Chapter 210: Putting on a Show of Gods and Ghosts

The town had no walls around it.

People could come and go at any time.

It was a town built mainly of stone and earth, really just a very large village that, because it was prosperous and had a market, had slowly grown into a town.

Once night fell, every household in town shut their doors; the moment it got dark, everyone went to sleep.

Only a scattered few homes still had lamps or firelight burning — either because the family was rich enough to light lamps, or because they had only just started cooking and eating.

Pan Yun walked ahead with a horsetail whisk in hand; behind her, Seeing Miao Zhen held a long sword, and Miao He carried a cat.

The three of them stopped at the town entrance, swept their gaze over the town with a glance, then headed toward the residence with the most lights on.

Miao He asked softly, "Little Xiao Shishu, are we really just going to show up at their door like this?"

Pan Yun: "You want to sleep outdoors for a night instead?"

She said, "Since we're already here, of course we should get a good sleep and a good meal."

The three of them walked straight to the Huang family's main gate.

The Huang family lived in the north of town, occupying half of the entire northern section; their main gate faced the town's main road directly, with walls jutting out on both sides, cutting the whole town in two.

So if the town wanted to grow, it could only expand south, west, and east — the entire northern side was blocked off by the Huang family.

Pan Yun stood at the Huang family's gate, turned to look back, and couldn't help raising an eyebrow.

Though it was very subtle, she still noticed it — the whole town sloped lower in the south and higher in the north.

Seeing Miao Zhen noticed it too. Staring at the Huang family for a while in the night, she said, "Little Xiao Shishu, the Huang family raised their foundation and deliberately built steps to conceal it. Their home is at least two meters higher than the lowest point in the south of town, and inside the gate it's probably even higher."

"The entire main street is paved with green stone bricks. I've only seen this kind of subtly rising layout in two places," Pan Yun said with a half-smile, "one is the square of the Grand Supreme Clarity Palace, the other is the Temple of Heaven in Jingcheng."

The square of the Grand Supreme Clarity Palace was where the Daoists held their grand rites, and the Temple of Heaven was where the state held its sacrifices — both were designed this way to subtly imply a steady ascent upward, reaching the Heavenly Court.

Pan Yun looked up at the Huang family's main gate and gate plaque. "Could it be that the Huang family also wants to subtly liken their own residence to the Heavenly Court?"

She stepped to the bottom of the stairs, stamped the ground beneath her feet, and said, "Don't you think this place is missing two stone lions?"

Miao He widened her eyes and said, "Little Xiao Shishu, that would be overstepping."

Pan Yun: "He's already taken ninety-eight steps — what's one more?"

Seeing Miao Zhen felt the same way. "Anyway, we're itinerant Daoist priests. Even if things come to light in the end, it's the Huang family who'll be called to account."

Pan Yun gave Seeing Miao Zhen an approving look.

Miao He thought of Deng Family Village and the Deng family's poverty, and grew eager to try. "Little Xiao Shishu, let me go knock on the door."

"Knock on what door," Pan Yun glanced at her and said, "Just wait here for me."

With that, she looked up, then leaped lightly, drifting gracefully up onto the roof.

She stood on the roof, took out a talisman paper, gave it a shake, and a great ball of fire appeared out of thin air, hovering in midair.

She stepped forward two paces, stood at the highest point of the roof, the fireball behind her.

Seeing Miao Zhen and Miao He looked up at her eagerly, hurriedly pinching the black cat to relay a message: "Quick, tell Little Xiao Shishu — the fireball needs to come down a bit more, and she needs to shift a bit to the left."

Pan Xiao Hei was being pinched by the two of them until she nearly couldn't breathe, shook her neck in anger, glared at the two of them, and only then spoke to her through the spirit realm.

Pan Yun stood on the roof, calmly shifted a little to the left, then snapped her fingers, making the fireball lower slightly.

Seeing Miao Zhen hurriedly said, "Right, right, just like that — the fireball hovering at her neck and back. That way the people in front can't see the fireball, but they can see the light."

The fireball hovered behind Pan Yun, making her whole person look as if she were radiating golden light.

The commotion on the roof quickly drew the attention of the servants in the Huang family's courtyard. Cries of alarm rose up, and before long the entire Huang household was in motion; quite a few people ran out from their rooms into the courtyard to look at Pan Yun.

Master Huang also came hurrying out, clutching his robe, along with the steward. The moment he looked up, he found it blindingly bright — he couldn't even make out the glowing figure on the roof.

Pan Yun looked down at them through lowered lashes, ignoring the warm fireball behind her. With her hidden hand forming a hand-seal inside her sleeve, wind sprang up at once; her Daoist robe flapped loudly, and the fireball behind her warped somewhat. In the eyes of those below, it looked as if the fire-beast the person from the heavens had brought was fierce and savage, glaring at them menacingly.

The Huang family's servants were so frightened they kept backing away; some fell straight to the ground.

Master Huang was also afraid, but compared to fear, the ambition kindled in his heart was greater. This was a person of extraordinary powers — and one had descended upon his house. What did that signify?

It signified that his family had a fated opportunity.

The wind and the red glow of the fire let Master Huang make out the Daoist robe on Pan Yun. He immediately steadied himself on the steward's hand, stepped forward two paces, and called out loudly, head raised: "For a person of great talent to descend upon my Huang family — this is the fortune of the Huang family, the blessing of the Huang family. I beg the honored one to enter, and allow my Huang family the honor of receiving you."

Pan Yun looked down at him through lowered lashes and said with a faint smile, "Huang Shijian, I have indeed come for you!" Huang Shijian's heart leapt at the words — half afraid, half thrilled — and he grew all the more reverent. "I beg the honored one to enter the residence."

