Chapter 445: Repay the favor as soon as possible

Snow lotus flowers bloomed all over the ground, and Lin Jue sat in meditation here.

The snow lotus flowers emitted a cold spiritual energy, which he sensed, and this unique spiritual rhyme also became a part of his cultivation.

Lin Jue had doubts in his heart—

Ever since he left the capital, sat in meditation on the southern mountain, meditated on heaven and earth by the sea, and then traveled the world all the way to this place, practicing along the way, he gradually had some feelings in his heart.

What he realized was a mysterious feeling, an unimaginable wonder, as if he saw a great Dao and saw the essence of heaven and earth.

But everything was not clear.

It was as if it was covered by a layer of fog.

Lin Jue was not impatient, keeping his heart calm, practicing slowly, and walking his own path with his head down.

Then he stayed as a guest on the mountain for a month.

The mountain was cold and boring. Lin Jue didn't know how deep the Dao practice and ability of the divine beings on the mountain were, or how many years they had lived. He only knew that time didn't seem precious to them. Sometimes they closed their eyes to rest, and the next time they opened them, it was already several days later. Chatting briefly with people, then taking a nap, was another half a month.

Sometimes he really felt they were like a mountain.

The spirits and monsters who came as guests were relatively closer to humans. Although they also slept for several days at a time, they at least seized the time to talk to people, exchange, or appreciate the snow lotus.

A month passed in the blink of an eye.

Approaching autumn, the snow lotus withered.

This Snow Lotus Gathering ended here.

Many guests went down the mountain one after another.

"This year's snow lotus seems to have bloomed even better than the last time."

"I think it's not as good as the last time."

"Hahaha, the Ancestor also said that this year's bloom is better. The River God doesn't think so because you like the last time too much. This time is the same. After you go back, every time you think of it, it will be more beautiful by one point. By the next fifty years, the snow lotus that bloomed this time will already be much more beautiful than this year."

"Things in the world are always like this."

"Sigh, to see each other next time and watch the snow lotus here, we have to wait another fifty years."

"Yes! Old friend..."

"Hahaha..."

Going down the mountain was also the time of parting.

Lin Jue saw many yaoguai and divine beings saying goodbye here.

Some lived far away and didn't interact on weekdays, so they seemed to take this Snow Lotus Gathering as an appointment, coming here to pay respects to the Mount Tianshan Ancestor every fifty years, and also to gather once.

The divine beings on the mountain were therefore rarely lively for once.

"How many times has this Snow Lotus Gathering been held?" When Lin Jue walked to the mountainside, he saw the white-armored warrior guarding the mountain and couldn't help but ask Wuer Mu beside him.

"..."

"You don't know either..."

"..."

"No one knows..."

Lin Jue looked back, the palace was still in the mist.

Those five ghosts with Dao practice were also gone.

These few were really like ghosts, appearing and disappearing unpredictably. Ever since they spoke up and vouched for him in the hall that day, they had disappeared. Lin Jue never saw them again, and after that, he mostly stayed with Wuer Mu.

But at this time, it was also time for him to part with Wuer Mu.

"You are already the Mountain God of Qinshan. I think you won't disappear easily. If I am successful, fifty years later, let's come here together to visit the Mount Tianshan Ancestor again."

"Hmm..."

Wuer Mu nodded, raised his wooden staff, and a huge northern mountain goat jumped out from the cliff. He just jumped and sat on the back of the northern mountain goat.

The northern mountain goat carried him and gradually went far away.

At this time, it was already the foot of Mount Tianshan.

Lin Jue looked back, but at the top of the mountain, he could no longer see the palace with blooming snow lotuses. He didn't know if it was blocked by clouds and mist, or if the Snow Lotus Gathering ended and it disappeared from the world. He could only see the towering and tall snow mountain standing between heaven and earth, not knowing how many years it had been there.

At this time, the human world at the foot of the mountain was changing.

Thinking of this snow mountain that had stood here for who knows how many years, and the Snow Lotus Gathering that had been held for who knows how many fifty years, in a trance, he also had a feeling—

No matter how the human world at the foot of the mountain changes, dynasties rise and fall, only Mount Tianshan still stands here, only the Snow Lotus Gathering is held again and again, the divine beings on the mountain take naps, and every time they close and open their eyes, it is the next fifty years, just closing their eyes and listening to the conversation of the guests below, talking about the human world of these fifty years.

Lin Jue shook his head and summoned the paper donkey to move forward.

Ahead was a lush green grassland, with rolling hills, having gentle curves, as if there was no end.

But Lin Jue knew that at its end, there was a vast forest growing on the high mountains.

It should have been a place with extremely high altitude and no grass, but it was covered with dense forests, with deep green leaves and straight branches, contrasting with the grassland below, constructing a rare beautiful scenery in the world that was very refreshing to the eyes.

Thin mist lingered in the forest, and a bonfire was lit.

"The snow lotus in the sky is truly beautiful..."

Lin Jue sat cross-legged by the fire, as if, just like what the divine being said, not long after going down the mountain, the snow lotus in the mist in the palace rippled in his memory.

The fox sat upright on the other side, but said:

"It's also beautiful here."

"Both are beautiful."

Lin Jue took out a snow lotus petal and examined it.

In an instant, the already cold temperature here seemed to have dropped quite a bit, as if he had returned to Mount Tianshan, not only cold, but also having a sense of being isolated from the world.

