Chapter 95: Medicine King Temple at the Foot of Mount Zhongnan

Left Assistant Minister Lu Kang!

To be precise, one must add the word "former".

This guy was Zhou Pan's backer.

Li Yan even suggested to Zhang Shitong that they should take action and slaughter this old man.

This person could be called a giant corrupt official in Guanzhong. Like Zhou Pan, he was a black hand who made money, and there was more than one such person. He was almost deceived by his hypocritical appearance.

Seeing the strange expressions of the few, Lu Kang thought they were shocked by his identity and shook his head slightly, "Everyone doesn't need to care. This old man has now resigned from office and returned to his hometown; I am no longer any Left Assistant Minister."

"Oh, sorry to disturb you."

Li Yan and the three looked at him and turned back into the house directly.

Lu Kang was clearly somewhat surprised to see the reaction of the three.

The middle-aged guard Fengping whispered on the side, "Master, these are all rough people in the martial world who don't understand etiquette; no need to pay attention to them."

Lu Kang looked at the sky and nodded, "It looks like this rain will stop ahead of schedule. Let's set off now, rest at the Mount Zhongnan official post station, and just happen to take Madam and Young Lady up the mountain to offer incense."

"Yes, Master."

The guard Fengping cupped his hands respectfully, then made arrangements, and before long, led the team away from the ruined house.

"Pfft!"

After they left, Sha Lifei finally couldn't help but sneer, "This old thing, looking like a human but acting like a dog, still pretending after stepping down; disgusting!"

Wang Daoxuan also laughed dumbly, shook his head, and said, "I observe his physiognomy: the forehead is full, the chin is thick, and the eyes are clear and spirited; it is a sign of wealth, nobility, and benevolence. I didn't expect him to be so treacherous while appearing loyal."

"It really is that you can't judge a person by their appearance..."

They were dealing with Zhou Pan, so they naturally collected some information on Lu Kang.

This Left Assistant Minister came from a humble background and had spent half his life in the officialdom; he was a famous black-hearted and greedy person. In a short time, he had made the Lu family a famous clan in Shangluo.

The key was that the other party was also slippery, participating in quite a few things, but could always retreat easily, shaking off the mud on his body. Otherwise, how could he have made the powerful Li family worry?

If it weren't for bad luck, he might have already become the Provincial Administration Commissioner of Shanzhou.

Sha Lifei's eyes rolled, and he smiled playfully, "This old thing, having been an official for many years, has saved up quite a bit of family wealth and offended the new Provincial Administration Commissioner; he can be called a big fat sheep."

"Slaughtering him can not only get money but also get the reputation of acting for heaven; the powerful people in the green forest will probably swarm over."

"At that time, we must stay far away, lest we get splashed with blood!"

Li Yan also smiled, "What you say makes sense. Just having this Lord Lu attract the target will allow us to pass through Niubei Ridge steadily and head to Fengyang early."

"Let's wait two hours before leaving."

With a plan, everyone was naturally even less in a hurry.

After entering the hour of the Snake, the sky completely cleared, and only then did they drive on the road.

After going downhill and turning around a few bends, the road began to be difficult.

This Qin-Chu Ancient Road was ancient; in some places, the bluestone on the ground had long been broken, mixed with mud, and after the rain, it was full of pits and bumps, and the whole way was uphill, making the horses slip from time to time.

At this time, the ability of the few coffin bearers was shown.

They carried shoulder poles and hemp ropes, lined up on both sides of the carriage, cooperated with each other, pushed the carriage while changing their footsteps, seemingly you left and I right, but the heavy coffin remained stable throughout.

Even when passing through pits and bumps, it was steady.

"Good skill!"

Li Yan saw this and couldn't help but shout in praise.

Wang Daoxuan smiled, "That's right. There is a saying in the funeral business: ten, eight levers, two materials."

"This profession of coffin bearers is strongest in the capital. I heard that their practice of lifting the imperial lever requires seventy-two people to work together to lift a dragon-wood of the same weight, with a bowl of water placed on top; they have to practice until no matter how many ditches or bumps there are, the water cannot spill!"

"That place is called the Auspicious Office."

The coffin bearer leader Yue Bala smiled honestly, "Their craftsmanship is much stronger than ours. They are also divided into eye, flag, curtain, follower, and bearer positions; not only are their skills remarkable, but there are also quite a few Mystic Sect people."

Saying this, he whispered mysteriously, "I have heard a rumor that more than ten years ago, there was a great drought in the north, the Yellow River dried up, and it happened to coincide with an earthquake, which shook out a stone dragon coffin. The sky showed strange phenomena, and quite a few people died."

"It was the people from the Auspicious Office who cooperated with the Tai Xuan Orthodox Sect, performing rituals all the way, and lifted the stone dragon coffin into the Wangwu Mountains to suppress it, only then did it stabilize..."

