in this land, opened up spiritual fields and mountains, raised spiritual beasts, and planted spiritual medicines. It is better to stay stable and not move. If the world is in turmoil, the ones who will be hurt will probably be your families who are doing business and planting medicines in a stable manner."

"And the ones who will be happy are the bandits and robbers. They will take the opportunity to occupy the grain fields and rob the sacred mountains. The ladies who used to stay in seclusion will probably have to come out to fight for a share of cultivation resources, or curry favor with some despicable people."

Zhao Fuyun's words made Xie Anlan have many associations. This was what he feared the most. The current situation was turbulent. When a family and an individual faced storms, sometimes an individual could leave at any time, but a family was like a big tree rooted in the earth. In a strong wind, it was only possible for the branches to be broken or uprooted.

Those who originally depended on their families will, on that day, be no better than independent cultivators and will become moths and butterflies in the wind and rain.

Although there are people in the family whom he hates, there are also people whom he likes, respects and loves.

He said nothing, just listened.

Zhao Fuyun continued, "So, I think you need to have a consensus that whoever brings disaster to the local area is your enemy. If disaster is unavoidable, you must make plans as soon as possible, whether it is migration or waiting for submission, at least the purpose should be to preserve the family."

After he finished speaking, he stopped talking. After a silence in the pavilion, Zhu Ke finally broke the silence and said, "The land of Guangyuan is about to be filled with blood and rain."

"But what Tiandu Mountain wants is for the people here to live in peace, not for all the lives here to be destroyed. As for whether others put this first, we have to ask them what they think." Zhao Fuyun said.

"Okay, I, Xie Anlan, am very grateful for Taoist Fuyun's sincere words." While speaking, Xie Anlan stood up and bowed to Zhao Fuyun.

Everything ended here. The wind blew into the pavilion again, and the light inside was dissipated in the wind. The moon in the small stream next to it was also washed away by the water and turned into a broken dark white piece.

After they sent Zhao Fuyun to the door, they came back. Zhu Ke and Xie Anlan sat down again. This time there was no light in the pavilion, only the moonlight outside the pavilion falling on the ground.

"Tell me, is what he said true?" Xie Anlan asked.

"I think so." Zhu Ke said.

"Is there any basis for this?" Xie Anlan asked.

"No, it's just a feeling." Zhu Ke said.

There was another silence. Xie Anlan was only in his forties this year, and the years had not left many traces on his face. Compared to a foundation-building cultivator, he was still very young. Only after he was over 150 years old, if he had not been promoted to the Purple Mansion, would his internal organs slowly begin to decay.

Foundation-building cultivators always have some methods to prolong their lifespan, but their true lifespan is usually around 200 years old. Of course, if their foundation is damaged due to fighting with others, their lifespan will naturally be shorter.

In the entire Guangyuan Association, a foundation-building master is often the pillar of a family. Although Xie Anlan is not the person in charge of the family, he can be regarded as a successor and the youngest foundation-building master in the Xie family, so his words carry a lot of weight in the family.

This time when he came to contact Zhao Fuyun, he naturally got the approval of his family. The information obtained from Zhao Fuyun will also be spread among the families.

……

In front of a two-bedroom bungalow, a man in a sky blue Taoist robe stood in the shadows.

The moonlight shone on the door of the bungalow in front of him and came in through the crack.

Tao Xuanzhi looked up at the moon, and he couldn't help but think of his hometown. Every time the moon was full, he would pray to the moon god in the sky, praying for the health of his family and praying for a reunion next month.

He stood in the shadow, looking at the moon in the sky, praying silently in his heart, hoping that the Moon Goddess would bless him with a smooth journey.

Just now, when he was on patrol, he spotted a shadow, and then it followed him here.

I came to the door and reached out to push it. The door was ajar. With a dry creaking sound, the door opened. The moonlight spread on the floor of the main room, forming a white spot.

A mirror appeared in his hand. This mirror was called the Moon God Treasure Mirror. It was a magical tool that he had refined by himself using the divine sacrifice method. It was a bit like the statue of the Red Flame God that Zhao Fuyun had refined. On the back of the mirror was a prayer with the name of the Moon God in the middle.

At this moment, the mirror was held in his palm and placed in the moonlight. The originally dark mirror surface was now surging with moonlight, shining into the room.

