bookbashuk Chapter 141 Settling Down
Chapter 141 Settling Down
Xituo County.
Zhenxiguan.
Large numbers of refugees lined up in long queues, stretching as far as the eye could see.
The monks guarding the pass, witnessing this scene, clasped their hands together and beamed with joy: "My Dao is thriving, my Dao is thriving..."
In the distance, a convoy of cars slowly drove up and merged into the crowd.
"So many people..."
Fang Yixin was full of vigor and spirits, and his whole being seemed to exude the image of a clear spring and a gentle breeze. Looking at this scene, he couldn't help but sigh.
Hu Quan'an was truly a kind and generous elder. He generously provided three "Earth Spring Tempering True" swallows for his family, and originally did not take a single penny in return.
But only after repeated requests from the Fang family did they reluctantly accept one.
Fang Yixin was already familiar with the cultivation method and had acquired the True Swallow. During the journey, he swallowed the True Knowledge and entered the Dao, becoming a true cultivator of Qi Absorption. Seeing his grandson embark on the path of cultivation, Fang Jingchun considered for a few days and then copied the contents of the ninth level of Qi Absorption from his own family's "Viewing the Black Tomb Book" cultivation method, also sending it to the Hu family, and also revealing that his family had a hidden immortal ancestor.
The two companies were quite open and honest with each other, preparing to cooperate sincerely and establish themselves in Xituo County.
"Young master..."
Just then, a rider arrived with a report: "The checkpoint ahead is guarded by White Bone Daoist monks... Mortals can pass freely, but cultivators need to pay a tax..." "What?"
Upon hearing this, Fang Yixin frowned immediately. His good mood about becoming a cultivator vanished instantly, replaced by secret regret: "If only I had waited until I passed the test to take the pill, I could have saved myself one person's share."
Hu Quan'an, who was also nearby, laughed and said, "These big monks love to accept offerings. We're under their roof, so we have no choice but to agree... How much do you want?" The knight replied, "The notice says that each cultivator who practices Qi cultivation should receive one Qi-cultivating spiritual item..."
Fang Yixin hesitated, looking at Hu Quan'an: "My family has nothing else, but that 'Earth Spring Tempering True Essence'—I wonder if it counts as a spiritual item for absorbing Qi?" "Of course it does, but it's too extravagant… This is a fifth-grade True Knowledge cultivator, someone with the potential to establish a Dao foundation!"
Hu Quan'an shook his head repeatedly: "We can't waste it like that. I still have two spirit herbs on hand, so I'll take them out with me..."
"How can this be allowed?"
Fang Yixin repeatedly declined, but couldn't resist Hu Quan'an's insistence, and was slightly moved: "My family has truly acted like a petty person in the past..."
But then he noticed the knight hesitate and asked, "Is there anything else?"
The knight gritted his teeth: "The notice states that if there are no spiritual items to absorb energy, people can be used instead... One hundred strong men and fifty beautiful young women can be exchanged for one spiritual item..."
Fang Yixin felt a sense of suffocation, realizing the cruelty of the cultivation world.
"Sigh... the esoteric monks like this kind of thing, but in any case, it's safer than a massacre by demon soldiers..."
Hu Quan'an sighed, "Let's go..."
The demon soldiers of the Azure Bird Tribe occupied a place not to rule it, but for a ritual to "bring chaos to the world".
Naturally, every time they occupied a place, they would carry out massacres and the like. It's not just that the people were suffering, but that there were practically no "people" left.
Looking at the entire ancient Shu, only Xituo County, occupied by the White Bone Path, was relatively stable.
Fang Yixin took a deep breath and followed Hu Quan'an to the front of Zhenxiguan.
Being a monk has its advantages; at least their caravans don't have to queue with mortals.
"Two cultivators who have submitted to the Qi cultivation!"
A highly accomplished monk, holding a gleaming golden mirror, glanced at the convoy and nodded.
Fang Yixin glanced at it and saw that the mirror was about the size of a palm, decorated with gold, but the gold seemed to be somewhat impure, and its shape was quite ancient. "A magical artifact?"
"This monk is indeed wealthy..."
Hu Quan'an quickly stepped forward, his face beaming, and presented two spiritual herbs: "Master, rest assured, we know the rules."
"Um……"
The monk accepted the offerings and secretly took the bribes Hu Quan'an gave him. Then he smiled and said, "I think you have potential. I should get closer to you in the future."
With that, he waved his hand: "Let them pass..."
His gaze swept over the faces of the women in the caravan, a rather lewd look in his eyes, which angered Fang Yixin, but Hu Quan'an pulled her hand back. Once the caravan had passed through the checkpoint and gone quite a distance, Hu Quan'an said, "I was just now chilled to the bone. It seems the news that Mingzi is in charge of Zhenxi Pass is true. We must be patient..."
Fang Yixin clenched his fists, never expecting that there would be so many helpless things after entering the path of cultivation.
Upon entering Xituo County, the number of refugees decreased considerably.
The convoy traveled for another half day before setting up camp as usual.
Hu Quan'an summoned Fang Yixin to discuss her future.
The two sides sat down, had tea served, and began to discuss the situation in Xituo County.
"Among the many forces in Xituo County, the White Bone Path is naturally the most respected... The White Bone Path originated from the Secret Realm and has many strange and unparalleled aspects. Both the demon race and the ancient Shu are quite wary of it. Moreover, it only occupies a border area, so neither side bothers to disturb it, thus it is relatively peaceful..."
