Knife splashing

Chapter 165 New Year’s Eve
“This event is of great significance!”

"Huashan cellar opening, drum king competition, Lantern Festival Shenlou competition..."

Shopkeeper Wan's voice was somewhat agitated, and he said in a hoarse voice, "Although I am a member of the Xuanmen sect and have made a name for myself by making drums and instruments all my life, I am still trapped in Xianyang and have never traveled far and wide."

"When I was young, I also wanted to travel around and make a name for my craft, but I was counting on you, so I didn't dare to leave..."

"I'm afraid there won't be a second time for such a grand event in my lifetime. I'm not only after the spot, but I also want to be willful for once and compete with others!"

As he said this, he bowed deeply.

"Everyone, thank you for your help..."

"Senior Wan is right!"

"Yes, even if we don't fight for the bread, we have to fight for our dignity!"

Everyone in the courtyard immediately applauded and cheered.

Seeing that the momentum was building and everyone was united, Manager Wan immediately began to assign tasks.

This competition in the God Tower is not that simple.

After the building was completed, it was necessary to invite the gods and consecrate the temple. For this purpose, Shopkeeper Wan specially invited Qingyangzi, the temple priest of the City God Temple in Xianyang City, to preside over the ceremony...

There are also some rules to follow when carrying the shrine.

This shrine is also called "Shua Shen Lou" and "Shua Ye Jia". It needs to be stable and rhythmic. When encountering those who are unkind and unjust and bully others, you have to carry the shrine and rush into them and break into their doors to urge them to mend their ways.

To put it bluntly, there is a possibility of physical violence at that time.

In addition, the Huayin Old Opera Troupe and the Xianyang Qin and Han Drum Orchestra must cooperate well with the team carrying the shrine and conduct drills for various situations.

It can be said that there are things going on inside and outside.

Even Manager Wan, an experienced old hand, was so busy that he had no time to rest, his throat was smoking, and he didn't even have time to drink water.

Fortunately, Li Yan's task was relatively simple.

He will use the magic drum to cooperate at that time, and at every critical juncture, he will use the Cloud Thunder Magic Drum to shock all directions.

He is already familiar with the ancient music of the Qin and Han dynasties, so he just needs to practice a few times to get the coordination right.

After assigning the tasks, Li Yan did not stay any longer. He went out and took Zhao Luzi with him to Pingkangfang.

Zhao Luzi never went home or into a tavern, but he had already thought of a place to entertain people on the way...

…………

Outside the city, the ruins of Daming Palace.

After a snowstorm, the sky cleared up.

The ruins of the palace were buried under the snow, but there were still two side halls standing, which were dilapidated but could barely provide shelter from the wind and rain.

At this time, night has fallen. The bright moon shines brightly, illuminating the vast snow as bright as day. The mottled ancient monuments also appear more desolate and distant.

Outside the gate of the abandoned palace, a bonfire was blazing.

"Hahaha!"

After taking a sip of Xifeng aged wine, Li Yan shook his head in delight, "Brother Zhao, if you play like this, which girl would dare to marry you?"

This Zhao Luzi is also interesting.

He had saved enough money and wanted to get married this year, so he asked a matchmaker in Xianyang City to find a suitable wife for him.

But his request was really weird.

First, she had to be able to endure hardships and be willing to live with him in the mountain temple and endure that kind of lonely and boring life...

Secondly, he needs to have some skills. After all, when he goes to collect treasures in the future, he will bring his wife with him. He is powerless and will not survive long in the wild...

As for money and betrothal gifts, they are all easy to discuss.

Li Yan smiled and said, "Money is meant to be spent. No matter how much money you have, if the girl has no place to spend it, what's the point?"

"Some girls are willing to sleep in the wilderness with you in order to help their families, but they also need to have skills. Isn't that difficult?"

Donkey Zhao scratched his head and said, "That's what the matchmaker said."

"But this is the rule of my family. The incense must be continued, and the rules cannot be abandoned. If I can't abide by the rules, this bloodline will be cut off within three generations."

