Chapter 152

"Let's say it beforehand! You cannot disturb me often, and I will not calculate or divine; I don't have such great ability. If you want to ask about the future, you don't need to ask me!"

"Third Shixiong is joking. Third Shixiong is in Mount Yishan but can know the affairs of the world; that is already a great ability."

Lin Jue paused after saying this, feeling it was a good opportunity to ask this senior about the materials in the Golden Core formula.

The Golden Core formula is extremely precious and confidential. Lin Jue had already thought it through; no matter where he was, he could not mention two materials from the Golden Core formula at the same time, and could only mention one each time.

The longer the interval, the better.

The more people he asked, the better.

But he was already learning alchemy, so asking the Planchette Immortal about these things was not strange.

Lin Jue thought for a moment and said: "I happen to have something to ask the senior. Does the senior know what Swallow Egg Incense is?"

"According to the rules of planchette writing, you have to return to the temple, prepare a sand tray, rice tray, winnowing basket, and brush, hold the talisman I gave you, light three sticks of incense, call me, and I will rack my brains to write you a crooked poem, and you will slowly guess from this crooked poem that you can't understand."

"..." Lin Jue thought for a moment. "Could it be a swallow's egg?"

"What nonsense are you talking about? This is another name for the Western Region Wood Essence. Because it is naturally oval-shaped and about the same size as a swallow's egg, it has a strange fragrance when smelled, and can repel plagues when burned, so it is called Swallow Egg Incense."

"So that's it."

This was consistent with what Lin Jue had guessed.

The Four Directions Five Elements Golden Core, Fire Ginseng, Snow Lotus, Earth Spirit Pill, and Golden Essence; four of the five elements were already occupied, so this Swallow Egg Incense could only be a wood element item.

Lin Jue had also figured out its personality—

If you ask it something, it might not necessarily say it, but if you talk nonsense and it hears it, it will definitely come to refute you and educate you, otherwise it won't feel comfortable in its heart.

"Is this thing famous?"

"I already said it's the Western Region Wood Essence; naturally, it's not famous in our Divine Land. Even the demons, monsters, and ghosts in this mountain who can be Planchette Immortals or have been Planchette Immortals, eight or nine out of ten don't know about the Western Region Wood Essence, let alone that you are using the three words 'Swallow Egg Incense.' If you don't believe me, go ask other spirits; they definitely haven't heard of it."

"Third Shixiong's knowledge is truly profound." Lin Jue complimented, then said with a tone of certainty, "Then since it's called Western Region Wood Essence, I imagine it must only be found in the Western Regions!"

"That's not entirely true! It can be found in the Western Regions, but it's not like we don't have it here!" The voice in the forest refuted. "In the human world down the mountain, when the imperial court was strong, it deterred all directions, and gods would bow when they saw the Son of Heaven. Small countries from all directions would send envoys to pay tribute. Once, a Western Region country presented such a treasure to the imperial court. Unfortunately, the emperor didn't recognize this treasure, and only listened to a Daoist who said that scraping powder to make incense could prolong life, so he did so. But even a Daoist who hasn't cultivated the ingestion method to a high level cannot fully absorb the spiritual aura within it; for a mortal to do so is just a waste of heaven's gifts."

"So that's it."

Lin Jue immediately felt that he had found this Planchette Immortal just right.

It was a big harvest in the first instance.

Then, while secretly noting down this information, he bowed to the depths of the mountain forest:

"Thank you, senior."

"Go back."

"Farewell."

Having solved the doubts in his heart and learned the information about Swallow Egg Incense, having found a Planchette Immortal, and having established a fixed contact with this senior he had known for several years, Lin Jue was satisfied and slowly returned to the temple.

The fox looked back every three steps, still searching everywhere for the source of the sound.

Slowly returning to the temple.

"Junior brother, I asked the Planchette Immortal senior, and he does have a junior. If you are willing, I can arrange for you to meet in a dream to see if it's suitable." The eldest senior brother said.

"Yes, yes, I also asked. If we all find Planchette Immortals from Mount Yishan, after many years, maybe we can contact each other through the Planchette Immortal." The sixth senior brother said. "It's just a bit troublesome for the Planchette Immortal senior."

"No need, I have already found a Planchette Immortal." Lin Jue, who had returned to the temple, first said to the eldest senior brother, then turned to the sixth senior brother. "But it is also from our Mount Yishan."

"Who is it?" The eldest senior brother said.

"It wouldn't be that one down the mountain, would it?" The sixth senior brother said.

"You guessed right, it is that one."

"That one, that one's temper is a bit strange." The sixth senior brother said.

"Although that one's temper is strange, it has a fate with the junior brother and gets along quite well." The eldest senior brother nodded. "Finding a Planchette Immortal is like making a friend; the most important thing is that the fate matches."

"That's right."

Lin Jue also nodded with a smile.

Over the years, he had had quite a lot of dealings with the Refuting Third Shixiong down the mountain, which could be considered a fate, and this fate was better than many others.

"That one doesn't seem to know how to calculate or divine." The sixth senior brother said.

"That doesn't matter." The eldest senior brother said. "Having broad knowledge and profound learning can replace divination."

Lin Jue also agreed with the eldest senior brother's words.

All divination in the world is half-occupied and half-pushed, half-divined and half-calculated. People with wisdom can know the past and the present, and then they have a bottom line for the future.

