Chapter 204: Paradise of Harvest After the four priests left, the little sister finally loosened her grip on the hilt of the sword, but her face remained serious. Lin Jue also relaxed and looked at Luo Seng: "I didn't expect that Mr. Luo had been a county lieutenant." "have nothing to say." Luo Seng put down his sword and sat cross-legged on the ground. "Five years ago, I came to Beijing and wanted to join the army. With the reputation of my ancestors, many people waved to me. But now the court is corrupt, and only the sons of nobles in the city can join the imperial guards in Beijing. Outside the capital, the army is either empty-handed or just obeys someone's orders. There is no point staying in it. After many twists and turns, I thought that I couldn't join the army for the time being, and it would be nice to be a military officer to protect the peace of the area. After all, this sword and martial arts should not be idle, so I went to Wan'an County to be a squad leader." He paused, shook his head and smiled contemptuously: "Two years later, I became a county lieutenant. I thought it was because the nobles thought I was capable and promoted me. But it turned out to be a roundabout and despicable scheme. I couldn't stand it, so I just resigned." Lin Jue listened and nodded repeatedly. After all, he comes from a family of generals. If he didn't have so many ambitions, it would be easy for him to become an official and live a good life.

In fact, throughout history, poems are full of literati who have been displaced and frustrated. In nine out of ten cases, the so-called displaced means that they went to different places to serve as officials, and the so-called frustrated means that they could not become high-ranking officials and could not realize their ideals and ambitions. In fact, when they came to the capital, they could become officials just by relying on the reputation of their ancestors. Even if you wander around the world and go anywhere, you can at least be a bookkeeper, a clerk or join the army. That's it. However, Wan'an County is one of the two counties in the capital, not a small city. The county lieutenant is a military officer second only to the county magistrate and the county magistrate. The fact that he was able to become a county lieutenant in such a short time shows his ability. Being able to give up things at will shows one's free and easy spirit. It is not wrong for the gods to fear him. Then he saw Luo Seng fall back and lie on the hay. He glanced at the lamp next to him and saw that it was dark black, with a thin lamp post on a round base and a lamp with nine lotus petals on top. Apart from being old, there was nothing strange about it. Thinking of what happened just now, he said casually: "Master, this lamp is also extraordinary." "This is a night watch lamp. Light it to keep watch for us." "This kind of divine treasure is rare. It seems that the Taoist priest has had a lot of luck in the past five years." Luo Seng said, "In this case, there is still half a night left, so let's sleep for a while. Don't worry, if those priests come again, I will go and meet them myself." "Mr. Luo is overly concerned." Lin Jue also smiled: "Although we two brothers and sisters have only been practicing Taoism for a short time, thanks to the dedicated teachings of our master and fellow brothers, we are not afraid of those priests." "That's best." Luo Seng didn't say much and just closed his eyes. At this moment, he had a face full of stubble and looked a little weathered. He slept with a sword in his arms. I wonder how much his martial arts had improved compared to five years ago, but he looked more reassuring than he did five years ago. Nothing happened all night. …… The next afternoon, on a small hill. Several people looked into the distance. Ahead are rolling mountains, with miasma flowing like water between them. The exposed peaks are covered with dense forests, and at this time of year, they are a brilliant golden red.

Occasionally the miasma would dissipate, and there would often be reflective spots below, as if there was water. There are several houses hidden ahead. Just then, a skinny and hunchbacked middle-aged man was walking towards them from a distance carrying a bundle of firewood. When he saw them, he was visibly stunned. "Excuse me, is the area ahead the original territory of Kuze County?" Luo Seng asked. "Yes." The middle-aged man answered dully. "Is there a giant snake with horns in there?" "Yes! Yes, yes!" Although the middle-aged man didn't know what they were going to do, he couldn't help but answer when he saw that Luo Seng's question was very straightforward. "have you seen?" "I've seen it! It eats people! It comes out every once in a while and wants to eat people!" "Is it much?" "do not know……" "What does it look like?" "It's thicker than a roof beam, and coiled up like a small house, with a horn on its head." "Do you know how to find it?" "I don't know! I can't go in. There's miasma and monsters inside. No one dares to go in..." "Thank you!" Luo Seng threw out a small string of money, about ten cents, which just landed on the pile of firewood, and then walked forward. "Thank you." "Thank you!" The two Taoists also passed by him. It's really straightforward. "Can't go in..." The middle-aged man wanted to remind them, but before he could finish his words, they had already walked away down the hill, and it looked like they were really heading towards Kuze County. How do you get into that place? The middle-aged man couldn't help but be dazed. Only the female Taoist priest looked back at him frequently.

