Cultivating Immortality in a World of Chaos - Chapter 789

[Chapter 787 Old Dao]

Taoist Qingxuan Temple.

Red walls and green tiles, shaded by jungle.

Gan Yu looked up at the plaque and walked into the Taoist temple.

As soon as you enter the Taoist temple, you will see a square paved with stone slabs. In the middle of the square, there is a huge copper incense burner.

The ends of the incense sticks burned out, emitting a rich sandalwood scent.

“Xuanzhen Palace?!”

When Gan Yu walked into the hall, he saw a majestic statue enshrined in the hall.

He was wearing a crown robe and a flat crown on his head, with his hands hanging naturally on his knees. A string of beaded curtains fell, making it impossible to see his face clearly.

According to the rules of the Taoist court, in a Taoist temple, the main priest can only be the ‘Emperor of Heaven’, and the accompanying priests are the gods or ancestors of all generations. Otherwise, it will be regarded as an evil sacrifice!

This statue should be the real ‘Emperor of Heaven’.

There were not many pilgrims at this time, and the temple was vast and majestic, with a sense of majesty and mystery.

Gan Yu suddenly became dignified. He first burned incense respectfully, then came to the merit box and threw silver coins into it.

“Thank you for your kindness!”

A Taoist child saw this scene and immediately stepped forward with joy, bowing and presenting the book of merits: “Please leave your name…”

Gan Yu picked up the pen and casually wrote the five characters of Baigan Village Gan Yu. Then the Taoist boy continued, “The believers have come from afar and must be tired. Would you like to come in and have some tea? The ‘green leaf tea’ in this temple is very refreshing and thirst-quenching. It is famous in the county.”

Although there were still pilgrims present, those who offered a large amount of silver at a time were very few in number. Usually only wealthy families during the New Year would do so.

The Taoist boy’s behavior was to serve people differently, but no one objected. Instead, they felt it was natural.

“You can…”

Gan Yu had invested so much, so he would certainly not return empty-handed. Upon hearing this, he smiled and followed the Taoist boy to the back of the Taoist temple.

Behind the Taoist temple is a garden covering several acres. It is quiet and elegant, with various flowers planted, creating a unique scene.

The Taoist boy invited Gan Yu to sit in a small pavilion, and soon served him tea and four kinds of snacks.

Gan Yu took a bite and found it delicious, but it was a pity that he couldn’t bring it home for his mother to try.

While sipping tea, he heard an old Taoist wearing a sword approaching with his sleeves fluttering. He bowed and said, “I am the old Taoist Mingde, nice to meet you, my good believer!”

“Master, you are polite…”

Gan Yu quickly returned the gift, and the two of them drank tea and talked about some of the Taoist scriptures. Taoist Mingde was shocked, thinking that this young man’s understanding of the Taoist scriptures was so fluent that he was not inferior to some old Taoists.

Even some of the profound ideas are quite inspiring to me.

After asking again, knowing that Gan Yu was here to take the boy’s test, his tone couldn’t help but become more intimate.

In the opinion of Taoist Mingde, if nothing goes wrong, this boy will definitely pass the exam this year. Even if he has not invested in advance, he can still make a good connection.

Gan Yu chatted for a few more sentences before asking about some Shinto matters.

Taoist Mingde smiled after hearing this: “In the Imperial Examination Hall, there are indeed some ghosts and gods causing trouble during every major examination… If believers come to our temple to ask about this, they have come to the wrong place. It would be better to go to the City God Temple and ask the temple priest for a talisman to protect you, which should ensure that you will be safe…”

Gan Yu was certain, but also a little puzzled: “I heard that the county town is protected by the dragon spirit of the officials, and the ghosts are not gods… The imperial examination hall is a place with strict laws and prohibitions, I don’t know why it is like this?”

Taoist Mingde smiled and said, “Of course it was a special permission from the City God… When the Taoist court recruits talents, they must have both talent and virtue. If a rich young man is well-educated but unkind and has killed many people, how can he be allowed to pass the exam? Therefore, before each exam, the ban will be lifted to allow the wronged souls to seek revenge!”

“I see……”

Gan Yu suddenly realized, but still felt a little unwilling in his heart.

His situation was not a case of being rich and unkind, but a disaster sent from heaven.

Do I have to endure the revenge of the Well Dragon King too?
Taoist Mingde took a sip of tea but smiled without saying anything.

In fact, as of today, most of these rules of the imperial examinations have been abolished… For example, if a rich man is rich but unkind, if he can find a person with profound Taoism or the protection of gods, or if he has some cultivation himself, he will naturally not be afraid of the revengeful spirits.

If one has darker intentions, he may even use the art of curse to harm those candidates with outstanding talents.

If the person has a strong background and nothing serious has happened, the Day and Night Wandering God will not take it too seriously.

But there is no need to say more about this.

The Dao Court recruits talents based on strength!
Regardless of luck, wealth, or background… they are all a kind of “strength”. The strong will win, and it is also the law of the jungle!

Of course, someone as talented as Gan Yu could also pass the exam as long as his luck was not too bad.

“Thanks for your advice…”

Gan Yu thanked him sincerely, and after making preparations, he went to the City God Temple to ask for the talisman.

Just as he was about to say goodbye, he saw that Taoist Mingde was actually wearing a sword. Thinking of the wanted poster he saw at the city gate, he couldn’t help but ask, “Master, do you practice martial arts? Do you have any Taoist skills?”

“I have nothing to do, so I just practice martial arts to strengthen my body… As for Taoism? It’s just missing the point.”

Taoist Mingde said with great disapproval.

“Oh? What do you mean?”

Gan Yu was a little confused.

