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Chapter 141 Zhen Yuanzi

Zhen Yuanzi's return was like a timely rain after a long drought, instantly dispelling the gloom that permeated the Wuzhuang Temple.

Inside and outside the mountain gate, the disciples who remained behind seemed to have found their pillar of support, and they all rushed out, bowing their heads respectfully to welcome them.

Zhen Yuanzi was dressed in an ordinary wide-sleeved Taoist robe, his figure was simple, and he was not surrounded by divine light, but he had a profound and majestic air about him, as if he were one with the Wanshou Mountain beneath his feet. He calmly swept his gaze over the people below him and nodded slightly.

"You all look terrified and walk unsteadily. What has happened?"

His voice was not loud, but it clearly reached the ears of each disciple, carrying a hint of inquiry.

The ninth senior brother, who was leading the group, quickly stepped forward, beads of sweat appearing on his face, and said respectfully.

"Master, please forgive me, something terrible has happened! After you left the temple with the Guanyin Bodhisattva's Buddhist scroll, we welcomed a group of distinguished guests from the Supreme Lord Laozi of the Tushita Palace. However, the reincarnation of Marshal Tianpeng who accompanied them, that pig demon Zhu Ganglie, was incredibly audacious. He sneaked into the forbidden area of ​​the back garden at night and destroyed our temple's most precious treasure, knocking down the ginseng immortal tree!"

He spoke very quickly, glancing furtively at Zhen Yuanzi's reaction as he hurriedly added to his sentences.
"By the time we disciples noticed something amiss, the pig demon had already fled in fear of punishment. As for the people of the Tushita Palace,"

Ninth Senior Brother paused briefly, carefully choosing his words,
"Although they are temporarily staying in the temple, the Silver Furnace Boy chased after the pig demon last night and has not returned. Currently, only Chen and Yuan are in the west wing. This catastrophic theft of the ginseng fruit may cause great trouble for them..."

Zhen Yuanzi remained unmoved, as if he had heard something trivial. He simply raised his hand to interrupt him, saying, "We'll discuss this later. Lead the way, let's go see that tree first."

The group quickly led the way. Upon arriving at the backyard, they saw that the once majestic and towering Heaven and Earth Spiritual Root, with its branches and leaves blocking out the sun, was now lying on the ground in a sorry state, its roots curled up, revealing a mess of black mud and signs of decay beneath.

Zhen Yuanzi stood before the fallen giant tree, showing no sign of anger. He simply flicked his sleeves lightly across the tree trunk.

"rise."

As the deep voice fell, an invisible yet vast magical power surged forth like a tide.

A soft "crack" sound was heard, the sound of the broken root forcefully mending itself. The massive, heavy tree trunk seemed to be steadily and slowly lifted and straightened by an invisible giant hand.

The ginseng fruit tree, as if it had never fallen, stood tall again in the garden. The broken roots, nourished by magical power, quickly healed, and fresh soil rolled up to cover them.

The disciples in the garden, who were originally filled with fear and anxiety, all revealed a near-fanatical worship and a sense of peace after witnessing this almost miraculous power that reversed the course of events.

However, the Ninth Senior Brother and the others knew in their hearts that the tree roots had been broken and the immortal source had been damaged. Even if it was restored to its original state, it would be severely damaged and it would be difficult to restore its former spiritual charm.

Zhen Yuanzi looked at the fruit trees that had been rebuilt and spoke calmly, but his voice sent a chill down everyone's spine.
"The ginseng fruit tree is the foundation of our temple, and its loss is unacceptable. Although I am not here, there are still many disciples guarding it. The fall of such a large tree caused quite a commotion, yet it was not noticed until dawn, and no one noticed at all. This is truly absurd. What is the reason for this?"

All eyes instantly turned to Qingfeng and Mingyue, who were supporting each other and hiding behind the crowd.

Qingfeng's face turned deathly pale, and Mingyue's legs went weak. Qingfeng, his neck stiff, tried to explain, "Master, last night I was tricked by that pig demon..."

"Master!" Ninth Senior Brother spoke first, his voice filled with helplessness and impartiality, pointing towards Qingfeng and Mingyue.

"The responsibility of guarding the Immortal Tree indeed falls to my two junior brothers, Qingfeng and Mingyue. I had repeatedly instructed them to watch over it day and night without any slackening, but they only realized something was wrong when they woke up in the morning. We were in the front yard and did not receive any warning, so we were unaware that something serious had happened."

Although the other disciples did not speak, their gazes toward Qingfeng and Mingyue were filled with unspoken reproach. If the two of them had not neglected their duties and slept soundly, how could that pig demon have succeeded?
Qingfeng was both anxious and angry, glaring at his Ninth Senior Brother, still wanting to argue. Mingyue, on the other hand, was so frightened that she fell silent, only daring to lower her head and tug at Qingfeng's sleeve.

Zhen Yuanzi's gaze fell on Qingfeng Mingyue, calm and composed, yet carrying an undeniable air of authority.
“To neglect one’s duties and cause the loss of a precious treasure is a grave offense.”

He paused, then pronounced, "Gentle breeze, bright moon, the Reflection Rock on the back mountain, face the wall for ten years, and quietly reflect on your faults."

Ten years. Qingfeng and Mingyue's faces turned ashen. Qingfeng's eyes blazed with venomous fire as he glared at his Ninth Senior Brother, his teeth grinding together. Mingyue, meanwhile, knelt on the ground with a thud.

Zhen Yuanzi turned his gaze to his ninth senior brother.

"Jiuchen, as the person in charge of the temple, you failed in your command, which led to this great disaster. You are also at fault. You are punished by being confined to the quiet room for one month to reflect on your mistakes."

