Chapter 131 The End of Nine Mountains (Part 2)
"You mean, in twenty years, I'll be staying at the Sanxi Temple in the north and becoming a famous Taoist priest?"
Longzhu is in the backyard of a woodworking shop facing the street.
At this moment, a young woman in a coarse linen dress, her long sleeves rolled up by her arms, wiped the sweat from her forehead. On the bench lay a thick, unplaned beech board. The muscles in her exposed arms were sharp and smooth, evident from years of hard work with the axe and chisel.
Perhaps few people know that before becoming "Laojun", Master Dongxuan was just the youngest daughter of a small carpenter.
When she was 25 years old, her family suffered a misfortune and she went to work alone in a Taoist temple in the north. However, because of her great talent, she became a disciple of the temple master. After that, she traveled around and gradually became famous, and then she founded the Sanxi Sect.
But now, she is only fifteen years old.
There are still ten years before that earth-shaking change in my life.
Long Zhu looked at the face, which was tanned honey-colored by the sun and had clear eyes and eyebrows, and found it difficult to connect her with the statue in the Laojun Temple a thousand years later.
She nodded and said, "Yes, but your appearance is also the opportunity for the end of the world, so I am here to deal with you."
The woman didn't feel nervous at all. She even leaned over and stepped on the bench to push the planer. The curled wood flakes fell like clouds, revealing the smooth and delicate wood grain.
She stood up, wiped the sweat from her temples, and said with a smile, "Are you here to kill me?"
"No," Long Zhu shook his head and looked at her seriously. "Those with great fortune are blessed by the Nine Mountains. I won't kill you, but I hope you give up practicing Taoism and live your life as an ordinary person."
The woman listened quietly, unconsciously stroking the plane that she used so well, and replied sincerely, "Okay, I promise you."
Long Zhu was rather surprised. She tilted her head and asked doubtfully, "Don't you have any regrets?"
"What's the regret?"
Long Zhu was silent for a moment, and then slowly described to the other party the vast incense offerings at Laojun Temple and the powerful reputation of Sanxi Sect.
The woman just smiled. She raised her eyes, and there was no surprise or ecstasy, nor fear in them, only insight and calmness.
"Why should I be sad? If I don't become a Taoist priest, I will continue to be a carpenter and practice Taoism. Isn't Tao the same as 'road'? There are thousands of roads in the world, but there is only one destination. I can change one and continue on my journey. Maybe I can even do better."
Long Zhu was stunned for a while, and finally thought: Maybe Tianjiu is right. If she becomes the ninth person, maybe the next world will become a better place in her hands.
But she had made her choice.
And a Taoist ancestor who should have had the destiny to become an immortal will disappear from the history of Xuanmen from then on.
But few people knew that several years later, a female craftsman with outstanding achievements appeared in various history books - Xuanxin.
That is the real name of Master Dongxuan.
Time flies, days and months pass by, and everything is moving forward slowly.
This was Long Zhu's second time encountering this world, and she was a bit more patient than last time.
Spring, summer, autumn and winter, the four seasons rotate, the wind blows, the sunset glow changes, swallows fly back and forth to build nests under the eaves, and the roots of weeds break through the ground again and again.
This time, she suddenly made many new discoveries.
The scenery of the four seasons is different, the morning glow and the evening glow are different, the arrival of spring and the departure of winter are different, and the eyes of children and the elderly are different.
After walking back to the end, she began to move forward slowly with the pace of the world.
It's like growing up again with an old friend.
Regarding the body that Tianjiu was reborn into in the human world, she secretly did a lot of things, such as helping his mother get rid of that shameless husband and facilitating another happy marriage for him.
In his life, he never became a child sold for nine coins, nor did he ever meet Laojun, because Xuanxin had entered the palace by chance and served in the Shaofu Supervisor, becoming a famous craftsman of the Yanshi generation, and even the emperor respected him.
Perhaps he will still wander around the world, looking for the ninth person.
But... maybe this time, he would also hope that the other party would show up later.
The Sanxi Sect did rise again in the underworld, but compared to its glory in the previous life, this time it was obviously more like a third-rate gangster organization without discipline or purpose. It did not cause any big waves, but still aroused the hatred of the famous and righteous people.
