In a small town a dozen miles outside the capital Chang'an, Fang Jie and Da Quan spent their days idly perched on roadside tree branches. They gazed at the majestic capital city in the distance, telling nonsensical jokes. They watched the scenery from their treetops, and every time, Shen Qingshan observed them as part of the scenery.
A delicate little girl pointed at Da Quan and Fang Jie and asked Shen Qingshan, "Auntie, who are those two people? Why are they perched on the tree branches?"
Shen Qingshan gently pinched the little girl's soft cheek and earnestly told her, "Those are two bird people."
The little girl obviously didn't know what bird people were, so she asked where the wings were hidden. Shen Qingshan smiled and said that those two were bird people who could fly without wings, very powerful. The little girl asked, "Auntie, can you fly?" Shen Qingshan thought for a moment and said yes, then vanished in a flash.
The little girl was startled, cried out, and ran away.
Fang Jie watched as Shen Qingshan peeked out from behind a large tree, a slight smile playing on her lips as the little girl fled. He suddenly realized he hadn't truly understood this woman. Before, when they were together, he thought he understood Shen Qingshan's personality; three and a half years later, he thought she hadn't changed at all. But now, he felt, in a daze, that the Shen Qingshan he saw wasn't the real Shen Qingshan.
Or perhaps, it was all the real Shen Qingshan.
"How many sides do you have?"
He murmured.
Da Quan, thinking Fang Jie was referring to him, thought carefully for a moment before answering uncertainly, "Two sides?"
Fang Jie chuckled, then asked, "Which two sides?"
This question made Da Quan even more unsure if his answer was correct, so he cautiously probed, "The front and the back?"
Fang Jie laughed heartily, a look of utter satisfaction on his face.
The big dog scratched its messy hair sheepishly, then suddenly its eyes sharpened, pointing south along the official road and saying in a deep voice, "It seems a very important person has arrived."
Hundreds of riders, dressed in Taoist robes and belts, with their hair disheveled and wearing tall hats.
Three large red carriages led the way, slowly approaching.
Fang Jie narrowed his eyes and couldn't help but sigh softly, "Indeed, a very important person."
Chen Qingshan, who was standing under a large tree, leaped to Fang Jie's side and sat down on a branch without any ladylike manners, pointing at the large procession and saying, "A bunch of stinking Taoists are nothing to worry about, but there are two old Taoists in the carriages who are frighteningly powerful. One's cultivation is so high it's terrifying, and the other's is unfathomable."
She turned to Fang Jie and said, "Of course, you might be more interested in the other person."
Just then, Fang Jie spotted several familiar figures in the procession of hundreds of people. He was somewhat lost in thought, looking at those people with a sense of unreality, as if from another world. Beside one of the carriages were neither Taoists nor the court officials who had come to greet them.
A burly man over two meters tall, a thin man with a pair of cymbals hanging from his waist, a middle-aged man with a copper staff strapped to his back, and an assassin dressed in black, his mouth and nose covered even in broad daylight.
Qilin, Henggun, Tienu, Yexiao.
There should have been Shen Qingshan in that group, but now she sat beside Fang Jie. She held onto a tree branch, her legs swinging back and forth in mid-air. Seeing Shen Qingshan like this made one suddenly realize that she was far younger than she appeared.
"Should I go down and say hello?"
Daquan smiled and said.
"Tienu still owes me a drink."
Shen Qingshan frowned: "Don't you not drink?"
Daquan said seriously: "Three and a half years apart, it's worth a drink."
Fang Jie rubbed his nose; perhaps his legs were a little sore from squatting, so he sat down on the tree branch as well. He looked at the group of hundreds of people, stared at one of the carriages, and suddenly smiled self-deprecatingly.
"The real one's a complete waste, the fake one's a genius."
He asked Shen Qingshan, "If you were the one behind me, wouldn't you think it would have been better to take the fake one back? What kind of mess did you guys make back then? Anyone you could easily steal would be more powerful and capable than me... and now he's even Master Xiao's closed-door disciple, wouldn't he be even more formidable in the future?"
"You can go down and stop the carriage."
Shen Qingshan said with a smile, "She's always wanted to meet you."
