A Tale of Encounters with Immortals: A Peach Blossom Temple in the Martial World

"mother--"

After staring at the corpse for a long time, the little girl suddenly opened her mouth, startling Zhang Zhengdao and Hu Yunying.

"Clap!"

Something behind Zhang Zhengdao shattered.

It looked like something had cracked open.

Looking back, Guo Lanying's eyes were full of tears, and the plate full of braised pork in her hand fell and shattered. Her lips twitched, as if she was about to cry, and she sniffed hard.

With that effort, tears started falling.

In the past few days, from the time she started calling her mother as a baby to seeing an eight or nine-year-old girl calling her mother as soon as she woke up, she has long since gotten into the role.

But just now I heard the little girl call the female corpse "Mother".

Zhang Zhengdao quickly tried to persuade her.

"This child has a lot of problems; she likes to claim any mother, just ignore her..."

"But...I am her mother..."

Zhang Zhengdao thought to himself, "What's wrong with her? Does she like being someone's mother?"

The little girl came over and took Guo Lanying's hand, looking up at her and saying, "Mother, you're crying! Did Xiaoyue make you angry?"

Guo Lanying immediately wiped away her tears, feeling much comforted. She squatted down and forced a smile.

"No, Mother just... accidentally spilled your favorite braised pork, and she's upset!"

"My mother is so good!"

The little girl wrapped her arms around Guo Lanying's neck; her soft, sweet voice melted Guo Lanying's heart.

"I'll go get the dishes. Eat more later."

He turned around and ran back to the kitchen.

Zhang Zhengdao was stunned. Could this really be done? He'd been appeased with just a few words?

Who is this little girl? Can chaotic energy have such healing effects?

The little girl stepped forward, reached out, took the female corpse's hand, and led her to the table. She looked up at the corpse, seemingly gazing at her, or perhaps deep in thought.

"I think I know you!"

"I think I know you!"

The female corpse actually spoke.

It was repeated once, like a broken record.

The voice sounded harsh and cold due to the vocal cord issue, unlike the sound produced by vocal cord vibration; it sounded more like ventriloquism coming from the abdomen.

Hu Yunying was also taken aback, examining the corpse for the first time.

She accepted that the female corpse was still fresh.

She accepted that the female corpse could walk.

But since the female corpse could actually speak, she couldn't quite recognize her.

It's not that this miraculous phenomenon is unacceptable, but rather, once the female corpse can speak, will she continue to think about things?

Or... will Shu Baimei come back again in the future?

This is absolutely terrifying!

Is God going to do this to me?

Hu Yunying gritted her teeth.

She's the kind of person who gets stronger with each setback; the greater the difficulty, the more excited she gets.

Turning her head, she saw Guo Lanying excitedly bringing out another bowl of meat and placing it on the stone table in the backyard, calling to the little girl.

"Come and eat, I'll go get more dishes."

She turned around and happily went to the kitchen.

What a terrible teammate!

Hu Yunying was speechless; the little girl was even going to recognize a female corpse as her mother.

But then again, is this girl Shu Baimei or Zhang Yuelian? Is this female corpse Shu Baimei, or simply a corpse?

This feels so confusing!

Hu Yunying had a headache, but when she glanced at Zhang Zhengdao, he seemed perfectly fine, already sitting down and preparing to eat.

The little girl has a big appetite.

After finishing a whole pot of rice, they still wanted more.

Guo Lanying felt sorry for the child, so she went to cook for her again.

Zhang Zhengdao couldn't be bothered with such matters.

Children grow quickly and eat a lot, which is understandable. It's just raising a child; it's not like we can't afford to.

After he finished eating, he went to prepare the command tokens and talismans.

It's still the first month of the lunar calendar, which is the off-season for farming. When spring arrives in March and planting begins, it will be difficult to find laborers. In addition, the imperial court may impose corvée labor because there are still many official fields and water conservancy projects.

We must make good use of this spare time to repair the road up the mountain.

The accounts of Ye Daoyuan's daughter from the Ye family in Daoxian County, the accounts of He Xiuyuan, the son of He Zhongzheng in Lingzhou Prefecture, and the accounts of the pretty cook at the Zuixianlou restaurant in Lingzhou City—these are all from wealthy families…

The command token was easy to write on; it was finished in less than half an hour.

The three command tokens were flicked casually, turning into three streaks of white light that disappeared into the sky.

The little girl who was cooking rice in the yard suddenly sensed something and looked up at the sky.

