From a carp to a dragon god

At the foot of Wuyang Mountain, a series of villages stretched all the way to Fengtian City, and the people living there were the so-called "starving people".

Fengtian City is located at the intersection of three prefectures and is close to the inner sea port. Many people gather here and make a living by doing odd jobs and carrying goods. They only keep enough food for a few days at home.

Currently, a plague is raging in Fengtian City, and the northern market is becoming increasingly desolate. Many people have run out of food, and the starving people are being forced to go out and look for food.

Many starving people contracted the plague as a result and were sent to the furnace of the Golden Knife Hall by the soldiers of Fengtian City.

The air was thick with the smell of death and sickness. Yu Shuyang walked halfway, but in the end, he couldn't bear it and stopped.

Yu Shuyang took off the Qiankun Long Serpent Bag and ordered it to transform into a Taoist boy to follow him and help the "starving people".

The snake-shaped bag contained provisions for the dead from more than a dozen cities. These provisions were no different from those for the spirits; their sole purpose was to ensure that the soul of the deceased would return to the netherworld.

Stepping into one of the villages, there is a large locust tree at the entrance, and not far from the tree, there is a well made of stones.

Just as Yu Shuyang was about to step inside, a "corpse" on the ground struggled to raise its head and shouted, "Young man, stop right there! Don't go any further!"

His voice was weak and feeble, as if he were about to die.

"Long Snake, feed him some food," Yu Shuyang said.

He observed with his divine eyes throughout the journey, and indeed, amidst the deathly and sickly aura, there was a faint trace of auspicious calamity.

At this point, he couldn't tell whether the plague was caused by a calamity or whether someone was taking advantage of the situation to spread the plague.

Logically speaking, while it is true that ominous omens correspond to epidemics, when they occur, they mostly present with symptoms of wind-cold and cold, and would never turn into plague.

Yu Shuyang felt that the plague incident, like the Earthly Tai Sui, was eerie and that someone was manipulating it behind the scenes.

The snake boy took out the spirit food from his snake pouch. Seeing that he couldn't feed it directly to the person on the ground, he rubbed and kneaded the spirit food into powder with both hands, then drew water from the well and fed it to the person.

This man was a member of the village's militia, similar to a member of the local militia. Ever since the plague broke out, each village had sent people to stand guard to prevent anyone carrying the disease from returning.

At first, the villagers still had food at home and could wait. Relief grain was delivered from Fengtian City and Beihuochang, which reassured the villagers.

As the plague escalated and spread to Fengtian City, all contact between the city and the outside world was completely cut off, and the poor people began to starve.

"Fellow villager, I have some grain here. Why don't you take my servant and distribute it to each household?" Yu Shuyang said to Ding Hu on the ground.

That Dinghu was also a middle-aged man. When he heard that the grain had been delivered, he was immediately moved to tears. Ever since the plague became more and more severe, these people had no strength left to escape.

The long-snake boy helped Dinghu up and followed him to deliver ghost food to each household in the village. He was a straightforward person and could easily deliver a hundred or so catties of ghost food with a wave of his hand.

The household was frightened by the long snake boy's actions and guessed that they had encountered a deity. They immediately abandoned their selfish thoughts and obediently led the long snake boy to each household.

The Long Serpent Child felt that this was too slow, so he asked Ding Hu to give him directions. He then used the Qiankun Dao Restriction to send the Netherworld Food home from a distance.

In some families, the husband and wife were lying in bed, waiting to die, when suddenly they heard a loud noise and more than 100 kilograms of rice appeared out of thin air, leaving the couple speechless with shock.

Yu Shuyang ignored how the Serpent Child delivered the food to the underworld. He opened his divine eyes and followed his senses, arriving at the Pit of Infants.

These baby pits are all stinking ditches, mostly for infants who were born but could not be raised, or whose babies were disabled or died young.

Logically speaking, most infant pits are located near local temples, so that there is a place to suppress them and prevent the wandering ghosts from causing trouble.

