Xiuxian, I can travel to another world

Chapter 221 Divine Treasure Secrets
"clatter……"

With a flick of her short sword, Sang Rongrong sent the brocade box landing steadily on the altar where the Three Pure Ones were enshrined.

Ignoring the two corpses on the ground, she looked at the brocade box with a look of wild joy.

at this time.

Her movements suddenly froze, her expression of ecstasy also froze on her face, and her eyes were filled with terror.

Why can't I control my body?

"You dare to lay a finger on something belonging to the Three Pure Ones?"

A soothing, ancient sound rang out in the night sky, echoing throughout the entire hall.

"call!"

The torches, oil lamps, and candles hanging on the walls of the Sanqing Hall suddenly ignited, illuminating the surroundings with their light.

"Kachacha..."

Accompanied by strange noises, the enormous head above, which served as the mechanism's hub, turned around on its own.

what happened?

Sang Rongrong's forehead was sweating.

She was quite knowledgeable and had even met some highly skilled people who had accessed the divine treasures, but she had never encountered such a situation before.

It was as if an invisible force ignited the torches and turned the statue's head back to life.

ghost?
Her first reaction wasn't that it was a divine intervention, but that the place was haunted.

impossible!
I am a second-rank Martial Grandmaster, with abundant Qi and blood. Not to mention the absence of ghosts, even if there were, they would not be able to withstand the surge of my Qi and blood.

So……

The Divine Treasure Martial Saint!

That would be worse than a ghost story!

Just as her thoughts were turning, the three statues above suddenly lowered their heads and looked at Sang Rongrong.

"boom!"

Sang Rongrong's vision went black, and she felt a muffled thunderclap in her mind, her consciousness drifting away without a foothold.

"girl?"

"girl!"

After an unknown amount of time, Sang Rongrong heard someone calling her incessantly and groggily opened her eyes.

What came into view was a Taoist priest with an otherworldly air.

Who is the new abbot of Baiyun Temple who came today?

"girl."

Zhu Ju, holding a whisk, bowed.
"You're really sincere. You can't just come to worship the gods during the day, so you have to come at night. It seems you have some unresolved issues."

“…” Sang Rongrong was stunned for a moment, then looked around.

There were no corpses around, not even the smell of blood. The statues of the Three Pure Ones stood perfectly fine in the center of the hall, as if everything that had just happened was just a nightmare.

However, when her gaze fell on the incense table, her expression immediately changed, and her hands tightened.

A brocade box!

The items are still there!

"Are these offerings brought by the young lady?"

Zhu Ju also looked at the incense table, casually picked up the brocade box, and his expression changed slightly after seeing what was inside:
"It's too expensive."

Two will suffice!

As he spoke, he took out two gems from the brocade box and handed the rest of the items back along with the box.

And then he said:

“Young lady, you are truly a sincere person. You are willing to offer such valuable items. Your wish will surely come true.”

Sang Rongrong took the brocade box in a daze, her face full of confusion, and she didn't come to her senses until she walked out of Baiyun Temple.

That Taoist priest...

Weird!
Although her clothes were not night clothes, they were not the attire of an ordinary woman either. Moreover, she appeared in the dead of night with a flash of swords, and the Taoist priest completely ignored her. He was either fearless or a fool.

Of course, it's impossible for someone to be a fool.

Looking down at the brocade box, which contained three gems and an account book, her expression immediately relaxed.

Gemstones don't matter.

The ledger was her real objective for this trip.

As for this Taoist temple...

From now on, let whoever comes can come!
…………

After seeing off his 'neighbor,' Zhu Ju returned to his residence with a faint smile and took out a martial arts manual.

Nine Mountains Kung Fu

An ordinary name, yet it points directly to the realm of divine treasures.

Besides the gems and ledgers, the brocade box also contained a martial arts technique, which he naturally took without hesitation.

"The former abbot of Baiyun Temple was quite a talent. He not only had the account books of the prince's transactions with others, but also the secret manuals of the divine treasures."

"but……"

Zhu Ju flipped through a few pages, shook his head, and sighed softly:

"He probably stole this manual from somewhere and doesn't know the secrets of its incantation."

Any cultivation sect will value its own lineage highly and try every means to ensure that its techniques are not leaked.

It is customary to include cryptic incantations in secret manuals.

For example: Five hearts facing the sky.

