Chapter 188 Old Friend
Chapter 188 Old Friend
Seeing the old woman suddenly close her stall, several stall owners nearby were very surprised.
"Mrs. Lan, why are you closing up your stall so soon? There are more people here than at night!"
The Miao old woman responded, "I suddenly remembered that there are some other good stuff in the village, so I'll go back and get it."
After saying that, the old woman ejected a small insect, which grew larger after landing on the ground. It looked a bit like a snake, but thicker and shorter than a snake, and more like a huge bamboo tube with many bamboo nodes on its body. The old woman threw all the things on the stall into the stick insect's mouth, and then the insect became smaller again and returned to the old woman's hand.
Cheng Xinzhan followed the old woman for a distance and soon left Tulong Mountain, heading south, which was the direction to Xiangxi. After Shen Zhaoming watched Cheng Xinzhan leave, he chose another road and also went to Xiangxi.
The road in Wuling Mountain is really difficult to travel. It is winding, going through caves, crossing streams, and you can't fly high because there are too many mountains and they are too dense, and your flight is blocked. It may be even more winding. If you fly higher, the miasma, fog, and vegetation will block everything and you won't be able to see anything.
After about two hours, the two men arrived at the wall of a canyon.
Cheng Xinzhan formed the elixir in spring, and now it is the end of summer and the beginning of autumn. There is a thin mist here, and the vegetation is lush. There are all kinds of wild flowers and fruits in red, orange, yellow and green, which are very beautiful.
At this time, the Miao old woman turned around and said respectfully,
"Master, we are about to reach my village. There are many mortals in my village, so I hope you will not reveal this place to others in the future."
Cheng Xinzhan nodded, "Don't worry about that, but I would also like to remind you not to play any tricks."
The old woman nodded, took Cheng Xinzhan to a cliff, and touched the cliff with her hand.
"Hula-"
A swarm of moths rose up.
Cheng Xinzhan was surprised to find that the cliff in front of him was actually covered by a group of moths. The color and pattern of the wings of these moths were exactly the same as the surrounding cliffs. When the moths flew away, a hole was revealed on this side.
The two entered through the opening, and then the moths returned to their original positions, sealing the entrance.
The cave was winding and had many forks. Cheng Xinzhan followed the old woman, secretly thinking about how secluded this place was.
After walking for about a mile, light began to appear in front of them and the cave gradually became larger. After walking out of the cave, the view suddenly became clear and the beautiful scenery in front of them amazed Cheng Xinzhan.
This is a circular valley, surrounded by mountains, with heavy clouds and vines overhead. Nothing can be seen above. I guess if someone flies over, they won't be able to see what's going on in the valley.
The lighting in the valley is even stranger. There is a strange insect like a jellyfish flying high in the sky, emitting soft light from its belly, illuminating the valley. The plants in the valley are all tall and dense. I wonder if they are related to this lantern insect.
In the middle of the millet, there is a mulberry forest, surrounded by fruit trees, under which pigs, sheep, chickens, and rabbits are leisurely living, and there are also old and young people enjoying themselves. At the foot of the surrounding mountains, terraces have been opened up, planted with Linggu herbs, a circle of colorful colors.
At the foot of the terraced fields, there are densely packed stilt houses, and on the eaves there are numerous silver bells hanging. Cheng Xinzhan had just recently participated in the construction of the mountain protection formation of Fuxia Lake. In his opinion, these bells were placed in a disorderly yet orderly manner, which should also be a very ingenious formation.
"Sister! Why did you bring outsiders in?"
At this time, two Miao people suddenly appeared in front of Cheng Xinzhan, an old woman and a young girl. However, what surprised Cheng Xinzhan was that the word "big sister" was not called out from the old woman's mouth, but from the young girl's mouth.
The young girl had a wary look on her face, and the old woman's shoulders and head were already covered with colorful poisonous spiders, which seemed like they were about to pounce on Cheng Xinzhan at any moment.
Cheng Xinzhan stood with his hands behind his back, not taking any precautions.
"Wait a minute!"
At this time, a male voice like a loud bell was heard, and then a tall man with a red robe, a red crown and a beard flew over and stood in front of the two Miao people.
Cheng Xinzhan looked at the man, a flash of red in his eyes, and then he suddenly smiled.
"Are you Master Red Crown?"
Under the horrified gazes of the three Miao girls, the tall man pushed the golden mountain overturned the jade pillar and knelt in front of Cheng Xinzhan.
"I am not worthy of being called that by the master. Please let the master know that I will take the surname Ji and name myself Kaiming. May the master live long and healthy."
Cheng Xinzhan helped the man up, looked at the man in front of him who was taller than him, and said with a smile,
"'Ji' is a Taoist surname, and 'Kaiming' means Taoism. It's a good name. It means to open up the dark and see the light. According to ancient legends, the Kaiming beast has angry eyes and lightning pupils, guarding the gate to heaven. Not bad, very good."
