Chapter 253

Master Jingkong stayed in Liuzhuang Taoist Temple for only two days before going down the mountain with his young disciple. When he left, he looked at Yuan Jing with a complicated expression, especially when he saw his young disciple reluctantly saying goodbye to Yuan Jing and they agreed to exchange letters with each other, his expression became even more complicated. Finally, he sighed, chanted a Buddhist name, and turned to leave.

Yuan Jing has been playing with the little monk in the mountains these past two days. He found it very interesting to see Fox Yue change his target and tease the little monk. He also picked a lot of herbs in the mountains. But he didn't expect that the little monk would leave after staying in the Taoist temple for two days. Although he played and fought with the little monk, Yuan Jing could still feel the little monk's attentiveness.

When will he see the little monk again after this departure? He hadn’t stroked the little monk’s bald head enough, and Yuan Jing looked eagerly at the mountain path where the little monk disappeared.

The old Taoist priest smiled and twisted his beard, and asked his good disciple: "Does Yuan Jing still want to meet Funeng?"

Yuan Jing retracted his gaze and looked up at his master. Didn’t he think he didn’t see the old monk’s complicated expression and his master’s gloating?

Although his lover is a little monk who cannot break his chastity vow in this life, Yuan Jing believes that no matter what their identities are, they will be together. Therefore, the master and the old monk should have seen something. This is an unscientific world and all kinds of possibilities can happen.

"Master, have you seen the future of my senior brother Funeng?" The little monk was still a little older than Yuan Jing, although Yuan Jing had never admitted it before the little monk left.

This time it was the old Taoist priest's turn to be surprised: "Could it be that my good disciple has also seen it?"

Yuan Jing twisted his fingers, not knowing how to answer his master's words. In the end, he simply pretended to be innocent and said, "Master, Senior Brother Funeng and I are destined to be together. But now Senior Brother Funeng and I are still young, so we don't need to think about these issues for now."

"Pfft, haha..." The old Taoist priest laughed.

"Master, this is true. We were together in our last life, and we will be together in this life as well. Maybe we are destined to be together for the rest of our lives." Yuan Jing stared at his master with serious eyes.

The old Taoist priest thought the young disciple was joking at first, but now he was wondering, could it be true? "Did you really see your past life?"

Yuan Jingzhi nodded: "Yes, in the previous life we were a pair of ordinary people, but that world was different from the present, there were no fairies and ghosts, it was a very peaceful era, but I only saw these situations after meeting Brother Funeng."

The old Taoist priest no longer joked with his young disciple. When he saw the young monk Funeng for the first time, he looked at his face as usual, but found that the young monk's face was actually changing. Looking more carefully, he found that the changed face was vaguely entangled with his young disciple. This facial change should have occurred after he met his disciple. If there had been no chance to meet, perhaps Funeng would have been a monk all his life, as the old monk wished.

But the little monk's appearance has changed.

The old Taoist priest actually doesn't mind what kind of Taoist partner his disciple will find in the future. He has remained single all his life. Even if his disciple finds a fairy or even a ghost, it doesn't matter as long as he is happy. What's the big deal if he finds a monk now? At most, the young monk can return to secular life in the end. The one who should be worried is the old monk Jingkong.

The old Taoist priest who had figured it out laughed again, touched his little disciple's head and said, "Then Yuan Jing, you have to work hard and try to lure the young monk Funeng to our Taoist sect. I think his aptitude for practicing Taoism is not bad. Haha, that would be interesting."

The disciples that the old monk used to show off to are now sending their younger disciples to be his disciples. It's really the kind that he personally sent to his door. It's really great. The old monk has lost both his wife and his army this time.

Yuan Jing was upset, but he was very happy that his master was open-minded. Not only did his master not stop him, but he also encouraged him to pull the little monk over. So he clenched his fist and expressed his determination: "Master, don't worry. I will definitely let Brother Funeng marry into our Taoist sect. But Master, Master Jingkong will definitely stop Brother Funeng from meeting me."

"It doesn't matter," the old Taoist priest waved his sleeves and said confidently, "In two years, Master will be able to take you down the mountain for training. If the mountain doesn't come to us, we will go to the mountain."

"Master, you are so nice." Yuan Jing cheered happily.

You are becoming more and more childish, Yuan Jing complained to himself in his heart.

