All the Way North

"Ah, what level is he at?"

Upon hearing Mr. Mengfei's words, Su Ziyang realized that he might have been wrong again.

"About the same as me. Who knows? Never mind, just take his experience as a reference. The main thing is to broaden your horizons, to let you know that there are always people better than you, and not to think you're all that great!"

Mr. Mengfei patted Su Ziyang on the shoulder and then put the "Double-barreled Hound" on the ground.

Because the little guy was too small, he was very good at climbing stairs and couldn't keep up with the group, so he cried out in frustration.

"Master, I've heard of this double-barreled shotgun, but what's a double-barreled hunting dog...?"

Su Ziyang couldn't understand his master's strange behavior and asked, somewhat amused and exasperated.

"Look at its nose, isn't it segmented?"

Su Ziyang picked up the puppy and examined it closely. He discovered that it was indeed true; the puppy's nose really was split in two.

"This is a hunting dog; look how black it is. I gave it a very profound name."

As Mr. Mengfei walked, he continued to explain to Su Ziyang.

What's your name?

"Call it, Coal Briquette."

Fairy Li couldn't help but burst out laughing, "Sir, this name is quite profound!"

"That's too profound. Look how black it is. There's no word for black in my name. But just by hearing my name, you can tell it's a black dog."

"I'm speechless." Su Ziyang rolled his eyes at Mr. Mengfei, then grabbed the Coal Briquette and ran up the mountain.

"You dare roll your eyes at me? Look at your Uncle-Master Zhenze, how strict he is with his disciples. I think I've been too lenient with you. You just wait!"

The three of them ran up the mountain, laughing and joking.

Upon arriving at the entrance of the Daoist temple, one could hear Zhenze instructing his disciples without even entering.

"You can't even learn something this simple? Go, get out of here and practice horse stance. It'll take the time it takes for an incense stick to burn."

"What are you doing, scolding the child every day?"

Sometimes even Mr. Mengfei couldn't stand Zhenze's explosive temper.

"What can they do? They made them angry. Their comprehension is just average. How about this, Xiao Fei, I'll trade these two for yours, okay?"

Zhenze chuckled, while Mr. Mengfei smiled slightly, "Get lost, you wish."

"Seeing you smiling so brightly, I thought you agreed. Alright, we're not friends anymore. I'm leaving!"

Zhenze waved his hand, turned around and left.

"We have to go back."

Upon hearing Mr. Mengfei's words, Zhenze stopped arguing. He immediately turned around and said, "It's been years since I've been here. Why don't you stay a few more days? You don't have anything else to do. What's the rush?"

"Little Ziyang is basically fine now. He's still working at the clinic. We can't delay any longer; I have to go back once he's better."

Upon hearing this, Zhenze nodded. "Okay, then I'll tell my master, and I'll cook some dishes for you at noon, so we can eat together, is that alright?"

"Sure. I've been missing your cooking all this time."

"You two, stop doing horse stance and go down the mountain to buy groceries!"

Don't let Zhenze's carefree appearance fool you; he's a really good cook. He's especially good at preparing vegetarian dishes.

Su Ziyang, engrossed in the aroma of tofu, swung his chopsticks vigorously, while Fairy Li ate with gusto, her mouth greasy with oil.

"Uncle-Master, this food is so delicious! You must have a secret!"

Su Ziyang praised the food as he ate.

"That's right!" Zhenze chuckled.

After finishing our meal, we went down the mountain.

The group didn't head towards the station, which puzzled Su Ziyang. They arrived at a small courtyard, where Zhenze went inside and drove out a Land Rover.

"The tank is full. Let's go!"

"OK!"

Mr. Mengfei and Zhenze didn't have any sentimental farewells; they just waved goodbye, and Mr. Mengfei revved the engine and drove off.

"The three of us will each drive for three hours, taking turns to rest."

Mr. Mengfei said with a smile.

"Ah, the Coal Briquette is asleep, so cute!"

Now, this Coal Briquette has become a cherished possession of Fairy Li, who loves it dearly.

"Be gentle, don't break the fabric."

Mr. Mengfei felt a pang of sympathy when he saw Fairy Li rubbing and rubbing.

"Master, this Land Rover..."

Su Ziyang and Fairy Li have different focuses.

"Ah, I bought it before, then gave it to Zhenze. But now that we have Little Coal Briquette, we can't take cars or planes anymore, so it's good to have a means of transportation there."

Only by enduring hardship can one Land Rover.

Su Ziyang had only heard the phrase before, but had never actually driven this car. However, listening to Mr. Mengfei say that buying this car was so casual, like spending two yuan to buy candy.

"What? You like it? If you like it, it's yours. Have fun with it!"

