Journey to the West: Starting with becoming an apprentice of the Nine Heavens Demon-Subduing Patriar

Before the first month of the lunar calendar was over, news spread along the trade route, station by station, throughout this small area.

It is said that on the second day of the first lunar month, on the western trade route, under a clear blue sky, a divine general descended from the heart of the sun on a sword and killed three treacherous vultures with a single strike.

According to folklore, the level of a Taoist priest is always exaggerated, with his bones turning to ashes and heavenly fire blazing brightly.

It is also said that the deity has a tiger's head and a human body, wears golden armor, and holds a sword, just like the statue enshrined in the temple at the foot of Huangfeng Ridge.

In teahouses and taverns, smugglers spread the story.

"You think he's just some ordinary mountain god or local deity? He has a temple, and his origins are incredibly powerful! Otherwise, how dare he show himself in broad daylight? Have you ever seen any wild spirit dare to appear under the midday sun?"

This statement, by sheer accident, revealed a key point.

As a result, the incense at the temple at the foot of the mountain has become much more popular.

Cigarette butts swarmed in front of the crooked-necked tiger god statue. Several familiar businesses pooled their money and asked the best craftsmen in Tongchuan Prefecture to recast the tiger god's golden body.

The caravans paid their "peace money" more readily than anyone else. Some seasoned traders, accustomed to traveling other trade routes, had privately done the math.

"Paying respects to other mountain strongholds is like feeding wolves; even when they're full, they'll still bite. But the money from Huangfeng Ridge is for hiring a bodyguard; they really do the job."

"In this world, even demons value loyalty more than humans. Where can you go to reason with them?"

……

Three days later, at the main peak of Huangfengling.

A hundred or so crows and hawks descended from the cliff, their wings barely touching the ground, not daring to breathe.

Tiger Two, fully armed, circled the patch of flat fur three times, growing happier with each look, his tiger face contorting into a black-hearted chrysanthemum.

For over sixty years, it has been a vanguard, and for the first time, it has soldiers that can fly under its command.

"Listen up, everyone."

It thumped its chest loudly, "From now on, I'll patrol three times during the day and twice at night. Along this hundred-mile trade route, even a fly that flies by must report its gender to me!"

"Do a good job, and you'll have meat every meal. Don't do a good job..."

It bared its fangs, held back its fierce words for a long time, and finally uttered:

"If you don't do a good job, my older brother's sword is much fiercer than mine!"

High atop the cliff, Lu Shanjun stood with his hands behind his back, listening to the commotion below, shaking his head and chuckling.

……

The great eagle was killed, the patrol camp was established, and on the fifth day of the first lunar month, Lord Lu resealed the cave.

Before he went into seclusion, he only gave one instruction.

In matters concerning the mountains, the three leaders discuss them together; in matters of business, protection comes first.

The boulder fell, and inside the cave, a single lamp flickered dimly. Outside, another year had passed.

……

That year, the 800-li Huangfengling area truly came to life.

First, demons came to seek refuge with him in droves.

There was a badger spirit who fled famine from the west, bringing his family of more than a dozen people with him. There was also a one-horned mandrill who was ostracized on other mountain peaks, with nowhere to use his brute strength.

There is also a white flower snake that has been cultivating for over a hundred years. It is said that the old snakes of Wushao Ridge now have food every meal and sleep peacefully every night. After traveling a long distance for half a month, they swam into the mountain and lay down on the ground, refusing to leave.

Huang San set up a special "Hall of Fame" for this purpose, which was located next to the first sentry post inside the mountain gate.

The demons who come to seek refuge must first have their karma verified.

The method passed down from the mountain king is something that every patrol leader can use a little bit of his hair to see the aura of the person's entire being, instantly distinguishing between pure and impure.

Those who have committed crimes involving human lives will not be received. Please leave.

Those who were stubborn and still wanted to cause trouble were being sharpened by Tiger Two's patrol team.

Those who engage in petty theft or thievery should be included in the merit and demerit register, and their deductions should be offset during their work duties.

They were completely innocent, registering, dividing the villages, and assigning tasks.

Over the course of a year, the number of demons recorded rose from 327 to just over 900.

There are too many demons, so the shacks aren't big enough to house them all.

Black Mane led his men and built three large strongholds based on the terrain of the three mountains.

The main peak stone hall has been expanded to three courtyards. Blue stone slabs have been laid in front of the hall, and a flagpole has been erected. The Demon-Slaying Banner is hung there, and it flutters in the wind.

The blacksmith shop at Gongzuipo expanded into a blacksmith camp. The two old blacksmiths took in seven or eight pig demon apprentices. The furnace fire burned day and night. The spearheads and arrows they forged were first sent to the patrol camp, and the rest could even be sold for money at the market down the mountain.

Wushaoling is the coolest place, where a grain depot was built. There are nine large cellars, with rats on the beams and moisture-proof underground. The old snake that manages the cellars patrols three times a day.

Along the trade route, a post station was set up every thirty li, built of bluestone, and equipped with clean water, dry firewood and herbs.

