First Arrival in Xiu Yue County

Gu Zhao had a pot of tea with Daoist Yansong, and they added each other as friends.

Seeing that Daoist Yansong was quite fashionable, Jiang Shishi couldn't help but ask, "Don't you have a Doukuai account?"

"No, I can still watch without registering," Daoist Yansong shook his head and said with a grin, "If I registered and people found out I only followed those Purple Robe Celestial Masters, where would I put my old face?"

Jiang Shishi didn't understand, "Isn't it normal for Taoists to follow Purple Robe Celestial Masters?"

Xiao Ya quietly handed her phone over, "This kind of Purple Robe Celestial Master."

Jiang Shishi: Σ(дlll)

So these weren't just called Female Bodhisattvas, but also female Celestial Masters. Buddhism was keeping up with the times, and Taoism wasn't falling behind either!

Seeing that the time was almost up, they had also made plans to have dinner with Xuan Xuan's parents that evening, so they didn't stay any longer.

Daoist Yansong handed Gu Zhao a card, "This is a secondary card for the Qingcheng Mountain Taoist Temple. There's no entrance fee when you go up the mountain."

Gu Zhao didn't stand on ceremony. This person was recognized by the Five Thunder Token, and he might really need to find him. Since he had no income now, he should save money on the entrance fee if he could.

Gu Zhao: (o▽)o

On the way down the mountain, Jiang Shishi and Xiao Ya were still like curious babies.

"Is there really spiritual energy from heaven and earth?"

"Can you really cultivate? What does cultivation feel like? Can it grant eternal life and preserve youth?"

"Are there really ghosts in this world? Female ghosts, child ghosts, old man ghosts?"

"Can you fly? Can you become invisible? Can you see through things?"

Gu Zhao glanced sideways at Jiang Shishi, who instinctively covered her chest.

Gu Zhao sneered, "If I could see through things, what would be the use of you covering yourself?"

"That's true!" Jiang Shishi nodded, lowered her hand, then puffed out her chest and provocatively asked, "Does it look good?"

Gu Zhao didn't look away, gritting his teeth and enduring, "It's passable."

"You two hooligans, that's enough!" Xiao Ya blocked their line of sight, "We have plans later!"

Jiang Shishi gave Xiao Ya a meaningful look, then said, "I was just asking if cultivating Taoism was that magical!"

Gu Zhao retorted, "What do you think?"

"Of course it's magical, you actually managed to save that child in such a critical situation," Jiang Shishi exclaimed.

"And it can also heal illnesses and promote health," Xiao Ya added.

Gu Zhao nodded, remaining silent. Judging by Daoist Yansong's condition, in an environment with sparse spiritual energy, they could only accumulate such shallow mana. He suspected they couldn't even draw the simplest Heavenly Dipper Talisman in one go, so naturally, it only had the effect of healing illnesses and promoting health.

Of course, Gu Zhao now had more questions.

"Are there any places in this world with relatively dense spiritual energy?"

"Besides Daoist Yansong, are there any other Taoists who have cultivated mana, or other people?"

"Are there any practitioners of evil paths? Are there..."

However, these questions were not urgent. Gu Zhao buried them in his heart. After going down the mountain with the two women, he contacted Xuan Xuan's parents and then had an authentic Sichuan meal in Rongcheng.

After reluctantly saying goodbye and agreeing to chat more online in the future and meet up again when they had time, Jiang Shishi and Xiao Ya left Rongcheng the next morning. They still had performances to attend with their group and would return to Yandu a week later.

Gu Zhao did not return to Yangcheng with Li Man. Instead, he used the excuse of missing his maternal grandparents and stayed in Rongcheng for a while longer, much to his grandparents' delight. That evening, they prepared a proper Sichuan feast, which Gu Zhao thoroughly enjoyed.

"Xiu Yue County."

Gu Zhao looked at a stone tablet standing in front of the earthen wall, on which the name of the county town was carved.

At the entrance of the town, a team of bailiffs in standard cloth armor was guarding the gate. Every time someone wanted to enter the city, they collected two copper coins for entry. There were no searches of goods or checks of travel permits.

