Chapter 67: Fellow Daoist on Scissor Peak "Someone lost money again?" Lin Jue walked forward and asked with a frown. "It never stops!" the middle-aged businessman in the lead said anxiously, "It was OK before. We put the goods in a tin box so the monsters couldn't steal them. But now, even if we put them in a tin box, there will be a hole drilled in it the next morning! But those merchants who run cloth shops and have the ability to transport the money out have made a lot of money!" "It's not just stealing money. A few days ago, someone didn't believe in evil and drank strong tea at night, set up a trap, and didn't sleep. As a result, he died in his own house the next morning!" said another businessman. "Is it still the original rat demon?" "We don't know either. We are all confused." The merchant looked anxious but respectful. "We heard that there are immortals on Mount Yi, and the masters of Fuqiu Temple are even more powerful. That's why we came here to ask. We only hope that the immortals can come down the mountain, help us get rid of the monsters, and get our money back." "Don't worry!" The third senior brother also stepped forward and said to them, "If it is really the rat demon causing trouble, then I can say that you have found the right place." "Does the real person have a solution?" "I can't say that we can get the money back, because the money may have been taken away. I can't say that we can get rid of all the rat monsters, but we can get rid of some of them." The third brother had heard about the incident in Yi County outside the city. "It was my seventh and youngest brothers who were in the city that day. There was a reason why my seventh brother dared to say that he would come to us if something like this happened again."
"that would be great!" Many businessmen looked at each other and were very happy. But when I thought of what my third senior brother said, "I can't guarantee that I can get the money back," the joy in my heart was clouded. "Although we want to recover the money as soon as possible, it is already very late now. We cannot walk in the mountains at night. Besides, you believers have come from afar and are tired. We still need to make some preparations, so please stay in the guest hall of the temple for one night. The meal cooked by my junior brother is quite delicious. We will go down the mountain early tomorrow morning." "That's great! Thanks Mahito!" "Please, believers!" The third senior brother first looked at Lin Jue and smiled. His expression clearly meant to say, "Hasn't the money for your carving knife arrived?" "Junior brother, go cook. I will take a few believers to the Tianweng Temple to burn some incense. After that, we have to go to Jiandao Peak to ask for help from fellow Taoists on Jiandao Peak. When the time comes, you and I will go down the mountain together." "Yes……" Fellow Taoist on Scissor Peak? Lin Jue couldn't remember it for a moment. Although there are many great masters and hermits, as well as many goblins and ghosts in Mount Yi, and there are goblins on almost every peak of the thirty-six major peaks and seventy-six minor peaks, ordinary people will never encounter them even if they go there. However, Jiandao Peak and Fuqiu Peak are right next to each other, and when Lin Jue chopped wood, he often went to Jiandao Peak. How could he not know if there are great masters and hermits there? Occasionally, you can hear wild cats meowing. Lin Jue thought about this while cooking. This is fine, as he prefers to act alone rather than deal with people. This morning, Senior Brother Seven went out to play and brought back a basket of fish, just enough to cook a pot. If there were no guests, this pot of fish would be cooked with thick oil and red sauce, and even a little bit of the soup would be enough to eat with rice. If there were more seasonings, it would also be enough to eat with rice. However, since there were guests, we naturally had to cook more. I'm afraid this is the last batch of chicken mushrooms this year. Cook a pot of egg soup, cut a piece of bacon, and add some mountain bamboo shoots to cook until the bamboo shoots are fragrant. Lin Jue’s way of cooking rice is also different from that of his fellow brothers. The brothers cooked in a pot with water, which was simple and convenient. Lin Jue cooked the rice until it was half cooked, then placed it on a colander to drain the water, poked a few holes in it and steamed it. After it was cooked, it became naturally loose and each grain was distinct, and it was delicious even when eaten alone. We sat at two tables for dinner. The Taoists in the Taoist temple sit at one table, and the believers sit at another table. Several merchants were very surprised that there was such good food in the Taoist temple in the deep mountains. They were naturally grateful for the surprise. However, at this time, their minds were mostly on the conversation between the Taoists.
