Chapter 40: Nine Two, Seeing the Dragon in the Field Countless people suffered from insomnia that night. There are two questions that always linger in the minds of these insomniacs. First, how strong is Huang Junshi now after being silent for many years? Second, why does Huang Junshi dare to do this? That was the edict that came from the capital city! Not some cats and dogs! That’s the county literary academy! It's not some insignificant place! Respecting Confucianism in this dynasty is the national policy set by Taizu. It is even more true that Confucianists have overwhelmed Taoism, Buddhism, and witchcraft. Although the Missionary Academy is only an external system created by Taizu and successive emperors, it is still a member of the Taoist sect after all! Naturally, Confucianism is superior in all aspects. Even though some monks of the outer talisman system have high realms and powerful cultivation, and want, are willing, and dare to compete with Confucianists, few of them would do such an act that directly slaps Confucianism in the face.
Most of them are directed at specific people rather than Confucianism itself. It was actually not a big deal that Huang Junshi injured the female teacher who was airdropped from the capital with one sword. The magistrate, the assistant county magistrate, the lieutenant of Liuxian County, the two directors of the Taoist Association and the Buddhist Association, the centurions of the Demon-Slaying Division and the Demon-Extermination Division, would not be shocked by this. Strong is strong, weak is weak, winning is winning, losing is losing! However, Huang Junshi's sword also cut open the Liuxian County Literary Courtyard, which was a slap in the face of Confucianism! He even left evidence behind! What do you want to do? How can it not shock people and lead to endless speculation? This is crazy! Tao Tie, who also couldn't understand Instructor Huang's thoughts, stood in the courtyard of his own cave, looking at the sky in the direction of the county literature for a long time. "After this incident, who would still pay attention to a ninth-rank monk from the Missionary Academy named Tao Tie?" Standing there until late at night, Tao Tie turned and walked into the bedroom, muttering to himself. No wonder Instructor Huang said that he no longer had to worry about the county literature and Shahe Gang, and he had two months to concentrate on his studies. In the next two months, if there is no other big news, the focus of Liuxian County will definitely be Instructor Huang Junshi. And the dispute over county literature and missionary school! The County Literature Society would not cause trouble for Tao Tie, and the Shahe Gang would not dare to cause trouble for Tao Tie. With the protection of Instructor Huang and the literary talent of Jianzhan County, Tao Tie can lie dormant quietly and develop well. This is what Tao Tie thought and did. I will never waste Teacher Huang’s kindness. Time flies. Time flies by like a white horse. It seemed like just a blink of an eye and two months had passed. During these two months, Tao Tiezhen devoted himself to cultivation and turned a deaf ear to what was happening outside. Not to mention paying attention to the major or minor events in Liuxian County, he didn't even care much about the changes within the missionary institute.
As long as it doesn't hinder his meditation, nothing else matters. The only problem was that after Instructor Huang Junshi slashed out two swords that day, no one knew where he went. Tao Tie went to the library to ask Mr. Qiu several times, but he didn't get a clear answer. This made Tao Tie, who sincerely wanted to thank Teacher Huang, feel quite regretful. Fortunately, this is the only regrettable thing. The rest is all good. For example, the incident in which Huang Junshi, a teacher at the missionary academy, slashed a man at the county literary academy with a sword did not actually cause a big uproar, but only caused some ripples in secret. The county government, the county literary department, the missionary institute, the Taoist association, the Buddhist association, the demon-slaying department, and the evil-exorcising department worked together tacitly to suppress the incident. Moreover, BR County Literature, Shahe Gang and even Tan Jinxuan did not come to visit in the past two months. Tao Tie got plenty of quiet and development time. Two months later, early morning. Tao Tie finished his morning lessons devoutly, then calmly collected herbs and practiced, sensing himself, and triggering [Knowledge of All Things] as usual. 【Name: Tao Tie Race: Terran Constitution: Stubborn and leaky Path: Taoist monk Realm: Ninth Rank Upper Exercise: 1. Taotie Visualization Method (Beginner, progress 56%) 2. Five Animal Exercises (completed, progress 100%) 3. Taiyi Five Elements Guiding Body Refining Technique (Entry Level, 80% progress) 4. Taiyi Light-Splitting Sword Technique (Not yet mastered) 5. Xingyiquan (not yet learned) Spells: 1. Five Ghosts Moving Technique (Mastery, Progress 74%) (Variation) 2. Taiyi Sect Basic Spells (Beginner, 99% progress) Earthly Evil Technique: 1. Tongyou (Mastery, progress 48%) 2. Demon Slayer (Mastery, 57%) 3. Swordsmanship (proficient, 33%) 4. Wind Control (Mastery, 12%) 5. Rock Leap (Mastery, 16%)
