Zhang Xiaozu looked at the old gate of Daomen and the depressed scenery on the mountain. He stopped and hesitated, not knowing whether to go up the mountain.
He never imagined that the Taoist Gate with the Tao Ancestor in charge would be in such a miserable state of decline and depression. To put it bluntly, it was like the Shanmen Gate had closed down.
Compared with the luxurious style of Liujiabao, Daomen is so poor that it is almost unbearable to look at it.
However, the reason he hesitated was not because he disliked the Taoist sect for being poor, but because he was worried that his arrival would bring unbearable disaster to the crumbling Taoist sect.
Looking at the Taoist disciples on both sides of the road who were plainly dressed, shouting hard, not caring about other people's opinions, and working hard to make money, Zhang Xiaopou couldn't help but feel sad, and suddenly understood why the Taoist would shamelessly cheat his Holy King Dan.
Because Daomen is too poor.
"It's not easy for fellow sects to survive, and my arrival may make the sect become the enemy of the world. Wouldn't that cut off their way of survival? Forget it, it's better not to cause trouble to the big guys."
Zhang Xiaozu shook his head slightly and turned to leave.
Suddenly a voice stopped him.
"Hey, this young hero is already here. Why don't you go up the mountain to burn incense? Maybe my young master's uncle will go back to the mountain in the afternoon. It's the right time to go up the mountain now."
The Taoist guarding the gate coaxed and deceived.
"Who is your little master's uncle?" Zhang Xiaozu asked in confusion.
"Jiuzhou Zhang Dayong, young hero, don't you know?" The Taoist looked at Zhang Xiaopeng in surprise.
Zhang Xiaozhu was startled when he heard this, surprised that his seniority was so high, but he immediately understood that he was a direct disciple of Tao Ancestor, and Tao Ancestor was the founder of the Tao Sect, so his seniority was naturally very high in the Tao Sect.
Even ridiculously high.
Zhang Xiaozu looked the Taoist up and down and asked calmly: "How do you know that Zhang Dayong will definitely come back?"
"Look what you said, this is my uncle's home. How can anyone not go home?" the Taoist replied.
"This makes sense." Zhang Xiaozhu felt warm after hearing this, and asked again: "Now that everyone in the world is looking for Zhang Dayong, you are not afraid that his arrival will make the Taoist sect an enemy of the world and bring you annihilation. Disaster?"
"If the sky falls, Taoist ancestors are there to hold it up. Below Taoist ancestors, there are elders and second uncles. Little people like us don't know the sky above and the earth below. Who will make things difficult for us?" the Taoist replied nonchalantly.
After hearing what the Taoist said, Zhang Xiaozhu immediately gave up the idea of leaving. He thought that things had already broken out. Now it was the Taoist ancestor, the uncle, and the second master who were helping him. He couldn't be like a tortoise with no face. If you dare to reveal yourself, you must at least meet the uncle and the second master and give an explanation.
"I want to go up the mountain." Zhang Xiaozu said after making up his mind.
Upon hearing this, the Taoist immediately beamed with joy and took Zhang Xiaopeng to the registration office in the pavilion next to the door. He said, "You must register before going up the mountain, and then each of you must hand over five star pills. The young hero and this lady are going up the mountain together." ?"
Zhang Xiaozhu was shocked when he heard this and asked: "Does anyone have to pay for going up the mountain?"
"That's right, with five star pills for one person, no child can be deceived. There are many benefits to going up the mountain. Young hero, don't miss out on a big opportunity just because you are reluctant to part with a small amount of money."
"Oh, what great opportunity is there on the mountain? Let me tell you about it." A man in brocade clothes came up and asked.
The Taoist cleared his throat and said: "First of all, there are gods on the mountain. You can burn incense to pray for marriage, children, wealth, peace, etc. Secondly, there are immortal mansions on the mountain, the Taoist's cave, and the caves of the uncle and the second uncle. Everyone You can go and visit, and maybe you can understand the supreme laws of heaven and earth from the cultivation aura they left behind. Furthermore, if my little master uncle comes back, those who are on the mountain will naturally be the first to get the moon near the water and the tower. In addition, if If my uncle is in a good mood, you will still have a chance to play chess with him."
"Is this true?" The man in brocade clothes was surprised when he heard this.
"It's absolutely true. I guarantee it with the reputation of Taoism." The Taoist nodded affirmatively.
But he said one less thing: these projects require money.
"I want to go up the mountain, I want to visit the Taoist ancestor's cave, and I want to play chess with the Taoist master and give you pills." The man in brocade clothes couldn't wait to take out five star pills and put them on the registration table.
"Please register and just write your name." The Taoist smiled and put away the Star Pill, then pushed a thick booklet in front of the man in brocade and said, "Thousands of people have already gone up the mountain. You have to catch them." Take the chance, I won’t even be able to drink soup at the foot of the mountain.”
He is trying to trick people into paying money to go up the mountain.
The man in brocade clothes wrote his name on the book, called Banihong.
