Chapter 48: The Murdered Wife's Testimony (4)
4
In the past few days, Zhu Qingchen is preparing to settle down in Lujia Village.
It wasn't because he didn't want to go back and sleep on the ice bed, nor was it because he wanted to stay and eat barbecue. It was mainly because he was worried that the people from Xuantian Sect would come and cause trouble for them again.
After noon, when the sun was not so strong, the old people sat under the shade of the trees, weaving medicine baskets with dried bamboo strips, while the children gathered around them, playing and playing.
Young people were wearing straw hats and tending to medicinal herbs in the fields. From time to time, the sounds of laughter could be heard from the fields.
Lu Nanxing did not take a break at noon and finished his work early. Now he was practicing with Zhu Qingchen.
Lu Nanxing meditated under a tree, feeling the flow of spiritual energy that his master had just asked him to experience.
In the past, he had practiced drawing qi into the body by referring to books, but the descriptions in the books were not detailed or were made up by others. Now that his master was teaching him personally, within half an hour, he felt that everything was suddenly clear and his spiritual energy was flowing very abundantly.
Zhu Qingchen sat under the shade of a tree, writing down the practice method transmitted to him by the system, while turning to look at Lu Nanxing to prevent him from making any mistakes in his practice.
The original book said that Lu Nanxing had a poor talent, but also said that even with the catalysis of various magic weapons, there were many people who could not form a pill when they were fifty years old.
But Lu Nanxing, who had poor talent, used the help of natural treasures and formed the elixir in just three months.
It's a complete contradiction.
Zhu Qingchen believed that Lu Nanxing had great talent, but he had been deliberately belittled by the original book, to the point that everyone, including himself, believed that he had no talent.
Zhu Qingchen wrote down the practice methods and drew a sword manual.
Just at this moment, Lu Nanxing completed the first small circulation, exhaled a long breath, and performed a closing posture.
Zhu Qingchen asked him: "How do you feel?"
Lu Nanxing looked at his hands in disbelief: "Master, I feel a lot lighter."
"That's good, you have finally gotten started." Zhu Qingchen said, "Your previous method of drawing Qi into the body was wrong. However, even if it was wrong, you were able to learn how to use spiritual power to activate the formation. This is really rare."
"Then I will now..."
"Lay a good foundation first, don't rush to practice other things." Zhu Qingchen handed him the booklet he had written. "Practice according to what is written here first, don't be lazy, and if you don't understand something, come and ask me."
Of course, it is possible that I don’t understand, but I can ask the system.
"Yes!" Lu Nanxing took the booklet with great care and flipped through it. "There is also a sword manual..."
"You can learn two more skills, both spells and swordsmanship, and then see which one suits you best." Zhu Qingchen nodded, raised his hand, broke off a branch from a distant locust tree, and held it in his hand, "Master will make you a wooden sword, you can use it first."
"Okay, thank you, Master."
Lu Nanxing gestured carefully in front of the booklet.
Zhu Qingchen rolled up his sleeves and peeled off the bark with a knife.
Sword-making is too slow, and one has to collect all kinds of rare materials everywhere. He can't do without them for the time being, so let Lu Nanxing use the wooden sword first.
Suddenly, Zhu Qingchen said, "You need to form the elixir quickly and accumulate spiritual power."
"Yes." Lu Nanxing nodded vigorously, "I understand, Master."
"Not just for yourself, but also for Lujia Village. The village chief and several elders are already discussing relocating the village."
Xuantian Sect treated them like this. Although they were mortals, they still had blood.
It's impossible to stay here and please others.
Zhu Qingchen said: "You should accumulate spiritual energy as soon as possible, and then draw a teleportation formation around the village and move the entire village away together. Then they don't have to pack up their things, and they don't have to leave the houses they are used to living in."
Lu Nanxing nodded: "I understand! I will work hard!"
"Well, it's good to have ambition."
Zhu Qingchen spent half an hour carving a small wooden sword, smoothing out the thorns on the surface, and then handed it to him: "Try it."
"Okay." Lu Nanxing picked up the wooden sword and assumed the starting stance according to the sword manual Zhu Qingchen had given him.
