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

The fairies felt it was a dream.

They have realized a big problem.

That means from now on, they are no longer free; they have been pledged to the new abbot of Fuqing Palace.

When they saw the former leader, the Black Tiger Spirit, leading the ten demon kings to kneel and bow to Zhang Zhengdao, shouting "Long live the Abbot!", they knew that their happy days were long gone.

"Everyone get up!"

Zhang Zhengdao raised his hand.

The demon kings kowtowed again and shouted, "Thank you for your great kindness, Abbot!"

Zhang Zhengdao: ...

Is this an attempt to transplant the imperial court's system? But then again, these demons haven't read many books, some can't even read, so how can we expect them to come up with any sense of propriety, morality, or shame?

“From now on, you’ll all be following me. Be diligent in your work. Pay off your debts as soon as possible, and you’ll regain your freedom sooner,” Zhang Zhengdao encouraged them.

The black tiger demon patted his chest and said, "Master, I will follow you for the rest of my life."

The wild boar spirit puffed out his chest: "Me too."

The bison demon was still lying on the ground, the blood from his head had stopped flowing, but he didn't have the strength to stand up. However, he could still groan and say, "Me...me too."

The fox spirit's eyes darted around several times before she said, "I am willing to work for the Abbot."

The remaining demon kings also expressed their willingness to follow Zhang Zhengdao for life.

I can't remain silent.

Behind him stood the girl and a huge white snake.

Everyone knows the White Snake; her cultivation is even higher than the Black Tiger Spirit's. But the White Snake still became a pet. Just thinking about the Taoist's incantation of "stillness" fills me with deep fear.

Zhang Zhengdao said, "Since you're all willing, from now on, the cleaning, chopping wood, cooking, and trading at the Taoist temple will all be your responsibility. Do your jobs well and try to settle the accounts as soon as possible."

The demons roared in response: "We are willing to die for the Abbot."

Zhang Zhengdao was about to adjourn the meeting, but then he thought for a moment and said, "Every three days, come to the main hall to listen to my lecture for half a day. No wild game... demons are allowed to be late."

Upon hearing this, the demons inwardly groaned. Making them listen to the lecture was worse than killing them, especially since they would be listening for half a day.

If they have to work so hard to listen to lectures, why would they even be fairies?

Isn't the point of being a fairy to avoid classes, do nothing, lie down, and still eat and drink your fill while ordering people around?

But no fairy dared to disobey.

"Black Tiger Spirit!"

"Little is here!"

"From now on, these demons will all be under your command, and the other nine demon kings will all obey your orders. Take care of things, and feel free to ask me anything you don't understand. The daily maintenance of the Taoist temple will depend on you from now on."

"Yes!" The black tiger spirit agreed without hesitation.

Did he get promoted without even realizing it?

I was quite happy. The abbot must be a powerful figure. I should feel proud to work and manage things under him. Especially those nine demon kings, who used to be outwardly compliant but inwardly defiant, and I couldn't do anything about them. Now that the abbot is backing me up, hehe, why should I be afraid that they won't obey me? I have great power in my hands, it feels pretty good.

After all the demons had dispersed, Ao Yu came over and asked, "Are we going to turn this into a cave?"

Zhang Zhengdao: Huh?

Ao Yu: "With so many demons in the Taoist temple, Master, are you trying to become a demon emperor?! Listen to what that black tiger demon is saying, 'Thank you for your great kindness, Master...'"

Zhang Zhengdao cursed, "I'm just here because I'm the only one left in the Taoist temple. These beasts make it more lively. And you're criticizing me? You're never home, always running around chasing after a spicy snack."

Ao Yu: "I call it Transform into a Dragon!"

Zhang Zhengdao said, "I enlightened you to become a dragon. Now, guess if it can become a dragon?"

Ao Yu said coquettishly, "Master, I'll have the White Snake serve you in bed..."

Zhang Zhengdao angrily retorted, "Get lost. My surname isn't Xu, and I have no interest in snakes."

The water snake spirit, who was not far away and was going down the mountain to fetch water, shivered, looked back at the Taoist temple, and quickly picked up the water buckets and ran along the mountain path, facing the setting sun.

Suddenly, so many demons appeared in the Taoist temple, and then the food inexplicably improved a lot.

Fairies know how to capture wild animals.

Zhang Zhengdao knows how to cook.

Especially after those carnivorous demon kings had eaten it once, they were shocked to realize that even if they had paid off their debts, they should not return to the mountains and forests to continue being kings.

The fox spirit, in particular, was very clever and quickly learned to cook, so Zhang Zhengdao didn't even need to lift a finger.

On the third day, Zhang Zhengdao gave a lecture in the main hall.

The demon kings and lesser demons had all arrived. One of the lesser demons, a wild duck, didn't want to listen to Zhang Zhengdao's lecture and planned to splash around in the water. However, he was caught by a fox spirit and thrown into the kitchen, where he was to be plucked and steamed.

So the lesser demons dared not make any rash moves.

Zhang Zhengdao's lectures were a form of preaching.

Ao Yu is right. There are so many demons in the Taoist temple. It would be bad if the powerful beings thought it was a demon's lair. Let's use lectures to cleanse them of their demonic aura first.

Ao Yu and the White Snake also came during the lecture.

The lecture officially began at the beginning of the Yin hour.

With a loud "smack," Zhang Zhengdao sat on the lecture platform in the main hall, slamming his gavel down. The dark mass of demons below the platform perked up, their eyes turning towards Zhang Zhengdao.

