Dao Cheng Gui Xian

Chapter 190 The Bamboo Gentleman's Hundredth Birthday Banquet

Continue uphill along the mountain road

From time to time, a white bone lion crouching on a stone block leads the way.

After looking at several, Li Wushou finally understood that these white bone lions were not actually the remains of real lions transformed into evil spirits.

Its essence is similar to the evil spirits raised by the paper goddess Guanyin in the mountains. It is made by using human souls and bones to carve and refine the shape, and its appearance is entirely based on personal preference.

Near the summit of the main peak, the terrain suddenly opens up.

Unlike when Li Wushou came to implant bones before, this place has now been developed into a platform by Zhu Junzi.

The platform is circular, and the mountain is preserved symmetrically on both sides of the direction directly opposite Li Wushou, with a set of steps in the middle that extends towards the top of the mountain.

Before I even got close, I could hear the lively hustle and bustle around me.

After stepping over the last step, the view suddenly opened up.

Incense smoke curled across the platform, and long, three-foot-high tables were set up in the open air, paired with wide, low meditation stools, creating a harmonious scene.

Li Wushou surveyed the entire scene, and the layout of the platform at this moment was quite interesting.

Although Zhu Junzi did not divide the area, everyone who was seated in the room had already chosen their own seats.

The difference is quite noticeable from the food laid out on the table.

On the table to the left were wine, fruit, and some snacks that Li Wushou couldn't name.

Most of the guests sitting there were human-shaped, or at least appeared to be human.

Li Wushou recognized several familiar faces inside.

The old woman with a long face on her back was sitting on the left. Behind her stood four golden and silver boys, holding fans and fanning her from time to time.

Besides them, the couple who had been vomited up by the white dog with glaring eyes were also sitting on the left.

The white dog was lying behind the two of them, seemingly resting with its eyes closed, but Li Wushou could tell from its twitching nose that it was constantly observing its surroundings.

Besides them, there were several other people with similar auras to Sister-in-law Huang and Village Chief Huang. They carried a faint scent of incense and were probably priests or village chiefs from the surrounding villages.

The table on the right also had drinks, but the fruits and snacks had been replaced with plates of raw or cooked meat.

The guests seated there were mostly mountain spirits and evil spirits.

There are mountain turtles with human faces and fangs;
There are rabbits that walk upright with ears like swords;

There were also some evil spirits whose flesh and blood were already in a mess, and which had mutated into various flesh and organs, piled up together.

Of course, there are others besides them!

There were burly men feasting at the dining table, and Taoist priests with gloomy demeanors feeding raw meat to evil spirits—a truly diverse array of figures.

Unfortunately, after searching all over, Li Wushou still couldn't find the old snail.

Li Wushou also wanted to step to the right, but before he could move his leg, he stopped.

He noticed three meat racks placed side by side in the innermost right corner of the platform, near the mountain.

On the first meat rack, there were eight sheep hanging.

The second picture shows two dismembered cows hanging on the wall, their bright red beef jiggling, clearly freshly slaughtered.

As for the third one, it's a person that's hanging there!

They were completely naked and thoroughly cleaned. There were men and women among them. They had already been gutted and drained of blood, and were hanging upside down on the hooks of the meat rack.

Most of these people's internal organs were either placed on the dining table or went into the stomachs of the guests on the right.

A small portion remains inside the body, ready to meet the needs of guests.

Looking around, these people who were hanging all had one thing in common: they all looked very young, around fifteen or sixteen years old, a tender age.

Li Wushou carefully counted them. There were still six skeletons left. No, to be precise, there were five and a half. The other skeleton was being sliced ​​by another skeleton, and only a small portion of it remained.

Beside the three meat racks, a pile of bones, still streaked with blood, lay haphazardly—some from cattle, some from sheep, and of course, some from humans.
These bones look very fresh, so the banquet has obviously been going on for a while now.

Li Wushou turned and walked to the left, finding an empty table at the very end and sitting down.