There are several interpretations of this in Taoist practices, and each interpretation has its merits, but the results are not entirely the same.

If one cultivates haphazardly, at best one will gain nothing, and at worst one will suffer from qi deviation and demonic possession.

This is still good.

Some people even go so far as to write down seemingly plausible but actually misleading techniques in their manuals, guiding others to practice them incorrectly.

The true secrets are passed down orally.

To obtain the true teachings, one must either spend time gaining trust or spend money to purchase the secrets.

This book, "Nine Mountains Technique," is full of such formulas, so even if one has the secret manual, it is not easy to comprehend it.

"I don't need to go through that trouble."

Zhu Ju lightly waved his whisk:

"With so many techniques, it's not difficult to find out what others are doing. I don't believe that a father would keep his son's teachings a secret."

"but……"

"It seems we still need to recruit some disciples, otherwise the trouble we're facing today might continue."

Such a large Taoist temple, with only him present, is bound to attract unnecessary trouble.

The next day.

A notice recruiting Taoist novices appeared in front of Baiyun Temple.

*
*
*
"drive!"

"Xu..."

Mengyu stopped the carriage and lifted the curtain:

"Your Majesty, we're here."

"So fast?" Zhao An, the heir of the Marquis of Zhenyuan, rubbed his eyes and stepped down from the carriage to look at the Taoist temple ahead.
"Master Ziju lives not far from where we are, so we can come and visit often."

"what?"

"What is this doing?"

"Recruiting Daoist disciples." Meng Yu glanced around and said in a low voice:
"Taoist priests and monks in my Great Qi are exempt from taxes and can also be exempt from miscellaneous labor, making them the best option for ordinary people."

"Taoists do not prohibit marriage or abstain from meat, and are more popular than monks who have taken vows and observed precepts."

However, a large crowd of people gathered in front of Baiyun Temple, and under the direction of the brokers, they were divided into two groups to avoid interfering with each other.

Adults gathered to watch. A group of young children stepped forward one by one to showcase their talents.

Martial arts, magic, musical music, and even somersaults are all acceptable.

"I see." Zhao An nodded, glancing at the boy in front of the Taoist temple, his eyes flickering slightly.

"Is the Taoist priest testing them?"

"Excellent!" Meng Yu said with approval.
"Elders are prohibited from approaching, and each child is allowed to practice their special skills. Food is also provided, which helps to discern a child's talents and temperament."

"Sir."

What do you think of these children?

These words carry a hint of a test.

"Hmm..." Zhao An hesitated for a moment, his young age revealing a maturity and composure, and slowly said:
"Those few overweight teenagers must come from relatively well-off families compared to the others. However, apart from two of them, the rest are constantly eating and can't even control their gluttony. Their future achievements are probably limited."

"The girl in red on the left has an arrogant expression. She must be very pampered at home. She immediately changes her expression if she doesn't like what others say. She's not the type to serve others."

"The child on the right gets excited whenever someone makes a mistake; there's something wrong with his nature."

"Those two looked completely bewildered and lacked composure."

"..."

"If I had to choose, I would definitely choose the child in the blue dress and the girl in the purple skirt. They know better than anyone else what they want."

"Excellent!" Mengyu exclaimed.
"not bad!"

"The young master is born with a wise mind and the ability to see through people's hearts, which is even better than his talent for cultivation."

"It's important for people to know themselves."

She thought for a moment and said:

"The two people the young master has chosen are exactly like that; they are still young, but they already have the composure of adults."

"If you understand yourself, know what you want, and work hard to achieve it, you can control your desires and get on the right path. As long as you are not too bad at talent, you can achieve something with a little bit of luck."

Many people live their whole lives without understanding what kind of person they are or what they want.

To be able to understand people's hearts at a very young age is undoubtedly a talent.

"Aunt Meng."

Zhao An looked up and asked:
Do you share the same choice as me?

"No." Mengyu shook her head:
"I would choose those two."

She pointed and said:
"A child's mind is not mature and can be adjusted later in life, but it is very difficult to change one's innate constitution."

"and……"

Mengyu's expression was complicated:

"Although I am reluctant to admit it, sometimes being a little wicked makes it easier to succeed."

Of the two people she chose, one was cunning and deceitful, belonging to the type with a less than good character.

"Oh!" Prince Zhao An nodded, somewhat bewildered.

