Bathing and Burning Incense

"Since you gentlemen are here, you must try my fine wine."

Fang Zelin took out the wine jars and laid them out one by one.

On top of the wine jar was a small piece of red cloth with the name of the fine wine written on it.

Asparagus Tuber Wine, Clear as Empty, a wine that evokes All Things in Spring, and other fine wines.

Before the others could examine it closely, when Fang Zelin removed the sealing clay, a rich aroma of wine immediately wafted out.

Fang Zelin poured wine for the Daoist priests one by one.

He then smiled and said, "Gentlemen, please have a taste."

The Daoist priests sat at the stone table, thanked them, picked up their wine cups with both hands, took a sip, and then closed their eyes to savor the taste.

Fang sighed and said, "On the way here, Daoist Priest Qingyun said that Fellow Daoist Fang's brewed wine is a celestial brew. I had some doubts before, but now that I've tasted it, I'm afraid I won't be able to drink any other wine in this lifetime."

Daoist Lü praised him for a moment, then shook his head. "The old beggar already has a hard time getting food. If you feed him, he might not need to beg anymore!"

"Not only you, Fellow Daoist Lü, but we are also afraid that we will not be able to drink any other fine wines in the future."

Daoist Zhong also burst into laughter, his eyes shining brightly as he looked at the other fine wines laid out before him.

I picked up the Asparagus Tuber Wine, took a small sip, but couldn't bear to drink it all in one gulp.

After savoring the wine on his tongue, he reluctantly swallowed it.

The rich aroma of wine wafted through the air, filling the surroundings with its fragrance.

Fang Zelin picked up his wine glass, took a sip, and after swallowing the wine, he spoke.

"Gentlemen, I have almost fully grasped the Blessing Technique. May I begin preparing for prayer?"

Fang Zelin then shifted the topic to more serious matters.

Fang Zelin naturally took this matter very seriously.

This matter directly concerns Blazing Summer, Human Race, and the Daoist Sect.

"If you've grasped the essence of it, and now that you've found a wise ruler, you can begin preparing for the prayers."

Upon hearing this, Daoist Qianji immediately spoke up.

Fang Zelin also thought it would be better to do it as soon as possible.

If they fail to pray for blessings and Jiuchuan goes off to prepare for an uprising, wouldn't that be a bad thing?

If things still didn't work out, he went to Jiuchuan to explain the situation.

"As for the altar and other items needed for the prayer, this old Daoist priest will take care of that. These days, fellow Daoist, you should burn incense, bathe, and meditate for three days."

After thinking for a moment, the Daoist Qianji made a suggestion.

Fang Zelin nodded upon hearing this, thinking that it was naturally best if the other party had made arrangements.

It was his first time offering blessings, so his experience was naturally inferior to the other person's.

"In that case, I will go and prepare. There is still quite a bit of rice left in the rice jar, so please help yourselves. I apologize for any shortcomings in our hospitality, as this is just simple food."

Fang Zelin cupped his hands in a respectful gesture, finished speaking politely, and then turned to go bathe and change.

While you're at it, clean the whole room.

Soon, Fang Zelin finished burning incense and bathing, changed into clean clothes, and sat quietly in the wooden house.

Seeing this, the Daoist priests outside did not disturb Fang Zelin, but instead began to busy themselves with preparing the altar.

Daoist Priest Qingyun calculated the time, while Qianji observed the stars at night to determine the direction.

The others prepared the altar, incense, candles, and other items.

After a day had passed, all the items were ready.

The altar has been set up, the orientation is correct, and the time has been calculated.

Next, we'll wait for the auspicious time in two days.

To ensure the success of this matter, everyone went to great lengths.

Daoist Lü cooked a meal for everyone with the spirit rice, and stir-fried some vegetables and eggs.

The prayer ceremony was about to begin, and bloodshed was unlikely to occur here, so Daoist Lü did not harm the rooster beside him.

"Didn't you say it was simple food? What kind of meal is this?"

As the Daoist priests sat around waiting for their meal, their noses twitched slightly, and they saw the fragrant aroma of spiritual rice wafting from the bowls on the table.

Thinking back to what Fellow Daoist Fang had said about simple meals, the group of Daoists suddenly became somewhat unsettled.

I had previously thought that Fellow Daoist Fang was cultivating in seclusion here.

He couldn't help but feel a slight sense of admiration; the other person truly possessed the air of a reclusive master.

However, upon closer inspection, something seemed a little off.

The wine from before, and the rice in this bowl now, are both imbued with a rich Spiritual Qi, and their flavors are of the highest quality.

Compared to the other person, my own spiritual practice in the mountains must have been the real asceticism, right?

Look at Fellow Daoist Fang, where is the slightest trace of ascetic cultivation in him?

We jumped to conclusions far too quickly!

"Given such conditions for rigorous training, I, too, would be willing to undertake it."

Daoist Priest Qingyun looked at the spiritual rice in front of him. Although he hadn't taken a bite yet, he already knew that the rice must be of the highest quality.

I'm afraid that after eating this, I'll find other types of rice hard to eat in the future.

However, since it's been delivered right to my doorstep, there's no reason to refuse.

The rice grains were crystal clear. When you scooped a mouthful of rice into your mouth and took a gentle bite...

Suddenly, I felt each grain of rice explode in my mouth, releasing a rich aroma and Spiritual Power.

The refreshing taste spreads in your mouth, accompanied by a sense of Spiritual Qi entering your body.

The Daoist priests couldn't help but twitch their eyebrows as they took that bite.

This spirit rice was much tastier than they had imagined.

This taste is unlike anything I've ever had in my life.

It seems that from now on, this will be the only place we can eat this.

I wonder how Fellow Daoist Fang managed to cultivate such spiritual rice.

At this moment, the Daoist priests couldn't help but glance at the rice paddies beside them.

If I'm not mistaken, this should have grown from that spirit rice. But how did that spirit rice grow to produce such Spiritual Qi rich rice?

You can't exactly use Spiritual Qi to water it, can you?

Daoist Lü was somewhat puzzled.

But after thinking about it, I realized that Fellow Daoist Fang was still meditating inside.

Let's see if we can ask later.

If possible, he should plant some spirit rice later, so that he won't be unable to eat it in the future.

After the Daoist priests finished eating, they cleaned up the food and then sat down on the ground to begin their meditation and spiritual practice.

This is basically the same as their usual routine.

After finishing their meal, they would then begin to study Daoist scriptures or meditate in quiet contemplation.

In a short time, several Daoist priests sat down at the foot of Yingping Peak, all of them meditating in meditation.

From a distance, this place looks more like a Daoist temple.

While the Daoist priests were in seclusion, two days passed in the blink of an eye.

Fang Zelin opened his eyes at that moment, got up and walked out of the wooden house.

The Daoist priests outside the wooden house were already prepared and stood to one side.

Seeing Fang Zelin come out, and waiting for Fang Zelin to walk ahead, he followed.

As the sun slowly rose in the distance, it dispelled some of the morning mist, Yingping Peak appear somewhat hazy and indistinct.