Chapter 2: The First Generation of Taoist Priests - Mao Xiaofang

  "Old Gold!"

  Jiang Le let out a cry of surprise and hastily ran in to take a look.

  Turn over Jin Lao's slanted body, Jiang Le was so frightened that his face turned white and he fell to the ground.

  At this moment, Jin Lao Tou's face was as white as snow, his breath completely gone. In his dead eyes that refused to close, there seemed to be a lingering excitement and unwillingness.

  "Dead? How could he be dead?"

  Jiang Le was shocked silly.

  He said that he was just an eighteen-year-old kid who had never encountered such a situation before, and naturally, he was at a loss for what to do.

  "At such an old age, and with the five organs being severely invaded by yin energy, if he dies, then so be it. What's there to make a fuss about?" A voice replied calmly.

  Jiang Le couldn't help but nod.

  Indeed, Old Jin is over seventy years old and has been coughing for many years. He doesn't know what disease he has contracted, but he's always feeling weak and ill-fated.

  Uh, no, is there someone else here?

  Jiang Le was shocked.

  He just didn't see anyone else in the room.

  He hastily turned his head around, but still didn't see anyone.

  Who said that? There's nobody there.

  Jiang Le felt a numbness in his body and cold sweat broke out on his back.

  Am I seeing a ghost!

  "Who? Come out?" Jiang Le shouted, trembling, while he was already prepared to escape at any time.

  If it were human, it would be fine, but if you really encounter that kind of thing, then it's a tragedy.

  "Haha, young man, you're quite bold, daring to ask me out?" The voice seemed to carry a hint of amusement.

  His mouth was dry and his heart was racing like thunder.

  This confirms it, this is absolutely not human.

  "That's it, I can't get out of here either. I'm just passing by, I'll leave now." Jiang Leqiang suppressed his fear and got up to run outside.

  Bang!

  Just then, a gust of cold wind blew in and the door suddenly closed.

  Jiang Le was shocked and pale, and hastily tried to pull it open.

  But this door seemed to have magnetism and couldn't be opened no matter what.

  Jiang Le grew anxious. He hastily pleaded: "Brother ghost, please spare my life, I still have a sick mother who needs my care, if I die she'll be all alone."

  "Hmm, still a filial son? Not bad, not bad. However, you call me Ghost Big Brother, I'm very dissatisfied. I have a name, you can call me Mao Daochang."

  As the long voice fell, a burst of golden light suddenly flashed in Jin Lao's arms, and then a virtual shadow appeared out of thin air, suspended in mid-air.

  This is a middle-aged man wearing a yellow Taoist robe, with a Taoist crown on his head and a thin face with sword-like eyebrows.

  This incredible scene made Jiang Le thoroughly desperate.

  There really is a ghost! Brother has encountered evil spirits.

  "My way is long, I'm just an ordinary employee of this antique shop, I have nothing to do with your death, please don't harm me, if I die, my mother will really be heartbroken, I can't die." Jiang Le looked at Mao Daochang nervously and explained sincerely.

  "Hahaha, what nonsense are you talking about, I've been dead for almost a hundred years, at that time you didn't even know where you were, how could we have any relation?" Mao Daochang burst out laughing, seemingly amused.

  Jiang Le wanted to cry but had no tears, and this was still a hundred-year-old ghost.

  The ghosts in TV shows are always the more ferocious the longer they've been dead!

  "Don't be afraid, I was a Taoist priest who specialized in upholding justice and subduing evil spirits when I was alive. I spent my life promoting righteousness, so naturally I won't harm people casually after death." Mao Daozhang explained calmly.

  "Really? You won't harm me? Like possessing my body or something?"

  Mao Daochang was so angry that he rolled his eyes and said, "You seem to know a lot, but I'm not interested in doing these things. Don't waste your breath, this old man seems to have something to say to you, wait for a moment."

