Chapter 149: Bear Skin Blanket

"These five spells..."

Lin Jue frowned and thought, the pressure of learning was too great, and he had to make some trade-offs.

Among them, the "tracking seal technique" used for tracking was itself a supernatural spell of demons. The book stated it clearly, it was very difficult for Daoist practitioners to learn, and even if they learned it, they were not as proficient as demons.

Lin Jue decided to give it up directly.

The best way is to teach it to his Fuyao.

That detaining souls and ordering spirits sounded powerful, but it was also difficult for Daoist practitioners to learn. It required a lot of time and energy to immerse in this way, and the gains were not necessarily higher than other spells.

If the hobby is in this, for example, born to like weaving dreams and creating illusions, and find it interesting, it is another matter. After all, practicing the Dao is to practice a kind of freedom, and all kinds of wonders are hard to resist a sentence of "liking in the heart".

Just like the seventh senior brother who likes magic tricks.

However, Lin Jue didn't feel much about this, so he decided to put it behind and explore it when he had time, leisure, and heart.

After thinking for a long time, he decided to learn Gang Qi first.

He should be very simple to learn this spell.

At the same time, practice "pointing stone into general".

This is also a powerful spell, and because of the care of the Mount Yishan Mountain God, he should not be difficult to learn.

That "persuading the monarch to frown" must also be practiced.

Whether this spell is easy to use or whether he will encounter opponents who are good at curse spells in the future, this spell itself is interesting and mysterious enough. No matter how low the practicality is, Lin Jue wants to learn it.

Some spells do have charm in themselves.

Thinking like this, he pushed the door and walked out.

"Third Shixiong brother..."

The junior sister didn't know when she moved her stool to not far outside Lin Jue's door, as if she was guarding him coming out. As soon as she heard the movement, she turned her head, her eyes lifeless, and shouted to him in a dry and hoarse voice:

"Pugai noodles..."

"What?" Lin Jue was serious, "Don't think so much. Master's worry is not unreasonable. Compared with the predecessors of the Daoist temple in the past, we went up the mountain the latest, and our cultivation is the shallowest. Master doesn't know how much effort he spent to get us precious Many Yaoguai Origin Pills, so we can't waste them."

"Ah?"

"You just follow the second senior brother's arrangement. Whatever he asks you to eat every day, gold, silver, lead, mercury, cinnabar, jade, and poison, eat more, and eat less of other things."

"Ah??"

The junior sister instantly showed despair.

"Haha!"

Lin Jue couldn't help but laugh twice, and then said: "I know what to eat to practice the eating method. When the weather warms up in summer, many mushrooms will grow on the mountain. When the time comes, pick some poisonous ones and cook them for you to eat. At least you will be happy when you are poisoned."

"Many... thanks senior brother..."

"Haha, I'll go cook something delicious first."

"Ah???"

"Ah what ah? Master is old, his body is not good, the eldest senior brother has been going down the mountain to suppress demons recently, and he has not been on the mountain for as long as he has been down the mountain. The second senior brother has broken his heart for your cultivation, so naturally, I can't treat them badly."

"What about us?"

"Watch us eat."

Lin Jue walked through the courtyard very calmly.

Several senior brothers and the junior sister had their own poisoning expressions, each had their own pitifulness, all sitting still, wanting to say something but having no strength, so they had to turn their heads to pay attention to him, watching him walk by.

The fox still walked with light steps, followed behind Lin Jue, and couldn't help but slow down, turning its head to look at them curiously, and even walked in front of them, put its front paws on their knees, stood up, and leaned close to look at their pitiful appearance carefully.

"Many~ thanks senior brother~"

The fox used a clear and thin voice, mimicking the junior sister's tone of wanting to die, thinking it was fun.

"Third Shixiong... brother?"

