Chen Shi's eyes were filled with a smile as he praised, "Friend Chu, you are a prodigy. Your transformation from the Divine Dao to the Immortal Dao is truly breathtaking."
Chu Xiangxiu raised his head in surprise, "You can understand it?"
He lowered his head again, his voice sowhat somber and sorrowful, "Others can't understand it. I asked them, and they said it's a Ghost Talisman."
Chen Shi laughed, "Under heaven, even among immortals, most are ordinary. Not many can understand you. I, though unworthy, happen to be one of them."
Chu Xiangxiu's eyes gradually brightened, a smile appeared on his face, and he began to speak more.
"When Master adopted , this place was experiencing famine. My parents and I were fleeing to here, and they starved to death while I fainted from hunger. Master revived with offerings from his temple. Since then, I've followed him."
Speaking to Chen Shi, it was as if he was speaking to himself.
"People from nearby villages and towns often ca to find Master for help—lost belongings, missing children, fields overgrown with weeds, or locust plagues, all sought him out. They didn't bring much as gifts, just so fruits and vegetables. I grew up alongside Master, living off these fruits and vegetables."
"Master said he didn't know how to cultivate, so he passed these things on to . I couldn't cultivate either. By watching these things every day, I gradually understood their aning. I helped Master with tasks, helping people drive away pests, find lost items, clear weeds..."
Chen Shi thought to himself, "Such comprehension seems to surpass even mine."
"You've cultivated for so long; surely you've achieved Harmonization?" Chen Shi asked.
Chu Xiangxiu replied, "I don't know my cultivation level. One day, out of nowhere, I was struck by lightning, and afterward, Immortal Energy and Immortal Light ca flowing to . Master said I was on the verge of Harmonization. Although he was the Earth God of Feng'an County, there wasn't a place suitable for my Harmonization in Feng'an County. He is a minor god, and for Harmonization, I need a vast space, which he couldn't provide. I didn't want to trouble him, and he said that if I didn't achieve Harmonization, I wouldn't live many more years."
Chen Shi felt a slight stir in his heart and asked, "Where did you go for Harmonization?"
"Master said that the Earth Immortal Realm is all owned by soone; without power or influence, I couldn't achieve Harmonization."
Chu Xiangxiu pursed his lips and said, "To achieve Harmonization, I had to go to the Dark Sea. So I set out, and it took over ten years to get there."
Chen Shi raised his eyebrows, "In the Dark Sea, when achieving Harmonization, did you encounter sothing peculiar?"
Chu Xiangxiu looked at his hands. His hands were clay-like and said, "Harmonization ans rging with the Heaven and Earth Great Dao, but the Great Dao in the Dark Sea might be sowhat strange. I painstakingly spent decades before successfully achieving Harmonization."
Chen Shi stared at his hands, "Did you bring the Great Dao of the Dark Sea back to the Earth Immortal Realm?"
Chu Xiangxiu replied, "Didn't you do the sa?"
Chen Shi lifted his gaze and t his, and they exchanged a glance before averting their eyes.
Chen Shi asked, "What happened after your return? How co your master disappeared?"
Chu Xiangxiu again stared at his hands and said, "He must have died. I was gone for nearly fifty years, and when I ca back, the temple was empty. People nearby seldom believed in the Earth God anymore; they turned to Bodhisattvas. I asked many people, but no one knew how he died. He was the Earth God of Feng'an County, how could he just die…"
He rubbed his fingers, causing the soil to fall away.
Chen Shi said, "You have no evidence it was Mahasthamaprapta Bodhisattva who did it."
"Correct. I have no evidence."
Chu Xiangxiu lowered his head, with water flowing from the eye sockets made of clay, moistening the clay eyeballs before falling drop by drop. He said, "I don't know who did it. But I know who benefited. The one who gained the most from this must have issues! So, with earth from Master's temple, I made an incense stick… Are you here to take to the Heavenly Court for trial? I won't go down without a fight."
Chen Shi said in a grave voice, "You cast spells to summon rain, killing many people. I'm here on orders to investigate this case and have no choice but to take you back."
Chu Xiangxiu shook his head, "I didn't cast spells to summon rain. I just went out to find who did it."
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