Chapter 13 The Goddess's Appearance and Inner View Are Not as Good as Me Creating a Divine Statue for Her

Agou's gaze lingered between the two, and he asked curiously, "Sister Ming, are you and Brother Xiao a Daoist couple?"

Xiao Jingze's eyebrows twitched, and he was about to deny it when Ming Ying replied with a smile, "No, we are just cooperating temporarily, and I am not a cultivator."

Xiao Jingze looked at her with a half-smile: "Is that how Miss Ming defines our relationship?"

Mingying looked puzzled: "Isn't that right? I wanted to be friends with you, but you rejected me."

Xiao Jingze repeated her words, looking surprised: "When did you say that, and when did I refuse?"

"By refusing the flowers I sent, aren't you refusing to be friends with me?"

"Miss Ming's way of making friends is truly unique."

Mingying looked at him for a while, then asked seriously, "Then I'll ask you one more time: would you like to be my friend?"

Xiao Jingze, seeing that he had to ask again before making friends for the first time, smirked and said, "Childish."

Seeing this, Agou raised his hand and shouted, "I'm willing, Sister Ming, I want to be your friend!"

Mingying turned around and happily gave her a high five: "Yay!"

Xiao Jingze was truly impressed by her speed in making friends. He pulled Agou away from Mingying and said, "Tell me what you know again."

Ah Gou stood up reluctantly: "This Fengshui Temple was built the year I was born. My grandfather said that back then, the Fengshui Immortal was not as powerful as he is now. The temple was only half-built, and the statue was moved away as soon as it was brought in."

Who were the people who moved it?

"I don't know. Grandpa doesn't recognize him either. He must be from out of town. No one else comes here. I only found him a few days ago when I was playing hide-and-seek with Ah Hu."

Mingying nodded: "Is there anything wrong with the feng shui layout of this place?"

Xiao Jingze took out a chair from his Sumeru Ring, sat down, crossed his legs, and replied, "Feng Shui layout emphasizes being appropriate to the time and place. This place is open, but the surrounding mountains all have a water-repelling posture. It can be used to worship other gods, but for the Fengshui Immortal, weak water means that the divine power will not be manifest and the incense will not be prosperous."

The other two didn't listen carefully to what he was saying; their eyes were both drawn to his chair.

Agou's eyes lit up. It was the first time she had ever seen a cultivator conjure up such large furniture. It would be so cool to go out like this!

Mingying blinked. How lazy must this person be to carry a chair with him everywhere?

Xiao Jingze sat casually, and seeing that the two of them were staring at him, he waved his hand and generously threw out two chairs: "Sit down and talk."

The three chairs were all different, but all equally luxurious and opulent. The chair Mingying was sitting on was covered with a gold-threaded cushion, which was completely out of place in this dilapidated temple.

Ah Gou sat on a colorful painted pear wood chair, with two deities in front of him. The place was utterly irritating; for example, the plaque lying on the ground was a major eyesore.

She jumped off the chair, kicked the plaque out the door, emptied the rainwater from the incense burner and put it back, then picked up the broken planks and poked at the spider webs on the wall.

Mingying enthusiastically joined in, while Xiao Jingze remained silent for a moment, seeing that the two seemed determined to make this place their home. After poking at the spider web, Agou asked him if he had brought a broom, and even Mingying looked at his Sumeru Ring with great anticipation.

Does he look like someone who would carry something like this? Xiao Jingze scoffed lightly: "Let me show you how cultivators do things."

He stood up lazily, picked out a cleaning talisman from his Sumeru Ring, and was about to chant a spell when he suddenly stopped, looking at his hand with an ambiguous expression. Why was he following these two to clean up this dilapidated temple?

Seeing that he was hesitant to chant the incantation and seemed about to back out on the spot, Mingying asked with a smile, "Has Young Master Xiao forgotten the incantation?"

Xiao Jingze glanced at her with an inscrutable expression, muttered a spell, and the talisman in his hand scattered into points of light, which then converged into more than a dozen golden streams of light that weaved through the dust and darkness.

He stood in the center of the light, his hair fluttering lightly with his sleeves, like a fluttering butterfly. Mingying looked at him through the dust. Compared to his gorgeous attire, Xiao Jingze was actually more handsome, but his strange voice usually made him seem rather annoying.

Xiao Jingze casually tossed the stream of light into the woods, then quickly patched up the roof, giving the temple a fresh new look. Although still simple, it was much cleaner and tidier. He turned and raised an eyebrow: "Is Miss Ming satisfied?"