The Taoist took out a finger-long wooden stick from the drawer under the table, then made a magic spell on the stick, handed it to Banihong and said: "Master Ba, please take this with you. If you are inspected, Just show this to them. There have been a lot of lay people sneaking up the mountain recently, which is very annoying."
"Thank you." Banihong took the stick and hurried up the mountain.
"Let's go up the mountain too." Zhang Xiaozu took out ten star pills and put them on the table, and then wrote his name on the register. He didn't write his real name, but wrote Mr. Zhang.
I was thinking of giving Ye Mingyue a pseudonym, but Ye Mingyue asked for a writing brush and wrote the three words "Zhang Yeshi".
"Third Master, please take it. Madam, please take it."
The Taoist handed the blessed wooden stick to Zhang Xiaozu and the other two.
Zhang Xiaozu put away the wooden stick, then took Ye Mingyue's hand and walked towards the gate. After walking more than ten steps, his expression suddenly became strange. He looked back at the Taoist and asked, "Is this really a Taoist gate?"
"Ah?" The Taoist was stunned by Zhang Xiaopou's question. When he realized what he was doing, he couldn't help but laugh and said, "Look at what you said, where else could this be if it wasn't a Taoist sect?"
Zhang Xiaozu opened his mouth and wanted to say: "I suspect this is a den of deception and kidnapping."
However, he didn't say the words. Instead, he stared at the Taoist's eyes with a half-smile for a while, and then said, "The name of the gentleman just now is quite interesting."
After saying that, he turned his head and continued walking forward.
The Taoist's expression froze, he touched his nose in embarrassment, and muttered in his heart: "Damn Cui Sanjin, tell him to walk more up the mountain and then look back. He just doesn't listen. Now someone will see through it."
"Is there something wrong with that person just now?" Ye Mingyue asked in a low voice.
"Can you read his name twice more?" Zhang Xiaozu said with a smile.
"Banihong...Banihong...ba...coaxed you?" Ye Mingyue muttered twice before reacting. She suddenly felt wary, stopped and asked via voice transmission: "He wants to coax us both to go up the mountain? He Have you figured out our identities?"
Zhang Xiaozhu took Ye Mingyue's hand and walked forward without stopping, explaining as he walked: "He wanted to coax us to go up the mountain, but he didn't find out our identities, nor was he specifically targeting us. For everyone who comes here.”
"What do you mean?" Ye Mingyue didn't quite understand, "Does he have any ulterior motives?"
"I just followed that person with a subtle attitude. I found that after he climbed up the mountain for a certain distance, he got into the side path and turned back. He even changed his clothes on the way down. I guess he was cooperating with the person in charge of registration. A Taoist man who sings and persuades people to pay money to go up the mountain."
"Why are you bewitching people to go up the mountain? Could it be that the Taoist master wants to keep everyone behind and use thunderous means to shock the world and make the martial arts cultivators put away their evil thoughts towards the Taoist sect?"
"You're overthinking it. They probably just want to make money." Zhang Xiaozu shook his head and smiled.
Ye Mingyue was surprised at first when he heard this, and then couldn't help but get happy and said: "They are treating you as a cash cow. Who came up with this idea? You are so money-making. You said, they want you to come back now. Well, still don’t want you to come back?”
"Maybe I don't hope." Zhang Xiaozhu said with a bitter smile, "If I don't come back for a day, they will make an extra day of money."
"I think so too." Ye Mingyue nodded and smiled, "It costs money to go up the mountain. Do you think it costs money to burn incense? Does it cost money to visit the Taoist ancestor's cave? Does it cost money to play chess with the Taoist master?"
"It's definitely not going to be free."
"When the news spreads throughout Tianwaitian and cultivators from Beiqiong, Zhongyue, and Gunan gather here, that sect will make a fortune."
"I'm afraid that in the end I will become the public enemy of the whole world, and the enemy will directly use the knife to speak." Zhang Xiaozu said worriedly.
"Don't be afraid, Dao Ancestor is there to support you."
"I'm afraid that even Daozu, the old man, won't be able to withstand it."
"Have you heard of the saying that those who are barefoot are not afraid of those who wear shoes? Dao sects are all barefoot now. Which of the other Tianzuns does not have a big family and a big business? Do they dare to risk all their family wealth and Dao Ancestor to fight for their lives?"
Zhang Xiaozhu looked at Ye Mingyue in surprise when he heard this and said, "Listening to what you said, why do I feel that the Taoist sect's 'poverty' has been planned for a long time."
Ye Mingyue said: "It's not impossible."
Zhang Xiaozu shook his head and said: "It's not always good to fight. It will involve too many fellow disciples. We have to find a way to divert people's attention."
"That's easy."
"how to say?"
"Just tell the truth. Just say that you were captured by Liu Wuzhi and sent to Tianwaitian. As for how Liu Wuzhi got to Jiuzhou, let the Liu family explain. Maybe the Liu family's teleportation array has been repaired. ." Ye Mingyue blinked at Zhang Xiaopou.
Zhang Xiaopou gave Ye Mingyue a thumbs up and praised: "It's a wonderful trick to divert disaster to the east."
Some people died, but not completely...
