Don't farm, cultivate immortality!

"Yes, I just happened to be passing by."

Zhu He stepped forward, patted the dust off her son's shoulder, and stood on tiptoe to straighten the wrinkles in his clothes.

He carried a sword on his back, put on a bamboo hat, and donned a straw raincoat.

Zhu He then noticed that her son's straw hat and raincoat were placed by the door.

"Mother!" Her son turned to look at her. "I'm leaving!"

"Walk slowly, and if you get tired outside, go home!" Zhu He said.

He didn't agree, but simply raised his hand and waved. His figure gradually disappeared into the distance as he walked forward, never looking back.

...

Five days later, Zhu He heard the sound of horses' hooves again.

Zhuang Xing, riding his black horse, stopped in front of the gate.

Zhuang Xing dismounted, and Zhu He said, "You're back. You left in such a hurry the other day, what were you doing out there?"

"You left in a hurry?" Zhuang Xing asked, somewhat puzzled.

“It was just a few days ago at noon,” Zhu He said. “Didn’t I cook you a bowl of noodles? You only stayed at home for a little while. I told your sister, but she didn’t believe me. She said I was lying to her and that her brother hadn’t come back at all.”

Zhuang Xing paused, turned to look at the door, and asked, "Mother, which way should I go?"

"Over there," Zhu He pointed, "that's where the Yun family lives. Why are you asking?"

"It's nothing." Zhuang Xing looked into the distance. "Let's go inside first. I'm hungry. Mother, please cook me a bowl of noodles, just like the ones from the other day."

"Okay." Zhu He led the horse in.

The house was bustling and noisy, full of the warmth of everyday life.

...

Historical records state:

In the thirty-sixth year of the Yuanding era, snowstorms and droughts occurred frequently, so the emperor abdicated and changed the era name to Yuankang.

In the tenth year of the Yuankang era, people ate each other, and demons wreaked havoc on the world. The emperor acted swiftly and decisively, but alas, the tide had already turned, and ingrained habits were difficult to reverse. Was the world doomed?

Forty years after the fall of the Yu dynasty, the world was still divided into three kingdoms. A sage ruler and a physician were born, who raised virtuous people, subdued demons, brought peace to the world, and ascended to immortality. He became a true immortal and was worshipped by the people.

...

The Finale (Part 2)

Pushing aside the bushes, Zhuang Xing climbed up the blue stone in front of him.

He wandered through the forest, sunlight filtering through the leaves and dappling the ground.

Across the road, he spotted the renovated wooden house, with an old figure standing on its roof.

Zhuang Xing waved from afar; it was his old friend, the old mandrill, who used its long arms to hook onto the roof and climb down.

Zhuang Xing took the stone out of his pocket and brought it back as agreed. The old mountain demon struggled to open its eyes. Its movements were slow like an old man's. When it saw the human figure carved on the stone, it was stunned for a long time.

"This is something someone entrusted to me to bring to you." Zhuang Xing placed the stone in the old mountain demon's hand.

It held the stone in both hands, carefully, as if it were an egg that would crack if dropped on the ground.

It slowly led the stone into the wooden house, pushed open the door, and sat on the ground.

I don't know if it remembers who the person on the stone is. It probably does, because Zhuang Xing saw that it didn't go out all day and just stared at that stone for a long time.

...

Six months later.

Autumn has arrived, and the once deserted village at the foot of the mountain has become lively again.

Zhuang Xing, leading his black horse, arrived at the village with Yun Ling.

Unlike other places, in addition to the people coming and going, there are also demons in the village.

Several wolf demons, carrying deer and wild boars hunted in the mountains, entered the village after being inspected by the guards at the gate. They dragged the hunted animals to a special butcher shop and negotiated the price with the butcher who was holding a knife.

Humans are willing to pay higher prices for these wild animals, which they can exchange for money to buy cheaper fish or poultry. They can buy meat when they are hungry and save the money when they don't need it, thus preventing food spoilage and ensuring fresher food.

If they hunt monsters, Taoist priests from Xuanqing Temple will buy them. If you need their help to find herbs, you can also give them samples of the herbs you need to look at and sniff. The wolves' familiarity with the wild makes them excellent partners with humans.

Zhuang Xing came here to accompany Yunling and to purchase some medicinal herbs.

As long as the rules are followed, both demons and humans can come and go in this village. Originally established as a transit point for demons traveling between Yidu and their own territory, the village has now become a rare trading place. Even some wandering demons and cultivators will come here specifically to find what they need.

Six months later, it became incredibly popular.

Leading his horse into the village, Zhuang Xing suddenly heard a call coming from behind him.

"Master Daoist, Master Daoist!"

Zhuang Xing felt the voice sounded familiar. He turned around and saw a scholar-looking man jogging over.

"Who are you?" Zhuang Xing asked, somewhat puzzled as to who this person was.

"Master Dao, it's me,"

The scholar stopped and turned around. His cloth robe deflated, and a wisp of green smoke emerged from it, from which a red fox appeared.

Zhuang Xing then recognized it, and even the black horse neighed and stretched out its hoof to bump fists with the red fox.

It was the red fox that traveled with me for a part of the journey to the capital to meet the emperor that year.

Years ago, we parted ways in Xizhou. Before parting, I gave it a little silver so it could go out and make a living. I never expected to reunite with it here.

"How did you end up here?" Zhuang Xing asked curiously.

