Qizhou

Wuming Mountain is not big, not towering, let alone steep.Among the mountains in the northwest, it looks extraordinarily delicate.But it was this kind of mountain that made Ci Nian regain a sense of familiarity.Zhuxi Mountain in the middle of Sichuan is also such a mountain. The mountain is gentle and can be climbed up by digging a road. There are green bamboo forests and clear springs in the mountain.

Ci Nian went around in a circle, gradually moving away from the magnolia.According to Master Xu, when he and his colleagues came here, they just walked around the flowers and trees, but this mountain is so big, maybe there are better scenery elsewhere. I just came up, and I have to go to the halfway up the mountain to see what I do today. If there are flowers in bloom, I can pick a few bunches. It’s not bad to go home and continue to study the lip balm powder.

After all, it is said in the book that those narrow and dark places often contain treasures. Maybe he will find a crack in the rock and drill in, and it will be a brand new paradise.Ci Nian walked along the mountain road to the end, and came across a stone wall. There were no words on the stone wall, and there were no traces of chiseling. There were a lot of weeds, which grew out like crazy in the spring. The rest of the stone wall The cracks in the soil can no longer fit them.

Ci Nian patted the stone wall, and listened for a while. He didn't wear a bamboo hat today, but he was wearing the book cap that He Qizhou found for him that day, but he was wearing a solid suit. Everyone would think that this book boy is unusual, he is probably a ruthless character who can carry the young master on his shoulders in a hurry.

There is nothing unusual about the stone wall, but the stone wall cuts off the mountain road.One end is a cliff, the other is a stone wall, and the gap left in the middle is absolutely impossible for an adult to walk through.Ci Nian thought for a while, then slowly squatted down, looked at the small gap, and came up with a plan.I saw two steps back after the resignation, straight body, folded hands in front of the body, holding breath, chanting words, the mountain was very quiet, except for the occasional wisps of wind, a few bursts of crying, only this resignation was left. The mantra slowly flowed out of Nian's mouth.

When he opened his eyes again, Ci Nian parted his hands and patted them hard at random. In just a split second, he turned into a snow-white fox, slipped into the gap, and disappeared without a trace.

Behind the stone wall is a field that has never been set foot in.The little white fox got out of the crevice of the rock and only ran a few steps forward when he heard the sound of water. The sound of water came slowly from far to near. Where there is water, there must be more luxuriant vegetation.Without thinking about it, Ci Nian straightened his pointed ears and ran in the direction of the sound of water.

With his belly on the grass, he ran fast, and after bypassing several towering trees, he finally smelled the unique smell of aquatic plants.Without even thinking about it, he closed his eyes, jumped up, and flew out of the grass.The next moment, the white fox was gone, and a slender boy jumped out from the bushes by the side of the road. He landed steadily, and there happened to be a small spot of light on the ground under his feet. Ci Nian raised his head along the spot. , but found that behind the stone crevice was a tiankeng surrounded by mountain walls.

Surrounded by mountains and rocks, it is extremely high and dangerous. I don't know how long this place has existed. On the cliffs, huge trees can grow obliquely, and there is more than one tree. The shining sunlight cuts and splits, and the border town has one spot after another.Following the footsteps of the sun, looking far away, there is a natural pool at the bottom of the tiankeng. The pool is shallow but crystal clear. The water in the pool is penetrated by the sun, like a piece of clear glass.

And there are green weeds and clusters of bright wild flowers beside the pool.No one knows where these flowers come from, and how they grow crazily in this isolated place, but these flowers are indeed very gorgeous. As soon as Ci Nian's eyes lit up, he ran over immediately, picked one and smelled it .He can't remember the name of this flower, but the color looks really good, if I take it back to make rouge...

Looking around, there is a circle of red flowers around the pool. The sun shines on the water and turns into sparkling waves. They are folded on the flowers, making the flowers more bright.Well, there are enough flowers, so it should be no problem to pick a bunch of them.Ci Nian's brain moved, and his hands moved along with him. He walked along the edge of the pool, one after another, with more and more red pistils in his hand, and the light fragrance slowly wafted out.

He picked one, and went around the bush to pick another. If the same piece was plucked, the flower would not look good.Ci Nian lowered his head, bent his waist, walked and plucked all the way, and when the bunch was full, he finally straightened up and took a breath: "This time..." Before Ci Nian finished speaking, he It stuck in his mouth abruptly.

