Chapter 1135: Chapter 179: Reincarnated (Part 3)
“Old Female Immortal Huang?”
In the small inn, inside Mo Mo’s room, Ye Fei mentioned some things he had heard—this iron box was found beneath the ruins of Old Female Immortal Huang’s home.
“She must have been one of those shamans from rural areas practicing deceit before the Four Olds,” Ye Fei shared his viewpoint, “Back in the day, rural folk were mostly ignorant, and outsiders frequently used small bits of chemistry and physics knowledge to fool the people.”
Mo Mo rubbed his temples, looked at Ye Fei, and suddenly remarked with a quirky expression, “Brother Ye, here we are cultivating immortality, discussing chemistry and physics, feeling like something’s off, right?”
Ye Fei didn’t think much of this, shrugged and said, “The development of science also gradually makes people forget about another kind of power… but it’s hard to judge whether this is good or bad.”
Mo Mo asked in surprise, “Why say that?”
Ye Fei smiled lightly, “Brother Mo, what do you think of the power of your Dragon Tiger Mountain’s tradition?”
Mo Mo paused, frowned, “My sect mainly deals with driving away ghosts and subduing monsters, aided by talisman arts, and in terms of power, my master says it’s stronger than other traditions. But Taoism is broad and profound, there are many paths; it’s hard to say which is stronger.”
Ye Fei shook his head, calmly saying, “Brother Mo, just tell me, what do you think of the power of your Taoist magic arts?”
Mo Mo was silent for a moment, “It’s very powerful… quite a few spells can’t be used lightly.”
Ye Fei nodded, “Exactly, Brother Mo. The Taoist sects in the world have many branches. Over thousands of years, it has been created by predecessors and developed by successors, making this system plex and powerful. In ancient times, disciples of various Taoist sects often had to persist in cultivating for decades before they could access Taoist magic. And even then, it might just scratch the surface. But nowadays… dare I ask Brother Mo, at what age did you start cultivating Taoist magic?”
“Fourteen years old, my master taught me my first Taoist magic art, Five Ghosts Hauling.” Mo Mo said casually, then waved his hand, and the teacup on the distant table seemed to be lifted by something, slowly floating to his hand.
“Good skill, Brother Mo.” Ye Fei smiled, “Brother Mo, starting Taoist magic at fourteen, it can only be said that Brother Mo has great talent… but it also proves the progress of Taoism from another perspective. After thousands of years of refinement and summary, it allows successors to avoid many detours. In fact, it’s not just Brother Mo, many Taoist sects today have already started to let young disciples begin cultivating Taoism. But stopping to think carefully, this is probably also a sign of the decline of Taoism… Brother Mo, do you understand my meaning?”
Mo Mo thought for a while, frowned and said, “You mean, in the past when Taoism was thriving, disciples were never short, so they could always insist on letting disciples improve their own selves physically and mentally, cultivating mind before cultivating skills, and only when ready, start the cultivation of Taoism. Now… now they’re forced to change strategies, doing it the other way around?”
“Do you know why?” Ye Fei suddenly asked.
Mo Mo instinctively shook his head.
Ye Fei sighed, “To avoid cutting off the inheritance… Imagine Brother Mo, if we still followed the old ways, cultivating immortality by cultivating the mind first, how many years would be lost? Modern people are impatient, seeking quick success, how many, after all, can settle down, sit in meditation for decades, practice breathing for decades, day in and day out? I do not deny the existence of such people, and their presence is still the true successors of Taoism… But such people are really hard to find. We have no choice, cutting off the inheritance means being ashamed before the ancestors of the sect, so the choice to step back is inevitable.”
“Won’t this surely lead to an unstable Taoist heart?” Mo Mo said seriously, “People… can easily lose themselves when acquiring powerful strength.”
“Just like today’s science.” Ye Fei said calmly, “The explosive development of science is only a matter of the past one or two hundred years. Yet its ability or power can change or even destroy the world… and now, it is already mastered by most people. Brother Mo, do you think this is a good thing?”
Mo Mo shook his head.
Ye Fei sighed, “So is Taoism, lowering the threshold just to prevent the inheritance from breaking off, isn’t this another kind of ‘science’?”
