Chapter 2: The Immortal Master Comes from the West

  A horse-drawn carriage slowly came down from the mountain road.

  The carriage was not large, and the decorations were very simple. The horse pulling it was a black, thin horse with no spirit, but its four hooves were all the size of a bowl, which could be seen that although this horse had poor sales, its bloodline was precious.

  But what's even stranger is that this horse carriage doesn't have a coachman.

  A lean horse "got got got" trotted on the mountain road, and every time it encountered a fork in the road, a faint light would flash in mid-air above its head, condensing into a compass that pointed to one of the roads. The lean horse would then obediently follow the direction indicated by the compass.

  The carriage inside was surprisingly spacious, which didn't match its volume.

  There were only two Taoist priests in the car, the older one sat cross-legged, while the younger one was a bit restless, occasionally lifting the curtain to look outside. The scenery in the mountains was not bad, but the Taoist priest had seen it many times and wasn't interested.

  On such a bumpy mountain road, the car was surprisingly smoother than a boat.

  "Big brother, did a disaster really occur in Lianhuatai Village two years ago? But why have I never heard that this village suffered a disaster?"

  The senior fellow who was meditating slowly opened his eyes: "The news obtained from the door shouldn't be wrong. Even if it's wrong, you and I will just have taken a trip for nothing. If it's true, then we might gain a talented disciple, and our credit won't be small either."

  The young Taoist suddenly sneered: "Heh heh, two years ago, who would have thought that the disaster would bring so many top-grade spiritual materials to the Cultivation World!"

  The elder brother also sighed: "Indeed, it's surprising that every place where a meteorite fell, they found good seedlings with wisdom roots. In the past ten years, there may not have been even one of the top ten wisdom roots appearing, but this time there are seven or eight, no wonder the old predecessors of various sects and factions want to search every place where the meteorites fall."

  "No one could have imagined that a disaster would turn out to be an opportunity for the entire cultivation world, and even less expected was that the demonic cultivators would send their top experts to infiltrate the Great Sui, secretly searching for those with great potential in cultivation."

  "Yes, I heard that all seven major sects have sent people to ambush the demonic cultivators, but the results are not very good. They suffered heavy casualties and were led away by the other party with their best disciples."

  "Hmph, all of Mo Xiu's dispatched experts are in the True Person realm. How many True Persons can the seven major sects gather in total? Can they not lose..."

  The two of them chatted in the car about their experiences in the Cultivation Realm. As for how to gain the trust of the villagers on Lotus Platform, neither of them was worried at all.

  The young Taoist looked out of the car and said, "Brother, it seems we're almost there."

  The senior brother nodded slightly, pointed two fingers at the empty space, and a yellow paper talisman appeared out of thin air. On it was drawn a cloud pattern with bright red cinnabar.

  He pinched his fingers in a secret hand gesture, muttered an incantation under his breath, and suddenly shook his finger, shouting: "Go!"

  The yellow paper talisman suddenly exploded into a ball of light, expanding to envelop the entire carriage and rising into the sky. The thin horse twisted its neck and let out a loud whinny, its four hooves flying through the air as the carriage rode the wind with a whooshing sound towards Lotus Platform Village.

  ……

  As young Daoist Chong Pu and his senior fellow apprentice Chong Zhao had expected, the two carriages flew over to Lianhuatai Village, where the rustic villagers indeed looked on in awe, knelt down to welcome them, and respectfully invited the two Daos down.

  In the grand mansion of Tanmura Osamu, Takashi sat still and silent, while Takahiro simply stated his purpose.

  It's said that the "Immortals" are going to choose their successors in their own village, Tiancun Zhang and several elderly villagers were so excited that they almost got sick. Tiancun Zhang was busy instructing his family to entertain the two immortals with good wine and food, while he went from door to door to spread the good news.

  The whole village was in an uproar: this is a celestial master selecting his disciples, and if one could be chosen, it would be a shortcut to success, far more promising than participating in any imperial examination!

  In less than an hour, all the boys and girls under 15 in the village gathered outside Tanmura's house.

  Before that, Tamura Osamu personally poured fine wine for the two Xianren and asked with a smile: "Two seniors, this... little old man has an unreasonable request, I don't know if you can take a look at how the little one is doing?"

  Chong Pu Dao Ren did not dare to take liberties, and looked at his senior brother. Chong Zhao Dao Ren asked: "Before we came here, I heard that there is a talented young man in the village, whose child is he?"

  Tamura couldn't help but laugh and bowed his head to the two: "Haha, that's right, I'm a dog son."

