Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio, but Thunderbolt Taoist Sect

"It seems that Tian Shanzi still needs more practice."

Looking at the light receding from the sky fan, Liu Qingyuan sighed.

"But this time he didn't slap me away, that's an improvement."

Just now, I was thinking to myself, "He really is my friend's Third Prince," but he hesitated and said something. So, he was slapped away before, right?

Having been swatted away before, he still dares to play like this. To borrow Tian Shanzi's words before leaving, this person's words and actions are indeed somewhat "dangerous".

"I had heard before that Dao Fengtian didn't like to communicate with people, so how did you manage to bring him here, senior?"

After everyone left, Ling Ziling dared to come out and ask questions. Judging from Tian Shanzi's personality, he really didn't like being too close to others. Not to mention someone like Liu Qingyuan who was good at joking around, even someone like the Third Prince who wanted to repay a debt of gratitude couldn't find an opportunity.

With such a personality, it's hard to believe he would be willing to leave his home and come here to join the fun. But Tian Shanzi stayed in the East Sea, not only saving the Third Prince but also taking responsibility for communication between the two sides. Although he always traveled very fast, he always ensured the exchange of information.

"Tian Shanzi loves seafood. This place is quite different from ours, so the produce is naturally different as well. Just then, Little Treasure complained to me that someone always treats him like a food spirit, so I catered to his tastes and invited Tian Shanzi to come here for a visit."

"...So, he was tricked into coming here by you, senior?"

“As I said, it’s about catering to their preferences, catering to their preferences.”

After all the joking around was over, everyone started talking about serious matters, such as how the Dragon Palace planned to negotiate with the Underworld after they arrived. After all, only a few people have the ability to send messages to their families in dreams after death, and the Underworld is so vast that it's impossible to find them immediately after arriving.

"After going to the underworld, who does the Third Prince plan to look for?"

"Of course we should go to Yama first. We sent people to inquire before, but they were all given the runaround by the ghost messengers. This time I will lead the team myself. I don't believe they won't give us face."

When they sent lowly soldiers to inquire, the other side blocked them at the door with various excuses. This time, the Third Prince personally went to inquire with the relatives who came to complain. He could fully represent the Dragon King of the East Sea, and no one dared to stop him.

“They were all harmed by people from outside the realm. You also come from outside the realm and know that you are not involved in the karma of this world. Being killed like this is equivalent to crossing the Book of Life and Death and changing your fate. The underworld cannot possibly not notice.”

The contents of the Book of Life and Death were suddenly altered, and those who shouldn't have died at this time went to the underworld to report for duty. Anyone who works in the underworld and participates in judging the souls of the dead should be able to sense that something was wrong.

But this huge mess is right in front of us, and no one has noticed or dealt with it. There must be some ill-intentioned people mixed in. What the Third Prince needs to do is force the Underworld to investigate thoroughly.

"Although it's not good to talk about someone behind their back, but..."

"Please speak freely, Immortal Master."

The Third Prince was meeting Jian Zi Xian Ji for the first time. He had just arrived and caused a stir, which made him seem a bit unreliable. However, Jian Fei Dao, whom he had met before, and the girl who came with him all called him senior and took him as their leader.

Putting aside his earlier antics, this man appears mature and composed, and whatever he says, the Third Prince believes, has some value.

“I said before that some fellow Taoist practitioners would come to this world to travel. Not long ago, two of my friends met someone on their journey and learned about a wrongful case concerning the underworld.”

Perhaps it was because Xi Fangping's willpower was too strong, or perhaps it was because the executioner had preserved his most crucial heart, but Xi Fangping's wounds healed very quickly, and were completely healed in just a few days. The three of them also moved faster and faster, and they had already covered more than half the distance.

If the Ninth Prince arrives at the right time, everyone might be able to get together in the end.

"This underworld is probably already corrupt. Third Prince, you'd better prepare for the worst."

"Corruption? I have indeed heard that there are many unclean things among the officials in the underworld. This is not surprising. For a long time, the way officials are selected in the underworld has been imitating the mortals in the mortal world. Even officials are selected from the scholars who have died. Basically, the underworld is just like the mortal world. Corruption is inevitable."

"The truth is probably more serious than the Third Prince thinks."

"How serious is it?"

"Raising the roof beam".

……

Speaking of Juan Shoutian and Yuan Wuxiang, Xi Fangping's injuries recovered much faster than expected. He even offered to let the two of them carry him so that his father could escape his suffering sooner.

Transforming into light won't work; no matter how strong Xi Fangping is, he's still just a soul. But using light-body techniques with him is fine. Although we can't travel from south to north in a few days, traveling a thousand miles a day is still achievable.