"I would also like to thank the master for his kindness in enlightening me."
Ji Kaiming said.
Cheng Xinzhan smiled and nodded. This was not a compliment. Looking at his expression, it was clear that he had decided on the human form after watching his own paintings. Moreover, when he went to the Miao village many years ago, he also taught Taoism to this big rooster. This was a real enlightenment.
"Is the old village chief still alive?"
Cheng Xinzhan asked.
"Yes, yes, but..."
"Just what?"
"Oh, it's a long story."
Ji Kaiming sighed, then noticed the three people standing beside him, and introduced them.
"Master Lan, this is Taoist Master Yun, my benefactor and the patron saint of our village. The paintings of the guardian gate gods we brought with us were made by Taoist Master Yun."
At this time, the old woman who led Cheng Xinzhan in finally had a chance to speak, and hurriedly explained,
"Mother, I was setting up a stall, and by chance this Taoist priest saw the demon-killing New Year painting and said he wanted to see his old friend."
At this time, Ji Kaiming introduced the old woman next to him to Cheng Xinzhan.
"Master, this is the leader of the Miao village here, Lan Yinluo, Leader Lan. Thanks to Leader Lan for taking us in, we now have a place to stay."
The old woman also put away the poison at this moment. This big rooster was the most powerful monster in the second realm. He had to kneel down when he saw him. Her eldest daughter was not someone to be trifled with in the second realm either, but she dared not say a word when being chased back home by this man. She was lucky enough to have formed a pill, but she could not see through this man's realm. She thought that he must be an old monster who changed his appearance.
This person had already been brought in, and he seemed quite polite, so there was no need for him to be unhappy, so he bowed.
"Meet Taoist Master Yun."
Cheng Xinzhan nodded and returned the greeting, "Everyone in Lixi Village is my friend. Thank you, Village Master Lan, for your help."
Lan Yinluo pointed at the old woman who brought Cheng Xinzhan in and said,
"This is my oldest daughter, Blue Hibiscus."
Cheng Xinzhan looked over and saw the old woman flicking her silver bell earrings, and a bug came out of them, then bit the old woman on the face. Afterwards, the skin on the old woman's face was torn apart by the bug like cloth, and turned into a thin film that fell off and was eaten by the bug's mouth. Then the bug crawled back into the woman's earrings.
The woman also revealed her true face, with regular features and a gentle and pleasant appearance.
"Meet Taoist Master Yun."
Cheng Xinzhan nodded and said, "I'm sorry to trouble you to make this trip."
"This is my little daughter, Lan Lusheng."
The Miao girl was frightened when she saw Mr. Ji, who was usually serious and always held his head high, kneeling down in front of the Taoist priest. At this moment, she hid behind Lan Yinluo and said hello.
Cheng Xinzhan also nodded in return.
"Master Yun, please follow me into the village for some tea."
Cheng Xinzhan shook his head. "Don't worry about having tea. Please take me to see my old friend first."
Ji Kaiming said yes and looked at Lan Yinluo. After all, she was the owner of this place.
The woman naturally agreed. Then Cheng Xinzhan followed Ji Kaiming and flew down into the valley.
After the two men left, Lan Yinluo and Lan Lusheng immediately approached Lan Mujin and questioned her carefully.
----
Ji Kaiming took Cheng Xinzhan directly to the terraced fields and landed on a medicinal field.
The herbs here have nine long emerald leaves with a purple flower in the middle. The clouds and mist hang low and dew condenses on the flowers and leaves, reflecting the tranquility of the entire valley.
This is the Nine-Leaf Flower, also known as the Nine-Storied Tower, a sacred medicine for curing poisons of the Miao ethnic group. I didn’t expect there would be a large patch of it here.
The nine-story building was half a person's height. There were three or five people applying fertilizer with bamboo baskets on their waists. Cheng Xinzhan took a look and saw that the white fertilizer looked like insect eggs. He didn't expect that this flower was a carnivore.
Ji Kaiming brought Cheng Xinzhan to a short and thin figure and called out softly,
"Village leader."
The short, dark man turned around and said,
"Hush, Master Red Crown, I've told you so many times, don't call me the village master in someone else's village."
"Snapped--"
The old man spilled all the insect egg fertilizer on the ground.
The old man's hair was as white as snow, and his wrinkles were stacked like terraced fields. His lips were trembling, as if he had countless things to say, but apart from a few unclear syllables mumbled in his throat, he didn't utter a complete sentence.
"Munigong."
Cheng Xinzhan stepped forward and held the old man's hand that was applying fertilizer.
"Yun, Taoist Master Yun."
The old village chief finally uttered these words.
The old man's muddy left eye kept moving closer to Cheng Xinzhan, as if he was afraid that he had seen wrongly, and his right eye had completely turned white, and he could not see anything. The old man's only remaining left hand tightly grasped Cheng Xinzhan's hand, not daring to let go, and the empty sleeve on his right side was tied in a knot, probably to make it more convenient to do farm work.