However, under the promotion of Wang Xuanling and his descendants during the ancient Shu Kingdom period, the establishment of the Zhu League was advanced by a hundred years.
Long Zhu knew that people who had appeared in the past would still come to this world, but their fate might change to some extent, big or small.
All she needs to do is wait quietly in this long life.
Countless dynasties rose and fell before her, countless prosperous cities rose and collapsed...The only thing that accompanied her was the familiar moon in the sky.
But during these countless days and nights, she often thought of a question.
Is the moon still the same moon as before?
Is this world and the previous world the same world?
Is Xuanxin, who became a famous craftsman of Yanshi, the same person as Laojun who founded Sanximen and was appointed by Tianxiao?
…
She couldn't find the answer for the time being.
Perhaps the person who could answer all these questions is still a very long and distant time away from her.
She could only continue to wait.
Through this, she changed countless identities, traveled to every corner of the world, and met many people - old friends who had crossed paths in the previous world, as well as strange and interesting new faces.
However, at the end of the story, she is always the only one left.
The difference is that there is one more grave that needs her to place flowers on it.
One night, she suddenly understood why Tianjiu wanted to end the world.
Perhaps, he doesn't want to be a farewell person forever in this life?
…
Spring goes and spring comes again.
She finally ushered in her 1,257th spring.
That was her season, a season for reuniting with old friends.
-
Outside the Taiqing Palace in Hecheng, a bright girl with light brown hair was arguing with the security guard at the door.
The uniformed security guard blocked our entry with a blank expression: "Miss, we don't allow visitors today. There's a funeral going on inside."
The girl turned around and asked the assistant in black to hand her a funeral gift.
"Look carefully, I'm here to attend the funeral!" The girl crossed her arms and said, "Why, someone gave me money and you don't want to accept it?"
The security guard remained unmoved, his expression serious: "Excuse me, Miss, we only allow people on the guest list in."
The girl opened her eyes wide and tried to persuade him, but she found that the security of Taiqing Palace was of extremely high quality and would not be moved by any persuasion.
She immediately frowned and changed her tone to a soft, pleading one: "Brother, please let me in. Actually, I'm here to look for my cousin. She's the one on the guest list. She became a Taoist priest at Qingcheng Temple after high school. I haven't seen her for a long time..."
The security guard was skeptical. He narrowed his eyes and asked tentatively, "What's your cousin's name?"
The girl's eyes lit up: "Zhao Caiyun!"
"Wow, it really is." The security guard's eyes fell on a certain line, and he had a clue in his heart, but his face was still cold: "What are you looking at? I still can't let you in. We have rules."
The girl grunted with gritted teeth, cursed, and stomped her feet away.
The black-clad assistant beside him asked with concern, "Miss Zhao, shall we go back to the hotel now?"
"Go back to the car and wait!" Zhao Mingjue angrily took out his phone and said, "Let me file a complaint against that security guard first."
Unexpectedly, as soon as I took out my phone, more than a dozen news push notifications rang one after another.
In one of the introductions, it was clearly written that "a young actor on the 18th line was kidnapped, and a caring citizen called the police for help."
Zhao Mingjue looked puzzled: "What the hell, they kidnapped me even though I'm so poor?"
This 18th-tier fresh-faced actor debuted two years ago through a talent show. I heard that his family conditions are average, he doesn't have many resources or connections, and his popularity is mediocre. He plays the seventh or eighth male lead in various ancient idol dramas every day. However, it is said that his agent recently got him a big opportunity, which is "Wangxiantai" directed by Zhang Huai. But the news of his joining the crew has not been confirmed yet, and he was kidnapped. I really don't know whether it is a blessing or a curse.
Zhao Mingjue snorted, clicked "not interested", and swiped away.
At this moment, the misty mountaintop Taoist temple was shrouded in solemnity. The white flags on the eaves of the palace gate hung low, swaying gently in the cool mountain breeze.