Unfortunately, these villages have no farmland to cultivate, so naturally there are no local temples, and sometimes they are indeed haunted.

For this reason, the altars for the Earthly Tai Sui quickly spread, and parents who had lost their children would come here to worship.

Yu Shuyang waved the command flag in his hand, capturing the standing Tai Sui statue on the bank of Yingkeng and directly putting it into the Qian Gang space.

This Qian Gang Space is similar to the Qian Tian Maze, both being bubble-like spaces. Yu Shuyang previously used the Qian Gang Space to house the Sea Toad Dao Soldier.

Once the standing Tai Sui statue was taken away, a mouse in the infant pit squeaked twice, which initially did not attract Yu Shuyang's attention.

After he collected three or four statues in a row, he saw the rats squeaking and realized something was wrong.

After taking one of them, Yu Shuyang realized the problem!
The rat carries the bloodline of the "ear rat," a calamity-bringing beast similar to the snake and the flying ox, all of which are imbued with a sense of misfortune.

Yu Shuyang instantly understood that the source of the plague was here; someone had released rats with the bloodline of the ear rat.

It seems that the person who released the plague was in cahoots with the Tai Sui Dragon God of the Divine Era; otherwise, these rats wouldn't be specifically watching the statue of the god.

With this in mind, Yu Shuyang didn't hesitate. He collected the ear rat along with the statue and, relying on the perception of his divine eyes, circled around the various villages, visiting everything from infant pits to mass burial grounds.

After he finished collecting all the statues and ear rats outside Fengtian City, Yu Shuyang vaguely sensed a divine thought, which locked him in place.

Seeing the situation, Yu Shuyang did not dodge, but took out the Five Ominous Tai Sui Whip. The newcomer should be a divine cultivator, probably the mastermind behind the Tai Sui Dragon God of the Divine Generation.

Before long, a foul stench descended from the sky. This stench was the spread of disease, and ordinary people who smelled it would immediately suffer from headaches, fever, and general discomfort.

The foul wind dissipated, revealing an old man with gray hair. He held a banner, which was none other than the Five Plagues and Six Diseases Banner of the Eastern Demonic Sect.

The newcomer was none other than the "sickly, demonic doctor" who had appeared in the Huaihe River market years ago. The little old man was hunched over and had a stooped back, looking like a piece of decaying wood, as if he could breathe his last at any moment.

"So you're just a rogue Taoist priest. It seems you don't even have a master. How did you end up getting involved with the Fragrance Scent Sect!"
"Enough! Enough! Heaven has sent down this calamity; it is your destiny to die here today!"

The sickly doctor looked Yu Shuyang up and down a few times, but because of the obscuring effect of the Qian Gang Xuan light, he couldn't see anything unusual. He didn't take Yu Shuyang's mid-stage sixth-rank cultivation seriously at all.

As the Five Plagues and Six Diseases Banners fluttered, the phantom images of five rats with ears appeared, each corresponding to one of the five directions of plague. The six tails on the banners also fluttered, emitting six-colored light.

Yu Shuyang held the Dongyuan Xuantian Flag in his left hand and the Five Ominous Tai Sui Whip in his right. When he saw the Five Plagues and Six Diseases Dharma Aura being unleashed, he simply flicked the long whip in his hand.

The five Tai Sui whips scattered like flowers, one whip turning into five, each of the five colors of ominous energy turning into a whip. Among them, the green ominous whip stopped the plague and disease, while the other four whips were lashed at the disease demon doctor.

The Heavenly Tribulation has been decreed, and five demonic sects are tasked with killing people. This is a calamity carried out in accordance with the will of Heaven. However, the Divine Sect has an agreement with the demonic sects that its disciples will not participate in the calamity.

It was fate that the Five Ominous Tai Sui Whip was a divine weapon, originally meant to subdue the sick, the demonic, and the doctor. Now, though it was a deliberate act of cunning, it unexpectedly struck the doctor.