Wherever the mirror light shone, white spots formed. This was a poor home, as he could tell from the dry goods hanging in the house. It should be inhabited by elderly people, that was his feeling.

Didn't see anything.

He walked in step by step. When a person enters the room, the moonlight seemed to follow him in. His body was hazy with the faint moonlight glow. With his entry, the room was no longer so dim.

He walked towards the bedroom.

The light of the Moon Goddess's Mirror in his hand did not disappear because it was separated from the moonlight. Instead, it emitted a holy glow like clear frost, illuminating an area like a lamp.

The bedroom door was completely covered by the mirror light. He did not approach it, but his magic power surged and turned into a gust of wind to blow open the bedroom door curtain.

There is no door to the bedroom, only a curtain.

The curtain had been used for so long that its original color could no longer be seen. In the moonlight, it was just a gray-brown color, as if it had originally had patterns on it.

The moment the magic power blew open the door curtain, one-third of the bedroom could be seen.

He walked closer, raised his hand and opened it, and the mirror light illuminated most of the other area.

Everything comes into view.

I didn’t see anything at first glance, but at second glance I saw a person kneeling on the ground.

His heart skipped a beat.

His mind tightened, his magic power contracted, and his left hand took out a talisman from his arms. These were all Red Flame Talismans, which were drawn by Zhao Fuyun and given to each person.

When the talisman appeared in his hand, it brought with it a sense of destroying evil and burning everything, which made him feel more at ease.

He looked carefully and saw that it was an old man.

The old woman's hair was already gray. Judging from her back and hair, she should be a woman.

In front of the woman was a box.

The box looked very old at first glance, like a former wedding box. Some of the red paint on it had fallen off and changed color, and at first glance it looked like a big black box.

She knelt in front of the big black box, exuding a sense of piety.

He had already learned from the chief of police that in the recent murders committed by the evil god, many people were strangely worshipping a box.

And in the boxes, there were dead bodies hidden.

But those corpses didn't look like they were forced in there by anyone; it was as if they went in there willingly.

Before, Tao Xuanzhi had only heard the captain of the police talk about it, but now he saw it with his own eyes.

There were three bowls in front of the woman, each with burnt paper in it. The faint smell of burning paper had not yet completely dissipated.

"Is she dead?" Tao Xuanzi asked in his heart. His intuition gave him the answer. The woman was no longer alive.

He didn't relax at all.

He slowly walked to the box and wanted to open it to see if there was a dead body in it.

If he guessed correctly, there was probably one, because there was only one woman and the person in the box should be the male owner of this family.

He walked closer and could see clearly that the woman's back beside the bed was like a bent stick, and it was clearly visible under her thin clothes that she was a very thin person.

She prostrated herself on the ground devoutly, with her hands exposed and skinny, her shoes had holes in them, and her trousers and clothes were patched at the ankles.

He took a few steps forward again, came to the box, looked at the black and red box, and did not see any runes on it.

He held the Moon Goddess Mirror in his mouth and stretched out his right hand to open the box.

Just as his hand touched the corner of the box, darkness came over him. At this moment, he felt as if he had entered a box, and the darkness closed in, just like the feeling of a box closing.

At this moment, he seemed to hear a voice in his ears.

The sound was like a woman's prayer.

That prayer was not evil. It was just a prayer for good things to happen. It was just a prayer to enter the box, to no longer suffer, to enter another beautiful world.

He didn't realize that there was actually a hint of expectation in his heart, an expectation that a world without suffering would appear here.

At this moment, he seemed to feel the wind, which seemed to carry his soul to the depths of that beautiful box.

The moonlight that was originally dimming on his body quickly dimmed.

At this moment, in the darkness, he saw the light again.

He was awakened by the appearance of fire, which was the light of the Red Flame Talisman.

Even without a driver, he was emitting fire.

The firelight in the thick darkness was like golden sword lights, tearing the darkness apart.

He saw clearly that he was still standing here, touching the corner of the box with his right hand. He couldn't help but retract his hand in fear. His eyes slid across the woman on the ground and found that the woman who was originally prostrating herself on the ground had tilted her head to one side and was looking at him with a pair of eyes full of whites.

There was a strong sense of anger in those gloomy eyes.

　Happy Mid-Autumn Festival everyone.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)