A golden nanmu coffin was placed in the center of the Taoist temple, and a memorial tablet was respectfully placed next to the altar. A long list of honorific titles was densely engraved on it, and at the end, there were the words "The spirit tablet of Lord Meng Gong Hui Bujiu".
Meng Bujiu, the head of Taiqing Palace, was born to a life span of 200 years, and indeed lived for more than 120 years. His death of old age was a happy funeral, but it was also a pity that Xuanmen lost a leading figure.
All those who came to pay their respects were prominent figures in the Xuanmen sect. They looked sad and heavy-hearted as they went to the coffin one after another to burn incense.
Wang Suqing, her junior sister, was also there. Now that Meng Bujiu was gone, she was the oldest and most powerful member of the Zhu Alliance.
Behind her stood two young Taoist priests, one with short hair and a rather sloppy look, with a small vermilion mole on each inner canthus; the other with long flowing hair, a whisk at his waist, and his arms folded, looking very cheerful.
Although both of them are her favorite disciples, the difference between them is really shocking.
One can win the championship in the martial arts competition, while the other is not enterprising and always comes last. This can be considered a subtle complement.
Wang Tianfu also stood beside the two of them and tugged at the sleeve of the long-haired Taoist priest. "Master Zhao, why do they all say that the coffin is empty?"
The short-haired man answered without being asked, turning back with a smile and saying, "How could a person like Master Meng lie quietly in his coffin and wait to be burned? Of course, he must have felt something before his ascension, and his thoughts were clear, so he ascended to heaven while traveling!"
Wang Tianfu scratched his head: "Then why put out a big coffin?"
Zhao Caiyun chuckled, touched the top of his head, and whispered with his hands together, "If we don't put this in, how will the Taiqing Palace Supervisor collect the funeral gifts? That might cover a year's expenses."
Wang Suqing coughed.
The people behind him straightened their bodies and looked into the distance with determined eyes, as if the whispering had never happened.
However, before half an incense stick of time had passed, the discipline of the few people gradually loosened.
Wang Tianfu turned around and tugged at his short-haired man's sleeve. "Master, is the one standing next to Director Bai the Master of Changfeng Monastery? His eyes...?"
Wang Fengxu looked over and saw a white figure holding three incense sticks as he came forward to pay his respects. He was wearing a Taoist robe, his hair was tied into a single bun, and he walked lightly. He was just as others praised him for his slender figure, upright as a bamboo.
It’s a pity that this young talent, who is as pure and elegant as a banished immortal, also has the same regrettable flaw: blindness.
This is a sequelae brought about by the Bai family's innate ability. Some of the restrictions appear on the arms, some appear on the legs, and his appear on the eyes.
Though blind, he moved without hesitation. He navigated winding mountain paths and undulating steps with pinpoint accuracy, as if everything around him was reflected clearly in his mind's mirror. Occasionally, a mountain bird would fly overhead, and he would tilt his head slightly, as if "seeing" the world in a different way.
Wang Fengxu thought to himself: If I were half as good as him, even if I were blind, lame or deaf, I would still be able to become a master of Taoism.
Zhao Caiyun sighed, "What a shame! Such beautiful eyes are wasted. It would be better if it were the legs that were broken. At least it would be pleasant to sit in."
Wang Fengxu said disdainfully, "You were expecting something better?"
Wang Suqing coughed again, and the people behind him straightened up and shut their mouths again.
After the funeral, Zhao Caiyun heard that her cousin came to Hecheng to see her, and happily walked towards the back door parking lot.
As she walked through an alley, she felt a vague gaze staring at her.
here we go again.
She thought to herself.
Lately, I've been feeling like someone is secretly spying on me, but strangely, there's no malicious intent in this spying.
She stopped and suddenly heard a sharp wind. She raised her hand and summoned the Five Elements Magic and Gold Technique to resist, but found that the "hidden weapon" attacking her was a pair of silver scissors.
Zhao Caiyun pulled the scissors from the wall, held them in her hand and looked at them for a while. They felt slightly cool and quite heavy. The material was not like ordinary scissors, but more like the fine iron she had smelted using the gold method, and contained abundant spiritual power.
"You have been following me all the way, why don't you come out and see me?"
She intuitively felt that the other party was not an enemy, and his tone was more of curiosity.