The "Demon Doctor" had also cultivated to the early stage of the third rank, and had withstood the lashes of the four calamities. He was eroded by the magical auras of fire, flood, drought, and cold, and his luck was weakened by the power of the Grand Duke Jupiter.

"you you!"

The sick doctor was so angry that he couldn't speak. He never expected to encounter a divine cultivator!
"Did you poison the plague? Did you also create the Tai Sui Dragon God's era?" Yu Shuyang questioned indifferently. The Five Ominous Tai Sui Whips were activated as usual. The five whips flashed like lightning, and the five-colored ominous energy each promoted a calamity magic. These were all made by the Five Ominous Hairy Men.

The doctor, who was suffering from a mental illness, was stunned for a moment before realizing that he had been tricked again. He wanted to explain, but didn't know where to begin.

"This Taoist priest, we've all been fooled by that sly fox from the Fragrance Scent Sect!"

Yu Shuyang stopped whipping and asked, "I don't care about the mess between your Eastern Demonic Sect and the Fragrance Sect. I'm just asking you, did you create the Standing Tai Sui?"

The replacement of gods is taboo, and it is an even greater disgrace to the gods who are replaced by gods, which made the sick and evil doctor look panicked.

"Young Taoist priest, please don't misunderstand. I am also an elder of the Eastern Demonic Sect. How could I do such a taboo thing!"
It was those vixens from the Scent of Incense Sect who did it. I just sent out some plague rats to keep an eye on the idols and wait for those vixens to show themselves!
You must believe me! Our Divine Sect and Demonic Sect both follow the divine path of cultivation; we would never do anything against the divine way!

The sick doctor was busy explaining, fearing that he might offend Yu Shuyang. Years ago, there was a calamity when the Divine Sect and the Demonic Sect fought, and the Five Demonic Sects were almost wiped out.

"What's the deal with the Fragrance Cult? Who exactly did this thing in the Age of Gods?" Yu Shuyang asked, seizing the opportunity.

He could tell that the demonic healer was bound by the oath between gods and demons, and had broken the rules by acting rashly just now, so he had no choice but to bow his head and speak softly.

“Young Taoist priest, as you know, there’s a matter between my Eastern Demonic Sect and the Fragrance Sect. During the last calamity, the two demons, Fragrance Fox and Fragrance Moth, faced the calamity.”

That sly fox risked his life to help the Fragrant Moth God ascend to godhood. Relying on the restriction of the Great Oath of Gods and Demons, he led the followers of the Fragrance Cult to attack the Eastern Demon Island, almost causing the destruction of the Eastern Demon Sect.

Now that the calamity has begun again, the disciples and followers of Xianghu and Xiang'e have raised their banners and established their own sects, attempting to wage another war against our Eastern Demonic Sect.

I came here following the divine secrets. I saw a group of fox spirits preaching and building temples around Fengtian City. According to the rules of the gods, I did not make things difficult for them.

Unexpectedly, Xiang'e's disciples and grand-disciples arrived. Back then, Xianghu sacrificed herself to die in the calamity, and had no chance to be reborn.

"The Fragrant Moth ascended to godhood and was punished by the great oath of gods and demons, but it did not completely perish. The matter of the generation of gods was caused by the Fragrant Moth's disciples and grand-disciples," the Sick Demon Doctor explained in detail.

Yu Shuyang nodded. He remembered after listening to the narration that Fan Liulang was a fox spirit who had become a demon. He originally lived in the northern part of Zhongzhou and was captured and taken to the Fox Kingdom of Qingqiu.

Originally, neither Fan Liulang nor Cao Xiaoshan were able to cultivate, but he used the Tribulation of Microcosm to refine them, which gave them the opportunity to cultivate.

That's why Cao Xiaoshan and Fan Liulang were sent to Menzhou, but unexpectedly, they continued the scheme of the Wenxiang Sect.

"Is this really true?" Yu Shuyang asked doubtfully.

