Golden Step

"Mr. Great Talent!"

After a long conversation under candlelight, the governor of Nanzhou looked at him with reverence, expressing the same admiration as his subordinate Chen Haoran. He bowed and said, "My name is Xie Nanting. May I ask your name, sir?"

As he said this, a slender figure approached the study window silently.

Wu Ci, who had been practicing the Heavenly Starve Scripture for some time, had a keen sense, and at this distance, he just happened to detect that the aura of the voice and shadow seemed to be the eldest daughter of the Chen family who had just conspired with her mother to commit suicide and escape.

This Miss Chen is really not an easy person.

Wu Ci sat behind the screen with a normal expression, nodding and smiling at Xie Nanting and the others, "I am Chu Ci, Lord Xie, please explain the matter of those girls down there. Even if they are to be sacrificed to the river god, they should not be tortured and imprisoned underground."

"It turns out to be Mr. Chuci! I was enlightened by your words today. I have a lot of feelings. I will not hide the fact that I came here for these girls."

"I'd like to hear the details."

"The dragon in Tongji Canal is a river god appointed by Emperor Qian himself. He is in charge of the entire Nanzhou Water Palace. He feeds on the country's fortune and practices. Instead of being loyal to his duties, he wants young girls born on yin days to be his wives every year. He also wants the girls to be resentful and drown them to become water ghosts. He loses his mind and drags passers-by into the water to serve as his food. He wants more and more every year... If he doesn't get what he wants, he won't rain.

I reported this to His Majesty, but no one responded. I wanted to secretly ask a master to kill this evil dragon, but I was helpless because this evil dragon was a water god officially pardoned by the court..."

Xie Nanting had a complex expression of sorrow. This noble second generation noble seemed to be particularly sentimental, like those ladies on the stage who were troubled by love and raised their sleeves to cry, "Sir, you don't know that everything in the world requires weighing the pros and cons, and everyone has things that are beyond their ability...

The monks of Tentokuji Temple serve the royal family and the rich and powerful. No matter how much I pay, I will not help to kill this evil dragon. As for the other sects, they are weak. They don’t want to offend the court and be involved in karma, but they are also unable to kill this evil dragon that protects the country. The capable Taoist sects have been labeled as evil heretics and have no news...

In this chaotic world, demons are rampant, the country is in tatters, the rich and powerful oppress the common people, and the people are suffering. However, no righteous man dares to be the first rebel. I am just an ordinary person, so I have no choice but to accumulate strength first, temporarily sacrifice these girls as a compromise, secretly store food and recruit soldiers, and wait until I have the strength to fight, then rise up and end the chaos for the people and bring peace to the world. "

Affectionate and yet ruthless, he is really like a playwright, and looks like an actor. No wonder Tianjizi said that Wuci has a high degree of compatibility with Tianzun. He is quite similar to Xie Nanting, who has a high degree of compatibility with Tianzun.

Listen: "Sacrifice for now, endure humiliation, and take revenge in the future"

Xie Nanting's words were very well said, and they completely captured the bad nature of human beings.

To be honest, if there was no need to make sacrifices himself like Xie Nanting did, Wu Ci would also do the same in a condescending manner, and even make it sound more righteous.

But based on the character of "Chu Ci", he cannot say this, he must firmly oppose it.

Wu Ci then interrupted Xie Nanting and said, "No matter what the sacrifice is for, forcing others to sacrifice according to one's own ideals is unjust. Do those girls and those innocent pedestrians who were dragged into the water deserve to be sacrificed?"

"But I remember their names."

Xie Nanting, who was crying and covering his face, raised his eyes, his eyes still had tears in them, his eyebrows were still raised, and with the same ambition from the beginning to the end, he repeated briskly and confidently, "For the sake of more people, someone will always have to be the bad guy, but I will remember the names of all the sacrifices."

"All of their names and families are registered in my warehouse. I have provided compensation to their families. As for them... I will not let them suffer for too long... Wait... When the great cause is accomplished, I will pardon them and make them small gods in various parts of this land. Together, we will enjoy the national fortune and peace they have brought us. They will never have to endure hunger again."

The voice was soft, spoken lightly with a smile, but the content was an extremely serious oath.

He said, "If they are unwilling to forgive me... then I will die as an atonement for the victims..."

Xie Nanting is telling the truth.

Wu Ci's "Heavenly Scripture" was derived from the Tiande Temple's practice that mainly focuses on the principles of flesh and blood and the Yin and Yang Dao, as well as the Tianji Dao's practice that involves many aspects, psychology, and some modern miscellaneous sciences. He knows everything that the Tianji Dao knows, and he also knows things that the Tianji Dao doesn't know, so he can naturally distinguish the true from the false.