And all divination and calculation in the world cannot be completely accurate; that is something no one can do.

Since it cannot be completely accurate, it cannot be completely believed. But as long as one knows, it is not good to believe, and it is not good not to believe; it only disturbs one's own Daoist heart, so it is better not to know.

Lin Jue soon returned to his room.

Continued to write and practice techniques.

It was the season when the mountain peaches were ripe again.

This was the happiest time of the year for the junior sister.

Mostly because she was born in poverty and her family didn't treat her well, she rarely had enough to eat when she was young. Therefore, every time the mountain fruits ripened, the sweet fruits were a great delicacy and could keep her full, which was a gift from heaven for children from poor families in those days.

Only when she was down the mountain, the wild fruits on the mountain couldn't necessarily keep her full.

Sometimes they were occupied by others, sometimes there wasn't enough to share, and sometimes they were picked clean by others before they were ripe; after all, there were more people than fruit trees down the mountain.

But Mount Yishan was an immortal realm.

There were not many people here, but the mountain was full of fruit trees; every time they ripened, it seemed like they belonged to her alone, and she could eat to her heart's content, until she was full, and even sleep under the tree when she was full.

Immortal life.

Oh, no—

It wasn't just hers alone.

There was also the senior brother.

There were also the fox and the colorful fox.

"Third Shixiong brother, you say if it were always summer on Mount Yishan and these trees always bore fruit, that would be good."

"So you wouldn't have to worry about food, right?"

"Yes."

Lin Jue thought for a moment and said to her: "In your past life, you might have been a monkey."

"Being a monkey on Mount Yishan is also quite good!"

The junior sister stood on the fruit tree, amidst the dense branches and leaves and the densely packed peaches, picking the biggest and best ones.

"Our place here is even better than the Immortal Source Temple; Daoist Wangji's place looks good, but it's actually all bare rocks, and only pine trees can grow." The junior sister said. "Not as good as our Fuqiu Peak."

For landscapes, she had her own way of appreciation.

Lin Jue sat in the mountain forest, also gnawing on a peach.

The junior sister kept picking fruits on the tree, shaking out the sound of branches and leaves, the little fox was beside her, desperately and selflessly digging a hole, constantly digging out mud, while the colorful fox was playing with the corner of his Daoist robe.

"Third Shixiong brother, it has been raining on the mountain for the past few days, and it's rare that it's sunny today. We can't finish picking so many peaches, so why don't we send some to Daoist Wangji?"

"Good."

Lin Jue was still sitting and gnawing on a peach.

The junior sister picked the peaches more carefully.

After picking the peaches, she fell to the ground, sorted them carefully, picked out the good ones, and put them into the back basket.

Lin Jue smiled and said she took all the good ones to give to others and threw the bad ones to him to eat; she just listened seriously and didn't answer.

"Let's go, senior brother."

Carrying the back basket, they walked toward the distant mountains.

Lin Jue naturally followed behind.

Midsummer was the time when branches and leaves were lush. The road out of Fuqiu Peak had more mud, so the vegetation was also more lush. The mountain was a piece of light or dark green, dotted with small purple, white, and pink flowers in the middle, and the ordinary mountain road seemed to become brilliant.

Amidst the light cyan and dark green, there was a stone stair road, steeply leading to the mountain; looking up suddenly, one couldn't see where it led.

The woman wearing a light gray and white Daoist robe and carrying a back basket walked first on this kind of road, followed by another Daoist, and also followed by a fox and a colorful fox, as if walking into a painting.

Moving forward, they entered the stone mountain.

Lin Jue walked slowly, not feeling tired.

Seeing the stone stairs from old to new, passing through the mountain and hanging on the wall, before he knew it, he reached the end.

Lin Jue couldn't help but stop, lowered his head, looked at a small purple flower growing in the gap of the stone stairs, and then looked up, discovering that the Immortal Source Temple was already on the opposite side.

The straight-line distance was already less than a mile.

That tall and towering stone mountain, and the palace on the stone mountain, suddenly seemed like seeing it for the first time, giving him a great shock.

Only today's shock had another source—

Lin Jue looked at the Immortal Source Temple on the opposite side and at the end of the stone stairs under his feet, only then discovering that, unknowingly, the junior sister had really built the road to the front of the Immortal Source Temple.

"Third Shixiong brother?"

The junior sister stood in front, stopped, and looked at him.

The fox and the colorful fox also stopped and looked at him.

"Coming."

Lin Jue hurriedly followed.

A few years had not brought any changes to the Immortal Source Temple; at most, the little Daoists practicing swords and techniques on the open platform looked more mature, and the middle-aged Daoist walking among them looked more weathered. Daoist Wangji was also a bit older than before; with more wrinkles, the whole person appeared much kinder.

The junior sister had more fate with the Immortal Source Temple.

After all, Lin Jue only listened to the Dao and learned techniques here, and then came here to communicate once a year, but the junior sister also learned to recognize characters and write here.

When seeing the back basket of wild peaches brought by the junior sister, Daoist Wangji was happy and stroked his beard and laughed, saying "good" several times, really losing the serious look from a few years ago, and asked them:

"How is your master?"

The two looked at each other, not knowing how to answer.

Daoist Wangji knew almost everything.

According to his original temperament, he would definitely say "I knew long ago that old thing wouldn't live long," but now he just stroked his beard and sighed long.