Zhang Xiaofan looked deeply at the middle-aged scholar before him who called himself "Wan Renwang." A bad premonition welled up in his heart, yet at the same time, deep inside, another force compelled him to ask involuntarily, "Please enlighten me, sir."
Wan Renwang gave him a profoundly meaningful glance and said slowly, "This black short rod possesses an extremely heavy baleful aura. Its black light is smooth yet restrained. Should a person approach within three zhang, the qi and blood throughout their body would inevitably be forced by this baleful aura to flow backward into the heart, causing death."
Zhang Xiaofan's heart stirred, and he couldn't help saying, "That's right. When I first encountered this thing, even from afar I felt my body grow heavy and nauseous, almost to the point of fainting."
Wan Renwang sighed softly and looked at him. "Indeed, that's exactly it," he said, seeming to frown slightly and sighing lowly. "That you didn't die is truly strange."
Zhang Xiaofan didn't catch what he said after and pressed, "What?"
Wan Renwang smiled faintly but didn't answer him, only pointing at the firestick. "This black short rod is an object of innately great balefulness, named 'Shehun.' It is not something belonging to the Demonic Cult. For thousands of years it has never appeared in the world; it is only recorded in some ancient volumes and rare texts. Brother Zhang is blessed with deep fortune to actually obtain these two supreme treasures of the world."
"Shehun!" Zhang Xiaofan's face went wooden as he repeated it in a low voice.
"Exactly." Wan Renwang's expression returned to calm. "The ancient text *Ten Treatises on Wondrous Artifacts* once recorded: Strange iron fell from heaven into the Nine Netherworlds; netherworld ghost flames refined it by burning yin spirits and fierce souls. A thousand years to redden, a thousand years to take form, a thousand years to gather ghost-fiendish qi, a thousand years to achieve the power of Shehun. In truth, such a baleful object was never something a living person could control. I never expected Brother Zhang..."
"Clang..." A crisp sound rang out as the black firestick slipped from Zhang Xiaofan's hand and fell to the ground. His limbs went limp, and he felt an unbearable tightness in his chest. He staggered back a few steps, staring fixedly at the firestick that had accompanied him all these years, unable to utter a word.
Wan Renwang looked at his terrified expression, yet a hint of a cold smile suddenly flashed across his face. "Brother Zhang, what's wrong?"
Zhang Xiaofan shook his head forcefully, feeling such extreme pain that even speaking was difficult. He muttered, "How... how could this be? I'm a disciple of Qingyun. How could I use such an evil object?" At this moment, he also recalled that day beneath the Netherworld Abyss. No wonder those nether spirits had been so terrified of his firestick—most likely it was the doing of this "Shehun."
Wan Renwang looked at his appearance and knew this youth had grown up in the Qingyun Sect his whole life, never having seen much of the world. Now suddenly encountering such a great upheaval, he was nearly at a loss. Yet seeing his state, Wan Renwang seemed to show no intention of comforting him, only saying indifferently, "An evil object? What do you think is an evil object?"
Zhang Xiaofan seemed somewhat soulless and lost. Staring blankly, he pointed at the firestick on the ground. "This... this thing has harmed countless living beings. How is it not an evil object?"
Wan Renwang let out a cold laugh. "Something that has killed many people is an evil object?"
Zhang Xiaofan almost replied without thinking, "Yes."
A mocking look appeared on Wan Renwang's face, and a fierce, imposing aura gradually emerged between his brows. His entire person seemed to become a completely different man, but Zhang Xiaofan's heart was in such turmoil that he didn't notice. He only heard Wan Renwang say, "May I ask, sire—boars and sows, black pigs and white pigs—are they not all pigs?"
Zhang Xiaofan hadn't expected Wan Renwang to suddenly throw out this question and was startled for a moment. "Naturally."
Wan Renwang continued, "Then lions and goats, fierce tigers and rabbits—when they kill one another, are they not all living beings? Is there a division of good and evil among them?"
