Saturday, April 3, 2021

LT Chapter 3

 Chapter 3: Incense Procurement


A new grave was added to the wilderness and forests.


After the descendant of the Danding sect gave his last wish, Wang Yan followed his wishes and found an empty place to cut out the isolation belt, got some dry wood, and cremated his body.


They dedicated their entire lives to the pill furnace, and even if they died, their bodies would burn with the flames, so that their souls would be detached and ascended.


Wrapping his ashes in cloth, he found a place with a decent view, dug a hole and buried it, and  gave him the last ride.


At the end of the day, too many unexpected things happened, and he also gained a lot, but he was still a little at a loss until now.


After returning to the Sanqing Temple, Wang Yan didn't conceal it and told his Master all the things he encountered. The old Taoist did not say much about this, but only said that all this was his fate.


The upper avenue, inclusive of all rivers, was very accommodating.


What he would do depended on his own choice. If he was willing to stay, he would continue to chop wood and get water. If he felt it was hard, he could leave.


For his training, the old way would not change because of certain things.


Wang Yan was naturally unwilling to give up this thigh easily. After all, looking for a successor was not urgent. His own great cultivation had not yet been accomplished, so how could he be willing to help others because of small losses.


He looked at the things in the box: a bronze token, a sheepskin ancient scroll, and finally the half of the black vine that was given to him as a gift. It was no more than three inches long, the thickness of a thumb, black as charcoal, and full of toughness.


Li Changye said that this was a Lingbao that could cure diseases and detoxify poison. In order to verify, he specifically asked the Master for advice, and the results were roughly the same.


It's just that the master gave him another suggestion to plant with the soil under the roots of old pine trees and irrigate with the dew on the willow leaves in the early morning.


Regarding the other two things, the old Taoist priest gave him a piece of advice. The karma contaminated by this inheritance was very heavy. If he could bear it, he could accept the inheritance. Otherwise, it was best not to lightly open it.


After hearing the words, Wang Yan was very grateful for the decision he made at that time. The fat rabbit named Chang Er, because of the death of the owner, did not eat or drink for several days, always in a state of sadness.


Life in the future would be as boring and monotonous as ever.


Another month passed in a blink of an eye, and now, the master also allowed him to chant the sutras with other seniors in the morning class. Although he hadn't taught the spell halfway, he was not discouraged.


In films and television dramas in his previous life, if the protagonist wanted to become a decent teacher and learn martial arts, he had to carry water and chop wood for at least three years before he could learn the true skills. He had only been in here for more than two months.


In his previous life, Wang Yan was just an ordinary person. He had no great wisdom or background. He had always been diligent and hardworking.


To say that his greatest advantage was that he had long-lasting patience. As long as it was something he believed, no matter how hard it was, he would stick to it.


Over the past two months of running back and forth up and down the mountain every day, Wang Yan's physical fitness greatly improved.


Chang Er gained weight for several laps due to the rewards from the seniors from time to time. Obviously, it had come out of grief.


Wang Yan, according to Master's instructions, didn't seem to change much of the black vine that he planted. What it used to be was what it was now. If it was an ordinary plant, it would have sprouted long ago.


Approaching October, when the season changed, an autumn rain continued for three days, thoroughly washing the entire Laoshan Mountain.


In the early morning of this day, the rain had stopped. He watched the side yard.


After finishing washing, Wang Yan put on a plain suit.


***


Completely organized. There were not enough joss sticks, so the Master ordered them to go down the mountain today to buy some, so as not to cut off the incense of the patriarchs.


In recent years, if people have anything they wanted, they basically went to the temple to burn incense and worship the Buddha.


Although the people's incense was gradually declining, they couldn't let go of their hands. Sooner or later, the three-pillar fragrance was still needed. So every two or three months, they would go down the mountain to buy some.


Pushing the door, he wanted to say something to Chang Er, but the fat rabbit was nowhere to be found, so Wang Yan had to give it up.


Today, the number of people going down the mountain to purchase, plus Wang Yan, was three.