The junior sister stood behind weakly and in astonishment, pointing at the fox:

"Fu... yao?" 【149-4

"Oh, it drank a cup of Thousand-Day Wine from the Mountain God on Langtou Mountain, and by the next morning, it could speak. It even grew two tails. I was afraid of scaring the people at the foot of the mountain, so I told it to hide its tails and shrink a bit. I've been teaching it to speak all along the way," Lin Jue said. "When you have time, you can teach her too."

"Fu~yao?"

The junior sister stared blankly at the fox.

The fox turned its head to meet her gaze, still imitating her.

The junior sister scratched her head weakly.

For some time after that, most of the senior brothers were like this.

And honestly, watching them in this half-dead state was actually quite amusing.

Especially since Lin Jue was completely fine, able to eat and drink normally, which made them envious; he could even eat and drink with them without issue, making it all the more enjoyable by comparison.

A few days later, on Fuqiu Peak.

Lin Jue's trip down the mountain this time meant he had missed the spring blossoms all over the mountain; he had missed both the fruit blossoms and the azaleas, which could be considered a matter of regret.

By now, the mountain was already a sea of lush green.

Amidst the green, one could even occasionally see newly sprouted fruits, as small as beans.

Lin Jue, however, stood in a place where the vegetation was sparse, facing a bare granite boulder, and suddenly flicked his sleeve.

A gust of wind energy instantly shot out from his sleeve.

"Boom!"

Flicking energy into force, gathering wind into a gale.

This gale force struck the rock, actually producing a muffled "boom."

The fox beside him tilted its head to watch, and after withdrawing its gaze, it raised its own paw and tried to flick it randomly in imitation.

Finding no result, it lowered its head to examine its paw carefully, pondering where the problem lay.

"As expected..."

Lin Jue muttered to himself.

This method of gale force and gale wind had many similarities with the Wind-Calling technique, only the form of expression was different.

The wind called by the Wind-Calling technique was the natural wind of heaven and earth; whether it was a breeze, a strong wind, a gentle breeze, or a gale, the wind was not constrained. Therefore, unless one summoned a wind as massive as a hurricane or a storm, it was difficult to have much lethality. But this gale force and gale wind method used the wind to transmit force and the energy to penetrate with power, focusing on combat and facing enemies.

He had quite a talent for the "Wind-Calling" technique, and after several years, he had already achieved some mastery, so learning the gale wind method was indeed easy.

It had only been a few days, and he had already entered the threshold.

"Boom!"

Another gale wind.

What followed was constant practice and study of the techniques, so that his mastery would improve, allowing it to transmit greater, faster, and even sharper force.

When he grew tired from practicing, he would sit right there, stop to rest, tease the fox, blow in the wind to enjoy the scenery, and ponder the formula for the Golden Core.

Speaking of that Golden Core formula, Lin Jue had originally thought it difficult, even specifically taking one of the ingredients, "Swallow Egg Incense," to consult the second senior brother, who had never heard of it either, making him feel it was even harder to find.

But in the affairs of the world, the difficulties seem to lie in the obstacles.

Lin Jue hadn't thought about it for a few days, and after that time had passed, looking back on it, he felt it didn't seem so difficult after all.

The materials seemed numerous, but gold was something he had seen; although merit was elusive and seemed hard to grasp, it was within reach. As long as one's method of gathering was practiced to a high level, the so-called Morning Glow Qi of the East Sea and the Evening Glow Light of the Western Regions were merely separated by great distances, and gathering them would be quite easy. He imagined the Stone of the South Mountain and the Leopard Spring of the North were the same.

The difficult ones were the Thousand-Year Fire Ginseng, the Thousand-Year Snow Lotus, the Earth Many Yaoguai Pill, the top-grade Golden Essence, the Swallow Egg Incense, and the Dragon Beard and Phoenix Feather, three of which Lady Yao Hua had already supplemented for him.

That left the Snow Lotus, Golden Essence, Earth Many Yaoguai Pill, and Swallow Egg Incense, with no idea where to look for them.

But Fuqiu Peak still had one more technique—

Planchette writing.

If one has doubts in their heart, one can ask the Planchette Immortal.

