Chapter 163 The Human Melting Pot
Since he was promoted to Grandmaster, Gu Dan's senses have become extremely sharp.
The movement that others could not even detect was like a thunderbolt to him.
The world is complicated and chaotic. The grandmaster uses the same eyes he uses to look at ordinary people in the world to easily discover countless problems that ordinary people would subconsciously ignore - to put it simply, after his eyes become sharp, things that were once worthy of attention will inevitably reveal flaws and defects.
The improvement of one's strength is also constantly forcibly raising one's aesthetic standards.
This is just a grandmaster, not even worthy of the word immortal.
From this we can see that the story of fairies falling into the mortal world and falling in love with mortals is probably fake. When fairies look at mortals, it is probably the same as looking at skeletons.
In the beginning, in order to resolve this feeling of discomfort, Gu Dan even needed to use his true Qi to block part of his perception. Later, after he gradually adapted and was able to find peace in the midst of noise, this perception truly became a help.
This special feeling after the promotion also made Gu Dan realize that if the promotion of martial arts can bring such changes, what about immortals? When the divine mind can really sweep thousands of miles, I am afraid that mortals are just a piece of moving meat on a skeleton, and there is no beauty or ugliness, they are all the same.
No wonder the immortals in legends have to stay away from the mortal world, because no matter how similar they look on the outside, when you really look at them, the huge gap between them will remind them all the time that they are completely not the same kind of people.
Nannan once envied a dog, but the higher one’s cultivation level goes, the greater the gap between people may be than that between people and dogs.
While in this world, there is a place for spiritual practice everywhere.
Gu Dan has begun to experience this special feeling. Although he has walked out of the Gu family courtyard, a feeling like a larger barrier has begun to surround him unconsciously, reminding him all the time.
"Someone is coming on horseback."
After listening for a while, Gu Dan said with certainty.
"To us?"
Xun Ke was no longer surprised that Gu Dan could always find out something in advance; he was used to it.
"Yes, it is getting closer."
Gu Dan nodded slightly, and the two of them did not disturb Aunt Cheng for the time being and waited together in front of the village.
Sure enough, from a distance Xun Ke could see a small black dot approaching here, and with a rough glance, the distance was at least several hundred meters!
He was able to detect and warn in advance from such a long distance? Even though Xun Ke was already somewhat used to it, he still couldn't help but feel a little shocked. What kind of strength does Mr. Gu have now?
They didn't have to wait too long. A man riding a horse came quickly. When he noticed the two people standing at the entrance of the village, he subconsciously drew the knife from his back.
This place is quite close to where the imperial court and the White Lotus sect were fighting. Even the displaced refugees would stay away from it. Anyone who could be met here was either a skilled and courageous person, or a lackey of the White Lotus sect or the imperial court.
"Who?! Where are you from?!"
The horse stopped about twenty steps in front of the two men. In the drizzle, the man in the bamboo hat looked tall and strong, and the scimitar in his hand was still oozing blood!
Xun Ke looked a little unhappy. "Who should I say is the one who came to our village? It's you, right?!"
"Your village?"
The man on horseback lowered the scimitar in his hand slightly, and his voice sounded a little surprised. He lifted his hat, revealing a burly and fierce face with a scar on it. At this time, his eyes were constantly wandering over Xun Ke's body.
After a moment, the man on the horse asked in disbelief: "Idiot?!"
Xun Ke was stunned.
This name seemed very far away from him, yet very familiar.
It feels distant because a group of friends once called him that, and it feels familiar because there was a silly and crazy girl in the Gu family's courtyard who always called him that.
But for a child who was only in his teens at the time, the changes in six years were too great. Even his voice was different, not to mention his physique.
"Who are you?"
Xun Ke was a little unsure.
"Is it really you?!"
The man put away the scimitar in his hand, turned over and got off the horse, "I am Erniu!"
He casually stuck the machete into the ground, "Don't you remember? We went fishing in the Yuan River together, and we were hung on the beams and beaten! Oh, do you remember the iron ruler in the private school teacher's hand? It was made from our family!"