“Brother Ye, isn’t this being overly concerned?” Mo Mo shook his head.
Ye Fei said, “Brother Mo, after the New Kingdom was established, to prevent certain evil Taoists from harming the people, a large-scale elimination campaign was undertaken, do you know?”
Mo Mo nodded, “I’ve heard from my master. That was when China’s true dragon and Xuanyuan Palace jointly acted, and within just a few months, they cleared out all demon sects in China. All evil path monks were either deprived of cultivation, directly suppressed, or killed outright.”
Ye Fei said, “Actually, many of these evil path monks were once orthodox Taoists. But because of Taoism’s approach of lowering the threshold, they went astray. Throughout history, ancient evil path demon sects were not that many… The demon is born of the heart, the demon es from the Tao.”
Mo Mo sighed, “I see.”
Ye Fei paused and continued, “However, even though evil path monks have basically been cleared, the New Kingdom later still established the Management Bureau. Over these decades, abuses of Taoist magic for evil keep appearing… Demons can’t be entirely eradicated, as long as evil thoughts arise, demons will appear.”
Mo Mo realized, sighed, “So Brother Ye, you said that cultivating the Tao, even if forgotten by the world, can’t truly be said whether it’s good or bad.”
Ye Fei slowly closed his eyes.
This left Mo Mo feeling somewhat heavy-hearted… But as his master sent him down the mountain to train, simply capturing some ghosts and fighting disobedient little monsters along the way is too monotonous. Discussions like this among peers seem necessary, right?
Demons born of the heart…
Mo Mo’s heart stirred, instinctively asked, “Brother Ye, if you encounter demons, what will you do?”
Ye Fei slowly opened his eyes, a cold gleam in them, and said softly, “Eradicate all evil. Since the degeneration of Taoism is irreversible, the only way is for future generations to gradually remove it. When all impurities are removed, naturally it will be transparent.”
Mo Mo opened his mouth. At this moment, he was not shocked by Ye Fei’s words, but rather the clarity in his eyes.
…
After a round of conversation, Ye Fei took the box and left, saying he wanted to try investigating the origin of the contents—he also left Mo Mo with a few test tubes from the box.
Perhaps thinking Mo Mo might also have the possibility to investigate clearly.
But actually, they didn’t have to split up—Mo Mo actually thought that cooperating to investigate together was also possible.
He suddenly felt that perhaps Ye Fei is a more solitary, solo person.
Thinking of Ye Fei mentioning his sect, Mo Mo pulled out his phone, calling Elder Changhe on Dragon Tiger Mountain, who had guided him into the world of cultivating immortality.
The buzzing sound rang out, Mo Mo looked at the convenient smartphone in his hand and murmured, “Science indeed.”
“Hello? Brat, what did you just say?”
“Old man, I want to ask you something. Have you heard of the ‘Gui Xu’ Taoist sect?”
“Gui Xu? What ghost? Never heard of it. Why did you suddenly ask about this thing?”
Mo Mo casually recounted his encounter with Ye Fei and some incidents in the fishing village.
“I have no impression of Gui Xu sect. I just checked the Taoist sect directory, and it’s registered there. But hearing you say this, he knows a lot about Chinese matters, logically he should have reported to the Management Bureau… Could it really be those hidden sects, only now ing out of seclusion? Or is it…”
“What do you mean?” Mo Mo said impatiently, “Old man, can you please stop speaking in fragments?”
“Brat, brat, repeat your conversation with him to me carefully. Don’t miss a word!!”
“Reciting…” Mo Mo groaned deeply, but still closed his eyes and recalled it word by word.
For a long while, Elder Changhe was silent. Just as Mo Mo was getting a bit restless, the phone finally relayed Elder Changhe’s voice, “The purge of the Demon Sect back then is something the younger generation couldn’t possibly know. We had an agreement not to speak of it lightly. That person is about your age and from a secluded sect, so he shouldn’t know anything. It’s illogical… unless.”
“Unless what?”
“Unless he is the remnant of those Evil Paths that were purged back then,” Elder Changhe’s voice was slightly grave, “The purge at that time was fraught with plications, and no one can claim that all the Evil Paths were pletely eradicated. Given how exceptionally cunning the Evil Path monks are, it’s not impossible for someone to have quietly escaped.”
