Chapter Fourteen: Appreciating the Moon at Quan Shan

  Qing Xū and Xiao Shí Tóu finished their meal at Wang Bo Lou in the late afternoon. When it was time to settle the bill, Li Lǎo Bǎn refused to accept any money, saying that Gu Zǎng Fēng had already left a hundred taels of silver as wine expenses and wanted them to take away the remaining silver.

  It turned out that Mr. Li saw Gu Changfeng neither going downstairs nor upstairs, and knew that these people were not ordinary people. No wonder Song Dabozi came with a strong momentum, but ran away with his tail between his legs. Mr. Li was a businessman who deeply understood the truth of having many friends and many roads, and he had a mind to make connections.

  Qing Xū was entangled by him and had no way out, so he said, "Boss Li, your family's ancestral skill of entanglement is truly impressive, and it's even more advanced here!"

  Mr. Li was taken aback for a moment, saying "Who did Taozhang say? Do you know my ancestors?" Looking at Qingxu's 27 or 28-year-old appearance, he secretly suspected in his heart.

  Qingxu smiled and said, "Your Li family's Wangbolou in this Jin City is also a hundred-year-old shop. Who is Li Zheng to you?" Li Laoban was shocked and said, "That was my great-grandfather, who passed away more than ten years ago! How did Daozhang know his name?"

  Qingxu let out a soft sigh and slowly said, "A hundred years have passed in the blink of an eye. The young man from back then has already left this world! I heard that he only lived for over a decade after leaving, which is equivalent to living for a century!" As he spoke, his eyes swept across Li Laoban's face, and he continued, "You've also practiced the art of nourishing life, haven't you?" Li Laoban was already bewildered, but simply nodded. Qingxu said in a deep voice, "Then remember, wealth and honor are not to be forgotten, do good deeds and charitable acts! Take care of yourself!" After finishing speaking, he went downstairs with Xiaoshi.

  Only Li Boss was left standing there, thinking for a long time, suddenly remembering something, excitedly shouting "It's him, it's him! The immortal that Grandpa Ta said is him!" Hurriedly chasing down the stairs, but Qingxu was nowhere to be found.

  After Qingxu and Xiaoshi walked downstairs, they quickened their pace and hurried for a while. Qingxu looked back to make sure no one was following them and let out a sigh of relief. Xiaoshi asked, "Big Brother Master, do you really know Li Boss's great-grandfather?"

  It seems that Qingxu was reminiscing about something from the past, and a hint of a smile appeared at the corner of his mouth. "Yes! That was a hundred years ago, when Li Zheng was only seventeen and working as an apprentice in a wine shop. I saw that he was clever and eager to learn, so I taught him some techniques for cultivating energy. Who knew that this young man would discover that I was no ordinary person and want to become my disciple? I thought he wasn't the right kind of person for my teachings, but he kept pestering me, crying and shouting, until I had no choice but to use magic to escape. As I left, I gave him a few dozen taels of silver and told him that phrase, 'Take care of yourself.' He couldn't find me, so he used the silver I gave him to do business, and later built this Wàngbō Tower! Luckily, I didn't tell him that I was from the Cōngtóng Sect; if I had, he would have been able to track me down to the mountains." Qingxu seemed relieved that he hadn't revealed his past, looking like he had been thoroughly pestered by Li Zheng back then.

  Xiao Shi Tou laughed and said "Big Brother Master, aren't you always worried about not having a disciple? How come when one is delivered to your doorstep, you don't want him?"

  Qing Xū shook his head and said, "Li Zheng is indeed clever, but he lacks a bit of enlightenment and patience. He can do business, but he's not suitable for cultivating the Tao."

  Xiao Shi Tou nodded thoughtfully and asked, "Big Brother Master, how am I? Do I have the capital to cultivate?"

  "You think it's easy making money? You're a disciple with great potential, chosen by Master himself. Besides, taking in disciples is all about fate. If Master and I hadn't passed through Red Gold Town that year, we wouldn't have saved you. Think about it, if we were flying on our swords that day, we would've never met you. That's just how fate works!"

  Xiao Shi thought to himself, it was indeed a coincidence that he could become a disciple of Kunlun. Thinking of his master whom he had never met, he asked Qing Xuan, "Big Brother Master, what kind of person is our Master?"

