Hearing Zheng Fa's heartfelt and shameless flattery, Daoist Hongjun glanced at him but said nothing. Instead, he pointed to the city below and asked, "Was this built by the Human Race here?"
Zheng Fa nodded in agreement.
Daoist Hongjun seemed to take an interest and, with Zheng Fa in tow, descended towards the tall building below.
" Dao Ancestor, let me change my appearance first," Zheng Fa said.
"Um?"
"I have some reputation here." Zheng Fa saw that Daoist Hongjun seemed unfamiliar with modern times and was about to introduce him when Daoist Hongjun suddenly stretched out his palm, in which a ball of Chaos energy was constantly rotating.
The Chaos energy spun faster and faster, shrinking smaller and smaller until it finally became a black dot that even Zheng Fa couldn't see clearly. Then, a blinding light shone forth.
Zheng Fa squinted, and when he opened his eyes again, he saw what looked like a universe in Hongjun's palm!
The singularity exploded, the first stars appeared, and galaxies were born.
Life begins to emerge on an unremarkable planet in a spiral arm of a galaxy.
Algae, dinosaurs, humans, civilization...
The past of the universe was replayed in the palm of Daoist Hongjun, and Zheng Fa even seemed to see his own face.
Obviously, Zheng Fa doesn't need to explain further.
Daoist Hongjun seems to have a great interest in modern life.
Zheng Fa transformed into a young man dressed in modern clothes, while Hongjun remained unchanged, wearing a Daoist robe. The two walked beside an eight-lane road.
The pairing of the two was rather odd, but with the recent rise of the Federation Immortal Way, more and more people were wearing Daoist robes, and Daoist Hongjun didn't attract much attention.
He looked around with apparent curiosity.
Zheng Fa, unaware of what he was about to do, looked around as well. The road was bustling with traffic, and every now and then one or two disc-shaped flying objects would fly by in the sky—these were gadgets developed by the Confederation Research Institute, essentially low-altitude electromagnetic flying vehicles that used the city's External Core energy source to achieve passage within the city.
This type of aircraft is quiet, highly sensitive, and faster, making it ideal for urban travel. However, modern spiritual materials are scarce and the price is high, limiting its use to only a few individuals and specific departments.
Daoist Hongjun first glanced at the cars on the street, then looked up at the flying object overhead, seemingly finding it somewhat interesting, and chuckled, "That's quite ingenious."
The two turned right from the main road and entered a much narrower street, which seemed to be a restaurant street, with restaurants on both sides. It was lunchtime, and the aroma of food wafted from both sides.
Zheng Fa could tell from the smell that the rice and vegetables used in many shops were gradually improved by the Agriculture Academy. Unlike the aircraft, these things had always been a key project promoted by the Federation.
Daoist Hongjun glanced at him, then at the diners in the restaurant, and his aura suddenly changed... making him seem like an ordinary person.
He pointed to the most popular restaurant by the roadside, Zheng Fa suddenly understood: this old man wanted to indulge in the culinary desires of a mortal!
The two entered the restaurant and ordered a table full of about ten signature dishes, much to the delight of the proprietress, who treated them with great hospitality.
Daoist Hongjun was truly unpretentious; he picked up his chopsticks and began to eat heartily.
Of all the dishes, Zheng Fa only ate one-fifth; the remaining eighty percent went into the old man's stomach.
This action startled the customers nearby, who all stopped eating.
The cooks in the kitchen all rushed out, holding rice scoops, staring at Daoist Hongjun with a mixture of joy and worry.
To his delight, it felt like he had met a kindred spirit.
My worry is that this close friend doesn't seem young; I hope she doesn't overindulge herself.
Fortunately, Daoist Hongjun seemed to be fine. He took a tissue and slowly wiped his mouth while chatting with the diners and chefs next to him, asking about their income, life and other trivial matters.
This was supposed to be a private matter, but the moment he asked, everyone else answered without hesitation, without any concealment.
It was only then that Zheng Fa realized that Daoist Hongjun had somehow mastered modern language.
"Life is so much better now." Seeing their enthusiastic discussion, the proprietress peeked out from behind the counter and sighed, "These young people don't know how hard life used to be."
"Take my childhood for example. Although we had enough to eat and wear, my grandfather was in poor health and had to go to the hospital every week. I also needed money for school. My father worked every day, but he couldn't save much money all year round. By the time he was in his thirties or forties, half of his hair had turned white."
"Is it better now?"
"Of course it's good now!" the proprietress shook her head. "Although we're not destined to cultivate immortality, at least we're not worried about food and clothing. My father is eating that kind of spiritual food now, you probably never imagined..."
What came to mind?
"He's in his seventies or eighties, and his hair has turned black again!" the proprietress chuckled. "He practices Broadcast Calisthenics at home every day; he's healthier than me. He's always running around, saying the world is so big..."
