[That really caught everyone off guard!!]
The worshippers surrounded Daoist Zhang and the black dog. Jian Ruonan stood on the outermost edge, some distance from him.
The worshippers watching the spectacle could all hear Jian Ruonan's thoughts. Only Daoist Zhang remained oblivious, still dancing about like a shaman in front of the black dog, babbling unintelligible incantations.
Daoist Zhang wore a Daoist robe with wide sleeves. As he performed his ritual, his robes fluttered and his long beard swayed in the breeze.
He looked like an old immortal about to ascend to heaven.
Among the watching worshippers, some had burning eyes, some looked indignant, and others were itching with impatience.
Clear Void Abbey had an air of unfathomable mystery, and its Daoists seemed like immortals. Who would normally dare spread gossip about them?
Now that they had heard gossip like this, none of them could bear to leave. They packed themselves three layers deep and then three more, so tightly not even water could get through.
The Daoist and the dog were hemmed in at the center.
The worshippers chattered over one another. "No way. Daoist Zhang is practically an immortal descended to earth. How could he cut off a dog's balls? What would he want them for?"
One worshipper said, "Alchemy, probably. I hear refining elixirs of immortality requires all kinds of rare ingredients."
Another said, "Dog penises boost virility. Adding dog balls to an elixir is an interesting idea."
[No, no, no. Daoist Zhang didn't cut off the dog's balls to make elixirs. He did it to practice his technique!!]
??!!
Practice what?!
What technique?!
The worshippers asked, "Did Daoist Zhang want to become a castrator?"
-Castrators were professionals in Great Xia who performed castrations on those who needed to enter the palace as court eunuchs.
*[Not so,