Jincheng.
On a noisy street.
The middle-aged man in the straw hat drank deeply from his bowl. After finishing his drink, he said in a loud voice, "Do you know why the hundreds of thousands of iron cavalry of the Great Zhen Dynasty bypassed Jin City when they marched south?"
"I don't know."
The children around shook their heads.
The waiter couldn't help but chuckle. "Master Xie, did you scare away the Great Zhen cavalry?"
"clever!"
The middle-aged man in the straw hat raised an eyebrow and said, "They know I'm in the city, so they don't dare come to Jincheng."
The children standing nearby looked on with admiration.
"Thank you, Boss Xie, you're really amazing."
"Brother Xie, can you take me as your apprentice?"
The middle-aged man in the straw hat chuckled, "If you buy me a drink, I can take you on as a disciple."
"Don't listen to his bragging."
A robust woman in a tiger-skin skirt arrived at a wine shop on the street. Jiang Wan sat opposite the middle-aged man in a bamboo hat and mocked, "Xie Dongliu, you don't even dare to leave the city, yet you scared away the iron cavalry of the Great Zhen Dynasty. Have you no shame?"
The middle-aged man in the straw hat laughed heartily, "My master once said, only by being shameless can one be invincible."
Jiang Wan couldn't help but roll her eyes. "Then you're invincible."
"Hey sis, did you run into any trouble on the way?"
"The journey back to Jincheng was exceptionally smooth; it was as if the forces that had attacked Chu had vanished overnight."
"Such a thing is true?"
Jiang Wan didn't know what was going on either. She remembered Qin Luo, whom she had met on the road, and said with a smile, "On my way back, I met a celestial master named Qin Luo. He had an otherworldly air about him and was the most celestial cultivator I had ever seen."
"Qin Luo?"
The middle-aged man in the straw hat stared wide-eyed.
Jiang Wan asked in confusion, "What, you know them?"
The middle-aged man in the bamboo hat said with a serious expression, "My junior brother is also named Qin Luo. Could it be that you encountered my junior brother?"
Jiang Wan burst out laughing, "Xie Dongliu, you really have no shame. You used to say that the Princess was your senior sister, but the immortal master I met by chance turned out to be your junior brother. Hahaha, I'm really impressed."
Xie Dongliu didn't care. "Believe it or not, my junior brother is very good. He respects me a lot. When we were at Longhu Temple, he often asked me for advice, and I taught him everything I knew."
"You can lie to me, but don't lie to these children."
Do you believe me?
"I believe in Sister Jiang."
"I also believe in Sister Jiang."
Jiang Wan smiled and took out a few copper coins, saying, "Take these and buy some candy."
"Thank you, Sister Jiang."
"Sister Jiang is the best."
The children left laughing, holding the coins.
Qin Luo was very happy to see Senior Brother Xie. He did not disturb Xie Dongliu and turned to disappear into the crowd.
A peach blossom drifted down onto the table. Jiang Wan picked it up and murmured softly, "There are no peach blossoms near Jincheng. Where did this one come from?"
Xie Dongliu looked around, but he didn't see any familiar figures. In the end, he could only look at the peach blossom in Jiang Wan's hand and murmur softly, "There are thousands of kinds of peach blossoms, but I'm sure these are peach blossoms from Longhu Temple."
Jiang Wan was skeptical.
...
Hengyun Mountain Range.
It lies in the northernmost part of the Chu Kingdom.
The Hengyun Mountains were originally a natural barrier blocking the Great Zhen Dynasty. Now, the mountains have broken in the middle. Qin Luo came to the broken mountain range with an umbrella and saw an old man sitting in a sorry state not far away.
Qin Luo approached the old man covered in mud and asked softly, "Old man, why are you sitting here?"
The old man raised his head, his eyes bloodshot, and said in a tearful voice, "There used to be a Yunhai Pass here, and my child... disappeared along with the Yunhai Pass."
Qin Luo didn't know how to comfort the old man. Looking at the fiery red sunset on the horizon, he felt an indescribable sadness.
The wind howled from the north, and the old man looked haggard; he hadn't rested for a long time.
Qin Luo quietly stayed with the old man, and when night fell, he put away his black umbrella.
"Why hasn't the Immortal Master left yet?"
The old man looked at Qin Luo. He knew that Qin Luo was no ordinary person. This place was very dangerous, and ordinary people dared not approach it. Qin Luo came here and was still spotless, so he must not be an ordinary person.
Qin Luo squatted down and sighed softly, "Old man, I want to help you, but I am powerless to do so."
The old man wiped his eyes, waved his hand, and said in a hoarse voice, "Immortal Master, I'm fine, you can go now."
Qin Luo said softly, "Grandpa, you haven't rested in a long time. Let me take you back to rest."
"No need, I just want to sit here for a while."
"Old man, perhaps you will see your children in your dreams when you are resting."
Upon hearing this, the old man's cloudy eyes gleamed, and Qin Luo said softly, "Old man, have you ever heard of the Yellow Springs Inn? Perhaps your child will appear in your dreams."
The old man nodded and said, "I've heard my neighbors in the village talk about it before, but I don't know if it's true."
"Why don't you give it a try?"
"Okay, okay."
The old man lay down on the ground.
The bright moonlight shone on Qin Luo, and his fingers touched the old man's brow, revealing his past.
early morning.
The old man woke up in bed.
He hurriedly left the room.
The old man's village had been ravaged by bandits, and the once messy courtyard was restored to its original state. Qin Luo stood in the courtyard and saw the old man wake up. He smiled and said, "Old man, I have dealt with the bandits in the vicinity. This is all I can do. You must live well."
"Uh-huh."
The old man nodded, his voice choked with emotion.
The moment the sun rose, Qin Luo vanished into the morning mist. The old man knelt on the ground and kowtowed towards the spot where Qin Luo had disappeared, saying, "Thank you, Immortal Master."
...
Qin Luo entered the Dazhen Dynasty through the Hengyun Mountains. He traveled north, passing through many towns, where the people of the Dazhen Dynasty were busy with harvesting and sacrifices.
Within the territory of the Dazhen Dynasty, there are many black stone tablets, with flowers and offerings placed in front of them.
The people of the Great Zhen Dynasty believed in the Way of Heaven, and these stone tablets absorbed the power of faith on behalf of the Way of Heaven.
As night deepened and all was quiet, Qin Luo entered a remote village and stood before a stone tablet blackened by smoke.
Qin Luo stared at the black stone tablet. After a moment, a blurry figure appeared on the tablet. In an instant, the sky darkened and a suffocating atmosphere made it hard to breathe.
Inside the stone tablet, the blurry figure looked down at Qin Luo and said condescendingly, "Your soul is quite interesting. Compared to those ants who want to defy the heavens, all you want is to live a good life. I can grant your wish."
Qin Luo said calmly, "Since you know what I want, we should sit down and talk."
"Qin Luo, I am the one who establishes order, and I will not change it because of your wishes."
“You keep rebuilding order, and I think you’re always learning. We can communicate.”
The blurry figure shook its head. "You could have replaced me, but you didn't have the courage."
Qin Luo shook his head. "You're wrong. I never thought about replacing you. I just want to be your friend and talk about how to make the world a better place."
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