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

The Bull Demon King lay quietly on the ground, bleeding.

The Giant Spirit God has returned.

"Marshal, Laozi is not here. He just went out and we don't know where he went."

Suddenly, the Bull Demon King straightened his body, and the hand that was holding Li Jing, the Pagoda-Bearing Heavenly King, drooped down.

The physical body was completely annihilated.

Li Jing, the Pagoda-Bearing Heavenly King, immediately cried out, "Where is the spirit of Brother Ox?"

The Bull Demon King's soul had just floated out when he looked at his own corpse, then at Li Jing, the Pagoda-Bearing Heavenly King, and then at the heavenly soldiers around him. He couldn't help but feel a deep sorrow.

Since I started cultivating, I never imagined that there would be a day when my physical body would perish.

That was a body of copper and iron, no less than Sun Wukong's, so how could it be so easily pierced?

I've hated the Giant Spirit God for ten thousand years!

If that kid hadn't distracted me and made me lose focus, how could I have been pierced through by a flying sword? How hateful!

As for whether or not one hates the owner of the flying sword.

Haha, does he even have the right to hate?

"I didn't expect Laozi to be out at that moment. Otherwise, if I had asked him for a Nine-Turn Rejuvenation Pill, I might have been able to save him. Brother Niu, I can only blame my bad luck..."

Li Jing, the Pagoda-Bearing Heavenly King, did his best.

The Bull Demon King, however, was unwilling to let go of the Giant Spirit God, who was standing timidly to the side.

Are you afraid now?

"I'm already in this state, even if Laozi came, it wouldn't help. It's just that this Giant Spirit God..."

The Giant Spirit God immediately added, "Don't worry, I guarantee I will take responsibility for preserving your body properly and sending it to your cave, Moyun Cave, so that those lesser demons can have a grand funeral."

The Bull Demon King angrily said, "No, send him to my original wife, Princess Iron Fan."

Giant Spirit: "Fallen leaves return to their roots..."

The Bull Demon King was furious: "I said it's where you are, and it's where you are. If it weren't for you..."

The giant spirit quickly agreed: "Okay, wherever you say, that's where you'll bury it."

These words puzzled Li Jing, the Pagoda-Bearing Heavenly King, who asked, "Why not bury your physical body in your own cave and instead buy a lady there?"

The Bull Demon King said, "If I were buried in my own territory, how could my demon subordinates let me rest peacefully in the ground once they knew I was dead?"

Li Jing, the Pagoda-Bearing Heavenly King, was puzzled.

The Bull Demon King said, "For them, that's a real treat."

Having heard this, they understood and made preparations, sending the heavenly soldiers to the Banana Cave on Mount Cuiyun with the body of the Bull Demon King.

It wasn't good for the Bull Demon King's soul to stay in Heaven for too long, so Li Jing, the Pagoda-Bearing Heavenly King, sent heavenly soldiers to escort the Bull Demon King's soul to the Banana Cave on Mount Cuiyun.

After the heavenly soldiers left, the giant spirit god approached.

"Marshal, why are you being so attentive to a fairy?"

Li Jing, the Pagoda-Bearing Heavenly King, said, "What do you know? This Bull Demon King was able to achieve such a level of cultivation without any background? But can the Heavenly Court find out? I can't find out. We've known each other for so many years, and he's always kept his mouth shut!"

The Giant Spirit God was bewildered and asked, "Then... who killed the Bull Demon King?"

Li Jing, the Pagoda-Bearing Heavenly King, quickly reached out and covered the giant spirit's mouth. He looked around and whispered a scolding, "Are you out of your mind? What a fool you are."

The Giant Spirit God was once again bewildered by the insults.

What's wrong with me? I've scolded myself several times because of the Bull Demon King.

Fearing that the Giant Spirit God would cause trouble again, Li Jing, the Pagoda-Bearing Heavenly King, could only explain quietly, "This Bull Demon King has quite a background; it's said he was exiled from the West, but the specifics are unknown. Besides, his magic is similar to Sun Wukong's—both have seventy-two transformations and copper muscles and iron bones, and their abilities are comparable to the Monkey King's. With such cultivation, he was pierced through the body by a small sword, as you mentioned. Tell me… should we still investigate who killed the Bull Demon King?"

The Giant Spirit God was such a fool. He had originally wanted to take the opportunity to ask for a mission to find the person who killed the Bull Demon King.

Upon hearing what Li Jing, the Pagoda-Bearing Heavenly King, said, he immediately broke out in a cold sweat.

He's a simpleton, but not an idiot.

Li Jing, the Pagoda-Bearing Heavenly King, whispered to him, "Do you know why Laozi, who never goes out earlier or later, chooses to go out at this particular time?"

Giant Spirit God: "Don't want to get involved?"

You've gotten smarter!

Li Jing, the Pagoda-Bearing Heavenly King, said, "It was you who stirred up this mess, causing trouble for the Heavenly Court. Think carefully about how to submit a memorial to the Jade Emperor to apologize."

The giant spirit finally realized the danger and pleaded in a low voice, "Marshal, you must save me! I am your loyal subordinate. I wasn't at the front of the charge that time."