This was the spiritual rhyme of the thousand-year snow lotus.

"Did she want the gift?" the fox asked with concern.

"No."

"She gave it to you!" the fox said again.

"Yes."

"When a fox gives something to someone, or a cat gives something to someone, it's because it wants to exchange for something better from that person!" the fox said firmly.

"Perhaps." Lin Jue nodded. "So I must return it as soon as possible."

"Return it!"

"But it's hard to say." "Hard to say?"

"It could also be that she was moved by my sincerity."

"..." The fox looked up and stared at him, asking, "How to return it?"

"Why didn't you repeat it?"

"How to return it?"

"We'll see. We have to travel tomorrow."

Lin Jue said with a smile, then closed his eyes while holding the snow lotus, as if he wanted to use the spiritual rhyme of the snow lotus to practice all night.

The fire crackled, a night watch lamp shone with a faint light, and there was also a vigilant fox, seemingly closing its eyes, but actually looking around from time to time.

After nightfall, the mist around gradually thickened.

The thick fog concealed some tracks.

Around the second watch, the moon was already in the sky, and the fog in the forest was so heavy that nothing could be seen. Even though the fire in the bonfire had never gone out, it could only illuminate two or three zhang around. Beyond two or three zhang, there were tree trunks standing in the forest, and one couldn't distinguish whether they were people or trees, and the branches of the dead trees, one couldn't distinguish whether they were branches or deer antlers.

!

Suddenly, a faint sound came:

"Fuyao..."

The voice was almost the same as Lin Jue's, as if it came from very far away, now present, now absent.

"Shua!" The fox instantly pricked up its ears and raised its head, looking into the depths of the thick fog.

That was where the sound came from.

However, it didn't answer.

This was a habit, and also vigilance.

Usually when Lin Jue called it, it wouldn't make a sound eight or nine times out of ten, let alone here, and let alone it clearly heard it wasn't Lin Jue.

"Fuyao..."

The voice continued to call.

The fox moved its head, changed angles, and looked several times, but its gaze couldn't penetrate the thick fog, so it had to lower its head:

"Daoist!"

"Hmm?"

Lin Jue opened his eyes.

The fox didn't speak, just looked into the forest.

At this time, the forest fell silent, and then a sound came out, but this time it changed:

"Daoist!"

It was almost the same as the sentence the fox just shouted, but it was much weaker, as if it came from far away, in the depths of the thick fog.

Lin Jue felt a palpitation in his heart.

He didn't need to look at ancient books to know that this was a common spell used by yaoguai and ghosts hiding in the dark. It is also widely spread in the world, often used in the depths of the night and in heavy fog. It will call your name. If you answer, some will immediately have their souls hooked, and some will follow it unknowingly and never return.

Moreover, this method actually has the same principle as restraining souls and spirits.

Lin Jue also looked carefully, wanting to see where it came from.

However, it was too far away, and the thick fog was too deep, so he couldn't distinguish it.

"Hu..."

The cold wind blew the fog. Although the wind was not strong, it suppressed the bonfire, the flame seemed to be suppressed, close to the firewood, and the night watch lamp also swayed.

"Daoist!"

The voice came out again, wanting to call Lin Jue over.

But Lin Jue smiled slightly and answered:

"What are you calling me for?"

"Hu!" The cold wind pressed over!

The Daoist sat in place, motionless, his face as usual.

But in the depths of the thick fog, there was a sharp scream, like a flute or whistle, piercing the thick fog.

The fox didn't hesitate and immediately rushed over.

When rushing over, it couldn't help but shout:

"Yaoguai!"

Naturally, no one responded to it.

After a while, a white shadow carrying a small yaoguai jumped horizontally between the branches and returned.

"It's that kind of fat rat that digs holes in the ground!" The fox became a little bigger and put the small yaoguai on the ground. "This one was already dead when I went, and there were many others. As soon as they saw me, they immediately dug holes into the ground and left!"

"It seems its Dao practice is not enough."

"I want to chase them! I can catch up!"

"You want to play digging holes, right?"

"It's chasing yaoguai!"

"But if you leave, no one will protect me."

"Then I suddenly don't want to go!"

The fox didn't hesitate, sat down, and looked around.

Just at this moment, there seemed to be movement underground.

At first, it was just a slight buzzing, like the vibration of a swarm of bees, and then it became a low tremor, as if something was moving underground.

The fox couldn't help but bend down slightly, put its head close to the ground, and then immediately shouted:

"Go to the tree! Into the tree!"

In just a few breaths, the earth collapsed with a rumble, revealing the roots of the big tree, and many small yaoguai wearing leather armor and holding spears and lances rushed out from the collapsed ground.

Above, a bonfire was burning, and a Daoist was sitting cross-legged by the fire.

"Peng..."

The Daoist's figure exploded into a clear breeze and dissipated without a trace.

The bonfire also quickly extinguished in the collapse of the earth.

These yaoguai were obviously stunned for a moment.

Heaven and earth turned dark, with only a bean-sized fire hanging on the treetop, illuminating a sharp face and a pair of huge fox eyes flashing with ghostly light.

The fox opened its mouth, its sharp teeth white and bright, but firelight appeared in its throat.

With a rumble!

The flames rushed out like a dragon, hitting the pit, and immediately filled it!

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 446 =====