Fairy Eye

"Hello, sir. I'm on my way to the city for a stroll." Seeing that the old man recognized him, Ah Chou wasn't surprised and walked over to answer respectfully.

Although he rarely went out, the name "Zhuxi A Chou" had already spread throughout several nearby villages.

"To the city?"

The old man stared at Ah Chou, then chuckled and said, "I heard your brother is coming home for the New Year. You weren't kicked out because you didn't like him, were you?"

Ah Chou was surprised that the other party had guessed the key point so quickly, and for a moment he didn't know how to respond.

The old man sighed: "You are really pitiful. I need to deliver hay to the Taoist temple on Jiming Mountain. The mountain is high and the road is dangerous, so the oxcart can't go up there."

"I'm getting old, and it's really hard for me to carry this cartload of hay by myself. How about I give you a ride up the mountain for me? Is that alright?"

"no problem."

Ah Fei thought about it for a moment and then agreed.

Then we boarded an oxcart and headed towards Jiming Mountain. Listening to the old man's ramblings along the way eased my previously depressed mood.

The oxcart, carrying heavy loads, did not travel very fast. It took more than an hour before it finally arrived at the foot of a snow-covered rocky mountain.

The old man jumped off the vehicle, glanced up at the mountaintop, and turned to Ah Chou, saying, "We've arrived at Jiming Mountain. Could you please help me carry some hay?"

"it is good."

Ah Chou followed, picked up two large bundles of hay, and headed up the mountain.

The mountain road was winding and rugged, and it was difficult for ordinary people to walk on. Fortunately, Ah Chou was used to doing farm work, so although it was a bit strenuous, he could still bear it.

The elderly people behind them, even if they were only carrying a bundle of hay, were so tired that they could hardly breathe and had to stop and rest after walking for a short while.

"You're quite the worker, kid. If it weren't for your striking appearance, I would have already betrothed my granddaughter to you."

The old man followed from behind and said with emotion.

Ah Fei just smiled and continued walking uphill with his head down.

There is a Taoist temple on the top of the mountain called Jiming Temple.

When Ah Chou and the old farmer arrived at the temple gate, they found it tightly closed. The old man knocked on it several times, but there was no response from inside.

"What's going on? Weren't we supposed to be getting hay delivered today? Why is no one opening the door?" the old man complained, increasing the pressure on his hands.

Bang bang!

Squeak!

Just as the old man was about to clap for the third time, the door suddenly opened from the inside.

An old man dressed in a blood-red robe and with two pointed ears stood behind the door, coldly staring at the two of them.

Whether it was the strong wind at the mountaintop or something else, Ah Chou suddenly felt that the surrounding air seemed to have become a few degrees colder.

Who are you?

The old man in the blood-red robe spoke in a hoarse voice, his eyes slightly narrowed.

"Are you the Taoist priest from Jiming Temple? We've come to deliver hay; we've never seen you before."

The old farmer dusted the grass clippings off his shoulders and looked into the Taoist temple as he spoke.

Upon seeing this, the smile on his face suddenly froze. He saw that at the bottom of a stone staircase in the courtyard of the Taoist temple, there lay the corpse of a Taoist boy.

There were still bright red bloodstains on the ground next to the body, indicating that the person had just died.

Ah Chou also saw the corpse, and his pupils contracted and his heart pounded.

Just then, the voice of an old farmer rang in his ears: "Taoist priest, the fodder has been delivered. This old man has other matters to attend to, so I won't disturb you any longer."

After saying that, he gently tugged at Ah Chou's sleeve, signaling him to quickly leave with him.

"Where to?"

The old man in the blood-red robe gave a sinister smile.

Then, with a flick of his finger, a beam of blood shot out from his fingertip, striking the old farmer directly on the back of the head, leaving a bloody hole.

Ah!

The elderly farmer let out a scream, lunged forward, and crashed heavily to the ground, where he remained motionless.

Ah Chou turned his head and glanced at it, and was so frightened that he was scared out of his wits. He didn't care about anything else and ran down the mountain like a madman.

However, due to excessive panic, his steps became unsteady, and he accidentally fell on the stone steps leading down the mountain, with blood streaming down his arms and face.

He wanted to keep running, but as soon as he stood up, he saw a red figure blocking his way.

"Spare me, spare my life..."

Looking at the old man in front of him, Ah Chou's mind went blank.

The old man in the blood-red robe stared at Ah Chou for a few moments, then suddenly reached out and grabbed Ah Chou's arm. With a sway, he carried Ah Chou into the Taoist temple.

Then they dragged the old farmer's body back to the Taoist temple and closed the door.

"Come with me."

The old man with blood bubbles walked towards the main hall of the Taoist temple with his hands behind his back, showing no concern whatsoever about Ah Chou escaping.

Ah Chou swallowed hard, suppressing the urge to run away again, and followed the old man in the blood-red robe step by step.

When he arrived at the entrance of the main hall, the scene inside made his heart leap into his throat.

In one corner of the main hall, a large pile of corpses lay scattered about, some old and some young, all with their eyes wide open, unable to close in death.

Fresh blood was spilled all over the ground, and the pungent smell of blood made Ah Chou's stomach churn.

When Ah Chou saw the old man in the blood-red robe turn to look at him, his heart tightened, and he stiffly followed him into the main hall.

"How old are you."

The old man in the blood-red robe turned around and asked calmly.

"Ten, nineteen."

He didn't know why the other person asked this, but he dared not lie.

"nineteen……"

The old man in the blood-red robe frowned, clearly not satisfied with his age.

After a long silence, he took out a pill that glowed with spiritual light and handed it to Ah Chou.

"Eat it and see. If you have spiritual roots, perhaps I can spare your life!"

"But if there isn't any, then they'll just become materials for my training, just like these corpses scattered all over the ground."

Although Ah Chou didn't know what the other party meant by "spiritual root," he seemed to have no other choice given the current situation.

Upon hearing this, his hands trembled as he took the pill. After hesitating for a few moments, he finally swallowed the pill just as the other party was about to violently attack him.

The old man in the blood-red robe didn't speak, just quietly watched him. As time went by, Ah Chou noticed that the other man's expression gradually turned disappointed.

Ah Chou felt that he was probably going to die here today.

Looking back on yesterday, he still vowed to make something of himself and live a respectable life.

Unexpectedly, in the blink of an eye, things have fallen to this state.

"The outside world is really dangerous," Ah Chou thought to himself, then secretly glanced at the old man in the blood-red robe's expression.

But it was this one glance.

He saw a light in the old man's eyes, like a flame dancing on a snowy field, burning ever brighter.

That gloomy old face also melted, gradually becoming warm.

Suddenly, the old man smiled.

"Good, good! This is truly a stroke of luck! I never imagined that an ugly monster like you could awaken a spiritual root!"

Ugly monster?

Ah Chou didn't find it offensive at all, and seeing the old man laugh, he laughed along with him.

"Senior, you...you won't kill me now, will you?"

"You're not allowed to laugh!"

The old man straightened his face and said sternly, "Your smile is so ugly, it makes me want to vomit!"

Ah Chou immediately dared not laugh anymore.

The old man nodded: "That's much more comfortable. Don't worry, I keep my word. I'll spare your life as long as you awaken your spiritual root. However, you have to do one thing for me!"