A gentle breeze rustled through the leaves, the sun shining warmly on the world.
Mu Chen opened his eyes, a slight flicker of memory crossing his face before he sat up quickly.
The surrounding vegetation was in disarray, and he was completely alone.
“Leaving me alone in the forest…”
“She… just got up and ran off?!”
Mu Chen looked down, naked and with a clear, faint red mark on his chest.
Fortunately, he was no longer the same, having reached the Half-Step Earth Master realm. This was a small problem for him. With a thought, he channeled his cultivation, and a wispy, ethereal garment appeared on his body.
He closed his eyes and tilted his head back, a complex expression on his face. “Damn it! Even a Taoist isn’t safe. How can I face anyone if word gets out?”
“Bai Su Zhen, you’ll pay for this!”
He didn’t know that he had turned the tables and driven Bai Su Zhen into a humiliating defeat, but he muttered the threat under his breath. Next time they met, he, a real man, would be on top!
He then quickly left the scene, the place of his sorrow.
…
The era was now a chaotic one, with demons and evil spirits emerging frequently.
For over half a month, Mu Chen traveled, passing through over a hundred villages and dozens of towns, solving no less than ten cases of evil spirits for the people.
However, they were all weak, newly born spirits, less than three years old. Even with his system bonus, he only gained three to five years of cultivation and a few hundred dollars.
The rewards were meager.
One day, Mu Chen arrived at Tan Family Town.
At the town entrance, a magnificent mansion caught his eye.
He saw a large reward poster plastered on the outside wall.
【Grand Master and High Monks are Sincerely Invited to Exorcise Evil Spirits!】
【Reward Negotiable!】
“Under the scorching sun, the Yin Qi remains, the spirits within should be quite strong…”
The corner of Mu Chen’s mouth curled upwards as he walked towards the mansion gate.
After being announced by the house servants, he met the owner of the mansion, Master Tan.
Seeing Mu Chen's extraordinary bearing and ethereal aura, Master Tan didn’t doubt him because of his age.
Upon learning that Mu Chen came from the Dragon Tiger Mountain, he started pouring out his grievances like a child who had been wronged.
“Realman, my mansion has been built for over a year. We lived here for a few days at first, but during those days, every morning, everyone in my family, from my wife and children to the servants, woke up and none of us were in bed. Every night, we were carried off the bed by ghosts…”
“There’s no way we can stay here at night. We sleep in our old house.”
After listening, Mu Chen calmly said, “Before entering the mansion, I saw a gathering of Yin Qi here. However, based on what you’ve said, the spirits in the mansion aren’t evil or ferocious. If they were, they wouldn’t just carry you off the bed, they’d be ripping your heads off.”
Master Tan’s face turned pale at Mu Chen’s words. “Please save me, Realman. After all, humans and ghosts are different species. Who knows when they might get upset and cause my entire family to lose their heads?”
He hastily stood up and walked out.
Just when Mu Chen was puzzled, he came back in, followed by three house servants.
The servants carried trays, each holding money.
At first glance, there must have been at least five or six hundred dollars.
“Although our profession has the rule of charging more to those who are wealthier, it doesn’t need to be this much.”
Mu Chen shook his head. Even an ordinary family of three in the provincial capital would only spend thirteen or fourteen dollars a year, and in towns and villages, even a few dollars would be enough.
“Master Mu, there have been five masters who came to see this before, but none of them could solve it…”
“Yesterday, before you arrived, another master came. His ancestor had a Realman from Mount Maoshan…”
“I was thinking, perhaps you could leave him to help you, so you’d have someone to work with?”
Master Tan spoke in a restrained manner, constantly paying attention to Mu Chen’s expression. If Mu Chen showed even a hint of displeasure, he would immediately send the other person away.
In both the common folk and the Xuanmen world, there was a hierarchy of contempt.
For example, those who came from large, prestigious sects were called Realmen, while wandering hermits were called Masters as a sign of respect.
Realmen who had complete, high-level lineages and received guidance from their predecessors through verbal instruction and systematic training were more orthodox and reliable than Masters who relied on a few incomplete or rudimentary techniques that they had figured out themselves.
The former could call for help if they couldn’t manage, while the latter could only hope for the best.
“It’s just a trivial matter.”
Mu Chen smiled and waved his hand. He didn’t have any of those strange and unwarranted airs. Moreover, this was his first time descending the mountain, and he was curious about what the cultivation level of those in the lower realm was like.
Seeing Mu Chen being so understanding, Master Tan’s impression of him improved even more. He thought to himself, regardless of whether this matter could be solved or not, he would definitely give him more money to make a good connection.
Time quickly passed until nightfall.
Mu Chen saw the master that Master Tan had mentioned.
A man in his fifties with a single-character beard.
“Mu Chen? You… you are the Junior Uncle Mu Chen from Dragon Tiger Mountain?”
“I’ve heard of the Dragon Tiger Mountain Heavenly Master’s adoption of a disciple, but I never expected to see it with my own eyes today. I… I, Maoshan Ming, am truly blessed!”
Maoshan Ming looked at Mu Chen in complete awe, his words filled with humility and flattery.
In the world of Taoism, Dragon Tiger Mountain reigns supreme!
If the Xuanmen were a country, the Dragon Tiger Mountain Heavenly Master’s Palace would be the Emperor, and Mu Chen would be the Crown Prince!
As for him, Maoshan Ming, he was at most just a commoner!
What amazed him even more was Mu Chen’s cultivation!
It was like a deep, bottomless abyss. He couldn’t see through it, at all!
Even just standing there simply, he exuded an ethereal aura of being one with Heaven and Earth. It wouldn’t be surprising if he ascended to heaven and moonwalked away the next second.
Seeing Maoshan Ming, Mu Chen realized that he had stumbled into a familiar plot.
This was clearly the beginning of the Master of the Spiritual Realm!
He couldn’t help but feel a bit of melancholy.
The realms of Taoism, from lowest to highest, were: Demon Exorcising Resident, Nourishing Dan Realman, Great Righteous Earth Master, and World-Suppressing Heavenly Master.
They correspond to Refining Essence into Qi, Refining Qi into Spirit, Refining Spirit into Void, and Refining Void into Dao.
At the age of fifty, Maoshan Ming was still in the late stage of Refining Essence into Qi. At best, he was a Demon Exorcising Resident at seven or eight levels. Even compared to his fifteen or sixteen-year-old self, he was slightly inferior.
For those who didn’t have a system and whose natural talent was average, it truly reflected the saying, “Cultivation is difficult, as difficult as ascending to heaven.”
“Realman Mu, the time is almost here. Don’t you think we should start…?”
Seeing Master Maoshan Ming’s humility in front of Mu Chen, Master Tan felt even more respect for Mu Chen.
As night fell, Mu Chen nodded, “Alright, let’s get down to business.”