On the Avenue.

Chapter 413 They Don’t Deserve It
The old man with a childlike face fled at high speed with the young man, avoiding powerful ghosts and gods all the way, fleeing thousands of miles away, but finally he could no longer suppress his injuries and fell down. The master and disciple rolled on the ground, smashing for several miles before they stopped.

"Master!"

The young man jumped up and ran to the childlike old man to check his injuries.

The old man with a childlike face reluctantly sat up and waved his hands, saying, "I can't die. The young scholar plotted against me, and I was caught off guard and suffered a great loss. This man is indeed amazing. Without the innate Dao fetus, he can still have such adaptability. But now I know his methods, and next time he wants to sneak attack me, it will be impossible."

He took out a vermilion jade bottle and poured out an elixir.

He did not rush to take it, but stretched out his index finger and gently tapped the elixir. A light shone from the elixir, and with the elixir as the core, multiple phantoms were formed, including the golden elixir, primordial infant, primordial spirit, the void realm, the sun, the moon, the stars, etc., which corresponded to the various realms of the cultivator.

The old man with a childlike face then took the elixir, and his injuries began to heal rapidly.

"If we hadn't explored the immortal cave and obtained this bottle of elixir, I would have fallen flat on my face."

He exhaled a breath of foul air, stood up, and said, "This pill is indeed a thing of the immortals, but it's a pity that I don't know how to refine it. Every time I use one, there is one less."

In just a few moments, his injuries were healed.

The old man with a childlike face pondered and said, "The woman next to the young scholar is the female fairy of Qixia Temple. Her cultivation should not have recovered yet. As for the origin of the hanged ghost, it is unclear. Wuxie, let's go and eliminate the other old gods."

He took out a canoe, pasted a talisman on his body, and transformed from a human body into a ghost with a horse's head, tall and thin. He took out a boy's lantern and hung it on the bow of the boat.

The young man Wu Xie said: "Master, how do I compare with the young scholar?"

The old man with a childlike face said, "You are not as adaptable as him, but your cultivation is not inferior to his. He no longer has his innate Dao fetus, and he has been dead for eight years. It is already remarkable that he has achieved what he has today."

Wu Xie was a little unconvinced and said, "My skills at Despair Hill are not as good as his?"

The childlike old man also pasted a talisman on him and said with a smile: "My Despair Hill inheritance is much stronger than the outside world. Even if he gets the True King inheritance, it will not work. However, he will not fight you fairly. If he sacrifices the hanged ghost, not only you, but even I will suffer."

Wu Xie's body changed, and he became a little horse-faced man, standing beside him, only as tall as his calf. He looked up and said, "He is definitely not as good as Senior Brother."

The childlike old man smiled and said, "Zhong Wuwang's strength is even higher than mine. He is a rare talent among men and is destined to be extraordinary. After he obtains the innate Dao fetus, it is inevitable that he will become an immortal."

He held up the bamboo pole, and the canoe swayed gently, and a small river emerged from the bottom of the boat, extending continuously.

The canoe followed the stream and gradually came to a large river and merged with it.

Canoes were coming on the river, and there was a ghost on each canoe. Suddenly, they dispersed and steered a small river towards the depths of the mainland. Beams of light shone from the boats, startling many ghosts, as if they were searching for something.

"Brother Taoist, what are you looking for?" The old man with a childlike face stopped a ghost messenger and asked.

The ghost messenger, who had a human body and an ox's head, said in a muffled voice, "We are the ghost messengers under the command of the ghost commander Xia Xiu De, and we are arresting the wanted criminal."

He unrolled a picture with a swish. It showed a man, a cart, and a dog. He asked, "Brother, have you ever seen them?"

The old man with a childlike face was slightly moved. The painting was very crude and it was impossible to make out the face of the person, but the shape was there but the meaning was there. The person in the painting looked like a scholar, not very old. The black dog walked on two legs and the wooden cart had arms and a mouth.

The old man with a childlike face smiled and said, "I know where the criminal is."

He gave directions to these ghost messengers, who thanked him one after another and sailed away in their wooden boats.

The childlike old man smiled and said, "It turns out that Chen Shi has already offended Yin Shuai. In this way, we don't have to worry about Chen Shi getting ahead of us."

Fusheng Town.

Chen Shi instructed Taoist Yu, "The people of Fusheng Town should move to the mountains as soon as possible and cultivate the land for future use. Also, if there are other villages and towns nearby, take some scholars with you and send them to the mountains as well. Don't let them stay in their villages to die. If you encounter danger, you can call on Wang Lingguan and he will respond."

Taoist Yu expressed his gratitude.

Chen Shi took the black pot and the wooden cart and left Fusheng Town.

The wooden cart drove out for more than a hundred miles. Chen Shi looked back and saw that the mountains and rivers were dark under the moonlight, except for Huofu Mountain, which was shrouded in sunlight. A majestic god was sitting on the top of the mountain, with a fiery red cloak fluttering behind him, rustling, extending for dozens of miles, protecting the area.

Wang Lingguan seemed to notice Chen Shi's gaze, turned around and waved from a distance.

