sinovels Chapter 29: Down the Mountain to Store
Chapter 29: Down the Mountain to Store
Cao Xing was absolutely right to call this cultivation technique trash.
The content of this technique is simple; it's the kind of technique you can learn after reading it once. The whole thing only teaches how to circulate and practice Qi, and nothing else. It's completely incomparable to the Crimson Blood True Scripture.
After everyone had completed their registration and their loan amounts at this conversion ceremony had been compared, Zhuang Duyou led the group out.
"You are all nominal disciples now. Once you reach the Foundation Establishment stage, you will be granted the true teachings and become entry-level disciples of the Upper Temple. If you can form your Core, then you will become true disciples."
Zhuang Duyou pointed to the caves to the west: "Those are your living quarters, Class D caves, five people per room, you can allocate them yourselves."
Everyone followed the direction Zhuang Duyou pointed and saw some dilapidated cave dwellings, some of which didn't even have doors.
Seeing this, everyone looked at each other in bewilderment.
This seems to be completely different from their imagined cultivation of immortality.
"Master... Senior Brother, when can we begin cultivating immortality?" a young man asked cautiously as he stepped forward.
Zhuang Duyou glanced at him and asked, "What's your name?"
"Wang Kaixuan".
Zhuang Duyou flipped through the roster in his hand, glanced at it, and his smile gradually turned cold. He did not answer Wang Kaixuan's question, but said with a forced smile, "You owe 230 taels of silver for this conversion ceremony. You will have to repay 25 taels every month from now on. You should pay off this money as soon as possible, otherwise it will be a burden on your path to immortality."
"Ah, this... I..."
Wang Kaixuan stammered and didn't know what to do.
Seeing this, Zhuang Duyou's expression softened, and he patted Wang Kaixuan's shoulder: "Don't say that I, as your senior brother, don't take care of you. Go to the Alchemy Pavilion to cultivate later. The senior uncles there are all good people and they are short-handed. You can do odd jobs there, earn money every month, and still have time to cultivate."
"Senior brother, thank you, senior brother, thank you, senior brother."
Wang Kaixuan was overjoyed upon hearing this and bowed repeatedly to Zhuang Duyou to express his gratitude.
"Senior Brother Zhuang, I also owe a lot of money, and I also want to go to the alchemy room." Seeing that Wang Kaixuan had been assigned a good place, how could the others show weakness? They all crowded around, wanting to go to the alchemy room to earn money and cultivate at the same time.
Zhuang Duyou quickly waved his hand and said to everyone, "Hey, hey, don't worry, we'll have the money, we'll have the cultivation, we'll have everything."
Zhuang Duyou then began assigning tasks: those who owed money went to the Alchemy Pavilion, and those who didn't owe money went to the Weapon Forging Workshop.
Wealthy people like Chen Xiang and Huang Li were sent to Baofu Palace.
The last group consisted of only four people, including Cao Xing.
Looking at the names of the four people on the roster, I realized that these were all ruthless individuals who had no money but each had their own methods.
For example, Wu Peng, who is on the list, was able to swiftly and decisively sever the root of evil at the conversion ceremony, which demonstrates his skill.
Zhuang Duyou then looked at Cao Xing, who was even more ferocious. It was a pity that their Shangfang Temple, although it had female Taoists, was not skilled in the art of sexual cultivation. If it were the Juxian Nunnery on Jieyang Mountain, this kid would definitely be a rare talent.
The remaining two are Shao Mingzhang and Jiao Zhengqing, both of whom are also unorthodox cultivators with considerable strength and cultivation.
Zhuang Duyou didn't assign any tasks to the four of them, but simply said, "You four junior brothers are not ordinary people. You can choose freely from weapon crafting, alchemy, talisman making, and magic array making. If you need anything, just come to me."
"Thank you, senior brother."
The four men bowed slightly to Zhuang Duyou, as this was considered a form of preferential treatment.
Zhuang Duyou nodded and prepared to leave. At this moment, Cao Xing stepped forward and said, "Senior Brother."
"Um?"
"I have brought my family with me. May I go down the mountain to let them know I am safe?"
Now that he has successfully entered the sect, Cao Xing should also plan to bring Bixia over. She has come to know the area quite well and there seems to be no danger. With his supernatural ability, Disguise, he is not afraid of being discovered by others.
Zhuang Duyou casually took out a plaque and handed it to Cao Xing: "This is not difficult. Although we are monks, we are not those bald monks who have to sever the seven emotions and six desires. From now on, you can go down the mountain for one day every seven days. Go down the mountain today, settle your family, and come back early. If you are not inside the mountain gate before sunset tonight, you will be punished."
Cao Xing took the waist token and thought to himself, "It seems that the Shangfang Temple doesn't have that many rules and regulations."
After everyone had dispersed, Cao Xing took the waist token and headed down the mountain.
Wutong City is located just below Shangfangguan, and since the mountain is not very high, it is extremely convenient to go up and down the mountain.
As soon as I reached the foot of the mountain, I could hear many cries from afar. There were over a hundred people participating in the conversion ceremony, but only twenty-seven of them passed the test.
The rest, even those who miraculously survived, were already dead by the time they were carried down the mountain.
As for those who were drained dry on the spot, their corpses were taken away by the disciples of the Upper Temple, and no one knows where they were taken.
"Young man!"
Just then, someone noticed Cao Xing coming down from the mountain and rushed forward, grabbing Cao Xing's arm: "Young man, may I ask you something? My brother's name is Tian Youliang, have you seen him?"