He was born intelligent, but having grown up in a noble family, surrounded by people who flattered him, he found it difficult to understand the complexities of human nature.

"Do you remember Granny Cai?" Mengyu thought for a moment and then asked.

What do you think of her personality?

"Very good." Zhao An nodded.
"He never cheats or shirks his duties, treats me with great respect, and manages many things very well."

He has a good personality and strong work ability, which is beyond doubt; otherwise, he wouldn't have stayed in the Marquis's mansion for so many years.

"Yes," Mengyu said.

"She is like this in front of you, but let me tell you, Granny Cai is ruthless. Sometimes, if someone says anything bad about her behind her back, she will be retaliated against. If she is slightly unhappy, she will beat and scold the people around her."

How would you feel?

"Ah!" Zhao An's face turned pale:
"No way?"

"That's the complexity of the human heart," Mengyu sighed.
"She is fiercely loyal to those who can benefit her, and can also ruthlessly suppress others."

"These kinds of people are very capable and you can trust them when you are strong enough, but once the situation changes, they are most likely to betray their master."

"so……"

"The princess never truly trusted her."

Zhao An seemed to be deep in thought.

These are the so-called "arts of employing people," which only royalty and noble families would study.

"squeak……"

As they were speaking, the gate of the Taoist temple opened, and Zhu Ju stepped out and bowed to the crowd.

"Thank you all for coming. However, Baiyun Temple only needs two young disciples. If you are not chosen, I will still give you travel expenses."

"you!"

"And you!"

He reached out and tapped lightly:
"come over."

"Huh?" Prince Zhao An looked surprised, turned his head to look at Meng Yu, and asked:
Why did the Taoist priest choose them?

In his view, the two children Zhu Ju chose were of mediocre talent, illiterate, and looked completely bewildered.

He has absolutely no special skills!
"Both of them are orphans, and they have pure and kind hearts," Mengyu said after thinking for a moment, though she wasn't entirely confident.
"The Taoist priest must have taken pity on them and was kind-hearted, which is why he accepted them and took care of them."

He frowned, puzzled.

It's not a good thing that an orphan is kind-hearted; in the secular world, such people are most easily bullied.

Moreover, they are often hungry and cold, resulting in extremely poor physical condition. Coupled with their mediocre talent, it is not worthwhile to train them.

"It seems you are a kind-hearted person, Daoist Master." Zhao An smiled.
"No wonder they came to my rescue."

Mengyu shook her head.

She didn't know much about Zhu Ju, but she didn't think he was a kind-hearted person. She feared he might have ulterior motives for recruiting Daoist disciples.

…………

Mengyu was clearly overthinking it.

Zhu Ju's requirements for the young Daoist disciples were very simple.

Being honest, obedient, and free from messy interpersonal relationships is even better; everything else is secondary.

Two orphans were a perfect match.

“You are orphans, and you have no names, only nicknames. From now on, you will follow me as my attendants.”

"Your name is Qingfeng, your name is Mingyue."

"Yes." Qingfeng and Mingyue knelt and kowtowed, answering in crisp voices:

"Thank you, Master Xie, for bestowing this name upon me."

"Call him Abbot!" Zhu Ju shook his head.
"Fine, I'll take the master then!"

"Both of you."

Turning around, Zhu Juchao, Meng Yu, and Zhao An gestured:
"sit."

"You two, serve the guests tea and water."

Qingfeng and Mingyue hurriedly grabbed a teapot and water cups, but they didn't know how to brew tea. Mengyu had no choice but to accept the result.

"I'm sorry to have made you two laugh at me."

Zhu Ju spoke:
“You two have come at just the right time. I was just about to ask you which important people live around here. I’m new here and know nothing about them. It would be bad if I offended one of them.”

If you want to learn about martial arts, you must choose the right target.

Even if Zhu Ju's divine soul power is strong, it is impossible for him to include everyone in the Starry Sky Workshop in his perception.

If you know which family has a master and what their lineage is, it's much easier to eavesdrop with a specific target in mind.

"Master, you're asking the blind for advice." Mengyu shook her head.
“We have only recently arrived in Shenjing and know very little about our neighbors. If you want to ask for information, you can go to the Yarenju.”

"or……"

"I've heard that there are places on the black market that specialize in buying and selling information. You could go and ask them, Master."

"Oh!" Zhu Ju stroked his chin, seemingly lost in thought.
"black market?"

(End of this chapter)