Ninth Senior Brother bowed deeply, sweat beading on his forehead. "Disciple accepts the punishment. Thank you for your mercy, Master."

After dealing with his disciples, Zhen Yuanzi turned around, as if the earth-shattering event he had just witnessed was nothing more than brushing off a speck of dust.
“A friend has come from afar, especially a distinguished disciple of Laozi of the Tushita Palace. To neglect such an honored guest would be a loss for Wuzhuang Temple. Jiuchen, come with me to invite him.” He strode forward, and his ninth senior brother quickly wiped his sweat and followed.

Inside the guest room in the west wing, Yuan Shoucheng rubbed his hands together and paced back and forth.
"Zhen Yuanzi is back, shall we go?"

Chen Guangrui sat upright at the table, his expression calm and composed.

"What's the panic? The clues are currently unclear, and Zhen Yuanzi might not be in a hurry to break ties while we're entangled in this mess. If Yinlu Tongzi has already returned to the Tushita Palace, our staying here can buy us some time. Every day we can delay adds another layer of uncertainty."

As they were talking, they heard no footsteps outside the door, but the door opened silently.

Zhen Yuanzi's simple figure appeared at the door, with his ninth senior brother standing half a step behind. The disciples outside the door stood in solemn silence, and the Taoist priest who had been guarding the door was nowhere to be seen.

"It is my fault for neglecting our distinguished guests."

A perfectly measured smile of embarrassment appeared on Zhen Yuanzi's face as he bowed to Chen Guangrui and Yuan Shoucheng, showing none of the arrogance of an ancestor of earth immortals, but rather like old friends reuniting after many years.

Chen Guangrui and Yuan Shoucheng hurriedly stood up to return the greeting, while wondering in their hearts what seniority Zhen Yuanzi was and what their status was. How could this Great Immortal Zhen Yuan be so humble?
"Great Immortal Zhenyuan, you flatter me," Chen Guangrui said calmly.

Zhen Yuanzi's gaze swept over the two of them, his tone still gentle and apologetic.

"I was invited by Guanyin Bodhisattva to the South China Sea to discuss the Dao, but unexpectedly such a mishap has occurred at my temple. Alas, this year my temple was planning to offer ginseng and immortal fruit to express our respect for Laozi. Unfortunately, fate has not been kind to us, and this calamity has caused all the immortal fruit to be lost. We were unable to let our distinguished guests and the young attendants taste even a little bit of it, and instead, we have caused them all distress and worry. I am truly at peace with myself, and I must personally visit the Tushita Palace to apologize to Laozi."

His words were earnest, and his posture was extremely humble, as if Wuzhuang Temple were the biggest victim and he felt deeply ashamed before Doushuai Palace.

"You flatter me, Immortal. I dare not accept such praise," Chen Guangrui said calmly.

Zhen Yuanzi then turned to his ninth senior brother, his tone casual yet carrying an unquestionable command.
"Jiuchen, go to the storeroom and fetch two items. Hmm, the Four Seas Clouds and Water Pendant and the Seven Stars Heart Lock Hairpin that were sent by Qionghua Palace two years ago."

The Ninth Senior Brother understood immediately and left quickly. He returned a moment later, respectfully presenting two jade plates, each containing a magical artifact imbued with spiritual energy.

"This is but a small gift, hardly enough to express my respect," Zhen Yuanzi said with a friendly smile, gently presenting the jade plate forward.
"Consider this a token of apology and compensation for disturbing our distinguished guests. You two have descended to the mortal realm by order of Laozi, and you must be very busy and cannot afford to be delayed. We disciples are foolish enough to have lingered here, which is truly impolite. Please take this apology back with you and convey my apologies to Laozi. I will immediately send someone to escort you down the mountain, and there will be no delay."

Although they offered gifts and apologized, adopting a very humble attitude, it was practically a clear invitation to leave.

Chen Guangrui guessed that Zhen Yuanzi wanted him to leave so that he could focus on "handling" the cooperation with Penglai and the Buddhist sect.

He showed just the right amount of hesitation and determination on his face, and cupped his hands in a gesture of respect to Zhen Yuanzi, saying, "Great Immortal, you are too kind. We dare not accept your apology. However, there are too many strange things about this matter."

His gaze swept over the ninth senior brother present and the disciples outside the door, and he spoke clearly,

"The ginseng fruit tree was previously knocked down, and your temple suspected that it was done by my Tushita Palace. However, the matter has not yet been investigated. If we leave now, it would be putting us at risk of suspicion. Not only will the doubts of the fellow Daoists of Wuzhuang Temple remain, but the reputation of my Tushita Palace will also be tarnished. In order to resolve your concerns, to prove our own innocence, and to be able to thoroughly report this matter when we report back to Laozi, we would rather stay in the temple for the time being. This matter must be thoroughly investigated."

Chen Guangrui's words were reasonable and well-founded. His insistence on staying, based on the grounds of finding out the truth and being responsible to Laozi, was entirely justified.

Yuan Shoucheng listened with great admiration, feeling that Chen Zhuangyuan's words were so eloquent, placing him on a moral high ground.

Zhen Yuanzi's smile finally faded slightly, and a hint of impatience seemed to flash in his eyes. But he quickly regained his approachable smile, as if he felt that Chen Guangrui was being too cautious.

"The truth will come out. The innocent will remain innocent, and the guilty will remain guilty. Immortal Chen is overthinking it."

He shook his head casually, flicking his whisk slightly, "I have already ascertained that this matter concerning the fruit tree has nothing to do with you."

His gaze shifted to the vast land beyond the courtyard, his voice, though soft, echoed clearly:

“This matter is easy to investigate. My Wuzhuang Temple also has local deities; we can ask them.”

(End of this chapter)