The ghost messengers didn't cause any more trouble. It was unclear whether something in the underworld had really held them back, or whether the three were too fast to catch. Xi Fangping became more and more familiar with the two and also learned that when Juan Shoutian looked at people, he always gave the feeling that you were not worthy of his attention. It wasn't that he looked down on you, but because he was blind, he didn't use his eyes to see people and scenery.

Based on the explanation, Xi Fangping roughly understood that it was thanks to the magnificent longsword beside Juan Shoutian. He had previously wondered why the Tai Chi pattern on the sword was spinning, but now he understood.

Once the sword is lost, Juan Shoutian will revert to a state of blindness and disordered senses.

One had both hands severed and fitted with strange prosthetics, while the other was blind and relied on a special sword to see. Xi Fangping felt that the place they lived in was indeed unlike the human world, but rather more like purgatory. After all, these two were not born this way. Despite possessing such great strength, they still suffered.

However, Xi Fangping himself was not much better off. Juan Shoutian and Yuan Wuxiang were at least still alive, while Xi Fangping was now just a soul, his physical body's fate unknown. But he felt that he had been away for so long that his physical body in the mortal world was probably long dead, and he was now not much different from a wandering ghost.

In this form, most ordinary people cannot see him, but he can see a special sight. For example, when they were walking through a place, a beautiful parrot flew by with an embroidered shoe hanging from its beak. Xi Fangping saw it and quickly asked the two to catch the parrot down, because he saw that there was a human soul inside the parrot's body.

"This is clearly a domesticated animal, how could it be flying outside?"

Yuan Wuxiang held the parrot's wing, and the three of them found a relatively high rooftop to stand on. They originally planned to cross the town below, but just then they saw the parrot flying over. Xi Fangping exclaimed that there was a person inside the parrot's body, and only then did they stop to catch the bird.

This parrot is relatively large, with brightly colored feathers and leg bands, clearly a pet kept by wealthy people. To prevent the parrots from escaping, they are usually tied up and not allowed to fly freely in the sky.

Moreover, the parrot was carrying the girl's embroidered shoe in its beak, and Xi Fangping even said that there was a person inside the bird's body.

"monster?"

"No, it is indeed a person, and he looks like a scholar."

Xi Fangping couldn't explain how he could tell. In his eyes, there was a distinct human double image inside the parrot's body, which looked like a scholar. Because the bird's body and the human body overlapped, it looked too strange, so he asked to catch the parrot.

The person inside the parrot's body was also terrified. He was about to fly home when several lights suddenly flashed before his eyes. Before he could react, his wings were grabbed by an irresistible force, rendering him unable to move. Two figures, one gold and one silver, appeared before him.

He thought that his soul leaving his body and turning into a parrot was bizarre enough, but he never expected it to be even more bizarre. The person who grabbed him had silver hair, but his face was extremely young. His clothes were mainly silver-white with light blue accents, and the gemstone embroidery on his shoulders alone was something that many people couldn't afford.

Also eye-catching was a Taoist priest a little further away, dressed entirely in gold, with strange golden-white hair and a golden robe. His headdress was shaped like an eave, similar to a Taoist's Chunyang scarf, but much more ornate. It was also gold, and if it weren't for the Tai Chi symbol on his headdress and whisk, it would be difficult to tell at a glance that he was a Taoist priest.

Although they were called Taoist priests, the two people in front of us looked more like immortals descended to earth, making people dare not act rashly in their presence.

As for Xi Fangping, the parrot could only see a rough human shape, but he was just an ordinary person and could be basically ignored compared to the other two.

"Can you speak? Who are you? Why would a spirit care about a bird?"

Looking at the human-like emotions in the parrot's eyes, you can tell that it is the human soul inside that is controlling the body. How could a perfectly good human soul be in a parrot?

Yuan Wuxiang only held the parrot's wing, not restricting its other movements. Knowing that the person in front of it was not simple, the parrot released the embroidered shoe it was holding and instead gripped it tightly with its claws, as if it were holding some unique treasure, and answered honestly.

The person inside the parrot's body is named Sun Zichu, a local resident. Due to some events, his soul left his body and became a parrot. Now he is rushing home to return to his body.

"Return to life?"

The idea of ​​the soul leaving the body is plausible, but how do you explain the embroidered shoe that the parrot is tightly gripping—it clearly belongs to a young woman? This guy has probably been a parrot for some time now.

"In that case, we'll see you off."