Commoners, merchants, scholars, and farmers, along with carriages and horses, passed through continuously. Although the small town was not very prosperous, it had a lot of human activity. No wonder the bamboo woven products from the mountain villages could always be sold.

Gu Zhao watched for a moment, then walked out from the roadside and paid the normal two copper coins before entering the city.

This small town perfectly matched Gu Zhao's imagination of an ancient county town. Along the slightly wider roads were inns, taverns, pharmacies, cosmetic shops, and other establishments. Deeper into the narrow alleys were residential courtyards.

Gu Zhao strolled through the streets and alleys, dressed in ancient attire, blending in and feeling quite immersed.

However, as he looked around, this small town looked like an ordinary ancient county town. There were gentry in brocade robes, as well as beggars with disheveled hair, but most of them were ordinary common people.

If Gu Zhao had transmigrated into this city immediately without any cheat-like abilities, he probably wouldn't have imagined that there were demons and ghosts in this world at all.

But when Gu Zhao gained mana and observed carefully, he discovered that something was wrong with this county town.

He saw over a dozen citizens whose Essence, Qi, and Spirit had clearly been drained, and a deep, grand residence that, even in broad daylight, was shrouded in a chilling aura that made one's body feel cold upon contact.

Passing by a butcher shop and a teahouse, Gu Zhao sensed a faint smell of blood, which was clearly not a good sign.

Conversely, the county office showed no abnormalities. However, he certainly wouldn't underestimate it, especially since he hadn't found the Golden Wind Sect's altar in the city.

"Those that I can sense are probably not the most powerful. Xiu Yue County is not a peaceful place," Gu Zhao thought to himself. "No wonder Elder He fled back to the village."

Compared to the remote mountain village, Xiu Yue County was indeed much more dangerous. As long as they didn't encounter a threat of village annihilation, staying in the mountain village was safer than staying in the county town.

Gu Zhao was pondering how to subtly inquire about the Golden Wind Sect when he suddenly sensed he was being followed.

It wasn't that he had eyes in the back of his head, but rather that after gaining mana and spiritual sense, he'd developed a naturally acute sixth sense. Whenever someone lingered their gaze on him for too long, he would sense it.

Taking the opportunity to buy a flatbread from a passing vendor, Gu Zhao saw two men dressed as idlers. They weren't far from him, pretending to be unconcerned, but they kept glancing at him.

Their bodies swayed, weapons hidden at their waists, greed in their eyes, malice in their gazes.

If he encountered these men in modern times, Gu Zhao would quickly get in a car and leave or find a security officer to uphold justice. But here...

Gu Zhao turned and walked into a nearby alley. His source of information had just arrived, hadn't it?

However, to his surprise, the two idlers didn't follow him in immediately. Just as Gu Zhao was about to walk out of the alley, pretending nothing was wrong, a figure approached him. It was one of the two idlers.

The next moment, he heard footsteps behind him. The other idler finally entered the alley and quickly came up behind Gu Zhao.

With the pincer formation complete, a hint of a sinister smile appeared on both idlers' faces.

"You look new. Is this your first time in Xiu Yue County? Visiting a friend, or traveling for study?"

"Your clothes are decent, so you should have plenty of travel money. Today, we gentlemen will teach you a lesson. Don't wander into alleys in broad daylight."

"Alright, enough talk. Hand over your money, or don't blame our blades for being merciless!" The man in front drew a short knife, while the man behind grinned sinisterly.

Gu Zhao pressed himself against the wall, a look of innocence on his face. "You... you're not planning to rob me, are you?"

Gu Zhao gestured with his hands and said sternly, "If you take another step forward, I'll have to take action. I'm telling you, this is self-defense. I won't be held responsible even if I kill you."

Taoists act with integrity and never resort to punishing without warning.

Seeing Gu Zhao's adorably foolish expression, the two idlers couldn't help but laugh, then they pressed forward.

"Thump! Thump! Thump!"

But just as the two sides were about to clash, a few light sounds were heard. A man in white, carrying a bamboo basket full of scrolls and holding a bamboo pole adorned with pictures of people and landscapes, suddenly appeared behind the man in front.

"Excuse me, may I pass?" the man said calmly.