  "Oh." Hearing Mao Daochang say that he wouldn't harm himself, Jiang Le couldn't help but feel a sense of relief in his heart. He had encountered a good ghost after all, and he was grateful for the Buddha's protection.

  But then Jiang Le was shocked again.

  The old man has something to say to me?

  Which old man? Is it Jin Lao Tuo?

  No way, didn't he die?

  Jiang Le was shocked and looked back, then became dumbfounded.

  Only to see that the floating Mao Dao Long suddenly grabbed a big hand, and a red light enveloped it. A virtual shadow was pulled out from Jin Lao Tou's corpse.

  The shadow stabilized and revealed a slightly blurred face, which was none other than Old Man Jin.

  But look at the ground, Jin Lao's corpse is still there.

  Damn it, Old Jin has also become a ghost.

  Jiang Le was so frustrated that he almost wanted to cry. He wished he could faint immediately and wake up later to find out everything was just a dream.

  But biting tongue hurts so much!!

  "Brother Jin... boss, your death has nothing to do with me." Jiang Le couldn't help but cry and explain again.

  "Hmph, you're a useless kid." Old Jin was calm and scolded Jiang Le.

  Jiang Le forced a bitter smile.

  If some young man suddenly encounters two ghosts and can still show great presence of mind, I'll now acknowledge him as my elder brother and sing his praises.

  "But you young man are indeed not bad, have a good foundation for cultivation and are willing to suffer. I've observed you for two months and think you're quite suitable to inherit my legacy, it's just a pity that I suddenly encountered this disaster." Old Man Jin let out a sigh.

  At this time, Mao Daochang snorted and said: "Even if you don't have this calamity, you only have half a year of yang life left. Moreover, the law power in your body is not pure, your dao soul is not gathered, and it's hard to dispel the yin energy. You can't even cultivate yourself well, how can you teach a good apprentice?"

  The old man looked at Mao Daochang, narrowed his eyes: "I said so, how could there be yin energy in the pure yang eight trigrams treasure? It turns out that a ghost was hiding inside."

  "A ghost? Have you ever seen a ghost that can hide in the pure Yang Bagua? Or are you going to try it now?" Mao Daozhang retorted coldly, seemingly having no good impression of Old Jin.

  Old Jin was taken aback, and his face changed slightly.

  Mao Dao Chang sneered coldly, "Now you know what's wrong. Let me tell you, I'm furious. Back then, my lifespan was limited, and once I knew there was no hope, I made a last-ditch effort to fuse my dao soul with the pure yang eight trigrams, sealing the Blood Demon in the Nine Yang Territory. With the tempering of the true fire of the sun every day, it would only take 81 years to completely refine the Blood Demon and eliminate one of the world's greatest calamities. But you incompetent juniors actually dug up the Nine Yang Territory, took away the pure yang eight trigrams, and released the Blood Demon! Now that the Blood Demon has gone into hiding to recover its strength, it will be a great disaster for the world when it returns. Who is going to make up for this mistake?"

  Jin Lao Tou's face completely changed as he stared at Mao Dao Zhang in shock: "You are the legendary Daoist master, Mao Xiao Fang!"

  "Who do you think I am? Judging from the fluctuations of your magic, you should be a member of the Jin family from Nanling. When I made this sacrificial decision back then, I also notified the Jin family. And yet, their descendant like you would commit such a thing, don't you have ulterior motives?"

  The old man was speechless, his face changing several times before he let out a sigh and said: "It's my fault, but I only know half of the story and don't know the specific location or what happened. Decades ago, due to the great changes in China, our Jin family in Nanling was also affected, and our family was torn apart, our legacy almost broken. Let alone this secret history. As for Jiuyang, it's a place I occasionally passed by, where I sensed that the yin and yang energies were intertwined, mysterious and unpredictable, making it impossible to see through the mystery. I thought there must be some great treasure hidden within, but unfortunately, in my early years, I also dabbled in grave robbing, but due to insufficient cultivation, I was severely invaded by yin energy and couldn't take action myself. So I asked someone to dig it up, not expecting that they would release a peerless demon king."

