Chapter 33 Fuqiuguan “How many Taoist temples are there in this mountain?” "Five or six, maybe there are more hidden. This mountain is so big, with strange peaks and forests, and jagged rocks. I haven't seen them all. There are only two that I deal with most. One is Xianyuan Temple, which is also from the Lingfa School, and the other is Jiulong Temple of the Danding School. In recent years, there have been a few more temples and Buddhist halls." “Is the temple also built here?” "This mountain is huge, and the scenery is beautiful. Not only do we Taoists like it, but the monks like it too." "It makes sense." Lin Jue nodded, bowed and asked: "So what are the differences between the Danding School, the Lingfa School and the Fulu School?" "No hurry, there is a hot spring at the foot of the mountain, we can soak in the hot spring and talk slowly." The old Taoist smiled unrestrainedly, "After walking for a few days, even though I have made great progress in my cultivation, I am almost covered with lice. The hot springs in the mountains are very comfortable, so I will take you to enjoy them." The group continued to move forward. Gradually we arrived at a forest with mist.

There is a hot spring, and the temperature is just right. In addition, the spiritual energy here is very rich, and it is quiet and deserted. Not long after that— An old man and a young boy were sitting in the hot spring. Not far away, a young girl was sitting with her back to them, holding a branch and silently poking holes in the ground for fun. This place is seldom visited and is quiet and peaceful, with only the sound of flowing spring water and the voice of the old Taoist priest. "As the name suggests, the Danding School is mainly about refining elixirs. This can be divided into the external elixir and the internal elixir. The external elixir uses a copper furnace as a cauldron, and various natural treasures, gold, silver, rain and dew as materials to refine elixirs, which can be said to have infinite uses. The internal elixir uses the body as a cauldron, and the spiritual essence of heaven and earth as materials to cultivate the golden elixir in the body. “In ancient times, cultivators in the world focused on refining elixirs. Refining elixirs here refers to external elixirs, while nurturing elixirs refers to internal elixir. “Later, perhaps because he realized the shortcomings of external elixirs, he gradually developed the method of internal elixir. "There are countless magic arts in the world, and they are ever-changing. In fact, they are somewhat related to the Danding School. Later, the external alchemy school gradually declined, and the internal alchemy school mostly retreated to the mountains for practice, and the emerging spiritual school became the mainstream. "Later on, more and more people became gods and immortals in the world..." The old Taoist paused here, as if he had something to say, and then continued: “Then there came into being the Talisman Sect. "Lu means duty and record. Fu means combination. The Fulu School must combine the talismans to work. In essence, it is to borrow the power of the gods, not one's own abilities." Lin Jue listened very carefully. This hot spring is very hot and it is comfortable to soak in. Preaching and answering questions in such a situation was something Lin Jue had never imagined before. But it is unusually comfortable. Hearing this, Lin Jue seemed to be thinking about something. He waved water to rub the dirt off his body. With the corner of his eye, he saw the girl sitting in front of them with her back to them scratching her head a few times. Obviously she was listening too, but she was very confused. It's quiet here and you can hear it clearly without having to get close.