The sunlight shines through the branches and leaves, illuminating Lu Nanxing.
He was wearing the simplest coarse cloth with narrow sleeves and had his hair tied up with a cloth strip. Although he was not very skilled, he practiced every movement to perfection.
The wooden sword made a sound in the wind, and the breeze flipped the sword manual.
This is normal practice.
*
Lu Nanxing was very diligent. On the first night of his apprenticeship, he was so excited that he couldn't sleep and stayed up all night practicing sword outside.
The villagers disliked him for always bringing up the wind that made the windows rattle, so they sent him back to sleep.
He didn't go back, but ran further away, into the depths of the forest, and continued practicing sword skills in the moonlight.
Zhu Qingchen and the system stood by the window, looking at him with relief.
The system was touched: "The protagonist is still very hardworking." Zhu Qingchen nodded: "Yes."
"As a teacher, do you want to go out and practice swordplay?"
Zhu Qingchen suddenly opened his mouth and yawned: "I'm so sleepy. I'm a cultivator. Do cultivators get sleepy too?"
The system choked: "People who practice immortality will not feel sleepy. It's all your psychological effect."
"Really? Maybe my 'sickly beauty' physique will not change no matter where I go." Zhu Qingchen walked towards the bed.
"Come on, you just ate a large plate of barbecue with sour plum sauce, and you're still a 'sick beauty'. Can a sick beauty eat so much? You only occupy one 'person', where is the 'sick' and 'beauty'?"
"If I wasn't 'sick' could I die?"
"That makes sense. But where is the beauty?"
"'Beauty' is what I think it is."
“…”
It makes sense, and the system cannot refute it.
The villagers of Lujia Village were warm and simple. Knowing that the Immortal Master was going to live here, they specially made room for him facing the sun and even helped him dry his quilts and pillows in the sun during the good afternoon sun.
The quilt and pillows are warm.
Zhu Qingchen climbed onto the bed, wrapped himself in the quilt, lay down contentedly, and smelled the sunshine scent in the quilt.
The system carried the electronic screen and blew out the candles skillfully.
Zhu Qingchen's hair was spread out on the pillow. He suddenly saw something and turned his head quickly: "Wait a minute!"
The little blue ball of light turned around: "What's wrong?"
"I still have a score to settle with you!" Zhu Qingchen sat up from the bed and gathered his long snow-white hair in front of him.
"What account?"
“Why is my hair white?”
"You don't understand. The masters in the immortal cultivation literature all have white hair!" The system argued, "Not only your hair, but your eyelashes are also white. If you have hand hair, your hand hair should also be white. This is the trend, I arranged it specially for you!"
"What kind of trend is this? Old and young."
"Haven't you always wanted to have long hair? I'll give it to you this time."
"I want long black hair, not long white hair!"
"You can't have your cake and eat it too. Don't be so demanding."
Zhu Qingchen pulled his white hair hard, but he pulled too hard and hurt himself.
Zhu Qingchen muttered quietly: "I used to pull out the white hair for grandpa and others, and now my head is full of white hair. If they see it, they will be very upset. And Li Yue, if he sees it, he will definitely laugh to death."
The system heard his mumbling and added: "You are older than your grandfather now!"
“…”
What the hell kind of joke is this? I'm older than my grandpa.
Zhu Qingchen threw away his white hair and raised his head: "By the way, during the day, how old did they say I was?"
The system confidently replied: "Two hundred and fifty years old! Don't worry, I know the rules. It can be five years old, fifteen years old, or five hundred years old, but not fifty years old!"
Zhu Qingchen poked his head out from under the quilt and looked at it carefully: "So what age did you arrange for me to be? Tell me again."
The system paused: "Five... half of five hundred..."
The system flew away quickly: "Idiot! You little idiot!"
Zhu Qingchen jumped up from the bed, stretched out his hand to summon his sword, and stabbed the system wildly.
"Half of five hundred? I'll split you into system halves!"
"Host, I was wrong!"
Lu Nanxing, who was practicing sword in the woods, saw that his master was working so hard and had already reached such a high level of cultivation, and was still practicing sword diligently at night. Suddenly, a burning fighting spirit ignited in his heart, and he strengthened his determination to practice diligently.