Wang Daoxuan was also full of curiosity, "This Daoist has also vaguely heard of it, but those who know the inside story are few, and they all keep their mouths shut. Does Lay Buddhist Yue happen to know the inside story?"

Yue Bala smiled bitterly, "I am just an ordinary person. Although I understand some taboos in the profession, when I really encounter something, I can only stare blankly. How would I know such secrets?"

"Our ancestor in this profession worships the God of Poverty. After all, it is the lower nine streams; if there were no other way, who would be willing to do this? Just barely enough to mix a meal."

Seeing this, Wang Daoxuan hurriedly changed the subject, looked at the high mountains in the distance, and smiled, "Anyway, since we are idle, this Daoist will tell a story to relieve boredom."

"The Medicine King himself lived in seclusion on Mount Zhongnan all year round. One night, an old man came to the door for help, claiming to be an old dragon in the Kunming Pool of Chang'an. Because it had been dry and hot recently, with no rain for several months, a Hu monk performed rituals by the pool to pray for rain, attracting commoners to burn incense and kneel to worship."

"However, this Hu monk actually had ulterior motives, wanting to borrow the resentment of the commoners to kill the dragon and take its brain to refine medicine. The Medicine King said, saving you is not difficult, but in the Dragon Palace at the bottom of the Kunming Pool, there are three thousand prescriptions of immortal medicine; borrow them for me to see, and I will solve this disaster for you."

"The old dragon was in a dilemma, saying that these prescriptions came from heaven, and the Heavenly Emperor strictly ordered that they must not be passed on recklessly. But the Medicine King insisted. For the sake of his life, the old dragon had to agree. After a while, the water in the Kunming Pool rose sharply, and the Hu monk died of anger."

"This prescription is the 'Thousand Gold Prescriptions', which later saved countless lives."

Sha Lifei shouted, "I've heard of it, the Medicine King Subduing the Dragon."

Li Yan was thoughtful, "I heard this story when I was a child, but looking at it now, it's a bit strange."

"People in the world are all like Lord Ye who loves dragons; if there were dragons in the Kunming Pool, I'm afraid the entire Mystic Sect of the world would explode. And the Hu monk's methods, no matter how you look at it, are like treasure-seeking, just borrowing the name of praying for rain."

"It's also possible."

Wang Daoxuan smiled, "In the past, Chang'an was brilliant in all four directions, and Mystic Sect experts gathered; there were even sorcerers from the Western Regions and Nanyang who came, perhaps there were other hidden circumstances, but it is no longer something we can know."

"The reason this Daoist tells this story is for another reason. We are passing through Mount Zhongnan; although we cannot go up the mountain to offer incense and visit experts, there is a Medicine King Temple at the foot of the mountain, and the incense is flourishing, so we can go and offer three sticks of incense."

Li Yan nodded, "The Medicine King has immeasurable merit; naturally, we must go and worship."

The carriage driver, Old Man Meng, also jumped off the carriage shaft, led the horse himself, avoided those slippery and dangerous slopes by experience, and remained silent for a while after hearing this, "This old man's grandson, I don't know what kind of illness he has; he has been dull and foolish since birth. I will also go and offer a stick of incense."

Going up the mountain is just like this; with a goal, walking becomes more energetic. Just past the hour of the Monkey, everyone had arrived at the foot of Mount Zhongnan.

Seeing the mountains continuous, clouds covering and mist winding, the forest quiet and deep, several mountain paths winding into the mountains, and then blocked by dense forests and white mist.

Arriving at this place, there were clearly quite a few people.

First, there were many incense groups; those from Guanzhong were only a part, and there were many who came from other states from ten thousand miles away.

The journey was long, people were tired and horses were exhausted, but this was only the starting point. Entering the mountain still required quite a bit of tossing, so they chose to rest at the foot of the mountain first and regain their spirits before entering the mountain to worship.

Second, all the Qin-Chu Ancient Roads were important roads communicating north and south, and along the way, there were supporting facilities such as passes, post stations, shops, and stores.

Like this place, there was a Mount Zhongnan Post Station, and there were several inns and tea shops around, and even shops specializing in selling incense and candles, so naturally there were quite a few people.

And Li Yan's feeling was even deeper.

He looked at the Mount Zhongnan range, his eyes full of shock.

He had also been here in his previous life, but with supernatural powers, it was another scene.

Wang Daoxuan had once told him that all famous mountains and rivers, caves and blessed lands, connect to the earth veins below and hook the sun, moon, and stars above, causing innate Gang Qi to gather and form a "situation."

!.

Mount Zhongnan was not listed as a cave and blessed land, all because it was not a single mountain, but a section of the mountain range in the middle of the Qin Mountains. One of the main peaks, Mount Taibai, was the "Mysterious Virtue Cave and Blessed Land," and Mount Cuihua was the "West City Tai Xuan Extreme True Cave and Blessed Land."

That is to say, he had not yet reached the core area.