Hu Quan'an took a sip of tea, cleared his throat, and said, "That White Bone Dao Master is said to be a great figure who has reached the peak of the Dao Foundation and is currently in seclusion to break through to the Purple Mansion... He has five Mingzi under his command, each of whom is a great cultivator at the Dao Foundation stage... His secular affairs are handled by Master Miaoshan, and the one at Zhenxi Pass should be Master Miaofeng..."
"Below the White Bone Path, there are also the Zeng family of [Zui Huo], the Yuan family of Li Shan, the Xuan family of Da Hu... all of which are famous Dao Foundation families, dominating their respective regions... It will not be easy for our two families to settle down peacefully."
Fang Yixin gradually learned about the affairs of the cultivation world. She knew that it was easy for mortals to settle down, but for cultivators to settle down and cultivate in peace, they either had to rely on various families as guest elders to receive offerings, or they had to have a piece of spiritual land where they could grow spiritual rice in order to support their cultivation.
Furthermore, my entire family also needs to be settled.
He looked at Hu Quan'an: "Senior, you must have already made up your mind to come here?"
"Alas... cultivation is fraught with difficulties; how can one be confident about anything?"
Hu Quan'an sighed: "Back when I was cultivating, I befriended a cultivator from the Zeng family. I was thinking of using that connection to rent a piece of spiritual land and establish myself there for now..."
"Oh?"
Upon hearing this good news, Fang Yixin's eyes immediately lit up: "It has to be a senior like you, you have quite the reputation."
"I can only resort to this old face..."
Hu Quan'an smiled wryly and touched his wrinkled face: "Besides, if we seek refuge now, the rent will be heavy... I might even have to risk my life for the Zeng family and participate in a few battles."
Upon hearing this, Fang Yixin's expression immediately became uncertain...
Wusheng Temple.
Fang Qing first went to the underground vault and retrieved several treasures of the "Ji Shui" (箕水) element, then came to find Sang Ji.
"Does the Venerable One wish to refine the [Ji Shui] Dao Foundation Spiritual Artifact? One that can contain water veins?"
Sangji thought for a moment: "Although my secret treasure trove of weapon crafting masters is not numerous, there are a few... The one most skilled in crafting water-element sacred artifacts is 'Black Spring Temple,' which is located below the Temple of the Origin of All Dharmas... I will write a letter and have someone send it to them; I'm sure they won't dare refuse..."
"Not bad, not bad..."
Fang Qing deeply felt the benefits of joining a powerful force; he didn't have to worry about elixirs or magical artifacts himself.
He was truly reluctant to leave the secret realm and asked, "How much longer can you hold on?"
"The situation in ancient Shu changed drastically every day, and the temple was under great pressure... Fortunately, the Dharma Kings had not yet shown any intention of crossing the sea to the east."
Sangji clasped his hands together, seemingly unconcerned: "This humble monk has already sent a letter, stating that I wish to observe the breakthrough of a great demon of the Bluebird Clan... The temple has already granted my request." "Observe a breakthrough? That's quite an excuse..."
Fang Qing understood; this White Bone Dao Master was quite proactive, and the excuse he came up with was also quite good.
"Wait... In the eyes of outsiders, you are destined to be the Dharma King's guru. Aren't you afraid of being easily wiped out by the Purple Mansion? Or being killed in the infighting of other temples?"
He then thought of another question.
"It's alright... My esoteric master is hard to kill. If he suffers a calamity, he will only be reborn and suffer for a few more decades... On the contrary, it can buy you more time."
Sanji's eyes shone with the light of a martyr.
"You're dead, so be it, you can be reincarnated anyway... But if your true spirit goes to the Great Snow Mountain, it might expose my existence." Fang Qing thought to himself, then voiced his doubts.
"This... if it were any other method, it might be discovered, but Your Excellency is the reincarnation of Vairocana Buddha, and I have the 'Tranquil Image of Vairocana Buddha' protecting my spiritual altar, so it's about 50/50..."
Sangji thought for a moment, then smiled and said, "Besides, given the current situation, no one should care about this humble monk... The so-called death and reincarnation is just the worst-case scenario."
"If that's the case, then we can still go... and buy ourselves a few more years."
Fang Qing arrived at the files room in a good mood and began to review the latest intelligence from Xituo County.
Thanks to the demon race driving fish into the abyss, the population of Xituo County has exploded, and several new Dao Foundation forces have been added in one go.
Miao Feng amassed a fortune from collecting taxes, especially from these Dao Foundation families. They dared not neglect the offerings to him, the head of the Mingzi lineage, and spent a considerable amount of money, all of which was sent to his cave by Miao Shui.
He did the math one last time and realized that Xu Hei had risked his life to do business, yet the money he earned during this period was less than the gifts he had received. He was speechless... "Hmm... found it."
Fang Qing casually set aside the files of several Dao Foundation forces, which still had Miao Shan's annotations on them. His subordinates would probably go to great lengths to obtain even a single record from them, but for him, it was just a matter of flipping through them casually.
He picked up the Zeng family's scroll and only skimmed to one line: "...accepted many tenant farmers, including the Hu, Lu, Fang, and Yue families, all of whom were convinced..." "But households..."
The butter lamp flickered, and Fang Qing knew that the Hu and Fang families had even fought with several other cultivators over becoming tenant farmers. And of all that blood and tears, only this short line remained in his hands.
"Well, at least things have settled down... I'll just have to farm for a few years from now on."
He knew that it was not easy for independent cultivators or even clan cultivators.
Now that they've become tenant farmers, they're thinking about having their own spiritual fields. Once they have their own spiritual fields, they want to become a Daoist family... Desires can never be satisfied.
"I need to observe carefully in secret why I have this sudden, uneasy feeling..."
Fang Qing gripped the scroll, his gaze deep and unfathomable…