The immortal is beside me

Chapter 75: The Great Famine at the End of the Han Dynasty (4500 chapters)

When she was in the Institute of Super-Research, Qin Jiajia once heard researchers talk about a concept called "space-time gravity": when the mass or energy of an object is large enough, its existence itself can bend space-time, and all the surrounding matter will slide towards it.

Now the three major camps of China's extraordinary system are all sliding towards Zhou Qing.

Compared to her previous fully armed alert, this time her actions were not restricted in any way. Apart from a simple "inquiry about her intention" instruction, the three major systems did not give her any extra requirements.

With their previous experience, they already understood that any unnecessary means in front of that person would be just a show of force, so they simply gave up the routine, discussed the matter at hand, and played the relationship card purely.

She took the car from the Chaoyan Institute to the outside of the Jianguo Road community and found Zhou Qing in an empty corner.

He was standing under a half-dead willow tree in front of a residential building, holding a pair of special scissors and trimming the willow branches hanging from the tree.

It is already the beginning of autumn. After a spring and summer of growth, the branches of the trees in the community have grown so long that they almost hang down to the ground. Not only do they take up the space for people to dry their clothes, but when the wind blows, the branches will crackle and hit the glass of houses and vehicles in the community, causing dissatisfaction and complaints from many residents.

This complaint naturally went to the subdistrict office, and all the staff were mobilized to check and trim the trees along the path one by one.

Qin Jiajia called out for someone and was about to walk forward when a clear voice suddenly rang out.

"Little girl, are you also a friend of the immortal?"

The voice seemed to come from her head, which scared her a little. She turned around and saw a red bird the size of a palm lying on a tree branch, looking at her with its golden eyes.

"Phoenix.?!"

She had heard about what happened in Qishan when she was at the Super Research Institute, so she naturally guessed the origin of the bird and was surprised.

Is this the legendary Demon King?
"That's right." Phoenix raised his head, "I am the first attendant under the immortal's throne, little girl, please remember this."

Companion? This word made Qin Jiajia slightly stunned. So far, most of the speculations within the Transcendent Research Institute about the "Demon Emperor and the Immortal" were that they were friends of different races. But from Phoenix's tone, this relationship didn't seem like pure friendship.

The Demon King was his companion? Was he the companion she had in mind?
These two sentences surprised Qin Jiajia for a moment. While she was thinking about it, Zhou Qing over there had stopped what he was doing and looked at her. She then remembered the original purpose of this trip and hurried forward.

"Zhou Qing, there are new developments from the leadership."

While helping Zhou Qing pick up the branches at his feet, she said, "I don't know if you've heard of this, but there's a title called Strategic Level within the government. Cultivators with this title can mobilize government resources at will. They asked me to ask if you're interested in taking on this title."

According to the news she heard, the three major systems are now strongly recommending him, and even the top ones have already issued instructions. As long as Zhou Qing nods, the authority matching the strategic level will be handed over to him immediately.

If it were someone else, this would definitely be an irresistible temptation, but when it comes to Zhou Qing, the outcome is questionable.

"Strategic level?" A phoenix flapped its wings. "The Immortal Master has always disliked being bound by such external titles. If the government wants to use this to build a closer relationship with the Immortal Master, it would be best for them to resign as soon as possible."

As soon as the voice was transmitted, Zhou Qing on the side glanced at it sideways. It quickly restrained its breath and its whole body turned into a ball of fire and disappeared on the spot.

"This title is of no use to me for now." He turned to Qin Jiajia and said, "However, if it is needed in the future, I will ask for it."

He had heard of the title of strategic level from Yuan Tiangang before. He really had no interest in anything else, but now he had several old friends scattered across the Central Plains, and with the official as an intermediary, it would be convenient to contact them.

"Okay." Qin Jiajia nodded.

This answer didn't surprise her. As Fenghuang had said, Zhou Qing had always shown little interest in this kind of thing, and the fact that he didn't refuse outright this time was already a great hope for the authorities.

In just a few words, the major issue concerning the highest level was resolved. The two of them returned to their usual state, casually chatting about their recent situation.

"Right, right, let me show you the results of my recent training."

Talking about daily affairs, Qin Jiajia's tone became cheerful again: "During this period, my Qi Sea has opened up 20%. I heard from the people in the institute that this speed is very fast. I can be included in the list of seed newcomers. If I keep up this speed, I may even be able to go to Beijing for further training."

As she said, during this period of time she stayed in the Super Research Institute not only to prepare materials, but also to learn cultivation methods and basic techniques.

In three months, her Qi Sea opened to 20%, which was definitely an excellent talent among official cultivators. She received admiration and praise from her instructor in almost every test.

Although these praises made her very happy, what she wanted most was to let Zhou Qing see her progress.

"They also taught me a few spells. They're quite difficult, you see."

Qin Jiajia stretched out her palm and activated her spiritual power. A small, faint ball of light appeared in her palm, like a third eye floating outside her body.

