In the vegetable garden on the mountain behind the Taoist temple, three young Taoist priests were busy fertilizing and watering.
One of them, a Taoist priest who was about 20 years old and with a delicate appearance, had a bucket of water on his shoulders and was bending forward with difficulty, panting from exhaustion.
Xu Chong looked at the shabby Taoist robe that was covered in mud, wiped his palms that were bleeding from the fall, and secretly shook his head with a bitter smile: "After you don't pay the tribute, let me do all the dirty and tiring work. If you can travel through time again,
Just go back, even if you go to the construction site to move bricks, you will be better off than here..."
Thinking of the time travel three months ago, his expression was extremely complicated.
He was originally a programmer on Earth, but one day he fell asleep in front of the computer, and then traveled through time.
Traveling to an ancient alien world with low immortality and low martial arts, he became a subject of the Tang Dynasty.
In recent years, due to constant natural and man-made disasters, the rise of refugees and bandits, and the chaos of demons, the entire Tang Dynasty has been extremely turbulent.
In order to protect the family and the country, the practice of martial arts and immortality became popular in the Tang Dynasty.
From the memories left by his predecessor, we learned that the original owner of his body was named Xu Chong, the only son of a small landowner named Xu in Liangzhou.
Since I had no talent for reading since I was a child, I was very interested in seeking immortality and asking questions.
So his father spent money everywhere to find connections, and after a lot of effort, he was sent to Ziyun Temple to practice immortality with the temple's master, Ziyun Zhenren.
I hope that Xu Chong can come down from the mountain with success in his immortality, and then be employed by the wealthy merchants' families as a leisurely immortal master. In that case, he can have no worries about food and clothing, live happily and richly for the rest of his life.
Unexpectedly, there will be unforeseen circumstances.
Last winter, a group of robbers broke into his hometown, killed people, set fire to it, and looted everything.
In an instant, he became a helpless orphan.
Without the financial support of his cheap dad, Xu Chong's life in Ziyunguan was not easy.
Because you have to pay money to practice magic here.
You have to donate two hundred taels of silver to Ziyun Temple every year. If you don't have money, only ghosts will be willing to teach you how to become immortal.
For the past four years, his father would go to the mountain to make offerings at the beginning of each year.
But this year has been delayed until now. Three months have passed, and Xu Chong has not handed over the offering.
In addition, after time traveling, for some reason, I have a good appetite every day and eat more than others.
Since the beginning of this month, he has clearly felt that his "master" Ziyun Zhenren has become less and less friendly towards him.
Especially in the past few days.
Every morning during the morning class, when I meditate and practice Qi, the "master" always screams and scolds me in front of all my brothers, saying that this is wrong, that is wrong, and that he has not made any progress at all after practicing for so many years.
This made him very depressed.
You know, just last month, the master praised him every day in front of all the brothers for his good understanding and excellent cultivation methods, and also asked the brothers to learn from him.
Now that the master doesn't want to see him, there is nothing he can do.
It is better to suffer anger here than to starve to death outside.
Going down the mountain?
He can go down the mountain anytime he wants.
The key point is that you are an ordinary person and have no special skills. What can you do when you go down the mountain?
In addition, he is now homeless and helpless. After coming down the mountain, he doesn't know where to go. He really doesn't even have a way to survive.
This is not the peaceful and prosperous time in the country in the previous life. You can support yourself by wandering outside and picking up rags.
In this ancient alien world where demons are troubled and bandits are rampant.
He was sure that he would not survive more than three days after coming down the mountain.
Not to mention monsters and beasts, the extremely hungry refugees would probably cook him to eat when they saw him wandering alone.
Stay here to cultivate immortality?
Fix some fucking coins!
It has been three months since I traveled through time. In addition to the four years since my predecessor, I practiced meditation every day and nothing else. Every time, my legs were so numb that I couldn't even stand up.
There is absolutely no effect of practice at all.
Master Ziyun didn't teach him any serious magic, and even after spending so many years in the mountains, he never saw anyone perform it.
Xu Chong had already begun to wonder, is this Master Ziyun a liar?