"This place is so close to Kuze County, and there are so many monsters and man-eating snakes in it. Why are they still living here? Why don't they move out?" "Where are there no man-eating snakes out there?" Luo Seng said, and used his scabbard to push aside the bushes blocking the road to leave space for the horse to pass. Then he led the horse into the mountains, untied the gun barrel hanging on the horse's back, took out the gun head, and installed it while walking. The miasma in front turned into fog and rushed towards me. "I have some heart-protecting pills here. After taking them, you won't be easily confused by the miasma." Lin Jue took out a small bottle, poured out a few small pills, and distributed them to them. "Thank you, Taoist Priest!" Luo Seng took the pill and put it into his mouth. The pill didn't taste good, but with his sharp five senses, he clearly felt his head cool down and became much more sober. When the miasma hit his face again, he felt it was as cool as ordinary mist. "Good Dan!" Luo Seng couldn't help but praise him. "This was made by my senior brother. We don't have much with us. If we finish it, we will have to make it ourselves." Lin Jue said. "It is indeed the true teaching of a famous teacher." Luo Seng felt even more fortunate that he had invited them to join him. Even if they don't know any other spells and can't help deal with the horned snake, this heart-protecting pill alone will be of great help. Then gradually walked into the depths of the mountains and swamps. In the thick fog, a corner of Kuze County appeared in their eyes. The mountains here are undulating and the water is everywhere. Wherever there is low, there must be stagnant water. Wherever there is high, there are towering trees. No one cuts them down, and they grow wantonly. A few people walking among them are really insignificant. "Brother..." The junior sister whispered, "There are so many spiritual plants here, no less than on Mount Yi!" She is more perceptive than Lin Jue in finding spiritual plants. Without him, only familiar with Seoul. "I saw it." Lin Jue replied, "Don't worry, just pick it if it's convenient. If it's not convenient, forget it. We have more important things to do." "understood." "Fuyao." "Hey?" "See if there are any signs of a snake crawling on the ground around us." Lin Jue paused, "But it can't be too far away from us." "Woo!" In Luo Seng's slightly surprised eyes, he saw the fox jump lightly and soar straight up. It was a white shadow that went almost straight up, and it was really light. If the miasma and mountain fog were thicker and the vision was more blurred, it would almost look like a white smoke rising straight into the sky. There is a sense of immortality in the mistiness.

Several people continued to move forward. The white shadow jumped back and forth between the branches, as light as an elf in the mountains, looking carefully below. It has been a long time since anyone has come here. The grass and trees are overgrown and the branches are tangled. It is difficult for people to walk here, let alone horses, which are bigger and have even more difficulty walking. There are often spider webs blocking the road and poisonous insects lurking. Sometimes we also encounter some mountain animals, some of which are even intelligent. They are all accustomed to the miasma and are very curious about these outsiders. Several people tried to avoid them if possible, and if they couldn't, they tried not to disturb them. So walk slowly. Plus they had to wait for Fuyao to explore the surroundings, so they walked even slower. This makes it convenient for the junior sister to collect spiritual plants. "There is a ball bead tree here! It can be used to make Shatang Dan!" “There’s one here, too!” “This Ganoderma lucidum also has spiritual charm!” “This one is old!” "This one has been gnawed..." Since she came down from Mount Yi, she rarely saw places with so many spiritual plants. She was also very excited during this process. Every time I pick a plant, I feel more joyful. When she was on Mount Yi before, she would often bring back spiritual plants for her senior brother when she was repairing the road outside. At first, Lin Jue thought that the two of them were providing for the Danguo tree together, and she also wanted to contribute. But after a long time, he realized that she was probably having her own fun in the process. It even feels a bit addictive. Even though she had never learned alchemy, she remembered several recipes of elixirs stored in Fuqiu Temple clearly. In this way, the miasma-filled and desolate place, which was obviously full of dangers and where ordinary people dared not enter, seemed to have become a paradise for her to collect spiritual plants. “Slow down…” Lin Jue had just finished speaking when suddenly a small black dot flew over from a distance. Almost at the same time, a scabbard was stretched out from the side. Snap! The scabbard knocked off the black spot easily. At this moment, the little junior sister who was looking for the spiritual plant raised her head, and in the distance there was a white shadow rushing back, returning to Lin Jue and looking into the distance. Lin Jue first lowered his head and looked at the small black dot. Seeing that it was a very common pine cone, he raised his head and looked forward. There are a few strange monkeys over there.

The strange monkey looked like a macaque. It was very large and strong, with arms longer than its knees and a pair of white ears on its head. It was staring at them. Although it is also a strange monkey, it is different from those outside Danxun City. "Zi~" A sour voice sounded beside me. Luo Seng has already pulled the bowstring. "Wait a minute, Mr. Luo!" Lin Jue stopped him and looked at the monkeys in front of him. "They have no ill intentions. We just entered their territory and they want us to leave." Luo Seng said nothing, but slowly retracted his bow. "These monkeys are smarter than the common birds and animals in the mountains. Maybe I can ask them where the horned snake is." "How do I ask?" "Those who practice Taoism have their own magic." Lin Jue said this and took a step forward. However, the group of strange monkeys were tall but very timid. Perhaps they were also frightened by Luo Seng's evil spirit. When they saw that the pine cones they threw not only failed to hit them, but the Taoist priest was walking towards them instead, they were so scared that they retreated and fled in all directions. Yet they are extremely fast! Some are on the trees, climbing like the wind, some are on the ground, running upright, also running like the wind, and some can even run on thin grass and bushes. Lin Jue couldn't help but be stunned. Seeing this scene, he remembered—— Isn't this an aboriginal? Even the apes that were gradually disappearing in the depths of Mount Yishan still live in this miasma-filled place! Lin Jue couldn't help but widen his eyes. You should know that among all the pills refined by Second Senior Brother, the one that he and Junior Sister eat the most, like the most, and is the most precious is the Shenxing Pill. Also called ape-dan. Normally they are reluctant to use it. There were still a few in his arms at this time, which were generously given to him by the second senior brother because he was taking care of the two younger ones. It’s not that the elixir is so difficult to refine, but that the elixir requires the hair or bones of the abacus, and the abacus, such an exotic animal, is becoming increasingly difficult to find nowadays. Lin Jue couldn't help but be surprised. This trip was a big profit. I couldn't help but turn around and look at my junior sister. "What's wrong, senior brother?" The junior sister also understood his meaning from his slightly bright eyes, but she was very confused and looked forward. In her mind, her senior brother had seen the world and was not as useless as herself. He rarely showed such an expression.

(End of this chapter)