Lin Jue thought about it and asked for her: "What does that mean?" "To put it simply, the talisman represents your identity. It could be your identity with the righteous gods in heaven, or it could be your identity with some earthly gods or even wild gods and evil gods on earth, which means they recognize you. Some talismans also record your identity and status, as well as which gods you can call upon and what abilities you can use. With a talisman, you can open an altar and draw talismans. Talismans are like military talismans. With an identity and a military talisman, you can mobilize troops, display various magical powers, and even invite gods to descend to the mortal world." The girl continued to play with her head down and poking the ground. But at this moment, a sound suddenly came from the forest. It was a strange and unfamiliar voice, not like that of a human. "You are wrong, old Taoist. The reason why the cultivators in ancient times switched from practicing external alchemy to practicing internal alchemy is because the natural treasures are becoming increasingly scarce. Many elixirs can no longer be made, let alone golden elixirs." "Who?" Lin Jue suddenly became alert and looked towards the source of the sound. The girl sitting on the shore was even more frightened. She also turned her head and looked into the distance, then quietly turned her head back to look at the two people in the hot spring. But I could only see the rising heat, the deep and dense forest, the mountains and clouds in the distance that were indistinguishable from each other, and where was any figure? Look at the old Taoist in front of me—— The old Taoist priest was still sitting in the hot spring, smiling, and did not bother to find out who the voice came from. And the voice continued: "You, an old Taoist priest, are not one of those Taoist priests who worship gods in the Fulu Sect, and you will not be able to be among the immortals in the future. Why are you so timid when speaking? Just tell me directly that the ultimate goal of the cultivators of the Danding Sect and the Lingfa Sect is to cultivate into ancient free and easy immortals, or to live in the world for a hundred years in peace and comfort, and the Fulu Sect is just a subsidiary of the current Xianghuo Shendao, isn't that enough?" "Hehehe..." The old Taoist was delighted to hear this and smiled without saying anything. "Who is speaking?" Lin Jue couldn't help but ask him, thinking he knew him. "I don't know, I don't know him, but this is Yishan. Few people have been here for thousands of years, so it's normal that there are more monsters. Oh, this guy must have lived longer than us, so maybe what he said makes sense." The old Taoist just smiled and said. "I see..." Lin Jue seemed to be thinking, "But I have encountered too many goblins and ghosts along the way." "Don't be too surprised. People have their own destiny. Besides, the world is in chaos now, and there are more demons and ghosts than a few years ago. You have encountered demons and ghosts once, so either your yang energy and blood are temporarily weak, or you have been contaminated with the aura of demons. If you walk on a mountain road at night again, if there are demons and ghosts on the road, they will naturally be more willing to come to you." "That's right." "What the Taoist said is not entirely correct." The voice in the dense forest sounded again, "It is naturally unusual for mortals to see wild spirits without any reason. But if you go to the place where wild spirits live and see wild spirits, isn't it just like seeing a person in someone else's house? What's so strange about that?" "That makes sense." The old Taoist nodded in agreement while soaking in the hot spring, and then looked at Lin Jue, "See, it's not bad to encounter a monster like this once in a while." "..." Lin Jue looked at his expression and seemed to understand something. The sound never came again after that.

After taking a bath in the hot spring, the two wanted to switch places with the girl, but the girl was unwilling to do so, either because she was shy or because she was afraid that she would encounter a monster if she left their sight. So we continued on our way. Gradually we were getting closer and closer to the scissor-like mountain and the Fuqiu Peak next to it, until we could no longer make out their complete shapes. After pushing aside the grass, there was a narrow path leading up the mountain. The old Taoist priest walked ahead. The girl walked in the middle. Lin Jue followed last. After crossing a bridge across the stream which was made only of a piece of tree trunk, we gradually went up along the path. The old Taoist spoke to them slowly as he walked. His voice was normal, as if he was sitting indoors and talking quietly, completely unaffected by the steep mountain road: “As the saying goes, ‘All under heaven belongs to the king,’ but this is actually not true. "In fact, only places with roads are under the jurisdiction of the government and are the king's land. The smaller the road, the weaker the court's jurisdiction. Other large areas of deep mountains and wasteland are not considered 'king's land'. “Similarly, only places with roads and houses belong to humans, and only places where people live belong to the human world. Other places belong to goblins and ghosts, and to the gods of the earth. “Ghosts and monsters usually don’t harm people during the day, but in deep mountains and old forests, especially where the sun doesn’t shine, daytime is also the dawn and dusk, the boundary between yin and yang. If ordinary people accidentally enter there, it’s best not to leave the sun. "Yishan is remote, with deep forests and heavy fog, and there are often monsters and ghosts. But you don't have to worry, there is also a mountain god in Yishan. The mountain god of Yishan is very powerful, much more powerful than the mountain king I saw the day before yesterday, and more powerful than most mountain gods in the world. If you see him, you must show enough respect. "This mountain is under his jurisdiction, and there is a Taoist temple here. Our Fuqiu Temple is also famous among the spirits in the mountain, and we are also famous in the eyes of the Yishan Mountain God. As long as you don't do anything wrong, the spirits in this mountain will not easily embarrass you. Even if you meet them, just be polite and say that you are a disciple of Fuqiu Temple, and most of them will let you go." Lin Jue hurried on his way silently and listened silently, feeling as if he had walked from the human world into a different place. Suddenly I heard someone singing in the mountains: "This mountain has hot springs that can wash away worldly attachments... This mountain has rare herbs that can be eaten to achieve immortality... This mountain has magic pills that can help you transcend the mundane world..." "It's the woodcutter." The old Taoist told them. Lin Jue looked up and saw deep clouds and mist, strange peaks and rocks appearing, and ancient pines bathing in the mist. It really looked like a fairyland. I couldn't help but stop and look back. Before he knew it, he had already climbed very high. The road he came from was almost invisible in the dense forest and clouds. Even in the hot spring where he had bathed before, he could only see a cloud of water vapor rising from the ground and forming clouds, but he could not see the appearance of the hot spring itself. As for the monster that interrupted him earlier, Lin Jue still had no idea what it was. Until a corner of the palace appeared in the mountains and forests, slanting upward, and behind it was Fuqiu Peak. "Coming." Lin Jue followed him forward and heard some ethereal flute sounds coming from the treetops. He also smelled the faint aroma of incense, which made him feel at ease. The gate of the Taoist temple soon appeared in front of them. It was a faded vermilion door with a cat lazily lying at the door. Above its head was a plaque with the three characters "Fuqiu Temple" inscribed on it, and on both sides were couplets: Get the fresh air of mountains and rivers; Gather the spiritual charm of heaven and earth.

