Journey to the West: Deer Power Immortal, Starting from Becoming a Disciple of the Supreme Lord Tais

"Is Mr. Zhou's body still intact?" Lu Qingxuan asked.

The woman wiped away her tears and was about to answer when the short, fat man, impatient, grabbed Lu Qingxuan by the collar and snarled, "Didn't you hear me? This family offended the River God. The man died, so his children should make up for it! If you keep nagging, I'll take you down with me..."

Before he could finish speaking, the short, fat man recoiled as if burned by a hot iron, wincing in pain.

Lu Qingxuan merely flicked his collar, not even lifting his eyelids.

"What kind of sorcery did you use?" The short, fat man covered his hand, a look of fear on his face.

Lu Qingxuan ignored him, instead looking around and addressing the onlookers in the neighborhood: "You just said that the man in this family died because he didn't offer his children to the river god?"

An old woman with a pointed mouth and monkey-like face jumped out, spitting everywhere: "That's right! The River God has appeared and said that the feng shui of our East Street is bad, and we need to offer sacrifices to young boys and girls to ensure peace."

Last month, the Wang family's daughter was sacrificed, and the Wang family is fine; the previous year, the Zhao family's son was also sacrificed, and the Zhao family is also safe and sound.

"This Zhou family, they refused to surrender no matter what, and the man died! What else could this be but punishment from the River God?!"

The others chimed in, chattering about how the river god was efficacious and that if they didn't offer sacrifices, even more people would die.

Upon hearing this, Lu Qingxuan sneered inwardly.

The so-called river god's punishment is mostly just some monster or water ghost taking the opportunity to make money and eat people, or it's a pretext made up by greedy and evil people in order to abduct children.

This week, Mingyuan's soul was inside his jade bottle. It was clearly taken away by that evil spirit, and had nothing to do with any river god.

Just then, the short, stout man recovered and beckoned his accomplices to surround him: "This Taoist priest is meddling in other people's business. Let's snatch the Zhou family's child first, then deal with him!"

Upon hearing this, several men rolled up their sleeves and were about to take action.

Lu Qingxuan sighed, and without making any move, he simply waved his sleeve, and a breeze blew by. The men were blocked as if by an invisible wall, unable to get close.

The short, stout man in the lead, refusing to believe it, drew his curved sword and slashed at Lu Qingxuan.

With a clang, the scimitar struck a layer of faint golden light, causing the man's hand to split open and the scimitar to slip from his grasp.

The short, stout man cried out and fell to the ground, finally frightened. He scrambled backward, stammering, "Who...who are you?"

Lu Qingxuan glanced at him indifferently, his voice calm: "I am a cultivator, and I will naturally intervene when I see injustice. Besides, I have some karmic connection with the Zhou family, so I will not allow you to act recklessly."

His words were forceful and carried an undeniable air of authority. The neighbors who had initially joined in the commotion looked at each other and gradually quieted down. A few who felt guilty had already quietly retreated a little.

The short, stout man shouted, his voice trembling with fear, "Stop trying to scare us! This family was specifically requested by the River God. If we anger him, not only will you, a mere Taoist priest, be implicated, but we will all suffer the consequences!"

"The River God?"

A cold glint flashed in Lu Qingxuan's eyes. "Then I'd like to see just what kind of being this River God is, daring to harm the people here."

Upon hearing this, everyone fell silent.

Someone muttered under their breath: "That Taoist priest has quite the big mouth."

Seeing that he had calmed the situation, Lu Qingxuan didn't press the matter further. He turned to the young woman and said gently, "Madam, may I go and see Mr. Zhou's body?"

The woman, already stunned by the series of events, finally regained her senses and hurriedly nodded, wiping away her tears, saying, "Please, Taoist priest, please!"

As she spoke, she pulled the two children aside and let Lu Qingxuan in.

The people outside the door were still standing there, some wanting to leave, some wanting to watch the excitement, but none of them dared to take another step forward.

The short, fat man got up from the ground, covered his hand, glared at Lu Qingxuan's back, whispered to the person next to him to tell the River God, and then slunk away with his accomplices.

As Lu Qingxuan stepped into the Zhou family's courtyard, a strong aroma of medicine and incense wafted towards him.

A thin wooden coffin sat in the backyard, its lid not nailed shut but only slightly ajar.

The woman led her to the coffin and said in a deep voice, "Taoist priest, my husband is here. We really don't have the money to buy a good coffin, and we can't bear to bury him, so... so we've just left it here. My mother-in-law said that maybe Mingyuan will wake up one day."

In the end, she herself realized how absurd her words were, and tears streamed down her face again.

Lu Qingxuan offered some words of comfort, then pushed open the coffin lid. Inside lay a thin man in his thirties, his face pale and lifeless, but fortunately, his skin had not yet decayed and was well preserved.

He took out a jade bottle from his sleeve. The spirit inside the bottle seemed to sense something, trembling slightly, and a faint wisp of spiritual light flowed around the bottle.

"Madam Zhou," Lu Qingxuan turned around and said solemnly, "If I told you that your husband is not dead, but merely his soul has left his body, and that I have a way to bring him back to life, would you be willing to try?"

The woman suddenly raised her head, tears still streaming down her face, but a glint of light flashed in her eyes, and her voice trembled: "Taoist Master...is what you said true?"

The white-haired old woman was also very excited and hurriedly asked, "Taoist Master, is my son really still alive?"

"Absolutely true." Lu Qingxuan nodded.

The young woman nodded solemnly: "In that case, I am deeply grateful to the Taoist priest for bringing my husband back to life!"

"good."

Lu Qingxuan said, "In that case, Madam Zhou, please step back a few steps with the old man while I perform my magic to call your husband's soul back to its place."

Madam Zhou hurriedly helped her mother-in-law back to the door, then shielded her two children behind her, her eyes fixed on the thin coffin, her fingers trembling slightly with tension.

The neighbors who had been watching the commotion outside also looked over, wondering whether Zhou Mingyuan was dead or alive.

Lu Qingxuan took a deep breath and released Zhou Mingyuan's soul from the jade bottle.

Zhou Mingyuan's soul seemed to have been tormented by evil spirits for a long time, hanging in mid-air looking around blankly, not knowing where he was.

However, when he looked at the people at the door, his soul trembled, and tears seemed to glisten on his blank face. He staggered a step toward them, but was pulled back by some invisible force and could not get closer.

Lu Qingxuan knew that his soul had been separated from his body for too long and its connection with his physical body had weakened. If it did not return to its place in time, it would likely dissipate again.

Without further hesitation, he pushed with his palm, and Zhou Mingyuan's soul, like a kite blown by the wind, drifted and fell into the coffin.

At the same time, Lu Qingxuan flicked his finger, sending a burst of magical power into the coffin to protect Zhou Mingyuan's heart meridian and guide his soul and body to merge into one.

Once everything was done, a soft halo suddenly shone from the coffin, and Zhou Mingyuan's pale face faded at a visible speed, replaced by layers of faint blood color. His previously stagnant chest also rose and fell slightly at this moment.

Then came the second, the third...