Agou applauded enthusiastically, and Mingying praised him generously: "Young Master Xiao is talented, kind and warm-hearted, and a great contributor to this temple."

Xiao Jingze ignored her unchanging flattery, sat back down, propped his forehead up, and said sarcastically, "Miss Ming is so kind and warm-hearted, she even cleans up a dilapidated temple she encounters on the road."

Mingying smiled brightly: "After all, this is where we're going to sit. Doesn't Prince Xiao feel much more comfortable now?"

Agou looked around: "If there were statues of gods, it would look even more like a temple."

Xiao Jingze's lips curled slightly: "What do you need a statue for? We have a goddess here to oversee things."

Agou excitedly raised his hand: "Then you will be the goddess's attendant, and I will be the goddess's page."

Before Mingying could say anything, Agou had already arranged the identities of the three people. When she turned her head and saw Xiao Jingze's resistant expression, she smiled and didn't rush to refute him.

Xiao Jingze stared at her for a while, then suddenly smiled and said, "Goddess is busy every day, so I suppose she can't always be here waiting. How about I make a statue for her?"

"Didn't Young Master Xiao come here to investigate the Immortal of Fengshui?"

“I see this place as serene and tranquil, with its beautiful peaks embracing the essence of the moon and its sturdy mountain slopes supporting its radiance. Moreover, the goddess was born on the night of the Lantern Festival, a time when all people pray and the bright moon shines together, making this place very suitable for the temple. If everyone comes to worship the goddess, then the Immortal of Fengshui will naturally have no need to worry.”

"Not many people outside Yunchuan know my identity. Young Master Xiao has achieved great cultivation; wouldn't he be more suitable than a mere mortal like me?"

"I'm afraid I'll have to disappoint Miss Ming. My element is water, which clashes with this place."

Mingying looked at Xiao Jingze suspiciously, thinking he was talking nonsense, but she had no evidence.

Xiao Jingze smiled and said, "Then Miss Ming will have to play the role of a goddess in this small temple. Maybe she can lure out the Fengshui Immortal behind it all."

Mingying turned her head: "I can't sit here forever."

She had never left Yunchuan, and there was no temple dedicated to the Goddess in Yunchuan. So, it seems that this fake deity actually had a proper temple.

Xiao Jingze tapped his thumb ring: "Don't worry, Miss Ming, there will naturally be a wooden statue to replace you."

——

When Mingying woke up the next day, she saw Fuling waiting for her with a smile on her face. She then secretly ran to the courtyard to hide. Shen Yichuan was sitting in the pavilion with a book in his hand. She lifted her skirt and quietly approached him, patting his left shoulder.

Shen Yichuan looked up with a smile and caught her red-handed right in front of him: "Did you and Zhiyi plan this together? Why are your actions exactly the same?"

Mingying sat down opposite him, resting her chin on one hand and picking up a cherry stem with the other: "My cousin has been away for so long, why did she only forget to send me a letter?"

"You two can chat endlessly in your letters. Her schedule is unpredictable, and she's just worried that your letters will go unanswered. I'll definitely remind her when she returns."

Mingying said "oh" and popped the cherry into her mouth.

Shen Yichuan casually asked, "Where did you and Prince Xiao go yesterday? How come your skirt is covered in mud and grass when you come back?"

Mingying pulled the stem out and, puffing out one cheek, replied indistinctly, "Now that you mention it, it seems we went to the wilderness and outskirts."

Shen Yichuan put down the book in his hand and smiled slightly: "Would you like to go for a stroll in the streets?"

The stone-paved street was bustling with people, with stalls lining both sides. Bamboo stalls displayed exquisite birdcages, pottery stalls were stacked with celadon bowls and plates, and peddlers' poles were filled with a dazzling array of items, including bamboo dragonflies, cloth tigers, wooden tops, and nine-linked rings. Mingying picked out a slingshot and excitedly squeezed into the cheering crowd at the front.

Seeing that she still had a childlike nature, Shen Yichuan shook his head and followed behind her.

Inside was a small stall with a cloth banner that read "Fairy Tricks." The stall owner was a thin old man with three rough earthenware bowls in front of him. He called out, "Look closely, everyone! The magic of the immortals! They can move things around!" Then he placed a walnut in the middle and turned it upside down. The three bowls moved around with a clatter in his hands, dazzling the crowd. He pointed to the bowl on the left and said, "The fairy fruit is here!"