  Qingxu heard the words, a strange expression appeared on his face, as if he couldn't think of any words to describe Guangyan. He helplessly said to Xiaoshi, "Master is a good person, it's just that sometimes... how should I put it, you'll see for yourself when you meet him."

  Xiao Shi Tou was a bit bewildered, and Qing Xu's words were like nothing had been said at all. In his mind, Guang Xian Dao Ren should be a god-like figure, because his father always called him "Old Immortal", which had left a deep impression on him. After Qing Xu finished speaking, he felt that what he said was not quite right and saw Xiao Shi Tou's confused face, so he quickly explained: "Younger brother, Master is a profound and unfathomable person, really hard to describe." Xiao Shi Tou thought about it and realized that maybe all high-ranking people were like this, otherwise why would they be called high-ranking?

  Inside, Zhao Wujin had long been secretly scolding "Guangxian is just a old mixed hair who pretends to be a god!" Qingxu would definitely agree if he heard it, and using "pretending to be a god" to describe Guangxian was the most appropriate. Xiao Shitou wouldn't know that his master, whom he had never met before, was such a person.

  Qingxu raised his head and said to Xiaoshi, "Little brother, we still have over ten miles to Wuspring Mountain, let's hurry up!"

  Little Stone gazed at the distant Wuquan Mountain and said with a bitter face, "Big Brother Master, you can obviously fly over with me, why do we always have to walk?"

  Qingxu had a sly smile on his face, and said with a wicked laugh, "What's wrong with walking? Let's hurry up!" Xiaoshi had no choice but to follow Qingxu southward.

  It wasn't easy to get to the foot of Wusong Mountain, but as soon as he saw the small stones behind the mountain, he quickly forgot his unpleasantness earlier. He was captivated by the colors of the mountain. In Chijin Town, you can't see such scenery. The Qilian Mountains give people a sense of mystery, coldness, and inapproachability. But Wusong Mountain is another kind of scenery altogether.

  Wuquan Mountain is located in the south of Lanzhou City, on the north slope of Gaolan Mountain. The layered buildings and pavilions are arranged along the mountain, with streams flowing like ribbons and green trees covering the landscape, creating a beautiful and serene scenery. Wuquan Mountain got its name because there are five springs on the mountain.

  Legend has it that during Emperor Wu's reign, Huo Qubing led his troops to conquer the Xiongnu people and once stationed his army in this mountain. When the soldiers were tired and thirsty, Huo Qubing struck his whip and brought out a spring. These five springs still exist today.

  The first one is Ganlu Spring, located on the west side of Wenchang Palace, with a solitary pavilion hiding behind it. The clear spring water flows gently, never overflowing even after heavy rain, and never drying up even in severe drought. Drinking from this spring is like tasting sweet dew.

  The second one is Yueyue Spring, located on the east side of Wenchang Palace. The spring is about a foot wide and five feet deep, shaped like a well. On Mid-Autumn Festival night, when the moon rises over the eastern mountain, this place receives the earliest moonlight. The moon's shadow falls into the heart of the spring, just like scooping up the moon from a plate.

  The third one is Mozizui Spring, located in the Mozidong Cave under the Guanlou Pavilion. Local men and women use their hands to search for stones or tiles in the spring water, believing that if they touch a stone, they will give birth to a boy, and if they touch a tile, they will give birth to a girl.

  The fourth one is Mengquan Spring, located below the East Dragon's Mouth. Here, the cliff hangs high above, with a waterfall cascading down like a hanging silk or a flying silk thread, falling into the midst of rocks and splashing out countless bright pearls. The water flows onto the grassy slope, forming a mirror-like surface. "Meng" is an omen name, implying that there are dangers below the mountain.

  The fifth one is Huiquan Spring, located at the south end of Qiqiao Bridge in the valley below the West Dragon's Mouth. The spring is round in shape, with clear water and fine sand, transparent to the bottom, sweet and delicious in taste, suitable for cooking, and also beneficial for irrigation, bringing benefits to the people, hence its name.

  Qingxu and Xiaoshi walked up the mountain road, watching the five springs one by one. Qingxu had been here several times before and had traveled to many famous mountains and rivers, so the scenery on the mountain was nothing special for him. But Xiaoshi was a first-timer, and as soon as he climbed the mountain, he exclaimed with excitement. Whenever they came across a spring, he would touch the stone beside it, jumping up and down with joy. Fortunately, today was the 15th of the first lunar month, and everyone in the city was waiting to watch the moon and lanterns, so there were only a few people on the mountain. Otherwise, people might think that Xiaoshi was an unsophisticated country bumpkin who had never seen the world before, which would be embarrassing and laughable.