Li Jing, the Pagoda-Bearing Heavenly King, had him cornered for so long, just waiting for this sentence.

"Alright, I'll use my old face in front of the Jade Emperor. If he still has some influence, I'll plead for you and make sure your punishment is lighter."

The giant spirit was moved to tears and repeatedly bowed in gratitude to Li Jing, the Pagoda-Bearing Heavenly King.

Small town, inn, sunny day.

Zhang Zhengdao was sitting in the courtyard, studying his gourd and figuring out how to make the Chaos Tree grow faster. Six ghosts were practicing their skills.

He was practicing the same martial arts technique that Zhang Zhengdao had obtained from Lü Dongbin.

Meanwhile, Lu Xiaohua and Fairy Zixia were eating fruit and chatting.

Lu Xiaohua mainly talked about her interactions with Zhang Zhengdao in Linbin Town.

Zixia especially enjoyed hearing about these things.

Moreover, when Lu Xiaohua mentioned Peach Blossom Temple on Peach Blossom Mountain, she showed even more longing. She had been practicing Buddhism for many years, and although she had an older sister with her, loneliness had always been a difficult inner demon for her to overcome.

That's why he insisted on following Buddha's saying, "The one who draws your sword is your ideal husband," wandering the world in search of a man who loves him.

Just then, the leaves in the yard suddenly rustled.

Lu Xiaohua looked towards the edge of the leaves, and a beam of light swept past, then stopped above the table between the two of them, where something was suspended in mid-air.

It was a small sword.

"You're back already? You killed the Bull Demon King?"

Fairy Zixia also found it very magical and asked.

Lu Xiaohua said, "This is my natal magic weapon. Look, there's an extra line here, which means I've already killed the Bull Demon King. If this line goes around one bend, it only destroys the physical body. If it goes around two bends, it destroys the soul."

Fairy Zixia exclaimed, "It truly is a wonderful treasure!"

Zhang Zhengdao glanced at them and said, "Of course it's a fine treasure. I even made it for her myself."

Lu Xiaohua smiled, pursing her lips.

Fairy Zixia protested, "What about mine? I want a magic weapon too!"

"Your Purple and Green Sword is a magic weapon!"

"This one doesn't count, it's mine, you have to give me one!"

A woman's little quirks.

Zhang Zhengdao said, "Xiaohua's magic weapon cost five hundred taels of silver."

Zixia was taken aback and looked at Lu Xiaohua.

Lu Xiaohua couldn't help but laugh: "Back in Linbin Town, he was a greedy and lecherous Taoist priest, so he charged money for making magic weapons for me, my concubines, and my disciples."

Zixia: "Should I give it to you too?"

Lu Xiaohua: "I didn't just give her money, I also whispered sweet nothings in her ear for several nights..." As she said this, she seemed to recall some fond memories and suddenly smiled.

Zhang Zhengdao said, "Shu Baimei has also arrived in this world."

Lu Xiaohua was taken aback, seemingly not expecting this situation, and immediately said, "Sister Shu? I can't sense her. Where is she?"

Zhang Zhengdao said, "She is still wandering the martial world, but I heard that there is a Taoist temple on Mount Qingcheng in this world. We can go and take a look."

"Aren't you going?"

Zhang Zhengdao said, "I want to watch the Chaos Tree grow. Go and bring her back. Maybe when she returns, the World Tree inside the gourd will have grown up and can take us back with her."

Lu Xiaohua suddenly asked, "Should we go straight back to Linbin Town?"

Zhang Zhengdao said, "No, let's go see another world first. If you're willing to come to Linbin Town with me, we can go home together. If you're not willing, we can't force you."

The world tree inside the gourd grew very quickly.

In just one month, it has grown two or three times its original size.

As they grow older, they may be able to connect with worlds in the primordial universe.

In the blink of an eye, Zhang Zhengdao had entered this world within the pot.

Blue sky, white clouds, lake, green grass...

It's as if the world has been growing all along, from just lakes and meadows at the beginning to boundless lakes, endless meadows, dense forests, and even distant mountains...

Besides, it seems that the world's ecosystem is gradually becoming more complex and sophisticated.

There are not only fish in the lake, but also birds flying in the sky, insects on the ground, and running deer and rabbits. In the distance, there seems to be the sound of tigers roaring in the forest.

It seems that this world within the pot is perfecting itself.

This made Zhang Zhengdao very emotional, as if he were reminded of what his teacher said in junior high school biology class—that ecosystems have the function of self-repair.

Standing beside the Chaos Tree, looking up, I saw that the Chaos Tree connected with heaven and earth, and I felt incredibly small. So small that I was like a drop of water in the vast ocean.

Zhang Zhengdao placed his palm on the Chaos Tree.

Suddenly, it seemed as if there was some connection between him and something.

Perhaps this is the harmony between one's own Great Dao and the chaos.

The Great Dao originates from chaos.

Chaos is the beginning of the Tao.

As soon as he closed his eyes, it felt as if the entire tree was in Zhang Zhengdao's mind. It was a magical feeling, like a universe in a single thought.