The torrent of memories came rushing back, and many memories from my childhood came flooding back to my mind at this moment.
Xun Ke seemed particularly surprised, and rushed over to give him a big hug, "How did you become so strong!!!"
He hit Erniu's chest hard several times with his fists, and the raindrops on his hat flew away like tears falling into the muddy ground, gathering into a shallow ditch.
"You kid, it's been so many years, why do you still look so thin? And still look stupid! When you left with Mo Zi, everyone envied you! By the way, isn't Mo Zi in Yangzhou? Why are you back? Who is this..." Erniu looked at Gu Dan and asked hesitantly.
After meeting again after many years, the two had a lot to say.
"This is Mr. Gu, Master Mo's best friend! He has decided to come out and save the world with Master Mo! Let's go back to the house and discuss the details."
"Mozi's best friend?! Wow, he must be a great hero. You are so lucky!"
Xun Ke pulled Erniu's hand and returned to the old house which was literally bare.
Erniu first took off his straw hat, then carefully took out an oil-paper bag from his arms, which contained a whole roast chicken and some large chunks of fat.
Carrying these things into the house, Erniu saw the burning fire at a glance.
And there was that big pile of vomit next to the fire.
"Guanyin soil?!"
Erniu stood there in a daze, looking back as if searching for something, "Have you met Aunt Cheng?"
The joy of meeting each other faded a lot. Xun Ke nodded and asked again: "What's the situation with Aunt Cheng? Why is she the only one left in the village? Where are her family members?"
Spreading the oil paper bag on the ground, Erniu came to the fire, took a deep breath, and said in a low mood: "When the stars fell at night, the place where they fell was not too far from here. Later, many martial arts masters came and caused chaos everywhere, you know."
Xun Ke nodded affirmatively.
The initial period was also the most chaotic. The news that Tianxing was the immortal destiny had not yet spread. In order to prevent the news from spreading, some warriors with sinister intentions began to purposefully slaughter the surrounding villagers. Their actions were outrageous.
But the news inevitably leaked out later. From one person to ten, from ten to a hundred, the whole area became a mess.
When Mo Qiu came with more than a hundred Mo practitioners, the initial and craziest chaos was almost over, and what remained was a series of melees and snatches among the warriors.
As long as you take a closer look and think that someone is hiding the magic stone, there is absolutely no logic at all, and the most direct killing is happening all the time.
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Later, Mo Qiu brought a group of Mohists and killed many warriors who had been carried away by the wind. He also fought with the White Lotus Sect Leader and Huang Chao to prove his strength. It took a full three months for this storm to pass.
But the loss was already inevitable. Moqiu shortened the duration and scope of the disaster, but he was not a god after all, and the damage that had been caused could not be eliminated.
Xun Ke's parents died because they wanted to stop the evil deeds of warriors. How could he not remember it?
"After Mozi took you away, the matter did not just end. The White Lotus came and preached in our village, saying that if you join the White Lotus, you will no longer have to pay taxes to the court. Everyone said that brothers and sisters said it was a good thing, but isn't this rebellion? Of course, everyone was unwilling to do so. Fortunately, the White Lotus did not say that if you don't join, you will die."
Erniu's face darkened, and his voice became terribly cold. "But later, people from other villages joined the White Lotus Sect. When the imperial court came, they insisted that we were in cahoots with them. We had to hand over the leader of the White Lotus Sect or we would be considered traitors together."
"this"
Xun Ke took a deep breath and tried hard not to swear.
"Then another official came and said that since the White Lotus' informant had come to our village, they could not escape responsibility. If they want to prove their integrity, they can ask our village to make up for what other villages owe, otherwise don't blame them for being rude."
Erniu's face looked somewhat uncertain in front of the roaring fire. Every time he spoke a sentence, the scar on his face seemed to come alive, twisting constantly, looking hideous and terrifying.