Zhang Xiaofan vaguely sensed what he was getting at, but he still didn't understand in his heart and could only say, "Yes."
Wan Renwang snorted. "Then let me ask again, sire—your so-called righteous path and evil path, are they not both made of people?"
Zhang Xiaofan was dumbfounded for a moment. He wanted to retort, but when the words reached his mouth, he realized he had nothing to say and could only say again, "Yes."
Wan Renwang's face was solemn as he looked deeply at him, until Zhang Xiaofan began to feel somewhat frightened in his heart. Only then did he hear Wan Renwang say slowly, "Brother Zhang, your Mount Qingyun possesses a wondrous treasure that shakes the world and astonishes the ages—the Ancient Sword Zhuxian. Are you aware of it?"
By now, Zhang Xiaofan's emotions were almost completely being manipulated by this Wan Renwang whom he had just met, and he nodded unconsciously. "Yes."
Wan Renwang's face suddenly darkened, and he said in a severe voice, "Then do you still know how many living beings this Zhuxian Sword slaughtered in the great righteous-demonic war a thousand years ago? How many lives it destroyed? If we speak of the world today, among all magical artifacts, the one that has truly killed the most people and bears the heaviest baleful aura—I'm afraid there is nothing that surpasses your Ancient Sword Zhuxian, which you worship as a divine object!"
A loud buzz exploded in Zhang Xiaofan's head. His body involuntarily took a step backward, as if someone had punched him squarely in the face. At the same time, he seemed to feel that deep within his heart, something had existed since childhood—a place sacred and inviolable. After a faint, crisp echo, a tiny crack appeared there for the first time.
※※※
The sun shone brilliantly, beaming down from the treetops and passing through the dense leaves to become little dappled spots of sunlight that fell to the ground. As the leaves swayed unceasingly, they seemed like mischievous children gently dancing about.
Occasionally, a few spots of sunlight fell upon the youth.
Zhang Xiaofan squatted on the ground. Before him lay the firestick, resting quietly on the ground, looking ugly and unsightly in the shadows. What Wan Renwang had said actually wasn't much different in meaning from what Bi Yao had said that day in Kongsang Mountain, but coming from his mouth, Zhang Xiaofan felt it was completely different. Deep in his heart, a faint shadow seemed to be laughing coldly in a low voice: *He is right. He is right.*
Wan Renwang sat calmly to the side, drinking tea that had long gone cold. In the distance, the elderly tea stall owner glanced in this direction before turning his gaze away again, completely unaware that within this youth's heart was a raging sea like turbulent waves!
No one knew how much time passed. The anxiety, struggle, and pain on Zhang Xiaofan's face gradually subsided. He slowly reached out, grabbed the firestick from the ground, stood up, and said coldly to Wan Renwang, "Who exactly are you?"
At this moment, Wan Renwang had returned to his casual demeanor. The baleful aura between his brows had vanished completely, and he smiled faintly. "Me? I'm Wan Renwang, nothing more than an ordinary man wandering the world."
Zhang Xiaofan stared at him, his hand gripping the firestick slowly tightening. "How would an ordinary man know so many things? Are you a demonic cultivator from the Demonic Cult?"
Wan Renwang didn't react much. He only looked at him and said indifferently, "Is the division between righteous and evil really so important to you?"
Zhang Xiaofan took a deep breath and said heavily, "Yes!"
Wan Renwang suddenly sneered. "If that is so, why do you still hold in your hand this evil object of the Demonic Cult?"
Zhang Xiaofan's body trembled, but his expression was stern. "This firestick may be an evil demonic object, but if I use it to slay demons and devils, then it is the righteous path. My conscience is clear, just like the Ancient Sword Zhuxian of my sect that you spoke of."
Wan Renwang was stunned for a moment. He slowly stood up and sized Zhang Xiaofan up from head to toe, as if seeing this person anew. The corner of his mouth actually revealed a hint of a smile. "You were actually able to think of this level yourself. Rare, truly rare. With just this mindset alone, you surpass most of your Qingyun... no, most people in this world!"