Aside from an initial scrutiny, no one reacted much to his arrival.

Or perhaps it's more accurate to say that the people attending the banquet all seemed to harbor some wariness towards each other.

Looking around, people were either alone or in groups of two or three at a table. Unless they were very familiar with each other, most people did not exchange pleasantries with each other. There were quite a few people like Li Wushou who sat alone.

Li Wushou took out the incense stick from his chest and stuck it in the crack of the wine table. He picked up a piece of pastry, intending to put it in his mouth to taste it, but just as it reached his lips, he put it back and replaced it with a piece of melon.

"Why aren't you eating, Li Wushou!"

Chen Gou'er scratched his head, somewhat puzzled.

"The filling is wrong!"

Li Wushou responded and then regained his composure.

After he picked up the pastry, he discovered that the filling contained a mixture of human and mutton meat. Although it smelled good, he was clearly not destined to enjoy it.

But the guests on the left were eating very well, whether they didn't notice or didn't care.
Li Wushou took everything in, and couldn't help but sigh inwardly:
"What a feast of demons!"

I sat quietly for a while longer.

The group of people who had been arguing with the white bone lion at the foot of the mountain also came up, cursing and swearing.

Unlike Li Wushou's earlier composure, they were very curious about everything because it was their first time there.

After some deliberation, the group found an empty table next to Li Wushou and sat down.

After that, several more guests arrived, some sitting on the left and some on the right, but in Li Wushou’s view, there was no difference.

Once the platform was nearly full, a cicada's chirping suddenly filled the air at the mountaintop. Li Wushou frowned; it was that cicada's chirping again!
He had stopped hearing it shortly after entering the main peak, but it started again now. However, this time it didn't last long; the cicadas chirped for a moment and then stopped.

The group, who had been exchanging pleasantries, suddenly fell silent.

Then, those who had experience with birthday celebrations all looked towards the innermost step of the platform.

Clearly, the mysterious Bamboo Gentleman is about to make his appearance!

Li Wushou also looked over with some curiosity, as he had never seen this Bamboo Gentleman before.

Once on the platform, he deliberately averted his gaze.

After all, the incense on his table hadn't been lit yet, the old beggar's door wasn't closed properly, and this Zhu Junzi didn't know what was going on. It wouldn't be good if he became suspicious.

Moreover, when I spoke with the Donkey Taoist last time, he couldn't give me a clear answer either.

The Donkey Taoist said that when he came before, the Bamboo Gentleman had already left, and he hurriedly exchanged the "Immortal Dew" and returned to Huangmao Village.

After that, he focused all his attention on the soon-to-be-born Corpse Willow God in Huangmao Village, and he never came to the birthday celebration of the Bamboo Gentleman again.

According to the calculations of Village Chief Huang and Sister-in-law Huang, he was afraid that once he left Huangmao Village, everything would have to start all over again when he returned.

He agreed to represent Huang Maocun in offering birthday greetings this time because he intended to settle the matter concerning Huang Maocun.

He just didn't expect to run into Li Wushou, who was like a mantis stalking a cicada, and he and his entourage were wiped out.

With light footsteps, a flash of light appeared at the corner of the steps, and a figure that surprised Li Wushou stepped out from the corner.

The figure was not tall, not even as tall as the table in front of everyone, at most about three feet.

He walked down the steps with his hands behind his back, looking quite old-fashioned.

But his face clearly showed that he was a half-grown child, with a round face and big eyes, looking about five or six years old, even younger than Chen Gou'er.

Unlike ordinary children or people, this bamboo gentleman has skin as white as jade, and even his hair is the same color.

Its texture was smooth with a jade-like luster, yet it inexplicably gave Li Wushou a very hard feeling.

In addition, the clothes worn by this bamboo gentleman were also very stiff. He wore a gray-white gauze robe covered with mysterious mesh-like patterns. Unlike ordinary clothes that fit snugly, it looked somewhat like crumpled paper.

