Chapter 44 Chapter 44 Luohua Town
Although the name is Luohua Town, when Yun Miao was brought by Niu Rao to fly over this small town dozens of miles away from Xuantian Mountains, she found that it was not as colorful and fragrant as she had imagined.
Instead, there are several wide streets crisscrossing each other, and from time to time, ox carts, donkey carts, and horse carts carrying heavy objects pass slowly by. Occasionally, you can see people riding strange-looking mounts, or riding flying swords or sitting cross-legged on magic weapons coming in and out.
The market on West Street is the most lively. On both sides of the street there are magnificent restaurants, simple and lively teahouses, and bookstores with the aroma of ink.
The shouts of the waiters at the restaurant door and the street vendors, the storyteller's clear voice in the teahouse, and the laughter of passers-by were like a stream of air rushing straight up into the sky. It was truly a crowd of people and a bustling noise.
The bustle here hardly resembled a small, remote town, but rather a bustling city. It was also a place where mortals and monks lived in exceptional harmony. Naturally, such a place would have been hard-pressed to find space for large tracts of flowers and trees.
Yun Miao stood on the cloud and muttered in disappointment, "There are no flowers here at all, so why is it called Luohua Town?"
She thought it would be as beautiful as the Peach Blossom Spring in the Cauldron of Heaven and Earth, but it turned out to be just a name scam.
"I had the same doubt when I first came to Luohua Town. Granny Hua explained the origin of the name to me."
Huo Xin's eyes swept across the bustling streets and he slowly began to talk about the history of Luohua Town.
There are usually associated low-level ochre mines near the Xuanxin ore vein. About 10,000 years ago, someone discovered a ochre mine here. Then the news leaked out, and more and more big people came here to mine and make money.
Because this place is on the outskirts of the Xuantian Mountains, the Xuantian Sect is at its peak of power. Therefore, even if there are high-level cultivators or noble families with ill intentions who value the interests of this area, they dare not commit acts of robbery. Those who are brave enough will calm down after being warned by the Xuantian Sect.
Although Xuantian Sect had the intention of protecting this place, it did not take any benefits from it, nor did it incorporate it into its affiliated forces. Therefore, a relatively free and peaceful village gradually formed here, and then slowly became a prosperous town.
More than a thousand years ago, a seriously injured pear blossom demon in the Nascent Soul stage escaped here and hid in a small town, secretly devouring living people every night to repair its own injuries. When the people in the town discovered that there was a demon causing trouble, they immediately asked for help from the Xuantian Sect.
Xuantian Sect sent a disciple to kill the flower demon, but unfortunately, the disciple was inexperienced and only dug out her demon core after killing the flower demon, without completely burning her body. The flower demon's remains were buried deep underground, and gradually revived.
So, when the demonic cult launched its massive attack on Xuantian a thousand years ago, the pear blossom demon, dormant for two hundred years, emerged from the earth, filled with hatred. The towering tree soared into the sky, instantly crushing half the street. The stretched canopy enveloped half the town.
A gust of wind blew, and countless pear blossoms burst into bloom, their rotten fragrance filling the air. Ugly tree roots spread underground, encircling the entire town, ready to kill anyone who dared to escape.
"Although the battle between the sect and the demonic sect lasted only three days, it shook the Xuantian Mountains to the ground, leaving them unable to pay attention to the situation in the small town. At the time, there were no cultivators stronger than the pear blossom demon. Thousands of mortals and dozens of low-level cultivators had to work together to save themselves. Ultimately, they killed the flower demon, uprooted her, and burned the giant pear tree to ash."
"But by then, the town was almost completely destroyed. More than a thousand mortals were killed, reduced to only a few dozen. Dozens of low-level cultivators were targeted by the flower demon, and only one remained. The casualties were devastating."
Niu Rao frowned upon hearing this and said, "The Peak Master told me about this. At that time, the sect also suffered countless casualties from the Demon Cult's sneak attack. Many disciples from Danfeng and other peaks..."
"This town was originally named Xuanshi Town, a combination of Xuantian and Huishi. Later, the sect heard about the town's situation and spared no effort to come and help. The surviving mortals began rebuilding the town on the ruins. Elder Ge Yan said the name Xuanshi didn't sound right, so Xuanshi Town was eventually renamed Luohua Town."