"It's me. I'm here."
Cheng Xinzhan said.
Upon hearing this, the old village chief grinned, tears came out of his eyes, and he pretended to kneel down.
Cheng Xinzhan pulled the old man back and said, "No need to do this."
"Let's go back to the house and talk."
At this time Ji Kaiming couldn't bear to watch it anymore, so he said this.
Cheng Xinzhan nodded and raised his hand, and the insect eggs that fell on the ground returned to the old village chief's waist basket. He supported the old village chief and flew up from the terraced fields, and followed Ji Kaiming to land in front of a stilt house.
Then, there were shouts one after another.
"Brother God is here!"
"Master Yun!"
"It's Taoist Master Yun!"
"It's really Taoist Master Yun!"
"..."
After all the people from the old villages working in various places in the valley were called over, Cheng Xinzhan's voice was a little hoarse.
"Are these the only ones?"
He looked up and saw that there were no more than a hundred people, and no more than ten white dogs and red chickens in total.
When he went to Lixi Village for the first time, the old village chief boasted about his achievements to Cheng Xinzhan. Cheng Xinzhan remembered it very clearly. He was talking about 57 households and 212 people. After Cheng Xinzhan went there, there were Polygonum multiflorum and door god paintings. In addition, Master Hongguan's cultivation had improved, so the population became even larger, and there were no less than a hundred chickens and dogs.
As soon as Cheng Xinzhan said this, low sobs began to come from the villagers who gathered around him.
Seeing that everyone could not control their emotions, Ji Kaiming explained the whole story to Cheng Xinzhan.
"After receiving the message from the master, we hesitated for only half a day, and then the old village chief made the decision. We packed up our belongings day and night, and moved the village the next morning. When we made the decision, we also sent people to notify the people in the nearby villages, but no one believed in the demon tide catastrophe."
Ji Kaiming shook his head and continued,
"We started out heading west, hoping to seek the protection of the Qinglong Cave, and settled in the Wangchun Mountain area. However, less than 40 or 50 miles south, I saw a demonic aura spreading ahead, as if the demons had surrounded the Wangchun Mountain area. Then I led the villagers to head south, seeking refuge with the Golden Rooster Clan, and settled in the Tianming Mountain area. Not long after we walked, we saw a large number of demons heading north, so we had to turn back again.
"Several days passed like this, and in the end we had no choice but to go north. We went up along the Hongjiang River, and just as we were about to reach Xiangxi, we encountered the demons chasing us. That was the time when fifty-five of us died, and twenty-one dogs were lost.
"It was also from the words of the demon who came chasing us that time that we learned that the Eighteen Villages of Hongjiang had been in trouble."
The old village chief added, "It was at that time that Master Red Crown suddenly turned into a human and spewed fire from his mouth."
Ji Kaiming nodded, "It was fortunate that he had refined the horizontal bone, transformed into a human form, and realized the magical power. Otherwise, I don't know how many of them would have survived."
"Then I hid in western Hunan. I didn't see the demons from the south chasing me again. But the poisonous insects and ghosts here were different from those in Hongjiang. I didn't know how to guard against them when I first arrived. Many people turned into corpses for unknown reasons at night and were called away.
"The village chief was so depressed that his heart fire entered his eyes and he became blind. Later on, when he was on his way, he didn't check and was grabbed by a zombie on his arm. He lost his hand."
Youji Kaiming started the conversation, and then everyone started talking one after another, with tears in their eyes.
The nightmare-like suffering and hardship along the way are not mentioned in detail. Finally, Ji Kaiming said,
"We want to settle down in Xiangxi. Although there are many demons here, they are not as aggressively plundering as in Miaojiang. Moreover, the terrain here is more complicated than that in Miaojiang. It is not easy to be found if you just hide in a ravine. Now that I have reached the second realm, I can protect the villagers.
"However, when we were looking for a place to set up camp, we were targeted by a group of demons. We were chased to the point where we had no way out. Finally, we broke into the outskirts of the Miao village. At that time, the village leader Lan led his men out of the village, killed the demons, rescued us and took us in. We have settled down here ever since."
Cheng Xinzhan nodded and said, "It's not easy."
Ji Kaiming replied, "It's not easy, but it's worth it. I once secretly went back to check, and the devil did go to sweep the place. If he hadn't left at that time, I'm afraid there wouldn't be a single person alive now."
"So what do you think about settling down here in the future?"
Cheng Xinzhan asked.
The old village chief replied, "Survival is the most important thing. We will go wherever we can survive. However, if Lixi Village can ever return to its former state, we would naturally want to go back."
Cheng Xinzhan nodded, "I understand. Then Mu Naigong and everyone else will stay here first. When we can go back, I will come and take everyone home. Kaiming, you and I will go meet the owner of this place again."
(End of this chapter)