Kongchen Immortal Lord Temple

The village elders from ten miles around hurried towards the ancestral hall in Shiqiao Village, looking rushed and out of breath.

Behind them, a large crowd of villagers followed, arriving in a mighty procession.

A villager had just rushed in to say they thought they saw an Immortal leaving, which immediately shattered the festive, lantern-lit atmosphere of Linjiang Village, an atmosphere that had been more lively and celebratory than New Year's.

The village elders, who had been preparing to host the Immortal and leave a good impression, all stood up in an instant. The oldest among them even abandoned his walking stick, showing no sign of slowing down as he ran.

Having eaten the River God's flesh last night, they felt invigorated and strong as they ran, like old warriors regaining their vigor.

When everyone gathered at the Shiqiao Village ancestral hall, they found the doors ajar, the wind sweeping through them with a creaking, scattered sound.

A sense of foreboding immediately washed over them.

"Great Immortal Kongchen?"

"Is Grandpa Donkey here?"

They called out to request an audience several times but received no reply.

The village elders led the people inside, only to find it completely empty.

The figure they were accustomed to seeing meditating on the prayer mat in the main hall was gone, and there was no one in the side rooms either. It seemed he had truly left.

Everyone felt utterly dejected.

Just then, Sun Tieshan also arrived. As soon as he ran over, he shouted, "The Immortal has already left."

"How do you know?" the village elder from Linjiang Village immediately asked.

Sun Tieshan pointed into the distance, "I saw the Immortal leave with my own eyes."

The village elder from Linjiang Village was furious and immediately unleashed a torrent of scolding, raising his walking stick and striking him, "You, Sun Tieshan, why didn't you stop the Immortal?"

"The Immortal slayed the River Demon for our ten miles around, and eradicated the demons from the River God Temple who have been feeding on our flesh and blood!"

"He even refined pills to save our village children and shared the River Demon's meat with us."

"For all these deeds, big and small, we could never repay him even if we became oxen and horses in our next lives!"

"And yet, we did nothing to show our gratitude. We didn't even offer the Immortal a hot meal. How can we, the people of these ten miles around, face anyone after this? How can we face ourselves, or the Great Immortal's boundless grace? Won't everyone say that we people from these ten miles around are all ungrateful wretches?"

Sun Tieshan, who was as strong as an ox and usually commanded great respect, acted like a child in front of the elder, unable to dodge as he received several blows.

Sun Tieshan wailed, "I tried to stop him, but I couldn't!"

"The Grandpa Donkey under the Great Immortal's command ran too fast. In the blink of an eye, he was gone without a trace."

At this point, one of the village elders stepped forward and restrained the elder from Linjiang Village, "Forget it, forget it. What kind of person is an Immortal? He's someone who travels to the North Sea in the morning and Cangwu in the evening, free to come and go as he pleases between heaven and earth. If he wishes to leave, no one can stop him."

"For such an Immortal, who appears and disappears like a dragon, it is already a tremendous fortune for us from ten miles around to have met and known him. In this single day, who among the villagers from our eight villages hasn't benefited from the Immortal's Immortal Qi?"

"Such a profound connection is the blessing accumulated over countless lifetimes. How can we possibly force him to stay?"

The village elder from Linjiang Village could only sigh, "Alas!"

This elder then asked Sun Tieshan, "Did the Immortal say anything when he left?"

Sun Tieshan thought for a moment and immediately replied, "Yes, he did."

He then recounted the entire process of the Immortal's departure in detail, explaining how he encountered the Immortal upon returning from hunting in the mountains.

Finally, Sun Tieshan conveyed the Immortal's last words to everyone: "The Immortal also said that if you truly wish to thank this humble Taoist, you need no feasts, no gold or silver. Just sincerely do more good deeds and cultivate good karma from now on."

Upon hearing this, the village elders were moved beyond words.

Among the villagers gathered outside, many began to weep openly, especially the three families whose children had been saved yesterday, and those villagers who held deep grudges against the River God Temple.

"This is a true living god!" The village elder from Linjiang Village tapped his walking stick on the ground, nodding and sighing.

"Slaying demons and exterminating devils throughout the land, seeking no gold or silver but good karma, possessing an immortal demeanor and a righteous spirit," another elder, who appeared to have a scholarly air, remarked.

At this moment, someone proposed, "Didn't we promise Great Immortal Kongchen that we would build a temple for him?"

"Although the Immortal has already departed, this promise must absolutely not be forgotten. It is time to fulfill it."

The others also remembered, and immediately responded in unison, "That's right. From now on, all of us from ten miles around will worship Great Immortal Kongchen."

A fisherman among the villagers shouted, "Only such a true Immortal is worthy of our worship and can truly protect us!"

Many villagers brought by the elders from other villages also shouted, "Exactly! Demolish that River God Temple completely and turn it all into a temple for the Great Immortal from now on."

The village elders exchanged glances and nodded with smiles.

The village elder from Linjiang Village stepped forward, facing the expectant gazes of the excited villagers, and said, "We promised the Immortal that we would build a temple for him."

"Although the Immortal does not care for such worldly things, we must not forget our roots."

The villagers responded in unison, "That's right! The people of our village repay kindness and never forget their roots."

"You're right, absolutely."

The elder gestured for quiet, his voice gradually lowering, "Therefore, a temple must be built. We will also need everyone's help recently to sculpt a statue and build a temple for the Immortal. More importantly, we must write down and carve the stories of the Immortal's passage through our ten miles around."

"Even many years from now, our descendants will remember these events, knowing that our ten miles around is a place where a true Immortal once stayed, a place of outstanding people and exceptional land imbued with Immortal Qi, a blessed land protected by an Immortal."

At this moment, the Village Elder of Linjiang Village gave a knowing smile, hinting at a well-thought-out plan.

"When the Immortal came to our ten-mile radius, he stayed in Shiqiao Village of Linjiang Village, which is where we are now. When the Immortal refined elixirs, it was right here beneath our feet. He also held demon feasts and judged demon-folk here."

"What does this signify? This is a blessed land that even an Immortal favored."

"Therefore, the first Great Immortal Temple shall be built here."

Once these words were spoken, how could people from other villages refute them? To speak against them would be like speaking against the Immortal himself.

The young and strong from the ten-mile radius all sprang into action. Carpenters, masons, and others came to help, rapidly constructing a temple on the existing framework.

The Ancestral Hall of Shiqiao Village was converted into the Kongchen Immortal Lord Temple. The ancestral tablets of Shiqiao Village were moved to a side hall, indirectly allowing them to partake in the Incense and Fire and Immortal Qi of Kongchen Immortal Lord.

The villagers of Shiqiao Village were overjoyed. Later, people from other villages and townships even found ways to move the ancestral tablets of their distinguished and prominent ancestors here for worship.

From then on, Shiqiao Village and the surrounding ten-mile radius truly produced many extraordinary individuals. The locals believed this was due to partaking in the Immortal's Immortal Qi, and they further considered the area an Auspicious Land.

Even many years later, as the stone carvings gradually wore away and the stories evolved and changed.

Descendants of Shiqiao Village, seeing the ancestral tablets of their village within the Kongchen Immortal Lord Temple, many even had a sudden inspiration and believed themselves to be descendants of Immortals. Otherwise, why would their ancestors be enshrined alongside a deity? This led to various disputes.