A dark shadow sweeps through the wind, revealing natural and man-made disasters.
A black cloud drifted by, the city was filled with wails, people fled in all directions, the unknown fear filled them with despair.
Shi Yulu waved her glass umbrella again, sweeping away the drifting black mist. The situation was settled, and not wanting to cause any more trouble, she finally acquiesced to Huaiwen's decision to join this disaster: "Since you want to stay here, then go ahead."
She immediately turned to look at Cang Lun, whom she hadn't seen for a century. Her heart trembled again, but she quickly thought of something and said, "This place needs to be thoroughly searched to ensure that no black energy clusters have been missed. Cang Lun, would you be willing to assist me?"
Cang Lun nodded, and Shi Yuluo added, "In that case, I'll be right back."
Cang Lun understood the meaning of "I'll be right back." He didn't say anything, but simply nodded in acquiescence.
The remaining individuals, with tacit agreement, patrolled Zhiyang City to ensure there were no more black mist clouds. They had originally planned to patrol separately, but unexpectedly ended up resting in the same place.
This was an abandoned thatched hut. Jiang Liyan was exhausted and injured; he slumped over, dozing off. Huaiwen, on the other hand, was staring intently at Cang Lun, as if she had a lot to say.
Cang Lun felt uncomfortable being stared at, so he joked, "I know I'm good-looking, but you don't have to keep staring at me. It makes me want to be more presentable."
Huaiwen chuckled sheepishly, dusted himself off, and bowed to Canglun: "Daoist Canglun, I am Huaiwen, and I have many questions about today's events. Please enlighten me."
Canglun admired Huaiwen's demeanor, but having spent many years mingling between the human and demon realms, he couldn't help but blurt out, "You're quite refined and handsome—"
Upon hearing this, Huaiwen's eyes widened, and a fireball ignited in Xuan Ye's hand.
The bright fireball startled Jiang Liyan awake. He asked in a panic what had happened. Upon seeing Cang Lun, he quickly waved his hand and explained to Huaiwen and Xuan Ye, "Hey, hey, don't worry. I just wanted to say that you are very intelligent, you can tell me anything."
Huaiwen stepped forward and asked, "Then may I ask, Daoist Master, do you know what that black cloud of energy is all about?"
Cang Lun scanned Huai Wen up and down, his eyes darting around: "Didn't you see? They turn people into 'patients'."
“If they just become patients, how could they act like warriors and attack others?” Huaiwen analyzed. “Master Yuluo also said that it’s not just people in this area who have been infected by the energy cloud. That means this matter is very serious, otherwise so many Taoists wouldn’t have come here.”
Cang Lun fell silent for a moment.
When did the black cloud appear? Probably after the stone tablet in Yong'an City descended. After half the people in Yong'an City died overnight, and that saying spread, it was clear that something extraordinary was about to happen.
After that, Cang Lun went to Yong'an City. However, he didn't know if the stone tablet had been tampered with, because he didn't find anything unusual about it when he arrived.
In the two weeks that followed, he heard people talking about the energy ball. They said it was an energy ball that could greatly enhance one's spiritual cultivation, and many Taoist priests were looking for it.
Upon learning this, Cang Lun was naturally curious and followed after them. However, he heard along the way that the stone tablet in Yong'an City had cracked. Before he could even reach Yong'an City to investigate, he saw Zhiyang City engulfed in flames and promptly came here to extinguish the fire.
But who could have imagined that this was not just a fire, but also a "pathological" disaster?
"Do you know about the stone tablet in Yong'an City?" Cang Lun asked.
Huaiwen nodded, and Canglun asked again, "Then did you know that the stone tablet in Yong'an City has cracked?"
Huaiwen glanced at Xuan Ye sheepishly, touched her cheek sheepishly, and whispered that she knew.
“Since you already know, then I won’t hide it anymore. These wisps of energy are probably related to that stone tablet.” Cang Lun said sternly, “If you want to know what these wisps of energy are, you first need to know what happened after the stone tablet cracked.”