Sure enough, the walnut was right there when the lid was lifted, and the crowd cheered. The old man moved the bowl again, slapping the right bowl hard: "And now!" The walnut reappeared, winning another round of applause. The old man stroked his beard proudly: "Which villager wants to place a bet? If you bet on the magic fruit, you'll get double the prize!"

Seeing that she was watching with great interest, Shen Yichuan glanced at her helplessly and said, "This old man just used some tricks. Only an ignorant child could be fooled into thinking it's some kind of magic."

Mingying was still smiling, and said softly, "I saw what he did. When he moved the bowl, he flicked the rim of the bowl with his right little finger, and the walnut slid into his palm. It's quite interesting, isn't it? Because the child didn't know, he thought it was magic and called a mortal a god."

Shen Yichuan nodded thoughtfully: "That's true. Anyone can become a god if they have methods that others don't know about."

"Does my cousin also want to become an immortal?"

"Mortals are bound by life and death, suffering from sickness and old age, while immortals live forever and possess the power to move mountains and fill seas. Who in this world doesn't want to become an immortal?"

Seeing Mingying's disapproving expression, he smiled and said, "Becoming a deity would allow you to answer the prayers of all living beings. Even so, Manman is still unwilling?"

Mingying watched the boy who had placed the bet slap his thigh in frustration. The "immortal" chuckled and accepted the copper coins, replying softly, "How could this be decided by my own will? My cousin knows that although I am the goddess of the Ming clan, I am ultimately just a mortal with a short lifespan."

Shen Yichuan gazed at her for a long time: "But who can prove that mortals cannot become gods?"

——

At the highest point of the Hundred Phoenix Tower on Cloud Street, Xiao Jingze leaned against the vermilion window sill, playing with the carving knife in his hand, his gaze sweeping over the crowds coming and going on the street.

Inside, a figure stood gracefully, dressed in magnificent clothes with intricate patterns, shimmering and sparkling, yet her face was blank, with no features.

Xiao Jingze sat quietly, his face indistinct at the boundary between light and shadow.

Yesterday, he thought it would be easy to carve one, but the moment he picked up the carving knife, her outline appeared clearly in his mind. As the wood shavings fell and the moonlight climbed onto the windowsill, he put down the carving knife, picked up the ink brush, and looked back to see her standing in the halo of light, her fluttering sleeves like those of a fairy.

The pen tip hovered in the air, ink droplets splattering onto the ground, spreading out dark circular marks. Xiao Jingze chuckled self-deprecatingly, put down the pen, and sat expressionlessly on the windowsill until dawn.

Agou knocked on the door: "Brother Xiao! Grandpa saw that you hadn't come downstairs yet and asked if you wanted to have breakfast."

She waited quietly for a while, and when no one replied, she knocked on the door again and pressed her ear against it. Strangely, there was no sound at all. Was Brother Xiao not here?

The door suddenly opened, and A-Gou swayed to steady himself. He looked up and saw him with his arms crossed, sneering, "Don't you know any manners, kid?"

Agou took a few steps back. Although she felt that Brother Xiao was more impolite, his expression was really scary, so she decided not to say anything.

Xiao Jingze turned and went back into the house. When Agou saw a figure inside, his eyes widened: "Sister Ming!"

Xiao Jingze paused, then turned back to look at her, his expression inscrutable: "How did you figure that out?"

He carved it according to his attire in Liuzhou. Shouldn't Agou have seen it before? How could he recognize it just by looking at his back?

Agou scratched her head. Brother Xiao had completely blocked her view, and she wanted to take another look. She replied hesitantly, "It's just a feeling, the feeling that Sister Ming gives me, and... um..."

She glanced at Brother Xiao's expression again. Every detail of the wooden statue was meticulously crafted. Even a fleeting glimpse revealed her unparalleled beauty. Apart from Sister Ming, she couldn't think of anyone else.

Xiao Jingze smiled and said, "What else?"

Agou looked left and right: "Um, and Brother Xiao, you said you were going to carve a wooden statue for Sister Ming, so it can only be her."

Xiao Jingze resumed his expressionless demeanor and casually closed the door: "Alright, you can leave now."

Ah Gou, who had been standing outside the door the whole time: "..."

Outside the window, traffic flowed bustling, but inside the house was completely silent. Xiao Jingze passed by the wooden statue, his steps faltering slightly. Her blank face, like a silent full moon, reflected his turbulent emotions.

A note from the author:

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