Chapter 157: Merit Points, Jia Huolong

Leaving the First Peak, they proceeded to the Second Peak.

Compared to the First Peak, the Daoist Flying Stork had many more close friends on this peak. Naturally, he brought his beloved disciple along to visit them one by one, exchanging polite compliments and discussing the Dao.

Ji Ming followed closely by his side. It was truly a scene of receiving divine elixirs here and marvelous medicines there, his arms full of pearl-like beads, the basket in the crook of his arm stuffed full of spiritual apricots.

After touring four or five residential huts and grotto dwellings on the peak, the Daoist Flying Stork remained largely unsatisfied.

When they first arrived, he had felt that he had numerous old friends here, and finding a tutor for his disciple should be a simple matter. However, upon actual meeting, he felt that it might delay his disciple's cultivation.

Because on this Peak of Divine Blessings, the atmosphere of discussing the profound and talking on Zen was overwhelmingly prevalent. Coupled with the rows upon rows of alchemy furnaces, the clusters of fire chambers, and the patches of medicinal gardens, he feared that if his disciple stayed here frequently, he would be influenced by his surroundings, neglect his cultivation, and become addicted to the arts of alchemy, talismans, and artifact forging.

It was not that these Daoist arts were bad, but rather that his disciple was currently in the prime years for making rapid progress in his Daoist attainments.

If his disciple missed this golden period and failed to forge that grain of golden elixir, it would be of no avail even if he refined countless spiritual elixirs and marvelous medicines.

The more the Daoist Flying Stork pondered, the more he felt he had truly acted rashly.

Earlier, he had been solely focused on utilizing his connections to reverse the public opinion surrounding the "Heaven and Man Obstructing the Dao" on the mountain, and had considered the matter of his disciple's tutor far too simply.

Such is the nature of a master: to plan with deep foresight.

Now that the Angling Dragon Elder was strictly adhering to the rules and unwilling to make even the slightest accommodation, who across the vast Taiping Mountain could ensure his disciple's safety? Could he really go and beg the high masters of heterodox sects who lived in seclusion in the mountains?

Seeing the old Daoist's smiling face contract once again, Ji Ming guessed seven or eight parts of his thoughts.

Calculating the time, it was only six or seven months away from the Daoist disciple assessment, and he wondered whether Master Su Luo had been lured by his illusion array to seek out that Spiritual Secluded Temple.

While he hesitated, a divine form vaguely manifested upon a mountain rock and shouted, "Stay your steps, stay your steps."

Upon seeing this, the old Daoist Flying Stork was not surprised, but merely asked in a muffled voice, "Old Mountain Ghost, who entrusted you to find me?"

On top of the mountain rock, that divine form assumed a posture of holding its belly and laughing loudly.

"I am not looking for you, not looking for you, it is the youth by your side. Someone entrusted me to bring a message, saying, 'If you have leisure, you may seek him in the city where the plums grow.'"

"Master, this must be the arrangement of the Great Master."

The old Daoist nodded, watching the divine form of the mountain ghost depart before saying, "It is a good thing for the Great Master to keep you in mind. The descendants of the Mid-Heaven Dao lineage, the 'Great Pure Yang Palace,' are very few, yet every single one of them is a supreme powerhouse. You must maintain this relationship well."

"Then I shall?"

"Go directly to Flying Bear City."

The two of them boarded the spiritual crane once more, passing through clusters upon clusters of cloud formations, soaring under the clear sky and bright sun. Leaving the towering peaks behind them, they soon arrived above a gigantic city.

Looking down from the air, the city appeared as small as battlements, and the people as small as ants.

When the spiritual crane spread its massive wings and descended in a vertical drop, the old Daoist sat as firmly as if rooted, not moving a single bit. Ji Ming naturally remained still as well, secretly steadying his physical body with primordial gang qi.

***

The spiritual crane landed atop a high pavilion by the waterside within the city, and the moment it touched down, people from the pavilion came out to receive them.

Seeing the old Daoist act as if he were the master of the house, one could easily tell that this pavilion was an industry of Crane View. Ji Ming leaned against the balustrade and looked out, taking in the scenery of a good half of the city.

The old Daoist beckoned the attendants of the pavilion to bring fine wine and delicious food. Looking at his disciple who was overlooking the city view, he asked, "Have you spotted that 'place with plums'?"

"I will need a little time. Many profound courtyards in this city grow plum trees."

Ji Ming withdrew his gaze from outside the pavilion and looked at the wine and food that already filled the table.

On the table were famous dishes and fine wines from Ochre Bear Province, such as triple-steamed meat, oil-waxed meat pies, raw silverfish slices, chrysanthemum wine, and osmanthus silver brew.

The old Daoist drank and ate without any inhibitions or regard for decorum. Ji Ming simply cast aside his usual reserved demeanor and joined in, eating and drinking with abandon.

Master and disciple ate to their heart's content and drank happily, temporarily casting behind them the cultivation taboos against eating meat and partaking in strong liquor.

Before long, one void-walking warrior after another returned from outside. Ji Ming frowned, put down his wine cup, and looked at his master, saying, "I didn't find it."

"A plum that is not a plum!"

The old Daoist reminded him.