He can bargain when doing business, but absolutely not when it comes to spiritual practice.
*
Zhu Qingchen stayed in Lujia Village for a few days, and Lu Nanxing's cultivation improved by leaps and bounds.
Early that morning, Lu Nanxing was doing morning lessons in the forest.
Suddenly, several sword energies swept past his head. Lu Nanxing raised his head and saw people from Xuantian Sect flying down from the top of the mountain on swords.
Seeing that the visitor had ill intentions, Lu Nanxing quickly made a gesture of withdrawal and ran to find Zhu Qingchen.
Zhu Qingchen was having breakfast with some elders in the village, with a bowl of sweet soy milk and some pancakes.
"Master!" Lu Nanxing ran over in a hurry and shouted, scaring Zhu Qingchen so much that the pancake in his hand fell off, and it fell into the soy milk with a "plop".
Zhu Qingchen picked up the spoon and reluctantly scooped up the pancake that had fallen into the soy milk.
Ever since he taught Lu Nanxing that he had to tell his elders if he had something, Lu Nanxing had to tell him everything, no matter how big or small.
When you get out of breath during practice, you should let him know; when you go to work, you should let him know; and when you come back, you should also shout “Master, I’m back”.
Zhu Qingchen now knows Lujia Village very well, and even knows how many piglets the neighboring pigs gave birth to last night.
He took a bite of the pancake soaked in soy milk: "What's wrong? What happened? Why are you so anxious?"
Lu Nanxing said: "The people from Xuantian Sect are here!"
"Hmm?" Zhu Qingchen put down the spoon and looked out the door.
Sure enough, as soon as Lu Nanxing finished speaking, the people from Xuantian Sect stopped in front of Lujia Village.
There were much more people than the last time. The middle-aged leader stood in the middle, with Xu Fangting and Shen Mingzhu standing on both sides, and countless disciples and followers behind them.
Everyone was neatly dressed in Xuantian Sect's uniforms, holding gifts in their hands, and there were ceremonial guards when they traveled.
It's a grand ceremony.
Lu Nanxing clenched the wooden sword in his hand, and the next second, the sect leader led everyone to bow in salute.
"The head of Xuantian Sect and his disciples have come to pay respect to Jade Purity Immortal Venerable and apologize to him."
Zhu Qingchen paused, silently picked up the bowl and drank the remaining sweet soy milk.
He said to the system: "Look, Xu Fangting, who in the original book took a month to wake up and clarify the facts for Nanxing, can get out of bed today."
It can be seen that in the original book, Xu Fangting did it on purpose.
He deliberately let Lu Nanxing suffer a little, and after a month, he would appear in front of him like a savior and rescue him, so that he would follow him wholeheartedly and willingly give everything for him, including the golden elixir and his life.
This person is very scheming and is definitely not the bright and cheerful senior brother described in the original book.
The system said: "Your speculation is completely different from what is written in the original book."
Zhu Qingchen asked: "What is written in the original book?"
"The original book says that Xu Fangting is a sword master who is devoted to the Dao and cares about the people. He split Lu Nanxing's golden elixir because he was deceived by Shen Mingzhu; he killed his wife to prove his Dao because he was deceived by his elders."
"……so what?"
"So, as long as he cuts out Shen Mingzhu's golden elixir, returns it to Lu Nanxing, kills the entire Xuantian Sect, and finally apologizes to Lu Nanxing, everything will be fine."
???
Could it be that Shen Mingzhu held his hand and forced him to cut the pill?
Could it be that the leader of Xuantian Sect held his hand and forced him to kill?
Shen Mingzhu and Xuantian Sect are not clean, and Xu Fangting may not be innocent either. How can it be solved with just one sentence "caring about the people"?
"This is a common technique used in 'Crematorium', setting up a green tea character to sow discord and a villain to deceive the protagonist, indicating that the protagonist was deceived by them." "In the finale, all the mistakes are put on them, and the protagonist only needs to simply complete the steps of 'tasting tea and abusing tea' and 'killing the villain' to transform himself into a 'peerless good old gong'."