"A family-inherited skill can only be mastered in the mountains. After being accustomed to the glitz and glamour of the city, I'm afraid few people would be willing to suffer..."

"makes sense."

Li Yan sighed and expressed his agreement.

He had seen the methods used by the treasure-hunting people to chase the mountains. Supernatural powers, Taoism, and even knowledge were secondary. The feeling of being connected with the mountains and fields was the most fundamental.

Not only that, as the laws of nature change, the environment in the mountains and fields is also changing. These tiny changes will be carefully recorded by the Bibao lineage, and it is also one of their methods to determine the location of the treasures of heaven and earth.

The world of mortals confuses people’s minds, and the colorful world dazzles the eyes.

It is precisely because of the persistence of people like Zhao Luzi that some ancient and special traditions have been passed down to this day.

The two drank and chatted.

Li Yan trusted Zhao Luzi very much and did not hide some things from him. "Brother Zhao, I have to remind you of something. The court has developed a new type of firearm. The world may change in the future."

"If you encounter it, you must avoid it..."

As he spoke, he told everyone what he had seen.

"Gunpowder, Li family?"

Donkey Zhao scratched his head and said, "Hearing you say this, I remembered something that is related to the Li family."

"Over in Shenmubao, Yulin, a coal mine was suddenly confined by the Li family a while ago. The people nearby are not allowed to go out. The surrounding mountains are guarded by soldiers, and no one is allowed to approach."

Li Yan seemed to be thinking about something. "If that's the case, you should stay away. The Li family is now in its heyday in Shanzhou. We are just people in the martial arts world trying to make a living. There is no need to provoke them."

"Also, what are you doing there? Is there any magical treasure there?"

"Well, I found this."

As Zhao Luzi spoke, he took out a few things from his arms.

They were black things, about the size of a thumb, oval in shape, with a shell in the middle and layers of shells on both sides.

This is... a trilobite? !
Li Yan was stunned.

He had seen trilobite fossils in his previous life, but this one was completely different. It seemed to have been carbonized and was only the size of a coin, like an obsidian. He was curious and couldn't help but pick one up.

In an instant, a fortune was absorbed by the Daluo Dharmakaya.

The amount was small, but it surprised him.

There are also conditions for absorbing blessings from the treasures of heaven and earth.

It is not good to frighten the treasures of heaven and earth, because their blessings will be dispersed and they will become ordinary things.

Even if they have already been collected and used as materials for refining equipment, it will not work because the good fortune in them will quickly settle and merge with the materials.

Only the treasures from heaven and earth that are still in the making will do.

And this thing can actually be absorbed?

"What is this?"

Holding the trilobite fossil, Li Yan examined it carefully and asked questions.

"This thing is called coal."

Zhao Luzi took a sip of wine, wiped his mouth and smiled, "This kind of natural treasure is not rare, it is often produced in coal mines."

"Sometimes, they will emerge from underground, their butts glowing like fireflies, wandering around the mountains at night. They are very sensitive, and will quickly burrow underground if a stranger approaches."

"It will also explode when the fortune is dispersed and both parties perish. Some people who have hoarded treasures have been killed by this thing, so few people know about it."

"Wherever this exists, there must be a large coal field."

"There are a lot of these things, and they're not worth much, but after they're ground into powder, they can double the intensity of a fire. The Thunder Fire Pills of Taixuan Orthodox Sect are mixed with these things. When I occasionally find them, I'll sell them to Taixuan Orthodox Sect."

"A while ago, another business came to me. Someone paid me a lot of money to find this thing. All I had to do was tell them the location."

"I had already discovered the Shenmu Fort area, so I sold the information to them. But not long after, these people came to my house in a rage, saying that the place had been occupied by someone else. Then I realized that the Li family had already enclosed the land..."

After hearing this, Li Yan frowned and said, "Don't deal with those people. Their origins are unknown. This thing might be related to the new gunpowder formula. If something goes wrong, you will be implicated."

"Ah."

Zhao Luzi nodded and said, "Those people are indeed a bit strange. Next time you come to me, just say you didn't find me."