Pan Yun said, "I still have two disciples outside the main gate."

The moment Huang Shijian heard this, he immediately ordered servants to go open the main gate.

The servants scrambled to open the gate in a flurry.

The two doors slowly swung open to either side, revealing Seeing Miao Zhen and Miao He standing outside the main gate.

One held a sword, the other held a cat, with about a meter between them. The two couldn't help sneaking a glance at each other, then in unspoken accord raised their right feet together to step over the threshold.

The two of them had just made it through the gate-tunnel when Pan Yun descended from the sky, drifting slowly down from the roof, landing precisely in front of them, right in the middle.

Pan Xiao Hei had been craning her neck to watch the whole time. Seeing this, she couldn't help letting out a meow, her voice full of disappointment — how had they actually pulled it off? Not even a little off?

Off was impossible. Pan Yun held her horsetail whisk, striding ahead with a proud expression, while Seeing Miao Zhen and Miao He followed behind her like the boy and girl attendants of a bodhisattva.

Master Huang's gaze slid back and forth across the three of them. Although Pan Yun's Daoist robe was covered in patches and even had strips of cloth frayed into threads, and the two Daoist children behind her were plainly dressed, Master Huang just felt they had the bearing of true masters.

Especially with one on each side of him, each cradling in her arms a sword and... a black cat.

!. Read

Master Huang couldn't help looking at the black cat. Meeting its clear, piercing gaze, he felt an involuntary shiver in his heart and hurriedly looked away.

But only for a moment — he quickly looked back, and clearly saw contempt in those cat-eyes.

Master Huang felt a twinge of displeasure in his heart, but dared not show it even more. If even a cat was this uncanny, this Daoist Priest must truly be formidable.

The golden-red glow on Pan Yun had already vanished (the fireball had burned out). Standing before Master Huang now, she was simply a small but spirited Daoist nun.

Master Huang respectfully invited Pan Yun into the main hall, immediately ordering servants to go prepare food and wine. "I beg the immortal elder not to think it beneath you. In the countryside, we only have chicken, duck, fish, and meat fit to eat. Tomorrow I'll send people to gather mountain delicacies."

Pan Yun shook her head and said, "There's no need. Those who cultivate the Dao must abstain from the seven emotions and six desires. Though I have yet to rid myself of this desire, I have no particular attachment to it."

Master Huang suddenly understood, and hurriedly asked, "Even a Daoist master as accomplished as yourself has been unable to rid yourself of the desire for food?"

Pan Yun glanced at him and said, "If I could rid myself of this desire, I would be no far from a Earth Immortal."

Old Man Huang hurriedly asked what her current cultivation level was.

Pan Yun sighed, "Below Earth Immortal is Human Immortal—and I am still far from reaching Human Immortal."

It's still very far indeed; she hasn't even reached the First Marquis yet, and Human Immortal comes only after breaking through the Seventh Marquis. Whether in past or present life, she had never seen anyone become a Human Immortal—she wasn't lying, hehehe…

The peculiar humility of the Chinese, Old Man Huang thought he understood: this Daoist was just one step away from a Human Immortal.

He didn't know what rank Human Immortal was, but since it carried the title "Immortal," it must be extremely powerful.

Pan Yun said, "Precisely because I have not yet broken through to Human Immortal, I have come into the mortal world to undergo trials. I just descended the mountain, and my first sight was this mansion."

She said with a faint smile, "This mansion is no ordinary place."

Old Man Huang's eyes widened; he gripped the armrest of his chair tightly, swallowed hard in nervousness, and asked, "H-how is it different?"

"This mansion faces south with its back to the north, directly east of the Great Shangqing Palace on Long Hushan, precisely severing the Azure Dragon qi of the Great Shangqing Palace."

Pan Yun smiled faintly, "The Great Shangqing Palace is the thousand-year lineage of our Daoist tradition. It was built on Long Hushan because that location gathers the five-directional qi—east, south, west, north, and center—allowing the five elements to generate each other and safeguard the lineage for ten thousand generations. Yet no one anticipated that your family's mansion was built directly atop a qi vein, severing the Azure Dragon qi flowing from the east toward the Great Shangqing Palace."

"Old Man Huang, do you know whether your family built this with intent or by accident?" Pan Yun said. "If it was accidental, then fate itself grows interesting."

Old Man Huang's heart pounded—he didn't know whether his father had acted with intent or not. From the words he left before dying, it was very likely intentional.

Thinking this, Old Man Huang's blood ran cold. He hurriedly said, "Immortal, my family had no intent! What should we do? If Long Hushan finds out, will they harm my family?"

"Old Man Huang, you worry too much. We Daoists believe in cause and effect. Even if a high cultivator from Long Hushan discovers this, they will only speak gently with you and ask you to relocate. To harm others by disrupting the Azure Dragon's qi vein would only bring trouble upon themselves."

Old Man Huang let out a long breath and asked, "Only high cultivators can detect the anomaly in my home?"

Pan Yun: "Not necessarily. Your Huang family has stood here for years, and Long Hushan is but a day's journey away—yet no one ever noticed. This shows the designer's ingenuity. But my junior disciple spotted the anomaly the moment he entered the town."

"Thus, if one encounters someone with extraordinary talent, even if their cultivation is low, they can still perceive anomalies," Pan Yun smiled faintly. "Your family truly built this mansion with clever thought—who would have guessed that the seemingly flat main road, with your Huang residence at the town's highest point, draws all four-directional qi toward your home?"

Old Man Huang's knees buckled; he dropped straight from his chair to the ground and hurriedly pleaded, "Immortal, save me! Please don't expose me! We built this house purely for drainage—I don't understand anything about Azure Dragon qi or four-directional qi!"

Good night, see you tomorrow

(End of Chapter)