Zhang Xiaofan ignored him, only staring at him and saying, "Who exactly are you?"
Wan Renwang didn't answer him. Instead he said, "This time you're traveling north; are you returning to your Mount Qingyun?"
Zhang Xiaofan was slightly startled. "What do you mean?"
Wan Renwang smiled faintly. "You still don't know, do you? The Demonic Cult has risen again, its power greatly increased. Recently they have gathered on Mount Liubo in the Eastern Sea. Your Qingyun Sect has sent many people there to rendezvous with other sects. I'm afraid a great battle is imminent. Why don't you go take a look?"
Zhang Xiaofan was dumbfounded. "There's actually such a matter?" But he immediately raised his head and said, "That has nothing to do with me. I'm asking you once more..." Before he could finish speaking, the words cut off. In just this moment of distraction, Wan Renwang had vanished like a ghostly apparition. Even that tea stall owner in the distance had disappeared without a trace. Only a lone tea stall remained, along with Zhang Xiaofan alone.
Zhang Xiaofan stared blankly at his surroundings. In broad daylight, for some reason, he felt a chill.
He stood in place for a long while. Finally, he stamped his foot, walked out from under this great tree, and headed east.
Not long after Zhang Xiaofan left, two or three people emerged from behind the great tree. The one in front was Wan Renwang; one was the tea stall owner; and another was the Demonic Cult maiden who would definitely shock Zhang Xiaofan if he saw her—Bi Yao.
Wan Renwang looked toward the east and nodded slightly. A faint smile appeared at the corner of his mouth. "This youth is stubborn by nature and firm in will. He rather resembles how I was back then."
The tea stall owner standing beside him was no longer in that decrepit, aged appearance. Instead, his eyes shot forth brilliant light, and his bearing was fierce and imposing. "Sect Leader, since he holds the heavy treasure of our Demonic Cult in his hands, why not keep this person here?"
Wan Renwang accepted being called "Sect Leader" with complete equanimity. He only said indifferently, "The Blood-Siphoning Bead and the Shehun have somehow been fused by this youth using his essence blood, becoming a blood-refined artifact. Now, aside from this youth, no one can wield this magical artifact anymore. It would be useless for us to seize it."
Bi Yao snorted from the side. "So that's why this stick looked so strange beneath the Netherworld Abyss that day. Turns out it has such a great origin."
Wan Renwang turned his head to look at Bi Yao, his expression greatly softening. "Bi Yao, what do you think of this youth?"
Bi Yao's face reddened, and she said coquettishly, "Father, today it was your daughter who asked you to come see how he was!"
Wan Renwang chuckled. "This youth is quite good, but he has been deeply poisoned by Qingyun Sect's sectarian bias since childhood. With that stubborn nature of his, wanting him to join our Holy Cult would likely be extremely difficult."
Bi Yao's expression immediately dimmed, and she sighed softly in a low voice.
Wan Renwang reached out his hand and gently stroked his daughter's hair, smiling. "However, he was able to untie the knot in your heart all these years and allow us father and daughter to reconcile. This kindness, we must certainly repay."
Bi Yao's expression stirred, and she said joyfully, "Father, do you have a way?"
Wan Renwang raised his head to look at the sky. An imposing aura slowly emanated from him, showing that he was a figure who had long held great power. But somehow, looking at his expression, he seemed to carry a few traces of sorrow. Only listening to him say slowly, "Changing a person's nature, though not easy, is not impossible."
Bi Yao was overjoyed. Wan Renwang turned his head and saw this; he smiled faintly, an expression no different from all fathers in this world when they see their daughters happy. Bi Yao smiled at her father but noticed the person beside him frowning and saying in a low voice to Wan Renwang, "Sect Leader, that's just a nameless brat from Qingyun Sect. Is he worth expending such great effort?"
Wan Renwang shook his head. "That youth holds in his hand an artifact of unprecedented, ancient balefulness. And looking at him, he can actually control it with ease. In the future he will definitely not be a thing of the pond. Such talent—if we can recruit him—will certainly be of great benefit to my hegemony, not to mention he has already done our father and daughter a great favor."