Having said that, Huaiwen no longer concealed anything and told Canglun everything she knew about the stone tablet. But what she didn't mention was that she would be affected by the stone tablet and have nightmares.
Upon learning these things, Canglun's gaze towards Huaiwen changed. Even a former high priest and demoted cultivator like himself couldn't discern the true nature of the stone tablet at a glance. How much less could an ordinary apprentice like Huaiwen?
Upon hearing this, Jiang Liyan was both surprised and delighted, and immediately congratulated him: "Well done, brother! I thought it was my magic that cracked the stone tablet, but I didn't expect it was you and him."
Huaiwen waved his hand and said that it was Xuan Ye's doing that this matter was accomplished.
"You're quite talented, kid. Who did you study under?" Cang Lun probed.
Huaiwen answered with a soft laugh, "I studied under Liu Xi."
Cang Lun had never heard of this person before… His mind raced: “What’s your name?”
"Huaiwen".
Jiang Liyan hurriedly added to the memorial, "My brother comes from the transvestite institute. You know the transvestite institute, right? It used to be a good place. It's just that it's been declining in recent years. But don't worry, with my brother here, the transvestite institute will definitely be able to revive and prosper!"
Upon hearing that Huaiwen came from the Bureau of Humans and Demons, Canglun froze, staring at Huaiwen in disbelief. Before he was exiled from the God Realm, he had also visited the Bureau of Humans and Demons, but by then, the Bureau's atmosphere had changed drastically, and there were hardly any human companions left.
Although he never went back to that place after being exiled by the gods, people soon stopped talking about the place of transvestites, and even now, few people know about it anymore.
Now that the transvestite has produced such a young apprentice, it's hard for him not to reminisce about the past.
Cang Lun's gaze gradually shifted from Huai Wen to Xuan Ye, as if fate was turning again.
Perhaps it was the intense gaze of Canglun that made Xuan Ye's voice low. How could people who had shared similar experiences not connect their past experiences after hearing Huaiwen's words?
Jiang Liyan rubbed his nose: "No matter how we talk about it now, we still don't know what that black cloud is. Unless we go back in time and see how the stone tablet descended and killed half the city's population, we can't find a solution right now. We might as well get a good night's sleep."
Huaiwen's expression darkened. She agreed with Jiang Liyan's words: if they could go back to the past, everything would be easily solved.
"Although we cannot go back to the past, there is a kind of magic in this world called the Art of Rewind. It can not only recreate past scenes, but powerful people can even change the past." Cang Lun preached like a Confucian master. "However, the people in this world who can operate this magic are nowhere to be found, or they may have already died."
"He's not dead."
"What?" Everyone turned to look at Xuan Ye.
Cang Lun was somewhat agitated: "Don't talk nonsense if you don't know anything."
Huaiwen's eyes darted back and forth between Xuan Ye and Cang Lun: "Who isn't dead?"
Xuan Ye raised his eyelids slightly and stared at Cang Lun: "The Great Immortal of the Eastern Region touches the bamboo slip."
As soon as these words were spoken, everyone understood.
The Eastern Great Immortal Fu Lin is a household name, a deity deeply revered and worshipped. Some worship him because he protects people, rescues them from danger, and brings them hope. Others worship him because he was the patriarch of the orthodox school of immortal cultivation a thousand years ago.
Almost all of his disciples have achieved immortality.
There are various legends about this Eastern Immortal in the human, demon, and divine realms. The most widely circulated story is that Fu Lin attained immortality, but after becoming a deity, he returned to the human realm to become a Taoist cultivator in order to benefit all beings. This is why he is revered by those who cultivate immortality.
Even though he was no longer an immortal, he still enjoyed the life of immortality and the passing years. But three hundred years ago, he suddenly disappeared.
Once he disappeared, Fengqin Mountain, where his sect was located, fell into ruin.
At first, people searched everywhere for his whereabouts, but after three hundred years, there was still no trace of him. The cultivators of immortality have changed three generations, and most of them believe that Fu Lin has probably passed away and returned to nature.