But even so, he could smell a kind of clear, upright, and fierce Gang Qi, carrying a bit of sobriety, but also majestic and vast, like a giant standing between heaven and earth, with a sense of oppression rushing toward him.

Wang Daoxuan saw this and laughed dumbly, "Just get used to it more; the Qin Mountains are a great dragon vein, and there are quite a few similar areas."

"You have the nose supernatural power, so you feel it deeply. This Daoist doesn't have this good fortune; I once relied on the ritual altar to experience the taste."

"Mystic Sect cultivation is not just for supernatural powers; just seeing this vast heaven and earth is worth a trip in the human world..."

"The Daoist is right."

Li Yan came back to his senses, sighed, and looked forward to that cave and blessed land even more.

Their team sending the dead was clearly unwelcome wherever they went. Let alone the inn, even the tea shop owner didn't want them to get close.

Everyone understood this very well, parked the carriage far away in the woods by the roadside, agreed to take turns guarding, went to the Medicine King Temple to worship, and then continued on their way.

Anyway, looking at this situation, except for ruined temples and abandoned houses along the way, they could only sleep in the wild. As long as it didn't rain, they could travel during the day and night.

"Little Brother Yan, look!"

Sha Lifei suddenly pointed to the right.

That was where the imperial post station was located.

Post stations can be called one of the most important facilities of the imperial court, large and small.

Large post stations usually include post houses, post official mansions, post official residences, martial official halls, horse god temples, horse sheds, warehouses, prison cells, post soldier quarters, and are surrounded by city walls, plus the commoners living around them, which can be called a small city.

Because of the limited space, the Mount Zhongnan Post Station was only a small one, but it was complete in every detail. Across the courtyard wall, one could hear the neighing of warhorses in the horse shed next door.

And at the entrance of the post station, the post official was full of respect, sending a group of people away; it was exactly Lu Kang's family and the guards.

Li Yan was slightly stunned, then shook his head, "I miscalculated. If I had known they were going up the mountain, why wait those two hours?"

Since things had reached this point, they didn't think about it anymore and left with Wang Daoxuan.

"They are going into the mountain."

Wang Daoxuan saw the road Lu Kang and the others chose and shook his head, "A trip up the mountain takes at least two days. It seems this Lord Lu is not in a hurry at all."

"Let's go, this is the road to the Medicine King Temple."

Just as he said, the Medicine King Temple was not far away, winding around a bend along the mountain road, built in a mountain col, not small in area, and the environment was quiet and secluded.

At this time, there were already quite a few incense guests, coming and going, all with solemn expressions.

There was a young man, who should be offering incense for a relative, burning incense and kowtowing, with tears in his eyes, muttering constantly, "Medicine King, my mother has been bedridden for a long time and is getting thinner day by day; I beg you to bless her for an early recovery..."

Like him, there were quite a few people offering incense.

Seemingly influenced by this atmosphere, the corners of the carriage driver Old Man Meng's eyes were also a bit red, offering incense and kowtowing respectfully, full of piety.

Seeing this situation, Li Yan also felt emotional.

To tell the truth, he didn't know how much use offering incense had. Those who could gather Divine Gang in the secular world were all Earth Gods, who could protect one side and not be invaded by evil spirits, and were already Fortune Gods.

Birth, old age, sickness, and death are all laws of heaven and earth. To say that offering a stick of incense could make a patient recover, I'm afraid even real gods would be too busy, and the Heavenly Dao would also lose order.

Perhaps all they could do was comfort people's hearts.

No matter what, the Medicine King had immeasurable merit and saved countless lives, so even if it was just to cherish the memory, sincere kowtowing was appropriate.

Thinking of this, Li Yan took three sticks of incense, lit them, respectfully inserted them into the incense burner, and then looked at the Medicine King statue, with white eyebrows and kindness, holding a cane and a gourd, looking down at the mortal world, seemingly carrying a trace of pity.

Good craftsmanship...

Statues like this were all cast by Mystic Sect craftsmen and then asked people to install organs and open light, enshrined in temples to worship, and over time, they would absorb the power of incense and gather Divine Gang.

If the statue was not made well, the incense naturally wouldn't be good either.

Li Yan praised secretly in his heart and prepared to kowtow.

He had already smelled the rich incense smell from the statue; with so many people offering incense, it naturally had already gathered Divine Gang.

But just at this moment, the Gou Die mark on his left hand suddenly became hot.

Li Yan's eyes blurred, and hallucinations appeared again:

The surrounding light became dim, the original wooden offering table and incense case quickly decayed, turned into dust and smoke, and dissipated, revealing an ancient and dilapidated stone platform.

On the stone platform sat an old man, dressed exactly the same as the Medicine King, the only difference being his face.

Yellow hair with black spots, fangs and wide mouth, white forehead with hanging eyes.

On his forehead, there was also a large "King" character!

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 96 =====