The system said again: "It may be that the reasons given in the original book to excuse him were too far-fetched, resulting in confusion in logic. The protagonist has a hidden personality. You have to be careful."
It was indeed far-fetched, Zhu Qingchen curled the corners of his mouth.
At this time, the deep voice of the head of Xuantian Sect came from outside the door again: "I offended Immortal Venerable Yu a lot a few days ago. When I heard what happened, I was terrified. I have severely punished the disciples who offended Immortal Venerable that day. I have come to apologize to the Immortal Venerable."
Zhu Qingchen ignored him, picked up the bowl, drank the sweet soy milk in small sips, pressed the corners of his lips with a handkerchief, and then slowly stood up.
Lu Nanxing followed him and walked out with him.
Xu Fangting was originally standing with Shen Mingzhu, and his face was a little pale due to his injuries.
As soon as Lu Nanxing came out, his eyes suddenly lit up.
When he met Lu Nanxing a few days ago, Lu Nanxing's cultivation was obviously still very low. Now, in just a few days, Lu Nanxing seemed to have been reborn. His whole body was light, and his body was full of spiritual energy. He seemed to be on the verge of forming a pill.
Could it be that he is a talented practitioner who has been hiding for many years?
No, it should be because of the good teaching of Jade Purity Immortal. No matter how stupid a person is, the Immortal can teach him to be reborn.
in this way……
Xu Fangting looked at Zhu Qingchen with a little more eagerness.
Zhu Qingchen pretended not to hear anything, clasped his hands, and walked in front of the people from Xuantian Sect.
The head of Xuantian Sect looked middle-aged, with slightly white hair and beard. He had the demeanor of a gentle, kind old man. He saluted Zhu Qingchen and said, "Greetings, Immortal Lord."
Zhu Qingchen nodded slightly and responded, "What's the matter?"
The headmaster turned around and raised his hand slightly.
The second elder and a group of disciples, dressed in single clothes, walked forward, released all their spiritual power, and knelt in front of Zhu Qingchen.
"Please forgive me, Immortal Lord."
Zhu Qingchen frowned, took a step back, and ignored their greetings. He looked up at the sect leader with a puzzled look.
What does he mean?
The head of the sect still had that gentle look on his face. He smiled and said, "They were blind and did not recognize the great man. They offended the Immortal Master and his disciples. I have already punished them. Now let them come and apologize to the Immortal Master."
Zhu Qingchen said calmly: "I've already said that what happened that day ends here, don't bother with it anymore."
"This matter is of great importance. We have always felt guilty and uneasy, so we came to ask for forgiveness from the Immortal Venerable."
Zhu Qingchen would never believe his nonsense.
The reason they came to apologize now was not because they had wronged Lu Nanxing and truly realized their mistake, but because of Zhu Qingchen's identity.
And everything they have paid for their apology now, including compensation, gifts, and even dignity, will be doubled back from Zhu Qingchen in the future.
Therefore, Zhu Qingchen took a step aside and did not accept their apology.
"That's enough apologies. Take the gift back and don't come again."
The head of the sect said, "My nephew has come here to ask for a favor."
Zhu Qingchen lowered his eyes and did not respond.
As expected by Zhu Qingchen, they were about to take back the apology they had just expressed.
Of course he wouldn't be stupid enough to agree to the other party directly.
The head of the sect was quite shameless. He turned around and pulled Xu Fangting and Shen Mingzhu in front of Zhu Qingchen: "My two disciples are the ones who give me the most trouble. It is also their good fortune that the Immortal Master has come out of seclusion today..."
Before he finished speaking, Lu Nanxing, who was standing behind Zhu Qingchen, seemed to understand something. He suddenly raised his head with his eyes widened.
What does he mean?
Could it be that he wanted to force his two disciples to his master?
He has only been an apprentice for a few days. What are these people thinking?
Xu Fangting and Shen Mingzhu already have a master, why are they trying to compete with him?
Lu Nanxing immediately went into combat mode, like a puppy, with his hair almost standing up. He stared fiercely at the master and his two disciples, ready to jump up and bite them hard at any time.
Zhu Qingchen noticed that he was emitting "puppy fighting power" and patted the back of his hand to reassure him.