The old Taoist walked in front, stepped over the cat and gave it a push. "Squeak..." The wooden door slowly opened, letting out a scent of incense. The old Taoist priest had already walked in first. Lin Jue stopped outside and looked to the left. There were several cultivated plots of land planted with vegetables. Behind them were donkey sheds, pig pens, chicken and duck cages, where poultry and livestock were raised. There were roads leading to the mountain on both sides, which seemed to be paved with bluestone slabs and steps. The footsteps ahead stopped. Lin Jue withdrew his gaze and saw that the girl had noticed that he did not go in, so she stopped and looked back, looking at him silently. He smiled, carefully stepped over the cat in front of the door, and followed. The Taoist temple is not very big, but not small either. Including the ceremonial gate, it has three entrances, and two palaces in the front and back. They are the Tianweng Hall, which enshrines the Tianweng, the Mother Goddess and many gods in heaven, and the Banshan Hall, which enshrines the Banshan Patriarch and some gods that only exist in ancient myths and legends. This shows that this is a Taoist temple that is relatively more inclined towards self-cultivation. On both sides are guest halls for pilgrims, chapels for Taoists, as well as dining halls, kitchens, pavilions for storing Buddhist scriptures, utility rooms, and so on. Lin Jue had not walked far when he saw a middle-aged Taoist priest coming out carrying a hoe. "Master, you are back? Who are these two?" "They are my new disciples, your junior brothers and sisters. Don't go to work in the fields, prepare a room for them first." "I have already cleaned up one room, but didn't you say you would only accept one apprentice? Why did you accept two?" "It's all fate. Clean up another room." "it is good." "This is my eldest disciple, your eldest senior brother, named Lu Wu. I have seven disciples ahead of you, and I will introduce them to you tonight." The old Taoist said with a smile, "Don't worry, my disciples are easy to get along with. The Taoist temple is also idle on weekdays, and there is nothing to do, so you can play with them." "Hello, senior brother." Lin Jue quickly saluted to the middle-aged Taoist priest. "Hello, senior brother!" The girl also followed suit. "Hello." The middle-aged Taoist priest was carrying a hoe, wearing straw sandals, and had his trouser legs rolled up. He looked to be in his thirties, but he didn't look old at all, except for his unusually gentle expression. Combined with his attire, he looked older than he actually was. After greeting the two of them, he walked back. Lin Jue looked at him with wide eyes. The old Taoist led the two of them and continued walking inside. "When the evening comes, after we pay respects to the master and the formal apprenticeship ceremony is completed, you two will officially be my disciples and their junior brothers and sisters." "Don't you want to choose an auspicious day?" "An auspicious day doesn't have to be in the sky. Today is the day I accept disciples. If you become my disciples, it will be an auspicious day."

"Oh……" Lin Jue couldn't help but turn his head and look around. The sound of the flute on the pavilion in the temple became clearer and clearer, as if it was very close. Besides the smell of incense, there was also the aroma of medicine and wine in the air, all of which were pleasant to smell. There were cats and dogs lying and sleeping in the yard as if no one was around. There was even a clouded leopard lying on the ground in the inner yard and sleeping soundly. Just by standing on the ground in the yard, cats would come over to look at him, smell him, or rub against him. But I don’t know where this place is. (End of this chapter)