Chapter 2832

Realizing that the old man before him was indeed possessed of great supernatural powers and was also a Han person, Lin Zhulu knelt on the ground without hesitation, choking with sobs as he pleaded, "Old immortal, the Han empire is now almost entirely occupied by the Tatars, and the Han people are living in misery and suffering. This junior has resisted the Qing for many years, but my ability is limited, and I can only watch helplessly as the Han empire continues to fall. Since the old immortal is also a Han person, I beg the old immortal to drive away the Qing dogs and restore the Han empire!"

Wu Feiyan also came to her senses, hurriedly knelt and kowtowed, and said respectfully, "I beg the old immortal to intervene!"

Meng Changsheng was slightly stunned by the two's actions, then he laughed mockingly and said, "I have been in seclusion here for hundreds of years. Whose empire is outside has nothing to do with me anymore. Whether a Han person is emperor, a Mongol is emperor, or a Manchu is emperor, none of these are things I care about."

Lin Zhulu and Wu Feiyan were suddenly filled with despair.

They had thought that with the old immortal's strength to easily kill hundreds of Qing soldiers with a flick of his finger, even taking the dog head of that old man Shunzhi in the Yanjing imperial city would be a piece of cake.

However, they had overestimated the Han integrity in Meng Changsheng.

In fact, having lived to this age, Meng Changsheng had long ago thrown national righteousness and national integrity to the back of his mind.

Therefore, he said with an indifferent expression, "This place is where I cultivate in seclusion. You two must not stay here any longer to disturb my practice. The Qing army chasing you has been completely killed by me, and you can leave now."

Lin Zhulu knelt on the ground and said, "Old immortal, if you can drive the Qing dogs out of the pass and save the common people, it will surely be a meritorious deed, and it will definitely be of great benefit to your cultivation. Moreover, such a thing should be a mere trifle for you. I beg you to reconsider!"

Meng Changsheng said with disdain, "Merit? Merit is like a chastity archway; even if there is more, so what? If there is more merit, can one attain longevity?"

Lin Zhulu was somewhat startled. To him, longevity was still a very unfamiliar term, and he completely did not understand what the meaning behind these two words was.

Seeing him stunned, Meng Changsheng said lightly, "Do not think that I am the only one in the world with such strength. Anyone who can sit on the throne is one who gathers the timing, geographical advantages, and human harmony. The fact that the Manchu emperor could fight into the pass and seize the Han imperial city proves that his destiny, his clan's dragon vein, and the national fortune of the Manchu Qing far exceed those of the Han at this stage, and there must be experts assisting him by his side!"

Having said this, Meng Changsheng paused slightly and continued, "I advise you not to be like a mantis trying to stop a chariot. With the two of you's abilities, there is basically no possibility of defeating a nation whose national fortune is rising."

Upon hearing this, Lin Zhulu appeared extremely dejected. He lowered his head, his tone firm and unyielding, yet filled with a sense of tragedy: "Even if I, Lin Zhulu, have no power to restore the Han empire, I will never give up fighting the Qing dogs to the end! The Qing dogs have a population of less than a million, yet they can occupy most of our China. If every Chinese man were indifferent, the Han people would never be able to take back the empire!"

Meng Changsheng smiled indifferently, "Your so-called ideals and ambitions are just because you haven't lived long enough. If you could live to my age, what would it matter who is emperor, the Tatars or the Han?"

Wu Feiyan, who was on the side, saw that he was unmoved and hurriedly said, "Old immortal, the Qing army is currently moving south like a hot knife through butter. They have already reached Huguang and are about to enter the Ten Thousand Mountains. Past the Ten Thousand Mountains is Diannan. Once they take Diannan into their pockets, China will be completely destroyed. At that time, you, old sir, will not only lose this precious place for cultivation, but even looking at the entire Central Plains, I'm afraid you won't be able to find a place to stay!"

Upon hearing this, Meng Changsheng frowned slightly and unconsciously.

Wu Feiyan keenly captured his change and immediately struck while the iron was hot, "Old immortal, you have the appearance of a Daoist immortal and an extraordinary bearing, especially that bun made of long hair, which is the finishing touch!"

Having said this, Wu Feiyan changed the subject and said loudly, "Old immortal, in order to unify the Central Plains, the Qing dogs are forcing all Chinese people to shave their heads and keep that money-rat-tail braid no thicker than a little finger. If you don't shave, you get beheaded. If you have nowhere to cultivate in the future and are forced into the world, if you don't want to bring about a fatal disaster, you will have to shave off your long hair. Can you accept that?"

Meng Changsheng's expression suddenly became extremely ugly.

He had been cultivating here for hundreds of years. In these hundreds of years, almost no one had come to his cave dwelling. But today, that group of blind Qing soldiers rushed in, shouting and killing, disturbing his peace.

He had thought it was just an accidental event, but now that he heard Wu Feiyan say this, he suddenly felt a sense of unease in his heart.

At this moment, Meng Changsheng remained silent for a long time.

Just then, a fire suddenly rose to the sky at the foot of the mountain. In order to completely exterminate the Southern Ming army and the Anti-Qing Society, the Qing army had begun to set fire to the mountain.

Seeing the raging fire, Meng Changsheng suddenly changed his mind and said, "Forget it. Since you two want to restore the Han empire, I can give you a chance, to see if you are willing."

Lin Zhulu was overjoyed and said hurriedly, "Old immortal, please speak!"

Meng Changsheng said lightly, "Today, you two will take me as your master. I will teach you some skills to fight the Qing. After you leave the Ten Thousand Mountains, you can continue to fight the Manchu Qing to restore the Han empire."

Lin Zhulu immediately said with great excitement, "Disciple Lin Zhulu, I pay my respects and thank the Master!"

Wu Feiyan, who was on the side, also knelt down immediately and shouted, "Disciple Wu Feiyan, I pay my respects and thank the Master!"

Back then, Wu Feiyan did not know why Meng Changsheng had suddenly changed his mind.

However, at the moment when this scene from more than three hundred years ago reappeared in her mind, she suddenly understood the reason.

At that time, it was 1650 AD, and there were 13 years left until Meng Changsheng's deadline.

The reason Meng Changsheng took the two of them as disciples was likely to let them delay the Qing army's attack on the Ten Thousand Mountains after they finished their studies.

In other words, Meng Changsheng had his own plans for everything. Taking Lin Zhulu and Wu Feiyan as disciples was likely for himself, so that his final thirteen years would not be disturbed by the Qing army.

Thinking of this, Wu Feiyan thought to herself with even more determination: "Thinking carefully, the Master has always been extremely eager to extend his life. Why would he have accepted his deadline so easily back then? The only reasonable explanation is that he had already found a way to counter the deadline!"

"And he has been hiding it, even pretending to say goodbye to me and my Senior Brother. I'm afraid he is playing a big game of chess, and perhaps both my Senior Brother and I are just his pawns!"

"The Master will stop at nothing to seek longevity. If I rashly expose myself to him today, what should I do if he wants me to lead the entire Anti-Qing Society to submit to him in the future?!"

At this moment, Wu Feiyan felt extreme regret in her heart. She regretted coming to the Ten Thousand Mountains, and even more regretted coming to China!

But now that the die was cast, the only thing she could do was to hide as far away as possible!