Standing firmly on the platform, though not tall, he possessed a commanding presence. If not for his childlike appearance, he truly lived up to the name of the Bamboo Gentleman.

Dozens of guests on the platform, whether human or spirit/evil spirit, rose to their feet, raised their glasses in congratulations, and said:
May your Taoist wisdom endure forever, and your wondrous teachings live as long as the heavens!

Li Wushou, who was also getting up, was slightly taken aback. So uniform?

Glancing at the other "seniors" beside him who were also somewhat bewildered, Li Wushou breathed a sigh of relief. Luckily, he wasn't alone.

Zhu Junzi stood on a stool in front of the table, picked up a wine cup slightly larger than his palm, and addressed the crowd:

Thank you all for coming!

His words were like gold, carrying a slight tremor that even the void seemed to ripple.

After finishing their drinks, everyone took their seats at Zhu Junzi's invitation.

Zhu Junzi sat at the main table, and the guests seated on his left and right began to toast each other, offering different congratulatory words.

Although Zhu Junzi's words were slightly stiff, he responded to everyone one by one.

Those who knew his temperament well didn't have any complaints, and the platform became lively for a while.

Li Wushou did not go up to offer a toast, but instead looked at the "seniors" beside him with great interest.

These people looked tense and somewhat anxious, frequently picking up and putting down their glasses, clearly eager to integrate into the group.

But there were too many people offering congratulations and pleasantries, and they couldn't get a word in edgewise.

After waiting patiently for everyone in front to finish their toasts, these individuals waited a moment, and seeing that no one else was standing up, they quickly picked up their glasses, ready to rise and deliver their prepared congratulatory speeches.

Suddenly, Zhu Junzi, who was sitting at the main table, stood up and clapped his hands.

Before the "seniors" could react, they heard cicadas chirping again from the mountaintop, and then skeletons suddenly emerged from the innermost steps.

Without exception, each of these skeletons held a white jade plate in its hand, on which lay an upside-down wine cup made of a skull, filled with wine.

Zhu Junzi slowly opened his mouth and said to everyone:

"This time the elixir is of excellent quality, please drink to your heart's content!"

The seniors sat back down, still looking embarrassed, but immediately glanced at the celestial dew placed on their table.

They had been tricked by the old snail at the foot of the mountain and were thinking of not participating this time, since they didn't have many spines prepared. If they paid for two more, they would have no spines left to exchange for immortal dew.

Wouldn't that mean we'd be celebrating a birthday with pure white?
But at this moment, the white bone lion at the foot of the mountain told them that this was the 100th birthday of the Bamboo Gentleman, and all those who came to celebrate would receive celestial dew wine.

That's why they came up with some skepticism, only to find out it was true!
The others were also quite surprised. Although they were equally eager for the elixir, they used their own methods to test it before drinking it.

This was undoubtedly a rude act, but Zhu Junzi didn't care, and the guests were used to it.

After the inspection, everyone showed expressions of surprise and delight, and bowed to the Master Zhu, who was seated in the main seat, to express their gratitude:
"Thank you for the generous gift, Mr. Xie!"

After expressing their gratitude, everyone drank the dew they had inspected in one gulp.

Zhu Junzi nodded slightly, then said to everyone with a rather solemn expression:

"The white bamboo on the mountaintop is growing well, and the quality of the fairy dew is getting better and better. These are all signs that this place is about to become a treasure land."

However, this precious land is newly formed, and the earth's energy is surging. It is difficult for me to calm it down by myself. This white bamboo forest is not easy to cultivate. If it is destroyed, it will be difficult to produce immortal dew in the future.

I implore you all to lend me a hand. Once this is accomplished, the celestial milk born from this precious land will be distributed among you ninefold, according to your contribution. How does that sound?

These words caused an uproar on the mountaintop.

Li Wushou held up his wine cup, a glint of shrewdness flashing in his eyes as well.

But it wasn't because of what Zhu Junzi said.
Instead, the incense he had placed in the crack of the table—it lit!
(End of this chapter)