  "Ah?" The two exchanged a glance, and Chong Zhao also didn't dare to be presumptuous. He slightly bowed his head and said: "In that case, naturally we should first invite the young master in."

  "Alright, alright..." Tanaka nodded repeatedly and went out, soon leading his son Tien Ying-dong in.

  Tian Yingdong is no longer the idle village youth who, two years ago, led a group of young men in teasing Sun Li about his lazy appearance.

  With his intelligence greatly expanded, he bore the great reputation of a genius, and now with every move he made, he had quite some demeanor.

  Seeing the two of them, although he clearly knew that they were no ordinary people, he still proceeded with caution and courtesy. He slightly bowed his head: "Disciple Tian Yingdong, greetings to both of my superiors."

  Chong Pu looked at his senior brother with eager anticipation, Chong Zhao hid his hands in the sleeves of his Taoist robe and pinched a finger seal. A circle of golden light rotated in the pupil of his left eye, weak and almost imperceptible.

  "Big brother, how are you?"

  Chong Zhao's face revealed a hint of a smile, and he became exceptionally polite to Tian Yingdong, standing up to greet him: "Young Master Tian, please take a seat. From now on, I'm afraid we'll be treating each other as equals."

  Tian Yingdong and his son, together with Chongpu, are surprised!

  "Two masters, are you saying that Ying Dong from my household has passed?" Tanaka still couldn't quite believe it.

  "Senior brother, what's going on?"

  Chong Zhao said: "Tian Gongzi naturally passed. And full of spiritual light, it's probably one of the top ten wisdom roots too. However, my observation technique is still shallow, and I need to check carefully to determine which type of wisdom root it is."

  His words just now answered both Tanaka's and his junior fellow disciple's questions at once.

  Tamura was overjoyed and immediately pulled his son to kneel down: "Ying Dong, come quickly to thank the two masters for their great kindness."

  Chong Zhao and his junior fellow-disciple hastily stepped forward and helped the two up: "Absolutely impermissible, this would be a blow to our fraternal bond."

  Tian Yingdong has already determined that he possesses the ten great wisdom roots. No matter which one of the wisdom roots, as long as he enters the door, in the future he will definitely be a personally transmitted disciple, and his status will be above Chong Zhao and Chong Pu. At this time, the two of them absolutely dare not show off in front of Tian Yingdong.

  Tamura Heitaro pulled Tan Yingdong to toast the two of them, and they repeatedly said they didn't dare. The four of them drank together.

  Chong Zhao and Chong Pu seemed to have forgotten about the people outside, enthusiastically telling Tian Yingdong all sorts of anecdotes about the Xiu Zhen realm.

  The two had a good relationship with Tian Yingdong, and naturally they lowered their posture. They fawned on Tian Yingdong, the future successor, in a subtle way, leaving a good impression on him without being too obvious, which was extremely clever.

  ……

  Sun Li stood among the crowd, with his younger brother Sun Chun by his side.

  Like everyone else, they were forgotten and left waiting outside.

  After a meal, some people became impatient and gradually expressed their dissatisfaction. Sun Chun pulled his brother's hand: "Brother, what are they doing inside? It sounds like they're having a great time."

  Sun Li remained standing still: "No need to rush."

  If I had to say what the voice in my mind has brought to Sun Li over the past two years, it would be stability, far beyond that of his peers - otherwise, he might have been driven mad by that voice long ago.

  He can suppress Sun Chun, but he doesn't need to bother with others.

  The dissenting voices grew louder and louder, until the people inside finally noticed.

  Chong Zhao and his brothers, as well as Tian Shi and his son, had already drunk to the point of flushed faces and hot ears. Once they felt that their relationship with Tian Yingdong was close enough, Chong Zhao suddenly slapped his forehead and said: "Ah, I've made a fool of myself in front of Elder Tian! It's a pity that I didn't meet Young Master Tian earlier, but it's also delayed our main business. Come on, Young Master Tian, let's go out together and take a look around Lianhuatai Village to see if there are any other talented individuals. This will also be an opportunity for us to examine your abilities."

  Tian Yingdong was extremely excited in his heart, although he had great confidence in himself, but he had also heard that cultivating immortality was an illusory and elusive thing. It wasn't said that just because you were clever and resourceful, you could definitely cultivate immortality, it seemed that the immortal beings had some harsh requirements.

  Actually, when he came in, his inner heart was far from being as calm as the surface. And after learning that he had been selected, he was even more ecstatic, and after a long conversation with two fellow Taoists, he unknowingly drank a bit too much.

