Chapter 102:

Clang clang clang.

In the melodious sound of the bell, the servant Taoists dressed in Taoist robes started serving porridge, filling large bowls of rice porridge for the people swarming around.

This porridge served to the people of the town can’t be anything fancy, rice porridge is just enough to fill their stomachs and prevent hunger.

But in difficult times like these, Nan Province is known to experience famines whenever there are natural disasters. A bowl of plain rice porridge, in a larger sense, could be a life-saving meal that can make the common folk grateful and indebted.

Moreover, the townsfolk only need to perform the simple task of climbing the mountain to burn incense and pay respects to the gods.

Compared to hard farming, this kind of work is much easier.

"Don’t push, everyone will get a portion, come one by one…"

The servant monk who was distributing porridge shouted, but his brows unconsciously furrowed, and he instinctively covered his nose and mouth.

Those who came to receive the rice porridge were mostly the lowest-ranking townsfolk, who had no other means of livelihood. Sёarch* The Nôvelƒire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.

The living conditions of the lowest-ranking townsfolk were not particularly good. At this moment, it was noon, and with so many people gathered in a circle, the smell made the servant monk’s stomach churn every time.

These people stood in such a large circle, with the smell of sweat, body odor, and foot odor mixing together. It was quite an unpleasant smell.

Nevertheless, no matter how disgusting it was, the servant monk could only bear with it and complete the task assigned by the temple.

The old man with a lame leg also pushed through the crowd with his crutch.

But he was old, and his leg was a little lame, so even though he leaned on his crutch, he walked slowly.

By the time he reached the place where the rice gruel was being served, most of the big buckets of gruel had already been taken, and there were two or three circles of people around.

"Rice gruel… can the fairy officials give me some too?"

The old man with a lame leg shouted.

But the crowd was crowded, and no one paid attention to this frail and weak old man.

When the crowd gradually dispersed, there was only half a bowl of watery gruel in his hands.

"This… is a bit too little, isn’t it? Fairy officials…" The old man thought for a moment and looked at the servant who was serving the gruel.

"Still not satisfied?" The strong servant seemed a little impatient.

The workers at Xuantian Sect are mostly strong people who practice martial arts or beginners on the path of immortality.

These workers are actually martial artists with inner strength, so they were already a little impatient with doing such menial tasks like cooking porridge. When they saw the old man approaching, their faces also showed some displeasure.

"Are you a resident of this town? Or are you an outsider who came here to freeload and drink porridge?" The strong worker furrowed his brow.

"Do you have a household registration in this town?"

"Yes, yes, yes." Mentioning household registration, the limping old man immediately straightened his back a bit, feeling quite proud.

However, when he felt around in his pocket, his face stiffened for a moment, then turned into an embarrassed smile.

"Immortal Elder, I am getting old and it seems like I forgot to bring my household registration…"

"No, really, I am a resident of this town. Every day, I go up the mountain to burn incense and worship the gods…. I just forgot today."

He smiled on the outside, but in his heart, he cursed himself for being so forgetful.

"I shouldn’t have talked to those two people from out of town. It was a waste of time, and I almost missed out on this bowl of rice porridge…" he sighed in his heart.

"….What are you saying if you don’t have a residency?" the servant said with a disgusted face, snatching the half bowl of porridge from the limping old man’s hand. This action startled the old man for a moment.

"Senior brother, this doesn’t seem right," another nearby servant tried to persuade.

"This is the rule of the Immortal Gate, we can’t break it," the servant said calmly.

The limping old man’s face turned pale and then blue, it was the first time he had encountered such a situation.

He couldn’t catch his breath, his face slightly flushed, and his legs felt a bit weak. He just sat down, right here on the side of the road.

"How did you get into this mess?" the servant’s face changed slightly.

Immortal Gate values its reputation. As soon as this old man sat on the ground like this, many people around started to look at him.

The servant was about to speak, but suddenly his face stiffened.

A long rainbow fell from the sky and transformed into a middle-aged Taoist wearing a red robe.

"It’s Immortal Chiyang!"

"Oh, Immortal Chiyang, who has a memorial tablet at Qingyun Temple, how did he come down to earth?"

"The Xuantian Sect immortal with a memorial tablet, that’s a true immortal…"

The appearance of Taoist Chiyang immediately caused a commotion around, with many people gazing at him.

Although the common folk called the people from Xuantian Sect immortal masters or celestial beings, they also knew that martial artists like them, who were menial workers, were clearly not to be confused with Taoist Chiyang, who had a memorial tablet in the Taoist temple.

Taoist Chiyang pointed at the ground, and an invisible force lifted the limping old man who was sitting on the ground.

Taoist Chiyang turned around and reprimanded the strong servant disciple who had just acted, "I’ve said it before, the provision of rice porridge involves the livelihood of the common folk. We must not be careless just because it’s a small matter. It’s just a bowl of rice porridge, right?"

"Bring some more and give another bowl to each person."

When Taoist Chiyang spoke, these servant Taoists naturally dared not go against his words.

Before long, the servant Taoists carried another bucket of rice porridge, attracting a crowd around them.



The old man with a limp also received a big bowl of rice porridge as he wished, happily walking away.