Mr. Mengfei chuckled and immediately offered to give it away. Su Ziyang was so startled that he didn't dare to utter a sound, but then he thought about it. Someone who could leave such a valuable item with a friend for several years must be serious about giving it away.

"Hey girl, is that nail polish that Ziyang gave you still working well?"

The journey was long and boring, so the three of them started chatting idly in the car.

"It works great, sir," Fairy Li said Yangyang, half-reclining on the back seat with her arm around Coal Briquette.

"I'm going to take a nap, I'm a little sleepy. You two, Master and I, should stay on duty."

Fairy Li, embracing Coal Briquette, actually closed her eyes and fell asleep.

"This girl is so straightforward! She falls asleep right away. It's amazing!"

Mr. Mengfei was also quite surprised by how quickly Fairy Li fell asleep.

"Master, you said that people can generate electricity. Today I specifically tried to experience Uncle Zhenze's Thunder Arts. It really made me feel numb, a tingling sensation all over my body."

This was what Su Ziyang was most curious about.

"It's also a manifestation of Qi. I haven't practiced Thunder Arts, so I don't really know how it works. Little Ziyang, just remember this: everything is just Qi! Once you have the fundamental essence, learning anything will be easy."

"It's like you have a lump of clay. The clay is the base. You mold it into a sword, a house, or a car—these are just different forms, but their essence is still a lump of clay."

Su Ziyang nodded. "What's the main purpose of repairing this?"

"It was used to subdue demons and monsters before, but I heard that in the next chapter Zhenze will be using this to give massages. And it's actually quite effective!"

Mr. Mengfei spoke with a mischievous grin, and Su Ziyang also wanted to laugh when he heard that Zhenze was using this Thunder Arts to perform acupressure massage.

Nowadays, when performing acupuncture, an electrostimulation device is often used to stimulate the acupoints with alternating electric currents.

Zhenze's Thunder Arts doesn't even need this device; it's self-contained and incredibly cool.

"Don't even think about it! Thunder Arts is passed down through a single lineage. I don't know why the old man took on two grand-disciples this year. Even if he took on a hundred, only one would truly inherit the skills. I don't understand how the old man does things!"

Mr. Mengfei directly rejected Su Ziyang's idea, which completely shattered Su Ziyang's thought of learning Thunder Arts.

"Master, how did you meet Uncle-Master Zhenze? I'm so curious!"

"This is a long story, a child without a mother! Anyway, I have nothing else to do, so I'll tell you."

One year...

Mr. Mengfei said that one year, when he was traveling around studying, he passed through a mountain village where the villagers had contracted a strange disease.

Listening to Mr. Mengfei say this, Su Ziyang suddenly remembered Xuhui used to tell stories like a storyteller.

This disease is very strange. What makes it so strange?

He's contagious...

"Plague!" Su Ziyang exclaimed in surprise. This plague, whether in ancient or modern times, has always been a very difficult disease to deal with.

The famous physician Zhang Zhongjing wrote the "Treatise on Cold Damage" with the intention of treating an infectious disease.

Actually, the original name of the "Treatise on Cold Damage" should be "Treatise on Cold Damage and Sudden Illness," which means that after a person contracts the disease, they will die very quickly. The Sage of Medicine clearly stated this point in the preface of his book.

"My clan was originally large, numbering over two hundred. Since the Jian'an era, less than ten years have passed, and two-thirds of them have died, seven out of ten from typhoid fever."

In less than ten years, two-thirds of the family died from a disease called typhoid fever.

"You could interpret it as a plague."

Mr. Mengfei thought for a while before giving his definition.

"From my youth until now, there are a few things I don't understand, and this is one of them!"

If Mr. Mengfei says he can't understand it, then it must not be a simple plague.

That year, Mr. Mengfei was planning to go into the mountains to collect medicinal herbs. When he passed by a village at the foot of the mountain, Mr. Mengfei noticed a strange atmosphere.

Every household had its doors tightly shut, and almost every door was covered with white banners.

At the time, Mr. Mengfei thought it was because the village chief had passed away, or because of some kind of collective activity.

In some villages where clans are the core of society, the clan head is very important, and if he passes away, it may result in a scene where every household hangs white banners.

After glancing around the village a few times, Mr. Mengfei sensed something was amiss, so he didn't rush into the village. Instead, he chose to go around it and went straight to collect herbs. Once he finished, he left.

As Mr. Mengfei was pondering, Su Ziyang suddenly noticed a child not far away, staring at him with a grin, his bottom exposed.

Mr. Mengfei said that although it wasn't early, it was definitely not late. It was around nine o'clock in the morning, at most no later than nine-fifteen.

