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

"Oh!"

Water splashes everywhere on the Qinhuai River.

Then a Taoist's head emerged from the water, followed by the head of a crane.

"You flat-feathered beast, you're so lazy, get up now."

The Taoist priest cursed under his breath and slapped the crane on the head.

The crane cried out twice in dissatisfaction before taking flight and catching the Taoist priest who had soared into the air. This time, he flew towards the temple again.

"Master, that Taoist priest has flown back again."

Bai Mudan pointed to the Taoist priest flying back and said.

Zhang Zhengdao: "Who cares? You haven't been doing business lately, have you?"

Bai Mudan pouted and said coquettishly, "Isn't this a bargain for you? I've been keeping you company all this time, and I haven't even charged you. You still have the nerve to act innocent after getting a good deal."

Indeed, Bai Mudan has been keeping her doors closed to visitors for a while now, leading many high-ranking officials to believe that she has reformed herself.

It's impossible for him to reform.

Before receiving instructions from the Golden Spider Princess, Bai Mudan thought life was pretty good.

There was absolutely none of the petty schemes of those so-called flower fairies.

I remember there was once a chrysanthemum fairy named Tao Huangying, whose heart was filled with all sorts of innocent fantasies. She created opportunities for herself to meet a man surnamed Ma.

In the end, it was still the same old story.

It's not just courtesans who want to reform; even female demons want to reform.

Especially female fox spirits, flower fairies, and snake spirits, they tend to have a strong desire to reform. However, when demons and humans unite, it usually ends in tragedy.

The Qinhuai River was such a bustling and prosperous place, with so many people flattering and praising it.

Anyway, Bai Mudan was so happy she forgot all about home.

Even if the Golden Spider Princess were dead and no one was giving her any more tasks, she would still want to stay here.

With this prosperous world, what need is there for becoming an immortal or a Buddha?

Become a good person?

Haha, there's no way he'll ever reform in this lifetime.

What is a man?

Even a powerful immortal like Lü Dongbin would want to possess any man he met, making him his furnace. Ha! Only Zhang Zhengdao, this Taoist, knows to cherish him and treat him as an equal.

But so what?

Can he stay on the Qinhuai River for you for the rest of his life?

Don't even think about it. How could a man even more powerful than Lü Dongbin stay in one place? Especially since he's a powerful immortal who transcends the Three Realms and is not subject to the Five Elements.

So although Bai Mudan was just a little fairy, she was also a very insightful female fairy.

Don't covet what you can't have or keep.

Self-satisfaction and self-pleasure are the most important things. Everything else is fleeting.

In the courtyard outside the temple's meditation room, a crane landed, followed by a middle-aged Taoist priest who hurriedly pushed open the door to the meditation room.

"Hey, didn't you run away? You're here to join the fun again, huh? Got it?"

Lü Dongbin, being a sharp-tongued man, couldn't help but speak up.

The middle-aged Taoist priest angrily said, "I suffered a loss in silence, so I came back to vent my anger and take it out on you all. Who wants to play a game of chess with me? I want to crush these noobs. Lü Dongbin, you come here!"

Lü Dongbin scoffed, "I will not compare my weaknesses with your strengths."

The old monk said, "There aren't many things in Jiangning City that could cause you to suffer a loss in silence. Could it be... that someone attacked you? That shouldn't be the case!"

Tieguai Li nodded, "That person isn't petty. Even if he senses something, he'll most likely tell us to handle it ourselves."

Lü Dongbin gloated, "I didn't expect you to be no match for him either."

He seemed to have found a reason to stop being upset about not being able to beat Zhang Zhengdao.

If even a Taoist priest like you can't beat me, it's normal that I can't either!

The middle-aged Taoist ignored him and looked at the old monk and Tieguai Li, saying, "Actually... the three of you could defeat that spider demon, and it wouldn't make a difference if I were to take you down. But I have one thing to tell you, and that's why I turned back. Will you listen?"

Tieguai Li nodded and said, "Go on."

The middle-aged Taoist priest said, "You may subdue the spider demon, but please do not harm her."

The old monk said, "Do you really need to bring this up? We have our own plans."

The middle-aged Taoist priest said, "That Taoist priest was very powerful. I was caught in his trap and didn't even know what happened. Suddenly, I was riding on a crane, my whole body bound by magical power. If I hadn't already shed my mortal body, I would have fallen down. If you all had come over here for a feast, the feast would have been set up in your temple..."