Fang Jie took out a pipe from the deerskin pouch at his waist, lit it, took a puff, and pursed his lips, saying, "She definitely doesn't want to see me because I'm handsome." "I can guess how much resentment has been building up for three and a half years. If that resentment could be transformed into a killing weapon, it could grind me to a pulp even from thousands of miles away."
"What did you say her name was?"
"Mo Ningzhi."
"Isn't it pretty?"
"Very pretty."
"Then I'll have to be even more careful. If I ever see her again, I'll have to keep my tail between my legs. She's incredibly beautiful, a damn genius, and she's even been taken as a disciple by the leader of the Great Sui Dao Sect. In ten years, she'll be a fearsome ninth-rank master... Does she even allow anyone to live?"
Shen Qingshan smiled but remained silent.
The young man sitting on a tree branch, smoking a pipe and squinting, looked strange... like a demon.
...
...
The officials from the Ministry of Rites responsible for welcoming Master Xiao of Qing Le Mountain were already waiting at the farewell pavilion thirty miles south of the city. These officials were not of high rank. The highest-ranking official was only a fifth-rank assistant minister, but it's worth noting that very few people in the world would warrant the Sui Dynasty's Ministry of Rites officials traveling thirty li outside the city to greet them.
Back when Emperor Murong Chi of Southern Yan personally came to the Sui capital to submit his surrender document, the Ministry of Rites officials merely waited at the gates of Chang'an.
In the words of one Ministry of Rites official, while Master Xiao wasn't exactly a powerful figure, he represented the face of the Sui Dynasty, so the Ministry of Rites had to handle him with utmost care. The Mongol Yuan Empire had Buddhism, with the Great Wheel Temple and the Great Wheel King of the Great Snow Mountain. Thus, His Majesty the Emperor bestowed upon the Sui Dynasty Taoism, with Master Xiao of the Yiqi Temple on Qingyue Mountain. This was a banner personally raised by His Majesty the Emperor of Sui; how could the officials of the Ministry of Rites not hold it high?
Moreover, this time it was the Sui Emperor himself who issued the decree, inviting Master Xiao to observe the martial arts academy's examination. It was an invitation, not a summons; even His Majesty's choice of words was so precise—how could the officials below dare to disregard it? The officials of the Ministry of Rites genuinely held Master Xiao in high regard.
His Majesty's decision to establish a sect wasn't something that could be done simply by appointing anyone. While the story of the peach blossoms blooming and the immortal peaches ripening overnight at Qingyue Mountain was of unknown veracity, the fact that it had deceived the majority of the populace was a miracle. It's doubtful anyone else possessed such abilities.
In the morning, Fang Jie and Da Quan watched the officials from the Ministry of Rites depart. Now, seeing them slowly returning alongside a carriage, Fang Jie couldn't help but praise, "A Daoist leader should have this kind of air. A few lowly officials of the fifth or sixth rank aren't even qualified to ride in his carriage."
Da Quan curled his lip: "Do you know that even the Great Khan of the Mongol Empire had to prostrate himself three times and kowtow nine times to get to the Great Wheel Temple? The Great Wheel King can make someone an emperor by pointing at them, and turn them back into an ordinary mortal by pointing again. That's true status. Master Xiao's airs are still inferior to the Great Wheel King's. When the Great Wheel King travels, he is protected by three thousand golden-bodied monks, accompanied by the Four Heavenly Venerables, scattering flowers for thousands of miles, and the kneeling people and officials along the way could fill the entire grassland!"
Shen Qingshan, however, disagreed, saying, "That's because Buddhism has been established for a long time. If Daoism can persist for hundreds of years, then the Daoist leader hundreds of years from now will probably be worshipped like the Great Wheel King when he travels. He can also casually appoint someone as emperor, rising above the mortals." Any imperial power in the world is supreme. "
"No."
Fang Jie shook his head and said: "As long as the Great Sui Dynasty does not fall, the Dao Sect will never have such a glorious day. Unless the Dao Sect moves the sect outside the Great Sui Dynasty and seizes a piece of land from the Buddha Sect as its own foundation."
Shen Qingshan was startled, and then nodded: "Yes...I was wrong. The emperor of the Sui Dynasty was too powerful. He would never allow anyone in his empire to have more influence than himself. Just like the Meng Yuan Empire, the emperor also needed things designated by King Dalun Ming. In the Sui Dynasty, I am afraid that it will not happen for many more years."
