This day was September 9th. Time had passed and the two of them came to the north of Heizao City.
Many ghosts and fairies gathered at the foot of a hill.
Looking up, there is a yellow light on the top of the hill, as if there is a dim moon.
Under the yellow light, an old man wearing a brocade robe appeared, wearing an imperial crown on his head, with a fair face and bright eyes, looking at the ghosts and immortals below.
Lu Shanguan heard the people next to him whisper: "This is the Ghost Emperor Yang Yun. The great writer Yang Xiong changed his name in the underworld."
Ghost Emperor Yang Yun said: "Master wants to recruit two disciples. I will first ask you to write an article and submit it. You need to have outstanding literary talent to impress me. The time limit is one hour, and the title is "Ode to the River Styx" .”
After saying this, a ghost servant came over and gave each ghost fairy three pieces of writing grass.
There are no banknotes, only book ribbons.
The ghost fairies participating in the test need to spit out Yin Qi, and the Yin Qi will adhere to the script grass to form words. This not only tests your skills, but also your literary talent.
When Lu Shangguan was studying, he chose the "Paleography" major at Imperial University and spent six years getting his bachelor's, master's and doctoral degrees. Later, he learned the "Confucian Heart Method" and "Haoran Qi" from his ancestor Lu Yideng. He also learned witchcraft and a small amount of "Dragon Chapter", "Feng Wen", "Netherworld Ghost Talisman", and ancestor Cangjie. The 13,800 basic runes left behind.
Moreover, he also obtained the "Netherworld Ghost Sutra" left by Zheng Xuan.
However, even so, it was still very difficult for him to write a "Styx Ode" suddenly. He can only do his best and obey fate.
Dong Xiaowan also participated in the test, and her ancient writing skills were stronger than Lu Shanguan's.
An hour later, the two handed in the script.
After Ghost Emperor Yang Yun retreated, an old man wearing black linen clothes appeared on the top of the mountain. He was dressed simply and without a crown. He was thin and had many wrinkles on his face.
The ghosts and immortals at the foot of the mountain whispered to each other: "This is the Ghost Emperor Zhang Heng."
Ghost Emperor Zhang Heng raised his voice and said: "The question I asked is related to arithmetic. Please listen carefully: Assume that the island is measured. Two tables are erected with a height of 3 feet, 1000 steps apart, so that the back table and the front table are in the same straight line. Go up, step back 123 steps from the front table, and observe the peak of the island with your eyes on the ground. Go back 127 steps from the back table, and observe the peak of the island with your eyes on the ground. How high is the island? How far is it from the front table?"
Lu Shanguan wiped his sweat, secretly breathed a sigh of relief, and thought to himself: "Fortunately, this is the theory of multiple differences in "Zhou Bi Suan Jing". It's not too difficult."
After all, he is not a math major. If the questions asked by Ghost Emperor Zhang Heng are too complicated, he may not be able to solve them.
He knew very well that he could not look at the problem from a static point of view. Although Ghost Emperor Zhang Heng was from the Eastern Han Dynasty, the gears of time were always turning. How could Zhang Heng, the Ghost Emperor who cultivated himself in the underworld, not come into contact with future generations of mathematicians? From 140 AD to 5200 years before the fusion of heaven and earth, mathematical research on the earth progressed rapidly. Some mathematicians should have gone to the underworld after death. If Zhang Heng was determined to do research, he would definitely learn something.
Therefore, Lu Shanguan has no confidence in the test. He looked at the many ghosts and immortals around him and thought: "There may also be mathematicians among these people!"
As with the previous requirement, the steps to solve the problem must also be written on the scrip.
An hour later, Zhang Heng collected a bundle of books and tapes and said he would give the results in three days.
After the test, the ghosts and immortals dispersed.
Three days passed by in a hurry.
On the third day, Lu Shanguan and Dong Xiaowan sat under a black jujube tree. They spent ten taels of silver to rent a tree and plucked the black jujubes from the tree at will.
For ghost cultivators, black dates are a tonic with a slightly sweet taste.
Silver is also used as currency in the underworld, because silver is the material that "hides the soul".
