After a night of heavy rain, by the Jishui River, young and strong men in the village gathered, hoping to salvage some rare things from the river.
However, at this moment, beside the rolling Jishui River, there were screams and shouts one after another.
The crowd surged, and the place by the river was completely surrounded.
The news that young Ji Xukong had salvaged a "corpse" quickly spread throughout the small fishing village.
In fact, similar things have happened before.
After heavy rains and flash floods, there will inevitably be some dead beasts drifting in Jishui River, and villagers sometimes see some victims.
Natural disasters are ruthless, but manpower is eventually exhausted. It is not unexpected that something like this happens.
The folk customs here have always been simple and honest. Usually when something like this happens, the villagers will not covet the property of the deceased. They will only fish up the body and simply dig a pit and bury it.
Occasionally when encountering some unlucky situation, everyone would invite the most virtuous and respectable person in the village to offer sacrifices and then throw the things back into the river, pretending that they had not been fished out.
This has been the case for more than a hundred years.
Fortunately, the fishing village did not encounter any strange disasters after all, and it was quite peaceful and peaceful.
Therefore, when the villagers who were left behind to clean up the mess heard about this incident, they were not too panicked. They even warned the children not to see any "water ghosts".
But the situation this time seems to be different from before.
On the bank of Jishui River, in the center of the crowd, everyone's eyes were extremely solemn. Looking at the "corpse" in front of them, they were even more embarrassed and did not dare to show any signs of it.
As for the person involved, Ji Xukong, although his face was pale, there was a faint expression of excitement in his eyes.
"Do you think this old man is really dead?"
It took a long time before a young man, who was not afraid of tigers even after he was born, asked, without any taboos.
If it were normal, he would have been scolded by the uncles in the neighborhood.
They were fished out of the river and soaked for most of the night. They are all swollen. Is there anyone left alive?
But this time, even the most well-traveled and well-informed person in the village could not make up his mind and hesitated to speak out.
I saw that the old man who was rescued by Ji Vukong had white beard and hair, a rosy complexion, and a calm expression. He was wearing a Taoist robe that did not look gorgeous, but was more natural and simple.
Not only that, the old man's body was even more dim and radiant. Although it was not obvious in broad daylight, it also made the onlookers feel dazzled.
At the same time, the old man's clothes were all dry, and he didn't look like he had just been fished out of the water.
What I saw in front of me was that the "old god" who looked like an immortal was clearly like an immortal. How could he be the unlucky "water ghost"?
The young man Ji Xukong looked around and saw that most of the people had doubtful expressions on their faces and no one spoke, so he felt heartbroken and took the initiative to step forward.
"Boy!" "Void!"
At the neighbor's uncle's sincere concern, Xiao Xukong smiled brightly, and then cautiously approached the old man, sensing his breath and heartbeat. He soon breathed a sigh of relief and raised his head:
"He's still alive!"
"Xu...Xu Kong, come back quickly!"
Not far away, the expressions on everyone's faces not only did not relax at all, but became more anxious and kept shouting.
Ji Xukong followed everyone's gaze and noticed that at some point, a faint purple mist was steaming out from where the old man was lying.
The villagers were afraid of avoiding the fog, but Ji Vukong felt comfortable all over and his exhaustion was gone.
However, in order not to worry his parents, relatives and friends, he reluctantly left the old man and returned to the villagers.
And as time went by, the purple energy not only did not dissipate, but became more intense and surging, reflecting the nine-color divine cloud, making this place look like a fairyland on earth.
At the same time, there was a faintly refreshing fragrance that filled the air, making everyone present feel like they had been reborn.
Just when everyone was in ecstasy, a slightly noisy voice came from the periphery of the crowd.
Not long after, an old man with white hair, but relatively energetic appeared and slowly approached surrounded by villagers.
】
Seeing this old man, the villagers seemed to suddenly have a backbone and came forward to greet him.
Xiao Xukong even took the initiative to run over, carefully helped the other person approach the Jishui River, and walked to the old Taoist man fished out of the water.
Seeing that the old man next to him had a solemn expression and looked at the old Taoist carefully without blinking, Ji Xukong couldn't help but ask:
"Grandpa, do you think he is a god?"
After his words fell, the place fell silent for an instant, and everyone present changed their expressions. Immediately, they all looked at the old man expectantly.
In fact, the boy's question is also a common doubt in the hearts of the villagers.
Hearing this, the gray-haired old man's eyes shone brightly. He did not answer directly, but only sighed sincerely:
"This man is countless times scarier than monsters and monsters."
Really divine!
In an instant, Ji Xukong was so elated that his soul almost flew out of the sky.
Just as he was thinking about how he would say hello to the old god when he woke up, his grandfather ordered everyone to throw the old god back into the Jishui River.
"Grandpa!?"
Ji Xukong's eyes were full of doubts and confusion.
Among the villagers present, some had the same expression as Xiao Xukong, while others nodded with relief on their faces.
Hearing this, the white-haired old man touched Ji Xukong's head and said earnestly:
"He and we are not from the same world after all. If we leave him behind, it is very likely to bring disaster to our village. Do you understand, Kong Kong?"