  "What kind of earth-shattering change is this? It's actually affected even the Taoist schools?" Mao Xiaofei's face showed confusion.

  The old man sighed bitterly: "This drastic change is specifically aimed at the Taoist school. The technique is flourishing, the Tao is declining, and in today's society, the pure and orthodox Taoist lineage has become extremely rare."

  Mao Xiaofang was shocked: "How can this be? Without a Taoist master in charge, wouldn't the evil spirits of the world be able to run amok?"

  "Ah, it's not that serious," said the old man shaking his head. "The Taoist teachings are in decline and the number of demons and monsters in the world seems to have decreased as well. I've been traveling around for decades and haven't encountered any powerful evil spirits either. I wonder what's behind this."

  Mao Xiao's expression turned serious, and after a moment of contemplation, he sighed: "The sea has become mulberry fields, I never thought that in less than a hundred years, the world would change so much. Indeed, heaven is not benevolent."

  Just then, Old Jin's figure suddenly became blurry and flickered, as if there were signs of dispersal.

  Mao Xiaofang's eyes flashed, and he stared at him in surprise: "Your soul can't gather? Newly deceased people have very stable three souls and seven spirits. Only after the seventh day of death, if they don't go to reincarnation and still linger in the world, without a Yinbao to calm their spirit, will their souls scatter. How could you be like this?"

  "This matter, I also don't understand. Since the great change in the Taoist sect, I have been traveling all over the world and encountered many such situations. People who have just died, if they are not holding onto resentment or attachment, their souls will become unstable. Within three days, those who remain in the mortal realm will inevitably scatter, without exception."

  Mao Xiaofang's face was full of surprise, and it wasn't until a long time had passed that he said, "What exactly happened in this hundred-year period?"

  As the old man's soul became increasingly blurred, several shadows seemed to be about to leave, Mao Xiaofang sighed and pinched his sword finger, a red light shot into the old man, causing his soul to stabilize instantly.

  "I have merged the pure Yang Bagua, suppressing the Blood Demon for many years. Now my Dao soul is weak and my magical powers are limited. This Town Soul Technique can only stun your soul for a moment. If you have any last words, speak quickly, otherwise you will soon enter the underworld and be reincarnated."

  Jin Lao Tou thanked Mao Xiao Fang: "Thank you for your kindness, fellow Taoist." After finishing speaking, he looked at Jiang Le who had a confused face.

  Jiang Le was startled and forced a smile on her face, which looked a bit like she was crying.

  Jin Lao Tou and Mao Xiao Fang's conversation, he listened to it vaguely, without understanding what they were talking about. He felt that this should be the legendary nonsense talk. Now he just wanted to leave quickly and report to Police Uncle, so as to collect Jin Lao Tou's body. It was also a way for him to repay Jin Lao Tou's kindness of taking him in.

  But now it seems like there's no room for choice.

  "Jiang Le, I don't have much time left. Originally, I wanted to take you as my apprentice, but unfortunately, heaven doesn't follow human wishes. However, you have the wisdom root for cultivating Taoism. If you don't embark on this path, it would be a pity. Therefore, I plan to pass on the family business to you."

  "Ah! You're giving me the store? No work no gain, isn't this a bit too much?" Jiang Le was startled, although it was a surprise, but Jiang Le wasn't very happy. A ghost giving you something, thinking about it just felt awkward.

  "Old Jin glared at him: 'You want me to die with my eyes open? Aren't you afraid I'll come looking for you every night?'"

  Jiang Le's mouth twitched, and he jumped in fright. I went to see him once and almost peed my pants. He comes every day, how can my little heart take it? This time, I didn't dare hesitate, and hastily said: "Boss, rest assured, I'll take this store, I'll definitely manage it well, strive for profitability within a year, open a branch in two years, get financing in three years, and go public in four years."