It's like some success masters on earth in previous lives, who specialized in recruiting apprentices to cheat their tuition fees.
Thinking of this, Xu Chong sighed again, feeling that the future was uncertain.
Even if he is a liar, so what? At least he can stay in a Taoist temple and have a shelter from the wind and rain, so he can live, right?
The two little Taoist priests not far away frowned when they saw him standing there for a long time without moving.
"Senior Brother Xu, why are you still standing there? Why don't you hurry up and fetch water!"
"Elder brother just said that if we don't finish watering this land today, we won't have food to eat at night..."
These are two new junior brothers who have just joined the Taoist temple, and they are probably the two unlucky ones who have been tricked.
Under their urging, Xu Chong could only carry the bucket.
As soon as I walked out of the vegetable field, I saw a yellow-faced Taoist priest walking out of the gate of the back mountain.
Xu Chong hurriedly saluted and said: "Elder brother!"
The senior brother looked at him expressionlessly, "Master wants you to go to the main hall to meet him."
After saying that, he turned around and left.
Xu Chong was stunned for a moment, then hurriedly put down the bucket and trotted all the way to the main hall of Ziyun Temple.
From a long distance away, he could clearly see the immortal Ziyun Master, holding a fly whisk in his hand, standing proudly under the statue of Taoist Patriarch.
"master!"
Xu Chong saluted respectfully.
Master Ziyun raised his eyebrows and said, "Come in."
"Yes, master!"
Xu Chong lowered his head, walked quickly into the hall, and bowed to listen to his lecture.
Master Ziyun glanced at him and suddenly asked: "How long have you been going up the mountain?"
Xu Chong thought for a moment and said, "To tell the master, my disciple has been on the mountain for four years, three months and fifteen days."
"You remember clearly."
Master Ziyun asked again: "How far have you mastered the Purple Qi Jue that I taught you?"
Have I achieved anything in my cultivation? How could there be such a thing as a ghost state, and it’s all yours that has the final say? Xu Chong secretly cursed.
But in order not to be punished, he had no choice but to bite the bullet and said: "Disciple has... already felt the Qi in his Dantian. He must be a little accomplished, right?"
Master Ziyun nodded with satisfaction, "Yes, that's the case, you can become a master of art."
A disciple? I am a disciple. What did I learn from you?
Xu Chong felt aggrieved and hurriedly pretended to cry: "Although my disciple has achieved a little success in the Purple Qi Jue, my master's magic to reach heaven has never been appreciated. Please give me some more time to teach the fool."
...The disciple really doesn’t want to leave the master..."
"My good disciple, I don't want you to come down the mountain so quickly as my master. However, the fate between you and me as master and disciple has ended, so you can't force it."
Having said this, Master Ziyun looked at him with a look of reluctance and sighed: "Let's go down the mountain tomorrow."
After saying that, he took out a shabby ancient book from his sleeve and threw it directly in front of Xu Chong.
"This book of sowing beans and making soldiers is my Ziyun Temple's mountain-preserving magic. I will teach it to you today. After you come down from the mountain, remember to study hard and practice seriously every day."
Xu Chong lowered his head and looked at the tattered ancient book in front of him. It was dark yellow and black, and it was also affected by moisture. The ancient cover was gone. On the damaged front page, several ancient seal scripts could be vaguely seen: Spread beans and become soldiers.
The pages at the back are almost stuck together, and the writing is blurry and terrible to read.
It was obviously a useless book placed on the bottom of the table. This old guy even lied to him and said it was a magic trick to conquer mountains. He really treated him like a fool.
You know, there are hundreds of newly printed Ziyun Scriptures in the library of Ziyun Taoist Temple. This old guy deliberately sent him a tattered book and refused to even give him a book with clear handwriting.
Seeing this scene, he was about to cry without tears, "Master, my disciple really doesn't want to leave the apprenticeship so soon. Without the master's teachings, I'm afraid that the apprentice will not be able to understand this magical skill."
After hearing this, Master Ziyun said in a dignified manner: "Cultivation of immortality and Taoism is about understanding and opportunity."
"If you have understanding, you will be able to understand this book sooner or later. If you fail to achieve great immortal skills, it means that you have not had the chance."
