Luopo Mountain, at the mountain gate.
Chen Lingjun looked around. Seeing no outsiders nearby, he secretly took out a jug of wine. With a twist of his wrist, two stacked wine bowls appeared, and he tossed them to the newly appointed gatekeeper sitting across the table.
A green-robed young boy and a young Daoist sat facing each other.
One had his foot planted on a long bench; the other had taken off his boots and sat cross-legged.
Chen Lingjun leaned forward, stretched out his arm, and clinked bowls with the young Daoist. The latter took a huge gulp of wine and laughed heartily. "I am flattered, truly flattered."
Chen Lingjun asked, "Brother Immortal Wei, you don't feel that guarding the gate here damages your dignity, do you? If you're unhappy, just say the word. I'll transfer you back to Qilong Alley. The old cook is easy to talk to—it's just one sentence from me."
"What foolish nonsense are you saying? Hurry up and punish yourself with a bowl."
Immortal Wei lifted his chin. "What sort of character I have, Brother Jing Qing, don't you know? I can't keep words in my mouth or matters in my heart. I'm simply blunt and outspoken; I'll never bend myself to please others. If I didn't like staying here, I'd have rolled up my bedding and gone back to Qilong Alley long ago."
By Chen Lingjun's account, Immortal Wei had been exceptionally promoted from a servant disciple at Qilong Alley's Grass Head Shop to an outer-sect disciple of Luopo Mountain. It might not quite count as ascending to heaven in a single step, but it was not far off.
He had heard that Luopo Mountain's first gatekeeper had been a fellow named Zheng Dafeng. Afterward, Mountain Lord Chen's prized disciple Cao Qinglang, Yuanlai—the Direct