Cao Xing glanced at the newcomer. The man was probably in his early thirties, wearing a patched gray linen coat. Although the hands that were holding Cao Xing were clean, they were covered with cracks of varying depths, clearly indicating that he was a farmer.
Tian Youliang?
Cao Xing thought for a moment, and it seemed like he had heard this name before when he was looking at the registration list.
He nodded: "Congratulations, he passed."
After receiving Cao Xing's confirmation, the man was stunned at first, but then his face was full of joy, and he shouted, "My brother did it! He became an immortal! Hahahaha!"
The man wept with joy and danced with excitement.
This contrasted sharply with the family members wailing and crying nearby.
Seeing this, others also gathered around to inquire.
Cao Xing didn't find it troublesome. He nodded when he heard a familiar name and shook his head when he heard an unfamiliar one.
Those family members who learned that their loved ones had passed the conversion ceremony were overjoyed and cheered, some even taking out pre-prepared copper coins and scattering them around.
Some wealthy families even boasted that they would hold a grand banquet to entertain the relatives of those who had also joined the temple.
"Young man, is there really no name for my son? His name is Song Fang. I haven't found his body. He must have joined the sect."
Cao Xing shook his head. He had never heard of this name before, which meant he wasn't among the twenty-seven people.
As for the absence of a body...
When Cao Xing thought about the end, some of the corpses had been squeezed into minced meat, their bones brittle, resembling a pile of rotten flesh. He wondered what had happened to them; they were probably buried on the spot.
Unable to get any results from Cao Xing, the man remained undeterred and stood at the mountain pass, his gaze fixed on the end of the stone steps before him, hoping that his son's figure would appear in his sight the next second.
Cao Xing looked at the diverse expressions of the people before him: some were joyful, some were excited, some were sorrowful, some were wailing, and there were those who refused to give up.
This scene is reminiscent of the time when my college entrance exam scores came out in my previous life.
In my previous life, I failed the college entrance exam, but all I learned was that life is more than just the college entrance exam.
The consequence of failing in this life is nothing more than turning into withered bones.
"only……"
Cao Xing glanced back at the direction of the temple above, his eyes gradually turning cold. "Does joining the sect really mean everything will be alright?"
"younger brother!!"
When Cao Xing picked up Bixia, Bixia clung to Cao Xing's arm like a sloth, refusing to let go.
He and Bixia escaped from the Wave Moon Cave and relied on each other for survival along the way. They were each other's family. Suddenly having Bixia leave him, even if it was only for a morning, was a test for her.
Cao Xing gently patted his older sister's head: "Let's go, I'll treat you to something nice this time."
This time, the conversion ceremony was like a perfect prediction, with 100% accuracy. I didn't spend a single penny, and I even managed to cultivate the second stage of the Five Internal Organs and Six Brightness Talismans. With all these good things combined, it's only right to celebrate with a big feast.
So he took Bixia out of the inn and found a larger restaurant, where they ordered a table full of food.
I must say, the food at this fancy restaurant is definitely different. Cao Xing and Bi Xia were eating with gusto, their mouths greasy with oil.
After eating and drinking their fill, the two began packing their things. Cao Xing hid the inner core in his mouth. This thing was too precious for Cao Xing to hide casually. If someone picked it up, he would be crying in the toilet.
As for items like the Golden Light Ring, Azure Gold Ruyi, Five Thunder Token, Magnetic Light Black Essence Ring, and Ice Soul Flying Knife, they could only be stuffed into his bag.
"Alas, it's a pity there aren't any spatial artifacts or anything like that."
Cao Xing sighed, but dared not hope that he could have such a treasure. Throughout the Journey to the West world, all treasures involving space were named and highly valuable.
For example, bags for different races, Vajra beads, jade bottles, etc.
These are treasures that we can't acquire ourselves, and as for spatial abilities, there are even fewer.
The so-called "Buddha's Kingdom in the Palm of the Hand" and "Universe in the Sleeve" are all supernatural powers of top-tier bosses. I should stop dreaming. If I had such supernatural powers, I would have already taken Bixia to Beiju Luzhou to live a carefree life.
However, although he did not know any spatial magic, he did have other supernatural abilities.
He lightly patted the package, and the thick package turned into a thin sheet of paper. He folded it twice and then casually stuffed it into his pocket and hid it close to his body.
After packing his things, Cao Xing pulled Bixia in front of him: "Sister, you'll have to make do with this for a while."
"Um!"
Bixia knew what Cao Xing was going to do: "Sister knows, sister won't do anything."
Seeing that Bixia was ready, Cao Xing used his supernatural power, "Illusion," and waved his hand to emit a beam of green light. The next moment, Bixia's figure transformed into a bracelet and landed on Cao Xing's wrist.
My current cultivation level can sustain me for 24 hours, but if it exceeds 24 hours, I will need to cast the spell again.
But for now, that's enough.
After doing all this, Cao Xing got up and returned to the upper temple. By the time he reached the foot of the mountain, it was almost dark.
Looking up, I saw a person standing at the bottom of the steps above the temple.
You haven't left yet?
Cao Xing took a look and realized that this person was none other than Song Fang's father from before.
Although it wasn't dark yet, the cool mountain breeze made the old man unconsciously tighten his clothes.
Cao Xing didn't want to get involved, but as he walked past the old man, the old man suddenly stopped him: "Master, please help me, please ask around for me, I beg you."
The old man was about to kneel down as he spoke.
Cao Xing frowned upon seeing this, but when he looked at the old man with a wrinkled face and those demanding eyes staring straight at him, Cao Xing finally softened.
Oh well, let's just consider it as earning good karma.