"Let me take my junior brother down the mountain this time." The third senior brother, who was best at fighting, volunteered. "Hmm? Junior Brother is going down the mountain too?" "I've agreed with him. I'll take him with me." The third brother said, "I've already gone to Scissor Peak to ask for permission from the fourth aunt." "Junior brother, you haven't finished cooking for this month yet, why are you going down the mountain again?" The fourth brother frowned and said, "Why don't you stay on the mountain to cook, and let the seventh brother go down the mountain with you." "Let the younger brother stay on the mountain to cook, and the fourth brother can go down the mountain with you." said the seventh brother. "You two." The third brother said helplessly, "I want to take my younger brother to pick out a set of carving knives." "Don't worry, brothers. I just made some salted vegetables a while ago. I'll make you a bowl of salted vegetables and minced meat. Put it in a cool place. It can be kept for a few days. It's enough for you to eat. It's also delicious. Just cook a pot of rice in the next two days." After Lin Jue finished speaking, he looked at the third brother, "What fourth aunt?" "Of course it's a mountain spirit, cultivating on Jiandao Peak, which is very close to our Fuqiu Peak. We have close contacts and are old friends." The third brother said, "I heard from you that the hole at the foot of the wall is as big as a bowl, and the mice are as big as cats. It's just right to ask the fourth aunt to help catch them." "Close contacts?" "Very closely." Lin Jue was puzzled, wondering why he didn't know. After eating, clean up the dishes. Since he was the one who cooked, it was natural that he should wash the dishes as well. This was the rule in the temple. However, the junior sister was always diligent and considerate of him, so she took the initiative to help him collect the dishes and wash them. One of them washes the first time, and the other washes the second time. The only sounds in the kitchen were the clatter of dishes and the splashing of water. It's a peaceful tacit understanding. While I was washing, I suddenly heard movement behind me. Lin Jue turned around and looked—— It was a strange cat that stepped over the threshold and came in. Just as it passed the broom beside the door, it was touched by the thin branches of the broom. It reacted violently, turned around quickly, and raised its hand to slap the broom a few times. When he looked up again, he met Lin Jue's eyes. It was already dark, and the stove was lit. The cat's eyes reflected the light, and it looked at him for a few times, then it started talking to Lin Jue: "Are you the new male disciple of Fuqiu Temple? The one who often comes to our Jiandao Peak to chop wood? Am I going to accompany you down the mountain to catch mice tomorrow?" The sound was soft and thin, sounding like a cat. Lin Jue was shocked. Behind it, two more cats came in. The two cats listened to the cat in front talking, and also looked up at Lin Jue. They took a few steps closer, raised their heads and sniffed the air, and exchanged opinions with each other, as if criticizing him. "This guy is nice." "It's really good, and it has some skills."