“A year ago, I heard from my clansmen that there was a special village for monsters in Yidu, where monsters and humans lived together without having to hide their identities. I was tempted and followed them out of the teahouse and headed this way.”

The red fox said, "Later I learned that you need to have the qualifications of a demon to work in the monster village. I came to this village through an introduction. I never expected to meet the Taoist priest. What a happy thing!"

The red fox burrowed into the clothes and transformed back into the pale-faced scholar.

"I just saw the backs of the two Taoist masters, and I was afraid I had mistaken them for someone else. I only saw them clearly when I got closer."

The red fox chattered on and on, its face beaming with joy, just like years ago, a chatterbox who couldn't stop talking.

The red fox invited the two to sit at the teahouse where it was currently working. Zhuang Xing and Yun Ling were not in a hurry and had already planned to stay overnight at the inn in the village, so they accepted its invitation.

The teahouse was bustling with activity. Some people sat at one table, some sat with foxes and cats, and some sat with people and dogs.

This scene would likely startle most ordinary people, but the villagers are used to it.

Zhuang Xing asked, "When you went to Zhuzhou, did you not commit any more thefts?"

"How could I dare?" Red Fox said. "I listened to the Taoist priest and found a secluded teahouse to become a storyteller. Although I lived a peaceful life for a few years, my cultivation level was low and I could not maintain my transformation technique at all times. Helplessly, I changed places several times, but I could not stay in any of them for long. I was still hiding everywhere."

“Once you’re here, you don’t need to hide anymore,” Zhuang Xing said.

"Yes! Before I came here, I never imagined there was such a wonderful place in the world." Red Fox nodded repeatedly. "Finally, I don't have to be on edge all the time, worried about revealing my true colors. I heard that Yidu is going to be even more exciting. Once I've saved up enough work for a year, I can change my name and go there to have some fun!"

"You haven't changed at all," Zhuang Xing thought to himself. This guy still loves to join in the fun.

"And what about Miss An? How is she now?" the fox asked again.

That year on the road, Red Fox and Xiao An talked the most. When it had nothing to do, it would tell stories to the little girl, and the little girl loved listening to its stories. The two actually had a very good relationship.

“She’s on the mountain,” Zhuang Xing said. “Yunling is working on reshaping her physical body.”

"Reconstructing the physical body? Daoist Master, you truly possess unparalleled skills! You even have such a method!" Red Fox exclaimed in surprise.

Yunling said, "It took many years to make some progress. Recently, we've only been trying to transfer Xiao'an's soul into the lotus root to see if we can create a movable body for her using the lotus seed."

"So, Miss An is all right now?" Red Fox asked.

“That’s good,” Zhuang Xing said. “If all goes well, she might grow out of the lotus pond next spring.”

"That's good, that's good," said Red Fox. "I'll definitely go visit him then. Daoist Master, I think I'll be able to visit him, right?"

Zhuang Xing smiled: "As you can see, the demons and humans here are different from those elsewhere. As long as you follow the rules, you won't be too restricted."

"What you say is true, Daoist Master," Red Fox nodded. "This place is wonderful!"

I chatted with the red fox for a while longer. This red fox was really a chatterbox; before I knew it, I had been sitting there for a long time.

They still needed to buy herbs, so Zhuang Xing parted ways with Yunling and went shopping for medicine.

We found a hotel late at night, turned on the nightlights, and bought some drinks and snacks.

"What are your plans for the future, Daoist Master? Will you continue to cultivate in the mountains?"

"Not really. In a few years, we'll probably set off from the East China Sea to travel overseas."

"Overseas!" Red Fox was taken aback. "Master Dao, what does the sea look like?"

"Have you ever seen a lake?" Zhuang Xing asked.

"I've seen it before," said the red fox.

“The sea is a lake that has no end,” Zhuang Xing said. “If you sit on a boat and go with the wind in one direction, you may travel for hundreds of days and nights and still only see water. Sometimes the waves are higher than a teahouse. That is the sea.”

"The ocean is terrifying," said the red fox. "What's the point of traveling to a place like that?"

“Because there’s more to the sea than just the sea,” Zhuang Xing said. “The land we’re standing on is actually also on the sea. There might be another land on the other side of the sea, people we’ve never seen before, trees we’ve never seen before. Everything there is unknown. There’s something else between heaven and earth. If we don’t actually reach the other side of the sea, no one will know.”

"The world is vast, and one cannot explore it all in a lifetime, but I want to know what lies on the other side of the sea, so I want to travel overseas."

Red Fox looked up at Zhuang Xing in deep thought, then suddenly asked, "Master Daoist, may I also go see the sea?"

"Do you want to go see it?" Zhuang Xing asked.

"I didn't know there was a sea before, but after the Taoist priest told me about it, I wanted to go see it."

“Go if you want to, no one will stop you,” Zhuang Xing said.

"But... I'm just a fox spirit," said the red fox. "Can a fox spirit as weak as me really go to see that endless sea?"

“Whether you go or not, the sea is still there,” Zhuang Xing said.

The red fox scratched its head. It had been struggling in the human world for decades. It had been a timid little demon patrolling the mountain on Tiger Great Sage's mountain, and it had also transformed into human form to live with people in sparsely populated villages. It was a little smarter and had more experience than other demons.

It considered itself to be very insightful about life, but what it heard today made it feel confused for the first time in a long time, and a kind of indescribable tremor in its heart.

It seemed somewhat distracted during the rest of the conversation.