Wherever the caravan went, hawks from the Sky Patrol Battalion circled overhead, and soldiers from the Mountain Patrol Battalion followed on the ground.

Merchants from Xiniu Hezhou made up a jingle: "After crossing Huangfeng Ridge, you can sleep soundly until dawn."

The Zhenwu Temple at the foot of the mountain has completely changed its appearance.

The golden statue, rebuilt with funds pooled from several large businesses, was erected.

With disheveled hair and bare feet, he wielded a sword and trod on a tortoise and snake, his gold paint gleaming brightly in the sun.

The tiger-headed deity statue to the side and below has also been replaced by the work of a master craftsman from Tongchuan Prefecture. Its armor is scaled, its head is raised and its hand is on its sword, and the small incense burner in front of its feet has been replaced by a large incense burner.

On the first and fifteenth of the lunar month, the queue in front of the temple can stretch for half a mile.

The old Taoist priest remained seated on the futon, his eyelids half-open, letting the worshippers come and go.

Occasionally, when a worshipper noticed that the cuffs of his sleeves were frayed, and offered to donate money to make him a new Taoist robe, the old Taoist would wave his hand and point to the donation box: "Go and use it to repair the temple for the patriarch."

……

Inside the cave, Lu Shanjun was fully aware of all these things happening outside.

Incense offerings will not deceive demons.

Those wisps of pale golden mist, year after year, flow endlessly over the mountains and sink into the dantian.

He could hear the thoughts wrapped in every strand of his heart, even with his eyes closed: blessings for merchants, blessings for harvests, blessings for children to get rid of smallpox, and now even blessings for those who study and take the imperial examinations.

Grandpa Tiger God is getting more and more involved.

The golden core in the dantian, its golden patterns rose from 30% to 50%, and then from 50% to 70%.

The more fully the lines spread, the more restrained the cinnabar's luster becomes.

By the end of the year, the entire pill hung heavily in the dantian, warm to the touch, like a moon pressed into the bottom of the water.

Sword control techniques also rose in prominence.

At the beginning of the year, when I used my divine sense to control the sword, I felt exhausted after traveling only a hundred miles, like a kite that had been let out of its string.

Even now, three hundred miles away from the Demon-Slaying Stone Sword, the divine spirit on the sword remains condensed and undissipated, striking east when pointed east and west when pointed west.

Meng Zhang was well nurtured in the sword, and the sword's sound became increasingly clear, faintly showing the foundation of a dragon's roar.

[Technique: Lesser True Martial Qi-Inducing Technique (Mastery 500/500)]

Everything is fine.

There's only one bad thing about it.

The technique seems to have reached its peak.

On this day, Lu Shanjun went through the entire "Xiao Zhenwu Qi-Inducing Technique" for the umpteenth time.

The blue phantom in the sea of ​​consciousness emitted lines of clear light, which ended when it reached the words "Golden Elixir Returning to the Pill," and there was nothing after that.

Gone.

It's not that he didn't understand it; it's just that it's not in the book.

Lesser True Martial Qi-Inducing Technique, Lesser True Martial Qi-Inducing Technique.

He used to think that "small" was a humble way of saying it, but now he knows its true meaning.

It's small, really small.

This volume originally only went up to the point of refining the elixir.

But the path of spiritual practice is long.

Taoist texts say that one refines essence into qi, refines qi into spirit, and refines spirit to return to emptiness.

The Refining Qi into Spirit stage has reached its limit; the next step is "Refining Spirit to Return to Emptiness."

How do you navigate this level? What's the timing? What's the key? What's the consequence of one wrong step?

It's not in the book, and the panel doesn't answer.

Lu Shanjun sat in the cave for three days.

The more I sit, the clearer I understand this principle: to create something behind closed doors and achieve the elixir of immortality is simply a matter of good fortune. He has the blessing of spiritual fruits to cleanse his marrow, the incense to fuel his fire, and the body of a white tiger to support him. He has all three advantages.

But going further up involves surgery on the soul.

One wrong step could lead to a decline in one's cultivation or even the destruction of one's soul, which would be far more painful than Meng Zhang's sword strike.

"That's enough."

He opened his eyes and blew out the lamp.

"Go down the mountain."

It's unacceptable to ask someone for help empty-handed.

Bring gold and silver? The old Taoist priest wouldn't even accept a new Taoist robe. Bring delicacies from the mountains? He's in seclusion at the temple; he has no need for them.

Lu Shanjun thought for a moment, recalling the frayed edge of the old Taoist's sleeve, and then the empty wine gourd that had been hanging under the eaves of the dilapidated temple for years.

I saw it when I came down the mountain last time; the stopper at the mouth of the gourd was already cracked and dry, and it was obvious that it hadn't been exposed to the smell of wine for a long time.

Those who cultivate themselves can refrain from coveting wealth, not from taking advantage of others, not from excessively pursuing beauty, and not from comparing themselves to others for empty fame.

But an old man who has been sitting in a dilapidated temple for decades might still crave a drink.

"That's it."