He raised his head, and there was a big tree in front of him. The tree was as big as the magnolia at the entrance of the mountain road. The leaves were soft and green, but only green. in.It is really surprising that such a non-flowering tree will grow at the bottom of this isolated tiankeng.What's even more amazing is that there is a young man sitting on the curved branches of this tree.

The man was dressed in red, with bare feet and a ponytail.Since Ci Nian jumped out of the grass and started picking flowers, he has been sitting here watching, but Ci Nian didn't speak, so he didn't make a sound. He didn't expect Ci Nian to pick flowers like this, and he picked all the way to the tree.Just getting together like this, the two of them really saw each other.

There was no wind at the bottom of the pit, but there was always a dark air-conditioning. Looking at him, Ci Nian didn't know how to react.Don't even think about it, this is definitely not human.The tiankeng is surrounded by mountains on all sides, tall and handsome, and the crack blocked by the stone wall is the only exit. He can come in because he is a fox. What about this one?What is this?Did he plant all these flowers?

Ci Nian and the red-clothed boy stared at each other for a long time before he coughed lightly and said, "I... I picked your flowers?"

The boy in red shook his head: "It's wild."

Can talk?It seems that this thing is not shallow.Ci Nian said again: "Then... I will go back first if there is nothing to do."

"Where are you going?" The boy in red seemed to have just realized this problem. He jumped off the book and landed lightly, without even making a slight movement.After resigning, he took two steps back and said, "I can get out as you want."

The boy was taken aback, with a strange expression on his face. He pointed to the tree behind him, turned around, and walked straight towards the tree. When he reached the big tree, he didn't intend to stop. In the blink of an eye, he passed through the trees, and quickly came back from behind the trees, and said with a smile, "I'm going out like this."

"..." Ci Nian froze in place, trying to figure out what it was for a while.Based on his practice for hundreds of years, he still hasn't been able to pass through the wall. How can this thing go in and out effortlessly?Could it be that this is not a ghost at all, but a ghost?Ci Nian walked forward, touched the tree, and patted the boy's shoulder, all of which were tangible entities.

"You..." Ci Nian was puzzled, "How did you do it?"

The boy in red laughed loudly, pointed to himself, and then to the big tree: "This is me."

"Ah?" Chi Nian was taken aback for a moment, and suddenly realized that the young man in front of him was the same as the green bamboos in Zhuxi Mountain, and different from spirits and monsters like him. These things that had passed through the roots of wisdom and transformed themselves were called wood spirits.Although people always refer to these things as monsters, trees are not like birds and beasts. They have roots and cannot walk freely. After they become spirits, they naturally have a light posture and can easily pass through obstacles.

As long as the tree is not damaged at all, no matter how the branch is broken, the wood spirit can be reborn.This tree was born in an extremely safe place. There is a hole in the sky here, but no one can touch it, let alone hurt him fundamentally.Chang'an is full of dragon veins, so it's not unusual to be able to cultivate to such an extent.Seeing that Ci Nian didn't speak, the young man took the initiative to come over and talk to him: "It's amazing that you can see me. Don't just stand there, talk to me. For so many years, no one has ever spoken to me!"

Resignation said: "I am not a human being."

The young man was taken aback, opened his eyes wide and looked at it for a long time, then moved closer to him and turned around a few times, wondering: "Aren't you human? Then what are you? Why don't you have much on you?"

"You are the thing..." Ci Nian muttered, and took off his book beanie, revealing the pointed ears that had been hidden for a long time.

Seeing this scene, the young man took a deep breath and showed a look of surprise. He said happily, "Oh! You are...you are..."

——"You are a dog!"

Ci Nian's face immediately darkened, he frowned, took two steps forward, pointed at his nose and said angrily, "How do I look like a dog! How do I look like a dog!? Whose dog is like this! Your family has Such a handsome dog!"

The boy looked puzzled: "I'm handsome too! Do you have such a handsome tree in your house?"

"I..." The little fox who thinks he has no opponent in the world of bickering except He Qizhou, unexpectedly met a strong opponent in this deep mountain and old forest today, and he hasn't figured out how to reply before the year of resignation, this young man came up with a new idea, he Said: "Oh, let's not play tricks on each other, how about this, let's exchange, you tell me one thing, I'll tell you one thing, won't it be evened?"