Daoist Hongjun glanced at Zheng Fa but didn't speak, only listening to the proprietress's incessant chatter:
"I opened this shop hoping to earn some money for my two children." A hopeful smile appeared on her face as she said this. "Both children have good aptitude; their teacher said they might even have a chance to pursue Immortal Way someday."
After chatting for a while, the two left the restaurant. Zheng Fa spoke first, "I didn't hire any shills."
In truth, he didn't do much; at most, he raised the bar for modern society—high-yield crops and low-cost energy, enough to ensure that almost everyone has enough to eat and wear.
Neither of these achievements is entirely due to Zheng Fa; External Core also made some contributions, and the high-yield crops are mostly attributed to the Agriculture Academy.
Daoist Hongjun nodded, then suddenly spoke, "Your role is to ensure that these people, these people without the fortuitous opportunity cultivate immortality, are not left behind."
Zheng Fa was stunned for a moment, then turned to look at Hongjun, Daoist Hongjun gaze was extremely insightful.
Daoist Hongjun nodded to him, then, with Zheng Fa by his side, they strolled around leisurely.
Zheng Fa remained in a daze.
That statement was quite correct. In essence, if it weren't for Zheng Fa's will, the products of the Nursing Home would hardly benefit the vast majority of people—for example, high-yield crops have always been researched and promoted by the will of the higher authorities.
For most people in Nursing Home, this thing is meaningless or even useless.
But what exactly is Daoist Hongjun doing?
Seemingly hearing his question, Daoist Hongjun said slowly as he walked, "I am somewhat interested in this Humanity's Dao world."
"With your omniscience and omnipotence, Dao Ancestor..."
Zheng Fa was still puzzled; the scene of the universe in the palm of his hand had left a very deep impression on him.
Why would the Daoist Hongjun need to resort to this undercover investigation?
"What one sees as Sage is different from what one sees as an ordinary person."
Daoist Hongjun's words gave Zheng Fa a slight jolt. What he said was quite true. When faced with the same thing, different positions and identities lead to different feelings. This Dao Ancestor was more practical than he had imagined; he was an experiential thinker.
"Go to school?"
Isn't that incredibly practical?
At this moment, Daoist Hongjun was only up to Zheng Fa's waist. He had a youthful face but a serious expression. He pointed to a primary school and nodded solemnly.
"Then... I'll find someone to handle the formalities."
"Need not!"
Daoist Hongjun swaggered into the school gate, went straight into a classroom, conjured up a desk, and sat down.
Along the way, no one—security guards, teachers, or classmates—noticed anything amiss; it was as if he were simply a member of the class.
In the evening, Zheng Fa received Daoist Hongjun from his teacher after school.
To be honest, looking at the naive Daoist Hongjun, Zheng Fa felt much less pressured. In a moment of folly, he even asked with a smile, "What did you learn today?"
"One Mathematics class, one Chinese class," Daoist Hongjun glanced at him and surprisingly answered honestly, "And one more class, a class on the philosophy of Immortal Way."
"Oh, this has only appeared in recent years."
Zheng Fa nodded. To put it simply, this course was about instilling some moral norms and Immortal Way concepts into the children.
"I know."
Zheng Fa sensed something amiss in the tone and turned to look at Daoist Hongjun Daoist Hongjun, who calmly said, "The first chapter of the textbook is titled ' The Dao Ancestor Descends into the Mortal World.'"
"..."
After a moment of silence, Zheng Fa said dryly, "I told you, Dao Ancestor, you are my role model!"
"Oh."
By the time Zheng Fa led Hongjun on his journey and they arrived at Rainbow Mountain, more than three months had passed.
Daoist Hongjun was indeed very experiential; he even went and found a job and worked for a day.
He later developed an interest in computers and sneaked into the computer science department of Renmin University, where he secretly studied for half a day.
Overall, they are not difficult to please.
Only...
"This is the place where Dao Ancestor cultivates in seclusion? It truly is a blessed land for immortals."
Daoist Hongjun stood at the entrance of the Nursing Home, looked around in amazement, and said to Zheng Fa.
He's a total philanderer.
Zheng Fa was almost numb from being called that all the way.
Tang Lingwu came out, looked at Zheng Fa with a puzzled expression, and asked, "When did you go out?"
Zheng Fa was taken aback. Before he could speak, Tang Lingwu looked at Daoist Hongjun again and asked, "Who is this?"
Zheng Fa couldn't reveal Daoist Hongjun's real name—a name far more well-known in modern times than in the Xuanwei Realm —so he could only give Tang Lingwu a wink and say, "He's a fellow Daoist I met."
Tang Lingwu seemed to understand something, glanced at Daoist Hongjun a couple more times, and accompanied the two of them into the Nursing Home.
She apologized and went out first. Only then did Daoist Hongjun turn to look at Zheng Fa and ask, "Don't understand?"