“Old man, Brother Ye doesn’t seem like it, right? Just like me, he heard tales of the sea monster and planned to e and exorcise it?”
“I’m just making assumptions. In any case, this person’s origins are mysterious, so keep a close watch and don’t trust easily.”
Mo Mo nodded.
…
…
Ye Fei was rather elusive, and Mo Mo found it difficult to grasp his whereabouts—even though there were unconventional methods.
However, Mo Mo felt that using Taoist magic arts to track someone was quite intrusive—after all, it wasn’t even certain who Ye Fei truly was.
There was, however, one thing that could be put on the agenda.
That was the return of the little girl’s father, Lv Hai, from the village clinic tonight.
It was Mo Mo’s first time seeing this haggard middle-aged man. Due to recovering from a severe illness, Lv Hai’s plexion looked slightly pale.
Upon Lv Hai’s return, he was inevitably rebuked by his wife Luo Aiyu. Facing her mother’s scolding of her father, the little girl could only hide from afar, wanting to do or say something but powerless.
Mo Mo found the little girl Lv Yiyun, who was boiling water in the kitchen.
The little girl was quite fearful of the mysterious young man who had seen through her identity, nervously clutching the corner of her clothing, her head lowered, not daring to look up.
Mo Mo sighed. He’d seen many monsters before, but this was the first time encountering one so timid… He shook his head, “Lv Yiyun, your father has returned. Do you remember what I told you this afternoon?”
Lv Yiyun nodded, then shook her head, biting her lip, “My, my dad can’t be a monster!”
“So, you’re saying it’s your biological mother who’s the monster?” Mo Mo replied.
This made the little girl want to say something, but she ultimately was unable to stand her ground and remained silent.
Mo Mo’s voice softened, “To know your bloodline origin, just get me a drop of your father’s blood. It’s not difficult for you, right? You want to know your origins, don’t you? Rest assured, if your dad is just ordinary, I won’t do anything.”
“But if…”
“No more ‘ifs’.” Mo Mo shook his head and said, “Remember what I told you about the Management Bureau? They are everywhere across the country. This time you only encountered me, but if you ran into them, it might not be as easy to handle… Should they forcibly check and investigate?”
“Alright then.” Lv Yiyun nodded.
Mo Mo then smiled, “Alright, tonight at two, in the woodshed at the back? I’ll wait for you.”
“I’m going to bring water to Grandpa.” The little girl didn’t nod, only lowered her head as she held the kettle and jogged away.
Mo Mo watched the little girl run off, suddenly smacking his forehead, blaming himself for being a fool… he could have verified with the little girl’s grandpa’s blood, right?
Perhaps Lv Hai also has a demon bloodline, and it came from that old man’s wife?
But if that’s the case, it seems even more challenging to investigate, doesn’t it?
Mo Mo scratched his head, but just then, several flashes of lightning occurred outside, followed by a rumbling thunder.
The weather by the sea really is unpredictable… Mo Mo muttered, thinking of Ye Fei, wondering if he had found out anything.
“I feel like… I’m just sitting back and reaping the rewards?”
…
…
Late at night, a torrential rain poured down, washing away everything.
A small figure, carrying an umbrella, battling the fierce wind, quickly approached the door of the woodshed at the back of the house, hurriedly pushing the door open and slipping inside.
At this moment, lightning flickered, filling the shed with white light, and she saw a pale face appear before her.
Ghost—!
The thunder swallowed her scream.
“Hey, don’t panic! It’s me!”
Mo Mo pulled out his phone, illuminating his own face, and watching the startled Lv Yiyun, he apologized, “I was afraid of being discovered, so I didn’t turn on the light. But I got bored waiting and played a match… Besides, aren’t you a monster? Why are you afraid of ghosts?”
The little girl’s face was pale; she still couldn’t look Mo Mo in the eye, only lowering her head, “I… I brought the thing…”
She seemed frightened, tightly holding a piece of blood-stained tissue, “Is… is this okay?”
Mo Mo didn’t ask how she got the blood, only nodded… But just then, he suddenly covered the little girl’s mouth, “Someone’s ing.”
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