"So the focus of the three words Luohua Town is not on the word 'flower', but on the word 'fall'."
He lamented, "Everyone says that plants have the strongest vitality, and that wherever there is light, water, and soil, there are plants. But those who say this forget that where there is light, water, and soil, there are not only plants, but also themselves."
"If you ask me, the human race possesses the most tenacious vitality. Though frail, they always manage to unleash terrifying resilience in desperate situations. They live like weeds in every corner of this world."
After Niu Rao finished speaking, he drove the auspicious clouds to slowly descend and led everyone towards the town.
Yun Miao was stunned for a moment after hearing the story of Luohua Town. When she faced the direction of the town again, she suddenly felt that it seemed to have become much more beautiful. It was a kind of beauty that was completely different from the Peach Blossom Spring in Tiandi Ding. It came from the most simple, tenacious and vigorous beauty of human beings.
At this moment, Niu Rao brought up the matter again, "By the way, you all know the cultivator who survived. He was Ding Sangsang from the Deacon Hall. I heard that Elder Ge Yan brought him into the sect."
Yun Miao and the other two were surprised: "That Sleeping God?"
"Brother Ding?"
"Sleeping God Ding Sangsang?"
Niu Rao reminded: "He is already a thousand years old, older than me. You should respectfully address him as Senior Brother."
"He's actually so old? Senior Sister Ning is only over 300 years old. I thought they were the same age."
Yun Miao suddenly thought of something: "Wait, I remember Mo Aotian said that the old turtle he raised was only five hundred years old? I think he even named it...Old Greenhead?"
"He calls himself Ding Sangsang, such a pretentious name, yet he gave such an ugly name to a 500-year-old turtle. Tsk tsk, I bet ten spirit stones that this old Ding did it on purpose."
Tan Xiaobai quickly opened his folding fan and said with great interest, "Then I'll bet a hundred dollars that he did it on purpose!"
Huo Xin didn't want to pay attention to such a stupid thing, but when she noticed that both of them were looking at her, she said coldly: "Ten spirit stones, he did it on purpose."
Niu Rao wanted to remind them again to call him senior brother, but he saw Yun Miao and Tan Xiaobai looking at him again.
"...Okay, I'll also bet ten spirit stones that he did it on purpose."
The old cow touched its horns hesitantly and muttered softly, "To tell you the truth, that old Ding used to call me Old Cow. I'm only 800 years old, much younger than him."
Yun Miao glanced at Niu Rao's dark, honest face, then thought of Ding Sangsang's pale, scholarly appearance. Then he nodded seriously, "That's right, one thousand is much more than eight hundred. That old Ding must be deliberately trying to show off by stepping on you, Senior Brother Niu. Next time he calls you Old Niu, just call him Old Ding. See if he's embarrassed!"
Niu Rao nodded as if he understood something, indicating that he had taken note of it.
Huo Xin: ...
The girl in black silently turned her eyes away, pretending she saw and heard nothing.
Tan Xiaobai said regretfully, "But if everyone is betting that Old Ding did it on purpose, then this bet can't be carried out."
Upon hearing this, Yun Miao immediately raised his chin slightly and said, "Who said betting is impossible? I'm the banker. Everyone is betting on the same thing: I win. The banker takes it all. Pay, pay."
Huo Xin directly took her hand that was stretched out for money and said, "This is not the way to eat in a banker's house. Old Yuntou, you'd better hurry up and leave with me. If you keep dawdling like this, you won't be able to make it to Grandma Hua's for dinner."
Yun Miao followed obediently while correcting Huo Xin's mistake: "I'm not an old man, how can you call me Old Yuntou? You should call me Old Yunpo."
Tan Xiaobai followed the boss's steps, his folding fan covering half his face, and said in a pretentious manner, "Then I'll call you Old Tan!"
Yun Miao: "Huo Xin is Old Mrs. Huo, and Senior Brother Niu is Old Ox Head."
Niu Rao touched the horns in embarrassment: "No, I think the old cow sounds better."
Huo Xin silently turned his head and glanced at Niu Rao. He was born with a simple and honest face, and he always smiled in a naive way, looking a little silly:...It seems that the rumors are true, Senior Brother Niu is indeed not very smart.
*
After Niu Rao and his companions entered the town, someone soon noticed the disciple orders hanging around their waists, but the passers-by only took a glance and then looked away.
