A group of visitors rested beneath the vines, drinking tea and listening to Dao sentiment, their ears feasting to the full. The jade chime rang melodiously, and the ripples of Heaven and Earth Spiritual Energy it stirred flowed like water, as though they had washed every branch and leaf of the ancient trees around the Daoist temple, making them even greener.
Since Hua Yang Palace had not yet issued an order to expel guests, they continued toward the Patriarch Hall, ascending step by step along the Main God Path. Where the view opened up, they could see Earth Lung Mountain's ferry crossing from afar. In their sight, the Dao Officials were tiny as ants, darting back and forth like shuttles. One enormous interprovincial dragon ship was especially eye-catching. It was a hundred zhang long and over ten zhang wide, its prow and stern, scales and whiskers all carved and adorned with gold. Its structures were like jade palaces and jeweled towers, with ancient pines and strange cypresses planted aboard, resembling a complete Daoist temple. It was said that this famous ferry ship belonged to Emerald Green Palace. Hidden mysteries lay beneath its cabins: densely arranged iron-cast giant coins as large as tabletops, called "Suppression Charm Coins," used to counter the ship's tilt caused by cloud-waves, wind, and rain during its voyage.
A fierce-looking young man was the first to break the silence. He asked, "That First Ancestor of the School of Military, Patriarch Jiang, has lain dormant for ten thousand years. Now he has joined hands with his Taoist Companion and emerged once more, causing no small stir. He must be plotting something tremendous. If you were him, what would you do? Why not draw materials from the spot and make a deduction?"
At the mountaintop, Mao Zhui had begun