"The Little True King is an interesting man. Brothers, you must meet him when you wake up."

Wang Lingguan looked at the shrines, and the figures of the Lingguans appeared before his eyes, as if they were still standing on the shrines, laughing and talking happily.

In those days, the people of the Ming Dynasty migrated to Xinzhou, Xiniu. One of the fleets was affected by the storm in the dark sea and deviated from the scheduled course. They were supposed to land in Xinxiang, but they deviated thousands of miles and came to Lingzhou in the south of Gongzhou. The treasure ship was destroyed by the storm, and they had to land. However, at that time, Lingzhou Province was still an uninhabited area, full of evil demons.

These Ming soldiers guarded the people on the ship and fought bloody battles. When they were about to reach the end of their rope, one soldier cut his wrist and sprinkled his blood on this dark fertile land. With his blood, he called on Wang Lingguan and the five hundred spiritual officials for help.

His blood was about to run out, and the other soldiers used their own blood to call on the guardian gods of their ancestral land in unison.

Wang Lingguan sensed the deep and innocent hearts of these soldiers, but these soldiers had no statues, no shrines, and no incense to guide them. They only had a heart full of enthusiasm, but they were unable to descend.

"With our remaining bodies, we will welcome the coming of God!"

The leading soldier sacrificed himself by drawing his sword, and hundreds of other soldiers did the same, using themselves as sacrifices and as statues of gods, inviting Wang Lingguan and others to come.

Wang Lingguan and his five hundred clones descended upon the area, took possession of their bodies, and fought angrily, clearing out all the demons and evil spirits on the west coast.

The people of the Ming Dynasty who were guarded by them, grateful for the life-saving grace of Wang Lingguan and others, built the Jade Pivot Wang Lingguan Fire Palace for them. When making statues for them, Wang Lingguan stopped these craftsmen.

"We have come in the flesh of heroes, why do we need to create statues? The flesh of heroes, sincere as fire, zeal as thunder, is the best golden body."

They sat on the shrine in the guise of mortals, and they sat there for ten thousand years.

At the end of the True King era, disasters were everywhere. He and five hundred spiritual officials saved the world from suffering in the guise of these soldiers, protecting the human race so that they could survive tenaciously in that dark era.

They persisted for more than forty years, and finally the sun rose again.

However, what they encountered was the encirclement and suppression of Despair Slope. Five hundred of their spiritual officials died in the encirclement and suppression, and only he escaped and buried the Taoist tradition.

"Brothers, it's time for us to protect the world again!"

There was a flame burning in his chest, and he whispered, "Though the bodies of those five hundred soldiers are gone, their blood is still flowing. Protect the people first, then avenge the blood feud!"

On the shrines, rays of light flickered continuously, as if responding to his anger and fighting spirit.

On the wooden cart, Chen Shi thought of the old man with a childlike face, and asked Zhu Xiucai to come out, saying, "Teacher, is the skill that the old man used the Imperial Purple Palace Skill?"

Zhu Xiucai thought for a moment and said, "It is very likely. However, among the techniques in the True King's treasury, I have only studied the Ten Books of Cultivation in depth, and I have not studied the Supreme Emperor's Purple Palace Technique in depth. The Goat Horn Tomb Guardian Beast told me that my cultivation is not enough, and if I force myself to read the immortal techniques, I will die if I am not careful."

Chen Shi was deeply touched. He fainted repeatedly while reading various immortal arts in the True King's treasure house.

However, the goat-horned tomb guardian beast did not remind him. This evil spirit must want to see him die in the treasure house.

"What he practiced should be the Supreme Emperor Purple Palace Technique. I once fought against Yang Bi and he used this technique. But he only learned the basics."

Chen Shi pondered, "Wang Lingguan said that after the disaster, people from Despair Hill came to cut down the mountain and destroyed the temple, so I suspect this old man is also from Despair Hill."

His eyes flashed, "Despair Hill is completing what was not done that year. All the temples of the Chinese gods will be completely eradicated!"

All the temples sank and disappeared, until now when the sun no longer exists, and the temples have only appeared. This gives Despair Hill the opportunity to uproot these temples and eliminate the trouble forever!
"But why must Despair Hill destroy these temples?" He was puzzled.

There are many puzzling things about Despair Hill, such as sending out heavenly eavesdroppers to monitor the world, which is very suspicious.

For example, why did Despair Slope use the immortal arts from the True King's treasury? Did he get them from the True King? Or were those arts passed down from another source?
Despair Hill holds too many secrets.

"Despair Hill wants to destroy the Chinese gods' Taoist lineage. I don't know how many people will be killed." A murderous look flashed in Chen Shi's eyes as he pondered how to kill the childlike old man.

He glanced at Zhu Xiucai, his heart moved slightly, thinking of the battle between Zhu Xiucai and the old man with a childlike face, and said with a smile: "Teacher, you were so powerful in your life, are you really just a scholar?"

Zhu Xiucai was hanging the rope on the canopy of the wooden cart at this moment. He hung himself up out of habit, fluttering in the wind. This made him feel much more comfortable. He said, "Of course I am a scholar. I failed the imperial examination."