Not long ago, the Fragrant Rat also said that the events of the Divine Era were related to the Fragrant Canopy Goddess, but Yu Shuyang did not believe it at the time.

“Young Taoist priest, this is absolutely true. I am a disciple and disciple who have been chasing after Xiang'e all the way, and I have just arrived in Fengtian City of Menzhou.”

"Besides, this matter is right in front of me, how can I fool you?" The sick doctor hurriedly pointed to a spell and swore an oath.

Upon seeing this, Yu Shuyang was also convinced that the cultivators of the Demonic Sect were all madmen. Some of them were simply restricted by the Heavenly Dao, while others were completely controlled by it.

"Where are the disciples and descendants of that fragrant moth?" Yu Shuyang continued to ask.

"Sigh! I'm looking for it too!"

Ever since the emergence of the Earthly Grand Duke, that fragrant fox has been making things difficult for them at every turn. The two sides fought for a while, and eventually both disappeared without a trace!

The doctor, who was suffering from a severe illness, was so angry that his teeth itched. He felt like he had been tricked.

Yu Shuyang was at a loss for words. Only now did he realize that the "sick doctor" was a simpleton, otherwise he wouldn't have been deceived time and time again.

"So you also caused this plague?" Yu Shuyang finally couldn't help but ask.

Originally, he wasn't fixated on the plague. After all, he was in a hurry to come to Menzhou to resolve the matter of the Divine Era and to bring back Cao Xiaoshan and Fan Liulang.

“Young Taoist priest, Heaven sends down a calamity, and man bears the consequences. This plague in Menzhou is a killing intent of Heaven and Earth, and I have only come here in response to the times.”

Seeing that he had explained things enough, the sick and evil doctor clasped his hands in a salute and said, "Young Taoist priest, everything has been explained clearly, so I won't bother you any longer. Let's take our leave now."

After speaking, the venomous doctor once again transformed into a gust of foul wind and fled swiftly.

Seeing this, Yu Shuyang did not intervene. He understood that the plague was not caused by his bad luck, but by the disciples and followers of Xiang'e.

I just don't know where Cao Xiaoshan and Fan Liulang are now, or if they've really gone to hide in the Nanjiang Water Mansion.

Or perhaps, they were captured by the Dragon Palace of the Water Mansion.

Just as Yu Shuyang was pondering, the Long Snake Boy came over with a person in a green robe and with disheveled hair. The person in the green robe was similar to Yu Shuyang's second brother-in-law and exuded the fragrance of medicine.

“Lord, this is a doctor from Fengtian City named Wu De. He saw me distributing grain and followed me, saying he wanted to see you.”

Before the serpent boy could ask any questions, he quickly explained.

"Young Taoist priest, please. On behalf of the disaster-stricken people outside the city, I thank you."

Wood bowed deeply, his expression of genuine admiration.

Since the plague broke out in Fengtian City, he was sent outside the city to be under control. He watched as people starved to death and were injured by hunger. Some people didn't care even when they got sick, and just waited to die of the disease.

Yu Shuyang smiled broadly. Through his divine pupils, he could clearly see that Dr. Wood was shrouded in the Heavenly Doctor Star, clearly the doctor who had saved him.

Back then, he awakened his dragon-carp bloodline on the treasure ship, but due to the conflict in the bloodline inheritance, he fell into a coma.

In the end, it was his junior brother Li Taiping who used magic to summon a physician, a celestial healer, to help select the dragon carp bloodline using acupuncture.

"Brother Wood, why are you here all alone?" Yu Shuyang asked curiously.

Doctors have always taken on apprentices with them, teaching their skills through verbal instruction and personal example. This is how my second brother-in-law, Bai Youyuan, taught his two sons.

"Alas, with the plague raging right now, we can't just bring them here to die!" Wood couldn't help but sigh again.

He is protected by the divine power of the Heavenly Physician Star and will not be affected by the plague, but those students will not be able to.

(End of this chapter)