At a time like this, when every household keeps their doors tightly shut and the village is deathly silent, wouldn't it be extremely eerie for a naked child to appear outside the village?

Mr. Mengfei glanced at the child and quickly chased after him.

Who knew that as soon as the naked child saw Mr. Mengfei running towards him, he turned and disappeared into the woods. By the time Mr. Mengfei caught up with him, the child had vanished.

At that moment, Mr. Mengfei sensed something was amiss, so he took out the Vajra Pestle he always carried with him. This Pestle was a gift from the master who had taught Mr. Mengfei the Lion's Roar.

This thing can exorcise demons, and it can also drive people away. After all, it is also a weapon.

Mr. Mengfei wandered around the forest for a long time with his vajra, but found nothing.

So he decided to head up the mountain, gather the herbs, and leave immediately. This was Mr. Mengfei's true thought at the time.

When they reached the halfway point of the mountain, Mr. Mengfei heard a crackling sound of thunder ahead. Upon closer inspection, he saw a rugged Daoist priest in a tattered robe slapping a large tree with his hand.

With each flap of the fan, a thunderous roar could be heard.

This was the first time Mr. Mengfei had ever seen someone use Thunder Arts, and with such immense power.

"Come out or not! If you don't come out, I'll summon heavenly lightning today and destroy you, you filthy beast!"

Mr. Mengfei secretly observed that the tree in front of him was already somewhat scorched and withered, but there was no sign of it moving, which made the burly Daoist even angrier.

Just as the Daoist priest drew the sword from his back, Mr. Mengfei noticed a huge dark shadow appearing on the top of the tree.

Upon closer inspection, it turned out to be an owl larger than a four- or five-year-old child.

The owl's eyes were like lightning as it stared at the Daoist priest who was causing trouble in the tree.

"Fine. You dare to show your face! I'll teach you a lesson! Were you the one who caused all that trouble down the mountain?!"

The Daoist priest muttered incantations, brandishing his wooden sword and performing ritualistic steps. Soon enough, a cloud appeared in the sky, and a bolt of lightning flashed and struck the owl.

To everyone's surprise, the owl neither dodged nor flinched, but simply stood there motionless on the branch.

Just as the lightning was about to strike the owl's head, it suddenly changed direction and struck the tree where Mr. Mengfei was hiding.

With a crackling sound, the branches and leaves scattered and began to fall.

Seeing that he couldn't escape, Mr. Mengfei ran straight to the Daoist priest.

Who goes there!

"Hey! I was gathering herbs, lightning struck me!"

Mr. Mengfei was afraid that the guy would stab him with the sword again, so he ran while shouting.

Upon seeing Mr. Mengfei's attire, the Daoist priest deems him not a bad person and sheathes his sword.

The two greeted each other upon meeting; this Daoist priest was Zhenze. This was also the first meeting between Mr. Mengfei and Zhenze.

"Hurry up, herb gatherers! It's dangerous here!"

Zhenze urged Mr. Mengfei to leave quickly, but seeing that Zhenze was too busy to pay attention to him, Mr. Mengfei pointed to the owl in the tree and said, "This owl is a spirit! The white thing on its head isn't white feathers. It should be riding a horse!"

The menstrual cloth, also known as the menstrual pad, was used by women in the past. When it comes into contact with menstrual blood, it becomes one of the most unclean things in the world, and most rituals will lose their effectiveness when they come into contact with it.

Although Thunder Arts is an extremely powerful and yang magic, this law loves cleanliness and purity. There's nothing that can be done about it when it encounters this thing.

Mr. Mengfei's words hit the nail on the head, and Zhenze dared not underestimate this person who claimed to have come to collect herbs.

Looking closely at the owl above its head, I found that, sure enough, there was a strip of cloth on the owl's head that looked like its own white feathers if you didn't look closely.

In animals, only those that have lived for many years will develop white fur.

Zhenze thought it was a sentient animal with naturally occurring white fur.

"What should we do then?"

Even Zhenze's most proficient Thunder Arts was no match for this owl.

Mr. Mengfei waved his hand. "Hey Zhenze, why are you picking on it?"

"There's a soul-stealing demon in the village at the foot of this mountain. I searched for a long time before I finally found it. I suspect it's this thing that cultivated into a monster to seduce people's souls."

Zhenze pointed at the owl and cursed. Mr. Mengfei looked closely at the owl in the tree that was not afraid of the two of them, and was also full of doubts.

Just as Mr. Mengfei was staring at the owl, the owl suddenly let out a snickering laugh.

That laugh made both of them cringe.

"Get down!" Zhenze had no choice but to stomp his feet in frustration.