Chen Shi was puzzled and asked, "But your talent is unprecedented, if not unrivaled, why did you only take the exam for a scholar?"

Zhu Xiucai hesitated for a moment, then told the truth, "I took the exam with the surname Zhu to tell the world that the surname Zhu has not been extinct and the bloodline of the true king is still there. After I passed the exam, the news spread to the fifty provinces and reached Xijing. After that, I failed every time I took the exam. I took the exam for the title of Juren fourteen times in total."

Chen Shi had never heard him mention his story before, so he listened quietly.

Zhu Xiucai said, "I have seen the sufferings of the people and the difficulties faced by the common people during my many years of taking the imperial examinations. I have witnessed the decline of people's livelihood and the oppression of the people by the government, which is even worse than the evil spirits. I want to take the imperial examination and tell the world that the Zhu family is still around! I want to become a true king and solve the sufferings of the people, the infighting in the officialdom, and the corruption in the court! I have all kinds of ideas and want to recreate the prosperity of the true king!"

He also wanted to know the truth about the end of the True King era.

No one in the world dares to use the surname Zhu anymore, except him!

"But I took the exam fourteen times and failed once."

Zhu Xiucai was hanging on the rope, his face calm, as calm as if he was telling another person's story.

"I thought I was not talented enough, so I practiced like crazy, studied hard, and strived to improve myself. I risked my life to enter the True King's Tomb, and was nearly killed by the Tomb Guardian Beasts several times. They beat me to death, leaving only half a breath, and threw me out. But I still crawled back. The Tomb Guardian Beasts did not kill me. The Goat Horn Tomb Guardian Beast said to me that after more than five thousand years, the Zhu family finally had a man of integrity, so he let me enter the True King's Tomb.

"He said he had waited for five thousand years, but none of the Zhu family had the guts to do it. They were all frightened by the ghosts and gods here. I am the only one who is stubborn and not afraid of death. I read the classics in the tomb of the True King and made an unprecedented breakthrough. I am confident that if I take the exam again, I will definitely pass it.

“I failed the exam again.”

Zhu Xiucai's eyes were filled with despair. "I was already in the Mahayana realm at that time, but I still failed the exam. I couldn't even pass the exam to become a juren. I couldn't do anything. But suddenly I realized, screw the juren exam, screw the spring exam, screw the palace exam! I'm already invincible! I have no rivals."

Chen Shi exclaimed: "You have mastered Laozi!"

Zhu Xiucai laughed and said, "That's right, I have mastered Laozi! I am not afraid of anything! If you don't let me pass the imperial examination, or become the top scholar, then I will attack Xijing! I want to tell these bastards that your true king is back! I will attack Xijing and fight against the Five Army Camps alone. I will face the Great General Cannon of the Shenji Camp head-on, and I will defeat the three armies by myself! I will break into Xijing City, enter the inner city palace, and sweep away the thirteen ministers of the cabinet!"

Chen Shi clapped his hands and said, "Well done!"

Zhu Xiucai laughed loudly, "Of course I fought well! These old guys controlled the government and regarded my Zhu family's kingdom as their own! These old guys gave birth to many cubs, which reproduced everywhere and sucked the blood of the common people. They all deserved to be beheaded! These old guys indulged evil spirits and exploited the people. If it were the laws of the Ming Dynasty, they should all be executed and their entire clans should be exterminated!"

Chen Shi asked excitedly: "And then?"

Zhu Xiucai's face darkened, and after a moment of silence, he said, "They used the Nine Palaces of the True King to suppress me."

Chen Shi's mouth twitched, and he said, "It's not your fault. The Nine Palaces of the True King are immortal artifacts, treasures of the immortal family. Even if a true immortal faces these nine immortal artifacts, he will suffer losses and grievances."

"That's what our ancestors used to suppress evil spirits, not to suppress our descendants."

Zhu Xiucai showed a painful expression, and after a moment, he continued, "After I was suppressed, the hermit ancestors of the thirteen families appeared and challenged me one by one. They lived longer than me and had higher cultivation than me. They never said a word to me, and they defeated me one by one."

Chen Shi was silent.

Zhu Xiucai's situation was the same as his grandfather Chen Yindu's. When Chen Yindu besieged Xijing, these ancestors also appeared, challenging Chen Yindu one after another, showing him the world above the world, forcing Chen Yindu to retreat and live in seclusion in Huangpo Village.

“They didn’t give me any trouble.”

Zhu Xiucai regained his composure and said, "They let me go because they didn't want to bear the infamy of regicide. I was in a daze, walking madly in Xiniu Island, completely hopeless. I have run into obstacles everywhere in this world, and have been beaten to a pulp by this world. I have lost my direction and the courage to live."

In the end, he chose to hang himself.

He came to the tomb of the True King, chose a loess slope, and hanged himself under the old willow tree.

He wants to use his cold eyes to watch the world decay and become corrupt under the turmoil of the thirteen families, and watch how this world destroys itself!
"Xiao Shi, don't have any sympathy for the Thirteenth Family. They don't deserve it." He said calmly.

(End of this chapter)