The technique of virtual vision is a detection technique that combines spiritual power with the release of spiritual consciousness. It can concentrate the detection power of spiritual consciousness in a small area and greatly improve the accuracy of spiritual consciousness detection. Qi-refining cultivators can use this technique to reach a level comparable to that of foundation-building cultivators in a small area.

The threshold for this technique is not high, even a novice cultivator can learn it, but combining spiritual power with consciousness and releasing it is not a simple matter. Ordinary people often need at least several years to master the trick, but she mastered it after practicing for three months. This speed is definitely top-notch, and everyone in the institute praises her.

"The art of the False Eye?" Zhou Qing naturally recognized the technique at a glance. "This technique is indeed very complicated. You've mastered it, so you really have a good talent."

"Really? Even you find it difficult?" Qin Jiajia raised her head unconsciously, and the corners of her mouth were harder to suppress than AK.

"Of course." Zhou Qing nodded. "When I tried to improve this technique, it took me two hours to get the knack. It was certainly difficult."

“.” Qin Jiajia’s smile froze.

She stood there stiffly for a while, let out a breath, and finally couldn't help but let out the sigh that had been accumulating in her heart for a long time.

"You... is it true that you always reach the pinnacle of everything you do, and never need to learn the basics?"

"What nonsense!" Zhou Qing said as he cut willow branches. "Everyone has a beginning, and I am no exception."

"So what were you like when you first started practicing?" Qin Jiajia asked curiously, "That must have been a long time ago."

With a click, another willow branch was cut off.

"It's okay to talk about it."

Zhou Qing threw the cut willow branches aside: "That was indeed a long time ago."

Qin Jiajia was stunned for a moment, then immediately pricked up her ears.

Although she knew that this man was an old monster who had lived for thousands of years, she had never known the exact era in which he lived. Even if she put aside the tasks assigned by the unit and just talked about her personal feelings, this was enough to make her listen attentively.

"The year I began my cultivation was a year of disaster. The two great factions of the cultivation world, the Cang Tian Sect and the Huang Tian Sect, fought each other, resulting in heavy casualties. At the same time, the mortal world suffered from a severe drought. It hadn't rained for three consecutive years, and the fields were no longer able to grow crops."

“As a result, many people have no food to eat.”

Under the broad daylight, the bare ground is thousands of miles away, and the bones are exposed.

Beside the cracked fields, a pair of cloth boots treaded on the rough dirt path, trudging forward with heavy steps. The steps became smaller and smaller until they stopped at the edge of the fields, as if looking out.

The owner of the cloth boots was dressed in Chinese traditional clothing, looking like a scholar preparing to take the imperial examinations in Beijing. However, his hair had turned completely white, and his face was covered in wrinkles, clearly indicating his advanced age.

"Eighty years."

He gazed at the desolate land before him and muttered to himself, "I left for the immortal path, and have not returned for eighty years. I, a mighty man, have become like this..." As he spoke, an indelible sadness and sorrow welled up in his heart. In the past, he would have composed a poem to express his feelings, but after eighty years of cultivating the Dao, now standing before this desolate hometown, he realized with a start that he no longer had the ability to compose poetry.

"Huh," he sighed in self-mockery, withdrew his gaze from the edge of the wasteland, took a step forward and prepared to set off again.

His footsteps suddenly stopped, and several auras surged into his consciousness. He turned his head and met several pairs of empty eyes.

There were a few ragged refugees, gathered on the roadside with crutches, looking at him hesitantly and not daring to go forward.

Looking further away, there were about twenty or thirty people a few dozen steps away, following in the footsteps of the pioneers. It seemed that they were fellow travelers who had gathered together to escape the famine.

"Sir."

The men nearby hesitated for a long time before finally speaking tremblingly, "Excuse me, are you the official sent by the capital to provide disaster relief?"

The refugee who was speaking was a man wrapped in a torn leather coat. Judging from his appearance, he should be less than 30 years old, but because he was so thin that his facial features were deformed, his face looked like that of an old man.

Looking at the people around him, they were almost the same as him, all of them were so thin that their ribs protruded, and they were so withered that they looked like walking reed sticks.

"I'm not an official, just a traveler who has been away for a long time."

The old man looked at them, his eyes full of sorrow, and finally sighed: "My last name is Zhou, you can call me Old Zhoutou."

Upon hearing that he was not a disaster relief official, the man asking the question's eyes suddenly dimmed, and his already withered body lost even more vitality, as if it would break at any time.

Seeing that, Old Zhou was shocked and asked, "Why did you end up here?"

Several refugees looked at each other.

"Master, what else can this be? There's no food to eat!"

A refugee said weakly, "This drought has lasted three years. There's no food in the fields, and the government is still collecting exorbitant taxes. Add to that the epidemic, and nine out of ten people in the county have died. Staying here in Guandong any longer is just like waiting to die."