After all, he is still young. Who doesn’t have a dream of traveling around the world with a sword, or even becoming an immortal?

“It is easy to practice in the public sector. Apart from the public sector, all other methods seem to be profound, but in fact they are just the moon in the water and the flower in the mirror. In the end, they are just wild fox Zen!”

Taoist Mingde smiled slightly, said nothing more, and asked the Taoist boy to send Gan Yu away.

After Gan Yu left, the old Taoist sighed quietly. A faint light flashed in his right hand, and a green leaf emerged. The leaf was green, and the petiole and veins were clearly visible.

It is suspended in the air, emitting a faint light, which is very mysterious.

If ordinary people saw this scene, they would certainly call him an immortal, or at least a virtuous person, and then beg the Taoist priest to accept them as his disciples and teach them Taoism.

But Taoist Mingde gave a bitter smile and said, “Practice… hehe… the spiritual power of heaven and earth is suppressed by the laws of heaven and earth. If a little bit of it leaks out occasionally, there will be countless monsters, goblins, and cultivators fighting for it… Even if you are gifted, tenacious, and have practiced for dozens or hundreds of years, it is not as good as a letter of canonization from the Taoist court… Practice, what the hell is cultivation!”

Taoist Mingde suddenly swore.

He was just like Gan Yu in the past, a young man who admired Taoism and was fortunate enough to be admitted to Qingxuan Temple and be taught the true Taoism.

But what does it matter?
After decades of hard work, it is still difficult to achieve anything.

He only acquired this magical power after he was so shameless that he took the same exam with a group of other children and passed it with the title of “Tongsheng”.

In his dantian, the ‘Taishang Tongzi Lingguan Lu’ sits at the center, controlling all magical powers.

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Otherwise, the Tao will be difficult to achieve!

In other words, if Gan Yu passes the examination this time, he will be on the same level as him…

Such a prosperous Shinto era has caused countless self-cultivators to despair.

“Oh……”

At this moment, a sneer suddenly came from behind the rockery.

“who?”

Taoist Mingde was startled and snapped his fingers, and a emerald green light flashed.

The green leaf turned into a green arrow like a crossbow, piercing the rockery directly!
Whoosh!
A figure flashed out from behind the rockery.

He was dressed in a Taoist robe, had a gaunt face, half black and half white hair, and looked very haggard.

“It’s you? Mei Changkong!”

Taoist Mingde was startled and immediately swallowed the thought of calling for help.

He first looked around, then immediately made a spell, causing a hazy glow to appear and spread all around. He then lowered his voice and said, “You are risking your life, yet you still dare to sneak into the county town… You are now a serious criminal of the Dao Court and are on the wanted list. If you are seen by the Day and Night Wandering God, you will be gone…”

This Mei Changkong was actually the Taoist priest on the wanted list worth fifty gold that Gan Yu had been thinking about all the time.

But for some reason, he seemed to know Taoist Mingde.

“It is hard to be content until the great revenge is taken…”

Mei Changkong sat down in Gan Yu’s original seat and munched on cakes without any grace. It was unknown how long he had been hungry.

“Alas… We are good friends, and I really can’t bear to see you go this far…”

Taoist Mingde looked at Mei Changkong with some regret.

Once upon a time, this Taoist brother was very handsome and talented, and attracted many young ladies.

Now his family is ruined and he is about the same age as me, but he looks so haggard and old.

“I don’t want to either… The Dao rules are strict. My ancestor wanted to blaze a new trail and worked hard. He died before he was thirty. My master succeeded him… He died in the mountains seeking an opportunity, and then passed it on to me.”

Mei Changkong wiped the cake residue from his beard and said in a low voice: “I usually don’t care about fame, I just want to cultivate and become an immortal… I finally cultivated something, but the county inspector took it away by force. If I didn’t obey, he would accuse me of a crime. The Taoist temple passed down by my ancestors was labeled as a shrine for evil sacrifices and lewdness, and I became a wanted criminal… I was so angry that I killed the inspector, and I became a felon in the court. Tell me… Where is justice?”

Taoist Mingde opened his lips but said nothing for a long time.

Originally he wanted to say that with Mei Changkong’s intelligence and talent, passing the county and state examinations would be a piece of cake for him, and he even had a good chance of becoming a Jinshi.

Even if he is not a Jinshi, as long as he has the title of “Jucai”, the inspectors will not dare to act presumptuously.

However, this person was obsessed with the path to immortality and was arrogant, so he was eventually thrown down from being a favored child of heaven to becoming a member of the mud.

However, Mei Changkong already knew this truth, so there was no point in saying more.

The more talented one is, the more arrogant one is!
Moreover, Mei Changkong has lost too much on this road and cannot deny it at all. He only has the Taoism left…

“You sneaked into the county secretly, I’m afraid there is something big going on. Are you still looking for revenge? Isn’t the inspector dead?”

Taoist Mingde was a little confused.

Although the inspector was only of the ninth rank, he was also an official appointed by the imperial court. Killing an official was treason and challenged the most sensitive nerves of the imperial court.

Mei Changkong didn’t even think about hiding in the mountains and forests to end his life, so why did he sneak into the county town?

“Of course I want revenge… I have already found out clearly that the inspector was only the one in the open during the incident. There are others hiding behind the scenes. Now they have been promoted step by step and have become the county magistrate!”

Mei Changkong sneered.

“You’re crazy! County Magistrate Cao is a seventh-rank official!”

Taoist Mingde was shocked. In the Taoist court, rank represents power!

A seventh-rank county magistrate, even if he does not manage much, has the support and faith of the people in the county. His divine power is enough to crush a minor cultivator like him to death more than ten times!

(End of this chapter)