Luohua Town is the closest small town to Xuantian Sect, and has a deep connection with Xuantian Sect. Disciples of Xuantian Sect often come here to play, so people in the town are no longer surprised by seeing it so often.
Niu Rao, relying on his tall and sturdy stature, walked in front to clear the way for everyone, while Yun Miao ran around like a fish in the sea, wanting to see everything and touch everything.
Originally, Huo Xin held Yun Miao's hand because he didn't want her to run around, but he found that he, who was at the second level of Qi training, was no match for Yun Miao, who was at the ninth level of Qi training, and ended up being dragged around by her.
"What's this?"
"I'm selling peacock eggs. Look at this big peacock next to me. Isn't its tail feather beautiful? Even though it's just an ordinary animal, it'll definitely be a feast for the eyes once it hatches and grows up. How about buying a few, little girl, and taking them home to hatch for fun? Buy more and you'll get a discount."
"But why does this look like an egg?"
"It's a peacock egg."
"The peacock is so big, and the egg is so small."
"A peacock's egg is only this big."
“There’s chicken shit on this.”
"Peacock poop is pretty much the same as chicken poop."
"So what's with this brown feather? Aren't all the feathers on your blue peacock different from this brown one?"
"this……"
"Okay, let me explain it to you. This blue peacock is a male and doesn't lay eggs. The female has brown feathers, so the eggs have the female peacock's feathers on them, right?"
"Ah, yes, yes, that's it!"
"You're just a jerk! You can't even tell the difference between male and female peacocks, yet you dare to sell chicken eggs as peacock eggs? You don't have the self-cultivation of a liar at all! Bah!"
Yun Miao put his hands on his hips and spitted at the stupid profiteer, then turned around and left in a cool manner.
Huo Xin, who was being dragged away, silently gave the profiteer a cold and disdainful look.
Tan Xiaobai followed the boss's footsteps and said, "Bah, profiteer!"
"Hey, you three little brats..."
The profiteer was so angry that he rolled up his sleeves and was ready to let the three children know how dangerous the world is. However, he saw a burly black-faced man with two horns on his head walk up to him, slowly clenched his fists and silently showed off his strong muscles.
The profiteer who was setting up the stall sat back on the ground silently, hugging the blue peacock with tears in his eyes: You're crazy!
*
"What's this?"
"These are all children's toys. Look how cute this rattle is. Do you want to buy one, little girl?"
"Buy, buy four."
Yun Miao spent a huge amount of money to buy four rattles. Then she and Tan Xiaobai held a rattle in their hands and shook it from time to time, attracting the attention of passers-by around them.
Huo Xin silently put the rattle into the storage bag, determined not to go along with them. Niu Rao was afraid of hurting Junior Sister Yun's feelings, so he was in a dilemma and chose to put the rattle on his waist as a decoration.
*
"What is this?"
"Sugar painting. Would you like one, little girl?"
"I'm going to draw the four of us."
"Okay, please wait a moment."
"By the way, can you use this syrup to draw a roasted whole lamb?"
"Uh... maybe."
“It has to be so realistic that it can fool people into thinking it’s a real roasted whole lamb.”
"Uh...I'm afraid that won't work."
Niu Rao: "...Junior Sister Yun, no matter how realistic the sugar painting is, it can't fool the Peak Master. If you really don't want to buy it, then I'll buy a roasted whole lamb and take it back."
If Junior Sister Yun continued to act like this, he was really afraid that the Peak Master would be so angry that he would jump off Danfeng.
Yun Miao chuckled, "I was just joking. Don't worry, since I promised to buy a roasted whole lamb for my uncle, I will definitely buy it for him."
At this moment, a chaotic noise suddenly came from the distance. Yun Miao and others looked up and saw someone riding a winged tiger flying low along the street towards them.
The winged tiger flew too low, its thick paw pads deliberately stepping on pedestrians' heads several times, which was quite similar to the scene in martial arts novels where a master of light skills steps on people's heads to gain momentum.
Although Luohua Town was a mixed population of cultivators and mortals, mortals still made up the majority. Pedestrians on the street immediately cried out in fear, crouching down with their heads in their hands. The young man atop the winged tiger, seeing this, burst into arrogant laughter, a laugh that was truly piercing.