After pondering for a moment, he continued his practice.

Until his magical power was exhausted.

This place happened to be not far from the peak, so he walked up a few steps, sat cross-legged under a pine tree, took a Many Yaoguai Origin Pill left for him by his master, and sat in meditation to cultivate.

Sunrise and sunset, clear skies and rain were unpredictable.

The ancient pine beside him reached out its branches to shade him from the sun and shelter him from the rain; the pine needles were soaked by dew several times, and the Daoist's robes were also wet and dry by turns.

Under the careful catalysis of the second senior brother, the senior brothers and junior sister's "Ingestion Method" was finally cultivated to the level where they could take the Many Yaoguai Origin Pill. At this point, they could finally stop taking medicine and poison for bitter cultivation, so Lin Jue prepared a table full of good dishes and rice, finally took out the Thousand-Day Wine gifted by the Mountain God, and the many senior brothers had a hearty meal.

And the eldest senior brother, who went down the mountain every day to eliminate demons, also saved up another Many Yaoguai Origin Pill for each of them.

Everyone had two now.

Lin Jue was also taking his third.

In his spare time, he first repaired the Bean Soldiers, then learned a few techniques; if he was tired, he would talk to the fox, which seemed like teaching it, but was actually also a way to settle Lin Jue's own heart.

The master's health was getting worse and worse.

After all, he was a practitioner of the Dao; he didn't have issues like being senile or unable to walk. When he was clear-headed, he still looked like an immortal with a Daoist air, spoke with clear logic, did things cleanly and efficiently, and could eat two big bowls of rice. But sometimes he would sleep in his room for two days, or sit cross-legged for two or three weeks in seclusion, telling people not to disturb him.

All the senior brothers and junior sister could realize one thing.

Some took it in stride, while others had worries.

Before they knew it, it was midsummer again.

It was still cool on the mountain.

Lin Jue sat in his room, which already had a comfortable desk, and he took out the paper he had bought down the mountain, along with the brush, ink, and inkstone gifted by the Shu family head, spread the paper on the table, and wrote carefully.

Character after character appeared on the paper.

The fox often jumped onto the desk, lay down, and stared very intently at him writing, neither noisy nor disruptive, nor did it interfere with him.

And it naturally couldn't understand.

This passage he was writing was precisely the "Mountain God Body Protection Method," also known as the "Stone Transformation Method."

Lin Jue tried to take this technique that the burly man in hemp clothes had taught him at the time, add the records and explanations of it from ancient books, then integrate his own insights, and perform a process of removing the complex to keep the essence, writing it all down on paper.

Copying books was by no means a purely laborious task; not to mention cultivating one's character and storing quiet energy, nor that practicing calligraphy was a good thing in itself, just the act of copying was extremely beneficial for his own learning and mastery of the content within.

Copying itself was a task that deepened impressions more than reading; if one could have one's own thoughts during the copying, whether adding or subtracting, modifying or simplifying, it was even better.

Therefore, Lin Jue was focused on it.

Until a knocking sound rang out outside the door.

"Knock, knock..."

The fox immediately turned its head, then looked at Lin Jue, only then jumping off the desk to go open the door.

The person standing outside was indeed the junior sister.

"Third Shixiong brother, there is a believer from down the mountain who says they are here to fulfill a vow. On the way, they were entrusted by someone to bring you a very large bear skin."

The junior sister had already recovered to her original state, full of energy, and after speaking, she poked her head in to look at him.

"Hmm?"

Lin Jue put down his brush.

"Hmm?" The junior sister also felt puzzled. "Third Shixiong brother, what are you writing?"

"The Stone Transformation Method," Lin Jue said. "The world is not peaceful these days; perhaps the senior brothers might find it useful, or it can be kept in the Daoist temple."

"Oh..."

The junior sister stared at him blankly.

She felt as if he were making some kind of preparations.

Lin Jue had already stood up and walked out.