"Imperial power cannot be separated from divine power."
Fang Jie smiled and said: "Because the emperor wants to count on the magicians to deceive the people more for him. But unless the emperor is a loser... he will never allow divine power to override imperial power."
Big Dog suddenly smiled mockingly and said: "Sometimes the emperor is not a waste, but he may also face the tragic situation of destroying the country."
These words did not fit in with the previous conversation, and I don't know why he said it.
Fang Jie glanced at him, thoughtfully.
The large procession on the official road drew ever closer, its grandeur growing ever more imposing.
When the lead red carriage reached the edge of town, its curtain was lifted, revealing a middle-aged Taoist priest with sharp eyebrows and a high nose, sitting cross-legged inside. Unlike the other Taoists, this one wore a bright red brocade robe embroidered with intricate gold patterns. He sat upright in the carriage, eyes closed, hands forming a mudra on his knees. He exuded an imposing aura, especially striking was the vermilion dot on his forehead.
It was unclear whether it was applied or naturally occurring.
From a distance, it looked as if he had a third eye on his forehead. The vermilion mark, about the size of a peach pit, resembled a vertical, crimson eye, its color so vivid it outshone even his red robe, making it exceptionally conspicuous.
Even from a distance, after a closer look, Fang Jie suddenly felt a tightness in his chest.
"Don't look."
Shen Qingshan lowered her voice and reminded him, "The mark on that old Taoist's forehead is rather strange. Even I almost lost my senses when I saw him last time."
Fang Jie frowned slightly and asked, "Is he the old Taoist you mentioned with ridiculously high cultivation? He doesn't look that old."
Shen Qingshan nodded and said, "This red-robed priest is called Crane Cry Taoist, and he's in charge of punishments in the Taoist sect. Although his cultivation is frighteningly high, in my opinion, even if I can't beat him, I might still be able to escape… because I can see how high he is. But the old Taoist in the second carriage is truly terrifying, because… I can't see exactly how high he is."
Those who can frighten Shen Qingshan are perhaps the truly terrifying ones.
Just then, the procession outside the town suddenly stopped. Many townspeople gathered there, mostly whispering among themselves. The people didn't really understand the Taoist sect. Emperor Tianyou of the Great Sui Dynasty strongly promoted the Taoist sect, and because Qing Le Mountain was in Jiangnan, there were already quite a few Taoist believers among the people of Jiangnan. In Hebei and the surrounding areas, the people were still somewhat unfamiliar with, and even resistant to, Daoism.
Getting a group of people with no prior faith to believe in something was no easy task.
As the crowd grew, a disciple dressed in a dark blue Daoist robe stepped forward and began to expound on Daoist doctrines. He answered questions with a smile.
"There are no immortals in heaven, because heaven itself is the greatest god," the Daoist said with a kind smile.
"Time and all things are bestowed by heaven. Human destiny is also ordained by heaven. The reason His Majesty the Emperor of the Great Sui is called the Son of Heaven is because His Majesty is truly a child of heaven. His Majesty's words represent the will of heaven. Why cannot His Majesty's words be disobeyed? Because the will of heaven cannot be defied."
Hearing this, Fang Jie couldn't help but smile and whisper, "These Daoists are quite diligent; they must have done their utmost to preach for His Majesty the Emperor of the Great Sui along the way."
The people listened attentively, occasionally asking questions. Just then, a bull suddenly charged out of the woods, seemingly startled, and charged straight at the crowd. Its owner chased after it frantically, shouting for people to get out of the way.
Just as the bull was about to crash into the crowd, the red-robed priest, who had been sitting with his eyes closed in the carriage, suddenly opened them and slowly raised his hand, pointing in the direction of the bull.
One point.
The ground collapsed.
A large pit suddenly appeared in the hard, brick-like road, and the bull, unable to stop in time, fell in. With a mournful cry, it was unclear how many bones it had broken. It struggled at the bottom of the pit, but it was like being caught in a net, unable to stand up.
"Holy crap!"
Fang Jie, sitting on a tree branch, widened his eyes and said in a smug way, "That was a bit too much of a show-off!"