At ten minutes past noon, a ghost servant came over and said, "Lu Shanguan? Dong Xiaowan? You two passed the test, please come with me."
Lu Shanguan was surprised: "Both of us passed the test?"
The ghost servant said nothing, turned around, and led the way.
Lu Shangguan and Dong Xiaowan quickly followed.
They found it incredible: "How could they be selected at the same time? Is there no one left in the Netherworld?"
The ghost servant led them over several mountains and came to a circular palace.
After Lu Shanguan entered, he discovered that it turned out that he had only passed the preliminary examination before, and besides them, there were several other people who came to the palace. Ten people were finally qualified for the re-examination, five of them were selected by Ghost Emperor Yang Yun, and the other five were selected by Ghost Emperor Zhang Heng.
The two ghost emperors came, one on the left and one on the right standing behind Gui Guzi.
The ten selected ghosts and immortals were also divided into two groups, with five people in each group standing on the left and right sides.
Guiguzi has a tall and straight figure, pale face and ancient appearance. Sitting in the Grand Master's chair, he looks like a middle-aged man with an immortal spirit and unfathomable profoundness.
Regardless of Yang Yun, Zhang Heng or Gui Guzi, their appearance is not fixed and can change according to their minds. Today they are young, tomorrow they are middle-aged, and the day after tomorrow they are old. Their appearance cannot be used to judge their condition.
Not to mention the Ghost Emperor, even the Ghost King and Ghost Immortal can change their appearance at will.
As for the ghosts and ghosts below the level of ghosts and immortals, because the Qi machine is not solid enough, what they show is just a group of phantoms, their features are not clear, and their specific appearance does not matter.
Guiguzi looked at the crowd and said: "I left behind "捭阖CE" and "Seven Techniques of Yin Fu" in the world. Today's test content is to memorize these two classics."
Ghost Emperor Yang Yun and Zhang Heng came forward and gave each of them a handful of scroll grass.
So the testing began.
This test sounds simple, but in fact it is not easy. The reason is that there is no paper and pen, and it is all sprayed on the tape in one breath. If you are not skilled enough, you will not be able to write many words at all.
Moreover, the "捭阖CE" implies the earth's script, the human's script, the foreign script and other related runes; the "Seven Skills of the Yin Talisman of the Ben Jing" implies hundreds of ghost charms. It is very difficult to write those runes on the script in one breath!
Fortunately, Lu Shanguan's skills were relatively high, he had already reached the late stage of Ghost King, and he was proficient in most of the Netherworld Ghost Talismans, so he could write silently faster. Moreover, he had studied "捭阖CE" with his ancestors Lu Yideng and Lu Wenbo, so he was relatively familiar with this classic. Even so, he was unable to completely write out the two classics silently. He exhausted his Yin energy after writing only 70% of the time and had to stop and rest.
Dong Xiaowan only memorized 60% of the content of "The Seven Techniques of Yin Fu", and he ran out of breath before he had time to memorize "捭阖CE".
The performance of the remaining eight ghost fairies and ghost kings was also unsatisfactory. Some ghost fairies were not familiar with these two classics at all and simply turned in a blank test!
In the end, Guiguzi left three people behind, namely Lu Shanguan, Dong Xiaowan and a ghost king named "Zhu Xi".
Gui Guzi looked at Dong Xiaowan and said: "When I recruit a disciple this time, I didn't originally want to recruit a woman. But your performance is outstanding and impressive. Let's do this. I will accept you as a registered disciple first and teach you the method of ghost cultivation. When you become a ghost, Emperor, then turn into a disciple."
Dong Xiaowan saluted respectfully: "Thank you, Master."
Guiguzi said: "Zhu Xi, Lu Shanguan, come closer!"
Lu Shanguan and Zhu Xi took three steps forward, bowed and listened quietly to the instructions.
Gui Guzi said in a deep voice: "You two have excellent qualifications. From today on, you are my disciples."
The two of them prostrated themselves on the ground and said, "Greetings to the Master."