Outside in the courtyard, there was indeed a pilgrim standing there, and on the stone table beside them lay a huge folded bear skin, with two senior brothers surrounding the pilgrim in confusion.

"Some time ago, there was a demon in my home, so I came to your esteemed temple and invited Daoist Lu to go down the mountain to eliminate the demon. My whole family is deeply grateful. I was originally here today to express my thanks, but unexpectedly, when I reached the foot of the mountain, there was someone waiting there."

The pilgrim recounted vividly:

"That person looked very strange; not tall but lean, with short clothes and trousers, a neck much longer than an ordinary person's, and a head that seemed a bit long too. As soon as I saw them, I felt they didn't look much like a human, but rather like a muntjac or a wild deer."

"As soon as that person saw me, they walked over."

"At first, they scared me quite a bit."

"Then, as soon as they opened their mouth, they asked if I was coming to Fuqiu Temple. I was a bit flustered, so I nodded and said yes, and they asked me to bring this thing to Daoist Lin on the mountain."

"I didn't even know which Daoist Lin..."

"When I opened it to look, it was such a huge bear skin; I'm afraid it's much bigger than a cow!"

The pilgrim was still shaken but very excited while telling the story.

"Daoist Lin is right here!"

The seventh senior brother pointed to Lin Jue beside him.

"You are Daoist Lin?" The pilgrim looked at Lin Jue and took out a letter. "There is also a letter."

"It is me, thank you."

As soon as Lin Jue saw the bear skin, he knew; it must be that bear demon's.

However, he just let it lie on the stone table, then took the letter, saw it was addressed in a few crooked characters to "Daoist Friend Lin of Fuqiu Temple," and opened it to read.

Inside were also crooked characters.

Because the handwriting was truly ugly, and the sizes were inconsistent, and it wasn't aligned neatly, it looked a bit difficult, but fortunately, the wording was almost entirely colloquial.

"... The people down the mountain saw the bear demon and saw the words left by the Daoist friend, and were shocked. After reporting to the officials, they skinned and tanned the bear demon, sewed up the wounds, made it into a bear skin bedding, and sent it to my Mountain God Temple."

The character for "bear" was written as an exceptionally large blob.

The character for "tanned" had also been corrected two or three times; there were several conspicuous black blobs on the paper, showing that a great deal of effort had been spent to write this misspelled word.

Lin Jue thought while continuing to read down.

"Thanks to the words left by the Daoist friend, the incense at my temple is flourishing. This bear demon was eliminated by the Daoist friend and me together. This bear skin is a good item, but I have no use for it, so I sent the deer to pass it on to the Daoist friend. What a pity, what a pity, the bear's chest was poked too badly by me, so after being made into a blanket, it naturally lost a section, and that white crescent moon patch couldn't be saved either; others won't be able to tell it's a bear skin."

This Mountain God seemed to have some obsession with the title "my seat."

The letter was poorly written, but the sentiment sent was genuine.

Lin Jue smiled slightly and put away the letter.

The junior sister and senior brothers were all standing behind him watching, and only after finishing did they show expressions of astonishment.

"What bear demon? Third Shixiong brother, when did you fight such a big black bear?"

"It was just when I went down the mountain to return home. When I came back, you were all quite troubled, so I didn't tell you." Lin Jue said very easily, then thanked the pilgrim who was listening in a daze, "Thank you for making the trip, carrying such a large bear skin blanket up the mountain in such hot weather; you must be overheated. I'll go pour you a pot of iced pine needle pear water made by my junior sister to cool you down."

Lin Jue then went to pour him some water first.

It was sparkling water made with pine needles, sweetened with autumn pear paste, and then iced by the fox's breath, very suitable for this sweltering summer.

He then carried the bear skin blanket into the room.

It was actually quite surprising—

The black bear's skin was simply as hard as leather armor, and the fur was like steel needles; even the softest parts were harder than pine needles. After death, it lost its spiritual aura, and after being tanned, it had actually become exceptionally fluffy and soft.