At the end of the alley, a shadow gradually emerged from the darkness.
It was a woman with short hair and wearing a casual jacket.
Her bangs were combed to the left as usual, and the loose hair covered her left eye, leaving only a pitch-black right eye. At first sight, I thought she had a gloomy temperament, but when I looked at her again, I felt that there was something familiar in her eyebrows and eyes.
But she couldn't remember where she had seen this man.
Maybe I saw it in a dream, but it would be a bit embarrassing to say it out loud.
"Excuse me, have we ever met before?" Zhao Caiyun thought about it and couldn't help asking.
Long Zhu blinked and shook his head: "No."
Zhao Caiyun weighed the scissors in his hand and pointed hesitantly: "Then this is yours?"
"No," Long Zhu smiled, standing there with his hands in his pockets. "I just think this suits you very well."
Zhao Caiyun was a little stunned. He looked down at the silver scissors in his hand, and seemed to be dazzled by their light for a moment.
When he looked up again, the mysterious and strange woman in front of him had disappeared.
-
"Master, can't we stay one more day?" Fang Ya walked into the Taiqing Palace's chapel carrying his luggage and looked around. "The room has been cleaned. I'll make the bed for you."
Bai He also held onto the door frame with one hand. Although his eyes were closed, he seemed to see everything. He smiled slightly and said, "No need. Go play with your friends. We haven't seen each other for many years. Take this opportunity to spend more time together."
"Yes!" Fang Ya touched his nose embarrassedly: "Then I'll be back soon."
As he spoke, he diligently cleared away all obstacles in the room, and placed some daily necessities in places that Bai He was accustomed to, before turning and leaving.
Bai He also walked slowly around the room. After getting familiar with the environment, he ran his hands over every corner.
Outside the window stood an old banyan tree, lush with green. The lush green color poured out from the window lattice, staining Bai Heye's moon-white Taoist robe like ink, making it look as if he had changed into a sky-blue suit.
Summer is approaching, with the chirping of swallows and the hum of cicadas. If you want to be in tune with the season, the courtyard may be lacking a set of cups, gourmet dishes and a chessboard.
Bai He also walked under the eaves, feeling the breeze blowing past him from time to time.
He had his hair tied up in a single bun, with a few strands of hair hanging down in front of his forehead. His eyes were quietly closed, with the forbidden lines under his eyebrows and eye sockets covering them, making him look mysterious and a little cold.
He had indeed lived a rather lonely life.
Why say "this life"? He is still young, and perhaps he has only lived less than a third of his life.
But deep down he always felt that he had vaguely retained some memories of his "past life". Most of those images were hazy, like a dragonfly skimming the water. Once he tried to seriously investigate their origins, they became blurred and it was impossible to find any trace.
So he feels that many things are familiar, and every time he meets someone, he subconsciously wonders if he has seen this person before.
But he could not find any more content in his memory, so he often fell into certain emotions alone, and found it difficult to find the right time to express them. He was depressed like this and turned himself into a pot of bitter wine.
A gust of wind blew, and the leaves rustled and fell. A wild raccoon, who came from nowhere, jumped onto the branches of an old tree and breathed threateningly at a white-bellied and gray-spotted wagtail beside a grass nest in the center of the tree.
Bai He also sensed something, and with his face slightly tilted, his expression unchanged, he raised his hand and put his fingers together without even making a seal. The soil under the tree roots rose up and built a small earth wall, which stopped the aggressive wild raccoon and made it fall flat on its face.
The wagtail chirped and flew away. The wild civet cat turned over and landed at the roots of a tree. It turned around in a daze and went into the bushes in a confused manner.
Bai He also loosened his fingers, lifted up his clothes and sat down against the railing. He put his mobile phone aside, the screen automatically unlocked, and the screen reader began to read out the date, time and weather.
The AI reading of this software uses the most basic robot voice, without the popular sound source, which makes it seem a bit dull and boring.
In his spare time, he would sit like this and listen for the whole afternoon.