  Four people went out, the two Taoist priests were fine, but after a while of operating their inner energy, they were steaming with wine fumes and had returned to normal. The Tian father and son, however, had red faces and thick necks.

  The two immortals came out, and the murmurs of discussion finally subsided.

  Chong Zhao and the other person were affable in front of Tian Yingdong, but when facing these rustic children, they didn't need to put on a facade. The two of them glanced around casually, Chong Zhao still secretly using his observation technique, already having an idea in mind, couldn't help but let out a soft exclamation of surprise.

  "Big Brother Shifu, what's wrong?" asked Chong Pu in a low voice.

  Chong Zhao slightly shook his head: "I didn't expect that there would still be someone here who could be cultivated. Although the talent is ordinary, it can also enter the immortal gate."

  Chong Pu was also surprised: "Really? It's so coincidental. In a small mountain village, there are actually two people who qualified."

  In the past, when sects chose disciples, not to mention a small mountain village, even in a large city with a population of hundreds of thousands, it was unlikely to find one qualified person. In a small mountain village like Lianhuatai with only a few hundred people, there were actually two at once, no wonder they were both surprised.

  Chong Zhao waved his hand: "Those who are willing to take the test, line up first, one by one."

  Chong Zhao and Tianmu Lang had someone bring a table into the courtyard, where Chong Zhao, intending to intimidate the village children, raised his hand and produced a jade ruyi from thin air.

  As expected, all previous dissenting voices disappeared without a trace, and everyone's face showed an incredible expression.

  Sun Chun was also stunned, a little guy who had never left the village, how could he have seen such a magical technique?

  Suddenly, a voice popped out in Sun Li's mind, filled with disdain: "Even the lowest-level storage bag is being taken out to sell."

  "What's with this 'Storage Bag'?"

  "That voice immediately said: 'The full name should be called "Xiao Hunyuan Virtual Space Array Independent Storage Space", storage bags, storage rings are just external forms, the specific principle is to use array method to capture an independent space drifting in the endless virtual space...'"

  The voice spoke in great detail, but unfortunately Sun Li didn't understand a word.

  After a while, the voice seemed to understand and complained in a bad mood: "Playing the lute to a cow!"

  The other voice that always quarreled with him burst out in a fit of schadenfreude laughter.

  "Ah——"

  A burst of exclamations came, Sun Li looked forward and saw that Tian Yingdong had already started the test at the front of the long queue. He was sticking the jade Ruyi on his brow, a dazzling light shot out from the jade Ruyi, condensing into a four-colored rainbow in front of him!

  "Hong Lan Bai Qing! This is... Bao Liu Hui Gen! One of the top ten Hui Gen, which emphasizes magical techniques, Bao Liu Hui Gen! Congratulations, Tian Shi Di!"

  Bao Liu Hui Gen is also among the top ten famous Hui Gen, and it's ranked in the forefront. Chong Zhao Dao Ren directly changed his words in front of everyone.

  Tianmou Chang was so delighted that his mouth couldn't close. Tian Yingdong, on the other hand, pretended to be calm and composed, putting on a show of being a talented scholar, and instead advised his father: "Dad, although Haizi has a clever root, his future achievements still depend on his own efforts."

  After his admiration and envy, he coldly swept the remaining crowd with a glance. He let Tian Yingdong test first, just to make these people understand that Tian Yingdong was qualified to make them wait outside!

  Tamura said at this time, "Two sages, isn't it time to start testing others?"

  "Good." Chong Zhao turned to the first person and waved his hand: "You come, do it in the same way as Tian Shidi just did."

  The boy was from the Li family in the east of the village, only eleven years old, extremely nervous and full of expectation. He went forward and stuck the jade Ruyi on his forehead, but the jade Ruyi did not react at all.

  After a while, Chong Zhao impatiently snapped: "Failed, next one!"

  Li Jia's little son retreated in great disappointment.

  Then, no one could make Yuruo shine again, and before he knew it, Sun Li was approaching.

  His younger brother Sun Chun stood behind him, clenching his small fists tightly: "Brother, you say I can do it? Can I?"

  Sun Li smiled but didn't answer.

  It was finally Sun Li's turn, but the people around him didn't pay much attention.

  These children are just clever at this time, and from Tian Yingdong's performance, it can be vaguely guessed that the smarter people are, the more likely they are to pass.

  Sun Li was inconspicuous since childhood, and in the whole village, except for his parents, no one else would pay attention to him. The master's evaluation of him had always been low, how could such a person possibly pass the test?