Li Yan nodded, his heart moved, and he smiled and said: "Brother Zhao, if you find a treasure in the future, just tell me directly."

"You won't lose out on the money you deserve, and you won't have to deal with outsiders and be on guard against being scammed."

"Row."

Zhao Luzi nodded in agreement without hesitation, but shook his head and said, "But if Brother Li wants to look for treasure, Guanzhong is not a good place to go."

"Originally, it was close to the Qinling Dragon Vein, and there were many natural treasures. But since the Qin and Han Dynasties, there have been a large number of Taoists and treasure-hoarding people, and anything that was found was immediately taken away."

"To this day, it's hard to even find some spiritual wood."

"On the contrary, the tomb-diggers of the Xunyou clan have developed far more than our Ganshan clan, and many skilled people have emerged. After all, there are many good things buried in the underground tombs. Over time, they will become treasures from heaven and earth."

"But doing this is too dangerous. I often hear about a lineage that just prospered, but in the blink of an eye it fell into a tomb, and no one came out..."

"Brother Li, have you heard of the Lishan Dharma Lineage?"

"Yes, we have dealt with each other."

"Not only do they guard the tomb of the First Emperor, they also have a mission, which is to monitor the mausoleums of all sizes in Guanzhong. Once they discover tomb robbers from the Xunyou lineage, they will take action. The two sides often fight to the death..."

Just like last time, the two of them had a bonfire with wine and meat, and the stars as their companions, while they recounted the wonderful things they had seen and heard.

Zhao Luzi tells various experiences and legends of treasure hunters.

Li Yan was not stingy and talked about some of his experiences and knowledge from his past life, such as what they called "coal essence", which was actually an ancient fossil.

This is why he likes Zhao Luzi.

This young man is taciturn and difficult to deal with when you are not familiar with him, but in fact he is honest and sincere, just like the naturalists who stayed in the wild all year round in his previous life.

He collects treasures only to make a living, but more often, he is like a curious child, pursuing ancient mysteries in the mountains.

Zhao Luzi is also a true seeker of truth.

Before we knew it, the bonfire went out and the sky gradually brightened.

"Brother Li, I'm leaving."

Zhao Luzi stood up, clasped his fists, and prepared to leave.

Li Yan was anxious and said quickly: "Why are you in such a hurry to leave? It's New Year's Day and you are staying alone in the mountains. Why don't you come to my place to celebrate the New Year?"

"No."

Zhao Luzi smiled innocently, "There are many empty mountain temples on the nearby hills, and no one worships during the New Year."

"When my clan was prosperous, we did all these jobs. Now there are fewer and fewer people. If I don't go, no one will go..."

Then he bowed and said, "Brother Li, Happy New Year."

"Brother Zhao, Happy New Year."

Li Yan also returned the greeting with a serious expression, and then watched Zhao Luzi pick up his bag, stride forward, and gradually disappear...

…………

Time flies, and before we knew it, it was New Year’s Eve.

All the shops on the street had closed long ago, and there were few pedestrians. Almost every household was busy. Even the unruly young men in Chang'an had to go home for a reunion dinner.

Occasionally, the sound of firecrackers echoes in the empty sky.

In front of the altar of the founder of the Xixuan lineage, Wang Daoxuan, wearing a brand new Taoist robe, respectfully cleaned the altar, arranged the offerings, and burned incense to offer sacrifices.

In addition, an ancestral shrine was set up for Li Yan and Sharifei, with a small couplet reading "kowtow three times in the morning and evening, and burn a stick of incense in the morning and evening" on it.

According to custom, they usually have to get up early and go to the ancestral graves to pay homage, but the three of them were living in Chang'an, so they didn't have to do this.

After Li Yan posted the couplets, he went to prepare the New Year’s Eve dinner.

Sharifei cleaned the yard and piled up winter cypress trees in the yard.

As night fell, firecrackers rang out and the cypress piles in every household were set on fire. Amid the blazing flames, the three of them raised their glasses and drank.

Looking down from the sky, fires flickered in the courtyards of Chang'an, illuminating the long night...

(End of this chapter)