Gui Guzi said: "Your ghost cultivation skills are very solid. Next, I will teach you a mental method called "Mingchuan Yin and Yang Transformation". This is a method of interchange of yin and yang. After you practice it, you can use yin and yang to change the yin and yang." Zhongqiu Yang transforms from the Ghost King and Ghost Emperor into a Pure Yang True Immortal. Whoever transforms into a Pure Yang True Immortal first and then helps the master complete a task can become a true disciple."
"Thank you Master for teaching me the Dharma."
Gui Guzi did not kick Dong Xiaowan out, but directly recited a scripture, and then asked Zhu Xi to follow Ghost Emperor Yang Yun, and asked Lu Shangguan to follow Ghost Emperor Zhang Heng. As for Dong Xiaowan, he was sent to the library to sort out the classics.
Guiguzi is the incarnation of Ancestor Minghe. He built a fairy palace in Yin Mountain, opened a cave, built a library, and collected hundreds of thousands of classics, as well as countless jade slips and plates.
The master of the library is named "Shangguan Wan'er", and like Dong Xiaowan, he is a registered disciple of Gui Guzi.
Shangguan Wan'er is the granddaughter of Shangguan Yi, the prime minister of Emperor Gaozong of Tang Dynasty. After Shangguan Yi was convicted and executed, Shangguan Wan'er was sent to Yeting with her mother as a maidservant. At the age of fourteen, because of her intelligence and good literary skills, she was appointed as a female official by Wu Zetian. She was in charge of the imperial edicts in the palace for many years, and was known as the "female prime minister" . During the reign of Emperor Zhongzong, he was granted the title of Zhaorong and took charge of the imperial court. His power grew increasingly powerful and he controlled the affairs of the imperial court. During this period, he established a large number of bachelors in Xiuwenguan to comment on the world's poetry on behalf of the imperial court. At that time, many ci officials gathered under his sect. During the Tang Long Incident, he held the Zhongzong's edict "The Prime Minister Assists the Government" co-drafted with Princess Taiping and begged for exemption, but he was still ordered to be executed by Li Longji.
Shangguan Wan'er can also be regarded as a generation of outstanding people. After her death, she went through hardships in the netherworld to become a ghost immortal, and was then accepted as a registered disciple by Gui Guzi.
She has been following Gui Guzi for more than three thousand years, but has not yet been able to advance to the level of Ghost King. She is still far from the level of Ghost Emperor, so she has not been able to become a disciple.
Comparatively speaking, although Dong Xiaowan started practicing later, she received strong support from the Lu family. She used cloning technology to recreate her physical body, and then cultivated her essence, energy, and soul at the same time. After becoming a mysterious immortal, she split her soul and entered the netherworld as a ghost body. , her skill is equivalent to that of a low-level ghost king, surpassing Shangguan Wan'er.
Moreover, she learned modern technology from Lu Shanguan, was the last to arrive, overtook others in corners, and was better at library management methods than Shangguan Wan'er.
For this reason, although Shangguan Wan'er arrived early, she was unable to bully Dong Xiaowan.
Dong Xiaowan stayed in the library every day, making backup copies of the compiled information, giving one copy to Gui Guzi, and keeping the other in his hands, preparing to take it back to the Lu family.
Guiguzi did not always stay in Yinshan Mountain, but wandered erratically, sometimes in the underworld, sometimes in the human world, sometimes in the fairy world, and only returned to Yinshan Mountain almost every twenty or thirty years.
Lu Shangguan followed the Ghost Emperor Zhang Heng, who taught him how to practice.
Although Zhang Heng is the Ghost Emperor, he is also an astronomer, mathematician, inventor and writer. He discovered the causes of solar and lunar eclipses, drew a star map recording 2,500 stars, calculated pi to 7 decimal places, and explained and established the Huntian cosmology.
After he became the Ghost Emperor, he still wanted to calculate pi.
Seeing him racking his brains and calculating, Lu Shangguan couldn't help but persuade him: "Brother, after you became the Ghost Emperor, you have a high status. How long has it been since you talked to low-level wandering spirits and ghosts? Do you understand the development of science and technology in the human world? You Did you know that the technology in the human world has become extremely advanced, and it is possible to calculate pi to hundreds of billions of decimal places?"