In order to go down the mountain and go out for training with his master as soon as possible, and to meet the little monk again as soon as possible, Yuan Jing, who was already very diligent, became even more diligent.

He waited for a month before he received a letter from the young monk. In the letter, he complained a lot about his master's strictness, which left him with almost no time to write letters. He had to write the letter during his sleeping time and asked other brothers in the temple to help mail it.

In his reply, Yuan Jing proudly told about his master's arrangement for him. With his current progress, it would not be long before he could go out with his master to gain experience and then go to Guiyuan Temple to see the little monk.

Looking at what he had written, Yuan Jing couldn't help but chuckle. He could imagine that the veins on the little monk's forehead were throbbing when he saw the contents of the letter.

After finishing the letter, Yuan Jing stayed in his room and meditated seriously.

The realm of Taoism is different from the previous immortal cultivation. It is divided into four realms in total, namely, refining essence into Qi, refining Qi into spirit, refining spirit into emptiness, and refining emptiness into Tao.

Yuan Jing currently knows the realm of his master, who is at the peak of Refining Qi into Spirit. Perhaps with one more step forward he can break through to Refining Spirit and Returning to Void. However, this step is not so easy to break through. In the plot, the old Taoist priest remained at this stage until his death.

Yuan Jing is of course still in the first stage of refining essence into qi. Once he breaks through to the stage of refining qi into spirit, perhaps his master will take him out to gain experience.

It was said to be two years, but Yuan Jing waited for three years before the old Taoist allowed him to go down the mountain to gain experience. Yes, he let him go down the mountain alone to gain experience instead of going with him.

Yuan Jing looked at the bag thrown beside him, feeling a little aggrieved. Were they really going to drive him down the mountain like this?

"Don't show such a wronged look to your master. You must be very happy in your heart. You can go down the mountain to Guiyuan Temple to find the young monk Funeng." The three years passed without leaving many traces on the old Taoist's face. His face was still full of rosy glow. No wonder the people living down the mountain called him the old immortal. He ruthlessly exposed his disciple's true face.

Look at these three years, we haven't seen each other again, but we have never stopped exchanging letters. Just because of that meeting three years ago, the old Taoist priest believes more and more in what his disciple said about the fate of past and present lives.

Yuan Jing rubbed his face with his hand and said, "Master, please give me some face. I have been with you for an extra year in the mountains, and I have cleaned up all the ghosts and monsters nearby."

"Okay, stop being so clingy and let's go. Before you leave, say hello to those little goblins you raised, so that they don't come up the mountain to bother the master."

"Oh, I see." Yuan Jing still felt a little bit disliked, but he could only pick up his small bag, put it on his back, waved goodbye to his master, took a walk in the back mountain, and left Liuzhuang Taoist Temple.

He still felt a little reluctant to leave. How could he not know how good his master was to him? He walked a few steps and turned back and said, "Master, you should not go out for the next few years. Wait for me to return from my trials and tribulations to honor you. You must not go out."

"Got it. Stop talking nonsense and let's go." The old Taoist waved his hand while standing on the mountain.

When they reached the halfway point of the mountain, Yuan Jing looked back again. Seeing that the old Taoist priest hadn't moved at all, he knew that the old Taoist priest couldn't bear to leave him. He would be alone on the mountain from now on. He hoped that the little goblins behind the mountain would stop disturbing his old master. Well, that was it.

Yuan Jing turned and went to the back mountain. When he got there, little foxes, little rabbits, and other little monsters appeared. They rubbed against Yuan Jing's legs, knowing that he was leaving. The little monsters were reluctant to let him go. After Yuan Jing said goodbye to them and told them what to do, the three big monsters also appeared.

"Oh, little brother is going out to experience the trials. Are you so reluctant to leave your sister?"

Yuan Jing said coldly: "I don't like little sisters, I only like good-looking little brothers."

"Pfft, haha..." Xiong Zhuang laughed loudly, "You, a vixen, actually have failed times in seducing people. Young Master Yuan Jing would rather find a man than a vixen like you."

"Xiong Zhuang, are you looking for a fight again?"

Well, the two demons were about to fight again, but the rabbit demon walked up to Yuan Jing, held out a few things and said, "Master Yuan, I don't have anything good, just these few herbs. Keep them on the road, maybe they can be used."