"In the first year, we gritted our teeth and managed to fill the gap left by the other villages. But in the second year, not only did things not return to their original state, but they became even more demanding, demanding more food from us. Haha, last time, everyone had to use up all their savings to get enough food. We almost couldn't even survive, so how could we get more food? Many people in the village were scared and simply took their families to hide in the mountains. They would rather become refugees, maybe there would be some way to survive."
Yuzhou is mostly plains, but there are also mountains.
The mountains and forests in this era were always exceptionally dense and sparsely populated, and even the government was too lazy to take care of them - why would they go to so much trouble to mobilize thousands of troops to search the mountains just to catch some peasants?
After all the effort, the harvest was barely enough to pay for the army's food and wages! If there was any money left, who would want to go to the mountains?
Therefore, hiding in the mountains is actually a very useful tactic for the poor people who are about to be driven to death most of the time.
But everything has a price.
It is true that hiding in the mountains can avoid the government, but the difficulty of surviving in the mountains is far greater than cultivating fertile farmland.
The difference between the two is that one is really hard to live, and the other is not allowed to live.
"Everyone just wanted to avoid the limelight at first. Who knows what will happen next? It's better to live than to die. We have to live one day at a time. Aunt Cheng and her family also hid in the mountains. Of course, there was not much food. One day after the rain, Aunt Cheng diligently picked a lot of mushrooms in the mountains and cooked a pot of wild mushroom soup."
At this point, Erniu clenched his palms tightly together, "Five people in the family of six were poisoned to death. Uncle Cheng died, Brother Sheng died, Brother Sheng's wife died, and even Aunt Cheng's four or five-year-old grandson died."
Xun Ke opened his mouth slightly, "What about Aunt Cheng?"
"Aunt Cheng didn't drink the mushroom soup."
Erniu actually laughed, and that smile was full of helplessness and sadness, "We are so poor! Aunt Cheng couldn't bear to eat a single bite of that pot of mushroom soup, so she is the only one left in the family."
“.”
No one spoke in the room for a long time.
The flames crackled and occasionally spit out tongues of fire, revealing tiny black embers that fell on people's clothes. Just a light touch would leave a series of black marks.
The flame that had been burning for a long time became increasingly weaker, and soon the last inch-high flame disappeared, revealing almost nothing left of the burnt wreckage, with a few gray embers.
The sound of the last burst of fire reminded several people. Erniu said as if waking up from a dream: "Later, Aunt Cheng went crazy. She always thought that she was robbed. The family went out to avoid the limelight and would come back sooner or later. Everyone couldn't persuade her. Fortunately, the White Lotus came again. This time, everyone did not hesitate and joined the White Lotus. They killed the officials and raised the banner of rebellion. At the beginning, our place was occupied by the White Lotus, but it was a good two years later. At least we didn't have to pick mushrooms to eat.
Later, the imperial court arrived and started the war. Let’s fight. If the imperial court doesn’t let us live, at least the White Lotus Sect can have enough food. For that, we have to take out the knife, right? But later, the imperial court sent more and more troops.”
He touched the scar on his face. "It lasted about two and a half years. We could no longer defend this place. The rest of the people in the village moved away. Only Aunt Cheng refused to leave and insisted on waiting for her family. If we took her back with us by force, she would cry and make a scene, rolling on the ground and banging her head against the pillar. We had no choice but to send her back."
After a pause, Erniu continued: "Although Aunt Cheng is crazy, she still remembers how to work. Even if she is alone, she can take care of a small piece of land and a vegetable garden, and there is still a harvest, so she can barely make a living. Occasionally, people from the village come to visit and bring some things to Aunt Cheng. Of course, the things they bring are not much. After the war started, everyone's life became difficult again. Later, the court had more and more troops. Instead of fighting the Four-Nation Alliance, they attacked us first. Life became even more difficult, and even this place was occupied by the court for a long time. No one could come here again. Later, the court troops left, and I secretly came here to see. The little food that Aunt Cheng planted was taken away. When I came, she was chewing tree bark."
“.”
Gu Dan and Xun Ke listened in silence, their eyes moving towards the ball of Guanyin soil not far away.
The bark has also been eaten! (End of this chapter)