Waving his hands, he interrupted, "If what you said is true, then there is no need to add new victims to those volumes."

"Hmm? What do you mean sir?"

"Didn't Lord Xie say that he couldn't find the Taoist sect? I can barely be considered a half-disciple of the Taoist sect. There is also a legitimate Taoist priest named Tianjizi outside the city."

Xie Nanting's eyes dimmed, and he glanced at his subordinate Chen Haoran without leaving a trace, and sternly rebuked the witch's words: "Sir, be careful with your words! Taoism is an evil heresy! It is cruel and tyrannical, using all kinds of conspiracies and tricks, and everyone in the world can punish it!"

"No need to act. You are definitely not a biased person who believes in rumors... I have already explained this to General Chen. General Chen also understands the Dao Sect and will not turn against you because of this. It will not happen like my father was betrayed by the garrison in Xiling a few days ago." Wu Ci stood up, adjusted his scholar's green robe a little, and said in a cold voice: "As for Xiezhou Lord, no matter how you apologize in the future, you don't need to add any more sacrifices now. I will kill the dragon for you."

Chen Haoran quickly replied, "Yes, Lord Governor, after listening to Mr. Chu's advice, I realized that I had listened to prejudice before... I understand you..."

"But the evil dragon is also an official appointed by the court. He is responsible for the fate of the country. Ordinary people cannot kill him, fearing that he will be punished by heaven and his luck will backfire. This is a move with only benefits and no harm! How can I let you bear the blame for me?" Xie Nanting ignored his subordinates and became anxious. "How can you make such a decision just because of a word I said?"

"It's not for you," Wu Ci said, turning away. "I just needed a sword that suited me, and I happened to strike that evil creature in the back."

Before he finished speaking, his shadow in a scholar's green robe disappeared behind the screen.

He clearly cares about the people and them, but he says one thing and means another just to save face... Mr. Chu is actually still a child...

After realizing this, Xie Nanting didn't know whether to laugh or cry, and quickly bowed to the window where Wu Ci left, "Sir, you are so kind! I will burn incense immediately to let everyone know that the bride is ready. I tricked the evil dragon onto the shore and killed it. Thank you for your kindness, sir."

"I've already said it has nothing to do with you." Wu Ci, who had just climbed out of the window, immediately turned back and emphasized loudly.

The two people in the study held back their laughter and agreed, "Mr. is right."

"snort…"

Wu Ci disappeared in a few seconds.

After he left, the girl in pink skirt hiding at the corner of the window sill turned her gaze away from the direction he left.

It turned out to be the former eldest daughter of the Chen family!

Miss Chen did not look at Wu Ci who was leaving. She put on a smile and knocked on the study door. Her hair swayed, making her look calm and elegant. "Father, I made a pot of soup for you. Drink it while it's hot."

"Yan'er, you're a step late!" Chen Haoran sighed, regretting that he didn't think of letting his daughter come earlier to see Wu Ci.

He waved to his daughter and took the food box from her. "But it's not too late. Come and meet the Lord Governor. Didn't you say you had something to report to the Lord Governor?"

…

On a flower tree not far from the courtyard, Wu Ci, who had just left, sat on a branch with his legs bent. The emotions he had deliberately played in front of others had disappeared.

There's something suspicious about this eldest daughter of the Chen family... From the perspective of her aura, she seems like an ordinary person, but she always gives people a sense of disconnection.

Wu Ci's gaze rested on the golden swing on Miss Chen's head.

It was a golden lotus with tiny lotus leaves. The lotus head in the center was a lapis lazuli with some runes carved on it.

There is a demonic aura on that waving horse.

The weak demonic energy was hidden so well that ordinary people could not see it, and other practitioners could not detect it either, but Wu Ci would never make a mistake.

He died in the previous round because of this, and even used his own body to circulate the "Heavenly Martial Arts Sutra" to gather the evil energy from everyone, but because he could not support it, he became possessed and committed suicide.

The demonic energy had infused into every vein and acupoint in his body, burning it. No one was more familiar with the demonic energy than him.

Could it be that... in the last week, the evil spirits on the governor of Nanzhou, the rebel army, the people, etc., all originated from Miss Chen's golden step-shaking sword?

Where did this step-shake come from?

Wu Ci frowned briefly and his expression became serious.

I have to find a chance to get that golden swing and study it. If I can't figure out its origin, I'll have to sit down and have a good chat with Miss Chen.