"I heard there's food in the north, so a bunch of us in the village decided to go north together to find a job. We haven't had anything to eat in a few days. If the disaster relief workers don't come soon, we'll all starve to death on the road."

Old Zhou opened his mouth and glanced at the bulging eyelids, shriveled chests, and swollen arms of those people. He wanted to say something but hesitated.

"The people of the Han Dynasty have come to this state. Is it really God's will that the Han Dynasty will be destroyed?"

Old Zhou sighed and put his hand on the storage bag behind his waist.

Any cultivator who has opened their Qi Sea can draw Qi into their bodies and use it to sustain life. However, for someone like him, who is only at the entry level of Qi Refining, it is still impossible to achieve complete fasting and he still needs to eat small amounts every ten days or half a month.

This time he returned to Guandong from the sect. The journey was long, and a Qi Refining cultivator could not fly. It would take several months to walk alone, so he put some Hu cakes in his storage bag as food along the way.

He put his hand into the bag, and with a flicker of light, he took out all the remaining cakes in the bag under the shocked gaze of the refugees.

"I still have some food here. You can share it with everyone."

Several people looked at the Hu pancake in his hand, their lifeless eyes suddenly lit up like hungry wolves seeing blood. They took the pancake from his hand tremblingly, their legs shaking as if they were about to kneel on the ground.

"Thank you sir, thank you sir!"

This cry of thanks was like the beating of a drum, instantly waking up the twenty or thirty refugees who were watching from behind.

With a loud noise, the refugees gathered around like a school of fish competing for bait. Hands stretched out to Old Zhou from all directions, and all they could see were hungry eyes.

"Master, please give me some bread. I haven't eaten for three days."

"Master, I have elderly people and children at home."

"master"

A scream was heard, and Old Zhou looked up, only to see that the hungry man who had just taken the bread was hit on the side of the face with a wooden stick. The piece of bread in his mouth, which he had not swallowed in time, was sprayed to the ground along with blood foam and was immediately picked up by another hand and swallowed.

He spat out a mouthful of blood, curled up into a ball, and tightly held the remaining bread in his arms. The crowd surrounded him from all sides, and fists, kicks, sticks and clubs were fighting in unison, and there were shouts and curses everywhere.

"Don't grab! Don't grab!"

Old Zhou became anxious and was about to stop them, but he felt his trouser legs tighten. He looked down and saw a young woman kneeling at his feet.

"Master, if you accept me, I will be your concubine and slave. If you give me some corn, I will survive and serve you for the rest of my life."

As if infected by her words, another woman ran over and pulled the girl next to her to kneel down together.

"Master, my little girl is thirteen years old and still a virgin. If you accept her, she and I will serve you together. You just need to give her something to eat, and I can survive on my own."

Begging voices filled his ears from all directions, and all he could see were dirty hands waving around. Several pairs of hands reached behind him, trying to grab his storage bag.

"Daddy...Daddy..." A child's cry came from the crowd, "I don't want to eat the bread anymore...Don't hit my daddy, I'll give you all the bread..."

Old Zhou's heart was shaken, and his concentrated spiritual energy almost dissipated. Seeing more and more people gathering around him, his heart finally sank, and he gathered strength in his arms, lashing out at the crowd.

A cry of surprise rang out. Although it was only the power of the Qi Refining Stage, the people on all sides were still swept away half a foot by the spiritual power and fell to the ground.

The chaotic looting stopped immediately, and the refugees sat down on the ground, looking at the skinny old man in front of them in shock and fear. The first few people reacted first, and their knees softened and they knelt on the ground.

"Master Divine Immortal."

They bowed to Old Zhou repeatedly, their bodies trembling uncontrollably: "God, please forgive us, God, please forgive us, we just want to have a meal, please God, please..."

Amidst the pleading, several more people knelt down, kowtowed repeatedly to him. Seeing those pairs of desperate eyes, Old Zhou stepped back, then suddenly turned around and ran away.

Cries and shouts were heard from behind. A few people tried to chase after them, but after being hungry for several days, they no longer had the strength to run. They stopped after a few steps and turned back to the crowd.

After running about a mile, Old Zhou stopped in front of a pile of rocks, suddenly sat down on the ground, and covered his face with his hands.

The big man was already terminally ill, but he was just a dying low-level monk. He couldn't even save himself, so how could he save the world?

His chest heaved violently, and only calmed down slightly after a few breaths. Just as he straightened up and was about to get up, he was suddenly struck by a feeling of being spied on from behind his head.

A pair of eyes were staring at him, or rather, had been staring at him for a long time. He was so shocked that he didn't notice the gaze behind him.

He slowly turned his head and looked towards the pile of rocks behind him, where he met a pair of eyes hidden behind the rocks.

He was a young refugee boy, about twelve or thirteen years old, with dishevelled hair and wrapped in tattered clothes covered in mud. He was so thin that the joints of his limbs were clearly visible.

He hid behind a rock like a vigilant cub, quietly observing the "immortal" in front of him.

(End of this chapter)