Bi Yao nodded repeatedly. "Exactly. I told him that very day—if he could join our Holy Cult, Father would definitely value him greatly. He just wouldn't listen."
Wan Renwang laughed in spite of himself. "How could he listen? With that nature of his, having grown up in Qingyun since childhood, he long ago came to detest our Holy Cult utterly. However... hehe, the Blood-Siphoning Bead and Shehun are the most baleful objects under heaven. Although this youth has inexplicably refined them into a blood-refined artifact, with the baleful aura restrained and not revealed outwardly, how can carrying these two great baleful objects by his side have no effect at all? In my view, this youth's cultivation is not yet profound, and being together with these great baleful objects day and night—as time passes, he will inevitably be invaded by the artifact's inner malicious qi. His nature will inevitably change; he will become bloodthirsty and fond of killing. By then the righteous path will not tolerate him, and if we employ a few small schemes, it will be difficult for him not to join our Holy Cult." Having said this, he laughed heartily.
Bi Yao was stunned for a moment. For a time, she couldn't tell whether she felt joy or worry in her heart, and she couldn't speak at all. She could only stare blankly toward the east. But she saw the brilliant sunshine, the sun directly overhead, and on the ancient road, that youth's figure had long since disappeared.
※※※
Zhang Xiaofan left that tea stall and headed east alone.
It was currently noon. Sunlight bathed the earth. Past the mountainous region of Kongsang Mountain was a vast expanse of fertile fields, open and sparsely populated. Only an ancient road, trodden by who knows how many people of ancient times and today, stretched straight ahead across this wilderness.
Zhang Xiaofan didn't fly through the air. Instead, he walked silently alone on the ancient road. The conversation with Wan Renwang just now had struck him with no small impact in his heart. Although he had spoken righteously and sternly when facing Wan Renwang, at this moment, when he was alone, he still couldn't help asking himself: *Could it be that I'm really right?*
The black firestick still rested quietly against his waist, vaguely transmitting strands of coolness from its body.
Walking, walking, walking...
Beneath the vault of heaven, on the ancient road, the youth laden with thoughts suddenly stopped his footsteps and raised his head to look at the sky.
The sky was azure, high above, appearing so lofty and beyond reach.
Zhang Xiaofan stared blankly, the corners of his mouth moving slightly, his brows furrowing together. In a low voice, toward the sky, as if also toward the depths of someone's heart, he said softly:
"What exactly do people live for in this world?"
※※※
Along the way, Zhang Xiaofan braved the wind and dew, sleeping outdoors. Although he didn't have much silver on him, when he was hungry he caught some wild birds and rabbits in the wilderness; when tired he found a tree to sleep under for the night. Anyway, back when he was on Dazhu Peak, because of the bamboo-chopping assignments, his body was quite strong, so he didn't feel it was too hard.
Actually, if he had ridden the firestick to fly through the air, he would naturally be much faster. But somehow, he had no such intention. He always felt vexed in his heart, with those troubles entangling his mind, so he preferred to travel slowly, hoping to think through the questions in his heart clearly.
But speaking of this, how could the questions currently in Zhang Xiaofan's heart be something a youth like him could figure out? No matter how hard he racked his brains, he always felt that the teachings of his sect from the past were naturally sacred and inviolable, that things were meant to be this way and could absolutely not be wrong. But then thinking again of what Wan Renwang had said, it seemed to also make some sense. Unable to choose between them, he was truly utterly perplexed.
If it were someone else, for example his sixth senior brother Du Bishu, he would let out a sly laugh and cast it aside. Anyway, since I'm under the Qingyun Sect, I naturally listen to the Qingyun Sect. And if it were his great senior brother Song Daren, with his rigorous nature, he fundamentally wouldn't believe in these so-called evil demons and heretical paths—he wouldn't even have the thought to ponder it.