Zhu Qingchen refused, "I just accepted a disciple a few days ago, and I can't teach him enough now, how can I teach two more disciples? Besides, they are already disciples of the headmaster, how can I accept more disciples? It will be embarrassing to say it out, and it will ruin my reputation."
Xu Fangting reached the stage of Dan at the age of fifteen, but until now, his practice has reached a bottleneck and he has not made any progress for a long time.
Shen Mingzhu was born with a defect, and what circulates in her body is a broken golden elixir made from rare and precious materials.
They both thought that if they could get guidance from Jade Purity Immortal Venerable, their cultivation would definitely be able to reach a higher level.
Originally, there was a gleam in the eyes of both of them, but after hearing what Zhu Qingchen said, the light in their eyes dimmed.
The two bowed and saluted, showing great humility: "Seek your guidance, Immortal Lord."
Zhu Qingchen was about to refuse, but the head of the sect said, "The Immortal Venerable has been in seclusion for a long time, and I'm afraid he doesn't know much about what's happening down the mountain. If you can lend me a hand, the Immortal Venerable will agree."
Zhu Qingchen folded his hands and said calmly: "No need, we are not outsiders here, let's talk here."
He didn't want to bring these people into the house and dirty the land of Lujia Village.
"Okay." The master dismissed the disciples behind him, leaving only Xu Fangting and Shen Mingzhu.
Zhu Qingchen also waved to the villagers, signaling them that everything was fine and they could go back to do their own things.
The villagers were quite enthusiastic. They stood not far away, carrying the farm tools they used for daily work, and kept an eye on what was going on here, fearing that Zhu Qingchen and Lu Nanxing would be bullied.
The head of the sect took a step forward, approached Zhu Qingchen, and whispered, "Your Majesty, you may not know that twenty years ago, the seal of the Demon Abyss loosened. I asked with the other heads of the sects for divination, and it turned out that the destiny was with my eldest disciple Xu Fangting."
Zhu Qingchen raised his eyes slightly and looked at Xu Fangting.
Seeing his reaction, the head of the sect continued, "He must ascend before the age of 20 to seal the Demon Abyss. But he is still too young, and has made no progress in his practice in the past few years, so he came to the Immortal Venerable for help."
"Besides, my little disciple is born with a deficiency and cannot form an elixir. Fang Ting and he are childhood sweethearts and have a very good relationship. The only thing he is worried about is him. So I hope the Immortal Venerable will be merciful and take the pearl as well."
"Your Excellency, please think of this as a move for the benefit of the people of the world. Otherwise, once the seal of the Demonic Abyss is opened, all the people in the human world will be devastated. How can Your Excellency bear this? If Your Excellency is willing to accept the two of them as disciples, I am willing to retreat behind the scenes."
This statement sounded high-sounding, but it clearly treated Zhu Qingchen as a sucker.
He was required to teach Xu Fangting and also to repair Shen Mingzhu's golden elixir.
In the original book, they squeezed Lu Nanxing to the point of being scared to death. Now that Lu Nanxing has escaped, they have set their sights on Zhu Qingchen.
It's time to replace someone to squeeze.
Lu Nanxing looked at his master nervously.
Naturally, he didn't want his master to accept another disciple, as he had only been his disciple for a few days.
But, the leader of Xuantian Sect said it so seriously, what if... what if something really happens?
The head of the sect looked at Zhu Qingchen confidently. He would not refuse on the grounds of the people of the world, right?
Zhu Qingchen clasped his hands and said calmly, "I thought it was something important."
The head of the sect was stunned, his eyes widened: "Immortal Venerable, this is related to the lives of all people in the world, how can you be so contemptuous?"
He also wanted to put a big hat on Zhu Qingchen.
Zhu Qingchen said, "Don't use 'the people of the world' to pressure me. I don't believe in this bullshit destiny."
"Two hundred years ago, all the cultivators in the cultivation world worked together to seal the Demon God in the Demon Abyss. I don't believe that two hundred years later, the fate will fall on a cultivator with evil intentions."
"If this is really destiny, then I think God is blind. It's time to change the world!"