Now that Xuan Ye has actually said that Fu Lin is still alive, anyone who hears this will be alarmed.
Cang Lun tried his best to calm himself down and asked, "You say that the true god Fu Lin is alive, what evidence do you have?"
Xuan Ye's eyes were sharp, and he asked with a light smile, "In the mortal world, there are many stories about Fu Lin. These stories are never without origin; each one has a story origin. However, there is a story called 'Saving the Daughter at Lujiang,' in which people disagree about who the god and demon who save the girl are."
Cang Lun retorted, "What does your story have to do with the living God Fulin?"
Xuan Ye ignored Cang Lun and instead asked, "Then let me ask you first, do you know what this story is about?"
“I know, I know!” Jiang Liyan blurted out.
This story is quite famous—a tale of a hero rescuing a damsel in distress.
The story tells of a fallen heiress who loses her mother, father, and all her money. Despite this, the resilient and determined heiress borrows money to open a shop and rekindles her hope for life. Just when she's doing well, she catches the eye of a wicked demon who forces himself on her.
When Qianjin was being escorted to the evil demon's house, they had to cross the Lujiang River. Qianjin thought that she would only suffer humiliation on this journey, so she might as well prove her innocence by dying. So, when the boat was almost in the middle of the river, she pretended to be seasick and went out to the deck to get some fresh air.
In that split second, taking advantage of the evil demon's subordinate's inattention, she drew the knife from his waist and held it to her own neck. Standing tall and proud, she cursed the group of villains with her own life, wishing them a terrible death.
Just as Qianjin was about to commit suicide, a bolt of lightning struck down from the sky, accompanied by the appearance of a deity. In the end, the deity saved Qianjin and punished the evil demon.
"So this deity is the true god of Fulin?" Huaiwen asked.
"If we want to know if it's him, we'll have to find that wicked demon from the storybook." Xuan Ye paced around Cang Lun. "However, as far as I know, that demon left very deep water ripple marks on his body."
"Water ripples? What are those?" Jiang Liyan stared blankly.
What was that? It was something Cang Lun was very familiar with—it was the mark left by Fu Lin.
Canglun remembered that when he first became a priest, he heard that the priests in the divine realm liked to leave their unique marks on their defeated opponents.
Upon further inquiry, it was discovered that the gods' fondness for leaving traces was an imitation of Fulin. It turned out that before Fulin attained immortality, he had a habit of leaving water ripples on the demons he subdued, thus demonstrating his victory.
After attaining immortality, Fu Lin felt that this practice was inappropriate, and gradually stopped leaving traces on the demons he had subdued.
But before that, the priests of the divine realm had already imitated and spread the practice of leaving marks on their defeated opponents. The priests even took pride in who left the most marks and whose defeated opponents were the strongest.
Before Fulin disappeared, no one dared to imitate his water ripples. Until three hundred years ago, when he vanished, people began to search for him.
It was also at this time that many people began to imitate the ripples on the water. Under the guise of seeing the ripples, they spread the word that they had seen the true god Fulin for the last time, inherited his mantle, and were going to Fengqin Mountain.
There are just too many people like this; no one can be trusted.
The last group of disciples at Fengqin Mountain must not be allowed to run rampant.
Therefore, it was declared that Fengqin Mountain was far removed from the world, and the roads leading to Fengqin Mountain were sealed off. From then on, without the sound of the wind chime, Fengqin Mountain was devoid of life.
For these reasons, Xuan Ye had never seen the water ripples left by Fu Lin's own hand, so he could not be certain that the deity in the story was the real Fu Lin.
Fortunately, he knew of a spot where there were ripples that resembled those from a bamboo sachet.
Cang Lun's memories returned, and he asked Xuan Ye, "Since you say you know that evil demon, do you know where he is?"
Xuan Ye turned fierce and sneered, "No one knows where he is better than me."
Jiang Liyan scratched his temples: "So who exactly is that evil demon?"
Xuan Ye replied with a smile that concealed a dagger: "Ignorant and incompetent, you will be destroyed by the Sun's Strategy."
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