Wu Ci stood up with the sword he had found, tapped the branches with his toes, and left Yunze City to return to the gathering place of the hungry people.

From a distance, he saw Tianjizi, who was wearing a green Taoist robe, fiddling with the compass with 13 strange symbols on it in the snow. "Daoyou Tianji, did anything unusual happen while I was away?"

The young man Tianjizi raised his head upon hearing this, tears of blood flowing from his eye sockets, green runes faintly visible in his eyes, and his hair, which was neatly tied up by a lotus Taoist crown, had turned a few strands white.

He wiped the tears and blood from his face carelessly, his expression as solemn as a sorcerer's words, "Nothing happened. This is exactly what makes me feel strange. The hexagram clearly shows that the crisis is in this section of the journey."

"That's strange..." Wu Ci looked at the hungry people behind him, looked around, and guessed after seeing the Tongji Canal, "Could it be the evil dragon below? Just now when I met General Chen, I happened to meet the governor of Nanzhou. He said that the evil dragon not only wanted to marry a girl who died in yin and yang, but also wanted all the girls to be resentful and turn into drowned ghosts who lost their minds, and drag all the passers-by down to serve as its food... Tomorrow, it happens to be sacrificing a bride..."

"Is there anything else?"

Tianjizi suppressed his anger, looked at the compass and shook his head in frustration, "No, that evil dragon is not enough to prevent my master's compass from observing the secrets of heaven. It is recorded in the sect's classics that this compass has been passed down from generation to generation by every direct descendant of Tianjizi."

"Is that so?" Wu Ci asked gently, "Then... have you ever seen in the classics that some objects are attached with evil spirits, which will spread on a large scale after being contaminated, and will explode if you are not careful, turning people into demons?"

"Fellow Daoist, are you talking about...demon energy?"

"Exactly."

"Taoism is weak and is regarded as an evil sect. All bad things are pushed onto our heads. If we are involved in anything, they say that we believed in the temptations of the Heavenly Venerable and became possessed by the devil. However, this has nothing to do with us... It is recorded in the classics... This type of evil energy has existed before the history of this dynasty. Its origin is no longer traceable. We can only look for it in the lost history of the previous dynasty."

Tianjizi paused for a moment when he spoke here. The smartest mind among Tianzun's disciples in the past few hundred years finally came to his senses. "Fellow Daoist Chu suspects it is demonic energy? Did you see any item with demonic energy in Yunze City?"

"That's right. The young lady of the general's mansion has a golden swing on her head, which has a subtle demonic aura." Wu Ci said affirmatively, "I will definitely not be wrong."

"The predecessors in our classics have speculated that the evil spirit is something from outer space. It will indeed confuse the compass... But... if so many people are infected with the evil spirit, they will all turn into evil spirits... Such a large number of people is absolutely impossible to control, let alone Yunze and Nanzhou. The infectiousness of the evil spirit can cause chaos in the whole world. How can it be suppressed and let so many people disappear quietly?"

"What if the evil spirit is temporarily dormant? During the Great Dream, I saw the ruler of Nanzhou revolt. All the rebels, all the people, including all the troops of the Qian Dynasty were infected with the evil spirit, but they were all dormant and did not erupt... just waiting for an opportunity."

"That's impossible. I've never heard of demonic energy being suppressed or transferred... Once infected, it's irreversible and will continue to transform. In a short period of time, a person will be forcibly turned into an insane demon."

"Fellow Daoist Tianji, what you believe may not be correct. If you have not verified it yourself, you cannot just trust authority or believe in the so-called 'it has always been this way'."

Wu Ci sighed softly, "You know what? Demonic energy can be transferred, which means that there may be a way to suppress and utilize it."

"Transfer? How to transfer?" Tianjizi suddenly became smart and looked at Wuci in shock. "Daoyou... you just said you would try it yourself?"

"No, I just read it from an unknown book." Wu Ci flatly denied the events of the previous week and changed the subject as if nothing had happened. "Let's not talk about the unclear things for now. Let's focus on the present. The commander of Nanzhou has started a sacrifice at Tongji Canal. I want to kill that evil dragon and save those brides first. I just happened to pull out the dragon's spine to re-refine my sword."

Tianjizi, the smartest person in the Tianji sect in the past few hundred years, who knew to run back when it rained when he was five years old and knew not to pick up things on the ground to eat, was easily distracted and immediately said excitedly, "Yes, kill that dragon! I can also refine weapons, I wonder if I can have the honor to finish this sword for you?"

"That couldn't be better. I'm honored."