At the same time, he repeatedly bowed and thanked Taoist Chiyang.

"Immortal Chiyang has a kind heart, descended to earth just to give me, an old man, a bowl of porridge…"

"With continuous famine, if it weren’t for the immortal from Xuantian Sect, people wouldn’t know how to survive in the world today."

Amidst the people’s continuous praises and expressions of gratitude, Chiyang simply responded with a smile. Then, once again, he rose into the sky, swiftly disappearing from the sight of the townsfolk.

He stood in the clouds, looking down at the small town, his smile gradually fading and his brows furrowing.

"The servants below don’t know how to treat the people properly, they need a good beating."

"The people who can become residents of this town are excellent followers. Each person can provide the power of incense devotion, so they should not be neglected."

The practice of immortal cultivation requires many years.

While cultivators have a long lifespan, compared to ordinary people and martial artists, there are also many cultivators who exhaust their life force and perish.

Therefore, the "Incense Symbol of Divine Fire" that can accelerate cultivation and the followers who can provide incense devotion become more precious.

Although Taoist Chiyang’s plaque is at the bottom, he understands the benefits of the Incense Symbol of Divine Fire very well.

"Speaking of which, it is quite an increase in incense devotion for the sect to establish a town specifically for the residents." With this thought, Taoist Chiyang smiled.

"Brother Chiyang, you seem to have a deep understanding of the path of incense devotion. Can you give some guidance to your junior brother?" Another Taoist named Qingyang, who was in the sky, asked.

Taoist Qingyang is a newly appointed sect official, ranking last among the immortals in the Taoist temple.

"This path of incense devotion actually emphasizes balance," Taoist Chiyang explained with a smile:

"This Great Yan Imperial Court is supposed to be chaotic, if it’s not chaotic, it won’t work. But if it’s too chaotic, it won’t work either."

"In the mundane world, people suffer and feel lost and in pain that they cannot explain. That’s why more and more people burn incense and worship gods to seek comfort for their hearts, providing a continuous source of spiritual power."

"If everyone is happy and content, how many people will still long to worship immortals?"

Taoist Qingyang nodded repeatedly, feeling enlightened.

"Senior Brother has a truly insightful perspective."

"However, if the world is too chaotic, what can be done?"

Immortal Chiyang laughed and said,

"This makes it even easier to understand."

"If war, natural disasters, and famine lead to a sharp decline in the population, then it won’t work either."

"That’s why there is a small town called Qingming Town, specially to provide shelter for believers to live."

"There was an old man with a limp, who seemed to come from a homeless background. Giving him a bowl of porridge made people want to bow down to him like he was a demigod. If it wasn’t for the famine, perhaps their sincere hearts would have been slightly diminished."

Taoist Qingyang was also amazed after hearing it.

"I never thought that the way of offering incense has so many details."

Immortal Chiyang smiled and said, "For forty years, the Nine Immortal Gates have oppressed the Great Yan Imperial Court. What I just mentioned are actually just the experiences and insights that the Immortal Gate has discovered during these forty years."

The towns under the rule of the Great Yan Imperial Court were burdened by heavy taxes, causing misery among the people, so they burned incense and worshipped gods.

Whereas in places like Qingming Town, believers could find shelter.

Comparing the two, it was obvious that the people’s grievances were directly aimed at the Great Yan Imperial Court, while the Immortal Gate could earn a good reputation. It could be said to be a win-win situation, winning twice.

The two Taoists, Chiyang and Qingyang, chatted and laughed as they turned into rainbow lights, returning to their sect and quickly disappearing into the clouds.

……………

On the table, Wu Qizheng placed a hardcover book and clapped it on the table.

"We’re about to take action. Would you like to take a look at this secret technique first?"

Qiao Mu took a glance at the book cover, which said "Flesh Changing Skill," but it was something he was already familiar with.

"Your Flesh Changing Skill is still at the stage of makeup and disguise, right?" Wu Qizheng smiled.

"The miraculous technique called ‘Flesh Changing Skill’ was created by the Martial Saint many years ago. However, it’s still in its early stages and not perfected. The version that the Wuji Association has released is also in its early stages."

"Only recently has it been gradually improved, and through practice, one can control their physical body with their mind, transforming their shape and appearance."

"…. Is this what the Martial Saint intended?" Qiao Mu squinted his eyes.

"You can say it’s my intention," Wu Qizheng didn’t explain further, and his gaze shifted abruptly towards the door, changing the topic abruptly:

"Was it Immortal Chiyang who appeared on the street just now?"

"Chiyang… I remember that name." Qiao Mu also looked up at the sky, lost in thought.

At the entrance of Heyang City Xuantian Temple, when he was burned to death, he also remembered the name on the memorial tablet at the gate.



"That’s right." Wu Qizheng squinted his eyes.

"According to the information from Star Xuan Envoy, Taoist Chiyang and Taoist Qingyang are the cultivators who publicly escort the emperor to Qingyun Temple."

"Since Taoist Chiyang appeared here, perhaps the Great Yan Emperor is also nearby?"

At this moment, a messenger from Wuji Association’s Star Xuan Envoy approached:

"Your Excellency Qizheng, we have received a confidential report stating that a member of the meeting has found a clue to the emperor’s whereabouts."