"It's a pity that no cat wants it." "Is it a wild man?" The two cats spoke as if no one was around, their voices very clear. "But he seems to have a fox." "Fox? Foxes stink." "You know too little! Foxes only stink when they are nervous or scared. The Taoist priest in the temple must have some magic that made the fox not scared, so it smells so good!" "Is a fox still considered a savage?" Lin Jue was startled again when he heard them talking. He slowly put down his bowl and chopsticks, turned his head and looked at his junior sister, only to see that she was also staring at him with her eyes wide open in shock. The two exchanged opinions, and there was a bad glimmer in their eyes. Coincidentally, I also ate mushrooms tonight. "Senior brother..." "Um……" Lin Jue didn't say anything, remained calm, washed his hands, shook off the water, and walked out. The junior sister followed him out silently. After a while. The inner courtyard of the Taoist temple. The three cats lined up and sat properly on the steps. The third senior brother brought Lin Jue and saluted the three cats. "Sorry, I was rude." Lin Jue said. "Sorry, I was rude." The junior sister also said. "It's not your fault. It's also our fault that we were too curious and wanted to see what the new disciple of the Taoist temple looks like." The leading cat said, "After all, we are old friends." "It's good that you understand, fellow Taoist." "Tomorrow I will help you go down the mountain to catch mice. Let me make this clear. Although we are catching mice, the rule passed down from our ancestors is that we will not eat mice that have become spirits. So for every mouse we catch, your temple will give us a loach as a reward for our hard work." "no problem." "That's all right." The cat raised a paw and licked it. "There are few people who are better than us at catching mice." A ginger cat came over curiously. The tabby cat glanced at it and slapped it with lightning speed, causing it to fall over. The orange cat ran away quickly. After agreeing to set off the next morning, the third senior brother returned to the room with Lin Jue and told him on the way: This group of cats were practicing on the Jiandao Peak. They had been here when Fuqiu Temple moved here before. The founder of Fuqiu Temple, Taoist Banshan, had maintained a good relationship with them until now, and asked him to be more respectful to them. The cats currently in Fuqiu Temple are all descendants of the cats on Jiandao Peak, but they have not yet attained enlightenment. If they do one day, they will most likely return to Jiandao Peak to recognize their ancestors. "correct! "Let me teach you the trick to activate the bean soldiers first!"
The third brother stopped at the door and took out a bean. "Although we carve beans into soldiers, it is also inherited from the legendary scattering beans to create soldiers, so the formula is still the scattering beans formula, 'Beans fall, wind rises, soldiers appear'. I usually recite it silently in my heart. If you want to use this to activate bean soldiers, you have to recite it out loud at the beginning, and then a wisp of magic power will be injected into the beans, and then throw them out, and they will become soldiers." "The beans fall and the wind rises, and the soldiers and horses appear..." Lin Jue murmured and repeated, taking a bean from his hand. "Withdrawing troops means 'returning to Lingdou and the troops to the Great Wall'." "Can anyone use it?" "Of course not." The third brother replied, "This is just a trick to stimulate the 'Bean Soldiers'. Who the Bean Soldiers listen to depends on the remaining souls in them. But this warrior is the one from that night. He already knows you and knows that you are my junior brother. If you stimulate him, he will naturally listen to you." "Is this so..." "You can try once. Don't keep trying. It's a bit disrespectful to my old friend." The third brother continued, "I heard what you said about the rat monsters. If we go down the mountain just to catch rats, it should be easy with a few fellow Taoists from Scissor Peak. The only thing to worry about is something else. Although we are in the city, we must be fully prepared." "Second Senior Brother went to Qiyun Mountain to inform fellow Taoists at Xuantian Temple. Is there no follow-up?" "Who knows?" The third brother shook his head and walked back: "They are not as free as us, they are very busy." While talking, he had already returned to the house. Lin Jue didn't know whether he was talking about the Taoists in Qiyun Mountain or the gods worshipped in Qiyun Mountain. He shook his head and didn't think much about it, instead he began to savor the previous sentence: "This is a bit rude to my old friend." It seems that he also respects these bean soldiers. Thinking of this, Lin Jue began to look at the bean carefully. The beans are relatively round, but whether you look closely or rub them with your hands, you can find that there are actually some lines on them, and they are not completely smooth and round. "When the beans fall, the wind starts to blow, and the soldiers and horses appear." Lin Jue thought so, injected some magic power into it, and then threw it. Beans grow in response to the wind and fall to the ground to become humans. He was indeed a sturdy archer. Lin Jue's eyes couldn't help but light up. Although I had seen and used this "bean soldier" last time, this time I used magic power and mantras to summon it from a tiny bean, so it was naturally different. This feeling is equally magical. "It's polite." Lin Jue bowed to him, explained the reason, and then chanted a spell to ask him to go back. Then the archer was seen shrinking rapidly downwards, and in the blink of an eye he turned into a round bean on the ground.
(End of this chapter)