Yet only Zhang Xiaofan, with a nature more stubborn than anyone else deep in his bones, when encountering this problem that almost completely challenged his former beliefs, wanted to properly think it through and figure it out clearly.
Thus, he walked with his head buried in thought for three whole days, yet still couldn't figure out the whys and wherefores.
One day, Zhang Xiaofan suddenly felt that the travelers on the road were gradually increasing. He focused his gaze and looked ahead. In front on the ancient road was a small town. Although it didn't look large in scale, perhaps because it was on this ancient road, there were quite a few people.
A wave of joy rose in Zhang Xiaofan's heart, and he temporarily forgot his troubles. These past three days there had been few signs of human habitation on the road. Now seeing such a small town, it indeed refreshed his spirits.
Walking near, he saw by the road at the town entrance stood a stone tablet with three characters carved on it: "Xiaochi Town." He figured this was the town's name.
Zhang Xiaofan strolled in. He only heard the sounds of people gradually growing louder. The ancient road ran straight through this small town. By the roadside were houses and eaves, as well as some shops. But there were even more peddlers directly setting up stalls on both sides of the road. Walking along the street, the cries of vendors never ceased—it was truly a painted scroll of worldly life.
Zhang Xiaofan walked among the crowd, and a slight smile gradually appeared at the corners of his mouth. When he was young and still living in Caomiao Village, he vaguely remembered it was also like this. The bustle of human life, compared to the cultivation days on Mount Qingyun, seemed to have a different flavor in his heart.
"Cling cling cling cling cling cling cling..."
Just as Zhang Xiaofan was still immersed in memories of the past, suddenly from the street ahead came a heaven-shaking sound of gongs that startled him. Then he saw the surrounding townspeople successively quicken their steps and run toward a place up ahead. Among them he heard a few people talking as they walked: "Hurry, the mayor has called a gathering to speak."
"I think it's about that matter, right?"
"Yeah, I heard last night the mayor, Chief Li, Scholar Fan and them discussed for a whole night. Don't know if they came up with a plan?"
"Hope there's a plan, otherwise these days really can't go on!"
...
Zhang Xiaofan heard this in his ears, and his curiosity was piqued. He followed the flow of people forward. He saw the surrounding crowds gathering. Before long, two to three hundred people had surrounded a stone platform at the town center.
Zhang Xiaofan stood in the crowd and looked toward the center. He saw that the stone platform was half a person's height and looked fairly smooth. Three people stood on it—two old and one young. They were presumably the mayor, Chief Li, and Scholar Fan he had just heard about.
Seeing that the people had mostly arrived, the oldest of the three on the stone platform stepped forward and waved his hand at the townspeople below. The townspeople gradually quieted down.
When it was completely quiet, the old man looked around and said in a heavy tone, "Fellow villagers, the reason I have called everyone here today, I presume you all know what it is. Since three months ago when that evil creature took up residence in 'Blackstone Cave' ten li outside the town, it has not ceased harassing our town. In the past month, it has grown worse, coming every night, snatching countless cattle, sheep, and poultry. What's more, three days ago the Wang father and son resisted it for the sake of their family's last ox and were actually... ah, they unfortunately died at the hands of that evil creature."
A wave of sighs passed through the townspeople, and a few couldn't help cursing out loud. Zhang Xiaofan understood the gist, but still didn't know exactly what kind of creature this evil creature was.
At this time the mayor spoke again: "This old man serves as mayor yet cannot protect the town's peace. I am truly ashamed. Last night after discussing with Chief Li and Scholar Fan, we concluded that since this evil creature is no ordinary being, it is not something we common people can resist. It would be better to post notices inviting some cultivation experts to return and subdue the demon. As for the costs, we must ask everyone to strongly support."
As soon as he finished speaking, the townspeople below said one after another: "The mayor speaks reasonably. We should indeed invite experts to come back and catch the demon."
"If this continues, I'm afraid people will be eaten by that evil creature. Do we still care about that little money?"
"Right, right..."