Of course, Little Xukong didn't fully understand Grandpa Zu's words, but he intuitively felt that Grandpa Zu was doing it for everyone's good, so he stopped making noise and just looked at the old god not far away with reluctance.
Seeing this, Grandpa Zu comforted him and said:
"Don't worry, nothing in the river can hurt that man."
"boom!"
And just when several young men stepped forward to lift the old god up, the latter suddenly opened his eyes.
The two golden dragon-like eyes were blazing, as if they had sunk into the depths of the sky, making the bright sun seem to dim in an instant. Only the fairy light was eternal in the world.
Even so, the old god's body did not have any fluctuations in divine energy. The people watching only had expressions of wonder on their faces and were not affected.
After a long time, the immortal light gradually died down, and the old immortal "came alive" in the astonished eyes of everyone. He stood up and walked around like a normal person.
After this day, there was such an old god in the small village by the Jishui River.
He eats the wind, drinks the dew, and meditates.
Although he was not seen eating anything, he was able to walk as fast as he could, leaving even the young men in the village behind.
In the early morning, old Taoists will stand quietly by the Jishui River and look at the sunrise in the east.
But every time he turned around and left, there were still fish gathering on the Jishui River, unwilling to disperse.
If you get off the net at this time, you can often come back with a full load.
Not only that, since the old Taoist stayed here, the village has been filled with happy events and has become peaceful and peaceful.
Therefore, everyone in the village respects him even more.
"I've met the Taoist priest."
People in the village, no matter men, women, old or young, are extremely respectful to other people, and they all take the initiative to say hello whenever they meet.
The old Taoist didn't rely on his status and nodded his head one by one.
However, the person never spoke.
After meeting the old immortal, the uncles and aunts in the village looked at the "followers" behind the old immortal with smiles on their faces and joked:
"Xiao Xukong, how come you don't catch fish all day long, and you are not ashamed to follow the Taoist leader all day long!"
Every time he was teased like this by the villagers, Xiao Xukong would just give him a simple smile in return.
In fact, since the old immortal moved into the village, countless people have followed him, and many of them even knelt down and kowtowed, wanting to worship him as their teacher.
However, the old god never paid attention to these behaviors.
As time passed, everyone's minds naturally became dull and they just let nature take its course. Only one Ji Xukong persevered, still persisted, and followed the old god closely.
Fortunately, these days, fishing in the village has been extremely convenient, and the harvest is often quite bountiful. There is no shortage of labor force like him who has not yet grown up.
After exchanging greetings with the enthusiastic uncle and aunt for a while, Ji Xukong immediately raised his eyes and looked at the slightly ethereal figure of the immortal spirit in front of him, and couldn't help but feel confused.
Today is already his fiftieth day following the old god.
And after these many days of indifference, Kong Kong's heart for the Tao has not only not been wiped out, but has become more determined, and he even feels like he has been reborn.
He wants to practice and ask questions!
Such a firm idea had never appeared in Ji Xukong's heart.
He knew from the bottom of his heart that if he missed this opportunity, he would regret it for the rest of his life.
Thinking like this, Ji Xukong immediately started running without any hesitation, catching up with the old god in front of him again.
The latter spent most of the day sitting cross-legged on a hill not far from the village, with his eyes slightly closed, practicing enlightenment.
But today, it is different.
Just when Ji Xukong was sitting cross-legged far behind the old immortal, preparing to imitate him as usual, he suddenly noticed that the old immortal did not close his eyes to practice, but was looking straight at him. .
While Ji Xukong was overjoyed, he heard the old god's calm and indifferent words in his ears:
"May I have your name?"
However, before the overjoyed Ji Xukong could speak, the old god had already said to himself:
"Well, Ji Xukong is a good name."
Hearing this, the young man in front of him couldn't help but be stunned, and then whispered in confusion:
"Taoist Master, I haven't answered yet... Or have you heard about it from everyone?"
Thinking of this possibility, Little Void couldn't help but feel complacent.
Unexpectedly, in response to this, the old god smiled slightly and asked:
"Did you really not answer just now?"
Hearing this, Xiaoxukong said firmly without hesitation: "Of course!"
Seeing this, the old god seemed to want to break the casserole and ask the end, and continued to ask:
"are you sure?"
The old god's tone did not fluctuate at all, and he still had the same calm look.
But this time, Ji Xukong's heart was at a loss.
Did he answer it? Or was it that he was so happy that he answered too quickly and really forgot?
The nature of a young man naturally has no taboos, so he calmly expressed his feelings.
In response to this, the old god finally showed a smile on his face, and couldn't help but smile:
"Yes or no, what does it matter?"
"The presence and absence of void is the foundation of the great road. It is indeed a good name."
Listening to the old immortal's emotion, Ji Xukong seemed to understand but he also heard that the old immortal seemed to be very satisfied with him, so he plucked up the courage to ask:
"Then what should I call you, Taoist Priest?"
After the words fell, I felt the silence of the world. The breeze is gentle, everything is growing, and everything in front of you is so natural and simple, almost letting the clear little void of Taoist heart sink into it.
After a long time, a calm voice seemed to ring in his ears:
"Poverty Taoist, too pure."
