Flowing water

  Some families are happy, some families are worried. Since the last time Mr. Huoshan appeared, he entangled various demon kings in Huoshan to form an alliance under Tianzhu Mountain. However, the surprise attack on Jiufeng Town triggered a desperate counterattack by Lin Xu, the god of Huoshan.

  In this fierce battle, the defeated demon alliance was subsequently subjected to crazy slaughter by the Yinbing of the Shangshen Temple day and night. The demons who participated in the war lost their unified command and scattered in all directions, starting a chaotic retreat. The situation between the two sides suddenly reversed. Taking advantage of the situation, the Shangshen Temple publicly posted a notice, offering a reward for the heads of the main leaders of the demon alliance. For a time, the demons were like dogs fleeing in defeat, unable to escape their fate.

  It is often said: a wily rabbit has three burrows, and can escape death once.

  In Huo Mountain, there have been at least hundreds of years of activity. For a great demon like Huo Mountain Jun and Bai Dafu who possess spiritual intelligence to not even prepare a safe hiding place in times of crisis is really too careless.

  In a mountain peak with steep and beautiful scenery, a hidden cave entrance as large as a well mouth was concealed by the surrounding dense weeds. If not intentionally searched for, outsiders passing by would never discover the secrets within. This place was exactly where Mr. Huo used to practice in his early years, but now it has changed its purpose and become a temporary shelter. Before Mr. Huo's severe injuries from his fight with Lin Xuan healed, he, Bai Daifu, and other loyal followers like Xiong Yao Jia Dan had to hide here and remain dormant.

  Fortunately, Mr. Huoshan had always been fond of preparing for the rainy day, and the dried meat and wine stored in this cave were enough for them to eat for a year or so, except for the limited freedom, their days passed quite comfortably.

  "Mountain Lord, how are you feeling today? Has your injury improved?"

  Dr. Bei personally handed a bowl of well-cooked medicinal soup to Huo Shanjun, who was half-reclining on the sickbed, and inquired with concern.

  Upon hearing this, the corners of Huo Shan's mouth twitched, and he forced out a faint smile. He couldn't help but cough twice, his spirits sinking as he said:

  "Cough, cough, I've been much better these past few days. Old Bai, thanks to you for timely lending a hand and saving me back then, otherwise, I'm afraid I would have died at the hands of that scoundrel. Cough, cough..."

  The big battle outside Jiufeng Town, Huo Shan Jun and Lin Xu fought a one-on-one duel. Both sides suffered losses, but Lin Xu's physical body had long since transformed into a divine golden body. As long as he was willing to expend his willpower, it was equivalent to having infinite recovery power, gaining an enormous advantage in the process. Although Lin Xu was also severely injured on the spot, the subsequent treatment only took a few days and everything was fine. Huo Shan Jun didn't have this capital, even though its strength was still above Lin Xu's. After all, it was just a physical body, and after getting injured, there was no shortcut to take, only slowly nursing his body back to health.

  Until now, Huo Shanjun can only lie in bed and rest, looking at this situation, without a few months of recuperation, it is impossible to recover from the various internal and external injuries left on his body by Lin Xu's Yinsha Lei and Qixing Sword.

  "Hey, saying it like that makes us sound like outsiders, must we be so clear about our relationship?"

  Upon hearing Dr. Bei's response, Huo Shanjun let out a sigh and said:

  "…How could I be willing to give up?! If only I had fifty more years, no, even thirty years, this position of the God of Huo Mountain would definitely be mine. Could it really be that Heaven is not helping me?"

  Upon hearing this, Bai Daifu was quite dismissive of Huo Shanjun's complaints. He simply shook his thin body and said in a loud voice:

  "To struggle and lose, then to hate heaven and blame fate, is the act of an ignorant fool. Sir Shan, are you not putting yourself on a par with those foolish common people? Isn't that beneath you?"

  Upon hearing this, Huo Shanjun revealed a self-mocking smile. He reached out to touch the wound on his abdomen that was still throbbing with pain and sighed:

  "Alas, a defeated general, how can you talk about bravery?"

  Dr. Bei remained unmoved and continued to speak in a self-absorbed manner:

  "Alright! You just rest and recover from your injuries. I'll think carefully about what to do next, and make sure that we can eliminate him the next time."

  Huo Shan Jun is now exhausted and out of breath, panting heavily, nodded his head and said:

  "That's great, I'll have to entrust you with external matters from now on. The question is, where should we start?"

  Even though the heavily injured Huo Shanjun was bedridden, he still had to face his enemy's abilities head-on. No matter how they looked at Lin Xu, the consensus among the monsters was that this guy was not easy to deal with. Huo Shanjun was worried whether Beidafu could come up with a good plan as promised.

  Seeing this, Bei Dafu smiled gloomily and said:

  "Oh, don't worry about this, I've already sent a messenger to inform the county governor, and there will be news from that side soon. After all these years, it's time for our gold and silver to feed those greedy officials and let them move around and exercise their bodies."

  "What did you say? A team of Brocade Guards arrived in town. Where did these bastards crawl out from?"

  As soon as he heard the report from his subordinate, Lin Xu almost didn't believe his ears. How did the Jin Yiwei, the imperial hawk dogs, find out about Jiu Feng Town? They actually came to the town with a swagger, seemingly intentionally putting Jiu Feng Town under their jurisdiction.

  Not long ago, after great difficulty, Lin Xiu had managed to disperse the Huo Mountain Monster Alliance. He had skillfully used his wrist movements to first pull in one faction and then strike another, barely managing to stabilize the monsters who were still stronger than him even after their defeat. However, he never expected that today would bring unexpected trouble. The strength of these Brocade Guards was indeed not something Lin Xiu took seriously, but the Great Qin Empire backing them was not a soft persimmon to be trifled with.