Ji Ming picked up his wine cup once more, and one by one, the void-walking warriors within his body leaped out from his acupuncture points, shuttling through the streets and alleys with the high pavilion as their center.

"Found it."

Just as Ji Ming's voice fell, a seven-foot-tall Daoist appeared on the pavilion, stroking three wisps of a fine, beautiful beard, holding a plum-handled horsetail whisk, and carrying a treasured sword on his back.

This Daoist shook his horsetail whisk with his right hand, formed a hand seal with his left hand, held it upright before his chest, bowed slightly, and spoke simultaneously, "This poor Daoist pays his respects."

"True Lord Fire Dragon!"

Ji Ming hurriedly stood up and bowed in greeting.

Ever since their parting at the cloudy sky palace, he had gone to learn about this True Lord, who often roamed freely in the mortal world. There were numerous bizarre tales and wondrous events circulating about him, the most famous being "Divining the Mystery to Pluck the Primordial Pearl."

Through his supreme divination arts, he had allowed a mortal to pluck a wicked dragon's primordial pearl, fulfilling a destiny of immortality. This event had been adapted into many storytelling scripts and continued to be praised down to the present day.

He had not expected that the Great Master had actually directed him to this True Lord Fire Dragon. For a moment, he felt deeply grateful for the Great Master's thoughtful care and effort.

"Senior!"

With True Lord Fire Dragon present in person, the old Daoist Flying Stork naturally showed the courtesy of a junior. He had no time to tidy up his grease-stained beard and stood in a comical manner side by side with Ji Ming.

"There are no True Lords here." Fire Dragon loathed tedious and complex rituals the most. Growing more mischievous with age, he pulled Ji Ming and the old Daoist together to the table and began drinking and exchanging toasts.

After three rounds of wine and five courses of food, the True Lord wiped his grease-covered mouth and produced a booklet, placing it before Ji Ming.

* * *

"That day, you left in a hurry, and this booklet was not brought down from Exalted Crossing Mountain."

"The Book of Merits!" Ji Ming took the small booklet in his hand, only then remembering that he had forgotten about the matter of the three hundred merits.

At that time in the grotto, he had given his word that upon fulfilling three hundred merits, he could return to the Fiery Ruins Grotto. Thinking thus, he immediately made an entry in the booklet: "Entertaining the alms-seeking Daoist Jia Huolong once; merits: one."

Seeing what his disciple had written, the old Daoist Flying Stork's eyelids instantly twitched.

Sometimes he truly felt that his disciple was far too resourceful and adaptable, practically the reincarnation of a clever monkey.

However, he also knew that those reclusive high masters happened to favor this very trait. They called this being innocent, natural, and unrestrained, which was most in accord with the Heavenly Dao.

True enough, True Lord Fire Dragon cast a glance, and upon seeing the three characters "Jia Huolong," he burst into laughter, stroked his three wisps of fine beard, and heavily praised the Golden Boy for his profound spiritual roots.

That night, the old Daoist left behind abundant cultivation resources and departed with a mind at ease.

His time was limited, so there were many matters he needed to entrust and instruct.

Early the next morning, a cloth banner was shoved into Ji Ming's hand, bearing the bold characters "Plum Blossom Easy Numbers," and subsequently, he was led to a divination stall.

He saw that the stall bore the inscriptions "When True, It Settles and Manifests," "Sincere Hearts Are Bound to Respond," and in the middle was written "Divination and Destiny Studied Together."

At the stall, True Lord Fire Dragon sat casually and said to Ji Ming, "For these next few days, you shall work as an assistant by my side, drumming up clients for me and accumulating some merits along the way."

With that, he told Ji Ming to go about his tasks.

Ji Ming looked around to the left and right. From an immortal soaring through the heavens on a crane to an assistant at a street stall, the transition of identity was so rapid that he had not yet recovered his composure.

The location of this divination stall was not amidst a bustling market, but rather pressed closely against a massive nanmu tree, beneath whose shade the cool breeze was refreshing. In his heart, he guessed that the True Lord had set up the stall here simply to enjoy the shade.

There were few pedestrians in the streets and alleys. A peddler leading a donkey passed down the street early in the morning ringing a bell, only to be cursed at from a nearby courtyard wall, causing him to instantly shrink his head and hurry past.

"You—"

Ji Ming exchanged a glance with the peddler, just as he was about to offer a greeting. Unexpectedly, the peddler caught sight of the stall beside him, clutched the pack on his body, and strode away rapidly as if he had run into a charlatan.

Strolling around the streets and alleys, Ji Ming saw very few shops, encountering only small residences with dark tiles and grey walls.

Ji Ming had rarely lived in the city, and everything appeared novel to him. Before long, he wandered out of the street, entered a large ward gate, and arrived in a bustling market.

There he saw crowds of pedestrians like weaving shuttles, and streets and alleys filled with goods baskets.

Walking along past various shops displaying antiques, calligraphy, paintings, snacks, pastries, silks, and ready-made garments, Ji Ming suddenly spotted an elderly woman and hurried forward to assist her. Once she had crossed the carriage and horse path within the ward, he immediately took out his booklet and made an entry: "An old woman was crossing the busy road; assisted her across; merits: one."