No one laughed.

The atmosphere was serious.

Because even the Three Pure Ones and the Buddha of the Western Paradise couldn't have restrained his magical power without him realizing it, right?

This is none other than the renowned Master Xiyi, whose Taoist name is Fuyaozi, a being whose status among immortals is second only to the Taoist Ancestor.

At this point, Fuyaozi added, "I can't even find where he is. I don't even know if it's him, but I feel that only he could have made me suffer such a loss."

Everyone remained silent.

At this point, Lü Dongbin finally spoke up and offered a suggestion.

"How about... we ask the Buddha to come?"

Fu Yaozi glanced at him. This guy was trying to drag Buddhism down with him. How wicked! Although he liked him very much, the old monk wasn't stupid. He naturally knew what Lü Dongbin was thinking.

"I do have a few close friends; why don't we invite them over for a get-together?"

The old monk finally spoke, slowly saying, "It's good to subdue demons and exorcise evil spirits, but it's even better to persuade them to reform. So no matter what happens after they arrive, we should at least maintain a proper demeanor, shouldn't we? The Taoist sect also has highly skilled practitioners; why not invite them over as well?"

Fu Yaozi said, "I won't get involved. Goodbye."

Knowing the Taoist's abilities, why did he stubbornly stay with this group? They might not fully grasp the situation, since it was just what he said, and they still had some doubts.

But he didn't want to experience that feeling of helplessness he had when he fell again.

He left without warning, disappearing from the meditation room in the blink of an eye.

The old monk sighed and said, "This whole mess was caused by the Taoists..."

Tieguai Li quickly said, "That's precisely why, since we're old friends, please do me a favor..."

The old monk said, "It's because I owed you a favor in the past."

The deal was settled, and the old monk was ready to call for reinforcements.

Actually, the three of them felt that they were enough to subdue the spider demon. However, just to be on the safe side and in case the Taoist priest suddenly attacked, inviting some other people to help was a necessary preparation.

One night passed.

Bai Mudan rose with a radiant smile, utterly satisfied with Zhang Zhengdao. The Taoist priest had given her such a wonderful surprise.

In just a few days, my cultivation level has greatly improved.

According to her estimation, besides the spider demon, she herself had the highest cultivation level in the cave. Even if Lü Dongbin came again, she would still have a fighting chance.

Previously, she was like a lamb to the slaughter in front of Lü Dongbin.

The temple fair in Jiangning City is very lively.

Zhang Zhengdao and Bai Mudan strolled through the temple fair.

Squeezing through the crowd, they bought many things, including some pastries, which Bai Mudan carried in her hands. Bai Mudan was very happy and took Zhang Zhengdao to the temple.

There were many people offering incense at the temple, as well as some who came to see the sights.

The temple is very large, with a front hall, main hall, rear hall, and various side halls...

If you're not familiar with it, it can take a long time to find your way out.

Zhang Zhengdao frowned and asked, "What are you doing at the temple?"

Visiting temple fairs is fine, spending a little money is fine too, I'm happy, it doesn't matter, it's harmless. But how can you push your luck?

Going to a temple is no small expense.

I just heard two ladies-in-waiting carrying a basket of incense and candles to offer incense. I heard that this basket of incense and candles cost fifty taels of silver.

Grab money!

Although these two ladies don't seem to be from wealthy families, this is still far too expensive. It's reminiscent of the saying, "A cluster of deep-colored flowers costs the taxes of ten middle-class households."

Zhang Zhengdao has money and isn't afraid to spend it, but you can't take advantage of me.

Therefore, he absolutely could not agree to buy such expensive incense and candles for offerings. So when they arrived at the temple and the monks selling incense and candles, he stood next to Bai Mudan without showing any intention of paying.

However, Bai Mudan didn't seem to intend for him to spend any money; she simply took out a large ingot of silver and bought incense and candles. Then she walked towards the side hall.

Zhang Zhengdao followed, and it seemed that this side hall was dedicated to Guanyin Bodhisattva.

Why don't you worship Buddha, but instead worship her?

Zhang Zhengdao didn't understand.

Bai Mudan said, "What's the big deal about bowing once?"

She thought to herself that if she could have a son or daughter, even if the Taoist priest left, she would have someone to rely on. Moreover, given how powerful the Taoist priest was, the offspring would surely be extraordinary and achieve great things in the future.

"You should also offer a prayer!"

Zhang Zhengdao looked at her: "Are you serious?"