Three beams of white light flew out from Zhang Zhengdao's courtyard and disappeared into the air.

Her eyes were filled with envy as she turned to look at Zhang Zhengdao's room.

I put down my chopsticks and went over.

Pushing open Zhang Zhengdao's door, they saw him sitting at his desk reading, with the female corpse standing beside him, like a guard protecting him.

It just doesn't have any popularity.

"father!"

The young girl bowed to Zhang Zhengdao.

"Say!"

"I want to learn immortal techniques!"

Wow, what a bold and outspoken young lady!

Zhang Zhengdao turned his head and looked at her with great interest.

Tell me, why do you want to learn it?

The little girl said, "If I want to think about it, then I naturally want to think about it. Why else? Dad, teach me!"

That makes a lot of sense!

Zhang Zhengdao glanced at her.

"Alright, if you want to learn immortal techniques, go to the pond and fetch thirty buckets of water every day for a month."

Zhang Zhengdao closed the book, looked at her, and asked, "Do you want to learn?"

Without the slightest hesitation, the little girl immediately nodded and said, "I will learn, and I hope Father will not go back on his word!"

"Go! Start today!"

Upon hearing this, the little girl bowed, turned around, and went out.

Dao County, Ye Prefecture.

The first month of the lunar calendar has passed.

From the Spring Festival until the New Year, the Ye family mansion has been bustling with activity. Firstly, Ye Daoyuan felt that the usual days were rather quiet, so he wanted to make it lively today. Secondly, he also wanted to create a lively atmosphere so that his daughter wouldn't dwell on past emotions.

Life at the Ye residence resumed as normal after the holiday, and Ye Daoyuan's mourning period was only a few months away. During this time, he would once again await the imperial decree.

Therefore, besides reading books and reviewing the court gazettes, Emperor Longjing analyzed the current political situation every day. He weakened the power of the Qingfeng Guard, but still wanted to monitor all officials. Eunuchs gradually moved towards the center of power, establishing the Eastern Depot and the Western Depot. The central government established the Grand Secretariat, completely dismantling the power of the prime minister. The position of prime minister became a figurehead, destined to end sooner or later.

He wrote letters to his teachers and classmates in the capital on several occasions, expressing his desire to take up an official post.

Recently, his teacher, who was serving as the Vice Minister of Revenue in Beijing, replied that the court would issue an edict after the mourning period ended. Ye Daoyuan was in a good mood upon receiving this confirmation.

The sky was pale and gray that day. While he was reading in his study, a thought suddenly struck him.

The study window opened by itself without any wind, and the breeze was warm as spring, without the slightest hint of coolness. To his surprise, he saw a beam of white light suddenly fall from the sky, pass through the window, and land on the desk.

Upon closer inspection, it was a folded letter.

He picked it up and smiled slightly, recalling the events of the year before. He then called out, "Someone, prepare quickly. We will head to Linbin Town in two days."

The servants in the mansion were in a flurry of activity.

Lingzhou Prefecture, He Prefecture.

He Zhongzheng was playing chess with a friend when he suddenly felt something and looked up at the sky.

My friend laughed and said, "Are you about to concede defeat?"

He Zhongzheng laughed and said, "I'm afraid something good is coming. I have a feeling about it, so I'll concede this time." With that, he abandoned his piece and prepared to apologize.

A beam of white light descended from the sky.

To the astonishment of his friend, a paper bird landed on the chessboard, scattering the pieces.

Ye Daoyuan laughed heartily: "Even Heaven doesn't want us to continue."

Upon unfolding it, he nodded and said, "Great news, great news!"

As they were talking, in a side room in the backyard, a little boy was sitting cross-legged with his eyes closed. Suddenly, he opened his eyes, smiled, and muttered to himself, "The time has come!"

Meanwhile, at the Drunken Immortal Pavilion in Lingzhou City.

The cook at the counter was doing the accounts when suddenly a white light fell down.

The cook also saw a letter on the counter.

This strange situation made her think of a certain possibility, and she couldn't help but look outside the door.

A peach tree outside the door seemed to be showing signs of spring, with tiny buds growing on its branches.

"So spring has come again!"

"It's time to go see the Taoist priest!"

While he was talking to himself, a monk was eating two plates of vegetarian food at a table not far from the counter.

Hearing the cook's words, he couldn't help but put down his chopsticks.

Looking outwards, it's as if you can see the ethereal immortals in the distant Peach Blossom Mountain.