Zhang Heng looked surprised: "Is this really true?"
Lu Shanguan said: "Brother, although I am not a mathematician, I can still recite pi to one hundred decimal places. How about I recite it for you?"
Zhang Heng was horrified when he heard the hundred-digit pi ratio, and asked: "Which human world are you talking about? I want to go and have a look!"
"Senior brother, you may not be able to go now."
"Why can't you go?"
"Because the human world of Middle-earth merged with the Nine Birds State, it became the forbidden land of ancestor Hongjun! The vast majority of scientists have not been able to survive the catastrophe of the fusion of heaven and earth, and scientific and technological civilization has been buried!"
Lu Shanguan will not tell Zhang Heng the secrets of the underground world, and there are only a few high-level cultivators left in the Middle-earth world on the surface. The original scientists in Europe and America have long since died!
Zhang Heng sighed: "Oh, that's such a pity!"
After a long while, Lu Shanguan asked: "Senior brother, do you know the origin of Zhu Xi, who was taken into the disciples by Master along with me?"
Zhang Heng hummed and said: "A sinister villain, someone who is just trying to gain fame."
"Huh? Is it Zhu Xi of the Song Dynasty?"
"I don't know anything about the Song Dynasty, I just know that he is a descendant."
Lu Shanguan remembered the records in ancient books. Zhu Xi was a great Neo-Confucian master in the Southern Song Dynasty. He advocated "preserving the laws of nature and destroying human desires" and always advised others that "starving to death is a small matter, but losing integrity is a big deal." At that time, Zhu Xi's theory was not taken seriously, but in the Qing Dynasty, his theory was appreciated by the Qing emperor.
Zhu Xi's words and deeds are inconsistent. A friend's sister lost her husband, and he advised his friend's sister to be chaste. However, he himself had a hidden agenda of forcing himself to marry his widowed sister-in-law in order to usurp his deceased brother's property.
Zhu Xi wanted to frame Tang Zhongyou, so he forced Yan Rui, a prostitute, to admit that she had an unclear relationship with Tang Zhongyou, but Yan Rui refused.
Zhu Xi also had another case, that is, the case of playing nuns. "History of the Song Dynasty" records that Zhu Xi "seduce two nuns as his concubines." All in all, to be a bitch, this person still has to set up memorials and say one thing and do another. Don't allow others to indulge, only allow yourself to be unrestrained and have all kinds of nondescript excitement!
Lu Shanguan thought: "How could such a person be accepted as a disciple by Guiguzi?"
But then I thought: "Who is Gui Guzi? He is the incarnation of Ancestor Styx. Ancestor Styx is an innate god and demon. He has no human emotions. How can we ask him to take a fancy to his character? Isn't that nonsense?" "
As Guiguzi's apprentice, Lu Shangguan has a lot of freedom and does not have to stay on Yinshan Mountain all the time.
He can leave Yinshan and explore in the netherworld. You can also go back to Fengdu City and talk to those judges.
Every sixty years, he will leave the nether world, pass through the ghost gate and return to the human world.
Because he was afraid that Guiguzi would place a restraint on him, he only appeared in Yuyuan and did not return to Shenjian Villa. It is even more impossible to return to Yuxu Peak through the teleportation array.
He hurriedly appeared in Yuyuan, handed a few jade slips to the Lu family, and then returned to the underworld.
In order to better coordinate with Lu Shangguan and Dong Xiaowan, the Lu family sent another descendant named "Lu Qianying" to split the Yin Hun and Yang Shen and turn them into ghost cultivators.
Lu Qianying is the thirty-second generation of the Lu family. Although she is five generations later than Lu Shanguan in terms of generation, she is much older than Lu Shanguan. She has also become a mysterious immortal. After splitting her ghost soul, after a period of As time passes, the ghost becomes a ghost, enters the underworld, and settles in Heizao City at the foot of Yin Mountain.
From now on, when Lu Shanguan and Dong Xiaowan get important information, they only need to hand it over to Lu Qianying. They don't have to risk traveling far away and pass through the Ghost Gate to the Divine Sword Villa.
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