  Their attention was all on Li Jia's third child behind Sun Chun.

  In the village, there are three major surnames: Tian, Li and Sun. Before Tian Yingdong, Lao San of the Li family was always considered the number one high disciple in Fu Zi's eyes. If anyone else had a chance to pass the test, it would have been Lao San of the Li family.

  Sun Li walked forward and Chong Zhao's expression was calm: "Let's begin."

  Sun Li picked up the jade Ruyi and stuck it between her eyebrows.

  Just as everyone was waiting for him to be scolded and it was Li Jia's third child's turn, the Jade Like Intent suddenly emitted a faint glow. The glow wasn't intense, only a light golden color, far inferior to Tian Yingdong's four-colored rainbow aura, but the Jade Like Intent had indeed lit up!

  "Ah..."

  The children were surprised and unexpected, even Tanaka didn't think that Sun Li, who had been inconspicuous in the village all along, could also pass the test.

  Chong Zhao and Chong Pu nodded slightly: "Pass."

  "Brother, you passed, haha, you passed!" Sun Chun was overjoyed and suddenly rushed into Sun Li's arms, shouting loudly.

  The ones who were brushed down earlier couldn't help but feel jealous in their hearts, only because they were from the same village and didn't dare to say it out loud. However, in their hearts, they thought that these two brothers compared to Tian Yingdong was a clear distinction between high and low.

  In fact, Sun Chun was just happy for Sun Li, but Sun Li himself was really calm, and this result was not unexpected for him.

  "Stop messing around, it's your turn."

  "Hmm!" Sun Chun went with full confidence, but the result was disappointing. Later tests did not allow anyone to pass again.

  If Lianhuatai Village only had Sun Li passing the test, such a harvest would also be acceptable to Chong Zhao and his brothers. In that case, Sun Li would become the focus of everyone's attention. However, now Chong Zhao just nodded slightly at him: "Go back and prepare, we'll leave tomorrow." Then he went into the house with Tian Yingdong and his son, chatting with a smile on his face.

  The children dispersed in twos and threes, still because of Tian Yingdong's dazzling light. Sun Li, who also passed the test, did not attract people's attention, nor did anyone come to chat with him. Only his younger brother Sun Chun was excited for him all the way, talking non-stop on the road.

  Sun Chun said something, but Sun Li didn't listen at all.

  Having passed the test, Sun Li vaguely felt that he was following an invisible trajectory, stepping onto a path that he seemed destined to take.

  After the initial faint joy had passed, he suddenly realized: this time, who knows when he would be able to return. The sound and appearance of his parents floated into his mind, and suddenly his nose stung. He grabbed hold of his younger brother, Sun Chun looked at him in surprise, seeing his serious and somewhat fierce older brother: "Brother?"

  "Second brother, our father is gone, now it's up to you to take care of mother!"

  "Brother, don't worry!"

  Sun Li habitually ruffled his younger brother's hair, suddenly realizing that perhaps for a very long time to come, he wouldn't have the chance to be so intimate with his brother again. What was originally a very ordinary action almost brought him to tears.

  Sun Chun walked ahead towards home, Sun Li sighed quietly behind him.

  Suddenly a voice burst forth in his mind like an explosion: "Youngster, why are you cultivating the Tao?!"

  Sun Li was taken aback: Why did he want to cultivate Tao?

  That voice continued to ask: "Do you know that once you leave tomorrow, you won't know what year or month you'll be able to return. It's very likely that by the time you return to your hometown, your parents and relatives will all have turned into a handful of yellow earth, and even this Lotus Platform Village will become a pile of rubble."

  "Why cultivate Tao, do you think it's worth it?"

  Why am I cultivating Tao?

  Sun Li was also thinking. He recalled that when Tamura went from door to door to inform everyone to take the test, Sun Li didn't feel excited or overjoyed at the time, but rather felt very calm and thought: It's here.

  What's coming?

  He also can't explain clearly.

  He was neglected since childhood, and except for his parents and brothers, it seemed that no one would notice such a young man. However, Sun Li always knew that deep down in his heart, he was different from those children in the same village!

  Is it worth leaving home to cultivate oneself?

  He looked at his younger brother running along the narrow village road ahead and suddenly smiled:

  I have my own way.

  This is the answer.

  "If in the future I can achieve something, then I can bring my family along with me. It's better than letting them just be ordinary people for this life and fall into the six paths of reincarnation, who knows if they'll be human or ghost in the next life?"