The master and his two disciples were stunned.
Ever since that divination more than ten years ago, which confirmed that Xu Fangting was the "savior" of the cultivation world, which sect among all schools and factions did not treat them with respect?
Whenever there are any good things, they are given to them right away and treated like gods.
It is precisely because of this that Xuantian Sect became the largest sect in the world of cultivation.
How dare Jade Purity Immortal speak to them like this?
Zhu Qingchen folded his hands and looked at them seriously.
He didn't mean to choke them, he really meant it.
What a bullshit savior setting. It's obvious that the original book imposed the protagonist halo on Xu Fangting.
He didn't believe that the true way of heaven would entrust such an important task to a monk with ulterior motives.
This monk even achieved enlightenment by "killing his wife to prove his truth".
He has never practiced Taoism, but he has read books.
How many years has Wu Qi, who "killed his wife to prove his truth" in history books been criticized? Even ordinary people understand the truth, so it makes no sense that the heavens don't understand it.
Allowing such a person to ascend is either because the Xuantian Sect has deceived people, or because the way of heaven is evil and it is okay to go against heaven.
Zhu Qingchen asked him, "Two hundred years ago, hundreds of cultivators in the cultivation world sealed the demon together. That seal could protect the human world for ten thousand years. Why did the seal loosen for no reason? Do you know the reason?"
Unexpectedly, as soon as he said this, the head of the sect's expression changed slightly, but he quickly adjusted himself.
"Please forgive me, Immortal Venerable. We don't know. I think it's because the power of the demon god is too strong inside the seal, and it attacks the seal every day, so..."
The head of the sect still did not give up and asked again: "Is the Immortal Venerable really unwilling..."
"No." Zhu Qingchen said sternly, "I will find a way to seal it, but I will never accept Xu Fangting as my disciple."
He glanced at Xu Fangting.
Xu Fangting always felt that Zhu Qingchen had seen through him, so he quickly lowered his head.
"If you want to support him, then support him." Zhu Qingchen said, "Don't think about those crooked ways. Concentrate on practicing. That's the right way. Don't come again."
The headmaster and his two disciples saluted: "Yes."
Zhu Qingchen didn't say much and took Lu Nanxing back.
After he left, several people straightened up.
Shen Mingzhu was indignant: "Master, he is really going too far! What he said was too harsh, saying that he had evil intentions and wanted to change the world..."
The head of the sect glanced at him and shouted in a low voice: "Shut up, the people haven't gone far yet!"
Xu Fangting's face flushed, and he also tugged at Shen Mingzhu's sleeve: "Mingzhu, it's done."
Having lost face so much and being scolded by others, the leader of Xuantian Sect left with his men in disgrace, his tail between his legs.
Lu Nanxing followed Zhu Qingchen back to the village.
Lu Nanxing asked hesitantly: "Master, will it be possible..."
Zhu Qingchen stopped and looked at him firmly: "No."
Zhu Qingchen asked him, "What does 'Heaven and Earth are not benevolent, and treat all things as straw dogs' mean?"
"Hmm..." Lu Nanxing thought for a moment, "Heaven and earth are cruel, and they treat everyone as puppies?"
Zhu Qingchen laughed out loud: "No, it means that heaven and earth view all things equally."
"I don't believe that anyone is born to be a savior and deserves to be revered and worshipped. I also don't believe that anyone is born to be humble and deserves to be a stepping stone for others." Zhu Qingchen looked at him seriously. "Of course, from a certain perspective, between heaven and earth, you and a puppy are the same."
Lu Nanxing:?
"Master?"
"But from another perspective, you may also be one of the saviors."
He is not the container who was "forced to split the elixir", nor is he the "wife" who was "killed to prove the truth".
He didn't have to wait for Xu Fangting to help him "taste and abuse tea", nor did he have to wait for Xu Fangting to help him take back the golden elixir, kneel down to apologize to him, chase his wife to the crematorium, and then take him to ascend together, so that he could enjoy the ascension of "all the chickens and dogs ascend to heaven".
Two hundred years ago, it was all the cultivators in the cultivation world who sealed the demon god. Two hundred years later, he could also be one of them. !
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