Calabash Fairy

The day Fairy Yunhua left was the first day of the new year. Early in the morning, the villagers came to the mountain god statue in their homes to offer incense and pray for good weather and smooth sailing in the coming year. Incense smoke rose continuously from the village and drifted into the mountain god temple on the mountaintop.

Several days later, in the Qingfeng Secret Realm.

Fang Yan sat cross-legged on the stone bed with a calm expression, holding the Mountain God Seal in his hand. His consciousness had completely sunk into the earth's veins, and he began to perform the final sorting of the earth's veins with practiced ease.

Half a day later, as a slight tremor reverberated throughout the Qingfeng Mountain area, Fang Yan slowly opened his eyes and smiled. At the same time, a golden light appeared out of thin air and entered his body.

This was precisely the twelfth merit that Fang Yan had received.

"Merit is hard to come by, and it's unknown how long it would take to accumulate a hundred merits. But these things can't be rushed..."

Fang Yan shook his head slightly, and with a flick of his palm, the Mountain God Seal flew into the air on its own, beginning to continuously absorb the incense offerings from the divine path.

He could clearly feel that as the newly incorporated ley lines of Qingfeng Mountain were properly arranged, the spiritual energy on Qingfeng Mountain had become noticeably richer, the land below the mountain had become more fertile, and even the fish in the river had become more active.

In the mountains and forests, Tuduo jumped out of the snow and looked around with some surprise. The black crows on the treetops also excitedly circled up and flew in the air, creating a peaceful and serene atmosphere.

"At present, although the Mountain God Seal is still accumulating divine incense offerings and its power is growing stronger day by day, it will probably still take several years before it undergoes its next transformation."

Advancement in the Shinto path is similar to cultivation; it often becomes increasingly difficult as one progresses. However, once one succeeds, the world before one's eyes will be vastly different.

Fang Yan looked around the secluded paradise surrounded by bamboo forest and was about to get up when suddenly, an irresistible drowsiness overwhelmed him, causing him to slowly close his eyes and fall asleep.

"Young friend Fang Yan, please come down for a chat."

"Young friend Fang Yan..."

As the gentle, aged voice continued to call out in his ears, Fang Yan felt his consciousness begin to fall endlessly into darkness...

He didn't know how much time had passed, but when Fang Yan opened his eyes again, he was surprised to find himself in an exquisitely carved wooden pavilion. Opposite him, an old man in a green robe, with a kind smile and a gentle demeanor, was stroking his beard and looking at him.

Although it was their first meeting, Fang Yan felt inexplicably drawn to the person before him; however, his expression remained somewhat wary.

He had clearly fallen victim to some kind of trick this person used, but even a ten-thousand-year-old demon king shouldn't have been able to drag him here so easily without any resistance...

This being is at least as terrifying as the great demon kings deep within the Hundred Thousand Mountains...

The old man opposite him clearly saw the wariness in Fang Yan's eyes and smiled, saying:

"Young friend, there is no need to be alarmed. I am Wei Zheng, a judge of the Department of Rewards and Benevolence in the Underworld. I have taken the liberty of inviting you here today because I have something to tell you."

The Office of Rewards and Benevolence? Wei Zheng?

Fang Yan was slightly taken aback, but he clearly remembered that the jade slip left by Fairy Yunhua contained a detailed explanation.

The Underworld Judges' Office is divided into four, with each of the four judges in charge of one of them, each performing their own duties.

These four departments are: the Department of Rewarding Good, the Department of Punishing Evil, the Department of Investigation, and the Department of Underworld Law.

The judge in charge of the Rewards and Benevolence Division was Wei Zheng.

Fang Yan looked behind the old man in green robes. Outside the pavilion, the sky seemed to be eternally dark and deathly silent. Although there were pavilions and towers all around, they were shrouded in yin energy, making the surrounding environment seem gloomy.

This place must be the legendary underworld...

Fang Yan looked at Wei Zheng, whose features were gentle and who was smiling at him. He was now seven or eight parts convinced, so he simply stood up, cupped his hands in greeting, and said:

Fang Yan has met Judge Wei.

Even though Wei Zheng appeared so gentle, polite, and kind at their first meeting, Fang Yan didn't actually trust him completely...

What truly put him at ease was the other party's unfathomable and terrifying strength. After all, if this person were truly going to harm him, would he still be sitting here peacefully?

"Young friend, there's no need to be so polite. If you'd like, you can simply call me Senior Wei."

"The reason I invited you here today is to explain that the matter of those evil spirits that escaped from the Soul Locking Well has been settled. Those who have the merit to kill evil spirits in the mortal world will receive merit."

"Young friend, you single-handedly slew four evil spirits, so naturally your name is on this list, and quite high up. Your merits will soon be recognized."

Upon hearing this, Fang Yan understood, but he was still somewhat puzzled. Surely, such a matter shouldn't require Wei Zheng, the Grand Judge, to personally summon him for an explanation...

Sure enough, after Wei Zheng finished speaking, he took out a jade ring from his dark green robe and presented it to Fang Yan.

"Besides this matter, someone also asked me to give this ring to my young friend."

Fang Yan looked at the ring that was being dragged slowly towards him by the blue light, but instead of taking it directly, he looked at Wei Zheng and said:

"Senior Wei, could you please tell me who left this ring?"

He recalled everyone he had met since his reincarnation, but it seemed there were no familiar faces in the underworld...

Wei Zheng didn't keep them in suspense and said directly:

"He is a Taoist cultivator named Qingxuan Daoren."

"This person did good deeds throughout his life and died 213 years ago. His soul returned to the underworld, but because his wish was not fulfilled, he was reluctant to be reincarnated. It was not until he received a letter from a friend in the living world the day before yesterday that he left this item and went to the cycle of reincarnation."

Upon hearing this, Fang Yan was taken aback. After a moment, he reached out and took the jade ring in his hand. The next moment, he heard a rather gentle young man's voice in his ear.

"Fellow Daoist Fang Yan, although we have never met before, it was only today, when Feng'er sent a message to the Underworld, that I learned of your existence and that the villagers in the mountains are living under your protection and their lives are getting better and better."

"Qingxuan, I am extremely grateful."

"My talent for cultivation is mediocre, but I have an exceptional talent for divination. I can only offer my lifelong knowledge of divination to you as a token of my gratitude."

The sound ended there, and Fang Yan fell silent for a moment.

Qingxuan Daoist didn't mention anything about himself, but he seemed to have gained a deeper understanding of this person...

"Despite being an expert in divination, why did he still linger in the underworld for over two hundred years, just to determine one outcome..."

Fang Yan put the jade ring in his hand into his pocket, looked at Wei Zheng opposite him, and solemnly said:

"Thank you very much, Senior Wei."

Wei Zheng nodded with a smile and said:

"There's no need for that. My Rewards Department rewards people based on the extent and amount of good deeds they performed during their lifetime. Even I rarely see someone like Daoist Qingxuan."

"Young friend, there is no need to feel regretful. Someone like him, who has done good deeds and accumulated merits throughout his life, will naturally be reincarnated into the six realms of reincarnation after death and ascend to the path of immortality."

As Wei Zheng spoke, a smile played in his eyes, and he pointed upwards.

"Perhaps you two will meet again someday..."