The mobile phone reported the news in a serious tone, mentioning the recent sensational kidnapping incident. It said that the male star held a press conference for the first time after being rescued, and at the same time confirmed the news of joining the crew of "Wangxiantai". It was really a blessing in disguise.
There were also some pushes from the Zhumeng Forum, saying that Wang Lingqi, the next-door neighbor of the Wang family, was promoted to deputy director, and that his cousin Bai Heng was promoted to captain of the 13th Detachment of Hecheng and consultant to the General Administration, etc.
Bai He also moved his fingers to bring a pot of tea, and while listening to the screen reader software muttering, he poured himself a drink.
The robot voice suddenly paused and interrupted, "User lz023 sent 10 pictures. Do you want to accept them?"
Bai He was also stunned. Although he closed his eyes, he still subconsciously looked left and right like an ordinary person.
Strangely enough, he didn't sense anyone approaching.
After a moment, he said, "Receive."
The screen reader software loads for a moment, and after receiving the information, it begins to honestly complete its job - informing the user of the content of each picture.
However, it is just a simple tool that facilitates blind people to access the Internet. It is not very intelligent and can only provide the simplest and most straightforward descriptions.
"There's a mountain in the picture, and on the mountain stands a big tree. Behind the tree is a sea of golden clouds. I guess this is a picture of the sunset on the mountaintop."
The robot even added pronouns like "I" to try to alleviate the stiffness brought by the dull voice.
After a brief pause, it automatically turns to the next page.
"The picture shows a grassland with snow-capped mountains and white sheep in the distance. It's truly a paradise on earth!"
Bai He also smiled.
"There are a lot of people in the picture, dancing around a bonfire, and there are stars in the sky."
"The picture is blue and there's nothing. I guess it's a sea with no wind."
"The picture shows a bamboo raft with an old man paddling it. The water and the mountains are all green."
"The picture shows a desert with a camel caravan in the middle and Haloxylon ammodendron trees in the lower right corner."
"picture……"
Bai He also listened to the pictures one after another. He didn't quite understand the meaning of the pictures sent to him by user lz023. Maybe he just pressed the wrong button accidentally, and he happened to choose to receive it.
But there was a thought in my mind telling me that this was not an accident or coincidence.
It was as if someone had traveled thousands of miles to come to him and preserved all these invisible landscapes for him.
The robot said: "User lz023 sent a text message. Do you want to receive it?"
Bai He also nodded and replied, "Received."
After a two-second pause, the robot said, "User lz023 sent a message, the content is - 'Reach out.'"
Bai He also frowned, looking a little dazed. With a bit of temptation and suspicion, he slowly opened his palm and raised his arm.
It's like trying to catch the raindrops falling between the tiles under the eaves.
The next second, there was a rustling sound, and his palm suddenly sank, and he was caught off guard and grasped something round and furry.
He rubbed his fingertips slightly and quickly formed a picture in his mind: this is a small bird, shaped like a long-tailed tit, but with a round head and body. After rubbing it carefully, he found that it was actually a felt bird with a bit of rough workmanship.
The uncle who was in charge of the abbot had bought this kind of handicraft at the Lubo Mountain Scenic Area, and had brought him one once, but he didn't know where he put it later.
Bai He was also lost in thought while holding the felt tit, when suddenly, his palm was scratched by a feather.
The white ball chirped and flapped its wings, then suddenly broke free from his fingers and landed happily on his head, like a hen incubating eggs and refusing to move.
Bai He also kept his hand outstretched and stood there for a long time.
One second seemed as long as a century.
He closed his eyes, but saw many familiar scenes: the bamboo pavilion of Changfeng Temple, the sunset on the mountaintop, and the fragments of historical books in Qingcheng Mountain...
He saw many people come and go, some planning their whole lives to change the world, while others were as steadfast as a rock, guarding a door to the end.
Finally, he saw himself climbing on the back of a snow-white celestial dog. They were running all the way towards the moon, without stopping, chasing, and behind them were the vast starry sky and the mortal world.
"User lz023 sent a message saying, 'Long time no see.'"
Bai He also felt a line of warm water droplets lightly sliding across his cheek, and he could hear his voice trembling slightly.
--"……haven't seen you for a long time."
=End of full text=
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