Seeing that most of the townspeople agreed, the three on the platform seemed relieved. The mayor said, "Since this is the case, last night I also asked Scholar Fan to write a notice. Let's post it then." Having said this, he nodded to the young scholar-like man. The scholar acknowledged, took out a white paper from his bosom with some writing on it, walked down the stone platform, and went to a brick wall standing nearby, posting it there.
The townspeople immediately crowded over. Zhang Xiaofan also went to look. He saw written on the paper:
*Presently there is an evil creature, the Three-Tailed Fox Demon, residing in Blackstone Cave ten li outside the town. It hides by day and emerges by night, harassing our town, plundering poultry, cattle, and sheep, and even injuring people. Alas, its demonic arts are formidable. Now we specifically invite experts of the Dao to eliminate the harm for the people. Xiaochi Town is willing to offer five hundred taels of silver as thanks.*
Zhang Xiaofan saw the signature was "The People of Xiaochi Town," and heard the surrounding residents expressing approval. He hesitated for a moment. He originally had the intention to do this good deed, but thinking again of what the townspeople and mayor had said, this evil creature was likely very formidable. His own magical power was meager. Getting beaten by the demon was a small matter, but if he accidentally lost his life, and worse, lost face for his sect—that was something he couldn't bear.
Just as he was hesitating, he suddenly heard an uproar burst out among the townspeople. He quickly looked up and was immediately startled. He saw a giant man walking in from outside. Wherever he went, with just a light push of his hand, the crowd parted like water to the side.
When the giant man walked near, Zhang Xiaofan saw him clearly. This person didn't look very old; at most around twenty. Thick eyebrows, big eyes, a square face and broad ears, combined with that astonishing physique—an imposing aura assaulted the senses.
Among the crowd, the tallest only reached his shoulders. He truly had the bearing of a crane standing among chickens.
He saw him stride to the wall, carefully read the notice once, and without a word, actually tore it down.
A cry of surprise arose from the crowd. The giant man turned around and swept his gaze across the surrounding people. The townspeople immediately quieted down. Only hearing the giant man speak in a muffled, booming voice: "I am Stone, the sole inheritor of the Gate Master of the 'Diamond Gate,' 'Venerable Great Strength.' I have come out on my master's orders to train. Today I have arrived here to do this deed of merit for you all."
Zhang Xiaofan was startled for a moment. He searched his entire mind but had never heard of this so-called Diamond Gate cultivation sect.
The surrounding people all stared at him. At this time the mayor and the others also rushed over, walking before this giant man called Stone. The mayor said carefully, "This... strongman, that evil creature is extremely formidable. It's not... ahem... not something that can be handled just with great strength. There might even be mortal danger. Have you thought this through?"
The giant man nodded, looked at the mayor, and said in a booming voice, "Do you not believe me?"
Being stared at by his huge eyes, the mayor felt somewhat frightened in his heart. He steeled himself and said, "N-no, I just wanted to remind you."
The giant man turned to look around. After a moment, his gaze fell on that brick wall where the notice had been posted.
"Is this wall of any use to you?"
The mayor was stunned for a moment and said in surprise, "Normally it has no use; it's just for posting notices."
That giant man called Stone chuckled, then suddenly shouted, "Stand aside!"
His voice was like a thunderclap. Even Zhang Xiaofan's ears buzzed, not to mention the other townspeople. Each of their faces changed color. In no time, a large empty space had cleared in the venue, with only the giant man standing in the middle.
He saw him furrow his brows and hold his hand horizontally. Suddenly his right foot stamped heavily on the ground. He formed a seal with one hand, rapidly reciting a short incantation in a low voice, then gave a great shout:
"Rise!"
"Whoosh!" A sudden gale of wind burst forth from the giant man's body, whistling past everyone's ears, nearly making people unable to stand steady. The crowd paled and retreated several steps with thumping footsteps. He only saw golden light rise, and the giant man had impressively summoned a massive golden wolf-fang cudgel, hanging horizontally in midair, brilliant with golden light. On it were carved two characters: "Breaking Evil." It looked rather solemn.