Thinking about it, Ci Nian thought it was quite fair, so he said, "Then you talk about it first."

The young man smiled heartily: "Okay, let me talk first." He pointed to the tree behind him and said with a smile: "This is me. I am seven hundred years old this year. My name is Aman. I am very satisfied."

"I don't know how old I am. My name is Ci Nian, not a dog, but a fox." When Ci Nian introduced him, he deliberately re-read certain three words.

"You said two things, and I have to add one more." Aman turned his head, looked at the lush tree crown, and said, "Do you know why this tree doesn't bloom in spring?"

"Why?" Ci Nian is really curious about this point. Budding and flowering in spring is the state of all things. Doesn't this tree need to bloom and bear fruit?

But Aman said: "I understand, you must not be from Chang'an, someone brought you from another place."

Ci Nian was puzzled: "What does this have to do with whether I am from Chang'an..."

"If you were from Chang'an, you wouldn't have asked this question." Aman turned around and patted Ci Nian on the shoulder, "There is a tree in Chang'an that buds in spring, blooms in summer, and bears fruit in autumn. Wait until it bears fruit." The fruit is huge, the skin is smooth, and when cut open, it will be filled with seeds. That is me, pomegranate. It is because of the meaning of happiness that I am called Aman."

When Ci Nian heard this, he suddenly realized that this is how the young man got his red clothes. He also wanted to talk about the origin of his name like A Man, but he couldn't say it, so he could only laugh: "So it is like this."

Aman asked again: "You picked so many flowers, what are you going to do?"

Ci Nian confessed: "To make rouge, the bonus looks good, and it must also look good when made into rouge."

Aman's eyes widened: "You know how to make rouge? Is it the kind of red thing that women put on their faces?"

Ci Nian nodded: "That's it, it looks beautiful..."

Before Ci Nian finished speaking, Aman grabbed his wrist and led him to run behind the tree: "I know there are more beautiful flowers here, I will take you to pick them! But you... you picked them Hua, you have finished the rouge, can you give me one?"

Ci Nian was puzzled: "You...you also like to dress up?"

Aman smiled and shook his head: "No, no, oops... just promise me, I'll take you to pick flowers, and you make rouge for me, don't we exchange courtesy! Besides... don't ask, let's go let's go!"

Aman was barefoot, but ran very fast. After running for a while, bypassing a few ancient trees, he found a field of light-colored wild flowers on the other side of the pond. The flowers were light pink, not dark. It is as gorgeous as red, but it can be seen that it belongs to the same flower bush beside the pomegranate tree.Aman looked at Ci Nian expectantly, afraid that he would not agree, and said: "You help me make rouge, and I will give you pomegranates in autumn, and I can also give you pomegranate flowers in summer, as well as pomegranate flowers." The red one can also be used as rouge, okay?"

This condition is quite attractive. After thinking about it for a while, he finally nodded and agreed: "Okay, deal."

As for what Rouge was going to do, since Aman didn't want to say it, he naturally wouldn't ask.The two of them plucked among the flowers for a while, and there was another bouquet in the hands of Ci Nian.He and Aman picked and chatted, and the random bickering at the beginning became speculative.No matter how human he is, Ci Nian is still a fox after all, he is more willing to deal with his own kind than to get along with strangers other than He Qizhou.

Aman heard a lot of stories from him, and also told him stories about Tiankeng. This back and forth brought the distance between the two teenagers a lot closer.Ci Nian held up the flowers and raised his head, only to find that the sinkhole could no longer be illuminated by the sun. Then he realized that it was getting late and it was time to go home.Aman saw his thoughts and said with a smile: "You actually have a family?"

"Of course I have..." Ci Nian collected the flowers and bid farewell to Aman, "I have to go back, my family is still waiting for me."

"Is it a person?" Aman was even more curious, "Can people... really be trusted?"

"Others don't know, but he can do it. Your rouge...I'll bring it to you when I'm done." Ci Nian didn't explain to him who this trustworthy person was, and after packing up, he turned into a fox and ran towards the exit go.

Aman was still sitting on his tree, looking at the little white fox going away, smiled and waved: "You must keep your word!"