Seeing the winged tiger approaching and seemingly ready to kick them, the pedestrians around Yun Miao all dodged to the sides. A large open space immediately appeared on the originally bustling street. Only Yun Miao and the other three were still standing there calmly.
Huo Xin's hand had already reached for his knife, but he glanced at Niu Rao beside him and retracted it. Niu Rao, on the other hand, raised his head and glared coldly at the winged tiger. The pressure of a Nascent Soul stage demon instantly soared into the sky and quickly disappeared. Only the winged tiger noticed it.
The winged tiger's pupils constricted from the pressure, and with a cry of terror, it flapped its wings and flew into the sky in a panic. The domineering man riding on it immediately screamed in fear and hurriedly grabbed the winged tiger's collar to steady himself.
"Where are you flying to? Get down, you idiot! I'm asking you to go down, not up!"
The man screamed and was quickly carried away by the wing tiger.
However, although the Wing Tiger temporarily changed its direction, the strong wind generated by its large wings still had a significant impact on the surrounding vendors, and many lightweight goods were blown into a mess by the strong wind.
The old woman selling sugar paintings had just made a sugar painting that was blown to the ground and shattered into pieces because it was too close.
When Tan Xiaobai saw the sugar man that looked like Yun Miao fall to the ground and shatter, he screamed and squatted on the ground.
"Boss!"
He stretched out his hand sadly, and it seemed that he was still trying to put the sugar man together.
Yun Miao wordlessly grabbed the back of his collar and pulled him up: "Stop crying, your boss is here."
Tan Xiaobai hung his head in frustration: "I didn't cry, I just felt a little sorry. I was thinking of exchanging my sugar figurine for your collection of sugar figurines, boss."
Yun Miao: "Sugar will melt, how can I store it?"
Tan Xiaobai said there was no need to worry, as the jade boxes used to store spiritual plants had the ability to keep them fresh, and they could use those jade boxes to preserve the sugar paintings when they returned.
Upon hearing this, Yun Miao immediately asked the old woman to make a set of four-person sugar paintings for each of them to keep. She also asked the old woman to make a hundred individual sugar paintings of her, which she would give back to others so that her master, senior brothers, uncles, and other friends could look at the sugar figures when they missed her.
Tan Xiaobai's eyes lit up, and he immediately shouted that he also wanted to buy a hundred of his individual sugar paintings and distribute them to his relatives and friends when he got home!
Huo Xin was speechless and said, "How old are you? Why are you still so childish?"
Yun Miao looked over dimly: "Grandma Hua must miss you a lot, right? Don't you want to give Grandma Hua a candy figure of your own to make her happy?"
Huo Xin paused, then looked at the vendor with a cold face: "Give me a hundred too."
How could one be enough? She wanted to give the flower lady a hundred!
Niu Rao touched his horns and said hesitantly, "Then... can you give me a hundred too?"
The old woman's eyes twitched, and she opened her toothless mouth with a fake smile: "Dear guests from the Xuantian Sect, I am very grateful for your support of my business, but I am over seventy years old and useless. I really can't make more than four hundred sugar paintings in a day. Look..."
More than four hundred sugar figures - this is not to take care of her business, it is clearly to take her life.
Could it be that the Xuantian Sect found out that her chickens had entered the neighboring vegetable garden and stolen food yesterday, so they sent disciples to punish her?
Oh, how unfair! She didn't let the chicken steal the food. It was the chicken that slipped through the hole in the fence. She caught it as soon as she found out. This was all the chicken's fault, not her, the poor old woman!
Huo Xin then realized that the number they mentioned was a bit outrageous, so they finally decided to ask the old woman to make ten sugar figures for each of them, and they could come and get them before dark.
The old woman heaved a sigh of relief. It turned out they were just here to buy candy figurines. Her smile grew more genuine. "Isn't that the Flower Granny you were talking about the one who's skilled at making fire and lives at the end of West Street?"
Huo Xin was surprised: "Do you know Granny Hua?"
The old woman nodded and said that the monk was a powerful and kind person. She had put out a fire in a house on the street before, so most people on the street knew her. Originally, everyone respectfully called her the Flower Fairy, but she didn't like it, so they changed it to the Flower Knife Master.
"I heard that Hua Dao Ke has a granddaughter who joined Xuan Tian Sect. Could it be you, young lady?"