Perhaps this old Taoist priest was too low-key and did not easily show in the mountains. Therefore, although the Taoist temple was large, there were not many disciples.


Excluding those who already entered the world, there were only more than 30 people who remained. They could even match third-rate small gangs on the rivers and lakes.


However, as the old saying went, the disciples are few but fine.


Among them, more than ten seniors have already practiced with Master, and the rest had to collect firewood, water, and dust, as well as contract some chores in Taoist temples. Therefore, the hard work of purchasing naturally fell on them.


"Junior Brother Wang, it's time to set off, and I have to come back tomorrow!" A senior outsider urged loudly.


"Coming!" Closing the door, Wang Yan walked straight out.


Outside the courtyard, the two seniors were already waiting with bamboo baskets on their backs.


These two seniors had only been in the business for about a year, and one has a surname of Li, a famous place, and was about 30 years old with a beard under his chin.


He was tall and strong, and it was said that he had learned martial arts for several years before entering the school.


Another was Zhang Daoran. He was born like Wang Yan, who was also a child of a wealthy family. It was only because he was weak and sick since he was a child, and his parents were like him. He couldn't bear to die. He heard that the Taoists of Laoshan had amazing medical skills, so he was sent to the mountain to cultivate and recuperate.


After seeing the gift, Wang Yan turned and went to the corner to take the back basket. However, at first glance, he was dumbfounded. He saw Chang Er curled up in the back basket, holding a carrot and gnawing with relish.


Seeing him, he groaned twice and continued to nibble.


"I'm going to do errands down the mountain. I'm not going to play. The mountain is high and the road is long, you should stay in the temple!"


Wang Yan stretched out his hand to lift it out, but the fat rabbit stretched its leg and flicked Wang Yan's hand away.


"Junior Brother Wang, I think you should let it go! It’s better to have multiple companions along the way." Zhang Daoran looked at Chang Er with a smile on his face.


For the children of the rich family, eating, drinking, and having fun was the norm. Even if they went up the mountain to practice Taoism, this character still remained deep in their hearts.


Zhang Daoran contributed a lot to it being as fat as it was today.


Seeing someone help, Chang Er took advantage of it. It sniffed and looked at Wang Yan, as if saying that it was going to make a decision.


Wang Yan had no choice but to compromise. "Fine! Brother said so, what else can I say, but I won't carry you all the time. When you come back, you can go up the mountain by yourself!"


With that said, Wang Yan carried the basket and followed the two seniors down the mountain.


After the rain was clear, the ground was still a bit moist. After three days of wind and rain, the mountain road was covered with dead leaves.


Laoshan was a famous mountain in Qingjiang Mansion, with unique scenery, steep mountains, and it was next to the East China Sea.


With a radius of more than a hundred miles, the golden dome was more than 400 meters high, surrounded by many strange peaks and ridges and other peculiar topography, and there were countless valleys and hills. Sanqing Temple was located on the golden peak of Laoshan, hidden in the clouds all year round. There was a charm of the immortal family isolated from the world.


So majestic , no less than the Five Sacred Mountains in his previous life.


Especially the Laoshan Academy at the foot of Laoshan Mountain, which was extremely prestigious throughout the Dasheng Dynasty.


Let's put it this way, one third of the top scholars in the Dasheng Dynasty in the past 100 years came from the Laoshan Academy. Many scholars in the world were proud of being able to enter the Laoshan Academy to study.


The emperor Taizong of the dynasty once mentioned a painting titled "The First Academy in the World". The lord of the palaces of all dynasties were all crown princes, and some of the relatives of the emperor were sent to the entrance palace for training. Yes, it could be said to be well-known in the world.


However, although Laoshan Academy was famous, the Sanqing Taoist Temple on the top of Laoshan Mountain was not well known. Nowadays, few people can climb to the top of the mountain to bring incense. At most, they could only watch the scenery on the side peaks around the mountainside and chant a few sutras, light some incense, and so on.


Those who come here actually admired Laoshan Academy.


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