At dusk, when yin and yang alternate.
Deep in the jungle of Weishan, near the towering century-old locust tree.
After Xuan Jue's manipulation and awakening, the once century-old locust tree had withered, and the yellow leaves fell one by one in this midsummer season.
But this does not mean that this century-old locust tree is completely dead.
Or to put it another way, the decline of a century-old locust tree is not "death", but "rebirth" in another sense.
At the cost of his centuries of cultivation and Taoism, he regarded the main body of his body as the "placenta" that gave birth to new life, and what was born was the spirit that Xuan Jue called "the mandrill".
Although there are no innate spiritual orifices like humans, the mandrill who transformed into a demon still possesses the most basic nine orifices and Qi veins.
Rather than continuing to be a conscious plant, being able to freely shuttle through the mountains and forests like an animal is what Mandrill pursues.
Not to mention, Xuan Jue also promised the mandrill that as long as it could swallow and absorb Pei Wende's "Earth Dragon Fate", he would teach it the complete method of transforming into a dragon.
By that time, the mandrill can completely get rid of its identity as a "monster and monster" and become one of the most noble innate nine-aperture creatures in the world - a dragon, just like a fish and a snake transforming into a dragon!
"Transform into... a dragon..."
Huddled in the "tree cave" of the trunk of a century-old locust tree, the mandrill's eyes showed desire and excitement.
During this period of time, Mandrill has never forgotten Xuan Jue's promise, and has been quietly inquiring about and observing the Tongqing Temple that stands on Weishan Mountain.
According to the information obtained by Mandrill, the Tongqing Temple was originally an almost abandoned temple.
Until more than ten years ago, a Buddhist sage named "Lingyou" chose to settle there, and Pei Wende was the child he always took with him.
Considering that the tasks given by beings of Xuan Jue's level were definitely not that simple, Mandrill did not choose to act rashly after initially learning the information.
Instead, they went further to find out the details of Lingyou and Pei Wende through multiple channels.
To this end, the mandrill also traveled throughout Weishan and beat up all the overlords in the mountain forest, both mature and immature, hoping to get some more detailed information from their mouths.
Facts have proved that the mandrill's caution is indeed justified.
According to the monsters in the mountains and forests, Zen Master Lingyou is no ordinary monk.
More than ten years ago, when he chose to settle in Tongqing Temple, the monsters in this mountain forest were not as rare as they are now, and there were even some monsters that had the ability to transform.
But since Zen Master Lingyou came to Weishan, those dangerous monsters have been driven away from the mountain forest.
Fortunately, Zen Master Lingyou didn't seem to have any thoughts of killing. Except for some evil spirits and ghosts, the lives of the other monsters were not in any danger.
Of course, this does not mean that the fate of those monsters will be good.
After all, although Zen Master Lingyou doesn't like killing, suppression and sealing are the unique skills of the Buddhist lineage. Those monsters were either sealed or suppressed.
According to some spirits who witnessed Zen Master Lingyou’s past.
Since he came here, not only the monsters in Weishan have been sealed and suppressed, but also the monsters in the entire Tanzhou area no longer dare to make trouble.
To be honest, when the mandrill learned about the great achievements of Zen Master Lingyou from other spirits, his inner despair was unprecedented.
With such a powerful Buddhist master suppressing Weishan, let alone the mandrill taking the initiative to seek trouble from the opponent, it would have been pretty good if Zen Master Lingyou didn't come to cause trouble for it.
For this reason, Mandrill has even prepared to give up the task assigned to him by Xuan Jue.
At worst, what if Xuan Jue turns him back into a locust tree?
It's better than being sealed or even completely eliminated by Zen Master Lingyou, right?
Just when the mandrill was about to give in and give up on the mission, Xuan Jue, who seemed to have noticed its retreat, came to it again and brought it a new piece of information.
Zen Master Lingyou doesn't have to worry about the mandrill, it only needs to concentrate on dealing with Pei Wende.
Because Zen Master Lingyou had been seriously injured due to a fight with a certain Taoist master long before he lived in seclusion in Tanzhou, and he had been just lingering for more than ten years.
The most important thing is that when the mandrill seizes Pei Wende's "Earth Dragon Fate", someone will step in to stop Zen Master Lingyou on its behalf.
If you want to say that Mandrill completely believed Xuan Jue's statement, that would naturally be impossible.
However, Xuan Jue came here not to discuss with the mandrill, but to give it naked orders.
Mandrill still dares not forget Xuan Jue's cold and solemn glance before he left.
It has no doubt that if it dares to continue fishing, the other party will definitely kill it with its own hands.
So under coercion and inducement, Mandrill finally chose to believe Xuan Jue's words and planned to risk taking action against Pei Wende.
Just when to take action? In what way?
Mandrill also had his own plans in mind, and did not intend to act completely according to Xuan Jue's words.
"July...15th..."
In the traditional understanding of ancient China, July 15th is an extremely special day.
Taoism calls it the Ghost Festival, while Buddhism calls it the Bon Festival.
Legend has it that on this day every year, the ghost gate to the underworld will open wide, and those ghosts who have not yet been reincarnated and have a special attachment to their hearts will be escorted by ghost messengers to the underworld to reunite with their relatives and friends during their lifetimes. .
Therefore, July 15th is also called the "Ghost Festival", which is the day when the gates of ghosts are said to open wide.
From the perspective of monsters like Mandrill, who have lived for more than a decade and have nearly a hundred years of cultivation and practice, this year's Zhongyuan Ghost Festival has another and deeper meaning.
Mandrill believed that Xuan Jue entrusted him to seize Pei Wende's "Earth Dragon Fate" before July 15th, and this must be part of the reason.
Therefore, after much thought, Mandrill decided to set the day of action on July 15th a few days later, that is, before the final realization of the agreement with Xuan Jue.
On that day, even if Zen Master Lingyou is not contained as Xuan Jue said, Mandrill will still have the confidence to escape from his hands.
But before that, Mandrill felt that he had to deal with the current crisis today.
"Snake... spirit?"
The mandrill crouched in the tree hole suddenly raised its head, and a cruel and bloodthirsty smile appeared on its ugly face.
swish swish...
I saw a large green-scaled snake crawling slowly among the leaves and grass in the distance as far as the mandrill could see.
A lone wolf walked in front with a timid expression. Due to the power of the big green-scaled snake, he had to get closer to the withered locust tree where the mandrill was hiding.
"Another... guy... who doesn't know... life or death..."
—Recommendation ticket—/—Monthly ticket—