6. Guidance (Proficient, 99%) 7. Preventing disasters (entry level, 89%) 8. Relieve Disasters (Entry Level, 87%) Mantra: 1. Eight Great Mantras (Entry Level, progress, Features: Purify Heart (Xuan), Purify Mouth (Yellow), Purify Body (Yellow)) Supernatural powers: 1. Clairvoyance 2. Clairaudience After two months of meditation, Tao Tie gained a lot. It’s not a complete transformation, but it’s true that things are very different now. First of all, it is the realm. From the ninth rank to the upper ninth rank, his foundation was solidified, his magic power was strong, and his strength increased greatly. Next is the exercises. Both the Taotie Visualization Method and the Taiyi Five Elements Guiding and Refining Technique have made great progress. Although it is still at the entry level, it is completely sufficient for now. Unfortunately, Tao Tiexin was unable to make progress in practicing the Taiyi Fenguan Sword Technique that he had longed for. This is true whether you are practicing asceticism or taking shortcuts. Human energy is limited, so she did not learn the "Xingyiquan" martial arts technique that was compensated by the Shahe Gang's eldest daughter Mo Yuhan, and she did not even have time to take a look at it. Again, it's magic. The Five Ghosts Moving Technique has reached the level of proficiency, and the five little ghosts can be driven more easily. They come and go without a trace, appearing and disappearing like ghosts, making it hard to guard against them. I can't learn the "Taiyi Fenguang Sword Art" in a short time, but I can't be a master of nothing. Later, Tao Tie went to see Mr. Qiu again, explained his needs and situation, and in return he received a volume of "A Comprehensive Explanation of Taiyi Sect's Basic Magic Spells". Even though Mr. Qiu said that Tao Tie was missing the point and was short-sighted, it would be better for him to concentrate on practicing the "Taiyi Fenguan Sword Art". Tao Tie still spent a lot of time and effort, taking shortcuts to learn the forty-nine basic spells described above, and mastered all of them (entry level, 99%), just a little bit short of mastering them. This gave Tao Tie the means to deal with many situations in many aspects. It greatly makes up for Tao Tie's shortcomings. The next one is the Earthly Evil Technique. The group from Wushan Temple was rewarded with a quota for exchanging three earthly evil techniques by the missionary academy. It would take a while to learn the Taiyi Fenguang Sword Art, so Tao Tie gritted his teeth and actually exchanged the "Yufeng" and "Yueyan". Under the guidance of Mr. Qiu, I also learned "Daoyin" to assist in the practice of "Taiyi Five Elements Daoyin Refining Technique".
As for "warding off disasters" and "relieving misfortunes", they come from the Demon-Slaying Department and the Monster-Exorcising Department. I don't know if it was because Instructor Huang Junshi chopped off the female instructor with a sword and cut open the county literary courtyard, which gave some shock to the Demon Slayer Division and the Demon Exorcist Division involved in this matter, After completing the mandatory mission at Wushan Temple, the Demon Slayer Division and the Demon Exorcist Division not only gave Tao Tie the maximum reward of 10 points for the Ninth Rank Demon Catcher Mission, He also gave two designated earthly evil techniques. With the idea that the more the better, Tao Tie accepted everything that came his way and learned "warding off disasters", "relieving misfortunes" together with "controlling the wind", "leaping over rocks" and "guiding". However, he did not put too much effort into it, so he is still at the entry level. Finally, there are sutras and mantras. The understanding of the "Classic of Purity and Tranquility" cannot be forced. In the past two months, Tao Tie has not gained any enlightenment about any Taoist scriptures. He just made some progress on the eight great mantras, pushing the three derived characteristics up one level. Overall, great progress has been made. It can be said that the young man has already equipped his sword. The cost was fourteen taels of gold, which was completely spent. Tao Tie had to face an old problem that had never been solved: he was running out of money. As the saying goes, a poor man has low aspirations. In order to prevent his ambition from being cut short by poverty, Tao Tie decided not to continue to stay in the missionary house to practice in seclusion, but to go out to catch monsters. "The estimated teaching time is really accurate." When leaving the cave, Tao Tie sighed in his heart and then became thoughtful. Is it really just an estimate, not a prediction? I'm afraid that Instructor Huang had predicted this situation long ago by predicting the future and doing divination. The "shooting covers", "star numbers" and "knowing the time" in the Disha technique and the "moving stars and changing constellations", "predicting the future" and "seeing through walls" in the Tiangang technique all have this ability. Huang Junshi taught that anyone who has learned any of the above spells can do the same. "Forget it, just ignore it." After a little speculation, Tao Tie put aside all other thoughts and stopped focusing on this matter. I started thinking about where to start and what kind of monster-catching mission I should undertake. The existence and influence of calamity energy have actually been demonstrated in the past two months. The frequency of strange incidents involving demons and monsters in Liuxian County is much higher than before. The Demon Slaying Department and the Demon Exorcism Department seem to be planning some internal system reforms, so there are too many people and too few tasks. In dealing with such strange incidents, they rely more on demon catchers. On the black stone slab of the communication terminal that can link to the Monster Catcher mission sections of the Demon Slaying Division and the Demon Extermination Division, there are many missions suitable for ninth-rank monster catchers to take on, whether they are within the county or in towns and villages outside the county. Therefore, Tao Tie has no shortage of tasks to do, but he just has to think carefully about which tasks to take. Whether it is within the county town or in the towns and villages.