The herbs that the rabbit demon found were all medicinal herbs with spiritual energy, such as ginseng and ganoderma lucidum. They were priceless outside, so Yuan Jing accepted them without hesitation: "Thank you, Brother Rabbit. My master will ask you to take care of them. By the way, if there is anything that my master is unwilling to tell me, you can send me a message."

Yuan Jing left a few communication talismans he drew for each of them. No matter where he was, they could find him and send a message by activating the communication talisman.

"Okay, don't worry. Besides, the old Taoist priest is very powerful. There are not many people who can threaten him." Otherwise, they would not be able to live such a comfortable life now.

Hu Yue and Xiong Zhuang also stopped fighting and stuffed the things they had prepared to Yuan Jing. There was a jar of spiritual honey, needless to say it was prepared by Xiong Zhuang. He was reluctant to give out so much, but luckily it was the only time in recent years. There was also a small bottle of century-old bell stone spiritual milk, which contained a dozen drops, and was best used for healing. Hu Yue also felt very heartbroken when taking it. After taking a look, she hardened her heart and stuffed it into Yuan Jing's hand.

"If you can't finish it, remember to return it to me when you come back."

"If you can't bear to give it away, don't pretend to be generous." Xiong Zhuang said sarcastically.

"Are you willing to give up that jar of spiritual honey?"

"But I sent it away as Taoist Priest Yuan, and I didn't expect to get it back. I'm totally different from you, a shameless vixen."

"Okay, stop arguing, I have to say, you two are really enemies. I'm leaving now, bye everyone."

After saying that, Yuan Jing turned around and jumped away. Hu Yue and Xiong Zhuang were stunned for a moment, and suddenly became furious. The rabbit demon quickly moved away from the battlefield. Sure enough, the two guys started fighting again, shouting angrily as they fought:

"Who is the enemy of this slutty fox (stupid bear)?"

Yuan Jing went to the town and bought a donkey for transportation. He headed east. His first destination was not Guiyuan Temple, but another Taoist temple. He delivered a letter for his master and exchanged Taoist techniques. Well, there were several such letters. This was a way for the master to inform other Taoists of Yuan Jing's identity, and it also allowed Yuan Jing to learn from others' strengths and weaknesses and draw on the Taoist techniques of other sects, which would be more conducive to his growth.

Yuan Jing's current cultivation level has reached the middle stage of Qi Refining and Spirit Transformation. That's why the old Taoist priest was relieved to let him go out alone. The old Taoist priest dared to say that among his peers, his disciple was definitely the one with the highest cultivation level and the strongest Taoist skills. As long as he didn't run into any tough opponents, he would have no problem with the trials along the way. What's more, he also gave his disciple some self-defense items.

When Yuan Jing entered the stage of refining Qi and transforming into a spirit, the seal that the old Taoist priest had placed on him was broken by itself. This year was enough for Yuan Jing to control and skillfully use the power of his Yin-Yang eyes. However, Yuan Jing discovered that his eyes were not only Yin-Yang eyes, but also a pair of heavenly eyes, because since the seal was broken, he found that this pair of eyes could not only see Yin and Yang, but also the "Qi" of all things.

He didn't know whether his original body had a pair of heavenly eyes, or whether he upgraded his Yin-Yang eyes to heavenly eyes because he entered this body. However, he was very happy to have this pair of heavenly eyes, because this pair of eyes could help him see more things, such as a person's luck and the merits of a person.

There is a layer of golden merit on the master's body, but Yuan Jingguan looked at himself and found that the merit on his body was extremely rich. At first glance, there was only golden light in front of him, and he could not see the person. He flipped through many Taoist books in the Taoist temple and borrowed methods of cultivating immortals. Only then did he come up with a way to converge the golden light of merit on his body. Otherwise, when he walked out and was seen by others, he would be a moving ball of merit.

The golden light of merit is of great benefit to a person who practices Taoism. The most obvious thing is that if there is a stubborn ghost that wants to crash into him, the ghost will be burned to death by the golden light of merit without Yuan Jing having to do anything.

Of course, there are disadvantages. This is equivalent to a mobile treasure house, and both monsters and Taoists will covet it.

Yuan Jing was sometimes curious, would the master not know about the changes in him? Although the old Taoist priest did not have the Yin-Yang Eyes or the Heavenly Eyes, he could open the Heavenly Eyes through certain methods after reaching a certain level of cultivation. Although the time was short, he could see many things clearly. Even his face should have changed a lot, but the master never showed any abnormality and still treated him as a good disciple.

