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

A major event has recently occurred in the martial arts world.

The Fairy of the Mirror Flower, a champion of justice, killed the Venerable Shanbei, the abbot of Xiangyun Temple, in Yunzhou. The abbot of Xiangyun Temple, Master Shanku, personally intervened, injuring the Fairy of the Mirror Flower. During the pursuit, the Fairy of the Mirror Flower vanished into the desert.

By the time they were found, he was already dead.

He was killed by the abbot of Xiangyun Temple with a single blow, dying in the desert. His body was probably devoured by jackals and hyenas long ago, leaving no trace of his remains.

When this news spread from the west to the south, Zhang Zhengdao was a guest at the residence of Sun Zhenjian.

The two sipped their wine, enjoyed delicacies, and exchanged frequent words of blessing.

This table was set up in the inner room, specifically for people like Zhang Zhengdao. Accompanying him were Magistrate Fan of Dao County and the newly appointed Prefect Huang of Lingzhou Prefecture. Several others sat sideways, including the Provincial Surveillance Commissioner, the county magistrate, and the registrar.

Zhang Zhengdao and Huang Tongpan sat at the head of the table and at the bottom of the table, respectively, while the rest of the people lined up on both sides.

Several musicians played an orchestral ensemble, and a female official sang a tune.

Huang Tongpan is a sixth-rank official who recently arrived in Lingzhou. He had already heard about the affairs of You Tongpan's family in Lingzhou, which were quite proper. However, the recent news of the emperor's search for Zhang Zhenren of Linbin Town made him want to come and visit. So, he took this birthday celebration as an excuse and had Sun Zhenjian arrange this table.

"Master, has His Majesty made an appointment with you?"

After several rounds of drinks, Magistrate Huang asked directly.

Zhang Zhengdao said, "His Majesty's pursuit of the Dao is merely a matter of following his heart. If we were to try to fathom His Majesty's intentions, we fear we would displease him. Doesn't Judge Huang, with his experience in officialdom, know this?"

That's a rather blunt way of putting it.

But Judge Huang could only endure it. Although he wanted to make things difficult for Zhang Zhengdao, he didn't dare to.

If a true person who has direct access to the heavens were to casually mention something in the future, what chance would they have of surviving?

He smiled awkwardly, using the toast as an excuse to cover it up.

Sun Zhenjian was embarrassed, but he had no choice but to set up the table; he couldn't fight city hall.

Seeing that Zhang Zhengdao had rebuked Huang Tongpan, he was secretly pleased, but he pretended that nothing had happened and advised, "We do not know whether His Majesty will come or not, but the arrival of our distinguished guests today is a great joy. Come, come, drink to your hearts' content!"

As they were drinking, they suddenly saw Qingxuzi rushing over and waving at Zhang Zhengdao from afar.

Zhang Zhengdao, impatient with the trivialities of drinking, excused himself and hurriedly left with Qing Xuzi.

Judge Huang then said in a pretentious manner, "He is a true man of genuine character!"

The others all nodded in agreement.

In particular, Magistrate Fan recounted the scene of his first encounter with Zhang Zhengdao.

The atmosphere at the banquet became lively again.

As Qingxuzi followed Zhang Zhengdao back, he quickly said, "A man has arrived, a government official, who said he's from Hanzhou and was commissioned by Prefect Shi..."

As soon as Zhang Zhengdao entered the courtyard, he saw a burly man sitting in the side hall.

When the man saw someone arrive, he stood up, cupped his hands in greeting to Zhang Zhengdao, and asked, "May I ask if you are the Venerable Master Zhang in person?"

Zhang Zhengdao nodded, looked at the man, and said, "Please sit down, guest. I heard that Prefect Shi sent you here..."

The man nodded, not daring to sit down, and took out a letter from his pocket, handing it to Zhang Zhengdao.

"The master entrusted me to personally deliver it to the real person."

Zhang Zhengdao nodded, then turned to Qing Xuzi and said, "Take good care of your guests, and give them some silver as travel expenses before they leave."

After saying this, he cupped his hands in greeting to the man and went to his study.

In the study, a female corpse was unexpectedly discovered.

Her gaze was vacant, her eyes empty, as if she were lost in thought. These days, we've been searching everywhere for her, but we've rarely seen her. Now, she's standing facing the wall.

Zhang Zhengdao ignored her and took out the letter to read.

After looking at it once, his expression turned sour. Just then, Hu Yunying came over. She had originally intended to use a sweet and coquettish manner to pave the way for her coming over that evening, but seeing Zhang Zhengdao's displeased expression, she dared not utter a word.

Zhu Jingyan, the fairy in the mirror, is actually a seed she planted herself.

A seed that yearns for the righteous path of humanity and pursues the light.

Just like Prefect Shi, what seemed like a casual act was actually a way to leave something behind for the world.

I haven't paid attention to Zhu Jingyan's news for a long time, and I didn't expect to receive such news.