The crowd immediately cheered. Zhang Xiaofan stood in the crowd but furrowed his brows. Back then he had received the true method of "Great Brahma Prajna" from Puzhi. These years although no one had taught him, he had secretly practiced without cease, so he understood a thing or two about Buddhist cultivation methods. The wolf-fang cudgel that this giant man called Stone had summoned was solemn with golden light. Looking again at his spell-casting hand gestures, they somewhat resembled Puzhi's back then. Most likely it had some connection to the Buddhist cultivation lineage.
This brilliantly golden wolf-fang cudgel was incomparably massive. It looked even slightly larger than its master. At this moment it was being controlled by Stone in midair, releasing great golden light. He saw Stone open his eyes wide, point with a spell formula, and the wolf-fang cudgel whistled through the air, smashing down from overhead.
The crowd cried out in alarm!
"Boom!" Amidst the deafening noise, dust flew everywhere. What had originally been a perfectly good brick wall was in moments reduced to fine powder under his magical power.
"Wow..." The townspeople present were all dumbstruck, then each broke into smiles. Since this giant man possessed such great magical power, eliminating that Three-Tailed Fox Demon would naturally be easily done. The mayor was the first to walk out, chuckling nonstop. "Strongman Stone has excellent abilities; then we shall trouble you."
Stone nodded.
The mayor paused, and a hint of hesitation suddenly flashed across his face. Then he said, "However, there is one matter I hope Strongman Stone can forgive."
This man called Stone probably always spoke in this muffled, booming manner, and he still did so now: "Elder, please speak."
The mayor said, "As for the reward, because it is all the townspeople's hard-earned money, we hope that we can wait until after the strongman has eliminated the evil creature, and then..."
Unexpectedly, hearing this, Stone waved his hand and said, "It's no matter. Before I left home, my master instructed me that we are righteous-path people. When we encounter evil creatures running amok, we should step forward without hesitation as a way to temper our cultivation. As for money or no money, there is no need to mention it again. You only need to provide me one full meal. Once I'm full and have the strength, I can go eliminate the demon."
The mayor was overjoyed upon hearing this. Such a bargain—how could it be anything but wonderful? He immediately said repeatedly, "Naturally, naturally. Strongman, please come with me. We will definitely satisfy you."
Listening to Stone's words from the side, Zhang Xiaofan felt somehow stirred in his chest, and he was immediately deeply ashamed. He felt that in the past his master and shiniang had also taught his fellow sect brothers in this manner. How could it be that when matters came to a head, he had actually become afraid of trouble? He had truly lost all face for his master.
Thinking to here, his hot blood surged upward. He felt that he was from a prestigious orthodox sect—how could he ignore this matter? He thought to step forward, declare his identity, and go with Stone to eliminate the demon.
Unexpectedly, he had just raised his foot three inches, just leaving the ground, when suddenly he heard a voice beside him, carrying a few parts anxiety and a few parts urgency, say, "Ah, this young brother, dark clouds cover your head, your hall of fate is black, your face bears the aura of death—this is extremely inauspicious!"
Zhang Xiaofan had been full of confidence, the words at the edge of his throat about to be spoken, about to do a righteous deed. Unexpectedly, having these words spoken right by his ear startled him, and he forcibly swallowed his words back. His foot faltered carelessly, he staggered a step, stepped in the wrong place, and actually stepped onto a pile of ****.
This anger was no trivial matter. Zhang Xiaofan jumped up. He felt his foot stank, and although it was separated by the sole of his shoe, his heart went cold, feeling his whole body shudder. Immediately he turned back hatefully, wanting to see who this speaker was.
He saw standing beside him an old man with completely white hair and beard, a clear and refined face, looking to actually have somewhat the bearing of a crane's bones and immortal's manner—the appearance of an enlightened expert. At first glance it made one feel a few parts respect. Beside the old man was also a little girl of eight or nine years old, wearing two skyward braids, lively and adorable. In her hand was a skewer of candied hawthorns, which she was eating with great relish.