  It is said that a dying centipede does not stiffen. Everyone knows that the great Qin Empire will eventually come to an end, but isn't it still alive and kicking? The remaining prestige of this dying tiger also commands some respect.

  At this time, the deputy commander, who was kneeling on one knee on the ground, looked at Lin Xu, who was pacing back and forth on the ground with a gloomy face, and said hesitantly:

  "It is said... it is said that we have been appointed by Yang Huaiyuan, the governor of Yu Province. Master, how should we respond?"

  At the sound, Lin Xu's eyelids jumped a few times, and his mouth corners drooped down as he said in a strange tone:

  "This Mount Hua is quite large, and there are many demons and monsters. A group of unfamiliar outsiders wandering around in the mountains, you say they accidentally encountered some unexpected events, shouldn't that be reasonable?"

  Having already sensed the mountain god's icy killing intent and death announcement, Bai Tianya hastily lowered his head in a gesture of respect and said:

  "Yes, I will understand, then go and make arrangements."

  Just as Bai Tianya was about to get up and go out, he saw Lin Xu beckoning him back with a thoughtful expression, saying:

  "...... Wait a minute, don't take action yet, I want to see what kind of tricks they have up their sleeves."

  "Right, then should we prepare..."

  Upon hearing this, Lin Xu glanced at Bai Tianya with a hint of annoyance and said:

  "I told you not to take action first, have I ever said don't get ready?"

  A drop of cold sweat trickled down from his forehead, and Bai Tian's head nodded like a garlic press, saying repeatedly:

  "I will understand later, I bid you farewell, I bid you farewell."

  Bai Tianya, who had just left the main hall, happened to run into Wang Liang, a deputy general, who was walking in. As he exchanged a questioning glance with his flustered comrade, Wang Liang caught sight of Bai Tianya's bitter smile. Before he could ponder what this meant, Lin Xu had already noticed the private exchange between his subordinates.

  He caught Lin Xu's scrutinizing gaze and felt a sudden chill in his heart, so he hastened his pace, stepped forward, and bowed respectfully, saying:

  "I have made inquiries and obtained clear information about the situation in the underworld, I report back to Your Excellency."

  "To make a long story short!"

  Lin Xue, who had just been disturbed by the Jin Yiwei, was not in the mood to listen to a long speech and asked Wang Liang to be concise from the start.

  The old and worldly Wang Bi immediately understood Lin Xu's intention and said succinctly:

  "Yes, I understand. According to reliable sources, Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva and the Five Officials' King have a very frequent exchange, and their relationship is not bad."

  Lin Xu thought for a moment about the meaning of this news and said:

  "Alright, you go and rest, and also send someone to tell Puji and Shang to come over."

  These past few days, Wang Liang had been running back and forth between the mortal realm and the underworld, and was thoroughly exhausted. He immediately cupped his hands in respect and said:

  "Yes sir, I will withdraw."

  About the time it takes to burn an incense stick, Pujizheng, who had been staying in a civilian house outside the mountain temple of Jiufeng Town, also appeared. As soon as he stepped into the main hall, he chanted a Buddhist mantra from afar and said:

  "Amitabha! I, a humble monk, pay homage to your lordship. I don't know if it was your lordship who sent someone to summon me here, but is it true that you have approved my request to build a temple the other day?"

  Lin Xuan was originally going to agree with Puji and Shang straightforwardly, but after hearing him speak so confidently, Lin Xuan felt a bit annoyed in his heart. So, he changed his mind on the spot and said:

  "Let's talk about building a temple later, I heard that the Great Monk is from Guanzhong, isn't that right?"

  At the sound, Pujizhe nodded and said:

  "The venerable one has spoken correctly. I was originally a guest monk at the Chanyang Wulou Temple, and from a young age, I have been accompanying the ancient Buddha, devoting myself to understanding the Buddhist Dharma. However, the Emperor favored and trusted the National Master Pudu Cihang, issuing an edict that all temples in Guanzhong, regardless of size, were to be placed under his control. I did not wish to join him, so I had to flee to a distant land. Fortunately, I received guidance from the Bodhisattva Dizang in a dream, and thus came to Huoshan to spread the teachings."

  The conversation mentioned Daqin Guoshi Pudu Cihang, and Lin Xu also thought of this famous figure, his eyebrows slightly furrowed.

  Although Lin Xu didn't know if the national teacher was a thousand-year-old centipede spirit as said in the movie, from the rumors circulating among the people, Pudu Cihang's reputation among the common folk was extremely poor, almost comparable to that of a street rat.

  Regardless of the disastrous plague sweeping across the land, they still spent a huge amount of money building Buddhist temples and statues, and under the pretext of disaster relief, they repeatedly held large-scale Buddhist events with staggering expenses.

  If it weren't for the current Emperor of Qin's eighty-fourth generation supporting him from behind, Pudu Ci Hang wouldn't have been able to afford such a huge expense even if he had spent all his family's wealth. Every single coin he spent came from the national treasury, which is the people's hard-earned money!

  Nowadays, the world is full of refugees, dead bodies are scattered all over the mountains and fields, and the roadsides are piled with white bones. Pu Du Ci Hang, as a monk, would rather do great evil than rescue the disaster victims at this time. Such a rebellious and unscrupulous act, even if it's not some kind of demon, is undoubtedly that of a ruthless professional swindler!

  PS: Everyone, this book has already reached 1 million words, it's time to start reading, don't wait any longer, hurry up and cast your votes!