No matter what, he will take the place of his original self to respect the old Taoist priest and find a way to help the old Taoist priest get through the disaster smoothly.

Walking out of the familiar territory and into an unfamiliar county town, Yuan Jing strolled through the streets of the county town while leading his donkey. When he saw snacks on the roadside, he would take out a few copper coins to buy one and eat while walking. Although he was dressed as a Taoist priest, in the eyes of others, he was still a young boy with red lips and white teeth, and was quite likable. How could he become a Taoist priest?

At this time, three scholars came out of the bookstore in front, talking excitedly. Yuan Jing saw the problem with a blink of an eye and asked the lady doing business: "Auntie, what are they so happy about?"

"Oh, little master, you don't know that the examination for the scholar has just ended. These three scholars are all famous talents in our county. Now they have all passed the examination and become scholars. From now on, we should call them scholars."

The people nearby also came to join in the fun, one of them was obviously not from here: "They look quite young, they have already passed the examination to become a scholar, their future must be bright, at least they can become a juren."

"Maybe he can pass the imperial examination and become an official. The doors of these three families are almost being trampled down by matchmakers."

"I can tell you're a stranger right from the word go. This old man doesn't know that among these three scholars, one is Yang Gonglu, who is already engaged and is waiting to pass the examination to get married. One is Huang Maocai, who already has a wife. The third and most handsome scholar is Shi Chi, who also ranked the highest among the three in the imperial examination. Unfortunately, his family is too poor, and he only has an old mother who makes embroidery to support him. If you don't mind that Shi's family is too poor, you can get a good marriage."

"This marriage can be arranged. Just consider it as an investment. Since he has the best grades, at least he can get a son-in-law who is a juren."

"Yes, the old lady of the Shi family has finally made it." The old lady was kind enough to point out the Shi family's residence, which was in a village outside the county town, and it only took an hour to get there by horse carriage.

Yuan Jing pricked up his ears while eating snacks. When the lady finished telling him the information, he also finished his snacks. He patted the crumbs on his hands, led the donkey and said, "Let's go."

He did not go to find an inn in the county town to stay, but led his donkey out of the city again. The direction he went was exactly the direction of Mr. Shi's home that the old lady had mentioned. He also bought some sesame cakes on the way and took them with him for dinner.

They staggered along the way and finally arrived at the Yujia Village mentioned by the old lady in the county when it was getting dark. Most people in Yujia Village were surnamed Yu, but the mother and son of the Shi family settled in Yujia Village later, because the Shi family's house was built on the outskirts of the village, close to the foot of the mountain. Before the death of Shi's father, the Shi family lived a pretty good life. But when Shi's father fell ill, most of the family's money was used for his treatment, but Shi's father still died.

Ever since Shi's father passed away, the Shi family had a hard time. It was Shi's mother who gritted her teeth and earned every penny to send her only son to school. Originally, she was not very popular in the village because she was a widow, but now that Shi Chi had passed the examination to become a scholar, the Shi family's situation has greatly improved, and there are still people visiting the Shi family even when the sun goes down.

"Madam, I am a Taoist priest passing by. I don't have time to go into the city. I wonder if I can stay at your house for one night."

"Oh, what a handsome young Taoist priest. Sister-in-law Shi, the young Taoist priest wants to stay overnight at your house." The villagers said with a smile when they saw Yuan Jing. Yuan Jing's smile was so pleasing that it was impossible to dislike him, so they spoke up for him.

Shi's mother looked at Yuan Jing and the donkey he was leading, nodded and said, "Well, please come in, young Taoist priest. It's just that my room is simple and shabby, I hope you won't mind."

"It's common to live in the open air, so I'm very satisfied to have a bed to sleep on. Thank you, ma'am. Judging from your face, there must be some happy event in your family."

"Oh, the young Taoist priest is right. Isn't there a happy event happening in the Shi family's sister-in-law's family?"

Originally, Shi's mother thought Yuan Jing was in a bad mood, but after hearing what he said, she no longer felt any resistance to staying with this Taoist priest. Moreover, the Taoist priest was still young and would not have much impact on a widow like her, so she said happily, "Thank you for your good wishes, Taoist priest. Please come in."