  "I just want to cultivate myself."

  A stubborn tone was evident in his voice.

  There is only silence in my mind.

  "Hahaha!" Suddenly two voices burst out laughing together, Sun Li was in agony, his head feeling like it was going to explode.

  "What about Yemao Tian?" two voices asked in unison.

  The third being still did not speak, silent as an empty void.

  The other two voices got used to it and started talking to themselves when they didn't get a response.

  "Qualifications may be ordinary, but determination is as firm as a rock, okay."

  "What's the matter?" Sun Li didn't understand.

  One of the two voices lazily said: "Luo Huan, you explain to the little guy what is Dao Xin."

  Luohuan was furious and scolded: "Bah! Wu Yao, you ignorant fool, what makes you order me around?"

  "You think you're so smart, come and explain what's wrong with this? You still want to argue with me about such a trivial matter?"

  “……”

  "Kid, what is the Taoist heart? After you enter the door, remember, don't listen to those fools deceiving you. What nonsense about the Taoist heart, it's actually extremely simple, it just depends on whether your cultivation heart is firm or not. You kid, your talent is a big problem, but your Taoist heart, absolutely no problem."

  Sun Limou: Is this praise or criticism?

  ……

  When Sun Liprogressed into the door, Sun Chun had already said the good news.

  Sun Li's father and mother were overjoyed, his father patted his son's shoulder vigorously: "Good boy, I knew you'd make something of yourself! All these years, I've been telling the villagers that my son is talented, but they just wouldn't believe me. Haha, how about it now, are they blind?!

  Mother was also beaming with joy: "A Li, you passed the test and gave our Sun family a good reputation. In the future, when I go out and see those sisters-in-law, I can hold my head up high..."

  Father pulled Sun Li: "Go, go to the ancestral tablet and burn incense, thank the ancestors for their blessings!"

  "Alright, alright, Ali, hurry up! If I were to say it, it's all because of the good feng shui of our ancestral tomb..."

  Worshiping ancestors is something that mothers cannot participate in, so Sun Li and his father and son lit incense, bowed their heads sincerely, and his father recited the words with a red glow on his face. It's clear that Sun Li was chosen by the immortal, and his father felt glorious for raising such a son, doing justice to their ancestors.

  After finishing dinner, Father's big hands, which were full of calluses, waved: "Mother, help the child tidy up and bring some good food."

  "Alright."

  Mother agreed and hurried away.

  Nothing more than a few clean clothes, after his mother finished packing the clothes, she hurried to boil water and cook eggs and cured meat, all of which were to be taken away by him.

  Father moved the ladder to climb up to the beam of the main house, and from a brick hole he took out a small locked box. He brought it down and opened it, inside there was a silver ingot weighing ten taels, as well as some loose silver coins.

  Father clenched his teeth and handed Yuanbao over to Sun Li, leaving behind a few scattered ones.

  "It's better than nothing."

  Sun Li was stunned for a moment, and his father casually waved his hand: "Most of it is probably the money you made from selling the medicine you picked, hurry up and put it away."

  The aroma wafted out of the kitchen, Sun Chun stood by, drooling with desire.

  Mother busied herself adding firewood to the stove and pulling on the bellows. A puff of smoke came out, mother's eyes reddened, and she quietly wiped away a tear.

  Tears couldn't stop flowing, and Mother covered her mouth and cried behind the stove.

  "Daughter, why are you crying? Didn't you and Father both say that this is a great joy for our family?" Sun Chun asked in confusion.

  In the main room, Father slammed his hand on the table in a rage: "What are you crying about! Useless women! How many people in the village have been waiting for this and can't even get it? You just wait, those families who came to our house to discuss Alai's marriage will all regret it..."

  His father waved his hand vigorously, his copper bell-like eyes had already turned red, but he was just holding back.

  Sun Li suddenly knelt down and gave his parents three loud kowtows. He felt a lump in his throat, as if he had swallowed a wet cotton ball, and when he tried to speak, his tone was off. He quickly turned around and rushed back into his own room, slamming the door shut.

  He wiped away a tear, and his hand inadvertently touched the three stone men in his pocket.

  For the past two years, he has been carrying three stone men with him. When no one is around, he takes them out and rubs them gently. The surface of the stone men has become extremely smooth.

  "Little one, think carefully, if you want to cultivate the Tao, there will be many more goodbyes like this in the future. The two paths of immortals and mortals may be forever separated!"

  Sun Li gritted his teeth and said with difficulty after a long time: "I understand."