Zhang Zhengdao began by saying, “You creatures with fur and horns, who wish to shed your beastly form and enter human form, must know that the three tribulations and nine tribulations are not mere illusions. The first tribulation is within the space of your spiritual altar—you must inhale and exhale the moon's essence, gather Qi to form an elixir, and refine the transverse bone in your throat to open the seven exquisite innate orifices before you can mimic human voices and speak human language. However, physical appearance is easily molded, but the restless mind is difficult to tame. Even if you cultivate human form, if you cannot subdue the beastly nature within, you will revert to your original form every new moon and full moon. In the past, the nine-tailed fox of Qingqiu transformed for three hundred years, yet it was still struck by lightning and fire, losing its fox tail. This was because its beastly nature was difficult to tame, and it forgot the principle that one must first cultivate humanity before cultivating human form.”

All the demons were stunned into a daze, their hearts filled with joy.

Damn it, we've struck gold! This Taoist priest... no, this immortal master... this sage, he just opened his mouth with such power! What kind of luck do we have?

Especially the Black Tiger Demon, the Wild Ox Demon, the Fox Demon, the Wild Boar Demon, and the Spider Demon, whose cultivation was relatively profound, widened their eyes in surprise.

They exchanged a glance, both looking overjoyed but forced to suppress it.

Thanks to Laozi, Buddha, the Jade Emperor, and all the gods... that we can finally eat meat again.

The demons were greatly encouraged and continued to listen attentively to Zhang Zhengdao's lecture.

Zhang Zhengdao's fingertips blossomed with lines, and a diagram of the demon cultivator's meridians appeared in the void: "Look at the Niwan Palace to the Yongquan acupoint, the 360 ​​major acupoints of the human body, corresponding to the number of stars in the celestial sphere. If you wish to change your bones and cleanse your marrow, you must borrow the Yin of the earth at midnight and the Yang of the heavens at noon, and use the guiding method of the 'Inner Landscape True Scripture' to break the demon core into primordial Qi and rebuild the five internal organs and six bowels."

The white snake spirit, who had been listening in, suddenly asked respectfully, "May I ask, sage... is there a quick way to achieve enlightenment?"

Zhang Zhengdao said: "You have seen some beasts who, in order to force themselves into human form, eat people and drink blood, only to be struck down by heavenly lightning within a hundred days. Know that transformation is like forging a sword; demonic energy is the iron, and merit is the charcoal. Lacking either, it cannot be made into a useful object."

The black tiger spirit standing to the side asked with some concern, "Sage..."

Zhang Zhengdao said, "Just call me Daoist Master. To speak of the sages is to be attached to appearances."

The black tiger spirit respectfully replied, "Yes, may I ask the Taoist master? Before we became demons, we were not yet sentient and had occasionally eaten people. However, after we became sentient, we had a sense of urgency and dared not eat people anymore. We are now just wild beasts eating each other. If we were to cultivate the Tao, would we still be able to escape the tribulation of heavenly lightning?"

Zhang Zhengdao asked, "Is there any cause or effect to cannibalism?"

The black tiger spirit said, "I am a hunter from the big city who wanted to get a black tiger skin to offer to the magistrate in hopes of gaining official rank and wealth. I was unwilling to be killed and could not escape, so I had no choice but to fight to the death."

Zhang Zhengdao said, "Yes—"

The black tiger spirit was overjoyed: "Really?"

Ao Yu, who was standing to the side, sneered: "If the Taoist priest says it's okay, then it definitely is okay, even if it's not okay."

Zhang Zhengdao: ...

Can we stop bragging like that?

Zhang Zhengdao continued, “Remember this: the human body is a precious raft for crossing the world. If the heart is not upright, the raft will capsize; if the virtue is not profound, the raft will decay. Even if one cultivates a beautiful face, if one does not follow the righteous path, one will ultimately be nothing but a painted skin and withered bones, unable to escape the calamity of being burned by the true fire of samadhi.”

After he finished speaking, he recited the "Inner Landscape Scripture" to the demons.

The true words of the scriptures resounded like a great bell in the ears of all the demons. They heard them, remembered them, and never dared to forget them.

After this incident, the demons became even more subservient to Zhang Zhengdao, showing him complete trust and daring not to disobey him.

This is guiding them on the great path of cultivation!

A once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

From then on, for the lessons held every three days, without anyone having to say a word, all the demons would arrive early, occupy good spots, and listen respectfully to Zhang Zhengdao's teachings.

For a time, flowers frequently fell from the sky and golden lotuses sprang from the ground in this Taoist temple.

Fortunately, Zhang Zhengdao had already used his profound magical power to shield the area around Fuqing Palace from the secrets of heaven, placing it in a state of chaos, so that it would not be perceived by those powerful beings.

The Great Thunder Temple, a sacred temple on Vulture Peak in the Western Continent of India.

The Venerable Shakyamuni is sitting on a lotus in the Buddha hall of the Mahavira Hall, preaching the Dharma.

Suddenly, he sensed that someone was obscuring the secrets of heaven in the direction of Jambudvipa. He frowned and tried to calculate with his fingers, but all he could do was find that Jambudvipa was in a state of chaos and he could not figure out the cause and effect.

His gaze fell upon Jambudvipa, and even with his profound magical powers, he could not discern its exact location, which filled him with worry.

Guanyin Bodhisattva of the South Sea, who was listening to the lecture, asked, "Has the Buddha noticed something?"

The Venerable Shakyamuni shook his head and remained silent.

Guanyin Bodhisattva said, "Should I go and make the trip?"

The Venerable Shakyamuni sighed, “There are great beings in Jambudvipa who use profound magical powers to obscure the secrets of heaven, and I cannot even detect them. Let alone you, you would be nothing more than a piece of cake if you went there. It would be better to wait and see.”

Guanyin Bodhisattva: ...

What great beings are there in Jambudvipa (the southern continent)?

But since that's what the Venerable Shakyamuni said, she didn't dare ask any more questions. Her eyes flickered, and it was unclear what she was thinking.