Having said this, Master Ziyun put his hands behind his back, turned around slowly, and said in an ethereal tone: "If everyone could teach me, wouldn't this world be full of immortals?"
"Master, I..."
Xu Chong was suddenly speechless, thinking that what this old liar said made sense, but I was speechless.
He lay on the ground, his brain working rapidly, thinking of ways to stay.
suddenly.
Master Ziyun waved his sleeves and sighed sadly: "Idiot, come down the mountain. I have revealed too many secrets for you today. I am afraid that you will lose your life and suffer the punishment of heaven. But you don't have to feel guilty. This is
After you come down from the mountain, remember to practice hard and don't insult the reputation of Wufeng Mountain."
Guilty?
I feel so guilty!
You old liar, what secret did you just reveal? Point it out to me?
You idiot...just say so if you want to drive me down the mountain.
Xu Chong almost died of depression, but now that the situation was over, he had no choice but to go down the mountain.
…………
Early the next morning.
Xu Chong packed up his things, took off his Taoist robe, put on secular clothes, and then walked out of the Taoist temple door with a simple luggage on his back.
It was the end of spring and the beginning of summer. Although the wind was not as biting as before, it was still a bit chilly in the face of the morning fog that filled the mountain.
Standing dejectedly outside the mountain gate.
Looking at the rugged mountain road shrouded in thick fog ahead, Xu Chong felt very depressed. He felt that his future life was just like this obscure mountain road, without any light.
Sighing secretly, he reluctantly cheered up and walked down the mountain.
As the sun slowly rose and dispersed the morning fog in the mountains and forests, Xu Chong walked on the forest path, and his vision gradually became clearer.
From morning to now, I have walked for almost three hours.
We have only reached the halfway point of the mountain now, and it is estimated that we will reach the bottom of the mountain by the afternoon at least.
Xu Chong was a little depressed. He couldn't understand why Ziyun Temple had to be built on the top of the mountain.
If you build a courtyard near the town plain, wouldn't you also be able to recruit apprentices and make money?
Don't be so tormenting people!
I paid an offering of eight hundred taels of silver and worked as a handyman for Ziyun Guanbai for more than four years. But when I left the army and came down the mountain, I was only given four steamed buns?
I am an immortal like you, you are worse than a capitalist!
There is an open space halfway up the mountain, and a low pavilion has been built on it for people going up and down the mountain to rest.
Xu Chong had been walking for several hours and was already hungry, so he went into Aiting to rest and eat a steamed bun.
Opening the small cloth bag inside the backpack, there were four steamed buns inside, as well as the broken ancient book: Spread Beans and Make an Army.
He only had steamed buns in his eyes, and murmured to himself: "Save your food, eat two today, two tomorrow, and the day after tomorrow... forget about starving to death."
Taking the tasteless thick-faced steamed bun, Xu Chong took a big bite.
I was bored, so I took out the tattered book and flipped through it. It was filled with ghostly drawings and talismans, and many places were incomplete. It was simply a useless book.
This Master Ziyun is indeed a liar.
Eight hundred taels of silver were exchanged for a scrap book that sat on the bottom of the table.
Thinking of this, Xu Chong sighed secretly and prepared to put the book into his backpack and save it for wiping his butt on the road.
The wound on the palm was aching again, probably because it had split open.
It was scratched yesterday when it fell on a stone while carrying water.
Xu Chong picked up his palm and looked at it, and found that the wound began to overflow with blood again.
It had to be wiped clean. He didn't want to dirty the clean clothes he had just changed.
I happened to have a tattered book that was damp, so I just tore out a few pages.
Thinking of this, Xu Chong held half a steamed bun in his mouth and used his injured right hand to hold down the broken book, while his left hand began to tear the incomplete pages.
Soon, the blood overflowing from his wound was stained on the torn book.
He didn't know if it was an illusion, but he always felt that this book seemed to be faintly emitting a halo.
suddenly.
Something weird happened!
I saw this broken ancient book suddenly turned into a stream of light and shot into his forehead.
Looking at the hand, there is nothing.
Are there any other ancient books that can help make soldiers become soldiers?