  Unconsciously, the sky had darkened, and a bright moon was slowly rising from the east. The moon was like a silver plate, casting a soft, clear light over the earth, and although it was nighttime, the scenery in the mountains was still clearly visible. Qingyu and Xiaoshi walked out of the Thousand Buddha Pavilion along the eastern corridor, strolling down to the Zi Wu Tai and Ba Gua Tai. From here, one could look up and see the waterfall cascading down from the East Dragon's Mouth, or look down and take in the "Meng Quan" (Dream Spring), the crown of the five springs. The character "Meng" is a trigram name, one of the sixty-four trigrams, with Kan above and Gen below; Kan represents water, and Gen represents mountain. Using the word "Meng" to describe the appearance of the eastern valley implies that there are hidden dangers beneath the mountains. The Ming dynasty poet Li Wenzheng wrote a poem praising Meng Quan: "A superior person invited me to brew new tea, drawing water from the fifth spring in the mountains."

  After strolling around the Five Springs, I felt carefree and suddenly looked up at the bright moon in the sky. I thought to myself that at this time last year, I was always with my old dad, but this year I'm not accompanying him, so he must be feeling lonely. But then again, who knows, maybe my old dad is drinking with Mr. again, and by now they might have even formed a trio with their shadows.

  Qingxu looked at Xiaoshi and saw that he was looking up at the moon, then fell silent again. He knew that Xiaoshi was homesick. After all, Xiaoshi was still a twelve-year-old child, and today was the Lantern Festival, a day for family reunions, so it was inevitable that he would feel a little sad. Qingxu patted Xiaoshi on the shoulder, and just as Xiaoshi was about to speak, he felt his body lighten and slowly rise up. The two of them rose higher and higher like a light cloud carried by the wind, until they finally landed on the Thousand Buddha Pavilion. It was built on top of the flying waterfall at Donglongkou, with a majestic and magnificent atmosphere, and its terrain was steep and shocking. As the highest building in Wuspring Mountain, it was a wonder to behold. Looking down from the railing, one could see the East Corridor suspended in mid-air, spanning over heavy rocks, winding around clear streams, and surrounding pavilions and kiosks, forming a circular wall that protected the garden like a Great Wall. Xiaoshi exclaimed with surprise, "Big Brother Qingxu, why didn't you say anything? I wasn't prepared! Can we do it again?" Qingxu smiled and said, "You can try jumping down yourself! I'll bring you back up later!" Xiaoshi looked down and saw that they were hundreds of feet above the ground. If he jumped down, he would be smashed to pieces. He knew that Qingxu was teasing him, so he forced a smile and said, "Forget it, then!"

  Looking from here, the city of Lanzhou is at our feet. At this time, the lights in the city are shining brightly, and every household has lanterns and streamers hung in front of their doors. The streets and alleys are crowded with people, it's even more lively than during the day.

  Xiao Shi Tou was admiring the night view while feeling a cool energy slowly entering from the top of his head, knowing that Zhao Wuji had started practicing. For over ten days, Zhao Wuji had been rarely chatting with Xiao Shi Tou, spending all day practicing. Perhaps it was because Qingxu was by his side, Zhao Wuji felt at ease with Qingxu around, even if someone caused trouble, he didn't need to worry. Today was a crucial day for the Yin Yang Harmony Great Method he was cultivating, if he could break through this barrier, the Yin Yang Harmony Great Method would enter its third layer, and his powers would recover to 50%, afterwards, the danger of his primordial spirit condensing would greatly decrease.

  Xiao Shi Tou didn't know that tonight was Zhao Wu Jin's critical moment in his cultivation, and asked Qing Xuan Dao "Big Brother Master, are we just going to watch for a night?"

  Qing Xū glanced at the moon and replied irrelevantly, "It's almost midnight, it should be coming out soon."

  Xiao Shi Tou listened in confusion and asked, "What's coming out?" Qing Xu had a mysterious look on his face and was about to speak. As if he discovered something, his eyes lit up and he pointed downwards with a very low voice saying, "From now on, no matter what you see, don't make a sound, or it will be scared away!" Xiao Shi Tou's curiosity expanded greatly, what thing? And it would be scared by them? He looked in the direction Qing Xu was pointing, wondering what it could be.