Zheng Fa nodded slightly.
He truly had no idea what Daoist Hongjun was doing.
"Now that you've taken the meditation cushion, you're qualified to obtain the Primordial Purple Qi."
" Dao Ancestor, this Primordial Purple Qi..."
"You don't want it?"
Zheng Fa nodded silently.
I really want it, but the problem is Creation Daoist.
Now the other side is eyeing them covetously, just waiting for the Primordial Purple Qi.
With the One Qi Transforms into Three Purities available, Zheng Fa is not afraid of death. The problem is, who knows if he can take the Primordial Purple Qi with him? If it falls into the hands of the Creation Daoist, then it will be troublesome.
This person is too dangerous. He is an enemy of the Nine Mountains Sect, not a friend. He possesses the Primordial Purple Qi, which is a great threat to the Nine Mountains Sect.
Daoist Hongjun looked at him, seemingly somewhat displeased, and the atmosphere between them became somewhat tense.
"Time for tea!"
Tang Lingwu walked in gracefully, carrying a tray. She seemed to sense the awkward atmosphere, her gaze sweeping over the two of them before she asked, "Did Zheng Fa upset you?"
Daoist Hongjun glanced at Zheng Fa.
Tang Lingwu placed the teacup next to Daoist Hongjun, half-squatted down, her eyes wide open, and said, "Grandpa, don't pay him any attention."
"..."
Zheng Fa was completely bewildered. Why was he calling him "Grandpa"?
But Hongjun didn't speak, and he didn't dare to say anything either.
" Zheng Fa is stupid." Tang Lingwu said, then glared at Zheng Fa, seemingly with some resentment.
You're saying he's stupid?
"Yeah, I can't see anything! She's always making me angry," Tang Lingwu said, chattering as if she were accusing someone.
Zheng Fa watched from the side.
Daoist Hongjun glanced at the two faces, as if he had seen something, smiled, and then began to speak sarcastically again, "He is already Dao Ancestor, and you still speak of him like that?"
"What Dao Ancestor? He's embarrassed by it himself." Tang Lingwu scoffed dismissively. "He often says that he was just lucky to inherit some of the wisdom of his predecessors, and he only wants to carry it forward and prevent the teachings of the ancient sages from being tarnished."
Did I say that?
Zheng Fa looked at the smiling Daoist Hongjun and felt certain in his heart, "I have said it!"
Tang Lingwu is her own mouth double!
"Does he really think that way?"
"That's right," Tang Lingwu said straightforwardly, "Otherwise, given how stupid he is, why would so many people on Rainbow Mountain be willing to help him?"
"..."
"You keep saying he's stupid, but I think he's very smart."
Tang Lingwu glared at Zheng Fa again and said:
"Tell me, he's so capable, yet he hasn't enjoyed much of a life of luxury or acted like a tyrant. On the contrary, he's busier than any of us. Isn't that stupid?"
"..."
"Others who cultivate immortality want to lock themselves in and cultivate in seclusion, afraid that others will learn from them. But he's the opposite; he's afraid that others won't be able to learn it. Isn't that even more foolish?"
"..."
Daoist Hongjun's expression grew increasingly strange.
Tang Lingwu continued, "His biggest weakness is his mouth. He values Rainbow Mountain highly, and the fact that he invited you here shows how much he respects and values you. But before he could even say two words, he made you angry again."
"I'm not angry." Daoist Hongjun smiled and shook his head, then glanced at Tang Lingwu. "It's you who's more anxious than this kid."
Tang Lingwu blushed, lowered her head, and remained silent.
But Daoist Hongjun's expression was quite gentle.
Zheng Fa watched from the side, thinking to himself that Tang Lingwu really was an old man killer...
Daoist Hongjun looked at Zheng Fa and asked, "She said you're the dumbest, so tell me, why don't you want the Primordial Purple Qi?"
Zheng Fa didn't hide anything and said, "Of course I want it, but if I take it and that Creation Daoist snatches it away, that would be even more troublesome."
"Are you afraid he'll leave the Nine Luminaries Heaven and become your enemy?"
"Yes."
Daoist Hongjun nodded, as if he understood, and asked to confirm, "Really don't want it?"
Zheng Fa was about to speak when he suddenly saw Tang Lingwu winking at him. He was startled and turned to look at Daoist Hongjun.
Daoist Hongjun had a smile on his face, as if he was watching a good show.
Zheng Fa immediately stopped.
"He's a bit slow, not as clever as a young girl," Daoist Hongjun commented calmly. "Without the Primordial Purple Qi, what will you use to protect this world?"
"..."
Zheng Fa's eyes widened suddenly.
"Why do you think I was able to come here?" Daoist Hongjun's words exploded in Zheng Fa's ears, "This place is also part of the Nine Luminaries Heaven."
(End of this chapter)