Since he's a local, his home should be nearby. What the parrot said is only half true, so why not just go and check on Sun Zichu's house?

The parrot looked at Yuan Wuxiang and then at Juan Shoutian. Given their appearances, their return would surely cause a commotion. However, since its soul had left its body so suddenly, its home was probably in chaos as well. Besides, it had to hurry back with these embroidered shoes.

Upon arriving at the Sun family's residence, they found a scene of chaos and turmoil. The Sun family members were shouting, "He's had another attack!" as they desperately called out to Sun Zichu, who was lying on the bed, barely breathing and half-dead, unconscious.

The Sun family's attention was entirely focused on their grandson, Sun Zichu, who had suddenly fallen ill again. Therefore, even with the courtyard doors wide open, no one noticed the arrival of Yuan Wuxiang and his group. Only a small child, startled by the scene inside, looked outwards and saw the people who had suddenly appeared.

Seeing that the parrot wasn't lying, Yuan Wuxiang let go, and the parrot immediately flapped its wings and flew inside. The people inside only saw a parrot wearing embroidered shoes rush in, fall to the ground and die after entering the room. The next moment, Sun Zichu on the bed woke up.

But as soon as he woke up, every time he responded to his family's concern, the first thing he did was to grab the embroidered shoes that the parrot had brought, as if they were a rare treasure.

At this moment, Juan Shoutian felt someone tugging at his sleeve and found it was a small child. Such a child posed no threat, so he didn't guard against the child's approach.

"Big brother, are you a god?"

Children this age don't understand anything. He's been to temples, but he only knows that the bald people inside are monks. He's never seen a Taoist priest, and he doesn't know the meaning of the Tai Chi symbol. He just thinks the people in front of him are golden and seem to be shining, like statues of gods to be worshipped.

"I am merely a Taoist."

What is the Dao?

The child couldn't understand because of the huge height difference between them. He looked up and saw a rotating pattern behind Juan Shoutian. He was immediately attracted and started to walk around to see what was rotating.

Juan Shoutian didn't intend to interfere. Although his clothes were occasionally tugged, the child wasn't even as tall as his legs, so the pulling force was negligible. The other person was just curious and had no malicious intent, so he let him be.

"It doesn't seem to be anything serious. Let's go."

Xi Fangping was initially surprised because he saw the human soul overlapping with the parrot's body, and thought that the other person had suffered some kind of persecution and become like this. Now it seems that it may really be a simple astral projection, and the soul returned through the parrot's body, so there is no need to worry.

As for the embroidered shoe, judging from how much the other party treasured it, it probably belonged to their sweetheart. How they obtained it is another matter, but it doesn't seem to be their concern.

Before anyone else noticed them, the three of them left. Along the way, they avoided going into towns. Firstly, Xi Fangping's situation was special, and encountering other professional exorcists might cause misunderstandings. Secondly, in the place where Xi Fangping lived, the city gods of different levels protected each other, and there might be similar situations in other places.

Xi Fangping's reputation in the underworld has grown famous because of his complaints. If other city gods have heard of him, they might try to trip him up, thus delaying his journey.

Just as the three turned to leave, a carriage arrived at the Sun family's gate. The people who got out met them, and judging from their expressions, they were startled by their appearance.

Just then, the Sun family finally noticed two physically conspicuous people in the yard, and their child was following behind one of them, craning his neck to look at something.

The situation became somewhat tense for a moment. An elderly woman stepped down from the carriage. Judging from her attire and the carriage, Yuan Wuxiang thought of the embroidered shoes that his grandson Chu treasured, and understood the reason. He pulled Juan Shoutian aside so that she could face the people inside, indicating that they could talk about what was going on first.

Incidentally, he also grabbed a little baby following behind Juan Shoutian. The child, seeing how special the two were, seemed determined to cling to them and not leave.

Seeing their child lounging at someone else's place, the Sun family quickly pulled the child away, not forgetting to remind the two people in front of them that they looked like gods, and what if the child, being ignorant, offended them?

While the Sun family was in a state of panic, the child witnessed the whole thing. He also recognized the parrot lying on the ground in the house; it was the parrot the Sun family kept, but it had died before. It was really strange that it was both alive and dead again.

The parrot was brought by Yuan Wuxiang. The child was curious as to why the parrot, which was supposed to be dead, could still live in Yuan Wuxiang's hands. He asked this question directly.

When these words reached the ears of the Sun family patriarch, it was as if two immortals had suddenly appeared with a parrot, and then the parrot flew away, waking up the previously unconscious Sun Chu. In other words, the two immortals had saved his life.

Okay, now I can't leave.