For a moment Zhang Xiaofan was subdued by the old man's bearing and couldn't bring himself to curse. He was just thinking of what to say when he saw the old man glance at his foot. Not only did he show no apologetic expression, but his face became even more urgent, saying, "Look, look, isn't this a great omen?"
Zhang Xiaofan was startled. "What?"
The old man looked at him and said with earnest meaning, "Have you never heard the saying: Step on ****, bad luck presses the body; nine out of ten die, misfortune fills the heavens?"
Zhang Xiaofan was speechless. He stared blankly and said, "No. Before I only heard my senior brothers say that when someone has extremely good fortune, people would say he has stepped in **** luck..."
The old man was stunned for a moment and shook his head repeatedly. "Foolish, foolish. Utter nonsense."
Zhang Xiaofan said, "What's wrong?"
The old man said, "Since they say that, do you usually deliberately step on ****?"
Zhang Xiaofan was startled. He remembered back then on Dazhu Peak, because his seniority was the lowest, he often had to do some dirty chores, and Master Tian Buyi's big dog Da Huang would...
He immediately shook his head repeatedly.
The old man nodded. "Then have you ever seen others deliberately step on ****?"
Zhang Xiaofan shook his head. "How could there be such a thing!"
"Exactly!" The old man clapped his hands. "If there really were such a thing as **** luck, how could everyone avoid it beyond reach? Furthermore, **** is the most filthy thing in the world, its stench soaring to the heavens, loathed by all. Once stepped on, could it be anything but bad luck? How could it instead be good?"
Hearing this, Zhang Xiaofan felt these words made great sense. It seemed he had indeed been wrong before. Then thinking again of what the old man had just said, it was truly alarming, and he couldn't help breaking out in a cold sweat. "Then, old man, you just now said I..."
The old man furrowed his brows tightly and sized Zhang Xiaofan up from head to toe, looking until Zhang Xiaofan's heart was in turmoil. Only then did he say, "Mm, it seems you indeed have a great calamity of balefulness. How about you step aside and let me read your fortune?"
"Read my fortune?" Zhang Xiaofan was startled. Only then did he notice that beside the old man's hand was a bamboo pole with a white cloth hanging from it, bearing four characters: "Celestial Guidance."
So it was a fortune-teller and physiognomist. But despite this, Zhang Xiaofan didn't hold him in contempt in his heart. The reason was simple: back then, the Qingyun Ancestor who founded the Qingyun Sect was also a wandering fortune-teller. Of course now there was no one in the Qingyun Sect who practiced this trade, but the Qingyun sect had always been quite friendly toward fortune-tellers; otherwise, wouldn't that be deceiving one's master and forgetting one's ancestors?
Zhang Xiaofan hesitated for a moment but realized that while he was talking with this old man, those townspeople had already surrounded that giant man called Stone and walked far away. He immediately composed himself. He figured it wouldn't hurt to let this old man take a look first. Anyway, that mayor had just said they would have the giant man eat his fill before going to eliminate the demon, so there seemed to be time.
Thinking to here, he turned around and said to the old man, "Alright then. I must trouble the old man to read my fortune."
The old man chuckled, pointed with his hand to a large tree by the roadside, and said, "Then let us speak over there." Having said this, he turned and walked.
Zhang Xiaofan was just about to follow when he suddenly heard a crisp voice beside him say, "Big brother."
Zhang Xiaofan was startled. He saw it was the little girl who had been eating candied hawthorns beside the old man just now. For some reason she had called out to him. Zhang Xiaofan looked at her rosy face, extremely adorable, and smiled as he bent down. "What is it, little sister?"
The little girl chewed at the corners of her mouth, spat out a few seeds, and looked at Zhang Xiaofan, her face seemingly smiling yet not smiling. "You still have **** on your foot. It stinks!"
"Ah!" Zhang Xiaofan's face immediately flushed red. He jumped up and shook his foot desperately, shaking off the filth on his shoe.
The little girl looked at his wretched appearance, smiled, turned around, and hopped over to the old man standing under the tree.