The old woman glanced at the knife on Huo Xin's waist and said with a smile, "I know where the Flower Knife Man lives. When the sugar figurine is ready, I'll have my grandson deliver it directly to you. It will save you the trouble of running back and forth."
Yun Miao and the others nodded in agreement. After paying the deposit, Yun Miao asked, "By the way, Grandma, do you know who that man was just riding on that Winged Tiger, making everyone want to beat him up?"
The old woman looked around and whispered, "I heard he's the young master of the Yun family. He comes from a very powerful family. You kids better stay out of trouble."
Yun Miao nodded seriously: "I see. I will pay attention to it."
After saying goodbye to the kind-hearted grandmother, Yun Miao immediately quickened his pace and headed towards the end of West Street. "Grandma Hua has lived here for so long, I think she should know where that Young Master Yun lives. Let's walk faster. After lunch, we can beat him up to help him digest his food."
Huo Xin looked at Yun Miao and said, "Didn't you say you would pay attention when that mother-in-law advised you just now? Are you changing your mind now?"
Yun Miao said seriously, "You don't understand. Mother-in-law is telling us that this is a dandy young man from a powerful family. He's easy to deal with, but his family isn't. So we can't beat him up in public; we have to put him in a sack in secret. And when I said I'd be careful, I meant to tell her I understood her hint and to reassure her."
Tan Xiaobai pondered.
Tan Xiaobai suddenly understood.
Tan Xiaobai exclaimed, "So that's what the old lady meant. Boss is so smart, I never thought of that! My family always says I don't understand good and bad words. I have to learn more from Boss in the future."
Niu Rao was initially skeptical, but after hearing what Tan Xiaobai said, he became skeptical. "The Peak Master often says I'm not very smart and can't understand the deeper meaning of what others say. Could it be that I really can't understand human language? Well, I'm just a cow after all. I've lived for eight hundred years and still haven't grasped the essence of human language. It seems I'll have to learn more from you in the future."
Huo Xin held his forehead with a headache. "That mother-in-law didn't mean that. Xiaobai, don't always learn these messed-up things from Yun Miao. And Senior Brother Niu, she's just talking nonsense. Don't believe her."
These two are not smart to begin with. What will they do if they are fooled by Yun Miao again?
Yun Miao crossed her arms in dissatisfaction: "How do you know that the mother-in-law didn't mean that? Can you hear her inner voice?"
Huo Xin was helpless: "Although I can't hear her inner voice, but what I understand is the norm, right? How could anyone say..."
Yun Miaowei raised his chin: "Too arrogant."
Huo Xin: "What?"
Yun Miao: "Huo Xin, you are so arrogant. What makes you think that everything you think is exactly what you think? Are you really sure that my interpretation is completely wrong and there is no possibility at all?"
Huo Xin choked: "I'm not sure about this. But..."
Yun Miao's face was grave as he spoke, "No, but. It's pointless to discuss whether my interpretation is right or wrong. Huo Xin, Xiaobai, and Senior Brother Niu, you must remember that the differences between people are sometimes even greater than those between people and dogs. It's a taboo in communication to always assume the meaning of others' words from your own perspective."
"Only by considering the possible meanings behind every word, never making arbitrary decisions, and thinking carefully before making decisions, can one become a wise person who is good at listening to the deeper meaning of others' words."
Tan Xiaobai: "I see."
Niu Rao: "I see."
Huo Xin: "...Is that so...?"
"Yes, that's it."
Yun Miao pinched Huo Xin's cheek with a serious expression, then walked away quickly.
Huo Xin followed behind with a thoughtful look in his eyes, savoring the deep meaning in Yun Miaogang's words.
After a moment, she suddenly paused. This wasn't right. Hadn't they just been arguing because Yun Miao's interpretation was so off-base? How could right or wrong no longer matter?
Also, tell others not to be arbitrary. Yun Miao’s interpretation just now was arbitrary in itself, right?
-----------------------
The author has something to say: Huo Xin seriously clarified: It’s impossible, that’s not what the old lady meant.
The old woman smiled shyly: "No, no, no, that's what I mean. Don't look at my age now, in fact, when I was young, I also had a heart that wanted to sack people and do justice.
The profiteer selling peacock eggs: ...You're crazy!
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