Prefect Shi kept a close eye on Fairy Mirror Flower, and her reputation for helping the weak and oppressed and upholding justice was frequently heard in the martial arts world. However, since returning to Linbin Town, Zhang Zhengdao seemed to have become somewhat isolated from the martial arts world.

Since the emperor came to Linbin Town, fewer martial arts practitioners have come here.

Furthermore, with the ongoing construction projects here, there are even fewer martial arts figures gathering here.

Firstly, after the emperor's visit, the government's inspections were more stringent; secondly, the area was full of laborers, leaving little room for江湖人士 (jianghu figures, people of the martial arts world) to make their mark.

People from the underworld usually frequent places where wanted criminals might hide, places where there are feuds and grudges, or places where gatherings are held.

But it will never appear in a peaceful place unless someone wants to hire someone to kill.

In a peaceful place, there is no opportunity for opportunistic behavior; people who come here only contribute to local consumption.

"Master...what did you say?"

The eldest disciple, Qingyangzi, came in from outside and, having heard about the matter, seemed quite concerned.

"It's okay, rumors may not be true."

Zhang Zhengdao had already calculated that Zhu Jingyan was not destined to die.

"You all take good care of the house. Make sure the rituals and prayers for blessings performed at the Sunzhen Temple are done well. This is your first major job. Once the temple is repaired, you'll have to take over this kind of work."

Qingyangzi was secretly delighted and quickly agreed.

Is this a preparation for him to hand over power in the future?

Seeing the obvious joy on his face, Zhang Zhengdao knew that he was overthinking things.

"It's all gone!"

Zhang Zhengdao waved his hand.

Qingyangzi and Hu Yunying left.

The female corpse looked at Zhang Zhengdao and said, "I want to go!"

"Once you catch the white-haired mouse, you can leave."

The female corpse silently began to face the wall again.

That damned rat seemed to have vanished. They searched everywhere but couldn't find it, which made the female corpse begin to doubt her very existence.

Yunzhou in western China.

A desolate desert, with endless yellow sand.

A woman in a white dress was lying motionless on the yellow sand of the Gobi Desert, her back to the sky.

In the distance, amidst the yellow sand, a long snake that had been winding its way across the desert stopped, glanced at the woman in the white dress, swam to her side, raised its head and flicked its tongue, seemingly deep in thought, without moving.

Then another scorpion crawled over, glanced at the snake from afar, but didn't go over. It just stayed still beside the group of women in white.

A vulture swooped down from the sky, ready to snatch a delicious meal, but just as it was about to reach the woman, it suddenly stopped, flapped its wings, and landed on a withered holly bush not far away.

"Boss, there's a woman here!"

A group of people came over, about thirteen or fourteen in total.

Dressed in rags, carrying various farm tools and broken swords and axes.

"What a woman!"

The man at the head of the group, who was pale and thin, almost skin and bones, shouted with delight.

"Not dead yet..."

"To be the bandit chief's wife for a few days..."

"Then give it to the second-in-command... and finally it's my turn..."

"I'm hungry—"

A short, dark-skinned young man, also malnourished, touched his belly and said.

Immediately, several people nearby stared at the woman in the white dress, their mouths watering. In these days, very few people who make a living in the desert haven't resorted to cannibalism.

What's lying here isn't a beautiful woman, but a large, delicious piece of meat.

"I was the one who discovered this first, damn it... Boss, whatever you say, I'll support you. Whether it's sleeping or eating, it's all up to you."

A burly, bald man with his shirt open, carrying an axe, couldn't help but say, "If you ask me, it's just a matter of one axe blow. Chop him up, throw him in the pot, and cook him up—enough for the brothers to eat for a day."

"roll--"

The leader was a thin, scholarly-looking man. Surprisingly, a sword hung at his waist. This sword was clearly extraordinary.

Although the exquisite scabbard was covered by the sandstorm, it was clear at a glance that it was no ordinary item.

The restless crowd immediately stopped.

But some people still can't resist licking their lips.

Turn the woman over, and a stunningly beautiful woman's face will be revealed.

"The Mirror Flower Fairy? She really is here..."

The scholar wanted to reach out and touch the woman's face.

Suddenly, a beam of light emanated from the woman's body, stinging his eyes and causing him to cry out "Ouch!" and stumble backward, nearly falling to the ground.

"The boss..."

Several people quickly came up.

"It's okay!"

The scholar waved his hand and drew his long sword.

A dazzling longsword, gleaming in the desert sunlight.

He gently offered the longsword, intending to open the woman's clothes.

Everyone around stared wide-eyed, not wanting to miss a single moment of this feast for the eyes. Making a living in the desert meant not only a lack of food, but also a severe shortage of women.

"Someone is coming!"

Suddenly someone shouted into the distance.

Everyone turned to look in the direction he was pointing.

In the distance of the desert, where the sun sets, a figure appears on the horizon in the haze.

The wind of the desert.

Sunset over the desert.

A lone figure drifted in.

With a sword on his back and a gourd at his waist, dressed in blue, his long robe fluttering, he seemed like an immortal.