Low difficulty or high difficulty. These all require careful consideration and prudent decision making. A county town is a county town after all. No matter how overstaffed the Demon Slaying Division and the Demon Extermination Division are, they will not be completely ignored. Therefore, the monster-catching missions in the county are either harmless or not very dangerous, or they are the result of misjudgments during the preliminary investigation by the two departments, or there are hidden secrets. It feels like there are some fakes mixed with the real ones. For monster hunters in towns and mountain villages, the farther away from the county town they are, the more likely they are to encounter monsters, ghosts, and evil cultivators. And the pay is relatively lower. Therefore, Tao Tie, who wanted to make money, naturally preferred to take tasks within the county. After careful consideration, Tao Tie took out a black stone tablet from his storage bag and linked the monster-catching mission sections of the Demon-Slaying Division and the Demon-Exorcism Division. Then he walked out using the Earthly Evil Technique "Ride the Wind" while at the same time selecting a task that was suitable for him. “From small to big, from easy to difficult, step by step.” When choosing tasks, Tao Tie set a set of principles for himself. It’s good to be in a hurry to make money, but you can’t be too impatient and lose your sense of proportion. Therefore, after lying dormant for two months, the first mission he took on was to focus on safety. Thanks to the five-star ratings of the previous two tasks, the Demon Slayer Division and the Demon Catcher Division sent Tao Tie several tasks with very considerable rewards. The difficulty levels vary. Tao Tie really found a task that met his selection criteria of "small" and "easy". This task is also highly recommended by the Demon Slayer Department and the Demon Extermination Department. only…… "Dongcheng District, Jiadi Lane." Muttering the name of the mission location, Tao Tie frowned slightly. The structure of Liuxian County, where the south is poor and the north is humble, and the east is rich and the west is noble, determines that those who have the financial resources to issue tasks in the Demon Slaying Division and the Demon Extermination Division mostly live in the East City District. There is nothing strange about this. What made Tao Tie feel a little weird was Jiadi Lane! Tan Jinxuan's home is here. The people living in this alley are either students of the county literature school, or wealthy people who want their children to study at the county literature school. In short, almost all of them are closely related to county literature. When strange things happen in the homes of these people, they usually try to seek help from the county literature, and rarely issue tasks through the Demon Slaying Bureau or the Demon Exorcism Bureau.
Unless like Tan Jinxuan, there are special reasons related to face or other reasons. This one should be no exception. Out of some inexplicable curiosity, Tao Tie clicked on the detailed introduction of this task: [No. 77, Jiadi Lane, is the home of Li Junsheng, a county literature student. There have been many strange things happening recently. One day, Mr. Li was lying on the bed with his shoes on to rest, when he suddenly saw a long bench that shouldn't have been there appear in the room. The bench is flesh-red all over and looks smooth and clean. Li was curious, so he stepped forward and pressed it. The bench bent as Li pressed on it, and it became as soft as meat, which scared Li. After calming down, I looked at the bench again and found that it was moving quickly on four legs and soon hid in the wall. One day, Mr. Li found a white stick in the corner of his bedroom. It was also smooth and clean. He reached out and touched it. The stick immediately fell down and went into the wall like a snake, and disappeared in an instant. Ten days later, something even stranger happened. Several little figures, no more than three inches tall, held a funeral in Mr. Li’s bedroom. Not only were there people carrying coffins, but there were also little women wailing. All etiquette is available. Li Sheng, who was at his wit's end, finally didn't dare to delay any further, and went to the Demon Slaying Division and the Demon Extermination Division to issue a task, asking demon catchers to solve the matter. The reward offered was the maximum reward for the ninth-rank monster catcher mission, one hundred taels of silver! If necessary, the monster hunter who accepts the mission and is recognized by Mr. Li will have the opportunity to receive some additional rewards! 】 After reading the detailed introduction, Tao Tie began to ponder. Judging from the detailed description, this mission should be committed by a monster. It’s actually not difficult to solve. The question is, Li Junsheng is a county literature student, not an ordinary person. Can he really not deal with these monsters that seem harmless at the moment? Why would they offer a reward of one hundred taels of silver and issue a monster-catching mission in the Monster Slaying Division and the Demon Exorcism Division? Obviously, there is something else going on. "and……" Tao Tie pondered and muttered to himself, "Why did the Demon Slayer Division and the Demon Exorcist Division push this mission to me?" It should be noted that the monster catchers affiliated with the Monster Slaying Department and the Demon Extermination Department can set their own status at will after completing the annual mandatory mission. If you want to take the mission, take it. If you don’t want to take on tasks, you can simply turn on the “Do Not Disturb” mode. In this way, the Demon Slaying Department and the Demon Extermination Department will not be able to push the tasks that the two departments think are suitable for this demon catcher to perform.
Two months ago, Tao Tie turned on the "Do Not Disturb" mode. Just after turning off the "Do Not Disturb" mode and planning to do a monster-catching mission, the two officials immediately sent Tao Tie a mission issued by a county literary student. Is it really just a coincidence? Tao Tie was very suspicious and felt conflicted. To answer or not to answer? (End of this chapter)